The cabinet team with Zhao Shouzheng as the core achieved remarkable and brilliant achievements during the New Year's Day audience in the 18th year of Wanli.
Not only did they rescue Luo Yuren and avoid a major prison, they also finalized the eldest son's study, which was a great victory with rich results. Zhao Ge Lao's status in the hearts of officials naturally reached an unprecedented height, and many people even began to compare him with Guan Gong... Oh no, Wang Dao and Wen Yanbo.
It was basically the kind that if he died, there would be no controversy about whether he should be given the posthumous title of "Wenzheng".
Amidst the praises from the whole court, Prime Minister Zhao spent a happy and peaceful New Year.
After the Lantern Festival, he returned to the cabinet and began to wait with great anticipation together with the four grand secretaries for the imperial edict to be issued so that they could arrange for the eldest prince to go out of the cabinet to study.
However, they waited and waited, but they never received the imperial edict they wanted. Well, after the beginning of the year, in fact, no imperial edict was issued.
It was not until the end of the first month that Zhao Shouzheng could no longer bear it and submitted a petition to ask for the specific date for the eldest prince to go out to study so that the Ministry of Rites could make arrangements early. In fact, it was just a reminder to Wanli that we had agreed to arrange it after the Chinese New Year and we couldn't go back on our word!
However, the memorial was ignored, and after waiting for several days, there was still no news. Damn, the emperor simply lost contact...
Seeing that Wanli was pretending to be deaf and dumb, the grand secretaries knew that things were not going well. Zhu Yijun, the son of Boyi, was going to go back on his word again.
After much inquiry, I finally got the gossip in the palace that Concubine Zheng was extremely dissatisfied with Wanli's arrangement and had been quarreling with him for the whole first month of the year. And the emperor seemed to have some leverage over her, so he actually gave in...
Although he hated the evil woman to the core, and hated Emperor Wanli even more for being a henpecked womanizer, the Grand Secretary decided to take a step back and give the Emperor and Concubine Zheng a way out, as he did not want to ruin such a good situation so easily.
So a few days later, Shen Shixing wrote another memorial to communicate with Wanli, saying that Your Majesty, we do not force you to appoint a crown prince immediately, but now the eldest son is nine years old and the third son is three years old, and they should go out to school.
That is to say, the appointment of the crown prince can be discussed later, and only the eldest prince can be arranged to study, and the third prince can also be included, giving Concubine Zheng enough face. That woman must be very happy, but she doesn't know that Prince Yu and Prince Jing also went out to study together. But the civil officials can easily distinguish the two when arranging teachers.
At that time, Xu Ge Lao assigned teachers to Prince Yu, such as Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Chen Yiqin, and Yin Shidan, who were future prime minister-level imperial teachers. But he randomly found some random people to be lecturers for Prince Jing, so people naturally regarded Prince Yu as the real crown prince.
The Grand Secretaries are now ready to follow the prescription, as they don't believe that Concubine Zheng can see through such a sophisticated routine.
Unfortunately, all their carefully planned plans fell through, as Concubine Zheng didn't fall into the trap at all... Two full months passed, and there was still no movement in the palace, which made Zhao Shouzheng want to take a hot air balloon to the sky to see if everyone in the palace was dead.
But apparently nothing happened in the palace. The Grand Secretaries knew that the emperor just didn't know how to respond, so they simply didn't respond and kept postponing it.
By April, the Grand Secretaries could no longer bear it. They were under too much pressure these days, and all the officials were watching them. If they continued to drag on without any progress, they would become a laughing stock.
The road now became narrower and narrower. The five grand secretaries no longer had any time to beat around the bush or use any strategies. They could only rush forward with one move - they jointly submitted a petition, requesting that Emperor Wanli immediately appoint a crown prince!
What is shocking is that even after the grand secretaries issued an ultimatum, Emperor Wanli still had no reaction and was determined to carry out the policy of playing dead to the end!
The emperor's actions this spring have made the people of the world see clearly what kind of person their majesty is. He is a scoundrel with no integrity or shame!
But Wanli didn't care about his loss of face and ruined image. How much is that thing per pound? Do you sell it in retail? I don't care at all. Anyway, I won't see or hear anything and just pretend nothing happened. Let's see what you can do to me.
He has no shame, but the Grand Secretaries all have their dignity. If they are not decisive, they will have no dignity at all when they are treated like nothing.
So within a few days, five university scholars simultaneously submitted petitions to resign...
Although everyone has their own reasons, for example, Zhao Shouzheng said that since this spring, his eye disease has worsened, his waist is sore and he can't stand sitting for a long time, and he is no longer able to handle the heavy workload of government affairs.
Shen Shixing said that his adoptive father was old and he wanted to go home to fulfill his filial duties.
Liu Dongxing said that he felt he was not capable enough and should give way to others.
Xu Guo said that he was too old to drive and begged for his life.
The most amazing one is Wang Jiaping, who said that because of the long drought in the country, as a cabinet minister he should take the initiative to resign, so he impeached himself...
Everyone knows that the real reason why the Grand Secretaries resigned en masse is that the emperor did not respect them, broke his promises, and went back on his word. The reason why he did not point it out directly is that the Grand Secretaries are close ministers to the emperor, and he always has to leave a little face and room for maneuver for the emperor.
Now Wanli was finally dumbfounded. There was actually no trick to why he could retire early. It was entirely due to institutional problems and his thick skin. He met a Grand Secretary who was easy to deal with and he didn't have to worry about state affairs at all.
As long as he is not afraid of being scolded and does not even attend ceremonial activities, can't he just stay at home completely?
This cabinet headed by Zhao Shouzheng was simply perfect. In previous cabinets, those with super abilities fought overtly and covertly, or those with incompetence made the country a mess, or those who only knew how to cater to the censors and torment the emperor together.
The Zhao cabinet was capable, united and harmonious, and more importantly, they stood firmly on the emperor's side without being overbearing. They were exactly the retirement combination Wanli had in mind. He was prepared to use them until death.
Now that these five guys have quit, how can Wanli sit still? Without them to protect him from the wind and rain, wouldn't he be so annoyed, busy and exhausted?
This time he finally stopped pretending to be dead, and issued a series of decrees to retain us, one after another, with earnest words, begging us to come back soon, saying, "I can't bear it alone."
The five university scholars were determined and resigned one after another. You betrayed my love and owed me a debt of conscience. No matter how much love you give, you can never buy it back...
In fact, everyone knew very well what the grand secretaries wanted, but if Emperor Wanli was willing to give in, why would he pretend to be dead for a hundred days?
Alas, how rude! You have no consideration for me at all.
~~
The Ming emperor and his prime minister, who were obsessed with the issue of the crown prince, did not know that the real foundation of the country was not the crown prince. It was true that the man who could really shake the foundation of the Ming Dynasty was in Beijing at the moment, but he was not the third prince of the emperor at all, but a chieftain who had traveled from outside the country.
The absurdity and magnificence of history bloom at this moment...
According to historical records, in the Gengzi year of April in the eighteenth year of the Wanli reign, 108 female Zhiyi people including Nurhaci from Jianzhou and other Wei countries paid tribute to the capital!
This founder of the Qing Dynasty just turned 32 this year, the best age in his life.
He was tall and strong, well-proportioned and sturdy, with a straight and large nose and a long iron face. All his hair was shaved off, leaving only a few strands at the back of his head, two strands above and below, braided and hanging. He also left more than ten strands of beard, the rest were tweezed off, leaving only two strands hanging by his lips.
What impressed people most was his eyes, which were thin and long, with upturned corners, which is called "hanging eyes" in Northeastern dialect. They were sparkling with brilliance, intimidating without even being angry, and revealing his ambition that was hard to conceal.
Although the Wild Boar Skin in the 18th year of Wanli was not yet capable of competing with the Ming Dynasty, it was already the most dazzling new star in Liaodong!
In the 38th year of the Jiajing reign, he was born in the family of Takshi, a chieftain of a small tribe in the Left Guard of Jianzhou. He was the eldest son in the family. His grandfather Juechangan named him Nurhaci, which means "wild boar skin". Because Jurchen men make a living by hunting, most of their names are related to prey.
For example, his second brother Shuerhaci's name means "little wild boar skin", his fourth brother Yaerhaci's name means "leopard skin", and his half-brother Murhaci's name means "old sheepskin".
Nurhaci's grandfather Juechang'an had the title of the hereditary commander of the Ming Dynasty. But in Liaodong, where the strong prey on the weak, the strong are the boss. As a chieftain of the Left Guard Branch of Jianzhou, Juechang'an was small and weak, so he could only rely on Wang Gao, the powerful chief of Jianzhou, through marriage. Nurhaci's mother was Wang Gao's daughter.
But she died when Nurhaci was ten years old, and Taksi married Nara, a daughter of Wang Tai, the leader of the Haixi Jurchens. The stepmother was very mean to Nurhaci and his brothers, and drove him and Shuerhaci out of the house. The brothers had no choice but to seek refuge with their grandfather Wang Gao and live in his Gule Village.
Wang Gao was treacherous and fickle. He rebelled many times and killed dozens of generals including the deputy general of the government army. Finally, in the second year of the Wanli period, he was wiped out by Li Chengliang's army.
When Gule Village was destroyed, Nurhaci and his brothers were also captured by Li Chengliang. They knelt in front of his horse and cried bitterly, begging for mercy. Li Chengliang saw that Nurhaci had an extraordinary appearance, so he felt pity for him, spared their lives, and took the brothers as his personal soldiers.
He learned Chinese characters in the General's Mansion, read "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Water Margin", and learned how to lead troops in battle and know how the Han society works... It can be said that it was this experience of joining Li's army that created the later Nurhaci.
Later, because of his bravery and repeated military exploits, Li Chengliang freed him from slavery and let him go home to get married. Juechang'an and Taksi also clung to the thigh of Li Chengliang, the "King of Liaodong", and soon rose to power, became rich, and grew stronger.
In the 11th year of the Wanli reign, Wang Gao's son Ata raised an army to avenge his father and repeatedly attacked the government troops. Li Chengliang once again surrounded Gule City. However, because the city was located on a mountain, the army attacked for two days and nights without success. Juechang'an and Taksi volunteered to enter the city and persuade Ata to surrender to Li Chengliang.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, another Jiannu chieftain, Nikan Wailan, who followed Li Chengliang to suppress the rebellion, suddenly ran to the front of the battle and shouted to the city: "Li Taishi has ordered that whoever surrenders to Ata be killed, and he will be the city lord!"
The Jian Nu in the city were already panicking, and they didn't believe that Atai could defeat the invincible Li Taishi. At this time, a soldier stabbed Atai to death with a knife and shouted loudly: "I am the lord of the city, open the city gate!"
Seeing their leader dead, the Jiannu in the city surrendered and opened the city gates. However, after entering the city, Nikan Wailan broke his promise and killed people, and the Li family army was also undeterred and started burning, killing and looting. As a result, Juchangan and Taksi, father and son, were killed in the chaos.
Afterwards, Nurhaci sent people to question why the government troops killed his father and grandfather. Li Chengliang felt a little embarrassed, so he returned the remains of his grandfather and father, let him inherit Taksi's land and horses, and asked for "30 imperial edicts, 30 horses, the title of Dragon and Tiger General, and the imperial edict of the governor" as compensation.
It was with this capital that Nurhaci began his entrepreneurial journey of unifying the various Jurchen tribes in Jianzhou.
It was not that he started an uprising with the thirteen sets of armor left by his grandfather. That was just an attempt to cover up his original sin of being ungrateful and rebelling after receiving the grace of the Ming Dynasty.
ps. Two posts in a row.
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