At this moment,
Lu Fang reviewed the cause and effect, and suddenly understood the key—
Zhu Mo was testing the Emperor's resolve to continue the reforms, while the Emperor, without stating his position, instead orchestrated a "luring the snakes out of their holes" tactic, testing the attitudes of Prince Yu, Yan Song, and Xu Jie… The Emperor intended to ascertain their positions before deciding whether to proceed with the reforms… If the situation proved unfavorable, he might halt them…
Concurrently, the Emperor also wished to test Zhu Mo. Now that they were delving into the deeper aspects, continuing these reforms would be no trifling matter. Zhu Mo, too, had to demonstrate his resolve through concrete actions…
This explained why the Emperor was not angered by his collusion with foreign secret envoys. It indicated that Zhu Mo had explicitly conveyed to the Emperor, through his actions, that he was not joking and that the reforms must continue…
Upon this realization,
Lu Fang felt that Jiajing still supported Zhu Mo, approved of Zhu Mo's methods, and was generally in favor of continuing the reforms. However, whether the reforms could be pushed through was likely a matter of observing how things unfolded… But his own words should be the opposite. He casually remarked:
“Your Majesty, this servant is truly muddled… Your Majesty’s reminder makes me recall another matter, which, in retrospect, seems to be true… Ah, there are rumors circulating that Zhu Mo provided firearms to Japan's Oda Nobunaga, which led to the defeat of the pirate leader Otomo Sorin… Your Majesty, should we question him about it? Make him provide a clear explanation?”
Jiajing was not displeased. Instead, he sighed and replied:
“The people of the Great Ming have less confidence than outsiders… Li Pan, upon seeing Zhu Mo defeat that Portuguese, and then publicly try the pirates, came to him for assistance… But Zhang Juzheng and the others, conversely, felt Zhu Mo had reached his limit… Lu Fang, if anything is strange, this is truly strange…”
Mm-hmm,
Lu Fang nodded incessantly but remained silent.
After contemplating for a while, Jiajing suddenly said, “Lu Fang, the Korean envoy said their musical instruments were broken last time? Have we given them another set?”
Lu Fang replied without hesitation:
“Reporting to Your Majesty, we have not yet… That set of instruments was a gift from Emperor Chengzu to them, and our inner treasury only has a few sets left, which we are reluctant to part with…”
Jiajing hesitated for a moment, then said with resolve: “Give them the set this time, along with a clear decree, and have that envoy come to the palace for an audience…”
“This servant understands.”
Lu Fang replied respectfully, while inwardly thinking—
Does this count as indirect support for Zhu Mo's use of troops against the pirates in Joseon?
While in doubt,
Jiajing closed his eyes and sat upright, then said:
“Have your subordinates below be more diligent. Report what those meritorious officials have been doing all these years…”
Lu Fang’s heart tightened, and he said:
“As commanded.”
…
Ten days later,
The Capital, Prince Yu’s Mansion.
The atmosphere seemed somewhat clandestine.
Xu Jie, Li Chunfang, Tan Lun, and Prince Yu himself were initially greatly encouraged, as the court had seemingly returned to its established order. Zhu Mo’s reforms were becoming a solo act, and if they continued like this, even military officers in Xuan and Da, including Yu Dayou of the navy, might retreat.
Indeed, Zhu Mo had the Emperor’s support. But if the Grand Secretariat and all the officials found things difficult every time, the perception would be different. Everyone would consider Zhu Mo to be acting arbitrarily. With his domineering attitude, relying on the Emperor’s backing, he could indeed remain popular for a while. But what about the future? As the saying goes, extremes lead to reversal. The Emperor, under the gaze of all officials and the world, could not always act unilaterally and would inevitably make adjustments.
For this reason,
They had been genuinely happy for a few days. But yesterday, Joseon suddenly sent a state letter requesting the Great Ming to send its navy to help quell the pirates. This was not a major issue, as such requests had been made many times before, and the court had always refused with various irrelevant excuses.
However, yesterday’s state letter had a peculiar aspect: its wording. To experienced officials like Xu Jie and Li Chunfang, it was a strange document.
Prince Yu reread it several times, and now, reading it word by word, he also noticed something amiss. This was because the state letter was written as follows:
“Vassal Lord Li Pan bows to the Great Ming Emperor:
We hear that the Superior State has recently pacified the pirates, established the Zhoushan Public Office to investigate the details of the pirate offenders, and then administered just punishment, thereby teaching by punishment, which is the kingly way. Moreover, they have printed evidence of crimes and issued a decree for all countries to hand over the pirate offenders. Our country has long suffered from pirate raids, and our people are extremely distressed and humiliated. Now, the divine might of the Superior State extends to all corners of the world. The humble vassal wishes to achieve complete order and hereby requests the Superior State to dispatch its navy to Tsushima. All military supplies, logistics, and rewards shall be provided by the humble vassal to the royal army.”
Xu Jie repeatedly muttered the words “achieve complete order,” seemingly referring to Joseon's preparation to use the Great Ming's prestige to remove Yun Won-hyeong?
He glanced several times at Li Chunfang’s expression, but Li Chunfang was being very cautious and remained silent.
In fact,
Both experienced officials knew well: the problem with this state letter lay in the “complete order” that was to be achieved, which was not just about the pirates. Because it mentioned “the people are extremely distressed and humiliated,” this could indeed be understood as the pirate menace, but it could also be interpreted as something else…
If they only requested the suppression of pirates, it would be easier. As long as they clarified the matter and did not involve other issues, sending a few ships to appease them would suffice. But their veiled insinuations made it difficult. If the Grand Secretariat agreed to this, even if only one ship was dispatched, it would be an indirect encouragement for Li Pan and his officials to remove Yun Won-hyeong…
If this were to happen, Yan Song would go mad!
How could Yan Shifan take this lying down?
First, the expulsion of Suo Zha, then the removal of Yun Won-hyeong, so who would be next? Zheng Jian? Mo Jingdian? Mang Yinglong? Or even Yan Song himself?
Though they understood, they refused to voice it. They pretended to be unconcerned, holding their teacups and sipping.
After contemplating for a while, Prince Yu suddenly said:
“Esteemed Elder Xu, Master Li, dispatching the navy is not impossible. Even if it is said to be for apprehending criminals for the Zhoushan Public Office, we could permit it… However, with him wildly implicating others and making insinuations, and speaking so highly of Zhu Mo, how can we permit it? This Prince believes we should simply refuse?”
Xu Jie’s heart suddenly leaped—
That’s right,
Zhu Mo?
It was likely him again?
Then it would be difficult…
It must be known that
When Xu Jie received Jiajing’s imperial edict last time, asking them to devise a proper strategy, he had been clear-minded: the Emperor was likely testing Prince Yu…
He had advised Prince Yu at the time to quickly go to Yuxi Palace himself and report that everything would be subject to the Emperor’s will. But Prince Yu had firmly insisted on shielding Yan Song, leaving him no choice but to compromise. The reason was simple: Prince Yu was the leader of the Qingliu (pure and upright officials), and whatever Prince Yu said, went. Xu Jie saw no need to act as a lone minister.
At that time, to prevent the Emperor from suspecting him of ulterior motives, he had expressed a grudging willingness to mediate, thus indicating to the world that he, Xu Jie, was caught in the middle, and everything was beyond his control…
This matter had not surfaced later, and he had thought it was over. But at this very moment, he was suddenly struck with dread—
The Emperor had tested everyone's attitude,
So, what about the Emperor's own attitude next?