Chu Fan said to Liu Ruyan, "Miss Liu, please wait a moment while I arrange some things."
Chu Fan turned to Eunuch Li and ordered in a serious tone, "Little Li, immediately send for Third Uncle and Chu Anping from the Imperial Affairs Office. Also summon the ministers of the six ministries to the Imperial Study. I need to make thorough arrangements and plans in advance for the governance of Wei's potential future territorial expansion."
Eunuch Li naturally obeyed Chu Fan's order immediately, even though it was almost dusk. However, His Majesty said that he wanted them to discuss matters in the Imperial Study, so Eunuch Li would go and call the person His Majesty wanted to see even in the middle of the night.
Liu Ruyan watched as Chu Fan, who had just been talking peacefully, suddenly issued an order, demanding that members of the imperial family and the six ministers of government come to the emperor immediately. She couldn't help but wonder, could an emperor really summon his subjects so arbitrarily?
Liu Ruyan asked Chu Fan with a puzzled look, "Your Majesty, your actions don't seem appropriate, do they? By now, most officials should have finished their work for the day and returned home to rest.
Isn't it a bit too demanding that you suddenly summon them to the palace at this time? Your Majesty, aren't you worried that such an action will make the members of the royal family and the ministers of the court dissatisfied with you?
Facing Liu Ruyan's question, Chu Fan calmly glanced at the sky and replied, "As the ruler of a country, I will naturally have things to do tomorrow. But if a problem can be solved today, why not choose to solve it today?
Besides, I won't take up too much of their time. Although it may take some time for Third Uncle to get to the palace from his ancestral land, the offices where the six ministers and Chu Anping of the Royal Government Affairs Office work are near the palace, so they will be here soon.
After hearing Chu Fan's words, Liu Ruyan could only sigh deeply. She spoke slowly, her voice filled with helplessness, "In our Canglan Empire, it's extremely difficult to summon all the ministers after the morning court session.
After all, our Canglan Empire is ruled by an empress. Many ministers would avoid meeting with the empress alone to avoid suspicion and to avoid unnecessary rumors. They would usually choose to have the empress announce anything in front of everyone at court the next day.
Chu Fan was momentarily unsure how to respond after hearing Liu Ruyan's words. He pondered silently: Historically, it wasn't uncommon for empresses to keep male favorites. It was understandable that ministers used this excuse to avoid involvement in palace affairs.
However, if she could not get the opportunity to meet with the ministers in person, it would be much more difficult for the empress to cultivate her own confidants. And if all matters had to be discussed in public, it would be almost impossible to create a rift among the ministers who were once united.
Chu Fan continued, "But in our Wei Kingdom, such a situation will never happen. Because I have clearly stated that if they are unwilling to obey my orders, then they can choose to rebel and overthrow my rule, or ask the royal ancestors to convene a clan meeting to remove me from the position of emperor."
"If they dare not take action, then they should respectfully obey my order. Moreover, the ministers have already rested at the time you just mentioned. It is not the time to rest in Wei.
If an official leaves his post without authorization and without providing any reasonable excuse, he will face severe punishment. I will not tolerate any laxity or irresponsible behavior.
"These ministers must understand that the Ministry of Revenue has accumulated sufficient funds due to the collection of commercial taxes, and the salaries of court ministers have also been increased accordingly. In addition, the distribution of refined salt has benefited almost every minister in the court.
Under such circumstances, if there are still court ministers who leave their posts without permission, it is undoubtedly a disrespect for their positions and an irresponsibility for state affairs. Such behavior shows that they are no longer qualified to hold a seat at court."
Liu Ruyan was once again in shock after hearing Chu Fan's words, her heart filled with disbelief. She realized that in the Wei Kingdom, the emperor's power could reach such an extreme level. This was in stark contrast to her experience in the Canglan Empire.
In the Canglan Empire, although her mother, as the empress, possessed extremely high authority, every decision her mother made had to be discussed and checked by all officials, and she had to act cautiously to avoid causing unnecessary political turmoil.
Yet, in the State of Wei, Chu Fan's words were law, absolute authority that no one dared to question or disobey. If Liu Ruyan hadn't experienced it all firsthand, witnessed Chu Fan's style of rule, and stayed by his side, she would never have believed that an emperor could be so domineering as to directly order disobedient ministers to rebel, or to have the patriarch of the royal family convene a clan meeting, or even to depose the emperor himself. All of this was simply unbelievable to her.
At this time, Liu Xueyu asked with a somewhat curious tone: "Brother Chu Fan, since you have already summoned all the six ministers, then shouldn't you also call the Prime Minister of Wei and Prime Minister Qin to discuss this matter together?"
Chu Fan replied, "Prime Minister Qin, I have already instructed him to handle some important matters. He is busy with these matters now, so please do not disturb him for the time being. Let him handle the matters at hand with peace of mind."
Liu Xueyu didn't say much about Chu Fan's response, simply nodding in understanding. After all, Chu Fan was a far-sighted emperor, possessing his own unique methods and principles for running the court and managing officials. She knew Chu Fan's wisdom and abilities well, so naturally, she wouldn't question his arrangements.
In fact, the reason why Chu Fan did not inform Qin Hui was because of Chu Anping's words. Chu Fan also thought that the name Qin Hui was unlucky, so Chu Fan had always kept Qin Hui out of all important matters.
In addition, the work of compiling textbooks is indeed very important, because it concerns countless people in the entire Wei State and his own hope of completing the system tasks.
Another important reason was that, even without any other purpose, Chu Fan was not prepared to give up on education. He knew that education was the foundation of a country. Only by cultivating more talents could the people be enlightened and the State of Wei truly become strong. Therefore, he always placed great importance on education.
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