I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 437 The Conservative is Me
"Jia Wenhe, you are not a good son!"

Sikong Yangbiao has been very angry recently.

He is Sikong, one of the Three Dukes!

There are only a handful of Wanshi in the Han Dynasty.

But now, someone is bullying him.

Yang Biao came to his Sikong Mansion angrily. The chief secretary had already come to greet him. Yang Biao asked, "Which one is this?"

The chief secretary's face was not looking good either. He said, "This is already the fourth Cao Yuan Lingshi today. As for Dou Shi Zuoshi, there are already seven of them."

Upon hearing this, Yang Biao became even more furious.

He didn't care about Dou Shi Zuo Shi, but this was already the fourth person with an official rank that Jia Xu had poached from him!

It just so happened that many of these officials were recruited when Fan Ling was in office, and some of the elders had even longer service in the government.

These people were only his superiors and subordinates, and after he became Sikong, he could not turn his back on them and drive out all the old people.

But Jia Xu came to steal his people from Sikong Mansion blatantly. Even if Jia Xu came to discuss it with him in advance, he would still release the people without hesitation... Well, even if Jia Xu came to him in person, he might not necessarily release the people, but you can't take it without permission!
But isn’t this a thief?
Thinking of this, Yang Biao couldn't help cursing: "This thief is really abominable!"

However, the transfer orders applied for by Jia Xu were always approved in time, and the people who were transferred would often leave happily, which showed that they had obviously colluded with each other.

Moreover, Jia Xu did not apply for the transfer order all at once, but applied one by one.

Thinking of this, Yang Biao became even angrier.

While still angry, Yang Biao did not forget to ask the Chief Secretary, "There is another vacancy in the clerkship now. Do you have any talented people to recommend?"

At the same time, there were quite a few government offices where this scene happened.

Even Jia Xu's former superior, the Supreme Court where Dong Zhuo worked, was no exception.

That day, Dong Zhuo came to the Imperial Prison and was furious to see that a quarter of the jailers were missing.

"Jia Wenhe!" Dong Zhuo gritted his teeth.

……

That day Liu Bian was preparing to go to the West Garden, but before he set out he heard the eunuch Gao Wang come to report that the Grand Marshal wanted to see him.

Liu Bian thought something big had happened, so he quickly canceled his trip and went to see Huangfu Song.

"Your Majesty, Jia Wenhe has now caused chaos in the government offices in Luoyang. Your Majesty must not let him go any longer. You must intervene urgently."

Liu Bian knew Huangfu Song's character. He always did things when he had something to do and would not easily express his opinions when there was nothing to do.

Now even he couldn't help but come to Liu Bian to accuse Jia Xu, which shows how what Jia Xu has done during this period of time has angered both God and man.

This also means that after the eunuchs re-emerged in Luoyang, the scene became increasingly lively due to Jia Xu's poaching.

Liu Bian immediately said, "Don't worry, please sit down and take a rest. I will send someone to call Jia Wenhe to ask him about it."

After saying this, Liu Bian ordered the eunuch Gao Wang to call Jia Xu over.

After a long time, Jia Xu hurried over. However, on the way, he had already learned from Gao Wang why the emperor was anxious to see him.

Seeing Jia Xu arrive, Liu Bian asked directly: "Wenhe, the Grand Commandant said that you have caused chaos in the various prefectures and offices in Luoyang in recent days. Do you admit your guilt?"

Of course, Jia Xu could not admit his guilt. He immediately shouted, "Your Majesty, I am innocent!"

"Could it be possible that the Grand Marshal would wrongly accuse you? This must be true!"

Jia Xu defended himself by saying, "I really don't know what I did to offend the Grand Marshal, but I really don't know where my crime lies."

Huangfu Song could hear that the emperor and his minister were in sync with each other, so he did not play tricks on them and asked directly, "Your Majesty, would you allow me to ask a question?"

Liu Bian naturally agreed.

Huangfu Song asked, "Were the two officials in my Taiwei Mansion deceived by you? And Zhao Yan, who was clearly sent as an envoy to Sanfu to help clean up the locust plague, was deceived by you even though he was hundreds of miles away!"

Jia Xu quickly defended himself, "You, the Grand Marshal, have misunderstood me when you said this. I am not lying. It is clear that the staff of the Grand Marshal's Office think that the School Affairs Department has a bright future and is more suitable for him to serve the country. That is why he gave up the bright future of the Grand Marshal's Office and joined the School Affairs Department. And although Zhao Yan has also joined the School Affairs Department, I did not forbid him to continue to be a staff of the Grand Marshal's Office!"

Fortunately, Huangfu Song had experienced ups and downs in his early years and had profound self-cultivation. Otherwise, if he had been someone with a hot temper, after hearing such inappropriate words from Jia Xu, he would probably have jumped up and staged a full-scale fight like a general beating a lieutenant in front of the emperor.

Although if it were someone else, Jia Xu might not say that.

But even so, Huangfu Song resisted the urge to take action, but still pointed at Jia Xu and said to Liu Bian: "Your Majesty, look, this man has no intention of repenting. The court should have followed the rules and regulations in employing people, but now, Jia Xu has disregarded the system and acted recklessly, disrupting the officials of various prefectures and offices."

"Your Majesty, the officials who were defrauded were not only from my Taiwei Mansion, but also from the Si Tu Mansion, the Si Kong Mansion, and even the Nine Ministers. I heard that the Yin of Henan and Luoyang County were also among them. Isn't there anything wrong with such a reckless act?"

Hearing this, Jia Xu looked at Liu Bian aggrievedly. Seeing that Liu Bian did not speak, he looked at Huangfu Song aggrievedly again, but he continued to be stubborn and said, "How can you say that you are lying when you are an official? They all came to the School Affairs Department voluntarily! The transfer process is also legal and compliant. Moreover, I am doing all this in accordance with your majesty's will!"

Hearing this, Liu Bian clapped his hands suddenly and said, "Mr. Huangfu, I remember now. I did agree to let Wenhe do this. Later, Wenhe sent in the names of the names one after another. I thought they were all volunteers, so I approved them all."

"Speaking of which, this matter is still my fault!"

Huangfu Song immediately said: "Your Majesty, why do you say that? This is all because of being deceived!"

"Then what should we do?" Liu Bian looked at Huangfu Song, then at Jia Xu, and suddenly clapped his hands and said, "Well, how about we just leave it at that? From now on, I will never allow Jia Xu to poach people as he did a few days ago. As for what we did before, it's a done deal, and it's not good to change our mind overnight..."

What else could Huangfu Song say when he saw this king and his minister who were so obviously cooperating with each other?
Neither of them wants to act anymore.

Since he had already achieved his goal, there was no need to reveal it.

But I still know in my heart that the School Affairs Department, which has absorbed talents from various prefectures and cities, will have a greater presence in the future...

He couldn't estimate it easily.

After Huangfu Song left, Liu looked at Jia Xu and asked, "Wenhe, are you satisfied now?"

Jia Xu smiled and said, "As long as Your Majesty is satisfied, then I will be satisfied."

Liu Bian smiled but did not answer.

So, why do some people call Jia Xu the number one strategist in the Three Kingdoms?

You can plan both your career and your career at the same time.

After the eunuchs were dispatched, Jia Xu keenly realized that the time had come when the School Affairs Department would be of great use.

At this time, the School Affairs Department not only needs to expand its strength, but the School Affairs Captain needs to be an independent minister, and the School Affairs Department must also be independent of all prefectures and cities.

Fortunately, Jia Xu was facing an emperor who trusted and respected him, allowing him to take his time and do things freely.

...Jizhou.

When arriving in Wei County, Zhang Rang wanted to let out two long roars to the sky.

In recent years, he has been suppressed too much in the palace.

God knows how he has been living these years!

Now, he finally had the chance to avenge the humiliation he had suffered from the scholars, and he swore that he would seize this opportunity.

"Attendant Zhang!"

Zhang Rang's heart tightened when he heard the cry.

He immediately restrained his gloomy expression, then turned around and replied: "Sima Man, what do you want to see me for?"

Zhang Rang immediately became alert.

He knew very well that when he came to Jizhou this time, General Dong Chong was just a wooden sculpture.

The only person who can truly check and balance me is this person, and I think he is the one sent by the emperor to supervise me and prevent me from going too far.

Man Chong replied: "I still want to discuss with the attendant about the relevant matters after arriving at the four counties and kingdoms."

This was not the first time that Man Chong approached Zhang Rang with this issue.

Zhang Rang also used the same answer as before: "Of course, we must obey the emperor's order and arrest the real culprit behind the scenes. We must not implicate innocent people..."

Seeing that Zhang Rang was repeating the same old things, Man Chong said goodbye and left in disappointment.

Zhang Rang was left staring at Man Chong's back. He snorted coldly and thought to himself, "When I entered the palace, you were still breastfeeding! Do you still want to find something to hold against me?"

In fact, when Zhang Rang first learned that the emperor had sent Man Chong, who was supposed to assist but was actually there to monitor him, he did not object.

Because even he himself didn't know what he could do when facing those rebellious nobles and powerful people.

Therefore, he does not object to having someone supervise him.

But now, he was fed up with Man Chong.

Supervision is supervision, but Man Chong often tries to test him, and he uses such a stupid method as asking directly. Although he knows that Man Chong wants to use this simple and easy-to-understand method to remind him to remember the emperor's instructions, it really makes him impatient.

Fortunately, although the battle against the rebellious Black Mountain bandits in Weijun and other places has not yet ended, they no longer need to intervene. They can go straight to Julu and other four counties.

When he gets busy, he will have a place to vent his dissatisfaction.

Five days later, Zhang Rang finally met the rebel he was going to deal with.

During these five days, Man Chong increased the frequency of his calls, asking Zhang Rang every day what he planned to do after arriving at the four counties.

On that day, Zhang Rang could not wait to tie several rebels captured by Sun Ce and others to the rack.

Zhang Rang felt that his eyes were his ruler. These people had fair skin and tender flesh, and it was obvious that they had never suffered any hardship. As long as he tortured them severely, he would be able to dig something out of their mouths!
After tying up the man, Zhang Rang waited for Man Chong to arrive before starting the execution.

These rebels captured on the battlefield are not ordinary people and are not innocent in any way.

Zhang Rang was determined to show off in front of Man Chong that he, Zhang Rang, had looked down on the palace for many years and had defeated countless scholars and officials during that time, and that he still had the potential to become a master even now!
This time, Man Chong did not disappoint Zhang Rang. He arrived just as the rebel was tied up.

Zhang Rang immediately ordered the eunuchs he brought with him and the torture experts from the imperial prison to start torturing.

Man Chong watched the torture from the side.

Listening to the screams, Zhang Rang paid more attention to Man Chong. Although he had not been in contact with criminal justice for many years, he still trusted his subordinates who had served him for many years.

Seeing Man Chong frowning, Zhang Rang said, "Mr. Man, I heard that you are an expert at gathering information, but I'm afraid you are not proficient in the art of torture and interrogation. If you feel reluctant, you might as well go outside and take a rest. If you have any results, I will notify you immediately!"

Man Chong shook his head upon hearing this, but continued to frown.

Zhang Rang thought that Man Chong was unwilling to show weakness and was just gritting his teeth to persist, so he simply ignored Man Chong and watched the traitor being interrogated.

After a long while, Zhang Rang felt something strange.

Logically speaking, these rebels were no different from the party members. After so much time, at least one or two of them should have confessed, but Zhang Rang never waited for the result.

He glanced at the rebels. Some of them wailed loudly under the whip, some clenched their teeth, but none of them was willing to answer the questions.

"Hit them, keep hitting them, hit them hard until they start talking!"

"If you don't speak, you will all be beaten to death!" Zhang Rang said angrily.

"Attendant Zhang, this won't do."

Zhang Rang looked at Man Chong and asked, "Why, is Lord Man afraid that they will be killed?"

"No, it is not a pity for them to die. My suggestion is to put more salt water on the whip, feed these rebels some ginseng soup, and use some special herbs on the wounds on their bodies. It will not only relieve the pain, but also stop the bleeding a little. I have brought all these."

In the torture chamber, Zhang Rang took a deep breath.

He thought he had been cruel and merciless enough, but he didn't expect that this was the living Yama that Buddhists often talked about!
Is he really old?

Facing the gazes from his men, Zhang Rang gritted his teeth and said, "Just do as Sima Man said!"

Seeing that Zhang Rang agreed to his request, Man Chong seemed to open up and addressed Zhang Rang in a more intimate way. He whispered to Zhang Rang, "Mr. Zhang, according to my experience, the reason why these people are so stubborn is not only to protect their clans, but more likely because their parents, wives and children are all in the clan, so they are hesitant."

"Of course we must use severe punishment, but we must also use strategies to win over people's hearts!"

At this moment, Zhang Rang suddenly understood why the emperor sent Man Chong to him.

This is not supervising yourself, it is clearly being the best helper!
……

Five days later.

"Sun Kang of the Julu Sun family was once a filial and honest official. Since the Zhongping period, he has served as the chief adviser to the bandit leaders many times and made profits from it. There is solid evidence. Zhang Gong, Zhang Ji, who was previously killed by Sun Bofu, once relied on him as a chief adviser."

"Now that Sun Kang is still at large, we should dispatch troops as soon as possible to capture his clan members and relatives, and force them to surrender within a limit of three clans."

Zhang Rang was a little hesitant when he heard this. He still remembered that the emperor did not like to punish relatives by association. "Will arresting his three clans implicate too many people? And it would take up too many manpower. It would be better to arrest only one clan, which would be enough to intimidate them."

Man Chong emphasized: "Mr. Zhang, now is a time of trouble, and it is time to use severe punishment to deter others! Moreover, I originally wanted to imprison his three clans first, and I didn't intend to kill all three clans..."

"What? You still want to wipe out his three clans?" Zhang Rang said in shock.

(End of this chapter)