When Senior Grand Secretary Wei Zaode and his cronies heard Li Banghua offer to donate his family assets, they lowered their heads and sneered continuously.
A polite way to put it: donating money for a promotion.
A blunt way to put it: selling offices!
They mocked Li Banghua for being a fool obsessed with his career. He was already a high-ranking official of the second rank, holding the title of Junior Tutor; the only step higher would be the Three Ducal Ministers of the first rank.
If they had turned the clock back a year, donating money to buy a promotion might have been justifiable, as the Great Ming Dynasty still had some breath left in it. But now, the Great Ming was a crumbling building, as precarious as a pile of eggs. Even if they raised a million taels of silver, it wouldn't stop the inevitable collapse. Why bother? It would be better to keep the money and prepare for the transition of power. Even more ridiculous, Emperor Chongzhen had merely offered a vague "great reward" without specifying what it would be—it was clearly just empty talk.
"Your subject, Wang Zhixin, having received immense imperial grace, is willing to donate half of my family assets to help exterminate the rebels!" Wang Zhixin, Commander of the Eastern Depot, then knelt on the ground, painfully offering up half his wealth.
Emperor Chongzhen’s mouth twitched. This man was truly a miser; even after being intimidated, he still dared to withhold half his property. He was the literal embodiment of "dying for wealth." The Emperor narrowed his eyes; though displeased, he feigned great pleasure. "Wang Zhixin’s loyalty is evident. I promote you by three ranks!"
Wang Chengen wanted to donate as well, but his money had already been given away, and the measly ten taels left in his pocket weren't fit to be offered. He felt suddenly vexed.
Wu Mengming recalled what Emperor Chongzhen had said during their audience before the morning court session. To curry favor with the Emperor and protect himself, he had to bite the bullet and say, "Your subject is willing to donate one thousand taels of silver!"
"Good! Commander Wu is promoted by one rank! Is there anyone else who wishes to donate silver?"
"Your subject is willing to donate five hundred taels to resolve this urgent crisis."
"Your subject is willing to donate one thousand taels."
"Your subject is willing to donate eight hundred taels."
...
Led by Li Banghua, over forty court officials donated one after another. Emperor Chongzhen calculated the amounts—ranging from a few dozen to over a thousand taels—but the total did not even reach fifty thousand!
"Is there anyone else who wishes to donate?" Emperor Chongzhen asked again, his face expressionless. The officials remained silent. Those who wanted to donate had already done so; the rest expressed their stance through silence.
"Very well," Emperor Chongzhen paused. "Since no one wishes to donate, I shall borrow."
"Is there anyone willing to lend money to me?"
Borrow? Hearing this word, Senior Grand Secretary Wei Zaode almost burst into laughter. *Chongzhen, oh Chongzhen,* he thought, *you are the Son of Heaven, yet you resort to borrowing money from your subordinates. Have you no shame, and does the Royal House have no dignity left?* Under these circumstances, was there any difference between borrowing and donating? If you couldn't even raise money through donations, would anyone actually lend to you? *What a pig-headed fool!*
The others had different thoughts. If Emperor Chongzhen asked them for a loan, could they refuse? Clearly not. How should they respond? The court officials and nobles kept their heads down, racking their brains.
Seeing that no one answered, Wang Chengen grew anxious. He feared the Emperor would be humiliated, so he hurriedly winked at Wang Zhixin. Being glared at by Wang Chengen made Wang Zhixin uncomfortable. He sighed internally, knelt again, and said, "Your Majesty, your subject is willing to lend five hundred taels to assist the Imperial Court in exterminating the rebels."
"Good, good, good... a child worth teaching!"
After waiting for a moment, seeing that the rest remained silent, Emperor Chongzhen called out a name directly: "Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue?"
Wang Zhengzhi, Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, would later surrender to Li Zicheng and then to the Jiannu. He wore the face of a chaste man but possessed the soul of a harlot. Emperor Chongzhen decided to start with him.
Wang Zhengzhi curled his lip in secret, stepped forward, and bowed respectfully. "Your Majesty, I am here."
"How much ready cash do you have at home?"
"This..." Wang Zhengzhi hesitated. The question was too direct. He knew the Emperor was definitely up to no good, though he wasn't sure what the trick was. He thought it over—the worst possible outcome would be the confiscation of his home. If the Emperor actually dared to do that, he would be the first to open the city gates when Li Zicheng arrived.
After mentally calculating the loose change in his house, Wang Zhengzhi said, "In reply to Your Majesty, I have about one hundred taels of ready cash at home. I have other assets, but they are all physical goods, not cash."
"Oh," Emperor Chongzhen narrowed his eyes. "Since you don't have much money, I will borrow a little less. Shall we say half?"
Wang Zhengzhi felt stunned. *Is the Emperor mad with poverty? He won't even spare a hundred taels...*
"This..." He wanted to refuse, but the Emperor’s majesty kept him from opening his mouth. *Lend it?* He knew the money he lent would certainly never be returned. After struggling for a while, he stammered, "Your Majesty, I have elderly parents and young children to support. I fear fifty taels won't last me more than a few days."
"Do not worry, Minister Wang. As long as I have a bite to eat, your entire family shall not go hungry."
With the Emperor having spoken to this extent, Wang Zhengzhi could no longer argue and could only agree with a mournful expression.
Emperor Chongzhen continued, his face still expressionless: "Where is Minister Fan of the Ministry of Works?"
Fan Jingwen, Minister of the Ministry of Works, bowed low. "I am here."
"How much ready cash is in your home?"
Fan Jingwen replied respectfully, "I have less than fifty taels of ready cash."
"Since it is so little, I shall not borrow from you."
The others raised their eyebrows, catching the point. Although Fan Jingwen was likely telling the truth, it was clear that one could escape trouble just by pretending to be poor and pitiful.
"Where is Zhang Jinyan?"
"I am here."
"Do you have any ready cash at home?"
Zhang Jinyan, Minister of the Ministry of War, knelt on the ground with a look of distress. "In reply to Your Majesty, I am an incorruptible official. There is no money left to spend in my home."
Wang Zhengzhi glanced sideways at Zhang Jinyan, lamenting in his heart: *This man is truly ruthless; he doesn't even want to lend a single copper.*
Emperor Chongzhen asked with a blank expression, "Is what Minister Zhang says the truth?"
"I would not dare to lie."
"Senior Grand Secretary?" Emperor Chongzhen’s expression grew increasingly grim.
Under the gaze of all, Senior Grand Secretary Wei Zaode slowly stepped out and said unhurriedly, "I am willing to lend five hundred taels of silver to help exterminate the rebels!"
"No, no, no, Minister Wei, you have misunderstood my meaning. I am asking how much ready cash you have in your home!"
Wei Zaode sneered internally and said loudly, "My family is poor and has no ready cash; I rely on borrowing money to get by. Even the five hundred taels I just mentioned are money I have borrowed myself."
Wang Chengen stood to the side, grinding his teeth. These people had hoarded more wealth than was in the state treasury. At a time when the Imperial Court was in dire straits, they refused to open their purses and were instead skinflints; it was truly detestable. He watched Emperor Chongzhen’s back, hating that he was not someone like Wei Zhongxian, who could intimidate the court and ease the Emperor’s burdens.
"Duke of Cheng?" Emperor Chongzhen ignored him, immediately turning his gaze toward the first-rank Duke.