Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 46 The Final Stage of Complete Imperial Power

When Zhu Changluo returned to the temple, Empress Dowager Li was chanting: "How is the emperor?"

"My grandson read out the congratulatory messages one by one, but my father...did not even look at me."

"...I'm sorry for that." Empress Dowager Li shook her head and said, "Let's not talk about this. Although your gift is made with great care, it's better not to show it to the emperor."

"My grandson was not thoughtful enough. I just thought that if the emperor knew that my grandson was working hard to live up to his trust, he would be more relieved."

Empress Dowager Li stood up and sat back in her chair.

Looking at the screen in front of her, she said, "I have already looked at it carefully. It is not easy for you to come up with such a strategy in less than two months."

"My grandson dares not slack off day and night, fearing that he will fail the expectations of the Imperial Grandmother."

"It's a pity that the emperor's son is not blessed. He didn't know you were such a good child."

At this point, the better Zhu Changluo performed, the more sad Empress Dowager Li became.

She calmed down and continued, "There are some things that grandma still doesn't quite understand. Please explain it to me."

"My grandson will obey your order."

Zhu Changluo behaved very respectfully and seriously.

This screen is the result of his work during this period.

The Imperial Household Department was busy for more than a month, recording countless memorials and reviewing countless archival records, before Zhu Changluo was able to put together this "Overview of the Ming Dynasty's National Conditions and Countermeasures to the Key Issues."

He said that it was a birthday gift to Zhu Yijun, and it was for Empress Dowager Li to hear.

Of course, if Empress Dowager Li thinks it is okay, Zhu Changluo wouldn't mind.

This is truly heartbreaking.

His son, who had only been in contact with state affairs for less than two months, produced such an achievement so quickly. Regardless of the breadth and depth of his thinking, or whether his ideas for future governance were appropriate, this diligence alone was a slap in the face for Zhu Yijun.

And this usurpation of the emperor's authority, which he regarded as his own, might be extremely destructive, making Zhu Yijun roar in his heart: You haven't ascended the throne yet!
Empress Dowager Li was also very tired during this period because Zhu Changluo "respected" her very much.

Zhu Changluo was diligent, so every morning and evening he would come to ask Empress Dowager Li for advice with his "shallow" ideas.

No matter how big or small the matter is.

A lot of things happened over the past month, and most of Zhu Changluo's ideas were reasonable and well-founded, and Empress Dowager Li found very few of them inappropriate.

Therefore, I feel more and more that it is unnecessary to do so, and even the time I spend praying to Buddha for forgiveness of sins and blessings every day is getting less and less.

Today she also thought that if her grandson also considered the hidden dangers of those issues, she would let go completely.

The ministers flooded Zhu Changluo with memorials, hoping that he would give up his power; Zhu Changluo consulted Empress Dowager Li on everything, also hoping that she would give up her power.

Since this was the last test, she was more prepared: "Why don't you start from the beginning? I will ask you if there are any questions that Grandmother doesn't understand."

Zhu Changluo began his roadshow and opened the first page of the "slide show" for Empress Dowager Li.

"Then I will start with the background of the current situation..."

This is unique content. Although there are no illustrations, things like "tables", "framework diagrams" and "flow charts" are still quite impactful when put together with the text.

Because he "wanted to report to the emperor", he made it bigger and placed it on the screen, so it appeared more impactful.

The beginning of the background context is the impact. From the time when history can be traced, the unified dynasties, the short-lived Qin and Sui dynasties, the chaotic times, the Han, Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties, their reigns are all listed in the table.

Behind the number 233 years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there are six shocking words: "How long can the country last?"

"In all dynasties, is it true that there were no wise rulers and wise ministers in the last years?" Zhu Changluo said sternly, "But it seems that the law of nature is so great that there must be some reasons that prevent the dynasties of various families from lasting for thousands of years. Thinking of this, my grandson can't sleep at night, and he traces back to the ancestral system of our Ming Dynasty."

"Taizu had a far-sighted vision. He abolished the prime minister and concentrated the power of the emperor." Zhu Changluo looked at Empress Dowager Li. "Now that the various systems have been established, the rise and fall of a country depends more on the emperor's timely administration and the appointment of the right people."

In front of his grandmother, Zhu Changluo could say without hesitation: "This concentration of power in the emperor is naturally beneficial to the dignity of the emperor. However, in terms of state affairs, if the government orders are to be smooth and the response is timely, the emperor must be very diligent. Reading and approving memorials in a timely manner is really the minimum requirement. It goes without saying that Taizu had a regent in the Chengzu period, and when it came to the Xuanzu period, the cabinet had to be set up as a regular practice, and the eunuchs were allowed to study..."

The ancestral system of the Ming Dynasty has naturally changed a lot, and now this process of change has been sorted out by Zhu Changluo.

Then he gave another example: "... In this way, the state affairs will rely on civil officials to govern the world, and the meritorious officials and military generals will be exempted from the self-reliance of the army. Military affairs will be very different from the founding of the country. Grandmother, please take a look..."

This page shows the evolution of the command system of the Nine Frontiers. First, before Emperor Yingzong, the highest commander of the Nine Frontiers was the general commander, which was a purely military position. Under the general commander were the deputy general commander, the deputy general commander, the guerrilla general, the camp officer, the garrison commander, the supervisor, etc.

Since Emperor Yingzong set up the post of governors in border towns, the governors gradually took charge of military and civil affairs, and the generals essentially became their subordinates.

Later, especially after Jiajing, the nine important border towns had actually evolved into three major "military regions", which were respectively governed by the Governor-General of Sanbian, the Governor-General of Xuanda, and the Governor-General of Ji and Liao.

Governors-general, provincial inspectors and governors-general are generally civil officials.

Military generals are usually suppressed, but if they have made great contributions in battles and have high prestige, they will be more suspected.

"Just like what my grandson asked my grandmother last month. Li Hualong impeached Liu Yu to discredit himself, so that the court officials would not accuse him of having his own army."

Queen Mother Li nodded, worried: "Now we have to deal with the danger of national destruction, military power is very important. It is easy to let go, but difficult to take it back."

"This is just one section. The other section is about the cabinet and the six ministries." Zhu Changluo turned another page. "Since Zhang Jiangling, the power of the cabinet ministers has greatly increased, and it is far beyond what it was in the past..."

At first, they were just secretaries and consultants, but after the Three Yangs assisted in the administration, the voting system was introduced.

Starting from the Jiajing period, as Emperor Daojun stopped attending court, the power of the cabinet was enhanced, and the cabinet ministers, who were originally relatively equal, gradually developed the practice of respecting the chief minister.

During the time of Zhang Juzheng, he used the "Performance Evaluation Law" to give the cabinet the power to supervise the six ministries, and the power of the cabinet reached its peak.

After the eleventh year of Wanli, Zhu Yijun was afraid of the cabinet, and the power of the cabinet shifted downward. The power of the ministries, which had been extremely suppressed, rebounded, but the power of the cabinet remained.

"My grandson has found that in the 12th year of the Wanli reign, the censor Zhang Wenxi mentioned four things that the cabinet ministers had done arbitrarily. I ask the emperor to ban them forever." Zhu Changluo pointed to the text of the memorial copied above. "At that time, the cabinet minister Shen refuted it, and the emperor did not change it back. The performance evaluation system was abolished. After that, although the cabinet ministers did not dare to obstruct the power of the ministry, when important officials were vacant, the nine ministers and the seal holders of the Ministry of Personnel were all allowed to nominate themselves and listen to the emperor's decision. The officials of the Ministry of Personnel were also recommended by the nine ministers, and the Shangshu was not allowed to choose his own subordinates. The officials of the prefectures and counties outside the prefectures and counties were all selected by drawing lots, and the power of the ministry was weakened day by day."

"Although the emperor nominates himself and makes decisions, and draws lots to prepare for his orders, father..." Zhu Changluo sighed, "the cabinet's power is a little smaller, and the power of the ministries is still controlled by it. The cabinet ministers submit proposals for all state affairs. If father can't see clearly, won't the ministers be able to do a lot of things in private? I think this is probably the cause of the endless party struggles that the Bodhisattva mentioned."

A clear thread of events appeared before Empress Dowager Li, and she couldn't help but mutter to herself: "So, it actually started from the time of the Emperor Shimiao..."

"Of course, there was a dispute between the Yan Party and the Qingliu at that time. However, the so-called Yan Party at that time was only the clique of the treacherous minister Yan Song." Zhu Changluo said, "Now the cabinet ministers dare not be like Yan Song or Zhang Jiangling, it is even more complicated. But no matter what, civil officials can control military officials externally, and they are responsible for the heavy state affairs internally. My grandson has a heart-piercing opinion, and they have never expected my grandson to be diligent. They think it is best for my grandson to approve everything the cabinet proposes."

"Humph! That's just wishful thinking!"

Zhu Changluo smiled bitterly and said, "My grandson is unfilial, Grandmother. I want to complain. From the old man Shimiao to my father, the situation is now extremely solid. If I really want to continue the country, I must ask Grandmother to help me as much as possible."

Taking advantage of the opportunity that the grandfather and grandson only dealt with "major incidents of concern" for nearly a hundred years in total, the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty finally formed an extremely solid power structure that dominated both the civil and military officials, and the imperial power could no longer easily control them.

Although Zhu Yijun could no longer continue to run the show for another twenty years, the situation was still not optimistic.

Zhu Changluo cried out in grievance from the bottom of his heart, and Empress Dowager Li comforted him first: "If it weren't for this, why would the Bodhisattva warn you? All these grandmothers know, and they are making things difficult for you."

As mentioned earlier, the Ming Dynasty's system actually placed very high demands on the emperor, but Zhu Houcong and Zhu Yijun, the grandfather and grandson, stayed in power for too long and did not pay enough attention to state affairs.

Nowadays, it is not just the civil officials who are becoming more and more powerful and indispensable. Zhu Changluo's proposal also points out the impact of Zhu Yijun's failure to fill vacancies on local prefectures and counties.

There were many vacancies in the capital and in local areas. Although the Ming Dynasty was still operating normally due to inertia, the local taxation was already controlled by the powerful families and clerks.

The big family has been multiplying for many years, and the clerks have been passed down from generation to generation.

When an official is appointed to a certain place, as long as he has made contributions and has no faults, he will then concentrate on seeking personal advancement.

Over the years, the prefectures and counties only knew about the various ethnic groups. Can the imperial power reach the countryside?

The dispute over the country's capital? That has nothing to do with them.

But in the local areas, they are looking forward to tax increases due to military operations, natural disasters and various other reasons.

When combined with the interests of many mining supervisors and tax collectors, the harm is even more severe.

There was disorder in personnel affairs, political orders were not implemented smoothly, local governments were out of control, financial resources were exhausted, the garrisons were deserted, the officers and soldiers were humble, and the nobles and relatives were in a state of decay.

Although Zhu Changluo already had a general idea, he couldn't help but sigh.

The Ming Dynasty has been dealt a terrible hand by his father.

Queen Mother Li agreed with his complaints about her father-in-law and son, and then said in a serious tone: "But since the crux is here, why does the strategy start with the royal family first?"

Zhu Changluo knew that this was the only thing that could really persuade her, so he immediately knelt down and said, "Grandmother, please allow me to do so!"

(End of this chapter)