In order to maintain the independence of this proposed ministry, Tộ called for its officials to be protected from the influence of the monarch and his officials. Tộ’s model proposed that the legal mandarins could be promoted but not demoted by their superiors. This legal system was consistent with Tộ’s proposal that Confucian values be removed from its preeminent position in the Nguyễn court. On the contrary, his assertion that obeying the law “fulfills the Way of the human being” suggests that Confucian concepts of morality and duty continued to influence his understanding of European legal systems.