The Shangshutai is not powerless. They have a cooperative relationship with Yanwei when it comes to prison matters.
In the Han Dynasty, ordinary cases were generally handled by local counties and counties.
Only murder cases or major treason cases would be brought to the attention of the governor, who would then report to the court and take the prisoner to Luoyang Prison.
If Shangshutai or Yanwei find problems with a certain case when reviewing the case, Shangshutai will send Sangong Cao to Yanwei to try it together with Yanwei's people.
This method of hearing cases, after the Song Dynasty, was the so-called cooperation between the Ministry of Punishment and Dali Temple in handling cases.
Shangshutai is the Ministry of Punishment, and Yanwei is the Dali Temple.
In fact, if we look at the later Six-Ministry System, the Shangshutai not only has half of the powers of the Ministry of Punishments, but also half of the powers of the Ministry of Husbandry and half of the Ministry of Officials.
The power of the Ministry of Industry is in the hands of Sikong, the Shaofu and the general Dajiang, the power of the Ministry of Rites is in the hands of Situ, Taichang, and Da Honglu, and the power of the Ministry of War is in the hands of the general and the emperor, as well as the eunuch and Guang Luxun (the military power is in the hands of
The general and the emperor were in charge, and the imperial servants and Guang Luxun did the logistics work, such as making weapons and armor, taking care of the horses, etc.).
But even if the Shangshutai only has half of the power of the three ministers, it is still very remarkable. The real power of the humble position can interfere with anything in the world. The Shangshu Ling even has the power of "three independent sittings", which shows the weight of the Shangshutai.
Chen Mu read official documents from all over the world. Not only could he check what was happening in the states and counties every day, but he could also intervene in local power management and help the emperor handle a small number of government affairs.
"Zhao Zhi!"
"My subordinate is here."
"There is a problem with this case. Send it back to the Jizhou Governor's Department and ask Governor Wang to send someone to investigate secretly."
"This...don't you go and report to Lieutenant Yan?"
Zhao Zhi, the minister's assistant, hesitated.
Chen Mu glared at him: "Does it mean that we have to report all the details to Yan Wei? If you don't want to do it, then don't do it."
Zhao Zhi trembled all over and said, "I'll do it now."
"Zheng and his wife!"
"My subordinate is here."
"Zhu Fu taxed the local people violently and died unjustly. He sent a reply to Zhang Jin, asking him to appease the barbarians, reduce taxes, and govern the people well."
"But His Majesty... wants to send troops to conquer the Southern Barbarians."
Mr. and Mrs. Zheng hesitated.
Chen Mu said expressionlessly: "I will discuss this matter with the Emperor in detail, just do as you please."
In the past two years, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty had reached the highest point in his career in both civil and military affairs. After suppressing the rebellion, a large amount of coins were shipped to the place and the people were appeased. Although there were minor troubles in the world, it has gradually become more stable.
I heard that the Southern Barbarians had killed Zhu Fu, the imperial governor? So I was furious, thinking that I could defeat the Wuhuan in the east anyway? If I blocked the Hu Qiang in the west, the barbarians in the south should also be educated.
Since Lu Zhi once defeated the barbarians in Jiujiang, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty planned to send Lu Zhi to lead his troops southward to attack the barbarians in Jiaozhou and stabilize the south.
But Chen Mu knows that the current Jiaozhou is an area in Guangdong, Guangxi and northern Vietnam in later generations. The mountains and forests there are dense and the terrain is complex. There are countless snakes, insects, rats and ants, and the local officials are also swarms of monsters and monsters.
Even if the imperial court sends millions of troops in, it will only waste people and money and is meaningless. Why not maintain stability first and slowly develop it later? Slowly manage it.
Therefore, he would dissuade Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty on this matter.
"only!"
Mr. and Mrs. Zheng took the order and left.
"Xu Zhi."
"My subordinate is here."
"Send these official documents to Yanwei? There is no problem. Sangong Cao sent someone to go over and review them together."
"But in the past, we just sent people to Yanwei? We don't need to send people..."
"I want it now."
Chen Mu looked at him indifferently: "This is a matter within the responsibilities of our Shangshutai. Do you want me to neglect my duties?"
"Don't you dare to take a humble position? Go ahead."
Xu Zhizhi slipped away.
"There is a tribe of thousands of people from Xiutu in the north who wants to surrender to the imperial court? Send it to the Bingzhou Governor's Department? Let him move the tribe to Shuofang County and let the guest Cao of the north handle it."
"Aren't you going to send it to Dahonglu?"
"It's the end of the year, and the emperor is about to go to the northern suburbs to hold a Piyong ceremony. Dahonglu is very busy, do you understand?"
"Uh, Yui."
"Don't send the documents for this year's official selection inspection to Sangong. Sangong has a lot of things to do every day. This small matter will be handled by our chancery. Do you understand?"
"..."
After Chen Mu took office, the Shangshutai became busy almost immediately.
In the past, documents were sent to the Shangshutai, which was only responsible for sorting them out. The important ones were given to the emperor for review, while the ordinary ones were sent to other departments according to their responsibilities.
Now that Chen Mu has all the power, he has to get involved in everything, which makes the Chancellor's Desk very lively and there are things to do everywhere.
Generally speaking, when a new official takes office, he either needs to start with three things, or he can lie dormant for a period of time and wait for an opportunity.
But three fires have advantages and disadvantages.
If these three fires are not burned well, you may be burned on your own head.
Therefore, most smart officials focus on stability. When they first take office as chief officials, they first understand the situation, then step by step to take back the power, and finally implement policies.
Like Chen Mu, on his first day at work, he lit fires everywhere, not only burning the three ministers and nine ministers, but also the emperor's decrees. This was the first time for everyone at the Chancellery to see each other, but after all, they were the immediate superiors, so even if they wanted to persuade them, they could not
I don’t dare, I can only do this first.
Anyway, if the sky falls, there will be someone taller to hold it up. If other departments come to ask for punishment, it will be Chen Mu, the minister, who comes forward. They, the small officials with less than 600 dan, are not so proud to be picked on by the three gongs and nine ministers.
After a busy day, all government affairs were finally handled. In the evening, Chen Mu was summoned to the palace.
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty sat high in the Mingtang, while Chen Mu sat at the table below. The emperor and his ministers looked at each other.
"Brother Mu."
"I'm here."
"How was it today at the Chancellor's Desk?"
"Alright."
"But I heard."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty had a complicated expression and hesitated to speak.
"What did your Majesty hear?"
"I heard that you sent Zhang Jin an official document to appease the barbarians and reduce taxes?"
"good."
"Don't Zigui know that I plan to hold a court meeting tomorrow and send Lu Zhi to quell the rebellion?"
"I've heard a little bit about it, but I don't think we should send troops."
"oh?"
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty asked: "Why?"
Chen Mu spoke eloquently: "Jiaozhou is located in a remote area, and it is useless to conquer this place."
"Weak ribs? What's the point?"
"It is tasteless to eat, and it is a pity to abandon it. If you attack by force, it will waste people and money, so it is not advisable. It is better to stabilize it first, and then deal with it slowly after the world is calmed down. In this way, you can't act too hastily."
"I see. Since it is Zigui's opinion, I should listen to it."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty nodded.
If you think about it carefully, this poor place like Jiaozhou is indeed like this. The reason for attacking the west and east is because Liangzhou and Youzhou are too important.
The Jizhou region was the most economically developed region in the Han Dynasty at that time, and its status was comparable to the Jiangnan region after the Song Dynasty. If the barbarians in the northeast conquered Youzhou, they would threaten Jizhou and the Han Dynasty's money bag, so the Wuhuan rebellion must be put down.
.
The same goes for Liangzhou. Since Liangzhou is directly adjacent to the Sanfu area, going south from Chang'an can directly threaten Luoyang, so the Qiang and Hu in the west must also be attacked, and they cannot be allowed to continue to advance eastward.
On the other hand, Jiaozhou is not that important. After all, the south is not an important economic place. Secondly, it is far away from the political center of Luoyang. Apart from showing off its civil and military skills, fighting or not is of little significance.
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty was a very lazy person. Unless there was a real threat to his throne and the world, and the people were in chaos to the extent of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he would not want to pay attention to it even if there was more commotion in various places.
Thinking of this, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty said again: "Zi Gui, I heard that what you did today seems to mean that you want to take over the chancellery?"
"nature."
Chen Mu said confidently: "This is half of the power that should be given to the ministerial office. How can I let the three gongs and nine ministers monopolize it? I govern the world for your majesty, so naturally I should be treated well and cannot be perfunctory."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty nodded with satisfaction: "Yes, I have long been dissatisfied with those incompetent officials. You should live a good life and govern. Don't betray my trust."
Chen Mu said: "Mu is just about to recommend three people to Your Majesty. With these three people here, Youzhou and Liangzhou will be settled."
"Who is it?"
"Gai Xun, the former prefect of Hanyang, can be the governor of Liangzhou. Gongsun Zan, the former magistrate of Zhuo County, can be the governor of Youzhou. These two people have high prestige in the local area and will surely pacify these two states."
"Then Geng Bi..."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty hesitated. Geng Bi had spent money to buy an official position from him. How could he be fired just for the sake of dismissal?
Chen Mu said with a smile: "Geng Bi can be transferred to other places. It is better to let him go to Yizhou. The governor of Yizhou is frugal and extortionate, collects taxes wantonly and annoys the people. I want to remove him and send Geng Bi to Yizhou."
, if he does the same, I will depose him."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty was extremely embarrassed. Que Jian, the governor of Yizhou, also bought an official position from him. Chen Mu deposed him as soon as he said he wanted to. He did not take selling his official position seriously. In that case, where was the authority of the official position sold by the imperial court?
Seeing that Han Ling Emperor was silent, Chen Mu thought for a while and said, "Your Majesty, I am doing this for your Majesty's sake."
"How to say?"
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty knew that Chen Mu was a smart man and would not make random mistakes.
Chen Mu explained: "Your Majesty, think about it, you only get a little money from selling your official position, and taxes are the biggest part. But you are frugal and extortionate, and you take all the taxes into your own pocket. Isn't this robbing money from Your Majesty? If a place
The governor is a capable minister and official, and he is not corrupt. He can manage the local area in a stable and prosperous way, and the tax revenue can be continuously supplied to the court. This is the long-term way."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty's eyes lit up and he was full of praise: "Listening to Zigui's words really made me see the light of day. It turns out that when I sold my official position, I only saw short-term benefits but ignored the long-term benefits. Those greedy officials
, levying unreasonable taxes and taking away the money that belongs to me is indeed extremely hateful."
The original Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty could not collect taxes. After all, the population was hidden, and the land taxes were very small. In this way, after deducting expenses every year, the court would not have much money left. Of course, he had to find a way to exchange money, such as using money to atone for sins, using
Money buys an official position, etc.
But now that Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty has received taxes from the whole country, he knows the taste of food. Of course, he also hopes that the world will be stable and that a steady stream of taxes will continue to be sent, so he feels that what Chen Mu said makes sense.
Thinking of this, Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty nodded and said: "Then according to Zigui's words, we will depose Quejian and let Geng Bi go to Yizhou."
"I would like to recommend one last person."
"who."
"Xun Yu from Yingchuan."
"Who is this?"
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty was puzzled. Hearing that his surname was Xun, could it be that he belonged to the Xun family in Gaoyang?
"This man is the grandson of Xun Shu, the former Prime Minister of Langlinghou, and the son of Xun Nui, the former Prime Minister of Jinan. He has the talent of a king's assistant and can be appointed to the Chancellery to assist Mu in handling government affairs."
"You can handle such small matters by yourself, there is no need to ask me."
Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty smiled and said: "From now on, you should be a good student and manage government affairs, and work hard."
Um.
Help me govern the world well. From now on, I will enjoy myself in Yutang Palace in autumn and winter, and enjoy myself in Xiyuan in spring and summer. I will put my arms around beautiful women and listen to music and watch singing and dancing every day. Isn't it wonderful?
"only!"
Chen Mu left.
Although I have been dealing with government affairs for a day today, power is slowly taking back the chancellery.
But that doesn't mean everything will be smooth sailing.
If other departments are dissatisfied and come looking for trouble. Or if people below him are causing trouble, deliberately neglecting government orders, or distorting policies in various ways, it will be a big blow to his authority.
For example, the two New Deals during the Song Dynasty were originally well-intentioned, but they were exploited by people with malicious intentions. Instead, they harmed the people and made it impossible for Wang Anshi and Fan Zhongyan to come to power. In the end, the New Deal failed and both of them were defeated by their political opponents. This shows that the political struggle is still quite cruel.