Chapter 347 Enke
Wei Ye hurriedly walked into the pavilion, bowed and said, "Grandfather!"
The old man who was fishing still looked at the float floating in the water when he heard this, and asked without turning his head: "What's the matter?"
"At the morning court today, Censor Huang impeached the Minister of Justice Yan Kuan." Wei Ye said.
"Why?" Upon hearing this, the old man suddenly turned his head and looked at Wei Ye.
The old man was over seventy years old, and his eyes looked cloudy, but at this moment they were somewhat sharp.
"All the criminal officials in Jiangnan died on the way to exile. Censor Huang used this to impeach Minister Yan." Wei Ye said.
"I heard that he has been very close to the Minister of Personnel Hu Zhongyan recently. He should be instructed by him." The old man returned to his previous calm demeanor and looked towards the lake.
"That's right, but he is my grandfather's student after all. Will the officials and people in the court think that it was my grandfather's instruction?" Wei Ye said worriedly.
"Heh." The old man smiled slightly: "I'm just an old man who is about to die. I have been retired for several years. What does it have to do with me?"
"Then I'll take my leave." Upon hearing what his grandfather said, Wei Ye said nothing more and bowed.
"Wait!" The old man stopped Wei Ye and said, "Feng Lian has changed a bit over the years. Have someone send the evidence of his corruption to the Chief Censor Luo Hui. Remember, don't reveal your identity."
"Grandfather, Luo Zhongcheng impeached you back then. Isn't this giving him credit? Why don't you let my second uncle do it?" Wei Ye asked puzzledly.
The old man is the former Minister of Rites Wei Hao, who retired three years ago.
About seven or eight years ago, when Wei Hao was the Minister of Rites, Luo Hui had impeached him shortly after he entered the Censorate.
As a grandson, Wei Ye naturally had no good feelings towards Luo Hui.
He also had no good feelings towards Censor Huang, who came from a poor family and owed his current success to his grandfather.
Although his grandfather did not contribute much, if his grandfather had not accepted Censor Huang as his student, this person would definitely not be able to sit in the court today.
After his grandfather retired, Censor Huang used to visit him often at first, but later he came less and less frequently, and in the past few months he even stopped coming and turned to Hu Zhongyan.
Upon hearing this, Wei Hao turned his head and looked at Wei Ye. After looking at him unnaturally, he said, "Do you know why I have been suppressing you from taking the imperial examination?"
"My grandson is not well-educated, and grandfather is afraid that he will bring shame to the family." Wei Ye said.
Wei Hao shook his head and said, "Because the officialdom is more complicated than you think, there are many things that cannot be taught. Moreover, I have already retired. Although some people will sell me their face, there are not many people who can help you. You are simple-minded and are not suitable for the officialdom."
"Grandson has disappointed grandfather." Wei Ye said with his head down.
Wei Hao was silent for a while, then said, "I will teach you one last time today."
"I have worked in the Ministry of Rites for many years, and it is no exaggeration to say that I have many students all over the world."
"Although people may forget about you after you leave, as long as we have this relationship, they will give me and the Wei family some face. This will be good for your father, your second uncle, and you in the officialdom."
"But if I ask your second uncle to impeach him, what will others think?"
"That Luo would have offended me, so if he took action, no one would doubt me. Do you understand?"
"Grandson understands. Thank you grandfather for the exchange!" Wei Ye suddenly realized and nodded quickly.
Wei Hao nodded slightly and said, "The Enke will start soon, you should prepare well."
Wei Ye was stunned when he heard this, then he said in ecstasy: "Grandfather allowed me to take the imperial examination?"
"Yeah." Wei Hao nodded, without explaining, and said, "Go ahead, don't disturb me fishing."
"Yes, grandson, I'll take my leave!" Wei Ye bowed, took a few steps back, and then turned around and left.
Because I was in a good mood, there was joy in my steps.
"The master has allowed Young Master Sun to take the imperial examination. Look how happy Young Master Sun is." The servant beside him said with a smile.
"I've suppressed him for several years, but his temperament is still not stable enough." Wei Hao shook his head and said, "If he passes the exam and is appointed as an official, you can follow him."
"Master, I think Young Master Sun is a good person. After all, he is still young. You shouldn't be too demanding of him." The servant advised.
"You have followed me for more than ten years, and you know the dangers in the officialdom. What's more, the current emperor does not tolerate any sand in his eyes. But it is precisely for this reason that I let him take part in this special examination. Otherwise, I will have to suppress him for a few more years." Wei Hao said with a smile.
The servant was a little confused when he heard this, but Wei Hao had no intention of explaining.
…………
Coincidentally, Zhao Xing also sent someone to send a message to Yin Hanzhang, asking him to investigate Censor Huang.
Although this impeachment did not have much impact on him, establishing authority is not just about killing a few people, but requires continuity.
Since Censor Huang dared to accept instructions to impeach, he must bear the consequences.
Only constant deterrence can make those officials afraid.
As long as no middle or low-level officials dare to charge into battle for those people, they will have to suffer the consequences on their own.
However, what surprised Zhao Xing was that before he asked anyone to impeach him, the impeachment petition against Censor Huang was delivered to him.
After reading the note, Zhao Xing was very surprised. It was actually written by Luo Hui. He not only listed Huang Yushi's deeds in the note, but also asked Zhao Xing to punish him.
The position of Chief Censor was very important. In fact, after Zhao Xing ascended the throne, he thought about replacing Luo Hui several times.
It’s not that Luo Hui did a bad job, but that Luo Hui is too principled.
Zhao Xing needed someone like Yan Kuan, who would blindly follow him and could integrate the Censorate into an ironclad whole.
Only in this way can the Censorate play its full role when he does something.
It’s not that Zhao Xing didn’t want officials in the court to have their own ideas, but if he wanted to rectify the administration of officials, he had to be able to turn the court into a one-man show.
Only in this way can he achieve the results he wants quickly, instead of constantly arguing with officials.
To achieve this, the role of the Censorate is very important.
Zhao Xing could not give orders for everything, and the person serving as the Chief Censor had to be able to understand his meaning.
Just like this Censor Huang, if there was someone who could understand his meaning as the Chief Censor, he wouldn't have to worry about it at all and could just deal with it directly.
But Luo Hui was very proactive this time, which surprised him.
Shaking his head, Zhao Xing didn't think much about it. Seeing that the ministers' suggestion was to hand it over to the Dali Temple for trial, Zhao Xing thought about it and picked up his pen to approve it, but added a sentence that the Chief Censor would personally supervise it.
…………
Time flies, and it is mid-September, and the imperial examination begins.
Although this was his first imperial examination after ascending the throne, Zhao Xing did not pay much attention to it.
Even if some talented people emerge in the imperial examinations, those who enter and leave officialdom are not granted high-ranking official positions.
No matter how talented you are, you won’t be able to use your talents in a short period of time.
The examination lasted nine days and the review lasted six days. At the end of September, the list of successful candidates was delivered to Zhao Xing.
Zhao Xing took a quick look and saw Wen Yanjing's name on the list of second class.
However, Zhao Xing did not care too much. He put down the list, looked at Wang Anshi, and asked, "Among these people, are there any who left a deep impression on you, Lord Wang?"
(End of this chapter)