Rise From the Humble

There are three study rooms, one light and two dark; the four walls outside the house are covered with wisteria; in front of the house, there is a bamboo forest with whirling jade trees, and in the middle there are pine and juniper bonsais, and the green grass around the steps; there is a pond in front of the window, with several golden scales. Full of life.

There are three study rooms, two of which are set up as library rooms, with thousands of volumes of books filling the shelves. One room was set up as a reading room, with a carved wooden lattice, and an inkstone sink next to the window. There was a wooden board on top, and two food boxes were placed on the wooden board, exuding the aroma of vegetables.

The desk that originally housed the Four Treasures of the Study was still filled with six delicacies and one soup. Two people sat across from each other on the desk, looking like good buddies. They were Zhu Pingan and Zhang Siwei. This study is Zhang Siwei's "Bingzhu Study", which means reading at night by holding a candle, and also highlights Zhang Siwei's pursuit of reading. His nickname of "a true naturalist gentleman" is inseparable from his pursuit of reading at night by holding a candle.

"Zi Hou, do you know that your memorial has stirred up the waters of the capital city." Zhang Siwei looked at Zhu Pingan seriously and said.

"Come on, what kind of energy can we, big and small officials, have? If you throw a brick casually in the capital, everyone you hit will be of a higher rank than us." Zhu Pingan shook his head disapprovingly, then picked up the wine bottle and poured it for Zhang Siwei. A glass of wine, "Don't talk about me in a hurry, first tell me what happened in the capital recently? I just came back today, and I have a dark eye on the capital. First, tell me what's going on in the capital now." .”

Zhang Siwei shook his head and smiled, holding up the wine glass with both hands to salute Zhu Pingan.

Zhu Pingan also picked up the wine glass with both hands, raised the glass high, drank it all in one gulp, then placed the empty wine glass on the desk, picked up a piece of meat that was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and put it into his mouth, suppressing the strong taste of wine in his mouth. .

"This capital city is in a state of turmoil and uncertainty."

After drinking, Zhang Siwei also put the wine glass on the table, wiped the wine stains on his mouth, then stretched out a finger and started to tell Zhu Pingan.

"First of all, the first thing is that our master Xu Jiexu has finally entered the cabinet. Although the master previously enjoyed the treatment of a cabinet minister, he did not join the cabinet. This time, the master has finally entered the cabinet. Ten days According to the decree of the former Holy Father, I am the Master of the Ministry of Rites and the Bachelor of Dongge University to participate in the maintenance of the aircraft."

The official position of Dongge University Scholar is not high, much lower than that of the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. He is only a fifth-rank official, but his power is much greater than that of the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. He is one of the cabinet bachelors, and he has the authority to follow the rules and regulations. He has great power, such as inspecting questions, drafting and approving votes, participating in central decision-making, and influencing the political situation. It can be said that he has a high position and power, but of course his authority is still not as good as that of the chief minister of the cabinet.

Generally speaking, there were six cabinet ministers in the Ming Dynasty, divided into "four halls" and "two cabinets". The four palaces refer to the bachelors of Huagaidian Palace, the bachelors of Jinshen Palace, the bachelors of Jianji Palace, the bachelors of Wenhua Palace, and the bachelors of Wuying Palace; the two pavilions refer to the bachelors of Wenyuan Pavilion and the bachelor of Dongge Palace. Those who hold such positions are cabinet ministers.

At this time, Yan Song, the chief assistant, was serving as a bachelor of Wenyuan Pavilion.

Although they are both cabinet ministers, the chief minister is the most authoritative in the cabinet, equivalent to the previous prime minister. Although he does not have the name of prime minister, he has the power of prime minister. In the Ming Dynasty, apart from the emperor, the cabinet was in charge of the power of the government, and the first assistant was in charge of the power of the cabinet. The second assistants and group assistants did not dare to compete with the first assistant. If the first assistant does not like the second assistant, it is easy to push the second assistant out of the cabinet. For example, during the Xuande period, the second assistant Chen Shan was in the cabinet for only two months. He wanted to compete with the first assistant Nan Yang for the right to speak in the cabinet. As a result, I was tired of annoying Nan Yang, the first assistant, and he sent him back to his hometown to grow sweet potatoes with just one sentence.

Of course, under normal circumstances, the first assistant would not dare to send the second assistant home at will, after all, the emperor is still watching from above.

Generally speaking, if the imperial examination is like a carp jumping over the dragon's gate for scholars, then joining the cabinet is like a carp jumping over the dragon's gate for officials. Once you enter the cabinet, you are equivalent to the current five standing committee members, with absolutely high power.

Therefore, Xu Jie's entry into the cabinet was the most shocking event in the officialdom.

After Zhang Siwei finished speaking, he looked at Zhu Pingan, wanting to see Zhu Pingan's surprised expression, but found that Zhu Pingan didn't seem surprised at all, which surprised Zhang Siwei.

"Zihou, have you already heard about the news that the master has entered the cabinet?" Zhang Siwei asked strangely. Zihou was not surprised at all by such a big news.

I came from modern times, so of course I know. Not only do I know that Xu Jie joined the cabinet, I know all the major events in the history of the Ming Dynasty. I also know that you will join the cabinet in the future, and even become the chief minister.

Of course, I won’t tell you this, and neither will anyone.

Zhu Ping'an took a sip of tea and replied unhurriedly, "For me, it is not surprising at all that the Prime Minister will join the cabinet. It is just a matter of time. Since the cabinet minister Zhang Zhizhang died of illness two years ago, the cabinet has only We, Mr. Yan and Mr. Li Benli, are just two people. Although Mr. Yan is in good spirits, he is already old after all. The cabinet matters a lot and the position has been vacant for a long time. Naturally, he needs to be supplemented by ministers."

"It's just you and me. To be irresponsible, there are no more than five people in this dynasty who are qualified to sit on the cabinet chair. We can count them clearly. Mr. Xu Jiexu, the Minister of Etiquette , it is a common practice for the Minister of Rites to join the cabinet. When Yan Song, the elder of Yange, entered the cabinet, he was promoted from the position of Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Moreover, the master stood up and turned the tide during the Gengxu Incident, which left a deep impression on the emperor. , although he did not join the cabinet, he enjoyed the treatment of a cabinet minister."

"Except for our Master Xu Jiexu, the most likely person among these people to sit on the cabinet chair is Master Li Moli, the Minister of Civil Affairs. However, I have studied the changes in the government and cabinet over the years of the Ming Dynasty, and there is no one among them. There is a precedent for the official minister to enter the cabinet, and I think this time will be no exception."

"In addition, the relationship between Master Li Moli and Mr. Yan Ge is not easy to deal with, and it is not an exaggeration to describe it as being like water and fire. If the Holy Majesty wants to choose a cabinet minister, he will definitely ask Mr. Yan Ge. I think Mr. Yan Ge will not give himself If you are unhappy, find an enemy to join the cabinet."

"The teacher is different. Before I left Beijing, I went to the Yan Mansion for a banquet. I met the teacher several times. It can be seen that the relationship between the teacher and Mr. Yan Ge is much better than that of Mr. Li. On the way to Beijing, I heard that the station staff We talked about it, and it was said that half a month ago, the post station was very busy, and officials from many places sent Cheng Yi to congratulate the Yan Mansion on the happy event. I inquired, and learned that it was a teacher who brought a niece from the Xu family in Nanchang to the capital, and married her Taking Yan Shifan as my concubine..."

Speaking of this, Zhu Ping'an changed into a comfortable position on the chair and said lightly, "So it is expected that the master will enter the cabinet."

When Zhu Pingan was talking, Zhang Siwei sat up involuntarily and kept staring at Zhu Pingan's face.

Shocked

He knew that Zhu Pingan was smart, but he didn't expect that Zhu Pingan was also so keen on politics.