My eunuch godfather

Today is a good day for Hegongying, as the first batch of enclosed houses in Nanxiawa Daying have been completed.

Following the example of later generations, Zhang Kun held a simple ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the first batch of river workers moving from their shacks into their new homes.

The ceremony was simple, but very effective; just look at the eyes of those river workers—they were full of envy and hope.

Hopefully, nothing inspires enthusiasm and initiative more than this.

Also attending the ceremony were military craftsmen. Zhang Kun hired them at a rate higher than the market rate to assist in the construction of houses along the river.

This is both a benefit for the craftsmen and an opportunity for them to spend more time with the river workers, thus fostering their integration into a cohesive group.

Zhang Kun also reversed his previous decision: not only the top three teams, but all river workers will be rewarded today.

The second and third ranked queues will receive an additional bounty as a reward.

The rent for the enclosed houses was waived, and the monthly rations and allowances were significantly increased compared to the original plan.

For river workers with families, the monthly ration was increased from six dou to eight dou, excluding the families.

River workers without families still receive eight dou of grain per month, with an additional three qian of silver per month.

This would inevitably lead to a significant increase in expenditures, but it would be beneficial for Zhang Kun to win over the hearts and minds of the river engineering battalion.

Since the expenses of the river engineering camp were borne by the state, Zhang Kun had no intention of pocketing them.

Rather than letting people like Li Cheng embezzle under the guise of materials, it would be better to use all the money for the river works.

The confrontation with Li Cheng made Zhang Kun realize that the five thousand river workers in the river work camp were the foundation for his survival in the capital.

In a critical moment, he's even more reliable than a eunuch godfather!

Zhang Kun's subsequent businesses, such as the tea plantation and printing workshop, will surely attract even more covetous eyes.

There is a high probability that one of them will be stronger than Li Cheng, and unlike Li Cheng, they will not be bound by the sworn brotherhood.

Therefore, Zhang Kun must keep a tight grip on the 5,000 river workers of the river engineering battalion!

Kindness alone is not enough; authority must also be established.

For example, yesterday, Zhang Kun punished a group of river workers who did not use the public toilets at the construction site by whipping them.

In addition to daily performance evaluations, Zhang Kun would not show too much favoritism towards the three battalions from his hometown, A, B, and C.

The river workers felt that Zhang Kun was fair in his work, clear in his rewards and punishments, generous in his rewards, and kept his word, so they naturally trusted him.

......

Logically speaking, more than 5,000 young men from other places who had received military training and most of whom had no families should have been allowed into the capital.

It is a very unwise, even dangerous, decision that could easily lead to chaos.

Under normal circumstances, the imperial court would not pass such a decision.

However, the Ming Dynasty court is now effectively paralyzed.

The main reason for the paralysis was not that Emperor Wanli had not held court for decades:

When the Zhengtong Emperor ascended the throne, the morning court sessions were greatly simplified and devolved into a mere formality by the three Yangs, who were appointed as regents.

Only eight matters could be discussed at the morning court session, and the emperor had to report to the cabinet in advance so that the cabinet could assist him in drafting a reply.

When it's time for court, all you have to do is read the prepared text, and then the meeting is over.

After all, the Zhengtong Emperor was only nine years old at the time, a year younger than the Wanli Emperor when he ascended the throne, making it difficult for him to preside over the morning court sessions.

The problem is that after the Zhengtong Emperor assumed personal rule, perhaps because he had become accustomed to it, he did not change the practice of holding morning court sessions back.

Therefore, starting from the Zhengtong era, the morning court session became a ritualistic procedure.

Before the emperors stopped holding court, officials began frequently asking for leave, arriving late, and skipping work:

On the eighth day of the sixth month of the sixth year of the Xuande reign, attendance was taken and more than 500 people were absent from work, of whom more than 300 were absent twice or more.

During the Chenghua era, there was an attendance check where less than one-tenth of the officials were present!

On the 15th day of the eighth month of the 15th year of the Hongzhi reign, attendance was taken and more than 1100 people were absent.

Because of the excessive absenteeism, crows would land during meetings, earning the morning court sessions during the Hongzhi era the nickname "Crow Court."

We cannot blame the officials too much, after all, in previous dynasties, morning court sessions were often held only once every five or ten days.

It was because the Hongwu Emperor was too diligent that he insisted on holding morning court every day.

Having a morning meeting at 5 a.m. and having to prepare by 3 a.m. is really torturous.

The officials couldn't stand it, and the emperors certainly couldn't either:

The Chenghua Emperor was the first to lie down, followed by the Zhengde Emperor, the Jiajing Emperor, and now the Wanli Emperor, who rarely attend court.

Because the Jiajing Emperor did not attend court for decades, the Longqing Emperor was unable to do so after he ascended the throne.

Officials from departments such as the Court of State Ceremonies no longer even knew how to conduct the morning court etiquette discussions!

No need for a perfunctory morning meeting, fine, but you still have to do some work, right?

Although the Jiajing Emperor secluded himself in the Western Garden to cultivate immortality, he did not neglect his duties of approving memorials, appointing and dismissing officials, or making major decisions.

He did not attend court for decades, and the number of memorials he did not approve totaled only a few dozen.

The Wanli Emperor was different. How lazy was he? There are already over a thousand memorials that he hasn't replied to!

What's worse is that this guy didn't promptly make personnel appointments or dismissals!

The Ming Dynasty's cabinet is said to have two members, but in reality, only Fang Congzhe does the work.

Wu Daonan repeatedly submitted memorials to the emperor more than twenty times at home, requesting to resign.

The Six Ministries only had four Ministers and four Vice Ministers, and several of them had repeatedly submitted memorials requesting to resign due to serious illness and other reasons.

With only seven officials in the Censorate and ten officials in the Censorate and other similar institutions, the system was completely inoperable.

This wasn't even the worst of it!

Four years ago, the imperial court was practically in a state of "anarchy":

In reality, only Ye Xianggao was holding the cabinet together, the Six Ministries had only one Minister and three Vice Ministers, and the Censorate had only one Deputy Chief Censor.

Ye Xianggao was in poor health at the time and repeatedly requested to resign as Minister, as many as 75 times, but Emperor Wanli refused.

Sometimes when Ye Xianggao was ill at home, many important national affairs were actually handled by his advisors and confidants!

There was also an official named Sun Wei who simultaneously controlled the Censorate, the Ministry of Revenue and its imperial warehouse, the Ministry of War, and the Beijing Garrison!

He controlled the supervisory power, financial power, and military power all at once! Luckily, he was loyal and didn't cause any trouble.

In local areas, more than half of the positions of governor-general and governor are vacant, more than sixty positions of provincial administration and judicial commissioner are vacant, and more than fifty positions of prefect are also vacant!

Liu Yikun, the governor of Zhejiang, used the guise of lecturing to cover up various activities of cult members.

He was also found guilty of other crimes, such as accepting bribes, but Emperor Wanli refused to take action and allowed Liu Yikun to continue his work.

After falling ill, Shandong Governor Li Changgeng repeatedly submitted memorials requesting to resign.

Emperor Wanli not only refused, but two years later he also put Li Changgeng in charge of the Liaodong military supplies and provided logistics for the Battle of Sarhu.

Li Changgeng did not slack off. Despite his illness, he resumed maritime transport and personally sailed to deliver military supplies to Liaodong.

He only requested that the Wanli Emperor send more manpower, but the Wanli Emperor still refused and told him to bear the burden himself!

The actions of the Wanli Emperor were not just lying down, they were giving up!

There is absolutely no problem with the claim that the Ming Dynasty effectively collapsed during the Wanli era!

Zhang Kun was helpless in the face of this situation and could only watch as the Ming Dynasty slid deeper and deeper into the abyss.

But Zhang Kun will not give up; he will strive to do his job well.

Continuously develop and expand your business, continuously expand your wealth in the business world, and continuously advance in the officialdom.

To preserve the vitality of the Ming Dynasty as much as possible, to bring about innovation, to reduce its ills, and to eliminate its enemies.

Until the Ming Dynasty is made great again!

This is not just the Ming Dynasty of the Zhu family, but the Ming Dynasty of all the people of the world!