Going through these heated struggles, Emperor Chenghua and the Hidden Dragon Society steadily seized control of Ming’s power structure.
“The most important thing is to capture the hearts of the people.”
“That’s correct.”
Reaching consensus, Emperor Chenghua and the Hidden Dragon Society devoted all their efforts to winning public sentiment.
Reforming the tax administration was the beginning.
After reforming tax administration, they also improved methods of mobilizing labor for the country’s public works projects.
What previously took the form of unconditional conscription, Emperor Chenghua changed to a system of employment.
“By doing this, we can help the wandering destitute settle down. Is that all? When those who receive wages spend money, commerce in the surrounding areas also flourishes—it’s killing two birds with one stone!”
At Emperor Chenghua’s decision, the ministers showed reluctance.
“Your Majesty’s intention is truly beautiful, but the financial issue…”
“While paying wages, we can collect some through income tax, and we can also tax merchants who gain wealth by doing business with the workers. And if we find and block areas where finances leak wastefully or are embezzled in budget execution, it will be sufficient!”
“That may be so, but there is no precedent for this. It’s difficult to be confident of success.”
“No successful precedent? When the Empire was still Joseon, they implemented this and succeeded! Yet you say there’s no precedent? Are your eyes knotholes?”
“Joseon was a small country. Small in land and few in population. But our Ming is a great country. Large in land and many in population. The circumstances are too different to apply directly.”
“Are you saying this after even trying!”
“…”
“Our Ming is now in the precarious situation of standing on top of a hundred-foot pole! To escape this crisis, examining past and present examples, as well as studying other countries’ cases and deliberating, is a minister’s duty! How can you only utter words that it cannot be done! And still call yourselves ministers of this Ming!”
Having lost justification to Emperor Chenghua’s rebuke, the ministers proceeded with the policy of employing workers for large-scale public works according to Emperor Chenghua’s will.
Following this, policies to inspire the development will of craftsmen and merchants continued through the establishment and operation of the ‘Intellectual Property Management Office.’
As these improvements, reforms, and implementation of new policies continued, Ming’s people gradually began to support Emperor Chenghua.
Nevertheless, Ming’s people still called Emperor Chenghua by the nicknames ‘Joseon Emperor’ or ‘Goryeo Emperor.’
This was because most of the policies Emperor Chenghua implemented were variations of those that had been successfully implemented in the Empire.
***
While more and more of Ming’s people supported Emperor Chenghua, the ministers were having a terrible time.
“Why did I take the civil service exam to become an official…”
“This is just… aren’t we in the same position as oxen and horses just following the emperor’s orders?”
“This is all because of the Hidden Dragon Society!”
Ming’s officials, great and small, had much to say about the emperor’s excessive personal rule.
To be precise, they had much to say about the Hidden Dragon Society crouching in the Secretariat Office.
-Revive the declining Ming!
Under this grand cause, Emperor Chenghua overhauled many things. However, most of these reforms and improvements came from the minds of the Hidden Dragon Society.
The Grand Secretaries and officials of each ministry also presented various policies following Emperor Chenghua’s will. However, most of the proposals they presented were dismissed as ‘outdated.’
In the end, the Grand Secretaries, ministers, and officials below them became mere puppets who simply carried out Emperor Chenghua’s orders.
And officials dissatisfied with this began attacking the Hidden Dragon Society.
However, this issue rarely surfaced.
The aftermath of the previous great purge still lingered, and the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard were thoroughly monitoring all officials, great and small.
Eventually, many officials began showing passive behavior, just doing what they were told.
However, a small number of ambitious individuals smiled with satisfaction.
***
“Tsk tsk tsk… No wonder they’re called outdated.”
“They still don’t know the world has changed…”
“The time has come for ‘the rear waves of the Yangtze River to push forward the front waves!'”
Young and ambitious officials who recognized their opportunity for advancement had arrived began moving diligently.
“The answer lies in His Majesty’s words!”
To seize the opportunity for success, young officials re-examined policies implemented in past dynasties and studied policies practiced in the Empire and Japan.
“The policies Japan implements are all modeled after the Empire’s, aren’t they?”
“Is the Empire the only answer after all?”
Young officials began earnestly analyzing the Empire’s policies.
And officials who thought they had created decent plans submitted their proposals to their superiors.
However, the responses they received were mostly curses and reprimands.
“Why are you doing things you weren’t told to do? Huh? Why are you doing things you weren’t told to do!”
“Instead of wasting time on this, do what you were told properly!”
The young officials who received such curses and reprimands had no choice but to withdraw dejectedly. However, there were those watching them carefully.
The Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard.
-It might really be an insignificant plan, but if not, we could achieve great merit!
Having finished their calculations, the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard found those memorials and submitted them to the Secretariat Office.
Having heard the stories behind those memorials, the Hidden Dragon Society immediately reported this to Emperor Chenghua.
“Are there such damnable people!”
Receiving the report, Emperor Chenghua was greatly angered and summoned the Senior Grand Secretary and ministers.
“How are you managing personnel!”
After reprimanding the Senior Grand Secretary and ministers, Emperor Chenghua found all the officials who had blocked the memorials and executed them.
“If you’re not traitorous ministers, then who is!”
Though the scope of the purge was smaller than the previous great purge, blood flowed once again. Officials became like turtles pulling in their necks, only watching carefully while muttering:
“This is just… the more capable the emperor, the harder it is to survive…”
“The nightmare of the old Emperor Xuande era is returning.”
If he hadn’t waged war with Joseon, Emperor Xuande would have been remembered as ‘a sage ruler unprecedented in history,’ but he was also synonymous with purges.
Though a storm arose from level ground, the Hidden Dragon Society selected good ones from the received memorials and submitted them to Emperor Chenghua.
Reading the memorials, Emperor Chenghua summoned the authors, greatly praised them, and immediately appointed them to high-ranking positions.
“From now on, memorials related to reform and improvement of state affairs should be submitted directly to the Secretariat Office!”
Following Emperor Chenghua’s decision, proposals from ambitious new officials began filling the Secretariat Office.
Seeing the increasing number of proposals, the Hidden Dragon Society members all sighed in unison.
“We’ve dug our own grave…”
However, the Hidden Dragon Society knew they had no choice.
“If the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard are eyes and ears, we need hands and feet to replace us.”
“Right. We need stones to fight those embedded stones on our behalf.”
“But what if we raise them and they later turn against us?”
“Before that happens, the emperor and we must firmly grasp power.”
“We should also only raise them to an appropriate level. We mustn’t make the mistake of turning puppies into tigers.”
With such calculations, Emperor Chenghua and the Hidden Dragon Society raised new officials as their hands and feet. And the new officials grew as they expected.
The most representative example was how they referred to the Empire.
Most of Ming’s high officials still called the Empire ‘Joseon.’ However, most new officials called the Empire ‘Daehan’ or ‘Daehan Federation.’ Some even called it ‘the Empire’ like Emperor Chenghua or the Hidden Dragon Society.
-We must acknowledge that today’s Empire is not the Joseon of the past.
-We must acknowledge what needs to be acknowledged.
This was the thinking of the new officials.
And as they received Emperor Chenghua’s favor, they also built connections with the Hidden Dragon Society. Building power this way, the new officials came to the forefront of political struggles with the old-generation officials.
***
The power struggles between Emperor Chenghua, the Hidden Dragon Society, new officials, and old-generation officials were conveyed to Seoul as quickly as possible.
Well-trained spies were mixed among the court ladies who went to Nanjing with Emperor Chenghua and the empress, as well as the Imperial forces dispatched to protect not only the emperor and empress but also the Hidden Dragon Society members.
The spies thus dispatched immediately relayed events occurring in Nanjing to Seoul.
They weren’t the only ones.
Wan knew even more deeply through the Secret Guards.
This was because the Secret Guards had succeeded in recruiting three members from among the Hidden Dragon Society.
To recruit them, the Secret Guards even requested help from Wan.
“If it’s for such a matter, I must naturally step forward!”
Responding to the Secret Guards’ request, Wan met with the Hidden Dragon Society members at a safe house created by the Secret Guards. Moreover, it wasn’t a meeting between Wan and all the recruitment targets, but one-on-one private meetings.
“I ask you to help for the Empire’s sake. This doesn’t mean betraying your loyalty. You just need to convey without concealment what is happening.”
The Hidden Dragon Society members who met Wan immediately prostrated themselves in emotion and answered:
“As subjects of the Empire, as Your Majesty’s subjects, this is naturally what we should do! We will perform this with all our devotion!”
Thus, the Secret Guards were able to place ears in the deepest parts of Nanjing.
As an aside, the three members recruited by the Secret Guards each thought they alone had met the emperor through the Secret Guards and believed they were the only source within the Hidden Dragon Society.
Thanks to this, the Secret Guards could compare the intelligence each of these three sent to determine if anything was amiss.
Having been established by Hyang and Sejong and performed all sorts of missions, the Secret Guards had become the world’s strongest and highest-level intelligence agency by this period.
***
“Hmm… In the end, it seems Ming has decided on consolidation as its direction. It seems we won’t need to worry much militarily for a while.”
At Wan’s words, Hwangbo In responded:
“That is correct.”
“The problem is, while it’s good that we don’t need to worry militarily, the management of intellectual property rights is somewhat troubling. If they work soundly on commerce and industry, wouldn’t it be disadvantageous for us? Considering their vast land and population.”
At Wan’s point, Hwangbo In answered with a slight smile:
“It is precisely that vast land and population that is the problem. No matter how much Ming’s emperor tries to spread good intentions widely, because the land is so vast, it will take a long time. Moreover, since people of the Central Plains have made imitation and forgery routine since ancient times, it’s impossible to correct this immediately. In my opinion, it will take at least 100 years to settle. That’s 100 years assuming there are no problems in Nanjing.”
Following Hwangbo In’s words, Kim Jong-seo continued:
“Moreover, since corruption among low-level officials governing Ming’s provinces never ceases, even 100 years is a conservative estimate. No, even if it’s corrected within 100 years, the Empire will advance even further during that time.”
“It should be so, but I have great concerns. Corruption and decay are difficult to cut off, and isn’t this the same for our Empire?”
At Wan’s concern, Kim Jong-seo answered with a laugh:
“Hahaha~, Your Majesty. Our Empire has the Office of Records!”
The moment the word ‘Office of Records’ came out, all the officials in the great hall, even the eunuchs, flinched.
Whether knowing this or not, Wan opened his mouth at Kim Jong-seo’s words:
“Ah! Speaking of the Office of Records…”