Chapter 1024
Rectifying Officialdom
After thinking it over, Zhu Qiyu said, "I think they all have a point. It would indeed be detrimental to the management and development of military farms if the military farms and soldiers' pay were placed under the control of the Ministry of War. However, the army is seriously corrupt, with soldiers embezzling pay and encroaching on military farms. If this continues, how will our Ming Dynasty be able to recruit elite soldiers and generals?"
Pan Yun: "Corruption is never judged by whether one is a civil or military official, but by the governance of the bureaucracy. If the governance is clean, both civil and military officials will be honest; if the governance is corrupt, no matter whether one is a civil or military official, honest officials will not be seen in the court."
Zhu Qiyu pondered for a moment: "Does the Grand Preceptor mean that to address corruption in the army, simply reforming the bureaucracy is sufficient?"
Pan Yun: "Because of corruption in the army, the authority and responsibility for land reclamation of the Five Military Commands were transferred to the Ministry of War. Later, when the Ministry of War became corrupt, to whom was the authority and responsibility transferred?"
Zhu Qiyu's eyes flickered slightly.
Pan Yun said earnestly, "Why not improve the responsibility of supervision? Local governments should prioritize the people, and the military should prioritize the soldiers. I want to grasp the fundamentals. The policies implemented should be aimed at making the soldiers feel at ease and strong, so that they can fulfill their responsibility to protect the country. That is a good policy."
Zhu Qiyu's heart stirred slightly.
Corruption was rampant in the army, but the Five Military Commissions represented the status and interests of the Ming army in the court. If the authority and responsibility for land reclamation and military pay were really taken over by the Ministry of War, would the soldiers who were not involved in corruption be satisfied?
The emperor pondered the matter all night and rejected the proposal at the morning court session the next day. He then summoned the cabinet ministers and key officials from various departments to the Imperial Study to discuss how to supervise the military's practice of receiving salaries without working and encroaching on military farmland.
Furthermore, the imperial court should strengthen the governance of officials and promote honest and upright conduct in the workplace.
By the time the court officials left the Imperial Study, the sun was high in the sky, past noon.
Fortunately, the emperor treated them to lunch, otherwise they would have been starving.
Yu Qian thought for a moment and headed straight for the Imperial Observatory, where he ran into Chen Huai, who had also just finished a meeting.
The two exchanged a glance, said nothing, and silently walked to the Imperial Observatory.
Almost as soon as they stood still, before they could even speak, a young Taoist boy stepped forward: "Lord Chen, the Imperial Preceptor requests your presence."
He then said humbly, "Please wait a moment, Lord Yu."
Chen Huai and Yu Qian exchanged a glance and followed the young Taoist priest inside.
Pan Yun was having lunch when she saw him and quickly waved, pretending to chat casually: "General Chen, come quickly, I haven't finished eating yet, let's have some more together."
Pan Yun handed him a pair of chopsticks and served him a full bowl of rice. "I didn't expect you guys to leave so late. I was thinking of waiting for you to come over so we could have lunch together."
Chen Huai was indeed not full, but he naturally had to be more reserved in front of the emperor, so he wouldn't starve to death.
Chen Huai took the bowl and chopsticks, glanced at the dishes on the table, and began to eat heartily.
The two of them ate heartily and put down their bowls and chopsticks at the same time.
Pan Yun wiped her mouth and said, "Ask me any questions you have."
Chen Huai said, "I have come to thank the Imperial Advisor for speaking up for our Five Armies Commandery."
Pan Yun: "I did this for the sake of the million military households and the Ming Dynasty. If the responsibility for military farming were placed in the hands of the Ministry of War, the development of military households would be more restricted, and it would be easy for civil officials to replace military officials, repeating the tragedy of the Song Dynasty, but..."
Pan Jun paused for a moment and then said, "Chen Huai, the military system of our Great Ming is based on garrison farming. If military households lose their garrison farming, the Great Ming will lose a reliable source of soldiers, and the border will be in grave danger."
Pan Yun: "I hope the Five Military Commands will not forget their responsibilities."
Chen Huai, with a serious expression, stood up and responded. After Pan Yun waved his hand, he bowed and withdrew.
He wanted to discuss with his old comrades that in this investigation of corruption in the military, the Five Military Commands must purge the corrupt officials within the army.
Chen Huai hurriedly went out and bumped into Yu Qian, who was standing in front of the door with his hands behind his back, looking up at the osmanthus tree. He paused slightly.
Yu Qian turned around when he heard footsteps.
The two exchanged a silent glance, then Chen Huai nodded to Yu Qian and left. Yu Qian simply nodded back.
Because it was his suggestion to bring the responsibilities of land reclamation and military pay under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War, Yu Qian is now very resented by military officers.
Shi Heng, whom he had previously valued, was dismissed and investigated for being involved, and his former superior, Wang Ji, also refused to see visitors. Therefore, he now has few supporters in the military.
The young Taoist priest came out and invited Yu Qian inside.
The table had been cleaned, and Pan Yun had replaced the teapot and teacups. Seeing Yu Qian come in, she smiled and stood up to invite him to sit down.
After returning the greeting, Yu Qian sat down opposite her, glanced at the teacups on the table, and said, "Your Excellency, the Imperial Preceptor, are very busy. I apologize for disturbing you."
Pan Yun brewed him a cup of tea and said with a smile, "Even if Jie'an hadn't come to see me, I would have gone to find him anyway."
Yu Qian lightly tapped the lid of the bowl and asked directly, "Why does the Grand Preceptor oppose my reform of the military system?"
Pan Yun: "I am not against Jie'an's reform of the military system; I am only against the transfer of the authority and responsibility for land reclamation to the Ministry of War."
Yu Qian frowned: "Compared to the Ministry of War, do you trust the Five Military Commissions and the regional commanders more?"
Pan Yun: "Jie'an, you are now the Minister of War, and you can guarantee the fairness and impartiality of the Ministry of War, but what about after that?"
Pan Yun looked directly at Yu Qian and asked, "How many years can you serve as Minister of War? How many years can you serve as Grand Secretary? And how many years can you live? How can you guarantee that your successors will be as fair and impartial in the Ministry of War as you are?"
Pan Yun held up a hand and said, "Fingers are not all the same length, and what you consider fair must also be biased. How can you be so sure that your bias is correct?"
Yu Qian stared blankly at her fingers.
Pan Yun retorted, "Jie'an, you're too dedicated, too forceful, and too eager to do good. Your efforts are making things worse."
"You want to govern the country like Huang-Lao?"
Pan Yun shook his head: "Without a good system, the reforms will make us even more reliant on people. There are eunuchs supervising the army, serious problems with forced labor, destruction of military farms, and desertion among soldiers. How long do you think the newly reformed military system can last? Is the destroyed new military system really superior to the current garrison system?"
Yu Qian remained silent.
Pan Yun gave him time to think. He drank two cups of tea, and it wasn't until the third cup that he slowly came to his senses. Only then did she raise her teacup and say, "Go find Chen Huai. Whether it's the Ministry of War or the Five Military Commands, whether it's you or Chen Huai, you are both now dedicated to the public good. In that case, why not cooperate?"
Yu Qian looked at the teacup held up in front of him, and after a long while, he still raised the teacup in front of him and gently touched it with hers.
Pan Yun smiled and the two finished their tea. She personally saw him off at the gate of the Imperial Observatory.
Those who secretly speculated that they would quarrel, fight, or even break up were almost shocked to see the two of them looking relaxed and even smiling.
Yu Qian and Pan Yun said their goodbyes and strode away.
He did indeed go to find Chen Huai.
Afterwards, the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commissions cooperated to crack down on corruption in the military.
Of course, they didn't just focus on fighting corruption; they also came up with measures to improve the treatment of garrison troops, soldiers, and officers.
Logically, with the increase in benefits, the national treasury should have spent more. However, in reality, the benefits that had been seized by some senior officers were distributed to other units, which to some extent increased the benefits for soldiers at all levels in the military.
There are corrupt people, but ultimately there are far more people who are sincere and honest.
Meanwhile, anti-corruption efforts were underway in the military, and the imperial court also began to rectify official conduct. (End of Chapter)