Two months of careful groundwork — and the fifteen days of “sick leave” that Minister Zhang had arranged to assist him — had borne fruit. Pei Shaohuai’s veiled counsel had achieved its initial effect: the Emperor resolved to revise the tributary trade policy, so that the four foreign nations would no longer come swarming in their great multitudes each year while the court fed and entertained them all, draining the people and squandering resources.
Seizing the moment, the Emperor pressed forward and consulted the assembled ministers on how precisely the policy ought to be revised.
Some argued that since this was a drain on the people and a waste of resources, the simplest solution was to revoke the credential tokens and gold plaques that had been issued, abolishing the tribute system from the myriad nations entirely, so that the court need no longer be put to such trouble year after year.
Others argued that the policy of accommodation was fundamentally about asserting authority, and that while the court did suffer some losses, the ancestral regulations could not be abolished, nor could Da Qing sever its friendly relations with the various foreign nations.
Still others suggested that the court simply draw up a list of tributary goods with their prices, and any foreign nation that wished to could continue presenting tribute on that basis.
Pei Shaohuai studied the Emperor’s expression carefully and could see that while the Emperor had no desire to keep playing the fool — emptying the national treasury year after year on a losing proposition — he also had no wish to completely sever relations with the four foreign nations. Pei Shaohuai turned the matter over in his mind, then stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, your servant believes that every problem that arises also gives rise to an opportunity. Were the tribute system simply abolished outright, Da Qing would have no channel of communication with the foreign nations, and this would not serve the nation’s strength. Your servant believes we should take what is beneficial and remove what is harmful — give greater weight to trade, and less weight to accommodation and gifts.”
“To give less weight to accommodation and gifts means no longer offering lavish gifts in exchange for meager tribute, not hosting extravagantly, not laboring horses and carriages in transport, and keeping imperial rewards within proper measure.”
“To give greater weight to trade means permitting envoys to bring sufficient quantities of goods to exchange within Da Qing. As for their value, how many can be sold, and what goods the envoys purchase in return — these matters can be left to the judgment of the people. If goods from overseas are of fine quality and reasonably priced and beneficial to people’s livelihoods, what harm is there in letting the people buy them freely? If goods crafted in Da Qing are greatly desired by the four foreign nations, then the people, in addition to farming, can take up workshop production, creating more livelihoods.”
And that was without even considering silk, tea, and porcelain — those perennial bestsellers. Even setting those aside and looking only at everyday items like iron pots, paper, and writing brushes… Da Qing would not lose money trading any of these with foreign nations.
An official stepped forward to challenge him: “According to Supervising Secretary Pei’s reasoning, if there are no rewards on offer, will the foreign nations still make the long journey to Da Qing?”
Pei Shaohuai did not reason through cause and effect but simply said, “If they would not come without rewards, then there is no need for them to come.”
He then asked, “If Da Qing’s sea vessels are willing to sail to the eastern, western, and southern seas — why would the sea vessels of those eastern, western, and southern seas be unwilling to come to Da Qing?”
The first statement was a principle of diplomacy; the second was a principle of profit.
What Pei Shaohuai had not expected was that the first to step forward in agreement was Pei Jue, who said only three words: “Your servant concurs.” His expression betrayed little, leaving Pei Shaohuai uncertain what this great-great-uncle of his had in mind.
Minister Xu and Lord Yang, bound by their positions, could not speak up too openly. Then officials from the Ministry of Justice, the Court of the Imperial Stud, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and the Honglu Temple stepped forward to add their voices in support.
The Emperor said, “Let the Ministry of Rites draw upon today’s deliberations and draft a new policy for relations with the four directions — emphasizing trade and reducing tribute — and submit it for further discussion.” The Emperor had taken Pei Shaohuai’s words “emphasize trade, reduce tribute” as his own — his intent was unmistakably clear.
The foreign nations would be free to come and go in Da Qing to conduct trade. Full opening of the seas was not far off.
As the officials came out of the Imperial Study, the Minister of Revenue had been clenching his teeth and forcing himself to endure, not daring to faint inside the Qianqing Palace. Each step he took was trembling and unsteady. It was not until he had passed through the gate of the Qianqing Palace that he finally gave way, collapsing against the palace wall.
In the end, he had to be carried off by eunuchs to the Imperial Medical Office.
When Pei Shaohuai witnessed this, he felt no particular sentiment about the difficulties of official life. His thoughts turned, rather, to the fact that the Ministry of Revenue, which Grand Secretary Zou had labored so hard to build, had been handed over to the Hexi faction by a treacherous protégé, who had installed a man who knew nothing of tax policy and nothing of the people’s hardships. If Grand Secretary Zou knew of this, how grieved and furious he would be.
He also thought of how the Ministry of Revenue bore upon the livelihoods of the common people, yet such a man occupied its highest post — a man who understood only how to forge factional alliances, play the games of court politics, and navigate the paths of officialdom, without any grasp of practical governance or how to improve the people’s lives.
One could only wonder how much additional suffering the people had endured these past years because of the Minister of Revenue’s ignorance and incompetence.
With one of the Six Ministries short a head, and a high post vacant, the coming recommendation session would surely be another bout of scrambling and jostling. Pei Shaohuai, as a Supervising Secretary, held a vote in those recommendations and could not stand apart.
Nor would he stand apart.
By the time today’s business in the Imperial Study had concluded, the day was already well past its midpoint, the sun declining to the west.
Pei Shaohuai did not return to the Office of Scrutiny. Instead, he made a detour to the Ministry of Rites. Today’s events had originated with him, and the Ministry of Rites had been considerably entangled in them — toward Minister Xu, he could not help feeling a little uneasy.
He entered the offices of the Ministry of Rites and found the officials there already busily at work, with the Honglu Temple staff assisting alongside them.
“Minister Xu.”
“Supervising Secretary Pei, please be seated.”
In private, the two addressed each other as uncle and nephew — but in official quarters, using their titles was more fitting.
Minister Xu had guessed the reason for his junior kinsman’s visit, and said with an easy smile, “There is no need for concern, Supervising Secretary Pei. This is all as you and I had anticipated.”
He then said, in a lighter tone, “You have accomplished what I have been unable to accomplish over many years. If anyone ought to feel embarrassed, it should be me.”
“Your servant cannot accept such praise — it is still Minister Xu who must help fill in the gaps I have left.”
This was no false modesty. No matter how good a piece of counsel, it was never perfect in every respect, and whatever was lacking required timely correction.
For instance, among the four foreign nations, in addition to maritime states far overseas, there were also neighboring kingdoms that shared land borders with Da Qing, where the two sides intermarried and traded. Drawing clear boundaries for such nations would be difficult — if the inland border states were not properly managed, any unrest would bring suffering to the frontier people.
Then again, while some foreign nations were opportunistic, repeatedly passing off inferior goods in exchange for court rewards, other nations had conducted themselves honestly and brought goods that Da Qing genuinely needed. These two cases had to be handled differently.
Minister Xu’s particular strengths lay in precisely these distinctions.
“It is simply my duty,” Minister Xu replied.
Pei Shaohuai was struck once again by the realization that while sound counsel was essential, without an enlightened ruler to recognize it, without the support and steadiness of elders and mentors, there would have been no day on which it could be put into practice. What appeared to be Pei Shaohuai’s success in remonstrating effectively was in fact made possible by Minister Xu — who had spent years receiving delegations, thinking through every consideration, and quietly absorbing the shortcomings so nothing would fall through the cracks. That was the rarer achievement.
Pei Shaohuai rose and bowed to him with sincere respect, saying, “Minister Xu’s character stands high above me — your junior learns much from you.”
Just then, someone from the Honglu Temple came to invite Minister Xu over, saying they wished to consult on how to give rewards in exchange for the tribute goods — that is, how to re-gift the tribute goods to other nations.
“Would Supervising Secretary Pei care to come along?”
“It would be my honor.”
At the Honglu Temple, Pei Shaohuai looked over the tribute lists submitted by the various foreign nations and found them, as expected, to be of very uneven quality.
Those offering jewels, agate, coral, and ebony were catering to the imperial family’s tastes; those offering spices, medicines, and furs in substantial quantities were there to trade.
Among the more outlandish tribute items — aside from Siam’s bowl-stones and the Wokou’s unsharpened swords — were the sea conch shells from the Sulu Kingdom, the bodhi leaves and “sacred relics” from Funan, supposedly blessed by monks, and a bundle of bamboo poles from the Kingdom of Nan’an, among others.
In page after page of tribute lists, the first entry from most nations was passable enough, but the items listed afterward were mostly rough cloth, bamboo, and silk of the coarser kind — things of little value.
After deliberation, goods that Da Qing genuinely needed and that were priced reasonably were retained.
The rest were assigned suitable pretexts and given out as imperial gifts to the envoys of various nations in the Emperor’s name.
For instance, the Sulu Kingdom was far from Da Qing, and the seas it traveled were unpredictable — ships needed heavy ballast to ride low and stable. So two shiploads of Siamese bowl-stones were to be bestowed upon them as a wish for safe passage.
As for the Wokou and the Kingdom of Siam, both being deeply devoted to Buddhism, the blessed bodhi leaves from Funan were to be bestowed upon them — with the added counsel that these two pious nations must on no account fight over them, and that the allotment would be divided evenly between them.
Siam was abundant in coconut palms, trees much like the palmyra, whose fruit was difficult to harvest. So the long, straight bamboo poles sent as tribute by the Kingdom of Annam were to be bestowed upon Siam, to help them harvest coconuts.
Of course, these were only the more amusing cases. Where genuinely useful tribute had been offered, the gifts given in return were also of corresponding value — the Ministry of Rites and Honglu Temple read the room with great precision.
In the days that followed, Minister Xu moved through the residence halls of the tributary guests, meeting with envoys from each delegation in turn, with graceful words conveying the Emperor’s intentions one by one.
Minister Xu brought a pair of peacocks to the Joseon delegation’s residence. The Crown Prince of the Joseon Kingdom came out repeatedly to receive him, speaking a Mandarin that was somewhat rough around the edges. The Crown Prince had led delegations to pay tribute to Da Qing on several occasions.
The Crown Prince had recently been reprimanded by imperial edict for improperly wearing a robe embroidered with four-clawed dragons, and his expression was somewhat flustered — worried that he had offended the Emperor and might lose Da Qing’s protection.
When the Crown Prince saw Minister Xu, he tentatively asked about the Emperor’s attitude toward the Joseon Kingdom.
Minister Xu cheerfully reassured him, “To be reprimanded by the Son of Heaven is the most commonplace thing for a minister. Pay greater attention to the dress code henceforth and do not repeat the offense.”
He then said, “His Majesty, mindful of Joseon’s loyalty and filial piety, bestows a pair of peacocks as a gift for the Joseon King’s daily pleasure.”
Hearing that the Emperor had bestowed a gift, the Crown Prince sighed with relief and said happily, “Whatever the Son of Heaven bestows, we shall honor it as our national bird.”
The Crown Prince then lowered his voice and asked Minister Xu, “Minister Xu — is there still any hope for the five-clawed dragon robes of a Prince of the First Rank… ? I ask that the Minister give us a clear indication.”
A gift of five-clawed dragon robes from Da Qing would mark Joseon as distinct from all other foreign nations, as recipients of an even deeper imperial favor.
Minister Xu replied seriously, “If Joseon wishes to follow Da Qing’s system of governance, rites, and dress, then it ought to study them properly. How can one err again and again, repeatedly displaying signs of overstepping? How would the Son of Heaven be inclined to bestow five-clawed dragon robes under such circumstances?”
Five-clawed dragon robes were a step below the Emperor’s own five-clawed golden dragon robe.
“It was only an oversight — entirely unintentional…”
Minister Xu said sternly, “I have never heard of a grandchild showing reverence to an ancestor and making repeated oversights. If the rites of one’s own household cannot be observed, how can one speak of national protocol?”
“I will certainly convey this to my father, and I ask that the Minister not be displeased,” the Crown Prince said hastily.
Minister Xu’s expression quickly shifted back to a warm smile. “The robes are not merely about the beauty of their embroidery. The rites of dress speak to the proper transmission of legitimate authority.”
In a few sentences he had both reassured the Joseon Crown Prince and delivered a pointed reminder, conveying the Emperor’s meaning with unmistakable clarity.
Around the Lantern Festival, the foreign envoys in the capital grew ever more numerous, all hoping to take advantage of the holiday to sell their goods.
On this particular day, Pei Shaohuai finished his midday meal at Hexiang Tower. When Chang Zhou settled the bill, he handed the proprietor a five-qian silver coin. Pei Shaohuai watched as the proprietor took out a few pieces of loose silver and said, with an apologetic air, “We are temporarily short of silver coins at the moment — I can only make change in loose silver. I must trouble you to find a moment to exchange it at the official treasury.”
Pei Shaohuai, who had been about to step away, paused and turned back. Silver coins had been in circulation for over a year and were flowing smoothly throughout Da Qing. How could a restaurant as large as Hexiang Tower be short of silver coins?
“How did this come about?” Pei Shaohuai asked.
“The official gentleman may not know — there are many foreigners in the capital of late, and they are quite taken with Da Qing’s silver coins. When doing business with them, one Da Qing silver coin is accepted as equivalent to one coin and two fen in exchange,” the proprietor said.
Pei Shaohuai understood at once. For the same one tael of silver, Da Qing’s silver coins were worth more than the loose silver the foreigners carried. The people could use silver coins to obtain more goods from the foreigners in return.
Given this margin of advantage, the people of Da Qing naturally held their silver coins tightly, or some even deliberately stockpiled them — which naturally slowed their circulation.
But this was only a temporary state of affairs — it would resolve itself once the foreigners departed.
What caught Pei Shaohuai’s attention was the fact that silver coins had already begun circulating to more distant places.
Perhaps this year’s tribute could include a small number of specially made silver coins — gifted out to travel with the wind and the ships, circulating into ever farther reaches.