"Jealousy" caused a great mystery when Emperor Wanli chose his concubine.

At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yijun (temple name Zongshen, 1563- 1620) was an emperor with wine, color, wealth and spirit. He is ten years old (1573) and has been in office for 48 years (1573-65438+). Because he was corrupt, greedy and fatuous (1589- 1620.7 did not go to court for one year), it became the main reason for the national subjugation of the Ming Dynasty. Twenty-four years after his death-1644, the Ming Dynasty perished. His mausoleum is the Dingling underground palace among the Ming Tombs in Changping County, Beijing, and it is now famous at home and abroad.

He/kloc-got married at the age of 0/6 (1578), but unfortunately, Queen Wang never gave birth to a boy. However, the Empress Dowager is old and yearns for grandchildren, which is convenient for August of the ninth year of Wanli (19, 158 1). The clerical officer conveyed the Queen Mother's will: "Order a certain lady to prepare for the defense" (1), which was completed in March of Wanli Decade (1582). At this time, emperor Wanli

Wanli first saw a beautiful woman with natural beauty and incomparable beauty among 100 candidates, but she didn't succeed. Because his mother Empress Dowager Cixi saw it on the spot. I feel-I don't like it, saying that the woman was unlucky, so she lost the election.

Because Wanli had always been afraid of her mother, she dared not raise objections on the surface, but she was obsessed with her lover, so she secretly instructed the eunuch to write down the name and address of the beauty at that time and planned to re-elect in the near future.

I don't know, it changes quickly. It turned out that at that time, he was an official of the Li Department (one of the six major departments of the Ming Dynasty). He is in charge of national etiquette ...) The name of the person in charge of choosing a concubine is Qian Ruogeng (about 1542—— about 1624), whose name is Dexian, and he is from Yinxian County, Zhejiang Province (now Ningbo City). He is a scholar at the age of 37. ), five official positions, wives and daughters at home, no children; At that time, I was obsessed with the beauty of "being a concubine" in Wanli.

Soon after, Emperor Wanli sent a trusted spy eunuch and found that the beauty was "taken away". As a result, Wanli changed from disappointment, jealousy, regret and jealousy to hatred of money.

First of all, Wanli put the name "money is like ploughing" on the screen of the bedroom to show that he never forgets it. Only a few eunuchs he trusts know this secret.

Secondly, because Qian was an official of the Ministry of Rites, he couldn't find any excuse to frame him at the moment, so he ordered the official department (the first of the six departments in the Ming Dynasty) to be in charge of the appointment and selection of state officials. ) transfer the money to Linjiang Prefecture in Jiangxi Province as a magistrate (four products) so as to have a chance to kill him in the future.

Soon, the opportunity came! It turned out that when Qian tried some criminals in Linjiangge, some of them used excessive punishment. Therefore, Wanli seized this handle, so that in the second year of "choosing concubines" (that is, the eleventh year of Wanli, 1583), it was necessary to ask eunuchs to appoint the then governor of Jiangxi Province through the official department-You Buzheng (in charge of the politics of a province, from the second grade, equivalent to the deputy director general). ) Ma Wenwei (1533- 1603, a native of Anqiu, Shandong Province, now belongs to Weifang City. Due to the bad reputation of Jiangxi Governor, he resigned and went home voluntarily in the seventeenth year of Wanli-1589.5. ) turn to Wanli; Then, Wanli told Ma the secret that Wanli wanted to kill money through a eunuch, who was familiar with him because he worked in Hubei. Then, Wanli promoted Ma to Zuo Buzheng (second grade, equivalent to the director). It won't be long. Emperor Wanli promoted Ma to be the governor of Jiangxi (equivalent to the governor) ⑥, becoming the highest-ranking local military and political chief in Jiangxi. In fact, Ma Wenwei has been bought by the Wanli Emperor.

So, after Ma returned to Jiangxi to take office, he immediately followed the will of Wanli, arrested Qian on December 19th of the 12th year of Wanli (1584), put him in Nanchang prison, and reported to the punishments department: "Investigate (see-review) the crimes of the magistrate Qian Ruokui ...".

Later, Emperor Wanli issued a decree: "If Qian Ruokun was brutally punished, ... he was executed". Emperor Wanli ordered Qian to be beheaded and immediately executed in Nanchang execution ground. As a result, Wanli "justified" immediately beheaded.

However, at that time, the governor of Jiangxi Province (official name, that is, supervising the censor) assessed the official management, applied for the admission of prisoners, put them on file, and confessed the gains and losses of political affairs. Although he has a low grade, he represents the emperor's inspection, and his power and status are quite heavy. ) Zhu Hongwei (? -1598, a native of Qingzhou, Shandong-now Yidu, and later served as the governor of Yingtian (Nanjing) and the Suzhou Municipal Government (with a political voice), but he was honest and upright. Although he is a seven-product sesame official, he can "cut big things and judge small things." So he called Wanli and said: I didn't know that there were no innocent civilians in Qian Ruogeng's case until I "tried the criminals and hung up the files" ("Examined the criminals and looked at the files"). I don't agree with Wanli to implement 10.

According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty at that time, even if money committed the crime of "being a cruel official", it could only be punished as "dismissing an official for the people" (dismissing an official as Shu Ren), and the biggest crime was just "banishing the army" (criminal law system of the Ming Dynasty: criminals were sent to distant places 1.2.3.4 thousand miles away for compulsory military service. ) has not been sentenced to death.

In addition, Shen Shixing (1535- 16 14), a university student recorded in the cabinet at that time, was a second-rate figure, born in Changzhou (now Suzhou) and called an elder. The disadvantage is that he often obeys the emperor's will. ) I also know that money is wrong, but I can't expose and point out the mistakes and hypocrisy of the content of Wanli imperial edict; So I went to find a euphemistic book with more than 700 words (the minister of feudal times stated things to the emperor), saying that Wanli killed money: "The minister of the DPRK cannot be raised." The ministers of the imperial court all said, "Money has not committed a capital crime and should not be killed!" Shen Shixing had to say on the spot: "Money is a violation of the law prohibiting equality between people" (saying: "Money is to detain some ordinary people who have not broken the law for no reason"), and it should be executed after autumn (ancient regulations: generally, death row inmates cannot be interrogated until after autumn), which is not a crime of "waiting for time". (Not guilty "Felony beheaded immediately". ) 1 1 。 It turns out that Shen Shixing adopted the method of "probation" to save money's life.

Under the pressure of ministers' public opinion, Wanli had to make a self-explanatory instruction in Shen's memorial: "Qian Ruokun, a former governor (governor) and the press (in fact, the" governor's press "did not participate in the performance), used heavy punishment for trivial matters, killed many civilians with one stick, and decided to execute the death penalty ()" Nian (Nian) Qing and others (you). 12

In this way, the life of the money was finally saved temporarily. Later, before the "Autumn Judgment" every year, Shen Shixing and others negotiated with the Ministry of Justice (another name is "Dali Temple", which is roughly equivalent to the Supreme Court): "Please postpone it year by year" (for several years).

However, from March of the 12th year (1584), Wanli began to fall in love with Zheng Guifei (1569- 1630, a wealthy Shuntian, now living in Beijing), and fell in love with this girl for life, and lost the election two years ago.

However, Qian spent several years in Nanchang prison in Jiangxi. The nights are long, the days are long, and life is worse than death.

Although the emperor Wanli died in July of the forty-eighth year of Wanli (1620), no minister dared to release him for the money before his death, violating the imperial edict of "execution after autumn".

Unexpectedly: (After Qian went to prison, his wife died and his second concubine remarried) One year before Qian went to prison, all three sons born to his wives and concubines had grown up-the eldest son, the second son and the third son (word) 13. Moreover, he is glad that his eldest son and his second son have lived in Nanchang for a long time, sending meals, medicine and clothes to the prison every day to take care of Qian Ruogeng's life. The third son, Zhong Jing, studied hard and was admitted to the Jinshi in the forty-seventh year of Wanli (16 19), so his social status was improved (he was appointed as the minister of punishments and the magistrate of Ningguo in the Apocalypse, now Anhui).

After the death of Emperor Wanli, his son Zhu Changluo succeeded to the throne, that is, Emperor Taichang, but he died only after 40 days (or 29 days). Then Zhu Youxiao (1605- 1627), the grandson of Wanli, succeeded to the throne, which was called the (western) school (1620- 1627 reigned for 7 years), and the year of apocalypse.

Therefore, Qian Zhongjing wished to save his father three times; He even knelt in front of Beijing Palace in ochre (reddish brown) prison uniform, begging for the mercy of the Apocalypse Emperor. He said: "I am willing to bear the death penalty for my father (not my father), which is very sad and crying!" Plus, several ministers, JaeHee Zong, interceded for their father and son.

Therefore, in the first year of the Apocalypse (162 1), Ming Xizong issued an imperial edict on May 1 1: "Release Qian Ruo, the former magistrate of Linjiang, and call on his son (Yu Yu for help) for loyalty, and quote the example of" Enzhao "of the Ministry of Justice"/kloc. The content of "Enzhao" is: "Next year is the first year of the apocalypse, and the world is forgiven. No matter the size of the crime, it is salty (full) forgiveness "15.

As a result, Qian Ruokun was finally released from prison (died of illness three years later), but seven or eight years before he was released from prison, he had suffered from stroke, paralysis and dementia.

Qian Ruokun spent 38 years in prison (1584— 162 1), probably the longest person in China's feudal society!

This also shows that the feudal emperor Wanli, in order to be "insatiable and detestable of evil", tried his best to collude and frame several of his deputies, which was extremely cruel and shameless!

The above facts show that this is indeed a big mystery in the late Ming Dynasty! But is this also a great injustice? That depends on the reader's own decision!

2065438+early August 2006, written in Nanjing Library-National Studies Museum. Please criticize and correct this article. Please respect the copyright law, and offenders will be prosecuted!

(About the author: Xu Fenhui, male, from Hanshan, Anhui, 1933, graduated from history department of Fudan University 1958, and retired from Chaohu No.2 Middle School 1990. )

Precautions:

1, Records of the Ming Dynasty, five or three volumes. Ming Shenzong records, vol. 1 15, pp. 2 178, 2 180.

2. The May 4th Volume of Shi Ming Lu. A Record of Ming Shenzong, Vol. 122, p. 2276.

3. Continuation of Sikuquanshu (volume 1682), All Wang Zu: Continuation of the Old Volume (page 50 1).

4. Wen Bing: Notes on Dingling, Volume VII, 2 1, page 465.

5. Yi Ding: Secret Service Politics in Ming Dynasty, p. 367.

6. "Xian" Volume III, p. 2772, in: the official "Epitaph of Duchayuan in Wei You".

7. The May 4th Volume of Shi Minglu, The Record of Ming Shenzong, Volume 146, Page 2727.

8, "Shi Minglu" Volume 54. A Record of Ming Shenzong, Vol. 156, p. 2887. Wen Bing: Notes on Dingling, Volume 7, 2 1, 22 pages. Manuscript of Wanli House, Volume I, page 275.

9. "Si Ku Quan Shu" (458- 1054), Shen Jia: "Continued Words and deeds of famous Confucian scholars" Volume III, Zhu Hongmo.

10, continued "Sikuquanshu" (1429), all over Wang Zu: Chai Qi Pavilion Collection (Volume 6), the third page, Qian Gong Shinto Table, the magistrate of Ningguo, Zhili, Ming Dynasty.

1 1, Continuation of Sikuquanshu, volume 362, page 276, Guo Que,1February.

12, Notes on the Early Wanli Period of Ming Dynasty, Volume IV, p. 233. May 4th Volume Shi Minglu, 156 Volume A Record of Ming Shenzong, pp. 2887 and 2889.

13, Yongzheng's "Ningbo Fu Zhi" Volume 24, p. 1988.

14, Volume 10 of Ming History, page 05 16.

15, A Record of Ming Taizu, Volume I of Ming History, p. 002 1.

16. This paper also refers to and adopts a small amount of related contents in Dingling in the Snow.