Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

If we were to say what purpose officials' wives and noblewomen could serve by gathering together, passing on messages might be one of them.

This is especially true when it involves someone in a lower position passing a message to someone in a higher position.

Now that Jiang Zhao has been appointed Prime Minister, many officials from the Han faction are surely curious about when a banquet will be held to celebrate.

But they dared not ask.

Given the intimidating presence of Grand Secretaries in the Cabinet, who would dare to challenge a fourth or fifth-rank official for questioning a first-rank official?

At this time, the women became the messengers for delivering messages.

"Celebrating his entry into the cabinet?"

Jiang Zhao frowned slightly.

Entering the cabinet and becoming prime minister is truly a joyous occasion.

A banquet must be held.

On the one hand, it serves as a celebration.

In one's life, there is really no greater joy than becoming a cabinet minister.

This represents the peak of one's career.

On the other hand, under the guise of celebrating his entry into the cabinet, he could also gather his former protégés and subordinates.

Setting up a celebratory banquet, limited to officials from Han's faction, would undoubtedly strengthen the cohesion among party officials.

This move will benefit the students and former officials who will take over the position of the teacher in the future, and pass on the connections of the head of all officials.

"March?" Sheng Hualan suggested.

“March won’t work.” Jiang Zhao shook his head decisively.

March is destined to be busy.

The imperial examination will be held on March 11th.

As the chief examiner, I will preside over the imperial examinations after March 11th.

I didn't have time before March 11th.

Generally speaking, the imperial examinations, from the provincial examination to the palace examination, lasted about fifty days in total.

The imperial examinations will be held on the eleventh day of the third month, which means they will continue until the beginning of May.

If Ouyang Xiu and Lü Gongzhu were to voluntarily claim illness and not leave their posts, wouldn't that allow them to retire peacefully?

In other words, before Ouyang Xiu and Lü Gongzhu could pull any tricks, a political struggle had to be waged to completely destroy them.

Therefore, there will definitely be no free time in March.

That will have to wait until after May.

Jiang Zhao pondered for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Let's do it at the end of May."

In May, Zhang Heng, Zhang Dun, Zeng Bu, and some of his former students and officials had presumably already entered the capital to take up their posts.

It's not too late to celebrate together.

“There’s another invitation.” Sheng Hualan said softly, her lips slightly red.

As he spoke, he handed over the invitation.

Jiang Zhao glanced at it twice.

Wang Shao's memorial mainly concerned the celebration of being granted a noble title.

The specific date is the eighth day of the third lunar month.

"Alright," Jiang Zhao nodded in agreement.

Hereditary succession, sharing the fate of the nation, is indeed something to be very happy about.

Since the expansion of the border began, five or six years have passed, and Wang Shao can be considered one of the core commanders under his command.

Everyone carries the sedan chair.

If I have enough time then, I'll go and have some fun.

If there isn't enough time, then just showing up and having a couple of drinks is enough to save face.

Sheng Hualan nodded repeatedly.

The Secretariat, the Hall of State Affairs.

Centered on the Hall of State Affairs, there are six buildings on all sides.

Zhaowen Hall, Jixian Hall, Wenhua Hall, Zizheng Hall, Wenyuan Pavilion, and East Pavilion.

The names of the six buildings correspond to the six Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet.

Among them, Zhaowen Hall is an east-facing hall, and traditionally, the east is considered the most honorable direction. The Grand Secretary of Zhaowen Hall was usually the prime minister.

The position of Grand Secretary of the Jixian Hall is usually held by senior cabinet ministers, or second-highest rank.

The Grand Secretaries of the Wenhua Hall usually served as lecturers at the Emperor's lectures, and were second only to the Grand Secretaries.

The Zizheng Hall is symmetrical to the Wenhua Hall, and is the next best.

The Wenyuan Pavilion was second only to the Wenyuan Pavilion, which housed books and memorials to the emperor.

The East Pavilion is used to store classical texts, which is the next best option.

Theoretically, the six Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet are ranked as follows: Grand Secretary of Zhaowen Hall, Grand Secretary of Jixian Hall, Grand Secretary of Wenhua Hall, Grand Secretary of Zizheng Hall, Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion, and Grand Secretary of Dongge Pavilion.

Of course, this is only a theoretical ranking.

In reality, the main duties of the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet were to draft memorials, draft imperial edicts, assist the monarch in decision-making, and oversee the Three Departments.

The six Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet have almost identical main responsibilities, which raises the issue of overlapping duties.

This means that, apart from the Grand Secretary of the Zhaowen Hall, the specific influence and power of the remaining five Grand Secretaries mainly depended on their political acumen and political foundation.

The order of power in practice is naturally different from the order of power in theory.

Political Hall.

The six Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, apart from occasionally working separately, mostly worked together in the Hall of State Affairs to handle draft proposals with differing opinions.

Grand Chancellor Han Zhang sat in the main seat, a faint smile on his face.

Below the autonomous position, they are arranged in left and right columns.

Zeng Gongliang, Grand Secretary of the Jixian Hall; Wu Chong, Grand Secretary of the Wenhua Hall; Ouyang Xiu, Grand Secretary of the Zizheng Hall; Jiang Zhao, Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion; and Zhang Sheng, Grand Secretary of the Dongge Pavilion, were all present.

At a glance, all one could see were people in purple robes and gold belts, carrying gold talismans and fish-shaped pouches.

These six individuals were at the pinnacle of their status as ministers, both in terms of prestige and power.

Every word and action they take constantly affects the livelihoods of twelve million ordinary people.

A satisfied smile might lead to the promotion of some officials; a moment of dissatisfaction might lead to their dismissal.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them "divine beings" whose words become law.

The difference is that they don't have the longevity of immortals.

Of the six Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, apart from Jiang Zhao who was exceptionally young, the rest all had graying temples.

Whether kind, upright, or gentle

Without exception, they all possessed an irresistible charm that made a good first impression.

In any case, they are all good people, loyal ministers, and selfless saints.

There were six people in total, but they couldn't muster even a shred of genuine emotion.

Just like Jiang Zhao and Ouyang Xiu, both of them were well aware that a political struggle might occur between them.

They might both secretly wish they could strangle each other, but they showed no reaction on the surface.

One had a righteous expression, the other was selfless.

Anyone who saw them would think that the two were in cahoots, not political enemies.

The Grand Chancellor, Han Zhang, holding a memorial, slowly said:

"Today, the Ministry of Justice has submitted nine memorials that involve drafting edicts. These will be submitted to the Ministry of Justice."

The Tongzhengsi was a government office specifically responsible for forwarding memorials from officials and local governments.

The Cabinet would draft its opinions on the documents submitted by the Office of Transmission and then submit them to the Imperial Study on small slips of paper.

Subsequently, the emperor issued an instruction and sent it back to the cabinet.

The cabinet may transfer the task to the six ministries or to local authorities for implementation.

He took out a memorial, glanced at it, and said:

"The Ministry of Personnel has already compiled a list of candidates for promotion to the rank of third grade or above."

"Pass it around for everyone to read."

As he spoke, he passed the memorial in his hand down.

It's less about viewing and more about "verifying".

Anyone of the third rank or above, wearing a purple robe, had already entered the core ranks of the imperial court.

Ninety-nine percent of those qualified to reach this position are people associated with the six Grand Secretaries.

The main purpose of reviewing memorials was to verify whether anyone was missing or lacking.

About half an incense stick later, the memorial was in hand.

Jiang Zhao glanced at it a few times.

His people are also on this list.

Zhang Heng was the Transport Commissioner of Xihe Circuit, and later promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

Zhang Fangping was appointed Pacification Commissioner of Xihe Circuit and later promoted to Minister of Rites.

Song Huai was the Deputy Pacification Commissioner of Huainan East Circuit, and later promoted to Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Wu Kui was the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and was later transferred to the position of Pacification Commissioner of Xihe Circuit.

Among them, Zhang Heng was promoted beyond his rank.

Zhang Heng was credited twice for his contributions in expanding the territory, once for opening up the borders at Xihe and again at Xifeng.

Moreover, these are all achievements primarily attributed to food.

When Xihe opened up the border, Zhang Heng was the "first civil official" besides Jiang Zhao and Wang Shao.

The same applies to Xi Feng's expansion of the borders; he was considered the "first civil official" besides Jiang Zhao and Wang Shao.

Such a resume is quite impressive.

At forty-one, one is at a very mature age.

Since they had made meritorious contributions, the new emperor, eager to bestow favors upon them, naturally promoted them beyond their rank.

The remaining promotions of Zhang Fangping, Song Huai, and Wu Kui were all normal and not surprising.

Just as Jiang Zhao was about to send away the memorial, he inadvertently caught a glimpse of a special name.

Wang Shiping!

The Education Commissioner of Liangzhe Road was transferred to the Privy Council.

Scholars promoted to military positions?

Jiang Zhao raised his eyebrows.

The lineage of Grand Tutor Wang has truly declined!

However, judging from the behavior of Wang Shiping and Old Lady Wang, it's no wonder that the Wang family lineage has declined.

In the past, when Wang Ruoyu acted recklessly and offended him, neither Old Madam Wang nor Wang Shiping showed any sign of expressing their opinions.

It should be noted that at that time, he was the only disciple of Han Zhang, a Grand Secretary of the Cabinet.

Despite this identity alone, Old Mrs. Wang and Wang Shiping remained completely silent, not even sending a letter of apology.

With such poor judgment, it's no wonder they've fallen on hard times!