Chapter 364: Minister of Rites (Twenty-two)
Although Weber had a stern face, he still couldn't hide the joy that Weber brought to the position of Minister of Finance. Although Gong Yu was very concerned about the result of his campaign for the position of Minister of Rites, he still had to attend the banquet set by Weber. Seeing Weber's joy, Kong Bugeng who was already the governor of Jiangsu, and Zeng Jing who was preparing to become the governor of Hunan, Gong Yu was disheartened for a while. He really didn't expect that he was not as successful as these people.
At this time, Weber raised his glass and said, "I was appointed as the Minister of State this time because of your majesty's favor. From now on, the only thing I have to consider is when to step down. Let's drink to this inevitable stepping down."
"Well said! Cheers!" Kong Bugeng praised, then picked up the glass and drank it all.
Zeng Jing was puzzled. He drank the wine first and then asked, "Brothers, why do you have to say such discouraging words?"
Gong Yu had already drunk the wine and sighed, "Brother Zeng, this is not a discouraging statement. Can Brother Wei be the Minister of Finance for the rest of his life? Since he has taken the position, he will definitely come down. Brother Wei sees things so clearly, it is his intelligence!"
Zeng Jing blinked a few times, but said nothing more. It was obvious that Weber's opinion was beyond Zeng Jing's cognition and he could not really evaluate it.
Weber poured another glass of wine, "Brother Gong, how are you doing? We are all very concerned. Among the three, who do you think will be elected?"
Gong Yu was a little annoyed and replied unhappily: "The final person to be elected will be decided by your majesty. This is not an equal election, how do I know who will be elected!"
"What is the equal-number election? Brother Gong, why don't you tell me about it?" Zeng Jing asked in confusion. He only knew that the Ministry of Rites was electing the Minister of Rites, but he still didn't know how it was done.
Gong Yu didn't want to talk to Zeng Jing. Kong Bugeng obviously didn't want to leave the audience in a daze, so he introduced new terms such as equal-candidate election and differential election to Zeng Jing.
The so-called equal-number election refers to an election in which the number of candidates is equal to the number of elected persons. If we take the current Ministry of Rites election as an example, the equal-number election means that there is only one position for the Minister of Rites, and the only person to be elected is Gong Yu.
Zeng Jing was a little surprised when she heard this, "If that's the case, then I can be selected!"
Kong Bugeng shook his head and said, "Brother Zeng, equal elections require more than half of the votes in favor. If they don't, there will be a re-election, but everyone wants to save face, so why would they really re-elect? The advantage of equal elections is that they can fully consider the rationality of the structure of the elected candidates, especially to give everyone an explanation."
Zeng Jing nodded, not quite understanding, and then asked about the differential election.
The differential election is simpler. Several candidates compete for one position. Whoever gets the most votes gets the position. If the top two candidates have the same number of votes, they will be re-elected.
Zeng Jing heard it clearly this time and couldn't help but sigh: "Isn't this easy?"
Hearing Zeng Jing's words, Kong Bugeng and Weber looked at each other and couldn't help laughing. Gong Yu certainly knew Zeng Jing's ability, so he didn't care about Zeng Jing's opinion. However, since he had a mocking intention in his heart, he paused for a moment and couldn't help laughing a few times.
Zeng Jing also wanted to save face, and this reaction was too sarcastic, so Zeng Jing's expression changed.
However, Gong Yu was a little out of control. He laughed a few times, but then burst into laughter. The three of them were a little unhappy, but seeing Gong Yu's reaction, they knew that Gong Yu was a little discouraged. They couldn't help but persuade him kindly.
Gong Yu vented his anger and finally calmed down. He finished the wine. Then he sighed, "I think highly of myself and looked down on Your Majesty at first. If I could have come with you three, I should have been able to win the Minister of Rites this time."
The three of them had arrived almost a year earlier than Gong Yu, so they naturally agreed with Gong Yu's opinion. So they all kept silent.
Gong Yu continued, "If I had not been so arrogant after meeting Your Majesty, thinking that Your Majesty would definitely adopt the strategy we had discussed long ago, and had instead worked hard with Your Majesty, this time would not have been so difficult. Luo Yiren also surrendered to Your Majesty and tried his best to serve you, even though his family's land was confiscated. He also wanted to have a background that would last a lifetime with the country. Although I did not underestimate Luo Yiren, I felt that Your Majesty's subordinates were all from Shandong civilian families and would not be able to achieve anything. But now I see a child like Yu Qian who understands how to learn. Even I feel that this is very right. Alas... humility brings benefits, while arrogance brings harm. This is true."
Wei Bo poured wine for Gong Yu, and then advised: "Since there are three people, Brother Gong still has a chance. Although Yu Qian spoke sincerely, he was still too childish. Besides, who will be elected in the end will naturally be decided by His Majesty. Brother Gong, why should you be discouraged."
Kong Bugeng also advised: "Wei Bo knows that once he becomes the minister, he will only face the situation of being demoted. Brother Gong, why should you worry about it? What's more, what Brother Gong said is reasonable. To conquer the world, you must use some means to deal with the nobles of the Qing Dynasty. Your Majesty is not in the mood to do these things at the moment. Once the matter of the Ministry of Rites is decided, Brother Gong will certainly have room to display his power."
Gong Yu was also really depressed. But there was no point in being depressed at this time, so he could only thank a few people and then congratulate Weber.
Everyone was afraid to drink too much, and after three rounds of wine and five dishes, they dispersed. The next day, the election continued. After the questioning, the elected representatives of the Ministry of Rites asked questions one by one. The three answered one by one.
Gong Yu knew that he was motivated by a desire to win, and he could no longer remain calm. But he was still very concerned about this, and in the end, he was unable to completely calm down.
After everyone finished asking questions, Huo Chong spoke up, "I have listened to the questions of the comrades, and I am very satisfied. I originally wanted to select the Minister of Rites first, but I think there is no need to rush. First select a few members of the Ministry of Rites. Then select the Minister of Rites."
The so-called committee members refer to the division of labor within the Ministry of Rites. The Minister of Rites is roughly equivalent to the class monitor, while the study committee member is responsible for the study content of the Ministry of Rites’ life meetings. The life committee member is responsible for various details.
Gong Yu was anxious, so he kept silent. These elected representatives had all experienced this, and there were these cadres and related powers and work in the military.
Yu Qian was naturally in charge of learning, Luo Yiren became the representative in charge of the latest direction, and Gong Yu became the representative in charge of personnel.
Gong Yu was not very clear about what this could do, but he saw Weber frowned slightly when he heard the result.
During the break, Gong Yu simply went to Huo Chong like Qian Qing and other old brothers and asked, "Your Majesty, I wonder what this position that everyone recommended is for?"
"Personnel management within the Ministry of Rites. Responsible for personnel assessment and promotion. You can think of it as the Ministry of Personnel within the Ministry of Rites."
Gong Yu was also a little stunned after hearing Huo Chong's clear explanation. The Ministry of Personnel was ranked first among the six ministries, and was known to hold the "power of life and death" over officials in the court.
If Huo Chong was right, it meant that Gong Yu had already gained enormous power. Although compared with the Minister of Rites, it was indeed not big enough. But it was already an extremely powerful power in the Ministry of Rites.
Just when he didn't know what to say, Huo Chong sighed, "The job of the Ministry of Personnel requires a person who is fair and can see through all kinds of conspiracies. Gong Yu, you are not bad, it depends on whether you want to do it. Maybe you think the Minister of Rites is more suitable for you."
Being told this by Huo Chong, Gong Yu knew that he could no longer fight for the position, so he quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I am only willing to serve you."
"Two different things. You want to do what you want, of course. But many things are not that easy. Especially in the Ministry of Rites. It's not like you think that just by getting in, you can have a good background. That's not the case at all."
Gong Yu only felt a buzz in his head. This period of time is not short. Gong Yu just saw Huo Chong advancing the construction of the Ministry of Rites in an orderly manner. Although he would not underestimate Huo Chong, he really felt that Huo Chong might not have thought too much, or not enough.
Seeing that the Ministry of Rites was about to be completed, Huo Chongke told Gong Yu what he was going to say next. It must be said that although Gong Yu also wanted to win over a few confidants to join the Ministry of Rites, he had no intention of turning the Ministry of Rites into his own little world.
...After all, it's not the time to think about this yet.
Huo Chong's words made Gong Yu give up the idea. Gong Yu started to worry about how he could get Huo Chong to let him go.
After thinking about it, I suddenly remembered the position I was selected to take on. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Shangshu Changshi Cao was reformed and a new department with authority was established, called Li Cao, which was the prototype of the Ministry of Personnel and has been used ever since. After the Wei and Jin Dynasties, Li Cao was changed to the Ministry of Personnel, and at this point, the Ministry of Personnel was completely finalized.
The authority of the Ministry of Personnel was finalized, but the affairs it managed and its departmental responsibilities were not completely determined. Generally speaking, it was responsible for managing the appointment, dismissal, examination, promotion, transfer, and honors of officials across the country. To say whether the authority of the Ministry of Personnel was large or not, it was indeed quite large. It was responsible for managing the appointment, dismissal, and transfer of officials from other departments. Doesn't this mean that it had the power to decide the life and death of other officials! Therefore, during the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Ministry of Personnel was directly listed as the head of the Six Ministries.
As someone who is in charge of personnel affairs in the Ministry of Rites, of course he has to take on these responsibilities. Gong Yu quickly responded, "Your Majesty, I need to ask you more about the standards for the personnel of the Ministry of Rites."
Gong Yu thought Huo Chong might keep him in suspense, but Huo Chong answered straightforwardly: "The standard is very simple. The Ministry of Rites does not want people who do not work. Those who are boastful and want to become members of the Ministry of Rites should not have such an idea while I am alive."
Hearing such a precise answer, Gong Yu could only nod and say, "I will follow your majesty's instructions."
After more than a year of work, the Ministry of Rites finally came to an end after the selection of the various committee members. Which member of the Ministry of Rites would be able to become the Minister of Rites? Everyone was eager to see who would become the Minister of Rites.
Huo Chong spoke again, "The term of office of the Minister of Rites is three years. Comrades, please vote according to your own ideas. I will announce who will be the Minister of Rites based on the voting results. Then, please start."
When Gong Yu learned that he lost to Luo Yiren by one vote, he found that he was not extremely disappointed. Of course, because he had the authority to arrange personnel in the Ministry of Rites, he did not lose anything this time, only the difference in how much he earned.
Likewise, the fact that the Minister of Rites was actually elected on a regular basis made everyone feel somewhat at ease.
According to regulations, the Minister of Rites is a position with a responsibility system. If there are no problems during the term of office, regular elections will be held every three years.
If there is a problem, the elected committee members will decide whether to hold a meeting of the Ministry of Rites. Or Emperor Huo Chong will order a meeting of the Ministry of Rites to discuss the matter and decide whether to re-elect the Minister of Rites. Once the decision is made, the Minister of Rites will be re-elected. The new Minister of Rites will inherit the term of office of the previous one from the time he takes office. After the term of office ends, a new round of elections will be held.
In the final analysis, the Ministry of Rites seems to be a noble department that talks about ideals and reality. However, it is also a department that attaches great importance to responsibility politics.
Thinking of the responsibilities that the Minister of Rites has to bear, Gong Yu felt a little sympathy for Luo Yiren.
Luo Yiren did not feel any self-pity. He invited Yu Qian to come over and consult him about the ideological construction in the army.
Yu Qian did not hide anything and simply told Luo Yiren about his case. After that, he told Luo Yiren that this matter was not easy. Even among the members of the Ministry of Rites, there were too many levels and different opinions. It was impossible to unify their ideas.
"I never meant to unify everyone's level. I just think that Branch Chief Yu's approach is very effective and can help everyone understand things."
Yu Qian quickly replied: "That's not something I came up with, but something that Master and Senior Sister taught me. If they hadn't taught me, how would I know this!"
When Luo Yiren heard this, he suddenly had an idea. After finishing his work, Luo Yiren went to see Huo Chong. But he saw Qian Qing was here with Huo Chong. The two of them made tea and obviously wanted to drink tea and chat. Luo Yiren was about to leave, but was stopped by Huo Chong.
Since things had come to this point, Luo Yiren immediately expressed his thoughts, "Your Majesty, I think we should train a group of people who understand logic and assign them to various departments, especially the Ministry of Rites. They should conduct logical analysis on various things, especially on everyone's words and deeds."
Huo Chong smiled and said, "This method sounds good, but it may be difficult to implement."
Luo Yiren nodded quickly, "I know. There are only a few people who really understand logic now. I know so many people that I am afraid I can't even count them on one hand. But if we don't do this, I am afraid that more policies will hurt your majesty's wisdom."
Qian Qing smiled slightly when he heard this. Huo Chong sighed, "Forget it, this kind of thing can indeed be tried. Anyway, the Qing Dynasty itself is not a threat. If China can advance to the point of being logical, it is indeed a great progress. But... hehe."
"Who does your majesty think of?" Luo Yiren followed suit.
"I thought of Yongzheng." Huo Chong replied.
"Yongzheng?" Luo Yiren was a little surprised. But after thinking about it, he felt that there was nothing wrong with Huo Chong thinking of Yongzheng.
Even if you look for evidence from folk sayings and deduce it logically, you can find something very interesting.
There is a common saying among the people about the relationship between Yongzheng and Huo Chong: "First, the prince became a traitor, then all the officials became corrupt officials and became the traitor's followers. Now even a craftsman has become a traitor. The emperor's eyes on things are too strange."
The people felt that Yongzheng was sarcastic, cruel and ruthless, and he killed princes, officials and craftsmen.
But from now on, it seems that the Eighth Brother has rebelled and established a court in Shengjing.
The reason why Lao Ba was able to escape was that his followers secretly colluded with Huo Chong and made a significant contribution to Huo Chong's entry into Beijing to kill Yongzheng.
As for Huo Chong, the craftsman, Yongzheng was not wrong about Huo Chong. It was just that Yongzheng did not expect Huo Chong to have decided to rebel from the beginning, which was the reason why Yongzheng died. Yongzheng was too arrogant.
After sorting out all this, Luo Yiren asked with more interest: "Your Majesty, please tell me more."
Huo Chong laughed and said, "Yongzheng is different from his father. Yongzheng has some humanity. His father Kangxi, haha, is an autocratic emperor. There is no such thing as humanity."
"Human nature... Your Majesty said that Kangxi firmly believed that he held power, and I can understand that. But how did Yongzheng's human nature manifest itself?"
"Yongzheng's humanity lies in the fact that his policies contain the logic of justice. So when you mentioned logic education, I suddenly remembered this. In Yongzheng's view, anti-corruption is a kind of justice. Corrupt officials themselves are wrong. However, in Kangxi's view, arresting corrupt officials is targeted in order to strike the enemy. As for whether corruption itself is right or wrong, Kangxi doesn't care. Because corruption cannot shake Kangxi's imperial power. Kangxi only cares about imperial power, not the logic of justice. This is what I think, the pursuit of justice is a manifestation of human nature."
"Pursuing justice? It turns out that Your Majesty also seeks simplicity in making judgments." Luo Yiren seemed to be thinking about something.
"I am not a complicated person. I think I have human nature. As a person with human nature, I will of course be careless, lazy and sloppy in many cases. This is also human nature."
Hearing Huo Chong say this, Qian Qing burst out laughing.
Luo Yiren also felt that this was right. Just as he was about to say goodbye, he suddenly thought of a question, "Your Majesty, since Kangxi is inhuman, will he be cunning and treacherous? From what I have heard, Kangxi does not seem to be a cunning and treacherous person. But he is not a person who is so diligent in government affairs."
"Now that we have talked about logic, then is diligence a result or a cause?" Huo Chong asked.
Luo Yiren pondered for a moment and suddenly understood a lot. "Your Majesty, as an autocratic emperor, Kangxi's diligence was only to keep the throne, not to promote justice. That's why Kangxi's reputation is dozens of times better than Yongzheng's. Because what Kangxi needs is to grasp power. It's human nature to promote justice, which is very offensive!"
"You're right. This is the different result." Huo Chong said, picking up the teacup.
In the Qing Dynasty, there was a custom of serving tea to guests. When guests met, the servants offered tea. The host thought that the discussion was over, so he picked up the teacup and invited the guests to have tea. As soon as the guest's lips touched the tea in the cup, the servant shouted: "Send the guests out!" The host stood up to see the guests off, and the guests also left on their own accord.
However, Huo Chong did not have such "human nature", but Luo Yiren saw Qian Qing sitting lazily on the chair next to him, obviously waiting for Luo Yiren to leave.
While Huo Chong was serving tea, Luo Yiren naturally said goodbye. He walked out of Huo Chong's place and closed the door. Luo Yiren felt something was wrong, but he couldn't tell. However, what Luo Yiren wanted most at this moment was to digest what he heard quickly. He completely put aside the fact that he felt something was wrong.
