Thus, the so-called diplomacy was merely a tool in their hands, aimed at pressuring the Ming Dynasty and forcing it to halt its reforms and open its doors wide.
If the Ming Dynasty refused, they would resort to violence. This meant two things:
First, the possibility of war declared by the allied states.
Second, a large-scale invasion by the Wokou pirates in the four provinces, directly using force to stop the reforms.
Zhu Mo understood that Zhang Juzheng wasn't incapable of understanding, he simply didn't want to accept it. His reluctance stemmed from a lack of sufficient recognition of such a law of brute force. If he had personally visited Ligang or Yuegang, things would be much clearer.
He didn't want to waste his breath, for the situation had already unfolded, and whether Zhang Juzheng was willing to accept it was beyond his control. Yan Song and his son, along with the Wokou, would eventually teach him how to behave.
Currently, the Yan family's next move was likely to use diplomacy to pressure the court while simultaneously employing Wokou to violently end the reforms. As the Grand Secretary, Yan Song could certainly pressure the court. However, if they intended to use Wokou to violently end the reforms, his firearms and cannons would not agree. Therefore, the situation remained stable, and the reforms must continue, provided Zhang Juzheng had confidence.
He immediately tested the waters, asking, "Brother Taiyue, let's speak frankly. After the Yan family caused all this trouble, what will happen next? Will the reforms continue?"
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Zhang Juzheng immediately knew he was being pushed to declare his stance. However, he now deeply regretted siding with Zhu Mo too early!
It was impossible to back down now; Yan Song must have already considered him an enemy. But since things had come to this point, he could only stand with this young man and bear the burden. He immediately braced himself and said slowly,
"Zi Xuan, no matter what, the pace of reform must not stop. The more we hesitate, the more they will push their advantage... You and I have offended these people, and we are bound to die eventually, so we can only see this through to the end... Besides, if we don't do it, who knows what will become of the Great Ming?"
Mm-hmm,
Zhu Mo was reassured and couldn't help but admire his courage, sighing,
"Brother Taiyue, you are still the most steadfast, truly fearless! As for us, let's not worry about the external storms for now. Let the wind blow and the waves crash, I will leisurely stroll through the courtyard...
Things have been chaotic these past few days, and many matters haven't been discussed. Hmm... I have already asked He Xinyin to compile a primer, and I've found some disciples to prepare to take over the one hundred and twenty academies you sealed off... These days, the silk trading post has also been established in Huating, so let's discuss the reforms...
I think those released bondservants should still be granted land based on their mouths. As for the land, I propose it come from the imperial estates. Any land annexed by the princely states shall be returned, and the land for the princes' stipends should also be reduced. What do you think is an appropriate reduction? How will the imperial family's stipends be handled then? Should it be in silver, or something else?
Additionally, the land annexed from the gentry and officials' donations shall also be returned. If the family line is extinct, it will be granted based on the mouths to those landless bondservants. Those who were originally just donations but have been turned into tenant land shall all be restored to their original state... There are many things to do. If there aren't enough people, I'd like to have the students from the academies help out, what do you think?"
Good,
Good!
As soon as Zhang Juzheng spoke of land reclamation, he immediately perked up.
It should be known that he had been contemplating this for over twenty years and had accumulated many files, waiting to start this work after becoming Grand Secretary. Now that Zhu Mo had decided to proceed, what was there to wait for? The sooner it was done, the better.
He regained his composure and said in an orderly manner,
"Zi Xuan, it's feasible! Those scholars spend their days slandering national policies in academies and not doing proper work, so they should be sent down to gain experience!
Tomorrow, we will ask Zhang Ziwen to issue an official decree in the name of the Provincial Governor's Yamen, and you will append your signature as the Imperial Inspector of Academic Affairs, leaving them no choice but to comply. I will then oversee it with the Examination System, and it should be largely cleared up within half a year... Once cleared, we will proceed according to your proposals first, and then discuss if it doesn't work out! In the end, it will just be a matter of expediency.
Zi Xuan, we must stabilize our position now... You don't know, Zhang Siwei and the others are already ready to retreat. He and Ma Ziqiang come from extremely wealthy families and are reluctant to stake everything... If we lose our footing, even before the Wokou land, the reforms will be dead..."
Zhu Mo nodded, and suddenly saw something—
Zhang Juzheng's followers were united by profit and power. I, on the other hand, am much stronger this time, relying on ideology. Whether it's those few scholars or Zhang Han, Liu Yingjie, they are all very united this time... Zhang Juzheng relies on those literati, and eventually, he won't be my match...
At the same time,
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He responded verbally, "The common people are now saying that the Wokou will land and attack Hangzhou at any time. To stabilize people's hearts, I will have Zheng Qin and others patrol the city with the musketeers every day to show the common people?"
Good!
"Exactly!"
Zhang Juzheng's expression finally eased, and he chuckled, "Zi Xuan, you are so young, yet you can remain calm and steady, which is truly admirable..."
After further planning, it was deep into the night. As they left, although their moods were still heavy, there was no longer any trace of panic.
...
The next day,
Zhu Mo, Zhang Juzheng, and Hu Zongxian, along with two teams, deployed the task of clearing the donated land. Zhang Han and Liu Yingjie, having experienced many hardships, remained calm as usual and quickly instructed their subordinates to break down the tasks to the prefectures and counties. With Hu Zongxian overseeing, the remaining forces of the Yan family in the four provinces had no choice but to obey.
Zhu Mo found He Xinyin and asked Li Zhi and Lü Kun to cooperate, leading the scholars from the prefectures and counties to work alongside government runners, registering and cataloging everything.
Therefore,
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While one side was engulfed in flames, this side remained still, everything as usual.
The twelve hundred musketeers patrolled Hangzhou daily, drawing cheers and curious glances from the gentry and commoners. Most people had also heard that Scholar Zhu's firearms corps had rescued Hu Zongxian, and the corps also had five iron bodhisattva cannons, even more powerful than the falconet cannons, which had also stabilized people's hearts.
The archives Zhu Mo had transferred from the Nanjing Ministry of Rites a few days prior had also arrived.
These archives recorded the tributary and diplomatic records since the Zhengde and Jiajing eras. Arranged chronologically, starting from the late Zhengde period, with the Portuguese conquering the vassal state of Malacca in Malaysia, everything began to change.
After carefully reading for two to three days, he suddenly discovered something very peculiar—
For some unknown reason,
Asia in the 16th century suddenly fell silent. From the Tatars to Annan, from Japan to Burma, all experienced a mysterious internal collapse. It happened almost simultaneously, and the circumstances were very similar...
This was something no one had ever mentioned, and it led him into deep contemplation.