Prime Minister

Chapter 1284 Old Cow and Sunshine

Chapter 1284 Old Cow and Sunshine

Ever since Zhang Yue removed Wang Anshi's calligraphy from the shelves in the Imperial College, Wang Anshi not only did not think that his calligraphy was wrong, but he also found a very meaningful thing to do for the rest of his life.

That means to delete and redefine the characters.

Many scholars followed Wang Anshi to Zhongshan to ask for advice on calligraphy.

Wang Anshi taught with pleasure, often speaking and drawing, and often expressing himself freely, with the content more than ten times more than the words in the storytelling book. Students came to Jiangning in an endless stream to ask for advice.

Of course, for those who opposed Wang Anshi, Wang Anshi started to make far-fetched stories again.

But Wang Anshi was determined. The more you say that I am making things up, the more I will write for you to see who is telling the truth.

He slept in Dinglin Temple, placed a pen and inkstone in front of the bed in the Zen room, and a lantern in front of the pen and inkstone, and then covered all the windows on all sides to prevent any light from coming in.

Someone handed a letter to Wang Anshi. Wang Anshi opened the cover, took a look at who wrote it, threw it aside, and then fell asleep on the meditation bed.

After sleeping for half an hour, Wang Anshi got up and wrote again. Every day, apart from sleeping, he wrote. Even in his sleep, Wang Anshi muttered to himself, finalizing his draft.

After waking up, Wang Anshi started writing. Sometimes he couldn't write any numbers, so he lay down on the Zen bed and went to sleep.

Wang Anshi not only wanted to write, but also wanted to integrate all the parts that critics believed he had fabricated and make consistent, forming a "righteous" theory.

In this way, he can govern the theories in his word theory.

While writing, Wang Anshi chewed Echeveria seeds to help him think. There were often more than a hundred Echeveria seeds on Wang Anshi's desk. Sometimes he didn't even notice that he had eaten all the Echeveria seeds. He would just touch the table and chew his fingers. He would not even notice that his fingers were bleeding.

Wang Anshi had this kind of unremitting spirit in his academic research.

Also because he wanted to compete with Zhang Yue, Wang Anshi let go of the feeling of having nothing to do after retiring from a high position for a long time, as well as the pain brought to him by the public criticism in the officialdom for many years.

He regained his fighting spirit in Jiangning and was determined to compete with Zhang Yue in this academic competition.

Wang Anshi continued to promote his theories and even used "Zi Shuo" to forcibly interpret Buddhist scriptures, which resulted in him being criticized by his close friend, the monk Faxiu.

On this day, Wang Anshi left the Zen temple and rode his black donkey back to the garden halfway up the mountain. He had only a dozen sesame cakes on him and was accompanied by an old soldier. On the way, he picked up a letter he had just read and read it again. At this time, he saw the "Performance Evaluation Method" in the official newspaper and could not help but marvel.

Wang Anshi sat in the stone forest of Zhongshan in shock, thinking for a long time when he suddenly heard someone calling him.

"Grand Prime Minister, Grand Prime Minister!"

Wang Anshi opened his eyes and found that it was his former subordinate Pu Zongmeng.

Wang Anshi looked at Pu Zongmeng and said happily, "Won't the transfer be coming tomorrow?"

Pu Zongmeng said: "Zongmeng walked a few steps faster on the way to see the Prime Minister. When he reached the middle of the mountain, he knew that the Prime Minister was in the Zen temple on the mountain, so he was impatient and came to find the Prime Minister."

"I haven't seen the Prime Minister for many years. He looks so energetic. Zong Meng is relieved."

Wang Anshi's complexion was of course very good, very different from when he had just retreated to Zhongshan. He was overjoyed when he heard this, and he stood up from the stone and said, "Very good, I'll buy you a few pots of wine!"

Pu Zongmeng said with emotion: "The Prime Minister doesn't drink, but he always knows that I like wine."

Wang Anshi: "My way is to be kind and frugal, but when friends come from afar, how can I be bound by convention?"

Pu Zongmeng was depressed. He was a murderer, indulged in wine and women, and was extravagant. Wang Anshi also tried to persuade him. Pu Zongmeng did not agree with him. This time he wanted to be promoted from Hanlin scholar to the second government.

As a result, Zhang Yue held up the censor's impeachment letter and questioned him: "I heard that when you were a prefect, you cooked ten sheep and ten pigs every day, and lit three hundred candles in your county residence at night!"

"The county official said that the people could not bear the heavy burden and asked you to cut some of the burden. You said angrily, 'Do you want me to sit in a dark room and starve?'"

"You have been extravagant in the capital, but you still haven't changed. Not only do you take a bath every day, but you also wash your face, wash your face, wash your feet, wash your feet, take a bath, and take a bath."

"Every bath requires several maids, not to mention the five hu of soup, and the time spent just boiling water and chopping wood is unknown!"

"How can you correct the morale of the world if you are used? Can you be a role model for officials in the world?"

In the past, officials only took a bath once every ten days, because boiling water and chopping wood was a hassle. Especially in a place like Bianjing where there were no trees, it would sometimes take a man a whole day to chop a load of firewood.

So firewood is expensive.

Taking a bath every day was definitely a very luxurious thing. Pu Zongmeng not only took a bath, but also washed his hands and feet with laughter. Such luxury caused a bad influence among officials and people.

Pu Zongmeng left sadly after seeing Zhang Yue's criticism. During this reform, many officials who were previously inferior to him were promoted, but Pu Zongmeng was the only one who did not move.

He knew that there was no chance of promotion under Zhang Yue, so he asked to go out. This time he passed by Jiangning and met Wang Anshi before taking office.

Seeing that Wang Anshi also criticized him for his extravagance, Pu Zongmeng was also depressed.

As they walked and talked, Pu Zongmeng talked about the reform and wanted to hear Wang Anshi's words, to test his attitude and explain how Zhang Yue excluded and attacked the officials of the New Party after he became the prime minister. However, Wang Anshi did not say anything, but picked up the official newspaper and asked, "Do you know this system of examination?"

Pu Zongmeng said: "It happened to be when Zongmeng left the capital to make the judgment."

"In the past, the imperial court would set up new government offices when it was reformed. For example, before..."

Wang Anshi said, "You can talk about it in terms of the three departments."

"He is the prime minister. Before, the Three Departments were in charge of finances, with more than a thousand officials, and they were actually controlled by the public officials. Xue Xiang and Zeng Bu were the envoys of the Three Departments, and later they both opposed the prime minister. After that, they had no choice but to set up the Sinong Temple to be in charge of the regular and equal accounts, but Lu Huiqing still had no choice but to set fire to the Three Departments together with Zhang Dun."

The government's efficiency is extremely slow, and it has been pretending to comply with the reform while secretly disobeying it for a long time.

The consistent experience of the Song Dynasty was to set up a new department and empty the original one.

For example, the Three Departments were used to bypass the Ministry of Revenue, and later the Three Departments were bypassed and the Ministry of Agriculture was used to collect green crops and income from exemption from military service.

It's like if you, Wang Anshi, can't control this department, you just set up a new department to replace it. This way you can avoid the risk of laying off people, which offends people, and at least let you keep your official position.

This is why there were so many redundant officials and government offices in the Song Dynasty.

What is the difference between the Yuanfeng Reform and the Xining Reform?

At that time, Wang Anshi was mainly seeking wealth. The national treasury was out of money, so he used the method of "financial management" to raise money from the public.

The purpose of the Yuanfeng Reform was to avoid multiple policies at the imperial court and inefficiency, and ultimately achieve unity of name and reality.

Wang Anshi said, "It has been half a year since the reform, and many government offices have been merged. Could it be that the court is still as congested as before?"

Pu Zongmeng said: "Yes, this is the result of many years of old habits. There are many old people in the government office, and it is inevitable that they will neglect things. Even if it is a provincial official, it is not unavoidable."

In short, if you want to get a special channel in the officialdom, you have to use "favors" to exchange for it. It is even common for officials to have small conflicts, make things difficult for each other, and block each other's procedures.

If you want to urge me, I will just say "considering it". It doesn't mean I won't do it for you, but I am considering it. As for when I will consider it, it depends on my mood and your attitude.

Therefore, if you become an official and want to get things done through normal channels, you have to ask for help, run around for connections, and waste your breath. So if you don't have anyone in the court, don't be an official.

Not to mention ordinary officials, even the officials in the two ministries of Zhongshu and Menxia are like this.

That’s why the performance evaluation system was created.

The performance appraisal system is not about performance, but about responsibility.

Performance refers to how much work you, as an official, have done within a specified time.

Responsibilities are specific to each task, and each task must be completed within the specified time. Once a task is completed, it must be recorded in the ledger.

In this way, there are two copies of the book, and the superiors will evaluate the subordinates, and each task will be completed and completed. The evaluation is carried out every month, and those who complete the task will be rewarded with promotion, and those who fail to complete the task will be punished.

Every process has a deadline for everyone. Otherwise, everyone will delay it for ten days or half a month, and you won't know where the problem is, and ultimately you will achieve the goal of making government policies go smoothly.

This was the case when Wang Anshi's reforms were not implemented in the Three Departments, and those officials tried every possible way to compete with the court in wits and courage.

Wang Anshi asked Pu Zongmeng, "If there was such a method of evaluation, would Lu Huiqing still want to burn the three offices?"

Pu Zongmeng said: "It is unknown."

"It is difficult to move things forward in the officialdom because of official corruption, official disunity, and official idleness."

"Officials are greedy for money, officials are lazy, and finally they become idle officials. There are the most such officials in the court, and they waste the most salaries. If there is a performance evaluation system, it would be good to let these officials do some work."

Wang Anshi said: "Yes, the performance evaluation system can improve the administration of officials, but the most important thing is to be good at employing people. We must do both."

"The Prime Minister has a good idea!" Pu Zongmeng was secretly disappointed when he saw that Wang Anshi had no intention of opposing Zhang Yue, but he was not in a position to reveal his attitude.

Pu Zongmeng finally tried to probe: "But Prime Minister, I think if this law is implemented, the officialdom will be in chaos. Besides, the performance evaluation system is not a permanent solution. The officials here are all cunning and there may be ways to deal with them."

Wang Anshi said: "This is Zhang Duzhi's business."

Pu Zongmeng weighed it and said, "Zongmeng is worried that Zhang Duzhi is using the name of performance assessment to manipulate the power of reward and punishment, and his real intention is to eliminate dissidents and establish a private party."

Wang Anshi said: "Although the governance of the country in recent years has not been lenient, it has not been harsh either. It shouldn't be like this!"

Pu Zongmeng said: "Prime Minister, I think Zhang Duzhi has finally shown his true colors. He only has one year left to serve as prime minister. There is no guarantee that he will not do something bad."

"In this world today, only the Prime Minister can control him!"

Wang Anshi glanced at Pu Zongmeng and thought to himself, "You are also showing your true colors. Back then, Wang Anshi, Yuan Jiang, and Chen Shengzhi opposed Zhang Yue's conscription law, but now he no longer has the energy to do so."

Wang Anshi smiled and motioned Pu Zongmeng to sit on the stone with him.

"I am old." Wang Anshi answered Pu Zongmeng. At this moment, there were the chirping of birds in the Zhongshan forest, and the afternoon sun just penetrated through the leaves and fell on the ground.

Pu Zongmeng lived a life of luxury and could not stand the slightest bit of sunlight, so his attendants immediately held an umbrella for him, which also shielded the ray of sunlight on Wang Anshi.

Wang Anshi waved his hand to indicate that it was not necessary, and then said, "There are old men riding donkeys in the wilds of Zhongshan."

"Go with the veterans or go on your own."

"He will be reincarnated as a cow one day,"

"A ray of sunshine accompanies me in my farming!"

The people around him felt very ashamed when they saw this. Wang Anshi's words were like saying, "You are blocking me."

They immediately removed the umbrella from Wang Anshi. Pu Zongmeng thought to himself, "The Prime Minister actually compares himself to an old cow, and in his next life he will only covet this ray of sunshine. I am really ashamed of myself for not being able to match his broad mind."

……

While Zhang Yue, who was in the Secretariat, was handling government affairs, he read the improved version of Wang Anshi presented by Cai Bian. After reading it, he was filled with sighs and speechlessness.

In his opinion, it would be fine if Lao Wang wrote a book on Chinese characters, but he had to add a lot of "meanings" into it, and mixed it with a lot of Buddhist and Taoist thoughts to support his statement.

This is not good.

He immediately ordered someone to send several pieces of tortoise shells with strange characters written on them to Cai Bian, and asked him to send them to Wang Anshi. In this way, perhaps Wang Anshi would not study the characters so diligently.

This incident also taught Zhang Yue a truth: if you are heading in the wrong direction, the harder you work, the bigger the mistake will be.

So why is the book of Doctrine of the Mean mentioned in the category of the Four Books?

What exactly is "middle"?

Choice is more important than hard work. If you choose the wrong direction, everything will be in vain.

When Zhang Yue thought of this, he looked at the documents piling up on his desk and became absent-minded.

Wang Anshi's calligraphy is quite nice. He quotes from classics and other political issues, making me feel like I've been fishing for a long time without realizing it.

So much so that the documents piled up like a mountain.

However, he also understood that as an official, who doesn't want to be lazy and slack off? This is human nature. Zhang Yue is also a master of slacking off. He didn't want to push people too hard by setting up this performance evaluation system.

But he had no way of explaining it.

Wang Anshi's Xining Reform focused on financial management, while his Yuanfeng Reform aimed to improve efficiency. Although the merger of government offices eliminated the problem of multiple policies and prevented lower-level officials from shirking their responsibilities,

However, after the reform, government efficiency has not improved.

The officials below were either lazy, greedy, or incompetent, and the imperial decrees could not be implemented at the lower levels. Zhang Yue had no way to explain himself, and his Yuanfeng Reform became a failure.

In order to reduce the number of cases of corruption and bribery, the performance evaluation system must be used to promote it.

Clean up the atmosphere in official circles and let officials focus on political achievements.

So there is a common line in TV dramas: Can you bear the responsibility for delaying someone's business?

The officials below immediately obeyed and did what was said. When an official did something, he would kowtow all the way. Not to mention the common people.

Therefore, the performance evaluation system must be implemented.

However, the Ming Dynasty’s performance evaluation system was based on money and grain, while Zhang Yue’s was based on accountability.

Thinking of this, Zhang Yue had almost dealt with the Zhongshu, and at this time Han Zhongyan came to see him.

Zhang Yue said: "In the future, the Zhongshu Official System Detailed Regulations Office will be responsible for deciding the specific regulations for the performance evaluation law. You will take on this responsibility and evaluate the performance of officials throughout the country!"

Han Zhongyan was pleased, as this was a matter of great power, and then asked: "What if officials do not perform well in the examination?"

Zhang Yue said: "Everything will be abolished!"

Han Zhongyan laughed loudly and said, "How wonderful! How wonderful! What a wonderful thing!"

Zhang Yue said slowly: "But don't set the rules too strictly in the first year. Give the officials below a chance to breathe and adapt, and then proceed step by step."

Han Zhongyan asked, "Then will the officials who are laid off be replaced from the Imperial College?"

Zhang Yue said: "I will discuss this matter with Li Qingchen slowly, you just do your thing."