The officer coughed, walked up the three steps, and with a whoosh, pulled out an imperial edict, reading:
“Jiangnan Reform Campaign Commander’s Order:
The Crown Prince assumes regency, advocating reform to restore the Way of the Sages. Jiangnan military and civilians must obey this decree in unison. Any who defy the reform laws will be dealt with by the Commander’s yamen as seditious elements. Jiangnan Reform Campaign Commander’s Prefecture.”
Having finished reading, he boomed:
“Fellow soldiers and civilians! Jiangnan reform, first and foremost, is about strengthening the nation!
Therefore, the court has ordered the Imperial Envoy to Jiangnan to collect the two years of unpaid tax silver! These people not only refuse to pay taxes but also instigate the common folk to riot, claiming that Zhu Mo and Zhang Juzheng promised five years of tax exemption during their reforms…
Is there such a thing in the world? Where in any law did Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Mo say no taxes would be collected? The province has found no evidence, yet these unruly masses refuse to listen! They speak of establishing the nation on the Great Way of Yao and Shun, of emulating the Founding Emperor, all of which is utter nonsense!”
He was now contorted with rage. With a wave of his hand, a troop of righteous volunteers emerged from behind the yamen.
Yin Xiaohu now understood—
Zhang Yu and Zhao Zhenji had likely established a Reform Campaign Commander’s Prefecture, using the Crown Prince’s regency and reform as a pretext to force small workshops to merge with larger households, ostensibly to collect taxes. These small workshops were probably unwilling, and thus were being pressed for tax silver…
Nearby, some villagers whispered amongst themselves—
“Two years of tax silver, one hundred taels for a workshop, and they haven’t even earned a hundred taels in these two years. How can they pay? They’ll have to sell their land again…”
“What kind of reform is this? Reform after reform, it’s always the common folk who suffer…”
“That Zhu Mo, where has he disappeared to without a trace?”
“If he doesn’t show up, he’s no good!”
“Can’t win against them, and yet they rush to the front, what a joke!”
“That Zhang Juzheng is also a scoundrel! He’s returned to the capital at this time…”
“Alas, pity these people…”
“Indeed, they just want to earn a bit of silver…”
“Forget it, in this world, silver was never meant for common folk to earn…”
“You’re mistaken, this is the Dong family seeking revenge!”
“Hush!”
“…”
Yin Xiaohu listened, his heart a raw wound!
Yet, his understanding was crystal clear—
The reforms could not proceed. The Emperor had retreated, leaving the Crown Prince to oversee the state. The Crown Prince did not endorse Zhu Mo’s approach but dared not openly oppose it. Thus, he found Chen Yiqin to mediate, resulting in the Yan family tearing down the facade from below, resorting to violence to restore the previous order in a short period…
These were not difficult to comprehend. But why wasn't Zhu Mo present? Where had he gone? Had he already been harmed?
He scanned the crowd, seeing that the righteous volunteers he had brought were also present. He thought that if this officer and the magistrate dared to be harsh with them, he would step out to intervene. Otherwise, these people would likely be made an example of…
But on second thought, he lacked the authority. He was merely a commander of the Reclamation and Defense Volunteers, how could he interfere in Nanxun County affairs? Moreover, they were acting under the Crown Prince’s name. If he forcefully intervened, wouldn’t he be accused of rebellion?
In his momentary distress, he broke out in a cold sweat.
…
After bidding farewell in Jiujiang,
Zhu Mo sailed down the river to Hangzhou. He first stayed at a temple, wandering through the streets and alleys, observing the sentiment of the common people. After several days, he heard that the Crown Prince’s decree had been issued. He also learned that Zhang Juzheng and Zhang Yu had a fierce argument, after which Zhang Juzheng returned to the capital.
Only then did he deeply feel that the crisis had arrived—
While others might not see it, how could he not? Zhang Juzheng was fleeing a place of turmoil. His deliberate argument with Zhang Yu was to distance himself from future entanglements! Zhang Juzheng, a man of his caliber, must have guessed that the Yan family would tarnish the reforms using the Crown Prince's name, and even drag the Crown Prince and Chen Yiqin down with them, and then use that leverage against Jiajing…
That night,
He found the temple where Lü Kun resided alone.
Lü Kun had been extremely anxious for some time. Upon seeing Zhu Mo, he blurted out, “Zixuan, why are you only arriving now? Everything has turned upside down!”
Zhu Mo saw that he had packed his luggage; it seemed he was preparing to leave?
He immediately sighed,
“Shujian, it’s a long story. Zhang Juzheng has already left Hangzhou, and Jiangnan will be turned upside down overnight. We must be prepared… Have you seen Mr. He and the others recently?”
Lü Kun, alone in Hangzhou, was in charge of the vast Zhongwu Commander’s Prefecture. Although he had uncovered quite a bit, Zhu Mo had gone to Yunnan and Guizhou and had not returned for a long time, while significant events had occurred in the court. He had taken it upon himself to immediately disband his numerous informants. Fortunately, they hadn't been made permanent positions at the time. After being paid, the people at various levels stopped bothering him. By his count, this had happened over a month ago.
He had intended to search for Zhu Mo’s whereabouts. If he couldn’t find him, he would return to the capital to resign and then go teach in Xuanda. Seeing Zhu Mo safe and sound now, he assumed the rumors of him being arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guard were false. It seemed something had happened during his trip to Yunnan and Guizhou, which had led to this series of events.
“Mr. He is still at Wansong Academy, but recently some ruffians have been harassing him. I wanted to go to Guanyin Temple to find Wu Ming and Wu Liang, but I couldn’t see them… Zixuan, what exactly happened?”
Lü Kun could no longer hold back.
Zhu Mo said with emotion:
“We must first find Mr. He… The situation is critical now. With Zhang Juzheng gone, Zhang Yu and Zhao Zhenji will quickly reverse the reforms. We must protect the common people!”
Yes, yes,
Lü Kun nodded, thinking that Zhu Mo always thought of the common people in times of crisis, and that he had indeed not misjudged this man. He immediately said,
“Good! This is indeed Zhu Zixuan!”
The two immediately rushed to Wansong Academy, only to find it empty, with even the resident scholars gone. He Xinyin, however, remained composed. Although it was late at night, he was still poring over his writings. Upon seeing Zhu Mo, he merely smiled, unperturbed.
Zhu Mo then recounted his journey to Yunnan and Guizhou, mentioning Mu Chaobi and Yu Chaosheng’s offering to Emperor Jianwen, Wang Cai’s role as a mediator, and how the next phase of reforms, which involved touching upon the powerful officials and the Directorate of Ceremonial, could not proceed for the time being.
Lü Kun sighed with emotion:
“This is about what I expected… To tell you the truth, the matters of the Directorate of Weaving that I investigated also involve Grand Eunuchs Chen Hong and Du Tai, which is extremely dangerous. Yang Jin has made it known that anyone who dares to investigate further will immediately be asked to resign.”
He Xinyin said calmly:
“So that’s how it is… Zixuan, we thought Mu Chaobi had harmed you… It seems that what Xu Wenchang said was not wrong. You should indeed step back, and with your stepping back, the Emperor also takes a step back. This is truly unexpected…”
He then pondered for a moment and said,
“Since Zhang Juzheng has left, Zhang Yu, who comes from a background of cruel officials, will surely bring about a brutal reversal… Protecting the people this time will not be like last time… Zixuan, in your opinion, what will they do?”
Zhu Mo’s mind was recently filled with plots from Journey to the West. The more he thought, the more worried he became. He said,
“No matter what they do, we must make the worst-case preparations… Mr. He, I sought you out today to ask you to write another letter to Immortal Lan, or to go to the capital to meet him. I will accompany you then.
Also, you have great popularity among the people. I would like to ask you to step forward and serve as the chief instructor for the Reclamation and Defense Volunteers… I believe that the use of force may be unavoidable then. Although there are still over a thousand personal guards at the North Training Ground, and Hulu Mountain Water Village can also muster one or two thousand naval forces, these are all official troops. Acting rashly at this time might lead to unforeseen consequences… It would be better for the Reclamation and Defense Volunteers to maintain order. If you become the instructor, the people will trust you.”
He Xinyin said concisely:
“Feasible!”
“But…”
He then added:
“However, I think if Zhang Yu and the others act recklessly, who can stop them? Think about it, Zhang Juzheng is a renowned minister, yet even he couldn’t suppress them…”
Zhu Mo sighed,
“I’ve also considered it, but I’m uncertain whether the Jiangnan Embroidered Uniform Guard will be willing to help…”
Lü Kun said resolutely at this moment:
“Zixuan, you must convince the Jiangnan Embroidered Uniform Guard, otherwise, we will surely not be able to suppress them! If Zhang Yu mobilizes those gentry and their household militias to return, it will immediately lead to great chaos, and there will be bloodshed!”
Zhu Mo patted him on the shoulder and said,
“Alright! Even if we can’t convince them, we’ll impersonate them then!”
The three reached a consensus.
He Xinyin went to contact various academies and private schools, especially those in the countryside, asking the teachers to instruct the common people to be vigilant and not to confront the authorities head-on. Lü Kun, on the other hand, would contact Lu Hao and others again, mobilizing everyone who had previously been under the Zhongwu Commander’s Prefecture to closely monitor the movements of Zhang Yu and Zhao Zhenji. For safety, they all moved to the North Training Ground to reside.
Under the cover of night, Zhu Mo rode his horse in haste to Guanyin Temple.