In the Wenhua Palace, the emperor's clear voice echoed around, making all the ministers present involuntarily correct their attitudes.
Since the Battle of Tumu, the situation in the court has been chaotic. Although there were stumbling blocks between the ministers and the emperor, they finally got into a rhythm.
For a group of elders present, a very important principle they have mastered in the past two years is to follow the direction of the emperor.
Although the emperor ascended the throne as a vassal king, judging from his various performances after ascending the throne, there is no doubt that the emperor already had his own set of political ideas and policies.
From the handling of each piece of government affairs, the elders actually gradually summarized some principles of doing things and the emperor's bottom line.
And these are the fundamentals of political struggle in the court.
The last time Chen Xun made trouble in the palace was a typical example!
For most people, that morning court meeting was just a smoke and mirrors. They only felt that the situation was bottomless and they could not fathom the positions and plans of the important ministers and elders.
However, for these people present now, they feel the same as Ming Jing.
The most fundamental reason why Chen Xun dared to scold the officials first and then openly confront the cabinet was that he had a good feel for the emperor's pulse.
The atmosphere in both the government and the public has been sluggish for a long time.
On the one hand, it was because Wang Zhen was a master of power and was accustomed to using various means to eradicate dissidents. Many loyal ministers in the court were dismissed or killed. Most of those who were able to stay were those who were wise and protective.
On the other hand, it was also because too many ministers died in the civil war. It had only been more than two years, which was far from enough to restore the almost annihilated civil and military ministers.
This is most obvious among the nobles, but in fact, the civil servants are not much better. Even after the Civil War, the imperial court has revised and improved the standards for selection, but today's civil servants are not much better. The pulse is still not connected.
Under such circumstances, the imperial court has a series of major issues that need to be resolved urgently. It is not easy to just maintain the normal operation of the court, let alone talk about the officialdom?
However, this situation is definitely temporary.
Based on these elders’ understanding of the Emperor, if one could sum up the Emperor’s policy in one word, it would undoubtedly be people-oriented.
Although they did not hear what Zhu Qiyu said to Du Ning, at their level, they would naturally go and see it themselves.
Since the emperor ascended the throne, everything he has done has been based on the imperial court and the country, and the people's livelihood.
Not to mention the more symbolic things like welcoming back the Supreme Emperor and ordering the Prince to leave the cabinet, let’s just talk about the actual facts. Whether it is the restructuring of craftsmen’s households, the construction of large canals, the opening up of mutual markets, and the reorganization of military villages, these things are certainly aimed at solving certain problems faced at that time. There are some difficulties, but what is more important to understand is that if the emperor had not insisted, these things would not have been so dramatic.
If you want to repair the border wall, you need to collect some corvees, and then select important passes to build first, leaving the other passes first. Anyway, after the Battle of Zijin Pass, Wala's vitality was also seriously damaged. In a short time, it is impossible to raise another army and go south. Attack Ming.
Of course, if the border walls of these small passes are not repaired, it will be more difficult for the people to resist when small groups of tribes plunder them.
However, looking at the overall situation, it is also difficult for the court. The people's lives have always been like this. No matter how hard they persist, if the court becomes more relaxed in a few years, the border wall will be slowly repaired.
There is absolutely no need to go to war, or even to change the long-standing craftsman household system of the imperial court, just to repair the border wall as quickly as possible with as little corvee as possible.
Given the depleted state of the treasury after the Civil War, the imperial court would not have any objections to this at all.
However, the emperor has to do it!
Because the people on the border are also the people of Ming Dynasty!
The flooding of the Yellow River has been a difficult problem for the imperial court to solve for many years. At Shawankou, embankments were built and breached almost every year to provide disaster relief.
Even when the Supreme Emperor was on the throne and the treasury was rich, it was not an easy decision to change the course of the Yellow River and build a large canal from scratch to divert water into Qin.
However, the emperor refused to follow the rules of Cao Cao. He forced the Ministry of Household Affairs to allocate money to build the canal when the treasury was completely depleted.
There is also the opening of mutual markets, although it is because of the original agreement with Tuotuo Buhua, but it does not mean that they do not want to tax the people harshly and work hard for the people.
Although the mutual market is now represented by the Imperial Store, the money that goes into the treasury is real. Without the support of this money, to do these big things, I don't know how much harsh government will be added.
But the emperor would rather do more difficult things and put the interests of the people first.
This is the pattern, but also the mind!
This point permeates every court affairs handled by the emperor.
Based on this, and then extending downwards, everything the emperor did actually had a context to follow.
There is no doubt that practical matters such as building canals and embankments, opening mutual markets, and reorganizing military settlements are very important, but the atmosphere of officials in the court is equally important.
It’s just that the meal has to be eaten one bite at a time and the things have to be done one by one.
After the civil engineering campaign, piles and piles were all urgent matters, so some problems, even if they were seen, could only be put aside temporarily.
However, as long as the problem exists, it is impossible to ignore it forever.
Since the emperor ascended the throne, he has always been generous and kind to his courtiers.
But this kind of generosity does not mean that the emperor has a weak character. To a large extent, it is because the emperor hopes to slowly improve the atmosphere of being wise and self-protective in the court.
Although saying this is suspected of criticizing the Supreme Emperor, many ministers knew very well that when the Supreme Emperor allowed Wang Zhen to exercise power, to a large extent, he was dissatisfied with the courtiers who repeatedly advised and blocked him.
Perhaps for the old man, it was a good thing that the ministers below him were submissive and praised the emperor for everything, and it was more conducive to the realization of his "grand ambitions".
However, facts have proven that the principle of listening to both will lead to enlightenment and partial listening to darkness is applicable at any time. The result of insisting on one's own will will only lead the entire Ming Dynasty into the abyss.
Therefore, for the emperor, he obviously learned this lesson.
Many of the ministers present had been staying in the capital and had experienced the affairs of the court during this period.
Since the emperor ascended the throne, there may have been times when the emperor was furious or when he had conflicts with his ministers.
However, no matter what the situation, the emperor was able to discuss things well with his ministers, and never used the authority of the emperor to force the ministers to bow their heads.
If it was due to the emperor's lack of prestige at the beginning, then with the great victory in the Battle of Oara, Yu Qian, Wang Wen and other ministers gradually came to power, and the emperor had already fully possessed this strength.
It’s not possible, but I really don’t want to!
The reason for this reluctance is that we don't want the officialdom atmosphere, in which everyone is already in danger, to become even more corrupt.
It is easy to destroy the official atmosphere and belief in being an official, but it is extremely difficult to establish it.
To be honest, if you really want to change the atmosphere of the officialdom, then the difficulty will only become more difficult than rectifying the army.
However, this thing must be done, the only difference is sooner or later.
Chen Xun, this old guy, is like no other, but his ability and vision to assess the situation is truly unparalleled.
After the imperial examination, the emperor only showed this little sign and was noticed by him.
Not only was he aware of it, but he also dared to make a big fuss about it, taking the opportunity to attack the staff and the cabinet.
As for the result, it was obvious that his plan was correct.
When Chen Xun put forward the theory that the root cause of the fraud in the palace examination was the weak officialdom, his behavior actually gained the emperor's tacit approval.
Therefore, whether it was Wang Wen or later Wang Ao, they could only defend passively and could not fight back.
This is the principle of thinking about defeat before thinking about victory.
However, everything comes at a price.
The reason why the emperor indulged Chen Xun was precisely because the old man also needed an opportunity to launch an action to purge the officialdom.
Thinking from another perspective, they were called in just after Duning finished his speech. In fact, it was also a signal to a large extent.
To put it bluntly, this is the emperor reminding Chen Xun that after receiving the benefits, he has to do something...
Chen Xun naturally understood this, so as soon as the emperor finished speaking, he thought for a moment, then stepped forward and held his hands in his hands, saying.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty, the atmosphere in the court is indeed low. This does not happen in a day. If this continues, there will be serious trouble."
"Therefore, I believe that the official department should take the lead and the Metropolitan Procuratorate should coordinate to strictly regulate the officialdom!"
These words were spoken loudly and with full conviction.
The old guys below couldn't help but think, this old guy is different now that he has support, he has the confidence to speak.
Of course, no matter how resolute Chen Xun said, it was just an introduction.
His role is nothing more than delivering messages to the emperor.
Thinking of the emperor's performance in the court some time ago, the elders probably had some concerns in their minds. If nothing else, the emperor already had a plan in his mind on how to change the atmosphere of the officialdom.
Sure enough, after hearing Chen Xun's words, the emperor's face softened slightly, but he was still very serious.
Shaking his head slightly, the emperor spoke.
"Three feet of ice is not a day's cold. Wang Zhen has been in power for many years, and everyone in the government and the public is afraid of him like a tiger. Those loyal and upright ministers who dare to speak out are either deposed or killed. They have accumulated power for many years, and they are like this in the court."
"I am not an unreasonable person, and I don't want to dwell on the past. However, I and the ministers need to understand that changing the atmosphere of the officialdom is different from rectifying the military."
"In the final analysis, rectifying military camps is about punishment or collection. However, to change the atmosphere of official circles, we need to cultivate and be lenient."
"What I want is not as simple as replacing a group of people. Sirs, maybe you understand?"
clear……
The emperor said it so clearly, how could they not understand it.
Just know that what the emperor wants to do is not simple.
Rectifying the officialdom is not uncommon in the past, but it is more aimed at corruption. Although there will be many difficulties in this situation, there is a direction in the end.
As long as the higher-ups unite their will, remain steadfast, investigate and arrest them at all costs, and throw a group of people into prison, they will be punished and killed, and the effect will be immediate.
However, the biggest problem in officialdom today is obviously not this.
Although there are corrupt officials in the court today, the bigger problem is that they do not dare to speak up for the country. They only care about protecting themselves and have lost their integrity.
Compared with corruption, this problem will only be more difficult to manage.
As the emperor said, if you want to reverse this trend, it is useless to rely solely on fighting and killing.
No matter how many corrupt officials there are, they are still in the minority in the entire officialdom, so all they need to do is use thunderous means to intimidate them.
However, the trend of protecting oneself and protecting oneself is now spreading, affecting the majority.
It is impossible for the court to replace all of them because of this. If it does, it will only have the opposite effect.
This is obviously not what the emperor wants!
The elders looked at each other with bitter expressions on their faces.
After a moment, Wang Wen took the lead.
"Your Majesty, I think this matter should not be rushed. Since the court intends to change the atmosphere, this is a matter that requires patience."
"In my opinion, we can start to improve from the following points."
"First, re-examine the officials who were promoted, demoted, dismissed, and killed when Wang Zhenyi's party controlled the government."
"If you bribe someone to seek promotion due to flattery, you will be punished by being demoted or demoted depending on the circumstances."
"If someone is demoted, dismissed, or killed, if he is wronged, the deceased will be granted a posthumous title. Those who were dismissed will be reinstated. Those who were demoted will be reinstated."
"In order to let the government and the public know, those who speak out for justice will not suffer unjust injustice. Those lucky people who do not want to be loyal to the country and only want to cling to the powerful will eventually be held accountable and the world will be informed."
After all, Wang Wen is the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. He is the professional counterpart in this matter, so no matter how difficult it is, he has to speak up.
And it is obvious that Mr. Wang has something in his stomach.
The first move is to be steady and ruthless.
In fact, after the emperor ascended the throne, he once took steps to rehabilitate officials who had been dismissed or demoted because they had offended Wang Zhen.
However, because the court was facing many major events at that time, more attention was paid to officials above the fifth rank. In addition to considering Wang Zhen's factors, because of the tense situation at that time, we also had to consider whether the promoted officials were competent and the officials would be reinstated. Whether employees can quickly control the situation.
Moreover, this kind of large-scale transfer will inevitably involve a lot of interests. Therefore, in order to stabilize the government, the people who were reinstated as peace officers at that time were either people with outstanding talents, or they resisted Wang Zhen fiercely. A person who made a big fuss and enjoyed a good reputation among scholars.
Ultimately, though, this was done because the situation at the time was volatile.
But now everything is slowly getting back on track. Although it can't be said to be Haiyanheqing, the imperial court has stabilized.
The Tian family is in harmony, the East Palace is stable, the court is stable, and the border is peaceful. It is time to continue to finish the unfinished things at that time...
However, it is obvious that such a big matter is not so easy to decide.
As soon as Wang Wen finished speaking, someone immediately raised objections.
Chen Yi, the censor of Zuodu, who had been silent since entering the palace, stood up with a frown and cupped his hands.
"Your Majesty, what Master Tianguan said is certainly a good intention, but it is not feasible!"
