On the evening of the first day, all officials who were qualified to attend the morning court received the edict issued by Prince Zhao Run in Chui Gong Hall.
This edict contained only one simple sentence: From the next day, the morning court will be postponed to Mao hour.
Regarding this edict, the officials in the court who received the news did not feel much at all. At most, they thought that His Highness the Crown Prince was a 'very thoughtful' Highness. Who would have thought that His Highness the Crown Prince would issue it after he became the Crown Prince?
The first edict was to postpone the morning court?
Logically speaking, at this sensitive time, as the newly ascended Crown Prince, shouldn't he issue some edicts that can stabilize people's hearts?
For example, the handling of Qing Wang Hongxin’s rebellion.
After just one stick of incense, Emperor Wei, who was resting in the Manlu Hall, also received relevant news.
Emperor Wei also couldn't laugh or cry about this.
Of course, he was not surprised, he was even surprised - that boy was only delayed by one hour?
You must know that Emperor Wei originally thought that his son was likely to directly abandon the regulations of the early dynasty.
That night, in Mrs. Que's boudoir in Prince Su's Mansion, Zhao Que curiously asked her man this question.
Zhao Hongrun said thoughtfully: "Abandoning the morning court immediately will cause a backlash from the clan. Maybe my second uncle will come to Chui Gong Hall to argue with me tomorrow, so this kind of thing must be dealt with slowly.
In other words, postpone it for an hour first, and then after a while, if there is no response from the clan, postpone it for another hour..."
Looking at her husband who looked determined, Zhao Que didn't know what to say.
How many people dream of being a dignified prince and heir apparent? But for my man, it seems to be a burden.
But having said that, Zhao Hongrun was really informed about this matter. After Zongzheng Zhao Yuanyan of the Zongfu learned the news that "the morning court was postponed", he frowned and thought for a long time. He really had no intention of committing suicide in person at Chui Gong Hall or solemnly.
His Royal Highness the Prince of the Royal Palace reasoned.
Maybe he also felt that just delaying the morning court meeting for an hour was nothing.
After all, Zhao Yuanyan had long heard of the Crown Prince's laziness.
The next day, Zhao Hongrun took several idle Zongwei and arrived at the Xuanzheng Hall before Mao hour to preside over the morning dynasty.
Today, all the officials in the court no longer stood outside the palace waiting like they did yesterday. They had already entered the Xuanzheng Palace one by one, waiting for the arrival of His Highness the Crown Prince.
To be honest, as Mao Shi was approaching, but there was still no trace of His Royal Highness, Du You, the Minister of Rites, like many courtiers, was speechless - didn't he promise to go to court early at Mao Shi? Where are the people?
As a result, just like yesterday, Prince Zhao Run hurried to the Xuanzheng Hall at the exact moment of Mao hour.
Looking at the happy expression on the face of the Crown Prince, Du You, the Minister of Rites, suddenly felt very tired, but in the end, he suppressed the negative emotions in his heart and led all the officials to meet the Crown Prince: "All ministers pay homage to the Crown Prince.
"
"Your Majesty, please excuse me."
Prince Zhao Run waved his hand, then looked at the courtiers present and said: "Before the morning court meeting, I will announce something first. In the next few days, I will integrate various ministries to a certain extent. I hope that all the ministers will cooperate when the time comes."
Hearing this, the whole palace was silent.
Ministers promoted by the old prince Hongyu, such as Tao Ji, Minister of the Ministry of War, Yang Yi, Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, Zheng Tu, Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, etc., sighed sadly after hearing this, thinking to themselves: they will not be able to stay in office after all.
Some other courtiers also mistakenly thought that Prince Zhao Run was referring to this matter, so they remained silent.
In their view, it was a very normal thing for Prince Zhao Run to kick down the courtiers who had been promoted by the old Prince Hongyu after he came to power.
No one expected that, in fact, what His Highness the Crown Prince said was nothing like this.
An hour later, Zhao Hongrun finished his breakfast in Wende Hall and came to Chui Gong Hall.
At this time, Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu, the three ministers of Zhongshu, had also arrived at Chui Gong Hall.
After greeting each other, Zhao Hongrun waved to the three ministers to take their seats, and then said with a smile: "Before reviewing the memorial today, I will discuss something with the three of you."
Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other in confusion and said in unison: "Your Highness, please give me your instructions."
"That's it..." Zhao Hongrun pointed to the stacks of memorials in the center of the inner hall and said in a deep voice: "According to the previous system, local memorials were sent directly to Chuigong Hall for approval. I feel that this kind of
The efficiency of the system is too low... You think, we are very busy here, but the ministers of various ministries can drink tea in the squad room. This is too shameful... No, I mean that the efficiency is too low and is not good for the entire society.
development of the country.”
"..."
Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other with helpless expressions, and secretly smiled bitterly: These words are really not something that the Crown Prince who only reviewed Jiufen memorials all day yesterday could say.
At this time, Zhao Hongrun did not pay attention to the expressions of these ministers, and still said to himself: "... Therefore, I feel that the functions of the six ministries should be strengthened."
"Delegate power?"
Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other.
You must know that both Emperor Wei and the old prince Hongyu had a very tight control over the checks and balances of the six departments in the court. For example, at the beginning, Emperor Wei felt that the power of the Ministry of Personnel was too great, so he borrowed Zhao Hongrun's hand to take over part of the Ministry of Personnel.
The powers were separated and a new "Yu Shi Jian" was established.
To put it bluntly, the six ministries of the DPRK and Central Government acted as a hand in the face of the imperial power. They were essentially executive offices rather than decision-making offices. That’s why there is a saying that “all national government orders come from the Chui Gong Hall.”
But now, His Highness the Crown Prince, completely opposite to his father and brother, actually proposed to increase the authority of the Six Ministries.
"This is really..."
Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other and did not dare to speak easily.
No wonder, after all, the stakes in this matter are too great.
"What do the three adults have to add to this?" Zhao Hongrun asked with a smile.
"Anything to add...?"
Lin Yuyang blinked and immediately grasped the thoughts of the Crown Prince in front of him: As for this decree, I will definitely implement it. If I object, there is no need to say more. I only need to listen to the additional suggestions.
After thinking for a while, Lin Yuyang said objectively: "As His Royal Highness the Prince said, adding the functions of the six ministries will indeed make the court operate more smoothly, but..."
He glanced at Zhao Hongrun and said something that all successive Wei kings had tried their best to avoid, that is, the power of the imperial court overrode the royal power, or even the royal power was sidelined.
This is inevitable.
For example, the Wei State once had a "sixth garrison battalion" general, who was a front-line figure in Wei's military. However, over the years, King Su Zhao Hongrun led troops to more expeditions than the six garrison generals of the Wei state combined.
There are even more, so that currently in the military, Su Wang Zhao Hongrun has become a banner figure. Even in other countries in the Central Plains, the reputation of "Wei Gongzi Run" has vaguely surpassed Wei Wang Zhao Yuansi.
In the same way, if the kings and princes of the past dynasties of Wei did not seize power, but asked the six ministries of the court to make decisions independently, then over time, when the people below gradually adapted and became accustomed to being responsible to the six ministers, the balance between the royal power and the court would become
It gradually tilted towards the latter, so that in the end, the king's power declined, and the king's words were not even as effective as the words of the six ministers.
"This is simple."
After listening to Lin Yuyang's words, Zhao Hongrun said with a smile: "Then add another inner dynasty to be above the six ministries, such as three adults... This can be done like this. The six ministries are responsible for you, and the three are responsible for me. If anything happens,
Question, I am looking for you, you are looking for the Sixth Department, and the Sixth Department is looking for the people under my command..."
"this……"
Even Lin Yuyang's heart skipped a beat when he heard these words.
You must know that although the three of them are ministers of Zhongshu, to put it bluntly, they have no actual power in the court. To put it simply, they are simply the personal staff of Emperor Wei, and they only assist the latter in reviewing the memorials and written history.
The real decision-maker is only the Emperor of Wei or the Crown Prince.
But if His Royal Highness the Crown Prince issues this decree, then they will truly become important ministers above the six ministries.
Suddenly, Feng Yu, the right prime minister of Zhongshu, interrupted and asked: "Your Royal Highness, is the "Inner Dynasty" located in this Chui Gong Hall?"
"Yes!" Zhao Hongrun nodded.
Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other and couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
The Inner Dynasty is located in the Chui Gong Hall, which means that the "Inner Dynasty" cannot escape the control of Emperor Wei or the Prince of the Supervisory State. It means that it is under the control of the royal power, and then let the Inner Dynasty controlled by the royal power supervise the six ministries, even if
The power of the six ministries was enhanced, and the six ministries could not escape the control of the inner dynasty, nor could they escape the control of the royal power.
"...That's a good suggestion."
Lin Yuyang nodded secretly. As a minister loyal to the royal power, he did not want the royal power to fall by the wayside.
Of course, no matter whether they agree or disagree, they do not have the qualifications and power to stop the new prince's decree. They could not stop the old prince Zhao Yu at the beginning, and they cannot stop the new prince Zhao Run now.
Seeing Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu all nodded in agreement, Zhao Hongrun said with a smile: "In that case, the three of you will draft an edict. I...well, go out for a walk."
Having said that, before Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu could react, Zhao Hongrun stepped out of Chui Gong Hall.
Seeing this, Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu looked at each other. After sighing helplessly, they had no choice but to draft the edict first as Zhao Hongrun said. After all, compared to reviewing memorials, this was indeed the thing that had the greatest impact on the court.
.
At the same time, Zhao Hongrun had left the Chui Gong Palace, greeted Zong Wei Mu Qing, Zhou Pu and others who were chatting with the Imperial Guards outside the palace, and headed to the Ningxiang Palace.
At this time in Ningxiang Palace, Concubine Shen Shu had already woken up and was very happy to see her eldest son coming.
In addition to being happy, Concubine Shen Shu was also extremely surprised, because as far as she knew, her eldest son was now the crown prince, and logically he should handle government affairs in Chui Gong Hall. How could he come to her side in his spare time?
Thinking of some of the misdeeds of this eldest son, Concubine Shen Shu quickly advised: "Run'er, your current status is extraordinary. Your father has entrusted the country to you, so you should shoulder the heavy responsibility and govern our country well."
Wei’s thousands of subjects…”
"I know, I know." Zhao Hongrun nodded flatteringly, and then asked: "Mom, do you have anything to eat here? The breakfast food in Wende Palace is too bad..."
Listening to Zhao Hongrun's complaints, Gao Li, Gao and the two young eunuchs couldn't help but smile bitterly.
After all, Concubine Shen Shu felt sorry for her son. After hearing what Zhao Hongrun said, she quickly asked her personal maid Xiaotao to get some pastries, and then told Zhao Hongrun: "Run'er, eat some pastries first. After you are full, you must obediently return to Chuigong Hall. You also
When you grow up and have children, you need to be more steady and not be like you used to be..."
Perhaps out of concern for her son's reputation as the crown prince, Concubine Shen Shu hesitated for a while and finally swallowed the word "naughty".
"Mom, don't worry."
After eating some pastries in Ningxiang Palace to fill his stomach, Zhao Hongrun wandered around the palace.
At this time, there were still Shang Shui soldiers patrolling and stationed in the palace. When they saw His Highness, they all came forward to greet him.
Seeing that these people were so unruly, Gao Li, Gao and the two young eunuchs dared not speak out - could His Highness the Crown Prince approach him casually? If not for the fact that these people were members of His Royal Highness's direct army.
Soldiers, they have already asked the guards to arrest these people.
But what made Gao Li and Gao He speechless was that His Highness the Crown Prince was still talking and laughing with the soldiers.
After finally waiting for His Highness the Crown Prince to send away the group of merchant soldiers, the young eunuch Gao Li couldn't help but said: "Your Highness the Crown Prince, we have been out for a while, so let's go back to Chuigong Palace..."
At this moment, he wanted to say: Even if you spend the whole day reviewing Jiufen memorials, you should go sit in Chui Gong Hall at least!
As a result, Zhao Hongrun still wandered around the palace for nearly an hour, and then slowly returned to Chui Gong Hall near noon.
At this time, in the Chui Gong Hall, when Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince walking in slowly, they felt exhausted - they had agreed to go out for a walk and then come back, but it turned out to be a whole morning.
Oh my God! This is only the second day!
"Have you finished writing the draft edict?" Zhao Hongrun asked.
In fact, he only asked this to break the dull atmosphere in the hall. After all, he had already seen that a pile of reviewed memorials had been piled on the table in front of Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu.
Sighing silently, Lin Yuyang stood up, came to Zhao Hongrun with a piece of paper in his hand, and said seriously: "Your Highness, this is the draft edict. Please take a look and see if there is anything that needs to be deleted."
Zhao Hongrun took the piece of paper and looked at it for a few times, nodded in approval and said: "Well, very good, let's issue a formal edict according to this!"
After hearing this, Feng Yu, the right minister of Zhongshu, said cautiously: "Your Highness, why don't you ask His Majesty for instructions on such a big matter?"
"Send it, send it." Zhao Hongrun waved his hand impatiently and said.
After thinking about it, Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu had no choice but to comply.
But even though it was not reported to the Man Dew Hall, Emperor Wei, who was resting in the Man Dew Hall, still learned the content of the edict within a stick of incense.
"Finally, he looks like a prince."
After seeing the contents of the edict presented by Tong Xian, Emperor Wei nodded in approval.
After all, compared with the first edict of "postponing the morning court", does this edict have a bit of a "new crown prince ascending to the throne" attitude?
"As for the content of this edict..."
Emperor Wei was stroking his beard and thinking about it, weighing the pros and cons.
In fact, in the era of Zhao Kang, the father of Zhao Si, the emperor of Wei, the power of the imperial court was still quite huge. After all, although King Zhao Kang of Wei could not be completely said to be ignorant, he was not very wise. Therefore, the Wei state at that time was actually
It was governed by the imperial court.
But after Zhao Si came to power, for some reasons, he weakened the power of the imperial court and strengthened the royal power, making the royal power superior to that of the imperial court. Gradually, the six ministries became executive offices with only very little decision-making power.
The old prince Hongyu went even further, as if he wanted to hold all the power in his hands.
But now Zhao Run, as the prince in charge of the supervision of the country, went in the opposite direction and actually planned to strengthen the functions of the six ministries, which made Emperor Wei have to be cautious.
Compared to the old prince Zhao Yu, the prince Zhao Run's heart, or mind, was so big that even Emperor Wei considered himself inferior. Although this was due to the latter's confidence, Emperor Wei was still a little worried.
What are you worried about? Of course, you are worried about the loss of royal power.
After all, Emperor Wei could tell at a glance that this edict was concocted by Zhao Hongrun in order to be lazy in the future. A superior who does not grasp power will inevitably allow the people below to take advantage of the loopholes.
However, from the current point of view, Emperor Wei believes that the new system in this edict still has certain merits.
Of course, this is only his preliminary judgment, and it will take some time to see how it will be reflected.
Having said that, Emperor Wei was not worried about Zhao Hongrun. After all, with the latter's prestige and status in Wei State, unless it was him or Zhao Hongrun himself, who else could shake the latter's crown prince position?
The problem lies in the future.
After a few decades, will the emperor's grandson Zhao Wei, or Zhao Wei's son or grandson, be able to balance the relationship between royal power and the court? - It must be said that Wei Emperor Zhao Si also thought very long-term.
"...I hope I won't leave any hidden dangers to future generations."
Emperor Wei secretly thought in his heart.
Because of the tacit approval of Emperor Wei, the edict issued by Prince Zhao Run quickly spread throughout the court and caused an uproar in the court.
You must know that the six ministries of the imperial court have only weakened their power in recent decades. When did they increase their power?
However, the edict of Prince Zhao Run is to change the six departments of the imperial court from "executors" to "decision-makers", even if they are just castrated versions of decision-makers, and the edict clearly states that there will be an "inner court" to control
But this still made the officials of the Sixth Department of the Imperial Court feel excited.
If the king takes the initiative to lay down his power, doesn't this mean that the gentry is about to rise?
Of course, there are also a group of people who are opposed to this matter, such as Zongfu Zongzheng Zhao Yuanyan.
Although it is said that the Zongfu was established to restrict the royal power, on the other hand, it also existed to maintain the royal rule of the Zhao family with the Ji surname. Now, the royal power has taken the initiative to relax its power, which means that the gentry is about to rise.
As for the rise of the gentry, although the benefits outweighed the disadvantages for the entire Wei State, it was not necessarily a good thing for the Zhao family surnamed Ji.
Perhaps in the future, although the Kingdom of Wei will still be under the control of the Ji Zhao family, the Ji Zhao family may be replaced by the rising gentry. "Note: The Ji Zhao family's royal power and the Ji Zhao family are two different things.
.To put it simply, the clan is responsible for the royal power, but the royal power is responsible for the entire country, not just the Ji family and the Zhao family."
"...Perhaps one day, even a descendant of my Ji Zhao clan will have to pass the imperial examination and gain military merit before becoming an official..."
Zhao Yuanyan secretly guessed.
In fact, he had a vague feeling that this day would not be too far away.
On the third day when Prince Zhao Run took charge of the court, Jie Ziyu and Wen Qi, the aides of Prince Su's Mansion, returned to Daliang from Shangshui.
Also returning at the same time were Princess Su Mi Jiang - who should now be called the Crown Princess - and her youngest son Zhao Wei, mother and son, as well as Su Ran, Chu Chu mother and daughter, as well as Oona, Yang Shixing and other pregnant female family members.
When they arrived at the gate of Prince Su's Mansion, they saw that the plaque above the gate had been changed from "Prince Su's Mansion" to "Prince's Mansion". Jie Ziyu and Wen Qi looked at each other with a tacit understanding.
Wen Qi smiled and said: "Haha, you really guessed it right."
It turned out that when Zhao Hongrun secretly came to Daliang a while ago, Jie Ziyu had already packed up his books at Prince Su's Mansion in Shangshui County.
At that time, Wen Qi was very puzzled when he saw it, so he asked Jie Ziyu.
Jie Ziyu then explained that it would be difficult for him to return to Shangshui in the future, and that he had worked hard to collect and copy these books, and he was unwilling to abandon them. Therefore, he planned to take them all to Daliang.
With Wen Qi's intelligence, how could he fail to understand the profound meaning of Jie Zitu's words? He just found it inconceivable that a lazy person like Zhao Run was really willing to shoulder the responsibility of the crown prince?
So they made a bet privately.
The result is obvious, the meson owl won the bet.
Not long after, Zongwei Mu Qing returned to the mansion in person and found Jie Zigui and Wen Qi: "His Royal Highness, you two will come to Chui Gong Hall immediately."
Of course Jie Ziyu and Wen Qi understood what this meant, and hurriedly took a bath and changed clothes. After cleaning up, they followed Zongwei Mu Qing into the palace and came to Chui Gong Hall.
When Jie Zigui and Wen Qi arrived at the Chui Gong Hall, there were not only three Zhongshu ministers, Lin Yuyang, Yu Ziqi, and Feng Yu, but also Xu Guan, the former Minister of War, Li Liang, the former Minister of Household Affairs, and Du You, the Minister of Rites.
At this time, Yu Ziqizheng and Li Liang were arguing about some issues about "taxation". Neither could convince the other, and they were red-faced. If Du You, the nine-foot-tall Minister of Rites, hadn't stopped them in the middle, they would probably have
Just roll up your sleeves and start fighting.
"...Is this Chui Gong Hall?"
Jie Ziyu glanced at Wen Qi with a strange expression, and the latter shrugged.
Thinking about it, they never expected that when they first came to Chui Gong Hall, the place where the Wei State issued government decrees, they would see two adults almost fighting each other.
"Hey, you guys are here?"
Seeing Jie Ziu and Wen Qi, Zhao Hongrun stood up, beckoned the former two to him, and introduced them to both parties: "Ji Ziu and Wen Qi, these two are my king's staff. Here, are
Mr. Lin Yuyang, Mr. Yu Ziqi
Mr. Yu, Mr. Feng Yufeng, Mr. Xu Guanxu, Mr. Li Liangli, and Mr. Du Youdu... Let's all get to know each other. They will be colleagues in the future. By the way, Jie Zi and Wen Qi are still young.
Please help me, adults."
"Colleague?" Jie Ziyu was very surprised when he heard this. After Zhao Hongrun's explanation, he suddenly understood.
It turns out that they are the temporary ministers of the Inner Dynasty.
Not to mention the surprise in the hearts of Jie Ziyu and Wen Qi, even Xu Guan, Li Liang, Du You and others were also quite surprised by this matter.
only……
"Thanks to His Highness the Crown Prince, I am responsible for discussing state affairs in the inner court. So... where are you, Your Highness?" Lin Yuyang asked quietly when everyone was happy.
"This king?" Zhao Hongrun's eyes flickered slightly and he said firmly: "This king has other... important matters."
"..."
Everyone in the hall looked at each other, with a hint of disbelief flashing in their eyes.