Han Dynasty Achievements

Chapter 73: The Spirit of the Great Han

Not only Liu Bian was stunned, almost everyone in the hall fell silent.

The court officials' eyes, like Liu Bian's, were on Dong Zhuo.

Except for Liu Bian, almost everyone present was a well-educated person, so it was natural for them to understand it very easily. However, many of them were secretly surprised and doubtful.

Quiet, very quiet.

"Many contacts? Who are you talking about?"

"The Lord listens to the evil, and the evil gathers. Who is this referring to?"

"Why did you suddenly mention Hebei? Who are the Hebei bandits? The Yellow Turbans?"

Some people's gaze quietly shifted away from Dong Zhuo, fell on Yuan Wei, and then suddenly retracted.

When Dong Zhuo saw that everyone was looking at him, his expression became more serious and he looked more and more like a loyal minister and a capable general.

Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others frowned secretly, wondering if Dong Zhuo was just saying this unintentionally or if he was referring to something.

Xun You seemed to see that Liu Bian didn't understand, and suddenly turned to Dong Zhuo and said, "Please give me some advice, Mr. Dong."

Dong Zhuo did not move his head, but glanced at him from the corner of his eye. From his position, he could tell that Xun You was a low-ranking official. He was dignified and self-respecting, and said, "Factions are a disaster for the country, and we must be careful."

Xun You noticed that Dong Zhuo's face twitched, vaguely understood something, and did not continue to ask.

After this period of time, Liu Bian understood a little with difficulty. He looked at Wang Yun and others behind Dong Zhuo, and did not ask any more questions. He smiled and said, "Mr. Yuan said that a gentleman should form friendships but not factions. I deeply agree with that, but I do not completely agree with it."

Ding Gong, Liu Hong, Xun You and others began to get nervous. They knew a lot of inside information and knew that Liu Bian was very dissatisfied with this person.

But now is not the time to deal with Yuan Wei!

Liu Bian did not give them too much time to think. He looked at Yuan Wei and said, "There are cliques and cliques. There is no clique without cliques. Friends come before cliques. Cliques contain traitors. The friends of gentlemen are open and honest, and do not avoid differences. The friends of villains value benefits and avoid harm. They unite when they are the same and disperse when they are different. They fight for life and death in the rivers and lakes, and bring disaster to the country and the people in the government..."

By now, more people had become alert and were looking towards Yuan Wei vaguely.

Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others bowed their heads, frowning with gloomy expressions.

Your Majesty, he almost pointed out the Yuan family!

Ding Gong, Liu Hong and others sat still, feeling extremely uneasy. They kept thinking of ways to deal with the aftermath of Liu Bian if the situation got out of control later!

Cao Cao did not sit down, but stood not far from where Pan Yin made his move, holding his sword.

His narrow eyes were full of coldness, and his gaze occasionally turned to the guards standing outside the door.

Liu Bian's voice slowly fell, and the hall became quiet.

Xun You and others secretly observed Yuan Wei with tense expressions.

Yuan Wei was summoned to the palace directly by Liu Bian, and his words were very direct and obviously targeted.

"How will this old tutor react?" Xun You and others thought anxiously.

From the eunuch party to He Jin, the internal strife in the court has been serious enough, we cannot allow any more chaos!

Especially it must not happen to the Yuan family!

Yuan Wei felt those clear eyes, his face remained motionless, he remained silent, and calmly said, "May I ask your Majesty, what is considered a clique?"

After these words were spoken, the hall became even quieter.

Ding Gong's eyes suddenly opened, and he blurted out nervously: "A clique is a person who abuses power for his own selfish interests."

Liu Hong reacted quickly and said: "The cliques are all treacherous people!"

They cannot let Yuan Wei confront Liu Bian directly, otherwise it will be difficult to end!

Yuan Wei turned his head and looked at the two of them, and said woodenly: "Si Tu, Si Kong, do you think there are any treacherous people in the palace who abuse their power?"

You can hear the needle drop!

There were countless people in the hall with expressions of horror on their faces. Yuan Wei actually asked back in public?

Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others all changed color.

Xun You instantly clenched his fists on his knees and stared at Ding Gong and Liu Hong.

Not only him, everyone in the hall was watching them, afraid that they would utter the word "Yuan Wei"!

In this Quefei Palace, in front of His Majesty and all the civil and military officials in the court, once the words are spoken, it will be impossible to take back the damage, and the consequences will be disastrous!

Ding Gong, Liu Hong also did not expect Yuan Wei to turn around. Looking at Yuan Wei's calm face and deep and unfathomable eyes, his lips moved, but he could not utter a word.

Liu Bian raised his eyebrows. He didn't expect that Yuan Wei, who had always been as steady as an old dog, would show aggressiveness.

Seeing that Ding Gong and Liu Hong were in an awkward situation, he said with a smile: "Yuan Qingjia, don't be so sensitive. Today, we are just chatting with each other. No matter the crime, no accusation, no personal grudge, and no regard for the past."

Yuan Kui frowned, and naturally heard the hidden meaning in Liu Bian's words. He turned around calmly, raised his hand, and said, "Your Majesty, I have no personal grudges or old hatreds with the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Works. I am just discussing the matter. I think that people who form cliques are first of all corrupt in character, then they are immoral, and then they are obsessed with profit and desire, and finally they forget their own reason and cause chaos and harm to the country."

The tense expressions of Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others relaxed a little. They had been worried that Yuan Wei would be angered and say something irreversible.

Ding Gong, who was originally a little embarrassed, was relieved by Liu Hong. Yuan Wei just vented his anger and did not lose his sense of propriety. There was still room for improvement.

"I don't agree with what you say." At the front of the hall, the young emperor said lightly.

Everyone who had been relaxing suddenly felt their hearts shrink, their eyes widened, and they looked at Liu Bian in shock.

Your Majesty, what are you doing?

Xun You's lips moved, hesitant to speak, feeling flustered.

If we take action against the Yuan family now, the consequences will be more serious than exterminating the eunuchs and relatives of the emperor combined!

There will be a huge vacuum in the imperial court! The local noble families who look up to the Yuan family will become disunited, causing the control of the Han imperial court to decline sharply!

A hint of coldness appeared on Yuan Wei's skinny face. His eyes were deep. He raised his hand and said in a light tone, "Your Majesty, please teach me."

Liu Bian saw everyone's expressions, thinking in his heart, but smiling more, he said calmly: "In my opinion, people who form cliques have nothing to do with character and virtue. It is said that great loyalty may be treachery, and great treachery may be loyalty. How can treacherous people have 'loyalty' written on their faces? Zhou Gong was afraid of rumors, and Wang Mang was humble before he usurped the throne. Until the end, who can tell the loyal from the treacherous? Who can distinguish the true from the false?"

Xun You listened to Liu Bian's words with shining eyes. He chewed on the words "Duke Zhou feared the rumors, Wang Mang was humble and did not usurp the throne". His mind was shaken, and he suddenly leaned forward and shouted loudly: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Ding Gong, Liu Hong quickly followed and said, "Your Majesty is wise!"

When someone takes the lead, others have to follow even if they have other thoughts.

"Your Majesty is wise!" People in the palace shouted one after another.

Yuan Kui knew that Liu Bian was pointing at him, but when he saw that Liu Bian did not draw his sword, his expression eased slightly, and he leaned forward and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

Liu Bian looked at this group of people, sneered in his heart, and said to himself: That's about it.

"No need to be so polite." Liu Bian waved his hand.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." The court officials stood up and looked at Liu Bian with different eyes, their hearts beating fast.

Ding Gong, Liu Hong, Huangfu Song, Xun You and others all looked somewhat excited and their eyes were burning.

Their Majesty is indeed wise. Although his words may seem ordinary, they actually contain profound truths that ordinary people cannot express at all!

Yuan Ji and others regained their composure and breathed a sigh of relief. At least, His Majesty did not make the situation embarrassing or out of control.

Dong Zhuo followed the crowd and knelt down and stood up again. He sat upright with a serious face and was secretly alert in his heart. In a short time, he had realized that the little emperor was very dissatisfied with the Yuan family!

"Yuan Wei, this old man, deceived me!" Dong Zhuo was furious.

Liu Bian smiled, his eyes calmly scanning the expressions of the people in the hall, slightly stretching his legs that were numb from sitting, and continued: "It is actually very easy to identify cliques. For example, they are arbitrary, block the channels of communication, speak alone, exclude dissidents, make private transactions, appoint people based on personal connections, have many cliques, and care about their own interests but forget about public opinion."

At this point, Liu Bian changed the subject and said, "For example, the 'new system' this time was carefully designed by all the dignitaries in the court with great effort, day and night, but some people came out in a group and said the same thing. The words in the memorials are highly similar, and the meaning is the same inside and outside. Are they forming a clique? Is this opposition for public or private reasons? Please tell me."

No one expected that Liu Bian, after going around in circles, actually came up with the "new system"!

Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others looked at each other quietly without saying a word, feeling uneasy.

The so-called collective opposition, the wording and sentences are highly similar, aren't they referring to them?

Even Dong Zhuo felt a little uncomfortable, because his memorial of opposition was written by Yuan Wei himself!

"Your Majesty,"

As a new noble and a beneficiary of the 'new system', Xun You raised his hand solemnly and said, "I think that the new system is a natural outcome, not a major overhaul, and is in line with the law."

As long as they are not targeting Yuan Wei or the entire Yuan family, Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and the like can be dealt with at will.

Ding Gong, who was a little embarrassed before, took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, if there are really court officials forming a party, the eunuch party is a lesson not far away. I request that they be severely punished!"

Liu Hong also intended to take this opportunity to weaken the Yuan family, so he raised his hand and said, "Your Majesty, please show me the memorial so that all the ministers can see it and show fairness."

Liu Bian frowned inwardly. These two really couldn't tell the main point. He smiled and waved his hand, saying, "I've said it before. Today we are just discussing. No accusations or charges. Let's talk about this new system. If you have different ideas, you can speak freely without any scruples."

Yuan Wei frowned. Under such circumstances, who would dare to have a different opinion? Wouldn't it be telling the court officials that they were a clique?

This is not a hat-trick!

Yuan Kui had a blank expression on his face. He knew that he could not argue about this. He said thoughtfully, "Your Majesty, this is a new system. This is a serious matter. Please take a long time to discuss it. Don't be hasty, so as to avoid panic in the court and the public and cause trouble. We must be careful."

'Want to jump out of the hole I dug? Don't even think about it'

Liu Bian snorted in his heart, but smiled more, and said: "Mr. Yuan, isn't this just a discussion? Don't be shy, just speak freely."

Yuan Wei sat still, glancing back with the corner of his eye.

Zheng Tai met Yuan Wei's gaze and immediately felt his scalp tingling. He was extremely panicked, but he had to bite the bullet and raise his hand to argue with Liu. He lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty, the Secretariat is already very powerful. If the power of the nine ministers is further reduced and concentrated in the Secretariat, I am afraid that the power will be too great and it will be detrimental to the country."

Liu Bian looked at him with a curious look on his face, and said, "There are six people who recorded the affairs of the Shangshu. Who do you think is harmful to the country?"

Zheng Tai was already panicking, and when Liu Bian asked him the question, he was speechless and couldn't utter a word.

Seeing that he was silent, Liu Bian suddenly turned to Dong Zhuo and asked, "Mr. Dong, do you think the new system violates the ancestral system?"

Dong Zhuo watched from the sidelines and saw the situation in the court clearly, especially the Yuan family, which was obviously feared and suppressed by the little emperor.

'You old thief has misled me!'

Dong Zhuo was filled with hatred, but his face was even more solemn. He turned to Liu Bian and said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, what I mean is that the law of our ancestors..."

He could not quite remember the words Yuan Kui had taught him in the memorial, so he paused and said, "Your Majesty, I second the motion."

Liu Bian had been watching Dong Zhuo, and when he saw a flash of embarrassment on his face, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Whose proposal do you agree with?"

Dong Zhuo had forgotten who was who and what they said. He straightened his face and suddenly said, "I agree with the court's opinion."

Liu Bian narrowed his eyes slightly, his eyes were full of smiles, and he nodded approvingly, saying: "Dong Qing's family really knows the big picture. The opposite of cliques is 'public discussion in the court'. The court does not belong to me alone, nor to a certain court official. It belongs to all officials and the people of the world. No one is allowed to act arbitrarily, form cliques to rule the country, and abuse power to harm the country."

Liu Bian sat up straighter, his face dignified, and said in a deep voice: "The decision made by the court's public discussion is mine and the decision of all officials. Even if someone disagrees and has different ideas, I respect them and am willing to listen. At the same time, I also hope that those who have different ideas can write to me, raise them, discuss and debate them, but! You cannot hinder each other, plot against each other, frame each other, or even put them to death just because of different political views!"

When the court officials noticed that Liu Bian's tone became increasingly stern, they bowed unconsciously and listened to his instructions attentively with solemn expressions.

Liu Bian looked around at them with a cold gaze, and said: "Any decision made by the court can be discussed and debated within the court, but it must not be expanded, and it must not be known to the world, causing a stir and setting off a bigger fight! The court must let the subjects of the world see that our Han court is united, upright, selfless, and dedicated to the public. It is definitely not a group of swindlers, like street dogs, barking and biting for a bone, and parading in groups through the streets, disregarding decency and shamelessness, which is extremely shameful!"

All the court officials in the hall dared not breathe. Liu Bian’s words were straightforward, explicit and harsh!

Liu Bian stood up and looked down at the courtiers in the hall. His face was as hard as steel, his eyes were piercing, and he said loudly: "I am a minister of the Han Dynasty. I am a man of steel, selfless and fearless! I have great integrity and my ambition is as high as the sky! Between the pen and ink, the wind rises from thousands of miles away. I have lofty ambitions and my ambition is above the blue sky! I am not greedy for small change or selfish gains!"

Dozens of court officials heard this, and many of them became excited and their faces flushed with excitement.

"Your subjects will obey the command and follow the instructions of the Holy Prophet!"

The court officials bowed again, and the sound was so loud that it could be heard throughout the palace, one after another, lingering in the air.

Liu Bian's words made his blood boil. He took a deep breath and waved his hand, saying, "That's all for today. After you go back, please write a report of your thoughts and ideas and submit it to the emperor."

"Your Majesty, I obey your order." The court officials responded in unison before they could react.

Liu Bian glanced again, turned around and walked out of the side door of Quefei Hall.

The court officials waited until Liu Bian left before they slowly stood up. They had different expressions on their faces and couldn't help but look at each other.

Ding Gong, Liu Hong's face flushed, and his hands, which didn't know where to put, were almost clasped together.

They never expected that this young emperor actually had such ambition and ideas!

The new nobles such as Xun You reacted the most violently. They looked at the side door where Liu Bian was no longer there, their eyes still wide open and their breathing rapid.

Yuan Wei sat there expressionless, his eyes locked, without a trace of emotion on his face.

Yuan Ji, Huang Wan and others felt a little uneasy and slowly walked to his side.

Yuan Wei glanced at them out of the corner of his eye and slowly stood up.

If he loses balance, he will stumble and fall face first.

"uncle!"

"Teacher!"

A group of people were shocked and rushed to rescue him.

A bigger chapter~

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