Zhu Jinsong's words fell, and Zeng Cheng, Zhu Erdan, and a group of big shots exchanged glances, looking utterly bewildered.
In fact, since Emperor Xiaozong, until Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself on Coal Hill, royal power had already been significantly divided by the Grand Secretariat. Even in Zhu Jinsong's version of the Ming Dynasty court, the Grand Secretariat held considerable power.
If Zhu Jinsong's so-called "caging royal power" merely meant dividing it among the Grand Secretariat, what was the difference between that and beating a dead horse?
Zhu Jinsong tapped the table with his finger and said, "Of course, I don't just intend to divide royal power among the Grand Secretariat. In fact, I plan to divide royal power into public power and private power."
Upon hearing this, Zeng Cheng and the other big shots' spirits were immediately lifted.
Public power? Private power?
Connecting Zhu Jinsong's previous statements with the literal meaning of these two terms, it was easy to infer that public power referred to the powers of the Ming court and local government, while private power referred to the powers that belonged to the common people themselves.
And these two powers were naturally in opposition – all were experienced old foxes, who didn't understand the intricacies of it all? When public power is strong, private power cannot be guaranteed; when private power is strong, no one will take public power seriously.
If an example were needed, the Central Plains dynasties almost always had stronger public power, with the Song Dynasty being the only one with stronger private power.
Of course, there was also an exception to the exception: the Great Qing.
The Great Qing did not involve issues of strong public power or strong private power; these issues were too tedious for the Great Qing. The Great Qing always prioritized the master's power above all else, and the servants were not concerned with issues of power.
If one insisted on saying that servants had any rights, it was probably the right to kneel, to shout "Long live the Emperor," and to fervently praise the merits of the twelve wise rulers of the Great Qing.
It was precisely because Zeng Cheng and the other big shots understood this that they were curious about Zhu Jinsong's approach.
How to strengthen public power?
How to strengthen private power?
And how to ensure stability between the two?
Zhu Jinsong tapped the table again and said, "I recall a Western proverb: 'Let the wind blow, let the rain fall, but let the king not enter,' which means protecting an individual's private dwelling from infringement by others."
"In our Central Plains, Master Mencius also said something similar: 'The people's Way is to have steady property, and thus have a steady heart; without steady property, they have no steady heart.'"
Zeng Cheng's gaze toward Zhu Jinsong shifted.
As a scholar who had passed the imperial examinations and reached the high position of prefect, Zeng Cheng naturally knew that "to have steady property, and thus have a steady heart; without steady property, they have no steady heart" came from Mencius, Chapter Teng Wen Gong I.
The key was that the original text was: "The people's Way is to have steady property, and thus have a steady heart; without steady property, they have no steady heart. If they have no steady heart, they will be unrestrained, extravagant, and will do nothing wrong. When they fall into guilt, and are then punished, it is misleading the people. How can a benevolent ruler, who is in power, mislead the people? Therefore, a wise ruler must be frugal, courteous, and respect subordinates, and especially when collecting taxes, there must be a system." xxs12
This passage translated meant: Governing the people requires adhering to a basic principle, which is that when people have a certain amount of property and income, they will have certain moral concepts and behavioral standards; those without a certain amount of property and income will not have certain moral concepts and behavioral standards. If they have no steady heart, they will act recklessly, break the law, and do all sorts of bad things. When they commit crimes and are then punished, it is equivalent to misleading the people. How can a benevolent person in power mislead the people? Therefore, a wise ruler must be diligent, thrifty, courteous to subordinates, and especially when levying taxes, there must be a system.
This passage could be interpreted as Mencius speaking up for the common people. Scholars studying here must also grasp the concept of "valuing the people, the people are important."
So, how could steady property be linked to the protection of private property?
However, Zeng Cheng did not know how to refute Zhu Jinsong's fallacious argument.
How to refute it?
Before the Duke Yansheng of the Northern Sect was completely stripped of his title, or rather, before his lineage was completely wiped out, he had the audacity to publicly declare that the Duke Yansheng lineage acknowledged Zhu Jinsong's profound Confucian scholarship, deeming him the sole grand master of Confucianism in this era.
"Sole in this era" and "grand master of Confucianism," when put together, essentially meant that any interpretation of Confucian classics by Zhu Jinsong, the Emperor, would be the only correct answer.
What was even more infuriating was that not long after the Duke Yansheng's mansion issued this statement, it completely collapsed. Zhu Jinsong then became the last officially recognized Confucian grand master in the world, effectively blocking any possibility of others refuting him.
Upon realizing this, Zeng Cheng could not help but resent the fools at the Duke Yansheng's mansion.
Ever since I, Zeng, defected to Liangshan, I haven't seen this lord read classics like the Analects, Spring and Autumn Annals, or Mencius. You bunch of scoundrels, why did you bestow the title of Grand Master of Confucianism upon him for no reason?
Zeng Cheng believed that it was precisely this title of Grand Master of Confucianism that became a significant motive for Emperor Zhu to eliminate the Duke Yansheng's mansion. Kublai Khan had also held this title of Grand Master of Confucianism.
The matter here was rather complicated.
Initially, Confucius's descendants lived in the area of Qufu. Especially after Emperor Wu of Han's "Dismissing the Hundred Schools and Venerating Confucianism," the status of the Confucius family in Qufu gradually rose.
However, at this time, the Kong family was merely leveraging the banner of Confucius's descendants; there was no such thing as the title of Duke Yansheng. Although their status had risen, they were not considered particularly formidable.
At the very least, the Five Great Clans and Seven Prominent Families did not pay much attention to the Kong family.
The Kong family's status truly became formidable in the second year of Zhihe of the Song Dynasty (1055), when Emperor Renzong of Song, Zhao Zhen, "decreed that officials should establish the title of Duke Yansheng for their descendants and order it to be hereditary."
It was precisely from this point onward that the Kong family's status in the world truly became formidable.
Unfortunately, while the Great Song showed genuine sincerity towards the Kong family, the Kong family repaid this sincerity with betrayal. In the twelfth year of Chunyou of the Southern Song Dynasty (1252), which was the second year of Mongke Khan, the Mongols had already conquered the Jin Dynasty and occupied the area north of the Yangtze River in the Central Plains. The contemporary Neo-Confucian Zhang Dehui of the Qufu Kong family, along with Yuan Haowen and others, met with Kublai Khan and knelt to request that he be made the "Great Master of Confucianism."
Not only that, but as early as the second year of Baoqing (1226), twenty years prior, Duke Yansheng Kong Yuanyong personally led his clansmen to join the Yuan army and accompanied them on their western campaigns, suppressing Han "rebels," but he died in the army.
To demonstrate their loyalty, the Kong family bestowed this honorific title upon Kublai Khan. Kublai Khan was naturally pleased, not only accepting it with delight but also exempting the Kong Mansion and Confucian households from military service.
However, this honorific title was rather far-fetched, as Kublai Khan, this old fellow, did not speak Chinese very well, let alone understand Confucianism.
By the time Zhu Jinsong, this arch-rebel, overthrew the Great Qing and was on the verge of unifying the empire, the Kong family again eagerly bestowed the title of "Grand Master of Confucianism" upon Emperor Zhu.
If Zeng Cheng were in his place, he felt he would absolutely not accept such a title, let alone Zhu Jinsong, this arch-rebel.
The key was that although Emperor Zhu did not accept the title of "Great Master of Confucianism," the Kong family had already bestowed the honorific title. Moreover, after the Duke Yansheng's mansion was destroyed, Emperor Zhu invited Confucius into the Temple of Literature, where he was officially sacrificed by the Ministry of Rites. Thus, Confucian scholars throughout the land could only accept Zhu Jinsong as the Grand Master of Confucianism.
In any case, what disgusted orthodox Confucian officials like Zeng Cheng the most was this title of Grand Master of Confucianism.
For example, now that Emperor Zhu Jinsong had linked the phrase "to have steady property, and thus have a steady heart; without steady property, they have no steady heart" with the protection of private property, then in future Confucian classics, this phrase could only be linked to the protection of private property, and there was no alternative but to accept it.
After a long silence, Zeng Cheng finally spoke and said, "Your Majesty, if 'the wind can enter, the rain can enter, but the king cannot enter,' then what should be done about those villains who violate the laws of the Great Ming and hide in their homes?"
Having said this, Zeng Cheng cast his gaze toward Ke Zhiming, the Ming Dynasty's intelligence chief, and said, "The Embroidered Uniform Guard under your command, Leader Ke, probably violates this the most?"
Ke Zhiming ignored Zeng Cheng.
It was not a matter of a day or two that the Embroidered Uniform Guard was arrogant and overbearing. In the Great Ming, they would at least show some restraint, but in places outside the Great Ming, the Embroidered Uniform Guard had committed countless misdeeds. Merely buying children from Europe and training them from a young age to be Embroidered Uniform Guard spies was an act that violated the Ming Dynasty's laws regarding the prohibition of kidnapping and dismemberment. Violating private rights was nothing?
Zhu Jinsong chuckled and said, "This is why I said we need to strengthen public power and private power."
"Although these two seem contradictory, they are originally one. Public power is strong, but it cannot infringe upon private power. The premise of protecting private power is also that it cannot infringe upon public power."
"For example, if Zhang San kills someone and then hides in his home, if we prioritize private power, then can we not search his home? That is certainly impossible because he has already violated public power, so public power will no longer protect his private power."
"For another example, if Zhang San kills someone, and then he runs into someone else's house, what should the government constables do at this time? They should naturally arrest him. This is to protect the safety of others and is considered an act of self-defense."
"For yet another example, if one day you, Elder Zeng, go to Sichuan and get lost in the deep mountains and old forests, and you see a panda—although the Great Ming now strictly prohibits hunting pandas, if you catch and eat one, the Ming Dynasty's laws will still protect you. This is also considered an act of self-defense and can be considered your private power."
Zeng Cheng really wanted to curse. Had I eaten something to damage my brain to the point of abandoning my position as a respected Grand Secretary and running into the deep mountains and old forests alone? Besides, can I even fight a panda? Even Zhu Gang, who stands beside you, Emperor Zhu, is it a question whether he can fight a panda!
Zeng Cheng said with a forced smile, "Your Majesty, this kind of private power seems not to be in opposition to public power? However, I think I understand some of your intentions. Perhaps it is to strengthen the public power for the common people of the world, weaken the public power that is solely for the government and the court, strengthen the private power of the common people, and restrict the private power that might cause harm to the Great Ming or other common people?"
Zhu Jinsong naturally knew that using Zeng Cheng as an example was a bit excessive, so he just smiled and nodded, saying, "However, this is exactly what I mean."
"My intention to divide royal power among the Grand Secretariat is also based on this."
"My plan is that the Emperor will be in charge of life, not death. State affairs will be decided by the discussions of the Grand Secretariat officials. The number of Grand Secretariat officials will be set at seven in the future, to avoid situations where opinions differ and decisions cannot be made. Each Grand Secretary will be in charge of a specific area, for example, one Grand Secretary could be in charge of education and healthcare."
"As for the Six Ministries, they will also be split based on this. For example, the Ministry of Works can be split into the Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of Transportation. For example, the Ministry of War can be split into the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Local Armed Forces, and other government agencies. The Ministry of Revenue will be the same."
"For example, if one day you, Elder Zeng, go to Sichuan and get lost in the deep mountains and old forests, and you see a panda—although the Great Ming now strictly prohibits hunting pandas, if you catch and eat one, the Ming Dynasty's laws will still protect you. This is also considered an act of self-defense and can be considered your private power."
Zeng Cheng really wanted to curse. Had I eaten something to damage my brain to the point of abandoning my position as a respected Grand Secretary and running into the deep mountains and old forests alone? Besides, can I even fight a panda? Even Zhu Gang, who stands beside you, Emperor Zhu, is it a question whether he can fight a panda!
Zeng Cheng said with a forced smile, "Your Majesty, this kind of private power seems not to be in opposition to public power? However, I think I understand some of your intentions. Perhaps it is to strengthen the public power for the common people of the world, weaken the public power that is solely for the government and the court, strengthen the private power of the common people, and restrict the private power that might cause harm to the Great Ming or other common people?"
Zhu Jinsong naturally knew that using Zeng Cheng as an example was a bit excessive, so he just smiled and nodded, saying, "However, this is exactly what I mean."
"My intention to divide royal power among the Grand Secretariat is also based on this."
"My plan is that the Emperor will be in charge of life, not death. State affairs will be decided by the discussions of the Grand Secretariat officials. The number of Grand Secretariat officials will be set at seven in the future, to avoid situations where opinions differ and decisions cannot be made. Each Grand Secretary will be in charge of a specific area, for example, one Grand Secretary could be in charge of education and healthcare."
"As for the Six Ministries, they will also be split based on this. For example, the Ministry of Works can be split into the Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of Transportation. For example, the Ministry of War can be split into the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Local Armed Forces, and other government agencies. The Ministry of Revenue will be the same."