Chapter 62 Renzong Chapter 4 Fan Gong upholds the government and works hard to support it
Chapter 2187 Renzong Chapter 4 Fan Gong upholds the government and works hard to support it
"Fan Xiwen is going back to Beijing!"
In the late spring of the sixth year of Zhengtong, there were a lot of similar emotions and discussions in the Imperial Capital of Han Dynasty. It was not until the emperor arrived in Beijing that things barely calmed down. Apparently, the real emotion of the dignitaries in the imperial capital was: Fan Xiwen was going to be the minister.
It was not a long journey from Jiangling to the north. Fan Zhongyan walked for more than a month. The key was not the time, but the mood during the journey. You know, every time in the past, he heard the king's call.
He traveled day and night, rushed to the capital, and reported his duties faithfully.
And this time, in addition to the reserve of a civil servant, a veteran minister, and a famous official, there is also the hesitation and anxiety in his heart, which may be a bit hypocritical, but if he doesn't value and cherish it from the bottom of his heart, why would he be like this?
On the way back to the north, the bureaucrats and dignitaries swarmed up along the road like flies smelling honey. Fan Zhongyan could not stop him or move them out of the way. It was extremely annoying.
Even though he was unmoved, Fan Zhongyan was also exhausted mentally and physically, because he understood deeply that no matter how diligent and kind these faces are now, they might be ferocious and terrifying in the future.
Traveling all the way north, when they arrived at Longmenyi, south of Luojing, people had already traveled dozens of miles from Beijing to greet them... It was also at Longmenyi that Fan Zhongyan received a piece of bad news and a death report. His close friend Teng Zongliang,
He died of illness on the way to Suzhou to take office.
Teng Zongliang, also known as Zijing, was also a Jinshi in the second year of Duangong. Under the halo of Fan Zhongyan, Yan Shu, Cai Qi and others, he was not so outstanding, and he could only be regarded as a follower of Fan Zhongyan.
In his early years, Fan Zhongyan shouldered a heavy responsibility for the first time and was arranged by Emperor Sejong to go to Huaidong to preside over the construction of coastal dikes. Teng Zongliang assisted him as an assistant. Fan Zhongyan was later promoted to the salt and iron envoy, presiding over the rectification and reform of salt affairs. Teng Zongliang also served as a judge and assisted according to orders.
He concentrates on his work and achieves great results.
After that, he held many positions, and was promoted and demoted many times because of Fan Zhongyan's relationship. No matter where he was, he was praised for his integrity, self-reliance, diligence and love for the people. His most recent outstanding political achievement was in Yuezhou
Although Yueyang Tower was not rebuilt when he took office in Hubei Province, Fan Zhongyan still mentioned Teng Zongliang's achievements in governing Yueyang in "The Story of Yueyang Tower"...
Teng Zongliang was not only a close friend to Fan Zhongyan, but also a comrade. Receiving such bad news at the critical moment of entering Beijing was a serious blow to Fan Zhongyan.
Even if his ambition to serve the country has long been as solid as iron and stone, it is inevitable to feel sad about it. On this spring rainy night, while crying, Fan Zhongyan wrote a new poem - "Die Lianhua·Sleep at Longmen".
Fan Zhongyan was not only a politician, a capable official in the imperial court, but also a writer. For a long time after he became an official, his literary talent was not that obvious, but his many articles, poems, political commentaries, etc. that have been circulated in the world
Most of his works were completed after he was fifty years old.
The occurrence of such a situation is obviously related to the political environment and social background of Fan Zhongyan. You must know that Fan Zhongyan has been in the most prosperous period of the Han Empire from a boy to a young man, especially the Yongxi Era, which is the most pure and bright period in the empire.
, he was first grateful to Emperor Taizong, and then determined to become a young man. It can be said that this was the beginning of his life's ideals and pursuits.
When Shizong succeeded to the throne, Fan Zhongyan became a Jinshi and became an official. Fortunately, he was valued and promoted by Shizong. He rose rapidly in the past twenty years and was busy with national affairs, and even gradually became a prominent figure among the common people's bureaucrats.
It can be said that the period before the age of fifty was the brightest and most valuable period of Fan Zhongyan's life. He devoted his whole life to the country and the people, and this continued until he took office in Longyou.
And that period was precisely a turning point in Emperor Sejong's twenty-seven-year reign. Due to the early death of Prince Jangde, a series of struggles over heir apparents and political struggles led to chaos in the government and turbid morals. Such a situation also
Obviously, it is more likely to arouse the emotion and worry of a loyal and benevolent person like Fan Zhongyan.
When Emperor Shizong died and the young emperor Liu Weizhen succeeded to the throne, the Han Empire truly entered a turning point at its peak. He saw the relapse of the weak ministers and bad governance in the Luojing court, and saw the empire slipping downhill.
Under such a background, Fan Zhongyan's full talent and loyalty, accompanied by a pot of sorrowful wine, can often be turned into a mellow poem.
The emperor obviously had high hopes for Fan Zhongyan's return, and he was very considerate in his courtesy. When he learned that Fan Zhongyan was approaching the capital, he specially sent Shi Quanbin, the leader of the chamberlain, to lead the imperial guards and meet him ten miles out of the city with a guard of honor.
Facing this kind encounter, it is impossible not to be moved. The more important point is that even though he was hesitant about Emperor Liu Weizhen, after all this battle, he still gained some confidence.
And Liu Weizhen really paid attention to Fan Zhongyan. After entering the city, he specially arranged for him to bathe and change clothes in the royal bath in the Han Palace. He also gave him a purple gold robe and a Hotan jade crown, and personally received him in Chongzheng Hall.
For this meeting, the emperor at least paid enough attention to it in person, and beforehand, Fan Zhongyan also prepared a lot of good advice and wanted to report it to Liu Weizhen.
However, the meeting between the emperor and his ministers did not last long, at least they did not discuss national affairs for long. After some polite questioning, Emperor Liu Weizhen formally issued an edict, appointing Fan Zhongyan as the Minister of the Han Dynasty and in charge of national affairs.
On the contrary, at the royal banquet later, Liu Weizhen talked a lot when talking about eating and drinking. This situation made Fan Zhongyan feel extremely uncomfortable. Liu Weizhen was not unaware of Fan Zhongyan's temper, and he also knew that such behavior would cause dissatisfaction with the old husband.
, perhaps, he just wanted to express his attitude through this method. I leave the state affairs to you, so don’t disturb me with other mundane matters.
In fact, Liu Weizhen already respected Fan Zhongyan enough. You know, in order to meet him, Liu Weizhen even shied away from a spring outing with his concubine. Liu Weizhen was obviously a romantic emperor. In the current Han Palace, not to mention three thousand beauties, three or four
There were always hundreds of concubines, and by the sixth year of Zhengtong, the number of named concubines had reached 37.
Among them, Concubine Han was the most favored, almost rivaling Empress Cao. Concubine Han's background was naturally not simple. She was the grandson of Han Chengjun, Prime Minister of Jianlong.
Now, a hundred years after the empire, after rounds of reshuffles, the empire's nobility class has also undergone earth-shaking changes. The circle of top nobility has become smaller and smaller, and they continue to remain at the center of the empire's power and still have great influence on the country.
There are only a dozen or twenty families left that maintain a strong influence on affairs. They have been selected through the turmoil and changes of a century of history.
The rest, either because they had no successors, because their positions were wrong, or because they made major political mistakes, started to go downhill compared to the Han Empire.
Many once-prominent and heroic families have fallen into silence or even fallen into decline. Some even have only vacant titles. Some families have even begun to sell off their ancestral properties to live off their lives due to poor management.
The arrival of the orthodox era is a blessing for the nobles of the world. Because the repressive power from the imperial power has been greatly reduced, even those fallen nobles can "make a comeback" and "rebuild their family business."
.
Then, a question arises. The orthodox era is the spring of civil servants and the common people. The nobles are also ushering in a revival. So when the cakes are limited, which group of people will the spring of the powerful build on the cold winter?
Woolen cloth?
After Fan Zhongyan became Prime Minister, he initiated a series of reforms (Liang) in many aspects of the empire's politics, economy, military, etc., all aimed at answering this question, although in the end it proved that this question had no solution!
Just a few days after Fan Zhongyan became the prime minister, trouble came to his door. Liu Jizhen, the king of Guangling, broke into the political hall and sued Bao Zheng, the governor of Luoyang, for despising the Tian family, insulting the emperor's uncle, and abusing official power.
, requiring Fan Zhongyan to be dismissed from office and punished
Under the correction of history, Bao Zheng, "Master Bao", still shines with his brilliance in the imperial court. In fact, because of his resume in the Political and Law School, he was a close minister of King Sejong and even had a teacher-student relationship with Emperor Liu Weizhen, which made him
The reputation within the imperial court is even higher than in official history.
At the age of forty-five, he served as the governor of Luoyang. Such a resume is extremely rare in the current Han Empire. You must know that the vast majority of bureaucrats in the world who take the normal promotion route are those
Most of those who are outstanding and have good luck can only achieve the level of ordinary state capital at this age.
Even Fan Zhongyan only became prime minister when he was nearly sixty years old, and it was still under the circumstances of major changes in the court. One can imagine how serious the "aging" among the upper-class dignitaries in the current Han Empire is.
And Bao Zheng, a "young man", quickly gained the reputation of "Bao Qingtian" after he became the governor of Luoyang. Because of two things, he was not afraid of the powerful and asked for orders for the people.
In the context of the strengthening of the rule of law during the Taizong-Sejong dynasties, the litigation profession flourished rapidly across the country, and in Beijing, a group of "big lawyers" who specialized in litigating cases for wealthy families appeared. This group of people can be described as
It can call the wind and rain, and is omnipotent.
However, since Bao Zheng took office as the governor of Luoyang, the "loss rate" of these people has plummeted. Even later, when they heard that Bao Qingtian personally decided the case, they quickly persuaded the "parties" to stop their losses and prioritize it.
King Guangling Liu Jizhen was the fourth son of Emperor Shizong. He was first granted the title of Duke of Guangling. After Liu Weizhen succeeded to the throne, he was promoted to king. Today, among the older generation of the Han clan, there is basically only one King Xu, Liu Yao. He has been the king for nearly three years.
The ten-year Zhongshu Order played a prominent role in the stability of the empire.
After the death of King Liu Zhao of Yan, he assumed the position of Zongzheng again. It was not until a few years ago that he retired from the post of Zhongshu Ling at an advanced age and concentrated on Zongzheng affairs. According to the clan practice, Liu Weizhen appointed his second uncle Liu Jide, King of Anyang, as his Zongzheng.
Shu Ling, however, by the time of Liu Jide, although the authority and role of Zhong Shu Ling was still maintained, it gradually declined due to human relations.
Liu Jizhen regarded his relatives as his disciples and was usually quite peaceful. However, when Fan Zhongyan first became Prime Minister, he caused a disturbance of "trespassing into the hall", and naturally there was a promoter behind it. However, he himself did have a relationship with Bao Zheng.
He complained because his son-in-law was killed by Bao Zheng for smuggling salt and tea, and was sentenced to death in court.
Beforehand, Liu Jizhen also kept his head down due to human feelings, hoping that Bao Zheng could raise a hand and at least save his life. As a result, "Master Bao" was very principled and had no accommodation. Before Liu Jizhen found the emperor, he killed him.
His son-in-law was sentenced to death.
There is another background here. Among the local officials of the Han Empire, only Luoyang and Kaifeng had few cases where death sentences were overturned. This was an extremely important source of authority for the governors of the second government. This was also
As a result, the second government cannot easily impose a death sentence, and it also achieves a check and balance effect.
Therefore, when Bao Zheng's verdict comes into effect, the only one who can save the son-in-law of Prince Guangling is the emperor. However, how can the current emperor challenge the unwritten political rules because of a "junma" with solid evidence of crime?
Returning to Fan Zhongyan, after understanding the cause and effect of the matter, he chose to support Bao Zheng without hesitation. However, facing the unyielding Liu Jizhen, in order to avoid making the scene too unpleasant, he finally invited King Zongzheng Xu Liu Yao out.
, and Liu Jizhen was banned for three months before the matter came to an end.
But this incident also became the beginning of a battle between Fan Xianggong and the unscrupulous nobles and stubborn and powerful conservatives inside and outside the court. Similar incidents occurred one after another throughout Fan Zhongyan's entire reign, and every time, they could
Fan Zhongyan was exhausted mentally and physically.
Fan Zhongyan was a man who was eager to do things and was able to do them. However, when a large part of his energy had to be involved in the internal discord within the court, all his efforts for the Han Empire were left to support him.