The Teng County yamen.
County Magistrate Li Yi changed into his official robes, washed his hands, then fetched the imperial directive and opened it to study it carefully.
His adviser, Yan Bin, stood beside him, his gaze fixed straight ahead.
Assistant Magistrate Jin Dache, Registrar Sun Ang, and Chief Clerk Huang Lin stood before the hall with their hands lowered, quietly awaiting the news.
After reading it, Li Yi breathed a sigh of relief and told them, "The emperor has decreed that every prefecture throughout the realm draw a Map of Mountains, Rivers, and Strategic Passes and submit it to the Capital in every leap year."
"A Map of Mountains, Rivers, and Strategic Passes?"
Jin Dache, Sun Ang, and Huang Lin were somewhat puzzled. What did the emperor want maps for at a time like this?
Yan Bin stepped closer and examined the document. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he remarked, "It would seem the court has no intention of taking up arms for the next few years."
Jin Dache and the others took the document. Its contents were simple:
With the realm now pacified and its territories extending tens of thousands of li to the seas and beyond, His Majesty wished to survey its mountains and rivers, terrain, frontier passes, strategic bottlenecks, distances between prefectures and counties, and local produce. He therefore commanded every prefecture to draw and present maps.
In a nutshell: Old Zhu wanted a look at a map of Great Ming's territory...
In the fifth year of Hongwu, the court had campaigned against the Yuan Court, winning some battles and losing others. Judging by the present situation, the gains had not made up for the losses, and its stance toward external enemies had shifted to a defensive stalemate.
Presumably, the emperor intended to refrain from war for the next few years and spare some time to examine his current territory. Hence this document.
Li Yi picked up his brush and gave his instructions. "Leave this matter to the instructor at the County School."
Ink touched paper.
The force of the strokes pierced through to the back of the sheet.
The brush lifted, then was set aside.
A pair of strong hands unfolded the paper, and an immense imperial presence surged forth. Minister of Personnel Wu Lin, Zhan Tong, and Lü Xi dared not look directly at him, lowering their heads to listen.
Behind the dragon desk sat a middle-aged man in yellow dragon robes. His features were unusual, his bearing commanding even without anger. His gaze swept over the three men, sharp as thunderbolts, and his resonant voice rang through the great hall. "Reprint the laws and constitutional statutes and distribute them to every office. You must remain vigilant every day and commit no violations! Should anyone transgress, I shall show no leniency!"
"We obey Your Majesty's decree."
Wu Lin, Zhan Tong, and Lü Xi answered in unison.
The suffocating pressure slowly receded. Fine beads of sweat had already appeared on their foreheads.
Zhu Yuanzhang set the paper aside, picked up a memorial, and glanced at it after opening it. "Worthy talent is a treasure to the nation. The sage kings of antiquity were ever tireless in seeking worthy men. Though I have suspended the imperial examinations, I have not suspended the recruitment of talent. The Ministry of Personnel must seek talented men throughout the realm. Order every prefecture, subprefecture, and county to invite them with due ceremony and send them to the Capital. I shall employ them in important posts to achieve the finest governance."
Wu Lin stepped forward, knelt, and reported, "Your Majesty thirsts for worthy men. We shall spare no effort in urging the local authorities to identify and recommend talent."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded slightly and raised a hand. "You are old. There is no need to kneel when making your report. Rise."
Wu Lin thanked him for his grace. "This concerns the proper rites between sovereign and subject. I dare not disregard them."
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled faintly and picked up another memorial. "Promote Li Tai, deputy salt transport commissioner of the Two Zhejiang regions, to vice minister of justice. Liu Zhao, magistrate of Taihe County, has governed capably and with integrity. Promote him to vice minister of works."
"We obey Your Majesty's decree."
"You may withdraw."
Zhu Yuanzhang raised his hand.
Before long, a tall young man with refined features and an exceptional bearing entered the Hall of the Imperial Canopy and bowed to Zhu Yuanzhang. "Your son pays his respects to Father, Your Majesty."
"Biao, you have come at just the right time. Take a look at this memorial."
Zhu Yuanzhang drew out a memorial and handed it to Zhu Biao.
Zhu Biao accepted it with both hands and unfolded it. It was a document sent by Wang Jeon, king of Goryeo, thanking Great Ming for the medicines it had previously bestowed upon Goryeo and offering tribute of seafood, fine cloth, and other goods.
They must have had nothing else to offer as tribute to send over a few things like these...
Yet these were not the document's main point. Its true purpose was to request permission to present tribute to Great Ming.
"Do you think Wang Jeon has been colluding with Nahaqu in the northeast?"
Zhu Yuanzhang asked gravely.
Zhu Biao knew that his father still bore a grudge over the murder of Great Ming's envoys in Goryeo in the fifth year of Hongwu.
After some consideration, Zhu Biao spoke slowly. "Father, I believe Goryeo has long been under the Yuan Court's control. Wang Jeon's desire to lean toward our dynasty is in fact an attempt to borrow our strength to escape that control. Yet the Goryeo dynasty is in decline, and the Yuan Court still has the power to influence it. Nahaqu holds the northeast and watches Goryeo like a tiger eyeing its prey. Unless he is removed, Wang Jeon cannot completely break with the Yuan Court and submit to our dynasty."
"As for the murder of the envoys, it is difficult to determine whether Wang Jeon colluded with Nahaqu. I believe Nahaqu certainly does not wish to see Goryeo turn toward our dynasty. It is also possible that he committed the murders to frame someone else."
Zhu Yuanzhang nodded. "In my view, Wang Jeon is insincere and petty, a rat wavering between two holes, unable to make up his mind. Suspend trade with Goryeo."
Zhu Biao lowered his hands and assented. Seeing that the matter was settled, he voiced the question troubling him. "Father, I believe recruiting officials through the imperial examinations is a grand ceremony for selecting talent. Might suspending them so abruptly wound the hearts of the realm's budding scholars and hinder the court's selection of capable men?"
"Heh. Are you questioning my decision?"
Zhu Yuanzhang smiled, his imposing presence pressing down.
Zhu Biao hastened to explain. "Father, I am not questioning you. It is only that selecting officials through the imperial examinations has, since the Tang dynasty..."
"Biao!"
Zhu Yuanzhang cut him off, rose, and walked out from behind the desk. He spoke sternly. "How could I not know the benefits of the imperial examinations? But in governing the realm, you do not do something merely because it has benefits. You must also see the harm it can bring."
Zhu Biao did not understand. What harm could selecting officials through the imperial examinations bring?
Zhu Yuanzhang spoke earnestly. "This is an emperor's chessboard. Victory and defeat cannot be judged by the gain or loss of a single piece. Have you ever considered how many northern scholars and how many southern scholars were selected through the examinations over the past three years? You have not, have you? Then I shall tell you: nearly eighty percent were southern scholars! If the court is filled entirely with southern scholars, who will speak for the interests of the northern people?"
"And that is not all. Of those eighty percent from the south, another eighty percent came from great and wealthy households in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and elsewhere. What are they best at? Greed! I suspended the examinations first to prevent southern scholars from monopolizing the court, second to buy time for northern scholars, and third to make my position clear to them."
Zhu Biao drew a deep breath. By "them," his father meant the Huaixi nobles headed by Li Shanchang, Hu Weiyong, and others. They differed from the men of Eastern Zhejiang: Eastern Zhejiang supported the examinations, while Huaixi opposed them.
As for the reason, Huaixi had many rough men. They did not have as many twists and turns in their guts as the scholars, and they certainly did not want a group of latecomer scholars climbing onto their necks...
Of course, not everyone from Huaixi was a rough man.
Li Shanchang was not.
Neither was Hu Weiyong.
Zhu Biao was shaken. A single decision was tied to the balance of power at court, the government, and the greater course of the realm. This was his father's astonishing strategic judgment!
Dayan Village, Teng County.
More than a dozen middle-aged men were hard at work. Some smoothed wooden planks with planes, others made windows, and a few children in their teens carried over thatching straw...
Driving his carriage, Xue Cheng spotted Gu Zhengchen from afar. He hurriedly climbed down and led the carriage over. Just as he was about to kneel, Gu Zhengchen stopped him with a hand. "Enough. The Gu Family is different from other households. Rank must be observed, but there is no need for such elaborate ceremony. This is my mother, Gu Shi, and my younger sister, Qingqing. While I am away, you must keep them safe."
"Rest assured, Master. I, Xue Cheng, will protect the old madam and the young lady with my life!"
Xue Cheng gave his solemn promise.
Gu Shi and Gu Qingqing helped Chen Shi into a room to rest. Gu Zhengchen looked at Xue Cheng, his lips moving slightly. "From now on, your name will be Gu Cheng. And I have another saying to give you."
"Thank you for granting me a name, Master. Please speak."
Gu Cheng responded at once.
Gu Zhengchen clasped his hands behind his back and gazed up at the vast sky. "The dark night gave me black eyes, yet I use them to seek the light..."
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