Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 314 Ease
The prerequisite for the emperor to consider issues is always the position under his buttocks. Because of his understanding of the nature of the officials below, Emperor Chenghui had no doubts about Jia Lian's explanation.

Once the performance evaluation system was implemented, most officials had no psychological pressure to achieve political achievements. The officialdom was dominated by the trend of following superiors. For example, if the emperor asked for one pound of something, it would be considered a guilty conscience if the tribute was increased tenfold when it came to the place of production. The reason was naturally that officials at all levels added layers of extra charges, and by the time it was implemented, it was completely unrecognizable. Because in this process, officials at every level would try to get some benefits. The final pressure was all given to the local people.

After Emperor Chenghui ascended the throne, he discovered this problem and carried out some rectification, which led to a temporary improvement. However, after a while, the old problem resurfaced, causing Emperor Chenghui to consider stopping some tributes.

In fact, Emperor Chenghui is now very cautious in introducing any policies. The reason why he introduced the performance evaluation system is out of his trust in Zhang Tingen and Sun Huazhen.

There is one problem that Jia Lian did not mention, but he gave enough hints, and Emperor Chenghui also realized it. If you want the policy to be implemented as accurately as possible, there must be a supporting supervisory agency.

If we want to rectify the administration of officials, it is too hasty to directly implement the performance evaluation system. We should first improve the supervisory institutions. The existing Supervisory Office is not qualified as a supervisory institution. All the officials are from the imperial examination system, and they are naturally part of a profit group. But now the words have been spoken, the arrow is on the string, and it cannot be stopped.

Emperor Chenghui, who slept in the study that night, had trouble falling asleep and tossed and turned until midnight before he fell into a drowsy sleep.

After the news of the cabinet meeting spread overnight, all the lazy officials in the government and the country were greatly stimulated.

The budget system is not so bad. The reaction is not particularly strong. At most, it tests the department's ability to make accounts and ask for money. Except for the Ministry of Revenue, other departments do not have much objection. After all, according to the budget system, as long as the budget is approved, the Ministry of Revenue has no reason to hold back on the allocation. In the past, the situation where you could not get money without giving some benefits to the Ministry of Revenue will definitely be much less in the future. Departments such as the Ministry of Justice and the Supervisory Office, which have always had difficulty in getting money, even welcome the budget system.

The performance evaluation law is different. After its implementation, officials who slacked off in the morning and skipped work in the afternoon have become accustomed to delaying official business as much as possible and not actively working if there is no benefit. After the performance evaluation law is implemented, who knows what severe consequences will be caused if official business is still delayed to be included in the evaluation? Working hard to pass the imperial examination and become an official is not only to be high and mighty, but also to live a comfortable life.

When a new day came, all the departments of the court were like a vegetable market. No one was in the mood to work. They were all discussing with each other. The topic was naturally the performance appraisal system.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand the performance evaluation method. Just learn from Zhang Juzheng’s performance evaluation method.

The officials above the third rank in the imperial court were silent, not because they liked being model workers, but because they were closer to the cabinet and were waiting for someone to take the lead so that they could reap the benefits and not miss the opportunity to move up. The problem was that at this level, there were no fools. No one was willing to take the lead, which benefited others.

The people who are really discussing the performance evaluation law and taking action are still the middle and lower classes. Some people really think that this is an evil law that will bring disaster to the country and the people, while others are very clear that the performance evaluation law can bring benefits to the country, but it will be painful for themselves. This type of people often just follow the discussion and do not take action, and even instigate others to take action. There is also a kind of old workhorse, who does most of the work in the department. Although they don't say it, they still hope that the performance evaluation law will be implemented. Of course, most of them are eating weird pies.

As the morning was about to end, some people from various departments took action, walked out of their respective offices, and gathered outside the cabinet. Together with some people who were stirring up trouble, two or three hundred people blocked the cabinet.

"My fellow ministers, the Performance Evaluation Law is an evil law. Why doesn't the cabinet resign en masse to reject it?" An official shouted, but the response he got was that the door was closed and none of the cabinet leaders came out.

"The ministers in the cabinet are only concerned about their own selfish interests and have no sense of responsibility. It is futile for us to block here. We might as well go back and write memorials to oppose this evil law." Someone shouted in the crowd.

"Yes, go back and write a memorial." After someone echoed, the crowd quickly dispersed. These scholars who became officials were not good at other things, but they were good at writing articles.

Soon, more than a hundred memorials arrived at the emperor's desk. Emperor Chenghui did not get angry, and even read a few of them patiently.

Soon Emperor Chenghui's three views were shattered, because the views in these opposing memorials were unbelievable to him.

To sum up, there are the following points.

The Performance Evaluation System was an evil law, and it reached its peak during the reign of the cruel official Zhang Juzheng. So, after Zhang Juzheng's death, the previous dynasty restored order. Is our dynasty worse than the previous one?
Is he going to use the sword of the Ming Dynasty to kill the officials of the Great Zhou Dynasty? What's wrong with this person's brain? Emperor Chenghui specifically looked at the signature, Fang from the Hanlin Academy.

Also, why was the performance evaluation system not included in the ancestral system? It was probably because Taizu disliked it and thought it was an evil law and did not use it. The ancestral system cannot be called that, Your Majesty!
In addition, according to historical records, the performance evaluation system made it difficult for officials to make a living. If Your Majesty implements it, it will inevitably lead to public resentment. It would be unwise to force it through.

Emperor Chenghui was in no mood to read on. It was thousands of words long, but the meaning could be made clear in just one sentence.

"Come here, call Jia Lian!" Emperor Chenghui called out, and Qiu Shian came over and said, "Your Majesty, it's time for lunch, how about waiting?"

"I don't have the mood to eat lunch. Just bring some food over. After we finish eating, Jia Lian should be here." Emperor Chenghui waved his hand in a bad mood, and Qiu Shian hurried to make arrangements.

Wearing his official uniform on a hot day, Jia Lian still had no appetite despite the ice basin. He had a bowl of porridge in his hand and it was very difficult to drink it with pickles.

Jia Lian certainly knew that the cabinet door was blocked in the morning, and then someone instigated the crowd to make a memorial in an attempt to divert the target.

But the cabinet's actions were really smart, and the fact that the emperor did not hesitate to issue an imperial decree had also spread. Therefore, the officials did not go after the cabinet, but the emperor was the target of all the officials' attacks.

Although he had no intention of taking a bullet for the emperor, Jia Lian knew very well that he could not escape this matter. Emperor Chenghui would definitely summon him, so he just had to wait patiently.

Just as he put down his chopsticks and had no time to wipe his mouth, the eunuch arrived. Jia Lian motioned the eunuch to wait, wiped his face with a hot towel, threw the towel aside and followed him out into the palace.

Even though the distance was not far, I was sweating profusely as I rode all the way to the palace in my official uniform in such hot weather.

There were several ice jars in Emperor Chenghui's study. Jia Lian, who was dizzy from the heat, felt a little more sober after coming in and feeling the cool air.

"Someone, give Lord Jia some water and wipe him with a towel." Emperor Chenghui glanced at Jia Lian who came in, said something, and continued to review the memorials with his head down.

Emperor Chenghui looked calm, but in fact his heart was in turmoil. The purpose of the performance evaluation system was to improve the work efficiency of the various departments. The reason why officials were so opposed was not because they were afraid of being exhausted.

Official business, just take your time. Why should it be handled promptly if there is no benefit? Is it not a common practice to exchange power for some benefits? The performance appraisal system delays making money.

This is the logic of Beijing officials.

For local officials, the performance evaluation system determines whether they can be promoted, so in order to achieve political achievements, they must dare to think and act.

It's all because of Li. What's the point of knowing the reason? Isn't it the same for everyone in the world?
The key is how to act in accordance with the situation as an emperor, and Emperor Chenghui knew it very well. Jia Lian did not hesitate to unbutton his collar and wiped himself with a wet towel, and felt much better. He took a cup of iced sour plum soup and drank it in one gulp without taking a breath. He felt comfortable all over and burped.

"I am sorry for being impolite in front of you, Your Majesty!" Jia Lian straightened his official uniform and said.

Emperor Chenghui nodded with satisfaction. It was rare for a young man to be so natural.

"They are all against the performance evaluation system. Take a look." Emperor Chenghui pushed the pile of memorials in front of him.

Jia Lian nodded and took it away, then sat aside and started reading. Qiu Shian quietly brought him hot tea, and Jia Lian didn't even look up.

After two cups of tea, Jia Lian had read seven or eight memorials. Emperor Chenghui couldn't wait any longer and interrupted him, "How are you reading?"

"The writing is brilliant, and they are all well-educated people." Jia Lian began to praise. Emperor Chenghui frowned and said unhappily, "Is that all you have seen?"

Jia Lian said as a matter of course: "Yes, Your Majesty, don't forget that I am also against the implementation of the performance evaluation system now."

Emperor Chenghui was so angry that he was stunned. Qiu Shian stood behind him and waved his hands desperately, signaling Jia Lian not to make the emperor angry.

Emperor Chenghui's expression improved slightly. He knew Jia Lian was not against the performance evaluation system, so he reminded him, "Did you read the memorial from Hanlin Fang?"

Jia Lian nodded: "I've seen it, there's nothing wrong with it. This is human nature. When you oppose a point of view, no matter if you are right or wrong, you always have to find a commanding position before you can look down on others. Although this Hanlin Fang has a rather special point of view, hasn't he attracted your majesty's attention? I estimate that Hanlin Fang is probably an old Hanlin for many years."

Hanlin is equivalent to the emperor's pen. When it comes to official documents, Hanlin is often the one who comes out. This is a real noble official. A normal Hanlin will be sent out after working for six years at most. A reserve cadre! This person seems to have been forgotten. The unconventional words between the lines, isn't it just to make the emperor notice him? Although this is not a good impression.

Emperor Chenghui had heard Jia Lian's off-screen voice and quickly returned to the point: "Don't ramble on. The performance evaluation law must be implemented. Just tell me your opinion."

Jia Lian was well prepared. After pretending to be silent, he said, "There are so many meetings and documents, and the efficiency is low, especially in the capital. Let's do it in the capital for a year to see the effect. At the same time, strengthen the supervision agency, eliminate a group of incompetent people, select a group of young people with sharp energy to fill the Supervisory Office, form multiple inspection teams, and inspect the whole country to rectify the official atmosphere. Lastly, the court is not short of money, so stop donating officials."

To rectify the administration of officials, we should not only focus on work efficiency, but also fight against corruption, laziness and negligence. It is not about how many officials should be punished, but just to make them restrain themselves.

I can only say that for the current Zhou Dynasty, doing these things well is almost the limit in the short term. The idea that all problems can be solved by the emperor's words is just ridiculous. In the officialdom, deceiving superiors and concealing subordinates, reporting good news but not bad news, and trying every means to climb up are the mainstream. There is also the phenomenon of donating money to become an official, which Jia Lian absolutely hates. How can an official who has bought money not get his money back after taking office? It's funny!

Everything else was fine, but Emperor Chenghui was a little reluctant to stop the donations for official positions, as it amounted to hundreds of thousands of taels every year.

"I can see that you and Prime Minister Zhang had no prior communication. In the future, you should strengthen your contact and do not weaken the relationship between master and disciple." Emperor Chenghui said this in a light tone. Jia Lian stood up and folded his hands. "I'll take my leave!"

Emperor Chenghui, who had nothing to say, waved his hand lazily, signaling Jia Lian to get out.

Emperor Chenghui was quite disappointed. He was determined to start the performance evaluation law, but the specific law was not released. It was expected that it would be strongly opposed. The real blow was that the shortcomings were seen. Even Jia Lian saw that it was too hasty. How could Zhang Tingen and Sun Huazhen not see it? Since they saw it, they jointly submitted a memorial. What does it mean? The problems at the grassroots level are already very serious.

After much thought, Emperor Chenghui decided to let the three cabinet ministers who were released play a role. He indicated his intention and wrote three letters, one to Sun Huazhen, one to Zhang Tingen and one to Li Qing.

The most basic unit of the county system is the county, which itself had many loopholes. Later dynasties continued to patch them up, and by the time of the Zhou Dynasty, it basically followed the Ming system, except that the governors and provincial governors were normalized for the sake of efficiency.

Emperor Chenghui put some ideas together and wrote them in a letter, seeking the opinions of the three cabinet ministers and requesting the three governors to submit a report on the current status of the work of grassroots county officials.

When the imperial power reached the county, the county magistrate had enormous power, which was reflected in his political achievements in the collection of money and grain, and the collection of criminal justice and education.

The performance of money and grain taxation is more intuitive, just look at the data. The flexibility of criminal justice education is relatively large, especially the criminal justice system, which is the hardest hit area for collusion between officials and gentry.

Emperor Chenghui's meaning is very clear. You cannot say that the bureaucracy is overstaffed and inefficient. You should implement the performance evaluation system and find out the actual situation and report it.

Emperor Chenghui was not sure about the situation in other provinces, but he could ask the Dragon Guard to investigate Zhili. By comparing the performance of the county magistrates in the four provinces, he would have a general idea of ​​the situation in the whole country.

Several cabinet bosses had a difficult day. They closed the door and hid in their offices refusing to go out, so as to avoid being entangled by the officials below.

For the sake of so-called reputation, the lower-level officials are really willing to take risks and there are many who are willing to offend their superiors.

When the five cabinet ministers were worrying about their bleak future, the note from Emperor Chenghui arrived in front of Kong Zhao.

After reading it, the Prime Minister immediately called the other ministers together and pointed to the note on the table: "The imperial edict is here, take a look."

Everyone read it one by one, and their faces were full of wonderful expressions. Emperor Chenghui wrote three things on the note, and ordered Wang Ziteng to be reprimanded and to discipline his subordinates. The budget system is particularly important; the preparatory work must be completed in the second half of the year; the performance evaluation system cannot be copied from the previous dynasty, but should be improved as appropriate and completed as soon as possible, and will be piloted in the capital next year, and suspended in other places.

The extremely tough emperor also made a partial compromise, and the ministers breathed a sigh of relief. The officials in Beijing would definitely continue to curse, so what! Anyway, the position of the ministers was stable.

Emperor Chenghui did another thing. He summoned Lin Ruhai and talked to him alone for an hour. Outsiders didn't know what they talked about, so they could only wait for Lin Ruhai to come up with his plan.

The next day, the issue of adding new members to the cabinet was somewhat rekindled, with Lin Ruhai being the most popular candidate.

(End of this chapter)