ps: This chapter is still a placeholder. I am currently working hard to revise the previous placeholder chapters, having reached chapter 528 and steadily catching up.
Even as rulers of a nation, not all rulers are the same.
As the ruler of Wa Country, Guang Ge Jian Ren's control extended only to the capital region and a few loyal vassal states. The difficulty of investigating the extent of leprosy across the entire Wa Country was akin to ascending to heaven.
However, once the Ming Emperor decided to have local officials investigate the situation of leprosy, the local mandarins immediately took action. The yamen runners delivered the news directly to the agricultural associations in various regions, and then the local officials consolidated the information and fed it back to the Cabinet.
But the feedback from the regions left the Ming Emperor quite bewildered.
Did the Ming Dynasty have leprosy?
Yes.
However, compared to Wa Country, where it spread extensively within a few days, the situation in the Ming Dynasty was quite perplexing.
The population density of the Ming Dynasty's mainland was indeed not high. After all, with a population of just over 500 million spread across more than 20 million square kilometers, it could be described as vast and sparsely populated. It was understandable that leprosy could not spread easily.
Yet, the crucial point was that the population mobility in the Ming Dynasty far surpassed that of Wa Country.
With the gradual popularization of railways and roads, the mobility of the Ming populace increased accordingly. Especially after the abolition of the travel permit system, the population mobility in the Ming Dynasty was further strengthened. High population mobility often meant an increased spread of leprosy.
Based on the existing population mobility in the Ming Dynasty, it was truly miraculous that leprosy, with its considerable transmissibility, had not spread widely.
Only after cross-referencing the memorials from the local governments with information from the Embroidered Uniform Guard did the Ming Emperor finally understand the crux of the problem.
Thanks to the Ming Emperor's habit of learning from the experiences of others, as soon as local governments discovered cases of leprosy in their jurisdictions, they would directly implement village lockdowns. Available doctors, medicine, and food supplies from nearby areas were immediately sent in, and the lockdown would only be lifted after all leprosy patients were cured. Naturally, leprosy could not spread.
More importantly, the living conditions of the Ming populace were infinitely better than those of the Qing.
The superiority in living conditions referred not only to food reserves but also encompassed all aspects.
For example, clothing. In the rural areas during the Qing Dynasty, let alone everyone having new clothes, it was a pipe dream for a family of five to find even a couple of pieces of intact clothing. Shoes were predominantly straw sandals, and many people worked barefoot in the fields, so getting scratched by grass or poked by stones was a common occurrence.
Take food, for instance. Throughout the year during the Qing Dynasty, not a trace of oil was seen. Salt was also a prohibitively expensive strategic material, and the populace suffered from a long-term deficiency in oil. Even if a family had a hen, its eggs would be exchanged for other daily necessities. Consequently, their physical resistance was naturally not high.
Wa Country was currently in such a stage—frequently getting scratched, with low physical resistance. If leprosy were to spread, it would naturally infect a large number of people. Although the Ming populace was still a long way from a life where everyone wore silk and satin and ate meat until they were tired of it, they had achieved a life where everyone had clothes to wear and occasionally ate meat, so their physical resistance was naturally much higher.
As is well known, leprosy is called a disease of poverty not only because it can drain the patient's family fortune but also because its prevalence in impoverished areas is a significant reason for this appellation.
Once faced with a situation like the Ming Dynasty, where the populace enjoyed better living conditions and the government was unreasonably generous in showering doctors and medicines like a paying player, leprosy would have no way to spread rapidly.
I am also in this state—not enough sleep, breaking out in a cold sweat, my brain not functioning properly, my head feeling dizzy and my fingers aching from typing. Is this just a common cold???
Furthermore, a new variant is coming soon. Everyone should prepare some diarrhea medication, or at least some plastic bags...
Tokugawa Ienari's face immediately darkened.
What could the Shogunate do now that the good citizens and outcasts of Wa Country were hiding around the Ming merchants?
If they angered those Ming merchants, causing them to draw their swords and confront the Shogunate, the Shogunate would be the one to suffer in the end!
His thoughts growing increasingly conflicted, Tokugawa Ienari, with a frown, asked, "Have you negotiated with those Ming merchants? Aren't they afraid of contracting leprosy?"
Tokugawa Ienari asked, utterly bewildered, "Don't they know how contagious leprosy is? Or do they have a way to deal with leprosy?"
Tokugawa Ienari was completely numb—caring yet not taking it seriously. What kind of attitude was this?
Seeing Tokugawa Ienari completely lost in thought, Watanabe Uemon tentatively asked, "Your Excellency the Shogun, do we still need to prepare some medicine for those Ming merchants?"
Tokugawa Ienari couldn't help but frown, his face etched with indecision.
As he spoke, Tokugawa Ienari suddenly sighed, "Our Wa Country, after all, still has to rely on the Ming. Wa Country must still do business with the Ming."
Watanabe Uemon also fell silent.
Watanabe Uemon suddenly recalled a delicacy he had once eaten.
Garrison Stew.
This was a delicacy first created by the people of Wa Country and quickly popularized. Apart from in the Ming Dynasty and France, this delicacy had spread throughout the world with the footsteps of the Wa auxiliary forces.
For a humble Wa Country like this, disregarding its own good citizens and outcasts, and spending some effort to prepare medicine for the Ming merchants, wouldn't that be reasonable?
...
As a Ming merchant, Qi Feng had been deeply involved in the medicinal market of Wa Country for nearly ten years.
During these ten years, Qi Feng's thoughts gradually shifted from making money to enjoying life.
In an era where patients with various ailments were rampant in later generations, the dog sons nurtured by the foolish eagle always brought up "If this country is like this, who is to blame?"
The problem was that the Ming Emperor himself was trapped in the question of "who is to blame."
Should it be changed to the so-called tripartite system of Europe, the so-called separation of powers and freedom?
In reality, such an idea could only be a fantasy. If this system were implemented in the Central Plains ministries, it would be courting disaster.
Analyzing the specific reasons in depth would be too complex, but in the final analysis, it all came down to the word "interest."
In fact, this was also why the barbarians in Europe and the foolish eagle generally had such large hearts. Because there had never been a truly unified dynasty in Europe, the barbarians were accustomed to the mentality of small states and small populations, and also accustomed to small court systems.
Russia was similar—Bolshevism, was it good? Yes! The key was that human beings have desires!
This system was fine in normal times, as it seemed to be the case even for the common people in the Central Plains ministries, with no apparent difference.
However, once disasters like the Little Ice Age occurred frequently, or when the people were truly on the brink of survival, the difference between large and small courts would become apparent.
The foolish eagle was not much better than Europe, otherwise, Comrade Bai Zhenhua would not have ascended to the throne, nor would the absurd joke of internal conflict starting with Little Russia have occurred.
However, even the directly transplanted Bolshevism of a large court system might not work.
Directly copying the entire set of Bolshevism carried a huge hidden danger, which was that the Ming Dynasty did not currently have the environmental conditions for that set of theories to survive.
How many years had it been since the Qing Dynasty collapsed?
Of course, it could not be said that this theory was wrong, because all countries in the world propagated it.
To achieve merit in the "dragon-slaying, bandit-exterminating" campaign, wouldn't it be better than wholeheartedly serving those barefoot peasants?
At that time, the Central Plains ministries had not yet experienced the pain of impending complete national subjugation and extermination.
And then, the Ming Dynasty became what it is now—the Ming Dynasty had an Emperor, and the Ming Emperor was a founding monarch who could not be restrained by anyone. However, the Ming Dynasty also had a Cabinet, and the Cabinet's power was no less than the Emperor's.
Especially as the Emperor gradually delegated power, the Cabinet could even directly replace the Emperor's role.
This was because the Ming Emperor had directly clarified the Cabinet's status in the administration.
However, while they held power, in reality, the Grand Secretaries who could lead the Six Ministries did not have high ranks. The so-called leadership of the Six Ministries was also neither legitimate nor proper, and they were also supervised by the Directorate of Ceremonial.
Now, the Ming Emperor had clarified the Cabinet's rank and responsibilities, with the Grand Secretary being of the first rank, the other Grand Secretaries being of the secondary first rank, and the Ministers of the various ministries being of the second rank.
Correspondingly, the original Six Ministries of the Ming Dynasty, as well as the later added Ministry of Austerity, the Ministry of Railways (promoted from the Railway Administration), and a host of other ministries, were clearly placed under the management of the Cabinet. Apart from the Grand Secretary, the remaining six Grand Secretaries were each responsible for a specific area of work, with responsibilities almost clearly assigned to individuals.
Parallel to the Cabinet was the Five Chief Commanderies. The Grand Secretary of the Cabinet could inquire about matters of the military commanderies, but only inquire—they could ask, but they had no decision-making power; the decision-making power of the military commanderies rested with the Grand Commanders of the military commanderies.
There was little to say about the Censorate; their main responsibility was to criticize. The Emperor and all civil and military officials were objects of their scrutiny.
However, the Censorate was not under the Cabinet's jurisdiction. What could truly manage the Censorate was the Office of the Censor. Alongside it was the Court of Judicial Review. Neither of these offices was under the Cabinet but were directly responsible to the Emperor. Among the Office of the Censor, while some censors in the capital were responsible for criticism, the rest undertook the duties of inspection. The Court of Judicial Review was responsible for both trial and judgment.
And the final interpretation of the Ming Laws rested with the Ministry of Justice.
In short, there were all sorts of departments, with clear responsibilities, and they were to support and restrain each other.
Basically, it could be said that the Emperor was useless, but without the Emperor, it was also impossible. Just like the Ming Emperor, he could directly bypass the Cabinet ministries and even the Five Chief Commanderies to do whatever he wanted. However, the Emperors after the Ming Emperor, in addition to supervision and the power to replace the Grand Secretary, would basically bid farewell to interfering in government affairs.
To try to regain power by replacing the Grand Secretary?
First, the Embroidered Uniform Guard would have to find evidence of the Grand Secretary's crimes, then the Censorate would have to impeach him, and the Court of Judicial Review would have to convict him. Only after completing this process could the Grand Secretary be replaced. If any single step in this process could not be completed, the Grand Secretary could not be replaced.
Furthermore, the tenure of the Grand Secretary and the Cabinet Grand Secretaries was fixed, calculated from the day they entered the Cabinet, with five years per term, and a maximum of two terms. This was a strict iron law established by the Ming Emperor and could not be changed.
In addition to this, the Ming Laws also emphasized that anything not prohibited by law was permissible. Coupled with this, a large number of suppression policies targeting clans and powerful merchants were established. The protection of ordinary people was reflected not only in the laws but also in the fact that the agricultural associations also bore some responsibility.
This placed the national system of the Ming Dynasty in a very delicate state: it appeared beautiful, arguably a model of nominal monarchy, and apart from still having an Emperor, the rest could be considered democratic and free, even operating in a near-perfect manner.
This placed the national system of the Ming Dynasty in a very delicate state: it appeared beautiful, arguably a model of nominal monarchy, and apart from still having an Emperor, the rest could be considered democratic and free, even operating in a near-perfect manner.
However, the Ming Emperor knew very well that such perfection was basically bullshit.
Even the system of the Rabbit was not flawless!
Whether it was weeping and executing two Ma Su in the past, or later prioritizing wealth without wanting to lead others to prosperity and even trying to extend their influence into the imperial court, these were all objective realities!
This was why the Ming Emperor had been constantly delegating power to the imperial court but had never relaxed the control over the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Eastern Depot, and the Censors and their offices—the officials of the Ming Dynasty did not have that high a level of awareness! If you relax a little, they could create a huge mess!
Thinking of this, the Ming Emperor couldn't help but laugh at himself.
No matter how hard he tried, he was not a god, how could he possibly solve those long-standing problems?
"And those officials who jump out and court death, I don't need to say any more about how to deal with them, do I?"
Of course, the Ming Emperor did not need to say any more, because the Ming Emperor had used the word "朕" (Zhen), meaning "I" or "Us" (used by Emperors).
Once the Ming Emperor harbored the intention to kill...
After Zeng Cheng and Liu Heming, along with other high-ranking officials, bowed in assent, the Ming Emperor then turned his gaze to Zeng Cheng, "Minister Zeng, you have been Prime Minister for almost thirty years now, haven't you?"
Of course, the Ming Dynasty always treated meritorious officials well. Although he was no longer the Grand Secretary, he would still receive all the treatment of a Grand Secretary and even a noble title.
Now that the Ming Emperor, that old man, had suddenly brought up the fact that he had been Grand Secretary for nearly thirty years, was he planning to dismiss him?
.
Heavenly Emperor's Noble Lineage reminds you: Remember to collect after reading.