Ming Dynasty: Ask Zhu Yuanzhang to abdicate at the beginning

Chapter 318: Wherever the sun and the moon shine, and wherever the rivers flow, the flag of the Great Ming Dynasty must be hoisted!

Upon hearing the imperial decree, Xu Huizu, Geng Bingwen and other military generals and nobles hurriedly tidied their appearance and walked into the imperial study.

outside.

All the ministers were in an uproar and started talking about it.

The establishment of the Government Affairs Office just now was a groundbreaking event.

Although everyone had guessed that the new emperor would definitely reform the civil service when he ascended the throne.

But I didn't expect the changes would be so big.

The Administrative Office was established, and from then on the court no longer had only six ministries.

The entire power structure has completely changed.

In addition, governors and inspectors were stationed in local areas, provincial governments were established, and the three departments were integrated. It is no exaggeration to say that such a big change was earth-shaking.

Many ministers had already made plans in their minds.

The direct consequence of the new emperor's series of reforms was a significant increase in the number of official positions in the court.

Maybe I can move up a level and reach the next level.

At this time, the new emperor summoned military generals and nobles again. Could it be that he is going to conquer another place?
However, the new emperor just declared war on the three Jurchen tribes yesterday!

Everyone was somewhat surprised and confused.

Only Yang Rong, Yang Shiqi and other government ministers who had just entered to receive the title looked at each other and had some vague guesses.

The new emperor asked them to handle government affairs, but made it clear that except for military and national affairs.

Summoning military generals and nobles at this time should be to discuss military and national affairs.

In the imperial study room.

Zhu Yunhuan's gaze slowly swept over Xu Huizu, Geng Bingwen and other generals.

He was no stranger to these people.

Previously, at the Ming Military Academy, they had all studied under Zhu Yunhuan, attended his classes, and were his students.

"Back then, my grandfather established the Five Military Commandery as the highest military agency of the Ming Dynasty, in charge of the military registration of the national garrisons."

"Conquests, garrisons, training, etc. are all under the command of the Ministry of War."

"When war breaks out, the Ministry of War dispatches troops according to the emperor's order, appoints military commanders, issues seals, and leads the troops dispatched from the garrisons to go to war."

"When the war is over, the military commanders will hand in their seals to the court, and the troops will return to their respective garrisons."

"In this way, the power to command the army is separated from the power to mobilize the army. The generals will not have exclusive control over the army, and the army will not have its own generals, thus ensuring the court's absolute control over the army."

"Grandpa Emperor is a man of extraordinary talent, the greatest emperor of all time. This system is absolutely perfect."

Zhu Yunhuan paused, and then continued: "However, the troops in the various garrisons have been farming for a long time and have been away from the war, and have gradually become corrupt and degenerate."

"So before I ascended the throne, I, as the crown prince, abolished and reformed the garrison troops, established the Daming Military Academy, and reorganized the new army."

"Today, the size of the new army is growing day by day."

"But the original garrisons were huge, and even after they were abolished, there are still quite a few of them. The reform will continue to be promoted in the future."

"I believe that there is a sequence in learning and a specialization in skills."

"The court is divided into civil and military."

"Using culture to control military power is the root cause of the weakness of the Song Dynasty."

"Before this, I implemented a dual-chief system in the Ming army."

"But both of the two chief officers are military officers."

"It is the same in every army and in the court."

"I have just issued an order to set up a government affairs office to oversee government affairs."

"It has been decided to abolish the Five Military Governor's Office and set up a Military Affairs Office to manage the military affairs of the whole country."

"The military and the government are separated, and each performs its duties."

Several people were surprised and delighted when they heard this. Xu Huizu bowed and asked, "Your Majesty, I wonder how this Military Affairs Office is different from the original Five Military Commanders' Office?"

Several people looked at Zhu Yunhuan at the same time. This was also the doubt in their hearts.

Zhu Yunhuan smiled faintly and said, "Didn't I say it? The Military Affairs Office is in charge of all military affairs in the country. In addition to taking over the powers of the original Five Military Commands, the conquests, garrisons, and training that were previously under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War will all be under the jurisdiction of the Military Affairs Office in the future."

"Generals who were previously assessed and promoted by the Ministry of Personnel will now be considered by the Military Affairs Office and reported to me for review and approval, and will no longer be submitted to the Ministry of Personnel."

"From now on, the Ming court will keep the civil affairs in their own hands and the military affairs in their own hands, and neither side will control the other."

call!
call!
call!
The breathing of several noble generals became noticeably heavier.

Which military general would like to have a civil official bully him and abuse his power?
But what can be done?

The court's regulations are to control the military with civil power.

Although the Five Military Governorates was in charge of the country's military affairs before, it only had the power to command troops but not the power to mobilize them.

To mobilize the army, a seal from the Ministry of War is required.

More importantly, the promotion, appointment, dismissal, assessment, and merit evaluation of military officers at all levels are reported to the court by the generals in charge, but whether they can be passed in the end is discussed and decided by the officials of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel.

Although most of the time, both the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel would act according to the reported list, sometimes they would get stuck or even be deliberately made difficult.

The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel would certainly not interfere with these senior military officers who were qualified to meet the emperor.

I dare not act like that.

But it is completely different for the middle and low-level officers below.

Sometimes, some generals clearly had enough military merit and experience, but when they really wanted to be promoted, they had to come to the capital to make some moves and seek connections.

Although the military generals and nobles were already very dissatisfied with this, they were powerless to do anything about it.

After all, this is the regulation of the imperial court.

To put it bluntly, the emperor deliberately allowed civil officials to intervene in the management and assessment of military generals in order to strengthen his control over the army.

Now that they heard Zhu Yunhuan say that from now on, civil officials would be separated from military officials and neither would control the other, how could they not be overjoyed?
Xu Huizu frowned slightly and said, "Your Majesty, are you so confident that you will give all the military power to the generals? Don't you need checks and balances? Then won't even the Ministry of War have to be abolished in the future?"

Military power is no different from other power.

No emperor would safely hand over all military power to his subordinate generals without any checks and balances.

This is equivalent to the emperor handing over his life and property to the general who commands the troops.

Perhaps the only emperor in history who dared to do this was Liu Chan.

All military power was handed over to Zhuge Liang.

In addition, the emperor had long been sidelined by powerful officials and had no choice.

"The Military Affairs Department is in charge of the national military affairs, not a certain general in charge of the National Military Affairs Department."

Zhu Yunhuan's majestic voice sounded: "Under the Military Affairs Department, there are the General Staff Department, the Personnel Department, the Inspection Department, the Intelligence Department, the Logistics Department, the Weapons Department, the Training Department, the Recruitment and Retirement Department, the Criminal Department, the Legal Department, the Audit Department, the Confidential Department and other departments, which are responsible for the mobilization of troops, the appointment and removal of officials, and the assessment of other matters."

"Whenever a soldier commits an illegal act, the Inspection Office will be responsible for inspection and impeachment, the Criminal Department will arrest and try him, the Legal Affairs Department will try him, and he will be punished according to military law. It will no longer have any relationship with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Justice, or the Inspection Office."

"The powers of the Ministry of War will be adjusted."

"The first is to be responsible for recruiting soldiers. After the reform of the guard system, the soldiers of the Ming army will be recruited from the people, which needs to be organized by the local government."

"As a subordinate department of the Political Affairs Office, the Ministry of War can coordinate and handle such work."

"Second, we are responsible for coordinating the arrangements for soldiers and generals after they retire."

"When soldiers retire, they will be given financial subsidies based on their military service or be assigned jobs in government offices."

"When a military officer leaves the army, he will either retire or be transferred to a civilian position, and the Ministry of War will also be responsible for this matter."

"Third, it is responsible for coordinating the relationship between the military and the government and handling overlapping affairs between the two sides."

"In addition to the above three items, if I have a special decree, I can temporarily assign tasks to the Ministry of War."

Zhu Yunhuan already had all the considerations in mind.

Let civility be civil, and let military be military.

The purpose is just as he said before, everyone has their own expertise and we cannot let laymen guide experts.

It is simply a joke to let a group of civilian officials who have no knowledge of military affairs point fingers at national and military affairs.

On the other hand, the military and political affairs were separated, with only the emperor governing both places, which could also check and balance each other and prevent the emergence of powerful ministers.

As for the issue of generals' autocracy, this problem has been largely solved after the dual-chief system was established.

After the establishment of the Military Affairs Office, it itself became a huge military command organization.

There is a complete military command, military administration and supervision system internally, which can check and balance each other and prevent one person from dominating.

There is no need for outside officials to intervene.

Besides, it is not impossible to arrange for civil servants to enter.

You can be directly transferred to the Military Affairs Department and its subordinate departments, and be transformed from a civil servant to a military officer.

But once transferred in, that person will be separated from the civil service system and become a member of the military system.

Conversely, the same applies to generals retiring and soldiers leaving the army.

From the military system to the civil service system.

Of course, although the two are divided into different departments, the Military Affairs Department and the Political Affairs Department, the local garrisons and the local government offices, still need to communicate with each other.

In many things, both sides need to cooperate with each other.

This is the purpose of the Ministry of War.

Not only the imperial court should have a Ministry of War, but each province should also have a corresponding department or organization specifically responsible for conscription, arranging retired soldiers, and handling liaison matters with the garrison.

"I understand." Xu Huizu said respectfully, "Your Majesty is wise, and I think this arrangement is very good."

The other generals and nobles were all smiling happily.

They hate from the bottom of their hearts that civil servants should tell them what to do.

There was no other way before, so I could only endure it.

Now that Your Majesty has separated the civil and military powers, how can I not be happy?

Zhu Yunhuan glanced over and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

He knew exactly what these people were thinking.

The personalities, temperaments and dispositions of military generals and civil officials are very different.

Most people just can't stand each other.

Military generals thought that civil officials were useless scholars who were powerless and could not even tie a chicken.

Civil officials believed that military generals were crude and barbaric warriors.

Using civil officials to control military officers may seem good on the surface, but in reality, bad things often happen because of the mutual dislike between them.

The military generals chose to go against the civil officials.

Civil officials often deliberately made things difficult for military commanders, and when the time came to fight, they would often miss the opportunity to fight.

There are countless similar lessons.

In the future, a Military Affairs Office will be formed by military generals to lead and command the entire army. At least this kind of situation where people deliberately make things difficult for each other will be greatly reduced.

The middle and low-level generals below will know that the orders are given by their generals, not by the civil service system, and will obey more resolutely.

The civil servants have their own different factions.

Isn't it the same for military generals?
Just use the generals from different factions to check and balance each other.

Moreover, if a military general wants to start a rebellion or launch a mutiny, a crucial point is that he must lead the troops in the army and be in control personally.

But once he became the Minister of Military Affairs and had to work in Jinling City, he would be far away from the front-line troops and soldiers.

In this way, they were prevented from using the military power to launch a mutiny.

The General Staff Office is responsible for formulating combat plans and issuing troop mobilization orders.

The Personnel Department was responsible for assessing, promoting, appointing and dismissing military leaders.

The Censorate was specifically responsible for investigating illegal generals.

Criminal, legal, audit and other departments have further strengthened supervision over the military.

The Confidential Office is mainly responsible for ensuring the strictness of military orders and the smooth flow of communication between superiors and subordinates.

Nowadays, ordinary memorials from local officials are directly sent to the capital through the postal system of the Ministry of Posts and Communications, greatly reducing the cost for officials to submit memorials.

But in Zhu Yunhuan's view, although the imperial court had extremely strict control over the Ministry of Posts and Communications, it was a very dangerous thing to hand over almost all communications to the Ministry of Posts and Communications.

Although he believed that the Ministry of Posts and Communications would not and dared not betray the Ming Dynasty.

After all, the Ministry of Posts and Communications was just an ordinary administrative department, not a violent agency, and it did not have the ability to rebel.

But in everything, we should be prepared for the worst.

Even if the Ministry of Posts and Communications as a whole is absolutely loyal, there is no guarantee that every official in the Ministry of Posts and Communications is loyal.

What if a desperate madman happens to be an official in charge of the Ministry of Posts and Communications in a certain place, and he uses his power to cut off communications...even if it is only cut off for a very short period of time, it may cause unbearable losses to the Ming Dynasty.

Military and national affairs are no more important than other matters.

Modern armies of later generations also use multiple links and multiple methods to ensure smooth communications, rather than relying on a single communication method and communication link.

The Confidential Office was an agency specifically responsible for transmitting military intelligence and orders within the Ming Dynasty's military system.

In fact, in the future, when local governments send out high-ranking officials such as governors and inspectors, important memorials from local governments will still go through the original reporting system.

However, the scale of the reporting system has been greatly reduced, and it is only maintained at the smallest scale.

The Intelligence Bureau is the military's intelligence agency.

The intelligence system is very averse to entrusting all operations to one agency.

Although Yao Guangxiao's Ming Intelligence Bureau was already operating very well, Zhu Yunhuan still planned to set up another intelligence department within the military system.

In this way, even if Yao Guangxiao's Ming Intelligence Bureau is stationed in another country and the intelligence system in a certain area overseas is discovered and destroyed, the intelligence information of the Ming Dynasty will not be interrupted.

Moreover, gathering intelligence through different means and channels, comparing them with each other, and judging the truth of information from complex messages is the basic operation of the intelligence system.

The military intelligence system also has internal functions.

The main purpose is to monitor the movements of "rebels" such as the remnants of the White Lotus Sect.

Including tracking down military generals who may have colluded with them.

If local officials are found to be among them, they will be reported to the Military Affairs Office, which will then hand them over to the Government Affairs Office for handling.
And so on, each doing their own job.

The military system is a self-contained system, but no one person can hold all the power.

Important matters ultimately have to be decided by him as the emperor.

Zhu Yunhuan added: "For the time being, the Minister of Military Affairs will be Duke of Liang Lan Yu, Duke of Song Feng Sheng, General Zhu Neng, Zhang Fu, and you five."

"Those who are not in Beijing only hold the title of Minister of Military Affairs, but are not responsible for the specific affairs of the Military Affairs Office."

"Any minister of military affairs shall be granted a first-rank title."

"Nobility is not included."

"When meeting other officials, the courtesy should be based on the first rank, not the title, to show the equality of civil and military officials."

"When encountering military and national affairs, the Minister of Military Affairs can write to me and speak to me about the matter."

"Once I have made a decision, the Military Affairs Department can only follow my orders and execute them. No more objections are allowed."

"As for other military and national affairs that I have entrusted to you, the Military Affairs Department can make their own decisions."

Military generals are different from civil officials.

All the civil servants who hold high positions and have great power are from the capital.

The local area is still divided into three departments, and the newly established governors and inspectors have not yet been sent out, and none of them can be called a senior official of the court.

However, military generals need to go out to command troops, and among those outside, there are quite a few military generals with extremely high ranks.

If they are not appointed as Minister of Military Affairs, I am afraid these people will be very dissatisfied.

But it is only natural that they are not in Beijing, only hold an honorary title and are not involved in practical work.

In this way, once they finish commanding the troops and return to Beijing, it will be easy to make arrangements.

Therefore, Zhu Yunhuan generously appointed Feng Shengdu as the Minister of Military Affairs.

Although it is known that this guy often discussed secrets with the King of Zhou, he may have had ulterior motives for a long time.

But it's okay.

Appointing him as the Minister of Military Affairs would allow him to stay in the capital with justification, keep him away from the army, and actually deprive him of his military power.

After all, in Zhu Yunhuan's design, the Military Affairs Office was actually an institution that kneeled and listened to imperial edicts.

Only military affairs that Zhu Yunhuan did not care about could be decided by the Military Affairs Office on its own.

Moreover, when the Military Affairs Department is in operation, specific matters must be carried out through the various departments under it.

The ones who really have power are the lower-level officials.

Just like the various departments under the Government Affairs Office.

This made it very convenient for Zhu Yunhuan to transfer students from the Ming Military Academy to various departments of the Military Affairs Office to take charge of affairs and firmly control the military system.

This is the real stroke of genius!

Military generals who fought for their country and made military achievements were mostly granted titles.

In theory, as long as one holds a title of duke or marquis, even if one is a first-rank official in the civil service, one has to get off the sedan chair and greet them when meeting them on the road.

But theory is theory, and reality is reality.

Feudal society did not strictly follow the rules of etiquette in everything.

In particular, many of the sons of nobles who inherited the title had not yet held office in the court, had no official power, and only had an empty title.

Even if one has a high title like Duke, when encountering a low-ranking civil servant who is in charge of affairs, he will try to please and curry favor with the other party.

On the other hand, the civil officials would never pay respect to these dukes and marquises who only had honorary titles but no real power.

To put it bluntly, rank is virtual and position is real.

The control of military commanders by civil officials was systematic.

Even at the beginning of the founding of the country, the system architecture was designed in this way.

Even a military general like Lan Yu would certainly look down upon ordinary civil officials.

However, important civil servants such as Liu Bowen and Song Lian were still treated with equal courtesy.

In this case, it would be better to simply abolish that special courtesy which is in name only.

Otherwise, after the separation of civil and military affairs, the military generals would feel that they were no longer under the control of the civil officials, and would probably immediately become arrogant, relying on their status to demand that the civil officials salute them everywhere, or even roll up their sleeves and punch people.

This group of people have such temperament and character.

Zhu Yunhuan knew it all too well.

So, take precautions first.

The Military Affairs Department is not taken into account, and the same is naturally true for the lower ranks of nobility.

The civil side is the civil side, the military side is the military side, they are parallel to each other and each has its own discussion.

The civil servants' psychology will also be relatively balanced.

You can't control the generals, but you can't let them take over your head either, right?

War, of course, is the continuation of politics.

When it comes to important national policies, Zhu Yunhuan would still convene officials from the Political Affairs Office and the Military Affairs Office to discuss together in order to consider the overall situation.

"Your Majesty, I accept your order. Long live the Emperor!"

Xu Huizu, Geng Bingwen and others quickly knelt down to express their gratitude.

Zhu Yunhuan nodded slightly and said, "Stand up."

"The Military Affairs Office will be operational from today onwards."

"I have already chosen the office where I will work. It is inside the Imperial Palace."

"The Political Affairs Office is in the west, and the Military Affairs Office is in the east."

"I have high hopes for you, and I hope you will not let me down."

Several people kowtowed again and said, "We will not let your majesty down and swear to be loyal to your majesty until death."

Although they are all nobles with honorable status.

But now there are no troops to lead and everyone is idle at home.

Now the emperor has asked them to lead the Military Affairs Office and become military ministers, which is undoubtedly a great honor.

Several people were extremely excited, rubbing their hands, ready to do something big.

"Good!" Zhu Yunhuan stood up from the dragon throne and said, "I set up the Military Affairs Office because the Ming Dynasty will conquer the world and conquer all directions in the future."

"As the Son of Heaven, I have the power to govern the Ming Dynasty, and I also have the responsibility to educate the barbarians. This is also the responsibility of the subjects of the Ming Dynasty."

"The Ming Dynasty will become the first empire in the world where the sun never sets."

"The barbarians have never been educated for generations, and their lives are miserable and unbearable. It is our responsibility to educate them and save them."

"After the establishment of the Military Affairs Office, we must immediately prepare for military affairs and formulate detailed strategies for foreign operations."

"I want the Ming army to conquer every corner of the world."

"Let all the barbarians be blessed by the grace of our great Ming Dynasty."

"From now on, wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever the rivers flow, the flag of our Great Ming will be hoisted!"

……

(End of this chapter)