Those Things in the Ming Dynasty Part 3 The Evil Palace _ Chapter 7 Fighting or Forbearance?
Zhu Houzhao, Emperor Wuzong of Ming Dynasty
Now let us take a breath. The most troublesome brother in the three hundred years of the Ming Dynasty is finally about to appear.
It is said that if the princes of the Qing Dynasty did not pay attention when studying, their master would immediately scold them:
"Do you want to imitate Zhu Houzhao?!"
Zhu Houzhao was not unjustly regarded as a negative example by people hundreds of years later. In terms of his learning attitude, he was really terrible.
Zhu Youtang was busy with everything in his life and cared about everything except his precious son. Zhu Youtang had a bad life. He only gave birth to two sons and one of them died of illness. The only one left was Zhu Houzhao. Naturally, he regarded him as his lifeblood. In addition, his brother was unfortunate in his childhood, so he was afraid that his son would suffer. He relied on him no matter what, rarely punishing him, let alone beating him.
This is probably a common problem among all fathers in the world.
Zhu Houzhao grew up in such an environment. He was not afraid of anything. He had whatever he wanted and no one cared about him. This was natural. Even his father didn't care. Who dared to care?
This is how countless prodigal sons were made.
But Zhu Houzhao cannot be regarded as a real prodigal son. According to historical records, he has an extraordinary IQ, is very smart, and understands right and wrong. However, this eldest brother has a lifelong hobby - playing.
Play, play as much fun as you want, turn over and over, turn the world upside down, cry and howl, just for one word - play.
Please remember this premise. Only by understanding this can you be fully mentally prepared for what will happen next.
Zhu Houzhao played in such a dark way until he was fifteen years old. Suddenly, there was a loud cry in the palace. He was told that his father was dying and that he, Zhu Houzhao, would become the next emperor.
Mr. Zhu Houzhao is not very clear about the meaning of this sentence. In his opinion, it is just an honorary title. You can live as you should, with no change.
But soon after, trouble came. Liu Jian, the chief academician of the cabinet, couldn't stand it anymore, so he wrote a letter hoping that brother Zhu Houzhao would stop playing around and be a good emperor. He also listed Zhu Houzhao's wishes in the book. There are several crimes, such as not sitting in the main hall, but wandering around to watch the fun, riding horses and rowing boats without authorization, eating at will, etc.
Are these charges?
It should be said that for Zhu Houzhao, these are indeed crimes, and Liu Jian has sufficient reasons:
It's great to stay at home, why are you running around? If you are hit by bricks falling from the sky, it is very dangerous. There are three long and two shortcomings. What will happen to the Ming Dynasty?
Riding a horse is not safe. What should you do if you fall? Not to mention boating. There were no lifebuoys in those days, and it would be bad if you fell into the water. For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, it is best not to do these dangerous activities casually.
Don’t eat anything indiscriminately. Although poisonous rice, rotten peanuts and the like are not yet popular, if you eat it and get a bad stomach, the Ming Dynasty will be ruined...
This is probably what he meant. Liu Jian spoke earnestly for a long time, but Zhu Houzhao only had one idea about this:
It's all nonsense!
When I was the prince, no one dared to interfere. Now that I am the emperor, this old man still dares to interfere!
But after all, this old man is the number one person left by his father and cannot be offended.
So Zhu Houzhao showed a loyal and honest expression and said honestly:
"I understand and I will definitely correct it in the future."
But the naive Liu Jian didn't know that if he believed Mr. Zhu Houzhao's words, he would be wrong even during the Spring Festival.
After that, not only did I not see Brother Zhu Houzhao hanging on his buttocks and working hard, he didn't even go to the morning court, let alone the afternoon court. I couldn't even find the shadow of this old man all day long.
Now it was the turn of the Minister of Personnel, Ma Wensheng, and the Minister of Defense, Liu Daxia, to take action. They had long felt that something was wrong. In order to restrain the young emperor's behavior as soon as possible and guide him to the right path, they were ready to fight hard.
Soon, the two wrote letters to persuade Zhu Houzhao, and said that if the emperor did not adopt their opinions, they would continue to write letters until the emperor corrected himself.
Zhu Houzhao finally encountered the first test in his life. At the age of sixteen, he had never seen the two ministers in such a desperate manner, and he felt fear for the first time.
However, a voice next to his ear said to him:
Your Majesty, you don't need to take orders from them, you have the power to order them!
Zhu Houzhao happily accepted this opinion. He immediately told the two ministers, you don't need to submit any more letters, because I won't let you work now. You are laid off, pack your things and go home to retire!
Ma Wensheng and Liu Daxia never expected such a result. Not only were they not scared, but they were bitten in return. After decades of hard work, such a result turned out to be the result. In sadness, they each resigned and went home.
The person who made that sound is called Liu Jin.
Liu Jin, a native of Shaanxi, has an unknown date of birth. This is also a normal phenomenon. Those in the family who are literate and can remember their birthdays will generally not become eunuchs.
Mr. Liu, whose original surname is Tan, is a very strong and courageous man. Why do you say that? Because he is a self-consecrated man.
Of course, his motive for committing suicide was not because he picked up martial arts secrets such as the Sunflower Book. The reason why he embarked on this path was just because he wanted to find a job. It is natural for such a person to cut himself with a knife in order to find a job.
strong.
What's even more suspenseful is that there is no guarantee that one will have a job in the palace. There were many people who wanted to be eunuchs at that time. If you don't have some connections, you can't get in. What if you can't get in and what you cut off doesn't grow back?
The losses are huge. People who dare to engage in this kind of risky investment are very courageous.
This preparatory eunuch was lucky. A eunuch named Liu took a fancy to him and arranged for him to enter the palace. After that, he changed his surname to Liu.
To be fair, Liu Jin was a very ambitious eunuch. After entering the palace, he studied diligently and worked hard, and soon acquired a basic level of education, which was already rare in the palace, so he was selected as Zhu Houzhao's attendant.
From Wang Zhen to Liu Jin, their journey to fortune reminds us that no matter when and where, even if we become eunuchs, we should continue to study. As the saying goes: knowledge changes destiny.
When Liu Jin saw Zhu Houzhao, who didn't like to study and wandered around all day, he realized that a golden opportunity had appeared. As long as he could coax this fun-loving boy and let him play as he pleased and meet his needs, he could
Get everything you want!
Of course, Liu Jin was not the only smart person, there were seven other people who also discovered this shortcut to great success. As a result, the eight of them were awarded an extremely prestigious title - the Eight Tigers.
Zhu Houzhao soon discovered that compared with the old men who lectured others with a straight face all day long, these obedient ladies around him were
The jailer made him feel comfortable. So he gave these people full trust, handed over the power of the palace to them, and allowed them to participate in government affairs and control the power of the country.
With the emperor's support, Liu Jin began to expand his power. This Mr. Liu was really a very smart man. He fully absorbed the experiences and lessons of previous eunuchs and extended his hand to a new field -
Civil Service Group.
Mr. Liu knew very well that although he was favored, he was still just a eunuch in the final analysis. If he wanted long-term peace and stability, he had to win over several ministers. People like Liu Jian and Li Dongyang naturally did not buy his account, but he knew that he must be among the scholars.
It's not difficult to find a few weak scum.
After careful observation, he found a suitable candidate - Jiao Fang, the Minister of Civil Affairs. After contact for a period of time, the two parties deepened their understanding and formed a consensus, and decided to work together to commit evil from now on.
Jiao Fang, a native of Biyang, Henan, was born as a Jinshi and was a member of the Imperial Academy. But if you think of him as a weak scholar, it would be a big mistake. I think back then, when Wan An was in charge of the cabinet, the bachelor Peng Hua recommended him for promotion.
Jiao Fang was omitted from the list of candidates for the bachelor's degree. When this brother heard the news, he immediately said that if I couldn't become a bachelor, I would wait for Peng Hua to get off work on Chang'an Road with a knife. If I didn't stab him to death, it wouldn't be over.
When Peng Hua heard the news, he was so frightened that he added Jiao Fang's name, and the matter was settled.
Brother Jiao is so tough. He probably was a gangster before becoming a Jinshi. It is only natural that he was roped into the gang. In this way, Jiao Fang became a key member of Liu Jin's criminal group. Considering that joining the eunuchs was a big deal.
A disgraceful thing, Jiao Fang did not disclose her identity, everything was carried out in secret.
Liu Jin's actions finally aroused the vigilance of the civil servant group. The departure of Ma Wensheng and Liu Daxia also made them fully aware of the upcoming danger. They must take action. Strike first to gain advantage, and strike later to suffer disaster!
different options
Liu Jian is an experienced politician. His many years of experience in the officialdom tell him that if he does not clean up the situation, the consequences will be disastrous. If he wants to get rid of the "Eight Tigers", the cabinet alone is definitely not enough.
To achieve final victory, all the power of the civilian clique must be mobilized to launch a fatal attack.
Based on this understanding, he found Han Wen, the Minister of Household Affairs, and laid out a careful plan.
The next day, the attack began.
On this day, Zhu Houzhao received a memorial. He flipped through the content casually, but was immediately frightened!
This memorial not only listed his various inappropriate behaviors since he came to the throne like an account book, but also boldly pointed the finger directly at Liu Jin and others for the first time, saying that he could no longer tolerate it and the "Eight Tigers" must be killed immediately. If Zhu Houzhao
They will never give up without implementation.
The author of this memorial is the famous literary leader Li Mengyang. To be sure, he is well-deserved for his reputation. His writing skills are extremely high, and he quotes from classics. In just a few thousand words, he condemned Liu Jin and others as eternal sinners and social trash.
But what Zhu Houzhao was afraid of was not the content of the memorial, nor the author of the memorial. He had seen similar things many times and was used to it. What really frightened him was the inscription of the memorial - Liubu Jiuqing.
Everyone knows the Six Ministries, and the so-called Jiuqing refers to the six ministers, the highest officials of the Six Ministries, plus the highest chief of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the highest chief of the General Affairs Department, and the highest chief of Dali Temple, a total of nine people, collectively called Jiuqing.
In layman's terms, this move meant that all members of the government cabinet initiated impeachment and threatened the emperor to agree to their conditions and demands.
Liu Jian is worthy of being an old man. He saw through the falsehoods of Liu Jin and others at a glance, and did not entangle with them at all. Instead, he mobilized various cabinet ministries to directly intimidate the emperor. He had already made a plan. Although the emperor made a lot of noise, after all, he was just
As a child, he can't help being threatened by adults. As long as he puts on a desperate posture, he will obey.
Liu Jian's idea was right. His move completely frightened Zhu Houzhao. Not long after he came to power, the group below started making trouble collectively. If he did not agree to their demands, there would be another collective strike. This would
How to sing alone?
He was ready to give in.
When Liu Jin and others heard the news, they were frightened out of their wits. They never expected that Liu Jian would be so ruthless and kill people with just one move. The eight people immediately gathered together to have a meeting to think of countermeasures. However, due to their limited IQ, they could not talk for a long time.
The only solution is to hold my head and cry.
Zhu Houzhao's situation was not much better. Compared with Liu Jian, he was still too young. Faced with the threat, he had to send Wang Yue, the chief of etiquette, to meet with several adults in the cabinet to determine one question - "What are you going to do before you give up?"
"
Wang Yue hurried to the cabinet to meet the three adults, but unexpectedly saw two different reactions.
He carefully began to ask several cabinet ministers for their opinions. Before he could finish asking, Liu Jian jumped up and expressed his opinions:
"There's nothing to say, just arrest those eight slaves and kill them!"
Xie Qian, who was already very talkative, was not polite and said sternly:
"For the country and the people, we can only kill them!"
However, the remaining Li Dongyang remained silent. Facing the surprised looks of Liu Jian and Xie Qian, he slowly stated that eunuchs who broke the law should be severely punished.
Li Dongyang's strange behavior at this time did not attract Liu Jian and Xie Qian's attention. They focused all their attention on Wang Yue, waiting for the official's statement.
It can be said that Liu Jin is unlucky, because the person Wang Yue hates the most is him. Everyone must know that the competition in the eunuch industry is very fierce, and Wang Yue naturally has no good impression of this colleague who is grabbing the job.
He fully accepted the opinions of the three cabinet ministers and immediately returned to the palace to convey the cabinet's opinions to Zhu Houzhao.
Zhu Houzhao did not expect that the cabinet would be so ruthless, but he did not want to drive away these obedient eunuchs, so he sent another person to negotiate with the cabinet again. This time he lowered his bottom line: he agreed to drive away eight people, but hoped that
Allow a period of time for execution.
The cabinet's answer was simple - no.
At the same time, Zhu Houzhao's statement was corrected - not to drive away, but to kill.
Zhu Houzhao really had no choice but to continue sending the Chief of Ceremonies to the cabinet for negotiations.
At this time, the "Eight Tigers" already knew the seriousness of the situation. They were so frightened that they took the initiative to find the cabinet and expressed their willingness to leave here for Nanjing and never interfere in the government affairs.
The cabinet ignored them at all.
Liu Jin and the other seven people all cried. They were forced to cry.
It was a hurried and chaotic day. The chief ceremonial officer in the palace hurried to the cabinet and then hurried back to the palace. Zhu Houzhao was helpless. The "Eight Tigers" had completely lost their previous prestige and were just waiting in panic all day long for what was about to happen.
coming destiny
ruling.
Surprisingly, at the same time, a debate broke out in the cabinet.
Seeing that victory was in sight, Liu Jian, the initiator of the plan, convened a meeting of the cabinet and officials from various ministries to discuss the next steps.
Liu Jian's impatience was well-deserved. As soon as the meeting started, he slammed the table and wanted to eat Liu Jin and others. Xie Qian and Han Wen were also very excited and must kill the "Eight Tigers". At this time, Liu Jian, who had been silent all the time,
Li Dongyang finally spoke, but what he said really surprised everyone present.
Li Dongyang said that as long as the emperor can distance himself and drive away the "Eight Tigers", there is no need to kill them, otherwise things may change.
His suggestion aroused dissatisfaction among Liu Jian and many others. Everyone present at the meeting thought that he was too weak and ignored his suggestion.
Li Dongyang didn't say much, just sighed softly. In his opinion, these angry people ignored an important issue, but there was nothing he could do.
In this way, the cabinet agreed on the final policy: get rid of the "Eight Tigers" and never give in.
But Liu Jian knew very well that it would not be easy to get Zhu Houzhao's approval for this policy. In order to achieve his goal, he decided to seek help from a person - Wang Yue.
During the negotiation, Liu Jian keenly felt Wang Yue's hostility towards Liu Jin. Such details naturally could not escape the eyes of the experienced Liu Jian. He immediately sent someone to contact Wang Yue, hoping to get his support.
This proposal suited Wang Yue's wishes, and he immediately mobilized the rest of the ceremonial supervisors to lobby Zhu Houzhao.
Zhu Houzhao was exhausted from a whole day of tossing. At the age of sixteen, he was no match for these old foxes who had been in the officialdom for many years, so when Wang Yue and others came to him for advice, he was already on the verge of collapse.
"That's it, arrest them, I agree."
Zhu Houzhao finally compromised, and Wang Yue completed his mission. He sent someone to inform Liu Jian that it was getting late today and would start early tomorrow morning to completely eliminate the "Eight Tigers".
Liu Jian, who had been nervous all day, finally felt relaxed, because all the problems would be solved tomorrow and he could have a good sleep tonight.
When we were in elementary school, the teacher once taught us this sentence repeatedly: Today's things must be done today.
What Liu Jian didn't know was that at that meeting, apart from the excited majority and the hesitant minority, there was another person who had ulterior motives and watched with cold eyes. This person was Jiao Fang.
lurking
Liu Jin's work finally paid off, and Jiao Fang, who received the news, told the "Eight Tigers" the plan formulated by the cabinet overnight.
When people are forced to a dead end, they will find a way even if there is no other way.
Someone will come to arrest you early tomorrow morning, and escaping is impossible. In the whole world, where can you run if you are not the king? When things have reached this point, you have to risk it all!
Liu Jin understood that there was only one way to save them. So he and the other seven people went to the palace overnight to visit their last hope-Zhu Houzhao.
As soon as they saw Zhu Houzhao, the eight people immediately cheered up, became angry and cried bitterly. At the critical moment of life and death, the eight people cried very seriously and dedicatedly. Zhu Houzhao was baffled by them and had to ask them to stop for a moment and finish speaking.
Liu Jin then spoke. He pointed the finger at Wang Yue, saying that Wang Yue was colluding with the civil servants and wanted to kill them.
Liu Jin was really a smart man. He did not directly accuse the civil officials who attacked them because he knew Zhu Houzhao's psychology very well. For this young man, the civil servants had never been his friends. What he trusted most was the eunuchs around him, so he had a deep understanding of Zhu Houzhao's mentality.
The fundamental Wang Yue was their most terrifying enemy. As long as Wang Yue was classified as a civil servant, Zhu Houzhao would naturally stand with them.
Zhu Houzhao was moved. He originally hated those civil servants, but he succumbed to their coercion due to the situation. After listening to Liu Jin's words, he realized that he was in such danger that even Wang Yue would obey the command of the civil servants.
How do you spend your days?
But what can I do?
Liu Jin saw through his thoughts and added the key sentence:
"The world belongs to Your Majesty. Who dares to disobey His Majesty's decision?"
Zhu Houzhao finally realized that the final right of interpretation had always been in his hands. There was actually no difference between being the emperor and the prince. As long as he wanted to, he could keep playing.
He immediately ordered that Wang Yue and others were relieved of their duties as Supervisor of Ceremonies and replaced by Liu Jin, while the military affairs of the East Factory and the palace were directed by Gu Dayong and Zhang Yong from the "Eight Tigers".
The matter ended like this, Liu Jin completed the reversal and became the final winner.
Liu Jin fully understood the spirit of precious time. He did not wait until the next day, but arrested Wang Yue and others overnight and sent them to Nanjing.
Then he put on the clothes of the ceremonial supervisor and quietly waited for the arrival of the morning.
the next day.
Excited, Liu Jian and Xie Qian rushed to court. With the emperor's approval and Wang Yue's support, they were full of confidence and prepared to hear the final results of these eunuchs.
But what they finally heard were several unexpected personnel transfer orders, and then they saw the proud Master Liu, the Supervisor of Ceremonies.
Liu Jian, who returned home with strong energy, could no longer hold on. He immediately submitted a resignation application to Zhu Houzhao. Li Dongyang and Xie Qian also submitted their resignations with him.
Soon, the resignation requests of Liu Jian and Xie Qian were approved, but Li Dongyang was retained.
That night, Jiao Fang told Liu Jin everything about the meeting, including Liu Jian, Xie Qian's decision and Li Dongyang's hesitation.
Liu Jin made a judgment based on this. In his opinion, the hesitant Li Dongyang was on his side.
In this way, the three-person cabinet during the Hongzhi period finally came to an end. "Duan" and "Kan" left, while "Mou" stayed.
When the day of departure arrived, Li Dongyang held a farewell banquet for his two old partners on the outskirts of the capital. At this last banquet, Li Dongyang was so sad that he couldn't help crying. But the other two people did not feel the same way.
Liu Jian finally couldn't bear it anymore. He stood up and said seriously to Li Dongyang:
"Why are you crying! Don't cry! If you had been firm then, you could have left with us today!"
Li Dongyang was speechless.
Xie Qian also stood up, looked at Li Dongyang with disdain, and then left the table with Liu Jian, never looking at him again.
Silent Li Dongyang looked at the two people's backs, raised the remaining wine in the glass, and sprinkled it on the ground.
I advise you to drink a glass of wine. There will be no old friends when you leave Yangguan in the west!
Sometimes, living humiliatingly requires more courage than dying tragically.