Live History Broadcast: Opening Ceremony Spoilers - Our Ancestor Was Enraged

Chapter 40 Wang Zhi

During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty

When Li Longji heard Lin Ke's evaluation of him, he was so angry that he blew his beard and glared. He had worked diligently for half his life, couldn't he just enjoy himself now that he was old?

I don't want to listen to those ministers whining and complaining, saying this won't work and that won't work, and what's wrong with that now!

I am the Emperor! I am the greatest in the entire world!

We can decide who lives and who dies!

…………

On the other side, Lin Ke continued, "After dealing with the tedious affairs of state for many years, Emperor Chenghua, Zhu Jianru, gradually lost his initial ambition and began to get tired of this kind of life. Like most emperors, he embarked on the path of cultivating immortality, recruiting alchemists everywhere, seizing fertile land, setting up imperial estates, and turning a blind eye to corrupt officials."

"The emperor began to slack off, which made things difficult for the diligent Wang Zhi. The cases he painstakingly investigated often went unsolved due to Emperor Chenghua's negligence. Wang Zhi gradually grew weary and tired of this situation. Just then, there was another conflict on the Liaodong border, so Wang Zhi volunteered to go to the border."

"Although Wang Zhi was known as one of the most powerful eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty, alongside the infamous Wang Zhen and Wei Zhongxian, he could not be considered a treacherous minister. According to the 'Veritable Records of the Ming Dynasty,' Wang Zhi once submitted a memorial proposing several policies for the border soldiers. The gist of these policies was: if the border pay was insufficient, could the court supplement it through the imperial treasury? Liaodong is bitterly cold; could each soldier be provided with a set of warm clothing? The soldiers risked their lives to defend their country; could they be rewarded more?"

"As for some unqualified generals, Wang Zhi would also request that they be punished. Wang Yue shared the same opinion. He rectified the border, repaired cities, promoted talents, and so on. Under the cooperation of the two, the lives of the people on the border were relatively secure."

"If these two people had time to clean up corruption in the army and improve its strength, they might have been able to recover the Hetao region and launch a war against Mongolia. The people on the border might have been able to live in peace for several decades."

"However, sometimes being too outstanding can breed jealousy. The collaboration between the two aroused the suspicion of the court officials. In the eighteenth year of the Chenghua reign, Grand Secretary Wan An impeached Wang Zhi and requested the abolition of the Western Depot."

"Wan An was a man of little achievement but held a high position, which caused dissatisfaction among many in the court. In the spirit of 'better to die than to die for one's fellow Daoists,' Wan An was the first to stand up and impeach the Western Depot, also in order to gain prestige and win the approval of the officials. However, Emperor Chenghua at this time was no longer the decisive Zhu Jianru, and he quickly agreed to Wan An's request."

Zhu Bajie of the Ming Dynasty: We finally managed to clean up Qingming Festival, and you've left us in this mess!

Judy, the Great General Who Conquers the North: You don't want the good, you insist on siding with the bad!!! What kind of immortal are you cultivating!

……

"But if Wan An wanted to completely bring down Wang Zhi, simply abolishing the West Depot was not enough. He set his sights on Wang Yue and transferred him to Yansui Town, while Xu Ning, who was originally in Yansui Town, became Wang Zhi's new colleague."

"As for Xu Ning, Wang Yue thought he was brave but not very resourceful. Before leaving, he told Guo Tang, the governor of Datong, that Xu Ning was stubborn and self-willed and could not be trusted. However, Guo Tang did not take his warning seriously. Judging from what happened later, Guo Tang seemed to have connections with Wan An."

But to my utter surprise, Xu Ning had no experience fighting the Mongols, yet he shamelessly assumed that Wang Yue's previous victories were largely due to his role as deputy general, and thus became complacent and arrogant.

"For Wang Zhi, a working-class person, it's easy to imagine how he felt when a good partner was transferred away and replaced by someone with an inexplicable self-confidence."

"The conflict between Xu Ning and Wang Zhi became increasingly acute. Wan An took the opportunity to impeach Wang Zhi for being at odds with Xu Ning, the general of Datong, and delaying the border war."

"After all, Wang Zhi had been working under Consort Wan since he was a child. In addition, he had offended many people in the court besides Wang Yue. Even if Zhu Jianru wanted to protect him, he couldn't do anything about it. So he could only transfer him to Nanjing to take over the position of Imperial Horse Supervisor."

"After Wang Zhi left, Dayan Khan used a small force as bait to lure Xu Ning into sending troops. Xu Ning, who was not very bright, immediately fell into the trap and was ambushed. The Ming army suffered more than a thousand casualties. Only when the reinforcements from Xuanfu arrived did Dayan Khan withdraw his troops."

When this news reached the capital, the ministers fell silent. They joined forces to oust Wang Yue and Wang Zhi, and replaced them with Xu Ning. They knew he was incompetent, but they didn't expect him to be this incompetent!

"But Wang Zhi absolutely could not be transferred back to the capital, so the ministers came up with a plan to deceive the emperor by telling Zhu Jianru that it was just a minor defeat and there was nothing to worry about, and that Xu Ning should be rewarded!"

"I'm really puzzled. Did the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty really have that much power? Enough to deceive the emperor?"

Zhu Baba of the Ming Dynasty (using very vulgar language): ...

All Emperors of the Ming Dynasty: !!!

"Emperor Chenghua, having long been confined to the palace, was largely ignorant of the war situation at the front. Moreover, with so many officials conspiring to deceive him, he probably never imagined they would work together to mislead the emperor. Therefore, Zhu Jianru ordered Xu Ning to atone for his crimes through meritorious service."

"Fearing Wang Zhi's return, the civil officials jointly impeached him for eight major crimes, resulting in Wang Zhi's demotion to the rank of Fengyu, and Wang Yue was also demoted along with him."

"While the Ming Dynasty is embroiled in internal strife, the Mongols are reaping the benefits and have begun raiding the borders again, while Xu Ning can only cower within the city, daring not to make the slightest move."

"Finally, someone couldn't stand it anymore and secretly reported to Emperor Chenghua, revealing the truth about the border war. Xu Ning's faction was all demoted. Unfortunately, the emperor's reign was short-lived. Emperor Chenghua lay down in his final days, allowing the court to become corrupt, and like Zhu Qizhen, he left the mess to his son Zhu Youcheng."

"In the later period of the Ming Dynasty, land annexation became increasingly serious, border defenses were lax, and after Emperor Xiaozong Zhu Youcheng, the civil official group expanded, although there were also ministers like Zhang Juzheng who were wholeheartedly devoted to the country."

"However, Zhu Yuanzhang probably never dreamed that one day the Ming Dynasty would have civil officials wielding such power. Even the emperors who were severely vilified in historical records were all those who didn't get along with civil officials, while Zhu Youcheng, who indulged them, received extremely high praise."

Zhu Baba of the Ming Dynasty: ...Our old Zhu is not someone who relies on reputation!

General Judy: Same here!

Emperor Zhu Youcheng of the Ming Dynasty: ...

Emperor Zhu Jianshen of the Ming Dynasty, known for his devotion to women: ...