Volume One: The Young Dragon Opens Its Eyes Chapter 140: The Feudal Princes of the Realm

Chapter 140: The Princes of the Realm

When Zhu Qizhen arrived at the Palace of Compassionate Tranquility, the Prince of Xiang had already departed.

After all, the Prince of Xiang was a grown man, and staying overnight within the inner precincts of the imperial palace was a taboo.

The Grand Empress Dowager had perused the various documents handed over by Zhu Qizhen. These detailed the reactions of the various ministers—both direct and indirect. Over the past few days, the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot had burned their midnight oil, even unearthing the remarks made by Zhang Fu and various members of the nobility during the banquets.

Although the attitudes of many ministers could only be gleaned indirectly through these reports, their leanings were already clear in the mind of the Grand Empress Dowager.

Having finished reading, the Grand Empress Dowager gently massaged the corners of her eyes, feeling exhausted in both body and mind. She thought to herself, "I am growing old, truly growing old." In the past, the volume of memorials she reviewed every day far exceeded this.

Yet today, advanced in years, she felt a sense of power diminishing with her will.

The Grand Empress Dowager asked, "How do you intend to handle this?"

Zhu Qizhen replied, "With the Duke of England giving his full support, this matter does not touch upon Yang Shiqi's bottom line. Though the others are clamoring with righteous indignation, your grandson still retains a measure of certainty."

The Grand Empress Dowager sighed softly and said, "Yang Shiqi is old. His reluctance to clash head-on with you now is merely to leave some leeway for his children and grandchildren. Had Yang Shiqi been ten years younger, he would never have compromised so easily."

For a moment, the Grand Empress Dowager was filled with emotional reflection.

The thoughts of the elderly differed from those of the young. In the past, Yang Shiqi had dared to argue forcefully on principle before the Yongle Emperor. Was he now afraid to contend with Zhu Qizhen?

It was simply that he had grown old. His vitality was failing, and deep down, he had long harbored the intention of retiring due to age.

Zhu Qizhen remarked, "It is largely because Her Ladyship is here that Grand Secretary Yang has taken a step back."

Of course, the Grand Empress Dowager understood what Zhu Qizhen meant.

Many others could also guess that Zhu Qizhen could release such rumors precisely because the Palace of Compassionate Tranquility remained entirely silent. This in itself signaled the attitude of the Palace of Compassionate Tranquility—at the very least, a tacit approval.

While many people treated Zhu Qizhen with outward reverence while privately harboring a degree of condescension, not a single soul dared show the slightest disrespect toward the Grand Empress Dowager, who had dominated the political currents of the Great Ming for over twenty years.

The Grand Empress Dowager stated, "Rest assured, when the time comes, I shall accompany you to the Hall of Literary Profundity. However, I am merely here to bolster your standing; you must manage the officials below yourself to ensure it passes."

Zhu Qizhen replied, "With Her Ladyship present, your grandson is entirely at ease."

Ever since the tenth year of Xuande, the Grand Empress Dowager had reduced the morning assembly to a mere ritualistic formality. Whenever state affairs truly required attention, memorials were simply exchanged back and forth. Nor did Zhu Qizhen currently harbor any intention of restoring the traditional morning court.

For Zhu Qizhen believed that gathering several hundred people for a meeting achieved very little in terms of practical governance.

He seemed accustomed to treating the morning assembly as a mere ceremony—a daily morning gathering where everyone assembled briefly for attendance before returning to their respective offices to handle their official duties.

The actual deliberation of state affairs took place instead within the Hall of Literary Glory or the Hall of Literary Profundity.

Routine administrative matters were sent directly to the Grand Secretariat for drafted responses, requiring only Zhu Qizhen's vermilion brush approval.

However, major decisions required the summons of high-ranking ministers for an imperial court conference, much like the previous deliberation regarding Lucuan.

Although an imperial court conference involved a considerable number of participants—including the Grand Secretariat, the Six Ministries, the Five Chief Military Commissions, and the Censorate, totaling over twenty people—it was impossible to keep every fifth-rank official in the capital waiting together.

Unless a specific department was directly involved, the Vice Ministers of those offices were not qualified to attend in person.

This instance was no exception.

Led by Wang Wen, the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, an endless stream of impeachment memorials from censors at all levels flooded the Office of Transmission. In a single day, hundreds of memorials nearly overwhelmed the Grand Secretariat.

Because of this affair, Yang Shiqi also submitted a private memorial seeking an imperial audience.

Consequently, Zhu Qizhen summoned the ministers of the various departments to hold discussions in the Hall of Literary Glory.

Inside the Hall of Literary Glory, the civil officials sat on the left and the military officers on the right.

This was a custom Zhu Qizhen had altered after ascending the throne.

Previously, even within the Grand Secretariat, apart from the imperial throne, the benches provided for all ministers were simple, long rosewood stools. Now, however, chairs equipped with backrests had been arranged.

Between every two chairs stood a small side table capable of holding a teacup.

Once both sides had taken their seats, a profound silence descended. Most people closed their eyes to rest their minds, occasionally casting sharp, piercing glances across the aisle as if probing one another ahead of a major battle.

"The Grand Empress Dowager and His Majesty have arrived!" Wang Fan announced loudly, holding a horsetail whisk as he emerged first from behind the screen and raised his voice in a high-pitched, eunuch's tone.

Immediately, the civil and military officials on both sides rose to their feet and bowed in unison, proclaiming, "We, your humble subjects, pay our respects to the Grand Empress Dowager, and pay our respects to His Majesty."

Zhu Qizhen assisted the Grand Empress Dowager, seating her first in the seat of honor on the western side, before returning to his own seat on the eastern side and declaring, "Rise, my lords."

"We thank Your Majesty. We thank the Grand Empress Dowager." Only then did the ministers rise together and retake their seats.

No sooner had they settled into their chairs than Wang Wen stepped forward from the ranks and spoke: "Grand Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, the posthumous memorial of Zhang Zhong, the late heir of the Duke of England, has been spreading wildly throughout the city of Beijing, disrupting public sentiment. Your humble subject implores Your Majesty to render a personal judgment to settle the hearts of the people."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Qizhen swept his gaze slightly across Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu, thinking inwardly, "Wang Wen is growing desperate."

Throughout this entire affair, Zhu Qizhen had caught the scent of haste.

For Zhu Qizhen had merely released the rumors.

Zhang Zhong's posthumous memorial had spread across Beijing. The various factions reacted differently, yet the scholar-officials, who formed the mainstream of public opinion, had unexpectedly failed to present a unified, one-sided stance.

This was naturally the result of the military nobility exerting their influence behind the scenes.

When Wang Wen attempted to prompt Yang Shiqi and the others to speak out, Yang Shiqi's stance remained ambiguous, refusing to give a definitive word. It was precisely this that caused Wang Wen to lose his composure.

In truth, the early Ming dynasty differed from its later periods; at the very least, during this era, high-ranking officials at the ministerial level within the court were largely insulated from public opinion. The political climate among Beijing's literati did not signify much. Yet Wang Wen found that a matter he thought most certain was slipping beyond his control, leaving him unable to wait any longer.

Otherwise, if the noble faction took collective action and won over the majority of officials, they might well lose the upper hand within the court hall itself.

In this era, the military nobility had not yet been sidelined; they remained a colossal juggernaut within the imperial court, deserving of the utmost gravity.

After much deliberation, Wang Wen decided to bring the matter out into the open for public debate.

If Wang Wen and the other opponents could gain the upper hand in public opinion, it would be best to let the matter rest for now. Should the Emperor truly insist on pushing it forward, they would retain greater initiative when arguing against it within the court.

Yet now, circumstances no longer afforded them the luxury of waiting.

Zhu Qizhen had not anticipated that Zhang Fu's intervention would prove so effective. Nonetheless, feigning complete ignorance, he asked, "Since that is the case, let everyone discuss it today. Grand Secretary Yang, what are your thoughts?"

Yang Shiqi replied, "This subject is old and finds it difficult for the moment to discern the advantages and disadvantages. It would be better to listen to the opinions of the various ministries first."

Zhu Qizhen asked, "What do all of you think?"

Hu Ying cleared his throat and said, "This aged subject believes that what Zhang Zhong stated possesses genuine insight. Previously, this subject had not realized that the stipends of the imperial clan were so vast."

"At present, among the imperial princes, there are the descendants of the Taizu Emperor: the Princes of Qin, Jin, Zhou, Chu, Qi, Tan, Zhao, Lu, Shu, Xiang, Dai, Su, Liao, Qing, Ning, Min, Gu, Han, Shen, An, Tang, Ying, and Yi—twenty-four principalities in total."

"Among them, the Prince of Qi and the Prince of Gu were stripped of their fiefs due to crimes. The principalities of the Princes of Tan, Zhao, Xiang, An, and Ying were all abolished because their lines ended with five sons. Thus, the lineage of the Taizu Emperor accounts for seventeen principalities."

In truth, Hu Ying had glossed over one branch here—the lineage of Taizu's eldest son, Zhu Biao—which was omitted due to reasons known to all.

"The Chengzu Emperor had three sons: the eldest was the Renzong Emperor, the second was the commoner Han, and the third was enfeoffed as the Prince of Zhao."

"The Renzong Emperor had ten sons: three legitimate sons, namely the Xuanzong Emperor, the Prince of Yue, and the Prince of Xiang; and seven sons by concubines: the Prince of Zheng, the Prince of Qi, the Prince of Jing, the Prince of Huai, the Prince of Teng, the Prince of Liang, and the Prince of Wei."

"Among them, three princes—the Prince of Yue, the Prince of Qi, and the Prince of Teng—have already passed away, and their principalities were abolished due to lack of heirs."

"The Xuanzong Emperor had two sons: His Present Majesty and the Prince of Jing."

"Adding the Prince of Jingjiang."

"Therefore, Your Majesty, there are currently twenty-seven imperial princes across the realm, scattered throughout the land and occupying the most fertile territories. Calculating based on a prince's annual stipend of ten thousand piculs of grain, that amounts to no less than two hundred and sixty thousand piculs, to say nothing of the multiplying descendants of the princes. For instance, the Prince of Dai has eleven sons. Within the imperial clan, those like the Prince of Dai are not few in number."

"According to the regulations established by the Taizu Emperor, a commandery prince receives two thousand piculs; a general defending the state receives one thousand piculs; a general supporting the state receives eight hundred piculs; a general safeguarding the state receives six hundred piculs; a commandant defending the state receives four hundred piculs; a commandant supporting the state receives three hundred piculs; and a commandant safeguarding the state receives two hundred piculs."

"The lineage of the Prince of Dai alone draws stipend grain amounting to forty or fifty thousand piculs. Moreover, within Shanxi alone, there are three princes—the Prince of Dai, the Prince of Jin, and the Prince of Shen—whose annual stipend grain alone exceeds several hundred thousand piculs."