There were many things going on in the court, but everyone, whether the emperor or the ministers, had gotten used to it.

The court is so big and there are so many things to do, so it is normal to be in turmoil.

If nothing major happens within a period of time, then life is actually very stable.

Only when something really big happens will people really care.

The court has been relatively stable recently. The only time it caused controversy was when the Ministry of Internal Affairs wanted to give the royal logo to private businesses.

However, the matter was quickly resolved, but the person who resolved it was Xu Guangqi, the Second Assistant Minister of the Cabinet.

After solving the problem of the Imperial Household Department, a new problem arose, that is, the Ministry of Revenue had to set up an office to supervise merchants.

How to locate this government office and how to handle it? Everyone was in the dark and didn't know what to do.

His Majesty has already issued an imperial decree, asking Xu Guangqi to handle this matter. Many people in the court are concerned about this matter.

Everyone was waiting for the Ministry of Revenue to come up with a decision, because they all felt that this matter might be a big deal.

Although Xu Guangqi took the position of Second Assistant to the Minister of the Cabinet and had many people supporting him, his foundation was ultimately shallow and no one supported him locally.

Many people felt that Xu Guangqi would not miss this opportunity. This was a good opportunity for him to extend his influence to the local level, and he would definitely not miss it.

Inside Xu Guangqi's home.

Several people sat opposite each other, with tea and snacks on the table.

Xu Guangqi said anxiously, "This is what happened. You all know it. We must come up with a plan as soon as possible, so there's no need to hide anything. Just tell us what you have to say."

"It's really no big deal," Li Zhizao said with a smile. "It's nothing more than setting up a new government office. So, let's just follow the new rules. Whether it's personnel deployment or the division of responsibilities, everything can be reset. We don't have to worry about anything."

Xu Guangqi nodded, frowning and saying, "There's nothing to worry about, but there's a problem here."

Hearing this, Shen Tingyun and Li Zhizao both looked at Xu Guangqi, both wanting to hear him say something.

After all, Xu Guangqi now has the highest position in this small team. He is the second assistant of the cabinet and also the person who deserves the most trust from His Majesty. His information is very important.

Xu Guangqi said, "Who will be in charge of this government office? Will it be under the jurisdiction of the local authorities? We have already agreed to send people to the local areas. At least we should send people to a few major cities, such as Hangzhou and Yangzhou, where there are many merchants."

"This is related to the problem I mentioned earlier. Although this matter seems simple, it is actually not easy to implement."

Xu Guangqi said this, glanced at the two people, and said, "I think you should understand what I mean, right?"

Li Zhizao and the other man certainly understood, but they were both a little hesitant.

Shen Tingyun pondered for a moment, then said, "It's not too difficult to decide who will take charge. We can just hand it over to Zhizao. He is currently the Minister of Revenue, a position that suits him perfectly. He is also one of us, so he is the most suitable person to preside over this office. The only question now is what His Majesty will think and whether he will agree."

After Shen Tingyun finished speaking, he and Li Zhizao looked at Xu Guangqi.

Neither of them could answer this question. Only Xu Guangqi knew the answer because he was the only close minister to His Majesty.

This was indeed a key issue, so both of them were waiting for Xu Guangqi to speak.

Xu Guangqi did not hesitate and nodded directly, saying, "That's no problem."

In fact, Xu Guangqi knew in his heart that since the emperor agreed to his memorial, this matter was basically left to him.

After such a long time, I have come to understand your majesty's thoughts to some extent.

If it is something you want to do and His Majesty agrees, then His Majesty will support you; if His Majesty does not agree with this matter, he will definitely not let you do it.

Now that His Majesty wants to hand this matter over to me, there will be absolutely no problem in me recommending Li Zhizao.

So Xu Guangqi could say with certainty that there was no problem.

Hearing what Xu Guangqi said, Li Zhizao and Shen Tingyun nodded together.

Shen Tingyun continued, "The first problem has been solved. Moving on to the second question, I think we should not put this yamen under local jurisdiction, otherwise it will be meaningless. This yamen is to supervise merchants. If it is handed over to the local yamen, what use will it have?"

That being said, everyone understands this principle. If we don't consider it from this perspective, but only consider it from the perspective of power, no one will be willing to share their power with others.

Especially for those in officialdom, this is an obvious thing. Why is it still being discussed when it is so obvious?

The reason is simple: objective conditions do not allow this. If you do not give this control power to the local governments, it is equivalent to opening a new government office in the local government. What does this mean?

Not to mention the salaries paid by the court, this means that the court is asking the local governments for money.

To put it simply, it is the court's distrust of local officials; to put it more broadly, it is decentralization.

Other reasons are secondary, only decentralization is the main one, which is the central government taking power from local governments.

Once we understand the essence of the matter, the rest becomes easier to understand. How could these local officials be willing to hand over power?

This is something that no official is willing to agree to.

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