Zhu Erdan and Zhu Sanshun, Liu Hemin, Liu Erniu, and other military bigwigs never imagined that while they were happily spectating, they would suddenly be blindsided.
Zhu Erdan stared at Zhu Jinsong, bewildered, and asked, "Are our Five Chief Military Commissions to be reorganized?"
Zhu Jinsong grunted, "What, do you intend for the Five Chief Military Commissions to continue as they are?"
Zhu Erdan, Zhu Sanshun, Liu Hemin, and others exchanged glances, unable to fathom what problems plagued the Five Chief Military Commissions.
According to the current military system of the Great Ming, the Five Chief Military Commissions were the supreme organs governing the Ming army. Below them were the Left, Right, Front, Rear, and Central Chief Military Commissions. Although they retained the name "Five Chief Military Commissions," they actually encompassed all sorts of chaotic affairs.
In contrast, the Ministry of War seemed somewhat undeserving of its name, as much of its authority had already been absorbed by the Five Chief Military Commissions, including the garrisons in various regions, which were now also managed by the Five Chief Military Commissions.
Zhu Erdan and the others had grown accustomed to this management model and saw no particular fault with it.
Zhu Jinsong, however, chuckled and said, "The Southern Sea Fleet of the Front Chief Military Commission and the Southern Sea Fleet of the Left Chief Military Commission, they have always looked down on each other, haven't they? And the armies and navies of the various Chief Military Commissions also dislike each other."
"Last time, when dealing with the Portuguese barbarians occupying Macau, your Front Chief Military Commission's army was busy bombarding the barbarians, and the Southern Sea Fleet was also busy bombarding the barbarians. In the end, not a single laborer was brought back. Do you still feel proud of that?"
"And between the armies and garrisons in various regions, and between the navies and fleets, there are numerous other messy and sordid affairs, aren't there? If I don't mention it, do you pretend not to see it?"
Upon hearing Zhu Jinsong's words, Zhu Erdan and the other military bigwigs immediately lowered their heads, none daring to meet Zhu Jinsong's gaze.
This was because what Zhu Jinsong said was the truth.
It wasn't just a day or two since the navy and army began to dislike each other; similarly, it wasn't just a day or two since the field armies and garrisons began to dislike each other. Although it didn't lead to major incidents, there was always covert competition and occasional sarcastic remarks directed at other fraternal units.
Zhu Jinsong continued, "Furthermore, the Left and Front Chief Military Commissions specialize in naval warfare, the Right Chief Military Commission excels in plateau and desert operations, the Central Chief Military Commission is adept at plain and hilly terrain warfare, and the Rear Chief Military Commission is skilled in cold region and grassland combat. Do you think you can conquer the world with just one specialized skill?"
"Times have changed!"
"Wars of the past were about who had more men and who feared death less. As long as everyone dared to wield a blade and kill, it was enough. But current warfare is no longer merely a contest of numbers and courage, although these two aspects remain crucial. It also relies more heavily on logistical support."
"Similarly, tactics and strategies are changing with the further promotion of firearms. Previously, a three-stage or even four-stage attack was needed to ensure firepower coverage. How many of you still use the three-stage or four-stage attack tactics now? In the past, close combat was emphasized. How many of you still use close combat tactics now?"
"If, one day, the Armaments Branch of the Royal Academy successfully develops a weapon that can kill people hundreds or even thousands of miles away, and can kill a large area with a single strike, what will you do then?"
At this point, Zhu Jinsong couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.
There were a multitude of messy problems to resolve in the imperial court, and the Five Chief Military Commissions also had a host of chaotic issues. Furthermore, besides these two, the Investigation Censorate under the Censorate and the Office of the Censorate under the Supreme Censorate were also riddled with problems.
The only ones that were relatively worry-free were probably the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot.
The reason these two agencies were worry-free was precisely because they operated outside the imperial court and military commands, and their scale was many times smaller than the behemoth that was the Five Chief Military Commissions.
What was even more vexing was that the future Great Ming was likely to encounter all sorts of bizarre and magical problems.
For example, what if some scoundrel tried to outsource tasks that should be handled by local government offices, wouldn't it?
This clearly changed the rules and models originally set by the imperial court; it could almost be considered rebellion. However, if they then added a label of "exploration" and claimed it promoted economic development, wouldn't the situation become magical?
In any case, Zhu Jinsong did not trust the officials of the Great Ming.
In Zhu Jinsong's view, the reason these Ming officials still behaved themselves was not because they had a change of heart, but simply because Zhu Jinsong, the Emperor of the Great Ming, was still alive.
It was like when Zhu Yuanzhang was alive, those corrupt officials behaved themselves and even worked with cangues on.
After Zhu Yuanzhang's death, the vilification of his character was a separate matter.
By the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, the Grand Scholar Xu Jie, who had overthrown Yan Song, played even more skillfully.
Old Xu confiscated the property of the great corrupt official and traitor Yan Song, and listed his assets. Because the quantity was too vast and the number of characters in the record kept increasing, the final list turned into a book called "Tianshui Iceberg Record," which meant "when the sun rises, the iceberg melts."
According to the "Tianshui Iceberg Record," when Yan Song's house was searched, over ten thousand taels of gold, more than two million taels of silver, and several thousand pieces of gold and silver jewelry were found. However, only a mere hundred thousand taels entered the Ministry of Revenue.
Later, the Jiajing Emperor questioned Xu Jie: "After the execution of prisoners in March, it is now past October, and the properties have not yet arrived, nor have they been seen. A large mansion is valued at only five hundred taels. This means the properties are not with the criminal's family, nor are they collected by the state, nor returned to the people. Where are they?"
This meant that something was wrong. Where was the money? Your list submitted to me claimed that Old Yan's house was a veritable gold mountain and silver sea, rich enough to rival the nation, but how did it become only a hundred thousand taels when it reached me?
Old Xu's reply was even more interesting: "When confiscating Yan's property, the assets had already somewhat dispersed. As per my mandate, I was ordered to collect them, but in my haste, I could not complete the task. Thus, I allowed Kong (Peng Kong, designated by Xu Jie as a 'rebel' of Yan's faction) and others to accuse, which then led to the implicati
on of the innocent, causing disturbances throughout a province."
According to Old Xu's explanation, the money was gone by the time Yan's property was searched. Now, if you want this money, I, Xu, cannot get it immediately. If you were to believe the words of Yan's faction, then the entire Jiangxi province might suffer – in short, there was no money.
At this point, the Jiajing Emperor, who was not unintelligent to begin with, knew that Yan Song had been wronged. Enraged, he said to Xu Jie: "You wait, if you cannot give me an explanation, I will not let you off!"
However, the amusing part was that before Xu Jie could provide an explanation, the Jiajing Emperor died first.
As for how the Jiajing Emperor suddenly died while in good health, it was hard to say – but it was very likely that Old Xu thought, "If you ask me for an explanation, and I can't provide one, why not let you give me an explanation?"
Don't think that Old Xu was incapable of doing such a thing.
Back then, in order to get rid of Old Yan, Old Xu had thrown his dignity to the wind. When Old Yan was in power, he even went so far as to marry his eldest son Xu Fan's daughter to Yan Song's son Yan Shifan's son as a concubine to curry favor with Old Yan.
Old Yan saw this and thought, "Good, we're related by marriage now. Even if you, Old Xu, are not honest and marry your granddaughter to my son, making me a generation older, we are still family, aren't we?"
Old Yan became happy and no longer doubted Old Xu, so Old Xu gradually gained favor with Jiajing.
Later, after Old Yan lost favor through Old Xu's intricate schemes – largely because he did not appease Jiajing after the Yongshou Palace burned down, while Xu Jie appeased the emperor and had the Wanshou Palace repaired for him. Jiajing was very pleased with this, and Xu Jie took this opportunity to get rid of Old Yan and become the big boss himself.
Later, when Old Xu's grandson-in-law Yan Shifan was sentenced to execution by Old Xu himself, Old Xu's eldest son Xu Fan went to see Old Xu.
Seeing that Old Xu was angry and silent, Xu Fan knew what his father's opinion was.
After returning to the inner quarters, Xu Fan poisoned his own daughter – the young girl Old Xu had given to Yan Shifan as a concubine.
What was Old Xu's reaction upon learning that his granddaughter was dead?
He immediately smiled and nodded in approval – "smiled and nodded in approval" means to nod and smile happily.
As for historical records praising Old Xu as an incorruptible official, this matter is indeed quite suspicious – one can discern the true nature of Old Xu from the many contradictory records in historical texts.
After the Jiajing Emperor's death, Old Xu supported Emperor Muzong Longqing, Zhu Zaihou, and then abolished the "Single Whip Law" that the Jiajing Emperor had pushed through with great pressure!
Subsequently, Old Xu's son, who hung a banner in his study that read "Return power and prestige to the sovereign, return administrative affairs to the various departments, return rewards and punishments to public opinion," managed to acquire four hundred thousand mu of fertile land in his hometown of Songjiang Prefecture "behind Old Xu's back."
Of course, it didn't matter whether others believed it or not; what mattered was that Old Xu himself believed it – I, Xu, am not ruthless! Not greedy!
It's just that Old Xu might not have known the saying that what goes around comes around. Within less than a year and a half of Emperor Muzong Longqing's ascension, Old Xu himself was defeated by Gao Gong and the other officials and was forced to return to his hometown in disgrace.
Upon returning to his hometown, Old Xu no longer bothered to conceal his greedy nature.
Due to Old Xu's perverse actions during his tenure, the national situation became chaotic in the third year of Longqing. Old Xu did not restrain himself; instead, he took advantage of the chaos to annex land extensively and exploit the common people, arousing public indignation.
When the local people filed a lawsuit accusing Xu Jie of seizing land and property, Hai Rui, who was then the Governor, immediately ordered Xu to "return over half," otherwise the case would not be closed. At that time, Old Xu thought that his father would concede and return part of the land to the peasants.
However, Hai Rui felt that this matter could not be let go. Thus, he reported to Emperor Longqing. Coincidentally, Emperor Longqing was also not pleased with Old Xu's actions, so he directly issued a secret decree to Hai Rui, ordering him to deal with Old Xu on the spot.
When Hai Rui went around the streets with a knife searching for Old Xu, Old Xu became scared. He knew that if he fell into Hai Rui's hands, he would surely die a thousand deaths. Thus, he disguised himself and fled overnight.
But after thinking about it in secret, Old Xu felt he couldn't swallow this insult and bribed the Supervisor Dai Fengxiang, instructing Dai to impeach Hai Rui for "preying on the gentry."
Now it was Hai Rui's turn to be unlucky. After Old Hai was removed from office, Old Xu not only retained most of his land but also took the opportunity to vent his anger.
According to the later "Records of Offering and Conquering · Biography of Grand Scholar Yan Song," Yan Song was born into a humble family, "his father was merely a minor official"; the same book's "Biography of Grand Scholar Xu Jie" states: Xu Jie's family "received land for generations, did not enter officialdom, until his father, owing to his poverty, became a minor clerk."
When they started, their families were comparable. Yan Song served as Chief Grand Secretary for fifteen years. When his house was searched, over thirty thousand taels of gold and two million taels of silver were found – this amount was compiled by Old Xu, but only about one hundred thousand taels eventually entered the national treasury. Meanwhile, Old Xu only served as Chief Grand Secretary for six years, yet his landholdings were fifteen times that of Yan Song.
Such a person, to say he dared not ruthlessly eliminate Jiajing...
Just look at the deaths of the Ming emperors throughout history. Except for the founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Laosi, and Zhu Jinsong, who hanged himself on Meishan Mountain, which other emperor died normally?
Emperor Renzong Zhu Gaochi wanted to investigate the tax situation in Ying Tian, Zhenjiang, Songjiang, and other places. Shortly after sending out personnel, he died of a sudden illness. The successor, Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji, although he enjoyed things like fighting crickets, had also killed people with Zhu Laosi. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him an emperor who could wield both the pen and the sword. However, Zhu Zhanji only reigned for ten years and died of an unexpected illness.
Further down, his son, Yingzong Zhu Qizhen, during the Tumu Crisis, even saw situations where the enemy forces were more familiar with the terrain than the Ming army. In Zhu Jinsong's opinion, another person who cared too much about face was tricked into becoming a dead dog.
And the so-called "Restoration of the Tumu Crisis" later was even more absurd. The Commander Zhang, the Supreme Censor of the Censorate Yang Shan, the Grand Master of Ceremonies Xu Bin, and the Assistant Supreme Censor Xu Youzhen, along with the eunuch Cao Jiaxiang and the Crown Prince's Tutor Shi Xiang, staged a play and enthroned Zhu Qizhen for his restoration.
Again, a group of civil officials.
The next emperor, Zhu Jianshen, was "wise in his early reign," but later established the Western Depot, which was abolished after only five years.
And just five years after the abolition of the Western Depot, Zhu Jianshen also died.
As for what followed, there's nothing more to say. Emperor Xiaozong Zhu Tang had a peaceful end. Emperor Zhengde Zhu Huzhao, a man who personally wielded a blade, died of a cold contracted from falling into water, and was even denied a change of imperial physicians.
Emperor Jiajing Zhu Hou, after Old Xu killed Yan Song, realized he had been fooled and intended to seek an explanation from Old Xu, then suddenly fell ill and died.
The next emperor, Muzong Zhu Zong, died after six years of reign due to excessive indulgence and long-term consumption of aphrodisiacs. The problem was that in the first year of Longqing, he initiated the Longqing Embargo reversal.
Emperor Wanli, this guy, was better off; at least he lived longer. In his early years, military bigwigs like Qi Jiguang would call themselves "dogs of the subordinate" to Zhang Juzheng, saying, "Your humble subordinate Qi."
Later, after Zhang Juzheng's death, he realized he still couldn't be in charge, so he indulged in wine, women, wealth, and anger, and thus brought about his own demise.
Emperor Guangzong Zhu Changluo died from the "Red Pill," and Emperor Xizong Zhu Youxiao died from falling into water.
If Zhu Jinsong believed that the deaths of these Ming emperors were all due to natural causes and that no one's sinister hand was involved, he thought that would be the greatest joke in the world.