Zhang Zuo, the eunuch in charge of the ceremonial department, was born in Qiandi Conglong and followed Emperor Jiajing from Anlu Xingwang Palace. This was his greatest asset in being able to secure the top spot in the eunuch circle.
The Qin eunuch was personally promoted by Emperor Jiajing after he came to power, but he was not in the same group as Zhang Zuo, the elders of the vassal, let alone the same travelers.
When Eunuch Qin wanted to enter the Lijian, he was always blocked by Zhang Zuo.
Later, Eunuch Qin killed Eunuch Bi, the former governor of the East Factory, and replaced him. Because of his position in the East Factory, he was given the title of Eunuch Bingbi, the Supervisor of Ceremonies, as usual.
The relationship between Qin eunuch and Zhang Zuo is basically like this. The first eunuch, Si Lijian Zhangyin, and the second eunuch, Dongchang Admiral, don't look at each other. This is very characteristic of the Jiajing Dynasty. It is the same reason that the first and second assistants rarely have real harmony.
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That's why the Qin eunuch could say that Zhang Zuo wanted to be the "real prime minister", which was really cruel, especially when he said it in front of the emperor.
Although the Si Li Jian, as the representative of the emperor, participated in the official procedures of the imperial court, the Si Li Jian rarely had direct contact with the various yamen of the outer court, and his main dealings were with the internal affairs, which was called "confidential affairs."
If the Chief of Ceremonies and the eunuch were in charge of the imperial examination, it would be like extending his tentacles directly to all the yamen of the outer court.
In this case, the ceremonial eunuchs, especially the palm eunuchs, are "both internal and external". They not only participate in decision-making at the center, but also supervise the external ministries. What is this power if it is not equivalent to a "true prime minister"?
Looking through history, the only eunuchs with this level of power were probably the Han Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty.
And then again, what is your motive for Zhang Zuo, the chief seal of the Supervisor of Ceremonies, to take the Dharma examination? Do you want to imitate the Han and Tang Dynasties?
This is where the viciousness of the Qin eunuch Zhang Zuo lies. After all, eunuchs in the Han and Tang dynasties all committed destructive acts.
Of course Zhang Zuo couldn't tolerate this connotation, and said angrily: "Then what do you want from Dongchang? They say that your Dongchang is the emperor's minions and ears. Could it be that you, Eunuch Qin, are not willing to just be the minions and ears?"
Zhang Zuo is certainly not stupid to be able to be the eunuch in charge of the ceremony. He just came forward to take the law test just to undermine Dongchang.
You can't just watch Dongchang expand and do nothing, right? If Eunuch Qin really gets the test, wouldn't he become the No. 1 eunuch?
Therefore, Eunuch Zhang must speak and show his attitude clearly, especially his attitude against Dongchang.
It is said that the eunuchs of Qin were not willing to be just minions and eyes and ears, and were as vicious as the "real prime minister".
If a tool like minions, ears, and eyes had independent thoughts, would it still be a tool? Can it still be completely controlled by its owner?
After watching the exchange of words between Eunuch No. 1 and Eunuch No. 2 for several rounds, the ministers suddenly felt a little excited.
Usually, most of the eunuchs' activities are in the palace, and they don't have many interactions with ministers. Eunuchs generally don't speak at court meetings.
In particular, eunuchs could leave the palace, but ministers could not enter the palace easily, so it was difficult for ministers to directly see the eunuchs fighting with each other.
The internal strife between the two great eunuchs today opened the eyes of many ministers, and they couldn't help but lament that these eunuchs were much more vicious when criticizing each other than the civil servants.
Perhaps I would also like to thank Qin Zhongtang for letting everyone watch a good show and get a glimpse of how the eunuchs fight among themselves.
When thinking of this, some people with a more sensitive mind discovered that Qin Zhongtang was presiding over the court meeting today - let's call it presiding. He named others to speak, which was very skillful.
When the official minister jumped out, he named Zuodu Yushi of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, who had greater political ambitions, to speak; when Dongchang jumped out, he named the ceremonial supervisor Zhangyin who wanted to suppress Dongchang.
Then Qin Zhongtang "guided" a few words in the middle, which resulted in a huge quarrel.
Listening to the two eunuchs arguing, Emperor Jiajing couldn't bear it and scolded: "Zhang Zuo and Qin Fu, you two have had enough, shut up and step back! This is a matter for the court, so the eunuchs should stop talking!"
From the words of these two people attacking each other, it can be easily analyzed that it will not work for either of them to preside over the examination.
Because these two people have too much real power, their positions are too sensitive, and they are too close to the throne, there is a risk of imbalance if they get the exam, and they may even threaten the imperial power.
So in the eyes of the emperor, you two eunuchs don't waste time, you can leave, you have nothing to do here!
Eunuch Qin secretly cursed a few words, a certain little bastard had no conscience at all, so what if he let Dongchang take advantage?
Don’t even think about it, who created the opportunity for you to “make a statement” today!
Besides, the reason why Eunuch Qin jumped out just now was because he saw some ministers starting to support Nei Yansong, so he jumped out to attract firepower!
They all have the surname Qin, so how come there is no tacit understanding at all! Haven’t you discovered that only Dongchang can help you fight for power through the yin and yang methods of overt and covert struggle?
On this issue, the emperor's thoughts are unpredictable. Don't think that you, Qin Zhongtang, can succeed with the overwhelming number of people!
Sometimes, having a large number of people is a disadvantage, and your party members may not be able to play their role!
They are just like teammates who are like pigs! They don’t know what is good or bad! Let’s see how Qin Zhongtang fights with others!
However, it was said that the two eunuchs were first instigated by Qin Zhongtang, and then the emperor ordered them to retreat, and the ministers' minds became active again.
After eliminating external risks, the meat is rotten in the pot again, so who can reach out to take the meat out of the pot?
Qin Zhongtang, who was becoming more and more comfortable in the position of "presiding over the court meeting", said calmly: "Who can tell me what you guys were talking about just now?"
Some people secretly complained, did Qin Zhongtang suffer from "forgetfulness"? He couldn't even remember what happened not long ago?
Before he could take the position of Prime Minister, he first contracted the "rarely confused" illness of Prime Minister!
Most people were careful to pretend to be deaf and dumb. After all, Qin Zhongtang had been in office for six years and his habit of fishing was already widely known.
How could you know that asking questions knowingly could not be fish bait?
Seeing this, Qin Dewei couldn't help but sigh in his heart again, fishing is really getting more and more difficult.
But after all, there is no lack of "great wisdom", and he replied: "As mentioned just now, if the Ministry of Personnel and the Metropolitan Procuratorate are not suitable, the examination method may as well be handed over to the internal director for implementation!"
Qin Dewei asked with a smile: "Then who suggested it? I can't remember."
The "Great Smart" couldn't help but be surprised, did you, Qin Zhongtang, even forget this?
Isn't it because Tu Qiao, the former censor of Zuodu, had a quarrel with Xu Zan, the former Tianguan of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and then after Tu Qiao found that he couldn't quarrel with the old bureaucrat Xu Zan, he took the initiative and decisively changed his position and offered to support Nei?
Besides, Tu Qiao, the "former censor of Zuodu", was able to speak because he was named by you, Qin Zhongtang! How could you, Qin Zhongtang, forget it?
Sensing an aura of danger from it, even the "great wise man" did not dare to answer casually.
You may be able to talk about things casually in court, but talking about people casually is a very dangerous behavior.
In the silence, someone suddenly answered: "It was Tu Zongxian's suggestion. Could it be that you, Qin Banqiao, really can't remember it?"
Everyone looked up, and the person who answered was Xu Zan, the former Tianguan of the Ministry of Civil Affairs! Not caring about guessing Xu Zan's thoughts, everyone hurriedly looked at Qin Dewei's reaction.
Qin Zhongtang was still smiling and said to Tu Qiao: "Tu Zongxian! I will give you another chance to organize your speech."
Tu Qiao had a premonition that something was not good, but what he said cannot be taken back and modified casually.
Besides, he doesn’t think this is a big problem. Does he have to support you, Qin Dewei? Don’t you, Qin Dewei, know what it means to have smooth communication?
One of the greatest political correctnesses of the Ming Dynasty was the smooth flow of speech!
Seeing that Tu Zongxian was stubborn, everyone was mentally prepared to face Qin's violent storm.
To be honest, Qin Dewei's "gentleness" today gradually made many people feel uncomfortable with it.
I also heard Qin Zhongtang say to Tu Qiao calmly: "In the past, after Emperor Taizu Gao abolished the prime minister, there was an edict that anyone who dared to restore the prime minister should be killed, and anyone who dared to praise the ministers' virtues should be killed.
If you propose to let the in-laws take the Dharma examination, will it cause the world to misunderstand that you have ulterior motives?"
Tu Qiao: "."
Are these two things related?
Qin Zhongtang interpreted it a little: "The internal ministers are already in power, and if they have the examination method and can directly supervise hundreds of officials and various yamen through the six subjects, they will have even more weight.
If you think about it carefully, how much worse is the weighted internal ratio compared to the Prime Minister?
Therefore, there is no essential difference between proposing that the internal management examination be established as a law and reinstating the prime minister and praising the ministers' virtues. It is probably that they lead to the same goal through different paths.
Although on the surface he does not have the power to restore the prime minister, in fact he has the power to restore the prime minister."
Everyone: "."
Can your interpretation of Qin Zhongtang be more blunt? You can't abuse your right to speak just because you are now a "Yi Yan Tang"!
Finally, Qin Zhongtang said with great sincerity: "What's more, Tu Zongxian, as the former head of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, your duty should be to lead the imperial censor to supervise the officials to rectify and impeach the public, but you advocate giving weight to the internal affairs. This is really unseemly.
You Tu Zongxian only entered the DPRK last year. In many cases, your lack of experience leads to poor thinking. If you don't listen to the words of an old man like me, you will suffer a lot.
"Listen to my advice, please think carefully about this and reorganize your language, okay?"
After hearing the last paragraph, many people suddenly felt that Qin Zhongtang's previous interpretation was no longer so rigid.
In fact, some people understood Tu Qiao's intentions. He might be hoping that after Mr. Yan obtained the power to pass the imperial examination, he would assign some of his responsibilities to the Metropolitan Procuratorate.
After all, it is impossible for a big boss to do everything personally, so it is logical to assign some specific work to the Metropolitan Procuratorate.
It should be said that it is human nature to want to fight for power, and Tu Qiao's words and deeds are understandable from the perspective of officialdom logic.
However, I really can’t stand the devilish interpretation of Qin Zhongtang who is “Yiyantang”!
Eunuch Qin, who wanted to see a joke, suddenly felt that he might be redundant? Maybe Qin Dewei didn't want any teammates at all?
The original intention of directly creating today's "Yi Yan Tang" eunuch Qin was just to allow Qin Dewei to stand in a favorable position, no matter how the situation changes, he can advance or retreat with ease.
But unexpectedly, Qin Dewei also harbored the idea of "testing the law" and started to make trouble by taking advantage of the "Yiyantang" opportunity.
At present, it seems that the Ministry of Personnel is not good, the Metropolitan Procuratorate is not good, the Internal Affairs is not good, the Dongchang is not good, and the Supervisor of Ceremonies is not good!
If the elimination method is used to make decisions, where does it work?
Qin Dewei kindly persuaded Tu Zongxian, the former censor of Zuodu, to retreat, and then said: "The matter of passing the legal examination is of great importance and cannot be ignored. You can speak freely!"
This meeting is really cold, and there is really no "great wisdom".
But Emperor Jiajing spoke and asked Qin Dewei: "If you follow your wishes, I have no choice. Could it be that we have to go to the Military Aircraft Department?"
Qin Dewei hurriedly turned to the emperor and said without thinking: "If you say there is only a military aircraft department, that's not the case!"
Emperor Jiajing obviously didn't believe it, and shouted: "Then what do you mean? Is there something more suitable?"
Qin Dewei replied: "What I envisage is that the records submitted by each yamen should be placed in the military aircraft office, and they should be checked once a month and once a year.
Then the results of each audit will be reported to the internal affairs department by the military aircraft department, and they will be dealt with internally!"
When everyone in the hall heard this, they were all surprised. Did Qin Dewei really change his gender today? He actually knew how to decentralize power? Is this the legendary God of Sharing?
I thought you, Qin Zhongtang, planned to let the Military Aircraft Department monopolize the test, but in the end, you got involved in it. Judging from historical experience, you wouldn't be so kind, right? Is it still bait?
Emperor Jiajing was also a little surprised, as if he had wrongly blamed Qin Dewei again?
But after Emperor Jiajing thought about it carefully, he felt that there was nothing wrong with this idea and that it suited his own taste, so he issued an edict:
"Just follow the strategy presented by Qin Dewei! The Military Aircraft Department collects the records and is responsible for the overall review, and the internal affairs department is responsible for handling the results!"
Then he pointed to the pile of resignation memorials and said: "After each official submits his or her examination certificate, Qin Dewei will then criticize and answer the memorials!"
After finishing speaking, the exhausted Emperor Jiajing didn't stay any longer, got up and left directly.
Everyone was about to disperse when suddenly Qin Zhongtang said loudly: "Gentlemen, wait! I will talk about the examination method for another quarter of an hour!"
Everyone sighed together, but they didn't dare not listen. Qin Dewei's resignation letter was still there!
Qin Dewei cleared his throat again and said: "The matters listed in the examination record book should first include the affairs currently being done by the yamen or department, as well as the progress and future deadlines of the affairs!
The second thing is to have things planned to start this year. After all, the whole year begins in the spring, and it’s not too late to plan this year’s things! We also need to have progress plans and deadlines!”
Finally, Qin Dewei concluded: "I hope you will take the test seriously and don't take it lightly!
If there is any concealment or failure to complete the work on time due to dereliction of duty, and it is verified by the Military Aircraft Department, it will be handed over to the internal affairs department for severe punishment according to His Majesty's decree!"
When the silent Mr. Yan heard this, he suddenly woke up!
The verification results are determined by your military aircraft, but the specific punishments are determined internally!
Your military aircraft department has the final say on who should be dealt with, but the bad guys are left to the inside!
In other words, when it comes to the examination law, your military aircraft department is responsible for decision-making, and your internal affairs department is responsible for implementation?
Doesn’t this horse-riding guy inside become a tool of your military aircraft department?
Qin Dewei's idea of seizing power doesn't seem difficult, but why is it always a step too late to think of it!