Chapter 55: Cut Weeds and Roots, Exterminate Evil Completely

"We pay our respects to Your Majesty!"

As soon as the Chongzhen Emperor arrived at the Eastern Warm Pavilion, Qin Liangyu and the others bowed deeply.

"My lords, please rise!"

Chongzhen raised his right hand. "Since you all arrived so early, you likely haven't had breakfast yet. Join me for a meal first; we need to be well-fed before we can discuss major affairs."

While he was speaking, Wang Cheng'en led several court maids in placing the breakfast on the table.

"Y-Your Majesty, is this what you have for breakfast?"

Qin Liangyu looked at the food on the table, her voice full of bewilderment.

There were a few plates of steamed buns, plain mantou, a basin of white congee, and three or four small dishes of pickled vegetables.

Let alone an emperor, even an ordinary gentry family would have at least two hot stir-fried dishes for breakfast, not to mention meat and fish.

Before Chongzhen could reply, Wang Cheng'en, who was serving congee to everyone nearby, lowered his voice. "Since ascending the throne, His Majesty's daily breakfast has consisted only of mantou, plain congee, and pickles. Even his lunch and dinner never exceed four dishes and a soup."

Everyone was once again startled, and the way they looked at Chongzhen shifted completely.

If Chongzhen's words yesterday had been emotionally charged to boost morale, seeing this scene today made them instantly feel that His Majesty's grand visions might actually be achievable.

It is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality. Among the countless imperial princes and commandery kings of the royal family, which of them was not living in lavish luxury with brocade and fine food?

Yet, as the supreme ruler of a nation, he could maintain such self-discipline and frugality. At the very least, this laid the foundation for becoming an enlightened monarch.

"Come, let us eat!"

Chongzhen sat down first and addressed the crowd, "Eating this for breakfast is the only way to keep hunger at bay. Hurry up and eat!"

With that, he picked up a large meat bun and began to eat without the slightest bit of pretense or affectation.

After exchanging glances, Li Banghua sat down without standing on ceremony, grabbed a bun, and started eating as well. Seeing this, the rest of them also began their meal.

A short while later, everyone had finished. Wang Cheng'en served them hot tea and then retreated behind the dragon desk to stand quietly with his hands tucked in his sleeves.

"I asked you all here today to discuss how we should handle the remaining accomplices of the Eunuch Faction!"

"Should we execute them? Imprison them? Or release them?"

A shock rippled through the hearts of everyone present. Indeed, it was about this matter. When messengers had been sent from the palace last night, they had already guessed as much.

After a few moments of silence, Li Banghua stood up and said, "Your Majesty, in my view, the remaining members of the Eunuch Faction must be uprooted and dealt with mercilessly. They framed loyal and upright officials—how many people died at their hands? How many ministerial families were ruined? Nothing short of execution will appease the public fury."

"Your Majesty, this old minister believes that Lord Li's suggestion is ill-advised!"

Guo Yunhou, the Minister of Revenue, stood up next. "Lord Li, while the members of the Eunuch Faction are indeed hateful and deserve to die, we cannot paint everyone with the same brush. Some may look like members of the Eunuch Faction on the surface, but upon examining their true nature, they are not wicked people. For instance, Grand Secretary Zhang Ruitu."

"Your Majesty, this old minister is not making excuses for Lord Zhang, but rather speaking based on facts. Although he attached himself to Wei Zhongxian, he never participated in framing loyal officials. There is a vast difference between him and the truly heinous members of the Eunuch Faction."

"For example, in the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, when Empress Dowager Yian fell gravely ill, Wei Zhongxian ordered Prefecture Magistrate Liu Zhixuan to persecute imperial father-in-law Zhang Guoji and other imperial relatives. It was Lord Zhang who stepped forward to stop it."

"Again, in the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, when the Beijing Temple of Confucius was being rebuilt and a shrine for the living Wei Zhongxian was erected there, it was once again Lord Zhang who put a stop to it.还有..."

Guo Yunhou listed more than a dozen instances before concluding, "This old minister believes that Lord Zhang's inner heart was full of conflict. His attachment to Wei Zhongxian did not stem from genuine reverence and admiration, but from political and utilitarian calculations to advance his official career—it had the nature of political opportunism. He maintained outward harmony and flexibility while secretly mitigating harm and quietly offering rescue."

"There are quite a few people like this. We surely cannot execute all of them!"

Guo Yunhou's words silenced Li Banghua, whose intent to kill had been exceptionally strong. The rest of the officials also wore pensive expressions.

Chongzhen nodded inwardly and then asked, "How does Lord Guo suggest we handle them?"

In response, Guo Yunhou pulled a memorial out of his sleeve. "Your Majesty, this is the memorial I drafted last night. Please deign to review it, Your Majesty."

Taking it, Chongzhen flipped through the pages while saying, "Continue speaking so everyone else can hear as well."

"Your Majesty, this old minister believes we should categorize the remaining accomplices of the Eunuch Faction. First, those who actively relied on them—such as those who participated in framing loyal officials, taking bribes, twisting the laws, and usurping state power—should have their entire clans executed and their properties confiscated. This includes the notorious Five Tigers, Five Beasts, Ten Youths, and Forty Grandsons; these people must be eradicated root and branch."

"Second, those who engaged in fawning and lost all moral baseline must also be shown no mercy, such as those who built shrines for the living Wei Zhongxian."

"Third, those who passively relied on them, such as those who used gold, silver, and jewels to bribe and ingratiate themselves, should have their properties confiscated and be exiled to garrison posts on the frontier..."

As Guo Yunhou finished speaking, Chongzhen also finished reading the document.

"What do my lords think of Lord Guo's proposal?"

"We await Your Majesty's wise judgment!" the officials chorused.

How could there be any objection? Guo Yunhou had divided the remaining accomplices of the Eunuch Faction into nine distinct tiers. Even the lightest punishment involved dismissal from office, the confiscation of ninety percent of one's family assets, and a ban preventing the direct lineage for three generations from entering official service. How much harsher could one possibly be?

"However, there are a few problems that need to be resolved," Chongzhen noted. "First, according to Lord Guo's proposal, well over half of the court would be purged. How do we fill all these vacant positions?"

"Second, among the military officers—such as those in the Four Tengxiang Guards, the Twenty-One Guards, and various regional garrison commanders—although they haven't committed capital crimes, many have taken massive amounts of bribes. According to the Great Ming Code, they should all be beheaded."

"Yet military generals are different from civil officials; leading troops into battle requires practical combat experience and skill. If we execute all of them, it will be extremely difficult to fill the resulting vacancies among the military leadership."

After a period of silence among the ministers, Grand Secretary Li Guopu stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, this minister believes that filling the vacant civil positions is actually quite manageable. During the Wanli and Tianqi reigns, many officials resigned because of factional strife. We can first recall these individuals to public service."

"Although they are somewhat older, their strength lies in their wealth of experience, which precisely aligns with the court's current policy of stability."

"Secondly, the Ministry of Personnel can dispatch clean officials to inspect the country, working in coordination with the Embroidered Uniform Guard and various regional censors. They can select and promote a younger generation who possess sufficient prestige, capability, and a genuine desire to work for the people, giving them an opportunity."

"In this way, after a few years when the older generation retires, this new batch will be ready to step up."

At this point, Li Guopu paused in thought for a moment before continuing. "As for those military officers, first, compel them to surrender their embezzled silver."

"Second, transfer them to other garrison posts across the country to dilute their local influence, but their families must remain in the capital."

"Third, assign them a task: within one year, if they fail to train a battle-ready and formidable garrison army, they will be executed on the spot. The specific standards can be drafted by the Ministry of War."

"Fourth, execute a portion of them. This is a prerequisite for the previous three measures, so they understand we are not afraid to take action against them."

"Finally, issue an imperial edict stating that this is an exception among exceptions, and any similar future offenses will be punished by immediate execution, to prevent anyone from using this as a precedent for future corruption."

"Splendid, splendid, splendid..."

"A brilliant idea!"

"What Lord Grand Secretary Li has said is entirely correct!"

As soon as Li Guopu finished speaking, everyone began to applaud and praise the plan.

Chongzhen was also extremely satisfied. Although the proposal was conventional and standard, it suited the current situation much better.

"Very well, since the general framework has been settled, I must trouble a few of you to refine the details further so we can announce it during the court assembly shortly."

Another hour passed. The officials finalized the details and handed the completed memorial back to Chongzhen.

Chongzhen read through it meticulously, closed the document, and rose from behind the dragon desk.

"Let us go to the Hall of Supreme Harmony. I imagine those people have been waiting anxiously!"