While Elder Yan Song pondered, he suddenly said,
“What Mo Qing said still holds water… That imperial estate reform in Jiangnan, what about granting land based on merit, it’s been discussed everywhere these past few days, but who really understands? On paper, it’s to reform the imperial estates, but in reality? This is a brutal move… Tell those below that the redemption fee is fake, it never existed!
There are so many landholdings bought out through patronage, tens of millions of mu. Even if each mu is three to five taels, that’s tens of millions of taels. Where would the world get so much silver? Make them use their brains. What Zhu Mo and Zhang Juzheng are doing, it’s a scam… Once they get the land, they won’t pay the money…”
Everyone couldn't help but gasp, realizing it was indeed so.
Although the land prices in the Great Ming had been falling since the first year of Jiajing, from twenty to thirty taels during the Hongzhi reign to five to six taels now, and that was for prime irrigated fields. The reason land was cheap was the heavy burden of taxes. Owning land was not something ordinary people could do; they would be ruined by the tax burden. This led to patronage to avoid taxes, and the price of buying out was actually much lower than the market price, basically one or two taels of silver per mu. But even at one or two taels, such a large sum would be unimaginably difficult to tally. Where could Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Mo come up with such money? If they truly paid this money, how would the court survive? It was evident that it was indeed a scam.
Luo Longwen also said,
“Yes, Your Excellency is right. They are using the imperial estates as a cover to silence the world, but in reality, they are targeting the gentry of the realm… Seven or eight years ago, I heard someone say that Zhang Juzheng had long drafted a strategy to survey all the land in the empire, specifically to squeeze the gentry and release all the untaxed land. They also said they would burn the deeds of patronage buyouts… Looking at it today, the rumors are indeed true. This was premeditated…”
Yan Shifan nodded and said,
“This Zhang Taiyue, he’s truly deep… If you hadn’t said anything, I would have truly thought Zhu Mo came up with it…”
Yan Song snorted and said,
“It’s all the same… That Zhu Mo, he’s not as simple as you think… You’ve been taken advantage of and are still helping them count their money… This person has now put Zhang Juzheng in front, which means he has even more ruthless countermeasures! In my humble opinion, Zhu Mo tricked Zhang Juzheng, saying there was a redemption fee. In the end, the gentry of the realm won’t receive any money and will only blame Zhang Juzheng, blame the pure faction. He, Zhu Mo, will escape…”
Oh…
So that’s how it is.
The family retainers were suddenly filled with awe and admiration.
Elder Yan Song wasn't particularly concerned about the defeat in battle; victory and defeat are common in warfare, nothing unusual. Moreover, the combat strength of the Wokou was clearly superior, and it wouldn’t change in a short time. However, ever since he saw that memorial on imperial estate reform, he had inexplicably become anxious. After thinking for several days, he had finally understood: Zhu Mo’s next step was to target the gentry of the realm. And once the land issue was settled by him, there would be no power to rely on, and no possibility of turning things around.
Thinking of this,
Elder Yan Song felt it was time to go all out, and said grimly,
“Shifan, Longwen, you must immediately write letters to Suo Zha, Otomo Sorin, Yin Yuanheng, Mang Yinglong, Zheng Jian, send one to each… Oh, and Anda, send a message to Anda too, telling them that Zhu Mo and Zhang Juzheng are about to flip the table, and urging them not to sit idly by!
Warfare, after all, is not something that can be decided in a moment! Who is always victorious in a hundred battles? What’s there to fear from one defeat? Should everyone just sit and wait? Wait for what… Wait until Zhu Mo destroys the Portuguese fleet too? By then, all the harbors will be sealed, and with the fire-arm corps, they will conquer Li, Japan, Myanmar, and Korea…?
Tell them that if they want me to step forward, they must listen to me. The war must continue, it cannot stop! Tell them to act as soon as they receive the letter… Lastly, tell them, I am eighty years old… I can choose not to care about the affairs of the world, but since I do care, I will definitely see it through to the end…”
The retainers had followed the Yan family for so long, and it was the first time they had heard Elder Yan Song speak with such a stern tone. They were all terrified, realizing that the situation had indeed become as serious as it could possibly be. They felt both awe for Elder Yan Song’s dominance and an unspeakable sense of foreboding—
Where did this Zhu Mo come from?
He was incredibly cunning, always coming up with unexpected tricks. Even Elder Yan Song had fallen into his trap from the beginning. The final outcome, it was truly hard to say.
…
At the same time,
Yu Xi Palace was filled with peace and harmony.
After Lv Fang received the secret reports from Wu Ming and Wu Liang, he couldn’t contain his joy—
A great disaster had been averted just like that…
Indeed, if the Wokou had besieged Huating, and then besieged it without attacking, coupled with the cooperation of several neighboring powerful officials, those troublesome court officials would have been forced to march to the Western Garden. At that time, troops would have to be deployed, but based on past experience, deploying troops was always a poor choice, often making the situation more complicated.
Moreover, such forceful actions must be taken when one’s own side is in a very advantageous position. Once in a disadvantageous situation like before, the more troops were deployed, the more dangerous it would become, and perhaps some might even rebel.
Now, it was good.
Wu Ming and Wu Liang had made it clear—Zhu Mo had used firearms to systematically destroy the Wokou encampments, and all the Wokou on shore had been cleared. With this, the forced ultimatum could not be carried out, and the realm had, once again, turned from peril to safety.
At this moment,
As he was thinking, he prepared the pills. It was almost dusk, and Jiajing was about to take them.
The two had cooperated for forty years, and their tacit understanding was already very natural. As soon as he had finished preparing and walked to the Eight Trigrams Platform, Jiajing opened his eyes.
“Look at you… beaming with joy. Do you think the matter is over?”
Jiajing swallowed the pill and closed his eyes again to guide his breath.
Lv Fang smiled and said,
“Your Majesty, Zhu Mo’s firearms are said to be even more powerful than those of the Portuguese. Everyone didn’t believe it before, but now they finally do… To be honest, this servant didn’t believe in such strange things before, but in the end, it was those thousand or so men and dozens of cannons that made the difference…”
Jiajing’s thoughts differed from Yan Song’s; he clearly understood the power of weapons. Seeing Lv Fang’s smug look, and thinking that Yan Song was likely also paying attention to the Firearm Bureau, he said calmly,
“Foolish. Don’t be too quick to celebrate. No one knew how powerful those firearms were before. Yan Song suffered a great loss, so why wouldn’t he go to the Firearm Bureau to investigate?
Lv Fang, you must go personally, with the Imperial Guards, and protect the Firearm Bureau. Announce to the outside that the Firearm Bureau has been sealed and no one is allowed to approach… Also, keep a close eye on everyone. Those who are not relevant, send them elsewhere. Those inside, if they need to enter or leave from now on, you must also manage them, manage them strictly…”
Lv Fang’s expression immediately turned solemn, and he said respectfully,
“This servant understands.”
Saying this,
He was about to leave the hall.
Jiajing then said, “Do you think it’s over? Given Yan Song’s personality, the more cornered he is, the more he will go all out. Tell them to be extra careful! Do not slacken at all!”