The next afternoon, in the palace’s martial arts arena.
Cao Rui was dressed in tight clothes, drawing his bow and drawing an arrow. As his fingers moved slightly, the arrow flew through the air and hit the red heart of the target in the distance, with the tail feathers still shaking slightly.
There are only three out of the four attendants now. Yesterday, Xin Pi and Xu Shu were on duty, and today, Xin Pi and Lu Yu are on duty.
Xin Pi had no choice but to work two jobs.
After the emperor had shot all the arrows, Xin Pi stood by and asked with a slightly worried look on his face, "Your Majesty, Imperial Doctor Zhang once said that Your Majesty needs to rest for a hundred days. I hope Your Majesty will take care of your health and not work too hard."
Cao Rui turned his head to look at Xin Pi, and then reached out and patted the quiver on his waist. Xin Pi had no choice but to grab ten arrows from the quiver on the shelf, and put them into the emperor's quiver.
Drawing the arrow, bending the bow, and shooting the arrow were all done in one go. Cao Rui looked at the arrow that hit the target again with satisfaction, and said to Xin Pi: "What the imperial physician said makes sense, but I can't do everything according to reason."
"Archery is one of the six arts of a gentleman, and practicing it is beneficial." After saying this, he raised his hand and shot another arrow.
How could one listen to everything the imperial physician said? Imperial Physician Zhang also said that one should not get close to women, but that did not stop Cao Rui from going to Guo Yao's room every day.
It's just shooting an arrow, no big deal.
After the second tube of arrows was shot out, Cao Rui, breathing slightly, handed the carved bow to Lu Yu, and then took off the quiver and threw it to Xin Pi.
"Minister Lu, I have heard that your father, Lu Zigan, was also a man of both literary and martial talents? He even led the army to suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion?"
When Lu Yu heard the emperor mention his father, he cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I am sorry to trouble you. My father was indeed a man of both civil and military abilities."
"My father studied under the great scholar Ma Gong, and later served as a doctor in the imperial court, and participated in the compilation of Dongguan Hanji. He also led the army to suppress the rebellion in Jiujiang, and forced Zhang Jiao to surrender to Guangzong as the General of the Northern Army."
Cao Rui took the fine linen cloth brought by the eunuch, wiped the sweat off his face, then turned around and sat on the chair at the back.
After hearing what Lu Yu said, Cao Rui said, "It was a great achievement to pacify the Yellow Turbans, but Emperor Ling wronged me."
Lu Yu said calmly: "At that time, the ruler was incompetent. No matter how talented my father was, he could never do anything. Unlike me, he could not serve a wise ruler in Luoyang."
Cao Rui pointed at Lu Yu and said with a smile, "Lu Qing has only been in office for a few days, and he is already so talkative?"
"I remember that when Emperor Wu of Han went north to conquer the Wuhuan and passed through Zhuo County, he sent people to pay homage to your father's tomb."
Lu Yu replied: "The emperor's virtue is engraved in my heart. It was at that time that I was called up to serve as an official."
Cao Rui asked again: "Are there any other members of your clan?"
Lu Yu said: "Your Majesty, the rest of my clan have all died in the chaos. Now I am the only one left in my clan, and no one is left in Fanyang."
Cao Rui smiled and said, "Since there are few people in the family, then expanding the family is a serious matter. Minister Lu's two sons are both in Luoyang, right?"
Lu Yu was a little confused: "Your Majesty, I have two sons and one daughter, and they all live in Luoyang now, not in Fanyang."
Cao Rui said: "Then send one of your sons back to live in your hometown, which will add more people to your family."
"By the way, tell me when you leave. I will send someone to prepare some gifts to honor Emperor Wu for your father."
Although Lu Yu agreed decisively, he was still a little confused. He was a minister, but he was not close enough to the emperor to discuss such things!
But what Lu Yu didn't know was that his descendants would become so famous that their name would last for hundreds of years.
This matter had nothing to do with Cao Rui, but he just said a few words to go with the flow, which was just an interesting thing in his daily life as an emperor.
Xin Pi, the attendant standing on the other side, was no longer surprised.
When your majesty talks about politics and military affairs, he is generally a wise and intelligent monarch. But when he talks about unimportant things, his words are always confusing.
Your heart is unpredictable!
At this time, the Imperial Guardsman Du Shu came over quickly and reported, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Court Judge requests an audience and is waiting outside the palace gate."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "The court judge came to see me. If he didn't come to see me today, I would have summoned him in two days."
"Let's go back to the study. Uncle Wu, ask Gao Rou to come over as well."
"Yes, Your Majesty." After receiving the order, Du Shu turned around and trotted away, while Cao Rui, with Xin and Lu, walked slowly towards the study.
Xin Pi said, "Your Majesty, the school reported that the court judge entered the Sikong Mansion last night and stayed for more than half an hour before leaving."
Cao Rui looked at Xin Pi and asked, "Why did he go to Sima Yi?"
Xin Pi said: "I have no way of knowing. But I roughly guessed that it seemed to be about the examination."
"Before your majesty was in the west, the court judge went to the Shangshutai to look for the two Shangshus, Fu Xun and Xu Xuan, regarding the examination, but they rejected his request and it seemed that they had a dispute in the Shangshutai."
"Sikong is in charge of recording the affairs of the Shangshu, and the Shangshutai is under his jurisdiction."
Cao Rui moved his slightly sore right shoulder and arm, and said thoughtfully: "It seems that the examination method has been blocked? No wonder. The Supreme Court is not responsible for this. It is not legitimate, and I don't have a direct edict."
"It would be strange if Gao Rou could do it."
Cao Rui and Xin Pi walked and chatted, while Lu Yu, who had less experience, followed silently behind, frowning and thinking without saying a word.
In the study, Cao Rui met Gao Rou. After chatting about some trivial matters of the court, Gao Rou had the preparations and began to file a complaint.
Fu Xun and Xu Miao of the Secretariat, Sima Fu of Liangzhou, Huang Quan of Yuzhou, Sun Zi of Yanzhou, and Grand Marshal Cao Xiu who was guarding Shouchun.
Gao Rou accused everyone of this, and her words were even sharper than those used at Sima Yi's mansion.
Of course it has to be sharper.
After being an official for decades, isn't he good at playing the victim? Moreover, what he did was arranged by the emperor, not the job of the court judge.
As the emperor, Cao Rui did not take any offense at Gao Rou's well-reasoned complaint.
"Don't worry, Tingwei. I will send people to Liangzhou, Yuzhou, and Yanzhou to convey an oral order to reprimand these three people."
"These three are far away, but Ministers Fu and Xu are close, right in Minister Nangong's office."
Looking at Gao Rou who was slightly stunned, Cao Rui smiled kindly and said, "I will call Fu and Xu here right now to make the decision for you!"
Gao Rou was shocked.
Is it necessary to have such a big battle?
Gao Rou wanted to refuse, but because he had filed the complaint first, he could not refuse the emperor's suggestion of "upholding justice" no matter what.
I could only accept it.
About half an hour later, the two ministers were led by Du Shu into the study.
Xu Miao had been to His Majesty's study before, but this was Fu Xun's first time.
Cao Rui waved his hand calmly: "Everyone, please sit down."
After the two attendants and three ministers were seated, Cao Rui asked directly, "Mr. Fu, Mr. Xu, the court judge just came to me to complain about you two."
"How come the exam was rejected?"
Gao Rou was on the verge of collapse. He reported this matter to get more work done, but he had no intention of making enemies with Fu and Xu!
Your Majesty summoned the two of them and wanted to question them in front of everyone. How could Gao Rou explain himself clearly?
Fu Xun is also an old minister with all the qualifications and background.
Hearing the emperor's words, Fu Xun glanced in Gao Rou's direction, then stood up and replied calmly: "Your Majesty, I just think that the examination method made by the court judge is inappropriate."
"At that time, Your Majesty was still fighting in the west, and the Imperial Guard ordered that no report should be made unless it was a major event, so I was unable to submit a report to Your Majesty in time. Now that I am in front of the Emperor, I ask Your Majesty to allow me to report this matter."
Cao Rui nodded: "The more we discuss, the clearer the truth becomes. Fu Qing, if you think there is anything wrong with the examination method, please tell us!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Fu Xun bowed slightly, then straightened his back and said solemnly: "I think the so-called examination is nothing more than adding work to the officials of the country, making the current administration more complicated."
"But the most important thing for Wei is not the administration of officials, and the most important thing for the administration of officials is not the examination! Wei already has a system of reporting to the emperor, so why do we need to establish an examination?"
Cao Rui certainly understood what Fu Xun said, and asked back: "Mr. Fu means that the current focus of the Wei Dynasty is not on the administration of officials. It is right to clarify the major policies. It is useless to focus on the details of officials everywhere?"
Fu Xun cupped his hands and replied, "Your Majesty is wise and enlightened. This is exactly what I meant."
"There is a system of reporting the situation to the emperor. The imperial court officials are supervised by the Censorate, and the governors of each state supervise the counties. Every autumn, the counties report the situation to the emperor, and in winter, the counties send accounting officials to Luoyang to report the situation."
"The counties submit their reports, the Supervisors inspect their reports, the Secretariat receives their reports, and the Censors review their reports." Fu Xun said earnestly, "I really cannot understand why we need to set up more layers of examinations and add to the burden on officials across the country."
"If that's the case, then everyone's goal is to pass the exam, so who would be willing to do anything other than pass the exam?"
Cao Rui was silent for a few moments after hearing this, and then he slowly said: "I am not saying that the system of reporting accounts is bad. It is generally feasible, but the details are incomplete."
After that, Cao Rui looked at Xu Miao again: "What do you think, Mr. Xu?"
Xu Miao bowed and replied: "I am the head of the Ministry of Justice. The affairs of the Ministry of Justice can only be decided by whether the officials are competent. The fewer criminal cases in the world, the better. How can officials compete for political achievements?"
"I hope your majesty will understand."
Cao Rui said calmly: "The system of reporting accounts is not perfect, and the examination system is not completely useless."
"Since we have encountered so many problems just after the implementation of the Shangshutai, there will be more problems in the prefectures, counties and armies."
"Minister Lu." Cao Rui looked at Lu Yu sideways.
Lu Yu stood up: "I am here."
Cao Rui said, "Later, let the Secretariat issue an imperial edict and order all the officials in Luoyang to discuss this matter. Within 15 days, no matter whether they praise or criticize this matter, they must submit a memorial on this matter."
"I want to take a good look at what my officials are thinking."
Lu Yu bowed in response.
After Fu and Xu finished speaking, Gao Rou put forward all the suggestions that he had discussed with Sima Yi in Sikong Mansion yesterday.
Cao Rui neither agreed nor denied it, but calmly said that he would make a decision after all the memorials from court officials were collected.
Interestingly, the Shangji system hardly included the Shangshutai and other officials in Luoyang.
Gaorou’s examination system does have.
Fu Xun and Xu Miao also tacitly did not mention this matter just now...
Being an emperor is difficult, and the difficulty lies in controlling the details of major and minor events and people's hearts. If Cao Rui did not know the difference between the two, wouldn't Fu Xun's words be more convincing?
After the three men left, Cao Rui sat in the study and flipped through the booklet that Gao Rou had copied himself, which contained the examination methods.
When he frowned, a hint of annoyance also appeared in his heart.
Cao Rui found that he seemed to have taken the examination too lightly.
In this era of poor communications and uneven quality of officials, it is difficult to establish a smoothly running examination system.
What's more, the current situation in Wei does not allow large-scale examinations.
Gaorou's examination standards are basically the result of continuously adding items to the Han Dynasty's Shangji system and further refining the examination. But can the situation in the Han Dynasty be the same as it is now?
Today, the world is still divided between Wu and Shu, and all prefectures and counties on all sides focus on military affairs. All industries are in depression and urgently need to be restored.
Where is the peaceful scene of the Han Dynasty?
In the Han Dynasty, all prefectures and counties in the four directions could adopt the same standard, but is it possible now? As Sima Fu said, it is impossible to use the same standard for Liangzhou compared with prefectures and counties in the interior.
The situation in each state is different. Do we need to come up with a plan for at least 12 states? That would be ridiculous.
Cao Rui sighed lightly. Although he discovered the problem with the examination system, he still had to do what he had to do.
Now Wu and Shu are still undecided. What will happen in five years or ten years?
The examination method already has a prototype. Wouldn't it be okay to perfect it and then implement it in five or ten years?
There is always something to be done, no effort is wasted, it is just a matter of sooner or later.
……
Fifteen days is just a moment.
Chen Qun, Man Chong, Pei Qian and others all returned to Luoyang.
Liang Xi, the governor of Bingzhou, also returned to Luoyang to fill the vacancy left by Xu Shu, who was transferred to the position of minister. Qin Lang and Qin Yuanming were appointed as the new governors of Bingzhou and took office immediately.
In the afternoon, Cao Rui was sitting in his study, thinking about meeting his ministers at the banquet tonight.
Wang Chang walked in from outside, holding a pile of documents in his arms. He couldn't hold it all by himself, so Du Shu and Zhong Yu followed behind to help.
Cao Rui pointed to the table in the corner and said to Wang Chang, "Put it over there. Has the Secretary of State read these memorials? What do they say roughly?"
Wang Chang said: "Your Majesty, most of the memorials are either blindly in favor or blindly against, with more people blindly in favor."
"Among those who expressed opposition, the one who had the most substance was the Grand Herald."
Grand Herald? Cui Lin?
Cao Rui asked, "What did the Grand Commandant and the Minister of Works say?"
Wang Chang replied: "I classify the memorials of Lord Hua and Lord Sima as blind agreement."
Cao Rui laughed out loud: "Wang Qing is really interesting. Come, give me Cui Lin's memorial. I want to see it myself."
"As you wish." Wang Chang didn't even look at it. He turned around, took the top one from the pile of petitions Du Shu was holding, and handed it to the emperor's desk with both hands.
Wang Chang came to deliver a memorial. Now that it has been delivered and Your Majesty knows his classification, he bids farewell and leaves.
None of the ministers were here. Only two imperial attendants, Du Shu and Zhong Yu, were in the study.
Cao Rui read Cui Lin's memorial and nodded as he read.
Cui Lin meant that if the current court wanted to better govern the country, what it should focus on was not establishing a system, but implementing it.
Cui Lin said that the method of examination had existed since the Zhou Dynasty, but it gradually fell into disuse and became useless.
The focus is not on the completeness of the bill's provisions, but on its implementation.
It is not that there is no law to rely on, and the reporting system is not unusable.
Rather, it is a question of whether the law can be enforced.
Cao Rui agreed with Cui Lin's words, and thought of the corrupt officials who were caught in later generations. Is it because the country's system is not perfect enough?
It’s not a question of execution!
There is no heart-wrenching confession, only the calmness of accepting defeat.
Cao Rui sighed and handed over the memorial in his hand: "Come, Wu Bo, Zhi Shu, the two of you take a look at the memorial from the Grand Herald."
"You have not been allowed to participate in political affairs. You two should take a look and then tell us what you think."
Du Shu was already nearly thirty years old, and he had political ambitions to be a minister of imperial guards. The emperor asked him to express his opinions, and since his talent had a chance to be seen, Du Shu was naturally willing to do so.
But Zhong Yu is different.
Today is the first time that Your Majesty calls Zhong Yu by his given name.
At the beginning of the year, Zhong Yao fell ill, earlier than Wang Lang. At that time, Zhong Yao thought he would not survive, so he personally crowned his son Zhong Yu on his sickbed and gave him the name "Zhi Shu".
At this age, it is normal to choose a name in advance. No scholar family is so rigid as to wait until the age of 20 to take a name.
How could Zhong Yu not be excited when the emperor called him by his courtesy name and treated him like a human being?
What the emperor asked him to answer was actually secondary.
In comparison, we can only say that the son of the Taifu has no worries about getting an official position, but the son of the Shangshu has no one to rely on.
Du Shu took Cui Lin's petition first, read it carefully, and then handed it to Zhong Yu.
After a few moments, Du Shu took a deep breath, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I also don't agree with the examination method. It's just that I have a different opinion from Grand Herald Cui Gong."
"Oh?" Cao Rui raised his eyebrows and looked at Du Shu: "What does Wu Bo think?"
"I think the Grand Herald's words refer to the problem of the enforcement of laws and regulations. Before I was promoted by Your Majesty last year, I had been an official in the court, and my daily work was all about trivial matters."
"The general situation of officials across the country should be similar to what I have experienced before. I think that examinations are more difficult than making plans, and officials will spend more time and energy to implement them."
"But there are so many things that take up time and energy, and a mere examination cannot even put you at the top. The words of the Grand Herald are just misleading Your Majesty."
Cao Rui smiled and nodded: "Good, you have insight. Regardless of whether what you said is correct or not, it is always right to dare to give advice."
"The views of young officials will naturally be different from those of older senior officials."
Du Shu cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I actually have some ideas of my own."
Cao Rui nodded: "Tell me!"
Du Shu said directly: "I think the examination method is fine for evaluating mediocre officials, but it cannot really select talents for governing the country for the Wei Dynasty."
Cao Rui asked: "What do you mean?"
Du Shu said: "From my humble perspective, among all the talented people who can help current affairs, which one was selected from among the officials?"
"Let's not talk about the distant past, let's just talk about the important officials of the current Wei Dynasty. Grand Tutor Zhong Gong, Grand Commandant Hua Gong, Minister of the Interior Chen Gong, Minister of Works Sima Gong, as well as the Minister of Guards, the Six Ministries, and the Nine Ministers. Among them, which one was selected through assessment?"
"All of them were recognized by the court's discerning eyes!"
Cao Rui thought for a few moments and said with a smile: "What Wu Bo said really has the feeling of 'no punishment for an official, no courtesy for a commoner'."
"When it comes to the three dukes and nine ministers, the court needs to have a keen eye for talent and does not need to take examinations. But ordinary officials of the rank of two thousand stones and below can take examinations?"
"do you mean this?"
Du Shu was a little embarrassed. He couldn't answer the emperor's question for a while, so he kept bowing and apologizing.
"It's okay. I said that it's a good thing to dare to give advice." Cao Rui raised his hand and pointed at Zhong Yu: "Uncle Zhi! What do you say?"
Zhong Yu thought for a moment, then hesitantly saluted and replied: "I don't understand state affairs, but I think the Grand Herald's words are a little inappropriate."
"What's wrong?" Cao Rui asked back.
Zhong Yu replied: "The court is now going to implement the examination system, but before it is implemented, the Grand Herald says that the implementation is not good, and has not yet given any useful solutions."
"I just think that this is not the right attitude when working for the court."
Cao Rui laughed loudly: "Uncle Zhi, I think you are also very smart!"
"I have also figured it out these days. It is not easy to establish a perfect system. How can it be done by a few officials in their study?"
"Take your time, I can wait!"
Du Shu and Zhong Yu saluted together.
As the sky gradually darkened, Cao Rui also set out from his study and headed for the banquet that had been arranged long ago.
Cao Rui did not call other important ministers.
Apart from Chen Qun, Man Chong, Pei Qian and Liang Xi who were invited to the banquet today, only three attendants, Xin, Xu and Lu, were present.
In this era, everyone drinks, and there are many people who are good at drinking.
Today, the Great Wei has no external threats to worry about, nor any obvious internal worries. This can be said to be the best year since the founding of the Great Wei.
The emperor and his ministers drank and naturally talked about state affairs. And state affairs were not too worrying. After drinking for more than thirty minutes, the atmosphere of drinking became more and more lively.
Man Chong had the most, while Pei Qian and Liang Xi were a little less so.
Cao Rui and Man Chong raised ten bottles, but Man Chong actually raised 20 bottles in return. Perhaps Man Chong was expressing his usefulness and loyalty to the emperor in another way.
The newly appointed Chen Qun, Chen Situ, perhaps because of his age, seemed a little drunk.
Cao Rui saw that Chen Qun was a little drunk, so he pretended to be drunk and came to Chen Qun's desk with a wine jar.
"Mr. Chen has been away from Luoyang for the past two years, and I miss him so much!"
"Mr. Chen, do you think the Wei Dynasty is better now than when I took over?"
Chen Qun stood up and bowed, and followed the emperor's gesture to raise the wine jar, saying respectfully: "Your Majesty personally led the tiger and wolf army to annihilate the enemies of Wu and Shu, and won every battle and conquered every attack. You are a wise and holy ruler who has never appeared in the history of the Wei Dynasty!"
"I congratulate Your Majesty and the Great Wei!"
"Your Majesty, ten thousand years!"
After saying this, Chen Qun picked up the wine bottle and drank it all.
Cao Rui also smiled and toasted everyone. For a while, the shouts of "Long live the emperor" echoed in the hall.
Two years have passed, and the Great Wei has now swept away its past decline and has almost completely changed its appearance.
The ten-year agreement and the oath made at Luoshui are still fresh in Cao Rui's mind, how could he forget them? (End of this chapter)
