Chapter 218 Resistance

Ye Qinghuai slept very late.

Fortunately, I have a day off tomorrow, so I can get up later.

"Your Majesty, I am going to say something that I shouldn't say. You have only slept two or three hours a day recently. If you continue like this for a long time, your body will not be able to bear it." Aunt Fanghua said while undressing.

Ye Qinghuai's eyes darkened and he said, "There are many things going on in the court right now. When the war is calmer, I will go to bed early every day."

"You said the same thing before. You said that you would have a good rest after the Spring Examination is over..." Aunt Fanghua began to chatter.

She knew that Ye Qinghuai was just perfunctory in saying these things and would not take them seriously. But if she didn't say it, she would feel that this worry was like a huge rock pressing on her heart. If she said it out, she would feel relieved.

"Aunt, can you sleep with me tonight?" Ye Qinghuai suddenly said.

Aunt Fanghua was stunned for a moment. She hadn't heard Ye Qinghuai speak to her in such a coquettish tone for a long time. It was as if she had returned to the time when Ye Qinghuai was a child.

She smiled softly behind Ye Qinghuai, who couldn't see her, and said, "Okay. But your majesty is the emperor now, and you sleep on the dragon bed. I can't sleep next to you like I did when I was a child. I will stay by your bedside to accompany you."

"No." Ye Qinghuai refused immediately, but she also understood Aunt Fanghua's concerns, so she thought, "How about this, Aunt, let's move the empty shelf over there, and you go get a bed and sleep next to my bed."

There were several double-layer wooden racks next to the bedroom, which were used to store spare charcoal basins in winter. They were about the same height as the bed, had layers and were sturdy. Ye Qinghuai went over to move them without saying anything.

"Your Majesty, you haven't fastened your undershirt yet..." Aunt Fanghua muttered as she hurried over to help.

At four o'clock in the morning, the lights in the bedroom of Jingshou Palace were finally turned off.

Aunt Fanghua couldn't resist Ye Qinghuai, so she also lay down on the makeshift bed to rest.

The bedroom was silent for half a quarter of an hour, and then in the darkness, the sound of someone turning over on the dragon bed was heard.

"Your Majesty, can't sleep?" asked Aunt Fanghua.

Ye Qinghuai was silent for a moment and said "hmm" softly.

"Aunt, I miss Mr. Lu." Ye Qinghuai sighed silently and continued, "When he was in the capital before, I could ask him for advice when I was confused. Now, if there is anything, I don't know who to consult."

"Hasn't your majesty been communicating with Mr. Lu?"

Ye Qinghuai shook his head, and then thought that Aunt Fanghua couldn't see it, so he said, "That's different. Some things still need to be discussed face to face."

Aunt Fanghua didn't know how to comfort her, so she said, "If your majesty has anything on your mind, you can talk to me."

Ye Qinghuai was silent for a moment, and said, "I told my aunt about the affairs of the court, but there is no benefit except to make her worry. I don't want to involve you."

The "you" she referred to were Aunt Fanghua and Zhou Shouyi.

In her heart, they were always her family.

"Your Majesty, there are so many ministers in the court. Mr. Lu is not here. Your Majesty can discuss with others."

This is exactly what is bothering Ye Qinghuai.

"Alas, those ministers... it's good enough that they don't become obstacles to me." Ye Qinghuai suddenly remembered that Gu Shihai once asked her outside Chengtian Gate: "Why do you want to rebel against the court?"

She thought his question was ridiculous at the time, but now she gradually understood.

The court has its own operating mechanism, and everyone in the court has his or her own position in this mechanism. She, the emperor, is just an outsider to this mechanism, but she tried to break this mechanism, so Gu Shihai said that she was "rebelling against the court."

Ye Qinghuai suddenly thought of someone, someone she should have thought of long ago.

Lin Yuxiu.

She actually forgot about him.

Not only was he outside this mechanism, but even his essay for the palace examination was about how to change this mechanism. Moreover, he was Wang Lisong's student and Lu Yanchen's junior, so it was most appropriate to consult him.

"Aunt, I've thought of the right person!"

  After saying this, Ye Qinghuai quickly fell asleep.
-

The next day was a day off, but Lin Yuxiu was summoned to the palace early in the morning.

"Mr. Lin, I have decided to speed up the process. After the new year, a Censorate will be established in Beijing. It will be directly under me and will perform supervisory duties. The Censorate in Beijing will be abolished, and the prefectures and cities will gradually implement it downwards. It will be completed within the year." Ye Qinghuai stated his idea straight to the point.

Ye Qinghuai and Lin Yuxiu had discussed this matter several times before.

This was the first step in Lin Yuxiu's reform plan. Only by making the Censorate independent from the entire bureaucratic system could we avoid the situation of "lower-level supervision of higher-level" and "self-supervision of self". Only after this step was implemented could other policies and new laws be implemented.

Lin Yuxiu was stunned for a moment, and replied: "Your Majesty, I think this matter is inappropriate."

Ye Qinghuai frowned. She didn't expect Lin Yuxiu to refuse so straightforwardly and decisively.

"Where is the debt?"

"In people."

Ye Qing thought: "After the Metropolitan Procuratorate is established, you will be transferred there to take charge of the affairs. If you need any personnel, just come to me."

"But I don't know who I should ask Your Majesty for."

Ye Qinghuai was a little unhappy: "Didn't you give me a list before, saying that the people on it were all available? Can't these people be transferred to the Censorate?"

When the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Justice were replaced, Lin Yuxiu had given Ye Qinghuai a list of people he thought were "usable in the court." The only names Ye Qinghuai was familiar with were Imperial Censor Li Wenqing and Jingzhao Prefecture Governor Jiang Qiancheng. Most of the others were new officials who had passed the imperial examinations this year or marginal figures in the court, and they did not hold important positions.

"Your Majesty, I don't think they are capable of taking on this important task right now."

Lin Yuxiu's attitude can be described as resolute.

Ye Qinghuai's face darkened again. "Although you, Lin Yuxiu, are the top scholar, who among my officials is not a well-educated person? Can't you find talented people for you to command? If you really can't find someone you like, I still have thousands of scholars and students in Dajing. After the establishment of the Metropolitan Censorate, you can recruit whatever kind of people you need."

The emperor's unhappiness was reaching a critical point.

Lin Yuxiu refused to give in. His expression was serious and a little stern. He looked at Ye Qinghuai and said, "Your Majesty, there have been many reforms in the past dynasties, but only a few of them were effective. Why? Take the most recent reform in our dynasty, the Xingrui Reform. Emperor Xingrui abolished the permanent farmland and counted the hidden households. His original intention was to increase taxes on large households and reduce the pressure on poor farmers. This would enrich the national treasury and enrich the people. However, the Ministry of Households reported that the number of permanent farmlands on the register did not match the actual number and needed to be re-counted. After the statistics were completed, only 1.2 million mu was reported to the court. The 1.2 million mu of permanent farmland in the country is less than during the reign of Emperor Shengzu. In a rage, Emperor Xingrui annulled the number reported this time."


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