My Portable Ming Dynasty

Chapter 217 "A Memorial Requesting the Establishment of an Examination System for Selecting Talented Individuals"

Hot topics in the Ming Dynasty court came and went quickly.

With Su Ze's submission of the "Memorial Requesting the Establishment of an Examination for Selecting Talented Individuals in the Ministry of Personnel," the focus of the imperial court in the capital shifted to this memorial, and the previous Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination case was no longer discussed.

On October 20th, Su Ze submitted a memorial.

——[Simulation Start]——

A day later, the memorial entitled "Request to Establish an Examination System for Selecting Talented Personnel" was sent to the Grand Secretariat. Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, and Zhao Zhenji all voted to approve it. The memorial was then sent to the inner court by Grand Secretary Li Chunfang.

Emperor Longqing hesitated over such a significant reform measure and sent it to the outer court for public discussion.

Officials from the outer court submitted memorials opposing the emperor's decision, but the emperor accepted your memorial.

——[Simulation End]——

[Remaining Prestige Points: 340]

[Should I spend 500 reputation points to ensure the memorial is fully executed?]

[Currently insufficient prestige points; these will be automatically deducted once sufficient prestige points are available, with execution deferred.]

The reform of the "Civil Service Examination" was indeed very difficult. The 500 points of prestige were the result of my own persuasion of the three Grand Secretaries, but at least it was acceptable.

Su Ze can now gain 16 prestige points per day, and it will only take him ten days to accumulate the remaining prestige.

Su Ze decisively chose "yes," and three days after submitting his memorial, he handed over a sick leave request to Grand Secretary Li Chunfang.

Su Ze actually has several nominal superiors.

First of all, he was an official of the Hanlin Academy and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, so he could ask for leave from Zhang Juzheng, who was in charge of the Hanlin Academy, or from Zhao Zhenji, who was in charge of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Su Ze was still an assistant director in the Ministry of Revenue, so he could ask Zhang Juzheng, who was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, for leave.

Then, in his capacity as the newspaper's editor-in-chief, he could request leave from Li Chunfang, the newspaper's president.

In the end, Su Ze still chose Grand Secretary Li, since Grand Secretary Li had a wealth of experience in taking leave.

When Li Chunfang saw Su Ze's request for retirement, the corner of her mouth twitched.

"So you submitted a memorial that caused such a big problem for the cabinet, and now you're asking to retire and go home?"

The usually good-natured prime minister was now somewhat annoyed, his eyes seemingly roaring, "You brat, you actually took leave!"

Ever since Su Ze submitted his memorial, "Request to Establish an Examination System for Selecting Talented Individuals," the court has been relentlessly attacking this memorial.

The biggest reason is that the number of clerks is an ancestral system, set by Emperor Taizu to prevent clerks from exploiting the people. Now the court wants to increase the number of clerks, isn't that deliberately going against the ancestral law?
The increase in taxes levied on merchants by local officials was also criticized as "competing with the people for profit" and considered as exploiting the people.

Criticism of Su Ze continued to pour in from both the court and the public. Some tabloids even implied that Su Ze was Cai Jing, who was helping the emperor amass wealth in order to curry favor with him.

Of course, reputable newspapers wouldn't dare publish such an article. If you say Su Ze is Cai Jing, then who is the emperor?
The cabinet has been busy these days, dealing with the final tasks of bestowing rewards on the northern war, the tribute to Anda, preparations for the voyages to the Western Ocean, the compilation of the Ministry of Revenue's accounting records, and dealing with the attacks on Su Ze by the outer court. Li Chunfang has been working overtime these days.

Then, considering that Su Ze was basically responsible for all of this, he actually took leave!

Li Chunfang's decades of cultivating her inner energy could not stop the resentment within her body from surging out.

Su Ze coughed lightly and said:
"Lord Li, I caught a cold last night and was almost bedridden. I have come to you, dragging my frail body, to beg for your retirement."

Li Chunfang looked at Su Ze, who showed no signs of illness, and said:

"Your Majesty, may I request that the imperial physician examine you?"

Su Ze said quickly:

"Lord Li, I can take care of myself at home."

"If the treatment is effective, what need is there for doctors? I have approved your request for retirement. Go back and recuperate."

After Su Ze left, Li Chunfang summoned Liu Jun, the secretary of the Imperial Secretariat, who was by her side.

"Go to the Imperial Medical Academy and find Physician Fu to treat Su Zilin at his residence."

Liu Jun looked at Li Chunfang with a puzzled expression. Su Ze didn't look sick at all just now, so why did they send the imperial physician?

Then Li Chunfang picked up a piece of paper and wrote down the names of several herbs.

Liu Jun took it and saw that it contained "Coptis chinensis" and "Phellodendron chinense," both of which are extremely bitter Chinese medicinal herbs.

Li Chunfang was a master of internal alchemy and also very knowledgeable about medical principles. This prescription was just a common nourishing and qi-tonifying formula, but it used extremely bitter medicinal materials.

Li Chunfang said:
"Have Physician Fu prescribe the medicine according to this prescription, and have the Imperial Hospital decoct it and send it to Su Ze's residence every day. Please have the physician supervise him to finish drinking it."

Good heavens, Liu Jun understood what Grand Secretary Li meant. It seemed that Su Ze had caused so much trouble for the cabinet this time, preventing Grand Secretary Li from taking leave, and had actually made Grand Secretary Li hold a grudge.
-
This was the first long leave Su Ze had taken since his marriage, and he spent quite a while with his pregnant wife.

The only unpleasant thing was that every day, the imperial physicians would send over very bitter Chinese medicine, and they would have to watch me drink it.

Su Ze strongly suspected that it was the petty-minded Grand Secretary Li who was taking revenge on him.

However, Su Ze hasn't been lonely these days, except for spending time at home with his wife.

Today, Shen Shixing also visited him with his wife.

The women went to the back courtyard to gossip, so Su Ze placed a water tank in front of the Taihu stone in the back garden and sat with Shen Shixing in front of the artificial lake built by the owner of the mansion at great expense to fish.

"Brother Zilin, you'd better not go fishing."

Shen Shixing looked at the full fish in his own tank, and then at the empty tank in front of Su Ze. He really couldn't understand what Su Ze was fishing for with his fishing skills.
After a whole morning of fruitless fishing, Su Ze also threw away his fishing rod.

November is almost here, and the weather in the capital is starting to get cold.

Su Ze and Shen Shixing walked into the pavilion on the edge of Xiaoyingzhou.

Although the emperor proved Zhang Jingxiu's ability and Shen Shixing's lack of favoritism after the Shuntian Prefecture provincial examination, the incident still affected him.

There was a lot of criticism of him, both openly and covertly, from the court to the lower levels; he was inevitably labeled a sycophantic cabinet minister.

Shen Shixing felt depressed and had asked for leave before Su Ze.

Several trees are planted on the artificial hill of Xiaoyingzhou. As an autumn wind blows, the leaves fall onto the lake.

Looking at the desolate autumn scenery, Shen Shixing said to Su Ze, "Actually, before the results were announced, Yuan Yu (Wang Xijue's courtesy name) also stopped me and asked me to avoid suspicion and not to nominate Zhang Jingxiu as the top scholar."

"I thought I was being impartial and selfless, but I almost implicated my master and almost ruined Brother Yuanyu's future."

Faced with Shen Shixing's complaints, Su Ze didn't know how to comfort him.

Su Ze could only say:

“Brother Rumo, even a cabinet minister in the officialdom is not immune to the three words ‘not in control of his own destiny’.”

Shen Shixing nodded. As the top scholar in the imperial examination, he was worldly-wise and understood these principles perfectly well. However, encountering the harsh realities of life still challenged his thinking.

Shen Shixing looked at Su Ze and said:
"Brother Zilin, I want to take up a post outside the capital."

"what?"

Su Ze looked at Shen Shixing with suspicion. As the top scholar in the imperial examination, a Hanlin scholar, an official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and the Ministry of Rites, Shen Shixing had always been in the most enviable position among officials in the Ming Dynasty.

Following this trend, Shen Shixing's entry into the cabinet should be a natural progression.

Ordinary officials in the capital were afraid of being assigned to outside the capital and did not want to leave. However, Shen Shixing wanted to leave the capital on his own initiative.

Su Ze said, "Brother Ru Mo, don't be impulsive."

Shen Shixing said:
“Brother Zilin, this is not an impulsive decision, but the result of careful consideration.”

“The ministers and high-ranking officials of our dynasty have their own paths to advancement, unlike the prime ministers of the Tang and Song dynasties who had to personally experience the system of prefectures and counties.”

"The Grand Secretary, the other Grand Secretaries, and Brother Zilin are all exceptionally talented. The national system can help you rise to the top early, but for a mediocre person like me, I have no idea of ​​the hardships at the grassroots level."

Su Ze paused for a moment. If you, Shen Shixing, are mediocre, then what are the others?
However, Shen Shixing had the idea of ​​taking a local position, and Su Ze probably supported him.

Many problems at the grassroots level are simply invisible unless you experience them firsthand.

"Now that Brother Rumo has made up his mind, has he told his sister-in-law?"

Shen Shixing said:
"I told you, after I leave the capital, I will entrust my family to Brother Zilin's care."

Su Ze nodded in agreement. The two families were close friends, and even if Shen Shixing didn't say anything, Su Ze would still take care of him.

However, Shen Shixing looked troubled and said:

"But I have another question for you, Brother Zilin: which post outside the capital would be best?"

Su Ze understood Shen Shixing's meaning. He certainly wasn't looking for a lucrative position to gain benefits, but rather a position where he could develop his skills.

Su Ze also began to think about it.

Shen Shixing's official position is now the same as his own, both being the fifth rank.

Officials appointed from the capital to positions outside the capital are generally promoted three ranks, meaning that the highest rank a local official can hold is the third rank.

However, even a third-rank official is considered a high-ranking official in charge of a region. Normally, someone of Shen Shixing's rank would be appointed to a post outside the region, which would be equivalent to a prefect.

Su Ze thought for a moment and said:
"How is the Tianjin Military Commissioner?"

Tianjin Military Circuit?
Shen Shixing quickly understood what Su Ze meant.

The Tianjin Military Commissioner was the official in charge of Tianjin Wei and the port of Zhigu.

Zhigu's location is special, and it became even more special after Suze was opened as a port.

Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty established garrisons in Tianjin, which included the Three Garrisons of Tianjin. In the early days, Zhigu was a large garrison, and all the land was used for military settlements, so it was under the jurisdiction of the Three Garrisons of Tianjin.

During the reign of Emperor Yongle (Zhu Di), Tianjin became increasingly prosperous, so the imperial court established the Governor-General's Office, which governed the Three Guards.

During the Jiajing era, the Jiajing Emperor established the Military Affairs Commissioner's Office, transferring the responsibilities of the Governor-General's Office to the Tianjin Military Affairs Commissioner's Office, and also incorporating the civil and judicial affairs of the Tianjin area into it, thus finally completing the unified jurisdiction of the military and civilians.

This position was a special one, one that managed both the military and the people. It was usually only set up in the border regions of the Ming Dynasty, and the Tianjin Military Commissioner was an exception among exceptions.

But it's not just military and civil affairs.

The Tianjin Military Commissioner was also responsible for the Zhigu Customs Office, which handled the customs duties related to Zhigu currency, and liaised with the Ministry of Revenue.

The Tianjin Military Commissioner was also responsible for the Zhigu canal transport, which was responsible for the transport of grain to the capital.

There was also Fengcai Salt Field in Baodi County under the Tianjin Military Circuit, which was the largest salt field in the Beijing area, so there was still salt administration work there.

The Tianjin Military Commissioner was arguably the most difficult official position in the entire Ming Dynasty, involving military, civilian, canal transport, salt industry, and commerce, making it even more challenging than being the Provincial Administration Commissioner in inland regions.

Shen Shixing was also tempted.

But he added:

"With my qualifications, am I qualified for this position?"

Su Ze smiled and said:

"The position of Military Commissioner of Tianjin is a tough job, and no one has filled it since the previous one left office."

"If Brother Rumo really wants to go, I will help you get it."

Upon hearing Su Ze's words, Shen Shixing understood that the matter was likely settled.

Given Su Ze's position in Gao Gong's heart and his relationship with Zhang Siwei, the mere title of Military Commissioner was naturally not a problem.

Shen Shixing bowed respectfully to Su Ze and said:

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Zilin. I would also appreciate it if you could help me with this task."

Su Ze readily agreed.
-
October 29th, in the Imperial Palace.

The outer court had been arguing about Su Ze's memorial for four or five days, but the Longqing Emperor still hadn't made up his mind to agree to Su Ze's memorial.

While adhering to ancestral laws was one aspect, the Longqing Emperor also worried that increasing the number of officials to collect commercial taxes would tarnish his reputation in historical records.

Increasing the number of officials to collect taxes is by no means something a wise ruler should do.

Today, even the Longqing Emperor has begun to value his historical reputation and is unwilling to tarnish his image.

If it weren't for the fact that all three Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet submitted memorials supporting Su Ze's proposal, Emperor Longqing would probably have rejected Su Ze's memorial long ago.

The opposition from the outer court was growing louder, and the Longqing Emperor was already preparing to reject Su Ze's memorial.

Just as the emperor picked up the memorial that had been kept in the capital for several days, Feng Bao, the director of the Eastern Depot, entered the imperial study.

Holding a thick stack of documents, Feng Bao entered the imperial study and reported to the emperor:

"Your Majesty, these are all confessions obtained from the interrogations of Ding Jingxuan by the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Emperor Longqing remembered Ding Jingxuan, the audacious official in the Ministry of Revenue who had embezzled gold and silver, a crime that truly offended the emperor. Therefore, he was specially ordered to be arrested and imprisoned for interrogation.

Emperor Longqing even specially ordered Feng Bao, the eunuch in charge of the interrogation, to supervise the proceedings. Feng Bao did not expect to uncover so much information from Ding Jingxuan, so he hurriedly brought the confession and the results of the interrogation and investigation to report to the emperor.

Emperor Longqing reviewed Ding Jingxuan's confession. In addition to the issue of embezzling gold and silver as impeached by the censor, Ding Jingxuan also confessed to colluding with wealthy merchants to evade customs duties.

"In the area of ​​Hushu Pass alone, Ding Jingxuan colluded with merchants to evade customs duties. He accepted bribes amounting to tens of thousands of taels of silver. How much tax did these merchants evade?!"

The Longqing Emperor was also shocked!

He remembered the Ministry of Revenue's account books that Zhang Juzheng had submitted a while ago. The total annual customs duty of Hushu Pass was only a few hundred thousand taels, while Ding Jingxuan alone accepted bribes of ten thousand taels. How much tax did these merchants evade?

And this is just the bribe that the wealthy merchant gave to Ding Jingxuan!
The more the Longqing Emperor read, the more alarmed he became. Ding Jingxuan was so frightened that he confessed to accepting bribes since becoming an official, revealing that helping subordinates evade taxes was a major method of bribery for officials in the Ministry of Revenue.

After reading it, the Longqing Emperor looked at Feng Bao and said coldly:

"Is this why all the officials opposed Su Zilin's recruitment of new officials and collection of commercial taxes?"

"With new officials collecting taxes, they will no longer have the opportunity to accept bribes!"

Feng Bao naturally dared not answer the Longqing Emperor's question.

The Longqing Emperor then said:
"These merchants would rather bribe the Ministry of Revenue officials than pay taxes to the court. Are these the 'good citizens' that the officials are talking about when they say they are competing with the people for profits?"

"Did this benefit go into the pockets of ordinary people, or into the pockets of unscrupulous merchants and corrupt officials?"

The Longqing Emperor selected Su Ze's memorial, wrote his imperial approval, and handed it to Feng Baodao:

"As Su Aiqing suggested, we shall recruit new officials in Shuntian Prefecture and collect commercial taxes accordingly."

(End of this chapter)