Chapter 446: Unjust Retribution

Although it was the busiest time as the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue worked together to supervise the distribution of funds, since Zhang Qian had personally come to the Ministry of War to summon him, Zhang Yue had no choice but to reluctantly leave all his unfinished tasks to Wan Shijie and then report to Minister Guo Zi in the main hall. Once outside, Zhang Qian suggested heading to Dong’an Gate. Knowing full well that the Ministry of War was located right in front of the Forbidden City, Zhang Yue understood the intention behind this and immediately agreed—after all, it was easier to talk outside the palace.

“After all, Fang Bin is someone who’s been used to certain procedures. So although an official’s suicide is a serious crime, the emperor still shows mercy and has not yet blamed him. I’ve dealt with Fang Bin a few times; logically, he shouldn’t have thought of ending his life like this!”

With Zhang Qian saying so, Zhang Yue became even more puzzled. Though he had already gathered quite a bit of information and pieced together some clues, since Lu Feng was Zhang Qian’s mentor and those matters shouldn’t have been known to him, he felt reluctant to express his doubts. Yet Zhang Qian spoke up on his own.

“Before Fang Bin died, Lu Feng was ordered to go to Lingji Palace to offer prayers. According to him, Fang Bin seemed pale and uneasy at the time. If he had told someone earlier, things might not have turned out this way. After all, the emperor assigned someone familiar with the situation; switching to someone else suddenly might not have been easy for him. Besides, Fang Bin’s death scared Minister of Rites Lu Zhen so much that he fell ill. It’s said he’s still working at the ministry despite being sick, and Wu Zhong isn’t in much better shape either.”

“Eunuch Zhang, what exactly are the emperor’s plans now?”

“I don’t know.”

Seeing Zhang Yue’s surprised expression, Zhang Qian helplessly shrugged and said with a wry smile, “The emperor’s mood is ever-changing. Even after following him for so many years, I still can’t figure him out. In fact, not just me—even those close to him, like the crown prince and grand crown prince, must always be cautious. Today, after reading your report, the emperor seemed in a fairly good mood when he sent me to summon you. But if you go to Qianqing Palace and find him furious, it wouldn’t be surprising. Fortunately, Yang Shiqi is on duty today. He has a good relationship with your teacher, so it’s good to have him around in case anything happens.”

The two walked while talking, with their attendants following from a distance. Zhang Qian explained everything that needed to be addressed or reminded, which put him at ease. Upon reaching Dong’an Gate, everyone dismounted. Since Zhang Yue’s attendants were not allowed to enter the palace, they could only wait outside. Zhang Yue followed Zhang Qian through Dong’an Inner Gate and East Upper Middle Gate, and soon they entered Donghua Gate. Since both the Crown Prince’s palace and the Eastern Palace were inside Donghua Gate, there were especially many guards. Zhang Qian remained silent, and Zhang Yue obediently followed behind.

“Eunuch Zhang!”

Hearing this voice, Zhang Qian stopped immediately. Seeing a group approaching from the east, he was slightly stunned before hurrying forward to greet them. Zhang Yue, who followed closely, recognized that the leader was Zhu Zhanji and inwardly thought it was quite coincidental to pass through Donghua Gate that day. After exchanging greetings, Zhu Zhanji asked Zhang Qian where he was going. Learning that it was to Qianqing Palace, he gave Zhang Yue another glance.

“My mother is busy seeing Aunt Ning and cannot free herself, so I’m heading to Qianqing Palace now to return the calligraphy sheets my grandfather lent me a few days ago and convey greetings on their behalf. It happens to be on our way.”

Since Zhu Zhanji said it was on the way and there were no highly formal officials from the Eastern Palace among them, Zhang Qian naturally had no objections. Along the way, he picked up on Zhu Zhanji’s earlier remark and said with a smile, “The Emperor values the Crown Prince the most. He wouldn’t refuse even the most precious things, let alone a few calligraphy sheets. Why go out of his way to return them? And since the Crown Prince offers to convey greetings, could it be that the Crown Prince is unwell?”

“Nothing serious. It’s just that after autumn, he suffers from some old ailments and can’t walk long distances. You know my grandfather’s temper—he hates seeing his father need an eunuch to support him while walking. Since he’s already been there in the morning and there are no major matters in the afternoon, my father didn’t come with me. By the way, Zhang Yue, do you have any excellent writings to present this time when you enter the palace?”

Zhang Yue, who had been a step behind Zhang Qian and appeared like any other respectful official entering the palace for the first time, was momentarily stunned at Zhu Zhanji’s question. “How does Your Highness know?”

“I just asked casually, who would have thought I’d get it right! But the Emperor is fully focused on the northern expedition now. Even if you have brilliant ideas, he probably doesn’t have the mind to listen at the moment. You’re smart enough to know when and what to propose. Why do you have to bring this up now?” As Zhu Zhanji spoke, he gradually adopted the demeanor of a future emperor, shaped by years of influence. It wasn’t until Zhang Qian whispered two words beside him that he suddenly realized, “Oh, first you lift the sea ban, and now this maritime transport—everything seems to revolve around the word ‘sea’… If those ministers who are already overwhelmed hear about this, they’ll surely accuse you of meddling.”

“Your Highness, maritime transport is essentially just a follow-up to lifting the sea ban. If the Emperor hadn’t sent people to suppress the pirates along the coast, and if there weren’t many skilled sailors familiar with the sea routes, I wouldn’t dare suggest this. The sea is different from river transport. If the Yellow River bursts its banks, river transport gets blocked, but maritime transport isn’t affected by that. Since the Emperor has sent Eunuch Zheng with treasure ships to the West, the geography and hydrology along the coast must have already been recorded, making navigation much easier. Building ships does take a few years, but once the treasure ships return from the sea, some will need to be repaired in the docks, but the rest can be used to transport grain. As long as the south has a good harvest, the north won’t suffer from famine…”

Although Zhang Yue intended to persuade Zhu Di, with Zhu Zhanji having spoken so much, Zhang Yue had no choice but to use him as a practice run for dealing with the emperor. Even Zhang Qian, who had initially agreed to help out of courtesy, gradually found the idea reasonable after Zhang Yue’s clear explanations. As for Zhu Zhanji, though he wasn’t someone easily persuaded, he was also somewhat moved. After all, compared to missing his father in Nanjing, he had always supported making Beijing the capital. But while Beijing had many advantages, feeding so many officials, their families, and craftsmen who moved north required plenty of grain.

Still, after putting so much effort into improving the river transport system, was it really necessary to use sea ships for grain transport?

Zhang Yue didn’t expect to persuade Zhu Zhanji in just a short conversation. Back when lifting the sea ban, how much effort and how many proposals had he put in before Zhu Di agreed to try it out starting with the Ningbo Maritime Administration? So, once he entered the Qianqing Gate, he stopped talking and continued to plan in his mind.

Although he was not sure he could restore maritime trade within a generation, once the ban on sea travel was lifted and maritime transport resumed, maritime commerce would gradually flourish. Establishing a navy might not be an extravagant idea either, as rampant piracy and incidents like those caused by Japanese pirates might not recur. Opening up maritime trade might not matter much to ordinary people, but grain transported by sea could benefit them. Moreover, wars always required grain to be transported from the south, and although it wasn’t needed for this northern expedition, it could be used in the future.

“Accepting bribes from border generals, imposing heavier taxes on military expenses—even the replacement of old grain with new grain in the Nanjing granaries was his doing! Good, good, this is my key minister, this is the Minister of War I’ve always trusted! This scoundrel… this insatiable wolf! If I had known earlier, I would have killed him! He thought killing himself would solve everything, did he? I… I want to see just how much he’s stolen! Lu Feng, Yuan Fang, you two take the Fang family’s assets from the Jinyiwei—I want to see how much money he’s corrupted! A Minister of War who is so corrupt, not to mention those in the Ministry of Revenue! Xia Yuanji… confiscate everything he has! And Du… Du…”

Zhang Yue, who had been lost in thought, was suddenly interrupted by such an angry outburst. After initial shock, he gasped in dismay, not expecting things to take such a dramatic turn. Seeing only a few steps left on the staircase ahead, he quickly lifted the corner of his robe and climbed up in a few strides, only to see Zhu Zhanji already hurrying into the main hall. Gritting his teeth, he was about to follow in, but Zhang Qian stepped forward and blocked him.

“Calm down, don’t act rashly now!”

Zhang Qian glared fiercely at Zhang Yue before turning to enter the hall. Interrupted in this way, Zhang Yue quickly regained his senses. He had heard of Fang Bin’s corruption and experienced his arbitrary behavior firsthand; he didn’t believe Emperor Zhu Di was truly ignorant. Zhu Di’s sudden change in attitude, from one of pity to anger, was likely due to those few words just now.

It might be acceptable to confiscate some money, but accepting bribes from border generals and embezzling military funds were probably the things Zhu Di found hardest to tolerate. Zhu Di didn’t even trust nobles to command troops and had to appoint supervisors or eunuchs to oversee them. It was inevitable he would be furious after such incidents. Yet these were all highly secretive affairs—who had exposed them? The censors or the Jinyiwei or the Eastern Depot?

“Your Majesty, please calm down. Don’t ruin your health over a dead man.”

Zhu Zhanji’s calm voice came from within the hall, while Zhang Yue outside had by now grown accustomed to the dim light there. He saw Zhu Di’s furious figure, along with two people kneeling on the ground—one of them was none other than Yuan Fang. “With one such audacious traitor dead, who knows if there are others! He betrayed my trust, he failed to meet my expectations… This scoundrel! Even after his death, I won’t spare him!” Even though it was his most trusted grandson who was trying to persuade him, Zhu Di had no desire to hide his rage at that moment. He smashed the teacup on the imperial desk onto the ground and thundered at the two spies, “Since Fang Bingsheng deserves execution, he shall not be spared even in death. Seize his official documents, open his coffin, and execute his corpse! And Wu Zhong, the Minister of Punishments, shall also be imprisoned by the Jinyiwei!” These words swept through everyone in and outside the hall like a cold wind. Even Lu Feng, who had been hoping to profit from Fang Bingsheng’s case, felt a chill run down his spine, recalling how Huang Yan and others had been executed for their crimes. Zhang Yue was even more terrified. Although executing corpses had occurred throughout history, it was never considered a legitimate form of punishment—it was mostly used for traitors, more as a means to vent anger. Even if Fang Bingsheng deserved death, executing a high-ranking official like him after he committed suicide, and dragging in the Minister of Punishments Wu Zhong as well, was an excessive act of retaliation.