Chapter 421: There is no more fame and preferential treatment in the Ming Dynasty
The political structure of the Central Plains has undergone a long evolution over thousands of years, and it is always trying to find the best model.
After Xia Yu established the Xia Dynasty and established his family and the world.
The Central Plains has experienced the enfeoffment of princes, aristocratic families, and nine-level Zhongzheng. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties when aristocratic families ruled together, the imperial examination gradually appeared in the political arena with a new look. After the chaotic years of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, the establishment of the Zhao and Song Dynasties
, making the imperial examination completely the only political mainstay in the Central Plains.
The scholar-bureaucrat group upholds the government, and the gentry group controls the local government, which is why the ridiculous saying about sharing the world with the scholar-officials comes into being.
The Ming Dynasty inherited the Song and Yuan Dynasties, rebuilt the Central Plains, reshaped orthodoxy, and inherited the imperial examination system. Although there is no longer any rhetorical promise to share the world with the scholar-bureaucrats, the gentry and scholars all over the world are doing such things.
.
In front of the Meridian Gate, Zhu Yunxi openly declared in front of hundreds of officials that the Ming Dynasty would abolish all preferential treatment for scholars in the world after they achieved fame.
The uproar was to be expected.
Those officials who had spent their whole life to be promoted to official positions fell down one by one.
Countless officials shouted at the top of their lungs, hoping that the emperor would take back what he had just said.
Even the commander of the Jinyi Guards, Jiang Wei, who claimed to be the Eagle Dog of the Ming Dynasty, became hesitant. Looking at the officials who had become crazy, he did not dare to give orders easily and order people to arrest and detain them.
Ren Hengtai's whole body was cold, and he looked at Zhu Yunxi in front of him with dull eyes, whining softly in his throat.
"Is Your Highness going to chill the hearts of scholars all over the world?"
"This dynasty was only twenty-eight years old. Your Majesty first took charge of the great treasures, reformed the old and made new ones, reshaped the orthodoxy of the Central Plains, and appeased the people. At the right time, the talents withered and the talents were hidden in the mountains, forests and countryside.
Your Majesty has spent twenty-eight years on re-establishing schools, educating the young and the poor, and treating the virtuous and virtuous. However, the vacancies of government officials are still frequently vacant.
Those who are supported by the country and have great reputations. The two scholars are the disciples of the emperor. The emperor seeks talents from the world. There are 28,000 officials in the government and the public, and hundreds of thousands of students in the world. This is a sin. Are all the students in the world guilty?
I am dull and have no grand plans, but I see that the prosperous Ming Dynasty can be expected. Your Highness is young and talented, and the government is blocked for a while, but you have time to adjust it. Governing the country is like cooking fresh food, simmering slowly. Your Highness has implicated innocent people due to current crimes.
The descendants of future generations are like simmering in a fierce fire. In an instant, the firewood will crack and the pot will crack. How can the country be stable?"
"I am a scholar of the Wenhua Palace and a minister of the Ministry of Rites. I am admonishing your highness. I hope your highness will understand clearly, think twice before acting, and put the Ming Dynasty as the most important thing."
Ren Hengtai let out a last long sigh and dissuasion, threw himself to the ground, and kowtowed heavily on the ground, his voice was like tears, he kept sobbing, and his back was shaking.
Zhu Yunxi's gaze has never been so firm.
He looked at the officials who were in despair and wailing, and said softly: "I am not alone in discussing with you."
"I'm just telling you."
After finishing speaking, Zhu Yunxi turned around and walked towards the dark city gate cave under the Meridian Gate.
"Your Highness!"
"Your Highness!"
"I beg your Highness to take back my order."
"Your Highness, the Ming Dynasty must not be in chaos!"
"..."
Ren Hengtai shouted loudly and was heartbroken.
Ru Ruan lifted Zhai Shan, who had fallen to the ground and fainted, and held him in her arms. There was no trace of blood on his face.
Suddenly, he turned his head to look at Yu Xin and Wang Jun with angry eyes.
Yu Xin and Wang Jun noticed the eyes around them and looked over silently. After seeing Ru Yu's face and eyes clearly, the two of them couldn't help but move.
"This is a good thing you did!"
Ru Ruan shouted angrily, her eyes seeming to spit out fire.
Yu Xin frowned and his chin trembled twice, but he couldn't speak.
Wang Jun beside him snorted coldly: "Your Majesty's decree has not yet been issued, and the preferential treatment of the world's famous people has not been cancelled! Could it be that your Majesty can be like His Highness and really chill the hearts of scholars all over the world? Could it be that, Do you really want to bring chaos to the world?"
Thump thump thump thump.
In the dark Meridian Gate, Zhu Yunxi's figure has disappeared.
But a burst of dense footsteps came from the city gate.
Today, those people in the city who were summoned to the palace to watch the play with the emperor walked out of the palace accompanied by Sun Gou'er, the manager of the twenty-four yamen in the inner palace, and others.
Probably because of what happened before entering the palace, today I talked to the emperor a lot about the old people whose parents were short-lived and had no intention of beating up the officials in front of the Meridian Gate anymore.
But he still cast curious glances at the officials who were fine one moment but now seemed to be crazy.
The officials looked at the common people leaving the palace and felt a chill in their hearts.
Zhu Yunxi's previous words were still clearly imprinted on their minds at this moment.
There will no longer be any preferential treatment due to merit in the Ming Dynasty. Everyone below the royal family will no longer have high or low status.
From now on, even if the old men in front of me turn gray, don't we no longer need to kneel down to them?
In the eyes of Ren Hengtai and others, they thought it was Sun Gou'er who was escorting the people out of the palace, but he stopped after walking out of the Meridian Gate.
The accompanying young chamberlain came up from behind Sun Gou'er.
The pupils of Ren Hengtai, Ru Yu, Yu Xin and Wang Jun suddenly shrank.
The little chamberlain's hands were holding a bright yellow imperial edict.
The imperial edict was in Sun Gouer's hands.
Sun Gou'er raised his eyebrows and glanced lightly at the civil servants in front of the Meridian Gate.
Why is there an imperial edict at this time?
Ru Ruan's fingers pinched the arm of Zhai Shan, who was still unconscious.
A painful exclamation came from Zhai Shan's throat. The frightened Minister of the Ministry of Affairs opened his eyes in a daze before he could speak.
Ru Yu had already whispered: "There is a decree coming."
Zhai Shan was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Sun Gou'er standing in front of him.
Sun Gou'er looked at Zhai Shan who had woken up, with an ambiguous smile on his face: "The officials are also awake. That's good, and the Za family can read out His Majesty's decree."
Ren Hengtai's eyes were red and his face was full of tears. He stretched his neck, trying to see clearly what was written in the imperial edict in advance.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Zhai Shan and others are packing their robes.
A young chamberlain stood beside Sun Gou'er and shouted at the officials in red and green: "If there is a decree, all the officials will kneel down and listen."
Sun Gouer shook his arms and unfolded the imperial edict.
"There is a saying that I often hear, which is that for every person who slaughters dogs for justice, most of the people who are unfaithful are scholars. The Kong family has failed me, the world's gentry has failed me, but I have never failed you.
The people in the world are very poor, and they just want to be well fed and clothed warmly. If you eat more and wear more clothes, they will eat less and wear less clothes.
This is what I don't want to see, so I decided today that the imperial court will open more schools. Those who want to study will always have to sit in the school with a full stomach and study. Outside the school, those who have achieved fame cannot be
The officials then find work by themselves, go to the fields to dig food, go to the shops to settle accounts, or serve in the army, and there will no longer be any preferential treatment.
Appreciate this."
The will of the emperor is stamped with a jade seal, and the central purpose is made clear, which is regarded as a national policy.
The content of the imperial edict read by Sun Gouer at this moment will also be notified to the yamen of various ministries and departments in Yingtian City tomorrow, and then sent to the 14th local government office of the Ming Dynasty through Di Bao.
In this way, we can tell the world.
The officials who were trying to force the palace by kneeling quietly in front of the Meridian Gate today were placating themselves one moment. This was just a personal act of His Highness the Emperor Taisun, who wanted to cancel the preferential treatment of the world. The next second, the emperor's will had appeared.
in front of everyone.
The emperor did not hold a court meeting, and even the Zhengyintang officials of the Six Ministries, Five Temples and Three Dharma Divisions did not know in advance, and issued the imperial edict based on the emperor's will.
Sun Gou'er did not give the officials a chance to come forward. After reading the imperial edict, he lowered his head and looked at the ministers in front of him: "Common ministers, can you hear clearly what your majesty means?"
Zhai Shan wanted to faint again, but his head was extremely clear. He nodded blankly: "I know..."
"Now that everything is known, the Za family will go back to resume their duties. Please feel free to help yourself."
Sun Gou'er swayed, turned around, and was already walking behind the Meridian Gate.
In front of the Meridian Gate, Zhu Gaochi, who had not yet left, had his hands clasped in his arms, and his eyes were quite meaningful. Zhu Shangbing, who was beside him, pulled his sleeves, and Zhu Gaochi turned his head slightly, with doubts in his eyes.
Zhu Shangbing whispered: "Is something big going to happen?"
Zhu Gaochi nodded, but did not speak. Instead, he stepped forward quickly and got out of Zhu Shangbing's sight.
In front of the Meridian Gate, Ren Hengtai, who was already completely heartbroken, suddenly got up from the ground and stared at the Meridian Gate entrance.
Just when he was about to take steps, Zhu Gaochi flashed in front of him.
"Prince Yan..."
Ren Hengtai's heart skipped a beat, his intention was blocked, which made him blush a little.
Zhu Gaochi always clasped his hands, his eyelids drooped slightly, and sighed softly: "Ren Butang, why do you have to do this? Let's go back."
Ren Hengtai blushed and looked at Prince Yan who was standing in front of him. He shook his head and his face was dull: "It can't be like this, why is it like this?"
"Is it reasonable to compete with the people for profit?" Zhu Gaochi asked softly, the Minister of Rites, who seemed to have aged in front of him.
Ren Hengtai frowned, the truth was there, it would never change, everyone knew it.
However, it is one thing to know, but it is difficult to change something.
Then Zhu Gaochi became more serious and said in a deep voice: "How can we compete with the country for profit?"
"Tax Commissioner!" Ren Hengtai suddenly spoke and called out Zhu Gaochi's current official position.
Zhu Gaochi looked at Ren Hengtai calmly, his face extremely calm.
Ren Hengtai was breathing heavily.
"Ren Budang, did I say something wrong?" Zhu Gaochi stared at Ren Hengtai deeply.
Ren Hengtai tried several times to calm down his chaotic emotions, but he always failed.
It is an indisputable fact that the local gentry and powerful people compete with the people for profits. But if the matter involves competing for interests with the country, it will be a crime of treason and theft of the country.
Just thinking about it, Ren Hengtai felt that there were floating corpses stretching thousands of miles in front of his eyes, rivers of blood, and holes thousands of miles away.
Zhu Gaochi clasped his hands in his sleeves, made a belly-holding gesture, lowered his eyes, and said softly: "The country has countless territories, there are countless people, and there are countless records in the yellow books on Xuanwu Lake. If the gentry's fame takes away the benefits of the people, then the people will lose a penny.
If a gentry seizes dozens of acres of fertile land from a common people, the country will lose dozens of acres of farmland, and the summer and autumn taxes will reduce tens of acres of farmland. There are countless gentry in the world, and they have countless fame, how much land will they seize? How much less will the country lose by summer and autumn taxes?
Doesn’t this mean we are competing with the country to benefit from it?”
Top-down exploitation has turned into exploitation by the middle class, taking advantage of the top and bottom and enriching the middle class privately.
Ren Hengtai's shoulders slumped. Hearing this explanation, he didn't understand.
Zhu Gaochi continued: "The state collects taxes and recruits miscellaneous servants, not only for one person in the family, but also for the whole country. Water transportation is dredged, ditches are dredged, the northern and southern borders are divided, the Japanese army is suppressed, the court salary is paid, and local relief is provided.
Don’t you need a lot of money and food?
How much is it if the local government seizes only a small amount of profit? Not much. But if the whole country competes with the country for profit, how much is it? How much!
The country is in short supply, the local area is fertile, and the people are hungry and cold. May I ask the ministers, under such circumstances, how long will the Ming Dynasty be?"
Ren Hengtai's eyes flickered and he was speechless: "Da Ming..."
"The Ming Dynasty will not last forever!" Zhu Gaochi let out a long sigh: "Nowadays, the Holy Emperor carries the power of founding the country, and no official dares to disobey him. However, when encountering fundamental events, we are still in today's situation. How can future generations change it? Dare to change it?
I don’t dare…”
With a sigh, he dragged himself into the city gate for a long time.
But those questions were firmly engraved in Ren Hengtai's mind.
He looked at the Fengtian Hall, which because of the emperor's frugality, had only weak lights shining behind the Meridian Gate. He was the first person in the world to have a scholar's archway, and the first person to hold the title of Minister of Etiquette and receive a bachelor's degree from the Wenhua Palace.
The minister, looking particularly lonely, lowered his head and turned around.
Ru Ruan supported the pale Zhai Shan and looked anxiously at the dejected Ren Hengtai, wanting to know what he and Prince Yan just said.
But at this moment, Ren Hengtai no longer had the strength to speak, so he walked heavily to Zhai Shan and Ru Ru: "Let's all disperse..."
After saying the last words, Ren Hengtai no longer wanted to stay in front of the Meridian Gate. He followed the thoughts of those kneeling down and forced the palace officials, stepped on the marks under the palace wall, and walked toward the Duanmen with a lonely back.
Zhai Shan grabbed Ru Ru's arm tightly and shook it anxiously a few times.
Ru Yu looked up at Ren Hengtai who was walking away and shouted: "What did you say?"
No one answered Rujun's inquiry.
Yu Xin and Wang Jun looked at each other and saw that Ren Hengtai had left. They waved their robes and cupped their hands towards Zhai Shan and Ru Yu: "Since your Majesty has issued a decree, we will leave first. Already."
Ru Yun stretched out her hand and opened her mouth, but Yu Xin and Wang Jun were already leaving from the Meridian Gate with their hands behind their backs.
"Let's go, everyone go back..."
Zhai Shan, who fainted for a while and never recovered, muttered weakly, then let go of Ru Ru's arm and staggered out of Duanmen.
Ru Yu felt like it was stuck in her throat, and she was holding a breath in her chest that could never come out.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he glanced gloomily at the officials in front of the Meridian Gate who were completely panicked after hearing the imperial edict, and he couldn't help but snorted coldly.