Chapter 98 The End
Chapter 98 The End
Concubine Zheng stayed with the emperor for quite a while until Ma Rong came to report that Duke Yingguo Zhang Weixian and the chief minister of the cabinet, Grand Secretary Fang Congzhe, and others had arrived outside the palace.
At this time, Wanli signaled Concubine Zheng to leave for the time being. Although she was reluctant, Concubine Zheng also understood that Wanli wanted to make arrangements for her funeral. She suppressed her grief, bid farewell to the emperor, and left Hongde Hall.
After Concubine Zheng left, Wanli asked Ma Rong to call them in. When they entered the hall, they saw that in addition to Zhang Weixian and Fang Congzhe, there were also Minister of Personnel Zhou Jiamo, Minister of Revenue Li Ruhua, Minister of War Huang Jiashan, Acting Minister of Punishments Zhang Wenda, Acting Minister of Works Huang Kezun, and Right Vice Minister of Rites Sun Ruyou.
Wanli did not summon these people, but they came together. Needless to say, Wanli knew that these people came here on their own. They had probably been waiting for this day for days. When they learned that Wanli wanted to meet Zhang Weixian and Fang Congzhe, they couldn't wait to come.
If it were in the past, Wanli would have been furious, but now Wanli no longer has that anger in his heart.
He was lying on the bed with not much time left. He knew that he could not make it any longer. Since he was going to tell his last wishes, he might as well come. Since Fang Congzhe was the only prime minister in the cabinet and there were countless vacancies in various departments, they were considered the important officials who could make decisions in the court.
Under the guidance of Ma Rong, Zhang Weixian and Fang Congzhe were in front, and the others followed behind, bowing to Wanli.
Many of these people had not seen Wanli for a long time, and some even saw the emperor for the first time. Seeing the emperor so seriously ill, no one knew what they were thinking. Wanli didn't want to guess anymore at this time. He knew that he didn't have much time left and some things had to be arranged.
Wanli reluctantly cheered up and asked the ministers to rest assured and work hard, and not to delay state affairs because of his illness. At this time, the Minister of Personnel Zhou Jiamo proposed personnel arrangements, once again stating that there were serious vacancies in various departments of the court, and hoped that the emperor would agree to fill the vacancies as soon as possible.
This time, Wanli did not refuse like before, but sighed and reluctantly agreed. Then he swept his eyes over the crowd and said a few words, asking them to assist the prince well in the future, be loyal to the state, etc.
After hearing what the emperor said, everyone understood and immediately made a promise to the emperor. Wanli then waved his hand, signaling them to leave. Everyone saluted the emperor again and left the Hongde Hall.
After these people left, Wanli looked very complicated, as if he was concentrating on thinking about something. After a long time, he sighed and told Ma Rong, who was serving beside him, to draft two edicts for him.
The first edict was addressed to the Cabinet. Its meaning was very clear. It confirmed the succession status of Crown Prince Zhu Changluo and instructed the Cabinet and the Imperial Household Department to assist the Crown Prince wholeheartedly and safeguard the imperial plan.
The second edict was Wanli's official will, which arranged that after his death, Concubine Zheng would become the empress dowager and Crown Prince Zhu Changluo would succeed to the throne. It also explained to Zhu Changluo some subsequent arrangements in the court and instructed his son, whom he had always disliked, on how to be a good emperor.
Although Wanli disliked Zhu Changluo, at this time, as the crown prince, Zhu Changluo would be the next emperor after his death. Wanli was really worried about his son's ability. He knew very well that his son had no talent and no courage to make progress. It was impossible for him to be a wise ruler.
Wanli only hoped that after his death, Zhu Changluo could barely maintain the status quo. As long as he did not let the civil servants fool him, even if he learned from himself and stayed in the harem and did nothing, the empire could still be maintained with the foundation of the Ming Dynasty and the arrangements he had made during his lifetime.
After finishing the contents of the edict, Wanli felt extremely tired and he closed his eyes again.
He was tired, very tired.
After so many years of fighting, the emperor was mentally exhausted. Coupled with the long-term pain and suffering, Wanli had long lost his attachment to this world.
Maybe death is not a bad thing. Before leaving this world, the only uneasy thought in Wanli's heart was that he felt guilty towards his master. He really didn't know how to face Zhang Juzheng when he got there.
"Sir... I'm sorry... I was wrong... I was wrong..."
Wanli sighed in his heart, and suddenly he seemed to hear a familiar voice in his ears.
"The outside of Xiaoxiang is covered with green, and the sparse forest is cold with dew. The phoenix feathers are densely packed, and they go straight up to the end of the pole..."
This poem is Zhang Juzheng's "Ode to Bamboo", which was written when he was a teenager. When Zhang Juzheng first entered the examination room, he wrote this poem in his youth to express his lofty ambitions.
Wanli learned this poem when he was a child, and also heard Zhang Juzheng recite it for him. Zhang Juzheng used this poem to encourage Wanli and placed great expectations on him, hoping that his disciple would become a wise ruler and create a new Ming Dynasty for which he had worked hard.
The voice was so familiar. Wanli opened his eyes wide and looked. The man walking towards him with his hands behind his back and in a blue shirt was his master Zhang Juzheng.
"Sir... Sir!" At this moment, Wanli was very emotional. He felt ashamed and guilty, and didn't know how to face it.
"Fool... Foolish boy..." Zhang Juzheng walked to his side and touched his head as he did when he was a child. Feeling the warmth of his master's palm, Wanli was so excited that he didn't know what to say.
"Do you know you are wrong?" Zhang Juzheng's sternness was accompanied by a hint of tenderness. Wanli nodded, tears falling again. Just like when he was a child, he respectfully admitted his mistake and said, "I am wrong, sir... I know I am wrong..."
"It is the greatest thing to know one's mistakes and correct them. It is good to know one's mistakes. How can there be people who are not wrong in this world?" Zhang Juzheng sighed. He took Wanli's hand and comforted him, "Life is like a dream. Once a dream is over, it must end. Emperors, generals, glory and wealth, the past events are all just clouds and smoke."
"Decline, decline, why don't you return?"
Holding Zhang Juzheng's hand, Wanli's pain instantly disappeared and he felt a lot lighter. He felt a sense of peace and warmth in his heart, something he had never felt before in all these years.
There seemed to be a light ahead, as bright as the sun. Zhang Juzheng held Wanli's hand, and the master and disciple met again after many years. Following his master, Wanli walked forward briskly. Although he didn't know what would greet him ahead, he was not afraid at all, and he didn't worry about anything, because with his master by his side, what was there to be afraid of?
That night, the Wanli Emperor, the longest-reigning emperor of the Ming Dynasty, died in the Hongde Hall and left this world.
When he died, Wanli was in a coma and passed away in his sleep without any pain. After the emperor passed away, everyone who received the news rushed to invite the crown prince Zhu Changluo to handle the emperor's funeral affairs and the new emperor's enthronement according to Wanli's edict before his death.
The Wanli Emperor, who had been oppressing everyone for decades, was finally dead. Behind the apparent grief of the court officials, they were secretly happy. With Wanli's death, there was finally no one to oppress them anymore, and the day for them to come to the fore had finally come.
Duke of England Zhang Weixian, Prime Minister Fang Congzhe and other officials discussed overnight and quickly came up with a follow-up plan. Among them, Sun Ruyou, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, expressed his opposition immediately after reading the Wanli edict. He pointed out that the Wanli edict honoring Concubine Zheng as the Empress Dowager was inconsistent with the ancestral system. As a staunch supporter of the crown prince, Sun Ruyou was absolutely unwilling to see Concubine Zheng ascend the throne of the Empress Dowager.
In addition, Sun Ruyou also criticized other contents of Wanli's will, claiming that if the crown prince Zhu Changluo acted according to Wanli's will, then what would they be? Could it be that Wanli wanted to suppress them before his death, and even after his death, they could not escape the shadow of the late emperor?
More importantly, if Zhu Changluo did this, they would not get any benefit at all, let alone use it to divide the power in the court.
Sun Ruyou's words were recognized by most people, except Duke of England Zhang Weixian, who seemed a little hesitant. After all, he was the leader among the nobles, and the nobles were naturally not the same kind of people as the civil service group. But in this situation, Zhang Weixian could not do it alone, and he did not want to offend these civil servants, not to mention that the nobles today are no longer the nobles of the past.
With Zhang Weixian remaining silent and adopting a tacit attitude, these civil servants decided to invalidate the original will left by Wanli and write another one according to their own wishes.
Anyway, the emperor is dead now, and the prince has not yet ascended the throne, so they have the final say in the court affairs. Even if someone objects, so what? They can just make it a done deal, destroy the previous will, and use the will they wrote to seal it. How can people in the world know whether this is the emperor's real will?
Sun Ruyou did what he said. He burned Wanli's will on the spot and rewrote a new one himself.
In the new edict, all the original meanings that Wanli wanted to express were deleted, and a lot of things were written in the emperor's tone.
When this "last will" was finished, everyone was very satisfied after reading it, because in this last will Wanli summarized and criticized his life, and also admitted the mistakes and harms of his administration.
Especially at the end, the will also specifically pointed out several points, including adding officials to the cabinet and various ministries, abolishing the local mining and tax supervision systems, suspending the local manufacturing and mining policies that Wanli had previously encouraged, taking money from Wanli's treasury (private money) to make up for the arrears of the Ministry of Revenue, especially the military expenses in Liaodong, and finally a general amnesty.
Except for the last one, the rest are what the civil officials have always wanted to do but have never been able to do. For so many years, Wanli refused to give in at all, fighting wits and courage with the civil officials. If there was no other way, he would just pretend to be deaf and dumb and delay.
Now that Wanli is dead, these people have launched a "counterattack" in the name of Wanli. Not only have they forced Wanli to admit his mistakes, but they have also used his name to resolve all the issues at once.
For a moment, everyone was celebrating with joy, and at the same time, they allocated the quotas and official positions to fill vacancies in various departments, in other words, they divided the spoils.
Among them, because Sun Ruyou, the right vice minister of the Ministry of Rites, made the greatest contribution in this matter, everyone unanimously recommended Sun Ruyou to join the cabinet and further serve as the Minister of Rites.
Although this appointment would only take effect after the new emperor issued an edict after the crown prince officially ascended the throne, in everyone's eyes, this crown prince was supported by them and now the court is controlled by them. There is no reason for the crown prince to disagree with their request after he ascends the throne. This matter is a foregone conclusion.
Under the dim candlelight, the people in the side hall were dancing and laughing, while on the other side of the wall, Wanli's cold body lay quietly on the couch. It was impossible for the emperor who had been in power for forty-eight years to come back to life, and it was impossible for him to continue suppressing them and showing his majesty.
An era ends and a new era is about to begin...
(End of this chapter)