The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 300 Obeying Orders
Upon hearing this, the Minister of Justice's expression changed drastically. How could he possibly dare to submit the list?
If they handed over their own people, it would be like handing over their own heads; if they handed over people who weren't their own, they would offend a group of people and send another group of people to Li Xianmu as scapegoats.

This is the power of the Minister of Personnel!

Li Xianmu pressed on urgently, "Why isn't the Grand Minister of Justice speaking?"

Some of the people in the room were gloating, while others felt a sinking feeling in their hearts, never expecting that the Minister of Justice would suffer such a setback so quickly.

Pressed by Li Xianmu's repeated, urgent questions, the Minister of Justice could only vaguely reply, "Your Excellency is too kind; there's no need for that..."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Xianmu interrupted him, saying sternly, "Grand Minister of Justice, why not? The prosperity of the nation depends first and foremost on the dedication of its officials. If we know that some officials are incompetent, wouldn't that be ruining the country?"
The Minister of Personnel is responsible for recommending and evaluating candidates for the nation. The Grand Minister of Justice is a second-rank official and an important minister of the nation. Although he does not serve in the Ministry of Personnel, he also has this responsibility. How can he be so vague about it?

Isn't this irresponsible towards the world?

The Minister of Justice, after being repeatedly rebuked by Li Xianmu, felt cold sweat pouring down his face. He could only plead for mercy, saying, "I misspoke just now. There was no negligence on the part of the officials, and they were capable of accomplishing this task in Gansu."

These words sent a chill down everyone's spines. Everyone knew that the Minister of Justice had admitted defeat and directly conceded defeat in the Gansu matter.

As expected, the Grand Secretary was extremely adept at seizing the slightest mistake and then striking hard. The Minister of Justice was cornered after making a careless move!
"That's it."

Li Xianmu deliberately drew out his voice, which was filled with indifference, and the room fell silent for a moment.

"Is the Grand Minister of Justice confirmed?"

"I'm certain."

Li Xianmu then calmed down slightly and looked at the others, "I have heard the Grand Minister of Justice's statement. What do you all think?"

There was a moment of silence in the room, and then everyone said in unison, "We will obey the Grand Secretary's wishes."

Li Xianmu stopped speaking immediately and left them to their own devices for several breaths. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the sound of their breathing.

"Then let's proceed as we just discussed. Everyone, please share your opinions. The matter in Gansu is of great importance, and the people are in a state of high spirits. If we don't give the people an explanation soon, the country may be on the verge of collapse, and scholars across the land will lose faith in the court."

Hearing Li Xianmu finally speak, the group breathed a sigh of relief. However, their mindset was different from before, and they were all a little nervous, not daring to speak recklessly, for fear of ending up like the Minister of Justice.

"It is entirely up to the Prime Minister to make the decision."

"I am not a person who acts arbitrarily, so please speak up."

After several rounds of back-and-forth, seeing that Li Xianmu was very determined, the group proceeded to present their suggestions in turn.

After everyone had finished speaking, Li Xianmu then offered his suggestion. Everyone immediately knew that Li Xianmu had already prepared his proposal and that letting them speak was merely a formality.

They just didn't want to be labeled as "dictatorial".

After Li Xianmu finished speaking, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief and the Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau immediately voiced their agreement, while the others hesitated for a moment.

The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review hesitated and said, "Prime Minister, isn't this a bit too harsh?"
Since the Yongle era, the court has always been cautious to avoid repeating the mistakes of the Hongwu era. The Dali Temple has always treated cases with utmost care, which is why it has been able to overturn countless wrongful convictions.

"Prudence is not indulgence!"

Li Xianmu said sternly: "The Gansu fake disaster relief case has been deceiving people since the Yongle period. The length of time it lasted, the amount of money and grain embezzled from the national treasury, the bad influence it caused, the corruption of the bureaucratic group, and the depth of its damage to the country are all unprecedented in the history of corruption cases since the founding of the Ming Dynasty."

Compared to this, the corruption case at the imperial tombs is nothing more than a minor ailment!
If we do not punish them severely, how can we deter lawless officials? If we do not plug this loophole tightly, how can the dynasty govern the country?
This is no longer the Hongwu era!

Since the implementation of the "anti-corruption allowance" system, officials in Gansu have continued their corrupt practices, defying regulations and allowing greed to run rampant. This demonstrates absolute contempt for the authority of the imperial court and is an incorrigible and stubborn problem!

Everyone was stunned by Li Xianmu's harshly worded remarks; each word was almost the most severe political accusation. The phrase "since the implementation of the system of allowances for maintaining integrity" was particularly striking, leaving everyone speechless.

Before the anti-corruption allowance system, officials' salaries were so low that officials from poor backgrounds could barely make a living if they did not embezzle or accept land donations.

There are objective reasons for official corruption, which is why even the emperor turns a blind eye.

However, since the implementation of the system of "integrity allowances," the salaries of officials at all levels have increased significantly, and the annual amount of integrity allowances issued by the imperial court has been a considerable sum.

Although the officials did not live a life of extravagance, they were all well-off and had enough to support their large families.

Corruption is done to satisfy personal desires.

From the perspective of the court, the emperor, and Li Xianmu, the nature of survival versus personal desire is entirely different.

Li Xianmu looked down at the group and, seeing that they no longer objected, immediately ordered someone to write down today's resolution. Then, the six people present stamped their official seals on it, and this was the resolution reached by the six.

The highest-ranking officials of the three judicial departments, the two heads of the anti-corruption department, and the Grand Secretary Li Xianmu, who was in charge of the matter.

"Now that the resolution has been made, there is no time to lose. The three judicial departments shall immediately send people to Gansu to escort the convicted officials back to the capital, while the clerks shall draft the judgments locally."

"Yes!"

……

One day after the imperial edict was issued, the six-person meeting reached a resolution.

This speed surprised everyone who was paying attention.

The final resolution was so severe and harsh that it was truly shocking.

In the resolution, Prime Minister Lee Hyun-mok used the harshest language to criticize these people mercilessly.

The Gansu Provincial Administration Commissioner was sentenced to immediate execution, while his subordinate officials were sentenced to immediate execution or death with reprieve. As for other officials involved, those who were principal offenders and committed serious crimes were exiled three thousand li away to the barbarian tribes in southern Jiaozhi or the tributary states of Guizhou, where chieftains were scattered, to build up the Ming Dynasty.

Some people thought it was too harsh, but after the specific list of those to be punished was released, everyone fell silent.

Preliminary estimates suggest that one-third of the officials in Gansu will be executed in the autumn, one-third will be exiled, and the remaining one-third will also be guilty of various crimes.

The vast Provincial Administration Commission was almost completely wiped out.

This tragic scene left people speechless, and even Zhu Zhanji himself began to question the meaning of life.

The entire court fell silent.

Countless people looked up, and in a flash, they seemed to see a giant behind Li Xianmu.

Holding a butcher's knife, he indifferently looked down upon the common people and the officials!
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The Gansu fraudulent disaster relief case was one of the most politically significant cases in the early years of the Xuande reign, and it became a benchmark thereafter. The Ming Dynasty officially launched a vigorous anti-corruption campaign, beginning a decades-long movement to reform officialdom.

In this movement, Li Xianmu forged a team with relatively sound ideology and decisive action, laying a solid foundation for subsequent good governance. —From "Changes in the Political System of the Ming Dynasty"

(End of this chapter)