Zhao Defang's road to the virtuous king

Defang was very angry, "Although Wang Jien's generation has made an inch of merit, they are the moths of our Great Song Sheji. Although the conquest was won, they slaughtered the soldiers who surrendered and allowed the soldiers to burn, kill, and loot. There were grievances among the local people, and the aftermath of the war in Sichuan and Sichuan lasted for many years." Defang looked at Nian Hao and said, "Nian Hao, what is your intention to praise Wang Jien so much!" Disgusted, so the emotional reaction was great. In fact, Defang's objection to the servant was only because of Wang Jien. He was quite satisfied with the servant Zhou Huaizheng, but this time he opposed Zhong Hang's move forward because of another reason.

Nian Hao was taken aback, "My lord, that's not what I mean by being an official, what I mean by being an official is..."

"Enough!" Defang stopped, turned around and said to Zhenzong, "Your Majesty, it is a misfortune for the family and the country that the servants interfere in political affairs. In the Han and Tang Dynasties, the servants relied on the emperor's trust and were dispatched to contact officials. , launched a palace coup, leading to the decline of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Your Majesty! Please don't forget what Wang Jien and his generation did when the late emperor passed away!"

Zhenzong was shocked when he heard this. He remembered that when Taizong died, Wang Jien actually wanted to support Yuanzuo. With his special status as a servant, he controlled everything in the palace, and even contacted the queen and officials to depose him. Lu Duan almost let Wang Jien do something. Zhenzong was very angry when he thought of this, so he said, "What the emperor said is absolutely true! You must never send a servant to this matter, and you will never allow the servant to interfere in political affairs in the future! Even if it is just a little!"

"Your Majesty is holy!" Seeing this, the officials hurriedly echoed

"Brother Huang, in your opinion, who is more appropriate to hand over this matter?" Zhenzong asked

"Returning to Your Majesty, the land of Huangzhou is not far from the capital. If it is true as stated in the report, it should be handled with caution. The minister believes that His Majesty can order the supervisory censor to go there as an imperial envoy, and order a survey to show that the court attaches great importance to it and appeases it." The hearts of the local soldiers and civilians."

"Well, it should be so." Zhenzong nodded, "This matter will be handed over to the officials selected by Yushitai, and I will make an order immediately."

After coming down to court, Defang came to the Chongzheng Palace and said: "Your Majesty, I heard that there are servants in the palace who have begun to communicate with officials. This matter must be investigated."

"Oh? There is such a thing?" Zhenzong asked

"Returning to Your Majesty, the case of Huangzhou officials should be related to this matter. I have checked the official orders. The officials of Huangzhou were recommended by the servant Zhong Hang. After being approved by the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Nian Hao, I will directly take office in Huangzhou. I believe that , the two of them must be involved in this case, and it is very likely that they were bribed by officials."

"Recommended by Zhong Hang? I really don't know about it, the servants can also recommend officials..." Zhenzong shook his head

"Your Majesty, please reiterate the instructions of your ancestors to deter officials and servants, so as not to repeat the mistakes of the previous dynasty."

"Yeah!" Zhenzong nodded, "Yes, I don't even know about such important matters as the recommendation of officials by the servants around me. If it continues, there is no guarantee that there will be no bigger troubles in the future."

The Huangzhou case was soon brought back to the imperial court. The state officials bribed Nian Hao, Minister of the Ministry of War, and Zhong Hang, the deputy chief of the internal servants. Because of the huge expenses, they extorted money after taking office, which caused public grievances. Zhenzong was very angry when he learned that, and beheaded Zhong Hang. Nian Hao, Minister of the Ministry of War, was dismissed from his official post and demoted to stay in a border town.

In the first month of 1013, the sixth year of Dazhong Xiangfu, Zhenzong issued a decree to reiterate the old system of the ancestors, and ordered that all servants who interfered with the official affairs of the state government during their missions, and local officials who refused to report, would be punished.The internal servants can only do their own duties when they go on missions, and those who play foreign affairs in vain will be dealt with by the Anjun law.