Chapter 284: Expanding the Prime Minister's Power
Lu Zhi, who was excited, looked at the sky, suppressed the desire to continue the conversation, and said to the two with a smile: "Dong'e Hou, Gongzi Chen, there is no reason to send hungry soldiers in this world. You can stay in the palace for dinner. I will change into casual clothes and then have dinner with you."
After Lü Zhi left the palace, Luo Xin smiled and said, "Achen, you performed very well today, or just right. I didn't expect you to change so much."
Luo Chen chuckled and said, "Fourth brother, if you saw the volume that was destroyed, you might be even more shocked. What do Chen's ideas mean?
But today I met the Queen Mother. She is truly a rare and extraordinary woman in the world. It’s a pity that she is a girl. If she were a boy, she would definitely be a saintly king and a wise minister who will go down in history.”
Luo Xin said calmly: "Even if she is a girl, she will still go down in history as a regent and a fake emperor!"
Luo Chen smiled and cupped his hands, saying: “The Han Dynasty has a regent like the Queen Mother, and she also uses our Luo family. It is going to prosper.
A commoner actually conquered the world, and a hero from a county actually dominated the whole country. It was really magnificent and fierce.
After the most corrupt nobles were swept into the garbage dump of history, the air throughout the country seemed to become fresher.
Are kings, princes, generals, and ministers of different species?
From now on, it will be an era for talented people to show their talents. "
Luo Xin looked at Luo Chen and said helplessly: "It's not that simple. Even though the family tree has been lost, you and I both know that the powerful people in the world today are still the descendants of the nobles of the six countries.
The background of these people is not comparable to that of ordinary common people. To govern the world, we still need the cooperation of these literate people.
It has been a thousand years since the era of complete bloodline aristocracy came to the present.
It may take another thousand years to realize what you said.
The Han Dynasty could not have lasted for a thousand years like the Zhou Dynasty. I am afraid it will take at least two dynasties for what you said to come true. You and I will not be able to see it. I will tell you when our descendants pay homage to us.”
If outsiders heard what the two brothers said, they would probably be shocked. The Han Dynasty had just been established, and they were already thinking about the future.
While the two were talking, teams of palace maids came in carrying meals. Lunch was naturally much more sumptuous than breakfast.
Lü Zhi changed into casual clothes and walked out. She was not as majestic as before, but showed some gentleness. She smiled softly and said, "Dong'e Hou, Master Chen, please have a drink."
Once there is wine at the banquet, it is naturally more than just a meal. Lu Zhi held up the wine jar and said, "I want to thank the Marquis of Dong'e for recommending Master Chen.
Prince Chen is a man of great talent who can stabilize the country. I have been thinking about the country's policies these days. With Prince Chen, I can finally rest assured.
Marquis Dong'e, what I am worried about is that Prime Minister Xiao He is so highly respected that he cannot be asked to give up his position. You are the elder brother of Prince Chen and the person I trust the most, so you cannot give up your position either.
What official position do you think I should grant to Master Chen to show my respect for him?"
Luo Xin said: "Queen Dowager, I don't think you need to be too anxious to arrange an official position for me. After all, I am still thinking about presenting you with an official system."
Lü Zhi woke up as if from a dream and said, "Prince Chen mentioned earlier that the idea of unifying the world and the official system, I forgot about it, but is there a big problem with the official system in the world now?"
Luo Chen replied: "The Han Dynasty mainly used the system of three dukes and nine ministers from the Qin Dynasty. This system was gradually implemented after hundreds of years of war and chaos, and naturally has its advantages.
However, the Qin Dynasty had an extremely vertical management system, with the central government, counties, and each level being very clearly divided. But the Han Dynasty was different, with kingdoms and marquisates at the local level.
Moreover, in the Qin Dynasty, clan relatives and in-laws had no power.
The Qin Dynasty did not have counties and vassal states, which was different from the Han Dynasty. It was not possible to copy the official system of the Qin Dynasty.
The first and foremost point of a dynasty's official system is that all important matters and important people in the world must be included in this system.
Regardless of whether the imperial court has the ability to manage or not, at least there must be a framework.
The empress dowager, no matter if she is the prime minister, the chancellor, or the chancellor, is a system that has been passed down since ancient times and remains popular today.
According to historical records, more than one monarch believed that the prime minister system hindered the monarch's power and even wanted to abolish it.
But please allow me to be unrestrained. The existence of a prime minister is necessary, and it greatly protects the survival of the country.
When the monarch is strong, he can appoint a weak prime minister to obey his orders, but the prime minister system must exist.
Because it is impossible for the monarch of a dynasty to be wise every generation. When the monarch holds all the power but is stupid, the prime minister's control is the last line of defense.
Chen's ancestor Duke Wen was once a minister of King Li. When Duke Wen was still in the royal capital, even though King Li had cholera in his heart, he could do nothing.
When Duke Wen left the royal capital, King Li led his army to the south, but was defeated miserably. The prosperous Zhou Dynasty collapsed in an instant.
Therefore, the first step of the Han Dynasty official system is to strengthen the existence of the prime minister system. "
The Luo family has always been pursuing one thing, that is, to expand the power of the prime minister, because compared with a monarch who can only be selected from the royal family, the probability of a talented prime minister appearing from a wider range of selection is higher.
However, any monarch must be wary of the expansion of the power of the prime minister, especially under the premise that the power of the prime minister in this era is already very strong.
A strong prime minister can even be called the deputy emperor.
As expected, even Lü Zhi hesitated and said, "Prince Chen, I have never heard of a monarch who can sit on the throne without holding power.
Not all ministers in this world are as loyal as Luo. I think it is inappropriate to expand the power of the prime minister further."
Luo Chen replied, "Queen Mother, the monarch's energy is limited, but the affairs of the country are unlimited. Using limited energy to manage unlimited affairs will definitely lead to failure.
There are twelve hours in a day. Those diligent saintly kings spend six hours handling government affairs, but most monarchs only spend three hours on handling government affairs.
Not to mention those difficult problems, if a matter takes a quarter of an hour to resolve, then twenty-four things can be resolved in a day. There are more than two thousand four hundred things in the world.
If the prime minister's power is too small, he will have to ask for instructions on everything, which will definitely slow down efficiency and be detrimental to the implementation of national policies.
The system of prime ministers came into being because the monarch alone could not handle government affairs."
The calculation is very clear. Lu Zhi certainly knew that one thing could not be handled in a quarter of an hour. Many monarchs even had to think about one thing for a long time, and most of them just did it directly according to the convention.
"You are right. The complexity of government affairs is not something that a monarch can handle alone. The prime minister should be given enough power.
But how to prevent the prime minister from usurping power?"
During the Spring and Autumn Period, it was not just one vassal state that had its prime minister usurp power from the monarch.
Luo Chen smiled slightly and said: "The most important affairs of a country are war and sacrifice.
The real affairs of the country do not lie in the mundane affairs handled by the prime minister, but in sacrifices and wars.
Government affairs are the most complicated affairs in the world. Chen can say without exaggeration that about 80% of the monarchs in history are not capable of handling them.
But war is different. It is an extremely important matter, yet far simpler than government affairs, because the essence of the military is deterrence.
Government affairs require policies, while the military just needs to be there.
If the monarch has an army and the prime minister has no army, the monarch will be safe.
The First Emperor established the post of Grand Commandant, who was at the same level as the Prime Minister and was the highest military officer, but it was not a permanent position.
In Chen's opinion, this was unnecessary and the emperor should be designated as the highest military commander.
That is, not only senior generals were appointed by the emperor, but even mid-level generals had to be appointed by the emperor himself, and the emperor should summon these mid-level generals regularly.
Generals who had made great contributions were given seals of prime minister, which was comparable to the position of prime minister.
After all, the generals who can reach this step must have the title of Marquis. As long as the monarch is willing to confer the title on them, no one will be unwilling. From then on, they will be your close ministers.
And you don't need to worry. Even if the power of the prime minister is expanded, there is still a difference between the monarch and the minister. It is impossible for him to surpass the monarch. As long as you control the appointment of senior officials, this can only be a system to prevent the emergence of incompetent monarchs in the Han Dynasty."
Luo Chen's remarks suggested three interrelated things, namely, increasing the prime minister's political authority, weakening the military personnel power of the outer court, and the pinnacle of military officers being civil servants.
Lu Zhi naturally understood that the core of Luo Chen's system design was "to strengthen the civil and suppress the military in the court, to suppress the civil and strengthen the military in the emperor, and to control the prime minister's ability to form cliques and engage in personal gain."
The emperor and the prime minister each perform their duties, so that the court can run smoothly and the foundation of the country will not be damaged due to the emperor's reckless operations.
Luo Xin glanced at his younger brother and knew that Luo Chen's real purpose was to expand the power of the prime minister. As for reducing the military power of the outer court, it was simply a lie. This thing cannot be reduced just because you want to.
The Luo family has always paid more attention to talents in government affairs, such as geniuses like the two Dukes Wen and Xuan. People like Duke Wu are of course highly regarded, but they are still not as good as the two Dukes Wen and Xuan.
Lu Zhi pondered for a moment and said, "I think the power of the prime minister does need to be expanded. The country is now exhausted and the affairs are extremely complicated. The prime minister should be given enough power.
It is also possible to dismiss the Grand Marshal, but the General should be retained as a reward. The Prime Minister's seal should not be shown to others easily. Wait until the world is stable before trying Gongzi Chen's method.
Prince Chen, please also tell me the official system. I will announce it at the court meeting in a few days.
I am the regent of the country, and it is time for a new atmosphere."
Luo Chen talked, and Lu Zhi and Luo Xin listened, from the afternoon to the evening. Even though he kept getting water during the conversation, Luo Chen still felt dry in the mouth.
"I will listen to your words today, and the Han Dynasty will be stable for a hundred years."
In front of the palace gate, Lü Zhi said to Luo Chen with emotion, "You should also attend the grand court meeting in three days. The people of the world should see you, the hero of the Luo family."
————
The struggle between imperial power and prime ministerial power was an eternal theme in the ancient world's politics. The Qin Dynasty implemented an extreme monarchy that was extremely dependent on the personal ability of the monarch. After the collapse of this system, the bureaucrats of the Han Dynasty began to try to explore a new system of state governance.
During the regency of Empress Lü, a system emerged that maintained centralized power but was very different from the Qin Dynasty's autocratic monarchy. This system is still considered extremely progressive today. With the support of this system, the Han Dynasty was able to quickly become strong and continue its reign for a relatively long time.
Next, I will spend a lot of space to introduce the core of this system. ——"The Rise and Fall of the Han Dynasty"
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
