Daming talker

Chapter 659: Just Play!
Seeing that no one objected to the principle of "regardless of qualifications", Wang Tianguan struck while the iron was hot and said:

"Since the qualification issue has been settled, the second article of today's court election rules is about the arrangement of the election process."

Then he explained: "After the scope of candidates is expanded, there are too many potential candidates. There are more than 20 people present, and I am afraid that everyone has their own account in mind.

In order to prevent the emergence of 10 to 20 candidates, which would make it difficult to reach a consensus, we need to make corresponding arrangements for the nomination process to ensure that the nomination goes smoothly. "

Someone with an impatient temper shouted, "The Heavenly Official should quickly make the rules clear and then get started! No matter how you elect someone, in the end, it all depends on popularity, right?"

Wang Tianguan saw that others were getting a little impatient, so he said briefly: "The nomination process is divided into two rounds. The first round is called the preliminary discussion, and the second round is called the resolution!

In the first round of preliminary discussion, everyone can nominate a candidate. As long as more than half of the ministers agree, the nominated person automatically becomes a candidate and participates in the second round of resolution.

In the second round of decisions, the candidates will be discussed and the two with the highest reputation will be selected as the final result! "

The charter proposed by Wang Tianguan was concise, clear and efficient, so there was nothing to object to.

It's better than a group of dozens of people fighting and arguing with each other.

Sometimes, it's ok to argue for two or three hours without any result, but there are also cases where people get angry and resort to physical fighting - don't think that civil servants don't fight.

Of course, ever since Lin Tailai started working at the court, armed fights in court meetings have disappeared when he is present, and no matter how angry the ministers are, they will not choose to take action.

So to be realistic, Lin Tailai also made outstanding contributions to the civilized progress of court meeting order.

After today's rules were set, it was time for the much-anticipated recruitment phase, and everyone was a little impatient.

This time the scope of eligible people has been expanded. It seems that everyone has friends and relatives who can recommend them to give it a try. What if it works?

Several governors and provincial governors who were not present were brought out to serve as test cases.

However, the reality is that those who are optimistic have learned a lesson that it is not easy to get a majority of approval.

None of the tentative nominations that were thrown out at the beginning could get more than half the votes, and most of them only had a few scattered votes in favor.

There are twenty-one ministers participating in the court recommendation today. About one-third are from the Qingliu Party and the Shanxi and Shaanxi Gangs, about one-third are from the Lin Party and the remnants of the Shen Party, and the remaining one-third belong to the chaotic camp.

Therefore, if they want to get more than half of the votes to pass the primary election this time, they must at least gain the support of one side between the Qingliu Party and the Lin Party, and then win over a few scattered votes.

How can ordinary retail investors do this? They will be cannon fodder if they are nominated.

Seeing that all those randomly nominated people failed, Lu Guangzu, who had been worried about being disturbed by random items, felt relieved.

It seems that the impact of "not restricting qualifications" is not as great as imagined, and we still need to keep stability and focus on ourselves.

So Lu Guangzu stood up and said, "I recommend Xu Guo, the former Grand Secretary of Wuying Palace!"

After this nomination was made, the slightly noisy Dongchao Room suddenly became quiet, and everyone said "Oh shit" in their hearts!
Everyone suddenly realized that there was such a special former university scholar in the opposition.

A year and a half ago, Xu Guo was forced to resign because of the Xizhimen Loyal Eunuch Incident.

In fact, in the Ming Dynasty, it was not uncommon for retired ministers to be reinstated and return to work in the cabinet, and there was no problem with the rules.

But the special thing about Xu Guo is that, first, he is Lin Tailai's teacher; second, if he were to come back, he would probably replace Zhao Zhigao as the prime minister.

After all, according to the rules, whoever entered the cabinet earlier would be ranked higher. Xu Guo entered the cabinet in the 12th year of Wanli, so if he came back, he would definitely be ranked higher than Zhao Zhigao.

There are many precedents for this. For example, after Xia Yan returned in the 24th year of Jiajing, Yan Song was demoted to the second assistant.

So it can even be said that excluding the three people who just resigned, Xu Guo is theoretically the only person today who has the potential to snatch Zhao Zhigao's position as prime minister.

Anyway, after Lu Guangzu proposed Xu Guo, six people from the Qingliu Party and the Shanxi and Shaanxi Gang immediately expressed their agreement.

Then several people who were not on good terms with Lin Tailai, or who were friendly with Xu Guoguo, also spoke up in agreement.

Therefore, those who agreed with Xu Guo easily exceeded the majority and became the first candidate to enter the resolution today.

Lu Guangzu couldn't help but smile. Today was a good start. As long as Xu Guo could be promoted, it would be considered a success. Nothing else mattered.

Originally, the atmosphere in the Dongchao Room was quite relaxed; the New Year was approaching, and everyone was nominating the two elders to have some fun.

But after Lu Guangzu's outrageous move, the atmosphere suddenly became tense, and even seemed to be on the verge of a showdown.

You know, in the past few years, the cabinet minister who had the most intense exchanges with the Qingliu forces was none other than Xu Guo.

Today, Lu Guangzu recommended his old rival Xu Guo, which was obviously "Xiang Zhuang dancing with a sword to target Pei Gong". The first purpose was to get rid of Zhao Zhigao's position as the prime minister, and the second was to disgust Lin Tailai.

At this moment, no one was talking or laughing anymore, everyone was looking at Wang Tianguan.

Lu Guangzu has used his ultimate move. How should Lord Tianguan respond?

Wang Tianguan coughed a few times, and then he saw Tongzhengshi Xu Shen stand up and say, "I recommend Zuodu Yushi Lu Guangzu."

Everyone: "."

Lu Guangzu's operation was already awesome enough, but who would have thought it could be even more awesome?
After all, Lu Guangzu was "using the opponent's force to counter attack", but you Lin Party members just used a flying dragon to hit him in the face?

Everyone knows that the ministers standing here all have their own reasons, and none of them wants to join the cabinet.

The ones who really wanted to join the cabinet were ministers like Zhao Yongxian, who were not too old but had no hope for a future. Only they had the idea of ​​giving it a try.

Lu Guangzu looked at Xu Shen in surprise, then at Wang Tianguan who had an expressionless face.

It turns out that the so-called "regardless of qualifications" is completely directed at myself?

Xu Shen explained the reason: "Since it is said that there is no limit on qualifications, even those who are not Hanlin can be recommended.

Then General Lu is the oldest and most experienced minister in the court, so of course he is the most qualified to join the cabinet!"

This reason is naturally very sufficient. As a living fossil of the officialdom who passed the imperial examination in the 26th year of Jiajing, Lu Guangzu, who is already 71 years old, is definitely the most qualified person to enter the cabinet in terms of qualifications.

A similar scene occurred, but this time it was the Lin Party that agreed unanimously.

However, some conflicts arose among the Qingliu forces. Without a plan in advance, everyone tended to have different ideas when encountering emergencies.

Some people opposed it, but some people agreed after hesitation, probably thinking that it was a good thing for Lu Guangzu to join the cabinet.

In addition to the votes from the neutral camp who "did not want to offend Lu Guangzu", Lu Guangzu passed the initial discussion very smoothly and became the second candidate to join the cabinet.

Then the atmosphere in Dongchao's room changed from tense to weird.

Lu Guangzu was a little annoyed. He had previously opposed Prime Minister Zhao's proposal and strongly demanded that the emperor recommend him to the throne.

If the final result of the imperial nomination is me, what will the emperor do? Fortunately, this is just a preliminary discussion. They will definitely vote me out. As long as they can nominate Xu Guo to the throne, it will be a success!

Wang Tianguan scanned the crowd and asked, "Are there any more nominations?"

Yang Junmin, the Right Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, suddenly said as if to play a prank: "I recommend Wang Tianguan!"

Since we are going to mess around, then let's all do it together.

Why didn't Lin Tailai beat you to death in Yangzhou? Wang Tianguan cursed in his heart, and then replied: "I am the one who presided over the court recommendation, so I should avoid suspicion."

Yang Junmin greeted everyone and asked, "Do you agree?"

Wang Tianguan said with a hint of meaning: "The imperial recommendation is a serious matter. I advise you not to mess around."

Except for a few of his party members, no one else jumped out to join Yang Junmin in making trouble, so Yang Junmin's "nomination" was not passed.

No one wants to be retaliated against by the Minister of Personnel. Even if you are not afraid, you still have relatives and friends to care about.

After suppressing the unstable factors, Wang Tianguan asked everyone again: "Are there any more nominations?"

Another remnant of the Shen Party, Zhan Yangbi, suddenly asked, "Former Minister of Rites Shen Li?"

Everyone felt like they had just seen a ghost. Why were the people on Lin’s side pushing the people from the Qingliu faction so hard?

Just now it was Lu Guangzu, and now it's Shen Li. What exactly is the Lin Party's intention? Why can't I understand it at all?
However, when hearing the name "Shen Li", some people secretly sighed that there was finally a serious nomination.

If there must be a standard answer for the imperial nomination, then it would probably be Shen Li. If the political situation in recent years had been normal, it would be Shen Li's turn to join the cabinet.

If Shen Li was still in the court, he would be almost the only remaining senior poet, second only to Shen Shixing and Wang Xijue.

Moreover, Shen Li is the leader and founder of the Qingliu forces. He has everything from qualifications to reputation. If he doesn't join the cabinet, who will?
But the Qingliu Party members present were still very conflicted. Should they invite Shen Li back to wade into the muddy water?

But Shen Li's own conditions were too strong, and no one could openly oppose it, so Shen Li's nomination was successfully passed.

Lu Guangzu secretly deduced in his mind, if he could nominate Shen Li and Xu Guo to join the cabinet, plus the candidates recommended by Wang Jiaping, would that be enough to monopolize the cabinet? This result didn't seem to be impossible, did it?
At this moment, Wang Tianguan was like a machine, only asking repeatedly: "Are there any more nominations?"

No one spoke for the time being. With the former second assistant Xu Guo, the most senior person in the outer court Lu Guangzu, and the standard answer Shen Li as their role models, no one else was more qualified.

Recommending anyone else would only bring disgrace upon myself in front of these three people.

Objectively speaking, these three people seem to be the most qualified people.

Zhong Zhenji, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, who had been keeping a low profile recently, stepped out and said with a wry smile, "I will nominate someone too."

Just as everyone was surprised, they heard Zhong Zhenji say, "Lin Tailai, the Imperial Academy Attendant, the Imperial Academy Junior Secretary, and the Three Departments Doctor, is here."

The people who were originally whispering to each other were silenced again. Minister Zhong, what are you kidding? Is Lin Jiuyuan qualified?

Also, didn't you offend Lin Tailai three months ago? What's the point of recommending Lin Tailai now?
Is he trying to trick Lin Tailai or praise him? Why can't I understand?
Zhong Zhenji said innocently, "The ministers had agreed before that there would be no restrictions on qualifications, so why can't Lin Tailai, one of the top six, be included?

Now Lin Tailai is already a fourth-rank official, not much worse than a third-rank official. Besides, the Grand Secretary himself is only a fifth-rank official."

Before everyone had finished tasting it, the Minister of War Ye Mengxiong jumped out and said loudly: "I agree!"

In the next wave, the Minister of Personnel Wang Tianguan, the Right Vice Minister of Personnel Wang Yongji, the Minister of Dali Temple Zhou Cai, the Minister of Public Administration Xu Shen, and the Left Vice-Chief Censor Zhan Yangbi all expressed their agreement.

After hesitating for a moment, the two major factions, the Minister of Revenue Yu Shenxing and the Minister of Works Chen Yubei, also expressed their agreement.

If they do not come out to support Lin Tailai, then the Lin Party will have to support both of them to join the cabinet.

Under the death gaze of Minister of War Ye Mengxiong, the newly transferred Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War had to agree.

Zhang Mengnan, the nephew of the former Prime Minister Gao Gong and the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, also came out to agree.

As a result, Lin Tailai's seemingly very frivolous nomination was passed by a narrow margin with just eleven votes in favor, which was just over half of the votes.

The Qingliu Party members looked at the absurd scene before them and fell into collective silence. They had no idea what their opponents were trying to do.

It seems that things have been getting out of control since they successfully nominated Xu Guo.

Wang Tianguan looked at the sky and said to everyone, "It's getting late! We'd better make a quick decision!"

Then several clerks carried a table into the east room, with a pen, ink and a stack of papers on it.

Wang Tianguan continued: "The candidates now are Xu Guo, Lu Guangzu, Shen Li, and Lin Tailai. Each of you take turns to step forward and write down two candidates on your paper!
The two people who were nominated the most times are the results of today’s court nomination!

For the sake of fairness, from now on, no one is allowed to whisper to each other or collude with each other!
Please, in the spirit of responsibility to the court, write down who you think is the most suitable candidate! "

Lu Guangzu blurted out subconsciously: "Isn't this inappropriate?"

Wang Tianguan glanced at Lu Guangzu and asked, "Why is it inappropriate? May I ask General Lu, is it unfair to let everyone write down their candidates freely?

Mr. Lu, do you still want to interfere with others? Otherwise, why don't you become the Heavenly Official?"

Then everyone took turns to write two names. After writing, the papers were put aside and not made public for the time being.

After everyone had finished writing, Wang Tianguan personally called out the names one by one.

After the statistics were completed, Wang Tianguan solemnly announced:
"Lu Guangzu is the top candidate among all the candidates in this imperial nomination! He was nominated by 15 people in total!"

Lu Guangzu: "."

How could he not understand at this point? The seven or eight people on Lin's side must have all voted for him!
Adding our own votes and some scattered votes, the total vote count was fifteen!
Fifteen out of twenty-one people surrendered to me. When has the Ming Dynasty court ever been so united?

Everyone just lamented that this court recommendation was so magical that the two great poets Xu Guo and Shen Li were not able to beat Lu Guangzu who seemed to be here to make people laugh.

But the next moment, something even more magical happened. Wang Shizhen continued to announce: "The second place is Lin Tailai, a total of eleven people nominated him!"

Everyone: "."

Who is the comedian chosen by the court today, Lu Guangzu, the oldest senior official, or Lin Tailai, the youngest senior official?

As for whether the third place was Xu Guo or Shen Li, Wang Tianguan did not announce it further because the third and fourth places were meaningless.

Everyone was deeply skeptical. Would the ridiculous court recommendation results of Lu Guangzu and Lin Tailai be approved if reported to the emperor?

How did the result turn out like this step by step? It seems that something really happened in the middle, and I really can't understand it without reviewing it.

Wang Tianguan glanced at Lu Guangzu proudly. He really had no other intention today but to have fun!
Do you think others can't guess that you will nominate Xu Guo?
(End of this chapter)