Chapter 335: Military Preparedness

"Your Majesty, since Jiangsu Province is newly established and a Governor has already been chosen, how should Zhou Linqing, the former Governor of Yingtian, be placed? I await Your Majesty's instruction—a second-rank official is also a weighty minister of the court, and leaving him idle too long will invite criticism!"

Zhou Yunshi, Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, bowed and reported.

Apart from those few in the Grand Secretariat, no one cared less about the addition of new Grand Secretaries than he did.

The Great Ming court had always had an unwritten rule: the Minister of Personnel, the "Heavenly Official," could not enter the Grand Secretariat.

This was to prevent the Minister of Personnel from abusing his authority to appoint his own men, forming a powerful force in the court and causing the entire political situation to spiral out of control.

"Zhou Linqing's governance record during his tenure was outstanding. Confer upon him the title of Minister of the Ministry of Rites and have him enter the Ministry of Rites to handle affairs. As for the specific division of duties... let Minister Zhang arrange it!"

Without a moment's thought, Zhu Youjian kicked the Governor of Yingtian straight into the Ministry of Rites.

Zhou Linqing was likewise a member of the Jiangnan vested-interest bloc—let all those who profited most go into the Ministry of Rites and tear each other apart.

Although the Ministry of Rites was a prestigious and clean office, apart from the triennial metropolitan examination, it ordinarily wielded little authority and had negligible influence over court governance. Even if that crowd quarreled till the heavens turned over, there was no need to pay them any mind.

His impression of Zhang Guowei, Minister of the Ministry of Rites, was not good.

Zhang Guowei's abilities were mediocre; it was only through the patronage of former Chief Grand Secretary Zhou Yanru that he had entered the Ministry of Rites as a Vice Minister, and subsequently risen to the post of Minister amid the constant turnover of court personnel.

This man was renowned for his hypocrisy in handling affairs—behind his elegant demeanor lay a stack of greed and shamelessness; he was a typical false gentleman. Though he had never committed any great error, his reputation in court was poor, and most of those who associated with him were members of the Donglin Faction. And this time, everyone Zhu Youjian had forcibly stuffed into the Ministry of Rites was a member of Donglin.

Officials of the Great Ming mostly shared a common trait: skilled at internal strife, inept at governance.

For the slightest personal gain, these men would rack their brains to fight over every inch of ground. The Ministry of Rites office should be putting on quite a show in the days ahead. When they had fought each other to mutual ruin, Zhu Youjian would sweep them all out in one stroke, on the grounds that they had brought shame upon the dignity of the court.

Thinking it over carefully, Zhu Youjian secretly laughed to himself.

Originally they were all of one gang, yet for the sake of power, they would still beat each other bloody.

If there were outsiders, they fought the outsiders; when no outsiders remained, they fought their own—in any case, they could never stay idle.

As long as their offices were not lost, the strife would never cease.

Those who associate for profit scatter when profit is exhausted; those who associate for power topple when power departs; those who associate for authority are abandoned when authority is lost.

The words of the sages were the perfect portrait of this lot.

"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Rites is a place of purity and honor; its affairs are not so numerous or difficult as to be unmanageable. At present there are already three Vice Ministers handling matters, and with the addition of the Nanjing Minister of Rites and the Right Vice Minister, that already far exceeds what the ministry's work requires. Now Your Majesty wishes to place the Governor of Yingtian within the ministry as well—when that happens, even office space will be hard to allocate! What exactly does Your Majesty intend?"

Zhang Guowei, who had already been extremely displeased that Fan Jingwen and Hou Xun had been elevated to Grand Secretaries, could no longer hold back. He raised his hand to straighten his black gauze hat, rose to his feet, bowed, and then, with resentment in his voice, challenged Zhu Youjian with a question.

Last year the Emperor had, for no apparent reason, added a Right Vice Minister to the Ministry of Rites, calling it a measure to better enable the Ministry of Rites to civilize the realm, and thus strengthen its power—that reasoning could barely pass muster.

But now he wanted to merge the Nanjing Ministry of Rites in as well. Although Nanjing only had one Minister and one Vice Minister, this would suddenly make two Ministers and four Vice Ministers.

And that still wasn't the end of it—now another former regional official with the title of Minister was to be added. Three Ministers and four Vice Ministers in one ministry—how could official business possibly be conducted? Wasn't this treating the Ministry of Rites like a chamber pot?

"Minister Zhang, mind your words! His Majesty's arrangement must have profound meaning. Moreover, how the six ministry heads are placed is a matter for His Majesty's sole discretion—how dare a subject interfere? How can a subject harbor resentment toward His Majesty? If the Censor-in-Chief were here today, he would surely impeach you for the crime of disrespect!"

Before Zhu Youjian could speak, Wen Tiren, seated in the foremost position, looked at Zhang Guowei with displeasure and spoke up.

Wen Tiren's rebuke left Zhang Guowei embarrassed and deeply regretful.

Before this year's metropolitan examination, someone had come to his door bearing Wen Tiren's name card, but Zhang Guowei, then riding high on his own success, had refused. He never expected that today this self-proclaimed incorruptible Chief Grand Secretary would deal him such a heavy blow.

His composure lost and resentment rising, all his years of cultivated equanimity vanished in an instant, and as if possessed, he had blurted out complaints—an act that violated the gravest taboo for a subject. Not only had his hopes for the Grand Secretariat utterly evaporated, but even his current position was now hanging by a thread.

In recent years the Emperor's temper, once irascible and narrow-minded, had changed considerably, but who knew whether he would bear a grudge over this? How was he to smooth things over now?

"Heh heh, would I be such a narrow-minded man? The Minister of Rites was perhaps too close to the matter to see clearly, and so spoke without thinking. I will not hold a grudge against a subject over this—heh heh heh!"

Zhu Youjian suppressed his anger, a warm smile on his face as he spoke lightly, while inwardly thinking: I must be like the sage-kings of old—when someone offends or defies me, never grow angry, always maintain composure, display magnanimity and generosity, and never let joy or anger show before the assembled ministers.

Zhang Guowei's resentful words today had planted the seed of killing intent in Zhu Youjian's heart, which had already held a poor opinion of him.

Even as a smile adorned the Emperor's face, the gaze he cast over was icy to the bone, and the words "Ministry of Rites" made his attitude clear—previously he had always addressed ministers as "my minister."

Seeing Zhang Guowei sit down with a pallid face, most of those in the hall felt a sense of schadenfreude.

Wen Tiren's rebuke seemed almost afraid the Emperor would not grow angry—it was practically an open provocation to ignite the Emperor's wrath.

That petty man—too terrifying. Unless one had absolute certainty of toppling him, it was best to stay as far away as possible.

"Minister Yang, what is the current state of the military camp at Shahousuo beyond the pass? How much grain and supplies have arrived? Are there any shortages of other materials?"

Zhu Youjian paid no further attention to the dejected Zhang Guowei, instead fixing his gaze on Yang Sichang, who was stroking his beard in thought, and posed his question.

"Your Majesty, the military camp at Shahousuo is now largely complete. The main structures of the barracks are primarily of wood, for the surrounding deep forests provide abundant timber, making it very convenient to source materials on site. At present, part of the Yongwei Camp and part of the Capital Camps have already moved in; the remainder is expected to be finished by the end of this month, at which time the entire camp will be able to accommodate over fifty thousand troops. Within the camp, twenty-two storehouses have been built to hold grain, supplies, and weapons. Currently stored are over fifty thousand dan of grain, one hundred twenty thousand bundles of hay, over ten thousand dan of beans, countless oil, salt, sauce, and vinegar, and various other military equipment and necessities. Follow-up grain and supplies are being transported in succession; it is estimated that before next spring, the camp's stored grain and materials will be largely complete, sufficient to supply an army of one hundred thousand for three months!"

Yang Sichang, who had been lost in thought, started slightly at the Emperor's sudden question, hastily rose and bowed, then unhurriedly enumerated the well-prepared figures one by one.

"Who from the Ministry of War is currently supervising the work at Shahousuo? Have the new winter clothing, shoes, and hats been fully prepared?"

Zhu Youjian continued his questioning.

"Your Majesty, at present the Shahousuo military camp is being supervised by Zhang Shiqi, Bureau Director of the Bureau of Military Equipment, with a Vice Bureau Director from the Bureau of Construction of the Ministry of Works assisting, along with several clerks overseeing progress. At present, winter clothing, shoes, and hats for the regular troops from Shanhai Pass to Songshan City have all been distributed, and the remaining Capital Camps in the capital have also been re-equipped. There remain over twelve thousand sets of uniforms, shoes, and hats to be made; the Directorate of Military Manufacture and the imperial estate uniform workshops are working at full speed, striving to have all military supplies and equipment ready for the Qin Army, the Sichuan Army, and other guest troops by November!"

"Very good. Minister Yang handles affairs with great care and diligence—my heart is deeply gratified! The Ministry of War must guard against arrogance and impatience, and must not overlook any detail! Let today's deliberations end here. Ministers Wen and the others, return and draft the edicts for the abolitions and appointments; after the inner court affixes the seal, dispatch them immediately to all concerned. Dismissed!"