Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 448: Differentiation between Close and Distant Persons (asking for monthly ticket)

early morning.

That day was a grand court meeting, and almost all the civil officials and military officers in the capital would attend the meeting, which would also decide on several important personnel arrangements.

On Zhang Luan's way into the palace, Li Zisheng kept asking him questions. When he learned that Zhang Luan was unwilling to join the cabinet and just wanted to be the right vice minister of the Ministry of Rites, he became very anxious.

"Laizhan, I can understand you. Gaining the trust of His Majesty is more real than being promoted to a high position. It was the same for me before." Li Zisheng said.

Zhang Luan smiled, then glanced at Li Zisheng, as if asking, since I've said you're the same, then why do you still come to interfere with me?

"But Laizhan, as a person who has been through this, I solemnly tell you that this won't work," Li Zisheng said patiently.

"oh!?"

Zhang Luan turned his head and pretended to listen: "I'd like to hear the details."

Li Zisheng sighed, "For you, it doesn't matter if you have a high position or not, but for those who want to rely on you, you have to have a huge shade to protect them... You see, I am just a minister of government now. When I have the emperor's favor, I am naturally very glorious, but when I am on the verge of despair, I am isolated and helpless. The reason is that I suffer from the disadvantage of a low position."

Zhang Luan asked curiously, "Then do you think it would be good even if you became a prime minister, like Wan An?"

"he……"

Li Zisheng was speechless for a moment.

He was also wondering, how come Laizhan’s thoughts were so clear today and why he was so logical and well-founded when arguing with me?
Normally I see him taking things easy and I thought he just wanted to be a leisurely person. But today he told me that he didn't want to compete for a high position. Why does it seem to have aroused the ambition of this old guy?
Is it just my illusion?

"Then tell me, how can you help me?"

Li Zisheng said with a worried look on his face, "Can a Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites protect me?"

Zhang Luan looked around, leaned close to Li Zisheng's ear, and whispered in a low voice, "It is never me, Zhang, who can protect you. It all depends on your Majesty's attitude towards you.

"To put it bluntly, if I protect you, who will protect me? We are actually pretty much the same... Look at Wan An, so what if he is the Prime Minister? And there is also Li Shangshu of the Ministry of Personnel who has repeatedly submitted petitions to resign. Which of them has a lower position? It shows that no one in the court is having a better life than anyone else."

Li Zisheng said with some distress: "Hearing what you said, it does make some sense. Now is probably the spring of those East Palace lecturers, and we old officials are all in the decline of our days!
"Laizhan, don't just blame me. You are not a pure lecturer in the Eastern Palace. You were born a scholar and were promoted by the previous emperor to serve as an official. Entering the Eastern Palace as a lecturer broke the long-standing unspoken rules of the Hanlin Academy. In the eyes of those Jinshi, you are a flatterer who was promoted by luck and is an object to be overthrown, just like me."

……

……

The grand court meeting was officially held.

After going through a series of procedures, the court soon entered into the issue of nominating candidates for cabinet.

Wan An pushed Zhang Luan out without hesitation and did not ask for his opinion, because in Wan An's view, only by making Zhang Luan a cabinet minister would it be most beneficial to him.

On the other hand, Hanlin Academy scholar Yin Zhi and Imperial Lecturer Yang Shouchen jointly recommended Xu Pu to join the cabinet.

Zhang Luan was watching from the side and was very surprised.

He was thinking, didn’t my son say that Yin Zhi and Li Zisheng were flirting with each other?
Why did he support Xu Pu instead of me this time? Did Yin Zhi want to abandon Li Zisheng and join the civil servants' party?
Then there is Yang Shouchen...

In the tribute case, he was framed by Liang Fang and imprisoned. I helped him a lot. Why doesn't this guy remember it and recommend me as his benefactor?

When Zhang Luan and Xu Pu were put forward one after another, many people actually knew that the competition would start between the two of them.

Huai'en then came out to inquire whether there were any other officials from the Hanlin Academy who would recommend others... At this time, the Attendant Scholar Li Jie came forward to recommend Xu Qiong to the cabinet.

For a moment, a three-person competition emerged.

Zhu Youtang looked around and said loudly, "It is wise to listen to both sides. I would also like to hear the opinions of all the ministers... Father-in-law, do you have anyone to recommend?"

At this time, Zhu Youtang still did not put himself in the position of the emperor, did not claim to be the only one in the court meeting, and even called his father-in-law, appearing to be approachable.

Zhang Luan walked up to the line and said, "I think Xie Qian, the Imperial Academy's attendant, is both talented and virtuous, and he handles affairs in a very organized way. As I talk to him more and more, I feel that he is sharp-witted and good at making arguments, and he can be appointed as the prime minister, so I recommend Xie Qian."

Many people present felt puzzled.

Didn’t you, Zhang Luan, say before that you would recommend Xu Pu?
Why do you support Xie Qian now?

When Xie Qian heard this, he did not feel honored. Instead, he blamed Zhang Luan for putting him on the fire.

I clearly don't have the qualifications to join the cabinet. I lack both experience and ability. But you insist on believing in me. People who don't know would think that I have a deep connection with you.

If you want to recommend someone, you can just recommend Liu Jian. Why do you have to put the blame on me?

Zhu Youtang nodded in praise: "Mr. Xie is indeed very capable, and I have a deep understanding of this. Do you have any other candidates to recommend? If not, then select one or two of the above four people to join the cabinet to assist in government affairs."

The emperor suddenly set the tone, not strictly limiting the number of people who could enter the cabinet to just one person, but "one or two people", which left ample room for imagination among the civil and military officials present... The emperor was not very satisfied with either of the two people in the current cabinet.

After all, adding one new person to the cabinet can be said to help the two people in the current cabinet share some government affairs... If you add two people to the cabinet at once... doesn't this mean that the previous two will be replaced at any time? Or is it simply because they are considered incompetent and a few more people are needed to stabilize the political situation?

……

……

Candidates are preliminarily selected.

There are four people, Xu Pu, Zhang Luan, Xu Qiong and Xie Qian, who have made it to the final.

The Ming Dynasty has not had a court recommendation process for a long time. The next step is for the nominators to explain what the advantages of these candidates are in entering the cabinet.

Because Wan'an himself was the Prime Minister and the leader of the civil servants, he was the first to speak on behalf of the cabinet and praised Zhang Luan a lot.

And every sentence begins with “When the former emperor was alive.”

As if he was afraid that others didn't know, Zhang Luan was actually promoted step by step by Zhu Jianshen and had nothing to do with the new emperor.

"...When the late emperor was alive, he had repeatedly mentioned to the cabinet that Zhang Luan had the talent to govern the country, and he had asked him many times about court affairs and asked him to provide solutions. Whenever it came to core affairs, Zhang Luan was able to handle them with ease and fulfill his duties, which was very admirable..." "...When the late emperor was alive, he had repeatedly entrusted Zhang Luan with important tasks, from the Honglu Temple to the Taichang Temple, and then to the Hanlin Academy, the Zhanshi Mansion, the Ministry of Rites, etc. He also took charge of the Imperial Hospital. He was able to successfully complete the late emperor's entrustment and worked tirelessly. He is truly a model of a minister!"

As the person involved, Zhang Luan was also confused after listening to Wan'an's recommendation.

Is this fucking talking about me?
Apart from the name being mine, the rest of the content seems to have nothing to do with me.

When did the late emperor ask for my opinion on state affairs?

Also, when did the late emperor assign me any important tasks? At best, he gave me many titles, but I didn't even go to the government office to perform my duties, okay?

After Wan'an finished his recommendation, he returned to the ministerial circle, with his back straight, looking around, calm and composed, as if he was recommending talented people for the country and would do it even if there were tens of thousands of people against him. However, few people present took him, the long-lived elder, seriously.

After listening to this, Zhu Youtang nodded and said, "What Elder Wan said makes sense. Father-in-law, what do you think?"

"Please forgive me for not being able to obey your command."

Zhang Luan came out and rejected the offer without hesitation. "I am not being modest. It is just that my family background, experience, and qualifications for being an official do not meet the standards for entering the cabinet. I do not even know how to draft bills, and I have not had much experience as a clerk in the Hanlin Academy. I still have a lot to learn."

Huai En was a little surprised. There are people in this world who are not tempted by high positions and generous salaries, and always keep a pure heart. They even actively reject good things like joining the cabinet. They are really an anomaly!

He immediately said in a loud voice: "Minister Zhang, many people in the court have recommended you. In fact, qualifications and experience are secondary. The main thing is to see what your true intention is."

This was actually a wake-up call for Zhang Luan. If you really don't want to participate in the cabinet election, you have to be more resolute in your refusal, so as to shut up those who want you to take the position.

Zhang Luan seemed to understand the meaning of this, and he expressed his opinion eagerly: "I am not even competent for the work of the Hanlin Academy. Once I have an important job to take over, I basically have to ask for help from Xie Qian and others. Every time I think about this, I feel ashamed. Now that I have been recommended to join the cabinet, I...I want to find a crack in the ground to crawl into."

"Ha ha……"

Some people present couldn't help laughing out loud.

Speaking of easy-going, the father-in-law in front of us is a role model. He really has no airs at all.

The way he spoke also seemed a bit vulgar.

He actually said in public in the court that he wanted to find a crack in the ground to hide in?

This kind of truth... is understandable!

Because few of these ministers had ever seen Zhang Luan's true abilities, they naturally looked down on him. When he modestly said that he lacked qualifications and abilities, they naturally believed him.

Zhu Youtang asked, "Father-in-law, do you think Mr. Xie has reached the standard of a regent?"

"Yes."

Zhang Luan said, "Xie Qian is indeed very capable. Whenever there is a problem, as long as we ask him, he can always solve it. And he can do it quickly and effectively. I always think... if I can have one tenth of Xie Qian's ability, I will be able to gain a foothold in the court. But now... I would rather resign than be forced into the cabinet... I have already written a letter of resignation."

"what!?"

The people present stopped laughing at Zhang Luan.

There is a little bit of admiration in all of them.

You could obviously continue to work in the civil service, but now you are determined to resign?

It seems that you have a strong desire to become a military hero, so much so that our team of civil officials can't even accommodate a big shot like you?
"Father-in-law, you have helped me through the difficult times after all, and you have made great contributions in many things... The ministers present may not understand, but I know very well, so you don't have to be too modest."

Zhu Youtang said seriously, "Let's talk about resigning later. Just state your own opinion. If you really have no intention of joining the cabinet... then I will consider others first."

"Yes Yes Yes."

Zhang Luan hurriedly said, "I am absolutely not pretending. I really do not think I have the ability. Your Majesty, please understand."

"Ah."

Zhu Youtang nodded and said, "Let's talk about others."

Afterwards, Zhang Luan returned to his position as a minister.

……

……

When the ministers present heard this, no one could laugh anymore.

Just by looking at the emperor's attitude towards Zhang Luan at the grand court meeting, they felt what "differentiation between relatives and strangers" meant.

The emperor had clearly stated that Zhang Luan had made great contributions in supporting the enthronement, so on the matter of joining the cabinet, he first took the initiative to ask Zhang Luan's opinion, and only considered others after Zhang Luan himself said he did not want to join the cabinet... Wasn't this telling everyone present clearly that as long as Zhang Luan wanted to join the cabinet, the position would belong to him?

Moreover, Zhang Luan really knows how to decline.

With this pulling and advancing and retreating, his image in front of the emperor instantly became much taller.

A minister who has made great contributions but does not show off and does not seek to make progress... Which person in power would not like him?
The key is……

He is also the father of the current emperor's only wife. In addition, the emperor's mother died early and his father just passed away. This person can be said to be a very close person to the emperor.

Are we making fun of others?

Don’t let others look down on us or even not even look at us straight in the eye?

"Your Majesty has ordered that all government offices should express their opinions as much as possible, and see what achievements each candidate has made in the six ministries and local affairs, and compare their strengths and weaknesses, and then make a decision."

Wei Tai stepped out and said, "In two days, we will hold another court meeting to decide on the final candidates for the cabinet... I will adjourn the court!"

(Please give me a monthly ticket at the beginning of the month, thank you for your generosity!)

(End of this chapter)