Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 5041 It’s all misunderstanding
The Grand Censor has always been regarded as a symbol of "integrity and honesty" and is considered the most fair position.

But while the position is fair, the person who holds the position may not be fair.

Liu Xiangdao was certainly not a perfect man, and was far from Wei Zheng, who once served as the Imperial Censor, but he was not an evil person who confused right and wrong and called a horse a zebra.

But everyone has his or her stance, and everything he or she does and says must safeguard that stance.

What is Liu Xiangdao's position?

It’s not about justice and integrity, it’s not about money and gain, it’s about Your Majesty.

This is a somewhat contradictory person.

He can disregard the majesty of the emperor's orders for the sake of fairness in his duties, making His Majesty so angry that he wants to curse him, but he can also disregard his own pursuits for the sake of His Majesty's interests...

Just as Shangguan Tingzhi said, it might be impossible to let Liu Xiangdao confuse right and wrong and call a horse a zebra to frame Fang Jun, but it might be possible to stir up the matter and put Fang Jun in the middle of public opinion.

……

"Go back and tell your father, sorry for the trouble he has caused."

Fang Jun expressed his appreciation, but he did not take the matter to heart as the relationship between him and Li Chengqian was very delicate.

On the one hand, Li Chengqian is extremely eager to monopolize the imperial power, and on the other hand, he needs Fang Jun to calm down the civil and military officials in the court and the aristocratic families. After all, compared with others, Fang Jun does not seek power, and the civil and military officials in the court, as well as the aristocratic families in the world, want to overthrow him as the emperor as long as they have the chance...

If Liu Xiangdao really takes any action, he will have his own plans.

After taking a sip of tea, he asked casually, "I heard Gongbi is also on the list of candidates for this imperial examination?"

Shangguan Tingzhi was somewhat proud when talking about this, but he did not show it on his face. He said modestly: "I am not very talented and well-educated. But before the exam, my father asked several well-educated people to come up with some questions. Sure enough, I got some answers on the test paper. It was just luck."

I guessed the question right.

Fang Jun would not believe it. The test questions of this exam not only included Confucianism, but also mathematics, astronomy, and even medical knowledge. It was extremely difficult to predict the questions and the probability was almost zero.

In name, all scholars could take part in this examination, but those who finally fought their way through the huge crowds of candidates for the provincial examination and came to Chang'an to take part in the Ministry of Rites examination were all the best among the children of aristocratic families. Which one of them was not the best of the best?
Anyone who can make it onto the list is definitely not a false name.

Fang Jun smiled and said, "Emperor Taizong once taught me that young people should not be arrogant, but they must have pride. I will pass this sentence on to you today."

Shangguan Tingzhi was overjoyed, and quickly stood up and bowed to the ground towards the north: "How can I be worthy of the teachings of Emperor Taizong? From now on, I will keep it in my heart and follow it!"

If we talk about the most meritorious minister in the Zhenguan period, people have different opinions. Some say it is Zhangsun Wuji, some say it is Li Ji, and some say it is Li Xiaogong. However, if we talk about the most favored minister in the Zhenguan period, everyone agrees that it must be Fang Jun.

Now Fang Jun gave him the words of Emperor Taizong's teachings, which instantly doubled his reputation among the literati, and no one dared to underestimate him.

The most important thing is that Fang Jun can say this, which obviously shows that he thinks highly of him.

As everyone knows, Fang Jun is unrivaled in the world in judging people. Anyone who is favored and promoted by him can become a leader...

Fang Jun waved his hand, asked him to take a seat, and asked, "Your father is now the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and the Prince of Hejian has always valued friendship and is accommodating. I think he will be able to find a good job for you. I wonder where you will be appointed as an official?"

Shangguan Tingzhi did not hide his emotions, with a bitter face and dejected look, "I will go to the West Market and be the mayor."

Fang Jun was surprised and said, "Newly minted scholars are either sent to various prefectures and counties to hone their abilities and gain experience, or to serve in the six ministries and nine temples of the central government to hone their abilities and consolidate their foundation. Why did they go to a place where merchants live? Could it be that your father did this to avoid suspicion?"

Shangguan Tingzhi shook his head and said, "It's not to avoid suspicion, but my father believes that since you, the Taiwei, planned to build the Maritime Customs and promote maritime trade, wealth has quickly gathered in the country. Not only is there no longer a worry of food shortages, but infrastructure construction is in full swing across the country, and the national strength has more than doubled. Such a large-scale accumulation of wealth must be channeled and managed by officials who are proficient in economics. Otherwise, not only will corruption breed, but the wealth may not be used for its proper purpose... There will definitely be a lack of such officials in the short term. The West Market is now the largest market in the world, with hundreds of thousands of strings of money traded every day. My father believes that if I can learn something in the West Market and gain some knowledge of economics, I will be able to handle it well no matter where I go to serve as an official in the future."

"Your father has a long-term vision and foresight!"

Fang Jun exclaimed in praise, saying that he was worthy of being the prime minister in the future. Regardless of his ability in handling general affairs, his vision alone had surpassed that of the vast majority of ministers in the court.

The wealth from all over the world will not only promote the construction of infrastructure and the prosperity of the domestic economy, but will also lead to inflation. If it is not properly handled, a large amount of money will be used for projects such as people's livelihood and military industry, which may lead to soaring prices in the future...

It is rare to be able to discover crisis in the midst of prosperity.

If one has the means to deal with crises, he would be considered a famous minister.

Shangguan Tingzhi said sincerely: "This time I came to visit you, in addition to telling you about Zhang Zizhou, I also want to ask the Grand Commandant for guidance and instruction. When it comes to economics, no one in the court or the public can compare to the Grand Commandant. If you can give me some advice, I will benefit greatly."

Fang Jun thought for a moment and said, "When you go to the West Market, pay more attention to the relationship between the amount of currency and the rise and fall of prices. Once you understand the connection, think about what means to use to stabilize prices... Don't be anxious, and don't be impetuous. If you can spend your entire life to understand the truth, your life will be enough to go down in history."

Confucianism is harmful to the country.

Those who only delve into metaphysics explain from an ideological perspective how to confine the people to the land in order to stabilize the ruling structure, but they turn a blind eye and turn a deaf ear to various phenomena in reality. They only know how to control the people but not how to govern the country.

Who are the most famous economists in history?
Guan Zhong, Shang Yang, Sang Hongyang, Fan Li, Ji Ran... all lived in the era of "a hundred schools of thought contending" in the early Han Dynasty or before the Han Dynasty. Since the rise of Confucianism and the elimination of the Hundred Schools of Thought, no more people proficient in economics have emerged.

Although Liu Yan, Wang Anshi, and Zhang Juzheng saw the crisis of the empire's economy, they lacked an understanding of how the economy worked, and had no effective means of regulation. They simply focused on performance and used power to push their policies forward, but ultimately their efforts were in vain and ended in failure.

Confucianism, a discipline that only talks about character and not reality, is only suitable for moral cultivation, but is of no benefit to enriching the country and strengthening the military.

Respecting only Confucianism is the way to self-destruction; allowing a hundred schools of thought to bloom can promote competition and bring about change.

The end result of a monopoly is a stagnant pool of water, guarding a huge family business but not striving for progress...

After chatting for a while, Fang Jun stopped talking about economics. After all, he himself only had a limited understanding of it, so he casually asked, "How many children does Gongbi have now?"

Shangguan Tingzhi was stunned and quickly replied: "I am just a young man, I can't compare to the group of children of the Grand Marshal. I am ashamed."

Fang Jun said meaningfully: "You still have to work harder. You, the father and son of the Shangguan family, are all handsome and knowledgeable. Both your sons and daughters can inherit such excellent blood. You should have more children and reproduce."

His appearance has already caused huge changes under certain circumstances. What if the "butterfly effect" causes Shangguan Wan'er to die, wouldn't that be a sin?
History is so exciting because of those amazing people...

Shangguan Tingzhi was puzzled and could only reply: "Thank you for your advice, General. I will definitely work hard!"

*****
When he returned home, the servant told him that his father was waiting in the study, so Shangguan Tingzhi hurried to report.

“What is the relationship between the amount of money and the rise and fall of prices?”

After hearing Shangguan Tingzhi's narration, Shangguan Yi stroked his beautiful beard and frowned in thought: "When the currency increases, the price of goods will rise accordingly. When the currency is scarce, the price of goods will inevitably fall... Who doesn't know such a simple truth? Is it necessary to pay too much attention to it?"

"Father, please understand. Since the general has specifically reminded me, it is obviously not that simple. There must be a reason behind it. After I go to the West Market, I will observe and record this matter more, and live up to the general's guidance and cultivation."

Shangguan Yi nodded happily: "That's exactly what should be done!"

In fact, you don't have to really achieve any results. You just need to inadvertently reveal to the outside world that such behavior is at the instruction of Fang Jun, and you will naturally board Fang Jun's big ship and successfully stand on Fang Jun's side.

Besides, Fang Jun has always been good at judging people. When the outside world sees that Fang Jun has high hopes for Shangguan Tingzhi, everyone will look up to Shangguan Tingzhi, right?
Fang Jun once said something very well, "A horse may travel a thousand miles, but it cannot go by itself without a rider; a man may have lofty ambitions, but he cannot achieve them without luck." Whether doing business, being an official, or even the ups and downs of life as a whole, one's own talents are important, but luck is equally important.

When your luck turns, heaven and earth will work together to help you soar to the top!

After finishing the business, Shangguan Tingzhi hesitated for a moment and whispered, "However, during the visit today, the actions of the Grand Commandant made me confused and I couldn't let it go."

Shangguan Yi asked curiously, "What's the matter?"

Shangguan Tingzhi then told him about Fang Jun staring at him from time to time, and recounted how Fang Jun urged him to have more children. At the end, he said with a conflicted look on his face, "At first, I thought the commander had a preference for Long Yang, and I was terrified. What if he made a request or even used force on me? What should I do?"

Shangguan Yi was also confused and doubtful: "This... is it possible? Although Fang Jun is not as lustful as other children of noble families, I have never heard of him having such a fetish!"

When the rich and powerful get tired of playing with women, some of them keep "boy lovers". This is not a shameful thing, but is regarded as an "elegant hobby" and is enviable. So if Fang Jun really has this hobby, he must be able to hide it from others, and there is nothing to hide. Since there has never been such a rumor, it is highly likely that there is no such thing.

Seeing that his son was still confused and hesitant, he couldn't help but ask, "What else?"

Shangguan Tingzhi gritted his teeth, moved closer, and said cautiously: "The commander said a lot of things that I don't understand, but he mentioned my offspring, and said that the Shangguan family has a good bloodline, and asked me to have more children... Father, do you think he is hinting at something?"

Shangguan Yi asked back: "What do you mean by that?"

"General Su Wen's 'good princess' only has an affair with older princesses such as Changle and Baling. Princess Jinyang is in love with him, but he is dismissive. Could it be that he has a fetish for older women? His words may hint that I should send Zheng over..."

Shangguan Yi was confused and asked subconsciously: "Who is Zheng?"

He immediately came to his senses, became furious, grabbed the teacup on the table and threw it at his eldest son's head.