The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 555: Can the Nobles Be Used?

Li Dai confessed.

Boiling a frog in warm water, finally the water is about to boil

The Zhejiang Party is about to boil the frogs in this big pot to death.

Wanli also ordered Luo Sigong to make preparations secretly.

The purge of the Zhejiang Party seemed to have been arranged at this point. They could start as soon as the secret guards had finished their investigation.

However, after explaining to Xiao Zhu Changxun, he fell into deep thought again.

He also has to consider his successor.

Although the Zhejiang Party was unable to seize any of the six ministers' positions due to his suppression, they still had quite a few at the level of vice minister of the six ministries.

More importantly, there are two cabinet ministers.

Also, they are still cleaning out corrupt officials in the court, and they are starting from the fifth rank and above.

The vacancies left after the purge of corrupt officials also needed to be filled, and almost all the royal party members who had some qualifications and abilities were promoted.

For example, Liu Yingqiu, Jiao Hong, Huang Chengxuan, Dong Qichang, Zhu Kuiyuan, etc., have all been promoted to the level of Vice Minister of the Six Ministries.

Li Tingji was directly admitted to the cabinet, while Yuan Keli and Li Hualong had already become the ministers of six ministries.

The one with the most experience among them was the Jinshi who came in the 11th year of Wanli, and he had been in the officialdom for only 15 years at most.

According to the rules of officialdom, they would be considered lucky if they could be promoted to the level of Vice Minister of the Six Ministries.

This is already considered an exceptional promotion for him.

Now, almost all the Jinshi who were on the imperial side and capable in the 11th year of Wanli were promoted to the level of Shangshu of the six ministries. Almost all the Jinshi who were on the imperial side and capable in the 14th year of Wanli or even the 17th year of Wanli were promoted to the level of Shilang of the six ministries.

Will he promote those incompetent members of the Imperial Party to fill the vacancies left after the Zhejiang Party is cleaned out?

Originally, he thought that there was nothing wrong with doing so. He liked obedient people, and as long as the officials were obedient, it didn't seem to matter whether they had the ability or not.

However, the Ministry of Revenue corruption case taught him a lesson.

If Chen Sheng had any ability, he wouldn't be so fooled by Li Dai.

Every failure is a learning experience.

He has to learn his lesson.

It is good for officials to be obedient, but they must also be capable to be reused.

If one reuses an official who has no ability, it will give opportunities to his subordinates who have ulterior motives or even corrupt officials.

The reason why the Ministry of Revenue was able to create such a huge hole due to corruption was because Chen Sheng was incompetent.

If Chen Sheng had any ability, he would have seen the clues long ago.

Therefore, if you are obedient but have no ability, you cannot be reused.

Otherwise, other government offices in the imperial court would most likely become like the current Ministry of Revenue, a mess that could not be any worse, and it would take an inordinate amount of effort to clean it up.

The question is, if we don’t reuse the obedient royal party, who else can we reuse?
He was just pondering when little Zhu Changxun couldn't help but ask, "Father, what are you thinking about for so long?"

This question is indeed a bit difficult to decide.

You have to pay attention to that in the future.

Wanli sighed slightly, then patiently explained, "Father is considering who will fill the vacancies left by the Zhejiang Party after they have been punished."

Why did you start thinking about this again?
Little Zhu Changxun was quite puzzled and asked, "Father, didn't you give this to the Prime Minister, Lord Shen, and the Grand Secretary, Lord Li?

Aren't their many disciples enough to fill the vacancies left by the Zhejiang Party?"

You didn't pay any attention to the lessons Chen Sheng brought.

Wanli shook his head slightly, then explained in detail: "You have also seen how the former Minister of Revenue, Chen Sheng, managed the Ministry of Revenue.

His ability was not enough to be the Minister of Revenue. My father was only considering the issue of party disputes and did not pay attention to his ability.

As a result, he was fooled by Li Dai without even realizing it.

Therefore, when we appoint important officials, we cannot only consider whether they are obedient. Obedience is only a prerequisite. We also have to consider other factors. For example, if their moral character does not match their position, they cannot be appointed. If their talent does not match their position, they cannot be appointed either.

"Chun Qiu Zuo Zhuan" says that those who are good at governing a country do not give excessive rewards and do not impose excessive punishments... If unfortunately, one passes by, it is better to be excessive than to impose excessive punishments.

To put it simply, it is better to have nothing than to have something inappropriate. If it is missing, it will not cause much loss, but if it is abused, the loss will be terrifyingly huge.

Chen Sheng’s position as the Minister of Revenue is a lesson. Now those who are both talented and virtuous under Zhonghua and Erzhang have been given important tasks. Let’s not talk about the moral character of the rest for now, but their talents are worthy of the positions of Vice Ministers of the Six Ministries or even Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet.

We can't abuse this situation, you know?

If we abuse it, they might produce someone like Li Dai or Zhang Dai, who would fool them around and cause the court heavy losses."

Would you rather lack than overdo it?

Upon hearing this, little Zhu Changxun thought about it carefully and was somewhat surprised when he asked, "Father, do you mean that the vacancy left by the Zhejiang Party will not be filled for the time being?
Wouldn't that mean the cabinet would be short of two Grand Secretaries, and the six ministries would be short of several Vice Ministers? Is that acceptable?"

It is better to have nothing than to have something of poor quality. If there is something missing, we have to find a way.

Wanli shook his head slightly and said, "If we really can't find anyone, then we'd rather have nothing than hire someone who is not qualified.

However, the court is not completely devoid of capable officials. Father is simply considering who will fill the vacancies left by the Zhejiang Party."

Oh, so they want to find someone else to fill the vacancy.

Little Zhu Changxun nodded slowly, then asked, "Father, have you thought of it?"

This is something I thought of.

Wanli nodded slightly and said, "Father wants to try whether officials from aristocratic families can be used."

Gentlemen?

Zhu Changxun recalled, "The three great families of Puzhou seem to be the aristocratic families. Can an official from my father's aristocratic family be employed?"

You kind of like to generalize.

Wanli shook his head slightly, then explained in detail: "The three great families of Puzhou are not from traditional aristocratic families. They were originally merchants, well-known merchants in Shanxi.

They are typical profit-seeking businessmen, the so-called profiteers, who have applied all their profiteers' methods to officialdom.

In fact, most of the current gentry are not from traditional gentry families, and there are not many gentry families in the Ming Dynasty that have been passed down for more than a hundred years.

Nowadays, anyone who has passed the imperial examination and become a Jinshi can be called a member of the gentry. Their fathers and grandfathers may not necessarily be members of the gentry. If their descendants cannot pass the imperial examination and become a Juren or Jinshi, they will withdraw from the ranks of the gentry.

So, what you said about whether the aristocratic officials can still be used is wrong. We must use the aristocratic officials. The key lies in what kind of aristocratic officials to use.

When the emperor said he was testing whether officials from aristocratic families could be used, he was actually testing whether officials from aristocratic families who had been passed down for generations could be used."

Uh, are all the nobles so complicated?
Upon hearing this, little Zhu Changxun thought about it carefully, then couldn't help asking, "Father, what about those officials from the aristocratic families you want to try?"

Don't try this randomly.

Wanli thought for a moment, then patiently instructed: "Father once told you that we must thoroughly examine officials we are not familiar with before employing them.

Especially this time, we need the assistant ministers of the six ministries or even the cabinet ministers. If we use them without a thorough inspection, it may cause big problems."

Do you need to investigate further?

Little Zhu Changxun had the habit of asking questions until he got to the bottom of things. After thinking for a while, he couldn't help but ask, "Father, how do we conduct the investigation?" If an ordinary person kept asking like this, Wanli would have become impatient long ago.

However, Xiao Zhu Changxun did not show any impatience when he asked this question.

Because he is now teaching the little guy how to govern a country, and the way to govern a country must be explained clearly. If he doesn't explain it clearly, the little guy may become a tyrant in the future.

He patiently explained, "There are many types of inspections, for example, having the Censorate inspect, the Ministry of Personnel inspect, the Secret Guard inspect, and so on.

These are things that others can examine, but we can also examine them ourselves. For example, we can pay more attention to them and ask questions if we feel they are ok.

I guess you didn't pay attention this time. In fact, there are not many corrupt officials and Zhejiang Party members who come from old aristocratic families. Officials from old aristocratic families such as Sun Yu and Lu Guangzu all retired from officialdom as soon as they realized something was wrong.

This proves that some aristocratic families that have been passed down for decades or even hundreds of years attach great importance to family inheritance. If there is a danger that will involve the entire family or even bring shame to the family, they will choose to retire without hesitation.

They are very clear about what they can and cannot do, so they are unlikely to collude with corrupt officials or even traitors. Such officials can still be used."

Also, you didn't notice that Wang Xiangjin and Bi Maokang were both from aristocratic families, and they were both pretty good.

It seems that at this moment, Bi Maokang's family only has his elder brother Bi Maoliang who passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, and he was a Jinshi in the 23rd year of Wanli. It is not appropriate for him to be promoted to the position of Vice Minister of the Six Ministries.

Then, we can first consider examining the Jinshi scholars from Wang Xiangjin's family.

There are many Jinshi in his family, and not a single one of them was found to be from his family during the investigation of corrupt officials. This proves that the Jinshi in his family are still good, at least they are not greedy.

As for the specifics, we'll have to ask."

After that, he said in a loud voice: "Send it to Wang Xiangqian, the doctor of the Ministry of War."

He wants to recruit people to demonstrate how to conduct the inspection.

Wang Xiangqian became a Jinshi in the fifth year of the Longqing reign. He served in the government for more than 20 years and was promoted to Langzhong in the Ministry of War. This was considered a standard process, neither too slow nor too fast. He definitely had the ability and his qualifications were sufficient.

As for whether he can be promoted and reused, we will have to investigate further to find out.

Wang Xiangqian had no idea that he might be promoted and reused.

In his impression, the current emperor seldom summoned officials below the rank of Minister of the Six Ministries, let alone Doctors, even Vice Ministers were rarely summoned.

Wanli's sudden summons really left him a little confused.

He hurried to the imperial study and took a look. He immediately bowed and said, "Your humble servant greets His Majesty and His Royal Highness the Third Prince."

Wanli nodded slightly, then looked at it carefully.

This guy has a decent appearance, with thick eyebrows, big eyes, a square face, and a full beard. He doesn't look like a wicked person at first glance.

He nodded slightly, then asked, "Zi Kuo, you are Zi Jin's elder brother, right?"

What does this mean?
Something happened to Zi Jin!
Wang Xianggan couldn't help but show a trace of worry on his face. He nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, I am Zijin's brother."

Well, he values ​​family affection, and at least he is not a cold-blooded and heartless person.

Wanli asked again: "Zijin is good at growing fruits and vegetables. What else are you good at?"

How do you say this?

I have read quite a few military books, but His Majesty seems not to like using civilian officials to command the army, so I won't talk about this specialty.

Wang Xiangqian thought for a moment, then said carefully, "I'm ashamed. I only know how to farm. I'm not as good as Zijin in terms of agricultural expertise."

You can farm too?

It is probably no coincidence that both brothers are Jinshi and both are good at farming and growing vegetables.

Wanli was quite curious and asked, "You have so many brothers in your family. Do you cultivate all the land in your family?"

Few people may believe this.

However, he cannot deceive the king because of this.

Wang Xiangqian hesitated for a moment, then said honestly, "Yes, Your Majesty, my humble grandfather's generation was still poor peasants who had no food to eat and no clothes to wear.

Moreover, the salaries of my grandfather and father were either used to govern the local area or to support us children, so there was not much money left to buy land.

Nowadays, our family only has more than 30 acres of land. It is not enough for us to grow food ourselves, so we cannot afford to hire someone to grow food for us.

Therefore, we all farmed our own land. All of our uncles and brothers who didn't take up official positions had to farm at home, including my father.

what?
Are you pretending to be honest or are you really like this?

When Wanli heard this, he couldn't help but be secretly surprised.

He was stunned for a moment before continuing to ask, "Your family has produced more than ten Jinshi scholars, right? And now you only have more than 30 acres of land?!

These thirty-odd acres of land are worth at most seven or eight hundred taels. Even if all ten Jinshi are of the seventh rank, their monthly salary adds up to seventy-five shi, which means nine hundred shi a year.

"If we go by the grain prices in the capital, your annual salary could buy 40 to 50 mu of land. Your family only has a little over 30 mu of land now?"

You can't just look at the salary.

Wang Xiangqian thought about it carefully, and then said carefully: "Your Majesty, this is mainly because I have too many people in my family.

My father's generation had eight brothers, and my generation also has eight brothers. Adding my wives, children and the elderly, there are about thirty or forty people in total.

My family's expenses are already high, at least forty or fifty taels a month. This is because we grow a lot of grain and vegetables ourselves. Otherwise, fifty or sixty taels a month would not be enough.

There is another reason, which is the teachings left by my ancestors that an official must benefit the people, otherwise he is not worthy of being an official.

My uncles and brothers dared not disobey. In order to benefit the local area, they had spent almost all their salaries. What was left was only enough to barely provide for their families. There was no money left at all."

real or fake? !
Wanli said solemnly, "Does your family really have no extra money?"

Alas, no one would believe this statement these days.

It was obvious from His Majesty's tone that he was a little bit unconvinced.

How to do it?

Now that things have come to this, he must explain clearly.

He couldn't let the Emperor think that he was deceiving the emperor.

Wang Xiangqian thought about it carefully, then gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, I dare to tell you something you may not have heard of.

My grandfather died in the line of duty, and according to the law he should have received a pension. However, the father and son of the Yan family were in power at the time, and they embezzled all the officials' pensions, so the pension for my grandfather was never given to my father and his brothers.

Originally, my father and brothers were not ashamed to ask for money from the imperial court.

Unfortunately, due to the sudden death of my grandfather, my father and brothers had not yet passed the imperial examination, and they did not hold any official position or salary.

At that time, my family was really struggling to make ends meet, and my father and brothers had no choice but to shamelessly go to the capital to beg for money.

As a result, Yan Shifan actually asked my father and his brothers to bribe him with 500 taels of silver before he was willing to pay the pension to my grandfather.

My father and brothers simply couldn't come up with the money, so they had no choice but to go home and struggle.

I remember it very clearly. At that time, we only ate vegetable porridge, without any meat or fish. We could never feel full, and I often felt dizzy and dizzy from hunger.

Our whole family was able to barely have enough to eat only after my father and eldest brother passed the imperial examinations."

It’s so miserable to be an honest official these days!
When Wanli heard this, he was stunned.

(End of this chapter)