Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

The enactment of the fiefdom law eased the somewhat tense situation in the capital.

In fact, the nobles of the capital all knew that they would inevitably have to compromise.

After all, the emperor had even replaced the governor of the Beijing garrison, precisely to guard against them.

They are already satisfied with the offer to exchange land in the capital for the court's assistance in establishing their own fiefdoms, and this assistance will only be offered after the tax revenue of the fiefdoms exceeds the income from the land. They believe the exchange is worthwhile.

Of course, some people are not satisfied and want to keep more land.

They allocated land to their own descendants, separating those branches who did not wish to go overseas and granting them independent land ownership.

In order to make these fields hereditary, they also petitioned the emperor to grant hereditary official positions.

Zhu Youjian knew that the nobles in the capital had been entrenched for centuries and still held considerable influence in the shadows. If they resisted, he would not hesitate to suppress them forcefully.

Now that he's bargaining, he can't be too forceful. He doesn't want these people to become desperate and do something that would be detrimental to him.

After careful consideration, he finally granted several hereditary positions of chieftain and colonel to each family, granting them corresponding hereditary land.

However, these positions are not unpaid; each family needs to offer up a certain amount of farmland in exchange.

Taking advantage of this, Zhu Youjian confiscated hundreds of thousands of acres of land and distributed the sacrificial fields originally intended for the new nobles.

The designated fields for high-ranking officers of the Beijing Garrison and border armies were also explicitly allocated around the capital. This was intended to strengthen control over military commanders and encourage them to safeguard the capital's security.

Because of this, Zhu Youjian was very popular in the army. Even though he forcibly relocated some of the hereditary officials of the garrisons through a merit-based system, he still won their loyalty.

Moreover, in order to win over the morale of the garrison troops, Zhu Youjian planned to inspect the resettlement housing of the garrison troops in the capital to see if they had been allocated enough land.

This was a policy he had been pushing forward for several years, intending to summarize the experience of reforming the garrisons in the capital and promote it to local areas.

However, the courtiers quickly tried to dissuade him upon learning this, because the capital was not so safe at the moment.

Because all the reforms implemented by the imperial court have inevitably harmed the interests of some people. No one knows what these people are thinking now, and the emperor will not be allowed to travel until the situation stabilizes.

In particular, the resettlement of garrisons in the capital city is still incomplete in some areas. The Privy Council, the Ministry of War, and the Five Ministries need to conduct another review to prevent the emperor from discovering any problems.

Due to their obstruction, Zhu Youjian's inspection tour had to be postponed until the summer.

"Even the emperor, a man of great stature, has many concerns about traveling in the capital."

"The task of maintaining order in the Ming Dynasty is arduous and long-term; all of you must take this as a warning."

Zhu Youjian expressed his strong dissatisfaction with this.

The officials of the Ministry of Justice were both ashamed and somewhat resentful:
Although the Public Security Commission was to be handed over to the Ministry of Justice, it was never actually transferred.

It was impossible for them to obtain the power of the Public Security Commission before they accepted the position of Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices concurrently serving as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

This made the officials in the Ministry of Justice increasingly dissatisfied, feeling that it would be better to make arrangements sooner rather than later.

Under these circumstances, Wang Zhichen, the acting Left Chief Justice, rushed over from Yongping.

He was actually quite concerned about his transfer to the position of one of the Nine Ministers.

After being demoted from the military governor of Liaodong to the commander of the Great Wall, Wang Zhichen did not resign because he wanted to prove himself.

Now that Liaodong has been pacified, he has been promoted by the emperor to one of the Nine Ministers. He finally felt relieved and could hold his head high.

However, while he was indeed feeling triumphant, there was still someone who could keep him in check: Sun Chengzong, who had been granted the title of Marquis and appointed as the Governor-General of the Beijing Garrison.

His position as the military governor of Liaodong was replaced by Sun Chengzong, and many people regarded them as irreconcilable rivals.

Some who were dissatisfied with Sun Chengzong and criticized his appointment as the Governor-General of the Beijing Garrison even encouraged Wang Zhichen to fight with Sun Chengzong.

Faced with these people's instigation, Wang Zhichen spoke righteously and firmly:

"Lord Sun is the foremost meritorious official in Liaodong, and I, Wang, am also a meritorious official in Liaodong. How can I arbitrarily criticize him?"

"If any of you have evidence, you may submit it to the Supreme Court. The Sixth Division of the Supreme Court also has the power of impeachment."

"Don't stir up trouble without evidence, or you'll only be looked down upon."

They rejected their encouragement, indicating that they were on the same side as Sun Chengzong.

He knew the reason why the emperor dismissed him from his post as commander-in-chief: he had poor relations with many high-ranking officials in Liaodong.

Now, of course, we should take this as a warning. Even when facing Sun Chengzong, who replaced him, we should show him goodwill as a meritorious official of Liaodong.

Sun Chengzong naturally accepted this goodwill. Because after being granted a title, he was ineligible to serve as a civil official, not even in the Privy Council. His right to speak on court affairs stemmed from his being regarded as a representative of the meritorious officials of Liaodong.

Wang Zhichen was granted the title of viscount and was also one of the meritorious officials of Liaodong. His appointment as one of the Nine Ministers was a good thing for all the meritorious officials of Liaodong, and he had to show his support.

In response to the controversy surrounding Wang Zhichen's appointment as Left Chief Justice, Sun Chengzong released the following information:

“Wang Zhichen has served as a sub-prefect and a judge, and is a minister familiar with judicial affairs.”

"Meritorious officials of Liaodong have the right to occupy one of the Nine Ministers positions."

He even communicated with officials from the garrison, indicating that Wang Zhichen's appointment as one of the Nine Ministers meant that there was now another minister from the garrison.

This garnered Wang Zhichen a lot of support. Ministers of the Ministry of War and the Privy Council, as well as ministers from the garrison, all supported Wang Zhichen's appointment as Left Chief Justice.

Under his leadership, the reform of the Supreme Court was carried out in a vigorous and successful manner.

Wang Zhichen planned to use his political achievements to become the official Left Chief Justice during the leadership transition.
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Yuan Keli, the Grand Councilor, presided over the reform of the three judicial departments and paid close attention to the affairs of the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court.

Noticing the adjustments made to these two government offices, he submitted a memorial stating:

"Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has made many improvements to the court system and adjusted many government departments."

"Now that the leadership transition is approaching, I believe it is time to make adjustments."

"After perfecting these systems, we will determine the official positions to be appointed during the leadership transition."

These words were echoed by the court officials, who also hoped to establish official positions for the imperial court.

The emperor should no longer be allowed to make arbitrary changes, as that would be detrimental to the stability of the court.

Zhu Youjian also approved of this proposal, because he also needed to finalize this outcome.

At the same time, we should identify and address any shortcomings in the current cabinet and five-branch system.

After consideration, he gave the order:

"The Ministry of Personnel will take the lead in determining the responsibilities of various departments and the staffing of officials, and will establish this in the Civil Service Law."

“This matter is very important and needs to be overseen by a high-ranking official.”

"The Grand Secretary, the Second Grand Secretary, and the Privy Councilors jointly assume overall responsibility and form the Committee for Determining the Official System. The Ministry of Personnel will be responsible for the specific implementation, with the participation of various ministries, departments, and supervisory offices, to determine the new official system for the Ming Dynasty."

"I hope the new official system will be more clearly defined and consistent with the principle of unified power and responsibility. All kinds of affairs should be handled by government offices and officials, so that no one can be left to deal with problems when they occur."

As he spoke, he thought of the ministers without authority and cabinet members without specific duties established in some later countries, and said to Yang Jingchen, the Second Grand Secretary:

"Minister Yang is in charge of the Cabinet Office. He is responsible for all matters that are not clearly assigned to any specific government department."

"After consulting with the various government departments, we will allocate authority and responsibilities to them." Yang Jingchen agreed, then consulted the emperor:
"During this reshuffle, the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and other departments with numerous affairs request that they establish the position of Assistant Minister, just like the departments of the Privy Council."

"I believe that additional assistant commissioners should be appointed to various ministries as appropriate to assist the ministers and vice ministers in handling affairs. They should also be responsible for important departments such as the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Finance, as well as government offices such as the Salt Administration and the Tax Administration."

"They should have departmental seals and the authority to sign off on the relevant matters under their responsibility."

"Important matters are submitted to the council for discussion by the minister, vice minister, vice minister, and vice minister."

"Matters involving other government departments and major policies shall be submitted to the imperial court for handling."

"In this way, the cabinet can reduce its general affairs and not have to deal with every little detail."

This is his suggestion in response to the current situation.

With the current emperor establishing numerous new government offices and continuously issuing orders to consolidate power in both the court and local areas, the affairs that the court has to handle are far more numerous than before.

In particular, the cabinet now not only assists the emperor in reviewing memorials, but also oversees six committees, is responsible for a certain aspect of affairs, and proactively issues decrees.

Yang Jingchen and others felt that the cabinet affairs were becoming increasingly numerous and they were struggling to keep up. The recent establishment of the Directorate of the Imperial Secretariat was a manifestation of this.

However, this approach only addresses the symptoms, not the root cause. The Secretariat cannot be expanded indefinitely, and it is not part of the Cabinet.

Therefore, Yang Jingchen suggested dividing the affairs among different levels. Unimportant matters could be handled by each department itself, without needing to be written into memorials and submitted.

Zhu Youjian was somewhat uneasy about this delegating power to various departments. After considering it, he said:

"The importance of a matter can be classified according to the four-quadrant method."

"The first quadrant is for important and urgent matters, the second quadrant is for important but not urgent matters, the third quadrant is for urgent but not important matters, and the fourth quadrant is for matters that are neither urgent nor important."

"For the latter two types of matters, authority can be delegated as appropriate. The first two types must go through the Cabinet, and the Cabinet member on duty can be responsible for the temporary handling of important and urgent matters."

A four-quadrant diagram was drawn, and Yang Jingchen was asked to divide the data according to this diagram.

The main point is to delegate less important matters, while important matters must be handled by the cabinet.

According to the Pareto principle, at least 20% of the affairs should be delegated to the cabinet. Eighty percent of the court's achievements are related to this.

The Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet were naturally pleased with this. Looking at the four-quadrant diagram drawn by the Emperor and listening to his explanation of the Pareto principle, they gained a clearer understanding of how to delegate power to government departments at all levels.

After figuring out the emperor's method, the courtiers felt that the emperor still had many ingenious ideas that were beyond their expectations.

This made some people sigh:

The emperor is truly a genius!
After demonstrating his skills, Zhu Youjian asked Yang Jingchen:
"According to the Privy Council's system, the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of State Affairs is a fourth-rank official, while the Deputy Assistant Minister of the Ministry of State Affairs is a fourth-rank official."

"How are the ranks of the Assistant Commissioners in the Six Ministries determined? How should they be appointed?"

Yang Jingchen had considered this for a long time and replied:
"Since the names are the same, the Assistant Commissioners of the Six Ministries and the Assistant Commissioners of the Third Division of the Privy Council shall be designated as having the same rank."

"At the same time, since there is a vacancy between the fourth-rank Assistant Minister of the Ministry and the third-rank Vice Minister, I believe that we can add the position of Assistant Minister of the Ministry, which is equivalent to the deputy head of the third-rank ministry."

"The number of assistant prefects, assistant clerks, and assistant assistants is not fixed and is set according to needs."

"For the convenience of the cabinet's administration, the cabinet ministers should make the recommendations."

This demand caused a great uproar in the imperial court.

After the Wanli era, Grand Secretaries of the Inner Cabinet were excluded from the court recommendation process due to their excessive power.

After Zhu Youjian ascended the throne, he further strengthened the Nine Ministers' power of appointment, allowing them to counterbalance the power of the cabinet with their power of personnel appointment.

The cabinet clearly disagreed with this and demanded that ministerial officials be appointed.

Bi Ziyan, the Minister of Revenue who was showing signs of becoming the head of the Nine Ministers, immediately retorted:

"The cabinet has no power to govern; that is the job of the six ministries."

"The positions of Assistant Minister, Vice Minister, and Deputy Vice Minister should be recommended by the ministry or by the Nine Ministers."

The other ministers shared the same opinion; they did not want the cabinet to interfere in the appointment arrangements of their departments.

However, with the emperor delegating power, the cabinet gained the authority to issue decrees independently, which naturally required people to implement them.

They wanted to place people in various departments, which is why Yang Jingchen made this request.

At the same time, this is also the consensus of the cabinet, who need personnel to implement the policy.

Grand Secretary Han Kuang said:

"His Majesty has repeatedly demanded the implementation of the court's measures, but officials from various departments have been making excuses."

"The cabinet's power to appoint ministerial officials is precisely to require them to work."

"I believe that the power to appoint these officials should belong to the Cabinet."

They argued endlessly with the Nine Ministers, vying for this power.

On this point, neither side was willing to concede. The cabinet did not want its decrees to become empty words, while the six ministries did not want the cabinet to directly interfere with them.

Zhu Youjian listened to their argument and couldn't help but feel a headache coming on:

This is actually where his dilemma lies: he wants the cabinet to implement his policies, but he doesn't want to give them too much power.

Now a contradiction has emerged: the cabinet is strongly demanding control over personnel appointments to implement policies.

This request could not be ignored, and after thinking it over, he finally smoothed things over by saying:
"Both the cabinet and the six ministries need to govern and have a certain degree of power to appoint people."

"I think we can follow the method of court recommendation, with each ministry first nominating candidates, and the Nine Ministers then recommending them from the central court."

"The cabinet, like me, has the power of veto and the power to dismiss unqualified officials."

“Officials who do not receive cabinet approval may be dismissed and transferred.”

"This way, the authority of the cabinet and the six ministries is guaranteed, and officials can be urged to implement government orders."

The power of appointment remains with the Nine Ministers, while their veto and dismissal powers are delegated to the Cabinet.

It's impossible for him to be in charge of appointing fifty or sixty ministers while also managing dozens of departmental officials.

Therefore, he delegated his power to make it easier for the cabinet to govern. Only the ministers and vice ministers retained control.

The decentralization of the power to appoint ministerial officials increased the power of the cabinet and the six ministries. After discussion, the cabinet ministers and the nine high-ranking officials all expressed their agreement.

The cabinet thus gained the power to adjust ministerial officials, further enhancing its authority.

After the emperor neglected his duties and delegated power, the cabinet, which exercised some of the emperor's powers, saw its power rise sharply.

The Nine Ministers, who were previously able to barely balance with the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, are now unable to compete with the Cabinet Ministers, except for those who serve as heads of Cabinet committees.

Zhu Youjian had anticipated this, but there was nothing he could do. Delegating power to the Nine Ministers would have been even more troublesome, as they each managed their own areas and would make decisions based on the interests of their own departments.

Therefore, the cabinet was the primary decision-maker, and Zhu Youjian chose to delegate power to the cabinet, allowing its ministers to perform their duties more effectively. (End of Chapter)