Volume 4 Chapter 23: Unity
"Mr. Zhao, you have to take care of Hu Quan!"
In the Chongwen Academy, where the capital was located, Zhao Ding heard these words again, and this time the one who came to make the suggestion was the Minister of Personnel Liu Dazhong. "If this continues, I'm afraid that the party struggle will start again!"
Zhao Ding, who was handling official business sighed inwardly upon hearing this, but on the surface he remained calm. He waved his hand to signal the Secretary Fan Zongyin, who was on official business, and other officials in the public office to temporarily leave, and then he spoke calmly, "Hu Quan has published a supplement without authorization again?"
"It doesn't matter if he publishes a supplement without permission, the key is the content!" Liu Dazhong was almost furious. "If he published a supplement to talk about the original practice, tell stories, record news, or even advertise the Cuju match, why would I do this?"
"What's the content?" Zhao Ding's expression remained unchanged. "Minister Liu, please sit down."
"My son happened to be on duty at the Imperial College today to copy the court bulletin. He ran out right after he finished copying and told me that Hu Quan had published an allusion about Duke Huan of Qi's virtue and evil today!" Liu Dazhong said with a wave of his sleeves. "Do you think he meant to fire half of the officials in the central government?"
After hearing this story, Zhao Yuanzhen also started to have a headache.
There is no other reason, this story is too famous. It says that Duke Huan of Qi came to a small town and saw that the place was in ruins. He was curious, but someone told him that the ruler of this place "respected good and hated evil", so it was destroyed. Duke Huan of Qi was puzzled. Why did the city become a ruin even though it "recognized good people and hated bad people"?
As a result, the locals continued to tell Duke Huan of Qi that this monarch recognized good people but could not use good people, hated bad people but could not drive them out, so his city became a ruin.
This story is so famous and ancient that it has become a standard story for everyone to use when they advise the monarch to impeach others. Coupled with the fact that Hu Quan himself had previously cursed those who advocated peace as spies, and the current situation, the intention is even more obvious.
"Minister Liu, please sit down." After a moment of headache, Zhao Ding still tried his best to maintain the demeanor of a prime minister.
Liu Dazhong sneered, finally found a chair and sat down casually, then waited for Zhao Ding to speak.
However, Liu Dazhong took office when Zhang Jun went south to supervise the army at Dongting Lake. He was recommended by Zhao Ding, and since he took office, he has almost obeyed Zhao Ding's orders. In fact, everyone knows that the two Shangshus, Liu Dazhong of the Ministry of Personnel and Hu Shijiang of the Ministry of War, plus Liu Ji, the deputy prime minister of the capital province, who cooperated very well, are the key support for Prime Minister Zhao to manage the government affairs of the country in the capital province.
Relatively speaking, the Minister of Rites Zhu Shengfei has a gentle temperament. Although he has always cooperated with the work of the capital province, he is recognized as Lu Yihao's man; the Minister of Revenue Lin Qi has been in office for three or four years, and he is from Li Gang's court; the Minister of Punishments Wang Shu should have been close to Zhao Ding, but unexpectedly he was very close to the Privy Council because of his particularly pro-war stance; as for the Minister of Works, it was Liang Yangzu who brought Zhang Jun, Tian Shizhong, and Yang Yizhong to protect the emperor, served as deputy marshal, supervised the tea and salt affairs in the southeast, and finally came to Beijing because the extraordinary official position was abolished after the Yaoshan War... This person has extremely strong political capital and comes from a famous family (his father is the prototype of Liang Zhongshu in Water Margin), but he has always been humble, and is an impartial and fair gentleman.
In short, after the court's Nanyang reform, with the six ministers becoming increasingly powerful, it was obvious that Minister Liu, who sat in such an important position, was naturally Zhao Ding's right-hand man. Therefore, Zhao Ding had no reason to hide his feelings when dealing with this man.
"Minister Liu, the government emphasizes 'practical achievements' and admires Wang Shu, and even makes Guanzi a prominent school of thought. We can't say there is anything wrong with Hu Quan publishing this. Besides, the fault of this matter is not with Hu Quan, but with the government." After thinking carefully, Zhao Ding finally spoke frankly.
"Prime Minister Zhao." Liu Dazhong also recovered his breath at this time, but shook his head repeatedly. "I understand what you said, but the emperor's intention is so straightforward that it is inevitable to make people suspicious. Hu Quan is simply instructed by the emperor!"
Zhao Ding finally sighed.
Speaking of which, there is no need to say much about Emperor Zhao's intentions. He is in favor of war and wants to march north! The attitude of this emperor has been very obvious from beginning to end... The imperial edict not to take the initiative to negotiate peace has not been revoked until now. He directly fabricated a letter from the north. He drove away the Jin people without giving any ministers a chance to speak after they came to the palace for an incense stick of time. Later, he just walked away in anger after "breaking the tassel". What else do you want?
"There is no government authorization. This was definitely done by Hu Quan on his own initiative. However, the government's ambiguous attitude and deliberate indulgence are not to be denied." Zhao Ding continued to ponder. "What I mean is, we need to find out the crux of the government's involvement in this matter..."
"Walls have no ears, just keep talking, sir." Liu Dazhong frowned slightly, but couldn't help but add another sentence. "If walls have ears, then you and the Minister of Personnel would have better quit!"
Zhao Ding ignored the other party's complaints and said slowly: "I think there are two problems. First, the emperor's determination to fight is unshakable. Seeing that half of the officials in the court are willing to negotiate peace, the monarch can't help but want to act on his own..."
"If we can gain the south of the Yellow River without fighting, welcome back the two saints, negotiate peace, and recuperate for a few years, wouldn't that be good?" Liu Dazhong shook his head helplessly. It was obvious that he had expressed his willingness to negotiate peace when the last division took place that day.
"In this matter, each has his own reasons... If we negotiate peace, everything will be fine, but how can we win the hearts of the people who survived in the two rivers? Even if we don't talk about the people who survived in the two rivers, how many people have escaped across the river? How can we explain it?"
"Isn't the government dedicated to meritorious service?" Liu Dazhong stamped his feet. "Why are you only talking about justice and not profit at this moment? How about taking a short break and then starting a large-scale northern expedition?"
Zhao Ding was silent for a moment, but continued: "Let's not talk about this for now... Let's continue with what I just said. Second, the emperor seems to be reluctant to welcome the two saints back..."
"It's not that it seems to be true, but it is beyond doubt." Liu Dazhong became serious again when he heard this. "And I think this matter is even more difficult to say. Sir, I was away from home before and I didn't quite believe the rumors. Today I know that the royal family is so suspicious!"
"The government may not be suspicious. In my opinion, it is full of resentment," Zhao Ding answered seriously.
"Be it suspicion or hatred, it's hard to explain, and neither the superiors can explain it, nor can the subordinates." Liu Dazhong said helplessly. "We say suspicion, but the emperor says hatred. We say hatred, but the emperor can't explain it, but he is suspicious... Mr. Zhao, the key is not here. The key is that there are some things that everyone knows, but why does the emperor have to do this? Can't the peace talks be turned around a little? Can't the two saints' affairs be covered up a little? The consequence of not keeping a sense of propriety and directly revealing it is that now there is suspicion inside and outside, and the dignity is completely lost!"
Zhao Ding also nodded slightly.
In fact, this is the problem, and it is also the fundamental reason why the court atmosphere was weird within a few days after the Jin envoy left that day - Emperor Zhao's behavior has clearly touched upon the foundation of Confucian society, which is basically the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues.
The patriarchal social system created by Confucianism, regardless of whether it is good or bad, is indeed a stable and useful thing. Over the years, everyone has adapted to using it to maintain social stability... When Wang Anshi was carrying out the reform, he and Sima Guang argued over the Dengzhou Ayun case for decades. Was it because they were idle? It was related to the foundation of Confucian ethics!
Now, Emperor Zhao not only challenges the ethical issue himself, but also pushes such an ethical contradiction onto these bureaucrats... You say that the emperor is the leader of the ministers, and the father is the leader of the sons, but who is your emperor and father now? What should you do if your emperor and father make a huge mistake that violates ethics? Oppose? Then what is the difference between you and the emperor? Acquiesce or agree? Isn't that helping the emperor to violate the moral principles?
But if Emperor Zhao was more secretive and pretended to be more serious, wouldn't he be able to get away with it? Why did he have to embarrass everyone?
It should be understood that no matter what, the Battle of Yaoshan had a huge impact. Whether it was the situation between the two countries or the internal military, politics, personnel, and authority of the rulers of both sides, there were drastic changes.
After that battle, everyone who was interested understood that Emperor Zhao already had the power to overturn the table in the internal political situation of the Song Dynasty, but the problem was that as the prime minister, wasn't your main historical mission to prevent this emperor from overturning the table?
Don't forget, this is not the first time that Emperor Zhao has tried to use the low-end ethical jokes of the Two Saints. He did it last time after returning to the old capital, but was beaten back by Lu Haowen on the spot... Do you, Zhao Ding, have the guts to cry back this time?
"Minister Liu, I think we have to make a choice between the two things." Zhao Ding nodded and finally spoke frankly.
"My lord, what you mean is... to give up one and gain the other?" Liu Dazhong immediately realized.
"That's right." Zhao Ding finally said his response. "What I mean is that we should jointly write a petition, and the capital, the Privy Council, the six ministries and nine ministers... everyone in the palace that day should sign together to request a plan for the Northern Expedition to show that we are selfless and non-partisan. But please also be polite in the matter of the two saints!"
Liu Dazhong was silent for a moment.
"Minister Liu, the peace talks are unlikely to be carried out with the government's position, and the resistance to this is greater than you think... There are two things you may not know. The Minister Wang (Wang Shu) of the Ministry of Justice came down from the palace that day and told me that Hu Quan's words made him feel relieved. And Zhang Shuxiang just wrote a note, asking the provincial government to hand over the matter of the imperial reports to the Privy Council on the grounds that Hu Quan was an editor of the Privy Council and the imperial reports were related to military affairs."
Liu Dazhong looked up in astonishment: "Is this really a party struggle?"
"There's no point in arguing!" Zhao Ding said solemnly. "I've already said it, the government's intention is clear! And since I, Zhao Ding, am the Prime Minister of the capital, I will not allow any more factional disputes in the court!"
Liu Dazhong sighed for a moment, but finally nodded: "In this case, we must find someone to talk to the emperor."
"No need." Zhao Ding said seriously again. "First, we can't control the emperor after all; second, the emperor may appear frivolous and stubborn, but he is actually very wise and must understand what we mean."
"Well!" Liu Dazhong thought for a long time and finally stood up. "In that case, I will contact colleagues in various provinces for you..."
Zhao Ding finally felt a little relieved.
However, while Prime Minister Zhao was working hard to maintain the unity of the court, Emperor Zhao, who had caused everyone to be disunited, had no awareness of the situation. On the contrary, he had been in high spirits these days and had been dealing with martial arts matters.
As mentioned before, Emperor Zhao was an unlearned man. He had no idea that the Zhao Song Dynasty had always had martial arts. He thought he was innovating the system... In fact, martial arts had existed since the Renzong Dynasty. It was modeled after the Imperial Academy, where students were admitted and taught, and combined with the military examination system, it was very advanced. It just didn't have the kind of high-level martial arts that Emperor Zhao expected that could interfere with the promotion of military commanders.
Not only that, as the saying goes, every failure makes you wiser, Emperor Zhao carefully asked the gossiper Yang Yi Zhong and found out that the Zhao Song Dynasty actually had nursing homes, shelters for the disabled, a medical promotion bureau, and a cemetery system.
However, all systems are good systems, but the actual implementation varies greatly.
For example, the highest martial arts school under the Imperial College only had one professor all year round, and like the Imperial College before Cai Jing's reform, it only provided training for the imperial examinations.
For example, nursing homes and shelters for the disabled are of course good, but in reality they usually remain at the level of model projects of some officials and are only run for a few years before they are abandoned.
The cemetery system is similar, and the assessment methods are also very good, but there is no supervision. The monks in charge of the cemeteries’ favorite trick is to dismantle the bodies like Kindaichi did, breaking five bodies into six, and then asking the court for ordination certificates when they have enough... In this situation, many poor people would rather choose cremation than be put into the cemetery.
The only thing worth mentioning is the medical promotion system... Throughout the Song Dynasty, both the government and the people attached unprecedented importance to the promotion of medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. Not only did famous doctors emerge in large numbers, but the medical administrative institutions, medical business institutions, and medical education institutions were also very sound. The central government not only had the Imperial Academy of Medical Officers, the Imperial Hospital, and the Imperial Pharmacy, but also had the Imperial Medical College corresponding to the Imperial College. Moreover, it was more advanced than martial arts, and was directly ranked and graded according to the Sanshe method. Not only that, medical officers were stationed in various government offices, military camps, and local areas, and a large amount of epidemic prevention medicines were allocated to remote areas every year.
It can only be said that, speaking only of the medical system, as Pan Guozhang finished his entire explanation, Emperor Zhao felt that he was really unworthy of the times.
However, these things were destroyed during the Jing Kang period, and it was not until the third year of Jian Yan that the corresponding central institutions were rebuilt. Only last year did they start purchasing medicines again, but they still used military funds, and most of them were used in military camps... And it seemed that Father-in-law Pan wanted Emperor Zhao to allocate some funds to restore the former glory as soon as possible, but he was fooled by the emperor in the end.
It’s good enough that he didn’t ask the father-in-law for money, let alone allocating funds?
In fact, Emperor Zhao spent a lot of money on the reconstruction of the martial arts school. Part of the unused Yeonbokgung Palace behind the imperial palace was used as a school building... You know, this place is only separated from Emperor Zhao's fish pond by a wall.
Back to the present, we have to say that Wu Jie is stronger and more careful than Zhang Jun. Not only did he send corresponding officers for training as agreed, he also sent dozens of young people from Guanzhong to enrich their martial arts... This made Emperor Zhao very satisfied.
"What's your name?" After chatting with the officers of the rear army and the right army of the imperial camp on the open ground of the temporary martial arts school, Emperor Zhao couldn't help but notice the young men from Guanzhong, so he turned around. When he looked at the young martial artist who was leading the group, who had barely even a moustache on his lip but was exceptionally tall and strong with muscular shoulders, he really had the subtle feeling that some of the world's talents were within his grasp.
You have to know that just looking at this man's skeleton, he has some of Han Shizhong's flavor.
"I..." This person was obviously at a loss because of his young age. He wanted to speak but didn't know what to say, and he wanted to salute but didn't know how to salute. He just stood there in a daze for a moment.
"Reporting to the emperor." Wu Lin, who was escorting these officers and martial arts students on behalf of Wu Jie, stepped forward half a step from the back to respond. "This man's given name is Zhongfu, which happens to be the same as Zhang Zhongfu, the commander of the imperial cavalry. But his surname is Wang, and he is from a wealthy family in Jingzhao... He entered the county school when he was young, and he made good progress, but he is also a natural martial arts genius. At the age of 18, he has already defeated all the opponents in Jingzhao. A month ago, the Prince of Yan'an was in Chang'an. He heard his name and went to test him. He was defeated after the test, and he also thought he was a genius. He was originally going to recruit him into the army, but later he heard that the emperor was going to run a martial arts school, so he recommended him and asked me to bring him here."
Zhao Jiu put his hands behind his back and nodded slowly, looking extremely satisfied, then went to look at the next student.
