The sky was not bright yet, so Chao Cuo sat down anxiously, feeling restless.
Han Xin sat in the upper seat and looked through the documents on the case wantonly. After looking at it for a few times, he threw it on the ground and picked up another one.
Chao Cuo was in a panic at the moment.
No matter who it was, he was suddenly woken up by a soldier in the middle of the night and said that the Taiwei was here. He probably looked like him. He had long heard that the Taiwei had an irregular schedule and often stayed up late to study. Unexpectedly, it was almost dawn, and he actually
I am still interested in coming here to look for books to read. If someone else came to visit on this day, Chao Cuo would insist on letting him know what kind of power the Three Dukes of the Han Dynasty had, but if the Taiwei did this, then Chao Cuo would have nothing to say.
No, it can only be done overnight to prepare food and drink.
As for Chao Cuo, he was not afraid of death. In order to accomplish some things he wanted to do, he could even openly contradict the emperor without taking his own life seriously.
In today's Chang'an, there are two people who can really scare Chao Cuo.
The first one is of course the old woman from Changle Palace, and the second one is Han Xin.
Because the two of them are different from the emperor, Chao Cuo has followed Liu Chang for many years. He knows his majesty very well. He does things not for himself, but for the world, and his majesty will never execute him because he is dedicated to public service.
In other words, it is the same with the Queen Mother who interrupts his process. The Queen Mother may kill herself, but she is a very smart person. She can understand the pros and cons of her approach, so even if she kills herself, she will still keep herself.
The idea may still be pursued.
Only this lieutenant. How should I put it? Outside of war, he is even less reliable than the emperor. He will kill himself and interrupt all his government affairs because he probably doesn’t understand his own policies.
What an impact it can have.
The reason why Chao Cuo was afraid of Han Xin was because he despised him.
He believed that Han Xin was far inferior to the emperor and the queen mother in terms of governance and overall situation, and he should not be resented by this man. This man was young and strong among the founding ministers. Who knows how long he could live. If he was resented by him, he would die and the government would cease.
At least ten years later, the ideas I left behind will not be taken seriously by the temple.
The Taiwei obviously didn't know Chao Cuo's inner thoughts, but he was quite happy to see that Chao Cuo, who had always been lawless, was quite frightened towards him.
In fact, the Taiwei and a certain emperor are highly similar in character. They are both confident and arrogant, look down on others, like to listen to flattery, like to show their holiness in front of others, are not restrained by etiquette, speak arrogantly, etc., such terrible and despicable characters
,same.
Han Xin casually looked through what Chao Cuo had written recently, then picked up a few of them and put them directly into his sleeves.
Chao Cuo was stunned.
Your Majesty still came to steal anyway, you obviously robbed it, right?
Han Xin obviously didn't intend to give him any explanation, but just asked: "Are all your recent articles here?"
Chao Cuo nodded hurriedly, "They're all here, they're all here."
"Teacher, didn't you take two petitions back to the inner room for revision last night?"
Zhang Tang suddenly asked.
Chao Cuo's words stopped abruptly, and just as he was about to speak, the Taiwei waved his hand and ordered Zhang Tang: "Go and bring that letter back!"
Zhang Tang ran out in a hurry.
"What is the use of these, Lieutenant?"
Chao Cuo asked cautiously.
Han Xin did not answer, but just said: "This Zhuzi stayed up most of the night and came to disturb me. He insisted that I find a way for him to weigh the situation of the place. This Zhuzi is getting even more outrageous!"
Ah, yes, yes.
Chao Cuo nodded and said with deep understanding: "Indeed, Your Majesty visited us in the middle of the night without knocking on the door, and then robbed someone after entering. His behavior is like a robber, and he should be remonstrated!"
"Don't worry, I will advise him well and let him stop acting like this. However, you seem to have the answers to the problems he is worried about. You are good. I am still thinking about how to solve it. I just saw it.
After reading the article you wrote, you are still very considerate about the governorship and the division of power. Yes, since your majesty has entrusted such a matter to me, I must go all out to solve this problem for your majesty. Therefore
, before dawn, you must come up with a solution to this matter, otherwise I will kill you."
Chao Cuo was stunned.
Han Xin said earnestly: "I still value you. Among the people in the temple, you are the only one who can come up with solutions. Zhang Cang can do things well, but it is not good for him to make decisions. Your ideas are very unique.
, can always come up with something that others dare not think of, and it is very feasible. Now is the era of great governance, it is even more necessary for all officials to unite together. We, the three princes, must unite as one and work together to serve the king.
This time, you and I have joined forces to handle this matter, and I will personally take credit for you!"
"Do you understand?!"
"Yi! Yui!"
Chao Cuo said, but there was a different kind of light in his eyes. Originally, he was not planning to do anything during this period, but now that the Taiwei took the initiative to find him and put on the Taiwei's skin, then he would dare
Go and do something.
The Taiwei saw through his thoughts at a glance and said coldly: "I will be by your side the whole time. If you dare to abuse my name and seek personal gain, I will kill you first!"
"Don't dare!"
"Okay, don't waste time, tell me what you think!"
Zhang Tang walked in with the watch and handed it to the captain. He obediently sat behind Chao Cuo. Chao Cuo cursed at him: "Get out!"
The Taiwei was dissatisfied, "This kid is quite sensible. Is he your disciple? It would be great to let him learn from you, so why kick him out?"
Chao Cuo was speechless and slowly spoke his thoughts.
"The Shou, Cheng, and Wei divide the power of the current county guards. The Shou governs the people, the Cheng guards the prison, and the Wei is in charge of military affairs. They are not in control of each other. The temple dispatches the governor to supervise, and the local officials responsible for financial power are all collected in the temple and become the Shaofu.
The officials are not subject to local control. For the kings, the three princes should be abolished, and the nine ministers should not be permanently established. The prime minister should be the guard, the court should be the prime minister, and the doctor should be the lieutenant.
It’s really inappropriate for you to be one level above the counties and counties.”
"Oh, the financial power is taken back to the temple, and the military power, security power, and governance power are separated? Then appoint a governor who does nothing but can check and balance them in name. You continue to talk!"
Han Xin sat in the upper seat with great interest, listening to Chao Cuo explain his huge idea.
Chao Cuo seemed to want to make a huge change to the entire official system of the Han Dynasty. According to Chao Cuo, the official system of the Han Dynasty was a bit too huge. The powers of officials overlapped with each other. It all depended on the ability of the official.
No matter how capable he is, he said that the censor he serves as has no clear division of responsibilities. If he encounters someone who is weak, he can only be responsible for supervision. If he encounters someone who is more ruthless, he is almost as good as the Prime Minister, and he is an official of Jiuqing.
This is also true. This is of course beneficial to the performance of some outstanding officials. Talented people can shine in any official position, but the disadvantages are also great. The emperor is strong, and it can still make all the governments cooperate properly and work together. Once Liu is
If an emperor like Ying comes to power, a big problem will arise. It would be strange if the ministers don't bite each other to death for those overlapping powers.
Therefore, reforms should start from the temple, clarify the division of responsibilities, and then go down to the local level to stipulate what everyone can, should do, and cannot do.
Chao Cuo wanted to weaken the highly developed human-governed society of the Han Dynasty, so that those who govern the country have laws to follow and cannot follow their own ideas.
This is contrary to the current theme of the Han Dynasty. The Han people admire this free governance method, especially those who use low-level officials to accomplish great things, imprison their bosses, and bully their colleagues. Such people are called famous ministers.
In the words of later generations, this was the unique romance of the Han Dynasty.
In the later dynasties, a county magistrate arrived at the place and swept across the country. He openly reprimanded the county guard and imprisoned his right and left hand directly. If he did not obey the emperor's edict, he would be executed first and then punished. The nine tribes would definitely be punished, but in the case of the Han Dynasty,
Then people today will say, this is a very capable and famous official. If he whips the governor as a county magistrate, he will not be condemned at all, and he can gain the reputation of being a capable official!
Not only for officials, but even among the people, the custom was so lax. In later dynasties, if someone insulted your parents or teachers and you said something wrong, you would kill the person or even wipe out his whole family. Then you deserve to be punished.
If you take off your clothes, you will be the most wanted criminal. If caught, you will be beheaded. Even for the sake of your filial piety, you will have to be imprisoned for twenty or thirty years. But in the Han Dynasty, if it is no big deal, just kill it and everyone will applaud you.
, then people will rush to protect you and hide you. As long as they don’t meet a special official, they will not deliberately arrest you. Maybe the official will feel your filial piety, give up arresting you, and simply resign and wait for a few years.
, if you receive amnesty, you can grow up brightly and your reputation will be very good.
Strong people generally have individual personalities. Without their own individuality, they cannot be gregarious.
This kind of romance is simply a disaster for Legalists like Chao Cuo!
How can you not act according to the rules?! Who gave you the power to enforce the law?!
Therefore, Chao Cuo must first rectify these disobedient ministers and officials, and then start rectifying this lawless atmosphere among the people!
It doesn't matter, Lieutenant, as long as you can handle the matter of having a long hair.
In the following days, the first person to arrive was Hexi King Liu Xiang.
As Liu Ying's eldest son, he had been running around at full speed during these days. It was just because the place was too far away that he didn't arrive in Chang'an until now.
Liu Xiang got out of the carriage crying. After seeing the three father-in-laws in front of him, he couldn't bear it anymore. He threw himself into their arms and started crying helplessly.
Liu Xiang is no longer the child he was before. He has already married. However, in front of his three father-in-laws, he does not have the dignity of a prince. He cries like a child, and Liu Chang pats his back gently.
, Liu Ruyi comforted him gently, and then they led him to the imperial mausoleum. When he saw the main hall covered with clothes, Liu Xiang cried even louder.
When he left here, only his dirty clothes were left.
Qi King Liu Xiang and Chu King Liu Yingke arrived one after another.
Not seeing each other for a long time, Liu Yingke looked more and more like the old Chu king Liu Jiao, especially the beard, which was exactly the same. He was dressed as a scholar and had a graceful demeanor. He lowered his head and sighed several times, but did not shed tears. As for Qi King Liu Xiang,
He started crying as soon as he got off the car and visited many of his father-in-law. Liu Chang was a little unhappy. The way he covered his face and cried seemed a bit hypocritical in Liu Chang's opinion. If he couldn't cry, he would just sigh like the King of Chu.
, why do you have to act like this?!
However, in front of so many brothers Youzi, Liu Chang still saved some face for him and did not reprimand him in person.
Liu Xiang did not go to Liu Chang for good or bad reasons. After arriving in Chang'an, after paying homage, he went to see Liu Zhang, King of Chengyang, without stopping.
Although Liu Zhang was a prince, he had been in Chang'an for a long time. He was the only official among the princes and was deeply trusted by Liu Chang.
However, his residence in Chang'an did not look like the scale that a royal palace should have. It was just an ordinary courtyard. The short courtyard walls could not even protect Liu Ci. The ground was full of dust. Liu Xiang was shocked.
Looking at the somewhat twisted wooden door, I walked into the courtyard and couldn't help but cover my face with silk, but refused to go in. I just shouted: "Zhang!! Zhang??"
"Brother?"
Liu Zhang ran out of the house, slurring his words, swallowed the food in his mouth, rushed to Liu Xiang's side, and gave his brother a hug.
Liu Xiang laughed. After a long time, he let go of his brother and looked at him. He couldn't help but frown. At this moment, Liu Zhang looked very shabby. The clothes on his body were actually patched, and there were no patches on them.
In the manner of a prince, Liu Xiang asked in surprise: "I wonder what happened to you in Chang'an? Why didn't you write to tell me?"
"You are the king of the Han Dynasty, why are you like this!!"
Seeing his brother's surprised look, Liu Zhang shook his head, "I hold an important position, so it's better to keep a low profile. If you are too ostentatious, it will be detrimental to things."
With that said, he invited his brother into the house, and the two sat facing each other. Liu Xiang had so many followers that the courtyard could not be crowded, so Liu Zhang had no choice but to visit the surrounding neighbors and let these people stay at the neighbor's house for a while.
Liu Xiang looked even more surprised when she saw Liu Zhang running around for this matter, "Zhang, they all say that you are favored by Father Zhong and are so powerful in Chang'an. How can you be like this?
"
Liu Zhang rubbed his face, "What's wrong with me looking like this?"
"No. Your courtyard is ungrateful."
Liu Xiang lowered his head. His clothes were quite luxurious. Even though they were mourning clothes, they were different from ordinary mourning clothes. Judging from the dress and temperament of the two brothers, they were completely different. Liu Zhang looked different from that country man at the moment.
Farmers in the fields are no different.
"I knew it. Because of what happened to my father, Father Zhong doesn't have a good impression of our family."
Hearing Liu Xiang's words, Liu Zhang suddenly frowned.
Liu Xiang ate with him, but the food was not to King Qi's taste. King Qi ate the mediocre food and kept shaking his head, "You eat these things every day, these things."
, the servants who raise horses for me don’t even eat them!!”
Liu Zhang just replied: "This food is not simple. Brother, you have to eat it carefully to taste it."
Liu Xiang just took a few more mouthfuls, but he couldn't eat anymore. He looked at his brother and said seriously: "I have something very important to see you for."
"Brother is here because of Dong Chi's matter."
"good!!"
Liu Xiang gritted his teeth and said, "Dong Chi is an old man who bullies others too much. He has repeatedly reprimanded me in front of the ministers for some unworthy charges. He is in cahoots with Chao Cuo in the temple. I can no longer stand him.
Yes, I know you are in charge of Xiuyi Mansion. We, King Qi, have three kings. I am in the east, Yan is in the west, and you are in the middle. Why are you being bullied like this?"
"You have to help me get rid of this old man Dong Chi!"
"Also, people around me said that when I come to Chang'an this time, Chao Cuo will find a way to deal with me. I don't dare to go anywhere else. You have to arrange a place for me."
Liu Zhang just ate the food in front of him and still didn't answer.
Liu Xiang talked about the grievances he suffered in Qi State and the county guards who became more and more unruly. "After the county was abolished and turned into a county, those county guards thought they could be on an equal footing with me. I am a high-ranking official."
The emperor’s eldest grandson!! The whole world belongs to our family, yet they dare to write a letter saying that my horse farm occupies too much space and affects farming? Do they want me to throw away my horse farm for the sake of farmland?! This is unreasonable!
"
"Brother, it is true that you are the eldest grandson of Emperor Gao, but this name cannot be mentioned every day."
Liu Zhang said, put down the chopsticks in his hand, and said seriously: "You'd better go to Zhongfu now, tell him his behavior, and then ask Zhongfu to punish him. Although Zhongfu doesn't like his elder brother, he respects him very much.
Father, for my sake, I won’t even deal with you.”
"What?? I'm going to plead guilty?? What sin do I have?!"
Liu Xiang was furious, but he could not express his anger towards his younger brother. He was very disappointed when he looked at his younger brother who was wearing simple clothes and eating wheat rice in front of him.
"Oh, you have stayed in Chang'an for too long, and you have fallen to this point. I have to take you back to Chengyang Kingdom, and if you stay here any longer, you will be ruined!!"
Just as Liu Zhang was about to speak, a servant suddenly walked in from outside the door.
"Where is King Qi?"
Liu Xiang was shocked and hurriedly bowed to see him and said respectfully: "I am here."
"Your Majesty wants to see you, why are you hiding here? Come back with me!"
The attendant said seriously, not taking the king seriously at all. King Qi did not dare to disobey, but nodded cautiously.
Liu Zhang stood up and said to his attendant: "I am having dinner with King Qi. After dinner, I will take him to the palace."
The attendant was stunned. Facing this unattractive King of Chengyang, he did not dare to be arrogant anymore and said bitterly: "Your Majesty, this is your Majesty's order."
"I know. When you go back and tell His Majesty the truth, just say that he is eating at my place and we will go together after eating."
"Yi!! Yui!!"
The attendant left here in a hurry.
Liu Xiang looked at his younger brother at a loss and felt confused.
"Brother, come and eat. You think this rice is vulgar, but I think it is very precious, because your Majesty sent someone to deliver this wheat rice. He knew that I had worked hard for several days without eating, so he sent someone specially
I brought a meal and let me rest for a day."
"Given by Father Zhong???"
Liu Xiang sat in front of him in astonishment, and Liu Zhang smiled and put the rice into his mouth.
"How do you feel now?"
"Sure enough. Savor it carefully, it has a unique taste."
"Okay, next, let's talk about your confession. Do you still think about how Chao Cuo will deal with you? Let me tell you the truth, as for the things you did, Chao Cuo didn't need to take action. If it weren't for my father's