The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 396

Zhu Youtang's new concubine was brought into the palace.

Temporarily living in the Yong'an Palace of the East Sixth Palace.

I got the title early in the morning, "Concubine Xian", from this title, Empress Zhang can feel a strong jealousy... She is virtuous, I am not virtuous, am I?

When Concubine Xian entered the palace, because she had just given birth, she couldn't breathe, so she just carried her in with a closed phoenix, and she didn't have to greet Empress Zhang. Originally, Empress Zhang wanted to visit the mother and child in person, but was told that the emperor had passed away. He strictly ordered no one to come close, and even planned to move the mother and son out of the palace again.

In the past, if you didn't have a child, you didn't enter the palace. Now you have entered the palace after giving birth, and you are going to move out. This even makes Queen Zhang a little confused.

"Your Majesty, since this younger sister has already entered the palace, why can't I let my concubine go to see her?" Empress Zhang directly proposed this day when Zhu Youtang was having lunch at Kunning Palace.

Zhu Youtang's expression was somewhat unkind.

Because in the past few days, Empress Zhang seems to have forgotten that she has a son. Empress Zhang does not know the news of Zhu Houzhao's disappearance until now, and Empress Zhang only regards her son as her son and is restrained by her husband without asking.

Zhu Youtang said coldly: "I'm afraid of trouble."

The phrase "provoking trouble" did not explain the specific meaning, which made Queen Zhang feel that her husband was full of doubts about her.

This is because Zhu Youtang grew up in a bad environment. He lost his mother since he was a child, and he is still growing up in fear. He is very afraid that the kindness and resentment of the inner palace of the previous generation will continue to him.

Empress Zhang seems to understand why Zhu Youtang first accepted the "virtuous concubine" into the palace, and then moved him to another secluded mansion...The reason for taking the "virtuous concubine" into the palace is to rectify her status, and then send it out to live, or to avoid palace infighting Bloody disaster.

Queen Zhang said: "The concubine wants to send her some gifts to express her condolences."

Zhu Youtang shook his head and said: "Queen, you should have heard of many ancient court battles. Even if you have good intentions, you will be misunderstood by others, and some people will even make use of it. So you don't need to show anything, it's normal Just get along."

"Giving some condolences, will people gossip about it?" Queen Zhang looked displeased.

I, the lord of the six palaces, have already taken the initiative to show my favor, yet Your Majesty actually thinks that I am causing trouble for nothing?Is this kind of a donkey's liver and lungs?
Zhu Youtang didn't answer.

After lunch, Zhu Youtang hurriedly left Kunning Palace.

……

……

Zhu Youtang went to Qianqing Palace, before arriving at the palace, Xiao Jing and Chen Kuan were waiting.

Zhu Youtang ordered: "Listen well, if someone sends gifts to Yong'an Palace, they will be rejected. All food and beverages must be inspected first, and the imperial dining room must be reserved recently. If someone sends unclean food inside, no matter who it is Strictly investigate."

"Yes."

Xiao Jing was very confused, this kind of matter, let him handle it like a eunuch who is in charge of ceremonies?
Chen Kuan interrupted and asked, "If the Empress gives gifts to Yong'an Palace..."

Zhu Youtang stopped and stared at Chen Kuan, who quickly lowered his head.

"It's the same for everyone, and the queen is no exception." Zhu Youtang said, "It's not that I suspect that someone is going to harm my concubine, but I'm afraid that someone will take the opportunity to make trouble. In the court, those who have been punished by the queen in the past, or those who The new imperial concubine has grudges everywhere, people's hearts can't stand scrutiny in the face of interests, who can guarantee that the things sent in are good, and they will be good when they are available?"

"Yes."

Chen Kuan quickly responded.

He actually understood it, but he was still afraid that Empress Zhang would secretly harm this concubine and the little prince.

Zhu Youtang said: "I'm not saying that I'm just guarding against the people in the palace, and those who come in from outside the palace, who knows what's going on in their minds?"

Originally, both Xiao Jing and Chen Kuan regarded the emperor as a fool who could be easily deceived, and felt that the emperor had completely trusted the new imperial concubine.

But as soon as these words came out, Xiao Jing and Chen Kuan realized that the emperor's thoughts were also multi-layered.

From a rational point of view, there is a "vengeance against sister" between this virtuous concubine and Queen Zhang. Although her sister was not killed by Queen Zhang herself, she died because of Queen Zhang. There was no problem at first, but the concubine Xian wants to poison herself... This kind of thing is not uncommon in court struggles. Live cases don't need to be drawn to Tang and Song Dynasties, just say that Wan Zhen'er cheated on miscarriage. In front of me?
Without mutual contact, there will be fewer entanglements, and there will be no suspicion of harming each other and framing each other.

This is where the emperor thought deeply.

What I want is not nothing, but not giving you the chance to create something out of nothing.

……

……

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

The three members of the cabinet, as well as the newly appointed minister of rites, Lin Han, and the minister of war, Ma Wensheng, and a British prince, Zhang Mao, were called in.

Tables and chairs had been prepared for them early that day, and a meeting about the inner court was going to be held that day.

In addition to the cabinet, they came in the name of the "Shang Ting Office". Lin Han entered the Shang Listening Office on Zhang Zhou's behalf. They came here not because of their titles and official positions, but also because they were members of the hearing office.

"I would like to discuss with you the candidates for the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment and the Minister of the Household Department."

After Zhu Youtang arrived at Qianqing Palace, he made an opening remark, which immediately tightened the atmosphere.

Liu Jian said: "The candidates for the Shangshu should be decided by the court."

Zhu Youtang seemed indifferent and said: "The inner court can also be discussed by the court, so there is no need to waste a lot of time, and you can speak freely, no matter what you discuss in the court, I feel tired. Whoever you choose, report it together Just come up."

Zhu Youtang seemed unable to lift his spirits.

After the hailstorm, the earthquake, the birth of a son and other things that made him excited, his life fell into a dull life, but at this time the prince was still missing, which made him very anxious.

Once something is brought up in the court, you will feel that those ministers are targeting him and Zhang Zhou. It is better to call people to the inner court for a small circle meeting, so that the matter is resolved satisfactorily and there is no need to argue.

In this kind of matter, Lin Han, Ma Wensheng, and Zhang Mao would not speak casually.

Even if they are qualified to speak and recommend personnel, they still have to follow certain rules, that is, the cabinet will be the leader... Unless Zhang Zhou is here at this time, let Zhang Zhou speak, and they would rather do a good job if Zhang Zhou is not there. The job of Shangshu's executive level is to hand over the decision-making and advisory powers to the cabinet.

Liu Jian said: "Your Majesty, the Minister of the Ministry of Households has been recommended before, and the Ministry of Officials has reviewed it over the years. It is most suitable for the Yushi Zhong of the Right Capital to succeed Zhou Shangshu."

After Liu Jian finished speaking, he observed the emperor's reaction first, and after seeing that the emperor had nothing to say, he nominated a candidate for another position, "Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, Tu Xun, the left servant of the Ministry of Punishment, will be the first candidate."

It was agreed before that Qi Zhong would succeed Zhou Jing.

But Tu Xun was pushed out temporarily, and it was because Min Gui, the censor of Zuodu, was convicted in the fight with Zhang Zhou and ordered to resign from office.

Zuodu Yushi can't replace Bai Ang, so it sounds reasonable to replace him with Zuo Shilang from the headquarters.

"En." Zhu Youtang just nodded indifferently after listening to the two candidates, and then said, "The qualifications are not enough."

Liu Jian asked, "Which one is His Majesty talking about?"

"Both of them are." Zhu Youtang said convincingly, "It has been less than a year since Tu Xun succeeded Zuo Shilang. I am not optimistic about many financial matters."

This made Liu Jian and the other three members of the cabinet very passive.

It was hard work for them to select a "suitable" person from the crowd, who was originally intended as a successor, and when they were put on the court, it would be "reputed by all", and as a result, the inner court meeting was directly denied by the emperor.

If you want to find someone who is more suitable than them... Liu Jian feels unrealistic.

Unless the emperor intends to make an exception for promotion, it will involve party issues. Those who are eligible for an exception for promotion must either have a close relationship with Zhang Zhouguo, or... at least they are also a neutral faction.

Zhu Youtang suddenly changed the topic and said: "The candidate for the left servant of the Ministry of Officials has not been decided yet. What do you think about this matter?"

This time, Li Dongyang said: "Han Wen, the right servant, should be promoted."

"Not good." Zhu Youtang said, "I would like to transfer Cheng Minzheng, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy who is in charge of the affairs of the Nanjing Imperial Academy, back to Beijing as the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials. Do you have any objections?"

The candidate was directly selected.

Cheng Minzheng...becoming the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials...Although Cheng Minzheng has been in the Hanlin Academy, Zhan Shifu and the Ministry of Rites before, it is not too much to be promoted to the Zuo Shilang. And the prestige in the court is enough...

It is because his political inclinations are not pure enough that no one takes him seriously.

Seeing that the few people present did not answer for a while, Zhu Youtang asked again: "Isn't he not qualified enough?"

Li Dongyang looked at Liu Jian first, and seeing that Liu Jian didn't say anything, he said: "The qualifications of a bachelor's degree are enough."

That being said.

However, because Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials is the most prominent among the six ministers, he is also used as a reserve position for the six ministers. Previously, the traditional civil servants wanted to give this position to Fu Han who had not been promoted to the Minister of Rites.

Now Cheng Minzheng suddenly appeared...

In terms of seniority, Cheng Minzheng is not inferior to Fu Han, but why is Cheng Minzheng not as popular as others?
It would be embarrassing if Fu Han couldn't be moved to be the Minister of the Ministry of Officials. There is no room for him in the six ministers, so why should he be minister of the Ministry of Punishment, Ministry of Households, and Ministry of Industry?Or let him be the censor of Zuodu?
In this way, at the age of 66, Fu Han might not be able to survive for a few years in the imperial court.

If you want to be a minister, you can only develop in Nanjing.

"That's good." Zhu Youtang said, "Cheng Minzheng has been the right servant of the Ministry of Rites for a long time, and it is reasonable to be promoted to the left servant. As for the censor of the left capital, I have thought about it before, and think that Nanjing was recommended by the court. Dai Shan, Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, is suitable."

Dai Shan is the Secretary of the Ministry of Criminal Justice in Nanjing, and she has been active in the past few years, because he has spent half his life in the prison system. Now that Bai Ang and Min Gui have retired, it is not impossible for Dai Shan to move directly to the capital to become the Minister of the Ministry of Criminal Justice. , Let him be the censor of the Zuodu in charge of the procuratorate, which is regarded as the emperor's "reciprocation".

If you agree to let Cheng Minzheng return to the court as the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials, then I will agree to let Dai Shan be the censor of the Zuodu, in an exchange of equals.

"As for the Minister of Criminal Justice in Nanjing, let Tu Xun go." Zhu Youtang added.

This can be regarded as pushing the "first candidate" for the position of Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice to the position of Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice.

Sounds reasonable too.

Since Tu Xun is not qualified enough to be the Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, let’s go to Nanjing first, and then we will discuss how to arrange it in the future... If Tu Xun leaves, then no matter who you recommend next, the qualifications are debatable. There is an argument for who the seat is for.

Zhu Youtang said: "Now Bingkuan is Minister of the Ministry of War in Nanjing, Counselor for Military Affairs, I will not transfer him back to Beijing for the time being. The so-called temporary, probably this year. I think it is necessary to mention something to you."

Liu Jian and the others felt a little awkward again.

This seems to be an inoculation for them. In order to avoid making them think too much, the emperor did this to prepare for Zhang Zhou's promotion to the Northern Six Departments of Shangshu, so he told them that even if Zhang Zhou wanted to be a Shangshu in the future, it was not now, so the Ministry of Punishments The Shangshu and the Hubu Shangshu still have to be the people in the court today.

Liu Jian sighed: "If Min Gui becomes an official and Tu Xun is transferred to Nanjing Ministry of Criminal Affairs, it will be very difficult to find a replacement for the position of Minister of Criminal Affairs."

Zhu Youtang suddenly said: "The Minister of Dali Temple, Wang Shi, has been in Dali Temple for many years. He has the reputation of being an arbitrator in dealing with the prison. Isn't he qualified to ask the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment?"

"Ok?"

Not to mention Liu Jian, even the few people next to him were very surprised.

Wang Shi's ability is enough, but the problem is that Wang Shi is not very flattering in the court, and it is also related to the fact that he was a governor in various places before, and he was not an orthodox Beijing official. Insufficient, and he didn't move his joints. Others know too little about his governance propositions, so they won't consider him when he is promoted.

In history, Wang Shi has the reputation of being "straightforward and easy-going". When he resigned, the emperor only consolingly gave him the position of Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs in Nanjing, and immediately appointed him as the censor of the left deputy capital and the admiral of Guizhou military affairs, and sent him to conquer the "Milu Rebellion" in Guizhou.

This situation...is very similar to Wang Shouren in history.

No matter how high your ability is, the court officials will treat you as a foreign minister, and there will be dirty work for you in the local area. Do you want to be a minister and become the center of power?Sorry, there are too few positions in the power center of the capital, and you are not qualified.

Zhu Youtang said: "I can't think of other more suitable candidates for the matter of punishment and prison. Wang Shi has also served as the Minister of Dali Temple for many years, and he also has the heart to forge ahead. I think he should be qualified for this job."

This time, Liu Jian came forward to object: "Your Majesty, Dali Siqing's promotion to Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, I'm afraid it will be considered a transition, which is inconsistent with the norms."

"What's wrong?" Zhu Youtang said, "This year, I have to change so many officials at once, and I actually have a headache. It's rare that Wang Shi still has the heart to serve the court. I also want to give the ministers and workers a Be vigilant and let them know that seniority does not mean that you can always be promoted, and the most important thing in promotion is to value quality and ability."

The implication is that Wang Shi is very capable, and I am very optimistic about it.

In history, it was precisely because of the emperor's admiration for Wang Shi that Wang Shi was not allowed to become an official. Originally, Wang Shi was over [-] years old, even if he really wanted to beg for old age, the emperor would allow it.

Or maybe...Zhu Youtang wants to keep such a person who can do dirty work and call him at any time.

"If it wasn't for Wang Shi, do you have any good candidates?" Zhu Youtang asked rhetorically.

Liu Jian and others are thinking.

The most suitable candidate, that is, Tu Xun, was not sent by you to Nanjing to be the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment?
Now it is not Wang Shi, but also him.

It really skipped the three powerful opponents of Min Gui, Tu Xun, and Dai Shan. Wang Shi had struggled to be the censor of the left capital, but now he was directly promoted to the minister of the Ministry of punishment... The emperor's employment... is a bit of buying people's hearts.

After that, Wang Shi didn't just obey his orders, he listened to the emperor's words and did things well?
"The minister seconded the proposal." Liu Jian gave up.

There is no discussion with the emperor.

Moreover, the emperor actually behaved quite well. First let Min Gui become an official, let Tu Xun be the secretary of the Nanjing Ministry of Justice, and let Dai Shan be the censor of the Zuodu, and then talk about the issue of Wang Shi being the minister of the Ministry of Justice... Competitors who are stronger than Wang Shi have been arranged, and then we will talk about how to arrange Wang Shi... If they don't come up, they will say that Wang Shi will be promoted...

The opponents belonged to each other, even if there were still opponents, their qualifications and prestige were similar to him, so it didn't depend on who the emperor liked?

"If Wang Shi is the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, then the Minister of the Ministry of Households should also choose Zhong Zhong." Zhu Youtang originally did not support the matter of Zhong Zhong as the Minister of the Ministry of Households, but suddenly changed his mind and thought that Zhong Zhong was suitable. .

This also made several ministers present realize.

Is this actually a court meeting?
Here's the deal!

You first agree to one of my candidates for employment, and I will compromise to give you a little sweetness. Let's take a step forward and take a step back to play a balance.

"As for the Ministers of the Ministry of War and the Ministers of the Ministry of Industry, I think that the Ma Qing family and Xu Qing's family are still competent, and they are not in a hurry to discuss a change. Then, before winter, we will not discuss it." Zhu Youtang added. One sentence.

It means that the ministers of the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Officials, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Ministry of Households, plus the Yushi of Zuodu, have been replaced one after another, so there is no rush to mobilize the Ministers of the Ministry of Military Affairs and Ministers of the Ministry of Industry.

But think of the previous emperor saying that he was not in a hurry to recall Zhang Zhou back to the capital...

Based on the political consciousness of these few people, it can be imagined that in fact, the Minister of the Ministry of War is likely to be reserved for Zhang Zhou, and the fact that Ni Yue is the Minister of the Ministry of Officials is not liked by the emperor. It is very likely that Ni Yue became an official. The minister's time will not be too long... This is actually related to Ma Wensheng's meritorious deeds.

Ma Wensheng is qualified to be promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, but it seems that the Minister of the Ministry of War left by Ma Wensheng is definitely reserved for Zhang Zhou, so only when Zhang Zhou was promoted to the Minister of the Ministry of War, Ma Wensheng can put down the minister of the Ministry of War and become the Minister of the Ministry of Officials.

Ma Wensheng said: "Your Majesty, there are tribal rebellions in Guangdong, Guangxi, Huguang, Guizhou and other places, and the local military situation is tense. Please also ask Your Majesty to appoint military personnel to maintain local stability."

Zhu Youtang asked: "Didn't I send Uncle Ping Lu there before?"

Ping Lubo Ma Yi, the hero who assisted Wang Shouren in the Battle of Weining Sea, was transferred to Guangdong and Guangxi as the general officer, but his personal ability itself was average.

Ma Wensheng said: "The military affairs should be controlled by the governor."

"Do you have a candidate?" Zhu Youtang asked.

Ma Wensheng took the initiative to break the monopoly of the cabinet this time, saying: "The minister recommended the former household minister's right servant and the right capital censor Liu Daxia."

Zhu Youtang thought for a while, looked around at the few people and said: "I will mention one more thing during the court meeting to see if the people in the court have any opinions. If not, let him be used to promote the military affairs of Guangdong and Guangxi."

(End of this chapter)