White-robed Minister

Chapter 162 0160 [The Urgent King Zhao Xu]

Before falling seriously ill, Emperor Yingzong of Song, Zhao Shu, issued a far-reaching edict: changing the imperial examination to be held every three years.

However, since the imperial edict had already been issued when the successful candidates for the provincial examinations were selected, this time it does not count.

Starting from the fourth year of the Zhiping era, which is this year, the imperial examinations will be held every three years until the imperial examination system is abolished!

Outside the Hall of Gathering Heroes, names were being announced.

One by one, the newly appointed scholars, upon hearing their names called, happily walked towards the corridor in front of the hall.

After all the names were called, the first three entered the hall in turn to pay homage to the emperor, while the fourth and fifth could only stand outside in the cold wind.

After the announcement ceremony concluded, Zhao Xu immediately proceeded to the Yingyang Gate Tent Hall—a side hall in the palace.

As the new emperor, to express his cautious attitude, he cannot yet handle state affairs in the main hall.

At this moment, Zhao Xu was more excited than sad. He was not yet twenty years old, but he had already resolved to reform the laws and was eager to reform the long-standing problems of the Song Dynasty.

Was it too expensive to build Emperor Renzong's mausoleum?

Having learned from his mistakes, Zhao Xu proactively told his ministers, "When Emperor Renzong passed away, my father was not his biological son, so he dared not reduce the funeral expenses. I am different; I ascended the throne as his own son, so I am not afraid of gossip."

As a result, the funeral expenses for Emperor Yingzong were significantly reduced, and the number of laborers conscripted was also reduced.

When Cai Xiang built Emperor Renzong's mausoleum, his lack of planning caused widespread discontent. Emperor Zhao Xu learned from this experience and specially sent his teacher, Wang Tao, to assist Han Qi in building the mausoleum.

Wang Tao stationed himself directly in Henan Prefecture, prioritizing cost-saving in all levies and ensuring that the local people's spring plowing could not be delayed.

Following this, Zhao Xu reduced the various rewards bestowed upon the new emperor by one-third. He also set limits early on for the granting of official positions through hereditary privileges and restricted the number of envoys sent to local areas.

These were all lessons learned, and Zhao and Xiang made the corrections themselves.

Zhao Xu walked briskly to the palace, and the elderly eunuch had to jog to keep up.

The young emperor was decisive and efficient.

Han Wei, one of the chief examiners for this year's imperial examinations, felt both gratified and amused by the situation. This new emperor, whom he had trained, might just be able to revive the Song Dynasty.

No sooner had Zhao Xu entered the hall and taken his seat than Han Wei followed him in.

Zhao Xu said, "Mr. Han, Wang Anshi refuses to return to the capital. What should we do? I still need to employ him to carry out the reforms."

Han Wei suggested, "The wise men of old all declined three times when they were invited; Your Majesty may issue another edict."

"Alright, then I will invite him back to the capital again." Zhao Xu immediately ordered an imperial edict to be drafted.

This young emperor is far too hasty. Han Wei couldn't help but worry and advised, "Your Majesty, matters of state cannot be rushed. A monarch's administration has its own order of priority. Please be more cautious. The most urgent task is not to summon Wang Anshi to the capital, but to appease the civil and military officials."

Zhao Xu asked, "Please explain in detail, sir."

Han Wei could only patiently explain: "The current prime ministers are all regents appointed by two dynasties. They should be treated with utmost courtesy and utmost sincerity, so that they may fulfill their duties. All officials in the court have their own responsibilities and should do their best. Since Your Majesty ascended the throne, you have repeatedly bypassed the relevant departments to issue imperial edicts, which is truly improper!"

After listening, Zhao Xu seemed to be deep in thought.

He was indeed too hasty, and he had too many ideas he wanted to implement. So much so that on many important matters, he didn't consult with the prime minister at all, or only asked a few symbolic questions.

Emperor Zhao Xu even sent Han Qi to build his mausoleum, leaving the Council of State without anyone to make the final decision. The three chief ministers, Zeng Gongliang, Ouyang Xiu, and Zhao Gai, had clearly guessed the new emperor's intentions and all took the initiative to back down to avoid conflict with Zhao Xu.

The officials and their relatives who lost the debate in Puyi are already stirring up trouble and trying to impeach the prime minister.

With Han Qi absent, Ouyang Xiu shut up, and Zeng Gongliang and Zhao Gai dislike arguing, public opinion is now overwhelmingly turning against them and starting a purge.

It seemed as if all the prime ministers were doomed!

In Han Wei's view, there were already signs of great chaos in the court, so why bother changing the law at this time?

"I understand." Zhao Xu did not immediately obey.

He planned to put the prime ministers out of the spotlight for a while.

Zhao Xu was extremely grateful to Han Qi, but at the same time felt particularly uncomfortable with him.

When Zhao Shu was seriously ill, Han Qi reminded Zhao Xu to stay by his side at all times, and even made it clear that it wasn't out of filial piety. Zhao Xu felt increasingly awkward afterward; he knew Han Qi was considering the bigger picture, but saying such things was simply wrong!

Moreover, Zhao Xu had recently felt that Han Qi was being a bit arrogant.

For example, Imperial Censor Liu Xiang submitted a memorial stating: "According to the rites, one should not drink alcohol or eat meat during mourning. During Emperor Renzong's national mourning period, all officials and military personnel were given alcohol and meat, and all the sheep in Kaifeng were slaughtered. This is wrong, so it should be corrected. This time, all officials should be given vegetarian food."

The official in charge of rites thought it made a lot of sense, and Zhao Xu also thought it made a lot of sense.

However, the chief ministers, led by Han Qi, did not consult with Zhao Xu at all and directly rejected Liu Ku's request, continuing to reward the civil and military officials with wine and meat as usual.

Whether as the emperor or as his son, this situation infuriated Zhao Xu.

My father just died, so what's wrong with officials drinking and eating meat? Are ministers leading the way in violating the national mourning ban? Why didn't the prime ministers consult with me?

From that time on, Zhao Xu began to distance himself from the prime minister, deliberately doing so for the other ministers to see!

It can only be said that this new ruler is very opinionated, but his methods are too immature.

Han Wei explained his situation clearly and then bowed to take his leave.

Immediately afterwards, Yang Zuo, the judge in charge of the trial, came to see him as ordered.

The Court of Judicial Review was responsible for evaluating and promoting officials in the capital, while the Inner Court was responsible for evaluating and promoting officials in charge of personnel selection.

Zhao Xu asked, "Has Xu Lai, the top scholar from the previous imperial examination, not returned to the capital yet?"

Yang Zuo replied, "I have already returned to Beijing to report for duty. However, the comments from the six officials regarding his two zero-exam results last year differed greatly."

"I was just about to invite him to the Court of Judicial Review for questioning."

"What's going on?" Zhao Xu asked.

Yang Zuo explained in detail: "Shen Qi and Gong Shen, the judicial commissioners of Jingdong Circuit, Gong Dingchen and Zhang Gui, the prefects of Yingtian Prefecture, and Zhang Jingxian, the transport commissioner of Jingdong Circuit, all spoke highly of Xu Lai. Only the former transport commissioner of Jingdong Circuit, Wang Yirou, gave Xu Lai a negative evaluation of his oppressive policies and harassment of the people, and even said that the people secretly called him 'Xu the Tiger'."

Zhao Xu frowned and asked, "Is this the same Wang Yirou who 'slept drunk in the North Pole, requiring the Emperor to help him, and was driven into slavery by the Duke of Zhou and Confucius'?"

"It is him," Yang Zuo replied.

Zhao Xu was utterly disgusted: "What good words could such an arrogant and unruly person possibly utter? After Xu Lai has been examined, bring him to the palace to see me immediately!"

"As you command." Yang Zuo bowed and withdrew.

Yang Zuo was a technocrat. When he was first appointed to his post, he personally directed how to repair the salt wells.

Later, in order to quickly restore the canal transport, he ordered the leveling of hundreds of graves, including the ancestral graves of prominent families, when the new canal was being dug.

This matter escalated significantly, with the case going all the way to the capital. Apart from Yang Zuo, all the other officials involved were punished, while the emperor and his chief ministers fiercely protected Yang Zuo.

Yang Zuo, who dared to level the ancestral graves of powerful families, naturally enjoyed Xu Laiqian's stories.

Otherwise, if the officials' evaluations are slightly different, he can simply pretend he didn't see it and there's no need for Xu to explain.

Xu Lai was invited to the court, and Yang Zuo personally received him.

As Xu Lai carried the bound documents, the officials of the judicial office all turned their heads to look at him as he passed by.

What's going on?

I've never seen an official undergoing inspection bring so many things with them.

Yang Zuo and Xu Lai exchanged greetings and then got down to business. Yang Zuo asked, "Why are there such significant discrepancies in these six evaluations?"

Xu Lai picked up the stack of documents, placed them on Yang Zuo's desk, and untied the hemp rope binding them, saying, "Please examine them carefully, Judge Yang."

""

Yang Zuo picked up one out of curiosity, glanced at it briefly, and then picked up another one.

Every document bore the signatures and seals of Gong Dingchen and Zhuang Gongyue. Judging from those documents, Xu Lai not only did not disturb the people, but also treated the laborers with great kindness.

Yang Zuo nodded and said, "His Majesty has instructed you to leave the Court of Judicial Review and go directly to the palace to meet the Emperor."

"Thank you for relaying the message," Xu Lai said, cupping his hands in greeting.

Yang Zuo was quite amusing. After Xu Lai left, he immediately summoned his subordinates and officials to witness this bizarre situation together.

Everyone burst into laughter after reading it.

"This Scholar Xu is truly fascinating. He actually prepared the official documents well in advance and even had the prefect and vice-prefect sign them."

"Yes, he doesn't even need to say a word to defend himself; these official documents are enough to prove his innocence."

"I have been an official for over thirty years and have never heard of such a thing."

"The prefect and the sub-prefect were also interesting. They each signed and stamped their names hundreds of times. Their wrists must have gotten sore from writing so many times."

""

This is an interesting anecdote, and it won't be long before it spreads throughout the officialdom of the capital.

Many officials were probably looking for something to do, and it's certain that more than one person would impeach Wang Yirou. Because during the annual performance evaluation of officials, giving indiscriminate negative reviews was a major taboo in officialdom!

Moreover, Wang Yirou was a clear-cut henchman of the prime minister, and impeaching the prime minister was a popular political trend at the time.

Xu Lai left the Court of Judicial Review and went straight to the Donghua Gate. He showed his imperial credentials, and the guards immediately let him in, presumably having already received the imperial order.

While registering at the Inner East Gate, Xu Lai saw an acquaintance again.

Wang Yuanbi rose and bowed: "Scholar Xu's arrival is just in time. If he had arrived two or three days later, I would have been transferred to the Imperial Pharmacy."

"Congratulations on your promotion, Your Majesty!" Xu Lai said with a smile and a bow.

Both of them were quite happy and chatted casually for a few minutes.

Wang Yuanbi's current position is equivalent to that of a gatekeeper in the Forbidden City. Officials from outside the capital who want to see the emperor must register with him, and they must also register when they leave.

Anyone who forgets to register upon leaving is considered to have spent the night in the palace.

Wang Yuanbi has been in this position for several years and is about to be promoted to the Imperial Pharmacy.

Xu Lai was unfamiliar with the palace routes, so Wang Yuanbi arranged for a eunuch to guide him.

In a side hall, Zhao Xu was handling state affairs.

While it was called a process of handling matters, it was primarily an observation exercise. He diligently studied the methods used by the prime ministers, and whenever he encountered any doubts, he would ask his trusted civil officials for clarification.

The confidant sitting in the hall at this moment was Shao Bi.

When Xu came to take the imperial examination, Shao Bi was one of the three examiners. Later, Shao Bi became Zhao Xu's teacher and is now responsible for compiling the daily records of the emperor's life, answering Zhao Xu's questions on a daily basis.

"Your Majesty, Xu, the Secretary of the Imperial Library and a proofreader, requests an audience," a eunuch announced.

Zhao Xu, who was learning how to handle government affairs, immediately smiled upon hearing this: "Quickly, invite him in!"

Shao Bi, who was sitting next to him compiling the daily records, couldn't help but sigh when he saw this: "Alas, the Emperor is too naive; his joy and anger are always on his mind."

Shao Bi picked up his brush and wrote: "The courtiers reported that the proofreader Xu had arrived, and the Emperor ordered him to enter immediately."

As the emperor, Zhao Xu was surprisingly a little nervous.

His three most trusted officials are Wang Anshi, Xu Lai, and Zhang Fangping.

Judging purely from seniority, Zhao Xu's idea was: Zhang Fangping to be the next prime minister, Wang Anshi to be the prime minister after that, and Xu Lai to be the prime minister after that.

Even for his own father's funeral expenses, Zhao Xu consulted Zhang Fangping before directly informing Han Qi and others.

A few days ago, Zhao Xu even wanted to appoint Zhang Fangping as Vice Chancellor, but Sima Guang immediately submitted a memorial to refute him.

How can a new emperor appoint a prime minister so impatiently after ascending the throne, before the previous emperor has even been buried?

Zhao Xu was too hasty and made a very ugly move!

Emperor Zhao Xu is currently facing many troubles. Zeng Gongliang recommended Wang Anshi for the position of Imperial Censor, but Zhang Fangping surprisingly believes that Wang Anshi is unsuitable. As the emperor, how can he resolve the conflict between his two most trusted ministers?

Not only did Zhang Fangping have a conflict with Wang Anshi, but Xu Lai also had a conflict with Zhang Fangping.

Last year, Xu Lai investigated land ownership in Yingtian Prefecture, and all of Zhang Fangping's clansmen were found to have hidden land.

Zhao Xu thought to himself: This is so difficult. How can I get these three people to get along?

"Your subject Xu Lai greets Your Majesty!" Xu Lai had already entered the hall.

With a broad smile, Zhao Xu said to his attendants, "Please have a seat. Move the chair closer."

In his daily record, Shao Bi added: "After arriving and entering the audience, the Emperor ordered him to sit before the couch."