Han Shizu

Chapter 1687

After the tea was served in the room, the laughter and laughter took a break, and Emperor Liu's expression became serious. He pointed the jade pen on his finger and said to Liu Chengxun slowly: "I heard that Liu Chun was originally planned to be the fifth Jinshi for the current examination. , I was suppressed by your words."

Today's examination is a bit special. Prince Yong's son Liu Chun also participated, and there was a lot of discussion. Although there were few blatant accusations, gossip was always inevitable.

Why should the majestic King Yong condescend to compete with the world's scholars and petty officials.Nowadays, scientific examinations are becoming more and more difficult. The more people refer to the candidates, the fewer the places for candidates. The huge competition pressure not only makes a large number of scholars choose partial subjects such as agriculture and medicine, but also forces some aspiring Scholars go to the martial arts exam.

At this time, when Emperor Liu mentioned this matter, Liu Chengxun shook his head and explained: "I don't agree with Liu Chun's reference and fame. Five admissions..."

Liu Chengxun did not shy away from this matter, he answered very frankly and admitted it.

"Of course I understand your concerns! It's just that you have to trust your chief examiner more. Lu Duan and Li Hang are both celebrities in the court. Lu Duan is cautious, and Li Hang is upright. Are you afraid that they will use scholars for personal gain, attract criticism, and ruin your family's reputation?"

Kaibao 20 years of imperial examinations, in the selection of the examiner team, Emperor Liu used two "young people", Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Lu Duan of Tongping Zhangshi, and Li Hang of Zhongshushe.

After the beginning of the spring of 21, after the court experienced several months of turmoil after the fall of Lu Duoxun, the center reached a new balance of power again.

Zhao Pu still serves as the prime minister, with the top assisting the king and the bottom commanding the ministers, but his authority is obviously not as good as before.The reason is very simple, the number of people who share power with others has increased significantly.

Needless to say, Zhao Kuangyi and Wang Zhu, Song Qi was transferred back to the imperial court to serve as the servant of the door and Tongping Zhangshi, who controlled the power of reviewing the imperial edict system; The post of Pingzhangshi is listed in the political affairs hall.

Needless to say, the Privy Council has always been a system. As the military and political link, Zhao Pu also does not have much control. Those who can serve as ministers of the Ministry of War have always been meritorious officials and do not buy Zhao Pu's account.

For example, Han Tong is now the minister of the Ministry of War. In terms of seniority, he is far superior to Zhao Pu.

Of course, the one who had the greatest influence on Zhao Pu was Lu Duan, who had been promoted from the governor of Guangnan Dongdao to the Minister of the Ministry of Officials. This almost declared that the power of personnel that Zhao Pu had always held in his hands was deprived.Of course, as the prime minister, you can still intervene, but it is absolutely impossible to be driven like in previous years.

Regarding the rise of Lu Duan, it was somewhat unexpected, because he surpassed Li Fang, Shi Xizai and other veterans.In the past, many people criticized Lu Duan. He was too good-tempered and mediocre in performance.

Even in the imperial examinations back then, his grades were not high. In the past, many people regarded Lu Duan's promotion step by step as the relationship between the late prime minister Lu Yin.

However, when counting Lu Duan's resume in detail, it can only be described as rich and solid. He was an official, a high school scholar, a county magistrate, and a governor. After many years, there is naturally no shortage of Daoist officials.

From the letter of ability and qualifications, there is no doubt that Lu Duan worshiped the prime minister.It's just that this person's politics are too mediocre, and his behavior is too low-key.

Others can underestimate Lu Duan, but Emperor Liu will not ignore him. After all, Lu Yin once told him that Lu Duan, his younger brother, is ashamed of himself.Emperor Liu attached great importance to Lu Yin and believed in his judgment. What's more, he always felt familiar with the name Lu Duan. After so many years of observation, he confirmed that this would be a famous official of his generation.

It was a matter of course for Lu Duan, who had always been regarded as a backup prime minister by Emperor Liu, to be promoted.Although the position in the political affairs hall is considered to be the last one, but only considering the fact that the Minister of the Ministry of Officials pays homage to the Prime Minister, no one dares to underestimate him. Personnel is one of the most important powers at any time, otherwise the Ministry of Officials How to become the head of the various divisions.

And Lu Duan's first important job when he took office was to be the chief examiner of this subject. Of course, it was just a name. Even so, Emperor Liu's biased intentions should not be too obvious.

As for Li Hang, he is indeed a young man. At the age of 34, he participated in Kaibao's 18 years regular competition, won the first prize in one fell swoop, and became famous all over the world.Of course, due to Emperor Liu's employment habits and the Han system scientific examination that lasted more than 30 years, Li Hang inevitably has the common characteristics of the first Jinshi in recent years.

That is, before referring to it, I didn’t just study and study essays blindly, but I had nearly ten years of experience in government affairs in my hometown Mingzhou, and was highly valued by the superiors. Even if I didn’t take the scientific examination, I still had the qualifications .

However, Li Hang still chose a "difficult" road to Longmen. Three years ago, he was recommended by Zhang Lin, the magistrate of Mingzhou, and went to Beijing for reference, and won the crown in one fell swoop.

And because of his solid grassroots experience and excellent administrative skills, Li Hang naturally didn't have to work hard for his qualifications in the court like most Jinshi, but was directly reused.

After being favored by Prince Liu Yang, he was transferred to the East Palace as an attendant, and later transferred to Zhongshu Sheren.

Song Zhun was the last person who had such an experience, but now Song Zhun is the chief envoy of Jiangxi Province. Although he is not a road to prosperity, he is also a great official in the frontier, and his promotion speed is like a rocket.

Therefore, some people in the imperial court regarded Li Hang as the second Song Zhun.And Li Hang did not disappoint no matter whether he was a man of integrity or ability.

Three years ago, he was one of the many examinees, and three years later, he became an invigilator. Such a chance, such a change of identity, is quite emotional.

And with Lu Duan and Li Hang as the hosts and invigilators, it can basically guarantee the fairness of the selection of talents in this examination. At least on this point, it can convince Emperor Liu and convince the courtiers.

On the other hand, even if you don't mention the personalities and morals of the two, if you say that both of them are in the rising stage of their official careers, they will not do anything to destroy their careers.

However, because of the reference of Prince Yong’s son Liu Chun, there was some turmoil. The examiners unanimously reviewed and approved the No. 5 scholar. After personally reviewing the answers to the examination papers, Lu and Li also recognized this ranking.

However, such a decision was interfered by King Yong Liu Chengxun. He was very concerned about this matter and imposed some means, hoping that Liu Chun would lose the rank, so it was fine to participate. There was no need to ostentatiously, just wait to inherit the title of King Yong.

However, Lu Duan and Li Hang were a little ignorant and insisted on keeping their rankings unchanged, but under the pressure of Liu Chengxun, they still lowered their rankings.

However, even so, it is still eye-catching. The eleventh place is not low at all. This result is dissatisfied by all parties, and all parties have knots. Emperor Liu also understands that he has not responded positively to this matter. , and finally the default.

However, acquiescing does not mean approval, and he will inevitably have more knots.When mentioning this matter face to face, although the words were calm, the meaning of beating was very strong.

Emperor Liu took a sip of tea, looked at Liu Chengxun, and said slowly: "Even if you don't trust Lu and Li, you should have confidence in the tribute system that the imperial court has implemented for many years. Recognition is the most perfect, fair and practical in all ages!

If Liu Chun has talent, he will get it; if he is not enough, he will lose the rank, that's all.You care about your reputation, and you are afraid of being criticized, so you interfere arbitrarily. Don't you know that this will cause even greater controversy.

This time, you were modest and let Liu Chun's ranking drop, but if you can let him drop, will you be able to promote him next time?"

Liu Chengxun had already sensed something was wrong in Emperor Liu's words, but after hearing these words, his face finally changed drastically, and he realized that he had really committed a taboo.

Pay attention to Emperor Liu's face, he looks very calm, but the more so, the more disturbed he feels.

To Emperor Liu, Liu Chengxun has always been frank, and this is also his way of self-protection. Therefore, he did not panic too much. After pondering for a moment, with embarrassment on his face, he cupped his hands and said, "Second brother's words made me sweat! Come on, it's true that I didn't think carefully, and in this matter, I did something wrong and broke the imperial court's rules and regulations, please punish me, I am willing to be punished, and I have no complaints!"

Liu Chengxun's attitude is so sincere, what can Emperor Liu do?It is also impossible for him to stare at this matter, so he took a deep look at him, waved his hand, and said in a neutral way: "It's good that you understand, if you care about it, it will be messy, and this matter will be exposed, and you should be treated as a fool." Quit, don't do it again!"

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)