Domineering Daming

The little girl curled her lips, picked up the pen and continued to practice calligraphy.

Zhu Xu frowned suddenly, and said, "Is this how the palace spreads it?"

The little girl didn't speak, but concentrated on practicing calligraphy.

Zhu Xu pinched his chin, who taught this, could it be the emperor's wife?not quite like...

"Your Majesty, Mr. Bi Ge is asking to see you." An inner eunuch appeared outside the door and said distantly.

Zhu Xu glanced at the little girl, and said: "Tell me." At this time, it is likely that Qian Qianyi has a general idea about this matter.

Bi Ziyan came in from the outside, seeing Princess Yongning lying there writing, he didn't care, raised his hand and bowed: "I see the emperor."

Zhu Xu sat down, waved his hands, and said, "Excuse me, come here, and move a stool for Master Bi."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Bi Ziyan said without changing his expression.He might have been agitated two or three years ago, but now he knows that the emperor's heart is like the sea, and he tried his best to restrain his expression and be cautious.

Bi Ziyan sat down on the stool, and then said: "Your Majesty, the matter of Qian Qianyi has basically been dealt with, please allow the cabinet a few days to minimize the impact, lest Shilin resentment, in vain There are twists and turns."

Zhu Xu didn't care about this. There is a shortage of people in the South China Sea, and there is no shortage of scholars in Ming Dynasty. Qian Qianyi is enough as a target. There will still be opportunities in the future. He put down his teacup and said, "Well, leave this matter to the cabinet. It must be done. Be clean and tidy, don't be anticlimactic, and forget everything."

Bi Ziyan was a little surprised at Zhu Xu's eloquence, so he hurriedly continued: "Yes, I will go to supervise it in person, and once it is completed, I will report it to the emperor in detail."

Zhu Xu said "Yes", he will be in the cabinet tomorrow, so he is not afraid that they will not do their best.

Bi Ziyan lowered his head and considered his words: "Your Majesty, the cabinet has cleared out the room, and you can enter at any time to deal with government affairs."

Zhu Xu glanced at him and said with a smile: "Well, I will go tomorrow. The cabinet members will not move, and the guards will be replaced by the imperial guards. Cao Huachun, my squadron, will follow, and I will allocate a few small rooms for Cao Huachun to use."

This is a bit like a cabinet—a small cabinet—the emperor, but under such circumstances, the small cabinet does not have the power of the "inner minister" like the former chief inspector.

Bi Ziyan didn't care too much, the supervisor of ceremonies has been down for so long, he almost forgot, raised his hand and said: "Yes."

Bi Ziyan looked up at Zhu Xu again, and said, "Your Majesty, I have some ideas about the reform of the cabinet and the six ministries."

"Speak." Zhu Xu looked at him and picked up the teacup again.

Although Bi Ziyan had a draft in his mind, he has now carefully considered it.

The cabinet system of the Ming Dynasty is actually very complicated. It evolved from the emperor's private secretary and formed after the abolition of the prime minister.But before Zhu Xu's reform, they always existed like "secretaries". implement.

That is to say, in the past, the cabinet could not directly command the six ministries and other agencies. It was always the emperor's "secretary" and "staff" in nature, not a formal court agency, and power was always in the hands of the emperor.

However, after Zhu Xu's reform, the cabinet has become the official institution of Jing Zhengchao, but because the previous six ministries held great power, the cabinet is still in name only and has little real power, which is why reform is urgently needed now.

Chapter 855

After a while, Bi Ziyan said: "Your Majesty, I believe that the appointment and assessment of officials, the budget and allocation of money and food, the affairs of various ministries, and the appointment of key officials should all be decided by the cabinet. Unification is the only way to reach the top and bottom, otherwise it will be scattered, that is, it will not be able to effectively use things, and it will increase internal friction, which is not conducive to the stability of the court, and the implementation of the 'New Deal'..."

Zhu Xu listened quietly, Bi Ziyan didn't go around the bush, he was very direct, and his meaning was very clear. He wanted to seize power from the six ministries and appoint key officials from the six ministries. executive body.

Zhu Xu has no opinion on the centralization of the cabinet. A strong and firm cabinet is necessary to promote government affairs, but the cabinet and the six ministries have their own powers.

These Zhu Xu didn't say anything, and said calmly: "Well, continue."

Bi Ziyan said: "I have discussed carefully with the six ministers, and they all have their own ideas. I have already drawn up a statement. I will invite the emperor first. After a few days, I will hold a cabinet meeting to discuss carefully..."

Zhu Xu didn't speak. He promised Fu Changzong, Zhou Yingqiu and others that he would let them join the cabinet. At this time, he should not make things difficult for Bi Ziyan, and he would not let go of his position.

"...I intend to transfer Sun Chuanting, Prime Minister of Liaodong, into the cabinet, and I ask the emperor for permission. Mr. Sun has rich experience in government affairs in the imperial court and local government affairs, and he is also very capable. I think he is the most suitable to join the cabinet." Bi Ziyan said.

This Zhu Xu knew about it a long time ago, and he also recognized it. He nodded and said: "Sure, order him to go to Beijing to join the court when he is young, and become a scholar of the East Pavilion."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Bi Ziyan glanced at Zhu Xu, and said again: "The New Year is approaching, and everything is complicated. I have drafted a memorial, and I invite the Emperor to read it."

Zhu Xu said "um", reached out to take it, and opened it to read.

He frowned at the first glance. Bi Ziyan's conception of the cabinet was beyond his imagination. He not only took away the personnel power of the Ministry of Officials, the financial power of the Ministry of Households, but also the tax power of the State Administration of Taxation, the royal bank, etc. The coinage, distribution rights, and even the appointment of officials in the last six ministries and nine temples are all in their hands, almost turning all institutions except the cabinet into puppets.There are quite detailed presets for the distribution, decision-making, execution, supervision, review, etc. of the cabinet's government affairs, which seem rather complicated.

At the same time, Bi Ziyan believed that the appointment and dismissal of provincial governors, governor-generals, and prefects of various prefectures should also belong to the cabinet, seeking to strengthen the imperial court's control over the localities.

Then, he also wrote a series of regulations on the field mu system and farmers, hoping to establish a stricter household registration system, control population flow, and lock the people firmly on the ground.

Then he suggested that there should be restrictions on merchants, especially Huitong Commercial Bank, which has been taken over by the cabinet, seeking to split it up to curb the impact of commerce on agriculture, and even made "safe plans" for customs and sea trade.

Zhu Xu watched without moving.

Such a memorandum is actually impeccable in the entire Ming Dynasty, and all the methods are used to deal with the disaster and ensure the stability of the country. The methods and methods are all right.

The only downside is the layout!

Now is an inflection point in the development of the entire world. If you can't make head-on, you will be left far behind, and will stagnate, or even go backwards, while the world outside of Ming Dynasty will change with each passing day and develop by leaps and bounds.

Seeing that Zhu Xu was silent, Bi Ziyan's heart skipped a beat, but he remained patient, lowered his head slightly, and didn't ask any questions.

Zhu Xu looked at this memorial over and over again. There are many merits, and there are also many gaps in his government affairs, but the word "pattern" is enough to obliterate too much.

It’s no wonder that Bi Ziyan said this, even if the Europeans embarked on the age of great exploration, it can only be regarded as an accident. Ottoman blocked the trade channels on the road, which forced them to carry out dangerous sea expeditions. Well, it is too difficult for the Ming people of the Heavenly Kingdom to go to sea, let alone expect the great changes in the world in the future.

Zhu Xu looked up at Bi Ziyan, thinking about what to say.The grown-ups in the imperial court were repeatedly attacked and denied by him. Now he has to be careful to appease them, so as not to really hit their confidence.

After a while, Zhu Xu said: "The cabinet and the six ministries have their own powers. In terms of affiliation, the cabinet governs the six ministries, but it can't monopolize all the six ministries. The cabinet has the powers of the cabinet, and the six ministries have the responsibilities of the six ministries. It is not possible for the cabinet to do everything by itself. We must trust the departments below and give them sufficient autonomy. Only in this way can we mobilize the enthusiasm of everyone and fully deploy all forces, instead of becoming an internal friction in the court... So, for What powers should the cabinet have, what should the six ministries and nine temples have, and how to avoid overstaffing and hindering each other, all of these must be carefully considered and carefully chosen..."

Bi Ziyan was taken aback, and raised his head to look at Zhu Xu strangely.

It's not because of Zhu Xu's words, but his tone, which is not a direct denial or a direct decision in the past, but a tone of "discussion".

Zhu Xu didn't notice Bi Ziyan's expression, he was still thinking about it, and said: "As for the fields you mentioned, Annan and Liaodong are now immigrating, and the relevant policies must be differentiated, and we can't cover them all at the same time. Dilemma, not only to strengthen the control of the local area, but also to investigate the local situation, we can't all decide the important affairs of the country based on the report, especially the Governor's Council, we must pay attention to it, this is an important point for us to understand the local area channel……"

Bi Ziyan lowered his head slightly and said, "Yes."

Zhu Xu glanced at him, and said: "As for the business part, you haven't done enough detail, it's too general. We don't know much about my business environment, business categories, differences between north and south, things are different, etc., and we haven't done it yet. A detailed investigation does not have specific figures, so you can't beat them to death with a single stick. You need to have a specific plan, which ones should be banned, which ones should be cracked down, which ones should be restricted, and which ones should be supported. These must be clearly understood... Especially Hai Mao, I also plan to try it, the cabinet should not stop it, I will see the specific effect first..."

Bi Ziyan listened to Zhu Xu's words, saw that there was no coercion in it, felt a little relieved, and felt reasonable, and said, "Yes."

For Bi Ziyan, Zhu Xu already felt that it was not suitable to be a secondary assistant, but the new secondary assistant still needs time to be cultivated, so he pondered for a while, and said: "Sun Chuanting, go to Beijing as soon as possible, and the cabinet will be completed first."

"Yes." Bi Ziyan said.He is quite satisfied with Sun Chuanting. This man is a man who is upright and capable of both military and political affairs. He is a rare talent.

"About the big discussion, how are your arrangements?" Zhu Xu picked up his teacup and changed the subject.

Bi Ziyan sat up straight and said, "I'm still preparing, what instructions does the emperor have?"

Zhu Xu took a sip of tea and said, "I plan to change the format. Zuo Cifu will convey to the governors of the provinces, the governors, the specific details of the court, all aspects of government affairs, and plans for the next year. They should be detailed, including various aspects, appointment and dismissal of officials, and expenditure of money and food." All of them are included, the provincial governors and governors can ask questions, question, and then discuss the best way. In addition, I am considering opening up a vote of confidence, that is, they vote on each cabinet and six ministers. Those who are below a certain percentage will be removed. transfer..."

Bi Ziyan frowned suddenly, wouldn't the cabinet be subject to local control?

After Zhu Xu finished speaking, Bi Ziyan murmured: "Your Majesty, this move may affect the prestige of the cabinet..."