GBP Chapter 126 So I've become a corrupt official again?
Chapter 126 So I've become a corrupt official again?
The various unofficial histories of the Ming Dynasty are quite wild.
The stories about Zhu Chongba roasting geese to kill Xu Da and bombarding the celebration tower, Zhu Laosi executing Fang Xiaoru's ten clans and skinning three thousand palace women alive, Zhu Zhanji's love of playing with crickets, Zhu Houzhao harassing Li Fengjie and then visiting the common people to visit Jiajing, Jiajing burying a cat in a golden coffin and writing a eulogy, all these messy things come from the unofficial history of the Ming Dynasty.
For example, the earliest record of Zhu Laosi's execution of Fang Xiaoru's ten clans is found in Volume 2 of "Zhishan Yeji", compiled by Zhu Zhishan, one of the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan who was as famous as Tang Bohu.
"When Emperor Wen ascended the throne, he asked Guangxiao who could draft the imperial edict. Guangxiao recommended Fang, so he summoned him. After several trips back and forth, Fang still refused to comply. So the emperor forcibly brought him in, and Fang was beheaded and forced to weep in mourning. When he arrived, the emperor ordered him to look at the draft, and Fang shouted and cursed loudly, but he refused. The emperor forced him to take the brush, threw it away, and said even more fiercely: 'It's nothing more than the extermination of my nine clans!' The emperor was furious and said: 'I will exterminate ten clans of yours!' The attendants asked which clans, and the emperor said: 'Friends are also clans.' Thereupon, he executed Fang's nine clans and ordered a great search throughout the land for all those who were friends with him."
Another example is the story of Emperor Jiajing burying a cat in a golden coffin and writing a eulogy. This story comes from "Wanli Yehuo Bian", compiled by Shen Defu, who was born in the sixth year of the Wanli reign.
"When the lion-cat died, the Emperor was deeply saddened and had a golden coffin made for its burial at the foot of Longevity Hill. He also ordered the senior officials on duty to write articles recommending its ascension to heaven. However, they were all unable to express themselves fully due to the limited topics. Only the article by the scholar-official Yuan Wei contained phrases such as 'transforming the lion into a dragon,' which best pleased the Emperor."
The unofficial histories of the Ming Dynasty are all about wildness; basically, all that's left is excrement.
What's even more infuriating is that these scholars weren't so wild during the Yuan Dynasty, nor were they so wild during the later Qing Dynasty. It was only during the Ming Dynasty that they were truly wild beyond measure.
For example, now, stories are circulating in the city that "Yang, the magistrate of Ningyang County, has connections everywhere and bullies the people at will. Not only does the prefect of Yanzhou secretly protect him, but even the Ministry of Justice in the capital dares not interfere. The people are driven to commit suicide at the gate of the Ministry of Justice."
It's not a rumor, it's a storybook, a legitimate storybook that was written, printed, and then bought and sold.
Even the pleasure boats on the Qinhuai River began to sing lyrics adapted from folk tales.
Emperor Zhu Chongba's face was ashen. He threw the storybook on the table and angrily cursed, "These bastards have the guts to sing it in Yingtian Prefecture, but why don't they dare to sing it in Ningyang County? They're just taking advantage of my good temper!"
Empress Ma smiled, picked up the storybook, glanced at it, and then handed it to Zhu Biao. She then smiled and said to Emperor Zhu Chongba, "They are nothing but a bunch of cowardly rats who hide their heads and tails and are not worthy of being on the table."
Emperor Zhu snorted and was about to argue with Empress Ma when she spoke first: "If you want to resolve this matter, it's actually not difficult."
Upon hearing Empress Ma's words, Emperor Zhu's eyes lit up, and he asked, "How do we solve this?"
Empress Ma smiled and said, "The one who tied the knot must untie it—this matter originated in Ningyang County, so it should naturally end in Ningyang County. If Ningyang County really cannot solve the problem, then it's not too late to do it according to your idea."
Emperor Zhu curled his lip and snorted coldly, "Ningyang County? With such a huge uproar, he was already in the eye of the storm. No matter how he tries to explain himself now, Chen Er has already committed suicide at the gate of the Ministry of Justice. Do people in the world believe his empty words or Chen Er's dog life?"
"Moreover," Emperor Zhu Chongba frowned slightly and said, "As soon as Chen Er committed suicide, someone was already stirring things up. Even if Wu Zude and Yang Shaofeng realized something was wrong and wanted to punish Chen Er's entire family, it would probably be too late."
In the eyes of Emperor Zhu Chongba, if Wu Zude, the prefect of Yanzhou, and Yang Shaofeng had worked together to control Chen Er by using his nine generations of relatives before Chen Er entered the capital, things would not have turned out this way.
What truly displeased Emperor Zhu Chongba was the sudden and widespread news of Chen Er's suicide outside the Ministry of Justice. This inevitably impacted his plans to single out Ningyang County as a pilot area and to use the opportunity to abolish non-Han customs.
After pondering for a while, Emperor Zhu Chongba suddenly chuckled coldly and said with murderous intent, "Since things have come to this, let Yang Shaofeng cause trouble first. Actually, we also want to see how capable he really is. As long as he can satisfy us, no matter how much trouble he causes, we, as the emperor, can always cover for him."
……
"So I've become a corrupt official again?"
Seeing Erhu rushing all the way to Ningyang County with urgent news, Yang Shaofeng couldn't help but start cursing: "Damn it, last time it was Liu Hongchang and his gang, and this time it's Chen Er. Damn it, why are these bastards biting me like mad dogs?"
Erhu, who was using the pseudonym Biaozi again, couldn't help but roll his eyes.
As the saying goes, flies don't land on eggs without cracks. First there was Liu Hongchang and his group of local gentry, and this time there's Chen Er, a troublemaker. These people are willing to risk their lives to oppose you, Magistrate Yang. Haven't you considered that there might be something wrong with you?
Just as Erhu was secretly complaining to himself, Magistrate Yang Shaofeng waved the letter in his hand and said to Erhu, "In any case, I thank Brother Biaozi first, and please also thank your Master Ma on my behalf."
Erhu cupped his hands in thanks and said, "I dare not accept Magistrate Yang's thanks, but I will convey the message to my master."
After a slight pause, Erhu continued, "My master said that His Majesty was furious about this matter, and the Empress was also very unhappy. He asked Magistrate Yang to come up with a solution. If he can make the Empress happy, my master will reward him handsomely."
Yang Shaofeng chuckled and waved the letter in his hand. "Actually, the solution to this matter has already been written in your master's letter—we can retaliate in the same way those clowns did, and we can even do it more ruthlessly than them."
After saying that, Yang Shaofeng told Erhu to wait a moment, and then went straight into his study to prepare a reply to "Master Ma".
It's just labeling people, it's just playing the mudslinging game, what's the big deal?
Looking at the internet after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the endless stream of outrageous tricks is dazzling. Then look at these people in the early Ming Dynasty, their petty tricks are probably not even as intense as the infighting between a few fan leaders. If you were to say it out loud, it would make netizens laugh to death.
After pondering for a moment, Yang Shaofeng picked up his pen and wrote: "I was shocked to hear that Chen Er committed suicide in the Ministry of Justice. I cannot help but feel resentment. Moreover, I have heard that the situation in the capital is turbulent, and that villains from all sides are stirring up trouble. This makes me very uneasy..."
After writing a long and detailed letter, Yang Shaofeng put it back in an envelope and handed it to Erhu after the ink had dried: "Brother Biaozi, please pass this letter on to Master Ma. If we can get the support of the Empress and His Majesty, a few clowns will not be able to cause any trouble."