"Guan family, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wants to see you!"
"Xuan!" Emperor Liu ordered while wiping his feet, and asked Concubine Gao to sit next to him.
Soon, figures outside the house flickered. Liu Yang did not come alone. There was another person following him, a young man with a clean face, short beard, and good manners. Zhang Qixian from Hengshui County.
After entering, under the watchful eye of Emperor Liu, the two paid homage, and Zhang Qixian even performed the salute.
"No gifts! Give me a seat!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Emperor Liu looked easy-going, still wiping his feet slowly, looked at Liu Yang, and said, "What's the matter?"
After being tempered on the battlefield in Liaodong, Liu Yang seemed much more confident, and he became more and more like a general. He calmly smiled and said: "It's still early, so I came here to say hello!"
"You are interested!" Emperor Liu threw away the footsteps and his eyes fell on Zhang Qixian who was standing aside: "Who is this? He looks familiar."
Although he was a Jinshi Tanhua appointed by the imperial palace, after so many years, Emperor Liu really only had some vague impressions of Zhang Qixian and could not recognize him for a while.
"Zhang Qixian, Minister of Hengshui County, bows to Your Majesty!" Zhang Qixian is indeed a very proactive person. After hearing this, he immediately stood up and bowed to His Majesty.
"Zhang Qixian, I remember, you should be Jinshi in the fourth year of Kaibao!" Emperor Liu recalled with a look of surprise.
Zhang Qixian responded respectfully: "Your Majesty, that's right!"
Looking at him, Emperor Liu chuckled and said, "I still remember when the prince visited the west and stopped the emperor to paint the land and offer suggestions!"
The story of painting the land and offering suggestions has become a good story, and it will almost certainly accompany Zhang Qixian throughout his life. The improvement of his reputation is also obvious, especially as Zhang Qixian became a scholar in high school and became an official. Of course, the most important thing is to be able to enter the eyes of His Royal Highness. This is also the most important point, the most enviable point.
Zhang Qixian never boasted about this, but after so many years, it was inevitable that he felt complacent. Of course, when Emperor Liu mentioned it, he couldn't figure out the emperor's thoughts and responded cautiously: "When I was young, I was arrogant and arrogant, and acted daringly. Now that I think about it, I feel ashamed that I made Your Majesty laugh!"
"Who is young and not frivolous?" Emperor Liu smiled. Perhaps because of his love for the house and the crow, he had a good impression of Zhang Qixian: "How many people in the world can have such courage and courage to speak out in a mere white dress?"
"Your Majesty is so complimentary, I'm ashamed of myself!" Zhang Qixian was also good at observing words and expressions. Sensing Emperor Liu's joyful mood, he relaxed a little, but his behavior became more and more humble.
"If you are just bold and want to be famous, then it is not worth mentioning. What is rare is that you can study hard, pass the scientific examination, and advance through talent and learning. This is not easy!" Emperor Liu stopped smiling.
Emperor Liu spoke from the bottom of his heart. Today's Han Dynasty Jinshi is not easy to pass. Unlike Ming Jing, medicine and other minor subjects, as the Jinshi subject that points to practical official positions, it is becoming more and more difficult, and it increasingly tests practical thinking and Ability is not just about writing a policy paper or giving a high-level talk.
"Although Zhang Zhixian has been in Hengshui for a short time, he has managed the government well, the people's livelihood is stable, and he has great governance. He is well-known in the prefecture and county. Fortunately, I specially invited him to come to see the emperor and report his work to His Majesty!" Liu Yang opened his mouth and said with a smile.
Hearing this, Emperor Liu raised his eyebrows, glanced at Liu Yang, looked at Zhang Qixian, and said quietly: "I know nothing about Hengshui County. During the northern tour in early autumn, Duke Shou mentioned it to me. He said that when passing through Hengshui, among the people, you can even get a sip of Hengjiang wine!"
Hearing what Emperor Liu said, Zhang Qixian was shocked and hesitated: "Your Majesty, minister..."
"I heard that you banned folk brewing in Hengshui after the Northern Expedition? For this reason, you also raided some wineries and arrested many people?" Emperor Liu asked.
There was no emotion in Emperor Liu's voice. As for Zhang Qixian, his psychological quality was really good. After a brief moment of panic, he calmed down and said respectfully: "Hengjiao is famous in Hebei. There are many wineries in the county. In normal years, the food consumption is very large." . However, this year, the imperial court issued an edict to launch the Northern Expedition. This is an extraordinary time, so extraordinary policies should be implemented.
The imperial court launched a large-scale Northern Expedition, which resulted in a huge loss of money and food. Feeding the army was even more important. Therefore, even if it was only a county, it was necessary to reduce unnecessary consumption and use it urgently.
Gu therefore ordered a ban on alcohol to ensure the county's food rations and to feed the army! "
After hearing what he said, Emperor Liu smiled, nodded and said: "The idea is good, and I have the courage to execute it and do the work!"
As soon as these words came out, Zhang Qixian breathed a sigh of relief, and even Liu Yang relaxed a little. Listening to Emperor Liu's words just now, he thought it was Li Shaoyou who had complained to Emperor Liu.
"But!" Emperor Liu spoke, and sometimes he liked to take a breather and make a twist: "The imperial court implements a tea and wine franchise, and the national wine service has its own policies and guidelines from the Financial Secretary. Before you ordered a ban on alcohol, did you ask the Taoist government to report it? Report to the Central Committee, has it been approved by the Financial Secretary? If not, this is a violation of authority!"
"His Majesty!"
After saying this, Liu Yang's face changed slightly and he spoke immediately. However, Emperor Liu stretched out his hand to stop him and just stared at Zhang Qixian's reaction indifferently.
As for Zhang Qixian, his expression changed drastically, his face turned a bit pale, and he knelt down on the ground: "I was careless, acted inappropriately, and went too far. Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
"Excuse me!" Emperor Liu waved his hand: "Although you are only in charge of one county, you have the power of life and death, regulate yin and yang, and deal with politics. You should be more cautious and prudent. If you want to serve the imperial court loyally, It’s a good thing, but the imperial court’s rules and regulations are not just decorations and cannot be ignored!”
"Your Majesty's teachings, I will keep them in mind!" Zhang Qixian quickly expressed his stance.
Today's Han Empire has tended to be perfect in various systems, but this perfection is only relative. In fact, it is difficult to be too detailed in the governance of such a large empire. After all, this is a feudal empire governed by individuals.
Although power was centralized and the authority of the imperial court was strong, the power of local bureaucrats was still very great. The imperial court generally followed the general policy and the local governments followed the big policies. As for any other aspects, the local governments actually had sufficient interpretation and administrative power.
Taking the tea and wine affairs as an example, the state has implemented a monopoly and made it clear that the tea and wine envoys under the Financial Secretary will be in charge of the whole country, but it is not really meticulous and directly touches the local states.
Under the influence of tea and wine, almost every Daozhou has its own voice and its own interests. Salt, tea, and wine represent financial resources and interests.
Generally speaking, under the condition of ensuring annual income, the central court does not have too strict supervision over local areas, and it is difficult to do so. Therefore, it is not unusual for local officials to flexibly adjust policies.
Although this is the actual situation, if you want to go online, you still have to be careful, but under normal circumstances, you will not do this. Of course Emperor Liu also understood this, so saying this to Zhang Qixian was suspected of scaring him, and it was also a reminder.
Having the courage to do things and take action are worthy of encouragement, but if you indulge in power and indulgence for the sake of political performance, it may not be a good thing. You may not see much when you are appointed in the state or county. When you climb to a higher position and reach a higher status, If you want to move forward, you need to curb your edge.
However, Emperor Liu did have an attitude of appreciation for this Qixian. From a very early time, he had been cultivating and promoting talents with prime ministerial qualifications to facilitate the replacement of prime minister power. Now, this Qixian can be regarded as a true It came into his eyes.
"However, Duke Shou has a good opinion of you. He thinks that your actions in Hengshui are worthy of recognition. You are a strong official who can take on tasks!" Emperor Liu smiled again and said: "He said that in terms of donations for the Northern Expedition, , you have done a very good job. In the past few months of my northern tour, from Hebei to Yanshan, I have seen too many local officials abusing people's power, causing the people to be overburdened and insecure. However, your small Hengshui County has always been Guaranteed stability, this is very masculine!”
"I'm just trying my best to fulfill my duties, share the worries of the court, and relieve the work of the people!" Zhang Qixian was completely relieved and said modestly.
"For the Northern Expedition, how much military rations did your Hengshui County mobilize and how many civilians were recruited?" Emperor Liu asked.
"Your Majesty, we have raised a total of 7,639 stones of wheat, 2,038 stones of flour, and mobilized 3,782 young men!" Zhang Qixian replied quickly, almost without thinking, as if he were counting treasures from his family.
Compared with the overall use of the Northern Expedition, this amount of consumption is simply insignificant. If it is transferred to the front line, it may not be able to sustain the consumption of the Northern Expedition army for a day, but for Hengshui, it is already a full effort.
"For your county, that's a lot!" Emperor Liu nodded slightly and said, "However, for the frontline army, food consumption is of course fundamental, and there is also a lot of wine in the army. Hengshui is a wine-producing area. Earth, I could have sent a message to the transfer envoy to supply the wine with all my strength!"
Hearing this, Zhang Qixian was obviously stunned, and then bowed: "His Majesty's words are like enlightenment and make me alert, but what I am thinking is too rigid!"
