The two brothers Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Kuangyi rode their horses side by side and walked down the long dark street with a clatter.
There is a curfew in Kaifeng Prefecture, but this curfew system is meaningless to military bosses like Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Kuangyi.
"What do you think about what Luo Youdu said today?"
Zhao Kuangyin said pointedly.
Zhao Kuangyi was silent for a moment and sighed: "This person is very familiar with the world's situation. He has analyzed many issues thoroughly. It is obvious that he has seen through His Majesty's great ambitions and has worked hard in advance. He is not a thing in the pond. I already understand my brother's intentions. Don't worry.
Well, I won't take the initiative to trouble him. It's not worth it to set up an opponent with extraordinary ability for yourself for a trivial matter."
"This is the best!" Zhao Kuangyin nodded solemnly.
After walking for a while, Zhao Kuangyi asked: "Brother, what do you think of Luo Youdu's analysis? Do you think it makes sense?"
Zhao Kuangyin pondered for a moment and said: "It's hard to say. This guy is not a simple person. He should have hidden some secrets and not shared the important parts with us. But even so, the situation he described is worthy of our careful study. Still
It has been some time since His Majesty decided to launch troops next year, and there is still time to think deeply."
Guo Rong had lofty ambitions. Since he ascended the throne, he had the ambition to conquer all directions and unify the world. He eliminated useless soldiers, trained elites, and actively prepared for war.
Whoever swings the sword first is the most important thing for Zhou to stabilize the world.
Guo Rong has not stated the matter publicly yet, but has only discussed it with a few of them in private.
The initial targets were set at Hou Shu, Southern Tang, and Northern Han. Most of the generals thought it would be better to attack the Northern Han first.
On the one hand, the political situation of the Liao Kingdom was turbulent and unable to support the Northern Han Dynasty on a large scale. On the other hand, by capturing the Northern Han Dynasty, they could start trade with Dangxiang, obtain war horses, and form a cavalry army. Of course, the most important point was revenge.
A year ago, they won the Battle of Gaoping with difficulty, surrounded Taiyuan City, and saw that the Northern Han Dynasty was about to be destroyed.
The Liao Kingdom suddenly sent troops. Due to lack of food and grass, they lost the battle with the Liao soldiers. They lost their general Shi Yanchao, vomited back the territory they had captured, and retreated to Kaifeng in despair.
Taking advantage of the internal turmoil in the Liao Kingdom, the suggestion of revenge against the Northern Han Dynasty was supported by most generals.
Zhao Kuangyin himself is also inclined to this.
But after Luo Youdu's analysis, Zhao Kuangyin suddenly felt that the Northern Han Dynasty might not be able to capture it easily.
Luo Youdu's words came to mind: "The Northern Han Dynasty is vast and sparsely populated, but the country is weak and the people are strong. If you attack the Northern Han Dynasty first, you can only gain by destroying it. Once you lose, all your previous efforts will be wasted and you will gain nothing. But the Southern Tang Dynasty did not
Similarly, Jianghuai is rich and has a large population. Even if the conquest is ineffective, it will not be a loss if it only captures one city and one area."
From the perspective of profit, it is indeed more economical to strike at the Southern Tang Dynasty with the first blow.
Luo Youdu watched the Zhao brothers leave, then turned and walked into the house.
After drinking more than two kilograms of hot rice wine, I smelled of alcohol all over my body.
He asked Lao Hu to boil hot water, got into the hot water bucket, and let out a comfortable breath.
As a southerner, he did not have the habit of taking baths in his previous life.
I take a shower every day and deal with things casually. People often say that I went to kiss the water.
There were no showers in ancient times, so Luo Youdu followed the local customs and found that soaking his body in a big bathtub felt really good.
Leaning on the edge of the basin, I recalled every detail of my conversation with the Zhao brothers.
"With Zhao Er's city, as long as you don't hit his gun, he shouldn't easily cause trouble for you!"
During this wine party, he revealed some things and got a lot of useful information, which can be regarded as mutual benefit.
The key is to dispel Zhao Kuangyi's bad thoughts so as not to stab him in the back.
"Unexpectedly, Chai Rong hasn't set a strategic goal yet, so Wang Pu hasn't come forward to pacify the border policy?"
"This is an opportunity!"
Guo Rong worshiped the Guo family temple all his life, and never thought of changing his surname back to Chai. It was the Zhao brothers who later forced the Guo family to change their surname for their own political purposes, so later generations were often called Chai Rong, but in this era there was no doubt that they were called Guo Rong.
Luo Youdu was accustomed to be called Chai Rong in later generations. When he was thinking alone at this time, he instinctively replaced Guo Rong with Chai Rong.
On the second day, Luo Youdu got up early and tidied his clothes. Compared with reporting to Kaifeng Mansion a few days ago, he looked more solemn today.
Yesterday he officially received the appointment letter from the Ministry of Personnel. From today on, he is no longer a junior official but an eighth-grade official.
Although officials and officials are often connected together, they have completely different meanings.
Officials are members who have officially entered the establishment of the organization, while officials are non-staff members. They do not record official files and can be dismissed at any time. The gap between the two cannot be calculated.
Riding a donkey, Luo Youdu arrived at Kaifeng Mansion.
As soon as he walked into Kaifeng Mansion, Lu Bin, the legal advisor, warmly greeted him. As soon as this matter was resolved, he recovered from his illness.
The two exchanged pleasantries for a while.
Luo Youdu was originally his subordinate, but there was a difference of several levels before, and now he has become a direct subordinate.
Lu Bin led the way and told him about the work tasks that Fa Cao was engaged in.
"The work of a law officer is simple. My duty is to litigate and decide cases, and you are responsible for giving reasonable sentencing suggestions based on our Dazhou laws when the case is concluded and convicted."
A little cold sweat broke out on Luo Youdu's forehead. It was really simple, he just had to memorize all the laws of Dazhou.
When he arrived at the office, Lu Bin enthusiastically introduced his colleagues to him, and then called him to his office for a cup of tea.
Luo Youdu was a little suspicious, with a flattered expression on his face.
Lu Bin said casually: "What does Luo Zhenggong think about criminal law?"
Luo Youdu said calmly: "I haven't understood it deeply yet, but I don't know what the superior officer is referring to?"
Lu Bin said: "His Majesty is virtuous and wise, and is determined to reform. He has ordered us to discuss whether the criminal law will be lenient or strict to set the standard for future sentencing."
"That's it!" Luo Youdu said with a look of enlightenment: "I haven't read the laws of the Zhou Dynasty thoroughly yet, so I don't dare to speak carelessly. I am willing to listen to the high-level opinions of superior officials."
Lu Bin said with a smile: "I personally think that criminal laws should not be too harsh. The emperor of the Han Dynasty abolished the laws of Qin and gained popularity and unified the world; Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty implemented benevolent policies and brought great order to the world; he released the prisoners on death row and all the prisoners on death row were returned. It can be seen that the laws of a country cannot be too strict."
"
Luo Youdu clasped his hands together and praised in a sincere way: "What Shangguan said is so reasonable. Mencius said: 'Govern the people benevolently, save punishments, reduce taxes lightly, plow deep and easy, and the strong use their spare time to cultivate it.
Filial piety, loyalty and trust, serve one's father and brother when one enters the country, and serve one's elders when one goes out.' From this we can see that if we want to achieve great governance in the world, we should base it on benevolence, and the same should be true for criminal law!"
Lu Bin was very happy. Yesterday Cui Yan, the governor of Kaifeng Mansion, specially ordered him to make good use of Luo Youdu. He already knew that the lucky man in front of him had caught the emperor's eye. In addition to envy, he had the idea of using him to strengthen his own reputation.
The reform of the Great Zhou Dynasty was imminent, and all aspects of the dynasty were in need of improvement, and the same was true for the criminal law.
He advocated putting benevolence first and resisting strict laws, while his opponent Zhang Yue of Kaifeng Prefecture advocated the use of heavy codes in troubled times, and the two were at loggerheads.