After the tea was served in the room, the laughter and laughter stopped for a while. Emperor Liu's expression became serious. He held the jade on his finger and said slowly to Liu Chengxun: "I heard that in the selection of scholars in this subject, Liu Chun was originally planned to be the fifth Jinshi. , I was suppressed by your words."
The Jinke Examination was a bit special. Liu Chun, the crown prince of King Yong, also participated, and there was a lot of discussion. Although there were few blatant accusations, gossip was always inevitable.
Why should the majestic Prince Yong, the Prince of Yong, be condescending and quarrel with the world's scholars and petty officials? Nowadays, the scientific examination is becoming more and more difficult. The more people take the exam, the fewer places are available. The huge competitive pressure not only forces a large number of scholars to choose partial subjects such as agriculture and medicine, but also forces some aspiring students to The scholar went to take the martial arts examination.
At this time, hearing Emperor Liu mention this matter, Liu Chengxun shook his head and explained: "I don't agree with Liu Chun's reference and fishing for fame. Regardless of whether he is truly talented or learned, it will inevitably lead to criticism and cause trouble. What's more, with the rank of Jinshi Five admissions..."
Liu Chengxun did not shy away from this matter. He answered frankly and admitted the matter.
"Of course I understand your concerns! However, you should have more trust in our chief examiner. Lu Duan and Li Hang are both famous officials in the court. Lu Duan is cautious and Li Hang is upright. They presided over the tribute examination and also Are you afraid that they will use your talents for personal gain, attract criticism, and ruin your family's reputation?"
In the 20th year of Kaibao's imperial examination, Emperor Liu used two "young people" in the selection of the examiner team, Lu Duan, the official secretary, Tongping Zhangshi, and Li Hang, a member of the Zhongshushe.
By the beginning of the spring of the 21st year, after the imperial court experienced several months of turmoil after the fall of Lu Duoxun, the central government had once again reached a new balance of power.
Zhao Pu still served as prime minister, assisting the king above and commanding the ministers below, but his authority was obviously not as good as before. The reason is simple. The number of people sharing power has obviously increased.
Needless to say, Zhao Kuangyi and Wang Zhu, Song Qi was transferred back to the court as a minister and Tongping Zhangshi, and controlled the power of reviewing and refuting imperial edicts; Wang You, the chief envoy to Hedong, served as the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs and Tongping Zhangshi. The post of Pingzhangshi is located in the political affairs hall.
Needless to say, the Privy Council has always been a self-organized system. As the military and political link of the Ministry of War, Zhao Pu also does not have much control. Those who can serve as ministers of the Ministry of War have always been meritorious officials and do not buy Zhao Pu's blame.
For example, the current Minister of War is Han Tong. In terms of qualifications, he is infinitely higher than Zhao Pu.
Of course, the one who had the greatest impact on Zhao Pu was Lu Duan, who was promoted from the Chief Envoy of Guangnan East Road to the Minister of Civil Affairs. This almost announced that the personnel power that Zhao Pu had always held in his hands was deprived of him. Of course, as the prime minister, he can still intervene, but he will never be able to drive as hard as in previous years.
Regarding Lu Duan's rise, it is somewhat unexpected, because he defeated old officials such as Li Fang and Shi Xizai. In the past, many people criticized Lu Duanduo. He had a good temper and mediocre performance. He was always stable in office and had no outstanding political achievements or achievements.
Even when he took the imperial examination, his grades were not high. In the past, many people only thought that Lu Duan's promotion was due to the late prime minister Lu Yin.
However, Lu Duan's resume can only be described as rich and solid. He was an official, was a high school scholar, served as a county magistrate, and served as governor. After many years, there is naturally no shortage of Taoist officials.
Based on his ability and qualifications, there is no doubt that Lu Duan became the prime minister. It's just that this person's governance is too plain and his behavior is too low-key.
Others may underestimate Lu Duan, but Emperor Liu will not ignore him. After all, Lu Yin once told him that he was ashamed of his younger brother Lu Duan. Emperor Liu valued Lu Yin very much and believed in his judgment. What's more, the name Lu Duan always felt familiar to him. With so many years of observation, he confirmed that this would be a famous minister.
Lu Duan, who had always been regarded as a backup prime minister by Emperor Liu, was promoted naturally. Although his position in the political affairs hall is considered to be the last one, but considering the fact that the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel worships the Prime Minister, no one dares to underestimate him. At any time, personnel affairs are one of the most important powers, otherwise the Ministry of Personnel Affairs How to become the leader of all ministries.
The first important task of Lu Duan when he took office was to serve as the examiner of the Jinke Examination. Of course, it was just a name. Even so, Emperor Liu's biased intention should not be too obvious.
As for
Li Hang was indeed a young man. At the age of thirty-four, he participated in the Kaibao Eighteen-Year Regular Competition and won the championship in one fell swoop, becoming famous all over the world. Of course, due to Emperor Liu's employment habits and the Han-style scientific examination that lasted for more than thirty years, Li Hang inevitably has the common characteristics of the Jinshi in recent years.
That is, before referring to it, I did not just read and write essays blindly. I had nearly ten years of experience in officialdom in my hometown of Mingzhou, and was highly valued by Shangguan. Even if I did not take the scientific examination, I was qualified to leave the official position and join the officialdom. .
However, Li Hang still chose the "difficult" road of Longmen. Three years ago, he was recommended by Zhang Lin, the magistrate of Mingzhou, and went to Beijing for reference, and won the crown in one fell swoop.
Due to his solid grassroots experience and outstanding administrative abilities, Li Hang naturally did not have to endure hard qualifications in the court like most Jinshi, but was directly reused.
After being favored by Prince Liu Yang, he was transferred to the East Palace as an attendant, and later transferred to Zhongshu Sheren.
The last person who had such an experience was Song Zhun, and now Song Zhun is the chief envoy of Jiangxi. Although he is not a wealthy man, he is also a high-ranking official in the border areas, and his promotion rate is as fast as a rocket.
Therefore, some people in the court had long regarded Li Hang as the second Song Zhun. And Li Hang did not disappoint in terms of his conduct, ability, and talent.
Three years ago, he was one of the many scholars taking the National Examination. Three years later, he became the invigilator. Such an encounter and such change in identity are quite touching.
With Lu Duan and Li Hang as the hosts and invigilators, they can basically guarantee the fairness of the talent selection for this subject. At least on this point, they can convince Emperor Liu and convince the courtiers.
On the other hand, even without mentioning their personal qualities, both of them are in the ascending stage of their career, so it is unlikely that they will do anything to ruin their futures.
However, because of the reference of Liu Chun, the crown prince of King Yong, there was some turmoil. The examiners unanimously approved and selected the scholar in fifth place. Lu and Li also recognized this ranking after personally reviewing the answers to the examination paper.
However, such a decision was interfered by King Yong Liu Chengxun. He was very concerned about the matter and used some means. He hoped that Liu Chun would be defeated, so he just participated. There was no need to show off, and he could just wait to inherit the title of King Yong.
However, Lu Duan and Li Hang were a little bit ignorant and insisted on keeping their rankings unchanged. However, due to the pressure from Liu Chengxun, they still moved their rankings down.
However, even so, it is still eye-catching enough. The eleventh name is not low at all. This result is dissatisfied by all parties and has their own hearts and minds. Emperor Liu also understands that there is no positive response to this matter. , and finally acquiesced.
However, acquiescence does not mean approval, and he will inevitably have more knots. When I mentioned this matter in person, although I spoke lightly, the meaning of beating was very strong.
Emperor Liu took a sip of tea, looked at Liu Chengxun, and said slowly: "Even if you can't trust Lu and Li, you should still have confidence in the tribute system that the imperial court has implemented for many years. In the way of selecting scholars, I also It is considered to be the most perfect, fair and practical one in history!
If Liu Chun has talent, he will take it. If he doesn't have enough, he will fail, that's all. You care about your reputation and are afraid of causing criticism, so you interfere arbitrarily. Don't you know that this will only cause greater controversy?
This time, you were too humble to let Liu Chun's ranking drop. However, if you can demote him, will you be able to promote him next time..."
Liu Chengxun had noticed something was wrong in Emperor Liu's words. However, after hearing these words, his expression finally changed and he realized that he had really violated the taboo.
I paid attention to Emperor Liu's face. He looked calm, but the more he looked like this, the more uneasy he felt.
Liu Chengxun had always been honest with Emperor Liu. This was also his way of protecting himself. Therefore, he did not panic too much. He thought about it for a moment, then with an embarrassed face, he cupped his hands and said, "My second brother's words made me sweat! Now I think about it." "Come on, it's true that I didn't think carefully. What I did in this matter was inappropriate and broke the rules and regulations of the imperial court. Please punish me. I am willing to be punished and will never complain!"
Liu Chengxun's attitude is so sincere, what can Emperor Liu do? It was impossible for him to stare at this matter, so he looked at him deeply, waved his hands, and said in a neutral tone: "As long as you understand, it will be chaotic if you care about it. This matter has been revealed, and it should be treated as such." Quit it, don’t do it again!”
"yes!"
