Chapter 886: May I attain Bodhi in the Dharma Realm (Part 1)

In the study of Zhang Mansion, he sat in the seat with a silent face with a solemn expression. Zhang Juzheng was wearing a mourning robes and sat with a haggard appearance on the left. Since receiving the bad news yesterday, he has been in extreme grief, and overnight he seemed to have been ten years old. However, while crying, he had to show his spirit and consider the impact of this sudden change on himself and the country.

According to the rules, he must immediately abide by the system, leave his post and return home, and mourn his father for three years. He cannot hold any official position in these three years, nor can he participate in any government affairs. However, the Wanli New Policy, which he spent his whole life, has just been laid out, and the situation seems to be very good. But his family knows his family affairs, and he knows very well that the reason why he has achieved his current results is entirely due to the examination method. Officials are mostly dissatisfied with this strict assessment. Once they leave for three years at this critical moment, those people will definitely try their best to destroy the examination method. When they come back three years later, they may be too late.

Thinking of this, he looked at the silence and couldn't help but feel annoyed in his heart: 'If you are not so easy to talk, how could I have to be so entangled!' Over the years, conflicts between the two have gradually arisen and disputes have often arisen. Nothing else, because Zhang Juzheng is strict in control and the rules set must be implemented. If he violates the rules, he must be punished. He is so serious that he is outrageous. Silence is just the opposite. Although he is like-minded with Zhang Juzheng, he believes in the principle of "people and political harmony" and is so good to officials that he is outrageous. In Zhang Juzheng's view, his magnanimity is simply indulgent.

For example, in the third year of Wanli, officials were tested and tested with a method of being burnt on the outside and tender on the inside, and more than 90% of them failed to complete the indicator. As the three-year trial period was about to pass, they would be punished if they could not complete it. Everyone had to report together that Mr. Zhang had too high requirements. If this method of playing, we would have to be completely eliminated. Zhang Juzheng said it was not possible. This indicator was formulated by Tian Mu himself, and you would definitely be able to complete it. If it could not be completed, it would be your own problem!

The officials had to ask for silence again, and said, "Then I will discuss with Mr. Zhang. The two of them bargained for a while, and in the end, the Prime Minister was very favorable, so Zhang Juzheng made a concession. Soon the cabinet issued regulations that from now on, local taxes will be paid, and as long as they receive a certain amount, they will not be punished even if they are confiscated.

But before everyone was happy, they all became depressed because the "certain amount" was 90%... Then in the assessment that year, all those who did not meet this indicator were demoted. Among them, 88% or even 89% did not escape the bad luck... Later, Mr. Chen came forward and persuaded him, and then he caught these brothers so that they would not be depressed to jump into the river. But the rest of the brothers were not so lucky, and it was useless to find Mr. Chen, and they were all demoted.

From then on, officials changed their previous style of soaking mushrooms in cold water and working hard from the beginning of the year to the end of the year, and worked diligently and dared not stop. They just wanted to pass the assessment at the end of the year, and not take the official back the more they treated him. The work efficiency was naturally greatly improved, which led to the vigorous Wanli New Policy.

So what Zhang Juzheng is most worried about now is not others, but the Prime Minister, who is known for his kindness and kindness, is worried that he will be mixed up after he leaves. He is too clear about the consequences... It is absolutely impossible to expect those officials to consciously implement the new policy. As long as the supervision is relaxed, they will definitely make great strides and their efforts will be wasted.

Thinking of this, Zhang Juzheng trembled his dry and cracked lips slightly and said with difficulty: "Or, let's get back to love..." This is the only way to stay. It is said that everyone worked hard for decades, and this method of "making people forget their grief and keep working" should be very popular... It was indeed the case before. There was a saying in the Song Dynasty that the prime minister was not worried and loyal to the country was filial. This was the same at the beginning of this dynasty. For example, the famous Yang Rong and Li Xian had all revenged love. Apart from being scolded by a few words from Taoist scholars, it basically did not cause much trouble.

But during the Jiajing period, this became a forbidden area that no one dared to touch. The reason for this change was that a filial son was born, Yang Tinghe, who was much more famous than Yang Rong and Li Xian. Yang Ge Lao's father died, and Emperor Zhengde tried his best to keep him. Everyone thought he would stay... Isn't this obvious? I worked hard for 30 years to gain the current status. Who would want to leave for three years, and they would not have to queue up again when they come back.

But Yang Tinghe was not sure what was stimulating... Judging from the subsequent dispute with Emperor Jiajing, this person really attached importance to these ethical rituals... The emperor refused to criticize him, so he left without complaining and absent from work for three years. Now, he fulfilled his name as a filial son, and his image became taller, but he also caused others to suffer. From then on, the senior officials of the court died of their parents. If they dared to say that they had robbed the love, the censors would definitely take the example of Yang Ge Lao to say that they were better than to scold him as a beast. Unfilial sons and without loyal ministers, they could only be reduced to the target of public criticism, so that no one dared to mention these two words later.

Zhang Juzheng naturally knew what situation he would face once he had a love robbed, but he was really worried about his career and had some luck in his heart... With Shen Mo's super reputation today, even if coal is white and snow is black, no one would openly object. So as long as Shen Mo proposed to take the love robbed, he would make a gesture and repeat it several times, and this matter would be successful.

After saying that, he looked at Shen Mo and waited for a reply.

Shen Mo thought about whether Zhang Juzheng would take over the relationship for a whole night. At this moment, he had an idea and said slowly: "It's better to Ding You."

"I'm telling the truth." Zhang Juzheng frowned.

"So too." Shen Mo whispered: "The risk of robbing love is too great, and the consequences are too serious. I don't think there is any need to take this risk."

"You..." Zhang Juzheng's pale face was covered with blood: "Do you think I am in the position of love?

"You misunderstood. I don't know what kind of person you are?" Shen Mo shook his head and said, "I mean, you have offended too many people over the years. If you give them a complaint, you will definitely attack them."

"I am not afraid of offending others. As long as I can keep the new policy in place, even if I am a disciple, I am willing to attain Bodhi in the Dharma field!" Zhang Juzheng said with a muffled groan.

"You are worried about me..." Shen Mo said helplessly.

"Do you feel relieved?" Zhang Juzheng looked at him and said: "In recent years, it can be seen that Lord Yuanfu has dealt with an official? How can he be the chief assistant like this?"

"That's because you are here." Shen Mo spread his hands and said, "If Mr. Zhang lifts his butcher's knife high, I will have to act as a Bodhisattva. If you are gone, I will naturally have a lion roar."

"Okay, this is the right person, and that's the right thing." Zhang Juzheng scolded mercilessly: "Since Yuan Fu had no intention of keeping me, let's make it clear. In recent years, I have been focusing on the one-whip method and clearing the fields of Zhangzhang in the Wanli New Deal. The former was basically successful, but the latter could be said to have basically failed! In the 26th year of Hongwu, the country cleared the fields of Zhangzhang in the country and obtained 8.5 million hectares of land, which has not yet been counted in Yunnan and Guizhou that were later opened. After two hundred years of rest and recuperation, there are two provinces in Yunnan and Guizhou, which should have a huge increase! What's the result? The two capitals and 13 provinces have only 7.9 million hectares of land! If the 890,000 hectares of Yunnan and Guizhou are deducted, it is a total of 1.5 million hectares less than before! In this way, I also gained the reputation of "shouqiao"!

"What exactly is the problem? On the surface, of course, it is the reason for the executive officials. They are either corrupted and attracted by the big investors, or they think they should be kind and be polite and try every means to conceal and miss the big landlords! But the fundamental reason is still with you, the chief minister!" Zhang Juzheng said coldly: "Because of the age of time, the previous data on clearing the chang-zhang can only be used as a reference and cannot be used as a basis for the examination. This requires us to strictly supervise and prevent fraud. However, Lord Yuan Fu's consistent attitude of indulgence made local officials deal with the Ministry of Revenue who went to clear the chang-zhang without any scruples, which led to this evil result!"

"I'm not a vague guess!" Zhang Juzheng continued: "This time, compared with the 15th year of Hongzhi, the largest increase in land volume was in the northern Zhili, Henan and Shandong. The country increased by 900,000 hectares, and these three places alone increased by more than 600,000 hectares. In addition to these three places, Huguang, Yunnan, Guizhou, Shaanxi, and Sichuan all increased. However, the seven southern provinces remained almost unchanged from the 15th year of Hongzhi. This is by no means a coincidence, but the officials in these places have received acquiescence. As long as they were the same as the 15th year of Hongzhi, they could pass the test!"

"Who do the officials in these places listen to? I think there is nothing in the world knows better than the Prime Minister!" Zhang Juzheng stared at Shen Mo angrily and said, "Why is Beizhi, Henan and Shandong the largest increase? Because it is close to Beijing, it can't fool me! Why hasn't the seven southern provinces changed? Because it is close to the Prime Minister, there is naturally nothing to worry about!"

"You said that, you would be wronged by me." Shen Mo was not anxious with him, but just smiled bitterly: "I came from the Southeast and knew the problems best. Simply put, it was too rich and too strong, and too far from Beijing. When Emperor Chengzu moved the capital, he laid the groundwork for the loss of control of the Southeast today."

"Hey, no wonder the outsiders who are officials in the southeast call them ghost countries!" Zhang Juzheng admitted that Shen Mo was telling the truth and said gloomy: "The imperial court's orders are far from Yunnan and Guizhou, but they cannot be practiced in the southeast. Because of his cunning and boldness, he is not obsessed with the court. If there is anything in the world in the future, he will definitely be severely damaged!" But he did not look helpless like Shen Mo, but changed his tone and said proudly: "The situation in the southeast is extremely strong, and the principles must change! We must make a little clear to make him know that the court's laws and regulations cannot be violated, and the division between the upper and lower levels cannot be overcome. If he eliminates too much, he will not be uncontrollable!"

"This is a good sentence, but it needs to be discussed for a long time." Shen Mo sighed long and looked at Zhang Juzheng with sincere eyes and said, "Brother Taiyue, since I have been talking about it today, I will also tell you what I think of you."

"Please give me advice from the Prime Minister." Zhang Ju said expressionlessly.

"You have the ability to do things in a world and the courage to do things, all above me." Chen Shu said frankly: "But, in my opinion, you are not a successful reformer."

"Haha..." Zhang Juzheng's eyes were very high. Even if he was pressed on his head by silence, he only felt that it was time and fate, not a battle.

"What is a successful reformer? Naturally, it makes his reform deeply rooted in people's hearts. Even if the person is gone, his policy cannot be overturned." Chen Si gave his definition: "I don't want to give the example of the ancients. I just want to say that you don't even have confidence in your reforms for twenty-seven months, which only means that you don't have confidence in your own reforms."

"If Yuan Fu could work together with me, how could I not dare to leave?" Zhang Juzheng said in a muffled voice.

"You always think that I was destroying your platform." Chen Si shook his head slowly and said, "Actually you were wrong. I was just giving a cooldown. If you don't do it well, you will burn yourself. I understand your mood of being unstoppable, but you have to know that what you want to command is a group of bureaucrats who have been corrupted and are full of selfish factors. You can use the test method to control them, but once you leave, the first thing they do is to tear off the account book! The tighter you are when you are there, the stricter you are to be against them, the more violent their future rebound will be! Is it possible to rely on these people to continue your policies?"

"Just give me more time..." Zhang Juzheng said unconvincedly.

"It's not a matter of time. In addition, when Gao Shegong was in power, it has been ten years since he implemented the new policy." Chen Shu sighed: "It's been ten years, and the truly appropriate policies have long been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. How could you stare at them like you are like guarding against thieves?"

"Does Yuan Fu think that what I did was wrong?" Zhang Juzheng said disbelief.

"Of course your policy is excellent, but the ancients said too much is not enough." Silently, "Just need to make a callback to give the officials a sigh of relief. A 10-point policy can be implemented with seven points, which is very successful."

"I'm afraid that this looseness will never get tight anymore!" Zhang Juzheng said: "I still stick to my own opinion. Only by strictly demanding and punishing those who have mistakes can all officials know that they are afraid and do not exceed the rules. After a long time, they will get used to it." As he said that, he clasped his fists and begged: "Yuanfu, let's hold on for a few more years... As long as Yuanfu is willing to work hard, no matter which one of the two capitals and thirteen provinces dares to make trouble!"
Chapter completed!