"Oh? How does that weaken the aristocratic families?"
Xie Yuan knew his younger brother was smart, but seeing how precocious he was, he couldn't help but be pleasantly surprised.
She deliberately suppressed a laugh and asked seriously, "Tell me, what are you thinking?"
Xie Zhen put her two little arms behind her back, trying to imitate Helian Jue's posture of standing with her hands behind her back.
However, his arms are too short, and when he forcibly puts his hands behind his back, he only looks cute, not authoritative.
Helian Jue & Xie Yuan: ...What an adorable little chubby boy!
I want to laugh!
But no!
We have to endure it!
The little guy is easily embarrassed and doesn't know how to be teased. It would be bad if he got angry and embarrassed by the couple.
On the surface, it seems that my elder sister's actions were for the sake of the aristocratic family—
Xie Zhen imitated Helian Jue's movements and expressions, while the rhythm and logic of his speech were a complete copy of Xie Yuan's.
He truly lives up to his reputation as the first child raised by Helian Jue and Xie Yuan; he embodies the essence of both of them!
"Clan records are books that record the genealogies of major families."
Xie Yuan nodded; the little guy was right.
On the surface, the imperial court's revision of the "Clan Records" was a manifestation of its emphasis on aristocratic families.
Unfortunately, you can't judge a book by its cover.
Clan records are not only "archives" of various families, but also assign ranks to each prominent family.
For example, the Xie family of Chenjun was a first-class aristocratic family.
Below the first-class aristocratic families are second-class and third-class families.
Among aristocratic families, the division of ranks also reflected their social status.
First-class aristocratic families look down on last-class aristocratic families.
Even the lowest-ranking noble families yearn to advance further.
The threshold for becoming a prominent family is very high; the family history must be at least three hundred years.
For three generations, his family produced high-ranking officials in the imperial court, such as the Nine Ministers and the Three Dukes.
However, in the last one or two hundred years, the world has been fragmented, wars have been frequent, and dynastic changes have been as common as child's play.
Many prominent families have declined due to war, natural disasters, man-made calamities, and other reasons.
Some up-and-coming people from humble backgrounds also began to enter the center of power.
For example, in the Northern Dynasties, there were some aristocratic families in the north.
They claimed to be a prominent family, but they were not registered in the "Clan Records".
At least for the powerful families of the Southern Dynasties, many powerful families in the North were considered bumpkins.
The late emperor unified the north and south, and the Great Zhou Dynasty became a unified regime.
If the late emperor had not become complacent and arrogant, and had not caused the Tangquan Palace Coup, he should have revised the clan records.
"In fact, the late emperor had considered revising the clan annals! But he was unwilling to compromise with the powerful clans!"
When Xie Yuan first suggested to Helian Jue that the "Clan Records" be revised, Helian Jue had said the same thing.
The late emperor intended to include the Helian imperial family in the clan records.
According to the standards for judging aristocratic families, the Helian clan had been established for over a hundred years and had produced four emperors.
This is far more impressive than the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers.
However, the moment the late emperor hinted at his opinion in court, he was met with opposition from the powerful families.
Of course, the late emperor did not directly mention revising the clan records or listing the Helian clan as a prominent family.
He tentatively suggested changing the Helian clan name to the Yuan clan name.
Helian is a Xianbei surname, and there were several states established by the Xianbei people during the Northern Dynasties.
The emperors of these countries all promoted Sinicization.
The Helian clan changed their surname once.
However, decades ago, some former nobles attempted a restoration and changed their surnames back.
After unifying the country, the late emperor needed to devise a more sophisticated strategy to better govern the realm.
Helian's ancestors were prisoners of war who later gained power through their military achievements.
For generations, they intermarried with the Xianbei and even became emperors, but if you trace their origins back, they were actually Han Chinese.
However, since the original surname was long lost to history, the late emperor thought it was appropriate to change the surname to "Yuan".
Yuan means head.
This indicates that their family was the most prominent surname in the Great Zhou Dynasty!
As a result, as soon as the late emperor uttered these words, not only the powerful families of the Southern Dynasty, but also the major families of the Northern Dynasty opposed them.
The late emperor knew that the powerful families were afraid that he would change his surname to "Yuan" and then put the Yuan family first again.
The noble families were used to being respected and honored. How could they tolerate a commoner like the Helian (Yuan) clan, whose origins were unclear, being ranked above their surname?
Of course, given the late emperor's achievements and prestige in unifying the north and south, it wouldn't be unreasonable for him to force his family into the ranks of aristocratic families.
However, he needs to compromise with the powerful families and acknowledge their monopoly position!
"How could the late emperor possibly agree to that?"
"He's too busy weakening the powerful families to allow them to continue their monopoly."
When Helian Jue mentioned this past event that he had heard from the Empress Dowager and several old eunuchs, he couldn't help but shake his head.
He felt that the late emperor was too willful.
Or rather, the late emperor really got carried away.
Too eager for quick success, too self-important.
Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish!
Haste makes waste!
In addition to the late emperor's impatience, Jia Yi's timing was also excellent.
The late emperor despised aristocratic families, and coincidentally, a "fighter" who hated aristocratic families jumped out.
The late emperor simply promoted Jia Yi to a high position and sent him to attack powerful families.
After that, everyone knows what happened.
The late emperor's actions backfired, leading to his own demise!
Now, with Helian Jue as emperor, he still intends to weaken the powerful clans.
But he will not be as "willful" as the late emperor.
Xie Yuan proposed revising the "Clan Records," which happened to coincide with Helian Jue's idea.
"Throw a bone and let them fight it out!"
Noble families are never a monolithic entity!
Don't be fooled by their apparent unity when they oppose the court and imperial power.
When it comes to the interests of their respective families, former "allies" will immediately turn into dogs fighting each other!
What etiquette?
What kind of manners are those?
If one's family is demoted or even squeezed out of the ranks of aristocratic families, not only will one lose one's future, but it will also affect one's clan and descendants!
This is not simply about interests; it is about the very foundation of the entire family!
Don't touch it lightly!
However, there are only so many spots available for members of aristocratic families; for every person who wants to join, there is someone who will be turned away.
Who will be promoted and who will be demoted?
It is inevitable that there will be competition and struggle.
In this process, some families will inevitably fall into ruin.
Helian Jue didn't even need to lift a finger to divide and weaken some of the powerful families.
What Helian Jue and Xie Yuan needed to do was wait for their internal strife to end, then purge some of the aristocratic families and introduce some from humble backgrounds.
Once isn't enough? We can do it a second time!
Until the privileged status of aristocratic families is completely broken.
"What my elder sister needs to do is use the 'Clan Records' to incite the various noble families to fight each other..."
Despite being a small child, Xie Zhen still held her head high and spoke eloquently.
His voice still had a childlike quality, but it already possessed an intelligence and maturity beyond his years.
Seeing Xie Zhen like this, and thinking about what he was about to do, Xie Yuan suddenly felt a pang of reluctance—
Am I being too cruel?
The Xie family doesn't just belong to me, it belongs to A-Zhen too!
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