Chapter 131: The Matter of the Ministry of the Household (Next)
The emperor nodded his head after Grand Maester Shu finished his words, even if he had some other thoughts in his mind, it was impossible for him to say anything else at this time. Because last year, for the sake of Fan Xian’s fussing about the Ministry of Justice, the court had sent the left royal secretary of the Du Cha Yuan far away to the Jiangnan Road, using the excuse that this person had a good deal of virtue and bad behavior.
Son of heaven golden mouth said words, naturally now swallowed back. Only at that time, the emperor is to appease Fan Xian, now the emperor is trying to borrow Guo Zheng’s zhang do something, was Shu Daoshi so blocked back, the heart can not help but laugh to himself, thinking that this is not considered to be their own digging the pit, their own to jump in?
“Isn’t there a eunuch who went to Jiangnan?” Prince at this time jumped out to show their own stupidity, laughed and said: “Father, although I can not believe the words of the Royal Historian Guo Zheng, but wait for that eunuch to come back to say, we will know what is going on in Jiangnan.”
This statement seems to be steady in the center, in fact, but some Yin bad, the eunuch will be how to slander Fan Xian, is not the words of the empress dowager in the palace, the crown prince for this matter is confident.
The emperor glared at him, said in a cold voice: “How can the eunuch’s words be believed? Ancestral training is here, don’t you forget it!”
The crown prince cowardly did not dare to speak again, Eunuch Yao who served on the side was silent, his face unchanged.
“Wait for Xue Qing’s sangha.” The emperor closed his eyes and breathed heavily once.
The people in the imperial study nodded their heads, thinking that the words spoken by the hall’s governor all the way around would naturally be more believable.
Has not been a position of Hu Daoshi this time finally opened his mouth, said: “In that case, that the matter of Jiangnan temporarily put aside, if you say that there is really such a thing, I …… really can not believe it, sincere, as the two highnesses said earlier, if there is really someone private transfer of state funds down to Jiangnan to seek profit, really traces of close to plotting rebellion, I I believe that Fan Shangshu is not this kind of heartless person. However, since the Jiangnan Road Royal Historian and some local officials on the chapter, the court can not ignore, about the Ministry of households of the investigation, really should begin to carry out, on the one hand, is to be full of civil and military officials heart convinced, on the other hand, is also to clear the Fan Shangshu received these accusations.”
For the door under the Chinese book of these several university scholar, the Qing Emperor still maintains the surface of respect, slightly contemplation after nodding, suddenly scoffed to himself and said, “Even if you make this kind of thing, it is not considered to be a heartlessness …… just I am a little bit curious, all the ministers have thought about it, exactly how to check it? ”
Although the corners of the lips with a faint self-deprecating smile, but the hearts of all the people in the imperial study is no reason to a cold, heard His Majesty indeed Fan Shangshu’s opinion is very big, just all the people in their hearts don’t understand, has always been deeply favored by the Holy House of Fan, why would suddenly become His Majesty does not like to see the place? Fan Jian, where exactly did he offend His Majesty?
And the last words asked by the Emperor also left the ministers dumbfounded, not knowing how to respond at all.
In the court of Qing, there were two systems used to monitor the rule of officials, one was the magistrates, those imperial historians who were used to being caned, and the other system was of course the powerful Supervisory Yuan.
The Procuratorate belongs to the prevention of corruption institutions, the right to wind rumors, so the previous Jiangnan Road, Guo Zheng, the royal historian dared in the absence of the slightest evidence of the situation, the report impeached Fan Xian private state funds, vertical under the treasury, and the merchant to compete for profits.
The Supervisory Yuan, on the other hand, belonged to the aftermath of the investigation and seizure institutions, with great power, and after authorization by His Majesty, could interrogate all the civil and military officials of the dynasty.
In general, if which of the six ministries has a problem, the one who goes to investigate the matter is, of course, the Supervisory Yuan, and the officials below the third rank they can be invited to that square gray and black building for tea, and when the matter is investigated to the level of the minister of the ministers and the ministers of the Shangshu, the decree will be requested again to ask for the privilege, and the one level to be investigated upwards.
The Ministry of the household has a deficit, according to reason, should also be done according to this strategy.
The problem is ……
Today’s Supervisory Yuan has a president at the top and eight divisions at the bottom. That bad behavior, make hundred officials afraid of Chen Pingping Chen president of the Lord, but has been several years did not personally handle the case, the last year is basically stay in the capital outside of the Chen Garden, no longer see things. And now between the dean and the eight offices, there has been one more position, a very powerful and special position.
Fan Xian, the supervisor of the Supervisory Yuan.
Fan Xian now had the power to mobilize the entire Supervisory Yuan, except for personnel appointments and removals, and Chen Pingping’s power was comparable. If the Supervisory Yuan was allowed to investigate the deficit of the Ministry of the Interior ……
The ministers in the imperial study have shaken their heads, thinking that letting the son to check the old man, can find out the problem is called a ghost! If this thing is spread, I’m afraid that North Qi Dong Yi and the people of this world, will take this thing as the biggest joke in the officialdom of the Qing Dynasty to see.
Grandmaster Shu smiled bitterly and said, “It seems that this time, we have to let the Supervisory Yuan avoid suspicion, but just for a while, I don’t know how I should arrange to clear the Ministry of Revenue.”
The several old ministers beside him nodded their heads in succession, since they wanted to investigate the Ministry of Households, they needed to do so seriously, whether they wanted to bring down Fan Jian or clear the suspicions on Fan Jian, they needed to treat it with a serious attitude and not turn it into a child’s play.
The emperor, however, laughed coldly at this time and said, “Why don’t you still have the same annual rules?”
“This ……” Shu Daoshi even complained bitterly, thinking clearly things, the emperor why you have to pretend to be confused? After a moment of hesitation, finally still drummed up the courage to say: “Your Majesty, after all, small Fan Sir is the Supervisory Yuan’s full powers, if you let the Supervisory Yuan to check the Ministry of the household, this thing is spread, I’m afraid the impact is not very good.”
“Let the Supervisory Yuan investigate.” The emperor coldly said, “At the same time, the Ministry of Mandarins, Ministry of Justice, Da Lisi sent members to assist, you then choose a leader to come out to lead this matter, since we want to check the deficit of the Ministry of households, which is something that a few people can do.”
The ministers in the imperial study understand, the so-called send members to assist, in fact, just monitor the supervision courtyard, just the people really don’t understand, since his majesty has already determined by the ministry of criminal justice ministry plus the Da Lisi investigation of the ministry of households, but why must the supervision courtyard dragged into this mess of water inside.
As for the general investigation of the Ministry of Ministers of the Ministry of Ministers, the ministers are also making mutterings, knowing that this mission will be the Fan family and the relevant officials offended miserable, but also clear, if you can really find out the problem, for their own reputation in the world is a heavy record, weighing the two, and finally no one dares to risk to pick up this hot potato.
Even the Fan family enemy of the Ministry of Justice, the second prince, are silent.
The emperor’s mood could not be seen, smiling, his eyes slowly flicked across the faces of the ministers and his son, and finally landed on Grand Maester Hu’s face.
Grand Maester Hu secretly sighed, knowing that he could not escape this difficulty. His own early in the year into the capital, was raised by his majesty as the cabinet under the door Zhongshu walking university sergeant, although there are a number of years ago the name of the text to protect, these years in the various official reputation for the road, but in the center of the land but there is no clear political achievements, his majesty belongs to his own, is nothing more than his own entry into the capital is not yet short, did not get entangled with the forces of all parties, on the other hand, is also wanting to their own borrowing to check the Ministry of households, the matter of the dynasty to set up the authority to.
For his majesty’s trust and reuse, Hu is grateful, for his majesty let himself to offend the Fanfu two, Hu is vaguely resentful.
Right at this moment, the eldest prince who only sent a sentence and returned to silence, but grabbed before Grand Maester Hu coldly said, “Father, my son would like to be the one who offends.”
The emperor laughed, waved his hand and said, “You …… can not.”
“Why?” The eldest prince frowned and said, “The son of the minister dares to guarantee with his head, absolutely will be investigated and dealt with fairly, will never be biased, please father believe in the loyalty of the son of the minister.”
The emperor’s face smile gradually converged, said, “I said, you can’t, then you just can’t. You are the commander of the forbidden army, but go to check the household department, do you want to open an example of military interference in politics!”
In those last words, the emperor spoke extremely harshly. The great prince a boring, no longer good to continue to refute what, although the emperor has always liked him to have a say a character, but today since the top military interference in politics so heavy hat, he also had to nerd back.
Hu Daoshi left his seat to ask for orders: “I, willing to lead the investigation of the Ministry of households.”
The emperor nodded, and turned back to look at the crown prince indifferently said: “Prince also go, followed by Hu Daoshi learning to learn, the investigation, led by Hu Daoshi, you do an errand.”
“My son obeyed the decree.”
Prince face calm, but inside is joyful, although nominally just an errand boy, but to the Ministry of Yamen in a seat, who is not afraid of their own three East Palace Prince? The so-called general leader of the people, in addition to Hu Daishi, it turns out that there is a share of their own, the Prince is somewhat happy, it seems that after the suspension of the temple, his father’s attitude towards their own cold and indifferent, finally transformed.
The group of ministers and sons led the order to go, the imperial study room back to quiet, the emperor expression coldly sipped tea, get up and leave the couch.
Eunuch Yao hurriedly draped a windbreaker over him, seeing that his majesty was not in a good mood, he asked with small intention, “Your majesty, return to the palace to rest?”
“No.” The Emperor walked out to the outside of the imperial study on the spot and said, “Go to the small building.”
Eunuch Yao was stunned and hurriedly followed, not saying anything, but in his heart, he was wondering, these recent days, the number of times His Majesty went to the small building was increasing.
Outside the palace gates, the several ministers of the court who were uneasy in their respective hearts arched their hands to say goodbye, there are the proud ones who are ready to go back and announce to their party that his majesty is ready to make a move towards the ministry of households, there are the worried ones who are ready to go back to their homes to think about how to face the future dynastic situation, and there are the muddled ones who are still muddled, thinking to themselves, thinking to themselves that how did his majesty’s mind turn a corner in a single day?
“Xiao Hu, go to my mansion and have a drink.” Shu Wu is not shy about anything, in front of the palace door pulling ready to take the first step to leave Hu Daoshi, said directly.
Hu Da Da Shi at this time is a brain of lawsuits, where to eat into the wine, and even begged for forgiveness: “old Shu, do not see me today’s luck is good? Which still have the mind to poetry.”
These two sex like good literature, and is the head of the ministers, his majesty and not strictly prohibit the ministers of private interactions, so the friendship is quite good, although the age difference is many, but often mixed in a place.
Shu Daoshi made a look, Hu Daoshi heart, they agreed to this proposal.
“Sacred heart is difficult to guess ah.”
Shu Wu’s residence is also in the south city, known for its seclusion, not how broad, but at this time the two drunken people talking under the pavilion, there is no need to worry about the spring breeze will talk about the taboo topics blown out of the wall, was heard by others.
Shu Wu sighed and said, “I’m afraid this is a somewhat difficult job for you, you’ve really complied with your brother’s love and lost your sister-in-law’s will.”
In these words, his majesty was compared to his brother, and the Fan family was compared to his sister-in-law, which was a bit incongruous. Dr. Hu laughed and said: “What nonsense? You are not surnamed Hu, are you drunk?”
“Not nonsense.” Shu Wu positive color, lowered his voice and said, “You say what you can do? Seeing His Majesty’s intention, he must find out that there is a bit of a problem in the Ministry of Households before he is willing to give up, but if there is really a problem in the Ministry of Households, what about Fan Shangshu?”
“The key question now is whether or not there is anything wrong with the Ministry of Revenue.” Hu Daoshi face sadness said: “You have explained to me in detail the disposition of the small Fan Taoshi, to his clear in the middle with three points of ruthlessness, gentle and elegant under the hiding of the bold and arrogant style of action to see, in order to stabilize the Jiangnan, increase taxes, he mobilized the Ministry of the household silver money down to the Jiangnan …… said that may still be the real thing! ”
“True or false for the time being, anyway, Jiangnan Governor Xue Qing one day does not take a position, the court can not know the situation over there. As for the deficit of the Ministry of the household ……”
Shu Wu laughed coldly: “The Ministry of households is the Yamen of money, war to transfer money, repair the river to transfer money, disaster relief to transfer money, repair the garden to money, open the chunin exams to money …… everyone in the world is reaching out to the Ministry of households to ask for a debt in general, coupled with the royal son and the officials to borrow some of the occasional, it is really a mess of bad accounts! Throughout the dynasties, which have accounts on the Ministry of households completely clear!”
“The Ministry of Households, is destined to just not be clean.” He continued in a cold voice: “Our Daqing dynasty this Fan Shangshu, from the Ministry of households from the lower officials to do, this life in the Ministry of households, to be fair, he governed under the Ministry of households, has been since the founding of the dynasty is the cleanest and most clear a Ministry of households, but that is the case, if you really want to nitpick in it, which have not picked out the reason?”
Hu slowly nodded his head, and the former minister Lin Ruofu is not the same, and now in Jiangnan arrogant Fan Xian is not the same, the Ministry of households Fan Jian, although the hands of the Ministry of households under the hand may also be a little unclean, but acted exceptionally low-profile and simple, from the ability to say absolutely no two words, the official reputation of the good is also full of the dynasty is rare.
If such a Minister of the Household fell in this political struggle, these two university professors would feel immense pity.
However, this time, it was His Majesty who showed the intention of letting Fan Jian go.
Why is this?
“Why is that?” Shu Wu frowned those old eyebrows and asked very directly the question that had been haunting the minds of today’s Imperial Study officials for a long time.
Grand Maester Hu was silent, raising his wrist and lifting a cup of spirits from the inner treasury into his lips, and did not speak for a long time.
Shu Wu stared into his eyes, knowing that this colleague, who was quite a bit younger than himself, was quite trustworthy in his judgment in certain areas.
After being forced to look at the other party’s gaze for a long time, Grand Maester Hu sighed and slowly said, “When everyone couldn’t think of it, His Majesty moved this, it’s really ……”
He couldn’t seem to find any adjectives to describe this Nine to Five, so he could only say with a bitter smile, “It’s really admirable. His Majesty’s clearing of the Ministry of Revenue, seemingly because of the official winds and inner doubts, in fact, this is a good ploy to kill three birds with one stone.”
“Which three little birds?” Shu Wu beard full of wine, slurred asked.
“The first bird is, of course, the Ministry of households, is Fan Shangshu, clearing the Ministry of households if powerful, Fan Shangshu in any case had to ask for resignation to return home.”
“The second bird is …… the first to advocate this matter of the Princess line of officials.” Grand Maester Hu said with a bitter smile, “With the incident at the Ministry of Revenue and Fan Jian’s resignation, how can Fan Xian be willing to stop? Rest assured, His Majesty will never allow this matter to implicate Fan Xian, who will still be the Tisan of the Supervisory Yuan after the incident. In that case, the Procuratorate would naturally retaliate against the officials of the Princess’s lineage. And at this time, His Majesty will no longer be forced to be a mediator due to the pressure from the palace, but will instead watch it all happen, and will even make a gesture of being forced to remove and lay off a few of the great officials in order to appease Fan Xian.”
“Pressure from the palace?” Shu Wu sighed, “Why is it that His Majesty could care less about the pressure from the palace afterward? No longer continue to be a mediator?”
“The reasoning is simple: the removal of Minister Fan Shangshu and Fan Xian’s anger, His Majesty could blame it on the officials of the Eldest Princess’s lineage. And as an emperor, the most important thing is to maintain the balance between the hundred officials in the court. Fan Xian’s side first damaged the Chancellor and then Minister Fan, and His Majesty will have to cut a large chunk out of the opposite set in order to maintain the balance.”
Grand Maester Hu continued, “This rhetoric, this imperial heart, is the best means to convince that old man in the palace that everything …… is for the sake of Qing Guo isn t it?”
He smiled, he laughed at himself.
Shu Wu continued to sigh and asked, “Then what is the third bird?”
Dr. Hu looked at him with a smile, “The third bird, naturally, is me and old Shu you.”
Shu Wu was shocked and said, “What kind of statement is this? You have received this order, and what I discussed in the imperial study was all in the name of justice, and Fan Xian is not a confused person, so how could he harbor a grudge against us?”
“What you said is exactly what I wanted to say.” Grand Maester Hu said, “Who made us reveal in the court today that we want to pull Fan Xian into the cabinet? His Majesty’s established policy has long since been decided, and in the future dynastic situation, you and I will be on one side, and Fan Xian’s Supervisory Yuan will be on the other, so since we have other thoughts in mind, His Majesty will naturally have to break our minds. Even if Fan Xian won’t hold a grudge against us for this, how could he not hold a grudge against the civil officials who have petitioned the court to impeach Minister Fan? Once this matter comes out, Fan Xian will definitely stop thinking about taking a proper career path, and you and I will no longer have the possibility of sitting under the door with him.”
“Just a guess.” Shu Wu laughed: “Even if the holy heart is difficult to guess, do not think so complicated.”
Hu Daoshi helplessly sighed: “Say also you have to say, finally make fun of, or you make fun of. These words are enough for both of us to be cut off ten times, you can not drink and go around.”
“How I am also a university scholar.” Shu Wu hemmed and hawed and laughed, “It’s just to accompany the wine.”
Suddenly his face was stunned, frowned and asked, “No, the first bird you said is not right, you have to explain clearly to me, why does his majesty not want Fan Shangshu to continue to take care of the household ministry, and why is he forcing Fan Shangshu to ask for his own resignation.”
Grand Maester Hu sighed quietly, “The reason is actually very simple, it’s because His Majesty doesn’t want to still look at Shangshu Fan’s face in the court every day.”
The two leaders of the civil officials of the Qing court fell silent at the same time and sighed in their hearts for Fan Jian, it seems that creatures like the dragon’s son are better not to be embraced casually.
When the two university scholars in the Ministry of households before Fan Jian aggrieved, they also once thought, is not to hurry to the court is ready to clear the Ministry of households to inform the Fan Household, and then turned to think, the Fan Household in the palace network of many people, which have no reason not to know, will fade this mind.
Indeed, as early as shortly after the end of the Imperial Study Room meeting, Fan Jian, who claimed to be ill and returned to his home, had already received the news, and knew that at tomorrow’s court meeting, His Majesty would formally launch an investigation into the Ministry of Revenue.
But he is not very worried, that solemn face has long been no year of the wind flow breath, just a calm and calm.
“It’s not a plan to kill three birds with one stone, it’s four birds with one stone.” Fan Jian smiled, said to the opposite side: “As a courtier who has been loyal to His Majesty for nearly thirty years, my admiration for His Majesty is consistent and has never waned, and what happened today is …… really admirable ah admirable.”
Regardless of people before and after, once mentioned His Majesty the Emperor, Fan Jian always converge eyebrow Ning Shen, respect without two, today the study in the middle of these two admiration …… is to say the boss is not respectful.
“What is the fourth bird?”
Fan Jian stretched out his right hand palm, to the body in front of the spread, flexed the thumb, as if it is practiced from somewhere in the masterful palms generally, four fingers strong and unyielding to the sky pointing.
“The fourth bird, the Inspectorate.”
“His Majesty wants to see if, with a single order, he can still command the movement of this horrible institution of the Supervisory Academy very smoothly as he did in those past years, and not as he feared amongst his fears, that it had already been grasped in the hands of Fan Xian.”
“The progress of Idle Child is too fast.” Fan Jian thought of his son who was far away in Jiangnan and sighed, “If His Majesty can’t even command movement of the Supervisory Court, then the power in the hands of my Fan family’s clan is a bit too great.”
The corner of his eyebrow suddenly raised extremely frivolously, and he said with a smirk, “Moreover, His Majesty still wants to see what the real relationship between Chen Pingping and me is. For so many years, His Majesty has always trusted Old Cripple and I immensely, and you know exactly why, because before Fan Xian entered the capital, Old Cripple and I had always been at odds with each other; what he wanted to do, I resolutely refused to do, and what I wanted to do, he was resolutely opposed to.”
Fan Jian’s expression dimmed, “Now that I think about it, it should be that both Chen Pingping and I were suspicious of each other, and wondered if the other had played some dishonorable role in the middle of that incident many years ago.”
“But Idle Child entered the capital.” He continued to explain softly, “There was much less suspicion between Chen Pingping and I, and quite naturally, His Majesty became more suspicious of us. And the most crucial thing is that Idle Child is getting more and more honorable nowadays, and every time Idle Child is one point more honorable, when His Majesty thinks of the events of that year, and the scene of today, he will look at me one point more unfavorably.”
“His Majesty is jealous.”
“That’s why I’m retiring.”
Fan Jian, the Minister of the Household, finally came to a conclusion.
But he immediately with a kind of nowadays has been extremely difficult to see in his face frivolous look shame laugh: “But …… you know me, I have always been silent, good at acting, but in the bones, is very stubborn and ruthless a person, he wants me to learn Lin Ruofu self resignation, lest everyone tear the face does not look good …… But I prefer not to resign, anyway, the emperor is always going to be more concerned about the issue of face than the subjects.”