Eastern Jin Dynasty: My powerful father

Chapter 7 Dominate Xicao
  Xicao is the meritorious official. As the name suggests, he is responsible for inspecting and recording the merits of officials at all levels in preparation for promotion. At the same time, he assists the chief officials in handling personnel selection and other matters.

In short, the functions and powers are similar to those of the Ministry of Personnel among the three provinces and six ministries.

If the Anxi shogunate is regarded as a court, then Bo Ze, the lord of Xicao, can be regarded as the minister of the Ministry of official affairs.

Not only personnel rights, but also Huan Wen allowed Huan Xi to participate in confidential matters.

At the same time, at the request of Huan Xi, Huan Wen appointed Xi Chao as the secretary of the Western Cao Dynasty to assist Huan Xi.

And these are the rewards Huan Xi deserves for running around for his father.

But only a few people know the inside story.

More people still criticized this, thinking that Huan Wen was nepotistic.

It stands to reason that recruiting and recruiting staff is also the power of the palace master. There are also many young people in high positions. For example, Gan Luo went to Zhao as an envoy at the age of twelve and was worshiped as a minister by the King of Qin.

But no one would recruit his fourteen-year-old son into the shogunate like Huan Wen and openly entrust him with important responsibilities.

In particular, some subordinate officials in the shogunate were waiting to see Huan Xi's jokes.

However, Huan Xi gave everyone a slap in the face on the first day he took office.

Huan Xi introduced his own assessment method based on Zhang Juzheng's examination method.

The new law stipulates that each Yamen Cao and Xicao will set time limits for the things that their officials should do, and register them in two books. One will be kept in Yacao, and the other will be kept in Xicao. Later, Xicao will register it according to the account book. , check regularly to evaluate the quality.

In the meeting hall of General Anxi's Mansion, after the officials had arrived, Huan Xi stood in the room and talked eloquently:

"The key point of this method is to set limits for examinations and to hold people accountable for the tasks. Among officials, it is clear at a glance who is superior and inferior, who is diligent and who is lazy. I call it the examination method."

Among the officials, there were many who complained endlessly.

They no longer doubted Huan Xi's talent. After all, he was able to introduce the imperial examination method and proved that he was qualified to take charge of Xicao. However, this really goes against the trend of today's officialdom.

The elites of the Eastern Jin Dynasty were all about being intolerant of worldly affairs and being free and easy. Now they are required to undergo regular assessments. This does not mean that they are forced to bury their heads in papers and have no time to talk about mysteries or travel around.

Huan Wen secretly kept these people in mind. He did not come forward to suppress his dissatisfaction, but signaled Huan Xi to continue.

Of course Huan Xi knew what the official culture of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was like. He said seriously:

"My father is guarding Jingzhou not only to guard the border for the country, but also to restore order to the world and rebuild China.

“If you have extraordinary ambitions, you should do extraordinary things. Only by working together and working hard can you achieve anything.

"Everyone who is willing to follow my father to Jiangling, I guess you are not a person who has nothing to do with his body. Why don't you follow this method, fulfill your duties, and assist the Jin Dynasty together with my father, so as to leave a good name for future generations."

Everyone was speechless, but then Huan Wen opened his mouth and said:

"Huan Zhubo's method is quite reasonable, but it is really against human nature. It is better to try it out in the Anxi Shogunate temporarily to see the effect.

"If it can be effective, it can be implemented in Jingzhou."

Seeing that Huan Wen had already spoken, the officials had no choice but to agree and go back to prepare a register for what they were about to do. Huan Wen left Huan Xi behind and said:

"My father appreciates your examination method, otherwise I wouldn't have called everyone to let you preach. But now that I have not established my power, I can only try it out in the shogunate, and I can't promote it until I take it to Shu."

"My child understands my father's concerns. My father can give me the opportunity to speak freely in front of everyone. My child is very grateful. Now that the new method can be tried out in the shogunate, it is even more unexpected."

After hearing this, Huan Wen was even more satisfied with himself as his eldest son.

The news that the Anxi shogunate tried the examination method spread quickly, but many people still questioned Huan Xi's talent, thinking that Huan Wen had taken great pains for his son, and that the person behind the examination method was Huan Wen, not Huan Xi.

After all, it is appalling for a fourteen-year-old boy to implement a new law.

There are many people who hold this view, including He Chong.

Hearing is false, seeing is believing. He had passed Huan Xi's exam himself.

Previously, he paid tribute to Yu Yi, but who knew that what Huan Xi did was not to imitate Huan Wen.

But there are also people who have greatly changed their views on Huan Xi, such as Xie Daoyun, Xie Yi's daughter.

‘Could this man really be a wise man? ’

Xie Daoyun put down the ancient book in his hand and thought to himself.

At this moment, the young Xie Xuan ran over happily with his short legs.

"Sister! Father is back."

Today is a day off, but Xie Yi went out early in the morning, saying he was going to meet Huan Wen for a drink.

Xie Yi is a heavy drinker. As long as he is not on duty, he will definitely get drunk.

Xie Daoyun stood up and said:

"I know, run back more slowly to avoid bumping into me again."

With that said, she took Xie Xuan and went to visit her father.

Walking to the hall, sure enough, Xie Yizheng was sitting drunkenly on the main seat, while the mother of the Xie family's siblings was having a lively conversation with a young man.

Xie Daoyun naturally recognized this young man, he was Huan Xi.

Seeing the two siblings coming, Xie’s mother introduced them:
  "This is the son of Huan Anxi."

Xie Daoyun bowed and said:
  "The little girl Xie Daoyun has met Lord Huan Bo."

Huan Xi stood up and said:
  "It turns out to be Yongxu's young master, Huanxi. This is very polite."

Xie Daoyun has long been famous because when she and her third uncle Xie An were watching the snow, she said, "It's not like catkins blowing in the wind." Her reputation as a talented woman spread like wildfire. As he spoke, Huan Xi said again:
  "This place is not the shogunate, so there is no need to call me by official title. Our two families are family friends. I will call you Bo Dao below. The female master can just call me by my cousin."

Xie Daoyun glanced at her mother, and when she saw her nodding, she said:
  "In this case, Brother Bo Dao doesn't need to call me Young Master. My father will call me Ling Jiang for me."

The two exchanged cousin names. Huan Xi bent down, stroked Xie Xuan's little head, looked at Xie Daoyun, and asked:
  "I wonder which young master of Xie Sima this is."

Xie Daoyun introduced:

"This is my brother Xie Xuan. Xie Xuan, why don't you pay tribute to Brother Bo Dao soon?"

Xie Xuan imitated the title of eldest sister in a sweet voice and said:

"Xie Xuan has met Brother Bo Dao."

Huan Xi couldn't help but laugh and said:
  "My brother is so innocent and endearing."

With that said, Huan Xi asked Xie's mother to resign, and Xie's mother said:

"Dao Yun, I'll help your father go back to the house to rest, and you can send Huan Lang off for me."

Xie Daoyun agreed and sent Huan Xi out of the hall, with Xie Xuan following behind.

Huan Xi and Xie Daoyun were walking in the corridor, with Xie Xuan standing between them. Huan Xi had just praised Xie Xuan for his innocence, but now he just felt that he looked disgusting.

Just when I was thinking about what topic to talk about, I heard Xie Daoyun suddenly ask:
  "Everyone in the world loves to be famous, but why did Brother Bo Dao behave so clumsily when he was in Jiankang?"

Not only was He Chongren blind, but Huan Xi had previously deliberately presented himself as dull and dull. Xie Daoyun had also seen this before and was also deceived by him.

But after arriving in Jingzhou, they were clearly two different people than before.

How could there be such a big change in just a few days? Therefore, Xie Daoyun was sure that Huan Xi did it intentionally.

Huan Xi did not hide anything and said frankly:

"If I show my talents, I am afraid that the imperial court will keep me in Jiankang as a hostage and I will not be able to take office with my father. Therefore, when Prime Minister He examined me, I deliberately made many mistakes, and the imperial court did not leave a porpoise in Jiankang."

Xie Daoyun chuckled softly:
  "Brother, aren't you afraid of being hated for fooling the ministers of the dynasty?"

Huan Xi didn't take it seriously and said:
  “If a tree is beautiful in the forest, the wind will destroy it; if it stands above others, it will be rejected by others.

“A man who can endure hardship is a true man, but a man who is not envied by others is a mediocre man.

"Only if you live a life of ease and do nothing, you will not be hated by others."

When Xie Daoyun heard this, his wonderful eyes lit up and he praised:

“‘A true man who can withstand hardship is a true man, but a man who is not envied by others is a mediocre man’. This is indeed the wisest thing to say.”

Saying that, Xie Daoyun asked:
  "Brother, do you have any next words?"

This sentence comes from Zuo Zongtang's poem, and Huan Xi naturally has the next sentence, but the allusion used in it is not suitable for speaking out, so he can only shake his head and say:

"It's just an occasional good sentence."

Xie Daoyun was slightly disappointed, but after thinking about it, he asked again:
  "Brother Shi, it turns out that he also knows poetry?"

Huan Xi nodded and said:
  "I learned a little bit, but when I got a little older, I saw the land of China sinking and the people of the Central Plains being enslaved. I decided to follow my father to drive out the barbarians, so I devoted myself to asking my father for advice on how to manage the army and save the country, and had no time to continue studying poetry."

"Compared to governing the country and saving the people, poetry and prose are indeed a small way."

Xie Daoyun sighed and asked again:
  "I heard that Brother Bo Dao made a vow in front of Yu Gong's coffin. But in the past few decades, many predecessors have had great ambitions that have been difficult to realize. How confident is Brother Bo Dao?"

Huan Xi said seriously:
  "Everything depends on human effort. If I try my best and fail to achieve it, I will have no regrets even if I die."

Hearing this, Xie Daoyun exclaimed:

"Brother Bo Dao said it well. My little sister is here to congratulate you. He will ride his horse and whip his whip to the north to conquer the Central Plains."

Huan Xi smiled and said:

"I accept the order from Jiang Jiyan."

The two said goodbye at the door. Huan Xi returned home and was called by Huan Wen.

The smell of alcohol had not dissipated from Huan Wen's body, so he asked:
  "You always have a purpose in your actions. Today you took the initiative to send Wu Yi (Xie Yi) back to your home. Why?"

Huan Xi did not hide the saying that a son is better known than his father:
  "Thank you to my parents for your daughter's good looks and intelligence, and her talent and reputation. I would like to ask my father to hire her for me."

As the saying goes, when it comes to important matters such as marriage, parents' orders, and matchmaker's words, it is better for you to make your intentions clear first, lest Huan Wen give him any confusion.

Huan Wen shook his head and smiled:

"I knew you were hiding something. Wuyi's daughter is smart and quick, and she is a good match for you. The two families are well matched, but you are young now, so there is no need to be so impatient. After a few years, if you still don't have If you change your mind, my father will send someone to your door to talk about matchmaking."

Later generations were all called Wang Xie, but today's Xie family is not a top-notch family.

The Xie family truly rose to be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Langya Wang family only after Xie An came to power.

Huan Xi was overjoyed. He knew that as long as Xie An did not stand in the way, with the friendship between Huan Wen and Xie Yi, and Huan Wen's future power, the marriage would be a sure thing.

The reason why Huan Wen didn't stop Huan Xi from thinking about Xie Daoyun was also related to the strength of the Xie family.

Although the Xie family of Chen County is not as good as the Wang family of Langya now, they are still a prince.

Xie Yi's cousin Xie Shang was the general of Xizhonglang, in charge of military affairs in the six counties of Yangzhou, the governor of Yuzhou, and the governor of Liyang.

　The next chapter is tomorrow at 12 noon

　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)