Chapter 203 The heinous crime
The palace rules are strict, and there are particular rules about what clothes the eunuchs wear.
When Su Shun first entered the palace, he could only wear brown clothes, which meant he was the lowest-ranking servant in the palace.
Of course, just because Su Shun wore the clothes of a Xiaohuangmen doesn’t mean he was wearing yellow clothes.
In the Qin and Han imperial palaces, the gates of the palaces where the emperor lived were painted yellow, symbolizing the dignity of imperial power. Therefore, the eunuchs who served the emperor in the palace were called Huangmen.
The attire of the Xiaohuangmen is easy to recognize. Any eunuch in the palace who wears a wooden stick on the waist of his ochre robe is a Xiaohuangmen.
This piece of wood was called "Qi", on which were engraved Su Shun's name, position and appearance. There was another piece of wood hanging on the yellow gate inside the palace.
When Su Shun entered or left the inner city of the imperial palace, he had to use the wooden strip around his waist and the wooden strip hanging on the city gate for verification. Only when they matched could he enter the palace.
This piece of wood is Su Shun’s pass to enter and exit the palace, and the person who wears it around his waist is the eunuch.
During the Han Dynasty, Xiaohuangmen was a genuine official higher than the six hundred stones, and his status was quite high.
However, from the Wei and Jin Dynasties to the present Southern and Northern Dynasties, Xiaohuangmen has become a general term for low-ranking eunuchs in the imperial palace.
But a low rank is still a rank. For most eunuchs, moving from menial labor to a low rank is a gap that they will never be able to cross in their lifetime.
Originally, Princess Chenliu also wanted to support this eunuch recommended by Su Ze, but Princess Chenliu's influence in the palace was limited. When Su Shun entered the palace, he was old and had no foundation in the palace. Therefore, after Princess Chenliu entrusted him to the Ye Ting Ling Zhang Ye, she never asked about his affairs again.
But I didn't expect that this guy has now become a eunuch.
Princess Chenliu was a little surprised. News from the palace had always been her shortcoming. Sometimes, in order to find out the news, Princess Chenliu had to go to the palace in person.
The favor of the royal family is always fickle, and it doesn’t mean that it can be maintained by entering the palace every day.
If you visit the empress dowager at a time when she doesn't want to see people, it will make her disgusted.
Princess Chenliu has a high emotional intelligence and certainly understands these principles, so the spies in the palace are also very helpful to her.
Princess Chenliu brought Su Shun into the palace and asked, "I didn't expect you to have climbed to the position of Xiaohuangmen in such a short time."
Su Shun also said honestly: "This is all the grace of the Lord and His Highness. After I entered the palace, I worked in the palace and gained the trust of Zhang Daling. Later, Liu Changqiu wanted to replace the eunuch in Your Majesty's palace, and Zhang Daling recommended me."
Princess Chenliu now understood that as the little emperor grew up, Empress Dowager Hu became more and more worried about him.
Even biological mother and child need companionship to maintain the relationship.
Empress Dowager Hu was obviously unwilling to invest time in maintaining her relationship with the young emperor, but she was also afraid that the young emperor would establish a close relationship with others, which would affect her relationship with her son.
The Grand Chamberlain Liu Teng understood the empress dowager's intention, so all the eunuchs around the emperor would be replaced once in a while.
Although it seemed that Su Shun would not be able to do it for long, Princess Chenliu still winked at Luzhu beside her.
Luzhu immediately understood what Princess Chenliu meant, and soon brought out a seemingly ordinary purse.
She secretly stuffed it into Su Shun's pocket. Su Shun secretly opened it and saw that there were both new and old coins in it, as well as some gold beans suitable for gifts. Su Shun immediately understood what Princess Chenliu meant. This was "activity funds" for him.
Princess Chenliu then mentioned the name of a low-ranking eunuch in the palace:
"When you have the chance, get closer to the eunuchs around His Majesty and exchange information about the situation in the palace."
"There is also a eunuch named Sun in the palace. You can also get close to him."
Su Shun immediately understood what Princess Chenliu meant. This eunuch Sun was the insider who passed on the message from Princess Chenliu inside the palace.
Su Shun had already received a commission from Su Ze, so he immediately said, "After returning to the palace, I will definitely get closer to Eunuch Sun!"
After seeing Su Shun off, Princess Chenliu asked Lu Zhu and the female historian about things happening in the mansion.
"Have all the gifts before the New Year been delivered to the various prefectures?"
Lu Zhu pulled out an account book and said, "The gifts from all the mansions have been delivered, Your Highness. These are the lists of return gifts."
Princess Chenliu took the list. She naturally trusted Luzhu, but the trust was mutual.
The best way to maintain a good relationship with your subordinates is to keep public and private affairs separate.
Official business must be handled impartially. One cannot neglect to check on subordinates simply because of a close relationship. When subordinates make mistakes, one cannot condone them simply because of a close relationship.
Only by handling official business in an impartial manner can we avoid letting official business affect personal relationships.
This is also the reason why the old people in the palace said that Princess Chenliu’s style of doing things is quite similar to that of Empress Dowager Wenming.
However, Princess Chenliu felt that she was far inferior to Empress Dowager Wenming.
This ancestor of the Northern Wei royal family used the system of "the son is noble and the mother dies" to force his grandfather's mother to death, but he also got along well with his grandfather and died peacefully ten years after his grandfather ascended the throne.
After the death of Empress Dowager Wenming, Emperor Xiaowen was deeply saddened and held a grand funeral.
But only Princess Chenliu knew her grandfather's true attitude towards the Queen Mother Civilization.
My father’s first two empresses were both surnamed Feng, and were from Empress Dowager Wenming’s family. It was obvious that Empress Dowager Wenming hoped to continue to consolidate the Feng family’s status as an in-law through this method.
However, although both Empress Fengs were said to be favored, they were eventually deposed. The second Empress Feng was ordered to be executed and buried alive with her father when the emperor was seriously ill.
By the time of Xuanwu, the Feng family had declined, but his father's last empress, Gao, was highly valued. The powerful official Gao Zhao was in power for many years and was only expelled in a coup after his brother Emperor Xuanwu passed away.
However, it was a remarkable achievement that Empress Dowager Wenming died peacefully. Moreover, my father also maintained the reputation of Empress Dowager Feng and continued to implement her policies.
Therefore, for Princess Chenliu, her father, the emperor who was praised by the world as wise and brave, was not her role model. Instead, it was the civilized and capable empress dowager who was the role model that women could learn from.
After checking the accounts, Princess Chenliu asked, "How are the people on the list being won over?"
Luzhu sighed and said, "I don't know how General Su got this list. The people on the list are all truly talented, and they are unwilling to accept expensive gifts."
Princess Chenliu nodded and said, "I am also surprised at Su Lang's ability to judge people. He gave me a list of names that all turned out to be rare talents in the court. I don't know how Su Lang was able to identify such talents."
Luzhu also nodded, Su Ze really had a good eye for talent.
There are many officials and scholars in Luoyang, but most of them are immersed in this extravagant atmosphere. It is not easy to stay clean and untainted, and there are even fewer people with good moral character and talent.
Even under the Nine-Rank System, there were very few people in Luoyang's younger generation who were not morally competent.
Su Ze was able to pick out the pearls from such a pile of shit. His ability to judge people is truly amazing.
The only one who can be compared with him is Chang Jing, who commented on the Su brothers.
Of course, it was impossible for Princess Chenliu to meet these talented people directly. After all, it was too strange for a princess like her to make friends with scholars.
Princess Chenliu used poetry competitions to win over the families of the people on the list, and through contact with these people's families, Princess Chenliu could roughly know what kind of character and talent this person had.
Those who manage their families strictly often have good personal morals.
Wifes who are knowledgeable often have good personal talents.
Su Liang, Yang Kan's wife, was considered to be both virtuous and beautiful among the wives of Luoyang officials. This trick was naturally learned from Empress Dowager Wenming, who often summoned court ladies to the palace to examine the level of court officials.
Although this method is not very scientific, it is at least an information channel.
Princess Chenliu said: "The time has not come yet, let's make a good relationship first."
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The court did not handle government affairs before the Lantern Festival. Prince Qinghe was not summoned to the palace during this period, so he held a banquet at home.
However, it was obvious that Prince Qinghe was not in a good mood recently. He hurriedly left the banquet after it ended and went to discuss court affairs in the study.
Those attending the banquet today are all direct descendants of Prince Qinghe. Minister of Personnel Cui Liang is sitting on the side seat, and the rest are children of high-ranking families who have defected to Prince Qinghe.
Prince Qinghe picked up an urgent military intelligence report and said:
"Cui Yanbo lost Qizhou, and Duke Danyang wrote a letter to protect him, asking the court to allow Cui Yanbo to continue to make meritorious contributions while serving his sentence."
Cui Liang said: "Lord Cui's defeat was not his fault, and Lord Danyang is also short of generals. This is a done deal, and we cannot stop it."
Prince Qinghe also nodded and said, "The Queen Mother has a good impression of Cui Yanbo, so don't let anyone impeach Cui Yanbo."
Next is the intelligence from the south. Cui Liang said:
"The one in the south changed the era name again. He changed it to Ordinary Era right after the New Year."
The King of Qinghe has a good cultural background. He said: "If the king's intention is not universal and great, then the way cannot be upright and square. This thief Xiao has such a big tone."
This is a famous quote from Dong Zhongshu's "Chun Qiu Fan Lu", which is Dong Zhongshu's political program for the world of sage kings.
Cui Liang added: "Ordinary, ordinary, the whole world is connected, this means that the Southern Dynasty is thinking of conquering the North again."
During the reign of Emperor Xiaowen, the situation of the world being heavy in the north and light in the south was still very clear. Emperor Xiaowen moved the capital to Luoyang in order to accomplish the feat of unifying the world.
It is a pity that Emperor Xiaowen died in his prime. During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu, many battles were fought, but he was defeated in the war against the south.
After that, the North and the South fought against each other until the Southern Liang was seriously injured in the Battle of Fushan Weir, and then there was stability for a few years.
After Xiao Yan had recuperated during this period, he probably felt that he was capable again, so he changed the reign title to Tongbu this year, and he had the idea of marching north to unify the country again.
Prince Qinghe said worriedly: "There are many treacherous ministers in the court, and Guanzhong is in rebellion. What should we do if the Southern Dynasty launches an expedition to the North?"
Everyone was silent. The Wei Dynasty was now facing internal and external troubles.
But what does all this have to do with the nobles in Luoyang?
These two topics are just appetizers, and what will be discussed next are the issues that everyone really cares about.
After the Chinese New Year, it is time for the court to recommend and select officials.
This was accompanied by a large number of job adjustments, and it was also the time for the high-ranking families who had surrendered to King Qinghe to divide the spoils.
Cui Liang listed out the appointments, performance appraisals, and promotions of the children of aristocratic families, as well as the important positions that needed to be adjusted. Everyone began to have a heated discussion for their own interests.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to divide official positions now.
The discussion lasted until midnight, and there were still some key points that could not be resolved. Prince Qinghe could only decide to discuss it again tomorrow.
During the reign of Emperor Xiaowen, the sons of families with the ability to become provincial governors had the opportunity to achieve the same official position.
During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu, it was difficult to become a county governor.
Nowadays, one has to wait for several years to become an official, let alone a county magistrate. Finally, retiring as a county magistrate is a good result.
There is nothing that can be done about it. The grandson of a Nine Ministers wants to be a Nine Ministers, but the Prime Minister has more than one grandson.
After discussing these important matters, Prince Qinghe dragged his tired body to rest, but was stopped by a retainer in the palace.
"Jun Yi, your nephew Feng Longzhi has made great contributions in suppressing the Mahayana Rebellion. The Ministry of Personnel is ready to recommend him to be the Henan Provincial Governor. Do you have anything else to ask for?"
This retainer was named Feng Shu, with the courtesy name Junyi, and was from the Feng clan of Bohai.
The Feng family has been prosperous since the days of the Murong clan of the Former Yan Dynasty and is a very influential legal family in Bohai.
If it were someone else, Prince Qinghe would have started to scold, but the Feng family was quite powerful and their children were capable, so he softened his tone.
Unexpectedly, Feng Shu crossed his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Feng Shu is not here to seek an official position for his son. This is the Ten Laws compiled by my subordinates. I want to ask Your Majesty to promote the revision of the law."
Prince Qinghe took the thick volume, opened it and saw that it was the "Code of Conduct" written by Feng Shu on the current court laws.
In the legal system, there are four types of legal provisions: "laws, decrees, codes, and comparisons".
Law is the fundamental law, that is, the code of law implemented by the dynasty. The Taihe Law implemented today was revised by Emperor Xiaowen in the 19th year of Taihe with the help of Doctor of Law Chang Jing.
An order is the decree and policy of the imperial court, which is an adjustment and supplement to the law. For example, an imperial edict is also a type of order.
Ke is the modern judicial interpretation, which is a refinement of the law, or the implementing regulations.
Comparison means comparing with similar judgments, which are similar to typical cases in the maritime law system.
Feng Shu had long ago proposed the idea of judicial reform to King Qinghe. He advocated "name and criminal law" and started from the rules and regulations to re-establish the laws of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
Feng Shu said: "Since last year, rebellions have been everywhere, all because of the lack of criminal law. The laws of our dynasty are very strict for the people, and those who violate the law will be severely punished, but the laws are too lenient for the officials, and corrupt officials often go unpunished."
When Prince Qinghe heard Feng Shu say this, he felt a little unhappy.
When he tried to exonerate his sister, Princess Lanling, he encountered a lot of criticism. Feng Shu also advised him not to forgive Princess Lanling just because she was a royal relative.
Now that Feng Shu proposed to revise the law, Prince Qinghe felt that he had a hidden agenda.
Feng Shu then continued, "The country is in turmoil now, and the imperial court will change the reign title and grant amnesty to the whole country at any time. Many people who have committed serious crimes can escape punishment safely if they can be granted amnesty."
"Even in Luoyang, some criminals, upon hearing the news of a change of era and amnesty, would break into houses and commit crimes such as rape and robbery."
“So I think that listing the ten major sins as the ten evils and defining them as unforgivable sins is the only way to warn the world.”
The King of Qinghe saw that the ten evils were: one, treason; two, conspiracy to commit high treason; three, rebellion; four, surrender; five, evil treason; six, unrighteousness; seven, disrespect; eight, unfilial piety; nine, unrighteousness; and ten, civil strife.
After reading it, she felt that Feng Shu was targeting her sister, Princess Lanling, and she felt even more unhappy.
However, Prince Qinghe was still graceful. He said, "The court is in a state of emergency. Now is not the time to revise the law. Jun Yi (Feng Shu's courtesy name) should go back first."
After saying this, Prince Qinghe threw down the "Ten Rules" and left.
Feng Shu picked up his letter and could only sigh before leaving the Qinghe Palace.
When he returned home, he saw his wife measuring the Shu brocade. He asked in confusion, "Where did this Shu brocade come from?"
(End of this chapter)