Chapter 88 The Power of the Prince
Outside Jubao Gate, countless soldiers guarded the dock. The originally bustling crowd had long been cleared away.
This is not the first time.
This isn't the last time.
This is the send-off procession from the Kingdom of Kings.
He Xi was also seeing him off. But only within it.
This time it was King Qin who left. Princess Qin and her concubine were the ones who treated Princess Anqing the most. After all, King Qin suffered a lot this time. He has been in Shaanxi for more than ten years. Many things in Shaanxi were built by him. The family's wealth is already very strong, and its financial resources far exceed those of other vassals. Because of this he also suffered the most losses.
But please don't doubt King Qin's political quality.
In fact, Zhu Di was able to ascend to the throne because of his own ability. But it also has something to do with him being the elder of the clan. At that time, the eldest of Zhu Yuanzhang's sons was King Yan. King Yan became the leader of all kings, and this title was very important to King Yan.
Otherwise, in what capacity would he declare his independence?
But if his two brothers were still alive, it would be really difficult for him to succeed, and it might not be King Yan who ascended the throne.
King Qin was unhappy with He Xi, but he didn't show it on his face at all, as if he were a harmonious family. This feeling made He Xi very uncomfortable, but she still had to complete the performance.
It was so easy to send King Qin away. He Xi was planning to go home. But he was stopped by the prince. Let him get on the prince's carriage.
The prince said: "Actually, there is one thing that I have always wanted to discuss with you. I have been busy for a while, so I delayed it. If I have time today, I will ask you what you want."
He Xi said: "What's the matter?"
The prince said: "I also know about the big things your Taiping Mansion has done. My father is going to establish a Coal and Iron Department, which will be under the Ministry of Industry. He specially transferred Zhang Du, the prefect of Changzhou, to this matter. It shows that he attaches great importance to this matter."
A trace of confusion flashed in He Xi's eyes. Being caught by the prince, the prince asked: "Don't you know who Zhang Du is?"
He Xi said: "Please give me some advice, Your Highness."
The prince said: "You are still an official for a short period of time, and many people in the court do not recognize you. Zhang Du has a nickname in the officialdom, which is that water cannot be poured into it."
"He was originally a member of the Ministry of War. My father once checked the roster of the Ministry of War. It seemed that it was the third or fifth year of Hongwu. My father found that Zhang Du had been in the Ministry of War for nearly ten years and had not done anything wrong. My father said, this is How can a person be a talented official? So he was promoted to be a censor. He handled many major cases during his tenure as censor. He was extremely thoughtful. Everything that was put into his hands never went wrong. And he came up from being a censor. , I can clearly see the methods below.”
"But do you know why he is called watertight instead of watertight?"
He Xi said: "Brother, don't take the test on me."
The prince said: "Zhang Du is good at everything, but his structure is small. It seems because he was promoted from a civil servant. He is cautious in doing things and makes no mistakes. Within his own authority, he firmly holds the power in his own hands, but I don’t dare to say a word about other matters, and I have been an official in the court for ten years and I have not said anything.”
"He's a good hand at getting things done, but that's all."
"Actually, my father kept him as the prefect of Changzhou for several years just to train him. Let him be the official seal official and cultivate his pattern so that he can be reused in the future. But these are my evaluations a few years ago. This time he is the prefect of Changzhou. I don’t know if he has made any progress since then.”
He Xi heard that Zhu Yuanzhang sent Zhang Du here, and he had some speculations in his mind.
Zhang Du is perfect as an executor of specific plans. But this is also Zhang Du's ceiling. The reason why important ministers are called important ministers. It is not because they have high official positions, but because they are responsible for governing the world and have ideas for the government to govern the world.
Generally speaking, people at the executive level cannot reach the level of important ministers.
Regardless of whether it was because Zhang Du had seen too many evil tricks, he was cautious and did not dare to take a step too far. Still, because I have little education and limited knowledge, I dare not say much about how to govern the Ming Dynasty, for fear of leaking the details.
But for He Xi's plan, Zhang Du is a perfect executor.
Coming from a lower-class background, the things the subordinates do are probably leftovers from other people's entertainment. If you are not a Confucian minister, you will not care about whether this is wrong or that is wrong. Outstanding ability and outstanding execution ability. Since becoming an official, there has been no problem with anything I have handled.
This is no easy task.
He Xi said: "Thank you for your advice, brother."
The prince said: "Don't worry, after Zhang Du returns to Beijing, I will ask him to visit you at your house. He will definitely obey your words. If you have any ideas, just tell him directly." The prince paused slightly and said: " This is a small thing, what I’m going to say next is the big thing.”
"The Coal and Iron Division Special Examination, please give me your advice."
He Xi was stunned, breathing slightly quickly, and said: "It's just because the Coal and Iron Department was established and all the staff were vacant, so I thought of a way to quickly replenish the manpower."
The prince didn't speak, and the atmosphere suddenly became cold. There was only the sound of ruts outside.
He Xi's heart kept churning. Don't know what to say.
I have to admit that as the successor trained by Zhu Yuanzhang, the prince has an extremely keen sense of politics. It can be said that one can tell the autumn when a leaf falls. He Xi's little move was so insightful in his eyes that he couldn't hide it at all.
He Xi's words were not meant to be concealed. But he didn't know how to tell the prince. Because they are all preludes. Zhu Yuanzhang never told the prince the secret of the future, so He Xi did not dare to talk nonsense.
After all, a king and a father are both a king and a father.
Between father and son, there was a sense of propriety. They knew it, but He Xi didn't dare to get involved.
No matter how good the relationship between the prince and the emperor is. That's between them too. As long as they have a little dispute, they may have no problem with each other, but if they get involved, they don't know about it.
The prince's voice seemed to be the same as before, and he said calmly: "Then tell me how you can temporarily fill the position."
He Xi said: "Actually, it's just an exam. It's just that the test questions are set individually based on the needs of the Coal and Iron Department's personnel."
The prince said: "What evening."
He Xi said: "I am here."
The prince said: "I understand that you don't want to talk about the things that my father told you. I don't have much involvement in other things. You are Anqing's consort, and I don't want to embarrass you. But this matter is different."
"I don't know if you really don't know or if you are pretending not to know. This matter is a big plan of the imperial court. It must not be ignored."
"The most important thing in the world is to win people. If you win people, you will prosper. If you lose people, you will perish. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, my father has been exploring the method of selecting and employing people. Master Song proposed the imperial examination because of the method of selecting people in our dynasty. It is not sound. My father used great courage to sweep away all old habits. This is a good thing. My father does not follow rules and regulations in employing people, but only based on their talents. Even monks, Taoists, and officials can all rise to high positions. There is an excitement in the Ming Dynasty. meaning."
"But there are always advantages and disadvantages. I really think that people are not following the rules and a lot of ridiculous things have happened. In the past few years, when I was a county magistrate, I couldn't comment on the people. Instead, I chose people and drew lots on the Golden Palace. It's a joke, but there is nothing I can do about it. .”
"Because the employment of people does not follow the rules. Hundreds of people can be selected to determine the level. How can they match the vacancies of officials far and near?"
"Therefore, establishing a system for selecting and employing people has been what I have been thinking about and urgently over the years. Although the imperial examination is not a complete strategy, it is still a usable strategy. My father naturally has his reasons for not taking it. But I want to know, what about you? What does special examination mean?”
"As the Crown Prince, I am the Vice-President of the world, and I will cooperate with you in everything. And when Your Majesty told you, let Fang Xiaoru join in. Don't you know what it means?"
He Xi quickly saluted and said, "I don't dare. It's just that this matter is of great importance, and I don't have any idea in my mind. How can I present something that I'm not sure about to the king? I'm also waiting for time to discuss it with Xueshi Fang. After finalizing it, I will present it to His Highness and His Majesty.”
He Xi could hear his heart pounding wildly. The prince at this moment really looked like Zhu Yuanzhang.
When the prince heard what He Xi said, he suddenly smiled, and the tense atmosphere suddenly eased a lot. He said, "Well, just set a time and send Fang Xiaoru alone."
