Sword Xia of the Shu Mountains Chapter 28: Constitutional monarchy

Shortly after the reform of the imperial examination system and the reform of the westernization of education, promoted by the cabinet chief minister Chang Lingyun. A man named Gu Xiancheng was admitted to the capital with excellent grades. Matteo Ricci and Xu Guangqi co-founded a famous institution of higher learning named after Matteo Ricci to teach Western studies with the support of Chang Lingyun— —Ricci University Hall. This is the predecessor of Peking University in the late Qing Dynasty. This school represents the highest achievement of the imperial examination candidates after ten years of hard work. Its status is second only to Guozijian. It has absorbed many outstanding talents who are capable of serving the country for Daming. Most of the scholars admitted to this school were from the Donglin Party, including Gu Xiancheng, the leader of the Donglin Party.

The Donglin Party was a reformist represented by the Jiangnan scholar-bureaucrats in the Ming Dynasty. They advocated openness of speech, ruled the country honestly, revitalized the political advantages and disadvantages, and eliminated the accumulated disadvantages of the government and the opposition. Since Chang Lingyun became the head and assistant of the Wanli Dynasty cabinet, he governed the country with benevolence, making the The rising national strength, economic prosperity, social stability, and political clarity of the Ming Dynasty were highly praised and appraised by Donglin party members, and he was unreasonable for his uprightness in the process of resolutely implementing the "Daming Regulations" in the court and personally trialing corrupt officials and horse halls. , and made Donglin party members regard it as a representative in the deeds of advocating clean government. Gu Xiancheng was admitted to Matteo Ricci University because of his admiration for Chang Lingyun, and wanted to have the opportunity to meet this great loyal minister.

At this time, Chang Lingyun had already formed a Ming invincible navy with strong combat capability and well-equipped weapons, which consisted of hired Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese fleets; at this time, he was far away in Shandong. , reviewing this team that is about to go to the Korean Peninsula to block the Tsushima Strait and want to end the seven-year-old Korean War as soon as possible. In order to form this navy, Chang Lingyun allocated about five million taels of silver from the treasury. Some sailors on the fleet were from China, some from Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, but all the soldiers in charge of the war were from China. The people and captains are all from Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands, but the commander of the fleet is a Chinese named Deng Zilong. Deng Zilong is a veteran of the Ming Dynasty. He has long beards as white as snow, and his white hair flows naturally like a waterfall on his shoulders. He holds a steel helmet in his hand and wears a golden armor of bright light. Although he is over seventy years old, he is still very courageous. He maintains the heroic spirit of being brave and good at fighting when he was young, not afraid of life and death, and stepping forward. His majesty is not simple. In the eleventh year of Wanli, he was appointed as the General of Yongchang Wei in Yunnan. He led his troops to fight in the Panzhihua Array to cut off Hanqian of Mubang, who led the Burmese army into the country, and was promoted to Deputy Chief. Today, he was appointed by Chang Lingyun as the commander-in-chief of the Daming Armada and sent to the Korean Peninsula to help the vassal Korea drive out the Japanese invaders. Before setting sail from Yantai, Shandong and boarding the command ship, Chang Lingyun was seeing him off as the first assistant of the Ming Cabinet

"General Deng, I appointed you as the commander-in-chief of my Daming Armada because you have made great military exploits for me and you are familiar with naval battles. I rarely have a talent like you in Daming; this navy is the imperial court. You must make good use of the hard work you spent."

After listening to Chang Lingyun's words, General Deng Zilong quickly put on his helmet and arched his arms to reply to Chang Lingyun

"Don't worry, Lord Shoufu, Deng Zilong will lead the navy to defeat the Japanese pirates and help North Korea end the war as soon as possible"

"Old General, please take care"

At this time, Deng Zilong didn't say anything. He arched his arms as a soldier and gave a big salute to Chang Lingyun. After the salute, he boarded the command ship and drew out his saber, straightening his waist and pointing the sword to the sky. command line

"Order the ships, lift anchor and sail"

With the command of General Deng Zilong, the signal soldiers on the Daming Invincible Naval Fleet all raised the signal flags to lift their anchors and sail, and then all the warships raised the white sails with the "Ming word" representing the Daming warships. Under the action of the wind, it formed a neat and orderly formation, and left the port of Yantai, Shandong in a mighty manner. After leaving Shandong, Chang Lingyun soon returned to the capital. After returning to the capital, he began to organize the list and materials of some candidates who were enrolled in Matteo Ricci School. When he received a piece of information about Gu Xiancheng, he immediately I have developed a strong interest in this person, because it is mentioned in the information that this person is the leader of the Donglin Party. So, Chang Lingyun asked the person in charge of student files in Matteo Ricci School next to him

"This guy named Gu Xiancheng has done very well. I think he has the potential to serve the country. What is he here to cultivate?"

The main person in charge of the management of student files is Yang Bin. After witnessing Matteo Ricci's victory over Hua Rong, the representative of traditional Chinese mathematics with Western geometry, in the competition representing Daming and Western to measure the height of the Forbidden City wall, he felt from the bottom of his heart. He completely accepted the knowledge of Western studies and was determined to serve Chang Lingyun's reform cause of introducing Western studies knowledge wholeheartedly. He became the person in charge of the management of learning materials and student files in Matteo Ricci School; Yang Bin arched his arms and replied to Chang Lingyun

"Reporting to my lord, this person is from Wuxi, Jiangsu, and the leader of the Donglin Party. He came here to specialize in the personnel department and is responsible for recruiting talents for my Ming Dynasty"

"I see that he did well in Western Geometry, Geography, Navigation, and Physics. It can be seen that this man is an all-rounder; I will go to Matteo Ricci's school with you. I want to see him"

"Yes, my lord"

After a while, Chang Lingyun went out of the palace with Yang Bin in a carriage and parked the car at the gate of Matteo Ricci School; at this time, in the dormitory of Matteo Ricci School, Gu Xiancheng was seriously reading Chang Lingyun and Yang Bin were standing at the door of his dormitory while reading the books he was studying in Matteo Ricci's school. When Yang Bin was about to call him, he was stopped by Chang Lingyun. Chang Lingyun whispered in Yang Bin's ear. he said

"Shh, don't say anything, I'll go in after he's finished reading"

At this time, Gu Xiancheng was more and more eager to read. When he stood up with the book and faced the door, he suddenly found Chang Lingyun standing outside the door, so he hurriedly put down the book in his hand, and then Kneeling down and salutes in a hurry

"Meeting the Chief Minister of the Cabinet, I don't know if the Lord came to the poor house in person, and I hope to forgive my sins"

So Chang Lingyun hurriedly stepped forward to support Gu Xiancheng, who was kneeling on the ground, and said to him with a smile

"Mr. Gu, please get up quickly"

After Gu Xiancheng stood up, Chang Lingyun said to Yang Bin

"Master Yang, please avoid me for a moment. I have something I want to talk to Mr. Gu alone"

"Yes, the official retire"

After Yang Bin cupped his hands and left, Gu Xiancheng presented a cup of tea full of water to Chang Lingyun and said

"Master Shoufu, please use tea"

After that, Chang Lingyun and Gu Xiancheng sat down together, and after a sip of tea, Chang Lingyun and Gu Xiancheng chatted

"Mr. Gu, I've read your profile. You did well in every subject in the entrance exam. You got full marks in both Western Geometry and Navigation. It shows that you are my great all-rounder. I deeply admire you. So I decided to meet you in person"

"Master Shoufu is too polite. Students have also admired him for a long time, so they were admitted to this Matteo Ricci school, and then entered the court as an official and Master Shoufu, you will jointly manage the Daming Jiangshan"

After listening to Gu Xiancheng's words, Chang Lingyun said to him with deep respect

"Mr. Gu really has ideals and ambitions, which is really admirable. To get such talents as Mr. Gu, I always ask for Lingyun."

"Shoufu-sama is too polite, it is an honor for students to be able to assist Shoufu-sama"

"I heard that Mr. Gu is the leader of the Donglin Party. He used to be a teacher in a generation in Wuxi, Jiangsu. He advocated some correct ideas for your students to be open-minded and honest in governing the country. What do you think of the future of Ming under my governance, sir?"

"Lord Shoufu dared to accept criticism, which made the students very gratified. As for the future, I can't estimate the future. All I know is that under the leadership of Lord Shoufu, the Ming Dynasty is now prosperous and prosperous, the country is prosperous and the people are safe. "Da Ming's Laws" decisively executed Ma Tang, a corrupt official without even giving the emperor's face Your lord is so enlightened, what should you do if Lord Shoufu can no longer assist the emperor to govern Daming?"

After listening to Gu Xiancheng's words, Chang Lingyun felt that what he said was very reasonable. He thought to himself: I will one day leave the human world and return to the immortal world. Today's emperor is so dull, without my assistance, the great Ming Jiangshan is under his control. Can it maintain its current prosperity and prosperity under control? However, he thought of the current prince Zhu Changluo, so he said to Gu Xiancheng

"Don't worry about this gentleman. Today's prince is very knowledgeable and open-minded. If he inherits the throne in the future, Daming He Chou will not be able to maintain his prosperity"

However, Gu Xiancheng's next sentence made Chang Lingyun speechless

"The prince will become the emperor in the future. After his son inherits the throne, can you guarantee whether his son will be a wise king?"

"This... this, I don't know. Does Mr. Gu have any ideas?"

"I don't think it's a good idea. I think there is only one way to keep the current prosperity and prosperity of Ming Dynasty"

"What's the solution?"

"That is to set up a fixed system to limit the power of the emperor, so that the emperor cannot do things that are detrimental to the country; when the emperor Taizu abolished the prime minister system and took all the power of the prime minister to the emperor, this approach seems to be It seems to solve the power contradiction between the emperor and the prime minister, but doing so has made some emperors who have no intention of governing the world to make the country a mess. Stay prosperous"

"Sir, do you mean to restore the prime minister?"

After listening to Chang Lingyun's words, Gu Xiancheng shook his head and denied it

"No, no, no, the restoration of the prime minister system will inevitably lead to some treacherous prime ministers taking over the government and changing dynasties, causing frequent wars and turbulence, and making life difficult for the people. good system”

"The gentleman said, what do I need?"

"I think it is necessary to establish a constitution to constrain the power of the emperor, so that some enlightened ministers will always control the power of the country, while those ministers are supervised by the people of the Ming Dynasty and the Jinyiwei, and the people will decide the candidates of the ministers. , this will not only prevent the emperor from doing things that are detrimental to the country, but also avoid the phenomenon of ministers taking control of the state and trying to change the dynasty, which can be said to be the best of both worlds.”

After listening to Gu Xiancheng's words, Chang Lingyun's eyes lit up and felt that the system Gu Xiancheng said was very reasonable, so he praised it

"Hey, yes, this system sounds very reasonable, sir, what is the name of this system?"

"This system is called a constitutional monarchy. Although it is easy to say, it is difficult to do. This is a method I have come up with over the years to keep Daming under the governance of enlightened ministers forever, but once implemented, it will damage the royal ministers. interests”

"This constitutional monarchy sounds pretty good, no matter whether it will harm the interests of the royal ministers, but at least you can give it a try to see if the system proposed by Mr. is feasible"

"Lord Shoufu is really enlightened. If I can produce a loyal minister like Lord Shoufu from generation to generation, I will definitely rule the world"

Gu Xiancheng's charisma quickly aroused Chang Lingyun's belief and determination to reform the political system of the Ming Dynasty and establish a constitutional monarchy. With this belief and determination, he will carry out the political reform of the Ming Dynasty. in the end

"Okay, I will definitely let Daming realize a constitutional monarchy"

When he said this, he thought of the subjects Gu Xiancheng took in Matteo Ricci's school, so he asked

"Mr. Gu, I think you are not only good at studying "Chinese", but also proficient in Western knowledge. If so, why did you choose the Ministry of Personnel instead of choosing Western majors for the benefit of others? /

Gu Xiancheng replied

"Because the Ministry of Personnel mainly manages personnel, it can recruit a group of talents for the imperial court and cultivate their loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. In this way, I can attract more talents to serve the country in Ming Dynasty"

"Mr. Gu really understands righteousness. He does not hesitate to be a national talent, but is willing to recruit other talents for me. It is really admirable"

"Master Shoufu has won the award, and it is Gu Xiancheng's duty to serve for the Ming Dynasty"

"Okay, okay, I will definitely promote you after you graduate, and I will take note of your proposed constitutional monarchy"

After speaking, the two shared a sip of tea on the table; let's take a look at Wu Ruoyun, who is teaching the prince to read. At this time, Wu Ruoyun is teaching the knowledge of Western studies to the prince Zhu Changluo, and the prince is listening patiently at this moment. . The last competition to measure the height of the Forbidden City made him, who was watching with his father on the dragon chair, have a strong interest in Western studies, especially since Matteo Ricci only used less than four points. The height of the Forbidden City was accurately measured in an hour, which made him more or less admire the knowledge of Western studies.

"Today I will tell you the story of Magellan"

"Teacher, who is Magellan?"

"Magellan was a great navigator of the Western Ocean. He led his fleet from his hometown and sailed westward across the entire earth, and finally returned to his homeland from the east, proving to the world The saying that the earth is round"

"Teacher, what happened to Magellan?"

"Magellan was killed by the local natives while leading his fleet through Luzon and did not return to his homeland with his fleet"

"It's a pity to die"

"Although it is a pity to die, he has used his own experiences and actions to prove the fact that the earth is round; in fact, it is the same as being an emperor. If you become an emperor in the future, use your own ability to govern the country. Prove to the people of Daming that you are a good emperor, then you will be recognized by the people of the world like Magellan, and you can be as famous as him in history"

"Teacher, do you think I can do it?"

"You can definitely do it. As long as you study with the teacher seriously from now on, and become a good emperor in the future, you will be famous for the day"

"Well, teacher, from now on I will definitely study hard and be a good emperor in the future"

"Well, I believe in you"

After Wu Ruoyun finished speaking, he gently stroked Zhu Changluo's head for a while; however, at this moment, Emperor Wanli had already walked silently from the door of the classroom to the two of them, when the prince Zhu Changluo and Wu Ruoyun saw After Emperor Wanli, he hurriedly knelt down and bowed to Emperor Wanli

"Children meet father and emperor"

"Wu Ruoyun meets the emperor"

Emperor Wanli raised his arm with a smile and said

"Get up, both of you"

"Thank you, Your Majesty"

"Thanks Father"

After they both got up, Emperor Wanli said to the prince

"Chang Luo, what did you learn from Teacher Wu today?"

"Father, Mr. Wu told the story of Magellan to the child today, and the child will be as famous as Magellan in the future"

Emperor Wanli didn't have that much interest in Magellan because he was here today for Wu Ruoyun

"Changluo, my father wants to talk to Teacher Wu today. You should go back to the East Palace and have a class with Teacher Wu tomorrow"

"Yes, father and emperor, son and minister retire"

Emperor Wanli gently stroked the crown prince's head for a while and said

"Okay, let's go"

After Prince Zhu Changluo left the classroom, Wu Ruoyun lowered his head and asked Wanli Emperor softly

"Your Majesty, what are you looking for from me?"

"Look up and let me see"

According to the will of Emperor Wanli, Wu Ruoyun slowly raised his head; when Wu Ruoyun raised his head, Emperor Wanli once again seriously admired Wu Ruoyun's beauty, and it was as beautiful as a fairy, like a fairy.

"Ah, she was born so beautiful"

After finishing speaking, Emperor Wanli touched his nose for a while, hesitating for a while, and then said

"I would like you to accompany me to the Imperial Garden today, and by the way, I would like to talk to you about the Prince's studies. I wonder if Mr. Wu has this kind of elegance"

After listening to Emperor Wanli's words, Wu Ruoyun said hesitantly

"Okay, okay"

Although she has a hundred unwillingness in her heart, when she thinks that this is the emperor's will, in order not to cause unnecessary trouble, even if she has a hundred unwillingness in her heart, she must give the emperor this face. After seeing Wu Ruoyun's agreement, Emperor Wanli said happily

"That's great, Mr. Wu, please"

After a while, Emperor Wanli and Wu Ruoyun were walking among the flowers in the imperial garden. The gorgeousness and beauty of the flowers when they bloomed matched with Wu Ruoyun's fairy-like beauty, which made Wu Ruoyun look like a fairy. She is like a fairy of a hundred flowers; the Wanli Emperor at this time was really fascinated by her; Wu Ruoyun never said a word during the walk with the Wanli Emperor, and for a while and a half did not know what to say to the Wanli Emperor, and At this time, Emperor Wanli took the initiative to find her and said

"Mr. Wu, do you think my imperial garden is beautiful here?"

Wu Ruoyun lowered her head and replied shyly

"beautiful, beautiful"

"Mr. Wu's appearance is like a fairy, and when these flowers meet you, they will feel instantly eclipsed"

"The emperor is too good"

"Hey, Mr. Wu, don't be too modest, your face is the most beautiful face I have ever seen in this world"

"Don't joke about the emperor, how can I compare to the number of concubines the emperor has in the palace"

"Those concubines and concubines are all vulgar fans, how can they compare to one ten thousandth of Mr. Wu's"

After the Wanli Emperor finished speaking, he suddenly took Wu Ruoyun's hand, which made Wu Ruoyun feel a moment of surprise; then he looked at Wu Ruoyun's face and continued to say

"Come on, I'll show you the pond in the Imperial Garden"

After finishing speaking, he took Wu Ruoyun's hand and ran to the pond. During the process of running with Emperor Wanli, Wu Ruoyun's hand was held by Emperor Wanli like this, but he could not feel the slightest bit in his palm. Warm, but feel very uncomfortable, that's because she always pretends that Chang Lingyun is alone in her heart, so she can never feel it in the hands of others. The joy and warmth when holding them together; when they reached the pond, Emperor Wanli took the initiative to let go of Wu Ruoyun's hand and said

"This is the goldfish I raised here in the Imperial Garden, look how beautiful it is"

"Yes, these fish look fat and big, enough to show that Your Majesty must have good intentions in raising these fish"

"Mr. Wu is really talented and intelligent, and I know that I have left the affairs of the country to Chang Aiqing to handle, so I like to feed the fish in this pond when I am idle. Do you think my fish will be fed? How is it?"

"The emperor must have put a lot of effort into feeding the fish so fat. It can be seen that the emperor is a person who can do things. If the emperor can focus on governing the country, the emperor will also do well. "

After hearing this, Emperor Wanli's face changed immediately, but at this moment Wu Ruoyun did not see his face; Emperor Wanli eased his emotions behind her and said

"I am really relieved to hand over national affairs to Chang Aiqing. You can see that the Ming Dynasty under Chang Aiqing's governance is now in good weather, the country is prosperous and the people are safe. The people don't know how well they are living"

After hearing this, Wu Ruoyun turned back to face the Wanli Emperor and continued to say

"But those are not the emperor's credit. Those are the ministers' credit after all. The ministers' credit can only keep the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty for a few years. If the emperor can be diligent in political affairs without relying on any ministers, Future generations will carry forward the spirit of diligence for the people, and the Ming Dynasty will surely be unified for all generations.”

These words made Emperor Wanli feel a burst of shame, and he hurriedly changed the subject and said

"Okay, okay, don't talk about this, I don't want to hear it, you'd better follow me to the Peony Garden to see it"

After arriving at the Peony Garden, Wu Ruoyun said naively and lively like a child who saw new things for the first time, looking at the very beautiful and fragrant peony.

"Wow, these peonies are so gorgeous"

"Yes, that's right, although these peonies look so graceful and luxurious, Mr. Wu forced them to let go of their noble temperament"

At this time, Wu Ruoyun said shyly and modestly

"Your Majesty, you're kidding again"

"I'm not joking, I'm telling you the truth; Mr. Wu, I have a request, I wonder if Mr. Wu can agree"

"Your Majesty, you said

So, Emperor Wanli made his request seriously

"I want to be your friend, can you see?"

Since the emperor opened his mouth, then what he said was the imperial decree, and she had no room for rejection; because she felt that if she rejected the emperor's favor, doing so would damage the emperor's majesty

"Okay, Your Majesty, since Your Majesty has opened the mouth, Ruoyun will have to agree"

However, Emperor Wanli was not satisfied with the simple relationship between himself and Wu Ruoyun, he also wanted to make the relationship between himself and Wu Ruoyun a step closer

"Hey, don't treat me as the emperor here, you can just treat me as a friend. I don't have a friend in the palace to feel bored"

"Okay, then from now on I'm not the emperor, you can call me Zhu Yijun directly, I'll call you Ruoyun"

"How can I do that? The emperor's name is not allowed to be called casually. Isn't this forcing me to commit the crime of deceiving the emperor?"

"Why can't you, I'll do it if I say yes. Since you are my friend, you should call me by my name. It's a big deal and I'll forgive you."

Wu Ruoyun saw that Emperor Wanli insisted on calling him by his name, but he couldn't push it, but the emperor wanted to be friends with her, so he nodded and agreed to the emperor's request

"Okay"

"Well, that's right"

After a while, Emperor Wanli picked a peony and put it in Wu Ruoyun's hand and said

"Ruoyun, this peony flower is for you. The peony flower is fortunate to have a lot of color because of you. I hope you can always be by my side like this flower"

After Wu Ruoyun took the peony, she quickly became silent. She finally knew the real intention of Emperor Wanli; Emperor Wanli told her after seeing her sudden silence

"Ruoyun, what's wrong with you? Why don't you talk"

Wu Ruoyun raised his head seriously at this time, looked into the eyes of Emperor Wanli and said softly

"The emperor's heart is in Ruoyun's heart. Thank you for the emperor's love for Ruoyun, but Ruoyun has only brother Lingyun in his heart. In this life, no one will love him except him; the emperor, Ruoyun bids farewell"

After she finished speaking, she returned the flower to Emperor Wanli and left the Imperial Garden without looking back, leaving Emperor Wanli alone still standing in the Peony Garden in a daze.

Three months later, news came from the Korean Peninsula in the east of Daming that General Xie Xiaotian, the commander-in-chief of the Daming Invincible Navy, led the Ming Dynasty Invincible Navy to defeat the Japanese army and ended the Korean War, but unfortunately, General Deng Zilong was there. Died in the Battle of Luliang. As early as two months ago, Deng Zilong led the Daming Invincible Navy to successfully block the Tsushima Strait after successfully blocking the Tsushima Strait under the order of the cabinet chief assistant Chang Lingyun, and then led the Ming army to quickly occupy Busan and defeated the Japanese fleet that rushed to the east of the Tsushima Strait. , and then used Busan as the base to occupy all the ports where the Japanese army landed on the southern part of the Korean peninsula from south to north, completely cutting off the supply line when the Japanese army invaded Korea. Qingzheng led the retreat by boat. Just as the Japanese generals were retreating, Deng Zilong led the Ming army to land and attacked together with the famous North Korean general Yi Sun-sin, and intercepted the Japanese reinforcements Tachibana Mongshige, Shimazu Yoshihiro, and Xiaobayakawa Hidey who wanted to rescue President Konishi on the Luliang Sea. Bao, Takahashi Tongzeng, Zong Yoshihide, Terazawa Hirohiro Department. Deng Zilong was over seventy years old, still in high spirits, and led three giant ships to attack the Japanese army, and he was the vanguard to fight the Japanese army decisively. During the battle, he took 300 strong men and jumped into the Korean warship to rescue, and fought straight ahead, and the Japanese army suffered numerous casualties. However, other warships threw firearms on Deng Zilong's warship by mistake, causing the warship to catch fire. As a result, Deng Zilong had no way out and died heroically. After Deng Zilong died, his deputy general Xie Xiaotian continued to command the Daming Invincible Marine Division to fight against the Japanese army, besieging the last batch of the main Japanese army on the peninsula. Share the strength of the Japanese army, Xie Xiaotian led the invincible navy to expel all the Japanese fleets that invaded Korea, and then led the fleet to approach the Japanese mainland; Xie Xiaotian dispatched a messenger on the ship at this time to Toyotomi Hideyoshi sent a letter, in the letter Ordered Japan Guanbai Toyotomi Hideyoshi to stop the war of aggression against Korea. Otherwise, the Invincible Navy of the Ming Dynasty would attack the Japanese mainland, and the Ming government would directly declare war on Japan. After receiving this letter, Toyotomi Hideyoshi had no choice but to agree to stop the invasion of Korea. The war and announced that he would never invade Korea again, and he died in depression soon after; at this point, the Wanli Korean War, which had been stalemate for seven years, finally came to an end. After the end of the Korean War, the Daming Invincible Navy quickly envoyed from Busan to Tianjin Dakukou and returned triumphantly. In the capital, Chang Lingyun had already learned the news that Deng Zilong was killed in the Korean War.

At this time, he was sitting on a wooden chair in the office of the palace, with his right hand clutching a letter sent by Xie Xiaotian, the commander-in-chief of the Daming Invincible Navy, and his left elbow resting on work The head was lined on the table, with a sad expression on his face. Deng Zilong's death made him feel a burst of sadness in his heart. He remembered that he had sent General Deng Zilong a few months ago and boarded the commanding battleship for the Korean battlefield, but he did not expect that meeting would become their eternal farewell. General Deng Zilong's achievements are unparalleled in the world. Although he has passed his old age, he still cares about the safety of the country. In order to serve the country, he is willing to give up the rest of his life and enjoy the happiness of his old age. people admire. When he thought of this, Chang Lingyun took a whim, picked up the brush on his desk, dipped it in a little ink, and wrote the four big characters "General Loyalty".

At this moment, Haining, the commander of Jinyiwei, who came in to convey the order of Emperor Wanli, came in to say hello

"Reporting to the Chief Assistant of the Cabinet, General Xie Xiaotian returned triumphantly with more than a dozen Japanese pirates prisoners. The emperor has ordered a prisoner ceremony outside the Meridian Gate to invite the Chief Assistant of the Cabinet to join you."

"Got it, I'll be there in a minute"

"Yes"

When Haining was about to leave, Chang Lingyun stopped him behind him

"Wait"

Haining turned around at this time and replied with a hand in hand

"Sir, what else is there?"

Chang Lingyun took the white piece of paper he had just written "General Loyalty" with a brush and handed it to Haining, and said to him

"Take this and convey my order; General Deng Zilong died heroically for the country, and he was a loyal and martyr of me in the Ming Dynasty. I postulated General Deng Zilong as a loyal and martyr general, and built a temple statue for future generations to look up to and worship."

"Yes, my lord"

After a while, Chang Lingyun finally caught up with Emperor Wanli's capture ceremony. Before the ceremony was about to start, Emperor Wanli happily said to Chang Lingyun

"Chang Aiqing, you are really my all-around loyal minister of Ming Dynasty. Not only did you help me govern the country, but you also drove away the Japanese pirates who had been entrenched in our affiliated country Korea for many years. You relieved me of Daming. I really have contributed to this disaster, I don't know how to thank you"

Chang Lingyun cupped his hand and replied

"Weichen doesn't want any thanks or rewards. Weichen just hopes to do his best to assist the emperor in defending the Daming country, and fulfill the last wish of our ancestor Chang Yuchun's request that his descendants be loyal to Daming. Daming created a prosperous world, made the country peaceful and the people live and worked in peace and contentment, and settled the rebellion of Japanese pirates for Daming, now it is time for Weichen to return to the fairyland"

After hearing this, Emperor Wanli's heart began to get nervous; but he was not so nervous for Chang Lingyun, but for Wu Ruoyun, because when Chang Lingyun left, Wu Ruoyun would definitely follow him. The lustful Wanli Emperor will never see Wu Ruoyun, a beautiful and beautiful woman.

"Chang Aiqing really wants to go back?"

And Chang Lingyun's next sentence made Emperor Wanli's heart completely calm

"No, the emperor, Wei Chen will stay in the human world for a while, because Wei Chen has something to do. If this task is not completed, Wei Chen will not feel relieved and leave the human world like this"

Wanli Emperor asked with a long sigh at this time

"What is it, let me hear it"

"Constitutional Monarchy"

“What is a constitutional monarchy?”

"This Weichen will explain to the emperor later, the ceremony of offering prisoners is about to begin now, or we should wait for the emperor to finish the ceremony and explain it to the emperor in detail"

"Okay"

Emperor Wanli temporarily put down this curiosity and decided to follow Chang Lingyun's words, and then inquire about the constitution of the monarchy in detail after holding the ceremony of offering prisoners that was about to begin.

The ceremony of taking prisoner is a ceremony that can best show the prestige of the imperial court. Guards of honor, including Fajia Lubooks, Danbi Lubooks, Horses, Buchan, Jade, Baoxiang, and Bands. At this time, Emperor Wanli was already wearing a dragon gun, and he stepped out of the palace, and the bell on the Meridian Gate was ringing. The captured Japanese pirates in the war of aggression against Korea had already been tied around their necks with a white silk scarf by the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty and ordered them to crawl on the ground. Ritual officials and military officials sent prisoners to Emperor Wanli in accordance with ceremonial procedures. The fate of prisoners and prisoners was completely in the hands of Emperor Wanli. Downstairs at the Meridian Gate, officials from the Ministry of War led the generals and led the prisoners of war to kneel. Wu Ming, the newly appointed Minister of War, reported: "Offer prisoners! Drums blared, gun salutes roared. The officials stood up to celebrate the victory. Ceremony official Qi Hongzhen said: Salute! So, they took the Japanese prisoners and made them kneel on the ground. When Emperor Wanli, along with Chang Lingyun and several other ministers, all went to the gate of the morning gate, Yang Hao, an official of the Ministry of War, raised his arms and played to Emperor Wanli who was standing on the gate tower: "I have ordered to pacify the battle of Korea. , the captured Japanese soldiers and prisoners, I would like to present to Your Majesty, please." Emperor Wanli shouted to all the officials and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who were in charge of escorting the prisoners standing under the Meridian Gate

"Take it"

Chang Lingyun, who was standing next to Emperor Wanli, and a minister loudly received the words of Emperor Wanli, and then four ministers loudly received it

"Take it"

8 people, 16 people, 32 people followed the order, and finally, 360 people including General Xie Xiaotian shouted in unison

"Take it"

The sound was like thunder, resounding through the sky. After a while, all the Japanese prisoners of war were taken to the Punishment Department, where officials of the Punishment Department waited for their release. After the captive offering ceremony, Chang Lingyun followed Emperor Wanli to the Imperial Garden and sat down in a pavilion. After the two sat down, a palace maid poured a glass of pear blossom wine for Emperor Wanli and Chang Lingyun, and then withdrew.

"This pear flower wine is sweet and delicious. It is brewed with pear flowers in the imperial garden. You can try it"

After listening to Emperor Wanli's words, Chang Lingyun and Emperor Wanli drank a glass of pear flower wine together, after drinking. Chang Lingyun said

"Well, this wine is really sweet, very good"

"Hahaha, I just said, this wine is brewed by myself, the taste can't be wrong"

After speaking, Emperor Wanli asked

"Chang Aiqing, what do you think of the prisoner offering ceremony with me today?"

"The spectacular scene of this captive offering ceremony can be described as unprecedented, and it is an eye-opener for Wei Chen"

"Haha, Chang Aiqing is probably the first time I've seen a prisoner offering ceremony"

"Yes, exactly"

"I have held this prisoner offering ceremony three times before, and today is the fourth time. Chang Aiqing has only been an official in the court for six years, and naturally knows very little about the things in the palace"

Speaking of this, Emperor Wanli remembered the constitutional monarchy that Chang Lingyun had discussed with him before

"Chang Aiqing, can you explain to me what a constitutional monarchy is?"

"Of course, but the emperor must not be angry after hearing this"

"Okay, I will never be angry, please talk to Chang Aiqing"

With such a precondition, Chang Lingyun confidently and boldly explained the general content of the constitutional monarchy to Emperor Wanli in detail

“The so-called constitutional monarchy is to set up a power organ composed of enlightened ministers to assist the emperor, and formulate a constitution to share part of the power with the emperor to govern the country; however, this must limit part of your power, the emperor.”

After listening to this sentence, Emperor Wanli mistakenly thought that Chang Lingyun wanted to rebel, did not take into account his previous promise to Chang Lingyun, stood up and said furiously

"If you want to share power with me equally, Chang Lingyun, you are so bold, don't you want to usurp the throne and rebel?"

Chang Lingyun replied very calmly

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger, Wei Chen is a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty after the founding of the country, and he will help Da Ming wholeheartedly, and will never dare to do such a rebellious thing as a plot to usurp the throne. If you do it, you will be sorry to the ancestors of Wei Chen"

After listening to Chang Lingyun's words, Emperor Wanli quickly sat down calmly. He thought about it carefully and thought that what Chang Lingyun said was very reasonable. If he was against it, he would have already been turned against with his current power, so why should he wait until now? Thinking about the fact that he has made a lot of contributions for the court in the past six years, he definitely does not look like a traitor who is trying to usurp the throne. do. So I calmed down and asked softly

"I believe you are loyal, but I just couldn't understand why you said that you want to limit my power. Since you want to help me wholeheartedly, why limit my power"

"That's because the emperor still doesn't understand the meaning of the constitutional monarchy. Although the emperor now entrusts the important affairs of the court to the small ministers, this is only entrustment, and the system still implements the dictatorship of the monarchy; and the constitutional monarchy system You do not need the emperor to entrust the power to the ministers, but directly share a part of the power with the emperor. The positions and names of the six departments remain unchanged. The candidates of the ministers are decided by the common people. After the decision is made, the emperor will appoint you. The meaning of constitutional monarchy It is to formulate a complete constitutional system for the imperial court, and use this constitutional system to control the state power. This way, you do not need the emperor to participate in politics, so that my Ming Dynasty can always implement an enlightened monarchy system, and when the emperor does not want to participate in the government It can be ruled but not ruled, it can be said to be the best of both worlds"

After listening to Chang Lingyun's words, Emperor Wanli carefully analyzed it in his mind for a while, then nodded his head in agreement with the proposal of a constitutional monarchy

"Well, your proposal is good. The constitutional monarchy has indeed reduced the trouble of running the country. I actually know in my heart that I really have no interest in running the country, so I entrust all the government affairs of the court to you. You did not let me down. The orderly management of my Ming Dynasty made my people in Ming Dynasty live in good weather, and the country was prosperous and peaceful. I also thought that sooner or later, you will leave my side and return to the fairyland. If you leave, there will be no one to replace you. I really don't know what to do when I govern this country, so you came up with a system like a constitutional monarchy for me, Chang Aiqing, you really have good intentions."

"Your Majesty, in fact, this system was not conceived by Wei Chen"

"Oh, is it? Since it's not you, Chang Aiqing, who is it?"

"It was conceived by a student named Gu Xiancheng, who is now studying in Matteo Ricci University"

After listening to Chang Lingyun's words, Emperor Wanli was immediately delighted and praised

"This man is really an excellent politician, I would recommend him to me if I get the chance, I want to meet him"

When Emperor Wanli said this, I saw a scholar in the imperial garden wearing a student uniform of Matteo Ricci University and holding a folding fan, led by a eunuch, to the pavilion and bowed his hands in salutation

"Students see His Majesty, see First Minister"

Emperor Wanli raised his arm and said happily

"Hahaha, no ceremony, no ceremony, you are Mr. Gu who Chang Aiqing said just now"

"Yes, student Gu Xiancheng has something to discuss with Lord Shoufu. I heard that the minister of Shoufu was with the emperor in the Imperial Garden and the students rushed to the Imperial Garden"

"Hahaha, it really means that Cao Cao and Cao Cao are here, I just mentioned you to Chang Aiqing, come, please sit, please sit"

After Wanli finished speaking, he pointed to an empty stone bench in the pavilion and motioned Gu Xiancheng to sit down

"Thank you, Your Majesty,"

After Gu Xiancheng sat down, Emperor Wanli poured Gu Xiancheng a glass of pear blossom wine and said

"Come and taste the pear flower wine brewed with pear flowers in the Imperial Garden"

Gu Xiancheng quickly arched his arms and said gratefully

"The emperor personally gave the students wine, the students were really flattered"

"Don't be polite, Mr. Gu, if you have something to say, just tell Chang Aiqing, I won't get in the way"

After hearing the words of Emperor Wanli, Chang Lingyun encouraged Gu Xiancheng

"Just tell me if you have something to say. The emperor is very open-minded. It doesn't matter what you want to say to me today."

"Okay, then I'll talk about it"

So, Gu Xiancheng explained what he wanted to discuss with Chang Lingyun

"I came to see Lord Shoufu today. You want to talk about the constitutional monarchy. Since the emperor is beside me, I will tell the emperor directly"

After hearing this, Emperor Wanli said with a smile

"Hehe, Chang Aiqing has already told me. After listening to me, I feel that this system is more reasonable. It is a wise move to use the constitution to manage and control the state power. I am worried about things, if my grandsons of later generations can also rely on the constitution of a constitutional monarchy to govern the country if they have no intention to handle state affairs like me, is it not a good thing?”

"The emperor's enlightenment is admired by students, but the constitutional monarchy is far from being as simple as the emperor imagined. The implementation of the constitutional monarchy must first abolish all the old systems in the court, abandon all autocratic systems, and abolish all the privileges of the princes and ministers; Your Majesty, you Will you accept it?"

"Me too?"

"Yes, Your Majesty; the so-called Son of Heaven is guilty of breaking the law and the common people. Only if the Emperor can lead by example and voluntarily cancel the privileges can the people around him, the princes and ministers, cancel the privileges together"

"Mr. Gu, which privileges do you refer to?"

"It is above the constitution to violate the interests of the common people with private interests. This is a privilege. Under the constitution, the ruler and ministers should be equal.

"Is my private life a privilege?"

"This should not be considered a privilege. The emperor has the emperor's life. This should not be interfered with. As long as the emperor does not violate the interests of the people, it is not a privilege."

After listening to Gu Xiancheng's words, Emperor Wanli said happily

"It's easy to handle this way. I never thought of violating the interests of the people, and I have no intention of state affairs. As long as I can enjoy myself in the palace, it's enough. I'll leave the affairs of the state to you to handle. I will intervene. As for whether it will harm the interests of the princes and ministers, that is their business and it has nothing to do with me. Anyway, I have had enough of them being in charge of me, and it should be okay for them to suffer a little bit.

Gu Xian's prejudice about the implementation of the constitutional monarchy was discussed so smoothly with the emperor, and a sense of accomplishment came to his mind immediately. With the support of the Wanli Emperor, the implementation and implementation of the constitutional monarchy could be completed successfully; therefore, Gu Xiancheng put his hands on the From the cup of pear flower wine that Emperor Wanli poured for him, he salutes Emperor Wanli with a smile

"Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty is wise, I can't believe that your Majesty can be so sensible. If I can implement a constitutional monarchy, I will definitely be able to shake the world and make all countries in the world submit to China. For the future prosperity of Daming, I want to respect the Emperor. a cup”

After listening to Gu Xiancheng's words, Emperor Wanli also raised his glass and said to him with a smile

"Mr. Gu is really the most amazing politician in my Ming Dynasty. This cup should be my respect for you, and a toast to my loyal heart of Ming Ming"

At this time, Chang Lingyun, who had been listening to their speeches, also raised his glass and said

"Cheers for the prosperity of Ming Dynasty"

"Cheers"

"Cheers"

When the three of them ate the glass of pear wine each held up together, there was a burst of hearty laughter around the pavilion in the Imperial Garden.