Was Jiajing Really an Incompetent Ruler? The Great Yan Emperor's Plans for Promotion / Great Yan Officials: Watching "Great Yan Dynasty" Was Worse Than Torture

At this moment, the surging imperial power and the otherworldly aura of immortality converged in the same person—and this was the effect Chen Qi wanted to achieve. The Emperor Jiajing was someone whom all his ministers believed to be a "god who had everything under control," and only then was he an emperor.

His indifference and composure, like that of Feranmut, combined with the supreme authority befitting a monarch, made him such an emperor. From the moment he appeared on the scene, he was enough to instill in all his subjects a deep-seated fear, making them want to serve him with the utmost care, as if he were a god.

You exist because he made you exist, but if one day he feels you are no longer useful, you will die without ever knowing why you fell from grace.

"Grand Secretary Yan."

"Your subject is here." Wei Yenwu's words instantly transformed Rat King Yan Song, who had been indifferent just a moment ago, into a docile domestic hamster.

"Yan Shifan said that Zhou Yunyi, who slandered the court, has a powerful backer, and that backer is right there in your Grand Secretariat. Tell me, who is Zhou Yunyi's backer?"

"Your Majesty, Zhou Yunyi has no powerful backers here." Faced with Wei Yenwu's question, Yan Song, played by the Rat King, displayed Yan Song far surpassing that of his own son, suppressing all previous disputes. As the Grand Secretariat Secretary, everything he said to the Emperor represented the Grand Secretariat's response.

"Then why does Zhou Yunyi know so much about last year's imperial expenditures?" Wei Yenwu asked again. At this moment, the Rat King gave the simplest answer in the most calm tone:

"The imperial court has no private accounts; all disaster relief funds are allocated through official imperial edicts. This shows that the Ministry of Works operates with transparent accounting."

"Good, excellent... What a cunning old fox."

The Emperor of Great Yan, enraged, laughed coldly. After a snort, he muttered to himself, "Everything is now clear, all the doubts discussed earlier have been suppressed, their embezzlement has been cleared, and they're not afraid of an audit... This is far more convincing than arguing a thousand or ten thousand times."

As expected, after hearing this, Wei Yenwu silently covered up the matter. Faced with accounts that couldn't be uncovered even if people were sent to investigate, further investigation was pointless.

"--Don't look at your father like that." Wei Yenwu, who had everyone rise, casually walked onto the dragon throne, yet still maintained his imperial majesty. Noticing Lin Yuxia's gaze towards the Rat King, Wei Yenwu immediately offered a word of advice. "You should learn from this."

Yan Song was getting old, and Yan Shifan would inevitably succeed Yan Song as the leader of the Yan Faction. However, Jiajing himself still needed a "black glove" (a figurehead), so he naturally hoped that the relatively naive Yan Shifan could learn more from his father's shrewdness and instead of always making things so big.

Now, the Purists was rendered speechless by Yan Shifan's rebuttal, and the arrogance of Yan Faction had also dissipated after being reprimanded by Wei Yenwu. Wei Yenwu then began to reveal his methods of managing people:

"What I just recited was a poem about seeking answers left by Jie, one of the fragments of the ancient 'Sui'. My favorite line is the last one: 'Clouds in the blue sky, water in the bottle.'"

"You people, some are clouds, some are water, you only do different things—you are all loyal ministers, there are no treacherous ministers among you."

With a single sentence, all the previous arguments between the Purists and the Yan Faction instantly became Mr. Nothing. Yet, it also subtly revealed Jiajing's attitude: what he needed were loyal ministers. As long as they worked for him and could do so, they were all loyal ministers.

As for who is good and who is bad, that's not important to Jiajing; all he cares about is the result.

"Is an emperor who only wants capable ministers but doesn't care who are good or bad ministers... really a good thing for the Great Yan?"

Now, with just one sentence, Amiya had already understood the Emperor Jiajing portrayed by Wei Yenwu. After muttering to herself, she bit her lower lip slightly, realizing for the first time that in the seemingly idyllic and prosperous Great Yan on the Terra, the court wasn't as rosy as she had imagined...

Even more so, the murky waters of the Great Yan Dynasty are probably deeper than those of any other country.

Chapter 276: Was Jiajing really a tyrant? The Great Yan Emperor's Promotional Plans

Wei Yenwu's portrayal of the Emperor Jiajing left a deep impression on everyone from his very first appearance. In the Great Yan, it wasn't that no one had ever played an emperor before, but none of them dared to do what Chen Qi did and actually film the current Great Yan court. They didn't have that kind of authority, much less the ability to film inside the palace like Chen Qi did.

Most of those production crews only filmed the Great Yan several dynasties ago, and they didn't even dare to use the past to satirize the present. When Chen Qi watched those dramas, he had a sense of déjà vu, like "Emperor Qianlong's Jiangnan." They dared not talk about court politics and the harem, and few of them understood them either.

The defining characteristic of these "emperors" in dramas is that they practically wear "I am the emperor" on their faces. They either dress in all yellow, adorned with gold and jade, or they travel to inspect the people's conditions and give themselves names like "Huang San" (meaning "Yellow Three").

However, the Emperor Jiajing, played by Wei Yenwu, is not like that at all. He doesn't even wear a dragon robe or silk. He only wears a blue Daoist robe, but as soon as he sits there, his imperial aura is overwhelming.

He also possessed a "mysteriousness" that many emperors lacked. He did not attend court for twenty years, yet he remained knowledgeable about everything inside and outside the court. He wore thin clothes in winter and cotton clothes in summer. Coupled with his desire to become a "god," such extraordinary behavior made him truly worthy of awe in the eyes of the officials, just like a "god."

Nothing in this world can be hidden from him; the life and death of all seemingly powerful ministers are merely a matter of his whim.

After Wei Yenwu appeared, the Yan Faction and the Purists, who had been arguing fiercely, all quieted down. At this time, Zhang Juzheng, played by Wenyue, put forward his first proposal for this year's budget, which was to ensure the smooth flow of trade routes in the Great Yan.

"Trade between our Great Yan has always been frequent. Among them, tea, silk, porcelain, and other products that are highly sought after by other countries are mostly produced in Jiangnan. Due to climate and other reasons, only Jiangnan can produce these goods."

"However, due to the great calamity of 'Sui' that year, the Great Yan Nation was severely damaged. Jiangnan was less affected by 'Sui,' but after our Great Yan suffered this great calamity, the Seaborn invaded the Higashi, Church of the Deep infiltrated it, frequently harassing Jiangnan in conjunction with the Seaborn, causing unrest in Jiangnan and hindering trade."

"While serving in the Ministry of War, I also considered the Ministry of War's perspective and thought that it might be necessary to increase military pay for the Jiangnan region, allowing Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou's troops to recruit soldiers, build battlefields, and then launch a proactive attack to wipe out the Higashi's Church of the Deep, thus ensuring the peace of Jiangnan in our Great Yan and guaranteeing the smooth flow of trade routes."

Wenyue, who plays Zhang Juzheng, spoke at length, demonstrating considerable thoughtfulness. His proposal received frequent nods of approval from the Great Yan Emperor in the lounge, reflecting his own perspective and empathy.

"Finally, we're getting down to business. But if the national treasury is empty, there's no way to increase military pay. We must first fill the national treasury before we can wipe out the Church of the Deep."

On screen, Yan Song, played by the Rat King, clearly noticed the crux of the matter immediately. Before Wenyue could finish speaking, he interrupted and suggested to Wei Yenwu:

"Zhang Juzheng and I have discussed this matter. I believe that as long as the coastal defenses Jiangnan are secure and trade in the rear is unimpeded, the next step is to discuss what to transport."

"For example, the silk that Zhang Juzheng mentioned, a piece of fine Gouwu silk could sell for six taels of silver in the mainland, but if it were sold to Victoria countries, it could fetch more than ten taels of silver."

"Currently, the two Mobile City of Gouwu have 10,000 looms in Su City and 8,000 in Zhe City. Can we increase the number of looms to produce more silk?"

"Of course." Upon hearing this, Wei Yenwu immediately knew that this was an excellent suggestion for the Great Yan, whose national treasury was currently empty. However, even so, Wei Yenwu did not agree immediately, but instead inquired about the crux of the matter:

"The key is silkworms. How can we increase mulberry fields and produce more silk?"

In response, Yan Song, played by the Rat King, naturally already had a corresponding strategy, explaining, "Su City's silk has always relied on Zhe City for its silkworm silk supply; it's due to the climate."

"According to the Grand Secretariat, half of the existing farmland in Zhe City should be converted into mulberry fields. This would increase silk production by more than ten million taels annually, which would allow for the weaving of two hundred thousand more bolts of silk."

"Farmland has all been converted into mulberry fields... What will the people of Zhe City eat?"

"The disaster has severely damaged many agricultural Mobile City in our Great Yan. Grain reserves were already low, and we can't let the people of Zhe City starve to death, can we?"

However, even though the Rat King provided a solution, Emperor Jiajing, played by Wei Yenwu, did not act like the "tyrant" everyone expected and make a decision on a whim. Instead, he asked another crucial question.

This also shows that the Great Yan Emperor and Kal'tsit were quite knowledgeable about people's livelihoods, and of course they understood how important farmland was to farmers.

Although Mobile City can move, Mobile City generally do not relocate arbitrarily unless they encounter extremely severe Catastrophe. This is because there are numerous towns and villages built on the foundation of Mobile City, and apart from a few Mobile City specifically used for agriculture, most Mobile City still rely on self-sufficiency for their resource reserves.

However, the Rat King still had his own method: to transfer grain from other wealthy Mobile City, planning the additional grain transfer based on the increase in mulberry fields. But this response still didn't satisfy Wei Yenwu, who continued to ask:

"Grain from other places is definitely more expensive than locally produced grain. Are the people of Zhe City willing to accept this?"

"The silk yield from each acre of mulberry field is higher than the grain yield from each acre of farmland." The Rat King's words dispelled everyone's doubts. At this moment, Wei Yenwu issued another decree, saying:

"The mulberry fields that have been converted will still be taxed as farmland, and no increase in taxes is allowed."

"--Your Majesty is exceptionally wise and talented, none can surpass you!" At this moment, Lin Yuxia also promptly offered her compliments, but this time, the compliments, when heard by everyone outside the screen, did not sound so sharp.

Because of the actions taken by Emperor Jiajing, played by Wei Yenwu, he indeed presented everyone with an excellent solution. By converting rice paddies to mulberry fields to increase income and enrich the national treasury, military pay could be increased, the army could be expanded to suppress the Church of the Deep in the Higashi, and trade would continue, gradually filling the national treasury.

"Wait a minute, is this really a tyrannical emperor? I feel like this Emperor Jiajing, played by Wei Yenwu... seems to be someone who, when he does act, is astonishingly powerful?"

At this moment, Chen Huijie was also somewhat confused about what kind of ruler the Emperor Jiajing really was. According to Chen Qi, Jiajing was a foolish ruler who had not attended court for more than 20 years. She thought he was a corrupt and incompetent ruler who neglected state affairs and was obsessed with becoming Feranmut, and who had been sidelined by powerful ministers.

But now, from the moment the Emperor Jiajing appeared, he was revered by all his ministers. Not a single minister dared to object to any of his decrees, and every issue he raised was of utmost importance to the people.

"He could both wield imperial power and have an exceptional understanding of the people's livelihood... a policy of non-interference?" Kal'tsit was somewhat surprised; even she had never seen a "tyrant" like the Emperor Jiajing.

Kal'tsit has seen many emperors, from sage rulers like the True Lung emperor of the Great Yan, to warlords like the former emperor of Ursus who expanded the territory, to tyrants like the Witch King of Leithania... They each had their own strengths and weaknesses, each one was very complex, with both flaws and merits, but the incompetent and foolish rulers were basically all the same.

But a monarch like Jiajing, who possessed both talent and ability, and who, despite being quite lazy in his approach to government affairs and allowing his ministers to form cliques and engage in self-serving activities, was still able to maintain control of the court and govern the country... should not seem to have much to do with being a tyrannical ruler.

"As a ruler, his personal desires were somewhat excessive, but if he could still maintain control of the government and work for the benefit of the people, he could still be considered a capable ruler who could preserve the status quo."

As for the emperor's personal desires... to be honest, Kal'tsit really can't comment on them. After all, kings are human too, and even many wise rulers still use the national treasury to satisfy some of their personal desires. After all, in their position, facing the wealth of the world, magnificent palaces, and a life of luxury, it's not uncommon for their personal desires to swell.

Generally speaking, unless it involves financial ruin or loss of life, such matters are rarely mentioned in history, and such rulers rarely earn the reputation of being "tyrants." Therefore, after some speculation, Kal'tsit inquired of Chen Qi:

"Director Chen Qi, could it be that Emperor Jiajing's desire to become Feranmut... will eventually spread and endanger the entire Great Yan Dynasty?"

"Well, you'll find out later." Seeing that this segment of filming was finished, Chen Qi called for everyone to stop, then turned his gaze to the Great Yan Emperor beside him and smiled:

"Your Majesty, then we'll leave the rest to you. The first episode still needs some scenes of Prince Yu and Consort Li, which we'll edit in after we finish filming."

"Yes, I understand." The Emperor of Great Yan nodded. He had indeed played a role in the script, the next emperor after the Emperor Jiajing, the Emperor Longqing. Of course, he was still the Prince Yu at the moment.

However, compared to the others, memorizing some simple lines was not difficult for the Emperor of Great Yan. What the Emperor of Great Yan couldn't understand was why the actions of the Emperor Jiajing in the drama seemed not bad, so he was judged as a tyrant. What went wrong?

As the ruler of a nation, the Emperor of Great Yan couldn't help but put himself in that situation and try to think it through. However, even with the limited information he had, he couldn't reach a conclusion and could only say to Chen Qi:

"Director Chen Qi, when will you provide me with the script for the next project? Can we speed up our filming?"

"That won't do. We can't delay Your Majesty's official duties, can we?" Chen Qi shook his head, promptly informing the Great Yan Emperor that this was unrealistic. Then, as if remembering something, he immediately handed another list to the Great Yan Emperor, saying:

"By the way, we're about to film our next scene in Gouwu. I still have a few officials in the drama, but we don't have suitable actors yet. If Your Majesty could help me choose some suitable candidates, that would be great."

"It's a small matter." The Emperor of Great Yan nodded. Looking at the names "Zheng Michang" and "He Maocai" on the list, and seeing that Chen Qi's evaluation of the two was "they cooperate well and, despite some differences, still work closely together," he couldn't help but think of the two officials from Shangshu who were quite close to him.

Thinking this through, the Emperor of Great Yan already had a candidate in mind. Then, remembering something else, he said to Chen Qi:

"I have another favor to ask of you. After this TV series is completed, it should be shown to the officials first, and then to the common people."

"This work, which the officials previously vehemently opposed but can now expose their ugly side... they are now forced to watch it and learn from it."

Chapter 277: Officials of the Great Yan: Watching "The Great Yan Dynasty" is More Torture Than Being Tortured

A month later, in the Western Garden of the Great Yan Imperial Palace, the officials once again entered the court. They were not there to discuss matters, but rather to watch the video recording, having received an imperial decree from the Great Yan Emperor.

The officials weren't particularly puzzled by this, after all, everyone knew that their Emperor was a secret fan of Chen Qi. And although most of them opposed Chen Qi filming in the palace, it was only because it was against the rules, and also... Chen Qi's track record was indeed too frightening. The officials were all wary of what kind of TV series Chen Qi would film that would cause turmoil in the Great Yan.

However, the fact that the emperor invited all the officials to watch the first episode actually relieved them. After all, they knew that their emperor had been on set the whole time, which at least gave them some reassurance.

After all, if the content would enrage even the emperor, it certainly wouldn't be filmed, much less broadcast to the people. On the contrary, if the emperor allowed it to be broadcast in front of them, then the content should be relatively safe.

With this in mind, the officials came to the Western Garden this time because they happened to have nothing to do during the holiday, so they figured they might as well get together and watch a "royal grand show." After all, how could they not watch a production that included a large number of officials, and even the emperor himself?

If they cheered a few more times, the emperor might be pleased and they could even get paid to watch the show. Therefore, most of the officials came as a matter of course, with only a few refusing on the grounds of being too busy with their duties.

What those officials didn't know was that by not showing up, they had actually avoided what could be described as the most embarrassing movie-watching experience of their lives.

Inside the Western Garden, the officials watching the finished product of the first episode of "The Great Yan Dynasty 1566" felt an extreme embarrassment, comparable to watching a movie with their parents and suddenly seeing explicit scenes. Many officials trembled, lowered their heads, and their toes almost poked through their shoes, as if they wanted to dig a three-bedroom apartment in the ground to crawl into.

They were careless! They thought that with His Majesty personally overseeing things, there wouldn't be any mistakes. Little did they expect that their Emperor would actually go all out and expose the entire corrupt side of the Great Yan Dynasty!

The problems exposed in the first episode are already very obvious: forming cliques for personal gain, corruption, powerful ministers in power, factional strife... Each of these problems represents a potential threat to the Great Yan Dynasty. Although they are not out in the open, everyone knows whether they are engaging in such behavior behind the scenes.

These are all seasoned veterans of the Great Yan officialdom, now holding positions in the capital. They're all incredibly shrewd and calculating. For His Majesty the Emperor to produce and broadcast this drama to them is practically a declaration that he's watching everything they do!

On the dragon throne to the side, the Emperor of Great Yan also had a serious expression, while the Grand Tutor stared intently at the big screen. The feeling of watching it off-screen was completely different, and the more the Grand Tutor watched, the more serious his expression became.

Soon, in a somber atmosphere, the first episode finished airing. The Emperor of Great Yan turned his gaze to his officials, and after a long while, asked in a low voice:

"Now that you've finished watching the first episode, I ask you, what are your thoughts?"

"--Your Majesty, I am guilty."

However, no sooner had the Emperor of Great Yan finished speaking than the first person to kneel down was none other than the Grand Commandant, who had always been at odds with the Grand Tutor. Seeing this highly respected elder minister kneel first, the trembling officials immediately fell off their chairs and knelt on the ground in a grand gesture, saying in unison:

"Your subject is guilty!"

"... Rise, both of you." The Emperor of Great Yan and the Grand Tutor exchanged a glance, both sensing a mocking expression in each other's eyes. The Emperor of Great Yan immediately turned his gaze to the Grand Commandant and asked:

"Grand Commandant, tell me, what crime have you committed?"

"Your Majesty, this old minister and the Grand Tutor have a long-standing feud, a fact known throughout the court. Now, Your Majesty is filming 'The Great Yan Dynasty 1566,' a story set in the future of the Great Yan Dynasty, a future riddled with problems."

The Grand Commandant's achievements are no less than those of the Grand Tutor, and he is also a quick-witted man. His immediate expression of understanding clearly indicates that he believes he comprehends the Emperor's meaning, and he said:

"Your Majesty wishes to use the future of the Great Yan depicted in this TV series, as well as the treacherous officials like Yan Song and Yan Shifan, to warn us to stop engaging in meaningless infighting and factional struggles. Instead, we should dedicate ourselves to the Great Yan, ensuring the people live in peace and prosperity, and preventing the absurd state of the Great Yan depicted in the TV series from reappearing."

"This old minister thanks Your Majesty for your guidance! It has freed me from the misguided path of power!"

As the Grand Commandant spoke, he bowed deeply to the Emperor of Great Yan once more. However, the Emperor did not immediately urge the Great Yan Commandant to rise. Instead, he turned his gaze to the assembled officials and abruptly asked:

"The Grand Commandant has already made his statement. What about you? Don't you have anything to say?"

As expected, upon hearing the Emperor of Great Yan's words, some officials who had initially harbored a glimmer of hope, upon hearing the Emperor's seemingly unrelated yet all-knowing words, stepped forward and knelt down in deep shame, saying:

"Your Majesty's words have shamed us; we beg Your Majesty to punish us."

"We will go home now, write our resignations, and submit them to the Ministry of Personnel, so that we can start afresh and serve Your Majesty with all our abilities once again."

It should be said that, fortunately, this was still the prosperous Great Yan. Under such a prosperous era, most of the officials of Great Yan still had a heart full of patriotism. However, having spent too long in the corrupting influence of officialdom, they inevitably lost their original aspirations. Now that the emperor had specially made a play to point this out, they were naturally filled with shame. One by one, they knelt on the ground, their heads bleeding from kowtowing, yet they still could not hide their sobs and regret.

The reactions of the officials were somewhat unexpected by the Emperor of Great Yan. While he did want to influence the ministers by airing the first episode, his primary motivation was to learn from the Emperor Jiajing's methods of managing people as depicted in the TV series.

After obtaining a portion of the script from Chen Qi, the Emperor of Great Yan summarized Emperor Jiajing's methods of managing people. One interesting point was that Emperor Jiajing rarely spoke very clearly; he preferred to use various methods to hint at his ministers, letting them interpret his intentions themselves.

One reason for this was that Jiajing didn't want to take the blame; if the ministers misinterpreted things, it wouldn't be his responsibility. However, this gave the Emperor of the Great Yan Dynasty an idea, as he felt that Jiajing's psychological tactics were very suitable for use in the power struggle with these ministers.

Now he knew that the effect was quite good, even a little too good. Faced with officials who, after being subjected to this series of blows, were filled with shame and wanted to resign and go home, the Emperor of Great Yan, after some thought, said in a deliberately profound tone:

"On television, the Emperor Jiajing said, 'Clouds are in the blue sky, water is in the bottle.' I disapprove of the Emperor Jiajing's indulgence of the Yan Faction and the Purists. I hope that my Great Yan Dynasty will only have one kind of loyal minister, and that is an official who is loyal to Great Yan."

"The ground is stained with blood, and the Yi people need to wash it. You will all be demoted one rank and temporarily assume the duties of your current officials. This time next year, I will be waiting for you to personally come and wash the ground beneath your heads."

"--Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The ministers understood the Great Yan's current intention: temporarily demote them by one rank, give them a year to thoroughly examine their conduct, and if they did not make any further mistakes, they would be allowed to return to their original positions.

Regardless of the crimes committed by these officials, they will later submit their own accusations in memorials. At that time, the Great Yan Emperor, who is unaware of many details, will understand what underhanded things the ministers have done behind his back.

It seems... this drama is actually quite useful. The Emperor of Great Yan couldn't help but think this, and after exchanging a brief glance with the Grand Tutor beside him, he immediately spoke to the Lee in charge of the playback:

"Mr. Lee, could you please show the audience the content of episode two?"

"Understood."