Liu Hong frowned when he heard the name.
"He Jin..."
Liu Hong frowned: "Although he served as Henan Yin and had certain merits, he has never led an army to fight in a war. Can he do it?"
Zhang Rang nodded.
"In the operation to capture the Taiping Dao thieves, He Jin led others to assist and made great contributions. Therefore, I believe that He Jin has a good military strategy. To deal with Taiping Dao matters, the princes of the court will naturally lead the troops, but the overall situation is taken charge of. , it could be He Jin.”
"I'm just catching bandits, this..."
"Your Majesty, I think He Jin is the most suitable candidate."
Zhang Rang interrupted Liu Hong's questioning and said: "Firstly, He Jin was born as a butcher in Nanyang. He came from a humble background and did not have a great reputation. Without His Majesty's support, it would be difficult for him to serve as a general for a long time and he would not be able to convince the public. , so he will definitely obey His Majesty’s orders.
Secondly, He Jin is the elder brother of the Queen, so his loyalty is certain, and to put it bluntly, He Jin is one of our own no matter how much he says, it is better than handing over such important authority to an outsider, who after all is not of the same mind as Your Majesty.
Thirdly, He Jin came from a humble background. Scholars generally looked down on He Jin's background and did not interact with him. He was a solitary minister, and solitary ministers are best used to do great things. No matter whether they are promoted or dismissed, nothing will happen. People speak to him without interruption. "
Zhang Rang gave three reasons that sounded meaningful but actually missed the point at all.
Liu Hong thought about it carefully and seemed to think that what Zhang Rang said made sense, so he was really thinking about this issue.
In Liu Bei's view, these high-sounding reasons for Zhang Rang's recommendation of He Jin were not the main reason for Liu Hong's consideration. The main reason was that the reason why the He family is what it is today is because the He family followed the path of eunuchs. .
As far as Liu Bei knew, He was born as a butcher in Nanyang, and his background was definitely not noble. Of course, this did not mean that He Jin killed pigs and sheep with a knife.
He Jin was also a well-educated man.
The ancestors of the He family indeed started out as butchers, killing pigs and sheep by hand. He was a rough guy, but very smart, and he was good at running businesses. In short, he made a fortune from this family business and accumulated a large amount of wealth. .
By He Jin's generation, children no longer need to kill pigs and sheep by themselves, they can even study and study. After studying and studying, they will naturally have higher-level pursuits in terms of status.
So the He family began to seek a way to transform.
Simply being a butcher will definitely be looked down upon, no matter how rich you are, the He family also wants to improve the family's social status, but the road of being a scholar is impossible.
Liu Bei's path was filled with too much uncertainty and contingency, and there was a lot of luck involved. He Jin obviously didn't have that good luck.
It was the second period of the Party Rebellion, when the eunuchs were oppressive and the scholars were silent. When the He family saw the situation, they followed the eunuch's path and paid the eunuchs to bribe them and send their outstanding and beautiful daughters to the court.
This is not the end, this is a beginning. If you want to stand out from the numerous palaces and enter Liu Hong's eyes, you obviously need excellent skills.
The supply of family money and one's own quality are indispensable.
After Queen He entered the palace today, the He family continued to spend money on eunuchs. They spent a lot of money to hire eunuchs to help with operations, allowing Queen He to have more opportunities to get along with Liu Hong. Queen He's own qualities were also very strong. The appearance, figure and skills are all top-notch.
So, relying on the eunuch's recommendation and her excellent qualities, Queen He fell into Liu Hong's eyes.
When Liu Hong's predecessor, Queen Song, was still there, Queen He relied on her excellent skills and the assistance of the eunuchs to become Beauty He, and was favored by Liu Hong.
Later, Empress Song was implicated in the political struggle between the Changshi Wang Fu and the Bohai King Liu Kui. She was framed by the eunuchs and was deposed. He Mei's luck increased, and the eunuchs pushed her along, and she eventually became the current Empress He.
He Jin and his younger brother He Miao also jumped to the top, and their chickens and dogs ascended to heaven, becoming the new relatives of the Han Dynasty.
Unlike the previous arrogant, domineering and authoritarian relatives of the Deng family and the Dou family, the He family's relatives did not have a noble background.
The Deng family's relatives and the Dou family's relatives were both well-established and powerful families. They had their own political and economic foundations. Their relatives were the icing on the cake, making them stronger. They could stand in a tripartite position with the eunuchs and scholars to achieve the delicate balance of the Eastern Han Dynasty for hundreds of years.
But He's relatives could not do this. He's relatives had no political base and were essentially nouveau riche. They relied on the support of eunuchs to rise to power. Before that, they had no political way out.
Therefore, the He family is essentially part of the eunuch group. Even if they ascend to a high position and become relatives, they are not qualified to stand in a tripartite relationship with eunuchs and scholars.
And after discussing with Liu Bei, Zhang Rang suddenly felt that the eunuch group was not strong enough at present, and the main reason why it was not strong enough was that it had no military power.
As eunuchs, they have no decent achievements and it is difficult for them to control the army in an honest and aboveboard way, so supporting an agent to help them control the military is the best choice.
This agent should be easy to control and easy to handle.
Now it seems that He Jin is indeed an easy-to-control target, which is why Zhang Rang is so confident in recommending He Jin to any military officer in the Han Empire.
And for Liu Hong, He Jin was indeed a good candidate for military chief.
First of all, it is impossible for him to let someone from the Ancient Literature School or Modern Literature School serve as military commander. That would not be in line with the court balancing technique that he had just realized.
Secondly, Huangfu Song is not a good choice. He has no outstanding military achievements and is from Liangzhou. At present, the Luoyang court is all masters of regional artillery. One shot will automatically eliminate them.
Zhu Jun is a good candidate. He is from Jiangdong. Geographically, he cannot get along with the scholars of the Central Plains. However, as a social expert who can stay away from the disputes between modern and ancient literature and maintain a certain degree of friendship with scholars on both sides, Zhu Jun He is destined not to be very obedient, and it is not in Liu Hong's interest to make him a military commander.
None of them can be a general.
So after comprehensive consideration, He Jin is really the only person who can meet the interests of the emperor and the eunuch group at the same time. His status barely meets the requirements, and there will not be much twists and turns.
At least that's what it seems for now.
Liu Hong had an idea in his mind and asked Liu Bei.
"Xuande, do you think He Jin is a suitable candidate?"
Of course Liu Bei would not go against the grain at this time. Zhang Rang's eyes almost popped out of his sockets. If he had gone against the grain, Zhang Rang would probably tear him alive.
However, Zhang Rang never imagined that He Jin, who originally belonged to the eunuch group, would betray him, and would become a knife in the hands of others, completely kicking off the decline of the central authority of the Eastern Han Empire.
A fool, a fool who doesn't understand the source of his power and his political base, and giving him a high position that is not in line with his abilities can only lead to disaster.
But the funny thing is that at this moment, the Eastern Han Dynasty court can no longer find more candidates who can meet the needs of both the emperor and the eunuchs.
Fortunately, with He Jin, a fool, to muddy the waters, future surgeries will be easier.
"Your Majesty, He Jin is the elder brother of the Queen. Your Majesty's relatives will definitely be loyal to Your Majesty. For Your Majesty, He Jin is the best candidate."
Liu Bei didn't mean what he said, and what he said was true. For Liu Hong, He Jin was really the most suitable candidate for him.
Even Liu Bei said that, and Liu Hong made up his mind and had a countermeasure.
"So, I have a countermeasure, and I know what to do next, but...Xuande, your teacher is going to battle this time, will you join him?"
Liu Bei thought for a while.
"My mentor goes into battle, and as a disciple, I must follow him no matter what, guard his left and right sides, and protect his safety."
(End of chapter)
