Biyun led several palace maids up the steps of Chaowu Palace and stopped in front of Cheng Feng.
"The lord is still summoning candidates for the big exam." Cheng Feng said simply.
Biyun bowed silently and led her people to retreat to the side to wait.
Xiao Qiu showed her face from behind Biyun and came close to Cheng Feng.
"Brother Cheng Feng, I haven't seen you for a while."
The girl, who is about thirteen or fourteen years old, has become slimmer and is no longer the chubby girl she used to be.
But because she is very greedy, her little face is still round, white and tender, and with a pair of watery almond eyes, she is very cute.
Cheng Feng glanced at her and said nothing.
"My sister and I went to Zhengzhou these days." Xiao Qiu's eyes sparkled. She didn't care about Cheng Feng's cold attitude at all.
"The Lord sent us to deliver something to Madam Tianxiang in Zhengzhou."
"We took a ship that sailed along the newly opened canal. It was really fast. We arrived in Zhengzhou in two days. Brother Cheng Feng, have you ever been on a ship?"
Cheng Feng hummed indifferently.
"Madam Tianxiang also gave the master a lot of gifts in return. We will present them to the master now."
"… "
"Madam also gave me a lot of Zhengzhou snacks, they are all delicious. I put them in the room and will share some with you later."
"Um."
Xiao Qiu chattered.
Cheng Feng looked indifferent, but he still listened slowly, responding occasionally, but never showing any impatience.
A maid at the back gently nudged her companion and whispered, "Xiao Qiu is really brave. She dares to talk to Cheng Zuo Suchang."
The companion looked around and found that no one was paying attention to them, so he lowered his voice and replied, "Yes, although Master Cheng is handsome, he has an extremely strict personality. Last time, a sister wanted to talk to him, but he scolded her and she cried. I am afraid of him."
"I heard that he, Sister Biyun, and Xiaoqiu came to the Lord at the same time. They knew each other when they were insignificant, so they treated him differently from you and me."
"I wouldn't dare to do that even if I were in your place. Lord Cheng's cold aura makes my legs go weak just by looking at him from afar."
As he was speaking, a group of people retreated out of the door of Chaowu Palace.
They were all candidates who were rated as top in this exam and had just been summoned personally by the lord.
Among this group of people, some are very young, while others are over 60 years old.
Some of them were dressed elegantly and behaved gracefully, so they must have come from wealthy families.
Some of them wore ill-fitting robes, had dark skin and thick knuckles, and it was obvious that they led a hard and toilsome life.
They retreated from Chaowu Palace, many of them still had flushed faces and clenched fists, still excited about being summoned by their lord.
Biyun led the palace maids behind her and walked forward, passing by the group of excited men.
These people originally had different identities, but no matter where they came from, their life trajectories would be changed from now on.
Most of them will enter the imperial court of Jin State and become the pillars of the country, while others will be assigned to local areas and become officials in charge of local affairs.
"Sister, these people are so lucky to meet a king like our lord." Xiaoqiu said behind Biyun.
Biyun looked back at her plump and beautiful sister, then reached out and squeezed her little hand.
Biyun thought to herself that she and her sisters were so lucky to have met the lord.
Because of the existence of the lord, the lives of so many people in the world have been changed and brought luck to so many people.
As soon as Li Que returned to his residence, he grabbed Dong Bowen's shoulders tightly.
"Bo Wen, I'm so excited." He shook his friend desperately, "The lord is such a kind and handsome man."
Dong Bowen pried his hand off with amusement.
"When he asked me a question, I was so nervous that I almost stuttered." Li Que recalled the previous conversation with the lord and rubbed his head in annoyance. "Ah, I must have looked so ridiculous at that time. What should I do? I left a bad impression on the lord for the first time."
Dong Bowen sat down, took out the tea set and boiled some tea.
"There are so many talented people around our lord." Dong Bowen sighed and offered Li Que a cup of tea.
"Yes, yes," Li Que said excitedly, "There is actually a woman serving as an official beside the lord. And that Lord Zhou Zixi, his legs..."
Dong Bowen sipped the tea in his hand and said, "From this, we can see that the lord is really a person who uses talents in a flexible way."
He carefully analyzed the important officials in the court of Jin: "Now beside the lord, Lord Zhou is responsible for the formulation of policies and regulations, Lord Zhang Fu is good at power struggle and diplomacy, and I heard that there is also a Lord Xiao Jin who is responsible for managing money and taxation. There is also Cui Youyu, Cui Sikong, who is good at water conservancy construction."
Dong Bowen slowly put down the teacup in his hand and said, "I wonder if the lord will let us follow a certain master?"
Li Que said hurriedly: "I like that Mr. Zhang. He looks very kind and always smiles."
Dong Bowen shook his head and thought to himself that Mr. Zhang was not as easy to get along with as he appeared to be.
"I admire Lord Zhou Zixi very much," Dong Bowen said. "Although Lord Zhou is disabled, he is a rare talent. I have read carefully the Jin Code and the system of assessing officials that he implemented, and I admire him deeply."
In Chaowu Palace, Cheng Qianye held a pen and made detailed notes behind each name.
"My lord, do you think this exam has selected some talented people who can be used?" Zhang Fu asked.
"Well, there are quite a few interesting people," Cheng Qianye tapped the names on the silk book, "This Li Que, he is proficient in mathematics and has a loyal character, so let's assign him to Xiao Jin. As for this Dong Bowen..."
Zhang Fu and Zhou Zixi spoke at the same time: "Can Dong Bowen be handed over to me?"
Cheng Qianye laughed: "You are all very good at judging people. This Dong Bowen is indeed quite interesting. I want to keep him for myself and won't give him to you."
Zhou Zixi and Zhang Fu saw their lord open the sandalwood box that had been on the table, take out a lapis lazuli from it, and roll it on the table for an unknown reason.
In the golden autumn, the King of Jin ordered the reform of the central government system of Jin and conferred titles on hundreds of officials.
In the imperial court, the three highest officials, namely, Grand Tutor, Grand Protector and Grand Preceptor, who originally held great power, gradually became honorary titles symbolizing honor.
Cheng Qianye appointed Zhang Fu as prime minister, with a golden seal and purple ribbon, and he was in charge of the king, leading all officials and assisting in all affairs.
Zhou Zixi was the Imperial Censor, with a silver seal and a blue ribbon, supervising all officials and being the deputy prime minister.
Langzhongling Helan Yanzhi was promoted to Taiwei and was in charge of military affairs.
Cheng Feng was appointed Weiwei and was in charge of the palace guards.
Xiao Jin remained as the internal envoy of Zhili and concurrently served as the Prince's tutor.
Yu Dunsu, Mo Qiaosheng, Gan Yanshou and other generals were awarded titles based on their military merits.
Helan Zhen was posthumously conferred the title of Marquis of Yongyi, and his brother was ordered to inherit the title.
The original nine ministers and central government officials remained in office or were slightly adjusted.
At the same time, a set of annual performance appraisal system for officials with clear standards and to prevent fraud was promulgated.
At the end of each year, all officials were ordered to prepare for their administration and to listen to government affairs in order to determine the rewards and punishments they deserved.
Three years is a major plan. Officials who perform well in the assessment can be promoted, while incompetent officials can be retained, demoted or dismissed depending on the circumstances.
For a time, the atmosphere in the Jin court was renewed.
The young, newly appointed officials were full of vigor and vitality, and their vigorous energy injected a breath of fresh blood into the court.
The experienced and steady court officials were unwilling to bow down to the newcomers, and they all abandoned the custom of lazy governance and worked diligently.
Although there were also many conservative voices of opposition.
But now the lord Cheng Qianye holds the military power and has many talented people under his command. He is in the limelight and no one can surpass his edge.
We can only watch her push for changes in the entire country step by step according to her own will.
The following spring,
The King of Jin ordered the Grand Chancellor Yu Dunsu to lead an army of 100,000 to attack Song on the pretext that an assassin from Song was plotting an assassination.
In spring, all things come back to life, showing new vitality everywhere.
Zhou Zixi was sitting in a wheelchair, walking on the rammed earth road of Bianjing Street.
Although he was a very busy official as the Imperial Envoy who supervised all officials,
But Zhou Zixi still likes to take time to visit the streets and alleys of the city.
Through the various aspects of people's livelihood, we can actually understand the pros and cons that arise during the implementation of the new policy so that timely rectification can be made.
Several children were playing on the roadside, and a boy accidentally fell near Zhou Zixi's wheelchair while playing.
A pale arm suddenly stretched out from behind Zhou Zixi and grabbed the boy's arm fiercely, not allowing him to get any closer.
The boy felt pain in his arm and started crying out in pain.
"Zhou Ming." Zhou Zixi called out.
Zhou Ming stared at the boy for a long while, and finally let go and threw the boy to the ground far away from Zhou Zixi.
The boy looked at the five bruised finger marks on his arm and ran home crying.
"Zhou Ming, you are too nervous." Zhou Zixi said helplessly, "How can I walk around in the alleys like this?"
Zhou Ming pushed Zhou Zixi's wheelchair again, and the wheelchair made a rumbling sound on the rammed earth.
"Now that our country is at war with the State of Song, how can you be so defenseless against others?"
Zhou Ming's voice came from behind the chair, "My lord has entrusted your safety to me. Even if I make you unhappy, I cannot neglect the vigilance around you."
"Yes, we are at war with the State of Song. I heard that the war is going very smoothly." Zhou Zixi rubbed his fingers gently, "But I always feel like I'm missing something. Is everything going too smoothly?"
In Chaowu Palace, Cheng Qianye smiled happily and said to Zhang Fu while twisting the military report: "Look, Prime Minister Zhang, another victory report!"
Zhang Fu smiled and said, "Congratulations, my lord. Recently, we have received frequent reports of victory. General Yu's army has approached the capital of Song, Pengcheng. It seems that our army will soon be able to destroy Song."
Cheng Qianye sat down and looked at another military report in his hand with a smile: "Qiaosheng is doing very well in Hanzhong and will be able to return to Beijing in a few months. God really favors our Great Jin."
***
There is a dim secret room in the Taibao Mansion in Bianjing.
Taibao Wei Sibu was sitting in the dim secret room, staring at the faint oil lamp in front of him.
The dim flames flickered, casting flickering shadows upon his dejected face.
"Sir, don't hesitate any longer." A gloomy voice said in the corner.
Wei Sibu clenched his fists.
Yes, he used to be the country's guardian, one of the three highest officials, and held great power in the country. Was there any day when his mansion was not crowded with people
Since the capital was moved to Bianjing,
He was gradually stripped of his power and the house became increasingly deserted.
Newcomers were in power in the court, and no one followed his lead anymore, leaving him with only a meaningless title to cover up his shame.
How did he end up in this situation
"Don't hesitate, sir. We can't allow our lord to force us to retreat step by step like this."
"If this continues, there will be no place for us in Jin State."
One gloomy voice after another rang out from the dark corner.