Han Dynasty Achievements

Chapter 56: Beat the Slow with the Fast

Liu Bian found the memorial submitted by the Shangshutai on the table, looked at it carefully, and said to Xun You with a smile: "There is still a vacancy for the Shangshu of the Six Departments. Pan Yin, tell the Shangshutai to promote Xun Qingjia to the Shangshu position, and make it immediately."

Xun You was surprised and delighted, and quickly stood up and raised his hand and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty..."

"Sit down, my dear."

Before he could finish, Liu Bian pulled his arm and went to the table again, saying, "Qingjia, I have another question. There are many vacancies in the court now, but there are good and bad people among them. It is really difficult to distinguish them. Is there any way to recruit them?"

This was also a big problem that troubled Liu Bian - he had no one under his command.

If he had enough manpower to support the court, he would have kicked Yuan Wei aside long ago.

After Xun You sat down, he knew that Liu Bian's intention was not to fill the vacancy, so he said, "Your Majesty, you can follow the example of Emperor Wu and issue an edict to recruit talents."

Liu Bian wanted more than that. He wanted to break the monopoly of aristocratic families on officialdom and curb the development of powerful families.

"It's feasible for now, but not long-term," he said.

Seeing Liu Bian in deep thought, Xun You suddenly had an idea and said, "Your Majesty, you can open a recruitment hall to recruit talented and upright people from all over the world. Your Majesty can personally examine and select the capable ones for appointment."

Liu Bian's eyes suddenly glowed, and he quickly thought of more things.

There were two main methods of selecting officials in the Han Dynasty: recommendation and recruitment. Generally speaking, both were controlled by aristocratic families.

The imperial examination that he had been thinking about was a matter of great importance. There were a lot of things to prepare from beginning to end, and it was not feasible in a short period of time.

But the Recruitment Hall allows one to skip the aristocratic families and go directly to the 'Palace Examination'!

He could easily set the examination questions in the Talent Recruitment Hall, and regardless of background or status, only the most capable ones would be promoted!

Liu Bian suppressed his excitement, looked at Xun You with a satisfied smile and said, "Your suggestion is very good!"

As he spoke, he picked up the pen again and wrote on the paper: It is better to recruit talented people as soon as possible in the Talent Recruitment Hall.

After writing this, Liu Bian raised his head, looked at Xun You and said, "Where do you think we should cut down on expenditure?"

Xun You showed hesitation for the first time. After a moment, he said, "Reduce the number of officials."

Liu Bian raised his eyebrows. He had just mentioned abolishing the three duke offices and expanding the Secretariat, but he did not mention cutting down on officials.

When I read The Grand Historian before, Liu Bian had this idea in his mind vaguely, but it was not specific. Because this kind of thing is a "big taboo" no matter when it is, and in the last years of the dynasty, it is the biggest taboo!

Then, Liu Bian had some thoughts in his mind, and he said to himself: "It's not impossible, but we need someone who is strong enough, even tyrannical, and not afraid of backlash from the government and the public."

"Who?"

Liu Bian was thinking about the candidates for the court and the government.

At this time, a eunuch came to the door.

Pan Yin walked out quietly, and the eunuch whispered something in his ear.

Pan Yin waved his hand, and after entering, he glanced at Xun You and whispered in Liu Bian's ear, "Your Majesty, the Shangshu and the chief official in charge of drafting the imperial edict in the Shangshutai are both on leave, and the other is vacant. The appointment of Xun You will have to wait a while."

Liu Bian remained calm, glanced at him and asked, "It has to be them?"

Pan Yin bowed and said, "Yes."

Liu Bian reached out and picked up the teacup, feeling suspicious.

"I just selected the governors of the seven states, and the person who drafted the imperial edict has been on leave for a long time. Isn't it a coincidence..."

Liu Bian drank a sip of tea and said thoughtfully: "Is Yuan Taifu still in the Shangshutai?"

Pan Yin said: "Teacher Yuan went to the Imperial Censorate."

Liu Bian seemed to be thinking about something, then he looked at Xun You and said with a smile, "It's just a little thing. I had a great conversation with you today, and I need to think about it carefully. After you go back, please write a detailed report to me. In addition, you can enter the Forbidden Palace at any time without reporting in advance."

Xun You stood up in a hurry, raised his hand with excitement and said, "I accept your command and thank you!"

Liu Bian smiled and nodded, watching him leave.

As soon as he left, Liu Bian looked indifferent and asked, "Did the Shangshu suddenly ask for leave?"

Pan Yin looked at Liu Bian's profile and said cautiously, "I sent someone to investigate. He left the palace suddenly and asked for leave because he had caught a cold."

"Is this the work of Yuan Wei?"

Liu Bian speculated in his mind and asked, "What about the imperial edicts appointing Dong Zhuo and those governors?"

"It's stopped too." Pan Yin said more carefully.

Liu Bian sneered and said, "Send Wang Yun to see me."

Pan Yin quietly tightened his face and said, "Yes."

As soon as he turned around, Liu Bian suddenly looked at him and asked, "By the way, what has mother been busy with recently?"

Ever since the day when Empress Dowager He had a big quarrel with He Jin, Liu Bian had not seen Empress Dowager He except for the coronation ceremony. Considering Empress Dowager He's personality of wanting to have three meals with him, it was very abnormal for her not to show up for so many days.

Pan Yin thought for a moment and said, "The Queen Mother has been in Changle Palace and has never come out."

"It seems that there is a hidden story behind He Jin's death."

Liu Bian muttered to himself, "Go ahead."

Pan Yin didn't dare to say anything more and responded by walking out quickly.

Liu Bian calmed down and looked at his notes on the table again. Thinking about what he had just said to Xun You, a smile appeared on his face again. He said in a relieved mood: "It's really good to have talented people to help... The more the better..."

He originally had only a vague understanding of state affairs, but now he has a clearer plan.

Liu Bian watched, picked up a pen, and wrote down some of his thoughts so that he would not be unable to remember them later.

Not long after, Wang Yun arrived. He was not tall, with a slightly dark face and droopy eyes, giving people an honest feeling.

"Your Majesty, I, Wang Yun, pay my respects to you."

Wang Yun entered the study, raised his hand and saluted. His tone was calm, without any disturbance.

Liu Bian turned around and looked at the usually low-key "prime minister" and said with a smile, "No need to be polite. It's like this, the Shangshu who is in charge of drafting the imperial edict is sick. There are many things to do now and I can't delay. I want to change his position and transfer Xun Yousheng, the Huangmen Shilang, to him."

Wang Yun thought it was something else, but he didn't expect it to be this. His face remained unchanged, but he hesitated in his heart.

Because, he can't do it!

The Secretariat was composed of the Shangshu Ling, Pushe, and the Left and Right Chancellors. The actual rank of the Shangshu was very low, and the power of appointment was in the hands of the Shangshu Ling.

Although the Shangshu Ling was more prominent because of the Shangshu Tai and had an independent seat in the court, his rank was not high compared with the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers. The appointment of the Shangshu Ling was decided by the Lu Shangshu Shi after discussion.

After thinking it over, Wang Yun found that he still couldn't do it, so he said, "Your Majesty, the Minister of the Chancellery has not yet arrived."

Liu Bian understood and said, "Go home."

Wang Yun hesitated to speak, and finally sighed helplessly and said, "I'll take my leave."

Liu Bian reached out and picked up the notebook in his hand, his expression gradually became cold, and he said to himself: "Okay, let's start with the Shangshutai!"

He decided to take complete control of the Secretariat as soon as possible in order to gain control of power!

Immediately, he stood up and walked to the desk. After sitting down, he picked up a pen and wrote as he said, "Pan Yin, pass the imperial edict to the Shangshutai. Shangshuling and Pushe will not be appointed for the time being. The six ministers will be determined by imperial edict. Select one Xiaohuangmen and nine Zhonghuangmen to wait at the Shangshutai. From now on, all correspondence with the Shangshutai, official documents, edicts, etc., will be handled by Xiaohuangmen."

Before Pan Yin could respond, Liu Bian had already finished writing, folded it, and said, "Come here."

A eunuch hurried in and said, "I'm here."

Liu Bian handed him the note and said, "Give it to Zuo Li and tell him to do it immediately!"

"Yes." Huang Men replied.

Seeing that Liu Bian had no other instructions, Pan Yin quickly responded and left.

Liu Bian sat on the chair, looking out the door with calm eyes but a hint of coldness.

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