After meeting Zhang Juzheng, Zhu Yijun informed Zhang Juzheng that Liu Yao had committed suicide, and said: "Now it seems that the only thing you can do is clean up the family. Once Liu Yao commits suicide, the real person behind the scenes cannot be traced." "
"Your Majesty, there is no need to regret. The conspiracy will not be exposed to light after all."
"If you really want to achieve something, you still have to make a conspiracy and take action. And as long as there are actions, there will be times when flaws are exposed."
"Your Majesty only needs to uphold justice and govern the country, and the overall situation will not be harmed."
Zhang Juzheng replied.
Zhu Yijun nodded after hearing this: "That's right, sir."
Zhu Yijun then smiled and said: "This time, it was just to eliminate the villains in the group that implemented the New Deal. The goal has actually been achieved."
"In addition, it is indeed time to give reassurance to those who are worried, so as not to damage the overall situation of the New Deal."
"When Li Xuan, the governor of Zhejiang, arrives and inquires about the situation, these corrupt officials and the corrupt officials from all levels of the Wu Xuan Department will be punished according to the law, and then we will end this case."
"I obey the decree!"
Zhang Juzheng handed over and returned.
In fact, from the moment Zhu Yijun asked Zhang Juzheng to clean up the house on his own, he had already set the tone to only clean up the affairs but not destroy them.
Therefore, Zhang Cheng was sentenced to death in advance.
You Qi will be killed with a stick in advance.
This was done to prevent them from revealing more of Zhang Juzheng’s secrets.
Because the Ming Dynasty did not have a real prime minister system, unlike previous dynasties, if a ruler like Zhang Juzheng had the same power as a prime minister, he was destined to do many shady things when he first fought for these powers.
What's more, Zhang Juzheng himself does not have high requirements for finding a career.
Of course, even if he is not like the light, he may not have so many supporters. Instead, he will only be shunned by others like Hai Rui at the beginning.
Therefore, even if Liu Yao provided evidence that Zhang Juzheng was guilty, the emperor Zhu Yijun would refuse to admit it.
"But after thinking about it, what happened this time also shows that villains are indeed good and hypocritical, and there are indeed traitors who appear to be loyal, so much so that they almost ruined the reform plan."
"It's okay if it's an ordinary low-level official, but if it really comes to a minister, especially if it appears in the cabinet, it can easily cause a lot of damage."
"This can be seen from Yin Zhengmao's previous incident, although Yin Zhengmao did not intend to undermine the New Deal."
"And this time it was just Lang, Guan, Han and Lin who colluded together, and it almost ruined the overall situation, which also explains the situation very well."
"So, there has to be a system to prevent this."
Zhu Yijun said at this time.
Zhang Juzheng was surprised when he heard this and asked: "Your Majesty wants to strengthen the control of ministers?"
"I want to build another West Factory."
Zhu Yijun said.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
Zhang Juzheng was shocked and said hurriedly: "Today's factory guards already cost a lot of money. If we set up the West Factory again, we may not be able to support it with national strength!"
"Besides, how can your Majesty be sure that Xichang can control the ministers, and will not be exploited and infiltrated by powerful right-wingers to act as His Majesty's eyes and ears, thereby alienating Your Majesty and the ministers?"
"More importantly, the fees are too heavy. Now the imperial court only has one million taels of silver in reserve. It is difficult to support the current factory guards and the world's troops, let alone the addition of a new factory."
"And there should be more trust between the monarch and his ministers than defense. Otherwise, it will be detrimental to the rule."
Zhang Juzheng replied.
Zhu Yijun actually knew that adding the West Factory would strengthen spy politics. Not to mention increasing financial expenditure, the effect was not very good.
But what he said was actually to pave the way for his real intention next.
"Sir, what you are saying is that there still needs to be trust between the monarch and his ministers."
"Since the West Factory can't be built, let's build an official residence."
"Build official residences for ministers and above!"
"When he took office, he moved into the official residence with his family papers, and when he left office, he moved out."
"The official residences should be built together, which is equivalent to letting the important ministers live together. It is not only convenient for the ministers to supervise each other, but also to discuss important matters. It is also more convenient for the court to send royal guards to protect them, check the people entering and leaving, and prevent spies from sneaking in."
"To be specific, it is not only helpful for ministers to motivate each other with their honest and upright style, but also to prevent villains from sneaking into a minister's residence to lure him with wealth. Colleagues can help remind him."
"The factory guards are keeping an eye on them, which shows that they don't trust the virtues of important ministers, but it is still okay for gentlemen to supervise each other. After all, the sage also said: See the wise and think of them!"
"In this way, even if someone goes to visit a certain minister, the other ministers can see him at his official residence."
"And if there are any children or domestic slaves who break the law, even if I don't monitor them, there will be colleagues who live with me to help supervise them."
"In addition, I also allow them to set up a meeting hall and a counselor's room in the official residence, and they can meet with their subordinates to discuss matters, and even add officials to the counselor's room to handle confidential matters for them and be responsible for conveying their governance intentions."
“In this way, if it rains, snows or hot weather, or even if you are sick and need to recuperate at home, you can take leave from the court and handle the government affairs at home to avoid the impact on your health due to attending the court meeting. The ministers can also discuss together at the official residence, which is conducive to quickly reaching an agreement on political opinions and avoiding any accidents. Suspected of cheating on someone in private."
"This can be regarded as a favor I give to my important ministers! It is not easy to live in Chang'an. It prevents them from being able to afford a big house in the capital because of their integrity and supporting their clan members, so they have to live in the outer city. Going to court is troublesome and prone to accidents. "
The official residence is not a product of later generations. The official residence system began in the Song Dynasty.
It's just that living in an official residence is inconvenient for parents to seek personal gain. After all, no one wants to be seen by other important ministers whatever they do, giving the court the opportunity to supervise in the name of protection. Therefore, powerful ministers in history like Cai Jing and Qin Hui Basically, they no longer live in official residences, but still live in private houses.
At this time, Zhu Yijun proposed to build an official residence for the ruling ministers, and Zhang Juzheng was no stranger to this.
In fact, Zhang Juzheng did not want to establish an official residence system.
He knows very well that civil servants who have always been fond of infighting or infighting will probably work harder than Jin Yiwei when looking at competitors at the same level for those top official positions.
But when he thought about it, it was indeed more economical to build an official residence than to build a western factory, and it was indeed more conducive to long-term and clear governance, and it could also improve the efficiency of governance. For most of the ministers who were veterans, life was indeed more convenient. Often go to the ministry or palace.
Of course, the most important thing is to save money.
Zhang Juzheng's main idea to solve the Wanli Dynasty's financial deficit problem was to reduce expenditure and increase revenue. As long as he could save money and achieve the same effect, he would naturally choose a more economical way.
So, Zhang Juzheng replied at this time: "It is not necessary to use golden nanmu and other royal objects to build the official residence. If the etiquette system is broken, it is estimated that it will cost only a million taels of silver. But more importantly, how many taels of silver can it be used all the time?" In addition, only a hundred guards are needed to detect people coming in and out, and can prevent anyone from colluding with the ministers privately. Compared with setting up the West Factory, it is indeed more economical and more effective. As your Majesty mentioned, I think it should be It’s a feasible system for now.”
"Then sir, let me ask someone to do it."
"Please sir, please work out a system for Ming Dynasty's official residence as soon as possible."
Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Zhu Yijun said with a smile.
"I obey the decree!"
Zhang Juzheng then talked with Zhu Yijun about the process of clearing the land, and then he left Zhu Yijun's place and went directly back to his private house.
Not long after Zhang Juzheng returned to his private residence, he had his student Li Youzi, who was also the minister of the Ministry of Industry of the Ming Dynasty, summoned and told him about the official residence.
Li Youzi was shocked when he heard this and his face turned pale: "Master, how can we build this official residence? This will make the ministers unhappy!"
"The servant cannot refuse His Majesty twice in a row!"
Zhang Juzheng said something.
After hearing this, Li Youzi was even more stunned: "What does Master Xiang mean?"
"Because of Li Cai, Qin Yao and other matters, His Majesty intended to further strengthen the supervision of officials, so he found some systems from historical materials that are not implemented today and wants to implement them."
Zhang Juzheng said, "You don't have to ask me what specifically I mentioned. I'm just here to ask you, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, if you can do a good job in building an official residence? Do you want to be an official with the rank of first grade in the future?!"
Li Youzi's reputation among scholars was not very good and he was often scolded as a villain because he was accustomed to following the wind and flattering the powerful.
But Zhang Juzheng felt that people like Li Youzi were actually more suitable for designing and supervising the construction of official residences.
Because only villains understand the evil side of human nature better.
Therefore, Zhang Juzheng chose Li Youzi to do this, and even offered him a promotion to a higher position.
After hearing this, Li Youzi stood up and bowed to Zhang Juzheng without thinking, saying, "In that case, students are willing to share their worries with each other!"
"Aren't you afraid of being scolded by the ministers behind your back?"
Zhang Juzheng smiled and asked one more question.
"Let them laugh and scold me, I will be a good official. As long as I can share the worries of the king and father, share the worries of the teacher, and help clarify the administration of officials, nothing else matters."
Li Youzi returned and said: "Please rest assured, Prime Minister, the students will definitely create an official residence that satisfies His Majesty and Prime Minister the most!"
