"On the outer layer of the imperial city, the one facing south is called Daming Gate, which is opposite to Zhengyang Gate and Yongding Gate. Slightly east and north, pass Gongsheng Left Gate, and eastward is called Chang'an Left Gate. Then east across Yuhe Bridge, from There is a road to the west of the Tenth Prince's Mansion heading north, and the one to the east is called Dong'an Gate. Then to the south, past Lingji Palace, and to the west of Huichang, it is called Changyou Gate. Inside the red gate, to the north of the gate, is the Denwen Drum Courtyard. This is There are six gates on the periphery, and there are seventy-two red pavilions around the outside of the wall. From outside Longzong gate to the east, there is the direct room of the supervising factory, where daily papers, books and boxes are stored, waiting to be collected from the emperor. Passing the Cining Palace, south of the small outer door to the east is called the North Secretary's Room, which is the clerk's room. Further south is the office of the Secretary of Ceremonies, which is where the two teams and four dialers live. There is also a hut with wooden barrels for The place for defecation and defecation. Further east is called the external dining room. After every fifth watch, some are collected and brought up from the river. They arrive here first and then are sent to the palace. Further to the south, it is called the Nan Si Fang, which is the direct room of the supervisor. Long. Outside the sect's gate, facing south, there is also the direct room for supervising officials and registers, with a well. Further south, there is Baoning Gate. The main hall to the west outside the gate is called Renzhi Hall, commonly known as White Tiger Hall. Fan Daxing The memorial tablet of the Emperor's Empress Zi Palace is here to be enshrined. Its southwest is called the Royal Wine Room. Its northwest is called the Horse House, where the supervisors and officials are ordered to torture criminals. There are two bridges outside the door, which is also the Horse House in Suyunli. . The southeast is called Sishan Gate. To the west of the bridge outside the gate is called Wuying Hall, where the queen was ordered to live. Further to the west, it is called the Grand Kitchen and Shang Shanjian, where the first prime minister, manager, and secretary live. Southwest of Wuying Hall , is called the imperial prison, which is where the chief officials live. Further east, it is called Nanxun Hall. Whenever there is a emblem canonization ceremony, the cabinet ministers will lead the Zhongshu seal to write the gold treasure gold book here. For example, there is the Secretary of Li Jian Gong Yin who was sent by the emperor. When he is under supervision, the emperor's prison supervisor will prepare a grand banquet for the chief officer to serve him. He will kill a deer and steam it to make soup, so as to show the abundance and luxury. This is a grand ceremony."
Liu Jin knelt there straight and spoke loudly. Although he was in his sixties, he was indeed physically strong. Even though he was a eunuch, his voice was still confident. The remaining seven people were lying on the ground with their foreheads on the carpet, sobbing softly. I had never heard that Liu Jin had not studied for more than a few days, but I was shocked to hear what he said tonight! Emperor Zhengde was lying lazily on the soft couch, looking at them indifferently. After a long time, he stretched his waist and said leisurely: "I have been waiting for you for most of the day. Is this what you are talking about in the middle of the night? Liu Jin, you can see Chu, you are familiar with all parts of the inner palace, but what’s the use of it?”
"This old servant is deeply favored by the emperor and never forgets his duties. Therefore, it is really helpless to recite it to you, old man." Liu Jin responded, but did not forget to wipe the corners of his eyes.
"Hey, it's rare that you have me in your heart, but I can't waste the country's laws. The courtiers jointly submitted the memorial, so I had to think deeply. I also let you read the memorial. What else do you have to say?" Zhengde looked tired. There was a bit more warmth in his eyes. He glanced at the eight kneeling people, feeling a sense of loss.
"Old slaves and others entered the palace during the Chenghua period, experienced three dynasties, received many favors from the country, and met the sage master. Although they were indebted, they still had ambitions. The late emperor, the eternal sage, said before his death: Of course, there is an outer court for foreign affairs, and there is an inner court for internal affairs. Everything depends on you. The prince lost his father when he was young, which is really a misfortune in life. You are all loyal and filial people, so you can imitate the kindness of your father and the filial piety of your children and grandchildren. The old slaves and others are ignorant and deeply feel the late emperor's entrustment. The emperor ascended the throne. On that day, the emperor was regarded as a sage and wise king. Although he acted like a dog and horse, he did not know how to work hard. However, the foreign court slandered the slaves as the accomplices of the tiger, because the slaves maintained the authority of the emperor and disobeyed the wishes of the ministers. At the beginning of the emperor's reign, he strictly implemented the new policy and eliminated the abuses. The method of salt introduction benefited the country and the people, but the ministers incited the censors of the two capitals and repeatedly forced the emperor, and the emperor had to obey. The slaves were indignant, thinking that the emperor was a king who kept his word, but was controlled by the mouth of the ministers. Many times He criticized the courtiers until the situation became like fire and water."
Zhengde's expression changed, he sat up straight and said, "Stop talking!"
It turned out that when Zhengde succeeded to the throne, he appointed the eunuch Cui Gao to go to the south to supervise the making of dragon robes. Cui Gao asked Zhengde for twelve thousand salt quotations to fund his official duties. Zhengde approved Cui Gao's request without even thinking about it. . However, what Zhengde did not expect was that Han Wen, the Minister of Household Affairs responsible for distributing salt, refused to implement it on the basis that there had been explicit regulations prohibiting the use of salt in lieu of appropriation. And it was Zhengde himself who issued this decree, or at least it was issued in his name. According to the ancestral system, all salt imports are used as border defense expenses and cannot be used for other purposes. However, Emperor Chenghua felt sorry for his eunuchs, and when he sent them out on official business, he acquiesced in their use of salt to line their own pockets. Therefore, during the Chenghua years, salt and bait were used instead of appropriations. When Chenghua's son, Emperor Hongzhi, ministers reported the shortcomings to the emperor, Emperor Hongzhi issued an edict prohibiting the use of salt instead of appropriation. When Emperor Zhengde succeeded to the throne, he reiterated this point in his accession edict. However, Zhengde seemed to have forgotten this clause, or did not know that there was such a clause at all (because the edict was drafted by the minister), so when Cui Gao proposed to use 12,000 salt quotations instead of appropriation, Zhengde immediately agreed, but the result was He was rejected by the Minister of Household Affairs. Feeling that his authority had been challenged, Zhengde became more determined and insisted on asking the Minister of Household Affairs to issue salt quotations. However, Zhengde's tough attitude aroused the counterattack of a group of petty officials - Liu Ke gave Shi Zhong and Thirteen Dao Yushi , these are officials who specialize in antagonizing people. Regardless of whether they are big or small officials or the emperor, they dare to antagonize them. They have gone to court one after another, hoping that the emperor will take back his orders. But Zhengde is not a coward. The more the officials object, the tougher he becomes. He says that the imperial edict has been issued. Jun Wuxi, please don't go to court again, otherwise I will punish you!
There is nothing the officials can do if they encounter such a tough emperor, but at this time there is still the last line of defense - the cabinet. The power of the Ming Dynasty's cabinet is relatively large. Although they do not have decision-making power, they have the power to draft decrees on behalf of the emperor. Doesn't the emperor have to issue decrees? We don't draft. Zhengde had no choice for a while. In desperation, Zhengde took a small step back and showed some goodwill. Because he felt that the ministers were against Cui Gao, he decided to demote Cui Gao to deputy envoy and appoint an eunuch as the deputy envoy. Right, but 12,000 salt citations must be sent out accordingly.
But it was obvious that Zhengde had made a wrong calculation. The ministers did not care which eunuch was the right envoy. Their goal was not to give him any guidance. But since the emperor had shown goodwill, it would be ungrateful for the ministers not to take a step back. Therefore, the three cabinet ministers put forward their own suggestions - twelve thousand salt notes, "half of which will be given to salt notes, and the other half will be converted into silver." This plan suddenly reduced the amount of embezzlement by the eunuchs by half. , which can be regarded as some gains. Moreover, the three ministers had other plans. Once the emperor agreed to this operation, it would mean that the emperor admitted that he was wrong and could kill the new emperor's spirit. Although Zhengde was only a fifteen-year-old boy and did not understand the meaning, there were many eunuchs with ulterior motives around him. They quickly explained the deep meaning behind it to Zhengde. After awakening, Zhengde was very angry and wanted to protect himself. With authority, he ordered: "This matter must be carried out in full." Not one of the twelve thousand salt quotations should be missing.
Seeing that Zhengde was about to win a complete victory, the three cabinet ministers used their final trump card. They jointly resigned - at the same time. This caught Zhengde off guard. After all, he had just ascended the throne and was very young. It was impossible for him to deal with the complicated affairs of the court. Moreover, he did not have any team of his own to promote. Even if he was promoted, it would take time. This move of the three ministers can be described as a defeat. We have reached the sore point of morality. In addition, the Empress Dowager knew about this and reprimanded him greatly, asking him to follow the late emperor's instructions. In desperation, Zhengde could only agree to the proposal of the three assistant ministers - accept the Ministry of Revenue's plan, half with the price of silver, and half with the salt.
In this way, the young Masanori's first confrontation with the courtiers ended in failure. During the confrontation, Masanori insisted on his own opinion several times, but failed to implement his plan. In the end, he had to accept the compromise plan and lost the His own face, and this also ignited Zhengde's desire to win. In the years to come, Zhengde often made mistakes against his courtiers. This may be one of the reasons.
This matter was an open secret, and no one dared to mention it in front of Zhengde. Unexpectedly, Liu Jin actually said it. After listening to it, I knew that Zhengde would be angry.
The main hall was very quiet, with almost no sound. The storm we predicted did not happen at all, but everyone could feel a sense of oppression.
