I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 219 Yuan Feng wants to reform

Cai Yong was very learned and was one of the most prominent scholars among the group of court writers who were often neglected.

When he made this suggestion, it was agreed by many people. Many people nodded repeatedly and praised Cai Yong's idea as very good.

Ma Ritian also agreed very much.

"In the past, Ma Gong was granted the title of Marquis of Yang'an by the Zuo family. Choosing a courtesy name from the Zuo family can also comfort Ma Gong's spirit in heaven."

After Ma Riti said this, even Yuan Shu nodded repeatedly to show his agreement.

So Yuan Feng made the final decision and chose the character "Jia" from Zuo Zhuan and named Yuan Shu's courtesy name Zi Jia.

With his name changed and a courtesy name given, Yuan Shu became an adult in all rights. He could be an official, get married, and walk the world under his own name without being involved in any other relationships.

So, inexplicably, Yuan Shu also had a sense of self-fulfillment.

It seemed as if after the ceremony, the world became wider.

After the ceremony of coming of age was completed, Yuan Feng hosted a banquet in the palace in the name of Liu Kui to entertain guests. Everyone ate and drank, enjoyed music and dance, and was very happy.

After three rounds of drinks and the sun setting, this lively ceremony came to an end.

A group of people who knew why Yuan Shu was holding the coming-of-age ceremony at this time came one after another to say goodbye to Yuan Shu and spoke intimately to him. It seemed that everyone knew that Yuan Shu would be promoted to a very high position in the future, and they hoped to become familiar to Yuan Shu at this moment.

Yuan Shu saw everyone off in a very elegant manner, giving people a feeling of spring breeze, which made Yuan Feng very satisfied. So after everyone left, Yuan Feng walked up to Yuan Shu and patted him on the shoulder.

"Growing up, you have to grow up after all. Before I knew it, you have become an adult. How does it feel to be an adult?"

"I just feel like I have more responsibilities, and I can no longer act recklessly and recklessly under the banner of being a father."

Yuan Shu smiled and said, "When I think about it this way, I feel quite regretful."

Yuan Feng laughed.

"No matter how others see you, in my eyes, you will always be my son."

Yuan Shu felt warm at this, and subconsciously wanted to do something bad to Yuan Feng's head and stage a drama to trick his father.

However, as an adult in the legal sense, Yuan Shu obviously can no longer do this.

And then, they still have things to do.

Just before the banquet ended, Liu Kui sent his old servant to tell Yuan Feng that he wanted him to go to Zhangde Hall after the banquet because he had something to discuss with Yuan Feng.

Yuan Feng did not refuse, and after the banquet, he took Yuan Shu with him.

On the way, Yuan Feng asked Yuan Shu to guess what Liu Kui wanted to do.

There is nothing to speculate about, it's just that.

"The emperor has just ascended the throne, so naturally he has some ideas. He doesn't want to become a plaything of the Yuan family. However, he has no external support and no confidants. He cannot turn the situation around by himself, so he will definitely find ways to bring in confidants, such as eunuchs, to strengthen his own power."

Yuan Feng took a few more steps forward.

"Although I guess the emperor won't be content to be a puppet, but it's only been a few days. There's no need to make such a request so quickly, right? Isn't this clearly telling us that he is unwilling to do so?"

"Father, the emperor is not someone who can keep his composure."

Yuan Shu laughed and said, "Back then, when Emperor Xiaohuan was still alive, he couldn't wait to announce to outsiders that Emperor Xiaohuan would definitely pass the throne to him, which made Emperor Xiaohuan furious. How cunning is this kind of person?"

Yuan Feng thought about it and felt that what Yuan Shu said made sense.

Your brother is still alive, and you are telling everyone that your brother has no son and that the position will definitely be yours in the future.

Although this is possible, you can't say it so blatantly!
It is obvious that he does not understand politics and has a low political level.

So Yuan Shu’s guess is very likely correct.

Thinking from this perspective, Yuan Feng had a new question.

"So, how should we deal with it?" "We should adapt to the actual situation, but I think this is not the most important thing."

Yuan Shu said slowly, "Besides, since the restoration of the Ming Dynasty, the many restrictions imposed by the royal family on the royal family have indeed played a big role. The royal prince has no power and no voice in the local area. He is just like a rich man. Officials and scholars will not associate with him to avoid suspicion. Those who associate with him are nothing more than small people in the market. Even if he is allowed to bring in people, what kind of people can he bring in?"

Yuan Feng pinched his beard and continued asking questions.

"But the emperor will eventually have many other ways, such as bringing in foreign relatives or recruiting and training eunuchs. It's not easy to catch all the foreign relatives and eunuchs. If we bring them in again, won't all the previous efforts be wasted?"

Yuan Shu lowered his head and thought about it, then quickly shook his head.

"Father, I don't think your worries are meaningful."

Yuan Shu's statement aroused Yuan Feng's interest.

"It's meaningless. How can it be meaningless? Tell me what you think."

Yuan Shu nodded.

"Power will not be controlled by anyone for no reason, and power will not be transferred from your hands to any eunuch or relative for no reason. No matter who wants to control power, he must have the ability to grasp it.

He must be able to make his subordinates obey his orders, and it does not mean that he will gain power just by holding a certain position. If someone thinks that power comes from the position he holds, it can only be said that this person does not understand power at all.

There were times when emperors were sidelined and became puppets, and there were times when officials had all their power taken away and could only act in name only. Even you, wasn’t your power as the Grand Coachman taken away by eunuchs? "

Yuan Feng stroked his beard lightly and nodded slowly.

"That makes sense, but eunuchs... are still unpleasant after all..."

Yuan Shu smiled.

"Father, the reason why the eunuchs rose to power during the reign of Emperor Xiaohuan was not because they were eunuchs, but because they stood by Emperor Xiaohuan when he was isolated and helpless, and risked their lives to help Emperor Xiaohuan defeat General Liang Ji.

They entered the game when all the civil and military officials in the court were not optimistic about Emperor Xiaohuan, and finally killed Liang Ji and helped Emperor Xiaohuan to rule the country. This led to them being rewarded, given titles of nobility and power, and they began to formally interfere in government affairs with impunity.

Now, as long as we are strong enough and hold power in our hands, even if the eunuchs come back, how can they seize power from us? Do we have to follow the story of Emperor Xiaohuan again? "

"The Luoyang army is in my hands. How can they do that?"

Yuan Feng is still somewhat confident about this.

This time, he even collected all the weapons and equipment in the palace and put them all in the armory, which was guarded by someone.

The army is composed of Yuan's people and they are all loyal to Yuan. Even if there are eunuchs, without weapons and equipment, what can Liu Kui do?

But now that we've come to this, Yuan Shu also has something else to say.

"Having said that, to be honest, father, I think that the positions of Zhong Changshi and other eunuchs do give eunuchs a lot of power. Even if Zhong Changshi does not do anything else, just this position can convey imperial edicts, manage documents, and become the intermediary between the officials and the emperor.

In the past, there had been more than one incident where eunuchs had withheld memorials from ministers, and there had also been several incidents where eunuchs had peeked at memorials, which had caused many rifts between the emperor and the officials and also allowed the eunuchs to act ahead of others.

When General Dou Wu wanted to attack the eunuchs, it was because the letter he sent to Empress Dowager Dou was read by the palace guard, so the plan was exposed, which led to the eunuchs' preparations and ultimately failure. The past is a lesson for the future, and father must be on guard against this."

Yuan Feng frowned, thought about it, and felt that what Yuan Shu said made sense.

"That's true. The emperor uses eunuchs to control internal and external traffic. Many things will naturally involve eunuchs and cannot be reported directly to the emperor. This is indeed very dangerous. Shu, what do you think?"

"If the emperor wants to recruit eunuchs, let him do it. But father can't just sit there and do nothing. I suggest that you take over all the positions that originally belonged to the eunuchs."

Yuan Shu said slowly: "The first is the Zhong Chang Shi. During the Qin Dynasty, including before the restoration, Zhong Chang Shi was a position for scholars, not eunuchs. It was not until Emperor Xiaohe that the emperor was young and the government was mostly ruled by women. Women did not accept ministers and outsiders, which gave eunuchs the opportunity to serve as Zhong Chang Shi.

The Zhong Changshi was in charge of the attendants, followed the emperor into the inner palace, advised on all affairs, and responded to officials. It was a position prepared for learned scholars, but it was taken up by eunuchs, which instead increased their power and allowed them to interfere in state affairs with justification.

Initially, the Zhong Changshi was only a thousand stones, but later it became a higher position than two thousand stones. Institutionally, the Zhong Changshi was already a high-ranking official. When the queen was in power, the Zhong Changshi held the title of king and spoke the law of heaven. She was no longer a post limited to the palace or the inner chambers of the boudoir.

The position is high, the power is great, and only eunuchs can serve as Zhong Changshi, not even concurrently. Moreover, multiple Zhong Changshi can be appointed at the same time. In this way, it is difficult for eunuchs not to have great power and influence. I think this needs to be changed. "

(End of this chapter)