Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 495: Reorganization of the Ninth Rank

Since the founding of the Southern Han Dynasty, Liu Bei often discussed the gains and losses of the political system of the two Han Dynasties with Huo, Ge, and Fa.

In addition to criticizing the incompetent emperor with Liu Bei, Huo Jun also often thought about what kind of political system Ji Han should implement. After all, although Ji Han claimed to revive the Han Dynasty, it did not mean that Ji Han had to restore the old system of the Han Dynasty.

Standing on the long river of history, Huo Jun knows that the Three Kingdoms, the Southern and Northern Dynasties, were succeeded by the Han Dynasty, and then the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

During this critical period of change, China was in the most chaotic Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties in history. Over the past few hundred years, aristocratic families had appeared on each other's faces, kings of various countries had taken turns, and systems had been constantly revised, eventually giving birth to the prosperous Sui and Tang empires.

Nowadays, the Three Kingdoms have been replaced by the Southern Han and Northern Wei. As one of the rulers of Ji Han, Huo Jun is well aware of the trend of future historical development. However, being in the torrent of the times, he often feels that he has no way to start.

They wanted to use an imperial examination system that was more conducive to centralization, but there was no corresponding cultural soil. And even if the mature imperial examination was developed in later generations, most of the officials who entered the official position through the imperial examination would have no official position except for the central government.

Why are there no officials?

Without him, during the Han Dynasty, the governors of prefectures and counties had the power to appoint local personnel. The appointment rights for official positions such as Biejia, Chief Secretary, and Merit Cao were in the hands of the chiefs.

Therefore, when the number of official positions in the imperial court is limited, the personnel power of the auxiliary officials of the prefectures and counties is controlled by the local governors. If the imperial court adopts the imperial examination system, there will inevitably be a problem of redundant officials, and some scholars will also tend to be recruited by the prefectures and counties. In this way This creates a talent conflict in the central region.

On that day, Huo Jun went to the Prime Minister's Mansion to meet with Zhuge Liang.

In order to allow more talents to have official positions, or to prevent talents from being recruited by local officials, the central government will deprive the states and counties of their personnel rights. When local officials were unable to appoint auxiliary officials, talents flowed from all over the country to the central government, either passively or actively, in order to serve as officials.

However, if we want to delve deeper into the difference between the two, we need to think carefully about why the chaemo system emerged?

Under this situation, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty implemented the inspection and examination system based on the political traditions left by Emperors Wen and Jing, allowing local counties to recommend outstanding talents to the central government. Therefore, the essence of the inspection and examination system is actually that the central government wants people from the localities, and the prefectures and states export talents to the court.

The nine-grade Zhongzheng system implemented by the Cao family and his son was actually replacing the old wine with a new bottle, changing the soup without changing the medicine, and strengthened the voice of the local gentry.

In the main hall, the two of them sat across the table, and the maid served tea.

When Huo Jun understood this, he turned to think deeply about the difference between the examination system and the imperial examination system.

When Sima Yi realized the expansion of local power, in order to strengthen the power of the central government, he transferred the judicial power to the central government. Due to the lack of clear standards and the improper founding of the country in the Western Jin Dynasty, a gentry clan dominated the center.

"Have heard a little bit!"

Zhuge Liang pondered for a while and said: "Zuo Xiong's new system tests talents, filial piety, integrity, and actual and actual talents. Based on their talents, they can distinguish the good from the bad and classify them for scientific examination. This should be good governance."

Huo Jun never told Liu and Ge about these thoughts. Not only did the Southern Han Dynasty want to prioritize the Northern Expedition, but also because the system was advanced, there was no specific administrative policy for the time being.

The essence of the imperial examination system is to let the central government control the jurisdiction and become the supplier and recipient of talents. We will weaken the local government’s say in personnel matters and prevent the phenomenon of students becoming former officials.

Zhuge Liang shook his feather fan lightly and said with a smile: "Zhong Miao is a rare visitor. I am here to visit you. I think I have something important to discuss with you."

As the recipient, the central government is very difficult to control the quality of talents. The county is not only a talent provider, but also a referee, with the right to evaluate the quality of talents.

Huo Jun smiled and asked: "Kong Ming, do you know that His Majesty wants you and me to rectify the inspection system?"

When Xiaolian who was recommended to the central government was appointed as a local official, he would definitely take care of the heirs of the prefect who recommended him, or his in-laws and old relatives. Over hundreds of years, they will inevitably branch out like branches, entrenching themselves from the center to the local areas. This is the phenomenon of disciples and old officials in the Han Dynasty.

When a prefect colludes with a wealthy family, he becomes both a referee and a participant. The central government has become the victim, and he needs to accept it regardless of whether the talent is garbage or not. Therefore, in order to distinguish talents, the central government has no choice but to conduct internal self-screening or punish county officials.

When Huo Jun figured out these contents, he suddenly discovered that Ji Han's attempt to implement this series of systems was no less difficult than a reform. The central government and local governments had to complete the collection and centralization of power, and deprive those state and county chiefs of personnel, nominations and appointments. right.

Of course, it is also related to Huo Jun's status. Although he is also in charge of the affairs of the minister, he does not dare to interfere too much in the affairs of the minister's desk because he is a general.

The Han Dynasty inherited the Qin system, so the officials in the early Western Han Dynasty came from the military groups in the early Western Han Dynasty. When the world is at peace, the military group has entered a period of aging and has no successors. By the time of Emperor Wu, because the military group had withdrawn from the political stage, he had to find a new group of talents to serve as officials to maintain the operation of the empire.

When Liu Bei wanted to change the filial piety and integrity system, Huo Jun's thoughts became active. He was going to try to use the new system in Yangjia as a reason to see if he could improve Ji Han's official selection system.

"I mean more than that!"

Huo Jun confided his feelings to Zhuge Liang and said: "Since the end of the Han Dynasty, when Zhang Jiao raised the yellow scarf and started a rebellion, the states and counties in the world have held military and power, and they are regarded as feudal princes. After Dong Zhuo's chaos, the heroes separated themselves, but fortunately the emperor rose up, Together with Cao Cao, we will bring peace to the world."

"Your Majesty appointed Kong Ming as the prime minister. Kong Ming was a wise and intelligent man who worked hard and worked hard day and night. He did not let up for a day, so he had good governance such as commanding the army, commanding salt, brocade, and iron. The Han Dynasty could be as prosperous as it is today. , thanks to the contribution of Kong Ming. However, the current legal system inherits the old shortcomings of the two Han Dynasties. If it is not promoted and eliminated, I am afraid that the Ji Han Dynasty will repeat the same mistakes."

"In the turbulent times of the Warring States Period, the King of Qin used the Shang Dynasty to reform the law, and then the remaining heroes of the Sixth Emperor of Qin unified the six countries and rebuilt the world. The former Han Dynasty inherited the old system of Qin, and Emperor Gaozu divided the world with prefectures and monarchs; the Later Han Dynasty inherited the old system of the former Han Dynasty and withdrew the army Centralize power to the king. We invaded the Han Dynasty and changed it, but the fundamentals remain unchanged."

"The commander-in-chief divides the country, promotes wise men at the top, and governs the people at the bottom. Jun is afraid that as time goes by, bad governance will return, and the country will have bad governance like that of the Chinese and Han Dynasties. For example, the disciples are old officials, and their in-laws are clinging to them; or they are filial and honest but have no virtue, and they are talented. There is no learning. Kong Ming has talents in management and music, how can he be unrighteous now?"

Listening to Huo Jun's words of more than hundreds of words, Zhuge Liang stroked his fan and frowned.

Zhuge Liang has read the classics and history thoroughly, how could he not know the bad governance that occurred in the two Han Dynasties for hundreds of years? But how easy is it to get rid of bad government?
In addition to using prestige to suppress those opposing voices, we must also find a new system to replace this old system.

Zhuge Liang has been building the Southern Han Dynasty system for Liu Bei for more than ten years, and he also has to provide food and grass. Maintaining the old system is not easy, so where can we find the energy to implement deep-seated good governance? After all, restructuring is not easy, but fixing loopholes and patches is easy. After thinking for a long time, Zhuge Liang asked: "Since Zhong Miao has said this, I wonder if he has any good advice to teach me?"

"Slightly small!"

Huo Jun took the tea stove, four tea cups, and a large bowl, demonstrated it to Zhuge Liang, and said.

"The bowl can be regarded as the court, the four cups are the place, and the tea is the scholar. Today, if you want to pour the tea in the bowl, but the bowl is empty, you need to take the tea and pour it in. The Chaju system seems to be to pour the tea into the tea cup first, Then transfer it from the tea cup to the bowl, as if the bowl is asking for help from the cup."

"If you can find a way to bring the tea from the stove to the bowl, and then distribute the tea from the bowl to the cups, then the cups will have bowls. If you want to draw hot tea, pour it early; if you want to drink cold tea, pour it later. ..."

The tea cup is hardly an example, but under Huo Jun's explanation and practice, Zhuge Liang gradually understood what Huo Jun meant.

Zhuge Liang pointed at the cups with his fan and said: "There is a lot of tea in the stove, and the tea bowl is not enough to hold it. Moreover, the tea has good and bitter qualities, how can we take all of it? Moreover, the bowls are big and the cups are small, and the tea water is poured into the cups. Then tea will overflow."

"Wei changed the small one to a big one!"

Seeing that Zhuge Liang understood what he meant, Huo Jun said directly: "The central government has taken away the power of conquest from the governors of prefectures and counties. None of the governors of prefectures and counties are allowed to conscript conquests. All the auxiliary officials appointed are appointed by the Shangshutai. For example, imitate the old system of imperial examinations and recruit more wise men. It is a test in the capital. The weak will be eliminated from the many, and the best will be chosen from the weak."

"The wise men are appointed by the central government, but the governor and the prefect have no power of appointment. In the long run, the officials will know your majesty but not the governors of the prefectures and counties. The branches will be strong but the branches will be weak, so as to avoid the mistakes of the old Han Dynasty."

Zhuge Liang stroked his beard, showing a thoughtful look, and said: "There are so many scholars in the world, how can we all let the ministers test and identify the virtuous? We need to let the prefectures and counties help distinguish them, the good ones will go up, and the bad ones will go down."

"But if you let the states and counties distinguish between them, it will be like promoting filial piety and integrity, emphasizing virtue and devaluing talents. If you don't strictly distinguish, how can you be an official?"

Huo Jun pondered for a while and said: "The Cao family practices the Nine-Rank Law, and promotes filial piety and honesty according to the country. Now I, a big man, can follow the example and change it. If there is no distinction between the poor and the low, everyone can go to the county to promote filial piety and honesty. The state and county are divided into family laws. , the class notes are reported, the person with the highest reputation is Xiaolian, and he will take the examination after entering the center."

Hearing this, Zhuge Liang frowned and said: "If the county promotes filial piety and integrity, it will weaken the power of the county governor. But this promotion of talent emphasizes talent but weakens virtue. If you promote officials without virtue, it will damage the country's politics."

Morality was the core issue in selecting officials in the Han Dynasty. To promote filial piety and integrity is to promote people with moral character. After all, in the eyes of the rulers of the Han Dynasty, only those with outstanding moral character could hold office.

Huo Jun's suggestion to directly select Xiaolian through examinations goes against Zhuge Liang's employment guidelines.

"What does Kong Ming mean?" Huo Jun asked.

"The county needs to take a test of moral character. If the moral character is insufficient, it will not be enough to be appointed as an official. But if it is the same as in the old days, there will be a way to move up from a poor family."

After stroking the fan and thinking for a long time, Zhuge Liang said: "As Zhong Miao said, no matter whether you are from a poor family or a high family, you can go to the county preparatory examination. Those who have mastered one of the five classics can go to the county to take the filial piety test. The county will test the filial piety and integrity. Scholarship, and further study in the state academy. In October, Xiaolian went to the capital with the tax collectors from various counties and went to Duanmen to test his talents."

The Southern Han Dynasty was different from the Northern Wei Dynasty. Most of the officials in the Southern Han Dynasty were from non-gentry families. In addition, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were not from the upper gentry family. They had no discriminatory attitude toward poor families and big gentry families. Instead, they wanted to use more scholars from poor families.

In order to prevent the county governor from monopolizing the right to promote filial piety and integrity, the task of selecting talents was delegated to the county. The county only had the right to evaluate scholars, but not to select them, thus weakening the prefect's power to inspect and promote officials.

It is a low requirement to be proficient in the Five Classics. If you are proficient in it, you will go to the county to participate in Xiaolian. The prefect will verify your virtue and talent before being recommended to the central government. After all, it is unrealistic to go directly to the imperial examination system. It is still necessary to apply the process of inspecting filial piety and integrity.

After a pause, Zhuge Liang said: "As for the conquest of power, Liang thinks that the power of appointment and removal of governors can be abolished first and collected in the Shangshu desk. After seeing the effect, we will discuss whether to abolish the power of appointment and removal of county governors. The specific details need to be discussed with the ministers. It’s not advisable to make big moves, and it’s not advisable to be immobile.”

Zhuge Liang was still wary of the power of the governor. The governor was responsible for almost everything except commanding troops. First remove the governor's personnel power and see what the effect is. After all, the Southern Han Dynasty mostly relied on county guards to govern local areas. If the county guards were unbalanced, the place would inevitably be in chaos.

Of course, it is also related to the foundation of the Southern Han Dynasty. There are many interest groups in the counties of Jingchu and Bashu. If you attack the county auxiliary officials easily, you may cause trouble.

Huo Jun pondered for a while and said: "We can follow Kong Ming's words. Managing a big country is like cooking small dishes. It needs to be changed slowly, and it is not suitable to be done overnight."

The integration of the imperial examination system and the imperial examination system with the magic reform still needs time to be tested. Anything that can be conducive to centralization of power and the advancement of poor families can be done.

As he said that, Huo Jun changed the subject and asked: "Today, officials are divided into high and low levels by salary, but they have the same salary as officials. Can one hundred officials be divided into nine grades to clarify the order of advancement and retreat, so as to supplement our official system in the Han Dynasty? Lack of it.”

"Oh!"

Zhuge Liang looked curious and asked, "Officials are divided into nine ranks. Can Zhong Miao elaborate?"

"This is so..."

The nine-rank official system began in the middle and late period of Cao Wei. Today, Huo Jun proposed the nine-rank official system in advance.

In the Han Dynasty, official positions were divided into high and low positions based on salary, but the salaries were mostly the same, making it difficult to distinguish official positions in detail. Therefore, since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, in order to refine the official position system and match the nine-rank Zhongzheng system, the nine-rank official system was introduced.

Later, although the nine-rank Zhongzheng system was abolished, the nine-rank official system was retained by all dynasties to clearly distinguish the hierarchy of superiors and subordinates.

Now that we are separated from the nine-rank Zhongzheng system, there is almost no harm in implementing the nine-rank official system. It just depends on whether Liu and Ge are willing.

(End of this chapter)