Red Mansion Royal Cat

Chapter 566: Bang him! Bang him!
When, when, when...

The Jingyang Bell rang twenty-four times in a row, and all civil and military officials above the seventh rank in the capital, as well as noble relatives and relatives of the emperor, regardless of their real or imaginary official titles, had to quickly enter the palace.

The emperor, who had been idle for two months, returned to the Fengtian Hall again. His ministers filed in, bowed respectfully in front of the hall and shouted "Long live the emperor".

Compared to the prince who had a pair of dark circles under his eyes, the emperor looked extremely healthy and did not look sick at all.

Many officials in the court looked at the poor crown prince with pity. It turned out that the current emperor had become a bad person.

Or... play him?
Play him!

No matter what happened in today's temporary court session, the censors in the palace were already looking at the man on the dragon throne with unfriendly eyes.

After holding it in for so long, let’s start with the emperor!
"Ahem, I have not been feeling well for the past two months. I am sorry for the trouble. I summoned you here today because I want to discuss an important matter concerning the foundation of our dynasty for eternity."

The emperor suddenly shuddered, feeling uncomfortable as if a thorn was stabbing his back. He then glanced at the group of officials under the throne and immediately became alert.

After fighting wits and courage with this group of people for more than ten years, the emperor knows too well the character of his subjects.

Seeing that the group of censors were eager to try, he immediately used coughing to indicate that he had "just recovered from a serious illness" and diverted everyone's attention to the real business.

This trick was indeed effective, and all the ministers in the hall immediately became alert.

This gentleman is indeed a wise man, but he always plots against people out of the blue, which makes people have to be on guard.

"Zhang Zhengju has presided over the revision of the Great Xia Code, and it has achieved results. I have reviewed and discussed it with several masters in the cabinet... Xia Shouzhong, pass on the order!"

"promise!"

Xia Shouzhong bowed, then took the jade-shaft imperial edict with colorful dragon pattern from the eunuch behind him and slowly opened it.

"Your Majesty has given an order, and all the ministers shall obey it!"

Everyone in the hall was immediately alarmed. Another trick?
The last time the emperor did this, he issued an imperial edict to reform the imperial examination system. What was he going to do this time?
Be vigilant or doubtful, but you still have to observe etiquette.

First listen to what the emperor is going to do. If it doesn’t work, just disobey the order and return it.

Then, all the civil and military officials bowed and saluted, shouting "Long live the emperor".

"Long live Long live Long live!"

Xia Shouzhong announced in a loud voice: "The imperial edict says, I have been appointed by heaven and have been on the throne for twelve years. Fortunately, the country has wise ministers and good generals to help govern the country, the country is stable, and the people live and work in peace and contentment... However, I have read the history books and found that there are few dynasties in the world that last for three hundred years. Most of the dynasties that have been established for three generations have foolish and mediocre monarchs, treacherous and corrupt ministers, and generals who are afraid of fighting and cowardly. Now there are wise ministers who offer good advice and make laws for all ages... I now issue an edict to promulgate the "Imperially Decreed Constitution of the Great Xia Dynasty" and implement it throughout the world. The monarchs and ministers of later generations will all take this law as the basis..."

"The central government shall have a Supreme Court, and the provinces, prefectures, states and counties shall each have a court to exercise judicial power."

"The central government shall establish a supreme supervisory council, and each province, prefecture, state, and county shall establish a supervisory council to exercise supervisory power."

"The separation of powers among the judicial, supervisory and administrative branches is an office of the same level. Officials of the provincial governments, prefectures, states and counties shall not interfere with the judicial execution of the courts or the Supervisory Yuan."

"Article 1, Section 1 of the Imperial Constitution of the Great Xia Dynasty: The Great Xia Emperor rules the Great Xia Empire, from one generation to the next, forever respected. The sacred dignity of the emperor shall not be violated."

"Article 1 of the second paragraph: The Great Xia Cabinet is responsible for the overall political affairs of the country, assisting the emperor and governing all officials. Officials below the fifth rank can be appointed and dismissed by the Cabinet in accordance with the law..."

"Article 1 of the third clause: The Emperor of Daxia is the commander-in-chief of the three armies, and the Grand Military Governor's Office assists him. The cabinet and other departments shall not interfere in the affairs of the Grand Military Governor's Office..."

"The Imperial Constitution of the Great Xia Dynasty is the foundation of the country. It cannot be changed without the unanimous opinion of the monarch and his subjects. If there is a desire to fill in the gaps, it must be recommended by the court. Only with a majority of votes can it be submitted to the emperor, who will decide..."

Nine imperial edicts were announced in succession, and each one was like dropping a huge bomb into the Fengtian Hall, making the heads of the ministers in the hall buzz.

Regardless of the relationship between the "Imperially-Decreed Constitution of Daxia" and Zhang Zhengju's "Outline of the Constitution of Daxia", why would the emperor take the initiative to delegate power to the cabinet?

Emperors of every dynasty have tried their best to consolidate power and strengthen their control over the world.

The current leader has done the opposite and has given the cabinet such great power.

And the separation of the three powers of adjudication, supervision and administration, doesn't this reduce the power of local officials?
If it weren't for the big bomb earlier, there would probably have been a quarrel in the palace by now.

If anyone dares to take away their power, I will impeach him! I will impeach him! I will impeach him!

So what if he is the emperor? How can the ancestral system be easily changed?
However, the emperor even handed over the power to appoint and dismiss officials below the fifth rank to the cabinet. This was a great joyous event for the ministers, which was the first time in history.

It is unacceptable that the power of the cabinet is affected by the power struggle at the local level.

What if one day I get lucky enough to become a prime minister?
After a brief uproar, the Fengtian Hall fell into deathly silence.

They were so shocked by the emperor's nine imperial edicts that they even forgot to kowtow and receive them.

It was the cabinet chief, old man Zhou Jiong, who knelt down first and paid homage with great ceremony: "This old minister accepts the order. Long live the emperor, long live the emperor, long, long live the emperor!"

"Your Highness Xia Lingxing obeys your order. Long live the emperor, long live the emperor, long, long live the emperor!"

"Your Highness Guo Peigui (Lin Ruhai...) obeys the order. Long live the emperor, long live the emperor, long, long live the emperor!"

Several bigwigs in the cabinet followed Zhou Jiong, kowtowed and shouted.

The emperor on the dragon throne nodded and smiled, accepting the kowtows of his ministers.

At this point, everyone in the palace understood that the emperor must have reached an agreement with his ministers long ago.

Weakening and dispersing the power of local officials and strengthening the power of the cabinet and the central government is clearly a method of strengthening the trunk and weakening the branches.

With the cabinet taking the lead, the rest of the people would not even think of opposing.

At this time, they were all intimidated by the power that the emperor had delegated to the cabinet, and each of them dreamed of becoming a prime minister and enjoying the wealth and honor of being second only to the emperor.

Little did they know that the emperor and his ministers had already planned everything that would happen today.

First, he proposed to strengthen the power of the prime minister, and then he wielded the sword to chop down the local officials.

As a result, the officials in the palace were probably all attracted by the bait thrown out earlier, and their heads were probably dizzy. They didn't remember that they also had to serve as people-friendly officials in the local areas for a few years before they had the opportunity to enter the cabinet and become prime ministers.

Looking at the ministers in the hall bowing one by one to accept the emperor's orders, the emperor felt as if a huge stone had been lifted from his heart.

Everything went smoothly. With this "Imperially-Decreed Constitution of Daxia", at least in legal terms, he established legal rules for future kings and ministers.

This legal rule, although not for eternity, will not pose any major problems to the Liu Dynasty, which lasted for 1,800 years, as long as there was no natural disaster that destroyed the country.

……

The Jingyang Bell suddenly rang, and the capital was already abuzz with discussions.

If it had not only rang twenty-four times, the people would have thought that the sudden ringing of the Jingyang Bell meant that some noble person in the palace had passed away.

When all officials were stunned by the emperor's nine imperial edicts, all kinds of speculations had already spread among the people.

However, these speculations were so mixed and bizarre that they could be. In the end, the imperial court’s announcement shattered the rumors one by one, leaving the entire capital city stunned.

"My God, your Majesty is crazy!"

This was the first reaction of all the people who learned the contents of the nine imperial edicts.

In the Rongguo Mansion, the eldest brother listened to Yuanyang reading the contents of the notice with a look of disbelief on his face.

The old sage had tried every possible way to reduce the power of the vassal states and ministers. He used Jia Daishan's powerful military force to force the local authorities to consolidate power in front of the emperor.

The current emperor actually dared to do the opposite and delegate such great power to the cabinet.

"Grandpa Tian, ​​if that's the case, wouldn't the prime minister from now on be nine thousand years old?"

The old lady recalled a story her grandson Jia Cong had told her. In that story, a eunuch who was favored by the king controlled the government and was called the Nine Thousand Years Old…

"Also, there are rumors that the great prime minister has submitted his resignation letter again and is going to retire and return home. Now the most popular candidate for the next prime minister is our uncle, Prime Minister Lin..."

"Don't let this word get out!"

Before Yuanyang could finish her words, Daiyu walked in without even having time to change out of her official robe.

After she bowed to the old lady, she warned her mother solemnly, "We have no right to control what others say, but our family members must not spread these rumors. Not to mention that the eldest master cannot leave for the time being, even if he wants to retire and return home, if our family spreads these rumors, it will be detrimental to Dad's future."

Few scholars can resist the temptation of the position of prime minister.

Lin Ruhai was no exception. If he could become a prime minister and take charge of a country's affairs, he could realize his political ambitions more easily.

But now the constitution has just been promulgated, and various reform measures have not yet been implemented. Given the country's policy of seeking stability in governance, Mr. Zhou Jiong's second resignation will definitely be rejected by the emperor, and the emperor will send the crown prince to Prime Minister Zhou's mansion to try to retain him.

"It will take at least a year. Once everything is settled, the Grand Master will be able to retire and enjoy his life."

There was once a prime minister who died of exhaustion in his duty room, and the royal family did not want Mr. Zhou to die in office.

The old man has served the country and the people all his life. It's time for him to take a good rest and enjoy his retirement.

Daiyu thought of Mr. Zhou's trembling and old appearance today, and she was greatly impressed.

Xia Ge is old and weak, Guo Xiangye has a pedantic personality, and Hai Gong has an explosive temper...

After much thought, it turns out that my father is the most suitable person in the cabinet.

Today, Daddy is in charge of most of the new political affairs, and the tone of the country is still new policies and reforms.

From all aspects, Daddy's position as Prime Minister is almost certain. Now he just needs to do his own thing step by step and not add unnecessary things.

The more Daiyu thought about it, the more she felt it was possible, so she told the old lady what she was thinking, which shocked the old lady.

Although she was shocked, the old lady's political wisdom immediately took over when she thought that her son-in-law was going to become the prime minister of a country.

She nodded and said, "Yu'er is right. The lower your profile, the better. Go to Huanghuafang now and tell your father all your guesses so that he can be mentally prepared..."

At this time, Master She, dressed in a dragon robe and jade belt, strode in and said happily, "No need. Just now, the palace announced the decree of His Majesty to promote my brother-in-law..."

……

The gate of the Lin Mansion in Huanghuafang was closed, but there were crowds of people outside the mansion.

Lin Ruhai was promoted again, although it was just an honorary title, but it still depends on what kind of honorary title it is.

Taifu, one of the Three Dukes.

The official was a first-rank official and was responsible for assisting the emperor in handling important state affairs. It was a very important position.

In the current cabinet, apart from Zhou Jiong, the Grand Tutor, only Lin Ruhai holds the title of one of the Three Dukes. Isn't the meaning obvious?

Even the second assistant, Xia Lingxing, now only holds the title of Junior Master of the First Rank.

"Why is your majesty so anxious?"

Lin Ruhai was puzzled. In fact, when Mr. Zhou Jiong submitted his first resignation, the emperor had discussed it with the cabinet ministers.

Although all the literati wish to rule the world, the ministers in the cabinet are still able to take the overall situation into consideration.

Xia Lingxing and Guo Peigui voluntarily withdrew and recommended Lin Ruhai as the successor prime minister in front of the emperor to facilitate his presidency of the new policy.

But according to the original plan, Mr. Zhou Jiong has to hold on for another year or so to ensure a smooth transition.

After thinking about it, Lin Ruhai still couldn't figure it out.

So he got up and planned to go to Zhou's house, but unfortunately the front and back doors were blocked by people, and it was almost impossible to visit Mr. Zhou secretly without alerting others.

Because he had something on his mind, Lin Ruhai tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep that night.

The next day, he stood outside the gate of the Qinzheng Hall early with dark circles under his eyes.

"Minister Lin, the emperor is in poor health and will not be in the Qinzheng Palace today..."

Uh... this trick again?
Lin Ruhai had already seen His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who also had dark circles under his eyes. The emperor and his subject looked at each other and smiled bitterly.

Xia Shouzhong, who came here by imperial decree, smiled bitterly and bowed to the Crown Prince, saying, "Young Master, the Emperor has asked me to be the regent. Unless the sky falls, I am not allowed to disturb him while he is recuperating."

Liu Hong held his forehead and sighed, "Father, your Majesty, you're using this trick again? The Imperial Constitution of Daxia was just promulgated yesterday, and there are so many things to do. Your Majesty, aren't you afraid that I'll delay something important?"

Xia Shouzhong smiled at Lin Ruhai and replied respectfully, "My young master is joking. Don't forget that Master Lin is here. The emperor has something for me to tell Prime Minister Lin. The hundred-year-old Great Xia is still young and vigorous. So the king is in his prime, the ministers are in their prime, and the country is also in its prime! We should be enterprising and make progress, so as not to let the people down."

Lin Ruhai understood what the emperor said. He was telling him that the emperor wanted to intensify the training of the prince, and also to train and examine him as the next prime minister.

To be enterprising and forge ahead means that Lin Ruhai should do it boldly and confidently, and work hard while there is still someone to support him.

If something goes wrong, old man Zhou Jiong will take the blame for his successor, and suffer for the country and the people of the world in order to protect the future of the new policy.

Lin Ruhai figured it all out, bowed from a distance in the direction of the Longshou Palace, and then kowtowed towards the Zhou Mansion in the south.

"Master Lin, it looks like we, the king and his subjects, are going to have to fight a tough battle together."

Isn’t it just a tough battle?
The nine imperial edicts issued yesterday will spread throughout the world within a few days even though the central government did not mention them.

By then, won’t the local governors be furious?

So now that you, the central government, have consolidated power, you are going to lay the knife on the heads of our local officials?

Why? Impeach him! You must impeach him!
Who should we impeach? Whoever benefits the most should be impeached!

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

　Thanks to Brother Pang, who is still so fat, for the reward.

　　I’ll stop here tonight and continue tomorrow. Good night!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)