As Cao Rui listened to Wei Zhen's words, he couldn't help but frown.
The Minister of Agriculture...
The position of Grand Minister of Agriculture in the Wei Dynasty had vastly different powers and responsibilities from those in the Western Han Dynasty.
Since the early years of Jian'an, after Cao Cao accepted the suggestions of Zao Zhi and Han Hao on military farming, the military farming system began to become increasingly important in the Cao Wei camp.
As a result, the status of the important position of Grand Minister of Agriculture among the Nine Ministers was further elevated, and he even became the head of the Nine Ministers.
Wei Zhen cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, shouldn't the court appoint a Grand Minister of Agriculture?"
The position of Grand Minister of Agriculture was so important that Cao Rui had to treat it with caution.
Cao Rui coughed lightly and said, "The position of Grand Minister of Agriculture is extremely important. Do you have any suitable candidates to recommend to me?"
Sima Yi was thinking at this time whether to recommend his cousin Sima Zhi. However, he had just recommended Sima Zhi to revise the law. If he let Sima Zhi be the Minister of Agriculture, the emperor might be displeased.
The four people present were all silent. It wasn't that there was no one to recommend, but they just couldn't figure out the right person for the moment.
The current emperor's style of doing things is completely different from that of the previous emperor. Personnel dispatch and important personnel arrangements are often decided immediately after discussion, and he does not hesitate for a long time like the previous emperor.
After a few moments, seeing that no one spoke, Cao Rui nodded and said, "How about Xu Shu and Xu Yuanzhi? This man is cautious in his work, and I have talked with him in detail. It seems that he is the most suitable person for a position like the Minister of Agriculture, which has many trivial matters."
Xu Shu... Sima Yi remembered that when the emperor was returning to Shouchun, he had ridden side by side with Xu Shu and chatted for half a day.
When the emperor selects people for appointment, he often does not restrict himself to their past political achievements, but chooses people he is familiar with. To select the virtuous and capable, it seems that one must first be included in the emperor's sight!
Since His Majesty has said so, the four of them could only agree with him. Otherwise, how could they sing against him?
Cao Rui said: "Huang Quan impeached Linghu Yu. Regardless of whether Linghu Yu is right or wrong, I will dismiss Linghu Yu first. Otherwise, what authority will I have as the governor of Yuzhou?"
"Now that the Minister of Agriculture has been selected, Master Wei just mentioned whether to transfer the management of military farming to the state." Cao Rui paused and said, "After Xu Shu takes office, I will ask for his opinion."
Wei Zhen, who had just raised this question, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty is wise. I am only raising this issue. We should not be impatient about institutional matters."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "That's exactly what should be done."
……
At the same time, outside the city of Yuzhou and Xuchang.
Huang Quan's carriage slowly left the city and headed towards the military farm office fifteen miles west of the city.
Just a few days ago, the governor Huang Fangbo arrested and imprisoned Linghu Xiaowei, who was in charge of Xuchang's agriculture, which became the latest hot news in Xuchang City.
Since Huang Fangbo came to Yuzhou a month ago, he has been on patrol almost every day.
Therefore, the agricultural officials near Xuchang City were quite frightened, fearing that something might go wrong and anger Huang Quan, who was already angry, and many of them took sick leave and stayed at home.
After Huang Quan arrived at the military farm office west of Xuchang, he got off the carriage and led everyone directly into the gate.
The clerks in the courtyard bowed one after another, but Huang Quan had no intention of talking to them, and went straight into the main hall of the office.
Seeing that there was only one person in the hall, Huang Quan showed displeasure on his face and said angrily: "Is there only one military farm official here?"
The young official quickly stood up from his seat, bowed to Huang Quan, and said with a slight stutter: "I bow, bow, bow to the governor."
Another one who can't even speak clearly.
Huang Quan frowned and turned to his chief secretary and said, "If the chief official of a place is incompetent and greedy, his subordinates will also be idlers. It seems that the rectification of the military farming in Yuzhou should start from Yingchuan and Xuchang!"
Before the chief secretary could respond, the young official standing opposite Huang Quan bowed and said, "Reporting to the governor, this is wrong. We are all working hard. How can we just sit there and do nothing?"
The chief secretary rebuked him, "How dare you speak to the governor in such a rude way?"
"Let him speak." Huang Quan sneered and looked at the young official: "If you can't tell me something, I will use you as an example of a slacker!"
The young official said calmly, "Please ask me, Lord Fang! I will tell you everything I know."
Huang Quan stroked his beard and asked, "Let me ask you first, why has the output of Xuchang's military farms dropped so much in the past three years?"
The young official replied, "My Lord, I have carefully investigated this issue and found that it is because the peasants often have to perform more corvee labor and miss the farming season."
Huang Quan saw that this man could really say something, so he began to test him: "Isn't corvée service a national priority? How can it delay farming?"
The young official said slowly: "Doing corvée labor is a serious matter, but it is best not to do it too frequently."
"The farmers worked hard in the fields, starting with plowing and sowing in the first month of the year, weeding the fields, pruning mulberry trees, setting fire to the wasteland, planting wheat, repairing threshing floors, and harvesting the crops. It was not until October that the crops were finished."
"In addition, we have to repair barns, build pontoons, transport rents, repair roads, build bridges, paint houses, and seal cracks in walls. There is not a single day in a year when we are not engaged in agricultural labor."
Huang Quan nodded slowly. What this person said was good, but he had not completely hit the point.
Huang Quan asked: "Is it really these corvée labor that affected the production of military farms?"
The young official said without hesitation: "Report to the governor, it is because the military governor abused the people's power and made the military farmers work for his property."
Huang Quan now understood that when he went out for inspection today, he actually met a capable and talented person.
Huang Quan asked, "What is your name? What position do you hold now?" The young official replied, "My name is Deng Ai, courtesy name Shizai. I am currently serving as a Dian Nong scholar, in charge of the clerical duties of the military farm in the west of Xuchang."
Huang Quan nodded and said, "Don't be a Diannong scholar anymore! I will recruit you as a state official to inspect the state's military farms with me!"
Deng Ai was only thirty years old. He had been born into a poor family and only managed to get such an official position through his hard work and perseverance.
Nowadays, a governor of a state is able to provide support, which is something that many people can only encounter but cannot ask for!
But Deng Ai said slowly: "I thank Fang Bo for his invitation, but I want to explain something to him first."
"Deng Shizai, right? You say." Huang Quan looked at Deng Ai leisurely.
Deng Ai replied slowly: "The so-called settlements and tuntian, whether military or civilian, are actually just farming. Ploughing in spring and harvesting in autumn is the common sense of the world and cannot be interfered with by human power."
"I hope that Fang Bo can be very cautious and make changes slowly when dealing with the military farming issue, and save some manpower."
Huang Quan frowned and said, "Don't people in the state only know that I, Huang Gongheng, can put the captain in jail, but don't they know that I can also govern an area?"
"Don't worry about this. Is Shizai willing to help me?"
Deng Ai bowed and said, "I would like to thank Fang Bo for his cultivation and I am willing to serve him."
Huang Quan nodded with satisfaction.
……
Luoyang City, Beigong.
Cao Rui bent the bow and held the arrow, aimed his right eye at the bull's eye on the target, slowly exhaled and released his fingers, and the arrow flew out of the wind and hit the bull's eye.
The carved bow held in his left hand also turned half a circle and then hung down to his side as his arm was lowered.
"What's the matter?" Cao Rui glanced at the eunuch Bi Jin beside him, who seemed to have something to say.
Bi Jin said respectfully, "Your Majesty, there is a message from the Queen Mother's palace saying that the Queen Mother has something to tell Your Majesty."
"Empress Dowager?" Cao Rui frowned: "Is it Empress Dowager Guo or the Grand Empress Dowager?"
"Your Majesty, it is Empress Dowager Guo who came to see you for something." Bi Jin replied.
Since ascending the throne last year, Empress Dowager Guo has been like a transparent person in the harem. She keeps to herself, never causes trouble, and rarely comes to me.
What happened today?
Cao Rui took a deep breath, held his breath, and pulled out the four remaining arrows from the quiver with his right hand. He bent his index finger and ring finger slightly and held the four arrows in his palm at the same time.
After one arrow is shot, the left hand pulls the bow back, and the fingers of the right hand bend to hold the other arrow horizontally.
The sounds of arrows breaking through the wind were heard one after another. He held his breath for a few moments, shot four arrows at the same time, and then exhaled.
"Let's go." Cao Rui slowly placed the bow on the bow stand and clapped his hands.
"As you wish." Bi Jin did not dare to delay and trotted out to call for a carriage.
A moment later, in the Queen Mother's palace.
"Greetings, mother." After seeing Queen Dowager Guo, Cao Rui bowed seriously.
"Why did you call me here, mother?" Cao Rui said to Empress Dowager Guo in a gentle voice.
Empress Dowager Guo looked at the emperor in front of her. He had a completely different demeanor and was like a completely different person from when he was in the Eastern Palace.
When he was in the Eastern Palace, he was extremely cautious, fearing that he might do something inappropriate and anger Emperor Wen.
The current emperor has a majestic demeanor without being angry, and even has some of the style of Emperor Wu.
Previously, all the eunuchs in the Empress Dowager's palace were beaten to death by the emperor, so as the emperor's stepmother, she had to be cautious in doing things in the palace.
But then again, after all, she is nominally the emperor's mother and the current Empress Dowager of Wei, so Empress Dowager Guo still has a lot to do.
So after nearly a year of silence, Empress Dowager Guo took the initiative to call the emperor over for the first time.
Guo smiled and looked at Cao Rui and said slowly, "Rui'er, please sit down. Your Majesty has something to tell you."
Cao Rui nodded and found a chair opposite Empress Dowager Guo and sat down.
Cao Rui looked around and asked, "Is there enough money in the Queen Mother's palace? If not, I will ask the Minister of the Imperial Household to transfer money to the Queen Mother's palace."
Empress Dowager Guo was also a woman of wisdom and intelligence, and she was both beautiful and talented. Otherwise, how could she have successfully competed for favor with such a beautiful woman like Zhen in Cao Pi's palace?
Empress Dowager Guo realized that the emperor probably thought she was asking him for money and property, and for a moment she couldn't help but sigh in her heart.
I haven't fallen to that level yet!
Guo smiled and said, "Of course it's enough. My palace has a lot of expenses, and Rui'er also sends a lot every New Year. There is really more than enough."
"What I want to talk about today is the affairs of the harem." (End of this chapter)
