Listening to Xu Jingzong's heart-wrenching words, Pei Huaijie's face trembled uncontrollably. However, no matter how panicked and anxious he was in his heart, as Fang Jun said, there was not much time left for him. Every time he delayed, there would be Perhaps one more official will plead guilty, accept punishment, and be convicted.
But how could he be willing to order the cancellation of the boycott and make huge concessions to make up for his previous wrong judgment?
Pei Huaijie suddenly realized that something was wrong. Since it was an edict issued to the world, it should be clearly stated to the world. Countless messengers would set off from Chang'an and go to all parts of the world. All the post stations were activated. After the messengers arrived at the state capitals, they would be passed down from state to level. edict.
Although the Hedong Salt Farm is not the seat of the state government, Fang Jun and the "Three Law Divisions" gathered there, so naturally there should be messengers there.
Compared with Chang'an to Luoyang, it obviously takes faster time to travel from Chang'an to Hedong Yanchi, so Fang Jun and others should have received the edict first. But why did they seem to be unaware of this matter, but they rushed to Luoyang in full force and started the interrogation with lightning speed as soon as they arrived, not caring whether the entire Henan government would overreact?
The only explanation is that Fang Jun and others already knew the contents of the edict, so they made a time lag and came to Luoyang to interrogate the Henan officials and quickly convicted them, making these people's crimes a solid case.
In this way, when many officials were convicted and the "redemption" system was abolished, they had to make huge concessions. Otherwise, how could they watch those convicted officials have their careers cut off and never be hired?
As Xu Jingzong said, these officials are the most outstanding children of each family. How many such outstanding children can each family have?
If once destroyed, the Henan family will never recover...
Pei Huaijie looked at Fang Jun and Xu Jingzong in shock and anger, how vicious they were!
If they had known about the edict in advance, Henan officials would naturally not have bowed their heads and confessed. In this way, they would not have been deeply involved in it and would have been restrained everywhere. Even if they compromised, the price paid would not have been too high. Nowadays, people are Daozu, and I am. Fish and meat can only be slaughtered.
When the officials have already confessed their crimes, it would be unimaginable to pay the price if the "three-law division" cancels the results of the trial and refuses to pursue them...
However, Xu Jingzong didn't know Fang Jun's plan behind him, and he didn't think about it at the moment. When he saw Pei Huaijie staring at him in shock and anger, he felt the pleasure of torturing his prey in his heart, so he smiled and said: "Pei Mansion Has Yin figured out the pros and cons? We should seize the opportunity. Now that His Highness is here, we can still order the "Three Laws Division" to open up a little, but if His Highness changes his mind, others will be powerless even if they want to take care of Henan officials. "
Pei Huaijie knew that now was not the time for resentment. Even if he was shamelessly led into the trap by these people and lost his troops and territory, he could only minimize the losses.
Taking a deep breath, he ignored Xu Jingzong and looked at Wei Wang Li Tai: "Your Majesty is wise and wise, and everyone in the Henan government sincerely supports you. We are willing to serve your Majesty's great cause."
He didn't care at all whether the "abolition of punishment and redemption" would cause violent turmoil in the world, because he could not wait. If this edict of "abolition of punishment and redemption" was implemented in the world, then the officials of Henan Prefecture would suffer disaster.
This was also a ruthless expenditure by Fang Jun and others, who did not give the Henan Aristocratic Family a chance to respond calmly. They would either stand firm and strongly resist the central government, or they would stop and show surrender and release the access control of the aristocratic family members for the policy of "measurement of acres of land".
Pei Huaijie didn't dare to gamble, as he and the Henan family would never be able to bear the consequences.
Li Tai raised his eyebrows: "This matter is not my responsibility. You should talk to Xu Shangshu."
Pei Huaijie said calmly: "In the past, this person was living in the dormitory of Emperor Taizong, doing nothing, but now he has stepped up to take charge of the ministry. He is just a lucky person, how can he take on such a big responsibility?"
These words did not take Xu Jingzong seriously at all, and were somewhat suspected of "resentment" to His Majesty for his poor hiring decisions.
Although Xu Jingzong was furious in his heart, his face remained unchanged and he said indifferently: "In the past, I had few talents and little knowledge. Naturally, I didn't dare to steal high positions as shamelessly as some people. Otherwise, if the area under my jurisdiction is governed only by aristocratic families but not by a central government, how can I be worthy of it?" How can Emperor Taizong’s sincere teachings be worthy of His Majesty’s kindness?”
Pei Huaijie's face was ashen. This was a complete denial of his political achievements over the years, saying that he only had eyes for the aristocratic family and not for His Majesty... But he couldn't refute it, because that was the fact.
But he was also aggrieved. Since Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty established the Sui Dynasty, nowhere in the world has this not been the case? Not only did the feudal officials have to look at the opinions of the family members, and only they could rule with the support of the family members, even the underground state and county officials were descendants of the family members. These official positions not only ensured the way for the children of the family members to become officials, but in turn also provided Can safeguard family interests.
Both the Sui and Tang dynasties were founded by aristocratic families. Transferring local governance power to aristocratic families was a compromise between the central government and the local government. This was the prerequisite and foundation for the stability of the world.
Why has it become a sin to be attached to a noble family now?
*****
The edict of "abolition of penalty and redemption" was issued all over the world. The first place to make waves was naturally Chang'an, which gathered the largest number of meritorious officials, officials, aristocratic families, and nobles. These people suddenly woke up and found that the privilege of "penalty and redemption" had been abolished, which was equivalent to How can you be willing to obey even if you take off a layer of amulet from their body?
A huge wave instantly set off, and the waves crashed on the shore with great momentum.
This wave first started among students in Chang'an, especially in higher education institutions such as Guozixue, Taixue, and Simenxue. Most of the students obtained their admission qualifications from "Yinmeng", which is naturally the origin of family education, or Meritorious service or family background are all the beneficiaries of "penalty and redemption". Now that "penalty and redemption" has been deposed, there is naturally a lot of noise and uproar.
Even under the obstruction of some people, many students walked out of the school and walked into the streets, heading straight towards the imperial city, intending to reach Chengtian Gate and try to persuade His Majesty to take back his orders...
Officials and dignitaries in the city also wrote letters one after another, and the memorials flew into Zhongshu Province like snowflakes. Faced with these fierce memorials, more than ten general officials and ministers suddenly felt overwhelmed.
It is not easy to organize them in batches, and there are many harsh words in the memorials. Some people even wrote sentences such as "treacherous traitors harm the country", "the king is ignorant", "treacherous traitors keep evil intentions and disturb Taizong's laws and state regulations" and so on. The words are also endless. If they are all reported truthfully, wouldn't it set off a vigorous prison?
They can only be sorted out in batches and submitted to the political hall for the prime ministers and assistants to consider and choose.
The small general manager is only a sixth-rank official, and he cannot bear too many responsibilities. It is better to let the big-headed ministers and assistants carry it...
In the political hall, the prime ministers and counselors were calm and calm. When the edict of "deposing, punishing, and redeeming" was drafted in the Wude Hall, they had already foreseen that this move would inevitably arouse opposition from all over the world, and it was understandable that there would be ups and downs.
But different camps and different interests will handle things differently.
Li Xiaogong, the prince of Hejian County who served as the Minister of Rites, looked angry and smacked the table and cursed: "Are you all out of your mind? Even if you misunderstand your Majesty's edict, you should give him reasonable advice, but he actually said, 'The king is stupid. ’ With such disrespectful remarks, how can you show any dignity in your eyes? Quickly notify Dali Temple to send people to arrest all these people and interrogate them severely. There must be someone behind it who intends to bring trouble to Chao Gang!”
There has been an undercurrent brewing in the clan for a long time. Wouldn't adding this trend now add fuel to the flames?
Once the clan comes into contact with the outside world, no one can control the direction of the situation, and the consequences will be disastrous.
This trend must be severely stamped out.
Liu Jie had a different opinion: "Why is the prince so irritable? The officials collectively submitted a letter just to express their respective opinions because of the large scale and far-reaching impact of the matter. Even if the words are slightly radical, it is understandable. Datang There has never been a crime for speaking out. Could it be that the prince is planning to set a precedent for obstructing people’s opinions and isolating foreigners from the outside world? ”
Most of the people making trouble in Chang'an City are civil servants from the Six Ministries and Nine Temples, as well as some students from Guozixue, Taixue, and Four Schools. And these students are all reserve officials and are considered to be within the "civilian" system. If this is Everyone was arrested, which was a huge blow to the civil service system, and an immeasurable blow to Liu Jie's prestige.
On the contrary, although the nobles were dissatisfied, because the top Zhenguan ministers were gradually withering away, the remaining two or three kittens did not dare to make trouble...
And this is what Li Xiaogong doesn't like very much about Liu Ji. He only cares about factional disputes and only talks about each other's positions. He not only ignores right and wrong, but also ignores national interests.
"Liu Zhongshu's words are wrong. If the current trend is allowed to go unchecked, where is the authority of the central government? Where is the majesty of His Majesty? The edict to abolish the 'punishment and redemption' was a conclusion reached by His Majesty and all the ministers and ministers together. Since the ministers and ministers also edict The order was signed and stamped, so why are you now shifting all responsibilities to His Majesty? Since Liu Zhongshu regards those officials and students as subordinates, please come forward to refute the rumors at this time to set the record straight. "
The two of them were quarreling and fighting endlessly, while the other prime ministers stood by and did not interfere.
Everyone knows that His Majesty is merciful and will definitely not hold Shangshu officials accountable, let alone arrest those students who took to the streets to make noise and make trouble. This matter can only be left alone. Anyway, tens of thousands of troops are guarding Chang'an inside and outside the city. , no one can cause too much trouble.
Now, we should pay more attention to the clan, lest those princes and heirs with ulterior motives take the opportunity to incite officials and students to make a fuss that will never end.
However, Prince Hejian, who has great prestige within the clan, did not mention a word about this, and Zong Zhengqing, His Royal Highness King Han, seemed to disappear, leaving others surprised and not knowing how to intervene.
Is it possible that there is something hidden in it?
So everyone can stay calm.
Moreover, although the current situation is full of rumors and the whole city of Chang'an is in a quarrel, compared with the collapse of the earth when Changsun Wuji and King Jin mutinied twice, it is really only a small scene.
After reorganizing and adapting, the Beiya Forbidden Army has fully taken control of Guanzhong, and the city of Chang'an is as solid as a rock. It is in vain for anyone to have the slightest idea.
Now that the edict of "abolition, punishment and redemption" has been approved by the Prime Minister and promulgated throughout the world, it is a foregone conclusion and cannot be changed.
On the contrary, the states and counties in the world, especially the places where aristocratic families are deeply rooted, need to be careful to avoid unexpected disturbances... Liu Jie and Li Xiaogong quarreled for a while, then changed the subject and reminded: "It's okay in Chang'an City, after all, the world is at your feet. , the imperial capital, even if you want to cause chaos, you can’t get into chaos , but now the "Three Law Divisions" have gathered in Luoyang to launch a large-scale interrogation of Henan officials, and the law of "penalty and redemption" has been abolished, and criminal officials are not allowed to redeem their crimes with money. Countless Henan officials have cut off their official careers because of this. The whole Henan Prefecture will be in chaos.”