Yan Shu said with a smile.
In the morning, the reorganization of the Constitutional Yuan was already on the agenda. Cai Qi and Song Shou pretended to write a letter to express their intention to resign and be laid off.
After all, the court now has regulations that the three-year probation period for prefectures and counties and below is still the same as before. That is, after serving as a prefect or county magistrate for three years, he should be transferred to another place. This is also to prevent the prefect or county magistrate from colluding with local forces and becoming corrupt.
Those above the rank of prefecture were considered senior officials, subject to a five-year term. This included the heads of the five departments, such as the transport commissioners and pacification commissioners, as well as the heads of the more than 50 departments under the Constitutional System Yuan, all of whom served a five-year term.
The Constitutional Yuan is an exception, allowing two terms, totaling ten years.
However, Zhao Zhen announced on the spot that Zhao Jun, the Minister of the Court, was not subject to term limits and could continue to serve, which caused a stir in the court and the public, and many officials complained.
Although Zhao Jun was supported by the entire Political System Council and their affiliated forces, he also had many younger brothers, such as Li Di, Xia Song, Yang Cha, Yang Gao, Zhao Pin, Chen Xiliang, etc., who had great influence in the court and the country.
But even when Ding Wei was in power, there were still countless people who opposed him, not to mention Zhao Jun, who was not a Jinshi and was not a dark horse who rose from a lower-level official.
It sounds comfortable to reach the top overnight, but you also have to bear the jealousy, envy, and dissatisfaction of countless people.
So, while Zhao Jun may have seemed to have had smooth sailing over the past decade, many people, both within and outside the government, were watching. If he hadn't been careful, countless people would have filed petitions to impeach him. If it weren't for the resolute stance of the many chancellors in the Constitutional Council and Zhao Zhen, he would have been out of office long ago.
"Uncle Lari, what you said shows that you, an old comrade, still have a low level of awareness. The government and the people have given me this position. All I have to do is serve the government, the Song Dynasty, and the people. How can you say that I am the executive vice emperor?"
Zhao Jun narrowed his eyes and took a sip of the old cadre tea, his cunning eyes like a little fox.
He has been in the officialdom for so many years, and has learned for so long from Lu Yijian, an old fox with rich experience in officialdom struggles. He must have gained a lot of wisdom.
"You're still trying to be cunning in front of me. We're both very close, so is there any need to be so official?"
Yan Shu smiled and teased.
Ever since Lu Yijian and Wang Zeng were laid off, he has now implicitly replaced Lu Yijian's position and is only second to Zhao Jun. Naturally, the two of them don't have so many concerns when talking to each other.
After all, Yan Shu's political attitude has always been very clear, which is to be a political tumbler, impartial, and stand in the absolute middle position.
Moreover, no matter what policy Zhao Jun implemented, he would fully support it, so there was naturally no need for him to be an outsider.
As the two were talking, the official on duty from the Constitutional Court hurried in and said, "Minister, Vice-Minister, northwest battle report: our army has captured Qingtang, Hezhuo Luo and Nan, and Li Yuanhao is now leading his troops back to defend it."
"oh?"
Zhao Jun took the battle report from the official, opened it and glanced at it. This was Han Qi's memorial, explaining the current situation in the northwest to the Political System Council.
"Han Qi was very anxious. I heard he even personally arrived at the front lines to observe the battle and urged the soldiers to fight bravely."
Yan Shu came over.
Zhao Jun laughed and said, "The Constitutional Council is about to be reorganized. How could he not be anxious? But there's no place for him. Even if someone recommended him, I wouldn't agree. He's not good at fighting, but he's a good hand at politics. However, his qualifications are too poor. What the Constitutional Council needs is a group of mature and steady people."
This statement is also obvious, meaning that the Constitutional Yuan needs a group of old men.
It’s not that Zhao Jun suppresses young people, but that he needs to consider his own interests.
The rejuvenation of the Constitutional Yuan is a good thing, but the younger it is, the more it shows that it has its own political views.
Like the New Party of the Qingli New Deal, and later Wang Anshi, Lu Huiqing and others, they were all in their thirties and forties. They became prime ministers at a young age and then carried out drastic reforms.
If they entered the Constitutional Council and had their own political ideas that were contrary to Zhao Jun's, it would obviously cause instability within the Constitutional Council.
So it is easier to control a group of old men.
The old man is no longer motivated to carry out reforms due to his age, so the Constitutional Yuan naturally becomes Zhao Jun's one-man show.
Although doing so may seem to suppress dissidents, it is often necessary to do so in order to safeguard one's own political interests, otherwise it may lead to the loss of political power.
And this is already the most moderate way. Compared with later Western political elections, Mark Twain's "Running for Governor" can be considered a legitimate campaign tactic.
What's more, Zhao Jun is now engaged in strongman politics, using strong means to develop the country. He will definitely not promote some obstacles to cause trouble for himself. Therefore, when the Constitutional Council selects the prime minister, he must personally review it.
Yan Shu naturally understood what he meant and smiled, saying, "In that case, just take good care of yourself."
"Now that our strategic mission in the northwest has been completed, we've seized such a large area of Xixia's land. Xixia should be feeling the pain. From now on, let Han Qi guard the northwest well."
Zhao Jun thought for a moment, then said, "Starting this year, have Han Qi crack down on smugglers in the northwest, severing all trade with Western Xia and imposing severe sanctions on them. No Western merchants are allowed to trade with them. Within the next few years, I will paralyze the Western Xia economy and cause them to collapse internally."
After planning for so long, the truth has finally been revealed today.
Both the Western Xia and Liao states were heavily focused on developing their military, and their entire economies were controlled by the Song. Now, with economic sanctions in place, their herders were deprived of their sources of tea and ironware, and their cattle and sheep, unable to be sold, would freeze to death when winter came.
By then, the entire grassland will be in economic collapse. It will probably not be long before the Song Dynasty will not even need to intervene, and the Western Xia and Liao will fall into civil strife, making it easy for the Song Dynasty to defeat and capture them.
(End of this chapter)
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