Although he returned to Youyan for military duties, when Zheng Rong left a few months ago, he was very confident in entrusting the defense to Cui Nan and Wei Hu, two famous offensive and defensive generals. There was plenty of money, so he walked in no hurry. Along the way, he taught him how to practice horse riding and archery and talked about the past and the present.
In his spare time, Zheng Rong once asked Qiu Yizhi: "Do you know why your adoptive father was in charge of Henan and punished your two uncles first?"
Qiu Yizhi has been thinking about this question since the Zhao family's house was sealed. Today when his adoptive father asked him, he answered calmly: "It's to kill one person as a warning to others, so that Henan officials will be afraid, so that they can concentrate on disaster relief." matter."
After saying these two sentences, Zheng Rong couldn't help but nod his head and praise repeatedly: "A boy can be taught! A boy can be taught!" Then he changed the topic and said, "Both Emperor Gao Zongren and Emperor Xianzong Zhao of our dynasty have taken measures to reform and strengthen the country. Although Xian Xian Emperor Zong is not inferior to Gaozong in terms of his thoughtfulness and sincerity in governing the country, but in terms of the effectiveness of his reforms, he is far behind him. "Do you know the reason for this?"
In the whole world, except Zheng Rong, King of Youyan, who else can, who dares, and who will discuss with Qiu Yizhi the merits and demerits of the previous emperors? Of course, Yi Zhi couldn't answer this question. He could only open his eyes wide and wait for Zheng Rong to ask and answer himself.
"Xianzong's reform was aimed at strengthening the army. The key to strengthening the army lies in money and food. To increase money and food without affecting the people, the land must be re-measured. Measuring the land will inevitably clear out the hidden land of the wealthy landlords. But the officials who supervised this matter Either he is inextricably linked to these wealthy households, or he is a wealthy household himself. How can this be done? So before the new law was implemented, there was already a lot of discussion both inside and outside the court. Emperor Xianzong worked hard to govern, and had no trustworthy talents, so he had to do everything himself. Eventually, he became ill from overwork and died in his prime, and his reform efforts were wiped out. The incident was not far away from Zheng Rong. He was very regretful when talking about it. He sighed quietly and continued, "However, Gaozong's reform law focused on the administration of officials. Before the new law was implemented, he first severely punished a group of officials who violated the law and neglected their duties, and punished other mediocre officials. After giving the admonition, he put aside the past and improved the imperial examination to recruit talents from all over the world. It can be said that he gave both kindness and power, and the officials suddenly became awe-inspiring. On top of this, he repaired some of the shortcomings of Emperor Shengzu Wu in his later years, eliminated the problem of ant collapse, and finally created more than ten achievements. The year is a time of peace and prosperity. Therefore, if we use the metaphor of trees, the officials are the stems and everything is the leaves. Because the branches are diseased, even if the flowers and leaves can flourish for a while, they will eventually wither and fall."
Qiu Yizhi listened very carefully, for fear of missing a word. After thinking about it carefully for a long time, he asked: "My child has two things that I don't understand. Please ask my adoptive father to clarify."
Zheng Rong nodded and said: "The Master said, 'Knowing is knowing, not knowing is not knowing, this is knowing'. If you have any doubts about the ritual, you can ask."
Qiu Yizhi immediately asked: "Since Emperor Gaozong has purged the government, why did corruption continue as usual decades later?"
When Zheng Rong heard this, he laughed loudly, slapped the case and stood up, admiring: "It's easy to say! You, a weakling, can raise such questions. It's really a waste of my sermon. My son doesn't know the saying, 'The human heart is not enough, the snake swallows the elephant.'" '? These bureaucrats started from humble beginnings and worked hard to get a good job. But as they got older, why didn't they think of ways to extort money? Normally. Therefore, rectifying the administration of officials is not something that can be achieved in one day. Only by being strict and strict can we achieve a clear future in a few years. This has been a chronic problem in all dynasties. "
Qiu Yizhi obviously understood, and nodded and continued to ask: "Then if, as my adoptive father said, our Emperor Xianzong is a very heroic and wise emperor, why can't we start with the administration of officials and implement the new law?"
"You idiot, how can you discuss such military and national affairs and the rights and wrongs of the emperor?" Zhongli Kuang, who was on the side, was originally dealing with the official documents sent by Youyan. When he heard the conversation between Zheng Rong and Yizhi, he began to have his own thoughts. They would eavesdrop; but when they got to this critical point, they simply put down the documents in their hands and shouted loudly to scold Yi Zilai. This Zhongli Kuang was usually very sinister and could not express his emotions or anger. Even Zheng Rong had never seen him so angry before and stared at him with a pair of doubtful eyes. Zhongli Kuang stood up quickly, pulled Zheng Rong aside, and whispered: "Although Qiu Yizhi is smart, his parents are dead, his education is incomplete, and his character is defective. Today's two questions are both at the heart of the imperial power and officialdom, vaguely He seems to be disobedient, I hope the prince can take precautions and not induce him any more!"
Zheng Rong waved his hand and said: "Sir, what you said is wrong. In today's world, all those who rise from poverty through the imperial examination are greedy for power and wealth, and the children of the royal family and the aristocratic families are all dandies and cannot be used. . Take my three biological sons as an example. They seem to have some talent at the moment, but they are unaware of the sufferings of the people and cannot become real pillars. I only wanted to repay the favor of saving my life by recognizing this son of a snake. , but looking at the ceremony now, he is a person with blood feud but he is ethical and ethical, smart and eloquent without being too sophisticated. He is really an excellent piece of rough jade. If this king does not follow the teachings of the saints, he will not follow the teachings of the previous kings. Isn’t it a waste of all the cultivation of Taoism and a waste of this national weapon?”
Zhongli Kuang shook his head and argued: "In the past, there was the He family in Chu. When he was pregnant with a raw jade, his feet were cut off and he became a useless person. As soon as the raw jade came out, it was thought to be a beautiful jade, and there was a fight for it during the Warring States Period. It was a hustle and bustle for half a century. After polishing the jade, it was completed. To pass down the jade seal of the country, the whole world has been fighting against each other for several generations. There are stories like this, please think twice!"
Zheng Rong sighed: "Of course I know your husband's painstaking efforts. But I will obey your husband's other suggestions, but I have my own opinion on this matter."
Zhongli Kuang shook his head and said: "Your Majesty has a broad vision, which is not something that a mere humble student in the lower class can understand. What will happen to this ritual in the future depends only on God's will!"
Zheng Rong patted Zhongli Kuang's shoulder and said, "In that case, please ask Mr. Zhongli to answer Yi Zhi's questions!"
Although Zhongli Kuang didn't say it, because he had the embarrassment of not seeing talents for many years, he loved talents even more than Zheng Rong. He walked up to Yi Zhi and asked, "What doubts does Yi Zhi have just now that you need your prince to answer?" "Listening to Qiu Yizhi repeating the question he just asked, Zhongli Kuang talked about it without saying anything: "Doctors pay attention to diagnosis and treatment, but the treatment methods for the same disease are very different. In the past life, there was a famous doctor who saw the same disease. For abdominal distension and pain, one person prescribed medicine to purge fire, and he recovered after having severe diarrhea for half a day; while the other person prescribed medicine to strengthen the underlying cause, and it took three months for him to recover. When someone asked who was confused, he said: "The former indulged in sexual immorality. If yang is excessive and yin is deficient, yin and yang are not balanced, taking laxatives will completely eliminate the yang poisons and heal naturally. The latter is weak due to overwork, infection with wind and cold, and deficiency of qi and blood. It is necessary to strengthen the root cause to eliminate the root cause of the disease. If the two are reversed, one's life will be in danger. "Do you understand this story?"
Zhongli Kuang's words were profound and sharp, and his examples did not correspond closely, but he savored them carefully but contained profound meanings, which frightened Qiu Yizhi until he could only nod his head with half understanding.
Youyan Road borders the sea to the east, Henan to the south, grasslands to the west, and the desert to the north. It has seas, rivers, plains, hills, grasslands, and Gobi. After ten years of management by Zheng Rong, it has a large population and rich mulberry fields. The Han and the Turks must compete for this place.
A group of people entered the border of Youyan Road and Bozhou from Henan. After walking a few steps, they saw someone coming to greet them from a distance. Zheng Rong hated the unnecessary extravagance of honors the most. The local officials in Youyan also knew his temper, so only a dozen or so people came to greet him. Although Zheng Rong was merciful to his subordinates, the prince still had to put on airs, stop his horse, and wait for the other party to come forward.
There were five people who came forward to greet them. The two military and political officials, Bozhou Governor and Duwei, rode at the end because the three people in the front were none other than Zheng Rong's three sons - Zheng Xin, Zheng Sen and Zheng Miao. The eldest son, Zheng Xin, is a legitimate child. He is already twenty-two years old this year. He has a thin beard and looks just like his father from a distance. The second son, Zheng Sen, is twenty-one years old. His mother is a princess from a foreign country. Zheng Sen died of dissatisfaction with the soil and water of the Central Plains. Zheng Sen has barbarian ancestry. Now his cheeks are covered with thin beards, and he looks very strange. The third son Zheng Miao is only thirteen years old and is also the daughter of the princess. He has delicate features and beautiful eyes, and is very cute. The three princes, King Youyan, have been trained by Zheng Rong since childhood. They are well-educated and skilled in bow and horse. They are very famous in Youyan.
Qiu Yizhi also heard her adoptive father talk about these three brothers several times on the road. She had longed for them for a long time. Finally, they met today. With a mixture of joy, nervousness and curiosity in her heart, she sat straight on the horse and looked forward. Although Qiu Yizhi is a child of a wealthy family, he grew up in poverty. When his mother was alive, she was afraid that he would go out and cause trouble, so she often kept him in the house to concentrate on studying. Therefore, Yi Zhi could only secretly ride on a few farm horses in Zhao's mansion for fun. Later, he was trained by Zheng Rong and his guards for several days in Henan. Although his riding skills had improved somewhat, he was far from being proficient. Now he straightened his body forward on the horse, but forgot to tighten the reins. The horse under his crotch just thought it had received the order and walked forward slowly. Seeing the three brothers getting closer and closer, Yi Zhi was so anxious that he was sweating profusely and his buttocks were moving wildly on the saddle. The horse finally stopped without knowing the owner's intention, but stood motionless in front of Zheng Rong.
Zheng Rong looked amused and ignored him, letting him block the way and waiting quietly for the three princes to come forward. When the three of them were in Youyan, they heard a report from a servant that their father had adopted a teenage boy in Henan. The rude person in front of them today was obviously the child named Qiu Yizhi. The eldest son Zheng Xin looked coldly at Yi Zhi's bewildered look and ignored him. He gently and deftly pulled the reins, rode his horse around and headed towards his father. Qiu Yizhi felt uncomfortable when Zheng Xin saw him. Instead, he remembered the reins in his hands and tugged quickly. As expected, the horse took a few steps back. Unexpectedly, it blocked the way of the second son Zheng Sen. Zheng Sen was not as well-educated as his elder brother, so he secretly hit Yi Zhi's mount on the neck with a riding crop. Even though the movement was not big, the force exerted was considerable. The neck is a soft part of the horse, and a slight blow will make the horse jump in pain. Yi Zhi was afraid of falling off the horse, so he dropped the reins and tightly grabbed the horse's mane with both hands. The horse suffered pain and became even more irritable. When the guards under Zheng Rong saw that the prince's adopted son was in danger, they were about to rush forward to rescue him. Unexpectedly, the third prince Zheng Miao, a boy in his teens, rode up to the side of Yi Zhi's horse without fear. Seeing an opportunity, he grabbed the opportunity. The reins, by some unknown means, calmed the horse. Qiu Yizhi breathed a sigh of relief and felt grateful, but didn't know what to say. She smiled silly towards Zheng Miao. Zheng Miao's two brothers were quite different in age from him. They had no playmates of the same age since they were young, and they didn't know how to get along with their peers. When they saw Yi Zhi's smile, they didn't know how to respond, so they had to scratch their heads and smile back. .
When Qiu Yi and Zheng Miao walked up to Zheng Rong, the two brothers had already finished saluting. Seeing this, Zheng Miao quickly dismounted and saluted. Zheng Rong was happy when he saw it. He dismounted and helped Zheng Miao up. He also introduced his three brothers to Yizhi and asked him to salute the three. After the ceremony was completed, he met with the local officials of Bozhou.
Although Bozhou is close to Henan, it is not far from Guangyang City, the capital of Youyan. Zheng Rong did not want to stay in Bozhou for fear of disturbing the place, so he ordered his followers to walk a few steps quickly and return directly to Guangyang.
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PS. This chapter describes the Gaozong and Xianzong reforms, especially the latter, which is a major background of this book. These two reforms, one before the other, are based on Fan Zhongyan’s Qingli New Deal and Wang Anshi’s Xining Reform in the Northern Song Dynasty. The specific situation cannot be explained clearly in a few words. Please refer to Wikipedia... (To be continued)