Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 216: The studious and inquisitive prince

The Qing government has always been relatively generous to local Ming officials who voluntarily surrendered.

The reason is simple: no one
This account is actually very simple to calculate. Although the Qing court was also conducting imperial examinations, the number of people was somewhat small compared to the vast land acquired this year.

Furthermore, by the time of the Ming and Qing dynasties, the imperial examination had evolved into a rigid eight-part essay in order to leave a path for truly good families from poor families.

Although there are many talented people who pass this exam, they still need some training if they are to be used to stabilize the local area.

In this way, the Ming officials who took the initiative to submit a letter of surrender would be a very cost-effective choice.

Take the Jianghuai area for example. Except for a few important positions, the remaining local officials are basically the same people.

This method is a good strategy for the Qing court, but Zhu Cilang cannot do so.

This raises an important question.

Where will the candidates to replace these local officials come from?

Having said that, perhaps someone will say something.

The Ming Dynasty had held imperial examinations for nearly three hundred years. Excluding those who were too old to be used, how difficult would it be to find a hundred or so Jinshi and Juren?
But having said that, people have their biases.

If your students go to work in local positions, your say in the court will be greater. If his old friends can control a region, he will be more confident in the court.

Under such circumstances, it is easy to foresee that various forces will inevitably engage in a series of struggles over these places.

Then the question arises again.

Was the Yingtian faction, which was unpopular during the Chongzhen reign and suffered severe damage during the Hongguang reign, capable of competing with other factions?

This is not difficult to understand. After His Royal Highness the Crown Prince finished speaking, even Xu Yinjue, who had never been involved in state affairs, couldn't help but cast a sympathetic look at Qian Qianyi.

"Your Highness, those who surrendered to the enemy have no king or father. They have read the books of sages in vain. In my opinion, we should select those who have committed the most heinous crimes and punish them according to the law to set things right!"

The first person to speak out was naturally Mr. Qian.

He has thought it through very clearly. Even if there are mountains of swords and seas of fire ahead, he has to jump into this pit!

What's more, even if he didn't jump, there would naturally be a lot of officials who had nowhere to go among those who fled from the north and would be eager to jump.

If they really don't cooperate with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, then their Yingtian faction will be marginalized.

Thinking of this, Qian Qianyi couldn't help but glance at Yue Qijie, who looked calm and composed, and then his eyes were filled with determination.

On the surface, this punishment of unfaithful officials seems to have nothing to do with their Yingtian faction. Even if they cannot get a few places, it will at most be a matter of increasing their strength, and it will not be serious enough to be marginalized.

But most of these official positions are from Nanzhili!

If they really cannot get enough places, they, the Yingtian faction, will inevitably become a vassal of Zhejiang under the control of others.

By then, what qualifications would Mr. Qian have to get involved in the position of Prime Minister?
"Well, what Mr. Qian said is reasonable, but where can we find such a useful person at this time?"

"Your Highness, you are worrying too much. Nanzhili has always been a land of outstanding people. Not to mention the numerous candidates for the Juren degree, even the Jinshi degree is enough."

Qian Qianyi's words were very confident, but no one in the hall thought he was bragging.

As the climate turned colder, the large swamps and lakes gradually receded. By the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the vast land south of the Yangtze River had been fully developed, and China's economic center shifted from the north to the south of the Yangtze River.

Coupled with the prosperity of the Maritime Silk Road and the rise of handicraft industry, most of the wealth of the vast China was concentrated in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

It is said that when the granaries are full, one will know etiquette.

With the blessing of massive wealth, the number of Jinshi and Juren from Jiangsu and Zhejiang naturally far exceeded that of other places. Qian Qianyi's statement was naturally just a statement of fact.

However, Zhu Cilang did not care whether there were many Jinshi and Juren in Nanzhili.

He mentioned this at this time, firstly to prevent the emergence of a monopoly in the court, and secondly to gain support in certain aspects.

"It's good that Mr. Qian has a plan in mind. We can discuss the specific candidates after Ma Shiying and Huang Daozhou arrive."

Finished?

Before Zhu Cilang finished speaking, Qian Qianyi felt confused at first, and then he felt as if a huge crisis was approaching.

The situation is now very clear. Replacing the disloyal officials is related to the voice of the Yingtian faction in the court. Going north and south can be regarded as the life and death line of the Yingtian faction.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince merely raised these two issues lightly without showing any inclination.

In this situation, it would be strange if His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did not intend to use this to exchange for the support of the Yingtian faction on certain matters.

just
Can I really afford a deal that is worth paying for two things related to life and death?
Thinking of this, Mr. Qian felt mixed emotions.

The result of going north and south is actually very obvious. Although it is possible to take over Jianghuai with the current strength of the small court, losing support for Hunan, Guangxi and the southwest is something the small court cannot afford.

Under such circumstances, if Yingtian loses the support of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, his status will inevitably be marginalized.

This is even more true when it comes to replacing disloyal officials. Without the support of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the Yingtian faction would inevitably lose its foundation of Southern Zhili under the siege of wolves.

With the combination of these two factors, whether His Royal Highness the Crown Prince supports it will determine the survival of the Yingtian faction.

Based on this, even if he proposed a more demanding deal, Mr. Qian would have to agree to it willingly.

Of course, on the surface, this transaction is also extremely important to Zhu Cilang.

After all, Yingtian is where he started his career. If this place is marginalized, its power will also be affected.

But Qian Qianyi also knew that after several victories, the prestige of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in Zhejiang was no less than that of Yingtian. Even if he still needed other forces in the court to contain the Zhejiang faction, both Ma Shiying and the officials who fled to the north could take on this task, and the Yingtian faction was not the only choice.

In this way, obtaining the support of the Yingtian faction is not only dispensable to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, but can only be regarded as icing on the cake at most. However, for the Yingtian faction, it is truly a matter of life and death.

Thinking of this, Qian Qianyi suddenly realized that this seemed to be a preferential treatment from His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to Yingtian?

Not only should he and the Yingtian faction not harbor resentment, but they should be grateful to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for giving him this opportunity?
“Ah~~~~.”

Just when Qian Qianyi's thoughts were beginning to drift away, a long sigh reached his ears.

"Your Highness has overcome many difficulties to achieve this triumphant return. Why are you sighing now when you should be celebrating?" In the past, such words should have been said by Qian Qianyi, but his mind was distracted and by the time he reacted, Yue Qijie had taken the lead.

He is from Guizhou, Ma Shiying’s fellow villager.

Seeing that Yue Qijie was behaving out of character, Qian Qianyi became even more alert. In the blink of an eye, he collected all his thoughts and focused all his attention on His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

"I remember my father once said that I was not good at government affairs. Now that the Tartars have temporarily retreated, all the heavy responsibilities have fallen on your shoulders."

Be considerate!

This sentence focuses on compassion!
Coupled with Zhu Cilang's seemingly embarrassed expression, he established his reputation as a compassionate minister.

"It is my duty to share your worries."

After hearing the standard answer from all the ministers, Zhu Cilang nodded, but from his expression, it seemed that he still felt guilty for placing all the burdens on his ministers.

"As the sage said, one should never stop learning. I am not even eighteen yet, but I still have the opportunity to learn."

Having said this, Zhu Cilang immediately stood up from his chair and paced around the room.

It was obvious that he was happy and motivated by learning.

However, some people in the room were still waiting for the boots that had not yet fallen. Except for Xu Yu who looked very pleased and almost said "the boy is teachable", others were just waiting nervously for the Crown Prince's next words.

"How about this, the clerks in the various government offices in Yingtian are still needed, so we can select some of them to form an advisory council to prepare for the palace to hear the news."

That's it?

As soon as Zhu Cilang finished speaking, Qian Qianyi felt relieved.

He originally thought that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was going through so much trouble to do something big, but in the end it turned out that he just wanted to recruit some clerks to help him understand the workings of the court.

This matter is indeed against etiquette, but it is not worth talking about it.

After all, Emperor Jiajing had recruited Taoist priests, and Emperor Tianqi had even recruited carpenters. Compared with their idleness, Your Highness at least wants to know more about how the court works. Who can dare to refute him?
"Your Highness, this is against etiquette."

A kind person finally showed up. After digesting Zhu Cilang's words, Master Xu Yu stepped forward without hesitation.

Advisory Council
Isn’t this the imperial lecture?
As the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy, how could Xu Yu tolerate a group of low-class people giving lectures to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?
"What does Mr. Xu mean?"

"Your Highness, the clerks are of varying quality, and there are many cunning ones among them. If you really want to understand the operation of the court, you can ask the officials of various departments to come and explain it. You must not get involved too much with those people."

Xu Yu seemed deeply distressed when he spoke, as if the clerks were like jackals and fire.

Is this prejudice?
Probably a few.

However, the clerks at that time were of low rank but had no power and no future. They often colluded with local gentry and powerful people, and relied on the authority of the government to commit crimes. They have always been the hardest hit by corruption.

Under such circumstances, Xu Yu was obviously giving him some face by calling him a cunning person.

"Mr. Xu, what you said makes sense," Zhu Cilang responded to Xu Yu solemnly. Then he turned to Ji Qingyuan who had been waiting beside him and said, "Remember this. When we investigate the officials who have violated their moral integrity, we will also investigate the clerks. If there are any criminals who have committed crimes, we will deal with them together."

In fact, after being disrupted by Xu Yu, Zhu Cilang's rhythm had been a little messed up, but the evil of the clerks could not be left alone. He simply took advantage of the conversation to catch rabbits by shooting at straws before revealing his real purpose.

To this, the people present had different reactions.

People like Xu Yu who haven't seen through the inside story probably just think that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can learn from his advice and take advantage of this rare opportunity to rectify the situation.

But people like Qian Qianyi were even more confused about the situation.

Dealing with unfaithful officials and punishing clerks can actually be regarded as one thing, that is, to rectify the local areas.

This matter is indeed important and involves a wide range of issues. In the past, if the central government wanted to do this, they would have to be extremely cautious and would not even dare to do it on such a large scale, let alone as they are now preparing to do it openly within the control of the small court.

Of course, this is a special time after all. Isn't it reasonable for the imperial court, with the power of a great victory, to take advantage of the opportunity of the aristocratic families being hit by the war to deal with some trivial matters?
just
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince went through all this trouble just for this?
I! No! letter!
With this in mind, Qian Qianyi stared at His Royal Highness the Crown Prince with even more anxiety.

However, Zhu Cilang did not keep everyone waiting for long. After a few thoughts, he returned to his own rhythm.

"I'm still overthinking things. Most of Yingtian's clerks come from various government offices, but they may not be familiar with local affairs. It would be better to send them to the prefectures and counties."

"Your Highness! You must not do that!" Facing the Crown Prince's wild ideas, Old Master Xu not only stood up, but also knelt on the ground and said in a persuasive manner: "Local officials have studied hard for many years before they can serve in the court. If you start this, the imperial examination will be meaningless, and the official positions in the court will definitely be controlled by the aristocratic families again!"

Xu Yu's words are definitely not alarmist.

It was not until the emergence of the imperial examination system, through hereditary succession, recommendation by imperial recommendation, and the Nine-Rank System, that ordinary people had a truly stable path to promotion. And it was through this series of reforms that the central government of the imperial court firmly gained the upper hand in the game with local forces.

Although Xu Yu did not have a clear and coherent understanding of these things, he could also perceive the importance of the imperial examination system to the country.

Based on this, when he heard that Zhu Cilang was planning to bypass the imperial examination, it was understandable that he would take some more extreme actions.

"Official positions?" Seeing Xu Yu's expression, Zhu Cilang was even more surprised than him: "When did I ever say I would assign them official positions?"

"So your Highness means..."

"I just sent them to the local area to learn and observe. How can I assign them official positions?"

Having said this, Xu Yu realized that he had misunderstood the Crown Prince's intention, and the old man's face turned red in shame.

But he was not good at political struggle after all, and his mind was completely focused on his own recklessness.

As a result, he did not notice that Qian Qianyi's face had turned pale just as His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was about to finish his words.

Being in the officialdom, who doesn’t know how the position of governor came about?

Didn't they originally go there just to learn and observe?

At this point, Zhu Cilang's true purpose had been revealed, and Mr. Qian finally understood what price he would have to pay.

"Your Highness is not only studious and inquisitive, but also thoughtful. I think this method is very good!"

"I second the proposal!"

"I second the proposal!"

(End of this chapter)