Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

"That's the power of intelligence!"

"No wonder the Emperor instructed the Embroidered Uniform Guard to prioritize intelligence!"

Having successfully used the power of the Tax Police Corps to easily repel the civil servants' attack, Liu Qiao was deeply impressed.

Although this was a collective action by law enforcement agencies, very few of them actually took action.

The most important thing is the tax information obtained by the tax police, which is used to force the civil servants who are targeting the law enforcement team to back down.

This made Liu Qiao deeply aware of the power of intelligence, and also made him understand what kind of power the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who was in charge of the intelligence center, possessed:
"I used to think that I had become a minister in the court and could stand on equal footing with the emperor."

"Now it seems that it is far inferior and cannot be compared at all."

"If I can gather so much intelligence, then I can certainly hold the reins of the intelligence center!"

Previously, Gui Zhuang had instructed him to focus on serving the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but Liu Qiao still harbored some resentment. He believed that as the Minister of the Imperial Guard and the Deputy Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, his position was second only to the Commander. Furthermore, with his concurrent position as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, he was entirely comparable to the Chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who served as the Minister of Intelligence.

Only now did I realize that my power was far inferior to the other's. If the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard wanted to deal with me, it wouldn't take much effort at all—

With the intelligence gathered by the intelligence center, any official could be impeached.

This instilled fear in Liu Qiao, and at the same time, he resolved that the Imperial Guard must possess intelligence capabilities, and strive to have this reflected in the reports presented to the emperor. Only then would the emperor remember the role of the Imperial Guard and not easily abandon them.

To achieve this, the cooperation of law enforcement teams is essential, such as the tax police, which can provide him with a lot of information.

Upon realizing this, Liu Qiao deeply regretted giving up the position of director in exchange for the empty title of Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

Aside from the elevation in status, this position didn't bring him much power. He had no say in the affairs of the Ministry of Justice, was collectively ostracized by the other officials, and they would even hold private meetings to exclude him.

It was because of this that Liu Qiao realized his position among the civil officials, and after Gui Zhuang's enlightenment, he completely sided with the emperor.

What he regrets now is losing his position on the Public Security Committee, which prevents him from directly issuing orders to other law enforcement teams. The power to coordinate across departments is now in the hands of the Minister of Justice.

The relationship between the Imperial Guard and other law enforcement agencies was limited to providing professional guidance, but it lacked command authority.

This was actually Zhu Youjian's intention; the power wielded by the Minister of the Imperial Guard concurrently serving as the Director of the Public Security Commission was simply too great. Therefore, he gave the latter position to the Minister of Justice, creating a system of checks and balances between the two.

This is also why the power struggle between the Ministry of Justice and the Imperial Guard was so intense during this period.

The two institutions have overlapping powers, and a period of adjustment is necessary before stability can be achieved.

Liu Qiao is now keenly aware of the inconvenience of losing his position as director. Even if he were still the deputy director, it wouldn't be so easy for him to collaborate with other departments or transfer personnel between departments in the future.

After exchanging views with other officials of the Imperial Guard and the heads of law enforcement teams, they decided to establish the Ming Police Association as a platform for communication with various law enforcement teams.

To avoid suspicion, the association regularly holds competitions, ostensibly for exchanging ideas and testing professional skills.

However, its primary function was to exchange information, serving as an intelligence exchange platform led by the Imperial Guard.

Liu Qiao wanted to use the intelligence he obtained to have a greater say in front of the emperor.

Other law enforcement teams shared this need. They also needed to maintain a respectable image before the emperor and preserve their relative independence.

Soon, the Ming Police Association was established as a platform for communication among various law enforcement departments.

Preparations for the first police competition have begun, with each guard post and law enforcement team required to send personnel to participate.

The martial arts association, overseen by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, provided a great deal of assistance, setting up multiple events modeled after martial arts tournaments to allow the police officers of the law enforcement team to compete in various aspects of their abilities.

They even planned to hold exercises modeled after the autumn drills on the canal, simulating scenarios such as criminals resisting arrest and practicing how to fight such situations.
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Zhu Youjian quickly noticed the changes at the Imperial Guard, as intelligence from the Imperial Guard was increasing sharply in the daily morning and evening reports.

This made him curious, so he asked:
"How come so much intelligence is coming from the Imperial Guard?"

"They want to steal the intelligence center's job?"

Zheng Shiyi didn't want the Imperial Guard to steal the limelight, but he could only tell the truth:
"We communicated with other law enforcement teams and obtained a lot of information."

"The intelligence center had to report it after receiving it, so they submitted it."

This was Zhu Youjian's requirement: every piece of intelligence had to have a source. The briefing might only contain a few words, but behind it lay a huge amount of data.

The source of any intelligence report, including which department of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, which Garrison Command, or other related government office it came from, is all verifiable.

Information originating from the Imperial Guard Temple also needs to be labeled.

Previously, such intelligence was extremely rare. Now, with its rapid increase, he was naturally very satisfied.

After learning about the work Liu Qiao had done during this period, Zhu Youjian said with satisfaction:
"I am quite pleased that the Imperial Guard can cooperate with the intelligence center."

"Liu Qiao's additional title was Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Second Rank, so we'll add another title for him: Minister of State Affairs of the Second Rank."

"Have him do a good job of searching for information about the outer court, and then submit a summary report to me every ten days."

"The same goes for your intelligence center. In addition to briefings, you also need to compile summaries and present important information again."

He doesn't always have time to read the daily morning and evening briefings.

Especially after becoming lazy, most of the time they just glance at it.

To prevent missing important information, he requested that a summary be compiled every ten days, and that he be reminded of it again.

He originally intended to entrust this task to the Embroidered Uniform Guard, as they were the most professional in intelligence.

Now that Zhu Youjian had realized that the Imperial Guards had some ideas about intelligence, he also gave them the power to compile it.

Similarly, Zhu Youjian intended to grant the Eastern Depot and the Office of Transmission, which compiled internal reports, the power to gather intelligence. This would allow for verification through multiple channels to prevent complete deception.

Zhu Youjian did not want Yuan Shikai to be deceived by fake newspapers, a situation he himself did not want to happen to him.

He always purchased the newspapers through multiple channels, even having the concubines in the harem subscribe to them and having officials who discussed the newspaper's contents bring them to him.

If he discovers that the newspaper he sees differs from what the public sees, he will investigate thoroughly to find out who forged the newspaper for him.

Zhu Youjian always attached great importance to the source of information, not giving others the opportunity to mislead the emperor.

As a result, Liu Qiao received a great gift: the power to compile intelligence from the outer court.

This signifies that the Imperial Guard officially acquired intelligence functions, although not as professional as the intelligence center, it still provided an opportunity to communicate directly with the emperor.

Upon hearing the news, Liu Qiao was overjoyed. It hadn't been in vain that he had used his position as a high-ranking officer in the Embroidered Uniform Guard to force Zheng Shiyi to submit the intelligence from the Imperial Guard's Office—

He joined forces with other officials in the court to demand that the reports submitted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard to the emperor include information provided by them.

They even required officials to take turns going to the palace to report, so as not to allow Zheng Shiyi to monopolize the opportunity to communicate with the emperor.

Zheng Shiyi naturally refused the latter, but after consideration, he finally agreed to the former.

This is how Liu Qiao was able to gain favor with the emperor. He earned the emperor's praise thanks to the intelligence he had gathered over the past few days.

What pleased him most was the addition of the title of Grand Minister of State. From now on, he would be eligible to participate in meetings of the four Grand Ministers of State.

This is also why he tried every means to concurrently serve as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice. He did not want to be limited to the affairs of the Imperial Guard and wanted to have the power to speak on important matters of the court.

Now the emperor has made it clear that he does indeed have this power. However, what he cares about most is the Imperial Guard, and he wants to preserve the Imperial Guard's law enforcement powers.
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After receiving the reward, Liu Qiao went to the palace to express his gratitude.

Zhu Youjian praised him a few times, then said with a serious expression:

"The Imperial Guard Temple was newly built a few years ago, and I didn't make many demands."

"But now that it has stabilized, it must fulfill its function." "I have always regarded the Imperial Guard as the handle of a sword, and the Imperial Guard must understand the master of this sword."

Liu Qiao was sweating profusely, and felt even more grateful to Gui Zhuang.

If Gui Zhuang hadn't specifically instructed him to pledge allegiance to the emperor, he would still be wavering between the emperor and a civil official.

Now, by threatening civil officials, he preserved the power of the Imperial Guard and indeed gained the emperor's trust.

In the past, the emperor would never have said such a thing, and would never have mentioned it to him.

Having clearly understood his position, Liu Qiao immediately swore an oath:

"Your Majesty, I am determined to be loyal to you and obey your commands."

"I intend to have the Imperial Guard and all law enforcement teams take the same oath, just like the military oath, placing loyalty to Your Majesty first."

This is a good suggestion; it clarifies for the law enforcement teams who their superior is. Zhu Youjian said with satisfaction:
"It's good that you understand this!"

"If the military is the barrel of a gun, then law enforcement is the handle of a knife."

"Only by using both swords and spears can the Ming Dynasty be secure."

"I hope you will work together with the army to maintain stability in the Ming Dynasty."

Liu Qiao was overjoyed to hear this, never expecting the emperor to value the Imperial Guard Temple so much.

If swords and spears could truly be placed side by side, wouldn't his status be comparable to that of the Privy Councilor and the Governor-General of the Beijing Garrison?

This filled him with even more motivation, and he decided to run the Imperial Guard Temple well.

He would not hesitate to stand up to anyone who dared to challenge the Weiwei Temple for power.

Zhu Youjian also encouraged this behavior, praising it as follows:
"A knife must be sharp, and sometimes it must draw blood."

"The Imperial Guards Temple did a good job recently. They need to make those who are trying to seize law enforcement power afraid, and they can't just keep being on the defensive."

"However, we should refrain from threatening officials in private in the future. Everything should be done openly, and we can directly report to the relevant authorities and apply for investigation and arrest."

"Han Yiliang of the Independent Commission Against Corruption will cooperate with your work."

“The various investigation bureaus of the Metropolitan Prosecutor’s Office also need law enforcement personnel.”

The Imperial Guard should strengthen its cooperation with the Censorate to deal with the power struggle within the Ministry of Justice.

Previously, any of the Six Ministries held a higher status than the Censorate. The Censorate was naturally at a disadvantage when facing the Ministry of Justice. Presumably, they preferred to deal with the Court of Imperial Guards and dispatch its officials.

Liu Qiao was even more delighted to hear this, knowing that as long as the Imperial Guards Court maintained good relations with the Censorate, it would gain more investigative powers.

In the future, investigating officials will no longer need to operate covertly; they can directly seek authorization from the Censorate.

He promised the emperor that he would cooperate with the work of the Censorate. Each investigation office of the Censorate had officers from the Imperial Guard.

The newly appointed Left Censor-in-Chief, Lin Yuji, also welcomed this.

In the collective recommendation by the three judicial officials, he was ranked first.

According to convention, he should have been appointed Minister of Justice, but he was instead appointed Left Censor-in-Chief.

When he first arrived in the capital, he didn't understand this. Only after Yang Jingchen explained it did he realize that the power of the Censorate now far exceeded that of the Ministry of Justice.

Even if the Left Censor-in-Chief cannot command other censors, his actual power still exceeds that of the Minister of Justice.

Furthermore, he can gain greater say by leveraging his prestige.

What prestige could be greater than elevating the status of the Censorate?

He wanted to suppress the Ministry of Justice and place the Censorate at the top of the three judicial departments.

The support provided by the Imperial Guard was crucial to him. The Censorate could then bypass the Ministry of Justice and exercise considerable power.

Therefore, after discussing with Yang Jingchen and Wen Tiren, Lin Yuji accepted the Weiwei Temple's offer without hesitation.

The two government departments will strengthen cooperation and work together more seamlessly in the future.

In this way, the law enforcement power of the Imperial Guard was finally stabilized.

No matter how unwilling the officials of the Ministry of Justice and other government offices were, they had no choice but to put aside their schemes.

Otherwise, they would face accusations from the Imperial Guard and impeachments from the Censorate, something no one wanted to face.

Zheng Sanjun addressed the other officials of the Ministry of Justice:
"No chance!"

"The law enforcement authority that His Majesty assigned to the Imperial Guard has been stabilized."

"Let's focus on what we need to do and look for opportunities later."

Zhang Fengxiang, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, was still somewhat unwilling, because he had instigated other government departments to compete for law enforcement power this time.

Unexpectedly, the Imperial Guard suddenly drew his knife, forcing the official who had made the move to retreat.

He addressed the officials present:

"Having lost the power of adjudication and the power of law enforcement, the Ministry of Justice is a toothless tiger!"

"What can we do now? Just manage the prisons?"

I am very dissatisfied with this situation.

Right Vice Minister Qian Longxi then said:
"The Emperor is protecting the Imperial Guard, so this is the only option for now."

"Fortunately, the Ministry of Justice still has legal work, which can be used to draft legal provisions."

"This is the same job as the Ministry of Rites' Department of Ceremonies, and I am willing to take on this responsibility."

Zheng Sanjun and the others looked at each other; no one was actually vying with him for this power.

Among the Ministry of Justice, only Qian Longxi came from the Ministry of Rites and was most familiar with formulating rites and laws.

He succeeded Wu Zongda, who had also been in charge of this area of ​​work; both of them were graduates of the Hanlin Academy.

Therefore, the legal work was assigned to Qian Longxi.

Just as he complained, Zhang Fengxiang was still in charge of criminal justice.

This is also why he was so enthusiastic in the struggle for law enforcement power.

If he doesn't win over law enforcement power, he'll only be able to manage prisons.

If he had law enforcement power, even if most of the power belonged to the Minister, he could still gain more important power.

Unfortunately, despite his many attempts, he was unable to win against the Imperial Guard, and he could only continue to endure it.

In his mind, the current Weiwei Temple is what he envisioned the Ministry of Justice to be like.

If the Ministry of Justice had such power, who would dare laugh at them for being relegated to the bottom of the Six Ministries! (End of Chapter)