The rebellious grandson of Emperor Zhenguan of the Tang Dynasty: Please, Your Majesty, be called Cro

Chapter 106 The Elder Grandson's Treacherousness

Upon hearing Li Shimin's question, Changsun Wuji carefully considered his words and said, "Your Majesty, Li Xiang is merely a child. His words are mostly intended to sow discord between Your Majesty and the powerful families. His words should not be trusted."

"Why should Your Majesty ponder this so deeply?"

"A mere child?" Li Shimin raised an eyebrow.

As he spoke, he picked up a memorial from the imperial desk and threw it in front of Changsun Wuji.

"Take a look at this memorial; it is that brat's idea on how to reform the imperial examination system."

Changsun Wuji unfolded the memorial, but the more he read, the more astonished he became. He couldn't help but look up and exclaim, "This—this was really written by that child?"

"Not bad. That brat does indeed have some talent."

"It's a pity that this brat is so rebellious; he's always trying to embarrass me!"

Facing his good friend Changsun Wuji, Li Shimin complained without any guard, not even noticing the hint of regret in his tone.

"I've kept you here to discuss with you the feasibility of that brat's suggestion to reform the imperial examination system by removing Confucianism from the fundamental system of selecting officials."

A deep sense of apprehension flickered in Li Shimin's eyes.

In the past, he focused on checks and balances in the court, and was single-mindedly thinking about using the Guanzhong aristocratic families and marriage alliances with powerful relatives to check and balance the aristocratic families and prevent them from becoming too powerful and consolidating the emperor's power.

But they never considered why, throughout history, imperial power has constantly slipped away.

Why did the power of the monarch fall into the wrong hands?

We exclusively uphold Confucianism! We claim to have a synergy between Heaven and humanity!

Admittedly, the earliest form of venerating Confucianism was initiated by Emperor Wu of Han to consolidate imperial power.

In the early Han Dynasty, the Huang-Lao philosophy was followed, allowing the people to rest and recuperate. However, by the time of Emperor Jing, the situation had already emerged where the feudal lords were causing chaos and the imperial power was difficult to control.

Emperor Wu of Han wanted to unify the country to resist the Xiongnu. Confucianism, which emphasized respect for the emperor, hierarchy, unification, and the order of rites and music, seemed to be a perfect fit for restraining subjects, suppressing local authorities, and strengthening imperial power.

The concept of the interaction between Heaven and humanity further deified imperial power, elevating the emperor to the status of the Son of Heaven. Han emperors hoped to use this belief to ensure the continuation of the empire for ten thousand generations, guaranteeing that the Mandate of Heaven would remain with the Liu family.

However, Emperor Wu of Han saw its wonderful use in enhancing imperial prestige and winning over the hearts of the people, but he overlooked the other side of this double-edged sword.

The concept of the interaction between Heaven and Man places imperial power under the Way of Heaven, which is tantamount to acknowledging that even the emperor must be subject to Heaven. However, the power to interpret the will of Heaven and explain calamities is firmly held in the hands of Confucian scholars who are well-versed in the classics.

From then on, an invisible constraint was added to the imperial court. Whenever there were floods, droughts, earthquakes, solar eclipses, or celestial anomalies, Confucian scholars would seize the opportunity to speak frankly and offer advice, directly pointing out the emperor's mistakes in governance.

Over time, the Confucian scholars united as one, relying on rites and the Way of Heaven, and dared to confront imperial power and resist the emperor's will.

The exclusive promotion of Confucianism also created a large group of aristocratic civil officials who shared common beliefs and political aspirations. They no longer blindly followed the emperor's lead, but instead began to use etiquette and morality to bind the emperor.

If imperial power wants to expand recklessly, it will be stopped by the laws and regulations; if an emperor wants to act arbitrarily, he will be refuted by "divine will".

The tools originally used to suppress feudal lords and govern the people gradually turned against the monarch and restricted him. The threat of local warlords gradually disappeared, while the power of the aristocratic families within the court continued to grow.

Ultimately, a century later, powerful families have seized control of the court. Compared to the feudal lords who directly threaten the imperial power, these families have parasitized the imperial power through Confucianism, controlling power through Confucianism, and subtly excluding and manipulating the imperial power, a practice that continues to this day.

Even after the collapse of the Tang Dynasty, there were still scholar-officials like those in the Song Dynasty and Donglin scholars like those in the Ming Dynasty—the class structure controlling Confucianism constantly changed, but the things they did remained the same:

By binding Confucianism with the feudal system of governance, Confucianism was packaged as a governing philosophy for governing the country and consolidating the monarch's power. Then, by using Confucianism, they parasitized the entire country and seized power for an entire class!

However, emperors always only feared this class: the Tang emperors feared aristocratic families, and the Song emperors feared civil officials.

Yet none of them realized that the power held by aristocratic families and civil officials was merely a facade. The real root cause lay in the bloated Confucianism that, while seemingly beneficial to the monarch, was actually manipulated by aristocratic families and interpreted by civil officials.

Until today, this thin veil has been torn open by Li Xiang's so-called "last memorial".

Li Shimin felt that he had broken out of the vicious cycle Confucianism had woven for emperors throughout history, and realized that consolidating power might not rely solely on checks and balances in the court, but should instead try to control the more fundamental channels for selecting officials.

The significance of the imperial examination in Li Shimin's mind was infinitely elevated by Li Xiang on his own.

Hearing Li Shimin's question, Changsun Wuji was extremely alarmed. He was not only alarmed that the emperor actually wanted to target the Confucian school, but also alarmed that the young man's position in the emperor's heart had inexplicably risen considerably.

That brat Mingming is full of rebellious words and always berates the emperor mercilessly!

He tried to calm himself, stroked his beard, and said, "Confucianism is the foundation of the orthodox tradition of the world."

"A sudden change is tantamount to abandoning orthodoxy, and is certainly inappropriate."

"Your Majesty, that young man may have some talent, but in the end, it is nothing but empty talk. If the people of the world are not taught Confucianism, how will they know what loyalty, filial piety, integrity, and righteousness are?"

"Moreover, the Sui Dynasty established the imperial examination system, but its focus was not on selecting officials." Changsun Wuji paused here.

"Oh?" Li Shimin's curiosity was indeed piqued: "Fuji, tell me, where is it?"

"It lies in imprisoning patriots," Changsun Wuji said, lowering his voice slightly.

"When Emperor Wen and Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty established the imperial examination system, it seemed to be a way for people from poor families to advance their careers, but in reality, it was to bring all the scholars in the country into the system of the imperial court."

"People study diligently through the years, striving for fame and fortune. Their minds are then focused solely on the court, and they will never stray from the system to cause trouble. This is the true meaning of 'keeping loyal and righteous people in check.'"

"Nowadays, all ambitious people in the world study Confucian classics from childhood, establish themselves according to the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, and make it their lifelong pursuit to enter the court as officials."

Confucianism served not only as the standard for educating people's minds but also as the foundation for maintaining stability in the court and among the people.

"If Your Majesty abruptly changes the fundamental principle of selecting officials based on Confucianism, it will be tantamount to severing the very foundation upon which countless scholars stand. After years of diligent study, if their learning proves useless, one can only imagine the resentment they will harbor. At that time, not only will it fail to retain those with lofty ideals, but it will also push a large number of scholars to the side of aristocratic families, turning them against the court."

He stepped forward, his tone growing increasingly earnest: "The Shandong aristocratic families have been using Confucian classics to unite the scholarly community, and now they are simply looking for an excuse to launch an attack. Your Majesty's actions have given them just such a pretext. They will surely raise the banner of 'defending the Way,' rallying Confucian scholars and powerful clans across the land to accuse Your Majesty of betraying the sages and corrupting moral principles. With the scholarly community restless internally, the aristocratic families stirring up trouble externally, and the Turks and Goguryeo eyeing the borders with predatory intent, the Tang Dynasty is likely to be plunged into a predicament of internal and external crisis."

"Your Majesty, it is not easy to maintain peace and stability in the realm. Even though Confucianism has its flaws, it is still the foundation of peace and stability."

"Those wild words of a scoundrel may sound tempting, but the stability of the world should be the priority!"

Li Shimin tapped his fingertip lightly on the imperial desk, his expression showing no anger, but listening quietly. Changsun Wuji's words were incisive in their assessment of the practical advantages and disadvantages, which were also the points of concern he had been pondering earlier.

"In my opinion, we should follow the first strategy in this plan and slightly modify the imperial examination system," said Changsun Wuji, holding the memorial proposing the reform of the imperial examination system.

"This first policy is enough to demonstrate the fairness of the selection of officials in our Great Tang Dynasty, and it is also enough to silence the dissent of those scholars who have been petitioning the emperor."

Even those prominent Shandong families would have nothing to say.

"Imprisoning patriots? Has it imprisoned all the patriots of the land, or has it imprisoned me, the emperor?"

"If we still use Confucianism to select officials, the questions will be set by Confucian scholars, the papers will be reviewed by Confucian scholars, and the candidates will all be Confucian scholars!" Li Shimin interrupted Changsun Wuji somewhat impatiently.

"Confucianism is controlled by the aristocratic class, and those who follow it will naturally lean towards the aristocracy!"

"Your Majesty is not currently revising the 'Correct Interpretations of the Five Classics' —"

"It is precisely because even that old scoundrel Kong Yingda fawns over the aristocratic families that it is even more evident that in the realm of Confucianism, everyone flocks to the teachings of the aristocratic families! That is why I am even more wary!"

"My mind is made up. This reform of the imperial examination system must get to the root of the problem and eliminate all the bad habits. Fuji, you should immediately begin drafting new regulations for the examinations, reducing the weight of Confucian classics in the examinations, and cutting off the path for aristocratic families to monopolize official positions through family learning."

"At the same time, we will place greater emphasis on practical assessments to select pillars of society who can serve the country effectively."

Seeing that Li Shimin had made up his mind, Changsun Wuji could only lower his head and agree, then bowed and remained silent.

He was secretly wary: it had been several years since he had seen his brother-in-law so determined to do things his own way.

Five years? Or ten? In recent years, he's clearly become too lazy to make any changes, as long as he can maintain his reputation as a wise ruler—

He became even more wary of Li Xiang, who had inspired the emperor.

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