Rule the Ming Dynasty Alone

When Wang Yue was kneeling on the ground, he found that the air suddenly became quiet, and an inexplicable tension suddenly surged in his heart. He could even hear the pounding of his own heart.

Since the year before last, he has been "doing whatever he wants" locally. Perhaps he is too far away from the royal capital and does not have a strong sense of imperial power.

But now that I have truly come before the emperor, I can truly feel the power of the emperor, and feel that my destiny is actually controlled by the person in front of me.

In fact, he can be said to be the person who has the deepest understanding of imperial power in the world today.

At that time, he was so prosperous as the chief minister of Weining Bo. However, just because of a poem that was deliberately misinterpreted, he was demoted and relegated to Anlu. He felt the cruelty and ruthlessness of the imperial power.

During his exile in Anlu, he witnessed Hu Daniu being forced to death by Li Guangming and Xiao Zhixian, but he deeply felt his helplessness and weakness. But when the emperor's favor comes down, he can majesticly kill officials with a sword, and he also feels that the imperial power can make dead trees bloom again.

Imperial power is like thunder and rain and dew, but as a minister, it can only be interpreted as "thunder and rain are all the kindness of the emperor."

Although he now has the merits of the Prime Minister's Salt Policy and even led the Ming army to defeat the Annan Li Dynasty, he is actually not worth mentioning in the face of absolute imperial power.

In Dongnuan Pavilion, sandalwood curls up.

It was naturally impossible for Zhu Youtang to unleash his thunderous wrath on Wang Yue. At this moment, he was more curious about this later celebrity.

He found that although Wang Yue was tall, he was not burly. He lacked the killing aura of a general and looked more like an iron-clad scholar.

But no matter what, it was the old man in front of him who eliminated the salt problem for him, and even led the Ming army to successfully defeat the Li Dynasty, and he had to be grateful.

Zhu Youtang came back from his thoughts, gently raised his hand and said gently: "Sit down, give me a seat!"

Huh?

Liu Jin was slightly stunned at first, but then he immediately followed the instructions.

Looking at all the civil and military officials in the Manchu Dynasty, the only official who could receive such courtesy was the chief minister of the cabinet, Wan An, but now this Zuodu censor who had returned from the local area was so valued by His Majesty.

Wang Yue thanked him and stood up, feeling flattered.

In fact, he has always had a question in his mind: He has obviously had no contact with Zhu Youtang, but since the emperor ascended the throne, he has not only been revived, but also can be said to have received the strongest support locally.

Not to mention directly awarding Shang Fang the sword to an exiled man, when Yangzhou was in danger, it was the emperor who promptly arranged for Wang Zhi to lead the Nanjing Shenji Battalion to provide support.

Now that he had returned to the capital, he was granted a seat when meeting a saint for the first time, which made him have to wonder how he could get such a holy favor.

Liu Jin brought a stool and made a gesture of invitation.

"Wang Qing, you have worked so hard this year!" Zhu Youtang knew that what Wang Yue did was not easy, so he praised him.

When Wang Yue heard the emperor's personal commendation, he felt moved in his heart. He quickly stood up and expressed his position: "Your Majesty is dedicated to the people, and his ministers should go through fire and water. It's just a small amount of merit and I don't dare to mention the hardship!"

"I have been exiled to Gu Ying for more than two years. I am sad and helpless about the past. It is the joy of autumn harvest, but I don't know that the salt policy has become a tiger. The poor poor family wants to eat salt, but they have nothing to do in the land of hundreds of miles. Today, the emperor's favor suddenly comes, and the old man is young again with a knife. ." Zhu Youtang recently rekindled his interest in poetry and recited Wang Yue's old works.

Wang Yue thought about the resentment and determination at that time, as if it happened yesterday.

In just over a year, he has fulfilled his vow at that time and made remarkable achievements in the salt administration. He also accomplished the feat of slaughtering hundreds of officials in Yangzhou in one day.

Wang Yue didn't know what the emperor was thinking at this time, so he naturally chose to say modestly and resolutely: "My clumsy work cannot be considered elegant, and it makes your majesty laugh!"

"You are still young when you are an old man holding a sword. I like this poem very much!" Zhu Youtang expressed his position pointedly, and then changed the topic: "Normally, you should be reinstated for your military achievements, but do you know why I don't? Do it?"

"I don't dare to presume on the holy will!" Wang Hua vaguely guessed Zhu Youtang's true intention, but he still expressed his stance in a dignified manner.

Zhu Youtang knew that a clear explanation was needed for the conferment of titles, so he looked at Wang Yue seriously: "Once you are reinstated, civil servants can only be granted the title of earl according to the ancestral system, and they are not allowed to interfere with the affairs of the Nine Ministers. Even if I am the emperor, , but it’s not easy to do anything that goes against the ancestral system, so I have to put aside the matter of your restoration and promote you to be the Censor of Zuodu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate."

"Your Majesty is so kind to you, so I can only repay your Majesty's death with my body broken into pieces!" Although Wang Yue had already made some guesses, he knelt down and expressed his stance in emotion.

Ordinarily, the Ming court did owe him a count, and with so many military achievements, it was impossible to be worse than Wang Hua.

It's just that Zhu Youtang's starting point is not to break the ancestral system of "not to intervene in the affairs of the Nine Ministers", so His Majesty's failure to restore him to the rank is a reward, not a ruthless emperor who crosses the river and destroys the bridge.

In terms of power alone, if he was restored to the title, he could only go to the border to serve as the commander-in-chief or governor under the title of an earl, but now he can stay in the capital as the imperial censor of Zuodu, so it is naturally the latter. of greater power.

In fact, it is up to you to choose. I also hope to be able to enter the court and work, instead of standing at the border with a count who might be squeezed out by the civil service group again.

If there was still a feeling of unwillingness earlier, but now that I heard Zhu Youtang personally explain the reasons for not returning to the title, I felt only grateful for meeting Bole.

"Wang Qing, I actually hope that you can hold a sword as young as you are, cut off those moths for the Ming Dynasty, and create a real prosperous age of China with me!" Zhu Youtang knew that Wang Yue was a scholar who cared about the common people, so he seriously Looking at Wang Yue.

When Wang Yue met Zhu Youtang's gaze, he also realized that the emperor in front of him had lofty ambitions, and expressed firmly with his eyes: "I am willing to serve your majesty till my death!"

Liu Jin stood nearby and witnessed this scene, vaguely feeling that the court in the second year of Hongzhi would be very different.

"With Wang Qing's help, I will no longer be timid. Sit down first!" Zhu Youtang felt much more at ease and immediately came up with a plan that he had already drawn up.

Wang Yue saluted and took his seat, then received a planning document sent by Liu Jin.

"If the Metropolitan Procuratorate really wants to do something, it will inevitably encounter some difficulties, and it also needs more manpower to conduct investigations. Therefore, I have decided to increase the manpower to the Metropolitan Procuratorate and prepare to establish a search office affiliated with the Metropolitan Procuratorate. The search office is temporarily divided into five groups. Each group leader's grade is designated as a thousand-household level, and they are mainly recruited from among the soldiers and martial arts scholars who have made meritorious service in the southern expedition. Each group is responsible for assisting an official of the Metropolitan Procuratorate in Beijing to verify hundreds of officials." Zhu Youtang saw Wang Yue Browse through your own plan and state your plan in a nutshell.

The corruption of officialdom in the Ming Dynasty was caused by many reasons. Originally, the vanguards of the anti-corruption campaign were Jinyiwei and Dongchang, but these two yamen had already been infiltrated.

In particular, the Jinyiwei not only have hereditary officers, but also the children of Wu Xun and the second generation of officials are constantly filling in. As a result, there are fewer and fewer Jinyiwei who are actually serving as officers. They will even treat the officials arrested by the emperor as their ancestors.

Originally, the most effective anti-corruption department was the West Factory, but the civil service group naturally did not allow such a terrifying department to exist. In the end, even the factory director Wang Zhi almost died.

After Zhu Youtang ascended the throne, he actually thought about cleaning up the Jinyiwei, and also planned to support the Wang Xiang. However, this is not a novel after all, and it cannot be a sentence or two that can make the Jinyiwei reborn.

There are hereditary, second-generation, and people who have already been loyal to them, and there are even a lot of informants. The problem cannot be solved by changing the Jinyiwei commander at all.

The most effective way to solve the problem is to start a new stove. The West Factory is actually another stove of the East Factory. Now the Inspection Office of the Metropolitan Procuratorate can also become another stove of Jinyiwei.

Originally, this idea was difficult to implement. After all, the search office was under the jurisdiction of civilian officials, but Wang Yue's return made this matter feasible.

A person who dares to slaughter hundreds of officials in one day can naturally sharpen his sword to chop down other corrupt officials.

Wang Yue read the plan quickly, but suddenly reminded him seriously: "Your Majesty's move is suspected of allowing the Metropolitan Procuratorate to support troops!"

"The search office can only have more than a hundred people, and they are divided into five groups, so we can't talk about supporting troops!" Zhu Youtang knew that there was no precedent of integrating officers into the central government office, so he was calmly qualitative.

Wang Yue knew that the civil service group did not want a strong Metropolitan Procuratorate to appear, so he reminded bitterly: "Your Majesty, whether it is to support troops or not, the resistance to this matter is probably not small."

"Wang Qing is worrying too much. This resistance will not make me give in. You only need to wait for the personnel to arrive!" Zhu Youtang shook his head gently, and then directly arranged: "I heard that while you are here, your Your grandson Wang Yu has helped you a lot, and your adopted grandson Hu Jun is also a talented person, so the two of them will serve as the deputy leaders of the first team of the search department to help you supervise the officials!"

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!" Wang Yue did not expect that His Majesty would do such a thing, and he saluted gratefully.

If his grandson and Hu Jungong are there to drive him, not only will he be able to do things more easily, but he will also be able to find a good future for these two younger generations.

Regardless of whether the deputy team leader is Deputy Qianhu or Baihu, if he can work in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, his identity and status cannot be compared to that of local military positions.

Of course, what excites him the most is the establishment of the Search Agency. Only by having more capable officers can we get things done, instead of being a mere commander who goes to fight with the entire civil service group.

Zhu Youtang's original intention was to let Wang Yue do things for him better, so he formally raised a difficult question: "I have always made clear rewards and punishments! Now that the Metropolitan Procuratorate has a search office, it can also give you greater personnel rights in the future. , but I happen to have a very difficult matter in hand right now that needs you to deal with!"

"The case of the Marquis of Huichang?" Wang Yue heard about the case just after arriving in Beijing and immediately guessed.

Zhu Youtang shook his head gently, and then handed a piece of information to Liu Jin: "During the investigation of the Huichang Hou case, Shuntian Mansion raided Changsheng Pawnshop and found that this pawnshop has been mainly selling Beijing debt. In one of the Although the name of the official is not listed in this secret book, the amount on it is shocking."

Beijing debt refers to a kind of debt activity in which loan sharks in the capital specifically lend money to officials who are candidates or are about to take office in Beijing. Because its interest income is very high, more and more powerful people are participating in it, and it is becoming more and more popular.

Even the technology companies of later generations know that lending is the most profitable, not to mention that in today's farming society, Beijing debt is simply the pillar industry of the capital.

"Your Majesty, as far as I know, it is common for many officials to borrow Beijing debt to go to their posts!" Wang Yue was slightly stunned at first, and then reminded him seriously.

Zhu Youtang smiled bitterly and stated the truth directly: "If a loan costs thousands of taels, do you still think it is just as simple as raising travel expenses?"

"Ah? Why are there so many?" Wang Yue's eyes couldn't help but widen, and he asked in confusion.

Zhu Youtang sighed secretly and shared his investigation results: "After investigation, these loans are no longer limited to travel expenses, but are mainly used to bribe officials in the capital, or perhaps to pay tribute."

Involution is prevalent in any era.

Originally, the selection of officials in the Ming Dynasty was very strict and had a complete operating mechanism. It's just that a small group of officials used Beijing debt to pay bribes in order to seek a future or to protect their official positions.

After all, the official responsible for verifying the officials is not a saint, but a mortal body, and naturally he hopes to gain benefits. Faced with the bribe money sent by the marquis, he finally chose to accept it. After that, officials were almost all selected based on money.

Seeing that the selection was becoming more and more unfair, other local officials also chose to follow suit and borrowed Beijing debt to seek office. As for how to repay, they naturally had to return to the local area to find ways to make money.

It is precisely because of this that big corruption like Li Zhiqing appeared in Yangzhou, and more and more local officials are squeezing the people to repay their debts.

Wang Yue was also secretly frightened, and couldn't help but angrily expressed his stance: "Since you have fallen to this level?"

"The prevalence of Beijing debt will destroy the government! I originally wanted to let Dongchang handle it, but now I want to hand this matter over to you. I hope you can find out all the money lending agencies. I want you to catch them all!" Zhu Youtang clearly said Aware of the dangers of Beijing debt, it was also entrusted.

Wang Yue once again felt that he had a heavy responsibility. If the salt policy was to allow the people to eat low-price salt, the current clearing of the Beijing debt was to prevent the people from being squeezed.

Even officials who originally harbored lofty ideals of governing the country and ensuring peace and stability had no choice but to take risks and choose the path of corruption once they fell into the quagmire of Beijing's debt.

The best thing to do now is to cut off this source of evil, so that newcomers to the officialdom who cherish the idea of ​​governing the country will not be polluted by the general environment, but can be good officials who make decisions for the people.

Wang Yue was no longer an impulsive person. He looked serious and said: "Your Majesty, I have a request!"

"Say!" Zhu Youtang looked at Wang Yue's serious look and looked seriously into Wang Yue's eyes.

Wang Yue swallowed his saliva and made a request: "I hope that this year I will select a few young officials from among the new Jinshi to enter the Metropolitan Procuratorate as Jinshi to observe politics, so that they can do things for me!"

"You don't believe those officials from the Metropolitan Procuratorate! It's just that when it comes to this matter, I'm afraid you need to do it yourself!" Zhu Youtang said mysteriously knowing that Wang Yue really wanted to accomplish something.