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

Chapter 1074: Capable Minister
A carriage was moving slowly on the official road. After Qingming Festival, the weather had become noticeably warmer and all things were reviving. Green spots could be seen everywhere on both sides of the official road, and some yellow, red and purple flowers were swaying in the breeze.

"On a fine day, I went to the banks of the Si River to look for flowers. The boundless scenery was new and beautiful. I could easily recognize the face of the east wind, and the riot of colour always marks the spring..." Upon seeing this scene, Du Yinxi couldn't help but think of this poem, which was "Spring Day" by Zhu Xi in the Song Dynasty. In the farmland in the distance, you can also see local farmers busy working in the fields, which adds to the interest of spring.

This scene made Du Yinxi feel very emotional, because just a few years ago, the area he was passing by could be said to be a hell on earth. Due to the famine in various places and the endless extortion and levy of the court on the people, the people could not survive, and they rose up everywhere, causing civil unrest.

At that time, the Ming Dynasty was engulfed in war, and the famine made the people desperate. Not to mention food, even finding grass roots to eat was difficult. The people who were almost starving to death could only eat Guanyin soil, or even exchange their own children for food.

At that time, the Ming Dynasty was on the verge of collapse. Although the court was suppressing rebellions everywhere, the number of bandits kept increasing.

These are not just rioters, they are just ordinary people who can't survive! But now it is completely different from before, showing a vibrant life.

All these changes started when the current emperor, Yongming Emperor Zhu Shenzhu, took control of the court. Although as a genuine Jinshi and scholar, Du Yinxi was deeply opposed to Zhu Shenzhu's taking office as a minister under the pretext of Jingnan and replacing Emperor Chongzhen as the emperor of Ming Dynasty, and even expressed strong dissatisfaction, as time went by, he had to admit that Zhu Shenzhu was a hundred times better than Emperor Chongzhen.

Although many people praised Emperor Chongzhen as a wise ruler, especially when he just ascended the throne, he decisively dealt with the hated Wei Zhongxian and the eunuch party, and vigorously promoted the upright people in the court, showing the demeanor of an wise ruler.

But later, everything Emperor Chongzhen did was extremely disappointing. Although he wanted to be a wise ruler, he did not have the ability to be one. Moreover, during his reign, the Ming Dynasty could be said to be in decline. The country was in chaos, rebellions broke out everywhere, and the people were living in misery.

On the other hand, Zhu Shenzhui, after entering the capital, first served as regent and then as emperor. In just a few years, he not only quelled the civil strife, but also curbed the war in Liaodong. In his hands, the people got a chance to breathe. The court made substantial reductions and exemptions to the local areas, and cancelled all the taxes imposed during the reign of Emperor Chongzhen. Not only that, but also allocated funds to restore production and stabilize the local areas. In just a few years, the country was greatly improved, and the lives of the people gradually improved.

The comparison between the two in just a few years was like two different worlds, which made Du Yinxi admire him immensely. The country had such an emperor, which was a blessing for the country and the people. The previous dissatisfaction with the emperor's ascension gradually faded over time and completely dissipated.

Du Yinxi was a Jinshi in the tenth year of Chongzhen. In the twelfth year of Chongzhen, he was the head of the Ministry of Revenue in Nanjing.

In the first month of the 13th year of Chongzhen, he was transferred to the post of Beixin Banknote Customs Branch. In this post, he clarified the tax rules and eliminated the accumulated malpractices.

At that time, it happened to be rainy and the price of rice was high. Merchant ships did not arrive, so he introduced a tax-free investment policy, and soon merchant ships arrived one after another. In December of that year, natural disasters were prevalent and people were living in hardship. He specially reduced meals, stopped banquets, stopped listening to music, and ate vegetables and porridge. At the same time, he provided relief to the victims, half a liter per person, every other day, a total of 200 dan of rice, which saved people.

From this, we can see that Du Yinxi was not only a capable official, but also an honest official. However, because he offended the vested interests of the time while in office, he did not hold the position of Beixin Chaoguan Branch for long. In order to drive him away, the merchants of the time colluded with the Donglin Party and took action secretly. They thought that he was promoted and sent him to Changsha to become the prefect of Changsha.

Although the official position of the prefect of Changsha is two levels higher than that of the Beixin Banknote Customs Branch, the problem is not as simple as the level of the official position. First of all, the official position of the Beixin Banknote Customs Branch is not ordinary. Although the level is not high, the power in the hands is not small. In other words, it is equivalent to the head of a local customs. It is one of the seven major banknote customs in the Ming Dynasty. It not only controls the flow of goods on the Grand Canal, but also is responsible for the jurisdiction of import and export trade. In addition, it has local administrative power. This is a rich government office. If Du Yinxi is willing to go along with the local gentry and officials, he can easily make a fortune that he cannot make in several lifetimes.

Three years as a clean prefect, 100,000 silver coins. This sentence is nothing in the job of Beixin Banknote Customs Branch. As long as you stay in this job for a few years, it is easy to make millions. Unfortunately, Du Yinxi is a person who does not want to go along with the crowd and cares about the people. Just like this, he was kicked out after only one year.

Although being promoted to the prefect of Changsha was a promotion on the surface, it was not an easy job. When Du Yinxi went to Changsha, the bandits were at their worst. Changsha's geographical location meant that it was one of the targets of the bandits' attacks. If the bandits attacked directly, it would be difficult to defend with Changsha's military strength. Once the city was broken, the outcome would be sacrificing one's life for the country. However, Du Yinxi knew this but still took up the post. After arriving in Changsha, he not only handled more than 300 cases accumulated in Changsha Prefecture in a short period of time, but also recruited soldiers to form a militia in the name of the prefect to train and prepare for war.

During the years he was the prefect, he personally led the army to repel the invasion of many bandits and saved Changsha. At the same time, he encouraged local production, collected refugees, resettled disaster victims, opened warehouses for relief, and was deeply loved by the people.

Later, because of his outstanding political achievements and the powerful bandits in the Central Plains, the imperial court specially promoted Du Yinxi by two levels of official title, allowing him to continue to serve as the prefect of Changsha, while also serving as the military governor of Wuhan and Huangzhou.

Soon after he became the military governor, the capital city changed drastically. Zhu Shenzhui entered the capital in the name of pacifying the rebellion and took control of the government, placing Emperor Chongzhen under house arrest. Du Yinxi in Changsha cursed upon hearing the news and even considered raising an army to support the emperor. However, before he could make any arrangements, Zhu Shenzhui defeated several of the troops that were supporting the emperor with lightning speed, and then won over Concubine Li. In the name of the previous emperor's Concubine Li, Zhu Shenzhui was decreed to be a prince, and Emperor Chongzhen was forced to issue an imperial decree to let him take charge of the government and suppress the local government.

Zhu Shenzhui then adopted a series of policies, repelling the Jiannu at the Great Wall in the north, and then mobilized domestic troops to encircle and suppress bandits in various places. After the biggest bandit Gao Yingxiang was defeated, the remaining bandits roamed around the provinces in the Central Plains. The court adopted a policy of setting up a net on all sides and closing the door step by step to further encircle and suppress them. At that time, Du Yinxi considered the overall situation and cooperated in the battle, and made contributions to the grand strategy of completely eliminating the bandits.

After the civil strife was quelled, the court issued a number of policies to ease local conflicts, restore production, reduce taxes, and allocate funds for disaster relief. Under these measures, Du Yinxi gradually developed a good impression of Zhu Shenzhui. Although he still had some objections to Zhu Shenzhui's means of ascending to power, he also admitted that Zhu Shenzhui's ability to govern was much better than that of Emperor Chongzhen.

After Zhu Shenzhui officially ascended the throne, Du Yinxi was transferred from the prefect of Changsha to the prefect of Xi'an because of Sun Chuanting. Sun Chuanting had dealt with Du Yinxi during the encirclement and suppression of bandits, and as a senior in the imperial examination, Sun Chuanting had known Du Yinxi for a long time and knew that he was capable. At that time, the court had just set up the post of Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, so Sun Chuanting was appointed as the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu. Due to wars and natural disasters, Shaanxi was severely damaged, and Sun Chuanting urgently needed a capable assistant to help him, so he transferred him from Changsha to Shaanxi through his connections.

After arriving in Shaanxi, Du Yinxi did a very good job as the prefect of Xi'an. In just a few years, he assisted Sun Chuanting in stabilizing the local area and gradually restored production. Logically speaking, based on his political achievements and the turnover of official positions over the years, he should have been promoted long ago. If nothing else, being a governor would be enough. But later, Sun Chuanting refused to let him go and hoped that he could stay in Shaanxi for a few more years. After discussion, he came up with a solution when the Ministry of Personnel promoted him, and directly promoted Du Yinxi from the prefect of Shanxi to the governor of Shaanxi. This position is second only to the governor in terms of rank, but because the governor of Shaanxi is more special, it is more noble.

Although he was the academician, Du Yinxi also assisted Sun Chuanting in many affairs of the governor's office. Whether it was civil or military affairs, Du Yinxi was very good at it and won the trust of Sun Chuanting. He worked like this for several years. Now it was impossible for Du Yinxi not to be promoted, and Sun Chuanting would not keep him in his hands forever. After all, he was just the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu. It would be a waste and aggrieved for such a capable minister to continue to work under him.

At this time, Sun Chuanting heard the news that Taiwan had been recovered, and also heard that the emperor was going to set up a government in Taiwan to govern it, and began to prepare to select suitable officials to serve as the prefect.

But after choosing and choosing, the emperor still couldn't find a suitable candidate. After hearing the news, Sun Chuanting suddenly had an idea and he immediately thought of Du Yinxi.

With Du Yinxi's rank and qualifications, the most likely thing for him to be promoted from the position of academician is to go to the Ministry of Rites and become a right vice minister of the Ministry of Rites, or to be sent to the Nanjing Ministry of Rites as a left vice minister. If not arranged in this way, he will be selected as the right governor of a province. As for being the left governor, although it is also possible, Du Yinxi's qualifications are still a little short. In addition, Sun Chuanting and Du Yinxi have been friends for many years, and the two know his temper very well. Du Yinxi is good at everything, but he doesn't like to be someone's deputy. If he wants to be someone, he wants to be the chief officer. If he is asked to be a vice minister or a right governor, I'm afraid Du Yinxi will not be willing.

Going to Taiwan to be the prefect is a good choice. Du Yinxi is extremely capable. He not only understands civil affairs but also military affairs, and has served as an education commissioner. It can be said that he has almost no weaknesses in all aspects of military and political affairs, and there is nothing wrong with his character. Although he is an honest official, he is not pedantic. He is flexible and diverse in doing things, and his methods are endless. Being a prefect of Taiwan may be difficult for others, but for Du Yinxi it is not a problem at all.

Besides, Sun Chuanting was different from others. Others might think that Taiwan was a barren land just after the establishment of the prefecture, and going there would be like being exiled overseas with a bleak future. But who was Sun Chuanting? Not to mention his personal ability and vision, and his relationship with the emperor was incomparable to that of ordinary people. He saw at a glance the real intention of the court to establish a prefecture in Taiwan and the importance of Taiwan in the future of the Ming Dynasty. If he could do a good job as the prefect of Taiwan and make achievements in this position, as long as he worked for a few years, he would surely become an important official in the court with this merit.

By then, it would be easy for Du Yinxi to become a governor of Fujian, let alone a minister in Beijing or a governor-general. Don't forget that Taiwan is not only under the jurisdiction of Fujian, but also under the dual jurisdiction of the central government. The prefect of Taiwan can see the emperor directly and submit memorials to the heaven, which is unique among all the prefects in the Ming Dynasty. It is no exaggeration to say that the prefect of Taiwan is the best prefect in the world.

(End of this chapter)