I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 63: Beijing Military Administration Office

Zhu Xixiao knelt on the ground and said in a trembling voice: "The military situation is unclear. It is the Jinyiwei who failed to do their job. It is my fault for failing to do my job. Please punish me for dereliction of duty."

Emperor Jiajing waved his hand, signaling Li Fang to help Zhu Xixiao up.

"Xixiao, it has nothing to do with you! The Jinyiwei was able to figure out the number and whereabouts of the troops of Xinai, Baduer and others in just a few days, so that I and the Ministry of War would not be blind. This is rare and precious.

Jun'er also told me that it was fortunate that Xixiao gave Qi Yuanjing all the intelligence about the Northern Tartars that the Jinyiwei had learned in time, so that he could plan calmly, set up an ambush, and win a great victory in Xianghe.

Xixiao, you are innocent, and you have made great contributions! Huang Jin. "

"The slave is here!"

"Take out the python robe given to Xixiao."

Zhu Xixiao knelt down quickly and took the python robe from Huang Jin's hand with both hands, "I thank the emperor for his grace."

"Li Fang, bring a stool for Xixiao."

"Yes."

Zhu Xixiao handed the python robe to the eunuch and sat down on the stool.

"Now I have to rectify the nine borders, and it is very important to have a clear understanding of the military situation. Previously, the Jinyiwei had always been in charge of the military situation at the borders, but you had too many things to do and couldn't take care of it all."

There are indeed too many things to do.

He was responsible for the emperor's guard and ceremonial guard, monitoring the royal family, nobles, civil and military officials, investigating major cases of treason, and later on, he was also responsible for combating evil books and evil words and "catching thieves."

Investigating military intelligence at the border, originally a very important job, has gradually been squeezed out and turned into a marginal duty that is not valued.

Many times, the military intelligence collected by the Jinyiwei at the border was from reports from garrisons in various places, or from spies stationed in military camps in various places. The intelligence reported by the Jinyiwei was transferred several times, making it difficult to distinguish the truth from the false.

This time when Xin Ai and Ba Duer broke into the border, the Jinyiwei were able to quickly obtain intelligence because they already had spies throughout the capital and their intelligence network was well-developed and mature.

If it were in Xuanda or Liaodong, the Jinyiwei would also be completely in the dark.

"The prince suggested to me that we set up a border intelligence investigation department to investigate the situation of foreign invaders at the nine borders and give early warnings. It should be registered under the name of the Military Affairs Supervision Office of the Beijing Camp. The Jinyiwei can transfer the relevant personnel such as the thousand households, hundred households, and small flags who were previously responsible for collecting military intelligence to it."

"Yes!"

Zhu Xixiao responded without hesitation.

The Jinyiwei were the living Lei Fengs of the Ming Dynasty. Without the Jinyiwei to transfer a large number of personnel to the East and West Factories, the East and West Factories would not have been able to be established at all.

Now when various government offices in various places are short of staff, they will write a report to the higher authorities, saying that they are short of staff and ask the Jinyiwei Military Academy for help!
They were used to helping each other, so Zhu Xixiao didn't mind transferring some people from marginal businesses over there.

Soon, the imperial edict of Emperor Jiajing was sent down to the cabinet and placed on the desk of the chief minister Xu Jie. He glanced at it, pondered for a while, and asked someone to invite the two cabinet ministers Gao Gong and Li Chunfang.

"The Beijing Camp Military Affairs Supervisory Office, with the Governor-General, Duke Chengguo Zhu Xizhong, the Assistant Director, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the General Managers Hu Zongxian, Tan Lun, Zheng Luo, the Chief of the Office of the Secretary Xiao Daheng, the Chief of the Office of the Armaments Hu Rugong, the Chief Supervisor of the Office of the Training Qi Jiguang, and the Counselor's Office, with Xu Wei as the Counselor, also in charge of the Border Affairs Investigation Section, directly in charge of the New Army Camp and the Warrior Camp."

Gao Gong had a terrible headache after reading it. He held the imperial edict in his trembling right hand. He turned his head and glanced at Li Chunfang, shouting, "Your Highness, are you trying to get the Emperor to do something new again?"

Xu Jie frowned slightly, "Gao Xinzheng, that's the imperial edict!"

Gao Gong's face turned serious and he quickly placed the imperial edict on the table.

Xu Jie continued, "During the Guihai Incident, the emperor was furious and wanted to rectify the border affairs of Ji, Liao, Xuan and Da. This is a matter of course."

Li Chunfang said quietly, "During the Guihai Rebellion, the northern barbarians knocked on the gate of the capital, Anding Gate. The emperor was disturbed and worried day and night. The lord is worried and the minister is humiliated; the lord is humiliated and the minister dies."

Gao Gong glanced at him, his nose smoking with anger, but his arrogance was definitely suppressed.

Li Chunfang continued, "The emperor is worried about the corruption on the border and has put a lot of thought into it. He has come up with this strategy and we, as his subjects, should follow it."

"That's right. But this personnel matter is under the jurisdiction of the Six Ministries, and the Six Ministries listen to our cabinet. We have to have a good talk." Gao Gong still had the same temper. He was convinced in his heart, but he could not lose in momentum.

"Hu Ruzhen and Tan Zili served as general managers concurrently as the governors-general of Xuanda and Jiliao, which makes sense. But there is also a general manager Zheng Luo, what is his origin?"

"Zheng Luo, Zheng Yuxiu, was a Jinshi in the 35th year of Jiajing. He was appointed as the magistrate of Dengzhou. He investigated and corrected many unjust cases and suppressed several pirates who disturbed the territory. In the 39th year, he entered the court as an imperial censor and inspected Liaodong and other places. He pointed out the accumulated malpractices, corrected the mistakes and found loopholes, and was praised by Yang Gong of the Ministry of War. In the 41st year, he was ordered to investigate the case of Yan Maoqing, Wan Cai, Wan Yulong and others who embezzled salt taxes. It was found that Yan Shifan was the mastermind behind the scenes. The emperor issued an edict to execute Yan Maoqing, Wan Cai, Wan Yulong and others."

Li Chunfang told the story slowly and leisurely.

Gao Gong remained silent. This resume was reasonable and impeccable.

"What is the origin of Xiao Daheng, the chief clerk of the Secretariat?" Gao Gong continued to ask.

Li Chunfang replied: "Xiao Xiaqing, the great tycoon, was a Jinshi in the 41st year and was appointed the magistrate of Yuci County, Shanxi. Yuci suffered from famine for many years, and the people were hungry and cold and displaced.

Xiao Xiaqing posted notices to recruit refugees, gathered local soldiers to wipe out bandits, and pacified the local area. When Hu Zongxian inspected Shanxi Town, he learned of his talent and appreciated it very much, and recommended him to be the chief official of the Office of the Secretary.

"Who is Hu Rugong, the chief officer of the Armoury Department?"

"Hu Rugong, Hu Shengcai, was a Jinshi in the 37th year of Jiajing, and served as a magistrate in Ningbo. When Hu Ruzhen was suppressing the Japanese in the southeast, he promoted the development of firearms. Hu Shengcai was in charge of supervising the production of firearms. In less than a year, he produced more than 10,000 bird guns, 400 large and small fire guns, and countless ammunition. He was awarded the title of Director of the Ministry of Works for his merits."

They are all talented!
One is brave enough to take on responsibilities, one is able to make decisions, and one is good at making military equipment. The Prince's Party is full of talented people.

Gao Gong continued to ask: "Xu Wei, Xu Wenchang, how come you were assigned to the Councilor's Office as a councilor? What does he do? Confidential documents?"

"The Counselor's Office is responsible for drafting and reviewing laws, regulations and orders under the orders of the superiors."

"After all that talk, it's just confidential documents." Gao Gong curled his lips and didn't take the Border Affairs Investigation Department seriously.

Civil servants are naturally averse to this kind of spying agency, but they know that this is a tactic used by those in power, so they simply turn a blind eye.

"Where's Lao Zhao? Is Zhao Dazhou still in the Coordination Bureau?"

"Yes, Mr. Dazhou holds the title of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue and is in charge of the affairs of the Donation and Relief Coordination Bureau."

"No wonder there is no granary. With Mr. Dazhou and the Coordination Bureau, you are still worried about a lack of food and wages." Gao Gong said sarcastically.

Hai Rui's memorial on public security angered Emperor Jiajing and he was directly thrown into prison.

The ministers were in a state of panic, fearing that another large-scale purge would be launched, and no one was willing to mention the establishment of a coordinating bureau.

This made upright ministers such as Gao Gong very angry!
A little bit of setback makes you retreat, where is the backbone of a scholar!

Xu Jie, who had been silent just now, said: "Gao Xinzheng, this is the imperial edict issued by the emperor. We, as ministers, should obey it. Moreover, these official positions and names were all drafted by the emperor. You are making irresponsible comments and criticisms. This is not the responsibility of the cabinet to consult.

Even if the power to seal and reject is to be exercised, it is the responsibility of the Six Departments and the Metropolitan Censorate."

Xu Jie was hitting Gao Gong.

The current cabinet sounds powerful, but in reality it is just the emperor's secretariat in the outer court, and they need to put themselves in the right position.

As Gao Gong listened to Xu Jie's words, anger rose in his heart, but he couldn't vent it for the time being.

Li Chunfang saw this and sighed inwardly.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince suggested that Gao Gong be added to the cabinet, which has far-reaching implications.

He and Xu Jie have different personalities: one is fiery and the other is lukewarm; sooner or later they will become incompatible.

Xu Jie had extensive experience, high reputation, and wide connections in the six ministries and the Censorate, and was able to maintain a stable balance in the court.

Gao Gong is talented, energetic and efficient in his work.

More importantly, he was Prince Yu's teacher for nine years. Once Prince Yu ascended the throne, Gao Gong would soar to fame.

No matter what, Xu Jie would never dare to offend Gao Gong to death.

So the two of them dealt with each other in this twisted way, and the political situation was balanced.

(End of this chapter)