A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 734 Discussion
Entering October, the weather in Xuanfu Town is getting colder day by day, but many townspeople don’t feel the chill in their hearts. It is to turn to the various military and civil affairs conferences held continuously by the General's Mansion these days.

Everyone is speculating about the future structure of Xuanfu Town, what official position will be held, and the general has announced that he will develop Monan, how will it be managed in the future?

The newspapers are talking high-spirited, and the folks are also like a cloud, talking about state affairs and giving pointers to the country. This is a unique feature of Xuanfu Town. If it is placed elsewhere in Daming, a note saying "Don't talk about state affairs" will be pasted on teahouses and restaurants. Here, everyone speaks freely.

All kinds of political clubs are constantly being born, and many teahouses and restaurants are their strongholds.

Regarding this point, many officials of the shogunate could not help but feel worried, thinking that the small people are boastful, and as soon as the decree is issued, the outside world will gossip about it, and dissect the decree like an official, analyze it one by one, and talk about the pros and cons, as if they are officials. It is quite unfavorable to the official control and education.

Moreover, the shogunate is discussing major issues, and they are also discussing "big issues" in the teahouse. A policy of the shogunate has not been clearly analyzed, and they have already analyzed it. The main reason is that the level of knowledge in the town is getting higher and higher. The ability and judgment are getting stronger and stronger, and everyone is picking up firewood.

If it doesn't meet the wishes of all parties, it will be criticized and have to go back and discuss it again. Wouldn't it make people angry?Zhang Gui, the ambassador of the Department of Civil Affairs, rants about this.

The emergence of newspapers has strengthened Xuanfu Town's external public opinion offensive, which is of great use in educating the people, but for the town officials, it is actually mixed.

Because of their deeds, they may be published in the newspapers at any time, and many people tend to go to the newspapers to seek grievances or report, and because of this, some officials were sacked. Is it under the rule of Wang Dou, or is it still under the rule of the imperial court at this time.

Wu Zhi of Wu Zhizhou in Yanqing Prefecture was recruited because of this. On that day, he was invited to a brothel with a few friends to drink and write poems. This was originally a very elegant thing in the literati world. , many beautiful poems were born in the brothel, and officials and courtesans are a complementary pair.

Who knows that it was published in the newspaper for no reason, and in the public mouth, he became a behavior like visiting a brothel, and it also aroused people's discussion about whether officials should visit brothels. Where does this make Wu Zhizhou put his old face?From that day on, he never visited brothels again.

There is also Gao Shiyin, who had a whim one day and went to the casino for a while, and he was also tricked.

Once Wang Dou rectified Xuanzhen, closed all the casinos in the territory, only left the brothels, and implemented a series of regulations, such as prostitutes must have a certificate to work, and they have to go to the Medical and Health Department for regular inspections to prevent sexually transmitted diseases, etc., free of charge.

But after all, gambling is a human nature, and soon it revived, but it went underground and was more hidden, so Wang Dou decided to open up the gambling industry after deliberation, and set up several large casinos in the town, controlled by the intelligence department behind the scenes operate.

They have to pay high taxes, and there are also regulations such as prohibiting usury and beheading hands and feet. After the troublemakers report to the government, they are arrested and sent to the mines to serve hard labor.

Gao Shiyin was going to die, and he was seen by several interviews. Jiang Hongsheng, a doctor of the newspaper, somehow made this news also appear in the newspaper, and was included in the anecdote column.

After the newspaper was sent out, there was no reaction from the people. After all, the Jingbian army has a very good image in the town. It is normal for officers to go to the casino to relax. But after Wang Dou saw it, he said: "It is better for soldiers not to go to the casino. Bad influence."

Now that Gao Shiyin quit, he approached Liu Benshen, the ambassador of the Information Department, and questioned him. The two almost had a fight, which caused very bad influence.

All kinds of troubles brought by the newspaper, for a period of time, even Wang Douzhi's subordinates asked to close the newspaper. They thought that the advantages and disadvantages were hard to say, and they would even hurt themselves.

Responding to Wang Dou, Wang Dou just said indifferently: "The public opinion is like water, how did Dayu control the water?"

He said again: "There are thousands of folk censors supervising, why not do it?"

However, he also believes that there was a period of time when the Information Department messed up. The newspapers under the department were supposed to educate the people, spread public opinion, pay attention to people's livelihood, and supervise officials.

The Xuanfu Times is a very serious big newspaper, and it is the target of the newspapers that will be established in various parts of the Ming Dynasty. Is it a paparazzi tabloid that spy on people's privacy and specialize in people's private lives?It's none of your business for Zhizhou Wu to visit brothels?It made him dare not communicate with famous prostitutes in the future, how could it be a gentleman's action?
There is also the matter of Gao Shiyin. If he violated the law and discipline, he will be investigated by the military law. What is the matter if it is reported in the newspaper?Isn’t it a waste of budget and space to focus on such messy things as people’s livelihood, government affairs right and wrong, and officials’ supervision?
Afterwards, the Xuanfu Times went through a series of rectifications, completely abandoning those vulgar things, moving towards high-end, and losing control of the public opinion that worries under his command. Wang Dou didn't take it seriously.

Most of the storytellers and opera troupes in various castles and cities are peripheral personnel of the Intelligence Department, so there is nothing to worry about controlling public opinion.

It is also a good thing for some officials to sit on pins and needles. The supervision of public opinion can prompt them to take their own government affairs more seriously. After all, the power of the supervision department is still limited, and more people are needed to participate. The more civil censors, the better.

Therefore, the circulation of Xuanfu Times is getting bigger and bigger now. People hold newspapers in their hands and talk about it in teahouses or at home, which has become the norm in Xuanfu Town. News about current events in the town can also be printed and distributed within a day or two. once.

It can be said that all the residents of Xuanfu Township are paying close attention to this structure meeting, not just Xuanfu Township, Datong Township, and Shanxi Township officials and people are equally concerned.

So from the fifth day of October, when Wang Dou led his army back in Lidong, the wide square outside the General's Mansion was filled with people who were inquiring about the news. Don't take away the fire in their hearts.

This is not only outside the General's Mansion, but even the entire Pailou East Street, Yanyuan Street, and Hubu Street are full of people in twos and threes.

The townspeople have heard that the general will completely reform the shogunate this time, which will be divided into three departments: the Ministry of Military Affairs, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the Ministry of Supervision. There is also the Central Military Department under Wang Dou's direct control. The various ministries of foreign affairs, and then each department and each department perform their own duties, completely decentralizing power.

The newspaper also said the same, so whoever is the chief officer of each department and division has become the focus of everyone's attention. There are also many key points such as the establishment of banks, the assessment of officials, and the development of Monan. wait and see.

The crowd was bustling, and every day the officials and generals who participated in the meeting strode in, whether they were happy or sad, and fierce discussions would erupt among the crowd.

Many Times interviews gather outside the door, and when the meeting is over, they flock to chase valuable interviewers, which can be described as very lively.

Their enthusiasm has also aroused the interest of ordinary townspeople. After finishing their work every day, they rush to the teahouse, listen to the movements of all parties, and then discuss excitedly. Even the officials under the imperial court are like this. Not to mention.

……

There are many teahouses and restaurants on Chengshizi Street in Xuanfu Town, especially the Xishuncheng Street of the North Gate, which is the main place for the townspeople to spend their leisure time. There are various teahouses everywhere, and it is an important place for everyone to wait for news.

On the ninth day of the lunar new year, the meeting for several consecutive days was about to close. On this day, the "Fuyun Pavilion" teahouse on Xishuncheng Street by the lake was even more crowded. Excited discussions continued to come, and even the tea-filling guy couldn't help but stop, listening and forgetting his work.

"...My humble opinion is that among the three departments of the shogunate, Han Chaodang is the Minister of Military Affairs and Huang Shibian is the Minister of Supervision. Although Zhang Gui is less talented, he is considered an old man under the command of the General... What's more, the General has drawn up The tenure system, the chief officials of each department count their tenure from the establishment of the shogunate in the 12th year of Chongzhen. Zhang Gui is not far away from the five-year tenure. It's a pity that Zhong Zhengxian took over."

"I am optimistic about Ye Xizhi, who has made a lot of achievements in political affairs, but it is a pity that his qualifications are low... I guess Zhong Zhengxian will be one of the deputy ministers, and then he will succeed Zhang Gui. After all, he belongs to the general...and he is good at mathematics. Outstanding."

This person's words were opposed by a group of people: "Where is Ye Xizhi's seniority? He also followed the general early, and he is also the teacher of the young general. It is appropriate to succeed Zhang Gui!"

"Indeed, is the general a nepotism? I am also optimistic about Ye Xizhi!"

"Brother Sun just said that Huang Shibian is the Minister of Supervision. Yang disagrees with this. Where do you put Ambassador Chi? He is truly respected in the Zhenfu Department!"

"That's right. Huang Shibian was originally Chi Dacheng's subordinate. He has already become the leader of a department. Chi Dacheng is still in the military and political department? That is absolutely impossible! Moreover, Chi Dacheng is also appointed as one of the deputy ministers of the military and political department. I Jing The governors of the frontier army have high positions."

"You say that Han and North Korea are the Minister of Military and Political Affairs, but I think Wen Fangliang is the most likely..."

There was a lot of talk in the Fuyun Pavilion teahouse, and everyone discussed it very enthusiastically. This teahouse has all kinds of ingredients, so it is more lively and attracts more people to come.

Just as he was talking happily, suddenly there was a commotion downstairs, and a group of voices said: "Mr. Han is here."

"It's Yuanwai Han."

"Brother Han is good."

"I saw Yuanwai Han again. I learned a lot from listening to the lectures that day, and I will definitely listen to them again today."

Amidst the noise, a deep voice with the accent of Zhending Mansion sounded: "You brothers and sisters are worthy of love, and Han really dare not take it."

Then a handsome and successful man in his fifties, with slightly white temples, a tall and straight body, wearing a military uniform, and eyes full of wisdom, entered the teahouse with a smile on his face. He held a newspaper in his hand and kept greeting the tea guests He bowed his hands and returned the salute, but it was Han Kaihui's father, Han Xianwei.

After Father Han arrived in Xuanfu Town, he lived a prosperous and stable life, and he didn't like any kind of business management. His favorite thing was to chat with people and discuss political affairs in teahouses.

The atmosphere here is tolerant, and there is quite a mass base. In addition, Han Xianwei is always full of insights, so he has quite a following in Fuyun Pavilion. Many people in this street have even heard his name, and even the Information Department pays attention to him. .

(End of this chapter)