Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 8 Do you think I'm a born killer?

The next day.

Zhu Youjian looked at the 'mountain' in front of him.

He simply looked at it, as if admiring a work of art that was both absurd and full of profound philosophy.

He could imagine that behind every memorial was a face flushed with righteous indignation and a pen trembling with passionate anger.

They quoted classical texts, they were heartbroken, and they placed themselves on the highest ground of reason and morality. With the sword of words, they launched the fiercest attack on him and the first banner he had just raised!
Zhu Youjian's gaze shifted from the silent mountain of paper to a thin document gently pressed down by his slender fingers.

That was not a memorial to the throne.

It was an urgent military report from the Nine Borders, delivered over 800 li. Every word on it seemed to be written with ice water, exuding a chilling aura.

More than a month has passed since winter began in Xuanfu and Datong, but the winter clothing and provisions promised by the imperial court have yet to arrive.

The border troops could only sleep in their armor at night, and some soldiers, unable to bear the cold and hunger, had already deserted in the dead of night.

Morale was low, complaints were widespread, and even... several small-scale mutinies had occurred.

mutiny.

This word was like a red-hot steel needle, piercing deep into Zhu Youjian's pupils.

Beside him, Wei Zhongxian stood like a shadow, even his breathing was extremely soft.

He could sense that the young emperor on the throne was emanating an aura even more chilling than the cold wind outside the palace.

"Your Majesty..." Wei Zhongxian finally spoke, his voice dry as if it had been sanded, "This servant sent someone to inquire. The officials of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War are still... still discussing it."

He paused, seemingly considering his words, but ultimately decided to repeat the original words in an almost imitative tone—a subtle provocation.

"They said...that the 300,000 taels of silver were obtained through confiscation of property, and since the source was illegitimate, their words were not justified. If this silver were used to pay military expenses, I fear...I fear it would damage the dignity of the nation and tarnish the imperial army..."

A deathly silence fell over the hall.

After Wei Zhongxian finished speaking, he lowered his head deeply, not daring to look at the emperor's face again.

He knew that these words would anger his unpredictable new master more than any direct confrontation.

however,
The anticipated thunderous wrath did not materialize.

Zhu Youjian simply and slowly pulled the thin military report from under his fingers and gently folded it.

His movements were elegant and composed.

Then, he stood up and walked to the front of the memorial mountain, and placed the military report, which was covered with the snow and wind of the border, steadily at the top of the paper mountain.

It stands like a small tombstone on a pristine white cemetery.

"National body? Master Wang?"

Zhu Youjian's voice was very soft, so soft that it seemed as if a gust of wind could blow it away, but in this empty hall, it was as clear as the tolling of a bell.

"Is their pride more important, or the soldiers who are about to freeze to death on the border?"

He turned to look at Wei Zhongxian, his eyes showing no anger, only a deep, unfathomable calm.

"Wei Banban, do you understand now?"

Wei Zhongxian shuddered. He understood, of course, but he dared not say it.

Zhu Youjian spoke for him: "They are not targeting you, they are not even... targeting me."

“They are defending their ‘rules,’ their ‘decency,’ and their ‘reason.’”

"In the face of this 'principle,' the life and death of the border troops, the safety of the country, and even the decrees of the Emperor can temporarily and dignifiedly take a back seat."

Zhu Youjian slowly walked back to the throne and sat down again.

At that moment, Wei Zhongxian sensed from him a chilling desolation and ruthlessness that was completely out of character for his age.

He finally understood it completely.

This group of people are not using swords to fight him.

They are using the vast, deeply ingrained system of morality, procedures, and public opinion that has been in operation for over two hundred years in the Ming Dynasty to trap and paralyze him!

They wanted to show him that even the emperor had to act within their rules!

……

Late at night.

Zhu Youjian dismissed all the eunuchs and paced alone in the empty Wenhua Hall.

The flickering candlelight cast his shadow on the cold floor tiles, elongating and then shortening, like a lonely soul conversing with his own shadow.

He was conducting a strategic review.

A strategic review of the new CEO of "Daming Group Co., Ltd."

A clear balance sheet came to mind.

Asset side:
Start-up capital: 200,000 taels of silver. Not much, but it was the first cash flow he could completely control.

The weapon of violence (knife): Wei Zhongxian and his Eastern Depot. A blood-stained, old-fashioned knife, sharp but infamous and with huge side effects.

Security System (Shield): Zhou Quan and his elite guard. A relatively loyal guard is the last line of defense for his personal safety.

Liabilities side:

Huge debt: an empty treasury and an astronomical fiscal deficit.

Redundant teams: a bureaucratic system that is so large and bloated that it is inefficient and riddled with internal factions.

The core issue: a deeply ingrained "corporate culture" that is incompatible with itself—the moral values ​​and rules of the game of the scholar-official class.

Zhu Youjian stopped and looked at the Memorial Hall Mountain, which appeared even paler in the night.

The problem lies in the third item.

He can kill people with Zhou Quan's knife, and he can confiscate property with Wei Zhongxian's hand.

But these are all just surgical-style "targeted removal".

He couldn't possibly kill everyone who opposed him; that was unrealistic and would have caused the entire "company" to collapse completely.

Simply resorting to killing and intimidation is the least efficient management method.

What he needs is not to destroy the old system.

He needs to...reshape it.

How to reshape it?

Well, the first thing is still to kill, of course; a person cannot stand without authority! The weapon of criticism cannot replace the criticism of weapons!

Zhu Youjian believed he was not a born killer.
He could try talking to those who opposed him until they were satisfied. If they really couldn't reach an agreement, he could have Wei Zhongxian send a few people to intimidate him.

If they still can't reach an agreement, then kill him.
……

Zhu Youjian closed his eyes, and the words he had heard countless times in the conference room in his previous life, like stones submerged at the bottom of the water, were stirred up by the undercurrent of memory and floated to the surface one by one.

KPI (Key Performance Indicators)...

ROI (Return on Investment)...

SOP (Standard Operating Procedure)...

closed loop……

Empowerment... Top-level design...

Grab...

These words, in the 21st century, may have become somewhat laughable due to their overuse.

But at this moment, in this vermilion palace belonging to the seventeenth century, they were nothing short of demonic sounds to those gentlemen who constantly quoted "Confucius said" and "benevolence and morality".

War is not just a clash of swords.

The most sophisticated war is the war for the right to speak.

He cannot play the game of "moral debate" with them within the rules they have set.

Because in this game, they are the referees, the interpreters of the rules, and he can never win.

What he needs to do is create a completely new set of rules for the game.

A new language that they cannot understand, imitate, or refute.

He wants to use this new language to redefine "good" and "bad," "merit" and "fault."

He wanted to drag their proud, impractical "pure discussions" into the quagmire of his pragmatic "quantitative" measures.

He will use their spears to attack their shields.

He wanted to use their most proficient skill, "words," to leave them speechless!

A cold smile crept across Zhu Youjian's lips.

He has found his new weapon.

Now, he needs to find the first whetstone for this weapon.

……

At midnight, all was quiet.

Wei Zhongxian and Zhou Quan were secretly summoned to the Wenhua Hall one after the other.

They saw the emperor sitting in front of a huge map, on which the various government offices and residences of important officials in the capital were circled in vermilion ink.

"They're all here."

Zhu Youjian did not turn around, but his voice was exceptionally clear in the empty hall.

"I have two things for you to do."

Wei Zhongxian and Zhou Quan bowed simultaneously: "Please give your orders, Your Majesty."

Zhu Youjian stood up and walked to them. His gaze first fell on Wei Zhongxian.

"Wei Banban, you are the Director of the Eastern Depot, my eyes and ears," he said slowly. "But from today onwards, I want you to not only be able to see and hear, but also... calculate."

“Count?” Wei Zhongxian was taken aback, his face full of confusion.

"Yes, settle accounts." Zhu Youjian's eyes were sharp as knives. "Go, find all the files from the Eastern Depot related to the Censorate. I want one person... that Left Censor-in-Chief Liu Zongzhou who was jumping around and leading the impeachment against you a few days ago."

Liu Zongzhou, a prominent figure in the Donglin Party, was known for his integrity and outspokenness.

"I don't want evidence of his corruption or bribery, nor do I want dirt on his forming cliques and engaging in corrupt practices." Zhu Youjian's voice carried an unquestionable command. "I want you to compile all the impeachment memorials he has submitted in the past three months, or even half a year."

He held out a finger.

"First, list who he impeached."

Extend your second finger.

"Second, what are the charges for impeachment, categorized by type."

Finally, he extended a third finger, his tone suddenly becoming more forceful.

"Third, and most importantly: what were the final results of these impeachments? How many people were investigated and found guilty, how many were dismissed from office, and how many were simply dropped without any evidence?"

"Make a table out of all this for me. I want a... 'quantified' result. Understand?"

Fine beads of sweat had already formed on Wei Zhongxian's forehead.

He doesn't understand.

He had absolutely no idea what the emperor wanted these things for.

Impeachment is a matter of momentum, morality, and the ebb and flow of power in the court. When...when can it be calculated with an abacus?

Quantification? What kind of term is that?

However, Wei Zhongxian had spent decades in the palace and had long since developed the ability to get things done even if the sky were to fall.

His extraordinary political acumen told him that behind the emperor's strange orders lay some kind of ruthless and terrifying method that he could not understand.

"This servant...this servant obeys the imperial decree! Even if this old servant has torn down the beams of the Eastern Depot, I will still make this chart for Your Majesty!"

Zhu Youjian nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze to Zhou Quan, who had remained silent to the side.

His tone softened considerably when he spoke to Zhou Quan.

"Zhou Quan, you are my shield, protecting me completely."

"Yes." Zhou Quan's answer is always just one word.

"I'm also giving you a task. It's the same one: investigate Liu Zongzhou," Zhu Youjian said. "But I don't want you to use the Yongwei Battalion's force. I want you to use your eyes and your brain."

He looked at Zhou Quan's resolute face and said, word by word:

"Go and investigate this Censor Zou thoroughly. Before impeaching anyone, did he send someone to conduct an on-site investigation? Were the so-called 'evidence' in his possession cross-verified by different people? Did he rely on hearsay or solid evidence?"

Zhu Youjian paused for a moment, then uttered a completely new term.

“This, I call it… ‘due diligence’.”

"I need to know whether his 'work process' is rigorous. Do you understand?"

Zhou Quan's brows furrowed slightly.

Due diligence? Work process?
These words were even more unfamiliar to him than the Sanskrit of the Western Regions.

However, he understood the emperor's core instructions.

Investigate the authenticity of each of Liu Zongzhou's impeachments.

He understood.

"Your subject obeys the decree." He accepted the order without hesitation, clasping his hands in a gesture of respect.

Looking at the two people in front of him, one with a blank yet awe-inspiring expression, and the other completely clueless yet absolutely obedient—his most important tool at the moment—Zhu Youjian knew that his plan had been launched.

Wei Zhongxian was his "market intelligence department," responsible for collecting negative data on "competitors."

Zhou Quan is his "risk control and compliance department," responsible for investigating "operational process loopholes" in "competitors."

As for himself, the new CEO of Daming Group, he has already sharpened his new sword.

This knife is not made of steel.

It is forged from cold, hard words like “data,” “process,” “performance,” and “results.”

He couldn't wait to let those well-read gentlemen taste the new knife at the first court assembly!

He wanted everyone to know that from now on, in this Forbidden City, under his rule as Zhu Youjian, simply shouting slogans would be useless!
He wants results.

It's something tangible, something that can be written on reports... the result!
(End of this chapter)