novelhk End of Chapter 358
End of Chapter 358
News of Wen Zongji's reform of the Dali Temple spread quickly.
There has been much discussion about Wen Zongji's rash act of breaking the boundaries between officials and commoners.
As the main stakeholders, officials naturally opposed this, and they firmly opposed granting junior officials the qualification to be promoted to official positions.
The lower-level officials who wanted to break down class barriers naturally supported it wholeheartedly; they couldn't wait for Wen Zongji's rules to be implemented in all government offices.
But it's obvious that whether you agree or disagree, it's meaningless.
Because Wen Zongji was reforming the Dali Temple, his rules were only implemented within the Dali Temple.
No matter how much trouble other officials cause, it has nothing to do with the Court of Judicial Review.
The Dali Temple officials, who were most qualified to oppose this rule, were now keeping a low profile due to their previous poor performance, and none of them dared to openly contradict Wen Zongji.
If we do as Wen Zongji suggests, we might be able to redeem ourselves. Even if we don't achieve any merit, as long as we do our job well, it's still acceptable if we don't achieve anything.
However, if one goes against Wen Zongji, one might be targeted by Wen Zongji as a prime example, and one's official position might be at risk.
It's an account that's easy to calculate; no one would be confused about it.
Thus, the new regulations, which aroused public outrage, were smoothly implemented at the Dali Temple.
The day after Wen Zongji personally divided them into groups, all cases were assigned for review according to the groups, completely breaking the previous model.
It was obvious to everyone that Wen Zongji had been planning this for a long time.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible to finalize the decision the day before, divide the teams into groups the next day, and redistribute the cases to each group in such an orderly manner; the speed was simply astonishing.
The officials of the Dali Temple saw Wen Zongji's series of actions and, regardless of what they thought in their hearts, they obediently followed his orders.
Wen Zongji didn't care what they thought; he only cared about the result.
The Dali Temple can no longer be as useless as before; it must shoulder the responsibilities it should bear.
That's understandable; he didn't hesitate to break down the boundaries between officials.
The idea is to use incentives to entice lower-level officials to willingly dedicate 100% of their energy to their duties, thereby motivating those slackers who are used to shirking their responsibilities.
Wen Zongji did not believe that the abilities of minor officials could surpass those of higher-ranking officials. These officials had all been promoted through their own hard work and merit, and their inaction and lack of action did not mean that they were incompetent.
Wen Zongji's new regulations were less about providing a shortcut to power for minor officials and more about using them to crack down on the laziness of the old hands in the Court of Judicial Review.
He said the same thing when he first presented his idea to the Crown Prince.
The Court of Judicial Review has no shortage of capable officials, but it lacks capable officials who are willing to work.
That's why the new regulations came into being.
Knowing Wen Zongji's intentions, the Crown Prince stood up to speak for him when the cabinet questioned Wen Zongji's new regulations: "Your concerns are not without reason, but firstly, I can guarantee that this rule will not be implemented in any government office outside of the Dali Temple. Secondly, this is only a temporary measure, and it will naturally be abolished when the time is right."
Throughout history, many dynasties have strictly adhered to the boundaries between officials and clerks, not allowing minor officials to be promoted to higher positions, and there are certainly reasons for this.
The Great Chu will not break this boundary.
"Your Highness, if that's the case, why go through all this trouble? Even if it's canceled later, it will still have opened a new door."
The Crown Prince said quietly, "It is said that harsh measures are necessary in chaotic times. The fastest way to get the Dali Temple to complete its rectification is to do so as quickly as possible. Do we want it to take several years to rectify like the Censorate? How many wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice will occur during that time? How many lives will be lost unjustly?"
The Crown Prince cared deeply for the people and knew that given the importance of the Dali Temple, they could not afford to take their time.
Upon hearing this, the cabinet members fell silent.
Wu Yangeng said, "Your Highness has great foresight; we have been one-sided in our thinking."
The Crown Prince said, "The Grand Secretaries are acting in the best interests of the court... Now that this matter is over, what else is on the agenda?"
After the New Year, Emperor Shun'an, citing health reasons, ordered the Crown Prince to oversee the state affairs, officially beginning the transfer of power to the Crown Prince.
Now, the Crown Prince not only presides over court discussions, but also attends the morning court sessions on behalf of Emperor Shun'an.
People had some guesses about Emperor Shun'an's actions over the past few years, and their attitude towards the Crown Prince became increasingly respectful.
The prince's words made perfect sense, so they naturally stopped pressing the matter.
Therefore, the new regulations of the Dali Temple, which sparked heated discussions both inside and outside the court, did not actually cause much of a stir in the cabinet.
Several months have passed in the blink of an eye.
The staff of the Dali Temple were used to officials and clerks working in the same group.
In the past few months, five cases were reviewed by the Court of Judicial Review and sent back to the Ministry of Justice for retrial. In only one of these cases, a minor official noticed something was wrong first, while the higher-ups were unaware.
Although it was just a case involving an inheritance dispute, not a major case involving a death, it is a fact that the official was humiliated by a minor official.
This also served as a warning to other officials in the Court of Judicial Review. Being humiliated by a lowly clerk not only affected their performance evaluations but also brought shame and ridicule to the entire government.
It's all bad, with absolutely no good.
Without Wen Zongji needing to say much, the officials of the Dali Temple, having just been slapped in the face, were as if they had been injected with chicken blood, and their enthusiasm for doing their duties increased significantly.
The Dali Temple has also undergone a complete transformation.
……
County Princess's Mansion
"Miss, be careful."
After Lingjie learned to walk steadily, she learned to run and then started to run wild. One or two maids couldn't keep an eye on her at all; several maids had to watch over her.
I don't know where she gets so much energy. She runs around the county princess's mansion every day, going here and there, she's incredibly active.
"Ling-jie'er!"
Pei Rujing's angry voice rang out.
Lingjie'er awakened her love for beauty and would always secretly take Pei Rujing's jewelry to wear when the maids weren't paying attention. After wearing it for a couple of times, she would lose interest and throw it away casually.
Pei Rujing walked into the room and immediately saw the jewelry that Ling Jie'er had thrown on the ground, which made her furious.
Ling Jie'er trembled with fright, her eyes darting around as she tried to find a way to stop Pei Rujing from holding a grudge against her.
Just then, Wen Zongji walked in.
"Daddy~"
Ling Jie'er felt like she had seen a savior and rushed over to hug Wen Zongji, burying her head and not daring to look at Pei Rujing.
Pei Rujing laughed angrily: "You have the guts to cause trouble, but not the guts to take responsibility, huh?"
Ling Jie shook her head.
Wen Zongji picked up Ling'er, pinched her little face, and said, "Ling'er, you can't run away from doing something wrong. Quickly apologize to your mother."
Lingjie immediately said in her childish voice, "Mother, I'm sorry."
She always admits her mistakes quickly, but she repeats them next time.
But Pei Rujing was easily swayed by her soft heart. Hearing her apology, her anger subsided by half: "Don't you dare steal Mother's jewelry again next time."
Ling Jie nodded repeatedly.
Seeing this, Pei Rujing decided not to argue with her.
Ling'er smiled sweetly and opened her arms, saying, "Mommy, hug me."
Pei Rujing hugged her and asked, "Aren't you afraid of me anymore?"
Lingjie buried her head in her neck and nuzzled affectionately.
A short while later, Ruige came in with his schoolwork and asked Wen Zongji a question.
Wen Zongji pulled him to sit down and patiently tutored Rui Ge'er in his studies.
The family of four, each doing their own thing, lived a warm and harmonious life.