Going to Beijing to save his father, all the powerful officials in the city are vying to be his fath

The emperor sighed helplessly, "Liangchen, there's no need for you and me to be so cautious. I know everything you do is for me.

You went to the Ministry of Justice yesterday and solved a big worry for me with just a few words. Today, when you were receiving the reward in the court, you were afraid that the meritorious officials would be dissatisfied with the reward and sacrifice your own merits.

I am grateful in my heart. I really regard you as a brother, so you can tell me anything you want to say.

You are the only one in this world who truly cares about me. We should be friends who can talk about anything."

If the emperor had said these words to Zhao Liangchen in his previous life, he would definitely be filled with gratitude and would really open his heart to the emperor.

But living a new life made him dare not trust anyone easily. In addition, Su Qin's constant insecurity and anxiety constantly reminded him that the king is the king and the minister is the minister, and the king and the minister can never become friends, so he did not really take the emperor's words to heart.

"Your Majesty, all the officials who are able to stand in the court today are sincerely considering Your Majesty.

Grand Tutor Yan, Grand Preceptor, Duke of Lu, Marquis Wuning, Lord Tong... They all work tirelessly for the Emperor and the court. It's just that their status constrains them, making some things inconvenient for them to do, so they have to step in. But this doesn't mean they don't understand the Emperor's difficulties."

The emperor agreed with what he said. Although he was very painful about King Liang's betrayal, he also found that there were many people supporting him.

No matter what these people's reasons are, they are definitely loyal to him.

However, there are still too few such officials. Thinking of the fact that most of the official positions in the court are vacant, he is still very worried.

Countless things, big and small, happened every day in the entire Yu Dynasty, and the important events reported to the court were countless. In the past, the four regent ministers would screen them and then hand over the important ones to him.

But now that so many officials are missing, he is too busy to handle many things. Moreover, he wants to rule the country himself. Without the help of the regent, he might be exhausted to death.

"Do you have any suggestions regarding the vacant officials?"

They had discussed this matter before Su Qin left. They knew that after the failure of Prince Liang's rebellion, there would definitely be many vacancies in the court. These positions needed to be filled quickly, but where could they find so many officials who were familiar with court affairs and understood the people's livelihood?

Even if we quickly select new officials through Jiaenke, these people are new and have no experience, so we dare not put them in important positions.

Zhao Liangchen hesitated for a moment and then said, "Your Majesty, don't worry. This matter is not that difficult to resolve."

The emperor's eyes lit up and he immediately asked, "Do you have a solution?"

Zhao Liangchen said modestly: "It's not really a solution, just a few suggestions."

The emperor immediately became interested: "Go ahead."

Zhao Liangchen: “Although there are many vacancies in the court, there are not many high-ranking officials. Those who are missing from the third rank and above can be promoted from below.

Officials below the third rank in Beijing can be recalled from the provincial level. At the end of the year, many officials will return to report on their work. Among them, some with good performance and good reputation can be selected to stay in Beijing.

If we move up layer by layer like this, the last thing missing are the low-ranking officials at the bottom. These officials can be selected from this year's new imperial examination candidates. They are young, strong, talented, and ambitious. It is time for them to do some practical work, but they lack some experience and knowledge. Sending them to serve as officials in the periphery will be a good opportunity to train them.

Furthermore, we don't know how much Prince Liang has infiltrated other prefectures over the years. These newly elected scholars are all disciples of the emperor, and they are perfect for being sent out as trusted confidants, becoming fresh blood and the emperor's eyes and ears. Once they have gained a certain amount of experience, they can be transferred back to serve as officials. By then, everyone in the court will be the emperor's trusted confidants."

Zhao Liangchen's words moved the emperor deeply, but he still had some concerns: "There are too many officials missing, and the new candidates may not be able to fill the vacancies."

Zhao Liangchen: "Special cases require special treatment. We can relax some conditions and select some special talents. Some people are very capable, but not necessarily suitable for the imperial examination. For example, when Chanzhou was flooded, I met a father and son among the victims outside the city.

They were all juren, but failed repeatedly, especially my father. My teacher met him and said that he was very knowledgeable, but too honest, and some of his views did not conform to the requirements of the imperial examination.

My son is capable and has good opinions, but he is in poor health and cannot endure the nine-day exam.

I believe that there must be many such people. It is not that they lack ability or knowledge, but that they are rejected for various reasons.

The emperor can add more quotas and relax some conditions, so that more talents can be selected as reserves. These people come from the people, so it will definitely be easier to send them back to the people. Anyway, the Ministry of Personnel conducts assessments every year, and those who fail the assessments will be dismissed.

If there are not enough high-ranking officials in the court, they can also be selected from some aristocratic families.

The children of these families are all well-read and knowledgeable, but generally only one child in each generation enters the officialdom, and the others do not.

The Emperor can issue an edict to recruit talented individuals from various families to serve in the government. This will not only win the support of these families, but also fill vacancies."

The emperor found the first option feasible, but he still had some concerns about the second: "Those aristocratic families have deep roots. If too many of their children enter the government, their family power will grow even stronger, and it may be difficult to control them in the future."

Zhao Liangchen: "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry about this. These families are not very united, and there are conflicts among them. When you select people, as long as you take advantage of some of these conflicts and select children from families with conflicts to serve in the government, they will check and balance each other, and they will not watch each other grow stronger.

Moreover, Your Majesty, you should use your own people for some important official positions, and just arrange those people for some unimportant positions.

Master Yan and his men certainly understand the details better than I do, so you can ask for their advice."

The emperor looked Zhao Liangchen up and down with admiration: "Liangchen, you really know a lot now."

Zhao Liangchen said ashamedly: "How could I understand these? These are just what I asked the teacher for advice before."

The emperor remembered Zeng Lao, who had suggested many of his previous plans. He hurriedly asked, "Could you ask Zeng Lao if he's willing to serve as an official?"

Zhao Liangchen shook his head: "Your Majesty, you also know that the teacher is not interested in this, otherwise he would not have taught for so many years. Moreover, he is old, and his body cannot bear too much fatigue."

The emperor was a little disappointed, but he didn't force it. He was unwilling to force the person to come, as it might not necessarily have a good effect.

He then asked about military affairs: "What do you think should be done with the private soldiers raised by the Marquis of Wuning? Should they be incorporated into the Imperial Guards, or should they be formed into a separate army?"