Chapter 89 Night Visit to the Grand Secretary's Estate

How is the night? The night is still young.
In the capital, thousands of households were brightly lit. On this night, no one knew how many people were filled with anxiety, or how many tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
As a veteran official who had served three reigns, the leader of the literary circle, and the Senior Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, Li Dongyang naturally did not sleep either. He had locked himself in his study, skipping even dinner.
As the de facto prime minister of the Great Ming Dynasty, Li Dongyang naturally saw further than others and understood much more clearly what this palace gate storm was really all about.
It would truly be strange if no one was instigating it from behind the scenes. Li Dongyang didn't even need to guess who was making mischief here, but so what?
It was not a recent phenomenon for the upright and outspoken scholar-bureaucrats to chase fame and sell their rectitude, using the monarch as a stepping stone simply to build their reputations. Furthermore, even Li Dongyang himself had come up through that very era. How could he not understand what kind of motives were hidden beneath the high-sounding slogans of those so-called upright gentlemen?
Li Dongyang himself knew very well that this did the nation more harm than good, but what could he do?
The scholar-bureaucrats were his foundation, the basis of his administration, and a sharp political weapon to handle dangerous storms. The grand secretaries of the Cabinet provided those lower-ranking officials with opportunities for patronage and promotion, while the lower-ranking officials charged into battle executing the instructions of the grand secretaries.
Ties of discipleship, same-year examination success, and shared native places—these so-called relationships wove a monstrous web. Even Li Dongyang himself was a link in this web. Besides, even if he chose not to use it, could he prevent others from doing so? By then, someone else would use this "sharp weapon" to deal with him!
"Sigh," Li Dongyang let out a deep sigh. As a veteran minister of three reigns who had long enjoyed imperial favor, whether out of loyalty to the Great Ming or gratitude for the recognition and favor shown by the late emperor, Li Dongyang did not wish to see such a severe confrontation between the scholar-bureaucrats and the emperor. For both public and private reasons, Li Dongyang had to quell this storm; otherwise, wouldn't the Great Ming descend into chaos if officials and the emperor continued to confront each other like this? What face would he have left to continue serving as the Senior Grand Secretary?
To make the emperor release the officials who had been thrown into the imperial prison, one had to show submission to the emperor. Yet the officials below demanded that the emperor be the one to submit. Neither side was willing to make the first concession. On one side was the majesty of the monarch, and on the other was the "moral backbone" of the scholar-bureaucrats. If Li Dongyang dared to brave universal condemnation and surrender to the emperor, he would instantly become the public enemy of the literati. But if the emperor refused to release the prisoners, Li Dongyang would likely bear the reputation of being "incompetent."
Just as Li Dongyang was caught in this dilemma, unable to advance or retreat, a knock suddenly sounded outside his study.
"Master, a Daoist priest outside has submitted a calling card, saying he wishes to see you," the voice of the elderly steward came from outside the door. Li Dongyang was startled. How could a Daoist priest visit his residence in the middle of the night?
"What kind of Daoist priest?" Li Dongyang opened the study door and saw the elderly steward holding a calling card printed with a Bagua pattern. Finding it very strange, he opened it, and his expression changed slightly. "Show the Daoist priest to the parlor for tea, and I will be right there."
What was the purpose of Daoist Priest Liaochen's visit? Li Dongyang was not sure, but he had already vaguely guessed that the Zhengde Emperor's sudden desire to build a "Millennial Shrine of Loyalty and Valor" must certainly have Liaochen's shadow behind it. Moreover, Li Dongyang vaguely felt that Liaochen seemed to hold a sense of hostility toward the scholar-bureaucrats—a hostility tinged with contempt. Li Dongyang did not know where Daoist Priest Liaochen's sentiment came from, but he at least knew that Liaochen had no fondness for the civil officials of the realm.
Li Dongyang did not like Liaochen either, but he would never deliberately convince himself that Liaochen was merely a charlatan from the martial world. Li Dongyang had witnessed Liaochen's abilities firsthand. Although it had by no means been a pleasant encounter, he could not deny that Liaochen truly deserved to be called an immortal of the mortal realm. Once beings reached their realm, they would not run to visit someone else's house in the middle of the night for no reason at all.
"Boundless Longevity and Virtue! Greetings, Cabinet Minister Li," Liaochen said, executing a Daoist salute upon seeing Li Dongyang.
"Peace to you, Daoist Priest Liaochen," Li Dongyang hurriedly cupped his hands in return.
"I wonder what brings Daoist Priest Liaochen to visit this old man?" Li Dongyang asked as he sat down in the northern-facing master seat, picking up his teacup and taking a gentle sip.
Liaochen smiled slightly but remained silent.
"You may all withdraw!" Knowing full well what Liaochen meant, Li Dongyang waved his hand to dismiss the servants standing in the parlor.
"Now, Daoist Priest Liaochen, you may speak of your business," Li Dongyang asked leisurely.
Liaochen did not mind Li Dongyang's attitude. Not only did the scholar-bureaucrats look upon him, a Daoist priest, with disfavor, but Liaochen had also never shown any respect for this group of "beasts in official robes"—referring to the flying birds and running beasts embroidered on the rank badges of Ming dynasty officials.
"This poor Daoist once saw a poem and would like to ask Cabinet Minister Li to critique it," Liaochen said.
"Oh, the Daoist priest actually writes poetry?" Li Dongyang said with a hint of playfulness, though inwardly he was deeply skeptical. If it came to refining pills from cinnabar and mercury, or capturing ghosts and subduing demons, Li Dongyang would not doubt Liaochen's proficiency in the least! Yet he had never heard of this Daoist priest writing poetry. To actually dare to come to his mansion and ask for a critique—he truly had to admire the Daoist priest's "audacity"!
Seeing the playfulness in Li Dongyang's smile, Liaochen naturally understood his meaning. Liaochen had seen plenty of how arrogant Ming dynasty scholar-bureaucrats could be. Unfazed, he explained, "Naturally, this poor Daoist cannot compose poetry, but I once saw a poem written in blood on a wall, and I wish to ask the Grand Secretary for your instruction."
Li Dongyang was somewhat puzzled by Liaochen's intent, but he had no choice but to follow his lead and ask, "Then please recite it for me to hear."
"A mountain of corpses and white bones fill the battlefield, ten thousand deaths in a lonely city, yet unwilling to surrender. A word to passersby: do not cover your noses—the fragrance of the living is not as sweet as the fragrance of the dead!" Liaochen recited word by word.
After Liaochen finished, Li Dongyang remained silent for a long while before sighing, "What a line—'the fragrance of the living is not as sweet as the fragrance of the dead.' There is heroic despair within it, and there is deep grievance held within it. The poem plunges into utter desperation, clearly written when facing death calmly with no way forward. This old man has indeed never heard it before. I wonder where Daoist Priest Liaochen saw it?"
Liaochen smiled and replied, "Jiangyin!"
Had Liaochen not possessed extraordinary abilities and served as the reigning protector Daoist master of the dynasty, Li Dongyang would have truly thrown him out.
"Daoist Priest Liaochen, coming here in the dead of night—are you here to make sport of this old man?" Li Dongyang's expression turned unkind.
"Every word this poor Daoist speaks is the truth. How could I have any intention of making sport of Cabinet Minister Li?" Liaochen's expression remained unchanged as he replied with a calm smile.
"Yangzhou has enjoyed peace for a long time, and our dynasty has not experienced warfare. Where did this poem come from? If it was passed down from the Mongol invasion of the south during the former dynasty, why has this old man never heard of it?" Li Dongyang asked.
"Does the Grand Secretary truly wish to know?" Liaochen picked up his teacup and asked.
"I know you have come here surely on account of the Millennial Shrine of Loyalty and Valor. However, the security of the realm lies in virtue rather than in strategic passes, in benevolence rather than in might. When the interior and exterior are at peace, the monarch is enlightened, the ministers are wise, and the people enjoy their work, a single command naturally inspires everyone to willingly die for the cause. What need is there then for thousands in gold or talk of ghosts and spirits?" Li Dongyang shook his head and said.
"Cabinet Minister Li, you don't even believe your own words, do you?" Liaochen smiled. "Think back to the Battle of Yishan, when one hundred thousand of the Great Song plunged into the sea, which could truly be called the fall of the realm. From then on, the land was tainted by barbarian stench, until fortunately, the founding Emperor expelled the Tartars and restored our Han Chinese domain, allowing China to continue its lineage. If one day China were to fall once more into the hands of barbarians, resulting in the fall of the realm, I fear that after future generations reflect upon it, Confucianism will no longer find a foothold in China!"