Chapter 958
2 Polarization
When Pan Yun returned to the capital, it was during the most intense period of their dispute.
Pan Yun didn't even go to see his father and brothers. Instead, he took his three nephews directly into the palace and moved into the Imperial Observatory.
She entered the palace and immediately appeared before the emperor.
Zhu Qiyu was getting anxious. Seeing her slowly sipping her tea, he hurriedly asked, "Grand Preceptor, is it really alright to just let things go like this?"
Pan Yun said, "Let them argue. When it comes to arguing, how could a military officer possibly win against a civil official?"
Zhu Qiyu: "But the military generals will rebel."
"The troops in Datong are in Kuang Ye's hands, His Majesty controls the Imperial Guards, Chen Huai has no leverage over him, Wang Ji is loyal and devoted, Jing Yuan is quite influential in the army now, and Yang Hong... he is fond of fame and has brains, Shi Heng can't persuade him."
Zhu Qiyu slowly sat down: "Then..."
Pan Yun said, “Your Majesty, the corruption of military officers and nobles is not limited to their own ranks. They often ally with local gentry and powerful families, who in turn have intricate connections with civil officials. If we were to investigate thoroughly, none of them would escape. The reason they remain silent now is simply because they feel Your Majesty is unable to investigate further.”
Zhu Qiyu's face turned ashen as he recalled the disastrous defeat of his personal campaign last year: "The military and political system of the Ming Dynasty truly needs reform."
Pan Yun's eyes flickered slightly as he said, "But reform cannot be accomplished overnight; it must be piloted on a small scale first."
Zhu Qiyu: "Like the reform of the Fengyang imperial clan?"
Pan Jun nodded: "If it succeeds in one place, it can be promoted to many other places. If it also succeeds in many other places, it can be promoted nationwide. Although it is a little slower, it is more reliable."
Zhu Qiyu: "Where does the Imperial Advisor think is the most suitable place to begin?"
Pan Yun: "If we're going to reform, let's start with Quanzhou Prefecture. But the problem of corruption in the army should indeed be investigated nationwide. Even if we can't find the root cause in some places, we should still stir up trouble, take back the food we can, and make them afraid to take action for a while, giving the military households a chance to catch their breath."
Pan Yun recounted in detail the land reclamation situation of several garrisons she had passed along the way, saying, "Many children know that they are born into military households, but they don't know that military households are serving the court and His Majesty. They just think that they are farming for some adult."
What's the difference between this and knowing only a certain person but not the emperor?
Any emperor would have turned pale upon hearing that.
Zhu Qiyu was so angry that he spun around on the spot and said, "My brother has long wanted to reorganize the army, but he relies on the meritorious military officers to fight against the civil officials, so he has been slow to act. Moreover, the meritorious officers are arrogant and have close ties with their subordinates, making it difficult to carry out the work. I am afraid that I will follow in my brother's footsteps and end up with nothing."
Pan Jun lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment before looking up and saying, "In the battle personally led by the emperor, the nobles and generals suffered heavy losses. Those nobles and generals who died in battle can be forgiven for their past mistakes. As long as their families voluntarily return the military lands they have seized, His Majesty can then meet with their sons and grandsons to appease and reward them. With them paving the way, it will be easier to deal with the others."
Zhu Qiyu was slightly taken aback: "Can they?"
Pan Yun nodded affirmatively and said, "Yes!"
She said meaningfully, "Their grandfather and father rolled in the ink pool, and the black ink on their bodies could not be washed off, but they were still young and innocent, young people, with their own spirit, and had not yet done such dirty things."
She was referring to Zhu Yi, the son of Duke Zhu Yong of Cheng, who also had a notorious reputation during his lifetime.
Because he was in charge of the Beijing Garrison and was one of the important military generals accompanying the emperor, he mistakenly entered the Oirat encirclement and miscommanded the situation. Even though he died in battle, Empress Dowager Sun was furious. Not only Empress Dowager Sun, but Zhu Qiyu also hated him.
They thought he was incompetent and had caused the loss of his army and disgrace to the country. Therefore, many military generals who died in battle were given posthumous titles and funerals, but he and Wang Zhen were not.
Oh, he's also part of Wang Zhen's faction.
Therefore, after Zhu Yong's death, his son Zhu Yi was unable to inherit the title and had no way to appeal to the authorities.
Pan Yun said, "I entered the palace today and happened to see him at the gate of the imperial city. I was itching to do some readings, so I took the opportunity to tell his fortune."
Zhu Qiyu's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he asked, "How is it?"
“He is more honest and prudent than his father, but…” Zhu Qiyu noticed that she hesitated halfway through her sentence and leaned forward: “But what?”
Pan Jun smiled slightly: "However, although he comes from a military family, he is weak and lacks defensive skills. He is far inferior to his father in martial arts."
Zhu Qiyu frowned upon hearing this: "Weak means having neither offensive power nor defensive skills. Where can such military merits be used?"
Pan Yun: "He can be used as a civil official to govern the local area, or placed in a position with less fighting and more people's livelihood. If he is used as a military general, he can be placed in a place of long-term peace, and he will surely be able to manage the relationship between the garrison and the local area well."
“Moreover…” Pan Jun paused and said, “He is the best knife right now.”
Zhu Qiyu's eyes flickered slightly.
He didn't ask any further questions, and Pan Yun returned to the Imperial Observatory to rest.
She was very tired after traveling for more than a month.
Furthermore, as a Taoist priest, she should not be too involved in political affairs. She was merely representing the emperor to tour the countryside and share some of her observations with him.
The emperor got angry and wanted to take charge of military and political affairs. What did that have to do with her?
Pan Yun stirred up a storm in the officialdom, then shut himself away and lived his own life.
He spent his days practicing meditation and going to the Ministry of Works, keeping himself very busy and happy.
The emperor then summoned Zhu Yi.
After Zhu Yi left, the emperor restored Zhu Yong's title and reinstated Zhu Yi as heir apparent.
Zhu Yongren is dead, but Zhu Yi is still the heir apparent.
Shi Heng and the others sneered. Before they could even mock Zhu Yi for currying favor with the wrong person, Zhu Yi had already begun to tidy up the household affairs. For once, she forced the clansmen to return the fertile land they had previously seized.
Not to mention the land his father had once seized; once the assets were liquidated, most of the family's assets were gone.
Zhu Yong and Wang Zhen had a very close personal relationship. While he was alive, Zhu Yong bribed Wang Zhen quite a bit. In addition, the Duke of Cheng's mansion lived a life of extravagance, and it took a lot of family wealth to balance the accounts.
In order to save expenses, Zhu Yi laid off many servants. The Empress heard about this and immediately ordered people to buy all the servants laid off from the Duke of Cheng's mansion and to find out their backgrounds.
Taking advantage of the cunning slaves who had seized fertile land from the Duke of Cheng, the Empress bought them all and sent them to work on the imperial estate. The remaining slaves were all allocated land and a portion of the property, and were registered as free citizens.
These slave girls were terrified when they were sold, and they were completely stunned when they received their household registration certificates. When they heard that each of them would also receive two acres of land and two taels of silver for settling down, they were completely dumbfounded and it took them a long time to react.
That's right, this is a charity project that the Queen wanted to undertake.
She is now keen on redeeming slaves and settling them in, and she also likes to act as a matchmaker.
Many maids from wealthy families would be eagerly sought after by small landlord families in the countryside to become their wives, because they were thought to be knowledgeable and experienced.
She liked to act as a matchmaker for them so that they could integrate into the countryside more quickly.
Following the example set by the emperor, everyone knew that the empress liked to redeem slaves to do good deeds. This year, during the Ghost Month, in order to pray for blessings and ward off disasters, many families voluntarily released their slaves and gave them money to settle down.
With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, they were planning to raise some money to redeem slaves from other places.
While the common people rejoiced, the imperial court was embroiled in bloodshed, creating two extremes. (End of Chapter)