I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 266: The sound of the abacus in the Ministry of Revenue
At night, in the inner courtyard of the Ministry of Revenue, the newly established Accounting Regulations Department was brightly lit, and the clattering sound of abacus still echoed in the courtyard.

A clerk raised his head, twisted his aching neck, rubbed his numb shoulders, stared with red eyes, and said to his companions: "What sin have we committed to have such a Shangshu, who gets up earlier than chickens and sleeps later than cats, and the little salary he gets is even despised by stray dogs on the roadside."

His companion looked around and said with empathy: "Yes, the Ministry of Revenue used to be a top-notch lucrative position, but now it is the most difficult and tiring government office.

Damn, if I had known that when I was selecting the government office, I should have chosen the Ministry of Personnel, or at worst the Imperial Household Department, but I was so stupid as to come to this unlucky Ministry of Revenue."

His companions all knew that he was just complaining for the time being, and if he really had to choose, he would still choose the Ministry of Revenue.

The clerk at the table behind him whispered, "Second Jia, I heard that the Ministry of Personnel is planning to restructure the six ministries and five temples at the center. It's said that it's going to be a big change. Why don't you take this opportunity to jump to another government office?"

The complaining old Jia was stunned, thought for a while and shook his head, "I have worked in the Ministry of Revenue for more than ten years. I can only read account books and use an abacus. If you ask me to go to other government offices, I really don't know what to do."

Another clerk asked curiously, "You Lao San, is it true that the Ministry of Personnel is rectifying the administration of officials and reforming the central government? The rumor has been circulating for half a year, but I have only heard thunder and have not seen rain."

You Lao San glanced at him and said, "How many times have we rectified the administration of officials and reformed the central government since the founding of the country? Every time it happened, it was earth-shattering. How could it happen so quickly?
I heard that Li Tianguan has been busy with this matter for the past six months with a group of people from the Ministry of Personnel. "

"What's leaked?"

You Lao San shook his head, "It's really weird! In the past, even if the cabinet ministers farted behind closed doors, the whole capital would smell it in less than an hour.

This time the Ministry of Personnel is rectifying administration and restructuring the central government. It's such a big move, but how come nothing has leaked out in half a year?

No, it should be that the whole capital is full of messy rumors, and none of them are reliable."

Another clerk said mysteriously, "You don't know this. There is a lot of mystery in it!"

"What mystery?"

The clerk pretended to show off and put away the documents in a pretentious manner, but he didn't say a word.

"Hurry up and speak, you four-eyed man."

"Fuck you, Zhang Siyan, hurry up and tell me!"

The clerks nearby urged him on.

You Lao San rolled his eyes and said, "Zhang Siyan, tomorrow is a holiday. How about we brothers pool our money together to set up a table at Chengfulou to treat you?"

Zhang Siyan then smiled and said, "You're welcome!"

He put down the document, poked his head out to look around, and then said softly: "I have a cousin who works in the East Factory. He mentioned it to me when we were having dinner together one time.

For this restructuring of the Ministry of Personnel, Li Tianguan specially organized a group of people who were familiar with the administration of personnel, including more than 40 assistant ministers, doctors, deputy ministers, principals, and clerks. A new personnel office was set up within the ministry, temporarily headed by Liu Cai, the former Nanjing Minister of War.

I heard that he was responsible for the rectification of the civil service and the reform of the central government. Li Tianguan repeatedly stressed that the information must be kept strictly confidential and not leaked at all.

Everyone laughed. Which minister had not repeatedly emphasized this? Was there any meaning in it?

It's all wind in the ears, what should be leaked still leaks out.

Zhang Siyan said calmly, "From the beginning, the East Factory sent spies in to keep an eye on everyone in the Organization and Personnel Department."

Everyone immediately fell silent.

Dongchang!

They actually sent the notorious East Factory to supervise this matter!

Seeing the expressions of the crowd, Zhang Siyan smiled smugly and continued, "In the beginning, some people in the Compilation and Personnel Department did not take it seriously and talked about things outside. What they said in the morning was sent to the East Factory in the afternoon; what they said in the evening was sent to the East Factory in the middle of the night. Even if they said it while hiding in the quilt at night, the East Factory thugs would come to their door early the next morning.

Entering the East Factory, haha, everyone, it's not that easy to get in there. Minor offenses will result in dismissal from office and immediate expulsion from the capital; serious offenses will result in the entire family being sent to Liaodong and Gansu to serve in the frontier war. No matter if you are a minister or a clerk, you will be severely punished.

Since then, everyone in the Personnel Department, from top to bottom, has kept their mouths shut.”

The room was silent for a while, and a clerk asked hesitantly, "The supervision of the East Factory is indeed different from others, but is it really so airtight? In half a year, no useful information has been revealed. Many officials in Beijing have asked around, but there is no definite news."

Zhang Siyan laughed, "There is a mystery in it."

"Is there any other mystery?" the clerks asked hurriedly.

Zhang Siyan started to act arrogantly again, hesitating and refusing to say anything.

Jia Lao Er said, "You bastard Zhang Siyan, all right, at the dinner tomorrow, we brothers will pool our money to buy you two bottles of Sichuan Jiannanchun!"

Zhang Si smiled happily, "Thank you, colleagues!" The clerks urged him, "Hurry up and tell me, hurry up and tell me!"

"You're right. After more than half a year, even if everything was done in a tight manner, some news would have come out. That's when the people from the Mission Bureau came out."

"The Education Bureau? What can the Education Bureau headed by Mr. Li do?"

"Haha, there are capable people inside. If three or five pieces of information are leaked from the Personnel Department, the Propaganda and Education Bureau will quietly release thirty or fifty pieces of information that seem true and false, and mix them together. Do you know which one is true and which one is false?"

"Hold!"

The clerks cursed in unison.

A manager came in and saw the clerks chatting together. He said with a fierce face, "What are you doing? Gao Butang is still in the signing room, waiting for you to calculate the accounts of Shandong in the first year of Longqing. If you can't hand it in, you know Gao Butang's temper. Can you bear it?"

I definitely can’t finish it!
Gao Gong has always been strong-willed and now has the final say in the Ministry of Revenue. When he gets angry, how can a small clerk like him stand it?
The clerks immediately returned to their posts and buried their heads in their work. The sound of abacus clacking could be heard again in the inner courtyard of the Ministry of Revenue in the night.

Gao Gong was sitting in the brightly lit signing room. Gao Yi and Xu Yang were sitting opposite him. The three of them were drinking ginseng tea and talking in low voices.

Xu Yangzheng said, "Gao Gong, the matter of the Xu Mansion is complicated and confusing, but most people in the court and the public think that you are the one who ordered it."

Gao Gong smiled bitterly and said, "I have presided over the survey of the land of the garrisons in the three towns of Xuanda, Shanxi, and have made great gains. I am now taking advantage of the victory to survey the land of the garrisons in the nine border areas, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and northern Zhili. If this continues, sooner or later, we will be able to survey the land of the whole country.

The matter of Xu Mansion came up at the right time, and everyone thought that it was planned by me, so as to kill the monkeys and scare the chickens and pave the way for surveying the land of the world."

Gao Yi asked, "Mr. Gao, it really wasn't you who did it?"

Gao Gong spread his hands and said, "Although Cai Chuntai (Cai Guoxi) is from Yongnian, Guangping Prefecture in the capital (now Handan City, Hebei Province), and has close contacts with scholars in the north, and I was also a examiner for his department in the palace examination, I have nothing to do with him and cannot order him around!

Besides, Songjiang is in the southeast. How can I reach in? I can’t reach in at all!”

Gao Yi stroked his beard, nodded and said, "This plan is vicious.

Cai Chuntai was at least a Jinshi who won two imperial examinations and was a famous scholar in the north. When this incident came out, not only the scholars in the north were in a frenzy, but also the newly promoted Jinshi and scholars in the south were full of criticism. During this period, many officials in the south submitted memorials to impeach him.

Xu Shaohu is the head of a family in Jiangnan, and he carries the high hopes of all the scholars in Jiangnan. After this incident, many people became disloyal, and the Jiangnan faction showed signs of splitting.

Gao Gong sighed, "It's only natural. We, the upright people, make friends based on our origins, teachers, and imperial examinations. Outsiders call us this party and that party. We say we share the same hatred and are united, but in fact, there are undercurrents.

Newcomers want to stand out and make further progress, but their predecessors are in the position ahead of them, blocking their career path. These newcomers are arrogant and take it as their responsibility to correct the world. They feel resentful when they see the predecessors who are unwilling to give up their positions.

Some people even regard the seniors as those who are just sitting there doing nothing. But these seniors, yes, people like you and me, have been suffering for more than ten or twenty years and finally have the opportunity to realize their ambitions. How can they give up easily?

They are called a party, but in reality they are just a group of people with different agendas, temporarily banding together to get what they want.”

"Yes." Gao Yi said with emotion.

Xu Yang is an "old veteran" who has endured for decades. He finally has a chance to realize his ambitions. He doesn't care how anxious the newcomers behind him are. He just wants to finish his work and achieve his achievements first!

He is now completely focused on this matter, calculating the pros and cons of this matter for the Gao Party.

Xu Yangzheng's future now depends entirely on Gao Gong.

When Gao Gong fell and the Gao Party disbanded, he became nothing.

If this plan went in a positive way, Xu Jie would fall from power and Gao Gong would be able to smoothly join the cabinet, and maybe even rise to the top and become the prime minister.

With the monkey from the Xu Mansion placed in front as an example, the work of surveying the land throughout the world will be much smoother.

The land survey was supposedly conducted by Gao Gong, but in fact most of the tedious work was done by Xu Yang. If the land survey was completed, it would be the first time since the Hongwu Dynasty that the country had made a great contribution.

He was more than qualified to be promoted to the Minister of Revenue, and even had the opportunity to enter the cabinet.

Just thinking about it makes me excited.

But is it so easy to bring down this old fox Xu Jie?

Even if he is overthrown with the secret support of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, this old fox will struggle desperately and fight back desperately, and the Gao Party will not be able to escape. I happen to be in charge of the actual work of measuring the land, and I will bear the brunt of it!
It’s so confusing!

Xu Yangzheng raised his head and asked slowly, "Duke Xinzheng, could this be the work of the crown prince and his party?"

(End of this chapter)