The rewards for state and county officials are generally the deeds of the Taiwan Constitution, the cabinet votes, the approval of the Son of Heaven, and the last side of the reward is sent to the Ministry of Officials to fill in the meritorious service department.

However, this time Li You is not a regular political achievement, it is a special event, and it is also in terms of river affairs, so it is also a practice for the Queen Mother to instruct the Ministry of Industry to perform the meritorious work. After getting the will, the Ministry of Works, together with the Ministry of Officials and the Ministry of Rites, studied the scriptures for five or six days, but did not come up with a reward plan.

Don't think that the Ministry of Industry deliberately procrastinates, this is quite a technical job, not as simple and casual as imagined. Moreover, the regulations on performance appraisal in the Ming officialdom are very specific, which is very convenient for making mistakes, but in terms of merit, there are not many articles, the subjective surname is very strong, and the variables are also large.

For example, for the same merit, this Son of Heaven may reward an earl, and if you change the Son of Heaven, you may reward the hereditary three-rank commander and send it away. Now Cisheng Palace's attitude towards Master Li is very subtle, and this must be taken into account when giving Li You a credit, so the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Officials are very troublesome.

After all, Master Li's merit is too special, there is no precedent at all, and he can only consider it one by one.

The types of rewards include written commendations, sending envoys to work for comfort, increasing ranks, giving gifts to family members, favoring descendants, rewarding goods, and promoting and moving officials.

It is the proper meaning of the text to praise and send the envoy to comfort the capital, and there is no need to talk about it, and the troublesome details lie in several other items.

This said, the old man Hu Du of the Ministry of Industry, the new Langzhong Pan Xiang of the Ministry of Officials, and Zhu Fanghe, a member of the Ministry of Etiquette and Ceremonies, sat in the small hall of the back hall of the Ministry of Industry with a cup of hot tea, and the main topic was to write about Li You's merits.

Lao Shangshu sighed, this is really a hot potato. It must be vain enough, not to let the subjects of the world talk about the stinginess of the court and snub the heroes, but also not too realistic, so as not to anger the queen mother. He estimated that the Ministry of Officials and the Ministry of Rites also knew the connotation of this matter, and the candidates sent for the meeting were very interesting.

Master Pan, who was once known as one of the three lackeys under Xu Cifu together with Li You, Zhu Fanghe, the Ritual Division, was both a member of the clan and a friend of Li You.

It can be seen that the meaning of the Ministry of Officials Shangshu is not to treat Li You too badly. And the meaning of the Ministry of Rites is probably to use Zhu Fanghe as a shield, in case Li You is dissatisfied with the reward, don't hold a grudge against the Ministry of Rites, and solve it internally with Mr. Zhu.

Contradictions are contradictions, and things still have to be discussed, Hu Shangshu spoke first: "We must discuss the result today." The headquarters first threw bricks and jade, this time Li You's merits, because it is also regarded as a stubborn defense and a desire to be martyred, can be compared to Wenchen's courage to kill thieves and less than to save the driver, how? ”

This is basically the consensus of the imperial court, Zhu Fanghe nodded and said: "The first emperor has an edict, and if the civil minister kills the thief, the son can have a hereditary military position." ”

Generally, the merit of killing thieves and rescuing the driver is obtained by military service, but in this dynasty, there are sometimes civil officials such as county orders who make military merits when they encounter rebellions, so they specially issue an edict, and those who make military merits will reward their descendants and hereditary military attachés.

"If Master Li is a military attaché, it will be very simple." Master Pan sighed.

Military attachés are different from civilian officials, and it is not uncommon to be promoted when they have great achievements, and it is also possible to jump from five or six grades to two or three grades, so it is easy to reward.

And the civil officials who govern the country can't be like this, no matter how great the merit of a magistrate is, it is impossible to be promoted to a scholar of Shangshu, and it is a very special grace to be able to jump a grade. Therefore, to give Master Li a meritorious service, we must first consider his status as a middle- and low-grade civilian official, and compare it with military merits, which is relatively troublesome.

Hu Shangshu thought about it for a while and decided to start with the easiest place first, "How about adding this one, please give me a pinch?" ”

Pan and Zhu both nodded and said, "Yes." ”

The number of Yulu does not involve any actual grade, and it is insignificant in the official position, not to mention giving one product of food, even if it is given ten of one product? Besides, Li You's merits are big and empty, and he is quite worthy of the reward of giving a pin, and he has two words to say it.

Zhu Fanghe suddenly said again: "Although there are many first-class products, it's a pity that Li You can't get them in the past two years." ”

"In terms of official position and rank, Pan Bulang is from the ministry, what do you have to say?" Hu Shangshu asked.

Master Pan had already written: "For such a great achievement, at least one grade must be promoted, and the five-grade official position must be awarded, otherwise it cannot be rewarded." ”

In fact, from another point of view, Master Li made this great contribution when he was a six-rank official, and he still suffered a lot. If he is already a member of the second or third rank at this time, then after saving the ancestral dragon vein, it is estimated that the imperial court will have nothing to reward in the official position, and he can only be rewarded with an earl. It's a pity... Considering the attitude of Empress Dowager Qian, Hu Shangshu frowned and pondered for a long time, "Master Li has been in Jiangdu for half a year, and it is not appropriate to move again." Please be awarded the title of the same governor of Yangzhou Prefecture, and how about the others who are still in their original positions? ”

Master Pan was noncommittal, and Zhu Fanghe interjected: "For the time being, please play like this, and discuss it again at the court meeting." ”

Under the basic plate of the five products, the other ranks are easy to handle, and the orders are corrected by the Yin and the doctors, all of which are matched with the five products.

After discussing Li You himself, we have to continue to discuss Enyin. Among the various rewards, those given to the officials themselves are called awards, those given to parents and wives who are still alive are called seals, those who are deceased are called gifts, and those given to children are called shades. Words are different, and their meanings are not the same, so they should not be used indiscriminately.

Of course, the core of these rewards is the grade of the official himself, the higher the grade of the official himself, the higher the grade of the seal, gift, and shade.

Li You's wife has nothing to discuss, the wife is expensive to her husband, and she is pleasant, and she can be called Mrs. Wupin in folk sayings. But about the gift to Li You's elders, there are different opinions, should it be given to his father's generation, or posthumously to his ancestors?

In the end, Zhu Fanghe made a final decision: "Lord Li saved the tomb of my Emperor Gao's grandfather for three generations, and the reward should also be traced back to his grandfather for three generations, so as to show the royal gratitude!" ”

Hu Shangshu and Master Pan did not object, and then discussed how to posthumously give away the dead and how to seal the living. In this regard, the Ministry of Rites is more professional, and Zhu Bulang continued to express his opinion: "If Li Fushi is awarded the five grades, this shall prevail, so the grade of the posthumous gifts from the ancestors should be increased, but the surviving parents should be lowered according to the five grades." ”

This is a convention, on the one hand, it takes care of the concept that the dead are the greatest and the ancestors are the greatest. On the other hand, what is the actual impact of a dead person even if he is posthumously gifted? And those who are alive should be pressed a little, leaving room for posthumous gifts after death.

Master Pan was in the ministry, so he naturally had a few treasures for various grades, and immediately said his thoughts: "But please do this, the three generations of Master Li's ancestors will posthumously present the three grades of Jiayi Doctor." The father of Lord Li can be crowned as the sixth grade Cheng Naolang. ”

Doctor Jiayi and Cheng Naolang are both the corresponding ranks of civil officials, and these ranks that do not have the meaning of substantive duties are often taken out as posthumous titles.

Zhu Fanghe objected: "Lord Li's father should not be the same article, otherwise how can Lord Li deal with himself?" Changed to a six-grade soldier and horse commander, as long as there is a grade on the left and right, it is fine. ”

Hu Shangshu and Master Pan don't care about this, it doesn't matter what the name of the fictitious title is, there will be a posthumous gift after death.

In other words, the command of soldiers and horses is also a virtual position with no practice at all, and it is only used as an honorary title. However, there is a peculiarity that according to the custom, the father of the horse is to be appointed as the commander of the soldiers and horses

Zhu Bulang suggested that Li You's father be appointed as the commander of the soldiers and horses, to tell the truth, it was the meaning that came out after a certain princess and pregnant woman rarely took the surname once, and it was useless except to entrust her careful thoughts.

Now that Lord Li's fathers and grandparents have been settled, natural mothers and grandmothers are also indispensable, each with its own title. So it came to the most critical and difficult project, that is, how Li You's children were rewarded.

This is more important than the bestowal of the father's ancestor, and to some extent may even be more important than the conferral of Li You himself. After all, the concept of inheritance is deep-rooted, and the future of a family is pinned on the next generation, and the better the next generation, the more prosperous the family.

Strictly speaking, the rewards that Li You's family have received so far are flashy, and the posthumous awards are just honors. And Li You himself is limited to his civilian status and officialdom rules, and he can only be promoted to the first grade, and he can't get more.

If there are only these, it will definitely not be worthy of Li You's great achievements, and the deficiencies must be made up from the grace.

Hu Shangshu's expression gradually became serious, and he said: "According to the theory of Wenchen's military exploits in killing thieves, one son will have a hereditary military position, and this official will ask Lord Li to favor one son as a hereditary position of five products and thousands of households. ”

"It's too low!" Zhu Bulang said bluntly: "It sounds like a joke!" The merit of saving the ancestral dragon vein can't be knighted, but is it only worth a five-grade thousand households? Speaking out makes people's teeth cold. ”

Hu Shangshu frowned again, although the Ministry of Industry of the Six Ministries is the most affordable, it is the weakest ministry in terms of status. If the Ministry of Officials is analogous to civil officials, the Ministry of Rites is analogous to scholars, the Ministry of Household is analogous to merchants, the Ministry of War is analogous to military attachés, and the Ministry of Criminal Affairs is analogous to officials, but the Ministry of Industry can only be analogous to craftsmen, this is the difference. Therefore, he, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, did not have the confidence to touch the emotions of the Queen Mother.

Empress Dowager Qian's resentment towards Li You is known throughout the dynasty. Other reward items are high, they are all inflated, and Queen Mother Qian will not care too much. But this grace hereditary is the hard currency that will rest with the country for generations, if Li You is set too high, what will Empress Dowager Qian think?

At that time, he is likely to be remembered by the Empress Dowager Qian from now on. If it is for the sake of the future, it may not be impossible to marry Li You, but he is at this age, and he doesn't expect to continue to have any development, he just wants to be safe and decent.

Thinking of this, Hu Shangshu insisted: "Hereditary five products, such grace is not small, Lord Zhu's vision should not be too high." ”

"It's not going to work." Zhu Fanghe also insisted on his own opinion: "You can't let the people of the world laugh at the court's lack of grace, in my opinion, the hereditary three-grade brocade guard commander can show the court's bearing!" ”

The commander of the three products is still the close servant of the Son of Heaven Jinyiwei, isn't this a blockage for the Queen Mother... Hu Shangshu can't think about it, so he has to deny it.

Master Pan, who had not made a sound for a long time, looked out the window and said, "It's not a way to quarrel like this, seeing that the head is about to fall, it will be the court meeting tomorrow." It's better to compromise and follow it, and it is better to be the commander of the four products. ”

"Then we will discuss it at the meeting!" Zhu Fanghe said.

Master Pan, who is familiar with various official positions, feels strange for some reason, but he can't say it.

After thinking about it for a long time, he suddenly found that if Lord Li's father became the commander of the soldiers and horses, and his son became the commander, this would be exactly the same as the treatment of the horses... This dynasty is also the father of the army and horses, and the son Yin is in command, which is really an interesting coincidence.

Zhu Bulang said again: "There is another thing, Lord Li is a civil official, but his son wants military merits to attack the military position, which is not in line with Taoism. It is also necessary to add a son, and the other son should be allowed to be imprisoned in the shadow of Shang Baosi or Guanglu Temple. ”

Hu Laoshangshu's scalp is numb, and adding a son to the shade is also a kind of reward, Li You was originally qualified, but... couldn't help complaining, this Lord Zhu is a clan member, and he is not afraid of the Queen Mother's retaliation, he is acting for his friends, but he doesn't think about others.

Zhu Fanghe saw that Hu Shangshu didn't speak, so he took a step back and said: "Then write all the controversial points into the recital and adjudicate it at the court meeting." ”

The second time it was said that the Empress Dowager Cisheng listened to the government of the Imperial Wuying Palace, and Hu Shangshu carried the chapter written overnight, and several of the places where the opinions differed from Zhu Fanghe and Master Pan were written in detail and clearly, and it was clear who was what point of view.

When he arrived in the hall, after all the things in front of him were discussed, Hu Shangshu went out to perform the matter and read his own chapter book.

This caused a murmur of small fragments in the hall, and the people spontaneously began to talk about each other. Everything else is decent, only this matter of grace is really controversial.

Should Li You'en be rewarded with five, four, or three grades? There is no need to express a general opinion, just three options, and it is enough for the cabinet scholars to express their position.

Wu Yingdian University Shi Peng Ge took the lead and said: "Enyin itself is a generous gift, and a thousand households are enough!" ”

Xu Cifu said-for-tat: "Great merit and great virtue are in front, how can the five products convince people's hearts?" There must be three products. ”

Among the other scholars, Yang Ge, a scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion who had a good impression of Master Li, naturally agreed with Xu Cifu, and Yuan Gelao, a scholar of Wenhuadian University, abandoned his neutral position and supported Wupin out of hatred for Li You. However, the old Shijin Pavilion of Dongge University proposed the best four products with the mud.

Now two of the three products are supported, two of the five products are supported, and one of the four products is soy sauce, and before you know it, Li You's reward issue has become a cabinet wrestling field again. Since the great changes in the imperial court at the beginning of the year, there have been few times of such sharp confrontation in the past six months, but I didn't expect that Li You's fuse inadvertently triggered a direct confrontation between the cabinet bosses.

The other people in the Wuying Hall saw it in their eyes and couldn't help but sigh with emotion: "If there is no Li You, the world will be peaceful, and as soon as Li You comes out, the chickens and dogs will be restless." ”

This person has only been in the cabinet for half a year, but the imprint he left is too deep, or the trauma to others is too deep... It has been seven or eight months since he left Beijing, but now just one name appears in the transcript, which can provoke the emotions of the old bureaucrats such as Peng Ge Lao and Yuan Ge Lao. Perhaps, the one on the throne behind the beaded curtain.

Among the six scholars in the cabinet, only Shoufu Xu Yue did not speak, and Peng Ge asked his ally with anticipation: "What does Yuanfu think?" ”

"Li You can be the commander of the Sanpin Jinyi Guard." Xu Shoufu said slowly.

Boss Peng Ge was shocked, how could Xu Yue help Li You speak? That's impossible! Although he and Xu Yue are not as close as they used to be, it will not make Xu Shoufu fall to Li You's side unprincipledly.

Not to mention Elder Peng Ge, the entire Wuying Palace, including Empress Dowager Qian, was extremely surprised.

Xu Shoufu took out a recital from his sleeve, "Before entering the hall, this six-hundred-mile tense recital was passed to the official. There was a Sizhou exile leader Mu who tried to rebel and occupy the ancestral tomb, and was exterminated by Li You and Xuyi Zhi County..."

Peng Ge was speechless, is this Li You a person with a destiny?

(To be continued)