The news that the Ministry of Finance received four million in cash overnight spread like a gust of wind in the capital. Early the next morning, everyone who could afford the imperial salary already knew the news. It can be seen that the Qing Dynasty Hall What a terrible job of keeping secrets.
Someone in the late Qing Dynasty once analyzed this phenomenon. The main reason why the Manchu Qing court could not keep secrets was related to the Eight Banners system.
Children of the Eight Banners are not born, nor do they have to study hard. They will have money and food when they are born. As long as you can understand a few words and are not blind, and have sound limbs and are not disabled, you can make a living in the army, and you can even make a living without working. Get the hardcore crop.
This kind of system will raise a large number of idlers, and idlers are full of right and wrong. They gather together every day to brag and talk about the world, hold two walnuts in their hands, put a caged bird on the shelf, and go back and forth to teahouses, theaters, and taverns every day. One to play.
In fact, many of the Eight Banners idlers who leaked secrets to the imperial court were not doing it for money, and there were no hostile forces to bribe them. They were just idle, and they just wanted to make themselves look great and know everything when they were chatting and bragging. This is the style of men in the capital.
Later, this style spread more and more widely, and even the officials of the Han Dynasty imitated it. From then on, there were no secrets in the Qing court.
For example, in the past few days, the news that the Ministry of Revenue has received an extra four million in cash has spread rapidly. All the people who have been owed salaries and flags have gathered together to speculate when the Ministry of Revenue will be kind enough to make up for everyone. Unfortunately, I've been waiting for three days and still no news.
Now the Nine Ministries and the Eight Banners were all panicking. They contacted each other privately, asking for information and putting pressure on the court. The four million taels of silver suddenly wrinkled the deep pond of Sijiu City.
"Comrades, it's useless for you to surround me. In fact, the silver deported to Beijing this time is said to be four million... Let me tell you the truth. In fact, the real silver coins are only two million taels. The dragon-patterned silver coins minted in Ryukyu... Hey, don't tell me, their craftsmanship is really good, and what they make is more beautiful than what we make..."
This well-informed official in the Ministry of Rites was obviously a bit talkative and liked to talk a lot. He could change several topics in one conversation. In the end, his colleagues around him got angry and grabbed him by the collar and yelled, "You're talking about serious things... don't use that nonsense." No, do you still want everyone to invite you?"
"Oh, don't worry, don't worry, I'll tell you right now... Actually, only two million taels are real silver, and the other two million taels are the household bonds issued by Jiangnan, ten yuan, five yuan, one yuan For round denominations, I heard that in the future there will be denominations of five cents, two cents, and one dime..."
"The court will not touch the two million in cash. It is the treasury silver of the Ministry of Revenue. What is actually issued to us are those paper bonds..."
Before he finished speaking, the officials of the Ministry of Rites were furious. Although they didn't dare to make trouble because the court refused to pay the money they owed, now the court actually wants to fool them with scraps of paper. This is intolerable.
"Shameless, shameless... What does the court think of us? Are three-year-old children just as easy to deceive? The Ministry of Revenue sold the local governor's I-Tiao to Xiao Letian. Xiao Letian went back and split the I-Tiao into small bonds, and then If you sell it to our court, isn’t it that the court is out of its mind?”
"Xiao Letian bullied me into this, but I didn't even dare to fart..." At this time, I didn't know that the official had eaten too many soybeans boiled in salt water in the morning. It was due to a bad gastrointestinal problem. With a pop, a stinky fart came out. It was released.
The whole room was filled with a strong smell of semi-fermented soybeans. The officials who were giving speeches with righteous indignation were out of breath, so they breathed heavily and sucked away more than half of the stench.
"Ugh...you, you, you...we are talking about the imperial court. Why are you cooperating with us? Ugh..."
The officer who carried out the biochemical attack blushed and retorted, "What can I do? I'm not afraid of your jokes. I only have half a bunch of small coins left at home. If I can't get the money within three days, I'll have to give it to my wife." Go with the hairpin..."
“Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu What does that feel like."
At this time, an empathetic person next to me said faintly, "Hey...who hasn't eaten soybean pickles? Let me teach you a trick. After a while, when autumn comes, you buy some Xuelihong, chop it up and pickle it, and then eat the soybeans again." Cooked together, it tastes really good..."
Before he finished speaking, there was a popping sound, and the angry fart official yelled, "What's the matter? We've all become so virtuous, what else are you talking about Xuelihong... I don't know about Xuelihong..." , I almost vomited..."
"I mean, we can't continue to be like this. The officials of the country and the DPRK have been completely disgraced... We have to fight, we must fight."
"Yes, we want to fight..." The surrounding officials were all filled with indignation, but when they looked back, they thought about how to fight. Could it be that they should follow the example of those Tai students and march.
At this moment, a handyman outside the gate of the Ministry of Etiquette rushed in, sweating profusely, "Sir, gentlemen, good news... Oops, the Ministry of Household Affairs is about to pay out the salary, and we will give you half of it at one time. You are in arrears, you adults must bring your little one with you when you treat guests."
The handyman thought he would be rewarded by the adults, but unexpectedly he saw a group of angry faces.
"Look, it's time to test us. I want to see if Guochao is still shameless. Let's go to the Ministry of Finance together. If Lin Shangshu has the nerve to give us these scraps of paper, I will fall on his face. .”
"Let's go together." A group of people stood up with murderous intent and strode towards the household department. The handyman shrank his head in fear and ran away quickly.
The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Husbandry are not far from each other. There is a Ministry of War Yamen in the middle. The officials of the Ministry of Rites are walking in the carriage, and after a while they see the gate of the Ministry of Husbandry.
They were not the first batch of officials to come. Now there was a constant flow of people inside and outside the door of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and it was almost overcrowded. What was even more surprising was that there was actually a group of shop assistants and even waiters from the tavern outside the door of the Ministry of Household Affairs.
"Look, when I heard that the arrears of salary were being paid, even the merchants in the capital were alarmed. They have very good noses. They knew that the officials had money in their pockets and would definitely spend it, so they all came to actively solicit business. Already..."
"Pull them down. I don't think they are soliciting business. They are here to collect debts. We have owed a lot of money to these traders in the past two years. We were afraid that we would run away when we heard about the salary."
These words were so depressing that the officials in the Ministry of Rites shook their heads and sighed.
