The issue of disarmament has existed since the reign of Emperor Renzong, and has always been accompanied by great controversy.

Wen Yanbo was impeached and banished from the capital for proposing a reduction in military forces, but his proposal was eventually passed, and a total of 80,000 troops were reduced.

But since then, there has been much thunder but little rain.

However, this time is different from usual. With the influence of party struggles, the attitudes of both sides have become very firm.

This caused the matter to escalate rapidly.

Officials from all departments of the court got involved.

The key is that Hezhong Prefecture is still investigating the case, and the court must make a decision immediately. Otherwise, once the imperial court of Hezhong Prefecture makes a judgment, things may become more acute and there will be no room for maneuver.

Therefore, Sima Guang was very anxious about this, as it also involved his judicial reform, and he hoped to hold a meeting as soon as possible to make a decision.

Because regarding this matter, it really depends on the emperor's attitude.

The emperor had the greatest doubts about whether to disarm or not, because he not only had to consider border threats, but also the safety of the capital.

...

...

Zhao Xu's previous attitude towards this was ambiguous.

Sima Guang was not sure either.

However, Wang Anshi was not in a hurry. Seeing Sima Guang jumping up and down, he became even less anxious. He just found various excuses to avoid meeting him, and he also avoided talking about it.

At the same time, he instructed Lu Huiqing and others to firmly oppose it.

Sima Guang was very angry.

In the end, the old prime ministers Fu Bi, Zeng Gongliang, Zhao Yan, and Wen Yanbo stood up and asked the emperor to quickly convene an important meeting to discuss the matter on the grounds of the safety of the northwest.

After all, Wang Anshi was the deputy prime minister, so he had to be given some face.

Chuigong Hall.

As soon as he came up, Lu Huiqing took the lead in attacking, saying that the procuratorate had seriously interfered in military, political and financial affairs and should be held accountable.

"What nonsense!"

Sima Guang immediately rebuked him, "This is simply nonsense! The case of arrears and withholding of military pay investigated by the procuratorate was only under investigation. Chief Prosecutor Su discovered that the military funds in Hezhong Prefecture were greatly short, but he did not use his authority to intervene in the matter. Instead, he immediately reported it to the court. How can this be called interference in military affairs?"

Lu Huiqing asked, "Didn't Sima know about the lack of military funds? Didn't you all know about it?"

Everyone was silent.

Lu Huiqing continued, "This is a well-known fact. Attorney General Su should also know about it, but he pretended not to know and used this incident to stir up trouble in Hezhong Prefecture. Then he executed the case first and reported it later, putting the court in a passive position. What else can this be if not interference?"

Sima Guang laughed and said, "It's something that everyone knows, so we can't talk about it, right?"

Lu Huiqing said: "It's not that I can't tell you, but Chief Prosecutor Su's purpose is very suspicious!"

Sima Guang said: "Attorney General Su is devoted to the country, there is no doubt about it. The case of Chen Guang is a public outrage, and we must investigate it. Does Your Majesty want your soldiers to sacrifice their lives for the country, kill the enemy and make contributions, but be treated like this?"

At the end of his speech, he bowed towards Zhao Xu.

Zhao Xu nodded and said, "I also understand the case of Chen Guang. The procuratorate did a very good job in this case. This is also the main purpose of my setting up the Imperial Court in Hezhong Prefecture."

Sima Guang immediately said: "However, according to the evidence provided by Chief Prosecutor Su, cases like Chen Guang are common in Hezhong Prefecture. It is chilling to hear about it. How can soldiers devote themselves to serving the country if they are treated like this?"

Zhao Xu sighed, "Six or seven out of ten of the national treasury's annual revenue is used for military expenses. Why does this phenomenon still occur?"

Sima Guang immediately said: "This is because the national treasury income can no longer support so many soldiers. If the army is not reduced, the soldiers and the people will suffer."

Zhao Xu nodded repeatedly after hearing this.

Han Jiang suddenly said, "But disarmament is a top priority for the country. The court is not prepared at the moment. If we disarm rashly, I am afraid it will encourage the enemy to invade. In addition, there is no place for the disarmed soldiers. If they gather together to become bandits, wouldn't it be even worse if they were to become bandits? I think we need to think about this matter carefully."

Zhao Xu nodded again.

Many ministers stood up and seconded the motion.

Sima Guang actually wanted to take a long-term view, but the reality did not allow him to do so. He said, "But at present, the lack of military pay has caused chaos. If the court turns a deaf ear to it, the consequences will be even more disastrous."

Lu Huiqing said: "If there is no procuratorate, this would never have happened."

Sima Guang snorted coldly, "You are just trying to cover up your own mistakes and deceiving yourself and others. Fortunately, the procuratorate discovered it early. If it had been delayed, the soldiers' resentment would have accumulated and exploded, which might have been a mutiny instead of a lawsuit centered around the judiciary."

Wang Anshi laughed a few times.

You are finally willing to speak up. Sima Guang looked at him coldly, "Why is Mr. Wang laughing?"

Wang Anshi said: "If I remember correctly, as early as the first year of Xining, Sima Xueshi pointed out the dangers of redundant soldiers, but at the same time he also said that rash reduction of troops was not advisable and that we should take a long-term view. Why did he become so radical today?"

I don't want to do this either. I was forced to do this. Sima Guang's face turned slightly red, but he said, "I am only concerned about the insufficient military funds in Hezhong Prefecture. According to Master Wang's opinion, should we just leave it alone?"

Wang Anshi said: "Of course the court cannot just sit there and do nothing, but it must also consider the risks that disarmament will bring."

Zhao Xu asked, "Does Scholar Wang have any countermeasures?"

Wang Anshi immediately bowed to Zhao Xu and said, "Your Majesty, regarding the issue of disarmament, Sima Xueshi once had a very unique opinion. But he also said that it is not something that can be achieved overnight.

Because the problem of redundant soldiers is caused by land annexation, the people can only join the army to make a living. If the army is cut rashly, the soldiers will lose their livelihood and may gather together to become bandits. Therefore, to solve the problem of redundant soldiers, we must first solve the problem of land annexation. "

Sima Guang's face turned pale, and he probably guessed what Wang Anshi was going to say.

Zhao Xu asked anxiously: "How do we resolve the issue of land annexation now?"

Wang Anshi immediately said: "People lose their land, most of the time it is because of natural disasters, or when there is a shortage of crops, they can only borrow money to get by, but usury is rampant among the people. The reason why Chen Guang went to complain was not because of the arrears or withholding of military pay, but because he was forced into a dead end by usury.

If we want to solve this problem from the root, we must first curb usury, so that the people can keep their land. The court has issued many laws before, trying to curb it, but it is still useless, proving that the judiciary is difficult to curb usury. I suggest that the court set up an official office to lend money at low interest rates to the people who are in a tight spot.

In this way, we can help the people and increase the revenue of the treasury. After all, this case is caused by finance, not military affairs. If we rashly cut the army because of finance, we may miss the point. If finance can be restored, we can kill two birds with one stone. This is the fundamental solution. "

Zhao Xu nodded repeatedly after hearing this and said, "You are right."

Lu Huiqing and others also seconded the motion.

As soon as these words were spoken, the conservatives' faces were instantly filled with anger.

I knew this guy was going to take advantage of the situation.

Although the Qingmiao Law had been debated privately countless times, it was the first time that Wang Anshi formally proposed the Qingmiao Law at such a conference.

Seeing that both sides were ready to make a move, Wen Yanbo was worried that the topic would shift to the Qingmiao Law, so he spoke first: "Regardless of whether this law is feasible, it will take time to restore the finances. The situation in Hezhong Prefecture is precarious, and this distant water cannot quench the immediate thirst."

Wang Anshi retorted: "But we can't rush to try all kinds of remedies, but we should prescribe the right medicine for the right symptoms. If there is a financial problem, we should solve it by solving the financial problem, not just treating the symptoms."

Wen Yanbo immediately retorted: "This is not treating the symptoms for the symptoms. If the government cannot afford it, it should cut spending. The people know this. As for the risk of disarmament, during the Renzong period, some people worried that soldiers would gather together and become bandits, but nothing happened."

Wang Anshi said: "Although it didn't happen then, it doesn't mean it won't happen now. Besides, why did the problem of redundant soldiers arise? Isn't it because of land annexation? If land annexation is not resolved, I'm afraid recruiting soldiers will be faster than reducing the army!"

Fu Bi suddenly stood up and said, "Your Majesty, in my opinion, both Wang Xueshi and Wen Zhongcheng have their reasons, and the two are not contradictory. Why not use both methods at the same time?"

As soon as these words were spoken, an astonishing phenomenon occurred. More than ten ministers stood up and expressed their support for Fu Bi's words.

Among them were not only conservatives, but also reformists, even including Chen Shengzhi and Zeng Gongliang.

Whether among the conservatives or the reformists, there are those who dislike both the public security, procuratorate and courts and the Qingmiao Law. They demand that nothing change, but are currently mixing between the two factions to cause trouble. What they want to see most is the public security, procuratorate and courts VS the new law, so that both of you will perish together.

Fu Bi's idea was very much in line with their proposition, which was to put them all in one place and let them fight each other.

"Mr. Fu is right!"

Zhao Xu nodded, and after a long pause, he said, "How about this! Temporarily appoint Wang Jinglue and Guo Xuanfu to preside over the reduction of the army. As for the financial affairs, the salt levy envoy and the prefect of Hezhong will be responsible for it."

"Your Majesty is wise."

"That's the end of today's meeting."

After saying this, Zhao Xu stood up and walked outside. As soon as he walked out of the door, he ordered the eunuch beside him, "Send a secret letter to Zhang San, asking him not to let me down."

"I obey your command."

"Ha ha!"

Zhao Xu finally couldn't suppress the upward curve of his lips, and strode out of the Chuigong Hall with a laugh.

Over there, Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing got on the carriage and immediately they couldn't help laughing.

"We've made a lot of money this time. We've reduced our military and implemented the Qingmiao Law. Haha!"

In fact, he also supported disarmament, but he did not say so. He knew the disaster of the three redundancies, but he agreed with Sima Guang's view that solving the three redundancies would not be a matter of overnight, so Fan Zhongyan set an example.

He decided to increase revenue and resolutely refused to cut costs, thus winning the support of many vested interests.

"Mr. Sima is still in the dark."

Lu Huiqing chuckled.

Wang Anshi laughed even more when he thought that Sima Guang might not be able to sleep.

Sima Guang was indeed kept in the dark because Zhang Fei did not write to him, and he was still struggling with it at this time.

"Forget it, Junshi."

Fu Bi could not help but comfort him: "Wang Jiefu's meaning is very clear. If you stop his Qingmiao Law, he will certainly stop the disarmament. He has never undermined the judicial reform."

Wen Yanbo smiled and said, "Anyway, we have already decided to let the Qingmiao Law be tried out in Hezhong Prefecture, and the public security, procuratorate and courts will monitor it. Now that we are going with the flow, we won't lose anything!"

Although they have been trying to block the Qingmiao Law, the emperor's attitude made them realize that they could not stop it and could only delay it. They have already thought of a countermeasure.

Sima Guang sighed: "Whether it is a loss or not depends on success or failure. Putting the disarmament and the Green Seedling Law together, it is frightening to think about it!"

He neither supports the Qingmiao Law nor is he worried about disarmament. How can he feel at ease?

I was completely forced into this.

(End of this chapter)