Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 207 The prime minister must start from the state department

Unity of knowledge and action!

Continuing the unique learning for the Holy Spirit!

Practice the four sentences of Hengqu!

Shen Zizhang really could not have imagined that he would be so highly praised by the emperor for just letting Zhang Zai's descendants take charge of Hengqu Academy.

Moreover, he was transferred from the position of Prime Minister of Guanglu Temple to the position of Doctor of the Department of Literary Selection——

Although the grades of these two positions are the same, the actual power they possess is completely incomparable.

Before attending the meeting, Shen Zizhang could never have imagined that he would get such a great opportunity by defending himself in court.

At this moment, he felt that he should be grateful that the door was open. If this person hadn't been ignorant and regarded his good intentions as an obstacle to impeachment, how would he have been able to get the opportunity to go to the palace to defend himself, and then get the opportunity.

In the Wenhua Hall, the officials were extremely envious as they watched Shen Zizhang transform from a cold Yamen temple minister to a lowly and powerful Wenxuan doctor.

What is the purpose of being an official? It is for fame, profit and power.

The emperor praised him, and the reputation was given to Shen Zizhang.

The power of the Wenxuan Secretary can be said to be the highest among middle-level officials.

With this power, are you still worried that it will be unprofitable? Even if Shen Zizhang is an honest official, the good relationships he forges can benefit future generations.

It can be said that the emperor gave Shen Zizhang everything that officials pursued. He even raised his rank and gave him the title of Third-Rank Political Participation.

Shen Zizhang could not repay such a favor by swearing to death. How can he hold his head high if he doesn't do well in the literary selection department?
Thinking of these things, and then thinking that the emperor specifically mentioned what happened the night before ascending to the throne, he designated Shen Zizhang as a hero of Conglong. Fang Guiwei smiled bitterly in his heart, knowing that Shen Zizhang had been forcibly labeled by the emperor and used as a confidant:

From now on, this Shen Zizhang can be regarded as His Majesty's man.

Fortunately, the two of them are just from the same hometown and have no other relationship.

Fang Guiwei was about to become an official and had no intention of taking power in the civil service department. The reason why Shen Zizhang was recommended was that he was reminded by Huang Liji some time ago that after the Donglin Party officials, who are mainly from the south, returned to the court, it might be difficult for the Northern Zhili officials.

Therefore, when he recommended the doctor of literary anthology department, he recommended Shen Zizhang, a native of Beizhili.

As for whether this person was lured away by the emperor, he didn't care -

No matter what, Shen Zizhang's identity as a northern Zhili person will not change, and he cannot deliberately favor southerners at the risk of being scolded by his hometown people.

The reason why Zhu Youjian appointed Shen Zizhang was, firstly, because of Fang Guiwei's recommendation. He knew that this veteran minister was a neutralist, and most of the officials he recommended were neutralists. This will prevent the Literature and Selection Department from being controlled by a certain party and forming cliques.

The second reason is that Shen Zizhang’s resume is relatively good-looking and he has experience in local government. In Zhu Youjian's view, such officials pay more attention to practical work. When selecting officials, it is natural to put practical work first.

The Literature and Selection Department is responsible for the appointment of middle and low-level officials, and the tendency of the person in charge can be said to be very important. Zhu Youjian wanted to use more practical officials, so he naturally wanted such officials to be in charge of the Literature and Selection Department.

"Han Feizi" said: The prime minister must be from the state department, and the fierce general must be sent from the army.

Nowadays, the six ministers among the Nine Ministers are actually used as deputy prime ministers and can be regarded as deputy prime ministers.

Since only Hanlin scholars are not allowed to enter the cabinet, Jiuqing must naturally use more officials with experience in local administration.

Zhu Youjian had never heard of any particularly capable bachelors in the Chongzhen Dynasty. He felt that these officials from the Hanlin Academy were not very useful. The purpose of improving the status of Jiuqing is not only to check and balance the bachelors, but also to select capable ministers——

Use officials with more experience in local governance to make decisions in the court.

Non-Hanlin academicians are not allowed to be appointed academicians. This practice has been maintained for more than 200 years. If Zhu Youjian breaks through forcefully, the resistance will be great. It is likely that a bachelor who is not a Hanlin scholar will not be recognized, and the orders issued will be resisted by the officials below.

Therefore, Zhu Youjian has not changed his mind on this point for the time being. Instead, he uses regular meetings to enhance Jiuqing's decision-making power and give Jiuqing more say in related matters. Zhu Youjian was not sure whether this method would work. However, the policy of attaching importance to hard-working officials will not change, and more talents in this field must be reserved.

The appointment of Shen Zizhang, an official with experience in local administration, as the doctor of the Literature and Selection Department was for this purpose.

After giving Shen Zizhang a few words of encouragement, Zhu Youjian did not forget the purpose of the meeting, which was to handle the affairs of the Ministry of Industry.

But before handling the matter, Men Dongkai, the newly appointed engineering minister, began to attack the officials of the Ministry of Industry and impeach officials such as Xu Siyue and Fan Zhen. In accordance with the emperor's instructions for dealing with rebellious officials, he also added Ge Datong, a doctor in the field division, to impeach him.

Zhu Youjian is not familiar with the names of these middle and low-level officials, and of course he has no idea what they do. The only option is to remove these people from their posts first, let the officials of the Three Judiciary Division review them, and then specifically convict them.

I was finally satisfied with the door opening and did not continue to squirt.

In fact, after the emperor appointed Shen Zizhang as the doctor of the literary selection department, Mendong was a little dissatisfied. Because the emperor failed to take down the four people he mainly impeached, Lu Tunan, Shen Zizhang, Xue Fengxiang, and Zhang Wenyu.

In particular, Shen Zizhang was actually promoted, which made him particularly dissatisfied. But as soon as the emperor resumed his duties, he could not immediately oppose the emperor and prevent the emperor from stepping down. Therefore, we targeted Xu Siyue, Fan Zhen, Ge Datong and others to impeach them to maintain their prestige.

The emperor was very generous this time and captured all these people. After today's meeting, Meng Dongkai said that he had overthrown half of the Ministry of Industry, and no one would object.

It can be said that he relied on his former colleagues to establish his reputation.

But just impeaching people can't show his ability. The door opened and he said:
"In May of last year, he broke into the office of He Zongsheng, the superintendent of the Sanshan Ministry of Industry. He stabbed his hands and feet, and robbed him of 56,000 yuan of official money and 200 taels of silver."

"I was working in the Ministry of Industry at the time and thought there was something fishy about this matter."

"Two hundred taels of silver is not bad, it can be easily taken away."

"But fifty-six thousand Wen is worth three to four hundred kilograms."

"How many thieves are there? How did they take away the money? How did they know where the money was in the yamen? It's all suspicious."

"I think we should conduct a thorough investigation and get to the bottom of this matter."

Unexpectedly, thieves in the capital were so bold that they dared to go to the government offices to steal money and even stab officials. Zhu Youjian really felt that troubled times were coming, so much so that there was this chaos——

The thief has no regard for the court, so he is so bold.

And there is likely to be internal and external collusion, which is why the theft was so precise.

Taking this very seriously, Zhu Youjian said:
"Although it has been more than a year since the incident, the officials involved were injured and we still need to find out."

"Regardless of whether He Zongsheng was rebellious or not, he was the doctor of the camp at that time and represented the face of the imperial court."

"I will ask Weiwei Temple to thoroughly investigate this matter and give He Zongsheng an explanation."

Then he said:
"From now on, all departments of the Ministry of Industry will open accounts at Sunchon Bank, and the government's allocations will be deducted from the account."

"Don't put too much money in the yamen at ordinary times, so as not to be noticed by thieves."

Put the Ministry of Industry's finances under the supervision of Sunchon Bank.

　"Records of Ming Xi Zong":
　　In May of the sixth year of Tianqi: He broke into the office of He Zongsheng, the doctor of the Ministry of Industry of Sanshan, who was in charge of the work. He cut and injured the hands and feet of Zongsheng, and robbed him of 56,000 yuan of official money and 200 taels of silver. Zongsheng asked him to replace him because he was seriously injured. After receiving the order, the thieves robbed the government office. The local officials were here to discuss matters separately. He Zongsheng was in charge of the quarrying affairs and was not allowed to leave.

　　In June of the sixth year of the Apocalypse, Wang Yehao, the censor of Henan Province, reported: Bandits in Kinki are rampant, and they must be arrested strictly. After receiving the decree, the imperial minister was stolen and the decree was issued. The Chinese and foreign patrol yamen were also given strict instructions. The provisions of arresting officials and participating in punishments were still enforced, and the law of consecutive sittings was established to clear up the source of theft.

　　In the sixth month of the sixth year of the Apocalypse, the king of the Zhou Dynasty was granted the title of Prince Gong, who was stationed on the high wall of Fengyang to share the stolen goods with the robbers.

　　In October of the sixth year of Tianqi: There were many thieves in the capital, so he ordered the censors of the five cities to issue orders to the military and horse officers to patrol day and night and seize the area strictly. Violators will not be punished.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)