Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 450 Initial Discussions on the National System, the Importance of the Accounting Department

On a cold winter morning, the wind howled and the heavy snow gradually stopped.

There were few pedestrians in Chang'an. A horse-drawn carriage traveled through the streets and slowly drove into Chang'an Palace.

Upon reaching the palace gate, Xun You alighted from the carriage and, guided by a palace maid from the Eastern Han Dynasty, proceeded to the Zichen Hall. There, he found Yu Yi, Jia Xu, Tian Feng, Zhong Yao, Du Ji, Yang Jun, Sun Zi, Dong Zhao, and others already waiting inside.

The others sat on either side, except for Zhong Yao, Du Ji, and Yu Yi, who sat alone. There was another seat next to the three of them. The four seats were covered with soft cushions and were more refined than the seats of the other subordinates.

"Is Lord Xun well?"

Fellow enthusiasts!

A maid led Xun You to sit in the front row, alongside the three gentlemen Zhong, Du, and Yu. The officials on either side greeted Xun You with respect.

The Tang royal palace was short of personnel, so in addition to placing the maids from the former general's residence in the palace, they recruited eunuchs from the Eastern Han Dynasty in various prefectures in Guanzhong to temporarily manage the affairs of the royal palace. After all, this was the beginning of a major undertaking, and many rituals and systems were not yet fully established, so they urgently needed the old people from the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Sitting on the soft mat, Xun You felt a little uncomfortable and asked Yu Yi beside him, "Why are you sitting alone today?"

Yu Yi had heard a little about it and said in a low voice, "When I met Guo Tu on the road, he said that since a new country has been established, it is not appropriate to use the old system, but to establish a new system. The new system will be based on the existing official positions, which will be mainly the three powers of finance, politics and military. Guo Tu did not say much about the rest."

Xun You glanced at the expressionless Zhong Yao and thought to himself, "I should be the military advisor, while Yu Yi is in charge of finances. Could it be that Zhong and Du are jointly managing political affairs? With the two of them sharing power, no wonder Zhong Yuanchang is not very happy."

Because they were from the same hometown, he knew Zhong Yao well. Although he possessed the talent of a national hero, he was also cunning and shrewd. In reality, his shrewdness was neither good nor bad, but it made it difficult to fathom his true intentions.

In the past, Zhong Yao resigned his official post and went north to join Zhang Yu, becoming his primary follower. In the past, after Zhang Yu went on a campaign, he almost always held all the power. Now, however, he had to share power with everyone, which might make him unhappy.

In fact, the reason why Zhong Yao was unhappy was not only because some of his rights were taken away, but also because Zhang Yu did not consult him in depth when designing the national system. He only asked for his opinion when he was in a key position, and felt that he was being ignored by Zhang Yu.

"Whoo~"

Zhong Yao breathed a sigh of relief, and the shrewd man quickly adjusted his mindset. Now that Zhang Yu had founded a kingdom and become the ruler, the situation was different from before. He needed to adjust his position in time, since Zhang Yu was a ruler who acted on horseback and was bound to be somewhat autocratic.

"His Highness has arrived!"

Zhang Yu, dressed in plain clothes and accompanied by Guo Tu, sat down on the imperial couch amidst the greetings of the crowd.

"Gentlemen, you may dispense with the formalities!"

Zhang Yuxu helped everyone up and said, "The grand ceremony is imminent, but the official positions of all of you are unclear. After careful consideration, I intend to emulate the old government system and the official system of the Later Han Dynasty. Therefore, I have summoned you all here today to discuss this matter. If there are any issues, I hope you will speak freely."

"Please give your orders, Your Highness!"

Guo Tu, following Zhang Yu's instructions, cleared his throat and said, "During the Later Han Dynasty, the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers were established, and the Secretariat was responsible for managing affairs. Now, Your Majesty, considering this, still established the Three Dukes and Nine Ministers. However, General Zhong Yao, the Military Advisor, has made outstanding contributions, comparable to Xiao He and Deng Xiaoping. Therefore, the position of Chancellor has been added, with Zhong Yuanchang appointed to take charge of the affairs of the Three Dukes, supervise the affairs of the Nine Ministers, and oversee the affairs of the Secretariat."

"The Ministry of Personnel was established with one Chief Minister and one Vice Minister. It was reorganized into six ministries: Personnel, Revenue, War, Rites, Works, and Justice. The Ministry of Personnel was responsible for the general system of the Ministry of Personnel, which was implemented by the Nine Ministers. The Ministry of Personnel was responsible for evaluating the merits of officials at all levels and selecting civil officials in prefectures and counties; the Ministry of Revenue collected taxes from prefectures and counties and verified the land and people of the country; the Ministry of War was in charge of selecting military officers, managing military registers, and dispatching post stations."

"The Ministry of Rites is in charge of the examinations for candidates of filial piety and integrity and outstanding talents, and is in charge of the affairs of vassal states; the Ministry of Works is in charge of palace construction and water conservancy; the Ministry of Justice reviews cases handled by the Court of Judicial Review and revises laws and regulations. The affairs of the above six ministries are led by a Minister, and are assisted by a Vice Minister."

"The Nine Ministers are: the Grand Master of Ceremonies, who is in charge of ancestral temple sacrifices, rituals and regulations, and astronomy and calendar; the Grand Master of Ceremonies, who is in charge of palace guards and also in charge of remonstrance; the Grand Master of the Palace, who is in charge of the country's horse and livestock, and also in charge of the allocation of military horses and the horses for the king's travels; and the Grand Judge, who is in charge of the country's criminal cases and adjudicates difficult cases in prefectures and counties."

"The Grand Herald was to oversee the compilation of classics and also manage education and medicine; the Imperial Clan Court was in charge of the household registers of the imperial clan and matters concerning crimes committed by imperial relatives; the Grand Minister of Agriculture was in charge of the granaries, coordinating expenditures and negotiating economic matters; the Minister of the Imperial Household was in charge of the palace's supplies and also managed the salaries and expenditures of civil and military officials." ...

As Guo Tu read on, the crowd whispered among themselves. Although the Tang Dynasty claimed to be modeled after the official system of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it actually strengthened the functions of the Six Ministries of the Ministry of Personnel. For example, the main functions of collecting taxes and grain, personnel examinations, and construction projects were all handled by the Six Ministries of the Ministry of Personnel, while the duties of the Nine Ministers were greatly weakened.

Although the power of the Nine Ministers directly under his jurisdiction was greatly weakened, Zhong Yao's expression did not change. After all, he concurrently served as the Director of the Imperial Secretariat. With the Director of the Imperial Secretariat in charge, and Du Ji still serving as Zhong Yao's deputy, he remained the head of administration.

"If the Nine Temples and the Six Ministries have responsibilities or conflicts, how should they be divided?" Feng Fang asked.

"I request the Prime Minister to make a ruling and to redefine the powers and responsibilities among them!" Zhang Yu said.

Although Feng Fang was a former official of the Eastern Han Dynasty, he had been quite submissive since surrendering to the Han. He constantly encouraged Zhang Yu to declare himself king, and even sent a woman of exceptional beauty to the palace when he learned that Zhang Yu was selecting concubines. As both his father-in-law and a high-ranking official he had worked with during the Eastern Han Dynasty, Feng Fang was appointed as the Grand Herald and one of the Nine Ministers on the list of those conferred titles.

"I wonder if the taxes on salt and iron are managed by the Imperial Household Department or the Ministry of Revenue?" Dong Zhao asked.

"No!"

Zhang Yu stepped forward to answer, saying, "The Design Division will still be managed by Yu Yi."

"Your Highness, what is the Bureau of Accounting?" someone asked.

Guo Tu, understanding the implication, said in a deep voice: "The Accounting Office is responsible for the state-run salt and iron industry and for reviewing the expenditures of the Nine Ministries and Six Departments. Without the seal of the Accounting Office, one cannot receive money or grain."

Zhong Yao frowned slightly. Back in Anyi, although Yu Yi was in charge of the state-run salt and iron industry, he wasn't responsible for verifying the finances; instead, it was Zhong Yao who issued the documents. Now that the expenditure of funds needed to be discussed with the accounting department, wasn't Yu Yi's opinion crucial? If he didn't seek Yu Yi's opinion, he feared that even if Yu Yi issued the documents, he wouldn't be able to collect the money and grain himself.

The prime minister's two greatest powers are personnel appointment and dismissal and financial expenditure. Now that the financial expenditure has been taken away by someone else, if Zhong Yao cannot cooperate with Yu Yi, he may not be a prime minister in name only.

After a pause, Guo Tu added, "The Accounting Commissioner is in charge of the affairs of the Minister of Personnel and participates in discussions with other officials in the Ministry of Personnel."

Upon hearing this, Zhong Yao's brows relaxed; those in charge of the affairs of the Minister of Personnel needed to cooperate with his work.

Zhang Yu had taken into account the infighting between the Accounting Commissioner and the Prime Minister. Since the empire was not yet unified, decisions still needed to be made by others when he was not in court. Granting the Accounting Commissioner the power to affix his seal was essentially a way to weaken the Prime Minister's influence and give the Accounting Commissioner the right to refuse.

“Yu Yi has followed me for more than ten years and has made outstanding contributions. He can be appointed as the Commissioner of the Accounting Department and concurrently serve as the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat,” Zhang Yu said.

"Thank you, Your Highness!" Yu Yi bowed gratefully.

Zhang Yu continued, “The world is not yet at peace, and troops cannot be stored away. Therefore, the Privy Council has been established, with the military advisor Xun You serving as its chief privy councilor to discuss military affairs and manage the military affairs of various departments. If one wishes to participate in the affairs of the Privy Council, one must be given a title. Without a title, one may not inquire about military matters or attend meetings to discuss them.”

"Those currently participating in the Privy Council affairs are the three ministers Guo Tu, Zhong Yao, and Yu Yi; while those deliberating on the Privy Council affairs are the two ministers Guo Jia and Du Ji. The military expenditures mobilized by the Privy Council are stamped by the Chancellor and the Accounting Commissioner."

"promise!"

Upon learning that military expenses were also to be managed by the Accounting Department, all civil and military officials were filled with awe.

With the power to veto military and administrative expenditures, Yu Yi, the Director of the Accounting Department, would be second only to Chancellor Zhong Yao in status. Crucially, the Director of the Accounting Department possessed the power to review expenditures, effectively monitoring whether civil and military officials were engaging in economic crimes.

(End of this chapter)