Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 50 Enfeoffment
The regent ceremony came to an end, and Zhu Lang finally breathed a sigh of relief. He took a handkerchief beside him and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

The weather in the south in October was still hot. The clothes Zhu Lang was wearing were enough even in winter. He had been so nervous just now that he was sweating all over.
The ministers below also breathed a sigh of relief. Not only Zhu Lang was nervous, but the ministers were also nervous.

The state supervision ceremony is extremely solemn. If someone makes a mistake during the ceremony, it is not uncommon to lose his job.

Everyone had finally waited for the King of Gui to ascend the throne, and they were about to confer titles on their officials, and to promote their positions and make money. If they lost their official positions because of something like this, it would be really funny. Therefore, all the officials were very tense and did not dare to be distracted for a moment.

At this time, all the officials in the field relaxed and took a breath. The censor in the field saw that everyone was slacking off and made another round of inspection. The field was once again quiet.
All the officials stood there in concentration, only to see Ding Kuichu suddenly step out from the front. All their eyes fell on Ding Kuichu, with a hint of envy flashing in their eyes.

Ding Kuichu, however, acted as if no one was around. He bowed his head and saluted, then spoke loudly.

"Your servant Ding Kuichu respectfully reports that the country is newly established and in its infancy, we should cultivate saintly virtues, improve discipline, and be cautious in politics and education..."

Ding Kuichu kept talking for a full quarter of an hour before he stopped. This was the first admonition to the new dynasty.

Zhu Lang waited for Ding Kuichu to finish speaking, then put on a serious expression and said

"I am so lonely and I am so tired"

Ding Kuichu then bowed and walked back to the court. After Ding Kuichu returned, Qu Shisi stepped out and spoke again.

"Your Highness Qu Shisi respectfully reports that the new dynasty is just beginning and state affairs are difficult. In order to restore our great Ming dynasty, we must first win the hearts of the people, demonstrate our military might, employ people with high prestige, and recruit talented people..."

Qu Shisi spoke for nearly a quarter of an hour, also giving advice on the government affairs of the new dynasty. After Qu Shisi finished speaking, Zhu Lang said in a serious tone, "I will accept your advice."
Qu Shisi withdrew, and then Lu Daqi came out, also reporting on the government affairs of the new dynasty. After Lu Daqi, Chen Zizhuang and He Wuzuo came out one after another.
For a moment, all the ministers in the court and Zhu Lang were listening to the suggestions of several people in turn. In fact, Zhu Lang was already in a trance after listening to Qu Shisi's speech.
It was not until Chen Zizhuang and He Wuzuo spoke up that he regained his composure and recognized the two ministers who had hurried to the city yesterday.
After all five people finished speaking, there was a moment of silence, and no one stepped forward to speak.
In fact, this is also a process, but it was the process of Zhu Lang's regent ceremony before, and now it is the process of the first court meeting of the new dynasty.
The procedures for the Regent Ceremony were drawn up by the Ministry of Rites, but the procedures for the first court meeting of the new dynasty were not rehearsed at all. The entire process was in the minds of the ministers below, and they all knew it silently.
Sure enough, when He Wuzuo finished speaking, Zhu Lang signaled to Wang Kun who was standing beside him.
Wang Kun then stood in front of the ministers and spoke loudly. Several eunuchs also stood in different places and repeated Wang Kun's words to ensure that all the ministers inside and outside the palace could hear clearly.
"Your Highness has spoken, all of you are the pillars of the country, and the words you offer are mature and thoughtful for the country, and I will respectfully accept your advice."

"At this time, the Eastern Tartars are rampant and the national affairs are difficult. I hope that all the adults will work together and work together to restore our Ming Dynasty."

As soon as Wang Kun finished speaking, all the ministers inside and outside the hall bowed down and shouted that His Highness was wise.
Zhu Lang looked at the ministers who were bowing down again, his face was calm. In fact, whether it was Ding Kuichu or Qu Shisi, their advice this time was actually meaningless.
It's not that there's anything wrong with their memorials. There's definitely nothing wrong with them, and no one can find fault with them, because what they said was just clichés that would never go wrong.

Advice such as fostering saintly virtue and recruiting wise officials simply points out a general direction that will never go wrong, but does not involve specific policy plans.

The only purpose of this proposal is to establish the status of these people in the new dynasty. Yes, if what happened just now was Zhu Lang's enthronement ceremony, then this is the ceremony for these people to be appointed as prime ministers.

Ding Kuichu was the first to come out, so the ministers in the hall knew that Ding Kuichu must be the first assistant of the new dynasty. Qu Shisi was the second to come out, so he was the second assistant. Lu Daqi, Chen Zizhuang and He Wuzuo came out, so these three people must enter the cabinet to assist in the administration.

The ministers bowed and called out to the emperor, then returned to their positions. Zhu Lang made a look at Wang Kun, and Wang Kun continued speaking.

"The court has moved around, all thanks to the ministers who have worked hard on state affairs, helped the country in times of crisis and made decisions. All the ministers have made great contributions to the country. If rewards and punishments are not clear, the power and orders will not work. Now the ministers are enfeoffed as follows."

When the ministers heard Wang Kun's words, they all secretly said in their hearts, "It's finally here!"
Then they held their breath and listened attentively to the words above. Only Ding Kuichu and a few others remained calm, looking like serious ministers.

"Jin Dingkuichu Dongge Grand Secretary, promoted to Minister of War and Minister of Revenue, in charge of all matters of the two ministries."

"Qu Shisi of Jin Dynasty was appointed as the Grand Secretary of Dongge, and was promoted to the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, in charge of all matters of the Ministry of Personnel."

"Lü Daqi of Jin Dynasty was appointed as the Grand Secretary of Dongge, and was appointed as the Minister of Rites, in charge of all matters of the Ministry of Rites."

"Chen Zizhuang, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Justice, in charge of all matters of the Ministry of Justice."

"He Wuzhuo, the Grand Secretary of Dongge, was appointed as the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Supervisory Office, and was in charge of the affairs of the Supervisory Office."

"The above five people all entered the cabinet to assist in government affairs"

Wang Kun paused for a moment, and then continued speaking without waiting for anyone to react.

"Li Yongmao, the Grand Secretary of the Dongge Academy, is temporarily in charge of the Imperial College due to the system of observing the imperial edict, and does not need to be involved in the general affairs."

"Su Guansheng of Jin Dynasty is the Grand Secretary of Dongge, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Processing, and is in charge of the Ministry of Works"…………

As Wang Kun continued to announce the decree, a glimmer of understanding flashed across the ministers' eyes.

As expected, the biggest winner this time was Ding Kuichu, who not only entered the cabinet in one fell swoop, but also took charge of the two ministries of military and household affairs, both of which were extremely powerful. Ding Kuichu also established his position as the prime minister.

Qu Shisi was able to join the cabinet by virtue of his contribution in initiating the enthronement of the emperor. Although he was only promoted to the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, there was no Shangshu above the Ministry of Personnel. Qu Shisi, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was actually a high-ranking official in the new dynasty. He would be officially promoted to the Shangshu of the Ministry of Personnel when His Royal Highness the Regent bestowed him with another reward.
As expected, the other three were in charge of a department and all served as assistants in the cabinet.
Li Yongmao should have been admitted to the cabinet, but because he was in mourning at the time, he refused to accept it. So he was given an easy job so that he could receive the title without affecting his mourning. This was also a demonstration of the new dynasty's preferential treatment of wise officials.

Thinking of this, everyone looked at Su Guansheng who was ranked behind the sixth person.

Although he still retained the title of Grand Secretary, he was not able to join the cabinet to assist in government affairs, and he did not even get the title of Minister of Works. He only got the title of Left Vice Minister of Works.

Unlike Qu Shisi's post as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Su Guansheng's post as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works was not a stable one. Although the King of Gui insisted, everyone still had to pinch their noses and give Su Guansheng a post as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.

However, with all five cabinet ministers secretly hostile to him, the Ministry of Works under Su Guansheng's control will surely be extremely busy in the future. If Su Guansheng makes the slightest mistake, I'm afraid he will be impeached by the whole court.
The ministers in the hall actually knew what His Royal Highness the Regent meant. Su Guansheng joined the Ministry of Works, so the money in Su Guansheng's hands would naturally be added to the Ministry of Works' treasury.
With Su Guansheng, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, no one could touch this money. This was actually the private treasury of His Royal Highness the Regent.

Everyone in the court knew that Su Guansheng must have brought more than 20,000 taels of silver with him this time, but everyone was very wise and did not investigate how much silver he had. Instead, they simply assumed that the Ministry of Works only had 20,000 taels of silver.

The King of Gui even drove Li Mingzhong to fight Ding Kuichu for this silver, which shows how much the King of Gui valued this silver.

If someone who doesn't know how to behave comes out and shouts about checking the Ministry of Industry's treasury silver at this time, I'm afraid His Royal Highness Prince Gui will dare to sink this person directly into the sea the next day.

After the Ministry of Revenue sent 5,000 taels of silver to pay the officials, the amount should now be 15,000 taels, but even this 15,000 taels is still on people's mind.
Ding Kuichu once wanted to transfer the silver on the grounds that the Ministry of Revenue had run out of money and the soldiers in Guangdong Province were short of food and wages, but Su Guansheng directly rejected his request on the grounds that he was renovating the palace.
Zhu Lang had already made preparations to move the capital to Guangzhou, so it was naturally impossible for him to build a temporary palace in Zhaoqing at this time, but this was an excellent excuse.
After Zhu Lang ascended the throne as regent, his status was different from before. There was no palace in Zhaoqing City that was worthy of Zhu Lang's current status.
Logically, it was the court that should have allocated money to Zhu Lang to build the palace. Now, His Majesty the Regent was loyal to the country and did not ask for money from the previous dynasty. He spent his own money to build the house. What could the officials say? No one could find fault with him.

Wang Kun kept reading out the appointments of the chief officials of the six ministries and nine departments, and then continued to confer titles on military officials.

"Li Mingzhong, the general of Wuzhou, is brave and valiant, loyal and diligent in the king's affairs, and protects the emperor in times of danger. He has made great contributions to the country. I hereby confer the title of Marquis of Wujing on Li Mingzhong, with an official salary of 1,500 shi, and his descendants shall inherit the title of Marquis of Wujing."

"Governor Jiao Lian of Guilin was brave and valiant. He wiped out the bandits and helped the needy. His contributions were great. Therefore, he was specially conferred the title of Marquis of Wu'an, with an official salary of 1,500 dan, and his descendants were allowed to inherit the title of Earl of Wu'an."

……

The enfeoffment of military officials was not unexpected. On that day, Li Mingzhong bravely led his troops to resist Ding Kuichu. As expected, he won the trust of His Highness and was promoted directly from a general to a marquis.

The news that the King of Gui had emphasized Jiao Lian's entry into the court spread throughout the court. Everyone knew that this man had once managed to save the King of Gui. With his merit in saving the King and his future position as the commander of the imperial guards, he was suddenly made a marquis.

In addition to these two people, the General of Guangxi Province, who has many elite soldiers and generals under his command, was also granted the title of Marquis of Si'en in order to pacify the land of Guangxi Province.

Yan Yuncong was the general of Guangdong Province. He actually managed 20,000 soldiers of the Guangdong-Guangxi Governor's Office on behalf of Ding Kuichu. He was also granted the title of Marquis of Qingjiang.

Only these four people were granted the title of Marquis in this grand ceremony of conferring titles on military officials. The rest, such as Ma Jixiang, a close official of the Jinyiwei, and relatives of Zhu Lang's wife Wang Yue, were only granted the title of Earl. There were about a dozen people in total.

"Thank you for your grace, Your Highness. We will do our best to assist Your Highness and revitalize the Ming Dynasty."

Almost all the officials in the field were given titles and rewards. After Wang Kun read out the edict of titles and rewards, everyone was overjoyed and bowed down to express their gratitude.

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(End of this chapter)