"I asked Wang Chonggu to express his position for the sake of our seven-year friendship with Wang Chonggu. I am not asking for anything from him. Regardless of whether he is willing to take this role or not, I have to take action against the Ministry of War. The position of Minister of the Ministry of War,
It is impossible to leave it to Shi Maohua anymore." As Zhu Yijun said this, he motioned to the left and right to offer seats to Wang Xijue and Wang Zongyi.
After the emperor and his party visited Wen'an County, Wen'an Ba ​​Prefecture, they were about to go back.
The distance of three hundred miles is far enough, and places like Dacheng County further ahead are almost the same - and in places like Zhuozhou and Jizhou, there is a risk of studying abroad, so it's better not to be too frivolous.
So, more than twenty days after leaving Beijing, the emperor and his entourage passed through Anxin and Wang Qingtuo and boarded the dragon boat from Wuqing Yangcun Station to Xianghe County in Tongzhou.
After arriving in Xianghe County, we followed Tongzhou and toured the capital.
Half a day after boarding the ship, Emperor Xu Shi had rested enough, so he called Wang Xijue, the Minister of Personnel, and Wang Zongyi, the Minister of Rites, to the room and held a small meeting.
"Your Majesty, Mr. Shi may not be involved in this matter. Is it too early to discuss deposing Mr. Shi?" Wang Zongyi thought for a moment and expressed his opinion.
Since the sacrifice to heaven in the southern suburbs, the emperor has become more and more powerful. Now that the matter has not been finalized, he has decided to depose the Minister of War, Shi Maohua.
Wang Zongyi didn't mind the emperor's taking or taking away the high officials of the Nine Qing Dynasty. This was the emperor's power.
However, it is best not to suffer any moral inconvenience.
Wang Xijue's buttocks were next to the short ridge, sitting opposite Wang Zongyi, and he quickly interjected: "I think Uncle Zong's words are wrong. Even if Shi Maohua is not involved, he must be guilty of oversight, and he should be restrained from living in peace."
, there is nothing wrong with it.”
When Wang Zongyi heard this, he disagreed in his heart.
Failure to observe is a basket that anyone can put in. To put it this way, did Wang Chonggu, who was above Shi Maohua, also fail to observe? Did Zhang Juzheng, then the chief minister of the cabinet, also fail to observe?
But he also knew what the emperor meant, and since Wang Xijue had said it again, there was no need to argue anymore - the crime of negligence was at least justifiable on the surface, barely enough.
Zhu Yijun was reviewing the memorials from the capital, opening and closing them one by one.
Hearing that the two senior officials were speechless for a moment, he replied without raising his head: "Even with his old illness, Shi Maohua should have retired to the official position. There is no need to discuss this matter further. Let's talk about the candidate for the Minister of War."
The military power of the Ming court was divided into two.
The first one is the Commander-in-Chief of the Five Armies, which has the power to command troops but not the power to deploy them; the second one is the Ministry of War, which has the power to deploy troops but not the right to command them.
At the beginning of the Chinese dynasty, the governors of the Five Army Governor's Office were often able to overpower the Ministry of War. Li Wenzhong, the chief governor during the Hongwu period, and Zhang Fu from Yongle to Hongxi years, all conquered the world with the emperor. They were a generation that conquered the world.
Naturally, honorable nobles cannot be suppressed by the Ministry of War.
However, the situation suddenly reversed due to the Tumu Fortress Incident, and the Ministry of War overcame the Fifth Army Commander-in-Chief in one fell swoop.
An overview of the original powers of the Yiying Ministry of War and the Fifth Army Governor's Office.
Military decision-making, combat strategy, ordnance manufacturing, general promotion, troop recruitment, national defense... and so on.
Even the most taboo power to command the army at first can be exercised by a group of governors, admirals, commanders-in-chief, prime ministers, managers, governors and other officials with the title of Ministry of War.
The power of the Ministry of War is evident from the struggle for the capital camp that has lasted from the Jiajing period to the present - Gu Huan took charge of the capital camp several times and was dismissed several times, which is an excellent microcosm.
Precisely because the Ministry of War has become more and more powerful over the past century, Zhu Yijun has never interfered in any drastic way since he came to the throne.
Instead, we started from the capital camp, focusing on the governors of the nine sides, and have encroached on it to this day.
I originally planned to wait for a year or two to survive the death of Shangshu Shi Maohua, Minister Luo Fengxiang and others, and then take them into my hands naturally.
But now that I have found an opportunity to exploit the topic, I will follow the trend.
Therefore, no matter whether Wang Chonggu accepts it or not, and whether Shi Maohua really has a problem or not, after returning to Beijing, he will always use this excuse to get into trouble.
Wouldn't it be a perfect side dish to join the military parade during the Zhengdan military parade?
By then, the military power of the 600,000 soldiers of the Ming Dynasty will be truly in their hands, and only then will they have the confidence to conquer the mountains and rivers, only then will they have the power to kill and seize life and death, and only then will they be qualified to rival Taizu Taizong.
Wang Xijue didn't know that the emperor was imagining it again. He only heard the emperor talk about selecting Quan, Minister of War, and felt that he should be the first to apply.
He thought for a moment and then said: "Your Majesty, how about Ling Yunyi, the governor of Guangdong?"
Ling Yunyi made outstanding contributions in Guangdong.
In November of the fourth year of Wanli, he led an army of 100,000 to pacify the rebellious Yao people. In order to pacify the Yao people in Luopang Mountain, he added Luoding Prefecture, which was directly under the jurisdiction of Guangdong.
With such great achievements in reforming the country and stabilizing the territory, it can be said that being promoted to an official in the Ministry of War is a matter of course.
As for the fact that Ling Yunyi is from Taicang... one should not avoid the hometown party when promoting talents.
Before the emperor could answer, Wang Zongyi, the Minister of Rites beside him, took the lead in shaking his head: "No, Ling Yunyi has killed too many people in Guangdong and has a reputation for violence and violence."
This may not be surprising to Ling Yunyi. After all, when "the Yao people started an uprising, killed officials and plundered land, and destroyed six of the ten prefectures in Guangdong," the momentum was so huge that Ling Yunyi killed him immediately and extinguished it, which in turn showed his talent.
But the way of being an official is often not just about right and wrong.
Since Ling Yunyi has a reputation of being violent and unruly, once he joins the Ministry of War, he will definitely be less criticized by scholars and less disturbed by the scientific community. He will even be labeled as a person who is not conducive to uniting the people.
If you have one less thing to worry about, why bother yourself?
Wang Xijue was about to speak but stopped.
He wanted to say something fair to Ling Yunyi, but after thinking about it, he sighed and said nothing.
Zhu Yijun, who was reviewing the memorials, finished reviewing the last memorial at hand and put it next to the desk.
He raised his head and glanced at the two of them, then his eyes fell on Wang Zongyi and asked, "Does Uncle Zong have a suitable candidate?"
Logically speaking, this kind of matter should have been decided by the Ministry of Personnel and then put on the court for discussion. Only then would the Ministry of Rites have room to speak.
However, the position of the Nine Ministers is of great importance, so it is natural that a consensus must be reached in private first. Otherwise, if the decision cannot be unanimously approved at the court meeting, it will appear that this group of court officials is not harmonious enough.
Wang Zongyi pondered for a moment and then slowly said: "Your Majesty, I think it is appropriate for Governor Li of Fujian to be in court."
When Li Zaiting was promoted from chief envoy to governor, he gained merit by suppressing the mutiny.
Three years ago, Wu Shanyan, the governor of Fujian Province, felt that the pay for the soldiers was too high, so he proposed to cut the pay by one-third.
Before the central committee here received the memorial, a round of mutiny had already occurred in Fujian. Battalion soldiers Ma Wenying, Liu Tingyong and others led thousands of troops to gather at the governor's Yamen and appeal to Wu Shanyan about the military pay.
In this regard, Wu Shanyan was too lazy to explain, and without waiting for the central government's approval, he took it upon himself to tell the top soldiers, "The pay reduction has been decided, and those who do not want to serve as soldiers will be allowed to go home and work in the fields."
The result is obvious.
Thousands of people poured into the governor's government office, and the lobby of the government office was smashed to pieces. Governor Wu Shanyan failed to escape and was captured and beaten until he was dying.
If Li Zai from the Chief Secretary's Yamen next door had not rushed to the court after hearing the news, made a prompt decision and comforted him properly, Governor Wu would have died if he had been sent to the hospital a little later. By then, thousands of soldiers involved would have killed the governor. If he did not want to fight terrorism, he would have to do so.
.
Afterwards, Wu Shanyan, who was paralyzed, was restrained and Li Zaiting took over as the governor and deputy censor of Fujian.
In addition, during the three years when Li Zaiting was promoted to governor, he and the commander-in-chief Yu Dayou suppressed the small people and returned to their native land, annihilated the islands where the Japanese pirates were hiding, and captured and killed the Japanese powerful. Years ago, he was promoted to the title of Deputy Imperial Envoy and Minister of the Ministry of War.
Now that I have entered the main military department, although it is a little faster, it is still a matter of course.
Wang Xijue thought for a while, went through Li Zaiting's resume in his mind, and nodded slightly.
The two of them looked at the emperor at the same time.
Unfortunately, the proposal, which both of them agreed with, was rejected by the emperor. Zhu Yijun slowly stood up and said, "Fujian Shipping Secretary has stepped in. Li Zaiting has not yet returned to Beijing."
The emperor stood up, and the two of them naturally stood up as well.
Wang Zongyi walked behind the emperor and said respectfully: "I dare to ask, who does your majesty prefer?"
Although he said he was bold, he actually felt at ease asking because the emperor would really discuss things with people like them - this was what touched him the most after he became the ninth minister.
Zhu Yijun walked to the window of the room and looked at the scene along the river from the boat.
"Yin Zhengmao, the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, is already on his way to Beijing. What do you think of him?"
Yin Zhengmao was a Jinshi in the 26th year of Jiajing's reign. He was on the same list as Zhang Juzheng. He was born in She County, Huizhou Prefecture, and was a fellow countryman of Xu State.
In terms of merit, he can be said to be "the greatest contributor to the peace of Guangdong and Guangxi"; in terms of political spectrum, he has been highly regarded by Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, and he is a die-hard New Party member; in terms of governance, in addition to his extraordinary military performance, he is also good at making money.
, changing salt and sparseness, all of them showed their outstanding talents, which can be said to be both literary and military.
Wang Xijue thought for a moment and nodded slowly: "Yin Gongqi is good at cultivating people and has outstanding achievements. She should be in charge of the Ministry of War."
After saying that, he turned his gaze to Wang Zongyi beside him.
Zhu Yijun also turned his head and looked towards Wang Zongyi.
However, Wang Zongyi looked unnatural and seemed hesitant to speak.
Both of them knew that Wang Zongyi and Yin Zhengmao had some feuds, so they were not surprised when they saw this.
Around the twenty-seventh year of Jiajing's reign, Yin Zhengmao served as a military officer, and Wang Zongyi served as a doctor in the military department.
They were just ordinary colleagues, but by coincidence, Yin Zhengmao's eldest son was named Yin Zongyi.
That's it, it's just a matter of choosing a name, and everyone just avoids it and that's it.
But it happened that Yin Zhengmao didn't understand the world, and he admired Wang Zongyi in his heart. In order to make friends with him, he would joke around all day long. My son Zongyi, my son Zongyi, talked about the eldest son in the family, trying to attract attention - just like
It's like a primary school student pretending to step on a pretty girl's feet casually.
Wang Shangshu, an old-fashioned scholar, couldn't stand this. When he couldn't bear it, he directly scolded Yin Zhengmao's office, filed an impeachment report, wrote letters to argue, and took care of him all at once.
Yin Zhengmao was a tough-talking person and refused to admit his mistakes. The feud and estrangement between the two of them was planted at this time.
Seeing that the emperor and the Minister of Civil Affairs were quietly waiting for their opinions, Wang Zongyi turned away and replied in a low voice: "Your Majesty, Yin Zhengmao is a scholar in the world and should join the Ministry of War."
Celebrating festivals is nothing more than a minor event and should not affect the judgment of business matters.
Zhu Yijun nodded gently when he heard this, and then looked at Wang Xijue: "After returning to Beijing, Wang Qing will ask the Ministry of Finance as soon as possible."
Although Wang Xijue landed by air, it is definitely a natural thing for him to take charge of the official department.
After all, half of today's officials in the Ministry of Civil Affairs are the team left by Shen Shixing in the past seven years, and the two of them wear the same pair of trousers, so the team must be able to digest it quickly - in history, Wang Xijue was not allowed to get close to officials, and Shen Shixing had to do it
He lent his protégé Yanguan to Wang Xijue for use. It would not be too much to call them political Siamese twins.
When Wang Xijue heard this, he raised his hands and accepted the order.
Having said that, Zhu Yijun did not end the conversation.
Instead, he turned around and walked out of the room, inviting: "Come on, come with me to get some fresh air."
Wang Xijue and Wang Zongyi naturally followed the emperor silently without saying a word.
After swatting away a group of imperial guards who tried to follow him, Zhu Yijun led the two of them out of the room and down the three-story ship.
At this time of year, heavy snow has begun to fall from the sky.
This is the last half-winter month for sailing in Shuntian Prefecture in the seventh year of Wanli. It gets even colder in the twelfth lunar month, so sailing is no longer possible.
Pedestrians on both sides of the strait were wrapped in thick clothes and hurried about.
From time to time, people who like to join in the fun gather on the shore and look at the dragon boats on the river.
Ice floes can be seen drifting across the river from time to time. I wonder if it is the result of ice removal by sailors in the river.
In front of the dragon boat, there are accompanying boats to clear the way, which are used to drive away civilian ships and clear the ice floes.
Zhu Yijun stepped down from the building and said with a complex expression: "Where can I see these poor people without leaving the palace?"
The two of them looked under the building boat and naturally understood what the emperor was referring to.
There were not only sailors on the riverbed breaking the ice and clearing the way for the boats, but also trackers pulling the boats against the biting cold wind when the passage was upstream.
Wang Zongyi replied from the bottom of his heart: "Your Majesty is kind and virtuous."
At least in his opinion, the emperor was a benevolent man who combined knowledge and action.
But Zhu Yijun didn't accept the compliment and laughed at himself: "I just talk, but in the end I still use the people's wealth and support. I can only count my conscience as good, not benevolent. It's far from it."
He didn't say who he was compared to, and the two people behind him didn't know how to answer the conversation, so they couldn't help but fell silent.
After walking to the deck, Zhu Yijun took out a memorial from his sleeve.
He turned around and handed the memorial to the court Wang Zongyi: "Wang Qing, when Ma Ziqiang, a cabinet scholar and minister of rites, left Beijing, he sent the last memorial, which was about the arrangements for the imperial examination. You are here to advise me."
When Wang Zongyi heard this, he was in awe.
As the former Minister of Rites, his time is running out, and it is still unclear whether he can survive this year. However, he still cared about the country before leaving, which is really touching.
Wang Zongyi respectfully reached out and respectfully took the memorial handed over by the emperor.
I couldn't help but be stunned when I saw the cover. The title said - "Welcoming the new direction of the imperial examination work"
As the saying goes, those who are close to red are red and those who are close to ink are black. Ministers who are close to the emperor, such as the cabinet ministers and the six ministers and nine ministers, have more and more strange but precise wordings in their writing.
He sighed with emotion, then gathered his thoughts, opened the memorial and started reading.
Wang Zongyi is getting older, and his eyes are no longer as sharp as when he was young - his brain can barely keep up, but his eyes can't keep up at all.
Of course, there are advantages to watching slowly. At least it makes the process of his expression changes much more obvious.
After a long while, it settled into a frown, a stiff expression, and a strange look in his eyes.
Wang Zongyi slowly closed the memorial, looked at the emperor and replied in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, I'd like to express my frankness, but Ma Gong's memorial is a bit too childish."
"The imperial examination is a grand ceremony for the country and the dynasty to promote their talents. If you arbitrarily add some calculations, logic and cause-and-effect theory, etc., I am afraid... it will go against the way of a saint."
It is better to be a lower class person than a lower class person, and Wang Zongyi is not completely denying these things.
But if it were included in the imperial examination, it would be a bit out of place.
Ma Ziqiang wrote this kind of memorial, it seems that he was really seriously ill and lost his mind, which is really regrettable.
Zhu Yijun glanced at this old-fashioned old man.
This is what capable ministers have to face when they reach the position of Jiuqing - everyone has their own ideas and will not be a yes man easily.
In this regard, Zhu Yijun could only explain in a gentle voice: "Uncle Zong, even if you say this, what Mr. Ma said is not unreasonable."
"The imperial examination is to recruit talents for the country, but it is not only for the country to select saints. In addition to personal conduct, it also needs to be calculated for political management."
"The two go hand in hand without conflict. Only by having both can you be a good official."
When Wang Zongyi heard this, his expression did not change much. He shook his head and retorted: "Your Majesty's words are indeed insightful, but calculations, logical cause and effect, and other things may not be of any benefit to governing the country."
The emperor's well-known hobbies are fishing, debating scriptures, and mathematics.
Wang Zongyi was not surprised by the emperor's attitude, but he still persisted.
Hearing this, Zhu Yijun sighed and advised from the bottom of his heart: "With it, no benefit will be seen; without it, all the harm will be seen."
"In the early years, many state officials miscalculated the tax amount when collecting taxes. Nowadays, when it comes to clearing out households, many county and county magistrates lack the ability to check and are confused.
When subordinates are deceived by subordinate officials, this is an uncalculated harm."
"The logic is the same, just like Wu Shanyan was demoted after the Fujian mutiny, but he still talked loudly at home. The soldiers' opposition showed that he did the right thing, and his broken legs were clear evidence that he had touched the current evil."
"Not to mention the jokes like Hu Runing and Tan Yushi who put aside the facts. They are all stupid without knowing it. It is really disgusting."
The emperor's expression was sincere and his tone was sincere, and he patiently explained to Wang Zongyi.
Wang Zongyi seemed to have listened, standing there with his expression changing, looking like he was deep in thought.
Wang Xijue stepped aside and watched coldly, with no intention of getting involved in this matter.
He saw it more clearly than Wang Zongyi, why is Ma Ziqiang superior to Shu? This was clearly the emperor's own intention.
Before it became clear, or in other words, when it reached the stage of court discussion, he didn't want to take a stand easily.
After a while.
Wang Zongyi, who was deep in thought, finally came to his senses.
Facing the emperor's expectant gaze, Wang Zongyi paused for a moment and shook his head firmly.
Ignoring the emperor's regretful look, he bowed to the emperor and said seriously: "What your Majesty said is certainly reasonable, but... the provincial official schools already teach arithmetic, and I think that having a rough understanding of these topics is enough for the purpose of managing politics.
That’s it.”
"And the selection of scholars according to the classic ranking is the foundation of the country and cannot be shaken. It is definitely not allowed to increase or decrease the ranking. I hope your majesty will tell you which one is more important and which is less important."
Wang Zongyi has been at the grassroots level and has been an official in the central government for so many years. Even if he doesn't know why, he can know it through experience.
Once the quality of calculation affects the ranking in the imperial examination, it is impossible to say that there will be people who are proficient in calculation but not familiar with classics. In the past, it is hard to say who is higher in classics or lower in calculation.
When Zhu Yijun heard this, he hesitated for a moment and nodded solemnly: "What Wang Qing said makes sense."
"Then just follow what Wang Qing said!"
"Add a supplementary volume based on the calculation of the numbers taught by the official school, and add another test. Only the calculation of the number will be used to depose, without increasing the ranking of Jinshi."
He paused: "Forget about this subject after the beginning of spring, we will start from the Jinshi subject in the eleventh year of Wanli."
Numeracy is an elective subject in official schools in various states. To slightly improve the status, it does not take too long for people to learn it from scratch.
As for logic, you have to wait for at least two more subjects, textbooks, and teachers before it is time to add the supplementary volume.
Of course, as I said before, no matter how difficult it is to change later, start changing slowly and do as much as you can.
Wang Zongyi couldn't help but be stunned after hearing the emperor's words.
He suddenly realized that the emperor might have made a mistake.
What he meant was that arithmetic, logic, etc. were just electives and no exams were necessary.
But the emperor only said that it would not increase or decrease the ranking, and wanted to use calculations to screen people. Well... if it was only used as a threshold for a lower level, it seems that it would not increase or decrease the ranking.
Wang Zongyi thought about it, and his mind was a little confused.
I just feel that it is increasingly unclear what the subsequent impact of the emperor's statement will be.
Before he could think clearly, he heard the emperor speak again.
"Wang Qing is very thoughtful. Each provincial official school has set up arithmetic courses. If he is dismissed because of the supplementary examination, it means that he has a bad attitude towards learning. He does not listen well on weekdays, and his conduct and conduct will not be much better.
.”
Wang Zongyi had an idea and was about to speak. He hesitated for a moment and then swallowed the words that came to his lips.
I have to say that if it was only as difficult as provincial professors, then the emperor would be right.
The arithmetic in the official school was extremely simple. When he was studying in Huguang Province, he was only slightly distracted for one year and completed the arithmetic course.
Normally, at least 80% of cases will not get stuck at this threshold.
This ratio is no different from making a show.
Of course, if you are dismissed from such a difficult calculation, you are really either stupid or bad - in Shilin, a bad attitude towards learning is a kind of moral corruption.
Wang Zongyi was shaken, but this time he did not refuse outright, but reluctantly said: "Your Majesty, please allow me to return to the Ministry of Rites to discuss it."
Whether to change it or not, and how to change it, cannot be solved by just talking.
This kind of major policy, which involves the fundamentals of the country and the dynasty, will take at least half a year to reach a conclusion.
Zhu Yijun nodded happily: "Please think about it first, and we will come back to the Ministry of Rites to discuss the terms."
"Also, although it is too late to take the subject now, we may be able to add a math subject for the Shujishi examination in April next year."
He doesn't need a mathematician to take the imperial examination. He can use primary school mathematics and basic logic to screen out people who have no rational thinking at all. In fact, it is enough.
Of course, the key is to improve the social status of mathematics and logic - for this reason, even if the Ministry of Rites lowers the threshold to the lowest level in the first year and only asks some questions such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division for everyone to pass, Zhu Yijun can accept it.
Once you enter the imperial examination, your status will gradually rise. Not to mention the mainstream, just being promoted to a sub-mainstream position is enough.
Of course, in the process, the local government may inevitably concoct some new types of auspiciousness, such as a child who failed in a private school and suddenly had an epiphany overnight and became one of the top 12 in the world of mathematics in the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Yijun couldn't help but shake his head and laugh as he thought about it.
Although they didn't know what the emperor was laughing at, Wang Zongyi and Wang Xijue looked at each other and laughed together.
Just as he was trying to grin, Wang Zongyi suddenly saw that the expressions of Wang Xijue and the emperor suddenly froze, and his smile stopped abruptly.
Wang Zongyi didn't know why.
"Your Majesty, there is something wrong..."
Before he finished speaking, he glanced at the embankment beside the river and seemed to see something, and the questioning also stopped abruptly.
My vision, blurred by old age, gradually became clearer.
On the shore is a deserted country road.
A coarse cloth was opened, and several scholars stood on the embankment, pulling one end of the cloth from left to right, waving it vigorously, to attract attention towards the dragon boat.
Chapter completed!