I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 653 Brother will help you deal with him!
Pan Yinglong said: "My humble brother knows that the most important thing for Tan Butang of the Ministry of War right now is to reform the post station transmission."

Su Feng laughed, "That's right. The busiest thing in our country right now is reform.

Prime Minister Zhang made drastic changes to the official system and fiscal and taxation systems. Prime Minister Hu perfected the army and navy reforms. Prime Minister Zhao reformed the supervision and management.

Tan Butang is also busy, busy reforming the post stations and changing the local guard posts."

"I know about Tanbudang's post station reform, and Shuntian Prefecture has also coordinated the post station reform in the capital.

The reform of the Ministry of War this time is very powerful. It can be said that it has been completely changed. If it were in the past, the Censorate and the Qingliu would definitely jump out to make comments. "

Su Feng laughed: "Of course.

Those upright officials can’t do the real work, but they are very good at pointing out other people’s mistakes. However, after several disturbances in the court, these upright officials who were good at empty talk were swept away. Most of the remaining ones dare not speak out. ”

As the matter concerned the factional struggles in the imperial court, the two men stopped talking about it and continued to talk about the Ministry of War's reform of the post stations.

"Brother Su, my Shuntian Prefecture has not helped the Ministry of War much, and I don't know what the rules of Tanbutang's reform are. You have been helping for so many days, you should know something. Can you teach me?"

Su Feng glanced at Pan Yinglong.

Do you think people really don’t know anything?
This is the working style of a capable and courageous official.

He is concerned about all political affairs, and will try to understand them clearly even if they are not his own affairs.

They are not meddling in other people's affairs. They are ambitious and have good plans. They take it as their responsibility to ensure the stability of the country.

"Haha, Brother Pan, you are too polite. It's not like I can give you any advice. I will just give you some advice."

Pan Yinglong used a serving chopstick to pick up some food for Su Feng and filled his glass of wine.

"Brother Su, don't be in a hurry. Let's talk slowly while we eat."

No wonder the emperor thinks highly of him. He is talented but not arrogant, ambitious but not impatient, and has the demeanor of a prime minister in his early thirties.

There are rumors in the court that the Governor-General of Huguang, Wang Yi'e, and the Junior Magistrate of Shuntian Prefecture, Pan Yinglong, are being trained by the emperor to take over the positions of Hu Zongxian and Zhang Juzheng and become the left and right prime ministers in the future.

It really is not groundless!
"When you meet a bosom friend, a thousand cups are not enough; when you meet a good friend for a meal, you will never go hungry." Su Feng's desire to make friends became even stronger, "Brother Pan, let's eat and talk at the same time.

My name is Baicheng, you can just call me Baicheng, Brother Pan."

"Brother Baicheng, you can just call me Fengwu."

"Feng Wu, come, let's have a drink."

"Okay, Brother Baicheng, come on, cheers!"

The two drank a cup together, and their relationship became closer.

After taking two more bites of food, Su Feng picked up the towel, gently wiped his mouth, and started talking about the Ministry of War.

"The Ministry of War now has two major issues: one is the garrison, and the other is the post.

Some officers and soldiers of the garrison were transferred to the town guard army, some were assigned to the battalion guard army, and the rest guarded the land which was gradually converted into agricultural reclamation companies and farm ranches. The general situation was set and there were no twists and turns.

The reform of the post stations, under the leadership of Zhang Xiang, first abolished the post station pass and inspection system. Officials on official business used the post stations, and all of them were actually kept on account, with their photos and business trip permits as proof, and their accounts were recorded with a signature. The post stations reported to the Ministry of War's Chariot and Vehicle Department every month, and the Chariot and Vehicle Department then transferred it to the Ministry of Revenue.

The Ministry of Revenue will then reconcile and settle accounts with various departments.

The system is good, but it takes a long time. In the early stage, it was all paid for by the Ministry of War. There are 1,936 land and water post stations across the country, and the Ministry of War paid for them very hard. "

Pan Yinglong nodded, "The imperial post system is divided into three parts: post stations, express delivery, and transfer. The post stations are the skeleton, and the express delivery and transfer are the flesh and blood.

In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, post stations used post passes as credentials. Within a few years, the post system collapsed, and public officials used post carriages and postmen at will, ignoring the restrictions of national laws.

Officials who were not on official business, but took advantage of the power of others, used the post stations at will, ate and drank at the post stations at will, and even extorted travel expenses.

Post station expenses increased dramatically.

During the Jiajing period, the post station system was rectified and the post station token was changed to a check-in certificate, which indicated the name, position, destination, round-trip dates, number of carriages, etc. of the person using the post station.

Unexpectedly, within just a few years, the Ministry of War, patrol officers and inspectors began to issue permits indiscriminately, and names and other content could be changed at will.

Not only could officials use the Kanhe at will, but they could also give it as gifts to others. Some officials took the opportunity to use the Kanhe to make profits.

By the end of the Jiajing period, the post system had indeed reached the point where it was time to change.”

Pan Yinglong stood up and poured wine for Su Feng and filled his own glass as well.

Su Feng tapped his index finger and listened with great interest.

This is what a capable minister is like. He knows all about state affairs and can handle them with ease.

Pan Yinglong raised his glass, drank half a glass with Su Feng, ate two bites of food, and continued talking.

"In the 45th year of the Jiajing reign, Zhang Xiang submitted a memorial containing the expenditure accounts of the Tancheng Horse Posthouse in Jinan Prefecture, which he had investigated when he was the governor of Shandong.

There are sixty dry laborers in Tancheng Post Station, requiring four hundred and thirty-two taels of silver; six cooks, whose wages are forty taels and two cents; and uniforms, which are the uniforms of the post station clerks, cost three taels and six cents.

There were 45 horses, and each horse's fodder cost 30 taels of silver, totaling 1,350 taels. There was also more than 240 taels of silver for supplies. The total cost of Tancheng Posthouse was 2,065 taels of silver per year.

Who will bear these expenses? The people of Jinan Prefecture will share the cost.

How many post stations are there in Jinan Prefecture?
In addition to Tancheng Horse Station, there are also Yancheng Horse Station in Qihe County, Liupu Horse Station in Yucheng County, Dongbeizhi Horse Station and Gushan Horse Station in Changhe County, Wuning Horse Station in Feicheng County, Longshan Town Horse Station, Zhangqiu Horse Station, Qingyangdian Horse Station in Zhangqiu County, Anning Village Horse Station in Zouping County, Baishan Horse Station in Changshan County, and Zhaofeng Horse Station in Qidong County.

There are twelve horse post stations in total. The other eleven post stations are smaller than Tancheng Post Station, but their annual expenditure is not small. It is estimated that the average expenditure is 1,500 taels of silver. The annual expenditure of post stations in Jinan Prefecture is 18,565 taels of silver.

As Pan Yinglong was speaking, he dipped his right index finger in the water from the teacup and wrote and drew on the table to calculate the sum.

Su Feng was stunned as he watched Pan Yinglong's fingers moving continuously.
This guy is so scary!
He had so many names, so many numbers in his head, and then he just recited them out loud.

No wonder he has the potential to be a prime minister. In comparison, I am just lucky to be the pacification envoy.

There is really no comparison between people.

“The imperial court will not pay so much silver, and it will eventually fall on the shoulders of the people of Jinan.

Zhang Xiang asked the Ministry of War to make a statistics. In the third year of Longqing, all the post stations in our dynasty spent more than 2.73 million taels of silver. This included the repair and maintenance of the post stations, daily expenses, the purchase and feeding of carriages and horses, and the wages of postmen.

This account has been hanging in the account of the Ministry of War for a year. Currently, only one-third of the central and local government offices have checked the accounts with the Ministry of Revenue and recognized the money and grain spent by their officials at the post stations.

The remaining two-thirds were still being argued back and forth, which made the good-tempered Mr. Tan angry. He slammed the table and said that if they didn't check it out, he would directly deduct the money from the accounts of various government offices in the Ministry of Revenue. "

Su Feng smiled, "These government offices are used to buck-passing and quibbling. Whenever something happens, they put it aside for three or four months, and then pick it up after the higher-ups urge them to do so. Then, they pass it back and forth between the various departments of the government office, and another three or four months pass.

I am very familiar with these grandsons, they all do things this way."

Pan Yinglong also laughed, "Brother Baicheng is right. Especially the local government offices, they have been doing things this way for hundreds of years, and it is difficult to change the accumulated problems. It is useless for the court to repeat the order.

We can only find solutions province by province. The provinces that have corrected the trend relatively well are Jiangsu, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Liaoning, Guangdong and Guangxi, Huguang, Zhejiang and Zhili. "

Su Feng was amused, "That's a must, don't you see who is in charge of these places?"

They both laughed. The people in charge of these places were all people with horns on their heads. The prefectures and counties below were completely submissive to them, and it was impossible for the atmosphere to be bad.

Pan Yinglong continued: "When the cabinet met, it was believed that the post stations needed to be changed, and they had to be changed drastically. Zhang Xiang meant to strictly enforce the Kanhe system, and any official who transferred, forged, or abused the post station Kanhe would be severely punished.

It is better to start from the administration of officials and rectify the privileges of officials in using post stations. After several discussions, Tan Butang and others drafted a draft and sent it to Xiyuan, but it was rejected in half a day. "

Su Feng listened with great interest.

Although he was a high-ranking official of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he knew very little about matters concerning national politics and decision-making. Compared with the cases he handled on a daily basis, which were all shady and dirty, these things were not so grand and exciting to hear about!

"Your Majesty, do you think it's inappropriate to fight back?"

"Yes."

Pan Yinglong glanced at Su Feng and felt determined.

To make friends, sometimes you have to show off your strength. However, wise people keep calm, while ordinary people prefer to show off like a peacock.

If you don't demonstrate your ability, how can others help you when you ask them to do something for you later?

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

Helping you is a favor, not helping you is a responsibility.

Why would someone do you a favor?
Isn't it just about your ability and background?
"The Emperor summoned Prime Minister Zhang and Minister Tan to the Western Garden for personal guidance. The Emperor said that strict inspection and rectification of the system of officials are only a temporary solution and not a fundamental solution. If rectification is carried out this year, it will be good this year, but it will be relaxed and neglected next year."

"Your Majesty is wise, that is indeed the case."

"The emperor said that if we want to change, we should change it thoroughly. Instead of patching it up here and there, it is better to hand the post station over to the market directly."

"Leave it to the market?" Su Feng asked curiously, "Brother Fengwu, who is this god in the market? Even the emperor listens to him?"

"The market is where you buy and I sell," Pan Yinglong explained simply and clearly.

"You buy and I sell? What does this have to do with the post station?"

Su Feng was even more confused.

Pan Yinglong continued to explain: "The emperor's intention is that there is no need to use the post station system. The post stations should be run independently, and everyone who stays in the post station must pay, regardless of whether they are officials or civilians."

Su Feng was stunned, "Is this possible?"

"Why not? You're staying at the inn for the night, don't you want to pay? The post station is the imperial court's post station, not a post station for one person or one family, who dares not to pay?"

Yes, the post station is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War.

Although the Ministry of War is not as powerful as before and no longer holds military power, it is not someone you can bully just because you want to.

Su Feng thought for a moment and asked, "Luyi Station is a horse station. Officials need to change horses here when they travel. What should we do?"

"Now horse carriage transport companies have been established in various places. Many of them are converted from previous delivery companies. Many routes have been opened. They are divided into passenger and freight transport.

When officials travel, they can take a scheduled passenger carriage or charter a carriage.

These carriage companies all followed the post routes, changing horses at the post stations and staying overnight at the post stations.

Outsiders don't need to worry about how the carriage company settles accounts with the post station. You just need to buy a ticket and the carriage company will take you safely to your destination."

"What about accommodation and meals along the way?"

"There are several types of carriage company tickets. One type provides food and lodging, and the other type does not provide food and lodging, and you have to do it yourself. It's up to you to choose."

There are so many tricks!
Su Feng swallowed his saliva and asked again: "Officials go on business trips, and it usually takes half a month to a month to go back and forth. The expenses are not small. Do the officials pay for it themselves?"

"You can ask the government to advance your travel expenses, and then ask the government's finance department to reimburse you after the business trip. Take out the receipts for the tickets, meals, accommodation and other expenses you spent along the way, list them one by one, and then have the finance department review them. If the travel expenses you advance are more, you can get a refund, and if you don't, you can get a reimbursement."

Su Feng was completely speechless.

It's really clearly arranged for you.

By now Su Feng could roughly understand the emperor's intention of handing over the post station to the market.

The cabinet does not need to supervise government offices and officials across the country. Repeated orders to regulated the use of post codes are of little use!

You can pay first, or each government office can pay first, advance the travel expenses, and let each government office manage its own people. Anyway, the Ministry of Revenue budgets you so much money every year, and the accounts must be audited every year.

If there is any fraud in the travel expenses, it will be audited and investigated.

If the accounts are not right and something goes wrong, the chief officials and assistant officials of each government office will come forward to take responsibility.

This holds their lifeline in check, forcing them to manage their people well, perform their duties honestly, and not mess around.

The Cabinet manages the six ministries, the various temples, the two governments and the twenty provincial governments. The six ministries, the various temples and the two governments and the twenty provincial governments manage the prefectures and counties below them step by step.

Responsibility is passed down level by level and pressure is exerted layer by layer.

Su Feng was a little confused. Zhang Xiang's method was to find a way to control the officials and formulate various regulations to limit their privileges. However, anyone with a discerning eye could see that this could only last for three to five years. If it was a little relaxed, it would not last even for one or two years.

However, the emperor's tactics were also aimed at officials, but the purpose was to sever the relationship between the officials and the post stations, turning them into a buying-sell relationship.

Will it work?
Su Feng, in his experience, saw that it was very effective. As for how long it would last, it would depend on how quickly the officials could find loopholes in the new system.

Yes, the emperor's move is equivalent to directly depriving officials of the privilege of using the post station for free or at a discount, rather than just imposing a restriction.

Wonderful!

Only at this moment did Su Feng realize the mystery.

He slapped his thigh and said regretfully, “These days, I have been helping the Ministry of War to set up the security rooms at various post stations, but I have not tried to understand the mystery behind it.

After listening to the official from the Imperial Guards, I felt that it was too complicated and confusing. I decided to continue doing my promising job as a guard.

Pan Yinglong laughed loudly: "Brother Baicheng, but now the Department of Vehicles is no longer called the Department of Vehicles. It has been split into the General Administration of Posts and Communications and the General Administration of Transport Management."

Su Feng also laughed, "Yes, since the Longqing New Deal, new government offices have emerged in endlessly. For example, the Zhenfu Division of our Jinyiwei has the same name, but its responsibilities are very different."

They drank and talked for about an hour, and the pot of Qiulubai was finished. The two of them became brothers and their relationship became closer.

Seeing that the time was almost right, Pan Yinglong, with a red face, took Su Feng's hand and said with a breath of alcohol: "Brother, I asked you to come here tonight just to ask you for a favor!"

Su Feng patted his chest and said, "Brother, tell me, I will definitely do it for you."

"Please help me check this person. If you find any problems, please help me deal with him."

Su Feng's eyes flashed, "Who are you going to deal with, brother?"

"Luan Yongfang, the brother-in-law of Feng Bao, the eunuch of the Imperial Household Department."

Su Feng's body stiffened, and he was covered in cold sweat. He suddenly woke up from being a third drunk.

(End of this chapter)