Zhang Juzheng teamed up with Feng Bao
The cabinet chief assistant has outstanding ability to raise the arch, and Emperor Longqing is also a teacher and friend, after Xu Jie's retirement, the high arch covers the sky with one hand, and is domineering.
In the twenty-sixth year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1547), the twenty-three-year-old Zhang Juzheng was admitted to the Jinshi examination, ranking ninth in the second class, and his examiner was Xu Jie. Because of his young and talented, Zhang Juzheng was awarded the title of Jishi of the Hanlin Academy, becoming a high-level reserve talent of the empire. In the Hanlin Academy, Zhang Juzheng was vigorously promoted by Xu Jie, a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, and was directly promoted from a five-grade deputy department-level cadre to a university scholar.
Gao Gong is older than Zhang Juzheng, with old qualifications, he is a Jinshi in the twentieth year of Jiajing (1541), six years earlier than Zhang Juzheng to enter the officialdom, Gao Gong also entered the officialdom as a Jishi. In the twenty-first year of Jiajing (1542), Gao Gong was appointed as the editor of Hanlin. Later, until the deputy minister, minister, and scholar, he was able to make good decisions and was a genius born in the world.
Xu Jie, Gao Gong, and Zhang Juzheng can be called the strongest combination in the late Ming Dynasty, and their encounter and cooperation, in addition to working together in the Hanlin Academy, is mainly the matchmaking of Yuwang Zhu Zaiyuan. It turned out that they successively became lecturers in Yuwangfu.
Gao Gong became the first assistant of the cabinet, adhering to the patriarchal style, self-respecting, turning the cabinet into a hall of words, and driving away Chen Yiqin, Zhao Zhenji, Li Chunfang, and Yin Shidan.
At the same time, Zhang Juzheng was suppressed.
This was not enough, Gao Gong completely offended Feng Bao in order to install the eunuchs Chen Hong and Meng Chong as the eunuchs of the palm print.
Feng Bao is talented, both a political broker and a bold and thick-skinned conspirator!
On July 19, 1572 (the tenth day of the sixth month of the sixth year of Longqing), the Ming Dynasty eunuch Feng Bao announced the will of the first emperor at the enthronement ceremony of the Wanli Emperor, ordered the crown prince to ascend the throne, and appointed Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Gao Yi and Feng Bao as the new emperor's ministers.
Zhang Juzheng and Gao Gong gradually split
It was the first time in the history of the Ming Dynasty that eunuchs and cabinet members served as ministers of care.
Mingshenzong went to the court, behind him was the eunuch of the ceremonial eunuch, in front of him was the cabinet scholar, the Ming Dynasty was full of eunuchs, known as the third eunuch era in China.
The great eunuch Feng Bao won the trust and support of the Empress Dowager Li
The first time was the dictatorship of eunuchs in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, marked by the rebellion of the Ten Standing Servants during the reign of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty.
The second time was after the Anshi Rebellion, and the eunuchs of the Tang Dynasty intervened in politics because of their meritorious service to protect the lord. Among them, Wang Shoucheng, Qiu Shiliang and others can even depose the emperor at will.
How did Feng Bao become the Minister of Care?
Ming Muzong relied heavily on eunuchs. At that time, Feng Bao, Chen Hong and Meng Chong were Mu Zong's handy secretaries.
Feng Bao not only has a unique political acumen, but also has extraordinary knowledge and has a deep attainment in calligraphy.
When he was young, the Wanli Emperor, who was obsessed with calligraphy, was influenced by it.
During the period of accompanying Emperor Jiajing, Emperor Jiajing admired Feng Bao's beautiful calligraphy and reused him as a pen eunuch.
In addition, Feng Bao not only engraved works such as "Enlightenment Collection", "Four Books", "Book of Books", "Tongjian Direct Interpretation", "Emperor Jian Illustrated Explanation", and "Interpretation of Scripture Books".
Qingming Shanghe Tu - Northern Song Dynasty, Zhang Zeduan
He also privately collected the original work of "Qingming Riverside Map", and couldn't help but leave his own inscription on it.
It can be seen that Feng Bao's calligraphy skills are indeed very accessible.
Feng Bao is not only good at calligraphy, but also proficient in music.
In addition, he can also make guqin, which has excellent timbre, and people collect his qin as a treasure.
Secondly, Feng Bao is not only a calculating and insightful political broker, but also a Confucian with many contradictions and a strong literati atmosphere.
After Mu Zong ascended the throne, Feng Bao held the right to approve Zhu's votes, and concurrently served as the commander of Dongchang and the imperial horse supervisor.
In order to make it easier for Feng Bao to do things, Mu Zong also granted him the treatment of riding a horse in the Great Interior.
Feng Bao won the trust of Empress Dowager Li
Later, Wanli became the crown prince. Feng Bao engraved learning materials for Wanli, supervised reading day and night, and won the trust of Wanli's biological mother, Li Guifei.
Feng Bao's calligraphy works
Feng Bao is proficient in government affairs and wholeheartedly assists the prince, and it is reasonable to be a minister who cares for his life.
It is an open secret that the celebrant was favored by the emperor more than the cabinet.
However, Gao Gong reprimanded Feng Bao for falsely transmitting the holy decree and forging Gu Ming's identity, and wanted to expel Feng Bao.
If Feng Bao wants to fake the holy decree, can he still make Gao Gong rank as the first assistant? In fact, this was just an excuse for Gao Shoufu to crack down on dissidents, and he himself bribed Chen Hong and Meng Chong to invite Mu Zong.
Gao Gong is very conceited and difficult to tolerate people, and now among the ministers of Gu Ming, Gao Yi is Gao Gong's protégé, Zhang Juzheng and Feng Bao are facing Gao Gong's suppression, so the two decided to join forces to fight back.
The emperor was young, and Empress Dowager Li's position was very important
Zhang Feng Alliance, Gao Gong was expelled, and Zhang Juzheng ascended to the peak of power step by step.
First of all, Feng and Zhang Jin slandered and made false cases, and successfully brought down Gao Gong.
Gao Gong's power relied on the teacher-student friendship with the emperor, but the person in power at this time was already Li Guifei, who was the queen mother.
Gao Gong instigated hundreds of officials to admonish Feng Bao and impeach Feng Bao for his heinous crime and should be punished!
Gao Gong ignored that the Chen and Meng Zhizhi he befriended had offered beauties to the emperor and offended Concubine Li.
Gao Gong was once snubbed in the Jiajing Dynasty, and it was Zhang Juzheng who asked him to revive him, but the two turned against each other in the Wanli Dynasty.
Gao Gong said worriedly in front of Gao Yi and Zhang Juzheng in the cabinet:
Ten-year-old prince, how to rule the world?
On the one hand, Zhang Juzheng pretended to agree to impeach Feng Bao, making Gao Gong relax his vigilance, and on the other hand, he conspired with Feng Jian to put Gao Gong "Ten-year-old prince, how to rule the world?" The remarks were revised to "How to be a ten-year-old child?" Let Feng Bao report to the Empress Dowager Li.
On June 15, 1572, Feng Bao went to meet with Empress Dowager Li and the 10-year-old Wanli Emperor early in the morning, and mysteriously told the emperor:
After careful investigation, Gao Gong plotted against him!
Gao Gong said in front of the ministers: "Ten-year-old child, how to be the Son of Heaven!" ”
The high arch is to rebel!
Empress Dowager Li and the little emperor were shocked when they heard this, and their faces immediately changed.
In order to make the play complete and bigger, Zhang Juzheng personally went into battle and told the Empress Dowager Li and the little emperor vividly that Gao Gong was ready to abolish the Wanli Emperor and set up another vassal king to succeed to the throne in Beijing.
Empress Dowager Li was angry, the emperor's bones were not cold, and Gao Gong bullied our orphans and widows like this!
On the sixth day of Wanli's accession to the throne, Gao Gong was sent back to his hometown for the crime of "autocratic power" and ended his career as the first assistant.
At that time, his joint excerpt of impeaching Feng Bao was still in the celebrant prison.
In order to avoid suspicion, Zhang Juzheng said to Emperor Wanli that if he had to depose Gao Gong, he would resign from us.
However, in terms of seniority, after Gao Gong fell from power, Zhang Juzheng is bound to succeed as the first assistant, how can he be willing to resign.
Second, Feng and Zhang made concessions to each other to achieve internal and external alliances.
First, although Feng Bao was a eunuch, he was very knowledgeable about the fundamental interests of the Ming Dynasty.
Second, Zhang Juzheng's side, although he is the first assistant, he has given Feng enough face.
The Wanli Emperor was in power
So, what impact did the Feng-Zhang alliance have on the dictatorship of the eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty?
On the one hand, the alliance of Feng and Zhang was a model of the alliance between eunuchs and cabinets in the Ming Dynasty, but on the other hand, it exacerbated the situation of eunuchs interfering in politics.
In addition, the Feng and Zhang Alliance's joint efforts to expel Shoufu Gao Gong also reflect the law that the weak huddle together for warmth, so that they can form a containment of the strong, so that they will eventually replace the strong. If any of them choose to rely on Gao Gong, I am afraid it will be difficult to see the Zhongxing situation brought about by Zhang Juzheng's reform.
Zhang Juzheng's reform was successful, and the Ming Dynasty was prosperous
The genius politician Zhang Juzheng stepped onto the political stage, clamped down on the imperial power, and the reform was successful, opening the situation of the Ming Dynasty.