We all now know that subordinate staff who are responsible for specific matters such as tax collection, litigation, and uploading and issuing are the "nerve endings" of the bureaucracy. Their actual status in political activities exceeds their reality in the bureaucracy. Location.
If the nerve endings are not open enough, the government orders will not be smooth, and all the efforts made by the above will have only one point of effect in their hands.
But in the Ming Dynasty, when it came to subordinate officials becoming officials, there was basically no future or hope. This is the general characteristic.
Of course, this does not mean that there are no subordinate staff who have become officials.
Although Emperor Taizu ordered many times that subordinate officials were not allowed to participate in the imperial examination, they were not allowed to become Jinshi. This did not mean that they could not be officials. It was just that Zhu Yuanzhang felt that allowing retired officials and prostitutes to participate in the imperial examination was really unworthy of the stage, so He wiped out the imperial examination opportunities of these 'lower class' people.
But after Hongwu Jianyuan, when the country was founded, it was the time to hire people, and how many officials did he kill?
Therefore, during the Hongwu period, officials could not take the imperial examination, but they could become officials. Whatever method was used, it was like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea and each showing his magical powers.
The first person who did not allow officials to serve as officials was Emperor Yongle.
In the seventh year of Yongle, Taizong summoned 28 people including Yushi Zhang Xunli and asked about their births. Twenty-four of them were Jinshi, and four others, including Hong Bing, were subordinate officials.
So he issued an order to the Ministry of Officials: Although there is no specific way to appoint people, the imperial censor is the eyes and ears of the imperial court, and it is appropriate to use people who are knowledgeable and knowledgeable in governing the body. He ordered: From now on, officials should not be re-appointed.
Hong Bing and others were particularly unlucky. After an inexplicable meeting, they were demoted to the preface class by Emperor Taizong.
This is an official position in Honglu Temple. It is specifically responsible for etiquette such as court gatherings and banquets. It is completely different from that of the censor.
But that's not necessarily a bad thing. When faced with a cruel and powerful emperor like Yongle, if the censor was too noisy, he might even be chopped down by him.
However, it should be noted that the imperial edict issued in the seventh year of Yongle did not allow subordinate officials to be officials of the Ministry of Education, but other officials could still be employed.
However, the trend of tightening the political prospects of subordinate officials has not changed.
After the Xuanzong Dynasty, even if officials successfully transferred to official posts, they would basically not be reused.
In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, there are almost no records of officials transferring to official positions, and most of them are still miscellaneous officials.
However, these subordinate staff and miscellaneous officials still adopted the principle of being close to each other and served locally, because they felt that they were good at the local area and familiar with the village, and could become a medium for communicating with the government and the people, helping to transmit government orders and promote the specific implementation of government affairs.
This...can't be said to be unreasonable.
But in reality it has completely changed.
When appointing officials, they generally avoid their hometowns.
Therefore, it is difficult for officials to establish prestige, and ordinary people know that you will leave.
The real situation is just like that Huang Silang - he is just a passing magistrate, and you are the iron-clad master.
Many officials themselves know that they are leaving, so naturally they are too lazy to poke a hornet's nest in a certain place. As long as nothing serious happens, they can be punished by others. They mainly need to make their superiors comfortable. After three years, bribes and bribes will make them superior. What, he went to be an official somewhere else again, why bother with so many other things?
If you understand the logic of this set of officials and officials clearly, you will find that whether a place is governed well or not is really not just a matter of having a county magistrate who is good at reading and has good conduct.
Zhu Houzhao knew all this.
That's why he asked that question.
If there is no hope of becoming an official, is it just to make money?
As for Yang Yiqing, he has to consider another aspect of the problem, "Subordinate officials are of the lowest rank. Since Taizong, Xuanzong, and Xianzong, there have been many restrictions on subordinate officials entering the government. That is to say, their knowledge and conduct are not enough to serve as officials. Subordinate officials are not qualified to be officials. Officials are not allowed to take imperial examinations or serve as officials. These are all ancestral systems. I ask your majesty to think twice."
Zhu Houzhao is not a real nineteen-year-old boy who grew up in the palace.
He knew in his heart that the situation of subordinate officials was becoming more and more difficult. The key was that there was a group that did not accept them.
This group is the officials themselves.
The reason is simple. I studied hard for ten years and passed the imperial examination before I could become an official. Why can you, a subordinate, be like me?
Besides, it’s a carrot and a hole. I’ll give you a little bit, and I’ll take a little bit less.
Therefore, no matter from the perspective of face, ancestral system, or interests, opening this hole will definitely lead to opposition from the entire bureaucracy.
But Zhu Houzhao was not a weak emperor who could not control the court. He had his own strength and means.
"What about the rest of the people? Do they all feel this way?"
Liang Chu also agreed, "This case cannot be made without authorization, otherwise there will be turmoil."
"I second the proposal." Wang Bing also expressed his position.
Zhu Houzhao scratched his nose and said, "I understand."
In fact, the emperor's power is greater than imagined.
Whether a subordinate official can become an official can actually be determined by a word invented by Emperor Xianzong of the Ming Dynasty, which is "passing the official position".
It's not a matter of being a junior official or not, even opera singers and alchemists can be officials.
Therefore, of course, a subordinate official can become an official. The key lies in his will as the emperor.
Moreover, there are trade-offs in methods.
There are some things that can be said but not said, and there are some things that can be said but not done.
He may not say this, but he can do it.
I made one or two... When there were more of them, the road was naturally paved out. This is much better than having to deal with the entire bureaucracy.
Zhu Houzhao thought so in his heart, but still asked: "Since everyone agrees, then there must be a solution to the corruption of subordinate officials. There is no need to say anything about severe punishment, even officials, I will punish them severely, but there are What’s the use?”
This question is difficult to answer. You want people to work, but you don't let them get promoted, and you don't allow them to make money after that. Is this like governance? I'm afraid it's a bit wicked and short-sighted.
"I believe that a more complete assessment of subordinate officials can be carried out for a period of three years. Basic skills such as prison names and writing will be assessed in terms of business affairs, and their reputation will be assessed in terms of their official conduct. In this way, we can eliminate those with despicable qualities and senior officials. The person in office is ill."
Zhu Houzhao was stunned after hearing this.
You have to work, you don’t get paid, you don’t get promoted, and you have to add another assessment? !
Go crazy!
"Let's discuss this matter later."
The emperor lost interest. In fact, this matter was a relatively important issue.
Because it is unrealistic to completely let go, the entire gentry group will jump up. It is true that it is very difficult to become a Jinshi. If subordinate officials can easily become officials, it will be unfair to those who take the imperial examination.
Yang Yiqing and Liang Chu knew that the emperor was not too satisfied, but they relaxed in the end, and they felt relieved.
How did they know that Zhu Houzhao was planning to build a plank road openly and covertly to visit Chen Cang.
But he is in the deep palace, but he doesn't know if there are any subordinates in the world who can do this well.
After thinking about it, he thought of a person who might be closer to a subordinate.
"Qi Shangshu."
"Wei Chen is here."
"Where did you want the Shanyang magistrate you mentioned to go?"
"Back to Your Majesty, I recommend him to be promoted to Shaanxi Road Censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and be responsible for investigating the encroachment of the pastures of the official horse ranch in Shaanxi."
Zhu Houzhao's lips curled up, "That's right!"
Just let this Zhang Cong go over there and cause trouble.
After that, nothing else happened.
The officials left one after another.
Zhu Houzhao ordered Liu Jin, "Send someone to look for this Zhang Cong. When I find him, I will come to see him."
"Yes. Servant... brought into the palace?"
Is this a problem... He thought about it for a moment, shook his head and said, "Let's arrange a place outside the palace."
Zhang Cong's position is not high, but the matter recommended to him by the Minister of War is quite important. But he himself had no background, so he had no choice but to be the emperor.
However, for a minor official who had just been promoted from the seventh-rank county magistrate to the fifth-rank Shaanxi Taoist censor, the emperor said some "overly ambiguous" words in the palace, but the effect was not good.
The Forbidden City is the Forbidden City, and it has its own atmosphere and rules.
The emperor is also a person who follows the rules. In this place, the emperor also has to play his role well. Your strange words and actions will cause drama.
But there is no need to worry about this when meeting in private outside the palace.
These things are too detailed, but they are crucial. Fortunately, he still understands officialdom.
