Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4984: Unmoving as a mountain
Fang Jun took the tea from Liu Rengui, smiled and said, "It is said that your majesty's talent is mediocre, not as good as the King of Wei and the King of Jin, but in fact, it is just a slight flaw in character, and his talent is not bad at all. This art of checks and balances is really good."

The art of leadership lies in checks and balances.

He abolished the power of the Shangshu, Zuo Pushe and Prime Minister, and used the Zhengshi Hall to check and balance the military. Then he granted many people the task of "Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi" to check and balance the Zhongshu Ling and Shizhong, to balance the inside and the outside, and to restrain the upper and lower levels. This move really has some of the style of Emperor Wen of Han, which is really amazing.

I just hope that Li Chengqian suddenly got the idea and completed his evolution, rather than just having a flash of inspiration or a short-lived one.

Cui Dunli was still worried: "If this happens, our momentum will be greatly reduced, and it may even affect the military reform."

He is the Minister of War, but his foundation is in the army. Moreover, although he seems to have been promoted to Prime Minister this time, the Council of State is full of His Majesty's people, and their attitude of restraining the military is not concealed. He may find it difficult to take a single step in the Council of State in the future.

Apart from the honor of being prime minister, he does not have much real power.

Fang Jun disagreed: "The military system of the Six Garrisons has been in place for more than a hundred years. It was inherited from the previous Sui Dynasty and expanded by the current dynasty. It is deeply rooted. It will take time to complete the reform. Before all policies and systems are perfected, it is not advisable to act rashly. Otherwise, there will be endless troubles. So we should be patient and don't worry about the turmoil in the court."

The change of the military system affects the whole body. It is necessary to formulate a more reasonable policy based on sufficient research, and then gradually improve it with the help of all parties. Not to mention other things, just the coexistence of the Fubing system and the Mubing system, or the abolition of the Fubing system and the Mubing system, will require a very long process.

The original intention of the military reform was to prevent the dangers of "weak trunk and strong branch", avoid the emergence of "Jiedushi", and put an end to the collusion between the army and local forces, rather than simply uniting the army into a whole to confront the imperial power and gain more benefits...

It is destined to be an extremely difficult task. It can be slow, but it must be steady and no mistakes are allowed.

Cui and Liu nodded, knowing that no matter what the situation was, the interests of the empire had to be put first, and personal gains and losses were not important.

But Liu Rengui was still indignant: "The Marshal is to Your Majesty a white jade pillar that supports the sky and a purple gold beam that spans the sea. It is no exaggeration to say that he has worked hard and made great contributions. Without the Marshal's strong support, how could Your Majesty be where you are today? As a result, when the birds are gone, the good bows are put away, and when the rabbits die, the running dogs are cooked. Now you have deposed the Marshal's title of prime minister. It is so heartless and disloyal, and it makes people feel disgusted. I am afraid that everyone in the court and the public will talk about it and feel sorry for the Marshal."

"Don't say such words again!"

Fang Jun frowned and scolded, teaching him a lesson: "Your Majesty is the ruler of the world, and everything you do is for the benefit of the country. As long as it is beneficial to the country, how can you care about personal feelings?"

Those in a high position should not sacrifice public interests for personal gain.

Liu Rengui nodded: "The commander-in-chief is right. I won't bother to repeat it."

Everyone understands the truth, but is it really right to be so "selfless" and ignore friendship for the sake of profit?

Fang Jun told Cui Dunli: "Don't worry about the disturbances in the court. When you enter the government hall, you only need to prevent those people from interfering in the maritime trade. The construction of many infrastructures and the allocation of domestic money and building materials will be handled by Ma Zhou. You must ensure that the management of maritime trade and the taxes earned will continue to support the construction. We must not let the maritime trade that we have worked so hard to open up become a tool for the aristocratic families to make money."

Li Chengqian's plan was very good. He used civil officials to check and balance the military, and added a prime minister within the civil service to disperse power, so that it was always under his control.

But whether it is civil servants or the military, "pursuing profit" is always their nature. At a time when the imperial examination system has not yet been perfected and a talent selection system has not yet been formed throughout the country, the court is still full of children from aristocratic families. "Making profit for the family" is the inherent responsibility of these children from aristocratic families. How can they miss out on maritime trade as a channel for reaping wealth?

Next, the civil servants may not be keen on checking and balancing the military, but they will certainly set their sights on maritime trade, trying to pry and seize this piece of fat meat from the navy and share it.

Su Dingfang's position as prime minister was more of an appeasement and compensation to Fang Jun personally. He was in charge of the East China Sea and controlled the ocean, so he had no influence on the government affairs in Chang'an. Therefore, he could only hope that Cui Dunli would withstand the pressure and take good care of the family business of maritime trade.

Cui Dunli said: "Don't worry, General, I will do my best to live up to your trust!"

Fang Jun said to Liu Rengui: "The Ministry of War is different from the army. You have to control your temper and strive for excellence. Anshang's energy is mostly in the Political Affairs Hall, playing games and fighting with a group of prime ministers. You have to take on more government affairs in the yamen and share some of the burden for Anshang."

Liu Rengui nodded in agreement.

He knew that he lacked both merit and qualifications, and there was no possibility of promotion in the short term, so he should calm down and concentrate on the affairs of the ministry, be a good deputy to Cui Dunli, accumulate qualifications and enhance his prestige. If Cui Dunli one day directly entered the three provinces, he would most likely take over as the Minister of War.

Fang Jun said: "I often say that ten thousand years is too long and we should seize the day, but the current situation requires us to settle down and ensure stability. The empire has been moving too fast in the past two years and its foundation is weak. It needs some time to settle down. We must not only see the road ahead clearly, but also consolidate the road under our feet, learn from the broad and selective, and accumulate knowledge before releasing it in small amounts."

The surge in talent and accumulation of wealth are the current manifestations of the Tang Dynasty, but they do not mean a rapid increase in national strength.

Whether people can be put to their best use, whether massive wealth can be put to practical use, and everything can be transformed into national strength is an arduous and lengthy process, which requires the government and the opposition to spare no effort and work together. Otherwise, when the glitz and glamour are gone and the tide recedes, we will find that nothing has yet undergone a fundamental transformation, and a great opportunity has been wasted.

People who fail often complain that time is not on their side and that fate is bad. But in fact, fate is fair. Everyone will have several opportunities of good luck in his life. If you seize them, you will be successful. If you don't, you will naturally suffer misfortune.

The same is true for a country. Even a poor and weak country will have a chance to rise at some point in time. This is called "national destiny". If a country seizes this opportunity, the country's national situation will prosper and its national strength will soar, laying the foundation for a century-old strong country. If a country fails to seize this opportunity, it will naturally decline and be bullied by others.

When the opportunity comes, we must seize it firmly, get rid of the old abuses, reform and strengthen the country, and maintain the advantage of firearms. Not to mention that the foundation of the empire will last forever, sweeping the world within a thousand years is not a dream.

……

Liu Li's residence.

In the study, Pei Huaijie, who came to visit, sat opposite Liu Li. Pei Huaijie stroked his beard and smiled, looking very proud. Some time ago, he participated in the research and preparation of military reform in the Ministry of War as an "insider". After each meeting every day, he would secretly send the minutes to Liu Li, which really made him feel uneasy and panic.

Fearing that he would be discovered by Fang Jun, he framed him with the crime of "stealing secrets" and "having secret dealings with foreign chieftains", arrested him, tortured him, and then sent his head to Liu Li...

Now that he has suddenly been assigned the post of "Tongzhongshumenxia Pingzhangshi", not only does he not have to worry about his own safety, but he is also promoted to Prime Minister. How can he not be ecstatic?
Liu Li glanced at Pei Huaijie, who was full of joy, and felt unhappy. He said, "The post of 'Pingzhangshi' is an honor, but it also means a heavy responsibility. There can be no mistakes. Otherwise, it will cause the loss of the interests of the empire and be a sin for generations to come."

You are used by His Majesty to check and strike the military. To put it bluntly, you are the knife in His Majesty's hand. The power of the knife comes from the person holding the knife, not the knife itself. Although you can use the sharpness of the knife to intimidate the enemy, once the enemy fights back, you will inevitably use the knife to resist... The knife is the one that hurts you inside and out. What is there to be happy about?
Moreover, there are two prime ministers and six "Pingzhangshi", a total of eight prime ministers crammed into the Council of State Affairs. How much power can each of them hold?
He deliberately emphasized "a heavy responsibility like a mountain", meaning that other people still have a foundation, such as the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of War, the Censorate, etc. What can you, a prime minister without any foundation, do except raising your hand when voting?
Pei Huaijie had been able to sit firmly in the position of "Yin of Henan" for many years and controlled the entire political affairs of Henan. His political wisdom was naturally beyond doubt. He clearly understood the meaning of Liu Li's words. His face was of course ugly, but he could not get angry and could only hold it in.

Others who were transferred to Chang'an must have made outstanding achievements in their local areas. Going to Beijing to accumulate experience and broaden their horizons in the central government offices was a way for them to be promoted, whether they were promoted directly within the ministry or sent to other places for promotion in the future.

However, he was disgraced and lost his prestige in Henan, and there was no place for him in the prefectures and counties of the country, so he had to be transferred back to Chang'an. But even after returning to Chang'an, there was no government office suitable for him among the three provinces, six ministries and nine temples. He could only hold the empty title of "Shangshu You Pushe" and "sneak into" the Ministry of War to be an "inside supporter" in the Military System Reform Committee...

His career went smoothly in the first half of his life, with rapid progress, but it was full of ups and downs in the second half.

But who could he complain to?

You think you have been so humble and submissive as the number one frontier in the world, but not only have you not been taken seriously, but you have become an "internal partner" in the struggle between the military and the government. If you did this for His Majesty, it would be fine, but what virtue do you have as a mere minister of the Central Secretariat? !

While his dissatisfaction with Liu Li had reached its peak, he also had serious concerns about his own future.

In his opinion, Liu Li's ship might not be stable.

All along, Liu Li, the head of the civil officials, has been at a disadvantage in the struggle with Fang Jun. Although he now has the support of His Majesty, Liu Li's own strength has not increased. On the other hand, Fang Jun is certainly feared by His Majesty, but doesn't this just show that he is very powerful? Moreover, His Majesty is now using tough means to suppress Fang Jun in the government hall, and he must appease him privately. He can't force Fang Jun and Li Ji to rebel, right?

Comparing the two, Fang Jun is obviously more advantageous.

But how could I get on Fang Jun’s big ship?
It’s a headache…