"In order to regulate the disordered Yin people and show their honor to the vassal state." [Guan Cai Lun]
The purpose of transporting money and grain from Yizhou to the north is to relieve the drought in Guanzhong and ensure that the people do not have food to eat; the second is to indirectly weaken Yizhou's strength. As long as Yizhou's treasury does not have enough money and grain, it will not be able to strengthen anyone. ambition.
First, transport grain and grass in the name of disaster relief, regardless of how much loss will be caused on the road. After this year's drought is over, it will gradually become a habit to transport money and grain from Yizhou to Guanzhong. The emperor can try to touch the people on this basis. The profit pie of tax sharing between the central and local governments is still dominated by aid to China and weak Yizhou.
"I have met Handan merchants, the governor of Yizhou. Not to mention anything else, he is very effective in doing things." The emperor simply commented that he did not have a very satisfactory impression of Handan merchants. When he summoned him, he could It can be seen that the Handan businessman is timid and cowardly. On the surface, he is elegant and graceful, but in fact he is selfish and greedy. Such a small person with character flaws and on the edge of power will spare no effort to do things for the person who promotes him as long as he is given enough benefits.
In order to find such a small person, the emperor put a lot of thought into it. Now when he mentions the Handan merchant in front of everyone, he can't say anything outstanding about it, so he can only use "diligence" to explain it: "This time He will be responsible for the transfer of money and grain from Yizhou to support the drought in Guanzhong, so that we can see what his talents are and that he can be appointed in the future."
Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, the power of the governor has gradually expanded. Not only has the rank of two thousand stones, which is the same as that of the prefect, he can also lead troops in battles and intervene in local government affairs. Liu Yan's proposal to reset the prefectural pastoral minister was actually based on the existing power base of the governor. It added more expressly stipulated authority and was able to legitimately govern its subordinate counties.
Although the emperor has never said it clearly since he took office, he is very disgusted with the state pastoral system, so whether he is granting an official or appointing an official, he only gives him the title of governor. Even Liu Yu Qianli, who was the Youzhou pastor at that time, After entering the court, he was also appointed as the governor, but he was given the detached treatment of two thousand dan in rank.
The prefectures and counties where Han Sui and others are located are places where the power of the imperial court is currently difficult to reach. The prefectures and counties where Liu Yu and Zhong Yao are located are in urgent need of someone to take the lead in centralizing power rather than decentralizing it, so the governorship they lead still has a certain degree of power. Compared with their actual situation, Yizhou had no internal or external troubles, so it naturally did not need military and political centralized officials. At the same time, it became another test for the emperor to trigger local reforms.
Let a little-known Handan businessman serve as the governor of Yizhou, but only give him a rank of 600 shi. His powers and responsibilities only include monitoring whether local officials such as 2000 shi are impartial and honest, and whether they collude with local powerful clans and rightists. Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, the state governor has gradually become an administrative official above the county governor, returning to the original position where he was originally established, only responsible for the important task of supervision.
This not only weakened the power of Yizhou's bureaucrats and powerful forces, but was also likely to rewrite the provincial governor system of the Han Dynasty.
However, Dong Cheng didn't care what impact the changes in the local system would have on him. He only knew that no matter what the emperor's intentions were for the strategy of 'weakening Shu', he must fully support it.
"What your Majesty said, I believe." Dong Cheng glanced at Zhao Wen, who had a complicated look, lowered his head and said, "The food and grass in Yizhou have been useless for a long time, and there has been no urgent need for many years. Now that there is a disaster in Guanzhong, it is better to transfer it northward. , to solve the urgent need. As for the losses on the way and the inconvenience of traveling in the mountains, I think that even if it is so, we cannot give up eating because of choking. We should do it according to the judgment of the Yizhou governor and do it cheaply."
Although the restructuring of Yizhou governor greatly reduced the power in the hands of Handan merchants and they could not interfere in the civil affairs of the prefects at will, it gave them a transcendent status. They could supervise local areas for the emperor, crack down on powerful people, and supervise administration. For example, this time the money and grain from Shu were transferred.
Handan merchants are personally responsible for supervising local officials. On the one hand, this can strengthen the central government's control over local areas and prevent separatist forces from reappearing in places like Yizhou; on the other hand, it can also have a thorough understanding of Yizhou's war potential and wealth.
Be aware of it.
The emperor said "hmm", suddenly sat upright on the couch, leaned over slightly and looked at Zhao Wen and said, "Why do you think Mr. Zhao is doing this?"
"The drought situation is serious now. Since Yizhou has surplus grain, it should be donated to relieve the national crisis. How can there be reason to be afraid of distant places and stingy expenses." Zhao Wen said without changing his face. Not only that, he even took the initiative to suggest: "Yizhou has a lot of food."
If you are a wealthy person, the court may wish to persuade you to donate, so that you can get more money and food."
"Forget it about asking for donations." The emperor shook his head and said: "I know what those subordinate officials are like. If you say you are asking for donations, it might turn into forced payment in the end. Yizhou can't stand any more trouble. What's more, the imperial court
Now there is no war, there is no shortage of food, and there is no need to kill the goose to retrieve the eggs."
Zhao Wen seemed to have known that the emperor would say this, and agreed without thinking: "Your Majesty Ruijian, I am not thinking carefully."
Seeing that Zhao Wen was very successful, the emperor nodded with satisfaction. He had deliberately struck just now just to test Zhao Wen's mind. Because a group of new troops will soon enter the court, Zhao Wen will have full wings, expanded power, and his followers.
Once more, your thoughts will also change. Whether you will continue to follow the emperor's lead in the future can be seen not only from today's few words.
"In a few days, the scholars from Shu will join the army and enter the court. Lai Min, Meng Guang, Du Qiong and others will be worshiped as doctors, Dong He, Zhang Su and others will be admitted to the Department of Civil Affairs to study government affairs. As for Fei Yi, Lu Yi and other officials' children
, first make plans and test them, and then decide whether to incorporate them into Taixue." The emperor suddenly mentioned the whereabouts of the Yizhou scholars. It was impossible not to use these scholars, especially well-known historical celebrities like Fei Yi.
Moreover, out of the strategy of "weakening Shu", the emperor could not leave these famous and influential scholars alone in Yizhou, otherwise it would be difficult for officials sent by the imperial court such as Handan merchants to carry out their work on the spot. In order to prevent
They gathered together and grew stronger at once, and the emperor reached a tacit understanding with many forces such as Ma Rixi and Yang Qi. The scholars in Kanto and Kansai rarely recognized the function of the Department of Official Affairs and planned to put them into the Department of Official Affairs to study for a year and a half.
It will be released in batches when the time comes, so that everyone can get used to it.
"Although these are the destinations that have been agreed upon long ago, I still have to mention one more thing." The emperor stretched out a finger to point at Zhao Wen, expressing his concern: "Sichuan has been separated for a long time, and those scholars are not very familiar with me.
The New Dealers of the dynasty did not understand my original intention of setting up the Civil Affairs Bureau. In order to prevent them from having the right and wrong debates of the past and to save them trouble, it would be better for Mr. Zhao, a local villager, to explain it in person."
This undoubtedly gave Zhao Wen an opportunity to contact the locals, and he quickly nodded and agreed.
"When an emperor governs the world, there is no one who does not seek talents from all over the world. Today, there are dozens of people in Yizhou who have been praised as virtuous and capable of governing the people. They are almost as good as those who were conquered by Duke Zhao in Guandong." The imperial court at that time.
Naturally, the power of the emperor was not the same as the current power. The emperor just made a casual comparison, mainly emphasizing: "I still said the same thing, whether the person who is promoted directly becomes an official or first enters the civil service department. As long as
If anyone fails to perform his duties after taking office, he will be punished in all lawsuits brought against him."
Everyone was awe-inspiring, especially when Wang Bin heard it, it was like frost invading his body. He somehow contacted him, because Handan Shang, the governor of Yizhou, and Hua Xin, the prefect of Shu County, were directly or indirectly related to him.