Chapter 28: The Battle of Wits between Ruler and Minister (Part 2)

  Mao Wenlong, what a headache this guy is!

  Yang thought to himself, how should he deal with Mao Wenlong?

  Yang Gaofei asked, "Didn't we just distribute 2 million taels of silver to supplement the military salary? Why didn't he get any?" Yang Gaofei was puzzled. Isn't Mao Wenlong an official of our great Ming dynasty? Last time when salaries were distributed, didn't he have a share? Otherwise, why is he coming again for silver? Has it been just a few days?

  "I report to Your Majesty, it is precisely because Lord Mao heard that the Emperor had issued an additional 2 million taels of silver for military expenses, so he came to request the allowance."

  "Why? Don't you count Ma Wenzhen's army as part of the Great Ming Dynasty?" Yang Gaofei was a bit angry. Anyway, Ma Wenzhen is still an official in the Great Ming Dynasty. You don't have to treat him like this and set traps for him."

  "I humbly report to Your Majesty, it's not that we don't consider Lord Mao as part of our great Ming dynasty, but the fact is that he has absolute control over his territory, and his military expenses are not subject to audit. The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue cannot allocate funds for him. If they allocate too much, Your Majesty's silver will be depleted; if they allocate too little, Lord Mao will be displeased. It's really difficult for me to handle this situation, so I didn't allocate any funds for Lord Mao." This official's words are quite sophisticated, on the one hand he is afraid of the emperor, and on the other hand he is afraid of Mao Wenzhong. This is a typical case of "killing with flattery", with hidden intentions to kill. It seems that in the eyes of these officials, Mao Wenzhong has already become a thorn in their side, someone who needs to be eliminated at any time and place.

  "I recall that we had previously finalized the number of troops under Mao Wenlong's command? What was it again?"

  "I report to Your Majesty, there are 28,000 people, but Lord Mao refused to accept the imperial inspection and supervision, so this time's additional pay was not issued to Lord Mao. Please instruct on how to proceed."

  This is a rotten affair. The civil officials in the imperial court wanted to supervise Mao Wenlong's money and grain, as well as his troop numbers, which was a normal requirement. Of course, there were also extra "hidden expenses". Mao Wenlong, on the other hand, did not want to be supervised by the civil officials, nor did he want to pay these "hidden expenses", with some far-fetched reasons, and ended up in a stalemate. The result of this stalemate was that Mao Wenlong gradually became estranged from the Ming dynasty's control, and the high-ranking officials in the court viewed him as a wolf-like existence with ulterior motives, like a rebel. In the end, Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong. Only the wild boar's skin was left to laugh at. The saying "I'm not afraid of an opponent who is like a god, but I'm afraid of teammates who are like pigs" wasn't wrong.

  Yang's reform was a headache, this kind of messy thing, the core is just two words, greed. Yang's reform did not have that mind to deal with this thing. After thinking for a moment, he said: "Since so, let it go for now and don't mention it, I will handle it myself."

  Mao Wenlong's request for supplies, it seems that the emperor has taken over this matter, and the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War will not intervene in this matter again. This matter is obviously a matter of settling with silver, and the only thing the emperor needs to do is to use the inner treasury's money to subsidize Mao Wenlong. It probably has little to do with the imperial court.

  ……

  The second thing is nothing special, the local area was affected by a disaster and requested tax reduction and support. Alright, let's just give them some money then.

  ……

  The third thing has come.

  "Your Majesty, I request that you ascend to the imperial throne." An elderly official stepped forward and memorialized.

  "What's this 'Jing Yan'?" Yang reform had heard of it once before, and thought to himself, "What is this thing?!"

  "What is this, a banquet?" Yang Reform continued the good tradition of not being ashamed to ask questions.

  "Your Majesty, this is a special lecture on classics and history, specifically for Your Majesty."

  "What's so particular about this? Is it a lecture on history?" Yang Reform knew nothing about the matter. However, an aura of conspiracy was rolling in.

  "I report to Your Majesty, the lectures on the classics are held three times a month and once every ten days. This is the grand lecture, which Your Majesty and all the officials attend, with strict etiquette. Apart from this, there are also minor lectures, held every other day, but the rules are not as many..."

  ……

  "What's the content of that lecture? History?" Yang Reform was very annoyed, do you still need to tell me about history? I graduated from nine years of compulsory education with excellent grades in history. I even studied history hundreds of years later. Do you still need to teach me about history?

  "To Your Majesty, there are three things to consider: first, 'tasting the flavor of the classics', which means exploring the subtle meaning and grand principles in the classics; second, 'using the past to prove the present', that is, using history as a mirror; third, cultivating one's nature and nurturing virtues."

  "Is... this useful?" Yang Gaizi weakly asked, truly weakly asked. Yang Gaizi had come to realize that this was obviously the Ming dynasty scholars' way of "brainwashing" themselves! Every day they made Yang Gaizi study the sages' "subtle words and great principles", learn from "using the past to correct the present", and cultivate Yang Gaizi's "moral character".

  Yang Reform shouted in his heart: Oh my god, retribution has come. He had dreamed of "brainwashing" these Ming dynasty scholars, but he didn't expect that retribution would come so quickly, and now the Ming dynasty scholars were preparing to give him a "counter-brainwash".

  "This, can't we just not go?!" Yang Gaizhi frowned, not wanting to go get his "brain washed".

  "I report to Your Majesty that this is a established precedent, the rules passed down from our ancestors, all have fixed examples, not some idea that we ministers came up with arbitrarily..."

  Is this the rule passed down from ancestors? Is it said that Confucianism has been brainwashing emperors throughout history? Yang suddenly felt terrified, fearing that he would transform from a modern person into a pure "Ming dynasty person". That way, he would be "brain dead".

  This is absolutely a retaliatory blow. The day before yesterday, there was a dispute with the ministers, and a letter was written to Wei Zhongxian in the evening. This morning's court session was made to "brainwash" himself. This must be done on purpose by this group of ministers. Yang thought maliciously about reforming.

  ……

  "Your Majesty, please ascend the imperial dais." The ministers on the ground all knelt down, their voices loud and uniform. Uniformly requesting Yang to reform to attend political class.

  Yang Reform thought of coming up with a headache, stomachache and the like as an excuse, but seeing all the officials kneeling on the ground below, he knew in his heart that he couldn't escape today. So, reluctantly, he said: "Then let's go to 'Jing Xian'."

  "Your Majesty is wise." A minister shouted out in unison, but unfortunately, Yang Reform hated it to death.

  A group of officials followed from afar and went to the Wenhua Hall.

  The etiquette of this imperial lecture is indeed complex. There are those responsible for turning the pages, those responsible for holding the books, those responsible for explaining, and those who recite aloud. The civil and military officials stand on both sides, just like during an audience with the emperor. Yang realized that it's not just him, the emperor, who needs to receive political education, but also his high-ranking officials. Of course, the emperor is the main character, while others seem to be here to supervise the emperor's political lesson.

  The train arrived at the station and the banquet finally began.

  A man who looked like an official came out and said: "I beg to report to Your Majesty, is Your Majesty lecturing on the classics or discussing history?"

  The Four Books and Five Classics? History? Yang Reform thinks he doesn't need any of them. The Four Books and Five Classics all say they are the key to imperial examinations, but I am the emperor myself, do I still need to take an exam to become a top scholar? Do I still need to read the Four Books and Five Classics?

  Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang said that without the Four Books and Five Classics, one can still become an emperor.

  History? I'm a 21st-century person who's familiar with history before the Ming Dynasty, and also familiar with history after the Ming Dynasty. Do you need to teach me about history?

  Yang is quite indignant about the reform. Unfortunately, it's hard to express. Can't shout at the top of my lungs that I'm a 21st-century person, I know all the history after the Ming Dynasty, no need for you to teach me, if so, the Ming Dynasty will have another crazy emperor, becoming a laughing stock for people.

  "What's the point of talking about Confucian classics? As the Son of Heaven, the Four Books and Five Classics are just a stepping stone for imperial examinations. Do I need to study hard and become a top scholar?" Yang Reform didn't say anything more vicious than that. The imperial examination system is nothing but a tool for the emperor to control the talents of the world, as Li Shimin said: "All heroes in the world will enter my net." So, making the emperor learn from the imperial examination's stepping stone is actually having one's head pinched by the door. It's not that the ministers' heads are being pinched by the door, but rather the Confucian ministers are using the door panel to pinch the emperor's head.

  "I'm terrified..." The official who was lecturing on history or classics to Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was frightened out of his wits. The other officials were silent, as if they hadn't seen anything.

  Yang's reform was suffocating with anger, knowing in his heart that if he didn't get this matter settled today, he would probably not be able to escape. Looking at the appearance of these officials, it seemed as though they were determined to fight to the end.

  "Let's talk about history." Yang gave in.

  "Which part does Your Majesty want to hear?" This lecturer was caught between the emperor and his ministers, pleasing neither side. He feared that if the emperor became displeased with him, he would be out of luck.

  "I discussed the story of Yue Pengju of Southern Song with all of you today, let's talk about him." Yang reform casually picked a segment from history.

  Yang Reform really wants to scold people, he is the emperor himself, no need to learn "the words of saints" to take exams, what's the point of learning. As for history, his middle school history scores are not very good, but as a long-time reader of time-travel novels, at least he knows the history of the past few hundred years. Even if Zhuge Liang were in front of him, he wouldn't dare say that he is more powerful than himself, and does he still need this group of sour scholars to teach him history lessons?

  As for saying that "the words of the sage" contain the truth about learning to be a human being and can improve moral cultivation, this is purely nonsense. Confucius was just one of the hundred schools of thought during the Spring and Autumn period, while others were busy "lobbying" to find a small official position, does only he have "truth" that can improve moral cultivation? Are other people just donkey dung eggs? Was there no "truth" before Confucius? Is Confucius born with "truth"? Can't we improve our morals without Confucius? Is it really like without Butcher Zhang, we would have to eat hairy meat?

  Yang's reform is extremely depressed. Very regretful. This is really a case of "shooting the goose that lays the golden eggs". He had been trying to "brainwash" these officials of the Ming dynasty, attempting to change their "brain structure", but didn't expect that today he would be the one to get such treatment.

  I thought they had an ulterior motive in the early morning, and now it seems that there is indeed an ulterior motive. In the eyes of the group of officials, I am too "unrestrained", and need to be taught with more "words of a sage" in order to become talented.

  Yang was extremely depressed and couldn't think of a good solution. He didn't want to "fight" with these bureaucrats, but they just wouldn't leave him alone.