ATPnovel Chapter 134 Taking the Initiative to Cut Losses to Survive
Chapter 134 Taking the Initiative to Cut Losses to Survive
Chapter 134 Taking the Initiative to Cut Losses to Survive
Chapter 133 Qianqing Palace, West Warm Pavilion.
Emperor Tianqi, Zhu Youxiao, stood in the center of the hall, before him lay more than a dozen silver gourds, each weighing seven or eight hundred catties. The gleaming silver shimmered alluringly in the candlelight. He bent down and reached out to touch one of them; the icy touch sent a shiver down his spine.
"This is... Fan Yongdou's?"
The Tianqi Emperor was not a man who had never seen the world, but the problem was that when he suddenly saw so many silver gourds, his voice still trembled slightly.
Chen Ying bowed and said, "Your Majesty, that is indeed the case. The Embroidered Uniform Guard dug out a total of forty-two items from the Fan family's cellar, each weighing about seven hundred catties. There were also some loose silver, gold ingots, jewelry, jade, antiques, and paintings, worth about twelve million taels of silver. What I brought to the palace was a portion of it, totaling more than four million taels."
The Tianqi Emperor straightened up, took a deep breath, and murmured, "A mere merchant—yet he possesses such wealth—Minister Chen, are you saying that his personal fortune is greater than my imperial treasury?"
Chen Ying had read unofficial histories in later generations, which said that when Li Zicheng entered Beijing, he confiscated more than 77 million taels of silver from the homes of officials and wealthy families in the capital. Of course, Chen Ying had some doubts about this amount, because Li Zicheng's conquest of the capital was not an overnight success. Those wealthy families and officials would definitely have transferred their assets. How could they have left behind so much silver?
Chen Ying remained silent for a moment, before he could speak, but Wei Zhongxian slowly said, "Your Majesty, Fan Yongdou is only one of the eight great Shanxi merchants. As far as I know, the other seven families, while not as wealthy as Fan Yongdou, are not far off. The combined wealth of the eight families is at least fifty or sixty million taels."
The Tianqi Emperor's expression changed.
For five years after his ascension to the throne, he lost sleep over the military pay in Liaodong and was constantly worried about famines in various regions. He lived frugally, even reluctant to spend money on palace repairs. Yet these merchants, whom he had never given a second glance, were incredibly wealthy!
"They—how dare they!"
The Tianqi Emperor's voice suddenly rose eight octaves, and he angrily said, "My soldiers are fighting on the front lines, my soldiers are shedding blood and sacrificing their lives, while they are profiting from the national crisis in the rear! They are even selling weapons to the Jurchens! Are they even human?"
Chen Ying lowered his head and remained silent.
Wei Zhongxian chimed in, "Your Majesty, Fan Yongdou's case has been verified. He colluded with the Jurchens and smuggled ironware..."
Gunpowder and grain—the evidence is irrefutable. According to the law, the family should be confiscated and their entire clan exterminated.
"Then copy! Then destroy!"
The Tianqi Emperor roared, "Issue an edict to confiscate the property of the other seven major Shanxi merchant families, leaving none alive!"
"Your Majesty, wait!"
Chen Ying looked up and stopped him.
The Tianqi Emperor frowned: "Minister Chen, what do you mean?"
Chen Ying took a deep breath and slowly said, "Your Majesty, the eight major Shanxi merchants are deeply entrenched and have extensive connections. Many officials in the court have dealings with them. If we were to confiscate them all at once, it might alert them and cause those officials who are colluding with them to act rashly."
Chen Ying's concerns were not unfounded. The eight major Shanxi merchants were different from merchants from the Central Plains or Huizhou. The Shanxi merchants had bribed countless military officers in Datong and Xuanfu. Rashly confiscating their property and exterminating their families could easily provoke a backlash from these eight major families. They could strike the market, causing panic among the people over food shortages, or they could use them to drag the military officers into the mess, forcing the officers in Datong and Xuanfu to rebel.
Nurhaci is now severely weakened. If he could gain the allegiance of the Ming soldiers in Datong and Xuanfu, he would be overjoyed. Moreover, with such a wide-ranging and forceful attack, it's impossible to expect them not to resist. Furthermore, from the imperial decree to its implementation in Shanxi, any link in the chain could potentially leak secrets, allowing them to transfer assets.
Some might say that we can start by looking at the transfer of assets. The court does not recognize the legality of their asset transfers. But then the question arises: if they transfer their land and property to tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people, can they still get it back?
The answer is yes, they can't catch them. In fact, even if they wanted to kill a few key leaders, they would come up empty-handed. It would be a losing proposition.
The Tianqi Emperor calmed down somewhat, sat back on his dragon throne, and said in a deep voice, "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Chen Ying thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that this matter should be handled slowly rather than hastily. Now that Fan Yongdou has been apprehended and the evidence has been solidified, we can pretend to follow the clues and investigate one by one. Then, we can quietly spread the word that we should make them pay a ransom of at least one-third of their family fortune. They can accept this result and won't be driven to desperation. Once people compromise, they will develop a habit. As long as this sword is still hanging over their heads, they can't escape. This way, we won't cause too much turmoil, but we can also make those officials who colluded with Shanxi merchants restless."
Wei Zhongxian nodded and said, "Your Majesty, Boying is right. The Shanxi merchants have been operating in the court for many years, and their network of relationships is extremely tight."
If we act too hastily, they might retaliate.
The Tianqi Emperor remained silent for a moment, then finally nodded: "Then let's do it your way. First, conclude the trial of Fan Yongdou, execute those who should be executed, and confiscate those who should be confiscated. As for the others—do as Boying wishes, and let none of them go."
Chen Ying bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise."
However, things were not as simple as the Tianqi Emperor had imagined.
When news of Fan Yongdou's home being searched spread, the court was in an uproar. First, several officials from Shanxi submitted a memorial, saying that Fan Yongdou was wronged and that the case was fabricated by the Embroidered Uniform Guard to curry favor.
Then, several censors impeached Chen Ying, accusing him of using his position to settle personal scores and amass wealth.
"Your Majesty, I impeach Chen Ying, the Commander-in-Chief of the Daming Army, for abusing his power for personal gain and framing honest merchants. His crime deserves death!"
"Your Majesty, I impeach Xu Xianchun, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, for abusing his power, using torture to extract confessions, and fabricating a false case!"
Memorials flew into the Office of Transmission, their language vehement and their targets clearly Chen Yinghe and Xu Xianchun.
Grand Secretary Gu Bingqian held these memorials, his brow furrowed. Although he was Wei Zhongxian's man, he had to admit that the affairs of the Shanxi merchants were far too complex.
"Your Excellency,"
Vice Grand Secretary Ding Shaoshi said in a low voice, "I'm afraid we can't investigate Fan Yongdou's case any further. If we continue, countless people in the court will suffer. With everyone in a state of panic, how can the court function?"
Gu Bingqian sighed: "I know that too. But this is His Majesty's will, Eunuch Wei's will, can we stop him?"
'
Ding Shaoshi lowered his voice: "We have to stop it, even if we can't. We have to find a way to suppress this matter."
Gu Bingqian thought for a moment and said, "How about this, you go find a few respected senior officials and have them jointly submit a memorial to His Majesty, asking him to reconsider. Say that the evidence in Fan Yongdou's case is insufficient and needs to be retried. Let's delay the matter for now, until His Majesty has calmed down, and then we'll think of a solution."
Ding Shaoshi nodded and left in a hurry.
When the news reached Wei Zhongxian's ears, he was furious.
"These bastards! The evidence is irrefutable, and they still dare to call it a miscarriage of justice? How much silver did they take from the Shanxi merchants?"
Chen Ying, standing to the side, said calmly, "Father-in-law, even if they don't accept the money, they'll still jump out. Because the Shanxi merchants have collapsed, their source of income has been cut off. Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents. How could they not jump out?"
Wei Zhongxian sneered, "Let them jump. I'd like to see what tricks they can pull off."
He stood up, paced around the room a few times, then suddenly stopped: "Boying, tell me, how should this be resolved?"
Chen Ying thought for a moment and said, "Your Excellency, I believe this matter should not be handled forcefully. After all, those people in the cabinet represent the face of the court. If we break ties with them, it will not benefit anyone. It would be better to take a step back, close Fan Yongdou's case, and make an example of him. As for the others, let's put them aside for now and deal with them after the storm has passed."
Chen Ying had complex feelings towards these Shanxi merchants. On the one hand, he hated them to the bone for their selfish and shameless acts of selling out the country, helping the Jurchens to dispose of stolen goods, and indirectly helping the Jurchens bleed the Ming Dynasty dry. On the other hand, he admired the Shanxi merchants for rising from such a barren land as Shanxi to become a group that was as rich as a country and even had the ability to shake the foundation of the Ming Dynasty.
These eight prominent Shanxi merchants were undoubtedly rare business geniuses. They ventured westward, eastward to the Guandong Plain, southward to Huguang (Hubei and Hunan), and eastward to the sea. Their caravans traversed every inch of Ming Dynasty territory, even penetrating deep into the Mongolian steppes and Liaodong, extending their business to the heartland of the Jurchens. Unfortunately, they profited from national crisis; every ingot of silver they earned was tainted by the lives of the Ming soldiers and civilians. Faced with such a stubborn and extremely selfish group, these men were born business geniuses. Sadly, their genius went astray. He had no other choice but to ruthlessly kill them. "Brother-in-law!"
Song Xianze appeared behind him unnoticed and whispered, "There's a commotion in the court. Several censors from Shanxi have jointly submitted a memorial saying that Fan Yongdou's case is a miscarriage of justice and demanding a retrial. Members of the Donglin Party have also joined in, saying that the Embroidered Uniform Guard's investigations are cruel and unfair."
Chen Ying sneered: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard may have made mistakes in handling cases, but in Fan Yongdou's case, he was absolutely not wronged. Believe it or not, eight out of ten of those who jumped out to defend Fan Yongdou had taken money from Shanxi merchants. The remaining two are either relatives or fellow villagers. It's not that they don't know what Fan Yongdou did; they're just afraid of getting caught in the crossfire."
Song Xianze whispered, "Then what do we do?"
Chen Ying paused for a moment, then slowly said, "Let them argue. The louder the argument, the better."
Song Xianze was slightly taken aback.
Chen Ying explained, "The louder they argue, the clearer His Majesty understands that this matter of the Shanxi merchants isn't just about a few businessmen, but a complex web of vested interests within the court. The more they plead for Fan Yongdou's innocence, the less likely His Majesty will let him off the hook. This is like shooting themselves in the foot. Besides, the Embroidered Uniform Guard has solid evidence. There are ledgers documenting the ironware and gunpowder Fan Yongdou smuggled. There are also testimonies from border generals regarding his grain delivery routes to the Jurchens. This evidence cannot be overturned with a few words of 'wrongful conviction.'"
Song Xianze nodded, then asked, "What about the Donglin Party—"
"The Donglin Party?" Chen Ying laughed. "They're not crying foul for Fan Yongdou; they're crying foul for themselves. In their eyes, everything the Embroidered Uniform Guard did was wrong; Wei Zhongxian's men were all bad people. They don't need evidence, they don't need the truth, they only need a stance of 'justice.'"
He turned around, gazing at the gradually brightening sky in the distance, and said calmly, "But in this world, not everything can be divided by 'positions.' Fan Yongdou betrayed his country, that's a fact. He deserved to die, that's also a fact. Whoever speaks out for him is siding with the Jurchens."
Song Xianze felt a chill run down his spine and said no more.
Just as Chen Ying had predicted, as the investigation into Fan Yongdou's case deepened, Fan Yongdou, who was in prison, finally spoke up and implicated many people. The eight major Shanxi merchants and dozens of businesses under them began to panic.
Inside the Shanxi Merchants' Guild Hall in Liangxiang County, an elderly man seated at the head of the table looked at the crowd and asked, "Tell me, what should we do now?"
"At worst, we can just part ways!"
A manager named Tian Sihui said, "If you don't give us a way to survive, why should we care about the lives of those peasants? In any case, this empire belongs to the Zhu family, the Yang family, and the Li family even more so—"
"Brother Tian, watch your words—"
"Be careful what you say, my foot!"
Tian Sihui scoffed, "With a knife to our throats, what other options do we have? We have no choice but to fight. We need to get all the people we've won over mobilized. Weren't they all smiles when we were collecting money? Now it's their turn to contribute. If Datong and Xuanfu fall into chaos, no matter how well Shanhaiguan is defended, it won't matter!"
Just as Tian Sihui was filled with righteous indignation, a trusted confidant quietly approached them and whispered, "I heard some news that someone can settle things for the Cao family!"
"Who?"
"Believe in King Zhu Youjian!"
Tian Sihui, disregarding the need to continue the meeting, hurriedly said, "Chief, I'm very sorry, my elderly mother is getting married at home, and as her son, I can't miss it. Please excuse me!"
Through an intermediary, Tian Sihui had contact with Cao Huachun, a confidant of Prince Xin. Cao Huachun made an outrageous demand, asking for four million taels of silver.
Several days later, when the Embroidered Uniform Guards were interrogating Fan Yongdou, the Cao family's name had mysteriously disappeared, as if they had never existed.
The Cao family mansion.
The old man in purple robes looked at Tian Sihui and said, "You handled this matter well!"
"His subordinates were incompetent, and Prince Xin extorted four million taels of silver from them!"
"Four million taels of silver is nothing!"
The old man in purple robes smiled faintly and said, "Our Cao family has 167 members, 167 lives. Aren't they worth four million taels of silver?"
There are actually quite a few smart people like Tian Sihui. He was able to get the information because this was actually a smokescreen spread by Chen Ying. The real purpose was to get them to voluntarily cut their losses.
Whether it was Chen Ying or Wei Zhongxian, what they wanted was money, not lives. Did they really think that eliminating the eight major Shanxi merchants would be a good thing for everyone? Actually, not entirely. Fan Yongdou alone had 30,000 to 40,000 employees, which meant 30,000 to 40,000 families and hundreds of thousands of people would lose their livelihoods. If these people were not dealt with, they would only take risks and either become bandits or outlaws.
At this moment, the Prince Xin's mansion instantly became bustling with activity, with carriages flowing like water and horses like dragons, and countless people rushing to give Prince Xin silver.