第1章 上岸翰林院，牛马见习生

Landing at the Hanlin Academy, a trainee

The third year of Wanli’s reign, in spring.
The Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng reinstated the practice of keeping the Veritable Records (Qiju Zhu), assigning the duty to the Hanlin historians on a rotating basis.

From that moment on—

Shen Nian, third-ranked Jinshi from the year Xinwei of the fifth Longqing reign, Bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, Compiler at the Hanlin Court, Zhang Juzheng’s most outstanding disciple, and lifelong nemesis of the Wanli Emperor,
—thus began his career as court chronicler.

⸻

That day, the young Wanli Emperor got drunk and missed an imperial lecture.

Shen Nian straightened his back and wrote:

“His Majesty, drunk, missed the imperial lecture. The Empress Dowager and the Grand Secretary rebuked him sternly, even speaking of dethronement.”

That month, a large number of eunuchs were appointed as mining and tax commissioners, extorting wealth from the people.

Shen Nian raised his chin and wrote:

“Before the throne, I declared: ‘The disasters of monopolies and mining taxes are entirely the Emperor’s fault.’”

That year, the Wanli Emperor neither performed the suburban sacrifices, nor paid respects at ancestral temples. He refused audiences, ignored memorials, and ceased court lectures.

Shen Nian and his fellow historians cried aloud:

“Better to die speaking than live in silence. The greatest honor of a court historian is to be killed by the Emperor.”

⸻

Shen Nian said:

“I must be ill. I can’t sleep at all.
I have contracted Zhang Juzheng’s illness—the burden of holding up a collapsing sky—
but I was not destined for Zhang Juzheng’s fate.

In a daze, I saw the Grand Secretariat reduced to two people:
one drafting memorials—that was me;
one issuing imperial replies—that was also me.”


立君左右，朝夕记注，君举必书，备修国史。
万历三年春。
内阁首辅张居正复置起居注，命翰林史官轮值兼之。
自此——
隆庆五年辛未科三甲进士、庶吉士、翰林院检讨、张居正最优秀的门生、沈·万历皇帝的一生之敌·念开启了他修撰起居注的史官生涯。
……
那日，小万历醉酒误经筵。
沈念挺胸写道：上醉酒误经筵，太后、首辅怒斥之，言废君主。
那月，大批宦官充当矿监税使，搜刮民财。
沈念梗着脖子写道：沈念在御前曰：采榷之祸，皆帝之过。
那年，万历帝不郊不庙、不朝不见、不批不讲。
沈念与一众史官高呼：宁鸣而死，不默而生，史官之至高荣耀就是被皇帝杀死！
……
沈念：“我大抵是病了，横竖都睡不着，得了张居正挽天倾的病，却不想有张居正的命。恍惚中，我看到内阁只剩下两人，一个是写票拟的我，一个是批红的我。”