Chapter 52: General Qi, I Have Doubts

Empress Dowager Li agreed to grant Qi Jiguang a peerage with her own calculations in mind. Qi Jiguang had become a disciple of Zhang Juzheng, and once he secured the title of Count, he would be able to enter the capital to take office as the Grand Commander of the Capital Garrison. Should that day truly arrive, Zhang Juzheng’s faction—akin to today’s Jin faction—though not bound by blood ties, would possess enough clout to threaten the Emperor.

This was a development she would never allow to happen. Therefore, when Qi Jiguang entered the palace to observe the Emperor practicing martial arts, Empress Dowager Li laid down these terms without room for negotiation.

Zhu Yijun’s expression remained unchanged. Empress Dowager Li had not informed the young Emperor of her intentions beforehand, as she did not wish to make things overly difficult for Qi Jiguang.

Empress Dowager Li was reasonable enough on certain matters, but exceedingly stubborn on others. If the child suffered the slightest hardship, her heart would ache, yet she would not forcefully issue an imperial edict to stop it; however, when it came to affairs of the outer court, she rarely listened to the grand principles expounded by the young Emperor.

Bestowing a peerage was certainly permissible, but Qi Jiguang—the sharpest sword in the Great Ming—had to remain firmly in the Emperor’s hands.

Direct imperial control was the bottom line that Empress Dowager Li would not allow to be challenged.

This matter of granting Qi Jiguang a peerage was a test of direct imperial control, following Zhang Juzheng’s "Memorial on Five Matters." Meanwhile, Zhang Juzheng’s debate with Yang Bo in the Fengtian Hall proved that Zhang Juzheng had no intention of usurping imperial authority or interfering with the Emperor’s direct rule. To Empress Dowager Li, the other aspects of the Memorial on Five Matters could all be tolerated.

The Emperor holding court at the palace gates, the Emperor reviewing memorials, the Emperor summoning Grand Secretaries, state affairs requiring court deliberations, and the evaluation of capital officials—all of these were considered reasonable demands.

With a young sovereign on the throne and the nation plagued by doubts, the absence of active imperial authority under the dynastic system prompted court officials to seize the opportunity to put forward demands. Expecting the Emperor to attend court, manage state affairs, and receive officials were not overly excessive requests.

Zhu Yijun was just about to speak and try to persuade Empress Dowager Li—given his eloquence and the presence of the outer official, the Empress Dowager would surely grant the young Emperor a bit of face.

"Your humble servant has always been a subject of the Great Ming, eating the ruler's stipend and carrying out the ruler's duties," Qi Jiguang spoke up first, bowing his head. "I beg the Empress Dowager to discern my heart."

"That is true as well. As long as General Qi understands, that is enough." Upon hearing Qi Jiguang’s reply, Empress Dowager Li knew he had agreed to the terms and would henceforth no longer belong to the faction centered around the All-Chu Guildhall.

What Qi Jiguang meant was that his past discipleship under Zhang Juzheng was purely out of helplessness. If he could have direct audience with the Emperor, and if he could perform his duties without placing himself under someone else's banner, he would certainly not wish to go about courting patrons everywhere.

To become a disciple of a patron was to become a running dog under someone else's roof. For a hardened military man accustomed to life-and-death struggles, it meant lowering one’s brow and bending the waist in service to the powerful.

Qi Jiguang and Zhang Juzheng shared a gentlemanly friendship, but in this rotten court, one had no other choice.

"I am weary. General Qi shall remain in the palace today and keep His Majesty company for a meal." Empress Dowager Li did not discuss any other matters with Qi Jiguang. The Emperor had already issued an imperial decree expressing his affirmation of Qi Jiguang. Empress Dowager Li was not recruiting military talent for her own faction, but for the Emperor.

The banquet was held in the Fengwang Hall, accompanied by Chen Dacheng, the Garrison General of Jizhou. Chen Dacheng was brimming with excitement. The Grand Commander had returned to the capital, not only receiving his full reward and a peerage, but also being granted a grand banquet hosted by the Emperor himself!

Among the personal guards who entered the capital this time, ten were specially selected to accompany them at the side.

"Your servant does not drink. Apart from naval forces, the consumption of alcohol is strictly forbidden by military law." Qi Jiguang looked at the wine pot and cups, saying with slight embarrassment. The prohibition of alcohol in the army was an iron rule established by Qi Jiguang himself, and he could not be the one to break it first, especially since he still had to leave the city and return to Jizhou that very day.

Zhu Yijun smiled and said, "The contents of the cup are merely water."

It was simply to create the right atmosphere. If he were to drink alcohol at his age, Zhang Juzheng would be submitting a self-accusing memorial every single day, and Empress Dowager Li would be dragging the young Emperor to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to read aloud an edict of self-reproach.

Upon hearing this, Qi Jiguang realized it truly was water. He hurriedly stood up, flicking his sleeves in a gesture as if to kneel, and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your consideration."

"In future private audiences and consultations, there is no need to kneel in response. When the Senior Tutor gives lectures, when the Embroidered Uniform Guard practice martial arts, and when Academician Xu teaches Us how to farm, none of them kneel to reply," Zhu Yijun said quite firmly, interrupting Qi Jiguang’s motion to kneel and citing these examples to make it clear that this was not some extraordinary favor.

For a battle-hardened general in his forties with nearly thirty years of bloodshed behind him to kneel before a ten-year-old sovereign was a matter of ritual and law, but the Emperor’s oral instruction was an imperial decree.

When ritual law and imperial decree came into conflict, whose command should one obey?

Qi Jiguang chose to obey the Emperor. He discovered another trait in the young Emperor: a disregard for mundane formalities. This might be a method taught by Empress Dowager Li to win the allegiance of others; with a young ruler and a skeptical nation, any method that could rally civil and military officials to loyal service was a good method.

Yet, such an approach made one feel exceptionally well-treated.

The meal concluded with both host and guests thoroughly delighted.

Zhu Yijun spoke in high praise of Qi Jiguang’s military achievements in pacifying the Japanese pirates and repelling the enemy, lauded his feats in the Battle of Xifengkou, and severely condemned the collusion between the Northern barbarian Little Prince and Dong Huli. He noted how this had heavily dealt a blow to the enemy's arrogant spirit and reinvigorated the resolve of the Great Ming army and civilians in resisting the foe, while simultaneously expressing his own concerns over the Northern Rong's renewed incursions across the border.

Qi Jiguang stated that he would do his utmost to adopt resolute measures to repel the invaders' encroachments, while increasing the number of watchtowers and beacon platforms to promptly detect enemy movements. He vowed to keep the enemy outside the nation's gates by every possible means, living up to the expectations held for the troops of the Three Garrisons by the Emperor, the civil and military officials, and the common people of the capital region, daring to fight, daring to struggle, and striving for decisive victory.

"We have established a Baoqi Palace in Jingshan. Now that Qingming has passed, would General Qi care to accompany Us to take a look?" After finishing his midday meal, Zhu Yijun proposed a stroll through the Shanglin Park.

"Your servant is willing to follow Your Majesty," Qi Jiguang hurriedly replied, bowing his head. Even though His Majesty had said kneeling was not required, he remained thoroughly deferential.

As for the Emperor's promises, Qi Jiguang did not foolishly expect His Majesty to fulfill every single one; he only hoped the Emperor would truly attach importance to military affairs and prevent the scourge of war from spreading to the capital region.

Zhu Yijun led Qi Jiguang and Chen Dacheng to the Baoqi Palace in Jingshan, brought Qi Jiguang outside the greenhouse, and stood beneath the midday sun looking at the crop seedlings in the fields. He squatted down and began introducing potatoes and sweet potatoes.

"According to Luo Gongchen, the Maritime Defense Prefect, sweet potatoes and potatoes yield over a thousand catties per mu overseas. General Qi and General Chen both come from military households engaged in garrison farming; you should understand what a yield of a thousand catties per mu signifies. Most importantly, these crops are not picky about barren or fertile soil. If they can be successfully cultivated, they will save countless lives," Zhu Yijun squatted at the edge of the field, pointing at the seedlings.

The seedlings were a deep green with oval, heart-shaped leaves, brimming with vitality. Qi Jiguang also squatted down to examine the seedlings closely; it was evident that they had been meticulously tended.

Pointing to the five mu of fields on the left, Zhu Yijun explained, "One plant every six inches, requiring four thousand seedlings per mu. The seedlings must have four nodes, with two leaves and a bud exposed above the ground, while the remaining leaves are inserted into the soil."

"This does not mean we need four thousand raw cuttings; the sweet potato vines are specially cultivated in heated rooms. If the temperature exceeds forty degrees, the seedlings will scorch, so temperature control and cultivation require daily inspection. Once the vines are moved out of the heated room and grow to a length of six to eight inches, we begin cutting the vines and planting them in the open fields."

"Forty degrees?" Qi Jiguang looked at the seedlings and, hearing this unfamiliar term, immediately asked for clarification.

Zhu Yijun then gave Qi Jiguang and his entourage a detailed explanation of the principles of thermal expansion and contraction in thermometers, as well as the defined standards of measurement.

"Sweet potato vines prefer sandy loam soil. When planting, the soil must be pulverized, refined, and leveled. Watering too much will easily cause the seedlings and tubers to rot." With this, Zhu Yijun concluded the explanation of the entire seedling cultivation process.

The construction of the heated room did not necessarily require a greenhouse; the primary function of the greenhouse was to cultivate disease-reduced potato vines. Whether it was pinching the tips or heat-regulating, the greenhouse was only needed until the vines reached six inches, after which they were cut and transplanted. Vines grew extremely fast, with every four nodes forming a new cutting.

In the twenty-fifth year of Jiajing, Qi Jiguang inherited his ancestral position, becoming the Commander-in-Chief of Dengzhou Garrison, and his responsibility back then had been garrison farming. Although the Southern troops (the Qi Family Army) practiced a system of voluntary recruitment, it did not mean they did not engage in farming. On the contrary, they attached great importance to combining agriculture with warfare; the Southern troops, who neither plundered nor looted, relied precisely on this integration of farming and fighting.

For the Great Ming, the business of farming was a matter of course.

Qi Jiguang possessed extremely rich experience in agriculture and conversed earnestly with the Emperor of Great Ming for a long time. Meanwhile, Xu Zhenming stood nearby, responsible for filling in any gaps; only when the Emperor encountered something he did not quite understand would Xu Zhenming speak up to answer, though the young Emperor was able to answer most of the questions himself.

As they walked toward the small pavilion in Baoqi Palace, Qi Jiguang suddenly realized that he was discussing farming experiences with His Majesty the Emperor! Was the Emperor not somewhat neglecting his proper duties with this?

Yet the young Emperor was exceptionally well-versed in agricultural matters and was clearly not just playing around. This made the flame of hope in Qi Jiguang's heart burn all the brighter.

"Your Majesty, do you often come to this Baoqi Palace?" Qi Jiguang asked with a hint of curiosity. In his impression, for a Ming emperor, performing the spring ritual to sacrifice to Jumang and holding the plow for show was quite enough. Even Emperor Renzong of Song only went to see the fields when it was time for the harvest.

Qi Jiguang could write military treatises; since ancient times, gifted military strategists capable of winning battles were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. The battlefield seemed tailor-made for them, yet very few military strategists were able to pour out everything in their minds and write it down in treatises.

Many military men knew how a battle ought to be fought, but when asked to explain, they could not articulate the underlying principles—much like dumplings in a teapot, they had the goods inside but couldn't pour them out.

Qi Jiguang was able to pour out the dumplings in his belly because he read books and possessed superb literary talent. Had he not been required to inherit his ancestral position, he would have even considered taking the imperial civil service examinations. Although his military genius was dazzling, Qi Jiguang never let go of his books while in the army.

Therefore, Qi Jiguang knew that Emperor Renzong of Song's Baoqi Palace was merely a gesture to show respect for agriculture; did Emperor Renzong really farm the land himself?

The founding Emperor Gao of the Great Ming had personally farmed, and even after becoming Emperor, he continued to farm within the palace grounds.

"His Majesty comes every single day," Xu Zhenming replied to the question. His Majesty cherished these seedlings dearly; no matter how late it was, he would come over to take a look before the palace gates were locked for the night, even if it was just for a single glance.

"His Majesty is steadfast and resolute. Your servant offers congratulations to the Great Ming, and to the common people of all under heaven," Qi Jiguang said with a heart full of mixed emotions.

Zhu Yijun took his seat in the Baoqi Palace. This was a small hall measuring less than three zhang in width across five bays—rather than a grand hall or pavilion, it resembled an arbour. He smiled and said, "General Qi, General Chen, Academician Xu, please sit and speak."

Looking directly at Qi Jiguang, Zhu Yijun said firmly, "General Qi, We have some doubts."