Chapter 117: The Emotional Officials of the Great Ming

Zhu Gaochi watched as Jin Zhong and the others left, his brows slightly furrowing. He beckoned to a nearby guard and ordered, “Go investigate why Jin Zhong appeared here.”

Zhu Gaoxu buying garrison land?

If Jin Zhong came to seize garrison land, Zhu Gaozhi could understand.

Buying it with money?

Zhu Gaochi couldn’t believe it at all. He knew his younger brother’s character very well.

Obesity might describe his physical state, but when it came to intelligence, Zhu Gaochi was far from foolish. Behind his prosperous appearance lay wisdom and keen insight.

The guard received the order and left. Zhu Gaochi bent down and looked at the wheat ears in the field. Although it was mid-March, the wheat was growing vigorously. If they purchased it, a good harvest seemed guaranteed.

When the government sold garrison land, it also included the wheat crop for the year.

Although this increased the cost for the merchants, but it made the process more straightforward. All the details about the farmland’s fertility were readily available, eliminating the need for meticulous negotiations. Merchants just had to agree on the amount of money with the soldiers, then go to the Agricultural Tax Office for approval. Once approved, they would pay the money and taxes, and sign the land contract.

Zhu Gaochi strongly supported the idea of selling garrison land to merchants. It not only helped to sort out the strong from the weak, strengthening the military but also revitalized the farmland, increasing grain production.

Since this was beneficial to the government, merchants, and the military, there was no reason not to let the King of Yan’s residence benefit a bit from it.

All 56,000 mu of garrison land in Baiyangkou was claimed by the King of Yan’s residence.

Zhu Gaochi walked out of the field and sat on a ridge, looking at the returning guard. He glanced at the soldiers behind the guard and asked, “How is it?”

“Your Highness, the situation is a bit unusual.” The guard hesitated for a moment, then said and stepped aside. He said to Wang Er Yue, “This person is the eldest son of the King of Yan; you should show some respect.”

“Your humble servant, Wang Er Yue, pays his respects to His Highness.”

Wang Er Yue quickly knelt down.

Zhu Gaochi assessed Wang Er Yue for a moment and said in a deep voice, “Speak.”

Wang Er Yue didn’t dare to get up and took out the banknotes, keeping his head low as he said, “That man, Lord Jin, said that the court is currently recruiting new secret guards and gave me ten guan of banknotes…”

“New secret guards?”

Zhu Gaochi furrowed his brows and looked at the guard.

The guard respectfully replied, “Your Highness, based on current information, Jin Zhong came to Baiyangkou not to buy garrison land, but under the guise of recruiting personnel for the new army.”

Zhu Gaochi’s face immediately turned cold.

Recruiting personnel?

Under the guise of the new army?

Zhu Gaoxu, even if you want to die, do you have to drag everyone from the King of Yan’s residence down with you?

Once this matter reaches the court’s ears, Ping An’s Army can easily crush the King of Yan’s residence. At that time, no one will speak up for you!

Maintaining an armed force, and training a private army – these are grave offenses punishable by death!

“Go, summon Jin Zhong!” Zhu Gaozhi stood up, his face growing colder.

When Jin Zhong saw Wang Er Yue kneeling, he understood that the situation had been exposed. He hurriedly walked a few steps closer and knelt in front of Zhu Gaochi, crying out, “Your Highness, I, Jin Zhong, have been coerced! In this group, there are also the guards of prince Gaoyang. If I didn’t comply, not only would they kill me, but they would also kill my entire family…”

Zhu Gaochi glanced at them and indeed saw four of Zhu Gaoxu’s guards among them.

These four men came forward and knelt on the ground, trembling and not daring to speak.

“How many people did you recruit?” Zhu Gaochi asked sternly.

An anxious Jin Zhong replied, “There are… there are seventy-six people.”

Zhu Gaochi’s face turned solemn as he said, “There are only a little over 1,100 soldiers in Baiyangkou. You’ve recruited so many. Your skills are not bad.”

Jin Zhong shivered all over and quickly kowtowed, “Highness, spare my life!”

Zhu Gaochi looked at Jin Zhong with a chilly expression, and the glint of killing intent in his eyes was ultimately covered by his inner compassion. He turned his gaze to the endless green fields and said in a deep voice, “Each of you will leave behind five taels of silver. You are not allowed to leave Baiyangkou until death. The King of Yan’s residence will send your family members here. Take care of yourselves.”

Jin Zhong’s face was filled with sorrow, and he kowtowed heavily, shouting, “Thank you, your Highness, for sparing our lives!”

He couldn’t return to Beiping Prefecture anymore!

In the years to come, he would be like a prisoner, forever confined to Baiyangkou.

But this might be for the best.

He no longer had to worry about Zhu Gaoxu’s coercion, about being targeted by the imperial army in the future, and about his head ending up on a flagpole in some battle.

He had tried to calculate fate and human life, but in the end, he had only fooled himself.

Everything was unpredictable.

In the capital city, Zhu Yunwen couldn’t hear Jin Zhong’s sighs. Instead, he was surrounded by the buzzing voices of his ministers.

Although the sale of Garrison land in Beiping Prefecture had obtained the approval of the Grand Secretariat, the inner council, and the emperor himself, it had not received the consent of the court officials.

That’s right, in this matter, the court officials didn’t have the authority to make decisions, but it didn’t mean they didn’t have the right to impeach, speak out, or protest.

Twenty-six officials, including the Censorate’s censor Yin Changlong, Huang Kai, the Director of the Ministry of War Pan Xing, the Vice Director of the Ministry of War Shi Pu, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites Huang Guan, and the Director of the Ministry of Revenue Qiu Xiang, submitted memorials to impeach the policy of selling garrison land.

One by one, they stood on the moral high ground, accusing the sale of garrison land, pointing out the harm of abolishing the garrisons, and threatening that if the emperor did not stop Beiping Prefecture from selling military farmland, all the garrisons of the Ming Dynasty would disintegrate, leading to chaos and the disintegration of the country.

Zhu Yunwen was quite puzzled. He couldn’t understand why ancient people had such a developed system of spitting. They could talk for three or four hours straight, their mouths spraying saliva all over the place, which was clearly not in line with science.

By the time the sun was high, he thought, ‘Alright, it’s time to clock out.’

Zhu Yunwen’s strategy towards officials who opposed the sale of military farmland was simple:

Delay.

He would wait until Beiping Prefecture had sold all the land, collected the money, and gathered the data. Then, he would engage in discussions and debates with these ministers.

Dealing with officials, Zhu Yunwen gradually discovered that almost all of them shared a common trait: they were emotional.

When there was an earthquake that resulted in casualties, they would wail and then write poetry and essays to express their feelings.

When a corrupt official was discovered in their own ministries, they would become angry and demand that the emperor punish the culprit, After all, this person was feasting alone, which didn’t win the people’s hearts.

When they receive their salaries, they get excited, and then they take their freshly earned money and visit a brothel to support the third industry.

In plain terms, these individuals lack rational analysis and understanding when it comes to evaluating issues and making decisions. They rely solely on their feelings and emotions when speaking and conducting their duties.

When it comes to the sale of garrison land, these officials rely on their feelings and perceptions. They feel that it’s not a good idea, that it’s wrong, and that it could be harmful. So, they light a small candle at night, write a three-thousand-word memorial, and submit it the next day.

If the emperor doesn’t approve or ignores it, it doesn’t matter.

you can avoid it on the first day, but you can’t escape it on the fifteenth. The emperor has to attend court sessions twice a month, so they believe they’ll eventually have the opportunity to discuss it in person.

They lack an awareness of data, and there is a shortage of rationality. Subjectivity and emotion play a significant role in their perspectives. As a result, their views may seem correct, but upon closer investigation, they are often found to be quite different from reality.

Countless unjust cases, wrongful executions, accusations, and impeachments are rooted in their emotional and subjective judgments.

They don’t bother with concepts like “motive” or “baseless accusations.” Instead, they directly ignore such nuances, skip the guesswork, and confidently tell you:

“This is wrong!”

“This person deserves to be executed!”

“This war must not be fought!”

In the end, we can’t blame them. They come from a literary background, where a bit of emotional indulgence is quite normal.

The key point is that Ming Dynasty needs a diverse set of officials, not just those from literary backgrounds.

As for the talented mathematicians, it’s a shame that they are either in the private sector or limited to a few individuals in the Ministry of Revenue…

It’s quite frustrating.

Zhu Yunwen returned to the Wuying hall, washed his face, and prepared to continue writing “Elementary Mathematics.” Without reforming mathematics, without introducing deductive logic, relying solely on a group of emotional individuals, how could they usher in a golden age?

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