Chapter 239: Warp and Weft Interwoven, Striving for the Upper Stream

After His Majesty the Emperor departed, the atmosphere in Wuying Hall visibly relaxed.

The elderly ministers rose from their seats one after another and hurried off to relieve themselves.

The younger and middle-aged officials, however, gathered in small clusters, each seeking out familiar colleagues and launching into animated conversation.

A buzzing hum of discussion instantly filled the great hall, dispelling the earlier solemn tension.

Only the pitiable Fang Zhuangli remained sitting blankly in his place, an empty space around him.

Before long, the old ministers returned from their break, and at just that moment a dozen or so junior eunuchs wheeled several dining carts into the hall.

This had become the established custom over the past two months for these long, extended conferences.

The carts were a dazzling display, laden with an assortment of finger foods.

There were dainty pastries such as milk cakes, milk skins, milk nests, and crisp butter cakes, as well as pre-sliced fruit platters bearing crisp pears, apples, and persimmons brought up from the ice cellars. Other plates held dried fruits — walnuts, peanuts, melon seeds, and more, in abundant variety.

But these common foods were clearly not the main attraction today.

Nearly everyone's gaze was drawn to a flash of emerald green.

Cold cucumber salad.

Here in the capital, in the tenth month of the seventh year of Tianqi, the cold wind was already biting.

Any cucumber to be found on the market was, without exception, "cellar goods" — painstakingly coaxed into growth in a heated greenhouse, carefully tended over a charcoal fire. A thing is prized when it is rare.

A single such cucumber, within the bounds of the capital, had been bid up to the astronomical price of one tael of silver.

An ordinary official, unless deeply corrupt or born into substantial family wealth, absolutely could not afford such an extravagance.

Thus, when those few plates of cucumber cut into thin strips appeared, they were swiftly divided up and snatched away in no time.

In a corner of the great hall, several newcomers from the Secretariat had naturally gravitated together.

Yao Ximeng was a man of Wu County, while Chen Renxi and Wen Zhenmeng were natives of Suzhou Prefecture.

With their native places so close and an old friendship between them, now serving together as newly appointed colleagues, a natural closeness existed among them.

Holding a small dish of pastries, Yao Ximeng watched those officials scrambling for cucumber in the distance and could not help but lower his voice in exclamation:

"Today I beheld the countenance of Heaven, and only then did I realize His Majesty's complexion is as fair as jade, his spirit soaring — truly the visage of a Son of Heaven who shall reign over an age of peace. Looking back now, I finally understand that Huating's words were no exaggeration."

The "Huating" he spoke of was a reference by native place, meaning the late Bureau Secretary of the Military Farmland Section in the Ministry of Works, Chen Suowen.

Chen Renxi, with a note of regret, took up the thread: "Indeed. It is a pity that Lord Huating passed away last year. That he had no chance to witness the brilliance of today's sage sovereign is truly a matter for regret."

Yao Ximeng nodded and added: "The day before yesterday I received a letter from Wu Changshi. He is now in Wu County investigating the birth rate, and his letter also mentioned Huating's son, Chen Zilong."

"Chen Zilong?" Wen Zhenmeng pondered for a moment. "I recall he is... nineteen this year?"

"Precisely," Yao Ximeng said. "Before I entered the capital, I examined his scholarship. His foundation is solid, and his literary talent is brilliant. Barring the unexpected, passing the provincial examination in three years' time should pose no problem. And with a bit more luck, passing the metropolitan and palace examinations in succession to become a jinshi is not impossible either."

Hearing this, Chen Renxi sighed with relief: "That is good, then. Lord Huating passed away in his prime, but with a son like this, he can rest in peace beneath the Nine Springs." The few of them chatted idly for a while, eventually moving past this somewhat melancholy topic of an old friend, and turned to discussing the details of the "Review of Old Policies" that His Majesty had proposed during the imperial conference just now.

According to past custom, the discussion, minute-taking, and revision of such a new proposal would inevitably require the Secretariat to assign personnel for support.

And more critically, the Secretariat now already contained four small groups. This "Review of Old Policies" would very likely also require the formation of a new group. That meant opportunity.

Each of them had newly entered the Secretariat with no specialized task in hand, so they were naturally all particularly concerned with this matter.

On the other side of the great hall, Ma Maocai and Yuan Jixian were huddled together, speaking in low tones. The ways of the world were truly wondrous.

A few months ago, when Ma Maocai left the capital for Shaanxi, he had still been in the position of a senior and had offered Yuan Jixian a few words of guidance.

Yet after this one trip to Shaanxi, Yuan Jixian had already become the head of the Secretariat's Shaanxi group, while he himself had instead become a group member under him. Although the Secretariat was newly founded and did not emphasize official rank, assigning responsibility according to the task at hand, this subtle reversal of status still left Ma Maocai feeling somewhat discomfited.

However, being older in years and a smooth man of the world, he quickly adapted to the change.

"Brother Jitong," Ma Maocai drew close to Yuan Jixian and sighed with heartfelt emotion, "I truly never imagined that after one trip to Shaanxi, the court situation would have undergone such an earth-shaking transformation."

He cupped his hands toward Yuan Jixian and said sincerely: "Speaking of which, I must thank you, Brother Jitong, for your correction that day. Otherwise, that policy essay of mine would likely have struggled to catch His Majesty's discerning eye."

Yuan Jixian shook his head and smiled: "Had it not been for the parting words you gifted me before your departure, Brother Qingjiang — 'an outsider cannot glimpse the inner workings of the universe' — I, your younger brother, might not have been able to see through the crux of the Liaodong situation and write that policy essay."

"And had I not been able to write that policy essay, how could I have entered this Secretariat, glimpsed the key junctures of the new policies, and offered a pointer or two on your essay? In the final analysis, it is all a chain of interlocking causes, all a matter of karmic connection."

He paused, then continued: "That said, no matter how cleverly I may have maneuvered, had it not been for your essay, Brother Qingjiang — that 'Memorial Analyzing the Various Populations of Shaanxi: Local Bandits, Border Raiders, Vagrants, and Merchants' — which was written with such essential precision, I would absolutely never have been able to enter the Secretariat."

Yuan Jixian glanced left and right, then lowered his voice, speaking with a hint of mystery: "Does my brother know what His Majesty's reaction was that day after finishing your policy essay?"

Ma Maocai's heart stirred, and he hastily pressed for details.

Yuan Jixian raised his eyebrows, his tone filled entirely with envy. "His Majesty was greatly pleased on the spot! He showed it around to those beside him and laughed, saying, 'Fine official writing, fine official writing! It is precisely such fine official writing that the realm needs!'"

Ma Maocai chuckled upon hearing this, his face bearing a mix of irrepressible self-satisfaction and a feigned modesty as he waved his hands repeatedly.

"Not at all, not at all. My family is from Shaanxi, so I am merely like a fish in water regarding the local conditions there. It counts for nothing."

"But you, Brother Jitong — to be able to travel incognito in Liaodong, cleverly borrowing the name of the imperial envoy from 'The Loyalty Record of the Liao Sea' to pry open local channels and investigate the myriad details among the Liao people, Liao generals, and Liao soldiers — that is true, great talent!"

The two men exchanged a few more rounds of mutual flattery, and the atmosphere immediately grew even warmer.

Only then did Ma Maocai steer the conversation onto the proper track. He reined in his smile and asked in a low voice:

"Brother Jitong, I have only just entered the capital now. Although I have joined this Secretariat, in my heart... I still harbor some hesitation."

"Oh? What hesitation does Brother Qingjiang have?"

"The three principles His Majesty expounded just now — the second and third are naturally words of gold and jade, beyond all doubt. But this first one... 'A prime minister must emerge from the provinces and departments'..."

He paused, then said carefully: "I am not doubting His Majesty's words, it is just... does our Secretariat, spending all day here facing official documents, count as... 'the provinces and departments'?"

Yuan Jixian, upon hearing this, shook his head without the slightest hesitation: "Naturally, it does not."

Ma Maocai pondered for a moment, then asked further: "In that case... are there fixed regulations for our terms of office, transfers, promotions, and demotions?"

This was the question that concerned him most.

The Secretariat held a transcendent status and afforded proximity to the imperial countenance, but ultimately it was not a traditional path of promotion.

If there was no clear stipulation, would working here for a lifetime not simply make one a high-level clerk?

Yuan Jixian did not answer immediately. He glanced around warily, then abruptly seized Ma Maocai's sleeve, his eyes burning intensely as he stared at him and asked, weighing each word:

"Brother Qingjiang, can you and I be considered the closest of friends?"

Ma Maocai was taken aback by this solemn display, then swallowed and replied with equal gravity: "Of course we are the closest of friends!"

"Good!" Yuan Jixian nodded. "Then I shall tell you this matter, but you must remember — under no circumstances may you spread it outside!"

Ma Maocai's heart pounded wildly. Instinctively he was about to raise a finger and swear an oath, but out of the corner of his eye he glimpsed someone nearby looking their way, so he hurriedly lowered his hand again, leaned forward, and through gritted teeth said in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"If I spread it outside, then let me sink forever into the collation of the 'Officials' Relationship Map,' never to find release!" "Hiss—"

Yuan Jixian, hearing this, was actually startled.

This oath was far too vicious!

The so-called "Officials' Relationship Map" was a task being jointly undertaken by the Directorate of Ceremonial and the Secretariat.

Its purpose was to take the native places, teacher-student lineages, same-year examination cohorts, marriage ties, past memorials, personal connections, and other such information of every official at court, sort and refine them one by one, categorize them, and establish files.

In His Majesty's words, this was called "bringing what lies beneath the table up onto the tabletop."

In the future, should officials attack one another, there would be no need to laboriously guess at the motives and connections behind it.

One need only pull up the map and attach the native places, teacher-student ties, factional affiliations, and all such information of both the accuser and the accused directly after the memorial, then submit it for the imperial review.

Those with nothing to hide in their hearts would naturally not care.

Those with something to hide in their hearts would, to some degree, exercise restraint.

The matter itself was a good thing. Though somewhat harsh and cutting, it was indeed an open and aboveboard scheme to rectify factional strife and bring clarity to official governance.

But this task was absolutely not a good assignment.

Collating this map required poring over vast seas of old papers, piecing together information from past memorials, essays, and archives — mind-numbingly tedious in the extreme. Moreover, this was tantamount to digging up the private affairs of every official. Those who did this work were not only looked down upon with cold disdain, they also offended the entire civil and military officialdom. More importantly, this task mired one in mountains of documents and oceans of files, utterly useless for statecraft and practical application, utterly useless for the path of establishing merit and achieving greatness.

For the elite of the Secretariat, a group proud and ambitious, all hoping to accomplish great things, being assigned to this was worse than being killed.

Thus, no one in the Secretariat was willing to do it. In the end, a rotation had to be arranged, the duty taken in turns — whoever's turn it was, tough luck.

Since Ma Maocai had sworn such a venomous oath, Yuan Jixian naturally believed in his sincerity.

He leaned close to Ma Maocai's ear and said in a low voice, "This matter, I hear, will be led by the newly promoted Grand Secretary Li Banghua, who will produce a set of regulations. His Majesty's current plan is that all who enter the Secretariat, after serving here for a period and becoming familiar with the direction of the new policies and the logic of how things are done, will be sent down to the localities to investigate and survey local conditions."

"After investigating and surveying local conditions, they must also independently complete an outstanding investigative report of the 'Five Circles' level before they can pass."

"After passing, they will be appointed to local posts for one to two years. Then they will be transferred back to the central ministries and courts, and after that, they may be transferred out to the localities again…" "His Majesty says…"

He paused, then uttered a phrase that would make any official's blood surge with excitement.

"The Secretariat is… a training course for grand councilors."

Ma Maocai's mouth went dry as he listened. He swallowed instinctively and stammered, "Th-this… this… how can there be… dozens, even a hundred grand councilors?"

Yuan Jixian, watching his shocked expression, laughed smugly. "How could there be dozens?"

"Think about it. The daily affairs of the Secretariat must be examined. The local investigative reports must be examined. The administrative achievements as county magistrate must be examined. The assignments after returning to the central government must be examined… Nothing is not examined, nothing is not scrutinized!"

"In His Majesty's words, if someone truly can, through such a combination of theory and practical affairs, fight their way out from among hundreds and thousands, pass through layer upon layer of testing, and ultimately stand out from the crowd — then for such a talent, even if one entrusts them with the position of state councilor, what objection could there be!"

Ma Maocai listened, his spirit soaring as if drunk on fine wine, his whole being floating on air.

From ancient times to the present, when had there ever been such a method specifically for training grand councilors?

This… this is truly… wait?!

Ma Maocai came back to his senses, lowered his voice, and asked a deeper question: "Brother Jitong, does His Majesty's meaning, then, imply… restoring the position of grand councilor?"

Yuan Jixian shook his head. "That I do not know. His Majesty often says, do not think so far ahead; do things as you go, and correct mistakes when you make them. So long as we remain on the road, even if the path twists and turns, the future is surely bright!"

Ma Maocai savored this last sentence and suddenly realized something was off.

"Wait — ever since I returned to the capital, I've noticed that every other word from your mouth is 'His Majesty says.' Where do you get so many 'His Majesty says'?" Yuan Jixian winked mysteriously and grinned. "After duty today, come to my home. I shall lend you my… volume of quotations, for you to copy." Ma Maocai's eyes instantly blazed bright, and he said in rapid succession, "Good, good, good! Good, good, good! I'll buy a bottle of fine wine to trade you for it!"

The two chatted idly a while longer before finally turning to the formulation of policy documents for the Shaanxi group.

This small group had been established just over ten days ago. Personnel were still being selected and examined, and for now it consisted only of the two of them.

But the collection of some basic materials and the consideration and discussion of the policy framework had already begun.

The princely fiefs, the salt administration, the Open-Canal Law, land surveys, the border troops… the affairs of Shaanxi were tangled and complex, with roots and knots intertwined. That it could transcend all the other provinces and be the first to have a dedicated Secretariat small group established was not without reason.

By now, Wuying Hall had already divided into a dozen or so circles, large and small.

Qi Xinxiao, head of the Secretariat's Northern Zhili New Policies group, was in low discussion with Grand Secretary Huang Liji about something.

Ni Yuanlu of the official governance group was gathered in a circle with Minister of Personnel Yang Jingchen and Grand Secretary Li Guopu, chatting quite happily.

Sun Chuanting, head of the military group, had simply pulled over Huo Weihua and Ma Shilong directly, intending to discuss the newly drafted regulations for the review and correction of military codes. The green-robed historian Zhang Maoxiu, together with the Duke of Xingye, Zhang Tongchang, was mingling with a group of newly ennobled merit officers.

The remaining merit officers, hall ministers, vice ministers, and supervising secretaries had also each gathered into their own clusters, some chatting idly, some discussing business, in no particular uniformity.

And in another corner of the great hall, Li Banghua, Zheng Sanjun, Sun Shenxing, and Liu Zongzhou — these several ministers who had walked through the bloody storms of the Tianqi reign — had also gathered together.

At first they exchanged a few idle words, but gradually, they all fell silent, simply watching, quietly and in silence, the scene before them of the hundred officials in heated discussion, a scene brimming with vitality.

Watching the hope and excitement shining on those young faces, watching the spirit rekindled in those who had once been their colleagues.

In the end, it was Liu Zongzhou who first broke the silence in this corner.

"I once wrote in a letter to Brother Mianzhen that the state of the nation was like a rudderless boat, drifting with the wind, those aboard standing by and watching, clamoring as if about to capsize and drown, yet none dared to roll up their sleeves and take hold…"

"Now, by Heaven's grace, this boat of our dynasty has once more found a man at the helm!"

"But those who once shared the boat with us… are no longer here."

The "Brother Mianzhen" he spoke of was none other than the famous Donglin minister, Zhou Qiyuan.

In the ninth month of the sixth year of Tianqi, he had been beaten by Xu Xianchun of the eunuch faction in the Imperial Prison until his flesh rotted away, and so he died.

At these words, Li Banghua, Zheng Sanjun, and Sun Shenxing were all, for a moment, lost in shared desolation, silent.

Yes — the dawn had arrived, but some would lie forever in the darkness.

After a moment, Zheng Sanjun let out a long sigh and was about to speak, to offer some words of comfort to his old friend.

But then they heard the young eunuch in the hall suddenly draw out his voice and call in a high pitch:

"The tea break is over —! Honored ministers, please return to your seats!"

The shrill voice instantly pierced through the hubbub in the hall.

A troop of young eunuchs filed in, swiftly and nimbly wheeling the refreshment carts away again.

The hundred officials in the hall, no matter what they had been doing, what they had been discussing, what mood they had been in — all came to an abrupt halt in that instant.

Every little clique vanished in an instant, and the assembly flowed into their seats according to rank and precedence, each person settling into place.

In the space of a mere ten-odd breaths, the entire great hall had returned to silence once more.

A moment later, Zhu Youjian strode out, swept his gaze over the orderly ranks of officials, and spoke directly:

"Very well, the meeting resumes!"

"Next, we shall deliberate the final great matter of the New Policies' implementation..."

"The discussion of contingency plans for every possible mode of failure of the New Policies!"