Volume 4 is in the ascendant Chapter 502: Candidates
"Mr. Lu, who do you think can join the cabinet after you retire?" Bai Tu knew that Lu Kang had made up his mind, so he stopped trying to persuade him.
In fact, Lu Kang had been trying his best to hold on before. If possible, he even wanted to hold on until Lu Xun returned from Yizhou before retiring.
Counting the time Lu Xun has been in Yizhou, this year is the sixth year. A few months ago, Guan Ning, as the governor, was ready to set off in March this year and return to report. By then, Lu Xun would be promoted to the governor of Yizhou.
In the previous five years, Guan Ning and Lu Xun had also made many achievements in Yizhou. Not only did they build an important shipyard in Yizhou and reclaim a large amount of wasteland, but also various people-friendly measures. Nearly 100,000 people were relocated from Kuaiji. In addition, 80% of the local Dongyu people have now become naturalized "Chu people."
In particular, if all the Yi princesses were assimilated into the Han culture and became Chengji princesses, the tribes would gradually die out or be assimilated.
This relied not only on suppression by force. Even as the governor, Guan Ning always used force with caution. Most of the time, he used force within the Dongyu people, when the tribal leaders brutally suppressed their people, and then he would "take action for justice."
The Yizhou model also provided the best teaching materials for the "enlightenment" of other regions.
Originally, after completing his five-year term, Lu Kang hoped that Lu Xun would come back with him. However, Lu Xun was worried about Yizhou. He was afraid that if he left with Mr. Guan, later people might misjudge and ruin this hard-earned good situation.
After all, Yizhou was newly annexed, and the last two Yiji who were "enlightened" were only in the third year of the Chuli period...
If the relationship between these tribal members and leaders is not handled properly, and if the key points of the further integration of the Dongyu people are not grasped accurately, chaos can easily occur.
Therefore, Lu Xun specifically applied to stay in office for another three years. During this period, he asked Bai Tu to transfer new people to familiarize themselves with the situation so as to ensure a smooth handover. He also wrote a special letter to Lu Kang.
What else can Lu Kang say about such a good grandparent and grandchild who are loyal to their duties?
"Mr. Zhou Yu is a man of independent judgment. He can be a confidant at home and a loyal follower outside. He is capable of taking on this responsibility." Lu Kang recommended Zhou Yu to Bai Tu.
The three beauties of Jiangdong at that time, the peak of beauty in Chu State, Bai Tu, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu, were all in their thirties at that time. In terms of seniority, Zhou Yu could be considered an "old minister", so it was not surprising for him to enter the cabinet.
However, Bai Tu shook his head and said, "How could Elder Lu not know my third brother's personality? I have mentioned this to him before, but compared to joining the cabinet, he prefers to lead troops outside."
To be precise, he was leading troops outside with Sun Ce.
Therefore, Bai Tu really did not want to transfer Zhou Yu back, otherwise what would be the difference between that and directly asking for Sun Ce's brain?
Hearing this, Lu Kang also shook his head helplessly, and then continued: "Gu Yuantan is cautious in his words and actions, caring for the people and benefiting the sick, not considering small profits and small achievements as his ability, and is good at making decisions in the central government."
"Yuan Tan is an upright and steady person, but he is better at governing a region, so it is not suitable for him to join the cabinet." After praising Gu Yong, Bai Tu rejected the recommendation for him.
After hearing Bai Tu's words, Lu Kang consciously stopped mentioning Zhang Zhao, Zhang Hong, Wei Teng and others...
In fact, Bai Tu also valued Gu Yong, Zhang Zhao and others. Which one of them was not a senior official in one of the six ministries or a provincial governor?
Even though they did not fully understand and accept the new policies of the Chu State, as long as they were willing to cooperate, Bai Tu would employ them. This could be regarded as a mutual adjustment between the old and the new. Although they did not actively promote it, they were still moving after being "driven away".
but……
The Grand Secretary of the Palace is more likely to be the one giving advice to Bai Tu!
The ideas of Gu Yong and others are, firstly, a bit conservative, and secondly, they are too closely related to the interests of the gentry, which does not conform to this point.
In contrast, Lu Kang is completely different.
Lu Kang is undoubtedly one of the "bosses" of the Jiangdong aristocratic families. He will fight for the interests of the aristocratic families, especially the big families in Jiangdong, in the palace.
However, in essence, Lu Kang's "struggle" is to find a balance point for Bai Tu and the State of Chu. If he feels that it is not balanced enough, he will directly reflect on it to Bai Tu, and will also try his best to quell the backlash of some large families whose interests have been damaged when it is acceptable... He will not have the intention of deceiving his superiors and subordinates, or harming the public interest for personal gain.
This is not only a matter of character, but also because of Lu Kang's age and experience, which give him such an open-minded attitude. Facts have also proved that Lu Kang's approach is the wisest.
Just look at the current prosperity of the State of Chu and the Jiangdong clans and you will know that anyone could say they suffered a loss in the previous "deal", but the Jiangdong clans would never have the face to say so!
Unfortunately, it is difficult to find a second Lu Kang.
However, the current situation is not as urgent as when Lu Kang acted as a lubricant between Bai Tu and the Jiangdong gentry.
After all, the new policy of Chu State was already paying dividends, which was the most stable time and the time when differences could be resolved. Moreover, the various factions within the State, from the Bai Tu family represented by Lu Bu, to the Nanjun clan, the Nanyang clan, the foreign clans, and the "poor families" who were becoming more and more important...
Aren’t the Jiangdong clans the most comfortable?
After all, Lu Bu and his group are not very good at scheming. Jiangdong was basically the base for Bai Tu's administration in the early years, and everyone in it has reaped the full benefits. At the same time... those guys from other factions who only get to eat meat and don't get beaten have been coveting them for a long time.
Although the State of Chu was at the peak of its prosperity and the struggles among internal factions were mainly based on "competition", at least there would not be any vicious internal friction. However, the Jiangdong clans were definitely the most active in following the wishes of the King of Chu.
This can be clearly seen from the data of various departments - among the gentry, young men from Jiangdong had the largest proportion of participating in the imperial examinations, the most joining the navy, the pioneer army, and the overseas governor's office, and they were also the most supportive of various workshop regulations.
"Minister Yu has a brilliant character. He likes to stand out from the crowd and never give up... He can take on this task." Lu Kang said with a pout.
This is referring to the Minister of Revenue, Yu Fan.
From the way they address each other, it can be seen that Lu Kang is less close to Yu Fan.
In fact...Yu Fan is not close to anyone!
Lu Kang also understood that this cabinet position would definitely be from Jiangdong, so after all, the farthest that these people could go was Huainan, and their interests were close to those of the Jiangdong gentry.
There was nothing to hide. At this moment, it was just him and Bai Tu playing against each other, so there was no need to talk about so much nonsense.
The Yu family is an old family in Jiangdong and has been a prominent family since the pre-Qin period. However, during the chaotic times at the end of the Qin Dynasty, the Yu family accurately sided with Xiang Yu. Even Yu Ji was from this Yu family. As a result, they were severely suppressed in the early Han Dynasty and were not listed among the four surnames of Jiangdong.
Later, when Bai Tu first established the Six Ministries, the head of one ministry was still called "Si Bu". The "Ministry of Households", which was the most concerned by the big families and needed the cooperation of the big families the most, and which would cause internal conflicts if not handled with care , was directly handed over by Bai Tu to Lu Kang as a way to ease the new tax system and the new household system.
The deputy of the Ministry of Revenue at that time was Yu Fan...
It was also from that time that Lu Kang and other families understood that Yu Fan, for unknown reasons, had jumped from the nest of the Jiangdong gentry to Bai Tu's side - after all, it was easy to imagine that the Ministry of Revenue, as the key to the new policy, had Lu Kang as the chief officer, and the deputy would definitely be Bai Tu's confidant.
to date……
Including Lu Kang and many members of the Yu family, they still don't understand why Yu Fan became Bai Tu's confidant "for no reason".
Under the circumstances at that time, the differences in interests between Bai Tu and the Jiangdong clans were much more acute than they are now. After all, at that time they had to be "skinned and bloodied" for the primitive accumulation of funds for the General's Mansion.
And you have to know that Yu Fan was the "King of Dissent" in Jiangdong before Ni Heng...
Of course, Yu Fan’s attacks are often just unreasonable, rather than pure argument.
Therefore, Yu Fan’s popularity among the major Jiangdong families can only be said to be average, but... no one has ever seen Yu Fan argue with Bai Tu!
Even if he had any opinions, as long as there were outsiders present, Yu Fan would just look sad and remain silent, and would later go to Bai Tu alone to give advice.
At that time, Yu Fan's "abnormality" was also one of the focuses of discussion among many children of Jiangdong aristocratic families, and many elderly people in the Yu family also had complaints about Yu Fan.
But now...
The Jiangdong clans had long been strong supporters of the new policy, and Yu Fan had become the person with the final say within the Yu clan, not just an outstanding junior.
Lu Kang had already resigned from his post in the Ministry of Revenue, and Yu Fan was also promoted to the position at that time.
The achievements of the Ministry of Revenue are now obvious to all, even though the major families are reluctant to acknowledge these achievements...
The Ministry of Revenue has four government offices: the Commerce Department, the Finance Department, the Taxation Department, and the Household Registration Department.
Needless to say, the first one is the one who is hated by the envoys of other princes, and those who negotiate official transaction prices externally and regulate commercial behavior internally are all from this place.
As for the Finance Department...they are the ones who curse other officials behind their backs the most, but are also the ones who are flattered the most by other officials in public - they are responsible for reviewing and approving the funding for various departments.
These two departments do not show Yu Fan's ability. After all, the Commerce Department can get a high price, which actually relies more on the craftsmanship of the Ministry of Industry and the quality of the Ministry of Civil Affairs as their "confidence".
However, the tax revenue of the Taxation Department of the State of Chu almost doubled every year. Yu Fan was impartial in this regard. He even combined the income of his own workshop and would report to Bai Tu if he felt that the tax was too low.
The Household Registration Office is even more powerful...
Yu Fan even dared to say that now in the entire Chu territory, excluding the Shanyue and Wuxi barbarians, the number of unregistered households is less than two percent, which is unprecedented!
The Shanyue and Wuxi Man are historical issues that are still being gradually surveyed, and the naturalization rate is also gradually increasing. It just takes time.
The number of anonymous households in other places has never been so small, even in the most centralized and peaceful times!
It can even be said that everyone is registered and every piece of land is included in the household registration.
Of course, it was due to the policies of the Chu State, but if Yu Fan had not been so serious and even repeatedly and proactively requested joint investigations with the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the living space of the "black workshops" would not have been suppressed to such a low level, forcing all families to "spit out" their hidden households.
When it comes to Yu Fan, Bai Tu also thought about it for a while, and then asked Lu Kang: "Can Zhong Xiang really take on Mr. Lu's position?"
Although judging from the tone, this was the one Bai Tu questioned the most, but... Lu Kang understood that this was also because Bai Tu was really considering Yu Fan, and it was not just polite words like he had just said to Gu Yong.
"Although Shangshu Yu has a stubborn personality, he has his own rules of conduct, and... Your Majesty does not need to worry about his prestige among the Jiangdong nobles." Lu Kang had said it very frankly.
The current Jiangdong clans have already reaped enough dividends, and it is no longer possible for them to further expand their "proportion". The key is to maintain the current scale as much as possible. In this case, it is not impossible to find a "black face" to keep an eye on them.
"Then... Mr. Lu will have to give Zhongxiang more advice in the future. Also, if Mr. Lu has any requests or suggestions, he can tell me at any time." Bai Tu's reluctance was not fake.
"Don't worry, my king. Whether in the court or in the opposition, I will devote myself to the Chu State..."
At the same time, Lu Kang's eyes flickered slightly - he did have requests, especially those that were usually difficult to ask for. Now he could take the opportunity to submit a letter of resignation to ask for them!
