Chapter 132 Please Kill Xu Qing
Chapter 132 Please Kill Xu Qing (Subscription Request)
In the Forbidden City, outside the Daming Gate, all officials had already gathered.
Today was a grand court meeting, a rare opportunity for officials to participate in national affairs. On weekdays, whether it was political affairs or military affairs, the cabinet would take the lead, and then summon the six ministers and the chief censors who were not in the cabinet, and they would get it done in a small meeting.
When it comes to the appointment and removal of senior officials, they will have a court recommendation or something like that.
Especially His Majesty, who entrusts all matters, big and small, to the Cabinet, and often only shows up when there are personnel changes in the Cabinet.
However, no one in the court, whether civil or military, dared to look down on this old emperor who had held authority for decades.
For example, the emperor would sometimes issue an edict in the middle of the night to ask a certain official for his opinion on a certain political matter. Often the person being asked would break out in a cold sweat, and then realize that even though the emperor lived in the Wanshou Palace outside the imperial city and devoted himself to the pursuit of truth, he still knew everything about the major political affairs.
In this case, how could the ministers not be trembling with fear?
Of course, only the emperor's personal eunuchs knew a little bit more about it. Since his youth, the old emperor had the habit of staying up late to review memorials. Then during the day, he acted idle and unfathomable, and was indifferent to state affairs.
In fact, they all put in a lot of hard work at night.
Perhaps it was because state affairs were becoming more and more complicated, and now the Prime Minister was very capable, and the emperor was old and his energy was declining, so he couldn't stay up late. Therefore, the personal eunuchs also had a chance to breathe.
Under the etiquette set by the censors and officials from the Ministry of Rites, the Prime Minister's sedan chair moved to the front of all the officials.
As the Yangyang Bell rang slowly, the Prime Minister's sedan chair stopped in front of the Daming Palace.
All the officials stood on the side of the road and bowed to the sedan chair in salute.
This is also a unique honor for the Prime Minister.
All officials had to enter the palace on foot, but the chief minister could ride in a sedan chair in the palace.
Throughout the history of our dynasty, the power of the prime minister has never been greater than that of the present one.
All officials were jealous and envious of the honor of being the first assistant, but few people commented on it. After all, the first assistant position was not a position that could be passed down to descendants.
Among the hundreds of officials in the capital, there are many who have passed the first and second class of the imperial examinations, and all of them have the hope of entering the cabinet and becoming the most powerful official in the future. Even though the hope is slim, who can stop dreaming?
If I reduce the honor of being the Prime Minister today, what if I take this position in the future? By then I will be in my seventies or eighties and have to walk to the palace in the middle of winter. Wouldn’t I have to retire and return home after only a few years?
Therefore, strengthening the preferential treatment for civil servants is in everyone's common interest, and we wish the more the better.
Soon, the Daming Gate opened.
The Prime Minister's sedan chair entered the palace first, and the civil and military officials on both sides entered from the side gates, and the thousand-household officials guarding the gate checked their ivory plates.
Then, they followed the etiquette process, entered the numerous palace gates, and finally arrived in front of the Golden Throne Hall. Each of them found his or her own position according to his or her rank, and stood under the steps.
The Prime Minister naturally stands at the forefront of civil servants.
At this time, the eighteen copper furnaces on the steps were burning with wisps of incense.
Surrounded by clouds and mist, the Golden Palace looks like the fairy pavilion of Penglai.
Suddenly, there was a huge sound of whip.
The officials saw the long whip in the mist, which looked like a giant python.
After three whip sounds, the long whip fell quietly to the ground.
As soon as the whip stopped, all officials fell silent.
Then comes the Shao music of the emperor's appearance, which is the exclusive background music. It is played after the emperor's procession has completed the process and his majesty has ascended the throne.
Shao music ceased.
The official of the Honglu Temple sang: "Ban Qi."
Then all the officials shouted: "Long live the emperor."
After the roar, the ceremonial officer said, "Bow."
All officials then performed the ritual of bowing once and kowtow three times.
The entire process is monitored by special personnel, and any disrespectful behavior will definitely affect one's career.
This is also the reason why grand court meetings are not held often.
The process is tedious, complicated and tiring.
What the middle and lower classes want is the power to participate in national affairs, not to seek trouble.
As long as you are willing to endure hardships, there will be endless hardships to endure.
They understand better than anyone!
On the throne, the emperor was wearing a crimson dragon robe, his eyes were bright and sharp, like an old dragon, overlooking his subjects.
"Let's discuss it."
Afterwards, a special official began to follow the procedure and announced the theme of today's grand court meeting.
It was mainly the cabinet ministers, the six ministers, the chief censor, the nine officials and the vice ministers of each ministry who spoke, while the other middle and lower-level officials were responsible for expressing their approval or opposition, as well as waving the flag and cheering.
Even so, they rarely have the opportunity to participate in national affairs.
After all, on weekdays, all officials are tools. The higher-ups set the tone, and they do their work. Of course, there are also rules for how to do their work.
At this time, Chen Fu, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, came out and said, "Your Majesty, I request that the chief minister be punished for embezzling silver from the Taicang warehouse to pay for the Liaodong military expenses."
As soon as he said this, everyone was in an uproar.
I didn’t expect that there would really be warriors today.
The officials looked ready to go.
Unexpectedly, the Dayu Dynasty really had loyal ministers.
Some smarter officials thought, is this a new trick?
They were all smart people who had passed the imperial examinations. They might not know how to do things, but they knew how to protect themselves. During the grand court meeting on the topic of "measuring the land", the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue suddenly appeared and fired directly at the prime minister.
If you say that Chen Fu has no one behind him, no one would believe it even if you beat him to death.
But the Minister of Revenue is the Prime Minister's subordinate, so it is impossible for him to order his subordinates to deal with the Prime Minister.
But it’s hard to say.
If the Prime Minister is eliminated, the Minister of Revenue will be able to move forward.
The old emperor was neither surprised nor angry when he heard this. He said calmly, "Master Zhang, is this true?"
The Great Yu Dynasty actually did not have a clear stipulation of the title of "First Assistant". In fact, there was only the Chief Academician of the Cabinet. But it did not prevent it, and everyone agreed to call him "First Assistant" or the respectful title "Prime Assistant".
This is what the officials call it.
The emperor usually referred to him as "Grand Master" or "Mr." or something like that.
This is because Taizu of this dynasty explicitly abolished the prime minister.
Moreover, the emperor just wanted to find someone to do the work and take the blame, so he generally followed the old rules in terms of the title.
The Prime Minister said, "Your Majesty, this is indeed the case. Because the treasury is empty and the expenses are insufficient, I have no choice but to embezzle the silver from the Taicang warehouse to pay for the Liaodong military expenses. I am guilty of this, and I beg Your Majesty to punish me."
The emperor nodded and said, "Since there is a reason for this, after the court meeting, you should submit a memorial to apologize, and we will discuss this later."
Many officials were secretly very disappointed, so how could they just let it go?
But thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the Lord.
Besides, the emperor didn’t say there would be no punishment.
Chen Fu said: "Your Majesty, the treasury is empty and the expenditure is insufficient. This year, we can use the silver from the Taicang warehouse to make up for the Liaodong military expenses, but it is almost the end of the year and the military pay for the Beijing camp has not yet been settled. I ask Your Majesty to open the treasury."
The emperor frowned and said, "The imperial treasury has its own uses. How can we just withdraw it whenever we want?"
Chen Fu said: "Then please kill me, Your Majesty. I have been working hard in the Ministry of Revenue, but I can't make money out of thin air."
The emperor said calmly: "Master Zhang, what do you think?"
The Prime Minister said, "Your Majesty, the treasury is empty and there is really no way to create money out of thin air. Therefore, it is imperative to survey the land and implement the Single Whip Law. If this cannot be done, the treasury will become even emptier and chaos may occur."
At this time, the smart officials came to their senses.
The empty treasury was just a cover-up, and the purpose was still to talk about "surveying the land".
However, after this conversation, the officials who opposed the land survey were unable to speak out.
It is obvious that the treasury is empty.
Unless you can solve this problem, why should you oppose the "land survey"?
Emperor: "How can we fill the treasury by measuring the land and implementing the Single Whip Law?"
The Prime Minister said, "Your Majesty, please listen to me. In the time of Taizu, the country was just beginning to be peaceful and everything was in ruins. The Yellow Book recorded 370 million mu of farmland. A hundred years ago, when our dynasty was at its peak, there were 800 million mu of farmland. But now, the Yellow Book records only 400 million mu of farmland. This is because half of the farmland in the country is hidden. If this continues, the national treasury will become emptier, and the powerful families who hide the farmland will become more and more powerful. I am afraid that the country will be in chaos again."
The Prime Minister spoke with great confidence, but the other officials remained silent.
Emperor: "Let's discuss this matter today."
At this time, a minister in his fifties stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, there are many obstacles to the land survey. It is not something that can be implemented just by deciding in the court. I am afraid that as soon as the court's decree is issued, there will be fires in government offices all over the country. Such incidents are recorded in history, so we must be cautious."
The Prime Minister said calmly: "Sir Cheng, are we not going to do anything about the affairs of the country just because they are difficult? If that's the case, what does His Majesty need us ministers for?"
Mr. Cheng said, "Prime Minister, let me ask you, when the decree to survey the land was passed down, the clerks in the government office colluded with the local people to forge the yellow book, and shifted the taxes and labor service that they were supposed to pay to the ordinary people. What should we do then?"
He then said to the emperor: "Your Majesty, the former Emperor Wen of Sui relied on this approach to fill the treasury and build up a strong military force, while the burden on the people was the heaviest in history. People say that the Sui Dynasty fell under Emperor Yang, but the evil began with Emperor Wen."
He quoted from classics and received applause from all officials. After all, Mr. Cheng was the Minister of Rites and was well versed in literature and history.
It would be difficult for even the Prime Minister to refute this argument.
Prime Minister: "Mr. Cheng's words make sense. In this case, why not try to measure the land in Shuntian Prefecture, the capital. I will personally supervise with the cabinet ministers and send Hanlin officials to implement this method. As the saying goes, if you can't clean up your own house, how can you clean up the world? With Shuntian Prefecture as an example, the resistance to the implementation will be greatly reduced."
Lord Cheng was speechless for a moment.
At this time, the nobles who were ranked as military officers were dissatisfied.
Everyone had little say in the court to begin with, and now the Prime Minister has even got his eyes on their money. They are no longer going to survive.
It should be noted that Shuntian Prefecture is located in the capital area, and those who concealed the most land were not civil officials but nobles.
Therefore, the civil officials are not in a hurry, but the nobles have to be anxious.
As a result, many nobles complained to the emperor, saying that their families were evading taxes according to the law, and that the expenses of a large family were very high. The money given by the emperor was not enough to support so many people. Even if they occasionally violated the rules, they had to do so.
There are many royal relatives among them.
Since they were close to the emperor, they were naturally the most daring to hide their land and population and evade taxes.
"Enough." The old emperor made a sound from his dantian, like thunder.
All of a sudden, all the ministers and nobles fell silent.
He then said to the Prime Minister, "Lord Zhang, do we really have to start the trial of land survey and implementation of the One Whip Law from Shuntian Prefecture?"
"If we don't do this, we can't set an example for the people of the world." The Prime Minister took a firm attitude.
Then a nobleman asked, "Shuntian Prefecture is trying to survey the land, what about Yingtian Prefecture?"
At this time, many civil officials in Nanzhili couldn't help but jump up and down.
After all, all the powerful nobles in the imperial court moved the capital to Shuntian Prefecture, which allowed the Duke of Wei to call the shots in Yingtian Prefecture.
At present, at least one-third of the land and population in Yingtian Prefecture are in the hands of civil servants in Southern Zhili.
Many of these people are closely related to the Duke of Wei.
"Yingtian Prefecture is the hub of the southeast, where the world's wealth is concentrated, and it is far away from the capital. Once something happens, it will inevitably cause turmoil in the world." A civil official refuted righteously.
The Prime Minister sneered and said, "This won't work, and that won't work either. You should come up with a plan on how to make up for the empty treasury."
All the officials were speechless.
The Prime Minister said, "Your Majesty, nowadays, all officials are pursuing their own interests. I think it would be better for Your Majesty to take the lead and implement the land measurement and the One Whip Law first. I will definitely carry out this order, even if it means my death."
He was generous and passionate, and had the courage to disregard life and death.
All the officials could not help but be furious.
The emperor spoke slowly, "Regarding the land survey and the One Whip Law, after Lord Zhang has worked out the detailed rules, we can hold a court meeting for the ministers to review it."
The ministers breathed a sigh of relief.
Such a major matter cannot be decided in one word.
As long as the emperor does not express his attitude, there will naturally be a turning point.
However, after this confrontation in the court, many ministers felt the Prime Minister's firm attitude of implementing the land survey and the Single Whip Law.
In fact, in order to implement the "One Whip Law", it is imperative to survey the land.
Otherwise, the people who pay taxes will still be the same lower-class people, and since they have no silver, they will only be exploited even more.
Then he retired from court.
As the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Shen Mo remained silent today.
After he retired from court, someone from the prime minister's residence came to look for him.
Shen Mo immediately came to the prime minister's residence.
At this time, several important figures in the court had arrived at the Yanyue Hall in the Prime Minister's residence, including the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue Chen Fu, who had taken the lead in firing at the Prime Minister today, and the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites Cheng Guang, who had refuted the Prime Minister by citing classics.
Shen Mo was not surprised at all.
Reform is actually the consensus of senior officials. The key is how to reform and how to implement it.
Among the high-ranking officials, some live a life of idleness while others pursue achievements and make contributions.
However, these two assistant ministers were definitely not his teacher's men at first, and it was unknown when his teacher had recruited them.
"Alas, the more superior you are, the more jealous people will be; and the more clean you are, the more people will dislike you." Shen Mo thought that the more high-profile the teacher was and the more power he took, the worse his future would be.
He should come less often to the Prime Minister's residence in the future.
After some greetings.
Chen Fu said: "Today's grand court meeting shows that the implementation of the new law is still facing many obstacles."
The policy of reform cannot be achieved overnight.
Many decrees have been issued before, but they are all insignificant.
The reform entered deep water when it came to surveying the land. The resistance was so great that any powerful official would be deterred.
These people followed the Prime Minister, but in fact they didn't even care about their families.
While Shen Mo was feeling emotional, he couldn't help but admire her.
Others have families, but Shen Junshan actually has no family.
His adoptive father didn't want him, his biological parents had passed away long ago, and he wasn't familiar with the people there, so he basically had no contact with them.
Even so, he had no intention of establishing a life for the people.
People are weird and complicated like that.
Chen Fu and Cheng Guang both come from prominent families, but they are more proactive in this matter than people like Shen Mo who have no family burden.
Cheng Guang said: "In implementing the new law, the first thing to do is to clarify the administration of officials. Nowadays, the affairs of state are handled by the central government, but in reality they are controlled by the clerks. If these people cannot be tamed, there is no way to talk about reform."
He has read history books thoroughly and has a very profound perspective on issues.
The Prime Minister nodded slightly and said to Shen Mo: "Junshan, since you went to Nanzhili this time, you haven't told me your feelings along the way. I wonder what you think about the current situation?"
Shen Mo: "The students were in a hurry and didn't see anything."
The Prime Minister showed disappointment. This student was not his kindred spirit after all. He said calmly, "Xu Gongming, what do you think of this man?"
Shen Mo hesitated for a while and said, "I am his teacher for the provincial examination, so it is difficult for me to express my opinion."
The Prime Minister: "He made such a big fuss about the provincial examination, don't you blame him?"
Shen Mo shook his head: "I don't blame him, but I admire his courage. But he is just a little bit weak, so it's hard to say what his future will be."
The Prime Minister nodded: "Then you can go down."
"only."
The Prime Minister looked at Shen Mo's receding back, then retracted his gaze and smiled at several important officials around him, saying, "Shen Junshan has his own future, so there is no need for us old men to worry about him."
Chen Fu did not dwell on this matter. He said, "Mr. Xu from Jiangning can be of great use."
Prime Minister: "How do you say that?"
Chen Fudao said, "Xu Sheng's family was wiped out, and only his uncle and aunt who raised him are close relatives, and they are not blood relatives. I know that this person is wise and brave, and has no family burden. Instead, he is similar to the Orphan of Zhao. He will marry Feng Xifeng. Although this person is the son-in-law of the Taicang Zhou family, he has an ordinary background and is also free of family burden..."
He spoke a lot in a very eloquent manner, all of which were areas where Xu Qing could make use of great capabilities.
After Chen Fu finished speaking, Cheng Guang retorted: "I fully agree with what Master Chen said, but in my opinion, Xu Qing should not be reused."
Prime Minister: “Why?”
Cheng Guang bowed and said, "Please ask the Prime Minister to be upright and invite this person to the capital to take the exam and serve as a Hanlin for a few years."
"I want to make him work, how can I let him have some free time?" asked the Prime Minister.
Cheng Guang said: "What the Prime Minister said is wrong. There is no shortage of smart and wise people in this dynasty, nor is there a shortage of people who can do things. If the affairs of Nanzhili cannot be carried out without Xu Sheng, it will sooner or later collapse, or it will be controlled by Xu Sheng and become a major threat to the country in the future.
With the foresight of the Prime Minister, and the assistance of our generation, the new law should be able to be implemented for a while. However, the difficulty of world affairs lies in the death of the person and the end of the government. Now Shen Junshan has no ambitions, the Prime Minister should choose someone to inherit your ambitions, instead of rushing to achieve success. "
Prime Minister: "Master Cheng's words are truly from the bottom of his heart. Unfortunately, life is unpredictable, and I am afraid that I will not be able to wait until he grows up. To do such a big thing, we must seize the day. There is no need to mention this matter again."
Cheng Guang couldn't help but sigh.
It is a law of history that a regime ceases to exist when a person dies, but those in power, don’t they know this?
It’s just that things in the world are unpredictable, and that’s not without reason.
His words really failed to impress the Prime Minister.
Cheng Guang bowed to the Prime Minister again and said, "If this man cannot be used properly, please execute him."
"what?"
Cheng Guang said in a deep voice: "Please kill Xu Qing."
(End of this chapter)