Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 62 Clean the house thoroughly before inviting guests (Please vote!)

"Gao Banban, how long would it take for an imperial edict to travel from Beijing to places like Southern Zhili, Fujian, Sichuan, and Guizhou?"

Gao Shiming recalled briefly and replied:

"Your Majesty, according to the time limit for official documents stipulated in the 'Collected Statutes of the Great Ming,' it takes about one month to reach Southern Zhili, more than two months to reach Fujian, and about four months to reach Sichuan and Guizhou."

"The above time can be reduced by 30-40% with 300-li express delivery, and by 70-80% with 600-li express delivery."

Zhu Youjian listened in silence.

This is what transportation conditions were like in feudal dynasties.

When doing anything, the time frame is often measured in months or years, and the cost of trial and error becomes extremely high.

Once you release the person, it's no different from gambling; you can only pray that your judgment wasn't wrong.

As for the 600-li urgent delivery?
That's something that's only used in extreme circumstances. If it were used every day, the couriers would probably rebel prematurely.

Therefore, even if he put together the so-called "Great Ming Dynasty Group" on paper, it was actually just a futures contract with delayed payment.

Once the imperial edict of reinstatement is issued to the prefectures, they will have to pack their bags and travel over mountains and rivers to reach the capital. For those from distant areas, it may take up to half a year.

In the Ming Dynasty, carriages and horses moved slowly, and so did letters.

But Zhu Youjian thought again and realized that this wasn't all bad.

Whether it was the virtuous ministers and famous generals he selected, or the Donglin scholars full of righteous opinions, they would all look down on him, the 17-year-old young emperor, to some extent.
Therefore, this is a good opportunity for him to free up his hands to clean the house before inviting guests.

Even if these remaining members of the eunuch faction had some moral issues...

But on the eve of his old rival and political enemy's arrival in the capital, he must prove his worth to him—the supreme emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

If you have no value, how can I protect you?
However, before cleaning the house, he had to ensure one thing first—his own absolute safety.

Thinking of this, he turned his head and looked at Zhou Yu, who was sitting quietly to the side, his gaze softening.

"Changqiu, how was the trip to the Imperial Estate today? Was it fun?"

Zhou Yu had changed into a slightly more capable-looking palace dress today. Upon hearing Zhu Youjian's amused words, she immediately wrinkled her nose in dissatisfaction.

"His Majesty!"

"I was clearly going to do my job properly..."

She muttered a rebuttal under her breath, but then wasn't really angry.

He cheerfully pulled a small ledger from his sleeve, stood up deliberately, and cleared his throat:

"Ahem...Reporting to Your Majesty."

"Upon my inspection, the original number of guards in key locations such as the Imperial Kitchen, the Qianqing Palace, the Imperial Pharmacy, and the Prince Xin's residence totaled 1,229."

"In the past few days, after verifying the list, I have successively removed 318 people from the list, including those with unclear backgrounds, those who impersonated others, and those whose brothers were also in the inner court."

Zhu Youjian raised his eyebrows. This practice of impersonation in the Ming Dynasty was truly a long-standing custom, even in the imperial palace.

"The remaining 911 people have all been settled in the imperial estates closest to the capital, as you instructed."

"Today, I inspected the imperial estates and have allocated 100 mu of land to each household, and reappointed the village head and baojia (local security officers)."

"In addition, the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs will arrange for staff to take turns to inspect and report back every day."

Zhu Youjian listened attentively, his smile growing wider.

The granting of land was within his orders, but the inspection by the village head, the security guards, and the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs was a completely unexpected surprise.

"Among them, there are still 102 guards from the former Prince Xin's mansion who are not yet married. I think we can find a matchmaker to arrange marriages for them. In this way, those with stable property will have stable minds, and their loyalty can be guaranteed."

"As for the rent of the imperial estates, I have not made any adjustments for the time being. It will still be charged according to the standard of 0.03 taels per mu of land rent."

Zhou Yu finished speaking in one breath, pressed the ledger to her chest, and looked over with expectant eyes.

Zhu Youjian was generous with his praise: "Good! Good! Good! Clear and well-thought-out, my beloved consort is truly my wise and capable assistant." Zhou Yu was overjoyed to hear this, but she forced herself to remain calm and composed, though her eyes were narrowed like crescent moons.

Zhu Youjian paced back and forth, feeling extremely cheerful.

It was a real surprise.

His original expectation was simply to screen all the personnel and arrange them to go to Huangzhuang.

He has plenty of other security solutions, but he simply doesn't have the time to develop or think about them.

Unexpectedly, Changqiu had taken into account things like village chiefs, security guards, patrols, and marriage arrangements, which was much faster than he had anticipated.

Next, we can think about things like the food procurement, shift supervision, and poison testing procedures of the Imperial Kitchen, and then hand them over to Changqiu for optimization.

If these security measures are continuously strengthened and upgraded for a period of time, they should be able to thwart the rumored assassination attempt by the "behind-the-scenes group"!
Yes, despite his lengthy analysis of Donglin and his assertion that there was no large and powerful behind-the-scenes group, he didn't actually believe it.

In his heart, he did not believe the Ming Dynasty emperor's legend that it was "easily soluble in water".

After all, who would risk the extermination of their entire family by resorting to such an uncertain method as "drowning"?

Arson, assassination, poisoning—aren't all of these cleaner and more efficient than drowning?

If you have the ability to raise assassins during the Ming Dynasty, why not be more radical and decisive?
But! But! But!

As the saying goes, it's better to be safe than sorry! Theory is theory, and reality is reality! As long as the green hills remain, there's always hope! In short, to sum it all up!
He dared not take the risk...

But now, it's different.

With the core inner court guards and eunuchs already at a relatively safe threshold, he can finally truly unleash his power!
Zhu Youjian stopped and turned to look at Gao Shiming, his gaze intense, without the slightest hesitation.

He spoke rapidly, a series of commands escaping his lips:

"First, compile a list of all the officers above the rank of battalion commander in Liaodong and the Nine Garrisons, as well as the officers in charge of each battalion and the military advisors. Include their names, ages, and places of origin. This should be completed by tomorrow night."

"Secondly, purchase one copy of every official gazette, tabloid, and popular publication sold in the capital, regardless of price or quality, and send it to the palace before evening."

"Third, starting tomorrow, I will go to the Yongwei Camp every day at Chenshi (7-9 AM) to observe the trials. Anyone who is absent, lazy, or derelict in their duties will be dealt with according to military law!"

"Fourth, inform the Imperial Academy that an examination will be held tomorrow at 9:00 AM, open to all the students, attendants, and scribes."

Zhu Youjian paused, then slowly finished speaking the last point:
"Fifth, tomorrow at Shenshi (3-5 PM), the officials will be summoned to the Wuying Hall as usual! In addition to the cabinet ministers and ministers who participated today, the nine ministers of the capital and the six supervising secretaries will also be summoned to participate."

He smiled slightly, a smile that was unmistakably wicked.

"By the way, send them a policy question in advance and tell them to write it down and submit it before they go to the palace tomorrow afternoon."

"As for the title, let's just call it..."

"—Seeking proposals on improving the governance of the capital city"

　Furthermore, there are precedents for this.

　　Taking the lifting of the sea ban in the third year of Chongzhen's reign as an example, the process involved sending documents to solicit opinions from local areas. Beijing was reluctant to lift the ban, while Fujian suggested it. After going back and forth like this, it finally took eight months to make a decision.

　　That's just how slow feudal dynasties were.

　　From this perspective, the slow development of clocks is actually because ancient production did not require precise timekeeping.

　　-
　　Yes, you read that right. Contrary to the popular fiction that "Fujian interest groups" resisted the opening of the fishing season, local Fujian officials at the time strongly recommended it.

　　-
　　I couldn't find the exact number of people in places like the Imperial Kitchen and the Imperial Pharmacy; I made that up, so don't believe it.

　　The Prince Xin's personal guards did indeed number 300, as stated in the Veritable Records of Emperor Xizong of Ming.

　　-
　　0.03 taels per mu is the tax standard for imperial estates, as mentioned in the very beginning chapter on imperial estates.

　　-
　　The publishing industry was very developed in the Ming Dynasty, and the Eastern Depot would usually send the newspapers it purchased to the palace, but not as comprehensive as the protagonist requested.

　　-
　　P.S., remember to flip back to the next page after you finish reading until you see "To be continued," otherwise it doesn't count as following the story TT
　　
　
(End of this chapter)