Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 149 Is Runan Prefecture the Runan Prefecture of the Imperial Court, or Runan Prefecture of the Aristocratic Clan and Powerful Clans?

Among the candidates for the civil service examination, Xu Jing was second only to Jia Cai in age. He was already thirty-two years old this year, but his eyes were filled with undisguised ambition. He bowed to the Crown Prince and said, "I believe that the problem in Runan County lies in the administration of officials!"

Unlike Jia Cai, who was old but not talented, Xu Jing was the most renowned among the nine candidates for the civil service examination. He and his cousin Xu Shao often discussed their fellow villagers in Runan County. Logically, he should have been recommended for the civil service examination long ago, or he may have repeatedly refused the opportunity to be recommended for the civil service examination.

However, Xu Jing's personal resume does not mention any refusal of the position of "filial piety and incorruptibility".

It can only be said that his success and failure both stemmed from his criticism of his fellow townsmen.

However, Xu Jing and Xu Shao developed a disagreement during their long-term evaluation of their fellow villagers. Xu Jing valued talent, while Xu Shao valued virtue.

In terms of talent, the difference between mediocre and outstanding individuals is obvious, but in terms of virtue, there is much more to discuss.

The ideological conflict led to a rift between the two cousins. In particular, after Xu Shao accepted the appointment and became the Chief Clerk of Runan County, he used his power and connections to suppress Xu Jing, cutting off Xu Jing's chances of being recommended as a candidate for officialdom and other opportunities to enter officialdom. He even forced Xu Jing to work as a horse driver and miller to make a living. He was busy with carriages and millstones every day. Where was the demeanor of a refined scholar?
Xu Jing's fate only took a turn for the better when Yang Qi of the Hongnong Yang clan succeeded Zhao Qian, who had entered the court as the Minister of the Central Capital, as the Prefect of Runan Commandery. Upon arriving in Runan Commandery, Yang Qi recognized Xu Jing's talent and appointed him as the Commandery's Accountant, and recommended him as a candidate for the civil service examination.

After finally turning the tables, Xu Jing's hatred for his cousin Xu Shao did not diminish at all. After all, even though the two had different ideas, they were still relatives from the same grandfather. However, Xu Shao not only suppressed him, but also did not want to give him a way to live.

The Xu family of Runan chose Xu Shao because of his higher reputation and the fact that his position as the Chief Clerk of Runan Prefecture would allow him to make greater contributions to the family.

The other powerful clans in Runan County also helped Xu Shao suppress Xu Jing because Xu Shao was closer to them and gave their clan members high praise.

How could driving horses and grinding grain possibly support a large family? As a result, his wife had to go out to do laundry and needlework to make a living, just to barely keep the family from starving to death.

That means it was Yang Qi. Only the Yang family of Hongnong could withstand the pressure from a group of powerful clans and noble families and recommend him as a candidate for the civil service examination.

"My ancestor, Xu Yang, the water clerk of Runan, was ordered by Emperor Shizu to rebuild the Hongxi Weir, turning thousands of hectares of farmland into fertile land. My descendants, the Xu family, are honored by this. During the Yongyuan era of Emperor Xiaohe, He Shang, the prefect of Runan, repaired the old Tongyang Canal and reclaimed more than 30,000 hectares of new paddy fields."

"However, the dikes and embankments in Runan Prefecture breach every year, and the annual expenditure on dike defense exceeds thirty million coins! As the chief accountant of Runan Prefecture, I have observed that officials of all ranks in the prefecture are embezzling funds allocated by the court for dike defense. Every year the dikes are repaired, yet they still breach every year, frequently flooding the fields of the people. Tax officials force the affected people to pay taxes, and the people are forced to sell their land. The powerful clans and wealthy families buy it at low prices, and in the long run, the people are forced to submit to the powerful clans and wealthy families."

Xu Jing's words were undeniably harsh. While the prefect could bypass the county clerk to carry out many things, the figures could not escape the eyes of the clerks in charge of accounting. As one of the clerks, Xu Jing openly criticized all the sordid affairs of Runan County.

However, what he said was not enough to implicate his patron, Yang Qi, since these things were done by previous governors of Runan County, and Yang Qi had only been in office for less than two months, so he naturally had no fault to speak of.

Liu Bian narrowed his eyes, staring directly at Xu Jing, but Xu Jing was not intimidated at all. He met the Crown Prince's gaze with a resolute look in his eyes, completely disregarding the fact that a Minister of Works from the Yuan family of Runan was sitting at the Three Dukes' Seat. Instead, he gritted his teeth and said, word by word, "If this continues, will Runan Prefecture belong to the court or to the powerful clans?"

Xu Jing's words were both scathing and truthful.

If the land of a prefecture is occupied by powerful clans and gentry, then what is the difference between this prefecture and the fiefdoms of these powerful clans and gentry?
Yuan Wei's face instantly darkened, and a sharp, sword-like gaze fell upon Xu Jing. He truly hadn't expected Xu Jing to dare reveal all of this. Moreover, although Xu Jing hadn't explicitly stated it, wasn't the most powerful clan in Runan Commandery none other than the Yuan family of Runan?

How dare you attack my Yuan family of Runan in front of me, the Minister of Works?

How could the Yuan family of Runan have fallen so low as to be torn apart by a stray dog?

But it doesn't matter anyway, the Crown Prince is unlikely to conduct a purge of Runan County when the army is about to set out to quell the rebellion.

Their opportunity will arrive as soon as the army leaves Luoyang.

"I know it."

Liu Bian gave Xu Jing a deep look. Unlike Guo Tu, who was single-mindedly pursuing fame and fortune and became a tool in his hands, Xu Jing simply wanted to take revenge on the powerful families of Runan County.

However, for the powerful families of Runan County, Xu Jing, a native of Runan County, was a more fearsome weapon than the still inexperienced Guo Tu.

And he just happened to need and like such a sharp and precious sword!

"I wish to appoint Wenxiu as the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor. I am still young, and I hope that Gongxiu can wholeheartedly assist me."

Liu Bian spoke from the bottom of his heart. At least until today, he had neglected matters of water conservancy and never imagined that these powerful families in Runan County would dare to make a fuss about the dikes and embankments.

"How could I not be willing to die for Your Highness!"

Upon hearing that the Crown Prince had appointed him as a junior official, Xu Jing's eyes instantly reddened, and he trembled slightly with excitement, even prostrating himself on the ground to express his gratitude.

From a renowned scholar to a poor man making a living by driving horses and grinding grain, and now being accepted by the crown prince, the ups and downs of his life have left him overwhelmed with emotion.

With Xu Jing setting an example, the other candidates for official positions also spoke up. However, He Qia was somewhat unlucky. Xu Jing, from the same prefecture, had said everything he could, while He Qia had not yet entered officialdom and had been studying the classics at home. How could he compare to Xu Jing?

Zhu Zhi of Danyang County elaborated on the Shanyue problem in Danyang County. As the center of Shanyue activities, Danyang County faced a rather thorny problem with the Shanyue.

The Shanyue were not uncivilized barbarians, but rather mountain bandits who ruled the mountains. Because they lived in the ancient Yue region, they were collectively called Shanyue. The Shanyue people lived in the mountains and forests, cultivating grains. Because the mountains produced copper and iron, they often forged their own weapons and armor. They were either scattered or lived in small groups. They were fond of martial arts and relied on the ruggedness of the mountains to resist the imperial court. They were an armed force that was close to being semi-independent.

However, Zhu Zhi disliked the way the county was conquered purely by force. Many of the Yue people had fled to the mountains to join the Yue because of the local officials' exorbitant taxes, and did not have any rebellious intentions.

Moreover, mountain warfare differs from plain warfare. The troops of the prefectures and kingdoms, lacking experience in mountain warfare and less familiar with the terrain than the Yue people, suffered repeated defeats, leading to the rampant and devastating presence of the Yue people in Danyang Prefecture.

Zhu Zhi advocated for a policy of appeasement and pacification, training an elite force for mountain warfare, and combining military and political efforts to subdue the Yue tribes in the mountains.

The problem with Le'an Commandery was the absurdity of the former governor of Qingzhou, Jiao He, which caused many remnants of the Yellow Turbans from Xuzhou, Yanzhou, Yuzhou, and Jizhou to flee to Qingzhou, resulting in a large number of bandits in various commanderies of Qingzhou. Even Cao Cao was unable to completely eliminate the Yellow Turban remnants in Le'an Commandery.

Chen Deng criticized the phenomenon of numerous Buddhist temples in Xiapi County, believing that the court should crack down on illicit worship and prohibit officials in the county from leading the worship of illicit temples or even promoting them. He argued that the Yellow Turban Rebellion triggered by the Taiping Dao should serve as a warning.

Lu Cui sharply criticized the corruption in Chenliu County and the illegal seizure of land by many powerful families during the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Ruan Yu was not good at administrative affairs, but was better at studying classics and poetry. However, he also pointed out the slow pace of the recovery of people's livelihood in Chenliu County after the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

Fu Xun of Beidi Commandery and Jia Cai of Guzang Commandery pointed out that the commanderies were not adequately guarding against foreign tribes in the recent rebellions in Bingzhou and Liangzhou, and hoped that the court would pay more attention to the defense of the border commanderies.

Of the remaining eight people, Zhu Zhi was the best, followed by Chen Deng, and then Lu Cui. However, they were all just full of enthusiasm and lacked political experience. They only talked about appearances and needed more experience. Guo Yuan, Fu Xun, He Qia and Jia Cai's answers were just average. The worst was Ruan Yu, who actually composed a poem on the spot to vividly describe the people's suffering. I didn't ask you to compose a poem in seven steps.

Indeed, one can't expect every writer to be as skilled in both poetry and prose and in governance as Chen Lin.
Afterwards, Grand Commandant Yang Ci and Minister of the Imperial Secretariat Liu Tao, as the heads of the Three Dukes and the head of the Imperial Secretariat respectively, symbolically examined several classics on filial piety and incorruptibility, as well as issues of general affairs, and then the assessment was considered to be over.

Xu Jing was appointed as the Crown Prince's Junior Attendant, while Zhu Zhi and Chen Deng, who had performed well in the examination, were appointed as the Crown Prince's Junior Attendants. Fu Xun, Lu Cui, Ruan Yu, He Qia, and Guo Yuan were appointed as the Crown Prince's Attendants.

Jia Cai was appointed as the Crown Prince's tutor. Even if we disregard Jia Xu's reputation, it wouldn't be right to let a 39-year-old serve as a retainer alongside a group of young people.

As for the officials in the palace who participated in the assessment of filial and incorrupt officials, they could only choose to turn a blind eye to the fact that the Crown Prince had taken all the filial and incorrupt officials who should have been appointed as ministers or advisors into his own household.

Outside Yong'an Palace, Yuan Kui and the others walked together to where the carriages and horses were parked. Grand Commandant Yang Ci looked at Yuan Kui's silent and lonely figure and couldn't help but feel a sense of emotion. His eyes were full of complex emotions.

He and Liu Tao, who had once been on good terms with Yuan Wei, had now parted ways with him. However, he still held some lingering affection for Yuan Wei. So, he quickened his pace and suddenly called out to Yuan Wei. Seeing that Yuan Wei did not turn around but stopped, he said, "Ciyang, the Crown Prince will surely become the true ruler of the world in the future. Rectify the Yuan family of Runan and do not follow in the footsteps of He Suigao."

Yang Ci did not believe that the Crown Prince was deliberately suppressing the Yuan family of Runan. Rather, he believed that the officials and scholars who were demoted for opposing the Crown Prince on various issues were actually former protégés and subordinates of the Yuan family of Runan. Moreover, some of them were also closely related to Yuan Wei in their opposition to the Crown Prince.

He Yong, Han Fu, and Hu Wuban—weren't they all killed, directly or indirectly, because of Yuan Wei? The other scholars of the New Text School also more or less stood on the opposite side of the Crown Prince because of Yuan Wei's decisions, and thus suffered demotion.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Wei snorted coldly, took another step, and walked away alone into the distance, his resentment towards Yang Ci growing stronger.

Just now in the hall, the one who pointed the finger at Xu Jing of the Yuan family of Runan and recommended him as a candidate for the civil service examination was also Yang Qi of the Yang family of Hongnong, who is your nephew Yang Ci.
If it weren't for your betrayal, Yang Ci, how could the Yuan family of Runan have fallen into such a perilous situation?
Yuan Wei always believed that even if the Crown Prince ascended the throne and became the emperor, how could the Yuan family of Runan, who had served as high-ranking officials for four generations, and the Yang family of Hongnong, who had served as high-ranking officials for three generations, suppress these two families, whose true disciples and former officials were spread throughout the country after their alliance? Were they really not afraid of chilling the hearts of scholars across the land?

As for He Suigao, how dare a mere butcher compare himself to the Yuan family of Runan!
"Bo Xian, everyone has their own ambitions, and you can't force things." Liu Tao quietly walked up to Yang Ci's side and whispered a word of comfort.

Yang Ci did not respond, but just watched Yuan Wei's departing figure and sighed heavily.

(3678 words)
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PS: Yesterday I originally planned to write one 3,000-word chapter first, and then another 4,000-word chapter, so yesterday was equivalent to adding 3,000 words.

The second update originally had another 500 words that slightly described the female characters, but it wasn't as explicit as you might think.

Unexpectedly, the first 3,500 words contained veiled allusions and excessive political content.

The corruption section was manageable, but the main issue was the section on the Yue people in the mountains. The policies regarding appeasement were suspected of implicitly appeasing a minority group… Therefore, I specifically clarified in the main text that the Yue people were not a minority group, but another name for mountain bandits in the Wu-Yue region. I also removed some sensitive specific appeasement policies, as well as information about the Qiang people… You understand, the Qiang people are in the Northwest, although the connection is not significant, but…

Then the next 500 words contain explicit content, so it was automatically 404 without hesitation.

After spending most of the day revising, I finally managed to delete all the sensitive content from the first 3,500 words. I'll put the rest of the content in the next chapter for now, otherwise I really won't be able to release it.

(End of this chapter)