Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 148 To Claim Both Sides? A Great Confucian Scholar Will Debate for Me!
According to regulations, the assessment of candidates for the civil service examination should be presided over by the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, but Liu Tao is currently overwhelmed with the affairs of the army's expedition.

Military affairs are of utmost importance. The number of able-bodied men who will be sent to quell the rebellion alone is as high as 100,000. At that time, Liangzhou and Bingzhou will also temporarily conscript able-bodied men and deploy troops from various prefectures and kingdoms to serve as auxiliary troops. In addition, there are the number of laborers needed for logistics, transportation, road construction, and bridge building. All of these factors are enough to affect the success or failure of the army.

Therefore, even the numerous minor matters arising from the two events of grain transport and labor conscription, Liu Tao personally oversaw every single one of them.

In addition, local governors kept submitting memorials on matters concerning the restoration of people's livelihoods. The mountain of official documents overwhelmed Liu Tao, and even the usually healthy man was overwhelmed by the heavy workload and fell ill for once.

According to regulations, if the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat is unable to preside over the assessment, the Vice Minister of the Imperial Secretariat should preside over it on his behalf.

Liu Bian sat upright in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over Liu Tao's slightly thin figure, before slowly turning to Yang Xu, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. A slight smile played on his lips as he said to Yang Xu, "Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has been unwell recently, so you will be in charge of this assessment."

Yang Xu, son of Yang Ru, the former Minister of Ceremonies, was imprisoned for more than ten years due to the Party Prohibitions. He also took care of the wife and daughter of his friend Cai Yong, who had fled to Jiangdong. After the Party Prohibitions were lifted by the Crown Prince, he was recommended by Grand Commandant Yang Ci to serve as the Prefect of Lujiang Commandery. He gathered tens of thousands of young men and quickly quelled the Yellow Turban Rebellion in Lujiang Commandery within two months.

Dai Feng, the leader of the Yellow Turban Rebellion in Anfeng County, Jiujiang Prefecture, fled to Lujiang Prefecture. Yang Xu led his army to defeat the rebels, beheading more than 3,000 and capturing Dai Feng alive. He pardoned the rebels and allowed them to return to their hometown, and distributed farming tools to enable them to engage in farming.

Therefore, after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Yang Xu was enfeoffed as Marquis of Guannei for his merits and succeeded Qin Jie, who had entered the court as Cavalry Commandant for his merits, as the governor of Nanyang, the hometown of the Later Han emperor.

Nanyang Prefecture was a large prefecture, and its people were extravagant. Yang Xu was very disgusted by this, so he set an example by wearing tattered clothes, eating coarse food, and using a dilapidated carriage and a thin, scraggly horse.

Yang Xu's prefectural assistant once presented him with a live fish, which Yang Xu accepted and hung in the hall. When the prefectural assistant sent him another fish, Yang Xu took out the fish that had been hung up before to show him his refusal.

Therefore, people at the time called Yang Xu "Prefect with Hanging Fish" and later, due to his political achievements and good reputation, he was summoned to the court by the Crown Prince to serve as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat.

When everyone heard the Crown Prince jokingly refer to Yang Xu as "the Minister of the Hanging Fish," they all smiled warmly. Even the virtuous and incorruptible officials turned their heads and whispered about Yang Xu's incorruptible deeds. A hint of respect appeared on the faces of the slightly immature virtuous and incorruptible officials.

However, Yang Xu remained calm and unperturbed. He slowly stood up, first straightened his clothes, then looked at the group of candidates for the civil service examination. His gaze lingered briefly on Lu Cui and Ruan Yu before he bowed to the Crown Prince and said, "I have a very close personal relationship with Cai Bojie, the Grand Master of Works. Among the nine candidates for the civil service examination, two are Cai Bojie's disciples, so I should recuse myself."

Liu Bian nodded slightly. Given Yang Xu's character, such an answer was exactly what he expected. But even though he had anticipated it, a hint of approval still flashed in his eyes as he looked at Yang Xu.

"In that case, shall the Minister of Works preside over this?" Liu Bian said, glancing at Yuan Wei at the Three Dukes' Seat.

But then Yuan Kui was coughing violently in front of the spittoon held by the eunuch. After coughing up some thick phlegm, Yuan Kui, whose face was slightly pale, took the water handed to him by the eunuch to rinse his mouth, wiped the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief, and then stood up shakily, bowed to the crown prince and said: "This old minister has recently caught a cold and is afraid that his strength is not up to par."

After speaking, he coughed again, and Yuan Wei covered his mouth with a handkerchief, his body trembling uncontrollably.

Liu Bian stared intently at Yuan Kui, noticing that Yuan Kui's complexion was indeed poor and his steps were unsteady when he entered the hall. The imperial physician had examined him at the Situ's residence a few days earlier and diagnosed him with a cold based on his symptoms and pulse.

In late spring, the temperature fluctuates between hot and cold, so it is not surprising that Yuan Wei, who is over fifty years old, occasionally catches a cold.

After all, Yuan Wei's health had never been very good. Nine years ago, in the fifth year of the Xiping era, he resigned and returned to Runan County to recuperate due to a long-term illness, so it seemed reasonable that he was unwell... what a load of rubbish!
Liu Bian glanced at Yuan Wei with a deep look in his eyes. A few days ago, all the members of the Yuan family from Runan gathered at the Situ Mansion in the capital. After that, Yuan Hong changed his name to Yuan Hong and broke away from the Yuan family from Runan. This matter had already been reported to him by the Embroidered-Clothed Inspector who was in charge of monitoring the Situ Mansion.

Although it is unknown what the Yuan family members discussed at their gathering, Yuan Wei's illness at this time is extremely suspicious.

Just like in the fifth year of the Xiping era, on the eve of the second partisan purge, he asked Liu Hong for permission to resign and return to his hometown to recuperate, citing a long-term illness.

However, although Liu Bian believed that Yuan Wei was unlikely to cause trouble, he did not dare to be careless at all, and his gaze towards Yuan Wei always showed a hint of vigilance.

Then Liu Bian turned his attention to the others. Lu Zhi and Xun Shuang declined to preside over the assessment because of their friendship with Zheng Xuan and Cai Yong. They couldn't let Grand Commandant Yang Ci, who had just recovered from a serious illness and was already old, preside over it, could they?
Yes, Sikong Zhang Ji was skipped.

Why should Zhang Ji, from the eunuch faction, be put in charge of the assessment of candidates for filial piety and incorrupt

Although Liu Bian still quite recognized Zhang Ji's abilities, having Zhang Ji preside over the assessment of these nine people, who were supposed to be candidates for the civil service examination and had accepted the politically correct ideology of "anti-eunuch" in the Han Dynasty, was probably more humiliating than the Crown Prince taking off his belt and urinating into the hats of these candidates one by one.

The nine candidates for the civil service examination exchanged glances. Having lived together in the same quarters for the past few days, they had become familiar with each other even though they had never met before. Moreover, they had no conflict of interest in the matter of being recommended for the civil service examination, and their relationship was quite harmonious.

Seeing these high-ranking officials shirking their responsibilities in overseeing the assessment, each with their own legitimate reasons, the candidates couldn't help but feel a strange, inexplicable unease, as if they were something despised and shunned by everyone. "You gentlemen all use old acquaintances as an excuse to avoid it, but I have no old acquaintances?" Liu Bian chuckled, leaning back on the armrest, his right hand lightly resting on the armrest, his left hand pointing to Jia Cai, the eldest among the candidates, and said, "Jia Caihe's younger brother, Jia Wenhe, was once my steward of the Crown Prince's household; Fu Gongti's cousin, Fu Nanrong (Fu Xie), was my tutor to the Crown Prince; the Empress arranged a marriage between me and the eldest daughter of Bojie (Cai Yong); and Kangcheng Gong (Zheng Xuan) and I exchanged letters and were close friends despite our age difference."

Yang Ci looked at the Crown Prince, who seemed to be confiding his grievances to them, the important officials of the court, narrowed his eyes, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.

This isn't just complaining; it's clearly a case of wanting to oversee the assessment but finding the steps too narrow.

If he weren't the crown prince, such behavior would inevitably draw criticism for being hypocritical and having one's own agenda.

But what can you do when he's the crown prince? An old man like him can only coax and pamper him, and actively make way for the crown prince.

"Your Highness is mistaken." Yang Ci smiled faintly, blinking slightly as he looked at the Crown Prince, and said, "The Book of Documents says, 'The Son of Heaven is the father and mother of the people, and the king of the world.' Therefore, all the subjects of the world are Your Highness's subjects, without distinction of kinship or favoritism. No matter who Your Highness favors, it is all for the sake of selecting talents for the country, without any selfish motives. So how can you talk about avoiding him?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bian couldn't help but smile gently, thinking to himself that it was indeed the old Grand Commandant who understood him, and that he truly deserved to be called a great Confucian scholar who had mastered the "Ouyang Shangshu".

Although it was merely a matter of presiding over the assessment of filial piety and incorruptibility, the person presiding over the assessment and the filial piety and incorruptibility who passed the assessment were bound by a debt of gratitude for recommendation, much like the teacher-student relationship that was formed out of thin air between a successful candidate in the imperial examination and the chief examiner.

As the crown prince, Liu Bian naturally did not need this recommendation, but he did not want it to fall into the hands of others.

As for Yang Ci's point that the emperor, not the crown prince, is the parent of all the people, everyone understood this implicitly and chose to ignore it.

"In that case, I will preside over this assessment."

Liu Bian gently tapped the armrest of the armrest with his right hand, the crisp sound echoing in the hearts of each candidate. Coupled with the fact that the Crown Prince himself was presiding over the assessment, it was inevitable that these inexperienced candidates would unconsciously become nervous.

After a long while, Liu Bian glanced at the nine candidates before him and said slowly, "I will not examine their writings or classical texts. I will give you a question and see how you answer it."

"Please, Your Highness, bestow upon us a topic!" The nine candidates bowed and greeted him.

Liu Bian ordered Gao Wang to bring two sheets of Caihou paper. He rolled up his right sleeve and wrote two large characters on the two sheets of paper: "天下" (All Under Heaven).
Everyone was puzzled. The word "all under heaven" was too broad. What kind of topic was it?

Lu Zhi, however, was different from the others. He leaned forward slightly, his eyes fixed on the two characters, examining them closely. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Your Highness's flying white calligraphy, learned from Cai Bojie, is becoming more and more spirited. It has not been in vain that Your Highness has put in so much hard work in calligraphy."

Liu Bian did not respond to Lu Zhi's words, but simply looked calmly at the nine candidates. Lu Zhi and Xun Shuang naturally knew in advance the questions he had prepared for today's examination; otherwise, they would not have repeatedly declined to preside over the examination, citing their old friendship. After all, even if they hadn't avoided it, no one would have criticized them.

"Gu Yuan hopes that you will discuss the ills of the world."

“You nine candidates for the civil service examination will all be responsible for governing the people in your respective regions in the future. However, it is too much to ask you about the state of the country before you have even had the opportunity to do so. Therefore, you may simply state the problems of the counties and prefectures you have been assigned to.”

The nine candidates for the civil service examination were taken aback upon hearing this.

Scholars had both the legitimacy and the obligation to participate in politics.

The Book of Documents, in the chapter "Tai Shi", states that "Heaven blesses the people, and makes them rulers and teachers." It is believed that the monarch and scholars are ordained by Heaven to educate the people, and therefore scholars must undertake the mission of "governing the people on behalf of Heaven".

Therefore, scholars would inevitably discuss politics in their casual conversations. Even young children who had not yet reached adulthood could say a few words about it. Even if they only had a half-baked knowledge, they could still talk about the problems in various places. They would never stump these filial and incorruptible scholars.

However, these people who were recommended by the local county magistrate to the prefecture, and then recommended by the prefect of the prefecture, have been given the favor of being recommended. Wouldn't it be like picking on their recommender if they were to point out the shortcomings of the prefecture from which they came?
This problem was precisely what Liu Bian intentionally created.

Even if he were unable to preside over the assessment today, he would still ask these candidates for the civil service examination to answer this question.

Liu Bian narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze slowly falling on He Qia and Xu Jing, who were from Runan County. Liu Bian was particularly curious about their answers.

(3120 words)
(End of this chapter)