The autumn wind is rustling, and in a while it will be a good day for the autumn harvest. Farming has been busy for most of the year, and the people are looking forward to a good year. In the Guanzhong Plain, large tracts of wheat fields are swaying with the autumn wind, and it looks like another A good year for a good harvest.
On the seventh day of September in the Renyin year, a large-scale civil uprising occurred in Dong County and affected several counties. The magistrates of Ming County, Hao County and two counties were killed by the mob. The county governor Li Shang urgently sent troops to quell the rebellion...
In the early morning, Huo Zheng and his ministers hurried to Bushou Palace to discuss state affairs with His Majesty.
In the Zhangtai Palace, Mu Sheng carefully read the memorial from Dongjun, with a solemn expression on his face. He expected that with the change of ministers in the Jin Dynasty, a new king succeeded to the throne, and he lacked prestige, all the places in the original Kanto region Someone should come out to cause trouble, but I didn't expect it to be so big. Even during the reign of the late emperor, there were incidents in Yuejun. It was mainly caused by people in the country colluding with foreigners. There had never been a large-scale civil war in the country. Change this thing.
Yang Jin stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, all the ministers are already waiting for the court meeting at Sihai Palace."
Mu Sheng said: "Yes, I understand."
This matter was nothing, and a son Chou Yinmao must be discussed at the court meeting, so Mu Sheng moved to Jianzhang Palace, where all the people from all over the world gathered in one palace to listen to the government.
When all the ministers saw the emperor arriving, they bowed and saluted.
Before the emperor could speak, Prime Minister Zuo Huo Zheng stepped forward and spoke: "Your Majesty, has your Majesty read the memorial from Dongjun this morning?"
Mu Sheng nodded and said: "I have already seen it, Huo Xiangguo, look at what happened in Dongjun now. How should we deal with the aftermath?"
Huo Zheng looked calm and said: "Your Majesty, I believe in the ability of County Governor Li Shang. They are just a group of lawless mobs. They can be suppressed very quickly. It is expected that in a few days, good news about the successful suppression of the rebellion will arrive in the capital." .”
Mu Sheng nodded and said: "Okay, I am relieved with the words of the Prime Minister, but I want to know what is the reason behind this rebellion?"
Huo Zheng said: "Your Majesty, I think that the old land of Guandong is still unable to adapt to the troubles caused by the laws of our court. I propose that in order to frighten the old land of Guandong, our court should revise more stringent laws and promulgate them throughout the country to deter the ugly people." .”
Huo Zheng's confidant Wei Wei Gao Zhong was the first to jump out and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that all the prefectures and counties in the Guan area have already surrendered to the king, and the laws should not be changed lightly. During the reign of the late emperor, he wiped out all the countries in the east of the Guan Dynasty and implemented the laws of this dynasty. This led to the old land of Kanto being in chaos every year. In order to stabilize the situation, it could only be implemented slowly. Later, a new set of laws was formulated specifically for the old land of Kanto. Compared with the old law, the new law was actually much more lenient. Today, the old land of Kanto is still causing chaos. I think it is because the new law is too lenient. I also think that if the law is not strict, it will not be enough to deter the country. Now that our dynasty has been under the rule for twenty-five years, it is time to abolish the law that was revised for the old territory of Guandong and govern the country strictly. The right path.”
Huo Zheng's younger brother, the doctor ordered Huo Jun to come forward and said: "I second the suggestion that the Prime Minister is mature and prudent. This is a good strategy to solve the old land of Guandong once and for all. In emergencies, the country should be governed with heavy laws."
Huo Zheng's younger brother, Lieutenant Huo Qi, the commander-in-chief of the Lieutenant Army, had always been taciturn. He just watched the court proceedings quietly without expressing his position.
After Huo Jun finished speaking, all the officials promoted by Huo Zheng came forward to second the proposal and agreed to amend the decree. More than half of the courtiers supported the abolition of the decree. This shows that Huo Zheng has almost completely controlled the government and made Mu Sheng deeply afraid. There is really nothing he can do. Huo Banchao's name is indeed worthy of his name.
At this time, Sima Qin, one of the nine ministers, stepped forward and objected: "Your Majesty, I do not think that now is the best time to amend the law. Even if it is to amend the law, we will have to wait until the rebellion in Dongjun is over. We will discuss amending the law." Regarding the matter, the top priority is that the imperial court needs to issue an explicit decree to appease the people of Dongjun as soon as possible and not to get involved with the rebels to avoid worsening the situation."
Fengchang Zhang Xi stepped forward and said: "I second my opinion. Lord Sima is right. The laws and regulations for the counties in Guandong should not be too strict. There may be another hidden reason behind the incident in Dongjun. Perhaps there are some reactionary forces behind the scenes to instigate the people to rebel. The imperial court acted accordingly." We must attach equal importance to suppression and appeasement, and we must not add fuel to the fire at this critical moment."
Tian Jian, the governor of Su Nei, also stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I agree with the words of Lord Zhang and Lord Sima. I am not from Jin, but from Anyang County, the old land of Guandong. I was a genuine Lu person during the time of strife among the nations. In the past, I The Tian family has successively served as the minister of the state of Lu, and my father Tian Ao once served as the prime minister of the state of Lu, so my words are of some reference value."
"My lords, the customs and customs in the old land of Guandong are very different from those in Guanzhong. At that time, the Jin army was like a thunderous force and it took just ten years to pacify the kingdoms of Guandong. However, the time of unification was too fast and the country expanded too rapidly. Such a vast territory has never been achieved before. If there is no successor, it will be difficult to govern.”
"Furthermore, the Guandong countries were founded for hundreds of years, and for nearly a thousand years, they were almost as old as the Yu Dynasty. The old laws of various countries have fully adapted to the local customs. Lord Weiwei Gao was right just now. The late emperor During his reign, the Jin law was forcibly introduced, but the effect was not satisfactory. Finally, a new set of laws was specially formulated to adapt to the old land of Guandong, and the situation was finally stabilized. The late emperor was far-sighted and I deeply admired him."
"Now we actually need to amend the law, and even have to govern the country strictly. It is really not a good policy. If we really do this, the people in the old Guandong area will be afraid that the people will not support them. Then it will not only be the Dongjun that will cause trouble. I think that the law is a policy that will harm the country. Never school”
As soon as these words came out, all the officials in the imperial court looked at each other. Zhang Xi and Sima Tan were a little wary of their objections. Tian Jian did not give the current Prime Minister Huo Zheng any face when he came up today. He used the old emperor's old rules to suppress the law-repairing faction. The last few words of the person are that practicing law is a strategy that will harm the country. They are very loud and clear. They basically slapped the left Prime Minister Huo Zheng in public. Now that Huo Prime Minister has the power and dares to do this, this official should not be allowed to do it. Basically, he will be dismissed soon. The consequences of being squeezed out of the imperial court.
Sure enough, Huo Zheng's expression changed slightly, but it was nothing. Fortunately, his subordinates stepped forward to protect the boss.
Zou Dan, the Shaofu, stepped forward and said: "Master Tian's statement is ridiculous. If the late emperor's new law was effective, why is there still a civil uprising in Dongjun now? Since the reform of King Wu in Jin Dynasty, we have not followed the past or the present, and things have changed. , the old rules cannot be followed. If our country of Jin still followed the old ways and followed the etiquette system, how could we achieve the great achievements of the Jin Dynasty under its unification? I agree with the Prime Minister's theory of practicing law, and please give your Majesty's sanction."
Before the emperor could express his position, several officials jumped out to make comments.
A skinny old man came forward and said: "Your Majesty, I have a message from Dr. Bao You, which can help us decide the future strategy of the Jin Dynasty. Our dynasty has seventy-two counties. The territory is so vast, and the secular languages are everywhere. The difference is huge. I think that our Jin Dynasty should follow the policy of the previous dynasty in enfeoffing the country. Each of the clan members will lead a country to defend the central government. They will be ministers and nobles for thousands of generations. The Yu Dynasty has been passed down for more than 1,400 years. The pearls and jade are in In the future, I will follow the ancient system."
As soon as Bao You said this, he really attracted the criticism from Huo Xiang's faction. In this era, there are still people who cling to the enfeoffment system and refuse to let go?
The doctor's order, Huo Jun, immediately stepped forward and said mockingly: "Well done, Dr. Bao. Since the enfeoffment system is so good, how did the previous dynasty perish? The princes from all over the country were not restrained by their sons and relied on their own troops. Did Dr. Bao ever remember the previous dynasty? During the reign of King Yu Ling of Chao Dynasty, he only wanted to re-establish the crown prince, which triggered a rebellion among the three princes. The war continued for more than ten years. The noble prince was actually forced to die by his ministers and hanged himself in the inner court. King Ling died, and the three princes fought for power, triggering military chaos and destroying the prosperous city. The temporary royal capital, Fengjing, was looted and burned to the ground. Is this the result you want to see? Dr. Bao manages the history collection of our dynasty. He should know what happened back then better than I do. Dr. Bao is the real one who brings up the enfeoffment now. He who harbors evil intentions and makes policies that harm the country and the people should be killed."
The skinny old man Bao You's lips trembled and he pointed at Huo Jun and said: "You...you...those three princes are intimidating, the following are guilty, the rebellious ministers and thieves are worse than pigs and dogs, and they will be infamy for thousands of years. Not all the princes were like the three in those days." The princes were so shameless and shameless, and the three princes were in chaos. Our ancestor Huan Gong of Jin was on the throne. Didn't he call on the princes to raise troops to kill the three princes, and supported King Xiaocheng to successfully succeed to the throne and be granted the title of Duke. If there was no such loyalty as Duke Huan, Gentleman, I don’t even know what kind of chaos this is going to be like..." After saying that, Bao You coughed violently several times, obviously making the old man angry.
Several doctoral officers who were good friends with Bao You also came forward to debate fiercely with Huo Jun and others. In fact, when the Communist Party of China was just unified, conservatives like Dr. Bao argued with the left prime minister Huo Zheng and the former right prime minister Cui Yan. This matter has been debated, and of course the late emperor would not listen to these conservatives.
Of course, after the Jin Dynasty's reform, officials from the reform faction have always been in power, that is, the Legalists have been in power. In fact, there was no Legalist in this era, and the reformists did not call themselves Legalists. The name Legalist was used by later scholars to refer to This group of people who have led the reform since the Warring States Period was given a special name.
These old conservative academics are very much like the Confucians of later generations. Naturally, they cannot shake the Legalist establishment. After all, this is a normal phenomenon in the period of great social transformation. Both old and new ideas and management systems have their own supporters, just like later generations. Changes in Zhou and Qin.
After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, the dual system of prefectures, counties and feudal states was implemented, which was also the result of the ideological struggle and compromise between the two groups. In the end, the parallel system of prefectures and states led to the chaos of the Seven Kingdoms. Emperor Wu of the Western Jin Dynasty, Sima Yanxing, enfeoffed the country and created the Rebellion of the Eight Kings, which led to the collapse of China. Being reduced to a barbarian pasture, such a painful historical lesson, later emperors never wavered again. So far, the system of prefectures and counties has replaced the feudal system, and Qin politics and laws have been implemented for a hundred generations. Now the Jin Dynasty in this other world is obviously at the same critical turning point in history. above, playing the role of the Qin Dynasty back then.
As a time traveler, Mu Sheng certainly knew the stakes. He just listened to what Dr. Bao said for fun and didn't take it seriously at all. Enfeoffment would be reversing the course of history. History has repeatedly proven that if a country wants to be strong, it must go to the center. Centralization of power is the right path, concentrating efforts to do big things.
For example, the reason why the European powers in later generations came to the fore was not only through the scientific revolution, but also through political and economic reforms and overseas colonial plunder, which finally enabled the royal families of various countries to strengthen their royal power, strengthened the authority of the central government to a certain extent, and fully released the country's potential. Take your place in the world and become a great power. If the country is still fragmented, with each locality blowing its own trumpet, and local princes defying the central government, then it will end up like the Taisha Dynasty in southern Xinjiang. It is an expert in civil war and an outsider in external war. It has strong national power but even a second-rate country like the Xi tribe will end up. Can't beat it.
Seeing the quarrel among the ministers in the hall, Prime Minister Zuo Huo Zheng was also annoyed. He coughed and said: "My lords, please be quiet and roar in the hall. How unbecoming is it?"
Huo Zheng turned to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, I propose that the court meeting be suspended today."
Hearing this, Mu Sheng said: "Okay, then let's retreat from the court. We will discuss it again when the memorial from Dongjun arrives."
Yang Jin said loudly: "Your Majesty has an edict. The court discussion is suspended and we must withdraw from the court."
After hearing this, the ministers left the hall one after another.
