Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

Chapter 668 Foresight and Fallacy

The old man's prestige was very high, and everyone filed out. Only Lu Zhaolin and Na Lu Twelve were left in the hall.The old man snorted coldly: "Twelve Lang, what did you just say? If you don't want to go, you won't go. Why do you say those stupid words?"

"I just don't want everyone to fall into the trap of the Emperor of Kansai!" the man said.

"It's obviously a good thing for the imperial court to recruit scholars, but why did it become a trap?" Seeing that there were only three people left in the hall, Lu Zhaolin couldn't bear his temper and retorted: "Also, now that the Tang Dynasty is on the verge of ruining the world, you still call it a trap?" As the Emperor of Kansai, if outsiders hear about it, I'm afraid it will be a disaster!"

"It's just words that sound nice!" The man sneered: "The emperor of the Li family, like the emperors of the Yuwen family and the Yang family, all regard us people east of Hangu as slaves, but only in the west of Guanxi He is a good man. What is this but the Emperor of Kansai? As for opening a subject to obtain scholars, it is even more ridiculous! Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, our surnames, Cui, Lu, Zhao and Li, have lived in Guandong for generations. We are good at classics and history, and we have always only asked questions. If you are taking other people’s exams, why should you refer to them and seek an official position yourself?”

"This -" Lu Zhaolin was dumbfounded by the question and stammered: "The court also wants to see if the person they choose is a good person! You can't say it's wrong even if you refer to it!"

"Then those who can pass the exam are good talents, but those who fail are not? Is it all up to the Emperor of Kansai?" Lu Twelve Lang sneered: "If that's the case, then I would rather study in the countryside in the spring and summer, and hunt in the autumn and winter. This life!”

"Lu Twelve, what do you mean?" the old man said coldly: "My nephew is also kind-hearted, so you don't have to use cold words to choke him!"

"What my nephew means is very simple. Given the current situation, it may not be a good thing to go to Chang'an to take the exam and wait with me!"

"Why is it not a good thing?" Lu Zhaolin retorted: "On weekdays, everyone complains that the imperial court favors the Guanxi scholars. I am waiting for the Hebei scholars to have a difficult official career. Now the imperial court really gives you a chance, but you don't go? As long as you pass the exam, you will be fine." Isn’t this a good opportunity to be admitted to the Zhaowen Hall?”

"Is entering Zhaowen Hall a good opportunity?" Lu Twelve Lang sneered: "You must have forgotten what happened to Cui Hao, right?"

Lu Zhaolin was stunned when he heard this. Cui Hao, whom Lu Twelve Lang spoke of, was a famous scholar of the Cui family of Qinghe in the Northern and Southern Dynasties. He served in the Northern Wei Dynasty, including Emperor Daowu, Emperor Mingyuan, and Emperor Taiwu. He was the confidant of Tuoba Tao, Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Against all odds, Tuoba Tao seized the rare opportunity to fight against Liu Song's Northern Expedition, destroy Hu Xia and Beiliang, and defeat Rouran. He was the chief contributor to the unification of the north in the Northern Wei Dynasty. He was ordered to compile the history of the Northern Wei Dynasty. This was for scholars It's a great honor.And it was precisely because of this incident that Cui Hao caused a huge disaster. Not only was he imprisoned and executed, the Cui family of Qinghe and the Lu family of Fanyang, the Guo family of Taiyuan, and the Liu family of Hedong who were married to him were also exterminated. They were known in history as "Prison of National History".

"Twelve Lang, what you said is a bit exaggerated. Cui Boyuan's fate was due to his own careless words and deeds, right? Emperor Taiwu asked him to compile the history of the country, but he included all the dirty things about his ancestors in it. If you still engrave it on a stone tablet and make it public, what will happen if you don’t die?”

"Do you think Cui Hao can protect himself by being cautious in his words and deeds?" Lu Twelve Lang sneered: "The reason Cui Hao ended up dead is because his achievements were too great and his foundation was too shallow. Surrounded by jackals and wolves, what will you do if you don't die? You think that if you go to Chang'an, you can rely on your talents and knowledge to enter the Zhaowen Hall, be appreciated by the emperor, and gain fame and wealth. If you fail the exam, or if you can only get a minor official after passing the exam, it will be okay , if you really go as you wish and climb the Dragon Gate, you will most likely end up like Cui Hao. Not only will you lose your life, but you will also implicate your clan members!"

Lu Zhaolin turned pale at what the other party said and was speechless for a moment.He was familiar with history books and knew that what Lu Twelve said was not false.According to historical records, Cui Hao gained Tuoba Tao's trust before supervising the compilation of national history. Tuoba Tao once ordered all ministers to seek Cui Hao's opinion first if there were any difficult matters to resolve, and he often went to Cui Hao's house to discuss the matter regularly. Cui Hao himself can enter the palace at any time.But unlike other Xianbei ministers, Cui Hao's power came entirely from the trust and bestowal of the Northern Wei Emperor. Although he was born in the Cui family of Qinghe, he did not marry other Xianbei ministers and did not have his own army. Moreover, he advocated Recommending the nobles of Hebei directly to serve as governors of prefectures and counties directly touched the interests of the Xianbei nobles of the Northern Wei Dynasty.As a result, once Tuoba Tao was angered, he would attack him in groups, and no one would intercede for him, so he died an untimely death.In sharp contrast, Gao Yun, the minister of Zhongshu who was also involved in compiling the history of the country, survived because he was the prince's teacher.At that time, there were few high-ranking officials from Hebei in the court, but there were many officials from Guanlong. They were mostly hostile to the scholars from Hebei, which was quite similar to Cui Hao's situation.

"Then Twelve Master, do you think we, the descendants of the Lu family, can just go on like this?" the old man asked.

"Uncle!" Lu Twelve replied: "My ancestral son Qiangong (Lu Zhi) started his family and became famous in the late Han Dynasty. It has been passed down for more than four hundred years. During this period, there were many people more prominent than my surname, and it was passed down to Today, there are only a few families called Cui, Wang, Zhao, and Li that can be called the same as the Lu family. The reason is that our sect is deeply rooted in the roots and does not seek temporary glory. The three great masters in Chang'an and Luoyang are not as good as Zhou. Doing things separately from the county is the key to my family's inheritance for more than [-] years!"

Hearing this, the old man couldn't help but nod, twist his beard and sigh.Lu Twelve Lang's words, "The three public affairs in Chang'an and Luoyang are good, but it is not as good as those in the prefectures and counties to engage in separate affairs." This clearly explains the political logic of our country from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Mid-Tang Dynasty.Since the founding of the Western Han Dynasty, with the decline of blood aristocrats since the end of the Warring States Period and the Qin and Han Dynasties, new aristocrats who have mastered the scholarship of Confucian classics and held official positions for generations have gradually stepped onto the stage of history. This is the predecessor of the gentry in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, such as Qinghe Cui The Lu family of Fanyang, the Yuan family of Runan, etc.

An important feature of these new aristocrats is that they attach great importance to county positions, because the Han Dynasty mainly adopted the recruitment system to select officials. No matter what level you reach, your descendants cannot enter the official career without the recommendation of officials in your hometown. Establish.In order to ensure that power can continue to be passed down within the family, even if you are the Third Duke in Luoyang, you cannot give up control of the county guard in your hometown.The local political system at that time further strengthened this point. In the local official system of the Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties, except for the prefects and governors, who were appointed by the central government, other subordinate officials were basically appointed by the prefects, governors, etc., and reported to the central government. Just be prepared.Since the prefects and governors are usually transferred from other places, in order to ensure administrative efficiency, they usually choose the descendants of the commander-in-chief of the prefecture and county to serve as subordinate officials.

Since the prefects and state shepherds came and went for several years, and there were no local clans, the actual power was often in the hands of subordinate officials represented by Zeng and Biejia.After the fall of the Han Dynasty, dynasties changed like lanterns and were unpredictable, which further intensified the power of local powerful clans.Taking the Northern Wei Dynasty as an example, since its founders were Xianbei nobles, after they occupied Hebei, they usually appointed Xianbei nobles as prefects and governors of prefectures and counties, and the governors of prefectures and counties were local nobles in Hebei. For example, those in Fan Yang were usually the Lu family and the Qinghe family. It's Cui.This ensured the interests of the Northern Wei state and the Han clan at the same time. Later, Cui Hao suddenly appointed scholars from Ji, Ding, Xiang, You, and Bing to serve as county governors. This was tantamount to directly robbing the Xianbei nobles. Jobs will naturally end miserably.

Therefore, in the eyes of nobles like Lu Twelve Lang, the Tang Dynasty, which was only about half a century after its founding, was just another Northern Wei Dynasty. The emperor took turns and came to my house next year!The Hebei nobles who have experienced Shi Zhao, Murong Xianbei, Former Qin Fu, Northern Wei Tuoba, Northern Qi Gao, Northern Zhou Yuwen, and Sui Yang naturally have no sense of sacredness or loyalty to the Li family of the Tang Dynasty.In their view, since the emperor of the Li family does not take us seriously, there is no need for us to rush to Chang'an to be dogs. Anyway, there has been no immortal dynasty since ancient times, only the inheritance of the family name will last forever.It won't be long before the Emperor of Chang'an will be replaced by someone else.The most important thing for them is to ensure their control over the land in Hebei. It doesn't matter who is the state and county official. As long as the subordinate officials below are theirs, the Lu family will naturally prosper.

From the perspective of a later generation, Lu Twelve’s view was both wrong and correct.What is wrong is that the Tang Dynasty did not perish as quickly as the short-lived dynasties of Shi Zhao, Murong Xianbei, Former Qin Fu, Northern Wei Tuoba, Northern Qi Gao, Northern Zhou Yuwen, and Sui Yang. Instead, it existed for nearly 300 years. During these 300 years Here, children of the gentry with a long history like Qinghe Cui and Fan Yanglu must make a choice between their hometown and the political axis of Luoyang-Chang'an.

If you stay in your hometown, although you can maintain control over your clan and land, it also means being politically marginalized. Under the unique imperial examination system of the Tang Dynasty, if a scholar cannot stay in the core area with Chang'an and Luoyang as the axis for a long time, If you choose to develop in Chang'an and Luoyang, as your career continues, it will take less than two generations to lose the close connection with the clan manor in your hometown. , from state and county nobles to bureaucratic aristocrats completely dependent on the feudal state.This was also after the Huang Chao uprising army invaded Chang'an in the late Tang Dynasty. Many gentry clans that had been inherited for hundreds of years declined. They could not lead the clan tribes to defend themselves like the ancestors of the late Han Dynasty, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and even forced the new central government to Recognize their political and economic privileges.From this perspective, Lu Twelve is right again.

"Twelfth brother, you said something wrong!" Lu Zhaolin said: "We Hebei scholars went to Chang'an this time with support!" "Are you talking about the emperor?" Lu Twelfth said with a smile: "The emperor's words How can we be gullible? He is from Kansai after all!"

"No, I'm talking about General Wang, Wang Wenzuo!" Lu Zhaolin said: "He is from Qingzhou, and his wife is also from the Qingzhou house of the Cui family in Qinghe. He was behind this incident, otherwise it would not have happened. Wait for something!"

"Wang Wenzuo? You mean General Wang Wenzuo, who has been enthroned today?" Lu Twelve asked with interest.

"Yes, it's him! I was able to escape from Chang'an this time thanks to his help!" Lu Zhaolin said with a smile: "Later, I also went to Baekje and the Japanese Kingdom. This General Wang was very powerful. An ordinary warrior!"

"How do you know he was behind this incident?" the old man asked.

"The general once mentioned this matter to me personally when we were in Chang'an, and he also said that the ban on worshiping Xia Wang Dou Jiande would be waived!"

"Oh? Is there such a thing?" The old man's expression changed slightly. He smoothed his beard under his chin and his eyes flashed. He was obviously thinking. Lu Zhaolin did not dare to disturb him anymore and had to wait quietly.

"Hahahaha!" Lu Twelve Lang suddenly laughed: "So, this Wang Wenzuo is really a person! Well, I will go to Chang'an with you, but I am not doing it to take a poetry test, but to learn how to Take a moment, General Wang, to see if he is a true hero!"

"Since that's the case, let's go and have a look!" The old man finally said.

"Yes!" Lu Zhaolin stood up excitedly: "My nephew will go talk to other people now, but Lu Twelve -"

"Let's go too!" The old man smiled: "He has been like this since he was a child. You can't stop him, you can only do as he wants!"

"Actually not!" Lu Zhaolin said with a smile: "Actually, the twelfth brother is very smart. He excels in both reading and archery. It's just that he doesn't like poetry, otherwise he would have become famous in the world!"

"This may not be a good thing!" The old man smiled: "If a person like him succeeds, the world will definitely be unstable. It is better for him to be depressed all his life than to have the world in chaos!"

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Shaanzhou, the land and water transfer envoy's residence.

"Shangguan!" Di Renjie bowed his hand to Yiji Lianbod: "The last batch of cloth from Luoyang has been delivered, please check!"

"Well, sit down and talk!" Ijilianbod pointed to the chair on the right: "You have worked hard along the way, drink some tea first!"

"Thank you, Sir!" Di Renjie responded. He was really thirsty along the way. When the tea was brought, he was not polite and took two sips. Only then did he notice that Yiji Lianbode was leaning at the desk to take a closer look. A sketch of what looks like a boat.

"If something happens to me, Shangguan, then I will leave first!" Di Renjie stood up.

"Huaiying, sit down, sit down!" Ijilianbod waved and said with a wry smile: "This is the sketch of the new ship sent by the general. It is said that it can move forward and backward freely on the water without a sail or oar, but I can't see it. I understand very well, you are here just in time, let’s go over the details together!”

"You can move forward and backward freely on the water without a sail? Is there such a boat in the world? It's impossible, right?" Di Renjie said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)