On the first day of the twelfth month of Wanli's 20th year, on the first day of the twelfth month of the Wanli reign, Gao, the minister of household affairs, was ordered to pragmatically manage all the affairs of the Mongolian and Yuan Dynasties, supervise the Imperial Guards and the seven towns of Jiliao and Xuanda, and also take charge of Tianjin's preparations for war. Grant Shang Fangjian, the generals and officers who do not have orders are engaged in military law, and there is no need to report.
As soon as the news came out, the matter of "Spring and Yuan Dynasty" that had only been discussed in private was directly put on the table, and it was inevitable that there would be a lot of discussion about the highly pragmatic "Second Manager".
The previous high-pragmatic appointment as manager was essentially a bluff by the imperial court to scare people. Therefore, although a record was set that time, that is, while he nominally controlled the frontier army in the seven towns, he never resigned from the post of Minister of Rongzheng, and the frontier army's Beijing camp caught him, but because he did not even intend to leave Beijing that time, the court was full of troubles. The official didn't react much. Although some people expressed that doing so would cause hidden dangers, they basically did not make much noise.
However, this time it was different. This time, the power in Gao Pragmatic's hands was even greater than the last time he bluffed, which immediately caused many officials to express their opposition.
To say that the power is great, it is indeed great: Needless to say, the Imperial Guard is the core elite that the imperial court has worked hard to build over the past few years. Although the entire army only has more than 60,000 people, its artillery equipment is more than twice that of the border troops of the same strength. , the cavalry unit of the Imperial Guard has one person and three horses, which can be said to be the richest in the Ming Dynasty;
The four towns of Ji and Liao are Ji Zhen, Liaodong, Changping, and Baoding. Among them, Liaodong has 180,000 soldiers, Jizhou has 180,000 soldiers, Changping has 60,000 soldiers, and Baoding has 40,000 soldiers, which amounts to 460,000 troops. .
There is also Tianjin that is listed separately. This Tianjin town was newly established after Tianjin Port became more and more important. It has not yet been placed under the jurisdiction of Governor Ji Liao, so this town is a little exception. It has only about 20,000 horse and infantry troops, but it has a navy. However, the imperial edict only said that Gao Jingshi should also be in charge of Tianjin's war preparations. Considering that the navy cannot go to Chahar, Gao Jingshi is not short of the 20,000 infantry and cavalry, so Tianjin Town probably will not actually participate in the battle.
The Xuanda side is similar to before. Xuanfu has 130,000 soldiers, Datong has 120,000 soldiers, and Shanxi has 70,000 soldiers. The total is 320,000 troops. Calculated in this way, Gao Pragmatic is still the same as last time, with more than 800,000 troops under his command. It seems that there is no difference. Why is it different?
Not to mention that the last time was just a bluff, but this time he actually wants to "supervise" the army. In fact, the following statement about giving Shang Fangjian is even more shocking.
Originally, the status of civil servants in the Ming Dynasty was high, and governors and even governors who were sent to the border areas to supervise military operations were often given the Shang Fang Sword, so that they could act as a sufficient deterrent to their generals. However, in the past, when giving Shang Fangjian, it was stated that "those below the commander-in-chief who do not need orders will be engaged in military law", but this time Gao Gao's pragmatic treatment was obviously different. There is no need to report the news.”
First of all, the most obvious difference is that Gao Pragmatic has the right to kill Zongbing, the highest-ranking general of the Ming Dynasty, when he believes that the opponent "does not need to die." What does it mean? This means that he will be killed in vain, without even reporting it, and the court will fully delegate power without imposing any restrictions on him.
Another point is that this sentence is not precise enough and can cause ambiguity. Should the words "generals" be understood as "all generals" or as "all generals and officials"? This difference is huge. The former only refers to generals, so it doesn't matter. Even if an unlucky general is killed, the princes in the court will probably not feel very distressed in their hearts. However, if it's the latter, that won't work, and that includes civil servants!
How can you kill civil servants! This is tyranny!
Although the words in the imperial edict were a bit vague, officials in the capital were clearly not vague. They wrote to the emperor one after another to ask the emperor to clarify his doubts. This matter must be made clear. Of course, making it clear is not fundamental. The fundamental issue is to ensure that no one can kill civil servants without permission. !
When things got to this point, even the officials of the Real School couldn't do anything for good. Some people also followed Shangshu and said that it was wrong to kill civil servants without permission. If things go on like this, the country will be ruined.
If you take a closer look, you will find that except for most of the direct descendants of the Gao Pragmatic family, who are embarrassed and can only remain silent, they are almost in a situation of opposition from the whole court. Gao pragmatic himself also wrote two memorials in succession. The first memorial stated that he would never indiscriminately accuse civil servants; the second memorial expressed his attitude to the emperor, saying that he also did not agree with the imperial edict being given the right to deal with civil servants. power, and emphasized that this was the power of the emperor. Even if the emperor gave the emperor (Shang Fang) a sword, the ministers would not dare to master it.
Originally, this matter was supposed to be just a one-word question, and the palace could just respond casually. However, for some unknown reason, after waiting for three days in a row, no news came from the emperor. All the memorials were like a pile of mud, and there was no response at all.
Just when the fermentation in the outer court had become too much, and most of the cabinet ministers felt that they had to remind the emperor by asking for resignation, the palace suddenly handed over a handwriting to the cabinet. This handwriting is not an order, but a question. The emperor asked the elders four questions in the handwriting: "What is the role of the manager? What responsibilities does he bear? What authority should he be given? What is the end of his duties?"
What is the position of a manager? What is the manager responsible for? What power should be given to managers? To what extent is the mission of the manager considered completed?
These seem to be four clear questions, but the elders are all good people and know how to extrapolate from the surface to the inside. In fact, the emperor's four questions all point to one thing: how to define "jinglue".
Speaking of which, this may be some kind of chronic disease that Ming Dynasty has always had. In the Ming Dynasty, there was always a lack of formal official positions for senior military officers. Civil servants from the imperial court were dispatched to local areas, mostly in special capacities with titles such as the Ministry of War and the Metropolitan Procuratorate, overriding the three departments.
The origins and differences between the two positions of governor and governor have been mentioned before. Neither of them are "official officials", but are essentially "official positions". The source of power is not the imperial court structure, but the emperor's temporary appointment. The same is true for "Jinglue". Even compared with the permanent status of governors and governors, it is neither permanent nor has its duties been accurately defined.
In other words, the function, power, operation, etc. of the office of manager depend entirely on how the emperor arranges it.
Here we have to flog the "History of the Ming Dynasty" again, because the "History of the Ming Dynasty" says: "In the first year of Tianqi, the Liaodong Economic Strategy was established. The name of the Liaodong Economic Strategy came from Song Yingchang and Empress Yang Hao in the 20th year of Wanli. By the first year of Tianqi, another Sun Chengzong, the governor of the cabinet, managed Shanhaiguan and was called the auxiliary. In the fourth year of Chongzhen, he was merged into the governor. In the eleventh year, a governor was added to Baoding."
Therefore, it is said that "History of the Ming Dynasty" is often unreliable, and it is obviously wrong here. Judging from the records in "Records of the Ming Dynasty", the earliest economic summary did not appear during the Tianqi period. Of course, "jinglue" can be understood here as a verb, meaning "to run military affairs and be responsible for military strategy" or something like that.
For example, on Bingchen in June of the 18th year of Hongzhi: Li Hao, the left minister of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Shanhaiguan, returned to Beijing and reported on Jinglue's deeds. From the entrance of Miao Temple to Miyun Tomb Tiangu Pass, there are fifty hectares of wasteland and twenty temples, more than 24,790 feet of side walls, more than 3,300 feet of furrows, piers, towers, towers, There are more than 170 barracks and other items, and more than 380 barracks. ("Records of Wuzong")
In Guimao, the first month of the thirteenth year of Zhengde, the Tatar bandit Wu Chijin led his troops to Muhetao. They were about to enter Yansui, and the guards heard about it. The Ministry of War issued an order: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief Zhu Luan of Yansui, General Hang Xiong, guerrilla Zhou Zheng, and Liu Yujun were stationed at the Anbian camp, etc. Ji Shiying and Feng Dajing were stationed in the convenient castle in the east; Commander-in-Chief Liu Yong guarded the town and dispatched troops at the same time. Ningxia General Soldier Anguo defended the town, Deputy General Soldier Lu Ying, guerrilla Li Yongding Army Qingshui Camp, Huamachi, Dingbian Camp and other places, and the East Road Commander-in-Chief ordered soldiers to patrol and respond to reinforcements, Shaanxi General Soldier Zhao Wen, Du Yu Shi Zhengyang's military strategy for the garrison in Guyuan. Please listen to all the generals and take charge of the war and defense on your own. There is no need to control them remotely." Follow this. ("Records of Wuzong")
In the seventh month of the 16th year of Zhengde's reign, the Ministry of War reported: "The construction of piers, towers, and wall trenches at Juyong, Zijing, and Daoma Passes is very strange. Li Zan, the censor of the capital, has summarized the experience." ("Records of Emperor Shizong") 》)
In the 11th month of the 30th year of Wanli, Jiashen: From the Imperial Inspection Yuan, the right censor of the capital, Jianda, was the governor of Ji, Liao, Baoding and other military affairs, and also in charge of food and wages, as well as the strategy to ward off the Japanese; the right censor of the capital, Hu Yingyuan, was in charge of Zhejiang and other provinces. In the local area, he supervises military affairs. ("Records of Shenzong")
Of course, "History of the Ming Dynasty" also has other records, such as Bingzi in June of the 26th year of Wanli: Wan Shide, the censor of Tianjin Qiandu, conducted an expedition to Korea.
As can be seen from the above, the Minister of Industry can also take up the position of "Jinglue", so the actual minimum "standard configuration" of "Jinglue" can probably be regarded as the Minister of Finance. In other words, ministers of Liubu Hall and above can serve as "Jinglue" if the emperor deems it necessary.
The mention of Yang Hao in the history of the Ming Dynasty was made in Gengshen, the leap month of the 46th year of Wanli: Yang Hao was promoted to the position of left minister of the Ministry of War and censor of the right capital of Qian, and he conducted a strategy in Liaodong. ("Records of Shenzong")
Literally understood, Yang Hao's actual position was the left minister of the Ministry of War and the censor of the right Qiandu, responsible for "the management of Liaodong". "Jingsu" is more appropriately understood as a verb here.
There is no problem with this understanding. For example, sometimes, governor and governor are often used together as verbs. As recorded in the "History of the Ming Dynasty", on Bingchen of the first month of spring in the twenty-fifth year of Wanli: North Korean envoys came to ask for help. In February Bingyin, it was reconsidered to conquer the Japanese. Bingzi, the former commander-in-chief, Tongzhi Magui, was the commander-in-chief of the Japanese army, commanding all the armies in the north and south. In Yisi of March, Yang Hao, who participated in the political affairs of Shandong Province, became the censor of Qiandu and managed the military affairs of Korea. At the end of the year, Xing Jie, the minister of the Ministry of War, was appointed Shangshu, governor of Ji, Liao and Baoding military affairs, and managed the war against the Japanese.
Huh? Xing Jie here is even more interesting. He served as both the governor and the manager as the minister of the Ministry of War.
So to sum up, the ministry of "Jinglue" is really very general and vague, and the definition is very unclear. The emperor "asked" the cabinet in the form of a handwriting what this "economic strategy" was and what it was. In fact, it was an anti-general army:
You say that I have given too much power, but economics is a temporary task appointed by the emperor. How much power is given is comprehensively measured from the importance of the task itself and the power required to complete the task. As the Ming Dynasty was founded more than 200 years ago, The "last battle" against Mongolia since 2000 was such a huge event! What's wrong with me giving "Mongolian and Yuan Dynasty Economic Strategies" more power than previous economic strategies?
These four questions, or rather this one question, really confused the elders. It's not that I can't find the words to answer, but it's hard to say it accurately no matter how I answer.
Are civil servants important? In the eyes of the cabinet ministers, it is of course extremely important. It is completely politically correct in terms of right and wrong. However, the emperor's meaning was correct. The elimination of Meng Yuan was also an out-and-out political correctness for the Ming Dynasty. Anyone who dared to object to this view should go to Xiaoling or Changling to enjoy the Lingchi treatment.
Why, you ask? Because the "rightness of the country" of the Ming Dynasty came from expelling the Tartars and restoring China. This is a fundamental footnote to the legitimacy of the rule of the Ming Dynasty.
Since it is impossible to make a comparative and selective answer, the cabinet has no choice but to use "question answering skills" to avoid talking about "which is more important". Instead, it shifts its focus and begins to discuss whether the position of "economic strategy" needs to be clearly defined, and if so. How to define it, and even discuss whether there should be some changes in the relationship between ministers and economic officials.
Faced with such a thorny question, neither Shen Shixing and Wang Xijue from the Heart School, nor Wu Dui and Liang Menglong from the Practical School Gao Dang wanted to "rush to answer". In the end, it was Wang Jiaping who spoke first.
Wang Jiaping's style is as always, unambiguous in what he says, and he clearly expresses his opposition to fundamental changes in the non-permanent position of manager.
His reason is not complicated. That is to say, the post of "Jingsuo" is set up because of the situation. If there is a serious matter in the country and a senior official needs to be temporarily in charge, then a special "Jingsuo" will be set up. stop. The advantage of doing this is obvious: General managers generally have great power and can only be set up temporarily. If they are set up permanently, who will supervise him and check and balance him?
Wang Jiaping's position has always been relatively neutral, and he even has a slight inclination towards the pragmatic school. Although this statement is directed at Gao pragmatism, it is not essentially aimed at Gao pragmatism, a specific person. This is even the case with Wu. Dui and Liang Menglong knew it well, so they did not jump out to refute, but planned to wait and see how Shen Yuanfu would answer.
Who would have thought that before Shen Yuanfu could answer, Xu Cifu actually intervened on his own initiative and clearly expressed his agreement with Wang Jiaping's opinion. He believes that the mechanism of setting up the strategy according to the situation and letting it go after it is completed is very good. It can not only flexibly deal with all kinds of unexpected and unpredictable big troubles, but also will not lead to a structural power imbalance, thus avoiding the consequences for the country. bring hidden dangers.
Shen Cifu said meaningfully that you still have to discuss the matter on the basis of the situation, and don't be too high-spirited - for example, the current problem is actually not that complicated. You just need to understand one thing: if you want to win this battle, you really need to Does the manager need to have the power to kill frontline civil servants?
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