unclear

Chapter 476 Customs
There is only one way to reduce this possibility, which is to gradually replace officials with conflicting ideas. There is only one way to achieve this, which is to select more young officials from the imperial examinations for training.

It sounds reasonable, but in fact it is difficult to do. The reason is simple: the target is wrong. What ran counter to the New Deal or Hong Tao's ideas was not specifically certain officials and gentry-bureaucratic groups, but the entire system and cultural background.

The candidates or Jinshi selected by the imperial examination are precisely the inheritors of this system and this culture. Anyone who tries to overthrow this system and change this culture is their natural enemy. Except for a few deviants, the vast majority of them will not be of the same mind.

The most troublesome thing is that this situation cannot be changed until a new education system is completely established. So what to do? Hong Tao decided to walk on two legs. On the one hand, we should select as many suitable people as possible from the imperial examinations. On the other hand, we should adjust the structure of the imperial court and find ways to replace the replaceable functions first.

To put it bluntly, Hong Tao wanted to create a small imperial court within the imperial court. Most of them would be filled by members of the Cuju Team and Haikou Division, supplemented by a small number of relatively determined royalist officials, so that the power originally belonging to the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers would be gradually transferred. Go to the small court.

In this way, the interests of traditional forces will not be immediately touched, and the reserve team cultivated by oneself can be trained and run-in at the actual management level, and time will be left for all parties to become familiar with and adapt.

It will be much safer to carry out education reform when the number of these officials is sufficient to trigger qualitative changes. Even if it caused a group of traditional forces to attack, the court would not be paralyzed. As long as the government can barely keep functioning, the ultimate winner can only be the emperor who controls the country's economy and military.

In fact, this work has been started for less than half a year, but it is done relatively secretly, and no one can feel it yet. In the eyes of the courtiers, the emperor's new general staff was a tool to limit military power and its role was relatively positive.

Among the 13 staff officers, 9 were from the Sixth Department and Nine Ministers. Even if the remaining 4 were royalists, they could still suppress the emperor's attempt to mobilize the army at will to participate in internal political struggles.

This is called short-sightedness. The emperor did not expect to use the army to suppress political opponents. If he wanted to, the marines would be enough. In foreign wars, the provision that the Army can be mobilized without going through the General Staff's military aircraft is precisely the motive. The Army is used for aggression.

The establishment of the General Staff Headquarters requires, in addition to the 13 general staff military and aircraft ministers with voting rights, some administrative staff to be responsible for daily work. These talents are the key. They are not selected by the courtiers, but directly appointed by the emperor. The vast majority will come from the Navy, Warrior Battalion and Kaihu Division.

It is better to let these young people who have received new ideological education and have practical experience work in the highest military authority of the empire for a few years, and then select those suitable for politics and promote them, rather than directly forcing young people with no political experience. It is much safer to enter the officialdom.

In other words, Hong Tao took advantage of the courtiers' fear of the army and secretly built plank roads to infiltrate Chen Cang. The staff department was turned into a temporary training unit for training new officials, allowing ministers who opposed the New Deal to use practical actions to train the backbone of the New Deal.

Then watching these young officials personally destroy the system they depend on for survival, it can be said that they are vicious and vicious.

But Hong Tao seems to think it's not quite flavorful yet, so he plans to add one more ingredient to speed up the process, and that's customs!
In the seventh year of Jingyang (1611), Yuan Keli held the two important positions of Governor of Shipping and Governor of Customs for two full years.

The work achievements are obvious to all. Not only has the Municipal Shipping Department’s points been raised from dispensable to the second largest court income after land tax, it has also initially established four transshipment ports and a team of disabled retired navy soldiers and civilians. The backbone of the transport fleet is responsible for nearly 40% of the grain and 80% of the supplies heading north.

But the navy is an army after all and is not suitable for excessive involvement in commercial activities. Even if Yuan Keli didn't have any extra thoughts, it would be too test of human nature and immoral to always let the wealth and wealth pass by in front of the officers and soldiers without being able to get it.

Once there is a serious corruption problem in the navy, facing the attention of the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, Ma Su will inevitably be killed in tears. Hong Tao would definitely not destroy the Great Wall for a little money and food.

In addition, Yuan Keli is also in his early fifties. No matter how capable he is, there is a limit. He cannot just use anyone who knows how to work to death. Reduce his burden and live a few more years, which will be of great use in the future. Then why not separate the shipping business from the navy and have to use customs first? The reason is very simple. Customs is highly professional, making it difficult for outsiders to intervene and making it easier to control.

Maritime transportation involves too many people, the area is too wide, and the threshold is too low, so anyone can get involved. Before completely changing the system, let's let the navy do it first. It just has an excuse to recruit more sailors. They can drive transport ships for training in normal times, and they won't be blinded if they can directly board warships during war.

"Your Majesty's move is definitely far-sighted, and I sincerely admire it!" When it was announced at the imperial meeting that the customs would be returned to the imperial court, all the ministers expressed their sincere joy with shouts of "Long Live the Holy Ming".

If this was said two years ago, I am afraid the effect would be reversed. It's only a few hundred thousand taels of silver every year, but he has to bear the responsibility of influencing the New Deal. He is either a royal guard or an internal official overseeing him all day long. If the guarantee is not enough, there are Dongchang gangsters secretly snooping. If he goes wrong, his reputation will be ruined, his family will be destroyed, how can he calculate it? Why isn't it worth it?

Things are different now. The annual silver income of the two customs offices in Guangzhou and Fuzhou has increased year by year, reaching nearly three million taels. They are two treasures who can lay golden eggs. If it can be brought back under the control of the imperial court, it will not only enrich Taicang, but also allow many officials to get some oil and water.

At this time, no one mentioned that he was ruined and his family was ruined. After all, when the benefits reached a certain amount, it was normal to take some risks. The navy has been fishing for two years without incident. No one has a bigger head than Yuan Keli, so why should he succeed us?
"Don't be too busy admiring me. I still have something to say. The customs revenue is several million taels per year, and it will get higher and higher with the rollout of the New Deal. This money looks like a lot, but in fact it is not enough. There are many in the north. The rivers in the province need to be dredged, irrigation ditches need to be dug, and some post roads need to be repaired. Money is needed everywhere.

I don’t want to mention the old affairs of the Municipal Shipping Department and the Governor’s Pay Office anymore, but lessons still need to be learned, and we can no longer turn the customs into a den of thieves who enrich themselves due to neglect of management. But how to treat both the symptoms and the root cause is a big problem.

If you want to solve this problem, you need to know where the problem lies. Zhao Aiqing, you are the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs and the great treasurer of the imperial court. You are good at planning money and food. If you have any experience in this regard, please tell me and let me and all my dear friends clarify your doubts. "

Accept all compliments, but don't be careless in your requests. Everyone wants to catch the customs, right? It doesn't matter. Let's draw a line and catch whoever has the ability. We are not trying to trick anyone. We must say ugly things first. Listen clearly and think carefully before deciding whether to reach out or not.

"...Wei Chen thought that the inventory and verification of incoming and outgoing goods was the top priority." Zhao Shiqing did not expect that the emperor would ask him by name. He stood up and saluted, and then pondered for a while before slowly giving the answer.

"It is true that the navy is responsible for inspecting merchant ships that do not enter and exit Guangzhou and Fuzhou, but when they arrive at the port, it is up to the customs to decide whether to charge more or less. If someone accepts bribes and deliberately falsely declares the quantity of goods, it will be difficult to hold them accountable based only on documents. Since Zhao Aiqing knows the disadvantages , is there any solution?”

The emperor touched his chin and nodded while listening, fully convinced of this analysis. However, the imperial meeting is not just about raising questions, it is mainly about solving problems. How to prevent concealment and false reporting?

"This... just needs to appoint honest and honest people to take charge of the customs, tell the truth to the superiors, and set an example to the subordinates to strictly control them. Although it is not perfect, it is not far away!" When Zhao Shiqing answered the first question, he expected that the emperor would definitely return it. There was a follow-up, I was already prepared in my mind, and I calmly gave a solution at this time.

"Well said, every word is to the point! But I have a question. Is it possible to find such a sage in the civil and military circles of the Manchu Dynasty? If so, you might as well recommend one or two! Come, come, dear friends, don't be idle, let's come together When selecting talents for the country, you should not avoid relatives when promoting talents."

The emperor nodded his head more diligently, clapped his hands gently to express approval, and then asked a third question with an overjoyed look on his face, and expanded the audience. He no longer asked the Minister of the Ministry of Finance alone, but handed it to the person sitting at the table. Everyone who is living.

(End of this chapter)