Daming: Dad, you are really not good at governing the country

Chapter 324: Whether the four assistants are doing a good job depends on the weather.

Zhu Gang said helplessly: "Qin Shi Huang believed that the posthumous title was a great disrespect for the successor emperor to discuss the previous emperor, for the minister to discuss the monarch, and for the lower to discuss the upper.

Therefore, the emperors of the Qin Dynasty had neither posthumous titles nor temple names, and the emperors did not grant posthumous titles to their ministers.

Even in the early Han Dynasty, when posthumous titles were restored, the ritual officials discussed the posthumous title before the previous emperor was buried, and the successor emperor decided on the posthumous title.

Zhu Yuanzhang said earnestly: "Third brother, you should know that there are countless people who have carried out reforms in every dynasty.

To implement reforms, we need not only to use tough measures, but also to have people who can convince all parties to help us implement the reforms.

In view of the slow progress in the formation of the cabinet, we plan to set up four assistant officials in spring, summer, autumn and winter, ranking after dukes, marquises and governors.

The incumbent will take turns on duty every ten days within a month, and while serving as a guest at the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace, he will also assist us in handling government affairs.

Dad thinks Gongshu Qi is a good talent. He is a fifth-rank official in the Yuheng Qingli Division and is fully qualified to be selected as one of the four assistant officials."

Although the working system of the four assistant officials is very interesting from the perspective of later generations, it was actually a failed attempt by Zhu Yuanzhang in setting up official positions.

Take the historical Spring Official Wang Ben as an example: he worked in spring and was on vacation the rest of the time.

In addition, each month of spring is divided into three decades.

Wang Ben only needs to work for one ten-day shift, and the other two ten-day shifts will be taken over by two other spring officials. The same applies to other seasons.

As for the assessment of the four auxiliary officials, it is even more interesting.

Let’s take the example of Wang Ben, the part-time winter official: It was winter, and the north wind was bitterly cold.

Zhu Yuanzhang thought that this was how winter should be, and it was Wang Ben's credit, so he gave him a reward without hesitation.

On the contrary, if abnormal weather occurs, it means that God is warning the incompetent four assistant officials on duty.

In other words, whether the four assistant officials do their job well or not, ultimately depends on the weather!
With such a weird assessment system, four people asked for leave soon after.

One of the four assistant officials took leave and was appointed by Zhu Yuanzhang as the director of the Imperial College.

This position was particularly important in the Ming Dynasty. Zhang Juzheng during the Wanli period once held this position.
Later, Zhu Yuanzhang was furious and dismissed the fourth assistant official because he gave the tribute students holiday without reporting it.

Only one year later, Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the positions of the four auxiliary officials.

Considering that Gongshu Qi was a rare technical talent, Zhu Gang did not want him to become a test subject in Zhu Yuanzhang's official position setting.

So he took out a design drawing directly from his sleeve and said, "Whether it is the four assistant officials of Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, or the cabinet ministers, they all need separate office spaces.

I suggest that on the basis of the original three main halls, we build Zhongji Hall, Jianji Hall, Wenhua Hall, Wuying Hall, as well as Wenyuan Pavilion and Dong Pavilion.

In addition to being a place for your father to rest before heading to Fengtian Hall to receive worship, Zhongji Hall can also be used to make preparations before you personally offer sacrifices.

For example, before offering sacrifices to heaven and earth and the Taimiao, Dad could first review the "blessing board" with sacrificial texts here, and he would also check the farming tools here before performing ploughing.

The chief minister usually worked in the Zhongji Hall, and his official title was the third-rank Grand Secretary of the Zhongji Hall, and he was also the Prince's Grand Tutor.

Depending on the specific circumstances, he is responsible for supervising the presentation of rules and regulations, checking memorials, and drafting and approving other duties.

Jianji Hall was the venue for banquets for foreign princes and nobles on New Year’s Eve every year, and the Second Assistant usually worked in Jianji Hall.

His official position was fourth-rank Grand Secretary of Jianji Palace, and he was also the Prince's Junior Tutor.

The duties of the Second Assistant included assisting the First Assistant in handling daily government affairs, drafting imperial edicts, and managing cabinet affairs.

Wenhua Hall was the venue for imperial lectures, where my father and ministers discussed state affairs. The ministers usually worked in Wenhua Hall.

The official position was the fifth rank Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace, and the quota was six, corresponding to the relevant functions of the six ministries.

In order to avoid arbitrary power, all the assistants were not allowed to concurrently serve as ministers of the six ministries during their tenure. Wuying Hall was not only the place where the imperial examinations were held, but also the place where the 24 government offices of the inner court worked on a daily basis.

There are twelve surveillance offices, four departments and eight bureaus inside, each with a eunuch in charge.

The specific staff were selected from 27000 craftsmen in the eight counties of Yingtian Prefecture.

One person from each household was selected to perform corvée labor. Some served in shifts of five years, while others served in shifts of four, three, or two years.

Wenyuan Pavilion was the library prepared for the "Hongwu Encyclopedia". It had positions such as the head of the pavilion, the supervisor of the pavilion, the direct pavilion, the proofreader, and the reviewer, who were responsible for various management work.

He is in charge of communicating cabinet affairs and is in overall charge of the matter.

The Chief of Cabinet Affairs directly manages general affairs and supervises the staff of the Imperial Household Department under his jurisdiction, who are specifically responsible for various chores such as guarding, receiving and sending, and cleaning.

The officials in charge of cabinet affairs, proofreaders, and reviewers take turns to go to the cabinet every day and are responsible for checking and reviewing books.

The East Pavilion is also called the Warm Pavilion, which transfers heat to the room through the fire channel to keep it warm.

In addition, the warm room can also achieve heating through the sandwich design of the wall. "

Although it only took Zhu Gang half a cup of tea to finish speaking these 700-plus words, it took Zhu Yuanzhang a full quarter of an hour to come back to his senses.

"Third brother, the suggestions you made are indeed good, but now is not a good time.

Today, the people in the four prefectures of Jiangnan are still suffering from hunger and cold.

If we start building a new palace at this time, it will probably attract some negative criticism and even cause public outrage."

Empress Ma, who was sitting next to her, nodded and said, "Tian'er, I just heard you say the ninth and tenth place among the 'Ten Greatest Virtuous Empresses in History'.

Mother is very curious about what the eighth virtuous queen has to offer. Why don't you tell me about it now?"

Zhu Gang knew that Empress Ma was hinting at him to change his approach and submit the suggestions he had just made to Zhu Yuanzhang.

In order not to disappoint Empress Ma's kindness, Zhu Gang simply continued with the topic of "The Ten Greatest Virtuous Empresses of All Time".

"The eighth place is Dugu Jialuo, the wife of Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian. She is not only the mother of Emperor Yang of Sui Yang Guang, but also one of the few outstanding women in history who can be called a politician."

Since Dugu Qieluo's deeds have been little known to the public, Zhu Yuanzhang did not interrupt this time.

After analyzing the specific situation of Lanna for Zhu Biao, who was receiving envoys from vassal states, he continued: "At the age of 14, Dugu Jialuo married Yang Jian, who was still the son of a general.

She is low-key and humble to others, and loving to her husband at home.

In addition, Dugu Jialuo also had ten children. She also made considerable contributions in assisting Yang Jian in building his career and eliminating troubles.

During the transition period between Zhou and Sui dynasties, Dugu Qieluo persuaded Yang Jian to make up his mind to establish the Sui dynasty.

Therefore, after the founding of the Sui Dynasty, she was canonized as empress by Emperor Wen of Sui.

In her daily life, she likes reading and is well-informed about ancient and modern times.

Dugu Qieluo often discussed state affairs with Emperor Wen of Sui, and her views often coincided with his.

In addition, her political talent was particularly outstanding. Because she made an indelible contribution to the "Kaihuang Reign", she was called "the Second Saint" together with Yang Jian.

The only stain on this person's life was that Dugu Qieluo made a mistake in establishing the successor to the Sui Dynasty.

She deposed her loyal eldest son Yang Yong and made her second son Yang Guang, who was more skilled in disguise, the crown prince, laying the foundation for the demise of the second emperor of the Sui Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)