Since ancient times, although there have been countless good stories about political affairs, the cruelty of the struggle for power cannot be concealed. Even the famous ministers and saints praised by everyone are no exception. When Emperor Wen practiced Zuo, Zhou Bo was inevitably imprisoned, and the Duke of Zhou was always afraid of rumors. Even if Liu Bei and Chen Chong are as clear-minded as each other, there are actually many disagreements between the two houses in private. However, both of them have the overall situation in mind. Once trouble occurs, they often stay silent and rely on tacit understanding to deal with it.
Now that Liu Bei is dead and Chen Chong has been idle for two years due to illness, the power in the DPRK is basically held by Liu Xie, assisted by Zhuge Liang, Zhong Yao and others, which has brought about a completely new change in the DPRK situation. Firstly, after the pacification of Bashu and Hebei, the country gained four new states and thirty counties, and a large number of new scholars entered the court and swore allegiance to the new emperor; secondly, in recent years, the number of old ministers has gradually declined, such as Liu Biao and Han Sui have died of illness, and their families have Disciples of honorable nobles also entered officialdom one after another. This allowed Liu Xie to recruit a large number of talents last year, including literary talents such as Wei Xi, Lu Cui, Liu Zhen, Ma Liang, and Zhou Buyi, and military talents such as Guo Huai, Dong Yun, Lei Xu, Fu Xu, and Sima Yi. Forest.
In the past few years, although Liu Xie presided over the government and had considerable political achievements, many of his actions were made by veterans and the late emperor, and his talents could not be used, which made him feel that it was difficult to achieve his ambitions and he had nowhere to make achievements. So now that his father passed away, although Liu Xie felt sad, he could not help but feel happy about leaving the cage and returning to the mountains and forests.
After the funeral was over, Liu Xie wanted to make a big difference, but he had to gather his power first, so he made the two previous visits. Unexpectedly, he was strongly opposed by Zhong Yao, Xun You and other veterans. Especially Zhong Yao. Now that Liu Xie has ascended the throne, Zhong has naturally been named queen, and Zhong Yao's status has skyrocketed. In addition, he is an old friend of Chen Chong and a leader of the noble clan, and his reputation has become more and more popular recently. Even in the list of ministers appointed by Liu Bei to take care of life, Zhong Yao's name is second only to Chen Chong and tied with Guan Yu. Since he spoke out against it, he naturally put great pressure on Liu Xie.
In distress, Liu Xie had no choice but to turn to Chen Chong, hoping to gain his support. After talking about the cause and effect, it was already dark, but Liu Xie still felt unsatisfied, so he asked the palace servants to get food and planned to talk to Chen Chong at night.
Liu Xie's night banquet was a pot of yokan. He first filled a bowl and served it to Chen Chong with both hands. Then he slowly sat back as the chairman and filled another bowl. He sighed, smiled at Chen Chong and said, "I heard that my uncle is here." I live happily in Longshang, and I have the style of staying as a marquis, but I ended up being dragged here to listen to these things about fame and wealth, don't you feel bored!"
Chen Chong did not answer immediately. He took a sip of yokan, tasted it carefully in his mouth, and then said slowly: "It's all human nature, how can there be no boredom? Gonglin, Yuan Chang and Gongda. They are all my old friends, and I know them better than you. When they were young, they were just like you, wishing to clear up the affairs of Kyushu one day, but now they are older and more mature. "
Liu Xie obviously guessed that he would give such advice. After Chen Chong finished speaking, he immediately continued: "Uncle, I have been dormant in the palace for a long time. At this time, I am trying to rectify the country and make a big splash, so that the world will be stable and all people will enjoy peace. , How can we waste time with an old man? Taiwei often said that movement is worse than stillness, but the tree wants to be still but the wind does not stop. The country's external troubles have not been eliminated, and the internal worries are uncertain. How can we sit back and watch?"
When Chen Chong heard this, he looked at Liu Xie carefully for a moment. Seeing his sincere and firm expression, he couldn't help but ask: "In that case, Gong Lin might as well tell me, if there are no constraints from the old ministers, how will the administration be planned next?"
Liu Xie knew that this was Chen Chong's test for him, and he looked solemn for a moment. If he could not be successfully persuaded, he might not be able to accomplish anything in a short period of time in front of this uncle who had close friends all over the government and the public and was appointed by a posthumous edict. He didn't answer immediately, but followed Chen Chong's example, holding a bowl and drinking yokan, and after sorting out his thoughts in his mind, he spoke to Chen Chong.
Liu Xie's political program can be roughly divided into three points, namely, simplifying the army, moving the strong, and enforcing the law.
The first is Jian Bing. Liu Xie's previous arrangements for the five mansions were not just a whim. Now there are actually 500,000 soldiers under the command of the Five Prefectures, and as many as one million soldiers are stationed in the fields. They occupy countless acres of land, and they can also arrange their own food and money, which makes Liu Xie unable to sleep and eat well. Therefore, the previous proposal to stop the troops was just a test. Then he planned to register all the soldiers in the field as civilians, and split the soldiers from the five prefectures into sixteen divisions and place them in different places. He also took back the power of each governor to open his own government. Once there was a war, the imperial court would send generals to deal with it.
Secondly, Qianqiang, to put it bluntly, is aimed at many honorable ministers in the court. Due to the continuous war with the puppet dynasty for more than ten years, Liu Bei did not like to depose his old ministers. As a result, the country was filled with nobles and nobles, and there were as many as 200,000 feudal households. Since Liu Xie took charge of the government, he has accumulated a lot of money for the state. Although the income and expenditure are quite equal, he is deeply concerned about the people's livelihood. Therefore, it was planned to recruit all the honorary ministers to Luoyang, change the enfeoffment of the city into gold and silk, and let the court spend the money. This would enrich the capital and suppress private annexation. It can be said that it has two purposes.
Finally, there are strict laws. Although during the Yanxing period, Sili Mansion was always known for its strict laws. But at that time, the country was actually ruled by Bafu and Silifu in parallel. Bingzhou, Henan, Yanzhou and other places under Bafu were on the front line all year round, so they were inevitably diligent in military affairs and neglected to enforce the law. As for the Hebei, Bashu and other places newly included in the country, they are also dominated by Jisi, and the governance of many townships and counties is unstable. The Toda Jue Jue and other decrees originally established by Chen Chong have not yet been implemented at this time. Therefore, Liu Xie also plans to start from here and strictly implement Chen Chong's new law. He has made up his mind to implement the policy for two years. Anyone who fails to implement it will be demoted.
When Liu Xie finished speaking, he carefully looked at Chen Chong's expression, but found that his uncle was smiling but not smiling, and did not express his position immediately. This made him a little disappointed, but he still said: "The country is at a time when everything is in ruins, and it is time to use thunderbolt means. Uncle, give me ten years, and I will succeed in governing the world to tell the Third Ancestor!"
At this point, Chen Chong also knew that he should not remain silent. He said: "Gong Lin, I said that governing a big country is like cooking small dishes. Do you know why? Because the affairs of the country are often affected by one hair, and the whole body will be affected. Once If it is not handled properly, you will have to spend ten times and a hundred times your efforts to make amends. Although your idea is good, it involves too many things. If chaos happens in the future, are you confident that it will be settled?"
Liu Xie thought that Chen Chong did not support him either, and felt unhappy in his heart. However, he did not want to end it there. He could only hold back his anger and said: "The sage has a saying: to convince people with virtue, the world will admire them; to convince people with strength, the world will win. Resentment. Although I intend to uphold strict laws, my original intention is to be benevolent, to benefit the country at the top and the people at the bottom. If there is really chaos and the fault is mine, then I will naturally correct it myself. But if the fault is his, then it will naturally be the thief's fault. First. When uncle says this, it seems that I am ignorant."
Chen Chong couldn't help laughing when he heard this. When he saw Liu Xie lowering his head and sulking, he thought in his heart: If the right and wrong of the world's faults could be explained so simply, I wouldn't need to embarrass him. But these words really touched him, and he couldn't help but think back to his youth. Courage is certainly inseparable from wisdom, but wisdom is also inseparable from courage. Wisdom without courage is actually nothing more than philistine. After all, the world belongs to young people, and the young bird will eventually leave the shelter of the goshawk and fly alone. Moreover, Liu Xie has already begun to show his talents, and it is really time for him to make a choice.
Two years of cultivation have made Chen Chong's mentality more peaceful, but his decision-making is still extremely decisive. Xuande is already dead, and he himself has been on the line of life and death. It's time to let the young man do his own thing. If I don't let them manage independently now, if they make mistakes in the future after death, will they still be able to get up and help them?
So after he pondered for a while, he said to Liu Xie: "Since Gong Lin wants to make a name for himself, then I will be the east wind that helps Kunpeng rise so high!"
When Liu Xie heard this, he was stunned at first, and then a burst of ecstasy surged into his heart. However, the confusion in his heart made him turn around and look around. There were only two of them upstairs. This made him ask repeatedly as if he was talking in his sleep: "Is this true?"
Chen Chong stroked his beard and smiled: "You and I have been together for more than ten years. When have I ever lied to you?" But he then extended his palm and said to Liu Xie: "You have to agree with me on five things before I can rest assured. "
Liu Xie hurriedly asked: "What five things are they?"
Chen Chong looked at the emperor and said leisurely: "First, I don't indulge in women, second, I don't build palaces, third, I don't use eunuchs, fourth, I don't drink water, and fifth, I don't fight cocks and dogs." After that, he looked at Liu Xie's expression and asked: " How about, can you do it?”
When Liu Xie heard this, he thought it was a joke at first, but when he saw Chen Chong's serious face, he gradually became more serious. He sat upright and said, "Since this is what my uncle said, do I dare not obey your orders?"
Chen Chong couldn't help but smile when he saw that although he responded, his tone was not very understanding. He said with emotion: "Gong Lin, these five things are all trivial, but the more trivial they are, the harder it is to correct them and the more attention they have to pay. You just need to If you can stick to your original intention for a long time and not be trapped by the five senses, I can trust you and leave the country to you. When your father passed away, he said, do not do evil because it is small, and do not do good because it is small. The most difficult thing is You should always keep the former in mind.”
Liu Xie was silent for a long time after hearing this. Subconsciously, he poured a glass of wine to drink, but when he met Chen Chong's eyes, Liu Xie felt embarrassed and quickly put the cup down. He simply picked up the pen from the eucalyptus slip on the side, dipped it in ink a little, walked on a beam, and slowly wrote down his father's will. After staring at it for a long time, he turned back to thank Chen Chong and said: "Uncle today I will recite the teachings every day.”
Chen Chong looked outside the building at this time and found that it was already late at night. When he asked the guard downstairs, he found out that the two had been talking for two and a half hours. Time was like water. Chen Chong stood up and said goodbye to Liu Xie, who then sent Chen Chong downstairs and ordered someone to arrange a carriage to take Chen Chong back to his home. From beginning to end, neither of them mentioned how to get the old minister to delegate power.
Before leaving, Chen Chong said this again: "I shouldn't have anything to do with the employment of people, but in my opinion, some people are not useful. You should be careful and don't lose your prestige. "Liu Xie lowered his head and said nothing.
After Chen Chong left, Pan Jun and Sima Yi came to ask Liu Xie for details. They couldn't help but worry: "The Prime Minister didn't say how to deal with it. Whether this matter has not been decided yet."
Liu Xie stared at the two lines of handwriting he had written on the roof of the building, and said after a long time: "There is no need to talk about this today. My uncle is here to see if I can be a king. If he thinks I am capable, he will take action soon." ”
"Does His Majesty think he is satisfied?"
"Nine times out of ten."
As expected by Liu Xie, not long after, Chen Chong attended the Luoyang court meeting for the first time and took the initiative to request an official appointment from the imperial court.
