Chapter 1544: The New Dynasty

"Duke of Ji…" The Crown Prince was momentarily taken aback, but then immediately nodded. "Very well, I will convey the Duke of Ji's meaning to my father the Emperor. There is, in addition, one more matter… Father also wishes for me to seek your opinion on something."

"Please, Your Highness, instruct me!"

"Father wishes for me to ask the Duke: in recent years, has the Duke felt that the conflicts and quarrels between the Liaodong Army and the Grand Secretariat have grown considerably more numerous? Have there been instances where the two sides have obstructed one another?"

"This…" Chen Sheng was startled.

To be honest, such things had indeed occurred. Ever since the founding of the Great Han, quarrels between the military and the Grand Secretariat had broken out from time to time, and on many issues they held no common opinion. In the beginning, everyone could still pull together in the same boat and unite their efforts as one; whatever hardships arose, everyone endured them together. But now, both sides had become colossal interest groups, entangling countless people from top to bottom. Even with the bonds of past brotherhood, quarrels and resentment were unavoidable.

Take military expenditures, for example: almost every year the Grand Secretariat and the military would quarrel at least once, to say nothing of other matters.

Yet this question was truly of extraordinary gravity. The Emperor was asking him through the Crown Prince — so how exactly should he answer?

But if he reported the truth, would that not be secretly informing against the Grand Secretariat, triggering a new clash between the military and the civil officials? If a quarrel erupted then, who knew how it would be settled.

The Marshal hesitated, a rare thing. Right now he had no desire to clash with the Grand Secretariat, nor should he do so.

"These past few years… the Grand Secretariat has indeed butted heads with our Liaodong Army on some matters, but they were all trifling affairs that caused no major disturbances. The Grand Secretariat also acts in the nation's interest, not to deliberately target us. In any case, the military funds and pay they allocate to us each year have never been shortchanged, and the local officials have never stirred up trouble for us."

While he obliquely acknowledged that conflicts existed, on the other hand he downplayed their severity — an answer that could be considered tactful.

"So they do exist…" The Crown Prince nodded with considerable understanding.

During his studies he had assumed that the civil and military grandees of the court were all utterly loyal, thinking only of serving the nation. But the first time he attended a state affairs council, he discovered that reality was far more complicated than he had imagined. The veiled antagonism between the Grand Secretariat and the military was apparent even to someone as inexperienced as himself, so hearing the Marshal's answer now did not greatly surprise him.

"Then would the Marshal wish to mediate from within, to dissolve and heal the conflict between the two sides?" he asked further.

"If it could be dissolved, that would be excellent indeed…" The Marshal still could not fathom what the Crown Prince and His Majesty truly intended.

"Father has also observed that of late the army and the Grand Secretariat frequently dispute without resolution, which not only wounds the dignity of the court officials but also brings little benefit to the nation. He therefore wishes to employ some methods to make the two sides more harmonious. For instance… placing a representative body of the military within the Grand Secretariat…"

"What does this mean?" Chen Sheng listened, growing even more puzzled. "His Majesty's meaning… could it be… could it be to establish a Ministry of War within the Grand Secretariat?"

The proposal the Crown Prince mentioned was, in fact, not strange at all. One might say that in previous dynasties, the court had always had a government department overseeing the army and military affairs. The former Ming court, for example, had a Ministry of War, which managed the promotions, pay, logistics, and military maps and records of all troops and commanders under heaven.

However, if they truly did this, would they not be retreading the old path of those previous dynasties?

After the new dynasty was established, in order to elevate the status of soldiers and strengthen military power, it had strictly enforced the principle of separating civil and military spheres. Civil officials had always been barred from commanding troops, and the Grand Secretariat could not direct the various regional commanders and armies. Military command authority was strictly confined within the military itself, answerable and loyal only to the Emperor alone. Though this method brought with it numerous drawbacks, it at least kept the army free from the constraints of civil officials, greatly enhancing the soldiers' motivation to fight. The days of the former Ming, when a Regional Commander could be ordered about by some petty civil official, were seen no more.

It was precisely because the new dynasty strictly enforced this policy of prioritizing military affairs that it could build up strength quietly and then, with the irresistible force of a thunderbolt, sweep through the surrounding nations and tribes, conquering such vast territory for the Great Han.

But now… could it be that His Majesty had changed his thinking? Establishing a military affairs body within the Grand Secretariat would be tantamount to allowing civil officials to meddle in military matters. Would that not become a grave calamity in time? Chen Sheng felt he could not fathom it at all.

Could it be that His Majesty feels the influence of people like us has grown too great, and fears a tail too heavy to wag? If that is truly the case, then… it is too heartbreaking.

"Is this truly His Majesty's… His Majesty's idea?" Chen Sheng, with rare hesitation, asked in a trembling voice.

"Yes, that is exactly what Father told me." The Crown Prince, failing to perceive the Duke of Ji's change in mood, merely explained patiently. "The incessant disputes among the ministers are, after all, no solution. It would be better to establish dedicated military departments within the Grand Secretariat — one department for the Army, one for the Navy — and then select generals of outstanding prestige from the Army and Navy to serve as Grand Secretariat Ministers. These two departmental ministers would then be solely responsible for handling military expenditures and local defense preparations. In this way, the Army and Navy Ministers could confer with the Grand Secretariat at any time, preventing the military from constantly clashing with the Grand Secretariat…"

As the times advanced, military affairs grew ever more complex, and the consumption of funds, grain, and materiel ever greater. Thus the new dynasty also had an urgent need to establish a body to oversee both Army and Navy military affairs: compiling and supervising budgets, researching and developing new weapons, overseeing the arsenals, and archiving maps and other intelligence records — all these tasks required a specialized body to take charge.

"Select generals of outstanding prestige to serve as Grand Secretariat Ministers?" The Crown Prince spoke without ulterior motive, but Chen Sheng felt his spirits lift.

"Yes, that is what Father said." The Crown Prince nodded. "Does the Duke of Ji find anything amiss?"

…His Majesty actually intends to select Army and Navy generals to serve as Grand Secretariat Ministers? Chen Sheng finally understood His Majesty's meaning, and with that his heart was set at ease. In the end, His Majesty had no intention of restricting the military.

He had failed to turn the corner in his thinking all at once.

The separation of civil and military spheres over these years had, while making him secretly rejoice that he was not subject to the constraints of civil officials, also planted in his mind the notion that the civil and military spheres must not interfere with each other. He had never considered that soldiers could involve themselves in political affairs. Besides, he and the other generals were all a bunch of stalwart warriors — could they truly enter the Grand Secretariat and serve as court ministers? If they caused some scandal or blunder then, they would probably make laughingstocks of themselves.

"His Majesty's intention, I naturally dare not cavil at. However… if done this way, might it not throw political affairs into chaos?" he asked cautiously. "Generals like myself have always only known how to lead troops into battle; we truly do not understand literary compositions and official documents."

"Father says that the Army and Navy Ministers will be responsible for military affairs, and need not possess great literary talent. There will be clerks to labor over such things for them; the ministers need only manage the two matters of military expenditure and defense preparations well." The Crown Prince answered with a smile. "Father also said that the Duke of Ji is the best candidate for the first Army Minister."

"Me…?" Although he had already sensed this, when the Crown Prince actually spoke the words, Chen Sheng still found it somewhat unbelievable.

"The Duke of Ji's prestige is weighty and known throughout the realm, and he is, moreover, Father's old brother. Could there be anyone more suitable than the Duke?" the Crown Prince asked with a smile. "Does the Duke not trust Father's judgment?"

What the Crown Prince spoke of was a confidential matter, known to no one else yet besides the Crown Prince and Chen Sheng. However, in the Emperor's mind, establishing dedicated Army and Navy Ministers within the Grand Secretariat was already a foregone conclusion, a matter that must be carried out.

The principle of separating civil and military officials had been a temporary expedient. It was done at the time to sweep away the former Ming's shadow of esteeming the civil and suppressing the military, and to rebuild the confidence of warriors. After several years of cultivation, the self-esteem of warriors had been established, and the realm's discrimination against warriors had greatly improved. Yet the complete separation of civil and military spheres also had many drawbacks, such as poor communication between the upper and lower levels, and difficulty in clarifying budget compilation and expenditure. After all, within a single nation, civil and military affairs could not be completely separated. Moreover, allowing the Army and Navy to be completely independent of the government…

Therefore, establishing Army and Navy Departments within the Grand Secretariat was an imperative.

However, filling the posts of Army and Navy Minister entirely with civil officials would also not do, for that would immediately return to the old path, resulting in the suppression of the military by the civil. Besides, warfare nowadays was a precise science — firearms, cannons, ammunition, logistics, none could be treated lightly. How could civil officials who knew nothing of military affairs be allowed to meddle blindly?

Thus, in order to continue maintaining the status of Army and Navy soldiers, having Army and Navy commanders enter the Grand Secretariat as ministers was only logical.

For the post of Army Minister, the Emperor's first thought had been Chen Sheng. This Marshal's seniority and prestige within the military were the highest. For him to serve as the first Army Minister was perfectly justified and proper; he was the optimal candidate. This matter could not yet be disclosed to the outside, so the Emperor had entrusted the Crown Prince to seek Chen Sheng's opinion and see whether he agreed.

"This…" Because it was all too unexpected, Chen Sheng was still hesitating. "Then… in the future, according to His Majesty's intent, in military council affairs, will the Army Department within the Grand Secretariat take precedence, or the Military Council?"

"Father's meaning is that the Army Department takes precedence; after all, it holds the substance of a ministry." The Crown Prince answered immediately. "The Army Department will be responsible for military administration, ranking first; the Military Council will be responsible for specific battlefield and campaign matters, serving as an advisory and planning auxiliary body. It is precisely to clarify this hierarchy that Father wishes the Duke of Ji to serve as the first Minister, so that the Military Council and the entire Army will be sincerely convinced."

"So that is it… so that is it…" Chen Sheng was suddenly enlightened.

"Uncle, I believe that in this realm, only you are worthy of this post. I implore the Duke to hesitate no longer, lest there be unrest in the court and the country!" The Crown Prince urged again, with sincere earnestness.

The establishment of the Army and Navy Ministers was already imminent, and not only the imperial family, but all the realm would likely see the Duke of Ji as the best candidate. If, when the time came, this post of foremost man of the Army were taken by someone else, the realm would likely draw many unfavorable inferences, and both sides would lose face.

Chen Sheng understood the Crown Prince's implicit meaning.

He finally made his resolve.

This was a result fully deserved, and an affirmation of his own merits. Why should he push it away?

If not me, then who!

"I beg the Crown Prince to report to His Majesty: I… thank His Majesty for his sacred grace! I shall surely labor for the nation, and would not refuse even ten thousand deaths."