Chapter 410: Competition between Civil and Military Affairs
Yang Xiu: “…”
He really underestimated the courage of this guy Ni Heng!
The sentence "Yuan Shao has good looks, which enables him to entertain guests" was already a mockery of Yecheng. It denounced Yuan Shao's political and military abilities as worthless, and did not leave out any attacks on Ju Shou, Guo Tu, Gao Lan and others.
Even the Emperor of Yecheng was just an emperor in name only in his mouth, and was not as useful as Zhang Lu of Tianshidao.
It turns out that the remaining power of the Han Dynasty does not exist at all in this madman's heart.
But speaking of it...
Ni Heng seemed to be rude to Qiao Yan, but whether he had mocked Chunyu Jia in the street before, or wrote down the denunciation of Yuan Shao today, it did not seem like he had any disrespect towards her.
Yang Xiu decided not to delve into this contradictory feeling.
The public reaction under the rule of Emperor Yong has always been the most real thing in the world.
However, what made Yang Xiu a little depressed was that he had already told Ni Heng that he would go into seclusion for two days so that he could write a sharp and comprehensive manifesto that would refute Yuan Shao and others from beginning to end, but he was notified by Qiao Yan before he even started writing.
Anyone could participate in this essay contest, except Yang Xiu.
"Your father is still with Yuan Benchu. If you really wrote an article denouncing his actions, wouldn't that put him in danger?"
Yang Biao's situation is different from that of Xu You's family.
Xu You published the true situation in the newspaper. If Yuan Shao took any extreme action, it would be because he was angry and humiliated.
However, what Yang Xiu wrote was bound to contain emotional accusations against Yuan Shao. When mixed with the family and national conflicts between the Yong Dynasty and the Han Dynasty, no one could be sure whether Yuan Shao would target Yang Biao.
The Yang family of Hongnong and the Yuan family of Runan also had the same status of being three dukes for four generations, and there was also a marriage relationship between them. There was no guarantee that Yang Biao would not become a victim at this time because of being caught in the middle.
Qiao Yan looked at Yang Xiu's belated expression and asked, "Besides, without a response from you, Yang Dezuo, will my Chang'an, or even the capital area where I have time to submit my contributions, lack the literary talent to fill the gap in the monthly report?"
The saying "When the lord worries, the minister is humiliated; when the lord is humiliated, the minister dies" has long been deeply rooted in the concepts of today's scholars.
Qiao Yan published the manifesto sent by Yuan Shao in the Leping Monthly in such a nonchalant manner, and even regarded it as a ridiculous existence. He did not intend to respond to the manifesto personally. However, facing the accusations raised in it, countless people had already become unable to sit still.
The people in Yecheng could not ignore Qiao Yan's achievements under her rule and accused her of bringing disaster to the people's livelihood. They then talked about the grudge between her and the Qiao family of Yanzhou, the conflict between her and Wang Yun and Liu Bei and others, and criticized her for reversing the right and wrong of appointing female officials. They also tried to stand on the moral high ground of the long-defeated Han Dynasty. It was simply absurd and ridiculous!
If we allow them to criticize the legitimacy of Dayong's rule over the world in this way, God knows if there will be someone else tomorrow if there is a Chen Lin today.
It doesn't matter if Your Majesty is too lazy to take action, don't we still have them?
Xu You had already prepared all the materials for them to use to denounce Yuan Shao during the quarrel, which was no different from a composition with sufficient arguments. If, under such circumstances, they still could not write a piece of writing that could hit Yuan Shao right in the chest, then there was something wrong with their abilities.
The bolder ones were ready to point their spearheads at Liu Bian, just as Ni Heng had demonstrated to Yang Xiu before.
If the inheritance of the Han Dynasty is really as flawed as they say, and Qiao Yan has been weakening the power of Han officials step by step, stealing the Dingsi and seizing the sacred artifacts to take the throne, then -
Why did Liu Xie, who actually had a clear succession mandate, not make any accusations against her, but instead stood on the side of the common people under her rule and entrusted the imperial seal representing the emperor's status into her hands?
Why did Liu Yu, who once sat on the throne, prefer to execute his own son rather than let Qiao Yan suffer such unfair treatment, and even willingly give up the power of the Han emperor in the face of the people's plea?
Lu Zhi, who came to Chang'an to serve as a minister in order to protect the emperor of the Han Dynasty, and Huangfu Song, who chose to be loyal to the Han Dynasty despite having the opportunity to rebel, actually fit the position of Han ministers far better than those ministers in the court of Yecheng. But why have they both accepted the fact that the Han Dynasty will eventually fall and the Yong Dynasty should be established, instead of following the example of Geng Yan who went to Emperor Guangwu and Xiao He who served Emperor Gaodi as they said in their manifestos?
When Liu Bian orally proclaimed this proclamation and used it to mobilize people in Yecheng, it was obviously no longer important whether it was written at the instruction of Yuan Shao to Chen Lin.
This emperor did not inherit the Han Dynasty's foundation in an ordinary way. It was obvious that he believed in all the arguments made by Chen Lin in his verbal and written criticisms. He had never seen with his own eyes what the other states were like today. Then why could he still keep the title of the Han Dynasty emperor and enjoy such a special position?
In this "feast" of confrontation among literati, he could only be a target of criticism!
Anyway, he was just a leader held up by the pseudo-dynasty.
"Besides, isn't this also an opportunity for you to show off in front of me?" Qiao Yan asked Yang Xiu again. "Compared to the strict selection of Hongwenguan this year, the candidates must have a wide range of knowledge and knowledge. Showing their talents and stating their positions through writing articles is also a way to get promoted."
If I were lucky enough to be selected and published in the Leping Monthly, and if my sharp words could make Yuan Shao angry to death, I would have truly made an unprecedented contribution.
Therefore, whether those who were already serving under Qiao Yan or those who were seeking advancement in Chang'an, all picked up their pens at this moment.
For example, Wang Can, the winner of the previous essay contest, while complaining that Chen Lin's essay was not up to standard, ground his ink and prepared to give Yuan Shao a heavy blow.
For example,
"Do we also have to write a manifesto?" Fu Shou held his chin and looked at Cai Zhaoji, Huang Yueying and others in front of him.
Even though Chen Lin, that bastard, only used light words like "appointing officials and dividing duties, recommending relatives" and "superior and inferior being reversed, yin and yang being disordered" to criticize Qiao Yan for selecting female officials to enter the court, that was only because he didn't want to reverse the priority of the Yong-Han confrontation and the reign of the empress, and he didn't want to cause any more gossip on the matter.
If His Majesty had taken a step back on the day of promoting the female officials because of Huang Wan's rebuttal, or if any of them had made any mistakes in their positions, Fu Shou had no doubt that this would be highlighted in Chen Lin's manifesto.
Your Majesty would also be charged with an additional crime for ascending to the high throne as a woman.
But what ability do Emperor Liu Bian, or even his father Liu Hong, have to be compared with Qiao Yan?
If they turn a blind eye to a few words today, sooner or later someone will bring it up as an old account.
So of course they had to write, and even write at a high level, so that this article, which stands from the perspective of supporting the empress and female officials, was not selected because one of the participants was the editor of Leping Monthly, but because it is indeed of such a high level!
Cai Zhaoji said: "I would like to write, but..."
However, her position is equivalent to that of a judge who screens articles from all sides. If she inserts her own article into the list, it would be suspected of abusing her power for personal gain.
Fu Shou was stuck for a moment: "You know my ability. It's ok for you to let me participate in the flood control operation, but it's really impossible for me to write such flowery things."
"Besides... I don't know how to curse, do I?"
Fu Shou banged his head against the table in distress.
Although she was not Princess Yang'an's biological daughter, the princess gave her a lot of etiquette training and never let her behave inappropriately.
"No, there's no need to quarrel." Huang Yueying suddenly interrupted.
Ever since Qiao Yan separated the post of Shaofu from the Ministry of Works and made Huang Yueying an official there, her work has become much busier. But because of the orderly birth and construction of this new department, there was a sense of confidence in her eyes.
Seeing Fu Shou and the others turn their eyes to her, she continued, "We speak with facts."
What is the fact?
"Take cotton as an example. General Xu brought it back to Bingzhou from overseas and studied in detail how to keep it alive. The one who supervised the cotton fields was a woman."
That was done by Qin Yu under the instruction of Qiao Yan.
Jia Xu was there to look after him for a while, but that happened later.
"We have made a lot of contributions in picking cotton and stripping cotton seeds."
"The improvement of cotton into silk thread and weaving into cloth is also due to women."
The improvement of the cotton weaving machinery was the work of Huang Yueying.
She said in a rare sharp tone: "If the Yecheng court is so disgusted by this kind of yin and yang reversal, it would be better to take off their cotton clothes first, why bother to be such beasts in human clothing!"
"Well said!" The Qiao sisters had just finished their work for the day and came here, and they heard what Huang Yueying said. "Just write it like this."
Who says you have to use such beautiful words to respond?
Your Majesty's pragmatic attitude, which has never changed, should also be reflected in the texts they publish!
And in the city of Chang'an, which was in turmoil due to the additional issue of Leping Monthly in March, it was not just the literati who were good at writing who were taking action.
But don’t forget, there is another piece of news in the monthly report, which is Qiao Yan’s recruitment of military generals.
Zhang He, who was originally stationed in Henei County under the dispatch of Yuan Shao, chose to go to Liangzhou during a meeting with Qiao Yan a few days ago because the Henei garrison could not surrender.
It is time for new people to enter Hanoi.
At this very moment, the imperial court in Yecheng had just issued a manifesto to fight against the rebels. They did not have the ability to write something that would bring honor to His Majesty, but they could impose a military sanction on the enemy!
After a series of tests ranging from military strength to leadership ability, when submissions arrived at Cai Zhaoji like snowflakes, the list of selected generals also appeared in front of Qiao Yan.
The person who ranked first did not surprise Qiao Yan.
Wei Yan.
When Liu Biao asked to be demoted to the position of Governor of Jingzhou, he also sent Wei Yan to Chang'an.
Previously, because he was too reckless and fierce, and as a general recommended by Liu Biao, he was not suitable for rapid promotion, so he was temporarily detained by Qiao Yan and placed under Guanglu Xun as an official.
But Wei Yan was able to carve out a future for himself last year by taking such a risky and life-threatening approach, so he would definitely not miss such an opportunity to advance himself today.
He was not satisfied with being a centurion patrolling around Chang'an City, but hoped to get a chance to make achievements.
Anyway, there is nothing that says that one cannot already hold an official position when recommending himself, so why can't he give it a try?
If successful, he would be one of the garrisons stationed in Hanoi County.
If Your Majesty intends to lead the army in person, it is very likely that he will send troops from Henei and go straight to Weijun. He can also get special merit for fighting with the emperor.
His guess was correct. This gamble made Qiao Yan, who was not so short of generals at the time, pay more attention to the cultivation of Wei Yan.
When he successfully won the first place, he was given the title of Henei Commander and led 3,000 Guanzhong defenders to Henei to meet with Cao Cao and be under the command of the General of Chariots and Cavalry.
Among the generals traveling with him, there was one who was ranked second in the front row. He was from Dongjun, Yanzhou, named Pan Zhang.
This one of the great Jiang Biao ministers in history was not from Xu Yang's territory, but was a person from the north. After changing his position on leaving Yanzhou, he immediately went to Chang'an, and happened to encounter such an opportunity, so he directly participated in the selection.
"One of these two men is ambitious and rebellious, and the other has a wild temperament. Your Majesty has really posed a big problem for Cao Mengde." Huangfu Song, who served as the judge of this selection, saw the strengths and weaknesses of Wei Yan and Pan Zhang clearly, and said to Qiao Yan when he sent them away from Chang'an.
Qiao Yan shook his head and smiled, "It's a problem, but if he can't even suppress these two, he wouldn't deserve to be called Cao Mengde."
This is what it means to make the best use of one's talents.
After all, if such a combination is placed in Henei County, the one who will have a headache will be Yuan Shao, not her.
After filling this last gap, she can focus all her energy on this battle of public opinion!
I don’t know how Yuan Shao felt when he found out that the manifesto was being publicized in this way.
The existence of the Leping Monthly Report had caused an extremely deep psychological trauma to Yuan Shao, so much so that when his subordinates hurriedly delivered this thing to him, Yuan Shao almost wanted to have it sent away immediately if they had not told him what was on it first.
When Liu Bian read out the manifesto in such a passionate tone that day, Yuan Shao received direct benefits.
For example, Kong Wenju of Beihai rushed straight to Ye from Qingzhou, swore allegiance to Liu Bian with tears, and was determined to defend the dignity of the Han Dynasty at the cost of his life. If he was required to issue a denunciation to Qiao Yan, he could also write it.
In the circle of celebrities who support the Han Dynasty, this can be considered a good story.
For example, Yuan Shao's previous defeats in losing Yanzhou, Yuzhou and Henei and Xu You's well-founded attack on him were temporarily suppressed by the Han emperor's condemnation of Dayong.
But before Yuan Shao could rejoice for long, he received this shocking news.
He didn't have to worry about how much trouble the manifesto would cause if officials from various prefectures and counties blocked it, because Qiao Yan had already published it in the Leping Monthly as a joke.
With the amazing printing capacity, the number of copies of this thing can even be counted in hundreds of thousands.
But why did she seem to not mind at all the impact this thing would have on her authority, nor was she worried at all that the existence of this thing would shake her rule?
Instead, it was as if he was showing a meaningless greeting from the enemy, and he just put it in the monthly report in a dignified manner. Then, he launched a campaign to collect manuscripts and generals from his own rule.
Such terrifying self-confidence caused Yuan Shao's already shaky confidence to suffer unprecedented destruction at this moment.
He tightly grasped the monthly report in his hand and asked the person who brought it to him in a stern voice, "What are the performances in various places right now?"
"We bought this from Luoyang." The visitor replied, "I heard that Luoyang had to print more copies before sending them. As for Chang'an..."
In order to make a response to Yuan Shao, one must first know what he wrote. Therefore, almost everyone in Chang'an had a copy of the Leping Monthly Report.
Then——
"Within two days, the submission office was forced to open an extra warehouse."
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