Chapter 9: Nobleman and Commissioner
Can a person's temperament really change so drastically?
He also recalled what his teacher had said: the late emperor had bluntly stated that the Fourth Prince was violent and capricious, and was unfit to handle such a heavy responsibility.
It is a well-known fact in the capital that Yan Xuanyu is a stupid and vicious playboy.
However, in the later years of the late emperor's reign, the court was in turmoil due to factional struggles, and no one expected that only the dissolute Fourth Prince, who was looked down upon by everyone, would survive to the end.
Is it really just luck?
not necessarily.
...
Yan Xuanyu's words were indeed serious. "Teacher of the World" was already the highest evaluation of Han Yuan. He then took a step back and blamed himself, bringing up the former emperor and governing the world. Who else could say anything?
Who can say that Yan Xuanyu treated Han Yuan harshly?
cannot.
Not only was he forbidden to speak any more, he was also required to say, "Your Majesty is wise." With the blue-robed officials admonishing him, Yan Xuanyu's action was in line with the common wishes of all the officials.
Some people have begun to speculate whether the blue-robed official had received instructions from the emperor, and some have also begun to pay attention to this low-ranking official who was originally inconspicuous in the court. If he had not received the emperor's order in advance, why did the emperor just let him return to the official team so easily?
Just one crime of disrespect could make this minor official disappear forever.
The officials in the Imperial Palace were still unaware of what the Cabinet was. They only heard Yan Xuanyu say that it was directly under the Emperor. Yan Xuanyu issued an edict appointing Han Yuan as the Chief Minister of the Cabinet, commanding it. Lin Fu, Zuo Qiucheng, Jiang Yuanhua, and others were also appointed to the Cabinet and given the honorary title of "Grand Secretary," while their original official positions remained unchanged.
The office space for the dozen or so people was also decided to be the Wenyuan Pavilion near the Jinluan Palace. They were responsible for reviewing memorials.
"From today onwards, all memorials from officials will go directly to the cabinet. They will no longer be submitted to superior officials according to the old system. They will be reviewed by superior officials before being brought to Chengtian Hall." Yan Xuanyu lowered his head slightly and looked around at the officials.
"My dear ministers, you are all in the capital, so what's the difference between submitting a memorial of greeting and not submitting one? The reason why I haven't read the memorials for more than a month is to see what you submitted. When I read the memorials, I look for substance! If there is nothing to do, it's better not to submit one." The originally calm tone became intimidating because it was stained with anger.
Among the memorials submitted to Chengtian Hall, the largest number came from the capital, followed by those from the areas surrounding the capital. This was because transportation was very underdeveloped at that time. Even if messengers worked day and night to deliver letters, it would still take more than ten days from the border to the capital.
At the current speed of information transmission, if there is any movement in the north, it will not be able to reach the capital in time.
This was the case in the previous life. After the Rongdi attacked several cities in succession, the capital city received the news and was in chaos.
Not only is it inconvenient to transmit information, but if you want to be rich, you must first build roads. This saying that Yan Xuanyu has heard since he was a child is absolutely philosophical.
While Yan Xuanyu was thinking about other things, the Golden Palace was silent.
Yan Xuanyu didn't know that his expressionless face and dead eyes due to his morning grumpiness were seen as a sign of anger in the eyes of outsiders. However, due to the special structure of the Golden Throne Hall, every word Yan Xuanyu said could be clearly heard by the officials.
Everyone bowed their heads.
Even after Yan Xuanyu mentioned the officials who would enter the cabinet, the court officials had different thoughts. Before Yan Xuanyu went to court, many people thought that the emperor had just ascended the throne and was unaware of the affairs of the court because he had been away from the political center when he was a prince. After all, it was obvious that the Fourth Prince had no one he could use and no one followed him.
It was because the previous emperor had once, in a rage, declared that the Fourth Prince was violent and capricious, unfit for the responsibility. It seemed that with just one sentence, Yan Xuanyu was kicked out of the line of crown princes.
But they saw everything the emperor did during court sessions, including his meticulous treatment of the blue-robed officials and the cabinet system he had just proposed. No matter what the role of the cabinet was, how could the court officials in the Golden Throne Hall not see that it was a chance for these remaining factions to fight each other, or... it was a chance for the emperor to show their loyalty.
After all, loyalty to the emperor can only be to one emperor.
Some officials had already started to think that perhaps the emperor was not what they had thought.
But now, the situation is far from settled. The King of Qin who is far away in the imperial mausoleum and the missing seventh prince may be eyeing the capital covetously.
The late emperor became confused and incompetent in his later years. During the dispute among the princes, he punished many innocent officials in order to weaken his own faction, which caused great damage to the vitality of the court. Currently, there are very few talents available.
Under such circumstances, the actions of the original owner after he ascended the throne undoubtedly accelerated the process of the Great Zhou's demise. However, the demise of the Great Zhou cannot be blamed solely on the original owner. It can only be said that the Great Zhou had already shown signs of decline during the reigns of the next few generations of emperors.
In general, Yan Xuanyu has been left with a mess.
However, being able to change the current situation step by step is also a very fulfilling thing.
Yan Xuanyu was even prepared for some officials to stand up and oppose the establishment of the cabinet, but the reality was that no official refuted him after he said this.
Yan Xuanyu didn't know whether to be happy or unhappy. He was glad that the cabinet had been established. This way, memorials could reach the cabinet directly and then reach Yan Xuanyu. He was confident in the cabinet because it housed more than a dozen officials from different political factions. Yan Xuanyu didn't believe they could do anything behind the scenes, at least for a while.
But Yan Xuanyu was a little unhappy. He thought that sometimes his decisions would be the result of his own assumptions. Even though the methods he came up with using modern thinking had more advantages than disadvantages and were beneficial to Da Zhou, he was a modern man after all. Whether the methods he came up with were suitable for Da Zhou's current situation and whether they were feasible in some place - Yan Xuanyu could not think of all these issues comprehensively.
It's not that he has a masochistic mentality, but he hopes that when he proposes a decision, someone in the court will stand up and analyze the pros and cons of the matter, instead of just standing there like a piece of wood and saying nothing like now.
The court at present is like a stagnant pool. Part of the reason is that those talented officials are still afraid to speak out due to concerns. Yan Xuanyu also hopes that the imperial examination will bring the talents he wants to the court.
...
"The Emperor, in compliance with the Will of Heaven, proclaims... that Han Yuan be granted the title of Duke of Korea, appointed as the Minister of the Cabinet, and appointed as the Chief Minister of the Cabinet. He must serve the Emperor in the palace immediately. This is my decree!" Li Zhongxian read out the decree in his hand.
Everyone in the Han Mansion knelt in the front hall to receive the order.
"Prime Minister, please accept my order." Li Zhongxian said with a smile.
Han Yuan, who was at the front, stood up with the help of his servants and took the imperial edict. "Your Majesty, I accept your order and thank you for your grace."
Not only was his previous house arrest lifted, the emperor even gave Han Yuan an honor that he had never enjoyed during the previous emperor's time.
From now on, the Han Mansion will be changed into the Duke's Mansion.
Li Zhongxian waited for Han Yuangang to take the imperial edict and said, "I have to return to the palace to report, so I won't bother you any more."
The group of people who came from the palace came and went quickly. Only after they left did everyone stand up.
Han Yuan's eldest son, Han Shidong, stepped forward and said hesitantly, "Father..."
Han Shidong is already in his forties, but he has not held any official position because of his father's job in the court. He thought that his life would just pass by like this, but who knew that after the new emperor ascended the throne, he appointed his father as Duke, and now he has transformed himself into the Duke's son!
But seeing my father's face...
"Please put the imperial edict on display." Han Yuan sighed. The old man who was originally energetic suddenly looked really old.
A hint of joy appeared on Han Shidong's face: "Yes, father." He reached out to take the imperial edict from Han Yuan's hand and held it respectfully in his hand.
Since the day the emperor ascended the throne, he shouted "The Great Zhou is in danger" in the court, and was later placed under house arrest in the Han Mansion by the enraged emperor. Although his eldest son comforted everyone at that time, everyone in the Han Mansion was still in danger. Han Yuan thought that he would be sentenced to death by the emperor in a fit of rage, but he was also worried about what would happen to other people in the Han Mansion.
But Han Yuan had been holding himself together all this time, but when he saw his eldest son's actions and facial expression, all of a sudden, everything disappeared.
"Xiu Chang, thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all your grace..." The old wife, who never cared about the affairs of the Han Mansion and only worshipped Buddha in the Buddhist temple, came over with the support of her mother-in-law and said softly.
Yes, thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the king!
He was first placed under house arrest, then made a Duke and given a title.
The new emperor was telling him in a very tactful but sharp way that the important thing was not thunder and rain, but the emperor's grace.
He, Yan Xuanyu, is no longer the dissolute Fourth Prince who has no power in the capital.
...
The Duke's Mansion was bustling with people coming and going.
When Lin Fu came to visit his teacher, he was surprised that the person he saw was not Lord Han who had just been conferred the title of Duke and appointed as the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, but the teacher who had been energetic and vigorous sat dejectedly on the armchair.
It seemed to be isolated from the bustling Duke's Mansion outside the study.
He bowed to his teacher and said, "Student Lin Fu greets his teacher."
"Come here." Han Yuan said.
As soon as Lin Fu looked up, he saw the bright yellow imperial edict hanging high above the study.
"I did something wrong, and I thought something wrong." Han Yuan's old voice sounded in the study.
Lin Fu was stunned.
"It turns out I was wrong." Han Yuan just murmured.
"Teacher, what do you think about the cabinet?" Lin Fu asked, "It seems that the people selected by the emperor to join the cabinet are not easy to deal with right now."
He hesitated to speak because the friendship between his teacher and the prime minister was "as light as water", and his teacher regarded the prime minister as a confidant. Lin Fu had no evidence, so he did not express his guess.
The establishment of the cabinet was equivalent to replacing the position of the prime minister, but the emperor still retained the position of prime minister and also let the prime minister enter the cabinet.
In Lin Fu's view, this is a muddy water.
Han Yuan is not only a Duke now, but also the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, in charge of the cabinet.
"The Emperor has considered all matters concerning the Cabinet." Han Yuan closed his eyes. "When you join the Cabinet in the future, just focus on doing your own thing."
The establishment of the cabinet means that the emperor wants to take back power.
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