Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

The Yamen of the Ministry of Industry seemed a bit empty.

Just a few days after Li Gang was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Industry, something like this happened, and 60% of his subordinate officials were taken away.

They all went to Dali Temple to drink tea.

"The Ministry of Industry cannot be in chaos. We must ask your Majesty to quickly recruit more officials!" Zhao Fengji, the left minister, said.

In terms of qualifications and achievements in the Ming Dynasty, Zhao Fengji far surpassed Li Gang, not to mention his great achievements in controlling the Yellow River.

The reason why he was placed below Li Gang was because Ju Ming was deliberately suppressing the "meritorious group".

Today's cabinet has become a cabinet of heroes.

Of the seven cabinet ministers, six had surrendered before Zhu Ming took Xiangyang, and one had defected during the Northern Expedition to Kaifeng.

These people have already formed a group of their own accord. They must control the six departments again and mix in some sand to become ministers.

Of course, although Zhao Fengji did not become a minister, his official rank was higher than that of Li Gang. Due to his great achievements in regulating the Yellow River, he not only had the official title of "Special Advancement", but was also named the Prince's Young Master, and was awarded the title of Viscount as a civil servant.

Therefore, it was very uncomfortable for Li Gang to be an official. If he met Zhao Fengji outside the yamen of the Ministry of Industry, he would have to step out of the way and salute his subordinates.

Li Gang sighed and said: "The official department is also under investigation. The current doctor of the Wenxuan Department has been arrested. The previous doctor of the Wenxuan Department was released to Shandong, and the Ministry of Punishment has also sent people to Shandong to arrest him. The official department is in chaos, how can we quickly provide relief? The Ministry of Industry is replacing officials?”

Zhao Fengji said: "We can only ask His Majesty and the cabinet to select officials themselves, bypassing the staff."

…

Bai Chongyan, the official secretary, was having dinner with Ju Ming in the palace at the moment.

"Sun Rugui, the doctor of the literary selection department, is your person, right?" Zhu Ming asked while chewing the mutton.

Bai Chongyan put down his chopsticks: "It was indeed promoted by me. This person was the first Jinshi of the Ming Dynasty. He was quite talented when he was a local official, and he was known for his upright character and incorruptibility. Could it be that Qin Hui was messing around when he was arrested this time? Climbing and biting?”

Ju Ming said: "A few hours ago, Sun Rugui confessed."

Bai Chongyan opened his mouth in shock and looked at the emperor stupidly.

Ju Ming sighed: "I'm very happy that you didn't get involved. I'm very disappointed that you kept the Ministry of Personnel in check. Zeng Xiaoduan, the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was also arrested just now. Sun Rugui, the person you promoted, secretly followed Zeng Xiaoduan. If you get together, they will join forces behind your back to corrupt the law and cultivate party members. "

"How could Zeng Xiaoduan be like this?" Bai Chongyan couldn't believe it.

When Ju Ming was the magistrate of Jinzhou, he once defended a scholar, restored his mother's innocent reputation, and even helped him get back his family property.

This scholar is Zeng Xiaoduan, who was promoted to left minister of the Ministry of Personnel this year.

When he learned that Zeng Xiaoduan had been confessed, Zhu Ming was so angry that he threw an inkstone in the palace. The anger caused by being betrayed was even more difficult to accept than hearing that Min Zishun was involved.

"Official family." A eunuch shouted at the gate of the courtyard.

Ju Ming asked: "What's the matter?"

The eunuch replied: "The Sanfa Division has sent someone to deliver Zeng Xiaoduan's preliminary confession urgently."

"Why so fast?" Zhu Ming asked in surprise.

The eunuch said: "According to the officials of the Third Law Department, Zeng Xiaoduan cried loudly after being arrested, claiming that he was ungrateful and could not live up to His Majesty. He answered whatever was asked, and added what he did not ask, and was willing to die quickly to repay Your Majesty's kindness. "

"Oh, bring it here." Ju Ming sighed.

The eunuch presented the confession, and Ju Ming couldn't bear to read it.

The confession showed that Zeng Xiaoduan violated the law for the first time eight years ago because he ran for office for the younger brother of his wife. At that time, he had not yet been transferred to the Ministry of Personnel and could not bear his wife's pleading, so he asked an official who violated the relationship to be transferred to another position.

If it ends here, it’s actually nothing.

But after his brother found out, he also came to ask for an official position. She also said that when her mother was still alive, she wanted to see their brothers achieve success. Balabala cried and complained.

Zeng Xiao thought about his late mother, and then thought that his wife's brother was already an official, so why couldn't his own brother?

He first got his younger brother a small official position in his hometown, and he jumped through several ranks within a year. He even took the opportunity to visit relatives in his hometown and hinted that local officials had tampered with his brother's files and directly promoted him to a first-class official. He was successfully transferred to a rank officer the following year.

My wife's brother and my biological brother have both become officials, so of course my brother-in-law cannot be left behind.

Until Zeng Xiaoduan was transferred to the Ministry of Personnel, he went crazy to promote three relatives. His brother-in-law even promoted him to the government.

Zeng Xiaoduan could not arrange for relatives to be promoted officials in the seventh-grade mansion. Zeng Xiaoduan could not do it alone. He had to collude with the doctor of the Wenxuan Department who was in charge of the matter. When he asks others to do things, he naturally has to reciprocate the favor, or at least turn a blind eye.

Throughout the process, many bribes were accepted.

Zeng Xiaoduan confessed all the officials who had been promoted illegally over the years, a total of fifty-seven!

These fifty-seven people were only promoted by Zeng Xiaoduan.

There are more low-level officials. The doctor of the Literature and Selection Department can make the final decision. He can just submit the report to the minister and minister for review and signature.

Ju Ming handed the confession to Bai Chongyan.

After Bai Chongyan finished reading, he couldn't speak for a long time.

He trusted too much in the literary selection department doctor he promoted, and he also trusted Zeng Xiaoduan not to act recklessly. Bai Chongyan casually looked at the official election documents submitted by those two guys, and then directly signed and stamped them for approval.

In other words, most top leaders are like this, and it is impossible to verify everything carefully.

One is a very senior second-in-command, and the other is a confidant he promoted. The two of them work together to deceive, how can Bai Chongyan control him? It is difficult to review carefully, and the written materials must have been done perfectly.

Ju Ming said: "Don't be a minister of the Ministry of official affairs for the time being, and go to practice as a magistrate."

"Yes." Bai Chongyan felt bitter in his heart.

The cases of Zeng Xiaoduan and Sun Rugui were not confessed by Qin Hui.

Qin Hui was so afraid of death that he wanted to squeeze out a toothpaste-like confession. Only a few confessions were made at a time, and then the Sanfa Division was asked to investigate, slowly delaying time so that one could live a few more months.

He only confessed Feng Youlai, the former director of the Literary Selection Department, who was Min Zishun's confidant.

However, Bai Chongyan's close confidant Sun Rugui, who was frightened to death because of his promotion, was arrested by the Third Law Division to try his luck for trial.

Sun Rugui saw Qin Hui being taken away with his own eyes, and soon he was also arrested, thinking that he was confessed by Qin Hui. Ever since, this guy couldn't hold back his stubbornness until the third day. He kept talking more and more and finally confessed Zeng Xiaoduan.

…

Bai Chongyan left the palace in despair. When he returned to Shangshu's official residence, his wife said that Bai Chongwu had been waiting for a long time.

Bai Chongwu has been the governor of Shijian City for several years. It is definitely a lie to say that he did not make any money, but the amount is not large and can be ignored. After returning from Japan, Bai Chongwu gradually rose in rank and is now the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue, who happens to be Qin Hui's right-hand man.

"Third brother, are you okay?" Bai Chongwu asked in fear.

Bai Chongyan smiled bitterly: "It's okay. Your Majesty was merciful and didn't criticize me too harshly. He was just demoted to the position of prefect."

Bai Chongwu breathed a long sigh of relief: "That's good, that's good."

"Where are you?" Bai Chongyan asked.

Bai Chongwu said: "It has been just over a year since I was transferred to the Ministry of Revenue, and Qin Hui has just been transferred to the Ministry of household affairs. Qin Hui and I have nothing to do with each other. There are so many gold and silver mountains overseas, and the sky is high and the emperor is far away, but I can restrain myself from making any fuss." Making money, how can you be corrupt and pervert the law when you return to the capital?"

Bai Chongyan said: "I just want my brother to be safe."

"Yes, it's good to be safe. What this official did was frightening," Bai Chongwu said. "When Qin Hui's case is over, I will retire and go to Jiangnan to settle down."

Bai Chongyan said in surprise: "My brother is an honest official, why is he like this?"

Bai Chongwu stood up and closed all the doors and windows: "One family does not speak the same language. I was greedy when I was an official in the Song Dynasty. How can I not be greedy when I am an official in the Ming Dynasty? It's just that I know the emperor's temper, so I have become cautious and restrained. I When I was a governor overseas, I made a total of 30,000 yuan..."

"Second brother is confused!" Bai Chongyan was shocked.

Bai Chongwu lowered his voice: "Don't worry, there are mountains of gold and silver everywhere there, what does thirty thousand guan mean? I did it very covertly, and it was impossible to be found out. When I returned to the capital, I never embezzled a penny again. The emperor punishes corruption. It’s so scary.”

Bai Chongyan is a very decent person, even a bit pedantic, but his ability is a little mediocre. After serving as an official for more than 20 years, he was actually able to be fooled by his deputies and confidants, without even knowing that he was being deceived by the cooperation.

When he heard that his second brother had embezzled tens of thousands of yuan, he suddenly felt uneasy and walked around the house anxiously for fear of being found out.

Bai Chongwu looked a little upset: "Sit down, don't go back and forth again. Qin Hui's case this time is very big. Anyway, I don't dare to be an official anymore. I just run to Jiangnan to settle down and stay away from the court." "

Bai Chongyan said: "Second brother, why don't you surrender."

"What did you say?" Bai Chongwu thought he heard wrongly.

"Surrender yourself." Bai Chongyan said.

Bai Chongwu was speechless for a moment: "Why should I surrender? I am the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue. I have only embezzled less than 40,000 yuan in more than ten years, and I can be a model for upright officials in the world. And I have decided to retire from illness. Why should I surrender after leaving the capital?"

Bai Chongyan asked: "Can't you really find out?"

Bai Chongwu said with a smile: "Don't say that the Three Law Departments couldn't find out, even when I asked them to investigate my officials and officials, I couldn't find them out. Those officials and officials at most suspected that I was making money, and even this suspicion I’m not sure. If anyone can really find out, I’ll be beheaded.”

"I hope so." Bai Chongyan sighed.

Bai Chongwu sat in front of his desk, stretched and said, "It's best if you're okay this time. I'm afraid something will happen to you. I don't have any ambitions. When I was in Xixiang County, I just wanted to get more wealth." day."

"I am considered rich now. The salary over the years, the rewards from His Majesty, and the small things I made... By the way, there is also the house that His Majesty rewarded. It would be a lot of money to sell it. I won't move to Jiangnan. If you want to live in a big city, choose a small place in the countryside, move with your wife and children and become a rich man without having to worry about anything, it will be a happy life just thinking about it.”

"My sons have no future, so I can only train my grandchildren. When they get older, if any of them has the talent to study, they will send them to the Supreme Emperor with a shameless face to study with the Supreme Emperor and then take the imperial examination."

Bai Chongyan didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Second brother has thought it through."

"I know how capable I am," Bai Chongwu warned. "After I leave the capital, you must not take bribes and bend the law, nor form gangs with anyone, and be your honest and loyal minister. You are too disrespectful to your own people." There is no need to be defensive. As long as they have a good relationship with you, you will think they are good people. Let me tell you, those people have dark hearts!"

Bai Chongyan thought about what happened today and bowed sincerely: "Brother taught you a very good lesson."

Bai Chongwu pointed to the northeast, which is Min Zishun's official residence: "Even if Min Zishun doesn't die this time, he will definitely shed his skin!"

"Is he really corrupt?" Bai Chongyan asked.

Bai Chongwu said: "I don't know if he is corrupt or not, but when he was in the Ministry of Personnel, he promoted many officials to be his cronies. He may not have been corrupt, but the people he promoted in violation of regulations probably committed many crimes. Moreover, he was in charge of the national treasury warehouse for several years, and the money and grain passed through his hands like water. I don't believe he can really bear it."

Bai Chongyan said in disbelief: "Is he that kind of person?"

Bai Chongwu patted his brother's shoulder: "Take care of yourself, I'm leaving first. Remember, don't be corrupt and don't form cliques. People like you are suitable to be lone ministers."