After a pause, the assistant minister and former cabinet chief assistant Ye spoke to Gao, and he said: "May I ask the emperor, there are rumors outside that the emperor wants to sell his official beard in order to raise money, and the emperor began to say that it is not groundless, so the minister dares to ask if it is really true?" ”

Apocalypse said: "This betrayal is nothing, and it is true that I plan to make a man." ”

Ye Xianggao said: "Has the emperor considered it, this title is a reward from the imperial court for meritorious people, what will you think if you take out the title and sell those meritorious heroes?" ”

Tianqi said: "Lord Ye means that the heroes will be ashamed of their company, thinking that these people who spend money to buy titles will smoke them with the smell of copper, right?" ”

Ye Xianggao said: "The minister thinks so. ”

Tianqi said: "It is indeed inappropriate to put the scholars of the Qing Gao and the generals who fight on the battlefield together, and it is indeed inappropriate to pull the people who spend money to buy the title together." In order to avoid this, I had already promoted all the counts to marquis a month ago, so that it would be easier for me to sell the earldom, and the heroes and the people who bought the title would not be compared. ”

Ye Xianggao said: "Selling one kind and selling a few are just different degrees, once the opening of the sale of the official mantle will not end well, the emperor and the eunuch sold the official mantle in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, resulting in the government corruption history books are left infamy, hope the emperor will think twice." ”

Apocalypse said: "I will say again, I don't sell my official position, I just want to be a lord, don't pull the two together at every turn." ”

Ye Xianggao said: "Your Majesty, is there any difference between this? Please think twice. ”

At this time, other people from the Donglin Party also came out one after another and said: "Your Majesty, think twice." ”

Tianqi thought for a while and said, "You keep saying that it is not good to sell official positions, but in fact, you have been selling officials all the time for so many years. ”

The ministers were shocked when they heard this, and Zhao Nanxing, the secretary of the ministry, said: "Where did the emperor start with this? The ministers served as the secretary of the ministry twice, and they were all admitted and promoted on the basis of strict assessment of officials, and the ministers could not afford the crime of selling officials all the time. ”

Tianqi said: "I am talking about the system, but I am not saying that you Lord Zhao is selling officials. Lord Zhao said it well, rigorous assessment and merit-based admission and promotion. A person should be rewarded for doing a good job, but he should be rewarded for not rewarding the silver or the land, but rewarding him for an official, does the implication be that he should be allowed to make it himself after he takes office? If so, is it considered a traitor? ”

Zhao Nanxing said: "Your Majesty, many people do not come to be officials for money, but for the safety of the people and the community!" When he has made achievements in office, what is wrong with letting him be promoted to play a greater role? ”

Tianqi said: "I believe you have heard the saying that thousands of miles of officials are only for money, so what are you embarrassed to say?" Of course, I admit that there are the kind of people you mentioned, but I don't think there are many such people, and I want to satisfy the interests of the majority rather than the few. As for saying that you must be promoted if you have made achievements, I don't agree with it, people's abilities are big and small, and a qualified county commander is not necessarily a qualified prefect, and a governor may not be able to do a job. ”

Seeing Zhao Nanxing's words, Sai Ye Xianggao said: "Let's not talk about how to appoint and dismiss officials, because it is a very difficult problem to be fair and reasonable, and to make the best use of people's talents. The emperor said that if you want to meet the interests of the majority of people, can you do it by selling the title? Those who spend money on a knighthood don't use it to make money? ”

Tianqi looked at Ye Xianggao and said, "Lord Ye asked like this, it means that you don't know how I want to sell the title and hurriedly object, the situation is actually not what you think, are you willing to listen?" ”

Ye Xianggao said: "The minister is willing to hear the details. ”

Tianqi said: "I am tired of saying it, let Yang Yushi say it for me, I also spent a lot of effort to persuade him and Zuo Guangdou at that time." ”

In the surprised eyes of everyone, Yang Lian appeared expressionlessly and said to everyone: "The emperor means that he only sells the earl title, and he can be crowned a county earl for spending one or two silver every year, and the county earl card is valid for one year. Spend ten taels of silver every year to seal the state uncle, the validity period of the state uncle card is also one year, and there is no need to kneel down to bow down to the officials of the state five products and below; Spend 100 taels of silver every year to seal the province, the validity period of the provincial uncle card is still one year, and the officials of the province and below do not need to kneel and bow their hands as a salute; Spend 1,000 taels of silver every year to seal the country, the Guobo card is valid for one year, and the officials who see the dynasty and below do not need to kneel and bow their hands as a salute. ”

Yang Lian said this, Tianqi interjected: "I add one more sentence, if you spend 10,000 taels of silver every year, you can be crowned a big earl, and the big earl license is valid for one year, and you don't need to kneel down to bow your hand when you see me." ”

Listening to Yang Lian and Tianqi's words, the ministers couldn't help it, and they talked about each other, and the imperial history on both sides began to shout loudly to silence everyone.

Ye Xianggao said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, this is a loss of the court's dignity!" ”

Tianqi said: "During the Jiajing period, when Hai Rui was still a county teacher, Shangguan came to check, and the people on both sides knelt but Hai Rui did not kneel, Shangguan was angry and said that they were Beacon Mountain, and the nickname of Hai Beacon was also called. ”

When everyone heard this, they seemed to understand a little, but they were not sure, and the assistant minister Han Yi asked: "Your Majesty, what does it have to do with the fact that his subordinates do not bow down and salute and he gets silver?" ”

Apocalypse said, "Why not? For example, if a county magistrate sells 1,000 county cards in a year during his tenure, he will earn 3,000 taels in three years. Thirty percent of the three thousand taels, or nine hundred taels, belong to me, because it was my idea; Forty percent of these three thousand taels is one thousand two hundred taels belong to the imperial court, because the imperial court has lost its dignity; The remaining 30 percent of 900 taels belong to the county, and if this county order wants to be transferred, he can take 300 taels before leaving, which is 10% of the total, of course, provided that he has no corruption and no deficit. ”

After listening to the distribution system of the Apocalypse, the officials couldn't help it again, the normal monthly salary of a county order is seven stones and five buckets of rice, and it is about seven or eight taels of silver, and there are no three hundred taels for three years, if he has no corruption and no deficit, he can take three hundred taels at one time when he leaves, and he will sell more and take more. If he can sell 10,000 county cards, his income is higher than that of a first-class master, and many people's eyes are red when they think of this.

Ye Xianggao didn't talk about the imperial court system at this time, he said: "Your Majesty, isn't it unfair that this chief official takes the money, and the others can't share it?" ”

Apocalypse said, "Who says others don't? I and the imperial court took 70% of the total amount, and the county left a total of 30%, the county order took 10% and 20%, and the rest of the county divided the remaining 20% according to their positions. ”

Associate Minister Han Yi asked, "Your Majesty, isn't it unfair that there are rich and poor people in this place?" ”

Tianqi said: "This is the problem of this official, if you govern well, if you have more rich people, you will sell more and earn more, you only know that the people are poor under the rule of the people, and you can only do it and watch, so that being an official can also reflect that the capable work more and work more." ”

Seeing that everyone was thinking and no one spoke, Tianqi said: "King Xin, I haven't thought about this matter yet, but now that I have said it, your government affairs will carefully discuss the details, and be sure to be fair and reasonable, and not lose me." ”

The king said, "My brother obeys." ”

Apocalypse continued: "I can't help this idea, it costs money to fight in front, and it's just trying to defend as much as possible, and if you want to attack, you don't know how much money it will cost." Liaodong alone needs more than 4 million taels a year for defense, and at least 4 million a year is needed to pacify the whole of Liao. ”

Zhao Nanxing, the secretary of the ministry, said: "The emperor is also helpless to do this, since this is the case, I will not talk about this topic." I heard that the emperor wants to raid every official's home, I don't know if it's true or not? ”

Apocalypse said, "Before answering your question, I will show you some people. ”

After speaking, he waved his hand to Yang Gongchun, the chief of internal security beside him, Yang Gongchun nodded and went out, only to see a group of young and clean little eunuchs in yellow clothes and black hats coming in under the leadership of Yang Gongchun. I saw that after they came in, they stood on both sides, bowed to the ministers with a smile, and then looked ahead intently, everyone wondered, what are these people who look like big girls doing?