Chapter 1112 1203 Complex System
What Wei Guangde wanted to do today, the first thing Zhang Juzheng did not object to, although he had not made a clear statement, but that was what he meant.
If the situation at Atai and Ahai is true, it is inevitable that the Liaodong Ming Army will send troops to Hongli Village and Shaji City again.
Improving the environmental sanitation in Beijing is actually good for everyone.
It’s not unexpected to everyone. In fact, the dirty areas of Sijiu City are mainly slums and markets, especially bustling commercial places such as Cow Horse Market and Zhu Market Street.
Yes, the more prosperous a place is, the more animal power is needed. After all, it is unrealistic to rely on people to transport large amounts of goods.
Then there are herds of cattle and horses on the street, and naturally the streets have long been covered with a thick layer of dung.
It's usually fine, it's fine when you step on it, it's even a little soft.
But once it rains, it is simply indescribable.
Before, everyone was used to it just out of habit. This was true throughout the Ming Dynasty, and even in cities all over the world, regardless of East or West.
The improvement of the appearance of Western cities actually only started in the late 18th century. At that time, Westerners became aware of hygiene, began to build special toilets and garbage dumps in the city, and arranged dedicated personnel to clean up garbage and feces.
Since Wei Guangde came through and realized the problem, he naturally had to solve it.
Well, history will record in the future that civilized China had already started urban sanitation work in the late 16th century, two hundred years ahead of the West.
Wei Guangde said goodbye to Zhang Juzheng's duty room and returned to his own duty room. He immediately sent a note to Shuntian Mansion and the Wucheng Army and Horse Division, asking them to come to the cabinet in the afternoon to discuss matters.
But when it came time to actually put pen to paper, Wei Guangde was in trouble. It can only be said that he seemed to have thought a bit simplistically before.
In this matter, Wei Guangde circled the yamen that were mainly responsible from the beginning, namely Shuntian Mansion and Wucheng Military and Horse Division, but he forgot that the two yamen had a mutually irreconcilable relationship.
Shuntian Prefecture is responsible for managing administrative affairs in the Beijing area. It has jurisdiction over 5 prefectures, 7 counties directly under the jurisdiction of the government, and 15 prefectures and counties.
This position occupies a pivotal position in the bureaucracy of the Ming Dynasty. Its responsibilities are wide-ranging, covering many aspects such as public security, government affairs, and justice.
Shuntian Fuyin, as the highest chief executive of the Beijing area, has a rank of third rank and is a civilian foreign official. This setting reflects the Ming Dynasty's emphasis on the governance of the capital area.
In the Ming Dynasty, the responsibilities of Shuntian Fuyin were not limited to administrative management, but also included judicial and financial aspects.
For example, Suncheonbu needs to handle criminal and civil cases in the Gyeonggi region, manage financial affairs, and be responsible for some specific ceremonies and activities, such as welcoming the spring and offering sacrifices to ancestors.
These responsibilities require Shuntian Fuyin not only to have good administrative management capabilities, but also to have a certain understanding and ability to handle laws and finances.
The Five-City Military and Horse Division was affiliated to the Ministry of War in the Ming Dynasty. In the second year of Yongle, the Beijing Military and Horse Command Division was established. After Beijing was established as the capital, the Five-City Military and Horse Division was divided into five divisions: Central, East, West, South and North. The city's soldiers and horses commanded Sizheng's 6th grade Yamen.
Each of the five yamen has one commander, four deputy commanders, and one official, who are responsible for public security, fire control, and clearing the streets of Dequ. Equivalent to the current Beijing Garrison District and Public Security Bureau.
In the imperial era, the capital was the residence of the emperor. It had important symbolic significance, political connotation and strategic position. Reasonable institutional setup was of great significance to ensuring the safety and smooth operation of the capital, so it has always been valued by rulers. .
The Ming Dynasty imitated the Yuan system and set up the Five-City Military and Horse Department as a full-time governance agency in the capital. It was responsible for arresting thieves, inspecting wind and fire, managing markets, cleaning streets and canals, examining corpses and injuries, editing and reviewing shops, and providing relief to the poor.
In fact, whether it is the government officials of Shuntian Prefecture or the officials of Daxing and Wanping counties, many tasks overlap with those of the Wucheng Army and Horses Division.
That’s not all. In addition to the Shuntian Mansion and the Wucheng Military and Horse Division, there are actually Jinyiwei and the East and West Factories that have appeared from time to time. Everyone is actually responsible for the security of the capital.
Wei Guangde held the pen and thought for a long time, not knowing what to do.
Now the Wucheng Military and Horse Division is under the Ministry of War, but the actual management power in peacetime is indeed in the hands of the censor who patrols the city.
Even though the censor is only of the seventh rank, he can still manage the commanders of the sixth rank.
In addition, there is also the issue of factory guards. It seems that they usually collect money from employees on the street.
With this kind of money, Wei Guangde knew when he first arrived in the capital that although business taxes were low in the Ming Dynasty, business expenses were not light.
But as for the merchants in Sijiu City, they have to pay filial piety to the Jinyiwei, the county government and the military department according to the rules, otherwise it will be difficult to do business.
Of course, if the background is strong, such as members of the Military and Horse Department and the county government, they can refuse to pay the money. They are intimidated by the people behind the businessmen and dare not do anything.
In addition, digging trenches and repairing canals seemed to involve the Ministry of Works. Wei Guangde knew that there was a street office under the Ministry of Works, which seemed to be doing the same thing.
All of the above can only be said that in this era, although China has a history of thousands of years, there is still no simple and effective management method for the growing cities.
Due to its large population and vast area, Beijing in the Ming Dynasty gave the court a headache for public security.
In the past hundred years, the number of yamen involved in public security and civil affairs management has gradually increased, involving the yamen of Shuntian Prefecture, Wanping, and Daxing counties, the Wucheng Army and Horses Division, the patrol censors, and the Jinyiwei, The relationships between departments such as the patrol camp and the sub-district office of the Ministry of Industry are complex.
Okay, now Wei Guangde finally remembered that there seems to be something about the Ministry of Industry.
Think about the sanitation work in Beijing, which involves the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Industry, the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Imperial Guard. It is no wonder that for more than a hundred years, the capital of the Ming Dynasty still used the foundation of the city built by Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, and involved too many yamen. , the scope is too broad.
Even if someone below realizes that there is something to be done here, they will shrink back if they think about it carefully. It is really difficult for the people involved to coordinate.
Not to mention anything else, when he actually started working on this matter, he, the deputy minister of the cabinet, felt that he was at a loss and had no way to start, let alone others.
What the hell is this?
It’s no wonder that when the invaders entered Beijing, a single order could drive the people to work on sanitation. The occupying army’s organization was simple, and it was just a matter of a word from the commander.
They don't have time to see any coordinating departments, what is implemented is military control.
However, if this kind of thing is done by the imperial court, it is really troublesome, as it requires coordinating several departments.
Wei Guangde thought for a long time, and in the end he could only choose that the matter should be handed over to the head of Shuntian Prefecture, and the officers of Daxing and Wanping counties under Shuntian Prefecture would be responsible for the specific implementation.
You cannot use the Five-City Army and Horses Division. First, the Army and Horses Division looks like one yamen, but it is divided into five, southeast, northwest, and middle. In fact, it is not easy to coordinate, although there is a distinguished person commanding these five. Commander, but after all there is a layer between them.
Furthermore, the rank of Commander of the Military and Horse Division is too low after all, and it is a martial arts position. What is the use of a sixth-grade martial arts position?
The Shuntian Prefecture Yin is different. He is a third-rank official and can be regarded as the real power in the capital. Although the position of Shuntian Prefecture Yin has always been notoriously difficult to fill due to the large number of powerful people.
With Shuntian Fuyin in charge of sanitation in the capital, it will be easier to implement it in other places in the future.
At the local level, the person responsible for this matter is naturally the prefect and county magistrate. There are not as many yamen as there are in the capital.
The government office in Fuya County has six divisions that connect with the six ministries. With just a word from the magistrate, sanitation work can begin.
It’s not like Beijing, there are too many mothers-in-law. Wei Guangde sat in his seat and thought about it carefully. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this should be the case.
The Street Department of the Ministry of Industry is under the orders of the Ministry of Industry and Shuntian Prefecture at the same time, so that Shuntian Prefecture can coordinate the work of street ditches in the capital, while the two counties recruit migrant workers to take charge of the sanitation work in the capital, and also directly collect sanitation fees from businesses , to pay for this expense.
This is also the biggest difference between ancient economics and modern economics. In the era of small government, taxes were collected based on expenditures. Without expenditures, there would be no taxes.
One-time expenses are taxed once, and long-term expenses are taxed long-term.
For later generations, it seems that new taxes appeared in some places from time to time in ancient times, and they felt that they were exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous taxes levied by the government, but this is not necessarily the case.
Relatively speaking, the ancient taxation model can minimize the burden borne by the people.
No expenses, no taxes.
Of course, it is impossible not to pay it at all. Zhu Yuanzhang had long ago determined that the taxes paid by local prefectures and counties to the central court would be dead. As a permanent rule, this tax cannot be escaped no matter what.
In the modern era of big government, taxes are clearly arranged. Regardless of the amount of government spending, the final manifestation is fiscal deficit and surplus.
Generally speaking, the government will not increase or reduce taxes unless it is absolutely necessary.
Wei Guangde is not prepared to leave the usual street sweeping work to the officers and soldiers of the Five Cities Military and Horse Division. They already have enough errands. If they can be solved by the government, there is no need to use soldiers, and they can also give the people in the city an extra job. A profitable business.
Thinking of this, Wei Guangde started writing quickly. He first wrote down everything he had just thought of. This was to be handed over to Shuntian Prefecture Yin and asked him to handle it according to this.
With the regulations in place, at least Shuntian Prefecture Yin will know what he wants to do and what needs to be done.
As for the Ministry of Works, they naturally have to attend this meeting. The sub-district office has been changed from the management of the Ministry of Works to the co-management of Heshun Tianfu. It is impossible not to say hello to the Ministry of Works, otherwise Shuntian Prefecture will I definitely can’t command the street office.
Anyway, the superior of the subdistrict office is the Ministry of Industry, which is the second-grade yamen, and it may give face to the third-grade Shuntian Mansion.
As for the future health inspection work, the City Patrol Censor and the Five Cities Soldiers and Horses Division can participate.
It is easy to carry out sanitation in Beijing, as long as you gather the manpower, but keeping it clean and tidy is another matter.
Shuntian Mansion, plus the people from the Wucheng Bingma Division, it is estimated that no one will dare to urinate and defecate casually in Sijiu City anymore.
As for the excrement of livestock, I remember that later generations seemed to put bags on these animals to catch the excrement and take it back to deal with it themselves, so it was not difficult.
Soon, after a charter was written, Wei Guangde quickly wrote a note to King Yin of Shuntian Prefecture, as well as to the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of War, asking them to arrange for a minister to come over, mainly to take charge of the street hall and People from the Military and Horse Department came to the cabinet to discuss matters.
Although the government of the Ming Dynasty should be said to be a very mature system, when faced with problems from later generations, Wei Guangde always felt that it was not as good as the government systems of later generations and could easily solve these problems.
As for environmental sanitation, if it is the political system of later generations, it can be done directly by Shuntian Prefecture. There is no need to contact the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Industry for assistance.
But it just so happens that Guogou Street is not under the control of Shuntian Prefecture, but the Ministry of Industry. If there is a problem, Shuntian Prefecture or the Military and Horse Division can just write a letter to the Ministry of Works and ask for resolution.
Then the Ministry of Industry official approved it and then transferred it to the Street Department for processing.
Compared with later generations, the handling of ordinary government affairs does seem slow and inefficient.
"Here comes someone."
Wei Guangde wrote the note and shouted outside the house.
"Master".
Lu Bu came in from outside the door, stood in front of Wei Guangde and bowed to listen to the order.
Wei Guangde handed the note in his hand to him and said: "Click here to ask someone to send it over. I will pick him up when he arrives in the afternoon."
Lu Bu took the note from Wei Guangde, glanced at it, and naturally knew where to send it.
After others left, Wei Guangde continued his work today.
He can't change the government system. This is an ancestral system that has been formed for thousands of years. If it were to be changed, everyone might not be used to it, and it would cause big trouble.
If you have trouble, please be troublesome. This can also reflect the value of the cabinet.
Soon, Wei Guangde's note was sent to Shuntian Mansion, the Ministry of Industry, and the Ministry of War.
Shuntian Prefecture Yin is Wang Zhiyuan, with the courtesy name Ershi and the nickname Jianfeng. He was a native of Xincheng County, Jinan Prefecture, Shandong Province. He was a Jinshi in the 41st year of Jiajing.
Being able to take up a position like Shuntian Mansion at such an age is naturally supported by noble people.
It’s just that his nobleman has now gone back to Shandong to retire.
Yes, this person is naturally Yin Shizhen. After leaving the capital, he wrote a letter when Wei Guangde returned to the capital, asking Wei Guangde to take care of his fellow Shandong people.
Wang Zhiyuan is very capable, otherwise Yin Shizhen may not fully support him.
After becoming a Jinshi in the 41st year of Jiajing, he was first awarded an official position in Jingzhou Prefecture. In the first year of Longqing, he was admitted to the Criminal Department and was given the title of Shizhong. It was Yin Shizhen who began to arrange the chess pieces in the six departments.
In the position of Shizhong of the Criminal Department, Wang Zhiyuan Shangshu put forward four suggestions to stabilize the people and consolidate the foundation, which were well received by everyone. He later served as the right to Shizhong of the Li Ke, the left to Shizhong of the Military Department, and the chief of Li Ke. Both the criminal department and the criminal department were given to Shizhong.
In the fifth year of Longqing's reign, he was promoted to Shaoqing of Taipu Temple, and was soon transferred to the position of Minister of Honglu Temple. He managed his subordinates with a serious attitude and kept the entire Honglu Temple in order.
During the Wanli period, due to the relationship between Yin Shizhen, Wei Guangde, after seeking his wishes, arranged for him to serve as the right Shaoqing of Dali Temple, the left Shaoqing of Dali Temple, the minister of Taipu Temple in Nanjing, and the minister of Taipus Temple.
It can be said that in the past three years, Wang Zhiyuan also gained the trust of Wei Guangde because of his outstanding ability. He was promoted along the way and finally supported his promotion to Shuntian Fu Yin.
This position is not easy to get, but it is of high rank, so there are naturally a lot of people watching.
When he ascended to the throne, the Shandong officials in the court seemed to be headed by him. This can be regarded as Wei Guangde fulfilling Yin Shizhen's instructions.
This can be regarded as Wei Guangde's superior move. Instead of pushing the Jiangxi fellow to the top, he pushed Wang Zhiyuan, which Zhang Juzheng had no choice but to accept.
Although Wang Zhiyuan didn't know why Wei Guangde summoned him, since it was a cabinet meeting, it must be a big deal.
However, he never imagined that it was actually a sanitation job.
However, although the matter is small, if it is done well, he can leave his name in history.
As for Zhu Heng and Tan Lun, it doesn't matter, just follow the arrangements.