Chapter 276 Japanese Silver Mine

The rebellion ended.

The Ming Dynasty also returned to its former corruption.

But the situation in the court changed dramatically.

Because Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao and Xing Wang Zhu Youluo entered the court as officials, and the two kings openly supported Zhongshan Hou Tang Hao's Yi Qie proposal, the court was no longer a one-man show for civil officials and gentry, but a new force appeared.

And the key issue is that in the new system of vassalage formulated by His Majesty the Emperor, the education system of the royal palace was also included in the assessment. As long as the children of the royal family passed the assessment specially formulated for the royal family, they could even directly enter the court as officials!

This is the most frightening thing for civil officials and gentry!

Why can civil officials and gentry control the government for more than 50 years?

Is there no Ming emperor who tried to take back power and change this situation?

Of course there was, Chenghua Emperor Zhu Jianshen was the best example, but Chenghua Emperor succeeded in the end but also failed.

When Emperor Chenghua was in power, he was indeed His Majesty the Emperor who followed his words, and the civil officials could no longer compete with him.

However, when he died, the following Hongzhi Dynasty became the golden age of civil officials!

In a word, the civil officials were not afraid of the emergence of tyrants and dictators, because how long could tyrants and dictators like Emperor Taizu Gao and Emperor Chenghua who deliberately criticized the civil officials and gentry live? It was only forty or fifty years, and the civil officials could wait for it!

Because there was a continuous supply of imperial examinations, the civil officials could continuously support and promote the younger generation to enter the court to inherit the mantle, so as to ensure that the power would continue to be passed on.

So even if they were suppressed by the emperor for a while, they only needed to endure it temporarily, and they would rise again in the end!

The so-called "a new emperor, a new minister", another meaning is that as long as there is an emperor, there are court officials.

The Hongwu Dynasty was the most harsh time for civil officials. Skinning, strawing, beatings, imperial caning, all of which made civil officials tremble with fear and walk on thin ice!

Emperor Taizu Gao, the tyrant, wanted to use the most vicious means in the world to discipline civil officials and gentry!

But what about now?

But what about since Tianshun?

Isn't it still that civil officials are strong and military officials are weak!

Even if a little tyrant like Emperor Chenghua appeared in the middle, would there be any change in the result?

Just need to replace the emperor, and the civil officials and gentry will successfully make a comeback and take control of the government again!

No matter how powerful the emperor is, the civil officials and gentry can endure and wait for a few decades!

To ​​put it bluntly, the emperor is not that important to the civil officials and gentry.

What civil officials and gentry need is a stable court and a mature government affairs processing system. As long as the powerful machine of the Ming Dynasty is still in normal operation, no matter who sits on the throne, civil officials and gentry are indispensable.

Of course, compared with the tyrants like Emperor Taizu Gao, they naturally hope that every emperor of the Ming Dynasty is better to be a saintly ruler like Emperor Hongzhi.

However, the situation is completely different now.

Because Emperor Zhengde is lifting the ban on the vassal states and is bringing members of the royal family into the court!

It is said that Prince Ning Zhu Chenhao has begun to prepare for the royal family examination. When these royal family children pass the examination, whether they are studying literature or military, they can naturally enter the official career as officials and generals, which means that there is a heritage for the royal family and vassal kings to enter the court!

Why can civil officials and gentry control the government?

Because they are indispensable, because they have a heritage, because military generals and nobles have no heritage!

Due to the sensitive issue of military power, the promotion conditions for military generals and nobles are extremely harsh, and the emperor naturally cannot leave them a path of inheritance, so that a certain army has become the private army of a certain military family.

The only inheritance of military generals and nobles may be the military examination in the imperial examination.

However, compared with the civil examination, the military examination is less valued. The military examination in the Ming Dynasty was created very early, but the system has not been determined, and it has been abolished and restored from time to time.

It was not until the 14th year of Chenghua that Emperor Chenghua, based on the suggestion of eunuch Wang Zhi, set up the military examination in the township and joint examinations, taking the civil examination as an example. To put it bluntly, this was also a means taken by Emperor Chenghua to check and balance the civil officials and gentry.

But in the sixth year of Hongzhi, the court decided that the military examination would be tested every six years, first strategy, then archery, and those who failed the strategy were not allowed to test the archery.

To put it ridiculously, in the Ming Dynasty, these warriors who participated in the military examination not only had to read poetry and books, but also had to have literary talent to make strategies, "first with strategy, then with martial arts", and put military strategy above military technology.

If you fail the written test of answering the policy, if you can't write a good article, you can't take the military examination, let alone the high school martial arts examination.

The written test of the early martial arts examination had three questions, two questions on policy, and another question on the Four Books.

To put it bluntly, Emperor Chenghua wanted to support military generals and nobles, so he attached great importance to the military examination and completely customized it, hoping to use it to select military talents to fight against civil officials and gentry.

However, you have a plan and I have a ladder. If you want to take the military examination, you can, but read poetry and books first. If you can't write a good article, you don't even have the qualifications to show your martial arts, so go back to wielding swords and sticks!

Most of these folk warriors are illiterate and crude. They can't write any beautiful articles with their lives, and they may not even write a complete sentence, so it is naturally impossible for them to humiliate themselves.

Besides, if they are really well-read, if they really have this strategy, why would they take the military examination? Wouldn't it be better to take the civil examination and become a Jinshi champion?

You should know that most military positions in the Ming Dynasty are inherited by hereditary nepotism. For example, the positions of generals in the garrisons are passed down from generation to generation. In addition, there are generals who are gradually promoted from the ranks. This is the mainstream appointment model of generals and assistants in the army, and the military examination is just a supplementary form, which is not taken seriously at all!

Because of this, without the existence of inheritance channels, military generals and nobles will decline day by day. On the contrary, because the nine frontier military towns resist barbarians, they have become a talent base for selecting military generals and generals in disguise. Generals such as Qiu Yue and An Guo all rose from the nine frontiers.

In this contrast, civil officials and gentry rely on the imperial examination to continuously provide fresh blood to enter the court, accumulating political foundation generation after generation, while military generals and nobles do not even have inheritance, how can they be opponents of civil officials and gentry, and gradually decline and decline is the norm.

However, these princes of the royal family are different at this moment!

His Majesty the Emperor has vigorously rectified the education system of the royal palace, and has given the princes of the royal family the motivation to study and cultivate their virtues. These princes of the royal family have no shortage of resources, let alone famous teachers. As long as they are willing to study hard and cultivate their virtues, it is easy to pass this imperial examination. At that time, they can enter the court in an endless stream and compete with the civil officials and gentry!

The princes of the royal family not only have inheritance, but also their background far exceeds that of any gentry!

This is what the gentry are really worried about!

When a large number of royal family members enter the official career, and when the civil officials and gentry are constantly seized power, what can they use to control this court?

This bold and risky move by Emperor Zhengde undoubtedly hit the vital points of the civil officials and gentry, forcing them to find ways to prevent royal family members from entering the court, or to slow down the progress of these royal children entering the court!

Yang Tinghe has asked Zhang Fuhua to send an imperial censor to Nanchang, Jiangxi, to secretly investigate the illegal evidence of Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao. As long as he gets solid evidence, Yang Tinghe has the confidence to completely overthrow him, and then expel these royal family members from the court!

But before he can make any move, a sudden message came back, but it caused a shock in the capital.

The envoys who went to Japan three years ago finally returned to the Ming Dynasty, and they brought a good news that was enough to make all the gentry crazy-the Iwami Silver Mine does exist, and the amount of silver hidden is inestimable, at least far exceeding all the silver mines being mined in the Ming Dynasty!

In order to push the Ming Dynasty to the ocean, Tang Hao designed to tell the story of the Iwami Silver Mine in Japan, forcing the court to send an envoy to Japan to verify it, nominally to mediate the internal struggles of the daimyo in various parts of Japan.

Normally, a Ming Dynasty envoy sent to a foreign country has one chief envoy and one deputy envoy, plus some accompanying officials but no more than ten people, and then more than twenty officials from the Xingren Division, and the total number is guaranteed to be less than fifty people.

However, because of the Iwami Silver Mine, which has a silver mine worth hundreds of millions, the Ming Dynasty delegation has expanded to nearly 200 people!

The main purpose of these 200 people going to Japan is to verify whether the news about the Iwami Silver Mine is true.

And this delegation of nearly 200 people is almost full of the forces of the Ming Dynasty gentry. After all, such an important matter must be sent to their own people, so that they can feel at ease.

This delegation was led by Xie Duo, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Tang Hao sent Ma Yong and Deng Boyan to lead 2,000 soldiers to escort them. They have been gone for three years without any news. Just when the court and the public were about to forget them, these guys finally came back, and brought back this shocking news!

Not only the gentry were excited, but the emperor Zhu Houzhao was also very excited!

After all, the savage said that this Iwami Silver Mine has a silver mine worth hundreds of millions!

What is this concept?

The annual tax silver income of the Ming Dynasty was only about 3 million taels!

In other words, the silver hidden in the Iwami Silver Mine in Japan is comparable to the tax revenue of the Ming Dynasty for thirty or forty years!

If it can be collected, then why would Zhu Houzhao worry about not having silver to train soldiers?

So Zhu Houzhao immediately summoned Tang Hao, who was also somewhat happy to hear that Xie Duo and others had finally returned.

After all, the fleet of Shandong Qinghe Shipyard was almost ready, and with this gust of wind, it was completely possible to go out to sea.

"Savage, what you said is actually true!"

Zhu Houzhao was so excited that his face turned red and he punched Tang Hao in the chest.

"Well, don't be too happy!"

Tang Hao reminded unhappily: "The silver mine is not yours now, but Ouchi Yoshioki's!"

Hearing this, Zhu Houzhao's eyes turned red instantly.

"What the hell is Ouchi Yoshioki?"

"What I like is mine, and he is a shitty name, a jumping clown, dare to rob my silver?"

Tang Hao was stunned when he heard this, and then he was a little bit amused.

The Emperor Zhengde of the Ming Dynasty in front of him was like a vicious dog guarding its food, with red eyes and bared teeth. The funniest thing was that this was not his food, but someone else's!

"Your Majesty, this is not that easy."

Tang Hao touched his chin and reminded: "If we want to get this Iwami silver mine, we must send troops to Japan, but will the civil officials and gentry agree to us doing this?"

Sending troops to Japan?

This is indeed a big obstacle.

Zhu Houzhao was poured a basin of cold water by Tang Hao, and then he calmed down.

Not to mention that Japan is a country that Emperor Taizu Gao designated as a country that will not be conquered. Since ancient times, the Chinese dynasty has been a country of etiquette, adhering to the Confucian idea of ​​​​appeasement and benevolence, but rarely sending troops to attack vassal states, no matter how you look at it, there is no justice!

These civil officials and gentry have always been firmly against war, and this time will be no exception.

So Zhu Houzhao directly threw this difficult problem to Tang Hao, and said in a deep voice: "Wild man, you quickly think of a way, no matter what, we must get this Iwami Silver Mine!"

"You also know the importance of this Iwami Silver Mine to us. As long as we get it, let alone 50,000 soldiers, even 100,000 or even 200,000 can be supported. At that time, you can also lead the army to the north to chase the enemy on the vast grassland!"

Tang Hao glanced at Zhu Houzhao lightly, and then proposed a good plan.

Zhu Houzhao's eyes lit up after hearing this, and immediately ordered people to go and make arrangements.

At the same time, Yang Tinghe's mansion.

The four ministers in Beijing, Wang Ao, the Minister of Personnel, Zhang Sheng, the Minister of Rites, Wang Jianzhi, the Minister of Punishments, and Li Shan, the Minister of Works, all gathered here.

They didn't have much personal relationship with each other, and they all had to gather here because of the current situation.

There was no way. The royal family's entry into the court posed a fatal threat to the civil officials and gentry. If they didn't unite and fight against the outside world, and started some internal struggles, the civil officials and gentry would be suppressed and completely lose their power, and become the subordinates and running dogs of the royal family of the Ming Dynasty. This was a result that no one wanted to see.

Yang Tinghe walked in slowly with Zhang Fuhua, and the four ministers immediately stood up and saluted.

Now the power of the cabinet has not expanded to the point of being above the six ministries, and the cabinet chief Yang Tinghe has been in power for a short time, so in terms of status, it is naturally equal to the four ministers. In fact, if we really talk about the actual power in his hands, he is far inferior to the Minister of Personnel Wang Ao.

Therefore, the person who the four Shangshu actually performed the ceremony with was Zhang Fuhua, the Chief Censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.

This five-dynasty veteran who had been honest and upright all his life originally assisted the government with Liu Jian, the chief minister of the cabinet, and Ma Wensheng, the heavenly official, to maintain the balance of power in the court.

However, as Liu Jin was in power, Liu Jian and Ma Wensheng were forced to retire one after another and left the court sadly. Now, only this Chief Censor is left in the court, still struggling to support it.

Because the Metropolitan Procuratorate is now a behemoth with independent powers of investigation and arrest, it has become a sharp knife hanging over the heads of civil officials and gentry!

Zhang Fuhua glanced at the people present, and then slowly sat on the chair.

He was old, and he had seen the situation in the court clearly. Because Liu Jian and Ma Wensheng were forced to retire one after another, Zhang Fuhua was also a little discouraged and submitted a petition for resignation many times, but unfortunately the emperor did not agree.

The reason is very simple. The Censorate is a sharp knife. Zhu Houzhao has not found a suitable candidate to take charge of the Censorate for him, so he has delayed Zhang Fuhua's retirement.

Now that His Majesty the Emperor has lifted the ban on the feudal system and brought the royal family into the court, he intends to fight against the civil officials and gentry. Zhang Fuhua was unwilling to pay attention, but Yang Tinghe repeatedly pleaded with him. After all, he was born in a family of orthodox education, and he did not support His Majesty the Emperor's risky approach, so he made a rare exception and came to Yang Tinghe's mansion to discuss matters.

"Old man, what should we do now?"

Yang Tinghe took the initiative to speak and explained the current situation one by one.

The dilemma faced by the civil officials and gentry now is mainly because of the heavy hostility of His Majesty the Emperor.

In order to suppress the civil officials and gentry, he even risked lifting the ban on the feudal system and brought the royal family and princes into the court as officials to give them the opportunity to regain power. How much hostility would make such a risky move?

Anyone who thinks of this will feel uneasy.

Zhang Fuhua sighed when he heard this.

"The civil officials and gentry control the government and are unwilling to return power to Your Majesty. This is a way to death."

"Now it is the Ming Dynasty, not the former Song Dynasty. Are you still dreaming of the emperor and the literati ruling the world together?"

Facing Zhang Fuhua's question, everyone present chose to remain silent.

The emperor and the literati rule the world together!

Is this a beautiful dream?

Actually, it is not!

Because the Hongzhi court was like this, wasn't it?

Why doesn't it work in the Zhengde court?

"Your Majesty is different from the late emperor after all!"

Zhang Fuhua said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty is far superior to the late emperor in spirit, courage, and foresight!"

"The Ming Dynasty court has barely been able to maintain its operation until now, which is already the limit."

"If we don't find a way to reform it, the people will be poor and the military and civilians will suffer, and sooner or later there will be chaos!"

"So, Your Majesty has to do this!"

Unexpectedly, Zhang Fuhua spoke for His Majesty the Emperor.

The people present still did not say a word, but fell into thinking.

They understood these reasons and why His Majesty did this.

But who is willing to hand over the power in their hands willingly?

Power is a poison. Once you are infected and taste it, no one will be willing to let it go!

What's more, the civil officials and gentry have controlled the government for fifty or sixty years. How can it be possible to easily ask them to return the power to His Majesty the Emperor?

Even if they handed over power, could His Majesty the Emperor really revive the Ming Dynasty?

What if he couldn't do it? Wouldn't that accelerate the collapse of the Ming Dynasty?

So, the right and wrong here cannot be explained in just one or two sentences.

"Your Majesty dares to do this, so you must be prepared."

"Don't worry about Prince Xing Zhu Youlu, he is a wise king, a golden signboard specially established by your Majesty!"

"He has noble morals and noble aspirations, no political stains, and no excuses or reasons for attacking and impeaching, so don't waste your time and energy on him."

Zhang Fuhua still gave his opinion.

"As for Prince Ning Zhu Chenhao, he is another extreme."

"Your Majesty deliberately put him in a high position, and if he indulges him, Zhu Chenhao will inevitably cultivate his party members, and then the day of his own destruction will come!"

"When that day comes, it will be your chance, and it will be your chance to drive the power of the royal family out of the court in one fell swoop!"

Hearing this, Yang Tinghe's eyes suddenly lit up.

He finally understood what Tang Hao and Zhu Houzhao wanted to do!

This ambitious monarch and his ministers really played a big chess game!

I am afraid that by that time, the royal family will also be kicked out of the court!

Just like garbage that has been used up, it will be thrown away like a worn-out shoe!