Daming Super Dimension Company, President Zhu Yuanzhang!

Chapter 164 The disadvantages of the Song Dynasty!
Before Xiao Ran could answer, Zhao Zhen already told the reason.

"Is it because of the nobles and bureaucrats in the court?"

Xiao Ran said: "Yes, during the Northern Song Dynasty, peasant uprisings and mutinies often occurred, as well as increasingly serious land annexation, redundant officials, redundant soldiers, and redundant expenses. You wanted to change it, reformed the electoral system many times, and appointed many A capable minister."

Zhao Zhen looked puzzled, "Why is it called the Northern Song Dynasty?"

"Taizu of the Song Dynasty made Kaifeng his capital, north of the Yangtze River, and later emperors, after the Jingkang Disgrace ended, made Nanjing their capital, so there are divisions into the Southern and Northern Song Dynasties."

Xiao Ran solved his doubts.

"It seems that the Liao army is calling. Mr. Xiao, please continue talking about reforms." Zhao Zhen nodded slightly, feeling convinced.

The biggest enemy since the establishment of the Song Dynasty was the Liao army.

Xiao Ran continued: "You appointed Fan Zhongyan as a counselor of political affairs, and promoted Ouyang Xiu, Yu Jing, Wang Su and Cai Xiang as admonishers, known as the four admonishers. Fan Zhongyan and Fu Bi proposed the principles of deposing the emperor in the Ming Dynasty, suppressing luck, and promoting fine tribute. Ouyang Xiu and others also submitted letters one after another to the reform ideas of selecting officials, equalizing public land, supporting farmers and mulberry trees, building military equipment, reducing corvee labor, and emphasizing orders. Since the New Deal violated the interests of the aristocrats and bureaucrats, Ouyang Xiu and others also submitted letters. , so they were blocked.”

"Fan Zhongyan? Are you talking about Fan Zhongyan who did not agree with my deposing Queen Guo and was released?" Zhao Zhen said hesitantly.

Xiao Ran slightly raised his eyebrows, "He was transferred to Suzhou last year. After taking office, he allocated a place to live in Nanyuan and built a county school. When floods occurred in Suzhou, he ordered the people to dredge five rivers and build water conservancy projects to guide the water into the sea. . He did great work in controlling floods and saved the people of Suzhou."

"Before this, he made a lot of contributions. Speaking of which, you went too far because he didn't agree to depose the queen."

Song Renzong Zhao Zhen had never liked Empress Guo, and it was too normal for him to want to depose the empress after the death of Empress Dowager Liu.

Zhao Zhen cannot be abolished directly, even if Queen Guo often provokes Zhao Zhen and Prime Minister Lu Yijian.

Until Queen Guo had a bad temper and had a dispute with Shang Meiren in the palace, and they got into a fight. Unexpectedly, she slapped Zhao Zhen on the face who was trying to start the fight.

This is a legitimate reason, Zhao Zhen will abolish it immediately.

Zhao Zhen looked embarrassed, "He speaks sharply and often has political disagreements with Prime Minister Lu."

"It's normal to have political disagreements in the court. You should have summoned him back to the capital by this time, right?" Xiao Ran asked without paying much attention.

Zhao Zhen felt much more relaxed now, "He should be able to arrive in Kaifeng in the next few days."

"Well, he will leave again next year. Later, if there is a war on the border, you will find him back and let him go to fight." Xiao Ran said slowly.

The main character is a person who loves his wife when things happen, but demeans her when nothing happens.

Xiao Ran felt a little sympathetic to Fan Zhongyan.

Before Zhao Zhen could speak, Xiao Ran said again: "Fan Zhongyan was transferred back to the capital by you to serve as a prisoner of the Imperial Academy. He soon became a member of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and a powerful official in Kaifeng Mansion. Fan Zhongyan worked hard to rectify the bureaucracy in the capital and eliminate bad governance."

"Subsequently, a saying spread in Kaifeng: The court has Fan Jun for nothing, and the capital has Xiwen for nothing."

Zhao Zhen laughed dryly and said, "Don't worry, Mr. Xiao, I will never let him be demoted if I call him back to Beijing this time."

"That's not necessarily the case." Xiao Ran chuckled.

"Do you know why he will be demoted next year?"

"In the third year of Jingyou, Fan Zhongyan was dissatisfied with Prime Minister Lu Yijian for cultivating party members and appointing cronies in the court, so he presented you with the "Hundred Officials Picture", sharply criticized Lu Yijian's employment system, and persuaded you to personally take charge of official promotions. Lu Yijian responded with ridicule Fan Zhongyan was pedantic and falsely accused him of overstepping his duties and colluding with officials in the court to drive a wedge between you and him. Fan Zhongyan wrote four chapters in which he accused Lu Yijian of being cunning. Because of his fierce words, you dismissed him and transferred him to Raozhou. "

"Your attitude made the imperial censor Han Du cater to your needs. He deliberately wrote the names of Fan Zhongyan's comrades and asked you to publish them in the court. The dispute between Fan Zhongyan and Lu Yijian implicated many ministers. Secretary Cheng Yujing asked you to revise the edict. You didn't agree. Then the prince Zhongyun Yinzhu claimed that he and Fan Zhongyan were mentors and friends, and wanted to demote him together with Fan Zhongyan. Then Ouyang Xiu, the editor of the palace, blamed Gao Ruona as an admonisher and said nothing about this matter. Xiang also wrote a poem called "Four Virtues and One Unworthy" to attack Gao Ruona, but he was also demoted."

"After all this, the officials in the DPRK were afraid of the power of the prime minister and did not dare to ask you to intercede for Fan Zhongyan and others. Fan Zhongyan was demoted from the capital, and no one dared to see him off. Only Li Hong, a direct bachelor of Longtuge, and Wang Zhi, the manager of Jixian School, left the suburbs. Farewell."

Fan Zhongyan was a capable minister, but was demoted one after another. Even though he was still working for the court, he was inevitably depressed, so he wrote a lot of poems.

"Prime Minister Lu is also doing my best. He has been assisting me since I was young. If he had any evil intentions, he would not have taught me how to conduct the dynasty, stop evil ways, ban goods and bribes, distinguish between rennies, and treat unmarried women when I was in charge. "Alienate friends, stop military service, and cut down on redundant expenses." Zhao Zhen was in a dilemma, so he tried hard to defend Lu Yijian.

One sentence left Xiao Ran speechless, "As an emperor, you shouldn't trust only one party. Have you never heard of the art of balancing?"

"I didn't say that Lu Yijian was a treacherous minister. He didn't have much merit, but he was pretty good. At least he didn't commit corruption and murder loyal ministers. He and Fan Zhongyan were just writing letters to each other to try to disobey him."

"When it comes to this matter, it can only be because you, the emperor, are not powerful enough."

Being said like this to his face, Zhao Zhen couldn't help but feel angry, "Mr. Xiao, be careful, the people of the world will live a stable life during my reign..."

Xiao Ran interrupted him directly, "I'm telling you this is for a fee. If you don't listen, I'll leave."

After a pause, he said, "And you said life was stable. In July of the second year of the Ming Dynasty, there was a severe drought and the locust plague spread. The disasters were the most serious in the Jianghuai and Jingdong areas. If Fan Zhongyan hadn't insisted on submitting a letter, the victims would have poured into Kaifeng. He began to report I asked the court to send someone to inspect the disaster, but you ignored it."

"Forget it, just think about it slowly. I'll come back when you think about it."

After saying that, Xiao Ran was too lazy to continue talking to him, and he didn't have to make the money with Zhao Zhen.

Xiao Ran's figure disappeared into the hall, and Zhao Zhen stayed there with an ugly expression.

……

Jimo ancient city
Xiao Ran drank a glass of water when he came back and lay on the sofa playing with his mobile phone.

Zhu Di, who came out of the room, saw Xiao Ran and was a little confused, "Why do you look unhappy?"

"I met a stupid customer." Xiao Ran touched his face and replied.

Zhu Di stepped forward and said, "Which dynasty are you from? Do you want me to teach you a lesson?"

"It's a small problem from the Song Dynasty. His order won't waste much time." Xiao Ran didn't care, and his mood returned to calm.

"Qu Bing isn't here yet? Let's go out to eat today."

Zhu Di said, "He should be back soon. Let's meet him later."

Not long after, Huo Qubing came back covered with dust. He saw that Xiao Ran was still a little guilty, "I really didn't go to the battlefield this time."

Xiao Ran and Zhu Di didn't believe it, but they didn't say anything and urged him to take a bath.

After going out for a delicious meal, Huo Qubing mentioned that he needed to rest for a while. Xiao Ran agreed and suggested that he go on a trip.

The three of them went home talking and laughing.

When Xiao Ran and the others entered, they saw Zhu Yuanzhang, Li Shimin, Zhao Kuangyin, and Ying Zheng.

Xiao Ran was surprised, "Why did you come here at the same time?"

"Zhu Di said that someone has made you unhappy. Who is an unworthy descendant? Let us go and see." Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly, his face darkening.

Xiao Ran called him uncle, how could he be bullied?

Hearing this, Xiao Ran looked at Zhu Di, "Did you inform me?"

"Unworthy descendants should be taught a lesson," Zhu Di said.

Xiao Ran was a little funny, and felt a little warm in his heart, "I'm not that angry, otherwise I would cancel the order directly."

Zhao Kuangyin stood up and said, "The unscrupulous descendants of my Zhao family have angered Mr. Xiao. This is my personal opinion."

He handed over the chest containing the gold.

Li Shimin half-smiled, "Is this how powerful the Zhao family is? And why do you have to apologize in person to your unscrupulous descendant? What's the use of your apology."

When it comes to protecting Xiao Ran, Li Shimin and Zhu Yuanzhang are the most serious.

Immediately, Ying Zheng said: "Can I go with you?"

"Let's go too." Zhu Yuanzhang said immediately.

"Ahem, you are not afraid of scaring Song Renzong Zhao Zhen to death." Xiao Ran was choked by saliva and quickly persuaded him to stop.

Ying Zheng did not force it. He stood up and showed a larger box of gold beside him. Before leaving, he said solemnly: "If you have anything to do, you can come directly to Da Qin. No one dares to make mistakes."

As soon as these words came out, Zhao Kuangyin was a little embarrassed and did not dare to speak.

After Ying Zheng left, Zhu Yuanzhang and Li Shimin were also persuaded by Xiao Ran to go back.

Zhu Di snorted coldly and then passed Zhao Kuangyin.

However, Huo Qubing came forward and said, "If you don't take me with you, it will be very painful for me to hit someone."

Xiao Ran didn't expect this incident to disturb so many people. "Okay, you go and have a rest. I'll take Song Taizu over to take a look."

……

Jingyou's second year
Kaifeng

Funing Hall

Since Xiao Ran left, Song Renzong Zhao Zhen always felt restless. He thought that he was not a failure as emperor.

For some reason, his right eyelid twitched.

Is he really not a good emperor?
Since he came to the throne, there has been no treacherous official in power, nor has it made things more difficult for the people.

Zhao Zhen walked around the hall irritably. He really couldn't figure it out, so he ordered to summon Lu Yijian.

The water in the tea cup had already cooled down, and Lu Yijian rushed to the hall.

He bowed and saluted, "Your Majesty."

Zhao Zhen asked in a deep voice, "Prime Minister, how am I doing as an emperor?"

Lu Yijian, who didn't know why, said hurriedly: "Your Majesty is considerate and caring for the people, and he can be called a wise king."

"I think you are a fool!"

Suddenly, a cold scolding appeared in the hall.

Song Taizu Zhao Kuangyin glared at his unworthy descendant Song Renzong Zhao Zhen with anger in his eyes.

Zhao Zhen was extremely familiar with the portrait of Taizu, and he stood up suddenly in shock.

"Taizu!"

"I don't have unworthy descendants like you! How dare you be disrespectful to Mr. Xiao? I will teach your father a lesson today!"

Zhao Kuangyin was so angry that he didn't care about the presence of outsiders. He just grabbed something and beat Zhao Zhen.

The palace guards outside the palace heard Zhao Zhen's screams.

"Taizu! I was wrong!"

"You don't understand respect, and you still dare to deny that you have failed as emperor. I think you have had enough of being an emperor!"

Zhao Kuangyin's anger was vented in the screams.

When the palace became quiet again, Zhao Zhen, who had been beaten with a bruised nose and face, apologized to Xiao Ran.

"Mr. Xiao, it was me who was stupid. Please forgive me for being disrespectful. This is all my apology!"

He offered gold with both hands, and now he didn't dare to complain at all.

Xiao Ran accepted it silently, always feeling that Zhao Zhen would be beaten even if he said nothing.

Zhao Kuangyin noticed the quiet Lu Yijian and asked, "Who are you?"

"I, Lu Yijian, have met His Majesty the Emperor Taizu."

Lu Yijian said cautiously.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Kuangyin's eyes darkened, "You are Lu Yijian, I didn't see how loyal you were."

These words are simply fatal.

thump.

Lu Yijian knelt down directly, "My loyalty to Your Majesty is a lesson to the world!"

Zhao Zhen didn't dare to plead for mercy now. He pretended not to see Lu Yijian's panic.

On the way here, Xiao Ran had already told the whole story.

Zhao Kuangyin was extremely dissatisfied when he saw Lu Yijian, "You have been the prime minister for many years and have not achieved much, so just resign."

"His Majesty the Emperor Taizu! Your Majesty..."

The shocked Lu Yijian had no idea why he had offended Zhao Kuangyin, and he did not want to resign just like that.

Zhao Kuangyin did not give him a chance to struggle, "What the court wants are officials who do practical things. You have no great achievements and you are not young. You should make way for young people."

"Come here, take the prime minister out of the palace and leave for your hometown within today."

Lu Yijian was flustered after giving the order simply and neatly, "I have been in the court for many years, and I have done it for His Majesty and the people of the world. Why do I have no merit in this matter!"

"I implore His Majesty Emperor Taizu to take a closer look!"

Xiao Ran said: "You assisted the young Song Renzong, and handled many domestic and foreign conflicts in the Northern Song Dynasty when the Queen Mother was in charge of the government. You made a very important contribution to the two palaces. It is not a great achievement, but it can be regarded as something. As. But in the later period of your administration, you acted wisely to protect yourself and used power to gain favor. You have a great responsibility for the intensification of the conservative political style and the three-redundancy problem in the mid-Northern Song Dynasty. "

"The most important thing is that you appoint cronies in the court and win over the courtiers. No official in the court dares to speak against you."

No longer giving Lu Yijian a chance to talk nonsense, Zhao Zhen wisely ordered, "Take Lu Yijian down quickly!"

Before the palace man took action, Zhao Zhen gave Lu Yijian a look, wanting to tell him that this was to save his life.

If Zhao Kuangyin was offended, he might not be able to leave alive today.

Losing his official position is a small matter, and Zhao Zhen can compensate him later, but losing his life means nothing.

Lu Yijian mistakenly thought that Zhao Zhen meant to save him, so he stopped struggling.

After dealing with Lu Yijian, Zhao Kuangyin said: "I should have been the one to handle it this time. I bothered Mr. Xiao to come over. I didn't expect that this unscrupulous descendant would be rude to Mr. Xiao. It really makes me ashamed."

"When this is over, I will give you another big gift."

Xiao Ran waved his hand, "No, that's enough."

This time he got a pile of gold directly and didn't care about Zhao Kuangyin's apology.

"Thank you Mr. Xiao for your magnanimity, but I haven't finished the previous question. Can I continue to buy Mr. Xiao's words at double the price?" Zhao Zhen was still thinking about the failure of the reform.

After the matter was resolved, Xiao Ran did not refuse. "If you want to reform, the biggest problem is the bureaucrats and aristocrats. Do you know who are the bureaucrats in the court who oppose reform?"

(End of this chapter)