Chapter 509
Zhao Ruosu is a very patient person. After being demoted back to the Marquis Mansion, he never complained or behaved abnormally. He performed his duties as a mansion more seriously than before, tinkering and tinkering. There were too many chickens and ducks in the back garden. At the time, he wrote to the queen, hoping to process a batch on a regular basis.
It took more than a month for this request to be delivered to the queen. The queen was surprised. She couldn't think of a small official who had been demoted. They were not to be slaughtered, but were sent to the Chaojia fishing village in the south of Beijing in the name of the emperor, where the villagers would dispose of them on their own.
The things Zhao Ruosu did in the mansion were probably like this, as if his lifelong wish was to manage a mansion without a master, and it was worth his conscientious work and a lot of hard work.
When the eunuch in the palace arrived, Zhao Ruosu was personally supervising two craftsmen to replace the severely damaged floor tiles.
Zhao Ruosu's official position was too small, and there was no need for an imperial decree to summon him. The eunuch walked over and said, "Zhao Ruosu, put down your work and follow me into the palace."
Zhao Ruosu was stunned for a moment, "So fast?"
"What fast?" The eunuch didn't understand.
"It's okay, wait for me to change clothes."
"Don't waste time, it's getting dark, let's go now, you're not the minister of the court, what should you change?"
Zhao Ruosu seemed a little at a loss, thought for a while, and said to the craftsman, "Come here first, and continue tomorrow."
When Zhao Ruosu entered the palace with the eunuch, he was wearing old clothes and was in a mess, as if he had just returned from a long way.
Under the Lingyun Pavilion, Zhang Youcai said with a smile: "Zhao Fucheng's outfit is not bad, not only is he despondent after falling out of favor, but he is also eager to see the driver. Go upstairs, Your Majesty is waiting."
Zhao Ruosu blushed slightly and opened his mouth to explain a few words. After thinking about it, he walked upstairs and found that the eunuchs did not keep up. He was a little surprised.
The emperor was writing when he heard footsteps coming in. He didn't look up. He continued to write, picked up the paper and read it again, and said to Zhao Ruosu, who was kneeling at the door, "When was the General's Mansion established?"
Zhao Ruosu was stunned again, but immediately replied: "Wei Chen remembered that it was the early years of Emperor Cheng, when Taizu died not long ago, and the prime minister at that time was quite dissatisfied, so Emperor Cheng divided the power of the prime minister's army to the general. After the change, the current pattern was determined in about seven years of Emperor Wu: the General’s Mansion was in charge of the military talismans, the Ministry of War made plans for the deployment of troops, and the generals in various places were responsible for training and commanding the troops, and each performed his own duties.”
"The general is somewhat similar to the middle palm seal in the palace."
"Yes, so it is often held by the imperial family or nobles, and it is better to be short than to waste."
"I intend to appoint Jiang Juying, the former military minister, as the general."
Zhao Ruosu raised his head and glanced at the emperor, "Jiang's military is not a military general, nor is he an honorable person. There is no precedent for such an appointment, but as long as your majesty is willing, no one will object."
"You understand what I mean, you don't have to hide it, just say it."
"Weichen dare not, Weichen is guilty."
"Do you want to say 'forgive you not guilty'? No, Zhao Ruosu, this is no good, you are indeed guilty and have not been forgiven by me, so no matter what you say, it will only add to the sin, since your sin is already very serious , plus nothing at all."
Zhao Ruosu thought about it and felt that what the emperor said was very reasonable, so he stood up without order and said, "Your Majesty wants Jiang Juying to serve as a general?"
Han Ruzi nodded, "Jiang Juying has done a good job recently, recovering hundreds of thousands of soldiers and slaves from various places, some of these soldiers and slaves volunteered for the people, and more than 70,000 people are willing to continue to join the army, plus the existing places. Garrisoned troops, Da Chu can gather at least 150,000 people to support the frontier, but these troops are not fully equipped, and the training is even more insufficient, and it takes half a year to train."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Zhao Ruosu didn't understand what the emperor meant. It was not his expertise to manage the army and train troops, and he couldn't make any comments.
"You just said that the responsibility for training troops belongs to the generals. If the generals are all on the front line, who should take care of the training?"
"Uh... Logically, it should be the Ministry of War, but it's usually handed over to the commander of the county or the commander of the vassal state. Those who really have real power are the governor of the county and the minister of state. That's why the abuse of soldiers and slaves arises."
"What if I want to hand over the responsibility of training troops to the General's Mansion? Is it customary?"
Zhao Ruosu thought for a longer time, "There is no convention in this matter, so there is no need to break or conform. Your Majesty just needs to pay attention to one thing. The general holds a military talisman. The title of general has changed from virtual to real, and I am afraid that it will start from here."
"So after Jiang Juying, those who serve as generals must be extremely trusted."
"It's not easy to find." Zhao Ruosu reminded.
"Then I'll have to do it myself."
Zhao Ruosu was taken aback and blurted out, "This, this is against the rules!"
"You said just now that this is not customary."
"Your Majesty's move did not break the conventions of the General's Mansion, but the conventions of the Son of Heaven. The Son of Heaven is supreme, how can there be a reason for self-demotion as a minister?"
"But who else can I trust besides myself?"
"This... Why does Your Majesty have to change the structure of the General's Mansion? Isn't it bad to maintain the status quo?"
"The General's Mansion exists in name only. It is no different from a warehouse for storing military talismans. It was once breached by a group of rebels. The military talisman is like a treasure seal.
Zhao Ruosu took a step forward, took a step back, and took another step forward, "It's easy for Your Majesty to directly take charge of the General's Mansion, as long as you don't appoint a general, you don't have to take this position yourself."
Han Ruzi thought for a while, "It makes sense, you can think of a way for me, how to make this matter both compliant and fast, so as not to cause random suspicion and opposition from others."
"Rong Weichen think about it... After Jiang Juying takes office, His Majesty can directly take back the seal of the Great General. In this way, although he does not have the title of Great General, he has the reality of Great General, and then two more credible and reliable people are needed. , one person in charge of the treasury, full-time custody of the military talisman, one person in charge, sharing the daily responsibilities for His Majesty, and then..."
Zhao Ruosu stopped abruptly, froze for a while, and said, "Your Majesty called Weichen into the palace for this reason?"
"Your method is good. From now on, you will come to Lingyun Pavilion every day to stand by, so you don't have to go to the Marquis Mansion anymore."
"But Wei Chen is still guilty."
"Yes, and you don't expect me to forgive you, others treat you as an imperial edict, you treat your sins, you won't remember your merits, and if you have deeds, you don't have to think about making meritorious deeds. Whoever comes and goes is up to you, just keep adding guilt to guilt. When I am really provoked, or I think you are useless, without investigation, I can directly execute you, or send you to the frontier. "
Zhao Ruosu was stunned.
"Retreat." Han Ruzi waved his hand.
Zhao Ruosu went downstairs in a daze, Zhang Youcai smiled and said, "Congratulations, Sir Zhao, for your promotion, right? Your Majesty is in a good mood these days, you are considered lucky."
"Well, Your Majesty has made me an 'official to be punished'." Zhao Ruosu said.
"Official to be punished? What kind of official is this? How many ranks?"
"No grades and no grades, opening your mouth is a sin, and sin adds to the sin, until the day when Your Majesty wants to kill me."
Zhang Youcai was also stunned, "You... but it's too unfortunate. Your Majesty is in such a good mood, and he didn't forgive you."
Zhao Ruosu suddenly burst out laughing, neither salute nor leave, and strode away.
Several eunuchs looked at each other in dismay, Zhang Youcai whispered: "Your Majesty is... driving him crazy?"
Only Han Ruzi knew what he was doing. He no longer wanted loyalty, he was only talented, and he no longer had to do everything himself.
The next afternoon, Han Ruzi summoned Cui Teng and scolded him fiercely in front of many eunuchs.
At first, Cui Teng knelt on the ground and shivered, but soon burst into tears, blaming himself, and even slapped himself.
Han Ruzi finally calmed down, screened the outsiders, and said to Cui Teng, "You have made a lot of mistakes, but this time hurts me the most, do you understand why?"
Cui Teng's face was covered in tears, "Understood, before... before, it was an unintentional mistake, this time it was... intentional, because I was too stupid and too vain, and always wanted to do something big."
"You want to do great things, that's fine, but there's no need to show it in front of me. The people I admire most are either in the frontiers or patrolling in other places. I keep my advisors by my side, just to test whether I have real talents. If you want to do great things, go to the frontier and work hard. Although your trip is a distribution, I have appointed a master for you. When you arrive in Mayi City, follow Wang Jianhuo to learn and ask more, understand?"
"The Ugly King of Luoyang?" Cui Teng wiped away his tears.
"You don't have to learn his skills, just watch how he behaves."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I understand, I want to be a new person."
"Well, is your father in good health?"
"It's better, but I was so angry that I lay in bed for two more days. The imperial doctor said that it was not a big problem. It was just a fire attacking the heart, and it was enough to rest."
"Go home and ask your father, would you like to come out again and take charge of the Ministry of War?"
Cui Teng's face was filled with joy. He didn't care about whether he was big or small. His father's return to office meant that the Cui family had regained the emperor's trust. He immediately said, "Yes, too willing!"
"Go home and ask your father what you think, and write to the queen."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Cui Teng kowtowed repeatedly, crying and laughing as he left.
The eunuchs were not surprised, Zhang Youcai shook his head, "What's wrong? Everyone who has seen His Majesty these days is... abnormal."
Han Ruzi was arranging troops. He appointed Jin Chunzhong as his messenger. He then went to the frontier to negotiate with Chai Yue and the Huns who had not yet surrendered to independence. The Great Chu could support the Huns, but the Huns wanted to follow the example of the previous Eastern Huns and go to the Great Chu. Called ministers.
The envoys from the Western Regions also set out, carrying new imperial edicts allowing Zhang Yin, the Marquis of Piyuan, and the possibly still alive general Deng Cui to act cheaply.
The change of the emperor surprised everyone, especially the ministers in the court. They were both puzzled and relieved. After all, the emperor's pressure was not so tight, and the prime minister Zhuo Ruhe regained real power, and everything could be discussed.
Han Ruzi did not ignore the imperial court, but he was no longer supervising himself. He was waiting for Qu Zixi to come back and establish an upright censor station who dared to confront the prime minister.
He hoped to have time to finish these things before the frontier was in chaos.