My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 211 Promotion to Fifth Rank

"Female tribute?"

This memorial was sent to the palace by the entire cabinet.

The Longqing Emperor raised his head and looked at the four regents, asking in confusion:
"After such a great victory, shouldn't we press our advantage and pursue them? Why then should we bestow tribute upon Anda?"

The four cabinet ministers really knew the Longqing Emperor too well. First, Zhao Zhenji, the fourth minister, stepped forward and said:
"Your Majesty, the Wushen tribe was originally a barbarian tribe entrenched in the Hetao region. They were only driven to the north this spring. The main force of the Anda tribe has not been lost."

"Datong's food and military supplies are only enough to fight this one battle. Winter will be here in a few months."

Gao Gong then added:
"What Grand Secretary Zhao said is absolutely right. The main force of Anda's army has not been lost, but this time they have been intimidated by the might of our Great Ming army. This is the best time to pay tribute."

Zhang Juzheng said:

"Your Majesty, the Anda tribe has long desired to pay tribute. Opening the horse market will allow our Great Ming to obtain fine horses and sell our goods. This is a win-win situation."

“During the Chenghua era, the border defense silver was only a few hundred thousand taels, but now the annual expenditure is two million taels. After Anda was granted tribute, a large amount of border defense silver can be left.”

Finally, Grand Secretary Li Chunfang said:
"Anda's tribute was a sign of submission to the Great Ming Dynasty, something that previous emperors had failed to achieve."

"As Su Zilin stated in his memorial, the initiative in this tribute mission lies with our Great Ming."

Upon hearing this, the Longqing Emperor finally calmed down.

Su Ze's memorial was correct. Taking advantage of the momentum of the great victory at Dongshengwei, and when the Mongols were terrified, proposing to pay tribute would yield the best terms.

Moreover, Su Ze also stated in his memorial that the Ming Dynasty's firearms were becoming increasingly advanced and its trade was becoming increasingly prosperous. The practice of granting tribute and opening markets was essentially equivalent to having the Mongols help the Ming Dynasty raise horses.

Whether it's war or peace in the future, the initiative will be in the hands of the Ming Dynasty.

Having confirmed this, the Longqing Emperor picked up his pen and said:

"Let Wang Shizhen, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, go instead. Has Shen Yiguan from the Ministry of Rites returned to the capital? Let him continue to accompany Wang Shizhen on this mission."

"only."
-
Su Ze looked at the system; this memorial was not difficult to execute.

Although the emperor was muddle-headed, the Grand Secretaries remained clear-headed.

——[Simulation Start]——

The memorial requesting the investiture of Anda was sent to the cabinet.

The cabinet unanimously voted to approve it.

A day later, the Longqing Emperor kept the memorial in the capital and sent it to the outer court for discussion.

The outer court opposed the tributary system, and the emperor did not approve your memorial.

——[Simulation End]——

[Remaining Prestige Points: 100]

[Should I spend 50 reputation points to ensure the memorial is fully executed?]

After Su Ze decisively chose "yes," he went to the Ministry of Justice to submit a memorial.

The system is now displaying a settlement report.

[Using 50 prestige points, the memorial was forcibly approved.]

The chief envoy, Wang Shizhen, and the deputy envoy, Shen Yiguan, traveled to the grasslands. Anda Khan warmly welcomed the delegation and agreed to accept the investiture from the Ming Dynasty.

The Longqing Emperor conferred upon Anda Khan the title of Prince of Shunyi, bestowed upon him a royal seal and imperial edict, and opened trade markets along the nine border regions.

The Ming Dynasty's goods economically controlled the grasslands, and large-scale wars ceased thereafter.

[Ming Dynasty +10]

[Remaining Prestige Points: 50]

National fortune +10!

Right.

In the history before Su Ze's time travel, although there was also a tribute mission by the Mongols, it was completely different from the tribute mission after the great victory of the Ming Dynasty.

Moreover, historically, the Datong tribute system only opened one horse market in Datong.

The Ming Dynasty of today is different from the Ming Dynasty of history. Under Su Ze's guidance, the Ming Dynasty's commodity economy is more prosperous, which can only strengthen its economic control over the grasslands.

Then it's only natural that the nation's fortune would increase by 10.

Of course, Su Ze did not think that the Ming Dynasty was free from external threats just because Anda had granted him tribute.

The Ming Dynasty is now fraught with crises.

Leaving aside the Jurchens in Liaodong, undercurrents were also surging in the southwestern frontier.

Coupled with the land annexation issues in the later stages of the dynasty, the problems of the Ming Dynasty were never external threats.

However, being able to pacify the northern border in one battle was also a good thing for the people of the Ming Dynasty. The people of the capital no longer had to worry about autumn defense, and the people of the entire northern border region no longer had to guard the border in autumn and winter.

Anda's granting of tribute greatly alleviated the Ming Dynasty's border defense pressure, which was definitely a meritorious deed for generations to come.
-
On September 27th, news from the front lines was gathered, and the imperial censor dispatched by the court to pacify the border had also arrived at the front.

The victory at Dongshengwei has been confirmed, and the list of those to be commended, drafted by Qi Jiguang, has been sent to the capital.

The emperor, with his own imperial edict, accepted all the names of those who had requested merit as reported by Qi Jiguang and ordered the Ministry of War to give them appropriate rewards.

It must be said that the Longqing Emperor did indeed possess the qualities of a wise ruler in this respect.

He was never stingy when giving rewards, never suspicious of frontline generals, knew his own limitations, and rarely interfered in military affairs.

Of course, this is also related to the ample financial resources during the Longqing period.

The Ministry of War was extremely busy. In the rigid military system of the Ming Dynasty, military merit was the most effective means to break through the institutional framework, and a large number of commanders of thousands and hundreds were rewarded.

These are all easy to handle. There are regulations for the commendation and promotion of military officers in the country. Just follow the regulations of the Ministry of War.

The most difficult thing to do was to reward meritorious generals like Qi Jiguang.

Qi Jiguang was already the commander of the Shanxi Provincial Military Command, a second-rank official, which was a significant promotion.

In addition, Wang Chonggu, the Governor-General of Xuanfu and Datong, also made great contributions, and he had already become the Vice Minister of War.

Minister of War Huo Ji was competent in his work and managed the Ministry of War in an orderly manner. The Ministry of War played a huge supporting role in Qi Jiguang's two great victories.

It was Su Ze who submitted a memorial proposing a solution.

Following the precedents set by Earl of Jingyuan Wang Ji, Earl of Weining Wang Yue, and Earl of Xinjian Wang Yangming, Qi Jiguang conferred upon them the title of Earl in recognition of their merits.

However, Wang Chonggu's problem was more difficult to solve, and Su Ze didn't have a good solution either.

The Longqing Emperor accepted Su Ze's memorial in its entirety, and the Ministry of Rites quickly drafted a title for Qi Jiguang, bestowing upon him the title of Earl of Dingyuan.

Wang Yongji, the governor of Datong, was also promoted. He was appointed as the vice censor-in-chief of the Censorate and governor of Shanxi.

Two other special personnel on the front lines received awards.

Fu Shun, who was in charge of the construction of the Dongshengwei Bastion, was promoted from the position of Principal of the Ministry of Works to Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works.

Wan Shun, who worked in Shanxi smelting iron and casting cannons, was also promoted to the rank of Assistant Minister.

The other officials were also rewarded, and Su Ze was the last one to receive a title.

Emperor Longqing decided to promote Su Ze this time as well.

However, the emperor still wanted to keep Su Ze in the Eastern Palace, so he promoted him two ranks in the position of the Chamberlain of the Imperial Household.

Su Ze's position in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices was Left Vice Minister, a sixth-rank official position. However, because his position as Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Revenue was a fifth-rank official, Emperor Longqing bypassed the fifth-rank Left Vice Minister and directly promoted Su Ze to Left Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, a fifth-rank official position.

The Left Vice Minister is second only to Zhao Zhenji, the Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and Yin Shidan, the Junior Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and is on par with the recently promoted Grand Masters of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Su Ze never expected that in just over a year, he would have caught up with Zhu Dashou. You have to understand that when he first entered the Hanlin Academy, he was nowhere near Zhu Dashou's level.

Once Su Ze reached the fifth rank, the emperor also issued him an imperial decree.

The conferment of imperial edicts was a very grand event. The edicts for the fifth rank were made with a black ox horn as the axis, with a red cover and embroidered with auspicious grass. The documents for conferring imperial edicts were drafted by the Hanlin Academy, approved by the Grand Secretariat, and finally stamped with the emperor's seal.

These processes will take time, but the Imperial Clothing Bureau will first visit Zhao Lingxian to take her measurements and make her official attire.

In this way, Su Ze achieved the goal of securing official positions and granting privileges to his wife and children in less than two years after entering officialdom.

Then look at your own system.

——Host: Su Ze——

Age: 26
Birthplace: Taicang County, South Zhili

Official rank: Left Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Assistant Director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Revenue, Daily Lecturer, Lecturer in the Eastern Palace, Rank 5.

Prestige: 50 (+16 per day)

Simulation times: 2 times per month (1/2 remaining)

Items in hand: [Model Calligraphy Brush] (blue), [Family Planting Mat] (purple), [Translation Rice Cake] (blue), [Post-Event Sketchbook] (orange, 3/5 remaining), [Flying Pigeon Message] (purple), [Memory Palace Sachet] (orange).

Main Quest: Achieve close relationships with all cabinet members; Quest Reward: 1 chance to draw an item.
Side Quest: Rehabilitate Hu Zongxian; Quest Reward: 1 Chance to Draw Items
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After his promotion, his daily prestige also increased, and Su Ze closed the system with satisfaction.
-
Just as the Su family was overjoyed by the great victory and promotion, Xu Wei walked into the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination hall with his book bag.

These days he has been focusing on preparing for the exam, and Su Ze has thoughtfully given him a break, not even letting him do his usual staff work.

Looking at the young scholars in front of the examination hall, Xu Wei was filled with emotion.

He was a young man who passed the county-level imperial examination and had participated in the provincial-level examination with great enthusiasm, but he failed the examination several times in a row, which completely shattered his spirit.

After that, he served as an advisor to Hu Zongxian, devoting all his energy to the war against Japanese pirates.

When Hu Zongxian was imprisoned, his former classmates and friends scattered and fled, and Xu Wei also spent a period of time in fear and anxiety.

It was during this time, when he served as Su Ze's advisor, that Xu Wei finally felt at ease.

It was also Su Ze who encouraged him to participate in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination.

Xu Wei recalled Su Ze's words: to succeed in officialdom, fame and official rank are indispensable.

As long as Xu Wei obtained the title of Juren (a degree in the imperial examination system), Su Ze would recommend him to serve as an official in Shanxi.

Su Ze had also thought things through for Xu Wei: he could go to Shanxi and start as a grassroots official to put his political ideals into practice.

Now that Shanxi is about to open its horse market, some areas near the border lack knowledgeable officials, which is exactly where Xu Wei's talents can be put to good use.

So Xu Wei was tempted and joined a group of young students to participate in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination.

Besides the students from the Imperial Academy around me, there were also students from Shuntian Prefecture who were taking the imperial examinations.

Since the students who were born into official families did not occupy the original quota for the provincial examinations, the candidates from the common people just looked at these students with curiosity.

Just then, several magnificent carriages arrived in front of the examination hall, and several elegantly dressed young scholars, supported by their pageboys, stepped down from the carriages.

The students around Xu Wei showed displeasure on their faces.

These were all sons of officials from the capital, participating in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination according to the new policy.

They competed with the imperial examination students for the quota of official students. Before the exam, there were rumors that the chief examiner, Shen Shixing, was going to help his mentor, Zhang Juzheng, cheat in order to recruit these sons of powerful and wealthy families.

The high-profile style of these scholars aroused dissatisfaction among other scholars.

However, those who put on airs and showed off were not actually from powerful families.

Zhang Jingxiu, the seventeen-year-old son of a true Grand Secretary, stood in line among the candidates from the commoner class, dressed in a simple scholar's robe.

As the son of a Grand Secretary, Zhang Jingxiu was also a child prodigy who gained fame at a young age.

But he faced much more pressure than his father.

As the son of a high-ranking official, Zhang Jingxiu's reputation as a child prodigy was accompanied by various doubts and pressures.

In fact, Zhang Juzheng did not want his son to participate in the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination this time.

His own student, Shen Shixing, was appointed as the chief examiner by the emperor. If his son passed the exam, people would surely say that the imperial examination system was unfair.

Even Zhang Juzheng did not want his son to take the provincial examination in Shuntian Prefecture. He believed that if his son could pass the exam, he should return to Huguang to take it.

Zhang Jingxiu signed up for the competition without telling his father.

Zhang Jingxiu's reason for participating in the imperial examination was also very simple. He was not doing it for fame and fortune, but to prove himself to his father.

After years of hard study, shouldn't you finally prove yourself in the exam hall?
All the students present entered the examination hall with this mindset.
-
The Great Ming Code stipulated that the results of the provincial examinations should be released within one month.

The real test for the examiners came after the provincial examination.

The first to get busy were the clerks copying the exam papers.

The provincial examinations also employed the method of copying and concealing names to prevent cheating.

To prevent candidates from leaving marks on their papers to cheat, or to allow examiners to identify candidates by their handwriting, the provincial examination papers had to be copied by clerks before being sent to the examiners.

Furthermore, the names on the copied exam papers must be covered up. If the covered name is removed before the end of the exam, the exam paper will be immediately invalidated.

The examiners need to review a large number of papers to determine the results of the initial review.

Then, the chief examiners of each room would bring the papers they had reviewed to participate in the "recommendation of papers" session presided over by the chief examiner Shen Shixing, and then eliminate 80% of the papers from these passing papers.

Finally, the chief examiner, Shen Shixing, also needs to review the papers, randomly check the rejected papers, identify any omissions or deficiencies, and avoid overlooking talented individuals.

Once everything is completed, the original examination papers are retrieved and compared with the examination papers. After confirming that there are no problems, a request is made to the Ministry of Rites to release the results.

The work of a provincial examination was extremely demanding. Shen Shixing worked day and night to review the papers, and finally completed all the review work on October 14th.

That's already incredibly fast.

The tedious work of grading papers exhausted everyone from the chief examiner to the deputy examiners, the co-examiners, and the clerks. It was only because Shen Shixing was the top scholar and his abilities were convincing that he was able to complete the grading so quickly.

If the chief examiner cannot convince the other examiners, and the examiners argue several more times, then it is normal for it to take more than a month.

Moreover, there weren't this many candidates when the rules were first established in the early Ming Dynasty.

The number of people taking the provincial examinations has increased threefold since the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, but the number of examiners and clerks has not increased accordingly.

The intense marking process, coupled with the lockdown of the examination hall, forced all examiners to live and eat in the hall, making the last few days of marking a torment. Every examiner wanted to finish the assignment as soon as possible.

Once the Ministry of Rites granted permission to post the results, Shen Shixing finally breathed a sigh of relief. He was about to pick up the official seal of the examination hall and stamp it on the list of successful candidates when he was stopped by the deputy examiner, Wang Xijue.

"Brother Rumo, shall we discuss this further?"

Shen Shixing said:
"Zhang Jingxiu's article is the most widely accepted, and Brother Yuanyu also agrees with it, so why do we need to discuss it again?"

Wang Xijue said:
"This isn't an exam paper with the names hidden. Don't you know it's the son of the Prime Minister's family? This list is bound to cause controversy. I'm afraid even Prime Minister Shi might not be satisfied. Why not make some adjustments?"

Shen Shixing, despite being the top scholar in the imperial examination, also had his own stubbornness. He said:
"My conscience is clear, why should I fear what others say? Let the announcement be made public."

(End of this chapter)