The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 321

Before the court meeting the next day, most of the ministers had just heard that Zhang Zhou had returned to the capital the day before yesterday.

"Come back? Why don't you see him coming to court? Or..."

"Perhaps he is in the palace now?"

When people in the court mentioned Zhang Zhou, they all avoided it a little, but they were still very envious. After returning to Beijing, they had a small meeting with the emperor before the court meeting, and even went to the court meeting with the emperor.

No one else has this kind of treatment.

Many people also went to ask Ma Wensheng and the three members of the cabinet about Zhang Zhou's return to Beijing.

The four of them had also never met Zhang Zhou, and they didn't know where Zhang Zhou was now. Naturally, they didn't know Zhang Zhou's arrangements after returning to Beijing, especially those involving Zhang Zhou's official position.

Until Zhu Youtang appeared at Fengtianmen and the court meeting began, Zhang Zhou was not seen.

Everyone began to wonder again, was the news of Zhou's return to Beijing just speculation?

"Everyone, Bingkuan returned to Beijing yesterday, and I have announced that I have seen him." Zhu Youtang took the initiative to bring up Zhang Zhou's topic during the court meeting.

Everyone held their breath and concentrated, knowing that they might soon get to the point.

Zhu Youtang said: "I originally wanted to regard him as the Duke of Lai. This matter has been stated in the court, but in his opinion, he still wants to do more things for the court. He is not in a hurry about the title."

Can you do this?

You don't need a title, don't worry?When are you in a hurry?When he is old?Or is he ready for the next military exploit?

Zhu Youtang added: "What I told him was the title of the Duke of Lai. I wrote it down for him first, and I will add the title to him at some point in the future."

"what!?"

The ministers present were in an uproar.

Previously, because of Zhang Zhou's merits in the two battles of Piantouguan and Ningyuan, the emperor said that he would bestow him with a title. At that time, it was agreed that the title should be recorded first, which was the result of separate internal discussions with cabinet ministers and others.

It has not been made public like today.

When the ministers heard it, the emperor was clearly treating Zhang Zhou as a special person, remembering not to reward him for his merits, just to let him harm us in the civil service system, and give him a title when he is done harming... Such?

Xie Qian came out and said, "Your Majesty, if you make meritorious deeds, you will be rewarded. If he makes any mistakes in governing the army in the future and has to convict because of this, then I'm afraid it will be difficult to maintain his current title."

"What Xie Ge said is very true."

Immediately a spokesperson came out to agree.

Zhu Youtang said: "What you mean is that if Bingkuan makes any serious mistakes in the court in the future, the title will not be rewarded? Otherwise! No matter whether I trust him or not in the future, even if I suddenly drive him one day Go to the west of Hexi, let the crown prince ascend the throne, today's discussion should also count."

Xie Qian listened.

Good guy, the emperor used his own life as an example. Do you still want to say that even if the Ming Dynasty dies and the dynasty changes, today's discussion will still count?

What's the use of just talking here?

Zhu Youtang saw that these ministers were very dissatisfied with this, and his attitude gradually became tough: "Although the use of troops in the Northwest has now mostly relied on Qin Hong, who is in charge of the trilateral military affairs, it involves future plans and policies, etc. In other matters, we have to rely on Bingkuan. I left him in the court instead of running the army in the Dudu's mansion, is there any fault in this?"

Hearing this, Xie Qian bowed his head and retreated to his seat.

"I regard him as a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy. This is a decision made after the completion of the "Da Ming Hui Dian", so that he can often come and go in and out of the East Palace to teach the prince. He does not need to attend to lectures on the feast day. Speaking, but it should be taught to the prince; I regard him as the left governor of the post-military governor's mansion, and ask more about military affairs; Advise the imperial court and me; if he is the left servant of the Ministry of War, he will conduct daily military affairs and ask for advice, and he does not need to supervise the affairs of the Ministry, but he can enter and leave the court."

"The Martial Arts Hall was founded by me, as the left servant of the Ministry of War, and it was also taught by the Martial Arts Hall, so as to promote the artillery and firearms of the Ming Dynasty, as well as the daily dispatch and training of the Shenji Battalion."

The emperor arranged a series of positions for Zhang Zhou.

Zhang Zhou himself had never heard of many of these positions, and it was the first time for the ministers present to hear about them. Especially when they heard that Zhang Zhou was going to hold the official positions of the three major yamen of the Imperial Academy, the Governor's Mansion, and the Ministry of War, the ministers present immediately exploded.

Zuodu censor Min Gui came out and said: "Your Majesty, this is absolutely impossible. Even though Zhang Zhou has military merits, his time as an official is still short, and he has no achievements and achievements in governing the ministry. He doesn't even have the experience of watching politics in the Sixth Ministry, so to promote him to the left servant of the Ministry of War will inevitably cause turmoil in the court."

Zhu Youtang said: "The turbulence you mentioned means that people's hearts are not convinced?"

Min Gui gritted his teeth, held up the wat board and said, "Exactly."

The dissatisfaction is really dissatisfaction, not to say dissatisfaction with Zhang Zhou's credit, but dissatisfaction with a new Jinshi who has only been in the court for half a year, and has already become the left servant of the Ministry of War and has added so many official titles.

Bai Ang, Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, also came out and said, "Your Majesty, there is nothing wrong with giving a title to someone based on his military achievements, but there is no precedent for him to be promoted to the Ministry because of his military achievements."

This means that we don't have any opinions on how much merit he has and how much honor he has.

Whether it was the founding of the country, or later Jingnan, border affairs, meritorious generals or officials were honored, there are precedents. Just for civil servants, there are two men, Wang Ji and Wang Yue.

Zhu Youtang said: "There is no precedent? Previously, the Marquis of Jingyuan won the title, and because of his success in seizing the door, he also managed the affairs of the Ministry of War. Your family will not be impressed by this?"

This refers to Wang Ji. At the beginning, he won the title of the Minister of the Ministry of War by conquering the south and the north, and retired as the uncle of Jingyuan. The Shangshu of the Ministry of War is equivalent to Shi Pu being transferred out after Yu Qian was killed, and Wang Ji came out to preside over the Ministry of War.

But soon Wang Ji voluntarily handed over his power, and he retired after completing the transition.

The matter of expediency was used by Zhu Youtang as a precedent, but it is still quite convincing...Zhu Youtang probably reminded the ministers present that I did not let Bingkuan directly use Lai Guogong as the Ministry of War Shang Shu, I'm giving you face, if you beep again, believe it or not, I will tear myself apart with you?

……

……

In the hall, there was a moment of stalemate.

The emperor seemed to be angry, but the ministers were dissatisfied, but they couldn't refute the examples given by the emperor, and because Zhang Zhou's military merits were indeed not easy to refute, meritorious service is meritorious service, the emperor did not confer titles, but directly gave The position of the left servant of the Ministry of War is unreasonable and unreasonable, and there is nothing wrong with saying it is reasonable.

It's just a matter of seeing the emperor's mood.

Now the emperor just wants to support Zhang Zhou... What can they do?
The most embarrassing person present was Wang Zongyi, the left servant of the Ministry of War.

Since he became the Minister of the Ministry of War, he has been living in the shadow of Zhang Zhou and Wang Yue. Even the Minister of the Ministry of War, Ma Wensheng, has nothing to do with Zhang Zhou and Wang Yue, let alone him.

Liu Jian came out and said, "Your Majesty, it's acceptable to take Zhang Zhou as the left servant of the Ministry of War. But since he doesn't care about the affairs of the Ministry, who should take care of him? It's appropriate to start with the affairs of the Imperial Academy because he is also the Ministry of War. .”

meaning is.

The Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War is the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War. We have no objection, but the problem is that he, the Zuo Shilang, should be a part-time job. Didn’t His Majesty say that he should continue to be a bachelor in the Imperial Academy and teach the prince?Then make that his job.

Zhu Youtang got a little angry when he heard it.

If it's a part-time job, why use him as the left servant of the Ministry of War?When I was in the northwest, I was also the Shangshu of the Ministry of War and the Censor of Zuodu!

Back to court to give him a left servant, of course, let him be the real card.

Attending a bachelor's degree is a full-time job, and so is the Taichang Temple Minister, and the Zuo Dudu of the military governor's mansion is also a full-time job, and the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War must also be a full-time job!What I told you is that you want both, otherwise what else would I tell you?
Zhu Youtang said: "Don't you think Mr. Liu Ge thinks that he is not competent?"

Liu Jian said: "Your Majesty, the old minister doesn't understand what he means. Since he is the left servant of the Ministry of War, why not let him take care of the affairs of the Ministry of War?"

According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty, Zuo Shilang is in charge of the main affairs of each ministry. Follow the primary and secondary.

After all, Zhu Youtang had made it clear before that Zhang Zhou was not required to take care of the affairs of the Ministry of War, so Liu Jian proposed to take him as a part-time job.

Zhu Youtang said coldly: "I just miss him. He can't stay in the office of the Ministry of War, so he will hand over the affairs of the Ministry to others. His prestige, he is the best candidate for coordination and overall planning! As for Wang Zongyi, the left servant of the Ministry of War..."

"The minister is here." Wang Zongyi finally walked out, feeling as if he was transparent.

Is it too disregarding my face to replace me when there is someone in the position?
Zhu Youtang said: "I will take you as the left servant of the Ministry of Industry and the admiral of Yizhou Mountain Factory. That's it!"

The people present looked at each other in blank dismay.

Admiral Yizhou Shanchang means to be responsible for raising charcoal for the imperial court. Before Jiajing, one person was also the Minister of the Ministry of Industry or the Minister of the Ministry of Industry to take care of this matter, which is equivalent to a part-time job. I went... so much so that after arriving in Jiajing, they were all taken care of by the doctor of the Ministry of Industry, and later the head of the Ministry of Industry was in charge, which also shows how unpopular this job is.

But now Wang Zongyi is clearly the genuine Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War, but he is directly transferred to the admiral Yizhou Mountain Factory, which is no different from being left out in the cold.

The emperor seemed to be saying "canonize the queen and put him in the cold palace", and Wang Zongyi's mood fell into an ice cellar in an instant.

"I just want to find a capable person to take care of the Ministry of War affairs. Therefore... I hope you can understand me."

The ministers present listened.

Probably the emperor felt that kicking Wang Zongyi out of the ice cellar was not enough to relieve his anger, so he threw a few big ice cubes inside to make him freeze quickly.

Those who are able to take care of it mean that Wang Zongyi is not capable?
Wang Zongyi's face was blushing. Although they are all Zuo Shilang, he is the real part-time job as the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Industry. It is impossible for the admiral to take care of the affairs of the Ministry of Engineering. Those charcoals are getting by... Even if I go back and continue to be the right servant of the Ministry of Industry, why does this bring people to death?

……

……

Zhu Youtang's attitude was so firm that the ministers present did not know how to oppose it.

Not to mention that there is someone in the position of the left servant of the Ministry of War, even if there is a vacancy, the next candidate should be decided by court recommendation, and the emperor's move almost relied on the power of one person to push Zhang Zhou to this position.

But...even Liu Jian and other cabinet members are not easy to come out to object.

On this matter, Ma Wensheng, Minister of the Ministry of War, opened the skylight directly and did not say a word.

It gave people the impression that the emperor had already dealt with Ma Wensheng in advance, but the actual situation was that the emperor had not greeted Ma Wensheng at all in advance.

"Everyone, this matter is settled like this!"

Zhu Youtang's attitude was firm, "Actually, before Bingkuan returned to Beijing, I mentioned that I wanted to arrange an official position for him, and you didn't raise any objections at that time. If it was only because I gave him the position of the left servant of the Ministry of War, you would have to criticize him." If he has any prejudices, I feel that those people have not considered the overall situation."

Hats off?
All the ministers were silent.

Wu Xun is gloating over there.

Let you civil servants keep reminding the emperor to let Zhang Bingkuan be the Duke of Lai, because you have lame eyes. You didn’t see that the emperor used Zhang Bingkuan to arbitrate power against your civil servants. We Wu Xun didn’t provoke anyone. You are oppressing!How could the emperor treat us as imaginary enemies?

"I still have one more thing to mention right now, which is the candidate for the governor of Liaodong. I asked you to discuss it before, but who can you choose?"

Zhu Youtang stopped discussing with this group of ministers how to arrange an official position for Zhang Zhou, and instead directly talked about the more direct candidate for the governor of the border town.

Ma Wensheng finally came out and said, "The Ministry of War recommended Yang Yiqing, the Minister of Taichang Temple in Nanjing."

Doesn't the emperor like to use newcomers?

Then our traditional civil service forces are no longer as step-by-step as before, and we always have to compete with some capable people, just like the promotion of Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu in the selection of Hanlin bachelor candidates, this is also to adapt to the trend.

"What else?" Zhu Youtang asked.

Tu Yu, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, said: "And there is Hong Han, the former governor of Datong."

One is new and one is old, one is capable and the other is experienced, it can be said that they complement each other.

Just when the ministers thought that the new Governor of Liaodong was about to be elected from among the two, the Tongzheng Envoy, Zuo Tongzheng Shen Lu, came out and said, "I recommend Lu Wan, the supervisory censor of Shaanxi Province."

"Ok?"

Everyone looked over with puzzled eyes.

What's the matter with you, Shen Lu, at this time?It's fine if you come out to join in the fun, it's recommended... Who is this person?

Zhu Youtang said: "Okay, if you don't have any opinions, then choose the new governor of Liaodong from among the three, and it will be decided in two days. Retire!"

The emperor was too lazy to discuss other matters with the ministers.

He did not directly decide to let Lu Wanlai be the governor of Liaodong. On the issue of Zhang Zhou, the relationship between the monarch and his ministers was very tense, and the emperor had to give each other some leeway, although Zhu Youtang was also very good at using Lu Wan. Firm, but he still wants to give the minister the illusion that everything is in accordance with the rules.

……

……

The court was dissolved.

Unlike in the past when all the ministers left the court, they were all filled with righteous indignation to discuss court affairs, this time the ministers were relatively calm.

The main reason is that the emperor's intention to reuse Zhang Zhou is too obvious. He already had psychological expectations before, but now he just fulfilled the expectations. Anyway, only Wang Zongyi suffered losses, and the rest...does it really have such a big impact?
to oppose?
How to object?

Didn't Bai Ang and Min Gui speak loudly enough in the hall before?From what angle can we evaluate Zhang Zhoude's lack of coordination?

The point is, it seems that the upper echelons of the Chinese officials, especially the cabinet ministers and the Minister of the Ministry of War, seem to have acquiesced in the matter of Zhang Zhousheng, the left servant of the Ministry of War. The way of playing is to persuade.

Just when the court meeting ended...

Zhang Zhouren is at home and hasn't stayed yet.

It is Xiaobiesheng newlyweds.

A trip to the Northwest can be regarded as an experience of life and death. When you come back and see your beautiful wife and concubine at home, why don't you hurry up and cherish it?
Wang Mingshan's pregnancy with Liujia should not be too much trouble, but anyway, the first three months of pregnancy have passed...the first three and the last three...women who have had childbearing experience know the way, even in this year, they will probably follow this principle Come.

Zhang Zhou was still sleeping at home, but it was Xiao Jing who came to tell him the "good news" of his promotion, forcing him to dress up and stay on the bed, he didn't even bother to wash up, and came out to meet guests while yawning.

"Mr. Zhang, you... this is?"

Xiao Jing was also very surprised.

Why did Zhang Zhou look... more haggard than yesterday?
Zhang Zhoudao: "Eunuch Xiao doesn't believe the hard work of this journey, especially when I'm approaching the capital, I've been traveling day and night..."

"Mr. Zhang's hard work for the country is really admirable." Xiao Jing said with emotion.

Do you work for your country?
Zhang Zhou thought about it, if there is another son named with Chinese characters, maybe there is nothing wrong with it.

"Mr. Zhang, at the court meeting today, His Majesty has already discussed with all the ministers that you will be the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of War. The official positions mentioned before, such as Taichang Temple Secretary, Bachelor of Attendance, and Zuo Dudu of the Rear Army Governor's Mansion, are also given to you at the same time. You are here to serve concurrently, and you are the second rank official. Congratulations." Xiao Jing cupped his hands and said, handing over the official certificate to Zhang Zhou.

Zhang Zhou asked curiously, "Isn't it genuine?"

Xiao Jing said with a smile: "Isn't this about your position as a civil servant? In fact, with your current status, what rank... does it matter?"

"That's right." Zhang Zhou nodded with a smile, "The most important thing for us to work is to get His Majesty's support."

"Yep."

Xiao Jing felt the same way.

What is a few grades, the one who has won the emperor's trust is a super grade. He Xiao Jing is not capable of suppressing the Minister of Chinese and Military Affairs of the court by himself, but Liu Jin among his latecomers can do it. Who said that he is a courtier? Do you have to make peace with the civil servant?
If all those who are close and sycophant are as "kind" to civil officials as Zhang Zhou is, then probably there will not be so many treacherous officials in power in history.

"In addition, Your Majesty mentioned that you have been asked to arrange the marriage with the Lin family early recently, because you have been delayed for a long time because of your going to the northwest." Xiao Jing said with a smile, "Your Majesty also said that when you get married Day, I will come in person.”

Zhang Zhou said, "How dare you?"

Xiao Jing smiled and said: "It's okay, it's for His Majesty's trust and reliance on you, and also to reflect the importance of this marriage. Just take it as a little face for Mr. Lin. What do you think?"

Marrying a daughter as a concubine, the emperor wants to give Lin Han face, so as to win over the two courtiers.

Zhang Zhou also felt that the emperor should also make a gesture of buying people's hearts.

(End of this chapter)