Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 441: Layoffs and Cabinet Secrets

Official appointments fell under the Ministry of Personnel for civil officials and the Ministry of War for military officials. Specifically, the Ministry of Personnel's Civilian Selection and Rectification Division handled the promotions and transfers of civil officials, while the Ministry of War's Military Selection and Rectification Division was responsible for the selection, appointment, promotion, replacement, and rewards of military garrisons and local officials. While the Jinyiwei (Emperor's Uniform Guard) was a personal guard directly under the emperor and not part of the Five Military Commandery, it was nonetheless a guard. As a guard, the selection, transfer, and promotion of its military officers fell under the Ministry of War.

In other words, although the Jinyiwei Commandery enjoyed varying degrees of say in the appointment and dismissal of Jinyiwei officials by directly influencing the emperor himself, it did not actually have the power to appoint and dismiss Jinyiwei military officials.

If individual officials were to be promoted, transferred, or demoted, the Commandery could still accomplish this through memorials of recommendation or impeachment. This was the case with the chiefs of the East Office, West Office, Street Office, and Southern Pacification Office, as well as some of the assistant officials. However, to achieve this kind of blood-shaking reorganization, where six were eliminated and three were retained, the Commandery had to communicate and cooperate with the Ministry of War.

Layoffs are relatively easy.

The emperor had already sent word to the Ministry of War and the Military Department. These two departments, especially the Military Department, had long been deeply dissatisfied with the many corrupt and incompetent officials in the capital, those with poor conduct or those who simply sought to get by. They had impeached many of them during the previous emperor's reign, but the lazy Emperor Wanli had always disdained the Ministry of War and had ignored all reports. Now, the emperor had spoken out, calling for a complete "purge" of the Jinyiwei. Naturally, the two military departments were pleased.

Therefore, the Command Headquarters only needs to send the document requesting the dismissal of a person to the Military Department for review and approval. The Military Department will then stamp it and send it to the Ministry of War. The Ministry of War will then remove the person's name from the list of officials and issue a formal dismissal notice to the official.

However, filling a vacancy is not something that can be accomplished with just a piece of paper.

Luo Sigong could recommend high-ranking officials from the three chambers and one department to the emperor, but he couldn't and wouldn't dare simply throw hundreds of mid- and low-ranking officials to the emperor for appointment with just a list of names. This would simply create jealousy for himself. Even if the emperor didn't react for the time being, the Ministry of War and the Military Science Department would never allow him to do so.

Luo Sigong knew without much thought that if he dared to write a memorial with a list of names, the cabinet would definitely reject the memorial. Moreover, the Ministry of Justice would immediately issue a list of names and bury him in the water.

Accusations of treason and tyranny were heaped upon him, a charge that would have given even a mediocre monarch pause, let alone one whose scheming was even greater than his own treacherous ministers. Therefore, Luo Sigong could only have Hai Zhentao and two doctors from the Ministry of War's Military Selection and Rectification Division slowly assess and select candidates. He would personally visit the Ministry of War and consult with his own soldier, Cui Jingrong, if communication issues arose. If the military department approved the application, they could fill a vacancy in a centurion's office within one to three days.

This efficiency wasn't great, because even without counting the miscellaneous offices under the Jinyiwei, or those managed by the Jinyiwei with a few Jinyiwei vacancies, such as the branch office of the Silijian Ceremonial Office outside Dong'an Gate, even considering only the five core offices—front, back, left, center, and right—that's a full fifty hundred-household offices. Even at this rate, filling the positions would take at least two months. And if the military department were to intervene and occasionally reject a few appointments to assert its presence, even more time would be wasted.

"It will take some time," Zhu Changluo asked, "How much time will it take?"

Luo Sigong calculated silently. "At the fastest, two months; at the slowest, half a year."

"It'll take almost two months." Zhu Changluo pondered for a moment, then asked, "Although the layoff ratio has been determined, is there any need to rush? If we lay off everyone at once, isn't General Wei worried that it will affect the normal work of the government office?"

"Your Majesty," Luo Sigong replied, "I was originally worried that the serious vacancies would affect the operation of the government office and worsen public security in the capital. Therefore, I tried my best to maintain the situation of laying off and filling new positions at the same time. However, although delaying layoffs and filling new positions can barely maintain the operation of the government office, it has caused panic among the people in the government office within a few days. If this continues, it will sooner or later lead to chaos. Therefore, I took the risk of using the pretext of improving public security to implement the method of expedited dismissal."

From the moment the news of the massive layoffs spread out of the Forbidden City, various institutes under the Commandery began to experience varying degrees of unrest, especially among those who knew they would be laid off but had temporarily remained on the job.

Luo Sigong even found out that soon after the news was released, some people had already started to collude with their colleagues and were preparing to go to the Southern Pacification Office, which was in charge of the layoffs, to ask Hai Zhentao for an explanation.

At this time, the best option is to adopt the method of "short pain is worse than long pain", lay off all those who should be laid off in one fell swoop, and then announce that the laid-off personnel can also participate in the subsequent selection to regain their official positions, so as to divide the laid-off officials.

Meanwhile, the massive layoffs in the inner court resulted in tens of thousands of unemployed people being released, along with severance pay worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, which spread from the imperial city to all corners of the capital, causing a rapid deterioration in public security. Luo Sigong simply didn't dare release the entire layoff list all at once, as otherwise the Jinyiwei's grassroots command structure would collapse that very day.

If there were a few more vicious robberies like the one at Baiyun Temple in Beijing, or if one or two officials died, he would be drowned in the criticism of the court.

Luo Sigong had no choice but to delay the layoffs and replacements despite the pressure from the uproar within the Jinyiwei and even the mutiny at the Qianhu Suo.

Just when both sides were facing difficulties, a sudden relief came. Two memorials from the Censorate directly prompted a major purge. Luo Sigong also took advantage of this strong wind to have Hai Zhentao take the layoff list to the Ministry of War and the Military Department for approval.

The process moved swiftly. The day after the list was submitted, the Ministry of War issued notices of dismissal and retention to each yamen. This caused an uproar. That same day, the dismissed military officers gathered and attempted to seek justice at the Southern Pacification Office and even at the Zhihuishi Office, just across the street.

But since Luo Sigong dared to operate on the aorta, he would not have been without any deployment.

While Luo Sigong was issuing orders to the Southern Office, he also sent orders to the governors of the three branches, requesting that they mobilize elite troops directly under their own branches to support the Command and Southern Pacification Office. By this time, the layoffs and replacements in the various branches had long since concluded. The military officers who received the orders were either survivors or those who had been fortunately promoted. They might have had some connections with the laid-off officials, but fundamentally, the two groups were likely united in purpose.

Moreover, the Five Military Commandery was nearby, and Luo Sigong had already informed them. Therefore, the guards of each office were on high alert. Seeing this, the rioting revolutionaries quickly lost their momentum and finally left in anger, seeking other solutions.

But they had no other choice. The day of the mass layoffs was the day when the General Affairs Committee for Restoring Public Security in the Capital was established and held its first meeting in the Rong government.

After a thorough cleanup, all the foundations for their schemes were gone. Even if some revolutionary officials wanted to ally with the criminals they normally protected to stir up some public order incidents and threaten the commanding general, they could only find people in the temporary concentration camps designated by the Ministry of Justice. For them, the concern now was no longer how to wear the official hats they had been stripped of, but how to save their wealth and even their lives.

"In other words, it won't be a hindrance for the time being?" Zhu Changluo asked.

"Yes," Luo Sigong added, "After the backlog of cases was transferred to the Ministry of Justice, the East and West Offices became even less busy. Only the Street Office, which needed to work with the Metropolitan Censorate to rectify the baojia system, remained as busy as before."

"Yes," Zhu Changluo nodded. "Since you already know the answer, I won't ask any more questions."

Luo Sigong's eyes moved, he stood up and walked to the imperial desk, and kowtowed silently. Only now did Luo Sigong truly relax.

"Go back and sit down. I have something else to ask you." Zhu Changluo waved his hand.

"Yes." Luo Sigong stood up again. He glanced at the imperial desk and saw the emperor open the first drawer on the right and pull out an opened envelope.

Luo Sigong thought the emperor would show him what was inside, so he deliberately slowed down his pace. However, until Luo Sigong put his buttocks on the wooden block again, the emperor did not hand him the letter that had been shaken out.

"Has the Commandery not yet announced the salary increase following the reorganization?" Zhu Changluo asked. "Your Majesty, not yet," Luo Sigong explained. "I plan to announce it after all vacancies are filled. Otherwise, those recently dismissed might cause unrest, which won't be quelled in time."

In addition to the incumbent officers, the Jinyiwei roster also included hereditary officials with salary, also known as stipends. These stipends received salaries but did not perform any actual duties and had no real power.

According to previous rules, as long as the hereditary title of a salaried official remained, even if dismissed from office, the official would still receive a stipend. This was a common practice of living inactive with a stipend. Although these unemployed salaried officials often did not receive the full stipend corresponding to their official title due to the court's lack of funds, they still received an income.

Luo Sigong felt that the blood-shaking layoffs had already caused a moderate commotion within the Jinyiwei. If he were to tell them now that the court was not only dismissing them but also halting their stipends and giving some of the money to their replacements, they would surely become even more agitated. They might even ally with the stipend-granting officials who didn't actually have any real posts to start a major uproar against him, Luo Sigong.

Luo Sigong wasn't afraid of unrest. As long as he could ultimately gain the emperor's forgiveness, he wouldn't mind directly suppressing the rebellion, soaking his hands in the blood of his former subordinates and colleagues. Furthermore, the officials who received several times their salaries would undoubtedly cooperate with him and take action against those "unfaithful comrades" who attempted to steal their money. However, the current problem was that Luo Sigong didn't have enough manpower available to support the rebellion until the vacancies were filled.

"Regarding the salary issue after the reform, the cabinet has drafted a secret letter." Zhu Changluo lowered his head and glanced at the letter paper. "I would like to ask for your opinions."

Luo Sigong was stunned for a moment. "Your Majesty, please ask."

Zhu Changluo didn't ask Luo Sigong any more, but turned to look at Lu Wenzhao. "You are a hereditary Jinyiwei, right?"

Lu Wenzhao still kept his head down, looking at the final report like a treasure, not knowing that the emperor was talking to him.

"You little brat, the emperor is asking you!" Luo Sigong quickly reached out and tugged at Lu Wenzhao's sleeve.

"Your Majesty," Lu Wenzhao knelt again. "I am indeed a hereditary centurion of the Imperial Guard."

"When did your family obtain the hereditary title?" Zhu Changluo felt a little tired and stopped waking him up.

Lu Wenzhao replied, "My ancestors were from Liangxiang County, Beiping Prefecture. During the Jingnan Rebellion, they joined Emperor Chengzu in the uprising and were awarded the rank of centurion for their meritorious service. After the capital was moved, they were granted the hereditary title of centurion in the Jinyiwei."

"That was about two hundred years ago." Zhu Changluo asked again, "How many males are there in the Lu family now?"

Lu Wenzhao didn't know why the emperor suddenly started asking about his household registration, but he answered honestly: "The Lu family is not blessed, and the population is small. By my generation, it has been three generations with only one son."

"How many acres of land do you have at home?"

"There are still 15 mu of ancestral land in my hometown, but I rented it out to others to farm."

"How much rent can you collect from the land each year?"

Lu Wenzhao thought about it. "It's hard to say. Good years and bad years make a huge difference. In a good year, I can harvest five or six dou per mu, but in a bad year, I can only harvest two or three." Lu Wenzhao, a small landlord, was a conscientious person. He would only take half of the harvest at most. If the harvest was poor in a bad year, he would waive the rent for his tenants and only take a symbolic amount.

"Is it enough to eat?"

"On average, it's enough to support me." After his mother passed away, Lu Wenzhao lived for several years as "one man feeds the whole family." This was also the most confusing period of his life.

"To support one person," Zhu Changluo said jokingly, "you have four people in your family now."

Lu Wenzhao scratched his head awkwardly. "Now that I'm an official, I can't just rely on the harvest to make a living."

"Then what do you rely on to make a living?" Zhu Changluo followed up the conversation and asked.

"This..." Lu Wenzhao suddenly became nervous.

"Just tell me what you have to say." Luo Sigong glared at Lu Wenzhao. "With your limited skills, can you really hide it from the emperor?"

"Your Majesty, I am an official of the Ming Dynasty. My first hope is of course the salary from the court." Lu Wenzhao wiped his hand and said, "In addition to the salary, I can also collect the 'regular payment' from the shops in my jurisdiction on a monthly basis. During festivals, in addition to the regular payment, the merchants will also give me a 'filial tribute'."

Lu Wenzhao did not engage in unscrupulous black income, nor did he take benefits from his subordinates, but he did take a lot of gray income such as "regular" and "filial piety". Otherwise, Lu Wenzhao would not be able to afford even the daily social expenses.

"When did you start collecting these gray incomes?" Zhu Changluo asked.

"From the 45th year of the Wanli reign, when I was granted the title of General Banner, I began to have a fixed jurisdiction." After returning from Liaodong, Lu Wenzhao paid for a promotion to Trial Hundred Households. However, the transition from General Banner to Trial Hundred Households was merely a hurdle in the promotion process; his actual jurisdiction did not expand. In terms of economic benefits, this was a losing proposition.

"What about before the forty-fifth year of the Wanli reign?"

"It's almost just the salary."

"What if this salary is cut off again?"

"If the salary is cut off." Hearing this, Lu Wenzhao began to understand the emperor's intention. "Then my family will have no food to eat."

(End of this chapter)