Chapter 33: Even One’s Own Son Has To Take A Back Seat! Seeking Monthly Tickets
The Eastern Palace is in turmoil, and the Ten Princes’ Mansion is no different.
At this moment, in the living room of the Prince Qin’s Mansion.
“Bang—!”
Zhu Shuang slammed the wine cup heavily onto the table, splashing wine high. His face was filled with uncontrollable rage: “Rebellion! This is outright rebellion!!”
“How dare Zhang Biao throw a tantrum in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, demanding money and face from our Father King?! Is this a censor?! He’s clearly a street thug!”
“Our Father King is truly senile! Not only did he not execute him, but he even paid out of his own pocket?! And gave him face?! Shameful! He has disgraced our entire Old Zhu family! If this were Xi’an, I would have him chopped up and fed to dogs!!”
Upon hearing this, Zhu Gang slowly took a sip of wine, his eyes holding a worldly shrewdness and a barely perceptible hint of worry.
After Zhu Shuang’s anger subsided somewhat, he put down his wine cup and said lightly, “Second Brother, calm yourself. Losing face is a minor matter.”
“It’s a minor matter?!”
Zhu Shuang’s eyes widened.
“Of course it’s a minor matter.”
Zhu Gang’s voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling penetration: “Zhang Biao is merely a catalyst. What he has truly exposed is the rotten hole that is the Ministry of Revenue! The predicament of the court being unable to pay salaries!”
As he spoke, he leaned forward slightly, staring at Zhu Shuang, and said again, “Second Brother, have you ever considered? If a censor’s salary can be in arrears for over seven months, then can the Ministry of Revenue dare to delay or, worse, stop paying our salaries as princes, the provisions and pay for our guards, and the expenses of our fiefdoms?!”
The anger on Zhu Shuang’s face instantly froze, replaced by bewilderment, then slowly turned into surprise and a hint of panic.
He had great wealth and a large household in Xi’an, with even greater expenses, relying entirely on the court’s annual stipends and the taxes from his fiefdom for support.
What if the court also delayed his payments.
“This… this can’t be possible, can it?”
Zhu Shuang’s voice was a little shaky: “We are princes! Father King’s own sons!”
“Own sons?”
Zhu Gang sneered, with a hint of self-deprecation: “In front of the Ministry of Revenue’s empty silver vault, even own sons have to wait! If even the capital officials can’t get paid, do you think Father King, or those people in the Ministry of Revenue, will prioritize our stipends as distant princes!?”
He picked up the wine pot and slowly refilled Zhu Shuang’s empty wine cup, his tone imbued with a world-weary wisdom:
“Zhang Biao’s commotion has finally burst the boil. The court is out of money, Second Brother. From now on, we either increase revenue by imposing more taxes, incurring the wrath of heaven and man, or we cut expenses by withholding from whom? Besides us ‘far from the emperor’ princes, who else could it be?”
Zhu Gang lowered his voice further, as if whispering, yet every word struck Zhu Shuang’s heart: “Today, Father Emperor spent fifty taels of silver from his own pocket to silence Zhang Biao. Tomorrow, will he reach into the bowls of us princes to fill the Ministry of Revenue’s deficit?”
“After squeezing us dry, the next step will be… Abolishing Feudal Lords?”
“Hiss—!”
Zhu Shuang gasped, feeling a chill shoot from his tailbone to the crown of his head.
He suddenly looked at Zhu Gang, his eyes filled with terror and lingering fear.
Compared to the terrifying future Zhu Gang had painted, Zhang Biao’s embarrassment and the scene in the Hall of Supreme Harmony were insignificant.
He picked up the wine cup Zhu Gang had just filled for him, but his hand trembled so violently that he spilled the wine all over himself.
He looked at the swirling liquid in the cup, as if seeing the impending lack of provisions in his fiefdom, the dissatisfied looks of his guards, and… Old Zhu’s cold, merciless face.
Seeing his second brother’s distraught appearance, Zhu Gang sighed silently, picked up his own wine cup, and drained it in one gulp.
The spicy wine went down his throat, but it couldn’t dispel the heavy gloom in his heart.
Zhang Biao’s seemingly absurd act was like a stone thrown into a stagnant pond, creating ripples that were quietly spreading, shaking the seemingly stable foundation of the Great Ming Dynasty, and stirring the emotions of everyone involved.
On the other side, the Prince Yan’s Mansion.
“Father King, that Censor Zhang is too bold!”
Zhu Gaochi finally couldn’t help but break the silence: “How dare he demand money and face from Imperial Grandfather? What’s the difference between that and a street thug extorting money?! Imperial Grandfather should have him beheaded!”
Zhu Di slowly turned around, his gaze sweeping over his three sons before finally settling on Zhu Gaochi. His voice was calm and unperturbed:
“Behead him? And then what? Let all of Yingtian Prefecture know that our Great Ming Dynasty is so poor it can’t even pay censors’ salaries? Give those who already harbor ill intentions even more excuses to attack the court?”
Zhu Gaochi was momentarily speechless, then stubbornly said, “Then… then we can’t just let him be so presumptuous! He’s lost the royal family’s face!”
“Face?” Zhu Di’s lips curved into a very faint, cold arc: “Sometimes, face is worth even less than actual silver.”
He paced a few steps and looked at Zhu Gaochi: “Gaochi, what do you think?”
Zhu Gaochi’s plump body leaned forward slightly, and his small eyes sparkled with shrewdness: “Reporting to Father King, your son believes that Censor Zhang’s actions, while seemingly absurd and rude, are in fact a clever stratagem, cutting straight to the core of the issue.”
“Oh?” Zhu Di raised an eyebrow: “Tell me more!”
“Firstly!”
Zhu Gaochi counted on his plump fingers: “He pointed out the reality of the Ministry of Revenue’s deficit and the court’s arrears in salaries, a fact that no one can conceal. Even though Imperial Grandfather is furious, he can only acknowledge it and even has to pay out of his own pocket to cover the arrears, which is tantamount to admitting the court’s financial predicament.”
“Secondly!”
He counted on another finger: “By using the story of Censor Shen trading his Jade Pendant for pig’s head meat, he turned the concept of ‘the court is poor’ into a vivid, and even somewhat tragically humorous, street tale. If this story gets out, it will be more damaging than ten memorials impeaching the Ministry of Revenue!
When people gossip about it during their tea breaks, if even a censor is this poor, how can the court be doing well? This loss of face is even more thorough than Zhang Biao rolling around in the Hall of Supreme Harmony!”
“Thirdly!”
Zhu Gaochi lowered his voice slightly, with a hint of depth: “He has portrayed himself and that Shen Lang as ‘victims’ who have been wronged by the court and are at their wit’s end. If Imperial Grandfather executes him, it will confirm the court’s stinginess and lack of benevolence. If he doesn’t kill him, it will make Imperial Grandfather appear ‘benevolent and considerate towards his subjects.’
In this dilemma, Censor Zhang, while seemingly placing himself in a dangerous position, has in fact draped himself in an invisible protective charm.”
A flicker of approval flashed in Zhu Di’s eyes, and he nodded slightly: “You see it quite clearly. What do you think, then? Is this person usable?”
Zhu Gaochi shook his head, his small eyes narrowing into slits: “This person’s actions are too erratic and difficult to control. Moreover, if he dares to demand salary in the Hall of Supreme Harmony today, he will dare to do something even more outrageous tomorrow. Using him carries too great a risk, like licking honey from a blade. However…”
He paused, then lowered his voice again: “He has torn down the curtain on the Ministry of Revenue, giving Imperial Grandfather a pretext to target the princes, reduce their stipends and guards’ provisions. Your son believes that Father King should prepare early. Otherwise, the hard times in Beiping are coming!”
Zhu Di did not respond, but his gaze fell on Zhu Gao Sui. He frowned: “Gao Sui, what do you think?”
Zhu Gao Sui looked up at the ceiling, and after a long pause, suddenly said, “I think we should get some pig’s head meat.”
“…”
Zhu Di, Zhu Gaochi, Zhu Gaochi.
That Zhang Biao fellow is indeed unusable! He’s poisonous!
