: Planning the Court

Although technical issues are Xie Hong's business and he is most concerned about, his identity is here, and the affairs of the government are also inseparable from him.

During the liquidation, Xie Hong implemented a bold and cautious strategy.

He said he was bold because he dealt with high-quality officials and his methods were very ruthless, in order to act as a deterrent effect; but at the same time, he also carefully controlled the scope of the liquidation. He basically only focused on beating the low-quality officials who followed the trend and made so-called soy sauce, but in fact he let it go.

His approach is quite close to the bottom line of scholars, but it has not gone beyond it. Many scholars feel similar to Zhang Sheng, thinking that Xie Hong is similar to those powerful ministers in the past, and they use the traditional method of fighting for the court, but he is more arrogant and his technique is not very proficient.

The scholars' dissatisfaction and anger were accumulated, but Xie Hong didn't care. He was destined to be hostile to the other party. What he wanted was to make the opponent temporarily surrender, and then build the capital into a stable base, and then slowly expand the influence until the new policy he had imagined was finally implemented.

If you are still as careful as before, and even have to bring a lot of bodyguards to travel, how can you implement the new policy if you are still not even protecting yourself?

Therefore, after listening to Zeng Jian's opinions, he combined the political struggle techniques of later generations to wipe out the most stubborn part of the opposition. No matter what the rest of them think, at least at present, there is no noise in the court.

However, suppressing the court is just a superficial phenomenon, not a once-for-all measure, and troubles will soon follow. Including the two cabinet ministers, the twelve people with the highest rank and the most responsibilities in the Ming Dynasty were reduced by nearly half at once, and these positions still have to be filled.

Xie Hong did not intend to significantly change the situation in the court now. Such actions are too stimulating and may make the scholars crazy. Moreover, the structure of the Ming Dynasty court itself is also a very mature structure, so it is really difficult for Xie Hong to think of a better one.

Not everything from later generations is good. If it cannot be localized and conform to the characteristics of the times, it may lead to the opposite result. Therefore, after the liquidation, what Xie Hong has to do is to place his own people in an important position and try to control the court.

Unlike most political winners, Xie Hong was not worried about how to give rewards fairly and avoid the breeding of internal dissatisfaction, but that there were too many important positions and there was no one in his hands.

For most politicians, this should be considered a happy worry, but Xie Hong is really worried. He is not a politician at first, and he has always used political struggles to make any serious measures. He is really helpless about the current situation.

Let’s talk about the positions of the two empty cabinet ministers. Li Dongyang became the chief minister, and there was no doubt about this. Since he retreated consciously, Xie Hong still had to give some lenient peace to the scholars and show that he was not a real lunatic, but was liquidating the enemy.

But the remaining two positions are in trouble. Strictly speaking, Xie Hong only has three serious scholars, and the only one who is barely suitable for this position is probably Zeng Jian.

Tang Bohu actually had no fame and fame. He was dismissed at the beginning. Even after the verdict was overturned, he was just a Juren. If he wanted to become a Jinshi, he had to re-examination. At least three years later. It is really too fantasy to let someone who is only thirty years old and has only a Juren’s fame become a master.

Well, I have to say that Tang Bohu doesn’t have the time to be a cabinet master. Now that the talented man in Tang has been left with Xie Hong, he has no time to intrigue in the cabinet. Besides, this kind of work is not his specialty, it would be strange if he can beat an old fox like Li Dongyang.

Aside from the consideration of loyalty, Yan Song has the potential to be a cabinet master, but potential is only potential after all. Whether it can be transformed into actual ability remains to be discussed. After all, Yan Song is only in his twenties now, even younger than Tang Bohu, and the problems he faces are the same as Tang Bohu.

Zeng Jian has both qualifications and abilities. Although it is very criticized for being a minister of the Ministry of Works as a cabinet minister, Xie Hong's current power does not cause any trouble.

What made Xie Hong hesitate was the old man's body. In fact, if Xie Hong had not been able to regain his energy, he would have been recuperating for the past year. Losing a child in his old age and years of wasting time have exhausted the energy of the old man.

When Xie Hong was recommended to enter the cabinet, this behavior itself was to declare a complete break with the scholars. While the scenery was infinity, the storm that was coming was also imagined. Although Zeng Jian expressed his willingness to take responsibility, he could let the elderly carry this burden, Xie Hong really couldn't bear it.

He didn't have any in his hands, so Xie Hong had to turn his attention to others. The people who originally defected to Liu Jin were good, such as Jiao Fang, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was a very suitable candidate.

Although he was in love with Liu Jin at the beginning, in the eyes of others, this behavior was almost the same as that of Xie Hong. Liu Jin could only nod and bow in front of Xie Hong. What kind of bluffing is his little brother?

Jiao Fang knew the truth. At the beginning, he passed the message through Liu Jin. Later, he simply ran to the Military Equipment Office to wait, expressing the meaning of surrender to the fullest, and obviously he ignored the public opinion in the Shilin area.

Such a person is safe to use. Although it is not completely without hidden dangers, as long as Xie Hong can maintain his strength, there is no chance of any change.

Therefore, Jiao Fang, the Grand Secretary, had basically decided, but the matter had not been told to the person involved. Xie Hong thought it would be better to leave him for a few more days, as it would be a small blow.

But although Liu Jin called Shanxiang at the time, there were only a few unsuccessful people who defected to him. Jiao Fang's official position was the biggest, and Liu Yu and Cao Yuan were relatively powerful.

Liu Yu was a Jinshi in the eighth year of Chenghua. He was originally a member of Liu Jian's sect. He was promoted to the right assistant censor because of Liu Jian's recommendation, but he was not a core figure in this sect.

There are many reasons for his failure to succeed, but the most important thing is his conflict with Liu Daxia. When he was governor Xuan Da, it was because of Liu Daxia's report in front of Emperor Xiaozong that he was devalued, and he was never allowed to use it and could only live in the Censorate.

Therefore, he was closer to Xie Hong in terms of love. Xie Hong directly pushed his enemies to a state of doom, which made him feel a little grateful. Of course, most people who were in the officialdom would not rely solely on their personal feelings to make judgments. Liu Yu would think like this and say this is just a means to get closer.

Xie Hong also intends to use this person, but it is difficult to push him directly to the position of the cabinet minister. Moreover, Xie Hong needs someone to control the six divisions.

As for Cao Yuan, this man was a Jinshi in the 11th year of Chenghua, and also from the Ministry of Works. He is currently serving as the Right Minister, but his prestige and qualifications are even below Liu Yu.

According to Zeng Jian, this person's ability is not outstanding, and it is unlikely to let him enter the cabinet. Even if he enters the cabinet, he will not be able to beat Li Dongyang and he will not be able to stabilize the situation. Xie Hong felt that instead of forcing him to enter the cabinet to cheer for Jiao Fang, it would be better to let him be a minister and be his own voice-over. Jiao Fang's voice is also very loud, and it is enough to not need help.

In addition to these three people, Zhang Cai is the only one who deserves attention in Liu Jin's sect. This person is about the same age as Tang Bohu and has a high reputation. He was also a Jinshi as early as the third year of Hongzhi. Many people in the court praised him, including people like Ma Wensheng, the Minister of Personnel.

The reason why he defected to Liu Jin was a traditional person. Because he was a fellow villager, he was introduced by Jiao Fang, so he defected to Liu Jin. According to Xie Hong's information, Zhang Cai was praised by everyone not for no reason, but because he did have real talent and knowledge. Therefore, Xie Hong naturally took this person into his vision.

Although the loyalty of these people is difficult to guarantee, as long as they formally surrender to them, they will not be tolerated by Shilin. The Jiangnan scholars who were focused by Xie Hong were criticized by Li Dongyang and others, let alone these people who formally surrendered to Xie Hong? These people are completely treacherous parties in the traditional sense.

Li Dongyang's guess is not wrong. Xie Hong's long-term plan is to let the new talents trained by the academy gradually enter the court and slowly expel the Confucian forces.

Xie Hong had no prejudice against Confucianism. In the Spring and Autumn Period, when hundreds of schools of thought contend, Confucianism was just one of them. This theory is not suitable for governing the country, but it is suitable for personal self-cultivation and family management. If Dong Zhongshu and other ambitious people had not fooled Emperor Wu of Han to pick it up, Confucianism would not have caused much harm to China, but might have been beneficial.

However, after Dong Zhongshu, the bureaucrats gradually realized the beauty of Confucianism and praised it as the great way to govern the country and pacify the world.

The most wonderful thing is that many Confucian theories are relatively vague and can be justified from various angles, which greatly facilitates the governance of those in power. As long as they are willing, the policies will be correct no matter how they say them.

Just as the more sound the country in later generations, the more detailed the legal provisions are; the less sound the country, the more blurry the legal provisions are. Too detailed rules are more beneficial to ordinary people, while vague rules are more beneficial to the rulers. Confucian scholarship just meets the latter's requirements.

This is the case with the Ming Dynasty laws formulated in accordance with Confucianism. A considerable number of criminal laws are determined according to the mood of the judges. If ten officials sentenced the same case, there may be ten results, and each of them can be explained.

This not only provides convenience for officials to dereliction of duty, but also works well in court struggles. Xie Hong also knows very well about the harm of such a governing philosophy. Therefore, after playing the trick of using the other person to do the same thing and frame him, he strengthened his determination to expel Confucian forces from the court.

Since this goal has been set, it is enough to stabilize the situation before the time is ripe. The people appointed now are just transitional roles, and there is no need to be very loyal. Moreover, the movements of the courtiers must be taken into account.

***. Thank you for your support from my brothers. Xiaoyu is very grateful, so I can only repay everyone with my efforts to write. Well, I will work hard. In addition, the next chapter is a long-lost emotional drama. If you like it, subscribe and leave a message to let me know. If you don’t like it, Xiaoyu will weaken the weight of the emotional drama in the future. OK, that’s it.
Chapter completed!