Chapter 161: "Performance Evaluation Method" from Another World
Chapter 161: "Performance Evaluation Method" from Another World
Xiuwenguan is located outside the north gate of the palace and is included in the imperial city.
To ensure that the imperial guards are guarding the palace, outsiders are unable to approach, and confidential matters in the palace are not leaked.
After the carriage stopped, Zhao Duan stepped out and instantly felt dozens of eyes, both open and covert, sweeping towards him.
This is a huge improvement in perception after being promoted to a high-grade level.
"Remember not to talk nonsense after you go in." Mo Chou stepped out of the car. The heat on her face had been suppressed and she switched to the state of a female official.
Don't forget to remind.
"Got it." Zhao Duan was helpless. This unexpected "rival in love" must be very worried about him...
With Mochou leading the way, the guards at the entrance of Xiuwen Hall did not check their identities, but moved aside to allow the two to enter.
After entering the yard and walking around the screen wall, I could faintly hear the sound of intense conversation coming from the largest house in front.
However, the sound insulation was very good, and even though Zhao Duan had sharp ears and eyes, he couldn't hear the specific content.
Until the two of them arrived at the door, Mo Chou knocked twice gently and slowly pushed it open.
The "big office" of Xiuwenguan comes into view.
An old voice became clear:
"Governance is the most important thing!"
Then, there is the "book fragrance" created by the gathering of fresh pens, ink, paper and inkstone, as well as the serious and intense atmosphere in the air when everyone is discussing.
Zhao Duan felt nostalgic and recalled the mountains of materials in the archives room of his previous life, as well as the strong tea and cigarettes he drank while staying up late in meetings.
Well, but he prefers to call it "class flavor"...
In the huge and spacious space, there were desks scattered around, on which were placed all kinds of study supplies and lamps that had not yet been lit.
At this moment, about ten people were sitting around the big table in the middle, seemingly discussing something.
Zhao Duan realized instantly that he was late.
"Therefore, if the problem of official administration cannot be solved, the subsequent new policies cannot be implemented! The imperial court's orders cannot be transmitted to the lower levels and effectively implemented."
First seat at the big table.
An octogenarian with white hair and beard, wearing a scarlet university scholar's robe, sat upright. His square face and sharp eyes set the first tone for the controversy.
Master Dong!
Zhao Duan recognized him at a glance.
Then, he saw Empress Dayu, who was sitting next to Grand Tutor Dong, at the upper seat. She was wearing a white dress, a crown on her head, and had a majestic and cold expression.
Xu Zhenguan had his long black hair tied up today, looking particularly dignified and solemn.
At this moment, he sat there without saying a word. When he saw the two people enter the room, he just glanced at them without any other expression.
Today is the serious empress...
"Let's go." Mochou nudged him lightly with her elbow, signaling him not to make a sound.
Zhao Duan said with an assured heart, I understand. If you are late for the meeting and your leader doesn’t call on you, then just find a corner and sit quietly.
He glanced around and found that at the end of the desk, in the corner, there was a strange official holding a pen, concentrating on transcribing Master Dong's words.
"The meeting recorder..."
Seeing this, Zhao Duan simply pulled a chair and sat next to him.
I put down the basket of pears in my hand so that I could sneak a peek at the recorded text and make up for the content at the beginning of the meeting.
The registrar glanced at him, seeming quite surprised.
But when Mo Chou nodded, he continued to concentrate on typing without distraction, pretending that the two people who came over didn't exist.
Seeing this, Zhao Duan blinked, feeling as if something was missing and feeling uncomfortable all over.
He slapped his head, and under Mochou's confused gaze, he took a stack of white paper from the thick pile next to the registrar, and picked up a thin brush.
I put on a posture of listening to the leader's speech and taking notes, and I felt relaxed all over.
——It feels right!
Only then did he have the leisure to look at the eight "scholars".
As expected, they are all quite young.
Although there was no ID card on the table, he still matched people with names according to the "distance of their seats from the empress."
The "first talent" Han Zhou is closest to Grand Tutor Dong and is a scholar in his thirties.
He was wearing a bachelor's gown, looking a little frail, with his hair neatly combed behind his head, his eyes clear, and he had a very literary air.
He is a scholar who looks gentle and elegant, which fits people's stereotype of the word "gentleman".
Wang You, who came from a prominent family, was about 28 or 29 years old and was wearing the same bachelor's gown.
A hand with fair skin and a well-proportioned appearance, belonging to a noble family, was placed on the table and tapped gently.
His other elbow was resting on the armrest of the chair, as if he was in deep thought. His posture was the most casual and relaxed among the young scholars present.
"Guo Jieyuan", who ranks third, is the oldest, about thirty-five years old, with an ordinary appearance, the kind that is hard to be found among a group of shameful people.
He had the most vulgar temperament and was the only one among the three who looked at Zhao Duan.
At this moment, the two sides' eyes met, Guo Jieyuan smiled, nodded slightly, then turned his head back and continued to focus on the meeting. At this time, as Master Dong reiterated the tone, everyone started talking again:
"What the Grand Master said is very true, but the administration has been corrupt for a long time. In my opinion, if we want to rectify it, we should focus on the two words 'corruption' and 'redundant officials'."
“How about cutting and streamlining?”
"No, it's not right. The redundant officials were created by the previous emperor to disperse the power of local officials. He split one official and established two... Now, it seems redundant, but in fact, there is a shortage of capable officials. If we abolish them, wouldn't it be cutting off our own arms? Maybe we can raise their salaries to keep them honest?"
"The national treasury is in a huge deficit, and we are in a hurry to fill the hole. Where can we get the money? It would be better to restore the ancestral system and impose severe punishments. Although it may not be effective in the long run, it is feasible in the short term..."
"…The accumulated problems are all caused by the Ministry of Personnel, and they should be solved by the Ministry of Personnel. Humph, isn't this the legacy of Li Yanfu?"
A group of young scholars expressed their opinions in a lively atmosphere.
When talking about the prime minister, he calls him by his name.
This surprised Zhao Duan a little.
What was even more surprising was that in the face of this discussion that was almost as heated as a vegetable market, neither Grand Tutor Dong nor the Empress had the slightest intention of stopping it. Instead, they were happy to see it happen.
This is a bit interesting.
On the first day of discussing state affairs, we were already in the right state... This was the atmosphere of discussing real issues, rather than reporting in a rigid manner, looking at the leader's face before saying a word...
Putting aside other things, Zhao Duan had a good first impression of Xiuwenguan.
Of course, perhaps it is also because these young scholars are too eager to realize their ambitions and have been holding back for too long.
Today the Empress is here in person, allowing them to speak freely, and they all show great desire to express themselves.
"Is the administration of the imperial court very bad?" Zhao Duan lowered his voice and asked Mo Zhaorong who was sitting next to him.
Mo Chou had just finished reading the "Minutes of the Meeting" and glared at him when she heard this, but still sighed, nodded, and whispered:
"The officials of the capital of Dayu are inspected once every six years, and the local officials are inspected once every three years.
According to this ancestral system, although it is difficult to eliminate corruption, if it is strictly enforced, there will be no major mistakes. However, the previous emperor had delegated power for too long, and the evaluation was in the hands of Li Yanfu. Over time, he became more and more lax, and the evaluation became superficial...
Now there are already a lot of problems. It is extremely difficult to solve this problem, but now the treasury is empty, which is a top priority. Without money, nothing can be done. Therefore, the idea of changing rice to mulberry was proposed before... It was also a desperate attempt to find a solution.
If you want to fill the treasury, you can’t avoid bureaucracy…”
With Mochou's explanation and the information provided by many scholars during their arguments and discussions, Zhao Duan finally had a clear understanding of the corrupt administration in Dayu.
This is not surprising, it is easy to deduce.
Whenever it involves people, if there is a lack of effective supervision, chaos will inevitably arise.
And judging from the results of the Li Party and the Eight Princes becoming powerful one after another, we can tell that the old emperor was absolutely a person who didn't care about things and didn't hold on to the power in his hands firmly.
It's not like we haven't tried to solve it.
According to Mochou, the old emperor once transferred the assessment matters from the Ministry of Rites to the Cabinet.
This is equivalent to taking this work from the lower-level departments to oneself, which can also be regarded as an attempt at "centralization".
However, Li Yanfu, the prime minister of the cabinet, was also the Minister of Personnel. As a result, the assessment seemed to be handed over, but in fact it was not moved at all and became a formality...
Like moving.
"Six years of imperial inspection? Three years of planning?"
Zhao Duan frowned, thinking this method was somewhat familiar:
"Is that all?"
This time it was Mo Chou's turn to be speechless: "What else?"
Zhao Duan didn't say anything. He just habitually compared this assessment method with the one he was familiar with in his previous life.
Obviously different, what about KPIs? What about the evil performance indicators?
It’s not that Dayu’s assessment method doesn’t involve this, but…
Not right.
Looks familiar... seems... I've seen it somewhere...
The discussion in the room continued.
No one noticed that Zhao Duan in the corner closed his eyes and began to search for memories of his past life in his mind.
As my brain was strained, some of the knowledge I had memorized while reading books in my previous life began to emerge.
Six years of imperial examinations...
Yes, there was a record of the assessment method of the Ming Dynasty in the books on Ming history that my leader liked in my previous life.
Later, because it lasted too long and became a formality, the assessment mechanism became paralyzed, and the Ministry of Personnel was also responsible for it.
Later, how was it resolved?
As his memories deepened, a name suddenly popped up in Zhao Duan's mind:
Zhang Juzheng.
The next entry spread smoothly: Zhang Juzheng's reforms, Wanli's restoration...
What method did Zhang Juzheng use to solve it?
It seems that I remember that a very well-known assessment method was invented.
Zhao Duan opened his eyes and subconsciously wrote three words on the paper in front of him with the brush in his hand:
Performance Assessment
(End of this chapter)