Chapter Eighteen: The Stern-faced Magistrate
Chapter Eighteen: The Stern Instructor
To be a good emperor is no easy task. To be a young emperor who loves to study is even harder.
Ever since Zhu Qizhen agreed to begin the daily lectures, he had no choice but to rise before dawn every day. At the fifth watch, he was required to go to the Hall of Literary Brilliance to read. After lunch, he would visit the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility, where the Grand Empress Dowager would explain state affairs to him, analyzing the actions of the Grand Secretariat for Zhu Qizhen’s benefit, so that he might understand why the three Yangs of the Secretariat behaved as they did.
After dinner, Zhu Qizhen still had to review various documents, all matters he did not understand. He would then order Wang Zhen to investigate these issues—for instance, the conduct of Xue Huan and Shi Jing, the two imperial sons-in-law from the Xue family and the Shi family. There were also palace rules that required frequent review.
On the third, sixth, and ninth days of the lunar month, he had an additional duty: holding court at the palace gate to listen to state affairs. However, because of his youth, each morning he would only handle eight matters, which the Grand Secretariat had already prepared in advance, making it largely a formality.
Afterward, the various departments would return to their offices, and Zhu Qizhen would return to the Hall of Literary Brilliance for further lessons.
The Hall of Literary Brilliance stood east of the Grand Harmony Gate Square, facing the Hall of Martial Valor from across the square. It was the place where the Crown Prince usually handled state matters, though at present Zhu Qizhen had yet to be officially named Crown Prince. Behind the Hall of Literary Brilliance was the Pavilion of Profound Literature, separated only by a wall, with a side door connecting the two. In this way, the ministers could closely monitor the emperor’s studies, for in their eyes, the emperor’s education was a paramount affair of state.
Indeed, the Hall of Literary Brilliance also served as a repository of books. Upon entering the Hall of Literary Brilliance, one faced the main hall, with side chambers on either side and a portrait of the Most Sage Teacher.
After washing and having his morning meal, Zhu Qizhen would arrive while dawn was still breaking; the sun had yet to climb out from the darkness. Yet Li Shimian was already present.
The first time Zhu Qizhen met Li Shimian, he was somewhat disappointed, feeling that the man’s reputation was perhaps undeserved. Li Shimian was a small, elderly man in a crimson robe, with a cloud-wild goose rank badge on his chest. His hair was streaked with white, his expression always stern, as if his face had never known a smile. His voice was always loud, with a hint of a southern accent.
Upon seeing Zhu Qizhen, Li Shimian first offered his respects, then led the young emperor to pay homage to the portrait of the Most Sage Teacher before seating himself in the main hall.
To be precise, Zhu Qizhen sat in the seat of honor, while Li Shimian stood below. Glancing around, Zhu Qizhen saw row upon row of shelves filled with yellow-embroidered volumes. He did not examine them closely, but it was clear they were all hefty tomes.
Li Shimian fixed Zhu Qizhen with a serious gaze and asked, “Your Majesty, what have you read before?”
“The Three Character Classic, the Hundred Family Surnames, and the Thousand Character Essay,” Zhu Qizhen replied.
Li Shimian said gravely, “May Your Majesty write them out from memory.”
Wang Zhen immediately stepped forward to prepare paper and ink. Zhu Qizhen took up a brush and wrote out the Three Character Classic, the Hundred Family Surnames, and the Thousand Character Essay one by one from memory.
Li Shimian watched from the side. Before long, a furrow formed between his brows—he found Zhu Qizhen’s calligraphy rather unsightly. In truth, the young emperor had always been a playful child, and calligraphy required dedicated practice. Since Emperor Xuanzong had fallen ill in the twelfth month of the ninth year of the Xuande reign and passed away in the first month, Zhu Qizhen, overwhelmed by affairs, had not held a brush for a long time.
Though Zhu Qizhen had gained much insight from later generations, his calligraphy had not improved in the least.
After Zhu Qizhen finished writing, Li Shimian asked a few simple questions, not at all difficult, suited to a child’s level. Zhu Qizhen answered fluently.
Li Shimian said, “Your Majesty is exceptionally intelligent; I am impressed. However, your calligraphy requires much more practice. In the future, when you issue edicts, you must not become a laughingstock to the world.”
Zhu Qizhen replied, “Sir speaks wisely.”
As an emperor, one need not be a calligraphy master, but one must at least be able to inscribe plaques and review memorials. In fact, many officials saw the emperor’s calligraphy more often than they saw the emperor himself. In this era, calligraphy was almost another face; it could not be neglected.
“I request Your Majesty, from this day forth, to copy ten model calligraphic sheets daily. The palace possesses the model calligraphy of the Two Wangs; Your Majesty should first practice these, then study the works of Scholar Shen from our dynasty, whose writing was greatly esteemed by all previous emperors.”
Zhu Qizhen replied, “I understand, teacher.”
Scholar Shen referred to Shen Du, who had entered the Hanlin Academy during the Yongle reign and whose calligraphy was admired by Emperor Taizong—a preeminent master of the day.
Zhu Qizhen asked, “Is Scholar Shen still alive?”
Li Shimian replied, “He passed away last year. However, Emperor Taizong called him the Wang Xizhi of our dynasty and especially loved his writing. There are many of his works hidden in the palace. If Your Majesty wishes, you may seek them out in the imperial archives.”
Zhu Qizhen nodded.
Li Shimian continued, “However, should Your Majesty’s calligraphy not improve, there must be consequences.”
Upon hearing this, Zhu Qizhen suddenly remembered the ruler bestowed upon Li Shimian by the Grand Empress Dowager and felt a twinge of nervousness. But he quickly calmed himself, thinking, “It’s only a smack on the hand—what’s the harm?”
He was already prepared for a beating, when Li Shimian’s tone shifted: “However, Your Majesty is still young; if there is fault, it lies with your teacher.”
Li Shimian’s gaze moved to Wang Zhen, his voice stern: “Attend me. This man has failed in his duty to instruct His Majesty. Ten strokes with the rod.”
Wang Zhen was startled, unsure how to respond.
Zhu Qizhen said, “Eunuch Wang did his best. It was I who lacked diligence, not his fault.”
“Wang Zhen attends Your Majesty daily. If he cannot prevent Your Majesty from failing, the fault is his. He has also neglected your calligraphy. I, your humble minister, began studying at the age of six, never ceasing through summer or winter. Yet Your Majesty’s brushwork is weak, the foundation lacking, and correcting it later will require much effort. Wang Zhen was your first teacher; he cannot shirk this responsibility,” Li Shimian declared righteously.
Zhu Qizhen was silenced by the force of his words.
Such was the custom: the ruler was never at fault; when mistakes were made, blame fell on those closest to him. When Shang Yang reformed the laws and the Crown Prince opposed him, it was the prince’s teacher who was punished by having his nose cut off. And so it was now.
Two eunuchs entered, holding Wang Zhen. “Forgive us, Lord Wang; we only follow orders,” they said.
From somewhere they produced a long bench and pressed Wang Zhen down upon it. Two men held him fast while two others raised redwood rods as tall as a man and delivered ten strokes across his back.
The eunuchs showed some mercy, yet Wang Zhen’s wails echoed without pause, though his voice did not weaken.
Afterward, Li Shimian ordered Wang Zhen to be taken aside for medicine, then began the lesson in earnest.
“From this day forth, I shall instruct Your Majesty in the Analects. Before you govern personally, I am entrusted by the Grand Empress Dowager to guide you through the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as the Great Compendium of Nature and Principle, that you may grasp the intent of the sages. Afterward, you will study our dynasty’s house laws—the Imperial Ancestor’s Instructions, the Sacred Learning Mind Method of Emperor Taizong, and the Book of the Five Relationships written by the late emperor. Thereafter, you will progress to the Essentials of Government from the Zhenguan Era, the Digest of the Comprehensive Mirror, the Outline of the Comprehensive Mirror, and the Expansion of the Great Learning. Thus you will understand the deeds of wise rulers through the ages, the reasons for order and chaos in the world, and the application of sage learning.”
Zhu Qizhen counted: the Four Books and Five Classics totaled nine volumes. The rest—Great Compendium of Nature and Principle, Imperial Ancestor’s Instructions, Sacred Learning Mind Method, Book of the Five Relationships, Essentials of Government, Digest of the Comprehensive Mirror, Outline of the Comprehensive Mirror, Expansion of the Great Learning—made up a total of eighteen books. These could be divided into Confucian classics and history: the former to cultivate the mind, the latter to reveal the use of Confucian principles. Add calligraphy, and the daily sessions with the Grand Empress Dowager on statecraft, and Zhu Qizhen felt his scalp tingle.
Being emperor was no easy matter.
Li Shimian continued, “The Analects is the simplest of the Four Books, recording the words of the sage. Your Majesty must begin your study of the sages with this work.”
He took a copy of the Analects from a nearby shelf and laid it open before Zhu Qizhen, pointing to the first chapter, “Learning,” with a ruler more than a foot long, and read aloud: “‘The Master said: To learn and to practice what is learned at due times, is this not a pleasure? To have friends come from afar, is this not a joy? To be unknown and yet not resentful, is this not to be a gentleman?’”
As Li Shimian read, there was a special cadence to his voice, an almost recitative quality. Hearing these familiar words, Zhu Qizhen suddenly felt a sense of absurdity, as if transported back to a classroom many years ago.
Only, he knew there was no going back.
“The Master said: To learn and to practice what is learned at due times, is this not a pleasure? To have friends come from afar, is this not a joy? To be unknown and yet not resentful, is this not to be a gentleman?” Zhu Qizhen recited, word by word, following along.