The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 287 The Beginning

that day.

The grand spectacle in front of the Nanjing Garrison Command ended with the Emperor's father-in-law Hu Rong and the Emperor's brother-in-law Sun Guangzong speaking in hushed tones. In the end, what remained in everyone's eyes and hearts was only that young master standing on the steps, a smile on his lips, his face expressionless, standing with his hands clasped indifferently.

Although outsiders did not witness it firsthand, the words spoken that day spread rapidly throughout the entire Jiangnan region.

Those who cannot reach that level can only feel secretly terrified.

Those who had access to such a level of influence had a vague premonition: how could Grand Secretary Li really take Hu Rong and Sun Guangzong, two powerful maternal relatives, seriously? Why would he specifically send his eldest son all the way to Nanjing Garrison Headquarters to humiliate them in front of so many officials?

This was clearly a case of making an example of someone to warn other officials in Jiangnan and to demonstrate power.

The Duke Shouzheng, who had recently taken on the concurrent post of Minister of Personnel, was telling the people of the world about his current immense power and influence!

So what does he want to do?
Considering the Anti-Corruption Bureau currently stirring up trouble in the capital, who wouldn't guess that this Minister of Personnel is serious, that he truly wants to crack down on corruption, or perhaps, to clean up the officialdom!

The Korean government office.

Li Fusheng, looking like a little adult, saw several children come to pay their respects to him and then leave. Li Fusheng turned to Li Fang and solemnly said, "Uncle, my father asked me to bring you a letter and some words on my way to Nanjing. Clarifying officialdom is one of the most important tasks for the court in the next ten years. The corruption case at the imperial tombs is just the beginning. Please make sure to keep an eye on things for my father in Jiangnan, and at the same time, the government should not get involved in those matters."

The Duke's mansion is already extremely wealthy. Father has recently been researching some things in the capital, and Li Shi, with her shop in hand, should not lack money in the future. If there are any dissolute or spoiled brats in the clan who corrupt the family, they should all be dealt with according to family rules. Please inform my eldest uncle.”

Li Fang opened Li Xianmu's letter, read it carefully, and a worried look appeared on her face. She hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, when your father wrote, did he ask you to explain anything else? Will such a large-scale cleanup of officialdom lead to the Li family being the enemy of the world? This matter is really going to offend some people. Is it really worth paying such a high price to do this?"

Li Fusheng's expression remained unchanged as he calmly replied, "Father said that this was decided when Grandfather was alive, and it is an inevitable matter for the Li family. He assured you that you need not worry about the future of the Li family, that the past will not befall the Li family, and that the tragedies of the past will not be the end for the Li family."

Li Fang was taken aback. Although he didn't know where his third brother's confidence came from, he still nodded and said softly, "Tell your father that I'll take care of everything here in Nanjing. Tell him to take good care of his health in the capital and not to overwork himself."

……

Beijing.

Imperial City.

Wenyuan Pavilion.

After the corruption case at the imperial tombs, even the cabinet members couldn't help but feel a sense of awe towards Li Xianmu. Many ministers were not afraid of the empresses and concubines, but most of them kept to themselves. It was truly rare to see someone as capable as Li Xianmu.

It should be known that whispers in someone's ear can be a deadly weapon.

But the more this was the case, the more awe they felt towards Li Xianmu, because Li Xianmu was not an arrogant person; if he did such a thing, he must have had a very grand scheme.

What were Li Xianmu's intentions?
It is universally acknowledged that the aim is to improve governance!
The corruption case at the imperial tombs was just the beginning; countless people were waiting for his next move, including the emperor, his colleagues, his political enemies, countless minor officials and clerks, and even hundreds of thousands of scholars.

Li Xianmu looked up from the pile of memorials, stretched, and saw that everyone in the cabinet was looking at him. He immediately smiled and said, "You've looked at me dozens of times this morning. If you have any questions, just say them."

"The Grand Secretary is preparing to clean up the bureaucracy. I wonder when he will begin?" "Yes, such a big move has attracted the attention of countless people. However, we haven't seen the Grand Secretary make any moves in the past few days, which makes us quite curious."

Li Xianmu laughed loudly, "Cleaning up the bureaucracy is certainly something that needs to be done, but it has already begun."

what?
The group of people were taken aback.

Li Xianmu smiled and pointed to the piles of memorials, then said with a serious expression, "Is purifying the bureaucracy just about shouting a few slogans and then implementing policies throughout the country?"

The governance of officials is revealed in these memorials, in the daily reports of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, and in countless clues. One case of corruption in the imperial tombs exposed so many corrupt officials, and there will be countless more cases of corruption in the imperial tombs. The governance of officials will gradually improve as a result.

Wait for the right opportunity, then seize the momentum to introduce new systems, gradually curbing corruption step by step. This is the right way to succeed.

Upon hearing Li Xianmu's words, the group fell silent for a moment. Historically, most prime ministers did not serve for very long, and most officials could not rule a region or territory for an extended period. This was to prevent the formation of independent kingdoms.

But if you really want to settle down and do something, it usually takes five to ten years. This is the conflict of reality, so power will slowly fall into the hands of those clerks who have inherited their positions from generation to generation.

They originally thought that once Li Xianmu had power in his hands, he would surely make sweeping changes, but they never expected that Li Xianmu would choose to proceed slowly and deliberately, without any hurry to make rapid changes.

As if he could read their minds, Li Xianmu said meaningfully, “Gentlemen, it is good to have Wang Anshi’s reformist spirit, but we cannot follow his example in our actions. Impulsiveness will not lead to great things, and the principle that haste makes waste is something I need not repeat here.”

Wang Anshi's reforms were hasty, and he appointed a group of sycophants to carry them out, which was the main reason for the failure of the reforms.

As for lower-level officials deliberately causing trouble, that's no big deal.

When Wang Anshi implemented his reforms, the Northern Song Dynasty was weak but not in danger of collapse, and the interest groups were not as powerful. The situation was much worse when Zhang Juzheng implemented his reforms, but Zhang Juzheng forged a team of officials who could obey orders, so the reforms were able to be implemented.

Li Xianmu didn't think much of Wang Anshi's political abilities. He believed that Wang Anshi would fail a hundred times in his reforms, so he wasn't suited to be the chief prime minister; he was best suited to be an inspector.

Stubborn Prime Minister.

In this world, there are names that are mispronounced, but there are never nicknames that are mispronounced.

"Then we are now..."

Li Xianmu pointed to the memorials on the table and said, "Now we need to review all these memorials and then send them to the Hall of Literary Glory."

As for the others, there's no need to rush; we'll wait for news from the Anti-Corruption Bureau.

Li Xianmu placed high hopes on the Anti-Corruption Bureau, hoping to ignite a spark of reform. His real purpose was to use this opportunity to discover a group of upright young officials from various provinces, prefectures, and counties who dared to confront corruption.

To prepare for subsequent reforms.

(End of this chapter)