Chapter 84

In the dimly lit bedroom, the doctors and attendants had long since left, leaving only Chen Ju by Wanli's side. The old attendant sat on a cushion, eyes closed, seemingly lost in thought.

Suddenly, there was a faint sound from the dragon bed. The old attendant, as if reacting reflexively, quickly opened his eyes and rushed to the bedside. As the chief eunuch of the inner court, the frail old man moved more nimbly than a young person.

"Master, you're finally awake!"

Wanli opened his eyes and stared fixedly at the ceiling.

"Where is Wang Hailin?"

"Master, he is investigating a case. I heard he has arrested many merchants who serve the palace."

"Summon him, I want to question him." Wanli sneered.

Chen Ju hurriedly said, "Master, you mustn't. You just woke up, and your body is still weak. If you get angry, it will be hard for us to make up for it!"

The old attendant knelt before him, weeping and wailing. He had served Wanli for decades!

Wanli smiled bitterly, "If you don't want me to find him, then I won't. Investigating a case? What's there to investigate? As the chief eunuch, if he can't figure out such a simple matter, it must be because he doesn't want to!"

From his tone, it was clear that Wanli was furious.

A rare opportunity was at hand. Chen Ju and Wang Hailin had been vying for power for years, and Wanli finally disliked Wang Hailin. If he could just fan the flames a bit more, who knew what might happen...

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but the old attendant held back, not wanting to say too much. He just lowered his head and remained silent.

Wanli turned his head, glanced at him, and smiled slightly, "Chen Ju, why don't you want me to arrest Wang Hailin and thoroughly investigate him?"

"Master, Eunuch Wang has devoted himself wholeheartedly to serving you for many years. To arrest the chief eunuch over a small case in Liaodong would be inappropriate, in my humble opinion!"

Wanli sighed and smiled, "You have truly served me for so long and understand the bigger picture!"

"Your servant does not deserve your praise."

Wanli's expression suddenly changed, and he sneered, "Chen Ju, do you really think I'm praising you? Don't think I don't know. Speak! Did you speak on behalf of Zhang Ke, urging me to investigate Liaodong, out of personal motives? Planning to use this opportunity to deal with Wang Hailin?"

They say serving the emperor is like serving a tiger, especially an injured one like Wanli, who is particularly sensitive. He had just been cursing Wang Hailin, and now he was suspicious of Chen Ju, changing his face faster than turning a page.

Fortunately, the old attendant was experienced and quickly said, "Master, your old servant only wants to serve you wholeheartedly and doesn't want to bring down anyone! I just can't bear to see a group of rats corrupting your empire. I couldn't bear to hide the truth from you, please see through it clearly!"

The old attendant knelt before him, sobbing and shedding tears, which softened Wanli's heart. After a moment of contemplation, he sighed, "Get up. Among those who serve me, you have been with me the longest and are the most sincere. Tell me about the situation in Liaodong..."

"Master, should we call Eunuch Wang over..."

"No need!" Wanli smiled slightly, "You are the chief eunuch of the inner court, and your son is in Liaodong. If you don't know the situation there, I'll send you to guard the imperial tombs!"

Chen Ju hurriedly said, "Master, your old servant does indeed know some of the situation in Liaodong."

"Good, I've slept enough. Tell me about it."

Chen Ju nodded hurriedly and recounted the case of Zhang Feng in detail, while Wanli listened attentively.

"I never thought that merchants of our Great Ming would become accomplices to corruption, undermining the foundation of our empire. A long dike can be destroyed by an ant's hole. These rats must be eliminated without mercy!" Wanli was furious, "If so, why is Wang Hailin hesitating, acting as if he's afraid I'll find out?"

"About that..."

"Speak, there's nothing you can't say!"

"Yes, Master. The Zhu family involved in the case are imperial merchants who help the palace. They are said to be smuggling to provide goods for the palace. Your servant thinks Eunuch Wang is worried that some people who don't understand the situation might spread rumors, tarnishing your reputation!"

Wanli smiled slightly, "Hmph, is worrying useful? I can't control what people say, let alone you! Don't think my palace is airtight. There are so many generals and eunuchs and palace women around, all silent, but they might be someone else's people. Whatever I say or whatever happens in the palace can't be kept secret! Believe it or not, tomorrow people will be talking about how I fainted during the audience today!"

Chen Ju hurriedly bowed his head and wept, "Master, your servant will tell the subordinates that anyone who gossips will be executed without mercy."

Wanli weakly waved his hand, "No need, let them talk. I can't ignore the chaos in Liaodong; I can't be a fool!"

Wanli gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing with anger. Having ruled the Great Ming for nearly fifty years, he was filled with pride, but the Battle of Sarhu shattered his glory. It was like a poisoned blade piercing his heart, bleeding every moment.

Chen Ju clenched his teeth and bowed, "Master, according to Zhang Ye's report, the corruption in Liaodong involves officials, military officers, merchants, and the inner court. This case touches on all aspects, and if we investigate, it will lead to a massive purge of the Liaodong bureaucracy!"

Even though Wanli was prepared, hearing Chen Ju's words still made him close his eyes in pain, his head throbbing. If it were a few years ago, he might have had the energy to thoroughly clean up, but now, with his health failing, did he still have the strength?

Especially since Liaodong was already rotten to the core, and with the old servant watching closely, if the bureaucracy really fell into chaos, it might not be a blessing for the Great Ming!

The tangled mess in Liaodong was a headache.

As he thought, Wanli suddenly said, "Chen Ju, this case involves so many people. Given your nature, you would likely suppress it like Wang Hailin. Why did you bring it up? Did you receive a bribe?"

Wanli was just asking casually, but Chen Ju nodded without hesitation, "Your servant did receive a bribe."

"Ha ha ha, a bribe to the chief eunuch! Tell me, how much silver did they give you?"

"Countless!"

"You are my chief eunuch, haven't you seen enough money? Countless! Aren't you ashamed?"

Chen Ju smiled and pulled out a letter from his robe, holding it in his palm.

"Master, your servant has seen a lot of silver, but your servant has never seen a treasure pot!"

"Treasure pot!? Don't play riddles with me, just tell me."

"Please allow your old servant to read this letter to you."

Chen Ju pulled out the letter and began to read. At first, Wanli listened with his eyes closed, but later, he felt Chen Ju's reading was unsatisfactory and snatched the letter, reading it carefully.

The letter was written by Zhang Ke and contained two main points. The first was about the inflow of silver. Zhang Ke briefly described how, since the opening of the Longqing era, over fifty years, countless silver had flowed into the Great Ming, with Western merchants bringing ships full of gold and silver to exchange for silk and porcelain.

Foreign trade had been discussed before, nothing new, but the second point opened Wanli's eyes. Zhang Ke elaborated on the issue of arbitrage.

The Great Ming had set the gold-to-silver ratio at 10:1, but in practice, due to a shortage of silver, the ratio was as high as 6:1 or even 5:1. In Europe, the silver price was roughly half that of the Great Ming.

Therefore, European merchants transported silver from America to the Great Ming, exchanged it for gold, and made a profit of 100% on a single trip! This was the reason for the inflow of silver and the outflow of gold after the opening of the Longqing era.

The foreigners made easy money through arbitrage, and Wanli was envious. Could the Great Ming also make this money?

Zhang Ke perfectly answered Wanli's confusion. The key was Japan, a small island nation that had once produced a significant amount of silver and gold, accounting for one-third of the world's production, and was also a source of silver for China.

The gold-to-silver ratio in Japan was even more absurd, around 5:1, meaning that taking Chinese silver to Japan to exchange for gold would yield a profit of over 20%, a considerable amount for ordinary merchants!

However, Zhang Ke, being a shrewd businessman, had an even better idea. The Japanese shogunate set the gold-to-silver ratio at about 10:1, but powerful daimyos, who owned vast silver and gold mines, didn't care about this regulation. Moreover, there was a black market for gold and silver, where many Western merchants also profited from arbitrage.

Zhang Ke's idea was to take a sum of silver to the daimyos to exchange for gold, then use the gold to exchange for silver at the shogunate, and then use the silver to exchange for gold again...

By repeating this cycle, with just a small initial investment, one could use Japan's money to drain Japan and provide a continuous supply of gold and silver to the Great Ming!

"Genius, a true genius!" Wanli, after reading the plan, was so excited that he almost cried. His heart was agitated for a long time, and the name Zhang Ke was etched deeply in his mind.