Red Mansion Royal Cat

Chapter 536: Taking a Vow
Logically speaking, even if Lin Ruhai were to become prime minister now, he would still be the lowest-ranking Grand Secretary.

Not only is there his chief teacher and cabinet deputy assistant Xia Lingxing in front of him, but also his old boss Wen Tongxuan who is above him. No matter how you calculate it, it is impossible for him to preside over the implementation of the new law.

However, the emperor specifically singled out Lin Ruhai, and did not specify which ministry or temple he should be in charge of. Instead, he let him take charge of major government affairs in the name of assisting the chief minister Zhou Jiong.

Lin Ruhai is only fifty years old, but he is already being trained by the emperor and the prime minister as the future prime minister of the country. This is interesting!

If someone else suddenly came to power, he would definitely be trembling with fear and at a loss as to what to do.

But Lin Ruhai was very different. After entering the Qinzheng Palace, he directly expressed his position to the emperor. He wanted to die for the country and was afraid of harming the country and the people's livelihood, so he wanted to ask for an imperial decree...

"I dare to ask Your Majesty to grant me the power to control the military!"

boom!
Not to mention the emperor and Zhou Jiong who proposed Lin Ruhai to join the cabinet, even Jia Cong, who was serving tea to several bigwigs, almost knocked over the teacup.

My father-in-law is so bold!

Does the cabinet have the power to control the military?

Yes, but not much.

Except for the previous Duke Wen Zheng of Wei, the old man who stabilized the country during a special period, and the current Prime Minister Zhou Jiong, he only has the power to mobilize the Five Cities Military and Part of the Patrolling Imperial Guards.

Since Lin Ruhai was asking for the power to control the military, he certainly wasn't referring to the Five Cities Military Command, but the various guards in the capital, or even the troops stationed in various places.

The atmosphere in the hall suddenly froze. Although the emperor was puzzled, he did not show any anger. Instead, after a brief shock, a smile appeared on his face.

"Lin Qing, do you know what you are talking about?"

Lin Ruhai showed no fear at all and always maintained his elegance and demeanor, as if the powerful words that were enough to make any emperor directly order the execution of the traitor did not come from his mouth.

Lin Ruhai stood up, straightened his clothes, and then bowed respectfully.

"I ask Your Majesty to grant me the power to control the military. I can execute those below the third rank first and report later. I also have the right to mobilize the capital camp, border troops and the armies of various vassal states!"

what?
pat...

The exquisite teapot in Jia Cong's hand finally fell to the ground. He looked at his father-in-law and uncle in surprise with his eyes wide open.

Different from Jia Cong's reaction, old man Zhou Jiong seemed to have thought of something at this moment, and his initial shock became relaxed.

"Master Zhou, what do you think?"

The emperor did not respond, but looked at Zhou Jiong who was sitting next to him.

Seeing that the old man looked pleased, I started a discussion with him.

"If Lin Hai had not asked Your Majesty for this decree today, I would have been worried about whether he could take on this responsibility. Now it seems that my vision is still very good. What do you think, Your Majesty?"

Hahahaha...

Almost at the same time, the emperor and Zhou Jiong burst into laughter.

The laughter broke the atmosphere in the hall that was almost frozen, and even the big generals and eunuchs guarding outside the hall breathed a sigh of relief.

It was too scary. They were really worried that the Grand Secretary who had just entered the cabinet today would be dragged to Caishikou and stabbed in the blink of an eye.

That would truly be a precedent since the founding of the Great Xia Dynasty, enough to shock the government and the public.

"Otomo, bring me my sword!"

Xia Shouzhong wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and quickly went to the inner hall to get a long sword that looked ordinary but was extremely extraordinary.

With a clang, the emperor pulled out the sword.

"This sword was given to me by my martial arts master, King Xianrong. One for my elder brother, one for me, and one for the Thirteenth Brother. The sword has no name, but today I will give it the name Chengtian. Lin Hai, accept the order..."

"Chen is here!"

Lin Ruhai responded with three bows and nine kowtows, respectfully asking for the emperor's instructions.

The emperor walked up to Lin Ruhai and handed the Chengtian Sword to him. "Hold this sword as if I were here in person. Mr. Lin can control all the troops in the capital camp, border troops and all the vassal states. You can execute the civil and military officials below the third rank first and report later. From me and below, Mr. Lin has the right to deprive the royal relatives, nobles, ministers and officials of their official titles and escort them to the emperor for punishment. I only hope that when the new law is completed, Mr. Lin can get along well with me and leave a prosperous Great Xia Dynasty for the people of the world!"

Lin Ruhai held up the Chengtian Sword with both hands, bowed again, and shouted: "The Holy Order is clear, and I, Lin Hai, will obey the order and die for the Emperor!"

……

The grand court meeting on the fifth day of June was enough to cause an uproar in the entire capital.

However, they did not expect that an imperial edict would be issued from the palace soon. After the cabinet issued an order to the whole country, the entire capital, both officials and civilians, were almost all shocked with their mouths wide open.

The emperor bestowed upon the newly appointed Grand Secretary Lin Ruhai the Emperor's Sword, which not only empowered him to control the army of the world, but also empowered him to execute civil and military officials below the third rank, and empowered him to deprive the royal family, nobles, and ministers of their official titles...

This immediately reminds people of an old man who has passed away - Duke Wenzheng Wei Qinghe!
Compared with that old man, Lin Ruhai, who is less than fifty years old, can be said to be young and energetic.

Considering Lin Ruhai's toughness and decisiveness in killing when he was in Jiangnan, old man Wei Qinghe can really be said to be a good man.

Look at the salt merchants in Jiangnan. In order to rectify the salt tax, Lin Ruhai spent nearly ten years slaughtering most of the wealthy families in Jiangnan. Almost every prefecture in Jiangnan had days of bloodshed.

It can be said that Lin Ruhai, who seems to be gentle and easy-going, is no less tough than those in the Jia family.

No one can be sure whether it is a blessing or a curse for such a person to hold power.

But for the emperor and Zhou Jiong, Lin Ruhai's request for power today made them most happy.

"Your father-in-law is a loyal minister who dares to take on responsibilities and is capable of doing so!"

Zhou Jiong and Lin Ruhai had already left the Qinzheng Hall and returned to the cabinet. Only the emperor and Jia Cong were left in the hall. The emperor happily gave Jia Cong a lecture.

Jia Cong asked tentatively: "Your Majesty, aren't you worried that if you grant me great power, the country will be in turmoil?"

In fact, Jia Cong wanted to ask, since his father-in-law now holds all the military and political power in his hands, what if he wants to rebel? Isn't the emperor worried?
The emperor just smiled and looked meaningfully at Jia Cong, who was obviously uneasy.

"You are still too young!"

what?
"There are so many obstacles to the implementation of the new law. If you think carefully about the difficulties that Master Zhou has faced in the past few years, you should understand one thing. It is impossible to implement the new law by just shouting slogans in the court and issuing a few imperial decrees. If Lin Ruhai wants to truly implement the new law throughout the country, he must have enough power in his hands to make everyone fear him! What is this power?"

Jia Cong blurted out: "Military power!"

The emperor nodded and said, "Yes, it is military power! Only the swords of the army can prevent others from easily hindering the implementation of the new law. If your father-in-law had not mentioned this matter today, I would have been worried that he would just give me a perfunctory response!"

Who doesn’t know how to shout slogans?

The emperor does not need a cabinet minister who can only put on high-handedness and shout slogans. What he needs is a regent who is brave and capable of doing things.

Lin Ruhai's initiative to ask for military power was a clear manifestation of his desire to do something big.

"I had a conversation with your father-in-law a few days ago, and it seems that he guessed what I was thinking. I am very happy that he has a loyal heart and a heart willing to die for the country. As a loyal minister, he will not let me down, so I will naturally not let him down. At the beginning, Wei Wenzheng held the golden mace to stabilize the government and laid the foundation for the prosperity of the country today. Today, I give Lin Hai the Emperor's Sword, and I hope he can also remove the thorns on the road ahead for Hong'er and you..."

The emperor was filled with emotion when he thought of the difficult years at the beginning of Yuanyou and the old man who had protected him.

He sighed and said, "As Master Zhou said, each generation has its own mission. It will take more than ten or twenty years to implement new laws and get rid of the old and bring in the new. Maybe it will take fifty or even a hundred years for the dynasty to truly implement the new laws throughout the country. Master Zhou, your father-in-law Lin Hai, and I can lay the foundation for you and remove the thorns on the road ahead. Jia Cong, grow up with peace of mind, the future is yours!"

……

No one would have thought that on the first day Lin Ruhai entered the cabinet, he did not hold a banquet to entertain his colleagues, but directly issued his first order with the Emperor's Sword.

"Order the chief officials of the provincial governments, judicial commissioners and garrison commanders in all provinces to report to the capital on the Mid-Autumn Festival. At the same time, order all the royal relatives, regardless of their rank or rank, to come to the capital before the Mid-Autumn Festival to listen to the imperial edict."

As to why all officials were suddenly asked to report on their work and what the content of the imperial edict was, only a few ministers in the cabinet and the two emperors in the palace knew.

Even when Jia Cong asked, Master Lin did not explain to him. Not to mention the others, the cabinet leaders were all silent, and no one could get any information.

It seems that Lin Ruhai has big plans behind this order.

If Lin Ruhai's entry into the cabinet had shocked the court and the country, then an order from Mr. Zhou Jiong could be said to be earth-shattering.

"Is the great lord planning to establish a religion?"

Master Zheng felt that his brain was not enough. He held the freshly-issued cabinet edict in his hand and spoke incoherently.

The content of the imperial edict was very simple. Mr. Zhou Jiong wanted to gather talented people from all over the world to re-interpret the Confucian classics, and would re-draft the imperial examination system in the name of the court, including standardizing educational books.

What exactly do the words of sages mean? Over the thousands of years, different opinions have been held.

However, since the implementation of the imperial examination, a complete and strict system has long been in place. Reinterpreting the words of the sages in the name of the government and standardizing educational textbooks and the imperial examination system is to put an end to the independent rule of various schools of thought and completely seize the right to speak.

To Jia Zheng, a man loyal to the country, this cabinet's decree was both important and correct.

But for those who put their own interests above public ones, this is like digging up their ancestral graves.

Before dinner was over, Ergou, the know-it-all in the Rongguo Mansion, brought the latest news.

The capital city exploded!

To be precise, the officials in the capital were in an uproar, and some even ignored the curfew and gathered to sit in front of the palace gates.

"Isn't this nonsense? What does the government have to do with them?"

Upon hearing this, Master Zheng was about to leave. After all, he was now the second in command of the Censorate and was in charge of the affairs of the imperial court.

Even if there are problems with the court's policies, that is the business of these censors. Why would these scholars who are not in the court cause trouble?

Baoyu, who was standing by, grabbed his father's arm and said, "Father, this matter is not that simple... Just think about it, as soon as the cabinet's decree was issued, hundreds of Confucian scholars gathered together to put pressure on the court. Is this something that ordinary people can do? In my opinion, the person behind this is probably very powerful!"

Ok?
Everyone in Rong Xi Tang looked at him with awe. Master Bao is becoming more and more powerful!
Jia Cong gave him a thumbs up. He was indeed the smart-minded Master Bao. His understanding of the war of public opinion had reached perfection. He saw through the essence of the matter at a glance.

After praising him, he asked, "What does Brother Bao think about this?"

"Nothing special. The Grand Chancellor wants to carry out the Qin Emperor's plan, but some people are unwilling to do so."

What is the greatest achievement of the Qin Emperor? Unification!
Whether in politics, culture, or even people's livelihood.

In Baoyu's view, the purpose of this cabinet decree was to lay the foundation for cultural unity.

The words of the sage have been passed down for thousands of years, and I am afraid that the sage's original meaning has long been distorted beyond recognition by various schools of thought.

It would definitely be a good thing if the court could restore the original intention of the saint to the greatest extent possible.

Some people were unwilling to do so because the imperial court wanted to break their monopoly on culture.

These Confucian scholars who went to put pressure on the court might have been truly concerned about Confucianism, but more likely they were being used by others.

Jia Cong gave a thumbs up again, Baoyu's growth was truly visible.

But this is not surprising. Baoyu has been in charge of the News Department for so long. He often quarrels with people in the newspapers and is used to seeing those literati who always speak in the name of saints.

There are people who care about the country and the people, but there are also many hypocrites.

Baoyu knew very well what kind of impact this decree from the cabinet would have. It would be a bloodless and fierce battle, and it would definitely be earth-shattering.

"Father, there's no need to rush. This is just the beginning. Just wait and see. It would be strange if this doesn't last for a year or two!"

Master Zheng had not yet figured out what his son meant, but when he saw Jia Cong nodding in agreement, he stared at Baoyu in a daze.

"Why can't your father understand? Baoyu, please explain in detail..."

"Alright, you and your son can discuss this later. Tomorrow is Cong's big day, so let's continue talking about tomorrow's wedding!"

The old lady interrupted the conversation between the father and son and glared at her second son.

He was startled and couldn't calm down even though the obedient Sun Baoyu was still a little shocked.

To be honest, this is really unfair to Master Zheng.

In Mr. Zheng's opinion, since his niece is a princess, the wedding will be taken care of by the Zongzheng Temple and the Ministry of Rites.

As the second uncle and uncle, he just needs to drink, chat and watch the fun with the guests who come to congratulate. There is nothing to discuss.

As the second in command of the Metropolitan Censorate, Lord Jia, the Right Censor-in-Chief, should be concerned with state affairs and devote the rest of his life to the Great Xia Dynasty...

But his son, who always used a big stick to hit Baoyu, now seems to be more powerful than him!
How about putting aside your fatherly authority tonight and asking for his advice?
When everyone was discussing Jia Cong's wedding tomorrow, Master Zheng stared at Baoyu and pondered for a long time, and finally whispered to him: "When we go back later, you should talk to your father about it..."

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

　Thanks to Barrister for the tip!
　　I’ll stop here tonight and continue tomorrow. Good night!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)