Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 103: Team adjustment, the Integrity Bureau is online!

"Your Majesty, why do you have to use this fake test to demonstrate your so-called fairness?"

Xue Guoguan, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, could not help but say to the emperor these words that had been in his heart for a long time.

Zhu Changgan turned his head and stared at him, his pupils shrinking like pinholes. "Natural disasters occur frequently, bandits are causing chaos, and the administration is in disarray... Which one is not a major problem facing the court? How come you say it's a fake exam?"

"Since that is your will, I will give you what you call fairness."

Zhu Changgan waved his hand suddenly, and Wang Chengen came in from outside with a large stack of test papers in his hand.

"This is the test paper of the students of the Imperial Academy. The questions they wrote are exactly the same as yours, but their answers are far more meaningful than what you wrote. What does this mean?"

"This shows that they care about the Ming Dynasty court more than you do, and that they are more concerned about the Ming Dynasty." Zhu Changgan continued almost in a roar.

He thought that these court officials might try to fool around, but he didn't expect that they would go so far. With so many people, almost no one had finished the test paper, and many even left it blank.

Can't they write?

No, they write.

One of the reasons cannot be ruled out, that is, the court officials of the Ming Dynasty were all poets with excellent literary skills, but they lacked understanding of the practical affairs of various state departments.

But none of those who can pass the imperial examinations in various provinces are fools. Most of them know the answer in their hearts but choose not to write it down.

Because that would harm their interests.

And more people don’t write it down because... since no one else is writing it, then I won’t write it either.

Since we all belong to the civil service group, we should naturally work together and take care of each other.

They did this only to put pressure on the emperor. It was their silent resistance to the emperor's willful behavior.

The dark clouds outside grew thicker, and the candlelight in the hall grew dimmer.

The rain fell noisily.

The faces of the ministers in the hall looked even uglier under the orange-yellow ox-horn lamps.

After the examination, the emperor asked the Ministry of Personnel to go through the formality of the meeting, but all the ministers knew that this was just a way for the emperor to comfort his officials.

Even if they would come up with a list, the emperor would not adopt it.

Besides, the current Minister of Personnel is Sun Chengzong, an old minister who was just reinstated by the emperor. He and they have nothing in common.

But the emperor's next sentence made everyone present suddenly jump in shock.

"Since I have conducted two examinations, I have decided to grant the students of the Imperial Academy official status and let them do my work for me."

"Your Majesty, this is not possible!" Tian Weijia, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, knelt down and said quickly.

"Your Majesty, according to the Ming Dynasty's ancestral system, the top three in the first class are directly appointed as officials of the Hanlin Academy, the second and third class Jinshi are Shujishi, and the rest are assigned to the Ministry of Personnel before they can be appointed as heads of various departments or sent out as county magistrates."

"No one except a Jinshi can be selected."

Zhang Sizhi, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, also knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, since Emperor Hongwu, the imperial examination system has been used to select officials. It has become a custom since then. How can Your Majesty change it at will?"

"His Majesty……"

Everyone present knelt down one by one, their faces flushed and their ears reddened, inexplicably excited.

"Nothing is impossible..." The emperor said to them in a cold voice: "I have already granted them the status of Jinshi. From now on, they will be stationed in the six ministries and work for me."

Wang Chengen came out with the imperial edict and sang: "By the will of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims... Dongge Grand Secretary, Minister of Rites, is old. I agree that he should return to his hometown to retire, and Cheng Guoxiang will take over."

"Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, was imprisoned for corruption and abuse of power. Liu Zhifeng, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, is now in charge."

"..."

Cheng Guoxiang, when Zhu Changgan saw this name, he remembered something.

He became a Jinshi in the 32nd year of Wanli's reign. He had served in many departments and had a ups and downs in his career. He was an honest official. After retirement, he lived in Nanjing and lived in poverty.

He wanted to gather capable and knowledgeable ministers who had practical work experience in the major central departments in the cabinet, so as to form an effective team that was familiar with the affairs of the six ministries.

After this adjustment, the emperor's men were once again included in the cabinet.

In this way, the general teams of the six ministries were decided.

Prime Minister, Minister of Personnel: Sun Chengzong
Minister of Revenue: Bi Ziyan
Minister of War: Yang Sichang.

Minister of Justice: Liu Zhifeng
Minister of Industry: Liu Zunxian
Minister of Rites: Cheng Guoxiang
All the civil officials were shocked and looked at Cheng Guoxiang and Liu Zhifeng.

Cheng Guoxiang was upright and righteous, and he was one of the only two people who had completed all the test questions.

He was confident that he was fair, so he was not afraid of other people's opinions.

However, Liu Zhifeng, the former Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, blushed, clenched his fingers, and wished he could crawl into the ground.

He also filled out the examination paper, but unlike Cheng Guoxiang, he was an informer.

It was he who informed Wang Chengen about the repeated gatherings of Zheng Sanjun, the Minister of Justice, with the Minister of Rites and others, and thus came into the emperor's field of vision.

Zhu Changgan naturally noticed this, and for the civil service group, it was not entirely a monolithic entity.

Aren’t they competing for official positions and advancement?
Then I will give you this opportunity.

You see, I value those who are righteous and upright.

Such as Cheng Guoxiang and his ilk.

I will also reuse those who report cliques and work for me.

Liu Zhifeng is a ready-made example. "From today on, I will regulate the court!"

……

At the same time, everyone in the Ministry of Revenue was busy.

Suddenly the door was pushed open.

Teams of eunuchs in armor and armed with sharp weapons and Jinyi guards rushed in with muskets on their backs. The leading eunuch shouted sharply, "The Anti-Corruption Department is investigating the case. No one is allowed to move. Come, seal up all the documents in the Ministry of Revenue."

"During this period, no one is allowed to enter but not leave."

Not only did they come, but a large group of people followed them.

There are more than a hundred people in the Imperial College.

Their office was officially established today, the Integrity Bureau.

They officially began to work for the emperor. Although they had no officers or soldiers under their names, they could mobilize the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot, and the first task the emperor assigned them was to check the accounts.

Check the accounts of the six ministries.

Among the more than one hundred people, the largest number of people were assigned to the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of War, with nearly thirty people in each department.

The other three parts only have thirty in total.

The reason is naturally that the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Revenue involve the most money and grain.

Xu Ci was appointed as the temporary chief justice of the Anti-Corruption Department. The wrinkles on his face were like blooming golden chrysanthemums. He could not suppress the excitement in his heart, "I am willing to die for Your Majesty!"

"Everyone in the ICAC, please follow my orders and seal all the documents."

Liubu, this is Liubu, a place I never dared to hope to go to.

But now, not only can he step into the six ministries openly, but he can also order everyone in the Ministry of Revenue around.

"Yes!" Everyone in the Imperial College had red faces and was impatient.

They also understand in their hearts that all this is thanks to His Majesty. If they really want to obtain this official position, they must work for His Majesty and do practical things for His Majesty.

Following the order to seal the documents of the Ministry of Households, everyone rushed in without saying a word.

One of them shouted, "I have interned in the Ministry of Households before. I know where the documents for recent years are. Come with me."

……

The same scene also happened in other departments.

The Ministry of War Yamen.

"The Independent Commission Against Corruption is doing its job, and no one is allowed to move."

"You don't understand what I'm saying, right? Chop him off... Puff!" Ma Shiwei, deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, had someone chop off the person who was in charge of hiding the account book.

Immediately, everyone who was thinking about it was frightened so much that they dared not do anything strange again.

The whereabouts of all the food and wages of the Ministry of War over the years and their details were turned out and packed up and taken away.

The Yamen of the Ministry of Industry.

With the entry of the Jinyiwei, the details of all the projects undertaken in recent years were also taken out.

One by one, they were loaded into the carriage that had been prepared outside.

Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Personnel...

……

Inside the imperial city, Zhu Changgan listened to the news reported by Wang Chengen and nodded, "I understand."

Students are an organized group with ideas, and if they can use them well, they will be a powerful force.

They are passionate, capable, determined, courageous... and much more useful than the old foxes in officialdom.

For the students of the Imperial College, the process of studying was unbearable for ordinary people, and the painful learning process in the Imperial College was also difficult to adapt to.

Why did the children of bureaucrats and gentry in the late Ming Dynasty not want to enter the Imperial Academy?

Because the Imperial College implemented a military-style management on its students, once a student was disobedient and violated the "school rules", he or she might be executed, exiled to the army, forced to serve as a clerk, shackled for life, starved to death, hanged, or even beheaded in public.

It can be said that the Imperial College was both a school and a prison, and even more a place of execution. Not only the students, but also the instructors, were suffering terribly from the oppression and enslavement of the bureaucracy, which only created absolutely obedient and servile bureaucrats.

Even during the examination stage, the examiners' rooms had charcoal stoves in the winter and ice to cool off in the summer, while the environment where students were waiting for the examination outside was extremely cold and hot, forming a sharp contrast.

But even so, they tried their best but still could not join the ranks of scholar-officials.

Instead, he was despised by bureaucrats and gentry.

The resentment accumulated in my heart has already filled my chest, even to the point of being a little twisted.

Now that they are on par with the literati, there are more opportunities to investigate and confiscate them.

How can you not exert too much effort?

Every penny of money and grain in the documents of the six ministries was used to the utmost.

　There will be another chapter in a moment

　　
　
(End of this chapter)