Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4794 Struggle of Interests
As the Minister of the Central Secretariat, the Prime Minister of the dynasty, and the de facto head of civil servants, Liu Li naturally represented the entire bureaucratic system of the Tang Dynasty. How could he not be shocked and angry when he encountered such an official who was reckless and wanted to destroy the entire system?
No matter what he thought in his heart, he had to show a desperate attitude to make His Majesty hesitate. Otherwise, if this matter was really implemented throughout the country, he, as the Minister of the Central Secretariat, would lose the support of all civil officials. Even if His Majesty did not dismiss him, he would only exist in name only.

He turned to look at Li Chengqian, and seeing that Li Chengqian was silent behind the imperial desk, he suddenly felt cold in his heart. He took off his futou, knelt on the ground, and cried, "Your Majesty, you should know clearly that in ancient times, reforms not only had to consider whether the new policy was reasonable, but more importantly, whether it was appropriate for the times. If it was not appropriate for the times, even the best new policy would increase chaos and even shake the foundation of the country. I humbly ask Your Majesty to review and discuss this policy, and temporarily try it out in Jingzhao Prefecture, and never rashly implement it throughout the country."

It can be seen that Your Majesty has been moved by this political achievement. For an emperor who is obsessed with emulating Emperor Taizong, sticking to the old ways will only lead to his failure. Only by seeking innovation and change can he achieve transcendence.

If we continue to oppose the implementation of this policy, it will easily anger His Majesty and lead to the issuance of the decree.

Then he could only settle for the next best thing. This policy was limited to the Jingzhao Prefecture for trial implementation, giving officials all over the country some buffer time. This was already the best condition he, as a civil official leader, could strive for...

Sure enough, Li Chengqian thought about it for a moment and nodded in agreement: "What the Minister of the Central Secretariat said is mature and appropriate. No policy should be implemented rashly just for the sake of temporary benefits. It should be tried out in Jingzhao Prefecture. During this period, the pros and cons will be tested. The benefits will be promoted and the disadvantages will be improved."

The hearts of the civil servants sank. Even if they found drawbacks, they would only improve them instead of abolishing them. This was enough to show the firm attitude of His Majesty. It seemed that this policy would soon become a permanent rule.

Everyone couldn't help but look at Ma Zhou, who stood upright with a resolute face, with all kinds of envy and jealousy. Although this policy offended almost all officials and clerks in the world, just the fact that it would go down in history was enough to make people willing to pay any price...

Li Chengqian continued, "Sun Chuyue is upright and has outstanding talents. He can be the Imperial Censor to assist Jingzhao Prefecture in supervising the implementation of the 'one-stop' office. If there are any violations of laws and regulations or obstructions, he can write to the Imperial Study to speak frankly about the pros and cons."

The ministers were in an uproar, looking at Sun Chuyue with envy. This kid has soared to the sky, and he actually has the qualifications to directly submit a letter to the imperial study...

Sun Chuyue was shaking with excitement. He managed to calm himself down and bowed to the ground: "I obey your order!"

Liu Xiangdao sighed imperceptibly. It was obvious that His Majesty was dissatisfied with his behavior of staying out of the matter and allowing the civil officials to impeach Ma Zhou. Judging from the fact that he promoted Sun Chuyue, it was both a warning and a warning...

*****
Academy.

Xu Jingzong, who had just returned to Chang'an from Henan, had lunch with Fang Jun.

After taking a sip of wine, Xu Jingzong put down his glass, stroked his beard, and sighed, "It's too late. If I had known about the 'one-stop' office earlier, I would have supported Ma Zhou no matter what. This is a political achievement that will be passed down through the ages!"

Anyone can see the merits of this policy, which completely destroyed the old government system and re-established a new governance model on the ruins. Such achievements are destined to be remembered for generations, and Ma Zhou was lucky.

Fang Jun took a bite of the side dish, chewed it and swallowed it, then smiled and said, "Your biggest problem is greed. If you can control your desires, you may be able to make further progress. Presiding over the land survey is already a great political achievement, so why bother to get more? Do this thing well, not only will it benefit the present and future generations, but history will also give you a fair evaluation."

The obstacles to measuring the land were huge, and most people could not do it at all. Only officials like Xu Jingzong, who were "treacherous and cunning", could do it. This person was greedy, money-loving, and slick, and had countless shortcomings, so he was not valued by Emperor Taizong. However, there was only one thing that could not be ignored, and that was his outstanding talent.

It is always difficult to have the best of both worlds. An honest person is bound to be rigid and inflexible, while a treacherous person is bound to have a broken moral code and fail to uphold principles. In comparison, a "capable official" is better than a "clean official"...

Upon hearing this, Xu Jingzong raised his glass and said, "We have the opportunity to realize our ambitions, all thanks to the unparalleled planning of Duke Yue. All these new policies that benefit the country and the people and will be remembered for generations were made by you, but in the end, we are the ones who benefited and gained fame. I am ashamed."

Fang Jun clinked glasses with him and said calmly, "The hard part of anything is not coming up with ideas or making plans, but implementing them. You deserve this achievement, so don't feel uneasy. Besides, it's impossible for someone like you to feel uneasy... I only hope that you put the country and the people first, keep some bottom line when doing things, and don't make me regret recommending you."

"I will definitely follow your lead!"

Xu Jingzong drank it all in one gulp.

He didn't care about the warning in Fang Jun's words. He knew his own business and naturally knew what his own problems were. It was a good thing to have Fang Jun as a sword hanging over his head to keep him alert at all times. Otherwise, he would have been lost in the face of the money, silk and beauties of the aristocratic families...

Therefore, Xu Jingzong felt that he could not be a leader. Once no one restrained him, his greed would run rampant and he would do anything.

It's great to have someone like Fang Jun who excels in all aspects to take the lead and offer advice.

Besides, he also knew that Fang Jun only came up with some shocking but effective "new policies" from time to time but was too lazy to implement them himself. He needed someone like him who was talented and trustworthy to go through fire and water and overcome all obstacles.

Not everyone is qualified to work like a slave for Fang Jun.

At present, it seems that Ma Zhou will definitely succeed Liu Li. Cui Dunli, who is in charge of the Ministry of War, may be promoted to Shangshu You Pushe in the future. Liu Rengui will continue to hold the Ministry of War in his hands after him. Su Dingfang will be rampant on the sea and travel across the desert, and it is almost certain that Xu Jingzong will be appointed as Shizhong.

Quietly, Fang Jun's power almost spanned both civil and military affairs, and he dominated the court.

The power structure formed by these people will support him in continuing to implement the new policies.

To be frank, it doesn't matter who sits on the throne at that time, they are just puppets...

The two of them had a small gathering and drank some wine. After the meal, they walked hand in hand in the academy, looked at the bell tower, looked around the dining hall, and walked around the observatory. They happened to meet Yin Wencao who came to report today and his companion Li Jingxuan.

The two sides met by chance, and Fang Jun, who had the highest status, was the first to greet: "So Master Yin is taking office today. Nice to meet you."

He had great respect for the Taoist leader of Caolou Temple, who was as famous as Cheng Xuanying.

Yin Wencao quickly returned the greeting, his expression excited and his tone full of emotion: "Duke Yue is too polite. I have heard of the name of the academy for a long time, but due to my prejudice, I have never been able to visit the place in person to see what it is like. If Duke Yue had not invited me to teach astronomy in the academy, how could I have known that there is such a place in the world to study knowledge? I am honored to meet you!"

Li Jingxuan on the side said with a smile: "You all may not know that when Master Yin saw the newly made high-powered telescopes in the Observatory just now, he was salivating. Even if the most famous prostitute in Pingkangfang was placed in front of him, she would probably be no more than this."

Several people laughed.

Yin Wencao said sternly, "Li Siye's words are wrong. A beautiful woman like jade is nothing but a skeleton. After a hundred years, her bones will be turned into dust, and her beauty will be blown away by the wind. However, knowledge will not disappear. Instead, it will become more and more advanced with the passage of time through the research of generation after generation. The reason why our Tang Dynasty stands out from the crowd and can prosper again after wars and chaos is not because of the living monarchs, nor the famous ministers and generals, but the knowledge as brilliant as the stars, the knowledge of farming, the knowledge of weaving, the knowledge of ironmaking, the knowledge of stargazing... China has passed down these knowledge from generation to generation, and as long as there is a piece of land, a splendid civilization can be developed."

Except for Fang Jun, the others were stunned.

Strictly speaking, this statement is somewhat "disrespectful" and may be suspected of belittling the king.

But on second thought, it's no big deal. It seems that since Taizong's death and the current emperor's accession to the throne, the emperor's authority has long been lost. People in the world respect and fear Taizong, but they neither respect nor fear the current emperor. It's okay to say a few outrageous words in private...

Fang Jun was a little shocked: "Master Yin is very knowledgeable and has broad insights. I admire him."

To be able to have such cognition in such an era is truly astonishing. People's wisdom is not yet developed, science is not prosperous, and no one has ever understood the world from a humanistic perspective. The rise and fall of things are just drifting with the tide, and no one has ever delved into the reasons. "The rise is sudden, and the fall is sudden." The king is regarded as the son of God, and people believe that the rise and fall of a country is in the hands of the emperor.

Only by recognizing the source of one's own endless inheritance can one avoid the disaster of the rise and fall of dynasties.

Yin Wencao was ashamed: "Who in the world dares to call himself 'learned' in front of the Duke of Yue? The 'mathematics' and 'physics' you pioneered are unrivaled in the world and laid the foundation for Chinese knowledge. For hundreds and thousands of generations to come, your reputation will be passed down and passed down. You can be called a sage!"

Fang Jun felt as if he had found a close friend. He patted Yin Wencao on the shoulder affectionately and said with emotion, "So others don't know how profound the significance of what we do is. The world has changed, people can die, and countries can perish, but the knowledge we have created with our life's energy has been passed down for a long time, nourishing generation after generation, allowing them to step on our bodies to continue to sharpen their skills and climb to greater heights. As long as these knowledge are not destroyed, China will never be destroyed."

Although Confucianism has all kinds of dross, it is undeniable that it is precisely because of the existence of Confucianism that Chinese civilization has been consolidated and formed, and has been passed down from generation to generation without interruption.

What the academies are doing now is similar to what Confucianism is doing. The two are not contradictory, but complementary.