As the saying goes, before fighting against the outside world, one must first settle within.
When Li Shimin made up his mind to have a confrontation with the Turks, he naturally had to launch a drastic round of internal reforms first!
The first thing to do is to change the law!
Four important officials, Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Wei Zheng, and Dai Zhou, worked non-stop at their desks for two months. Finally, they cut out the complicated "Wude Code" and simplified it, and launched the "Zhenguan Code"! Spread around the world!
From the day it was promulgated, Datang has entered a new era, and the social environment will become more harmonious!
At the same time, after extensively listening to opinions from all walks of life, the "Zhenguan Law" also added a lot of articles, including the "Entry and Exit Law", which specifically regulates people entering and leaving the country, and adds additional provisions for goods entering and leaving the country. Tariffs range from 10% to 60% for different types of goods.
When this law was promulgated, many big shots in the DPRK breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, the business can still be done... It's just that the dividends originally distributed to the generals were given to the court.
This is actually a good thing. After all, we are aboveboard, and we no longer need to do business secretly.
Oh yes, there is an interlude in the middle.
The emperor calmly dispatched several imperial envoys to investigate and prosecute several generals who had been arrogant at the border for many years. Their homes were confiscated for several serious crimes such as corruption, abuse of power, and embezzlement.
I can only say that everyone who understands the taste of it understands it.
At the same time, the imperial court's large-scale layoffs were also in full swing. Officials from various places and officials in Beijing successively entered Chang'an for assessment within three months, and the fittest were eliminated.
This workload almost overwhelmed Changsun Wuji, so Li Shimin could only send Fang Xuanling to take over.
In the end, the results were great.
The bloated imperial court was eventually reduced to 647 people.
The local officials also underwent a major change of blood, so that the manpower to govern the world was somewhat insufficient.
cut!
Chop, chop, chop!
It doesn’t matter what happens to you in the north, south, east, or west, just finish cutting first!
When Li Shimin sat in the East Palace and saw the briefing in front of him, his mood was complicated.
"Auxiliary machine, Xuanling."
He looked at the two close confidants in front of him who had lost a lot of weight, and praised,
"This...it is good to streamline personnel, and it is also good to select the best."
"For example, in the imperial court, you reduced the inner court of more than 3,000 people to more than 600 people. This is a very good thing!"
"I'm afraid no court in the past dynasties has been so clean and tidy. With fewer people, the efficiency is even higher! It's unprecedented and unprecedented. It's excellent!"
The two ministers had dark circles under their eyes, but did not show any expressions of joy.
Because listening to the meaning of the emperor's words, it seems that there is still a turning point.
"But..."
Sure enough, the turning point came.
Just listen to Li Shimin helplessly say,
"You can't be too rough on the local area."
"Some officials are indeed not very good, their abilities are mediocre, and they don't seek to make progress. But it's not like they can't be used!"
"Abolish them all at once. If there are no local officials to match and no one to govern, there will be trouble."
"Compared with the governance of rural landlords and gentry, it is better to be governed by officials appointed by the imperial court. Even if it is mediocre, this governance power cannot be left vacant and given away!"
He paused for a moment and said to Xu Fenglei, who was drinking tea at the side:
"Listen clearly, are you right?"
Xu Fenglei smiled.
"Since His Majesty has chosen drastic reforms and completely abandons the old things, this period of pain is inevitable."
He said softly,
"Now that you've done it, let's do it to the end! If you ignore this and open your mouth, many people will take advantage of this loophole, and ultimately the effectiveness of the reform will be greatly reduced."
"I think it was out of this consideration that you two gritted your teeth and fought hard to the end."
When the two heard this, they both nodded in agreement.
"What the Grand Master said is absolutely true."
Fang Xuanling cupped his hands and said,
"In fact, I have repeatedly relaxed the standards, but most local officials still cannot meet it, and far from it!"
"To describe them as a corpse-like meal is an understatement. The important minister said that they are simply full of fat and useless!"
"If such officials continue to be used, the Zhenguan Dynasty will not be well!"
Changsun Wuji also echoed:
"Yes, Your Majesty! It's not that we are too harsh, it's that they are too unbearable!"
"this……"
Li Shimin sighed.
"In the final analysis, it's all the mess left by the Wude Dynasty. If you push it further, it's all the mess left by the Sui Dynasty. My father has not recruited much talent over the years, so he just muddles along."
He sighed,
"Now, it's up to me to take care of it."
"This is really...such a great Tang Dynasty. It seems to be strong, but if I hadn't supported it with you, would it have been able to survive?"
This is really not something Li Er is boasting about.
If it weren't for him, an emperor who was full of civil and military skills, working hard to govern, coupled with the help of such top civil and military ministers.
Right now, the Tang Dynasty will probably be short-lived!
"well!"
Li Shimin held the briefing in his hand, raised his forehead and said,
"The most urgent task now is to select a group of good officials to fill the official vacancies in various places."
"My dear friends, do you have any good ideas?"
His eyes swept towards the three people in front of him.
These three are all his top think tanks, and there is no problem that they cannot solve!
"Return to Your Majesty."
Changsun Wuji was the first to speak,
"Is it possible to select a group of young talents from nobles and noble families?"
"Clan, honorary clan, and aristocratic families now all have young people studying at home to cultivate themselves. How knowledgeable are they? Young people are energetic, fighting spirit, and energetic."
"By sending them to local governments to practice and practice, we can also test their quality and select a few talents who can be put to great use for the country in the future."
Li Shimin nodded.
"Can."
He responded,
"This is indeed an idea. Put the clan and clan first, and the aristocratic family second. Let them select a few talents who can be used. I will send people to evaluate them before they can become officials."
"Including you, anyone who thinks there are talents in the family can recommend them. Don't avoid relatives when promoting talents."
In Li Er's heart, the nobles are the closest to him, followed by the clan.
However, aristocratic families, such as the Five Surnames and Qi Wangs, should be more cautious and even wary of them.
Speaking of which, these guys all supported Li Jiancheng at the beginning, haha.
"yes."
Changsun Wuji responded,
"I must think carefully after I return home and contribute some talents to His Majesty."
This is a good opportunity to expand the strength of the family!
Must be grasped.
"Yes." Li Shimin looked at Fang Xuanling and said with a smile, "Xuanling, if you have any opinions, let me know."
Seeing him stroking his beard and calming down, you knew he had an idea.
"Replying to your Majesty, I believe that I should urge the ministers in the court to promote virtuous people."
Fang Xuanling stroked his beard and said,
"Ministers not only need to do their jobs well, but also have the responsibility to discover talents for the country."
"If Your Majesty does not urge it, everyone will not take it seriously; but if Your Majesty urges it, or even rewards and punishes it, I think the officials will rush to discover the outstanding talents in the field."
"Ignore everything else, let them recommend the talents. As for whether they are worthy or unworthy, it is up to His Majesty to decide."
Li Shimin's eyes lit up.
Snapped!
"What a great idea! Haha..."
He clapped his hands and praised,
"It is said that in a land of ten steps, there must be fragrant grass; in a city of ten houses, there must be loyal men."
"There must be some wise men out there, but I didn't bother to mobilize everyone to find them."
"Xuan Ling's idea is good, I can make a note of it."
After the words fell, the three of them all turned their attention to Xu Fenglei.
"Master?"
Li Shimin said with a half-smile,
"it's your turn."
"With your intelligence, you should already have an idea, right?"
Xu Fenglei coughed dryly and slowly put down the tea cup.
"Uh... I have an immature idea."
He responded,
"I believe that selecting talents should not be a matter of hammers and mallets. Selecting a group from nobles and mobilizing ministers to select a group can indeed alleviate the temporary shortage."
"But what about the future?"
"The number of nobles in the clan is limited, and the circle of friends of the courtiers is also limited. This method will be exhausted after less than three uses."
"So I say, this is all about treating the symptoms, not the root cause."
Li Shimin raised his eyebrows and touched his chin.
Fang Xuanling and Changsun Wuji also gently stroked their beards and nodded, listening attentively.
"Then can you tell me how to cure the root cause?" Li Er raised his hand and asked with interest.
"The fundamental solution is to establish a system for selecting talents!"
Xu Fenglei said in a deep voice,
"Use this system to continuously select reliable and available talents from the broad masses of the people!"
"Your Majesty has just said that in a city with ten houses, there must be loyal men. So there are hundreds of millions of people in the world, how many loyal men and talents should there be? I'm afraid they will be like crucian carps crossing the river, and they will be countless!"
"If the selection system is compared to a fishing net, talents are an endless stream of fish. You only need to cast the net at the right time to catch a net of talents!"
"In this case, Your Majesty, are you still worried that no one will be available?"
Li Shimin opened his eyes slightly, and his heart was already filled with waves!
"Okay, okay..."
"What a great idea! Your idea is great!"
He murmured, and a picture appeared in his mind——
A fisherman cast a big net into the river and fished it out in an instant. The net was full of dancing fish, packed into a big ball!
The fisherman laughed excitedly, and when he looked back, it was himself!
"What the Grand Master said is somewhat similar to the imperial examination system created by Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty!"
Fang Xuanling said in shock,
"right!"
Xu Fenglei said firmly,
"It is true that the imperial examination was established, but the imperial examination established by Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty and practiced by Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was too one-sided and the threshold was still very high."
"In the Sui Dynasty, those who could participate in the imperial examination were all children of wealthy families. In the end, they were from poor and poor families, and there were not even a single commoner in Guizhou."
"I believe that there should be no threshold for the imperial examination. Anyone who has read a book is eligible to take the exam! As long as the article is decent and the thoughts are clear, you can become an official!"
Li Shimin nodded.
"Yep."
He agreed,
"I want talents from all over the world, not just from aristocratic families."
"I believe in one thing, there are experts among the people."
"There should be no threshold for this imperial examination. It doesn't matter whether you are a prince, aristocrat, or a villager. There is nothing else to do here, just a test paper to determine your level. As long as you are talented, a villager can be above the aristocrats!" "
"This is great, I like it!"
How to get rid of the huge political influence of powerful families and consolidate imperial power has been a problem that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty has been thinking about since the beginning.
Li Shimin has always been Yang Guang's villain, but there is one thing Yang Guang will never do, and that is attacking the powerful!
This is what he wants to do!
The word "imperial examination" seems to be a sharp knife, a knife given to the heart of a wealthy family!
"The idea is good, but..."
Changsun Wuji muttered,
"How many books can a country man read? How many books can a child from an aristocratic family read?"
"The two...are not the same! If we really want to compare them in the same examination room, I think...ordinary farmers' children will probably be crushed. There should be very few who can stand out."
Xu Fenglei nodded.
"Yes, that's undeniable."
He responded,
"But this at least gives poor scholars all over the world a hope and a way to rise."
"As long as you study hard, you can get ahead!"
"Perhaps in the first few imperial examinations, children from aristocratic families can gain an advantage by relying on their profound family knowledge, but don't forget, how many people are there in aristocratic families? How many poor scholars are there in the world?"
"Where is the base! In the future, there may be 20 children from rich families and 100 poor scholars standing in the same examination room."
"Even if all the children from wealthy families pass the exam, only 20% of the poor scholars pass the exam, and 80% of them are eliminated! The number of people from both of them who become officials is the same!"
Changsun Wuji fell into silence.
A bad feeling suddenly arose in his heart.
This imperial examination system seems to be very friendly to the poor people, but it is somewhat disadvantageous to the noble families.
Although this gave poor scholars a chance to become officials, it actually cut off the official career of nobles from aristocratic families, because originally they could become officials through recommendation without taking exams!
For example, his son Changsun Chong, relying on his kindness, should have no problem becoming a feudal official Dangdang.
But now that I have to take the exam... I might be eliminated!
If the eldest grandson Chong loses the election, he will have to live by inheriting the title. However, the title will be reduced one level every generation. After four or five generations, if the eldest grandson's family does not produce a genius, then the entire family will be marginalized and no one will be left!
God, what a knife!
Li Shimin and Changsun Wuji obviously had different feelings about this knife.
One is the person holding the knife, and the other is the person being stabbed.
"well said!"
Li Shimin clapped his hands and said,
"Listening to your analysis, this imperial examination system is indeed a good thing! It is a good system that can truly last for a long time and steadily select talents for the Tang Dynasty!"
"The Tang Dynasty needs imperial examinations!"
"Listen up, your suggestion is very good. Let you handle the first imperial examination of the Tang Dynasty! How about you being the examiner?"
Xu Fenglei: "???"
"Ah this..."
He was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly waved his hands and refused,
"Your Majesty, I just came up with an idea. As you know, I've always been more clever than practical, so please spare me..."
What a joke!
He doesn't want to be exhausted! Drinking tea every day to discipline children, doesn’t it sound good to them?
Look at these two big guys with dark circles under their eyes and sloppy steps...
He doesn't want it to be like this!
(End of chapter)
