Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1005 Debriefing
Hong Chengchou just arrived in the capital yesterday. He has been serving as the Governor-General of Huguang for three years.

During these three years, Hong Chengchou did a very good job in this position. After solving internal problems, the Ming Dynasty began to restore local production, and Huguang was the top priority.

Compared with Shaanxi and Gansu where Sun Chuanting was located, Huguang is synonymous with the land of fish and rice. There is even a saying in later generations that "If Huguang is prosperous, the whole world will be well-fed." Although Huguang today has not reached the level of later generations, it is not much different from Jiangnan. In addition, the gradual recovery of the climate in recent years and the policy changes of the court have made local production develop extremely rapidly.

Hong Chengchou was an extremely capable official, although his reputation in later generations was not very good, and he was even accused of being a traitor. But even so, Hong Chengchou's ability cannot be denied, not to mention that the situation has changed a long time ago. Hong Chengchou did not surrender to the enemy because of the disastrous defeat on the Liaodong battlefield, but instead became the governor of Huguang in the Ming Dynasty, and worked very hard in this position.

In three years, Hong Chengchou basically straightened out the entire Huguang region, promoted many capable officials, and personally arranged for local reclamation and production recovery. During his tenure, Huguang changed a lot. In just three years, not only did he wipe out the local erosion and depression caused by bandits, but he also restored the vitality of the Huguang region. At the same time, he also vigorously built water facilities and dredged rivers in the local area. In addition, he also spent a lot of energy on culture and education, with outstanding results.

According to the term of office of officials in the Ming Dynasty, one term was three years, which means that the court would evaluate officials every three years, evaluate their political achievements during their term of office, and give the evaluation results.

The evaluation results will serve as the basis for whether the official will remain in office, be promoted, demoted or even dismissed. If the evaluation results are average or good, the official will usually continue to serve in his original position for a maximum of nine years. After the expiration of the term, the Ministry of Personnel will decide his future destination.

If the evaluation is average or slightly poor, the official will face the possibility of reprimand or even demotion. If the evaluation is not up to standard, it is uncertain whether the official can continue to work. If things go wrong, the official who has worked hard for ten years to get the position will be gone, and he will be directly expelled from the officialdom and return home to retire. If he is a mediocre official or a corrupt official, if he is found to have problems, it is not just as simple as losing his job, but he may even be imprisoned.

Of course, those who perform well in the assessment have the possibility of promotion, thus improving their rank and moving up step by step. This assessment was set by Zhu Yuanzhang in the past, and its purpose was to supervise officials at all levels. However, more than 200 years after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, many assessments had long become a formality and could no longer achieve the original effect.

However, soon after Zhu Shenzhui became regent, he began to rectify the administration of officials by starting with the Beijing inspection. After Zhu Shenzhui became King of Wu and eventually ascended the throne of emperor, the supervision of the administration of officials became stricter. Not only did he resume the Beijing inspection of officials from top to bottom, but he also strengthened the assessment of local officials starting with the Ministry of Personnel. In addition, the Supervisory Office headed by Xu Xiancheng and Zhang Xijun remained in place. In actual fact, this Supervisory Office has subtly replaced part of the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate's supervisory capabilities over officials, and has become a special agency dedicated to the assessment and supervision of officials at all levels, with enormous power.

As the Governor-General of Huguang, Hong Chengchou had just completed a term. Given his official level, he was not required to undergo ordinary evaluations by the Ministry of Personnel and the Supervisory Office. However, as a senior official of the imperial court, especially a local governor, it was necessary for him to report to the emperor in Beijing every three years. This time, Hong Chengchou came to the capital to meet Zhu Shenzhui and report to the emperor.

Hong Chengchou was no stranger to the capital. He stayed in the capital for many years after passing the imperial examination. He was initially appointed as the director of the Jiangxi Qingli Division of the Ministry of Justice, and later served as a member of the Ministry of Justice and a doctor. He then worked in the Ministry of Justice for six years until the second year of the Tianqi reign. He then served in local positions.

However, more than 20 years have passed since the second year of Tianqi, and the capital city today is very different from the capital city in Hong Chengchou's memory. When he returned to the capital city again, he found that the capital city was more prosperous and vibrant than the year he left. Walking on the streets of the capital city, he felt the atmosphere of prosperity, which made Hong Chengchou feel very emotional.

When he first returned to the capital, Hong Chengchou was not in a hurry to visit colleagues and old friends, nor was he busy walking around. On the day he arrived, he first submitted a memorial to the palace, and then went to the temporary residence to wait. Not long after, someone from the palace came to tell Hong Chengchou to prepare to enter the palace tomorrow. Hong Chengchou never left the house again, and rested well in his residence for a day. The next morning, Hong Chengchou came to the palace in full dress and was received into the palace.

Hong Chengchou had been to the imperial palace before, so he was not unfamiliar with it. However, it had been a long time since he last came here. The current owner of the imperial palace had changed from Emperor Chongzhen to Emperor Yongming. Although Hong Chengchou was a senior official of the Ming Dynasty and the Governor-General of Huguang, it was actually the first time he met Zhu Shenzhui. On the way to the Qianqing Palace, Hong Chengchou couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.

Hong Chengchou actually had very complicated feelings about Emperor Zhu Shenzhui. Although as an orthodox official who was a Jinshi, Hong Chengchou initially felt a little uncomfortable with Zhu Shenzhui's ascension to the throne in such a way, he later had to admit that Zhu Shenzhui did a much better job as emperor than Emperor Chongzhen. If Emperor Chongzhen had still controlled the world at that time, it would be hard to say what the Ming Dynasty would be like today with Emperor Chongzhen's ability. On the contrary, after Zhu Shenzhui entered the capital, the Ming Dynasty soon underwent tremendous changes in his hands. Not only did he solve internal troubles, but even foreign enemies were now suppressed. The Ming Dynasty was changing with each passing day, and there was a faint aura of revival.

What's more, Hong Chengchou's achievements today were all due to Zhu Shenzhu. Although the previous Emperor Chongzhen also valued Hong Chengchou, Hong Chengchou felt insecure working under that master and had little confidence.

But it was completely different under Zhu Shencui. This master was not only a man of great talent and strategy, but also good at employing people. He could also give his subordinates autonomy to display their abilities and make the best use of them. This was also the reason why Hong Chengchou had been promoted to higher and higher positions over the years. In his opinion, his achievements today were inseparable from Zhu Shencui. It could be said that Zhu Shencui was his mentor. It was precisely because of this feeling that Hong Chengchou had some complex and contradictory feelings towards Zhu Shencui.

Arriving at the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Shencui received his ministers in the side hall as usual. Hong Chengchou was led in by Lu Jiude, and after entering the side hall, he saw Zhu Shencui sitting there, looking at him with a smile. Although it was the first time he met Zhu Shencui, how could he not know his identity in this situation? He immediately stepped forward to pay homage with great ceremony, and said, "I, the Governor-General of Huguang, Hong Chengchou, pay my respects to Your Majesty."

"Hong Chengchou!"

"I am here..."

"You've come a long way, thank you for your hard work."

"I thank your Majesty for your concern. It is only natural for me to come to the capital to see you. There is no such thing as hardship..."

"Well, you are very good. Stand up and take a seat." Zhu Shenzhui raised his hand and said.

Hong Chengchou stood up, took two steps forward, and then carefully sat down on an embroidered stool at the side. After sitting down, he bowed his head slightly, placed his hands on his knees, and put on a respectful attitude.

Since Hong Chengchou came, Zhu Shenzhui has been carefully observing this famous figure. In history, whenever the late Ming and early Qing dynasties are mentioned, Hong Chengchou is a person who cannot be avoided in any way, because this person can be said to have changed the entire history of the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. If there was no Hong Chengchou, the Ming Dynasty would not necessarily perish, and the so-called Qing Dynasty would not have entered the pass to seize the world, and even replaced the Ming Dynasty to control China for nearly three hundred years.

Regardless of how Hong Chengchou was originally evaluated in history, he was indeed a capable official, and it was because of him that all these changes occurred. Of course, the situation is different now. Hong Chengchou has not experienced those things, and he is still the governor of Huguang in the Ming Dynasty. Hong Chengchou has done a good job in the local area over the years. His ability has not only been proven, but also recognized by Zhu Shenzhu.

Looking at Hong Chengchou, these thoughts flashed through Zhu Shenzui's mind. Zhu Shenzui smiled slightly and started chatting with the other party.

Zhu Shenzui's attitude was very kind, and his words were gentle and warm, which gradually relaxed Hong Chengchou's uneasy heart when he met the emperor for the first time. As the two talked, Hong Chengchou also felt a lot more relaxed.

Zhu Shenzhu asked a lot about his situation in Huguang. Hong Chengchou did not hide anything and basically answered the emperor's questions fluently. From the conversation alone, it can be seen that Hong Chengchou spent a lot of time and effort in the local area, and he did it himself, otherwise he would not have been so clear and detailed.

In fact, Zhu Shencui had known about Hong Chengchou's policies in Huguang for a long time. The Jinyiwei were no pushovers. Their powers were much greater than before. They could not only monitor the country and collect external intelligence, but also have an in-depth understanding of the progress of local administration and people's livelihood. Every month, detailed information was gathered from all directions in the capital, and compiled into a book by a dedicated person and submitted to Zhu Shencui's desk.

It is not just the Jinyiwei, there are also police departments that have been established in various places. With the establishment of police departments, the central government has more control over the local areas and more sources of information. Moreover, the Police Department was originally under the control of the Jinyiwei, and the current head of the Police Department is Liu Bo, who was originally from the Jinyiwei.

These two systems are separate on the surface, but in fact they are inextricably linked. Zhu Shenzhui's original purpose in setting up the Police Department was to use this functional department to solve the needs of local guards that were no longer needed and the disbanded army. At the same time, it was also to use the channels of the Embroidered Uniform Guard to start a new business. In addition, the police department can also replace most of the previous government officials and clerks, allowing them to transfer from the local administrative structure to direct control of the central government. Through the establishment of this system, the central government's control and supervision over the local governments can be further strengthened.

(End of this chapter)