Chapter 336: Zhu Youjian's Butcher's Blade, Fully Charged

Wasn't all the recent uproar about the new policy of selecting "Provincial Administration Commissioners" for the thirteen provinces?

How did it turn into selecting "Governors and Governors-General" for the thirteen provinces?

Ahem...

Zhu Youjian is an emperor for the first time.

And even more so, an emperor of the Ming dynasty for the first time.

Making some mistakes, after all, is unavoidable.

After all, much of his understanding of the Great Ming only gradually and slowly became complete once he actually began handling state affairs.

In the past, within the Prince Xin Residence, much of the information he absorbed was still far too superficial.

He had originally thought that the post of Provincial Administration Commissioner would be sufficient to oversee local civil affairs everywhere, press for tax payments, and clear up all manner of accumulated abuses.

After all, isn't the Provincial Administration Commission precisely in charge of civil affairs?

Besides, Zhu Youjian's demands were not high.

He did not seek a perfect score for every province; he only sought to collect a bit more tax from each province and to slightly alleviate the people's hardships — that would be enough to consider the objective achieved.

To put it bluntly, aside from the all-important Shaanxi, the other places were mostly just idle moves on the board; whatever gains came of them were pure profit. But in the end, his understanding of the Ming dynasty's local administrative structure was not deep enough.

His understanding of local current abuses was not thorough enough.

And he saw the officialdom of the Great Ming even less clearly.

First, let us discuss the structure.

At the start, Zhu Youjian had thought that local administration was simply the tripartite division of the Provincial Administration Commission, the Provincial Surveillance Commission, and the Regional Military Commission.

Then, as the times evolved, posts like Governor and Governor-General were established to centralize power — essentially reviving things like the Regional Chief, Grand Administrator, and Military Commissioner, except that Governors and Governors-General were detached assignments, used to avoid the late-Tang situation of entrenched regional warlords carving up the land.

I have received nine years of compulsory education and many years of Douyin education! Who can understand the Great Ming better than me!

And yet... how could it be so simple!

Within this structure, there is also hidden an administrative level called the "Circuit," straddling the space between the province and the prefectures and counties.

For example, Shandong is actually divided into three Circuits:

The Jinan Circuit, governing Jinan Prefecture, the Eastern Depot Prefecture, and Yanzhou Prefecture.

The Haiyou Circuit, governing Qingzhou Prefecture, Dengzhou Prefecture, and Laizhou Prefecture.

The Liaohai Dongning Circuit, governing the Liaodong territories of Jin, Hai, Gai, Fu, Liaoyang, Shenyang, and so on.

More crucially, these Circuits are further divided into a whole series of posts: the Branch Surveillance Circuit, the Branch Administration Circuit, the Grain Tax Circuit, the Education Circuit, the Military Defense Circuit, the Register Circuit, the Troop Purge Circuit, the Pacification Circuit, the Recruitment and Training Circuit, the Military Farmland Circuit, the Water Conservancy Circuit, the River Management Circuit, the Postal Circuit, the Salt Law Circuit, and so on.

These Circuit officials were generally concurrently held by Assistant Administration Commissioners of the Provincial Administration Commission or Vice Surveillance Commissioners of the Provincial Surveillance Commission.

And to successfully handle the collection of both the new and old military stipends, the matter absolutely could not be resolved by a Provincial Administration Commissioner alone.

The Military Defense Circuit belongs to the Provincial Surveillance Commission, yet sometimes this same Military Defense Circuit concurrently manages grain storage, military farmland, and the salt law.

The Branch Administration Circuit belongs to the Provincial Administration Commission, yet sometimes this same Branch Administration Circuit concurrently manages military defense, military farmland, and the horse administration.

Thus, Zhu Youjian's initial idea of resolving local fiscal and tax matters through the Provincial Administration Commission was, frankly, underestimating the Ming system.

"My apologies, but in my Great Ming, not only is the fiscal and tax system a mess, the local official post system is, in truth, also a mess."

Next, let us discuss current abuses.

The fiscal and tax problems in the localities have never been solely about finance and taxation themselves.

They implicate a whole series of issues — the princedoms, military guards, sea bandits, local bandits, native chieftains, and so on — tangled and intertwined, with deep and knotted roots.

Take the simplest example.

In many places, bandits appear, plundering merchants and travelers, stealing draft oxen.

So where do these bandits come from? Are they all common folk who cannot survive?

In some places, that is indeed the case, but in many more places, it is not.

In most places, the bandits originate from the local guard stations.

This is especially true in areas where guard stations border civilian farmland.

The principle is, in fact, the same as why provincial borders easily breed bandits.

Bandits from the hereditary military households, exploiting the separation between the military household system and the civil administration system, gain a geographical advantage in the heartland of the Great Ming akin to that of a provincial border. To deal with such military-guard bandits, relying on a single Provincial Administration Commission is utterly unworkable; one must coordinate with the local military garrisons, the Regional Military Commission, and the Provincial Surveillance Commission to jointly suppress and govern.

If even bandits are like this,

then those princedoms, sea bandits, native chieftains, local strongmen, and the like are troubles where pulling one hair moves the whole body.

Finally, there is the officialdom.

Governors and Governors-General, though they have no explicit rank, actually belong to the central administrative structure and report directly to the Emperor.

Governors and Governors-General everywhere have always been required to participate in the capital evaluation and undergo assessment together with the officials of the two capitals.

Therefore, all Governors and Governors-General are either appointed with the concurrent title of Vice Minister or Minister, or dispatched with the concurrent title of Censor of the Chief Surveillance Bureau.

Their scope of authority is extremely broad, sufficient for a person of ambition to spread their wings and achieve great deeds.

But a Provincial Administration Commissioner, even as a high official of the upper second rank, is still only a local official.

Not to mention being constrained on all sides, their scope of authority is far too narrow.

In short, the prospects are not bright enough! And so, the original project of selecting Provincial Administration Commissioners for the thirteen provinces, halfway through its advancement, bogged down in a quagmire of extreme difficulty.

Even though Zhu Youjian forcibly narrowed the quota of new-policy officials, attempting to push those among the old-policy officials who had ambition and a desire to climb into taking the thirteen-province path,

the results were still meager.

These bureaucrats are shrewd to the extreme.

They either do everything possible to stay in the capital ministries to work, taking the secure channel of meritorious service and red-marked promotion,

or they maneuver in advance, pulling strings everywhere, planning to secure a post in an inspection team in the northern provinces under the second phase of the Yongchang new policies. Both of these paths above are gateways into the new policies that can bypass the requirement of local practical experience.

Compared to the path of the "Thirteen-Province Provincial Administration Commissioners," far from the central government, these are truly far superior.

And even if someone were truly willing to go to the localities to work.

The three provinces of Shanxi, Shandong, and Henan also ranked far higher in priority than Shaanxi.

For one simple reason.

Shaanxi was too poor, too chaotic, and too far away.

Too far from the Emperor, too far from the New Policies, too far from the central power hub — far, far too far!

So what to do about it?

Nothing more than recognizing a mistake and correcting it.

Zhu Youjian never considered himself incapable of error.

The New Policies, too, were never meant to be rigid dogma fixed for all time and eternally correct, but a dynamic reform constantly adjusting and adapting. Insufficient administrative authority?

Then raise the compensation and expand the authority. Elevate directly from selection for Provincial Administration Commissioner to selection for governor and grand coordinator — comprehensively broaden their administrative authority!

Complaining it's too far?

Then set rewards and penalties, and revise the performance metrics.

For places like Shaanxi, Guangdong, Fujian, and Huguang, grant additional performance bonuses based on their importance and distance! Offer promotions with wider latitude and higher ceilings.

Still unwilling to go even with all that?

Then make it compulsory assignment, compulsory selection, compulsory recommendation!

As long as their talent and background are suitable, do I care whether they're willing or not in their hearts?

They take the Great Ming's salary, work for the Great Ming, and still want to haggle with the Emperor?

Every last one of them can get the hell out there on assignment!

In short.

Don't be fooled by how vigorously the New Policies are being pushed in the capital these days, or how every man in officialdom keeps the "new discourse" on his lips, projecting an air of reformist vitality. Those who truly deserve the word "comrade" as Zhu Youjian uses it are, in truth, very few.

The overwhelming majority are merely operating on inertia, compelled by the crushing weight of imperial authority and the moral narrative hammered home by one New Policy label after another.

But this inertia will decay.

It will be slowly eroded and worn away by old customs and entrenched abuses, until it grinds to a complete halt.

At that moment, a visible hand is needed to provide fresh impetus.

That sounds convoluted and obscure.

But to put it plainly, it's actually very simple.

Just keep whipping the top! Whip it till it flies!

The Hall of Earnest Reflection.

Before the audience with the Shaanxi imperial commission group, a confidential meeting not on the public schedule was drawing to a close.

The participants in this meeting were as follows:

Gao Shiming, seal-holder of the Directorate of Ceremonial; Liu Ruoyu, seal-holder of the newly established Inner Court Supervision Directorate; Wang Tigan, Director of the Eastern Depot; Tian Ergeng, Commissioner-in-Chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Grand Secretary Li Guopu; Ni Yuanlu, secretary of the Official Governance Group; Jiang Sirui, secretary of the Personnel Governance Group.

Zhang Zhiji, Censor for City Patrol and Superintendent of the Five Wards Troops and Horses Office; Luo Yangxing, Censor for City Patrol and Superintendent of the Patrol and Arrest Battalion.

Li Guopu bowed slightly and delivered his final summary:

"Your Majesty, that is the general outline of the arrangements."

"All necessary preparations have been discussed and settled. Although the relevant personnel at each node have not been informed of this matter in advance, they have all been pre-positioned."

"Once set in motion, everything can be on track within two days, and the work at each stage can be completed normally."

"Would Your Majesty see if any further adjustments are needed anywhere."

After Li Guopu finished speaking, Zhu Youjian nodded, but did not reply at once.

He simply leafed through the booklet in his hands with meticulous care, occasionally cross-referencing it with the dossier volumes stacked beside him.

What Zhu Youjian was paging through was not some operational plan.

The plan had long been settled — it was just arresting people; there was nothing that complicated about it.

What he had been weighing all along was exactly whom to invite to this New Year's event.

— The Capital Spring Cleaning List.

The mountain of dossiers beside this list contained the detailed particulars of these people's crimes, along with brief background statements.

This so-called spring cleaning was not the same concept as the capital evaluation or the grand review in the Ming regular oversight system.

The capital evaluation occurred once every six years, in the si and hai years, and examined civil and military officials in both capitals. That affair had historically been the meat grinder of court factional strife.

For instance, Wei Zhongxian's rise back then had in fact ridden the tailwind of the factional wars of the third year of Tianqi.

At that time, Zhao Nanxing controlled the Ministry of Personnel and, wielding the axe with sweeping strokes, purged the Qi, Chu, and Zhe factions entirely, then turned his spearpoint directly at Wei Zhongxian.

That was what detonated the extreme factional warfare that began in the fourth year of Tianqi, revolving around the cases of Xiong Tingbi, Wang Wenyan, and others.

Wei Zhongxian seized the chance to merge with the civil officials who had been struck down and driven from power — thus was born the overwhelming might of the eunuch faction that dominated the realm.

But the next capital evaluation would not come until the second year of Yongchang.

A date that distant — Zhu Youjian could not wait that long.

As for the grand review, that was close at hand, to be conducted in the first year of Yongchang, and its scope covered local officials throughout the entire realm.

By rule, local officials serving in various posts around the country were required to come to the capital in rotation for audience, and await examination by the Ministry of Personnel according to the "Eight Standards."

(Note: they didn't all come at once, there were rotation rules governing who came and who didn't — I just couldn't find them T_T) The greedy and the cruel: stripped of rank and reduced to commoner status, with illicit gains recovered and themselves sent into military exile.

The reckless and the feeble: allowed to retain their cap and girdle but dismissed to idle residence.

The aged, the weak, and the infirm: retired.

Those of insufficient talent or strength, and the frivolous and shallow: demoted or transferred.

Local officials from every region were required to arrive in the capital by the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month of the seventh year of Tianqi, and then await their evaluation.

They were forbidden to come early, lest their work be neglected; nor were they permitted to come late, lest they miss the evaluation.

This was originally a sound policy for cleansing the civil service.

But when it comes to actual practice, the process is filled with visits from former disciples and old associates, and the trading of favors among powerful ministers and nobles.

When local officials enter the capital, most must bring ample gold and silver to pay their respects.

If they reach the capital and find their silver insufficient for bribes, they must even borrow at usury from the capital-debt merchants, fighting with everything they have to maintain their connections.

After all, those who are rapacious and cruel are not necessarily dismissed from office.

But those who are rapacious and cruel yet fail to pay their share — those are dismissed without fail.

The silver currents flowing north and south… are they really just the yearly drafts and regular drafts of the merchants?

This tribute-paying into the court within the Great Ming officialdom is likewise a silver current not to be underestimated.

As for the quality of this grand evaluation, Zhu Youjian in truth held no particular expectations.

The time was far too short, and the Great Ming's maladies far too deep.

Relying solely on the strength of Minister of Personnel Yang Jingchen alone — even if he coughed blood from exhaustion, he could hardly change the greater situation.

Zhu Youjian cared about only one thing.

Had this gleaming silver flowing into the capital stirred up those greedy natures that the new policies' storm had temporarily suppressed?

Had it already fattened those lambs awaiting slaughter enough?

At last, the sound of turning pages stopped.

Zhu Youjian pondered a moment, picked up the vermilion brush, and lightly drew a red line through the roster.

"The list will stop here."

He casually handed the register to Li Guopu, who waited below, his tone indifferent.

"Though the new jinshi number four hundred, they still need time to be cultivated. Removing too many people rashly would still affect the court situation too greatly." Zhu Youjian leaned back in his chair and continued instructing:

"As for the pace of the plan, there is no great problem. Proceed step by step."

"There is only one point."

His gaze swept over the people in the hall, and he gently reminded them:

"Arrests, interrogations, convictions — these must be carried out properly, following procedure."

"A great sweep is not about launching a great purge. Do not leave any handle for others to criticize."

"Once people are arrested, interrogate as they should be interrogated, convict as they should be convicted."

"Everything open and fair, the entire process transparent."

"If you arrest rightly, let him be disgraced in the Great Ming Times. If you arrest wrongly, give him sufficient endorsement to clear his suspicion. In short, either guilty or not guilty. Do not revert to the old factional practice where a single impeachment triggers a mob attack, and whether guilty or not, the man must leave office."

Li Guopu straightened his body and cupped his hands solemnly:

"Yes! This subject shall strictly obey Your Sacred Will and ensure that this sweep is conducted openly and uprightly, without bias and without faction."

Zhu Youjian nodded and said nothing more.

"That will be all. Withdraw for now. We have another meeting to hold later."

The men rose at once, performed their obeisance, and then filed out of the great hall.

Zhu Youjian watched their retreating figures and could not help shaking his head.

People… how could they possibly be entirely without bias and without faction?

That is something only the rarest of sages can achieve.

To say nothing else — if one day evidence were found of Lu Xiangsheng's corruption,

Zhu Youjian's heart would surely tremble; he would hesitate long, thinking how to bend the law for personal favor.

Judging others by himself, how could he hold overly unrealistic expectations for the officials below? Yet…

What Li Guopu expressed was precisely what ought to be said on the official surface.

Not like Guo Yunhou, taking the lead in undermining unity and undermining the greater cause.

Hmm??? Could that old scoundrel have done this deliberately, wanting to exit the stage early?!

Zhu Youjian suddenly realized this possibility and for a moment did not know whether to laugh or cry.

Surely not, Old Guo! You underestimate Our ability and the baseline of Our conduct far too much!

Though he seemed to have discerned Guo Yunhou's true intent,

Zhu Youjian had no intention of revising the original personnel appointment.

Every path is chosen by the person walking it. Old Guo chose wrongly — then wrongly it is. Let him go.

In any case, he was, after all, striving to do the work. That alone is very good.

Zhu Youjian picked up another plan from the table and began leafing through it carefully.

He was about to summon the members of the Shaanxi imperial commission group; he needed to go over the details of the Shaanxi plan once more with care.

Yet as he read on, Zhu Youjian could not calm his mind.

It was not because of this so-called great sweep.

This operation — it sounded grand in scale, as if it would shake the court and send heads rolling in waves.

But in past reigns, such things had in fact been done before.

The capital evaluation, the grand evaluation, and even the retaliatory purges stirred by the advance and retreat of factions after each new emperor ascended the throne — in essence, they were the same as this great sweep. Dismissing over a hundred officials in one stroke was, within the political ecology of the Ming dynasty, no earth-shattering event at all.

Only…

Zhu Youjian let out a long sigh, tossed the plan in his hand onto the table, and for a moment felt rather despondent.

Gao Shiming, seeing His Majesty's displeased expression, reflected briefly and more or less understood.

His Majesty was, after all, a figure descended from the heavens. Witnessing the filth of this mortal world — how could he have no reaction at all?

He hesitated a moment, then softly offered his counsel:

"Your Majesty, the Dao of Heaven proceeds in due order; the affairs of the world can never be accomplished in a single stride."

"The currents of corruption and greed are like dust and grime — there is no need to sweep them all away in a single morning. Let us slowly set things right, gradually cleanse and filter. Remove one part of treachery and malfeasance, and one part of clarity remains. With a mind of non-action, carry out the work of action; wash away the corrupt atmosphere step by step. When men's hearts return to stillness and the world's ways return to purity, all under Heaven will naturally and slowly grow peaceful and secure, and the signs of chaos will vanish of themselves, leaving no trace."

Zhu Youjian froze for a moment, then immediately understood that Gao Shiming had misunderstood.

What he was anxious about was hardly these corrupt officials right now.

Man-made calamities are easy to quell; heaven-sent disasters are impossible to defy.

Corrupt officials — if you can wipe them all out, that's good; if you can't, there's good in that too.

But natural disasters are a different matter.

The bone-chilling cold of the Little Ice Age, a great catastrophe sweeping the entire realm, is about to arrive!

—Though Zhu Youjian was growing more and more bewildered about exactly how it would arrive.

But arrive it certainly would!

And when it does, it may well strike with sudden ferocity, unstoppable once unleashed!

Otherwise, given the strength of the Ming institutional system he was now experiencing firsthand, how could it possibly prove utterly incapable of response, to the point of total collapse?

And right now, he seemed to have accomplished many things.

But in truth, he had not really accomplished anything at all.

This was the deepest source of anxiety in his heart as a transmigrator.

Zhu Youjian had no way to explain. He could only rise to his feet and perfunctorily echo:

"Companion Gao, well said, well said indeed!"

"Let us go! The time is about right. We shall go meet the men from Shaanxi!"

Elsewhere.

Li Guopu exited the hall and exchanged clasped-hand farewells with Tian Ergeng, Zhang Zhiji, and the others.

His expression was as composed as ever. Alone, he walked in the direction of the Grand Secretariat.

Not until he reached a secluded narrow passageway

did he finally succumb to curiosity and draw out that booklet from within his robes.

He opened it.

He turned directly to the middle-to-latter portion of the list.

A bright vermilion stroke of the imperial brush slashed across the table, severing life from death.

One name, most unfortunately, lay exactly upon that vermilion stroke.

Ministry of Personnel, Bureau Director of the Appointments Office, Zhang Guaifang.

Seeing this, Li Guopu finally let out a breath of relief.

That was as it should be. If the Ministry of Personnel was not cleansed, how could official governance be cleansed?

He had worried earlier that His Majesty's hand might not be ruthless enough. Now it seemed his concern had been unnecessary.

Li Guopu tucked the booklet back into his robes and continued on toward the Grand Secretariat.

Only this time, his steps were much lighter.