I really want to sleep, and someone will give me a pillow!
Regarding the many drawbacks of the corvée system, Wang Anshi believed that it had reached a point where change was necessary, as it had serious implications for the country and the people. Historically, Wang Anshi also proposed the Conscription Law (Exemption Law) to deepen reforms to this drawback.
As far as the normal process is concerned, he first gives examples to illustrate the problem, and then proposes reforms.
However, Zhang Fei made a shocking statement and actually wanted to sue the court over this method.
This couldn't help but bring inspiration to Wang Anshi!
In the previous process, he was the only one who went to the court to fight for it, but in this kind of matter, each person often has his own reasons.
There will definitely be some debate in the court.
And it's hard to come to a conclusion.
But if it happens in court, there will be a result, which will be more convincing.
The law is relatively strict and unlikely to be ambiguous.
Therefore, Wang Anshi was very excited.
Zhang Fei explained: "If this law itself is illegal, then it is grounds for suing the court."
Wang Anshi was stunned when he heard this. "How can this law be violated?"
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "Of course."
Wang Anshi asked curiously, "What law did you break?"
The law is the law, how can the law be violated
That's against the law.
Could it be Khitan law
Didn't the Khitans also copy us
Zhang Fei said embarrassedly: "I have some clues about this, but I am not sure yet, so I dare not speak rashly for the time being."
Wang Anshi's face changed and said, "You are not even sure, what are you doing here?"
Suddenly, he looked at Zhang Fei and saw that the boy was full of confidence and not guilty at all. He couldn't help but think, good boy, you want to hide something again.
All along, Zhang Fei always hid the key arguments in lawsuits until he brought them out in court to catch them off guard.
Wang Anshi could understand this. After all, Zhang Fei was of low status. If he took it out too early, it might be gone, or someone might find a flaw in it.
Wang Anshi thought about it seriously. He only cared about prosecuting the Corvée Law, and didn't care about the means. If Zhang Fei could really sue successfully and prove that the Corvée Law was illegal, then his reform would be a natural outcome.
It's so easy.
After a while, he suddenly sighed: "You can't succeed in this. If the court pleads guilty, do you know what the consequences will be?"
Zhang Fei said: "Of course I know, and I didn't plan to succeed."
Wang Anshi was surprised and said, "Then you are asking for trouble."
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "The court does not admit guilt because of political considerations. I am sure I can win the case in the judicial system. The question now is whether I can sue the court. The law does not prohibit me from doing so, but in reality I may not be allowed to do so. If Grand Secretary Wang can support me and allow me to be qualified to sue, I can at least force the court to investigate the corruption case and use it to fend me off."
Wang Anshi suddenly realized, "So that's it! So that's it! You are really cunning, no, stupid, using a butcher knife to kill a chicken."
"No matter whether it is a white cat or a black cat, as long as it can catch mice, it is a good cat." Zhang Fei laughed.
Wang Anshi was very happy to hear this and agreed with it deeply. He said excitedly: "Well said! It doesn't matter whether the cat is white or black, as long as it catches mice, it is a good cat."
This sentence coincides with his philosophy.
Zhang Fei added: "Having said that, this corvée law does have many drawbacks. When I sue the court, I will list them one by one. If it is not corrected, this kind of thing will continue forever. But to solve these drawbacks, we can only rely on Grand Secretary Wang."
How could Wang Anshi not know what this kid was planning
This is an exchange of interests.
I fight for you, you give me a chance to play.
Wang Anshi was very excited and decided to start the reform at the beginning of next year. The arrow was on the string and had to be fired.
But how to start
He is still considering it.
Although he did not intend to propose the conscription law at the beginning, if he could use this case as a detonation point, he could actually save himself a lot of trouble. At that time, he could go with the flow and move forward and backward freely with ease.
The key is to have a legitimate reason.
Wang Anshi had already made up his mind, and it was obvious that this fellow seemed to understand the corvée law very well, so he couldn't help asking: "How do you think the corvée law should be corrected?"
Zhang Fei hesitated for a moment, "This is not what I am good at, but my understanding of laws is that they are about perfection and execution. No matter how good a law is, without enforcement, it will become a bad law."
Wang Anshi nodded slightly.
Seeing that he didn't care much, Zhang Fei didn't plan to say anything else, and asked Wang Anshi again: "I wonder if Grand Secretary Wang will support me?"
Wang Anshi smiled and said, "If what you say makes sense, why don't I support you?"
For him, this deal is a sure win.
"Thank you, Grand Secretary Wang."
... ...
After leaving Wang's house, Zhang Fei did not go home, but went straight to Sima's house.
After all, suing the imperial court is no trivial matter and will inevitably cause earth-shaking changes. The support of Wang Anshi alone is not enough. It is necessary to obtain the support of Sima Guang at the same time.
This is safer.
When Sima Guang heard about this case, he was extremely angry, just like Wang Anshi.
But then he was shocked.
"What? You...you want to sue the court?"
"Yes."
Zhang Fei nodded.
Sima Guang asked curiously, "What are you suing for?"
Zhang Fei said: "It is illegal to prosecute the corvée."
Sima Guang was like Wang Anshi, "Is the corvée law against law? What law is it against?"
Zhang Fei hesitated for a moment, "It violates the laws of our ancestors."
"The law of our ancestors?"
Sima Guang's eyes lit up, and like Wang Anshi, he sat down next to Zhang Fei, turned sideways, and wanted to stick close to Zhang Fei, "What do you mean?"
Zhang Fei leaned slightly and said awkwardly, "At present, I only have some clues. The details still need to be verified. I dare not speak rashly for the time being."
Sima Guang looked at him suspiciously, hesitated for a moment, and said, "The court will never let you win. If you win, do you know what the consequences will be?"
He and Wang Anshi were both extremely talented and could react to many things very quickly.
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "Of course I know, but I can use this to force the court to find out the real culprit and put an end to this case."
"So they're asking for an exorbitant price, so they'll pay you back right away!"
Sima Guang smiled and nodded.
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "That's right. If this happens, the opponent will definitely choose to sacrifice the pawn to save the king."
Sima Guang said: "But if you do this, the risk you will take will be very high."
Zhang Fei said: "Therefore, I hope to get the support of Sima Daxueshi."
Sima Guang thought for a while with a frown, and suddenly asked, "Do you plan to go find Wang Jiefu?"
As expected of Ah Guang, his reaction is really quick! Zhang Fei nodded and said, "I just came out of Wang Daxueshi's house."
"Did he agree?" Sima Guang asked immediately.
Zhang Fei nodded.
Sima Guang asked again: "How did you convince him?"
Zhang Fei replied: "Because I know that Grand Secretary Wang wants to reform this law."
Sima Guang immediately asked: "Then how do you plan to convince me?"
Zhang Fei replied: "Because I know that Grand Secretary Wang wants to reform this law."
Sima Guang stroked his beard and smiled: "Good boy, you actually figured out my thoughts."
Zhang Fei said: "Sima Dashi is more far-sighted and thoughtful."
Sima Guang asked, "Does that mean you are also against Wang Jiefu's reforms?"
Zhang Fei said: "I am just an ear and pen person, and I only oppose injustice."
Sima Guang stroked his beard and nodded with a smile: "I promise you that I will fully support you in suing the court."
"Thank you, Grand Secretary Sima."
After leaving Sima's house, Zhang Fei couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, but his expression gradually became solemn, and he muttered to himself: "I am the knife and who is the fish?"
... ...
At this moment, Wang Anshi had already arrived at the palace. It turned out that Zhang Fei had just left the Wang family when the emperor summoned Wang Anshi into the palace.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."
"Sir, there is no need to be so polite. Please take a seat."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
After Wang Anshi sat down, Zhao Xu said, "Today, when I was reading history books, I suddenly thought of a question, so I specially invited you to the palace to ask for advice."
Wang Anshi asked, "What is the problem?"
Zhao Xu then said: "Throughout the ages, all capable ministers who have governed a country have raised the question that governing a country requires governing its officials first."
Wang Anshi understood immediately and stroked his beard, saying, "I wonder which history book Your Majesty is reading?"
Zhao Xu asked curiously, "Why do you ask this question, sir?"
Wang Anshi laughed and said, "Your Majesty is definitely not looking at the history of the Tang Dynasty."
Zhao Xu immediately said: "I am reading the history of the Tang Dynasty."
"Then Your Majesty must not have read the history of Emperor Gaozong of Tang and Empress Wu of Zhou." Wang Anshi said with a smile.
The more Zhao Xu listened, the more confused he became. "I hope you can explain it clearly, sir."
Wang Anshi said, "From the Northern Dynasties to the early Tang Dynasty, the government was controlled by the aristocratic families, and the Guanzhong aristocratic families were particularly prominent. Your Majesty, do you know how Empress Wu Zetian extended her imperial power?"
Zhao Xu said: "Overthrow Zhangsun Wuji and Chu Suiliang."
Wang Anshi shook his head and said, "That's just the beginning."
Zhao Xu hesitated for a moment and said, "Sir, you are referring to building the eastern capital in Luoyang."
"exactly."
Wang Anshi said: "At that time, Chang'an was in Guanzhong, and the Guanzhong clans were intermarried and intertwined. If we want to eliminate them, it will be impossible to do it in a short time. The only way to get rid of the Guanlong clans is to move the power center to Luoyang, the eastern capital.
The same is true of our government's administration today. If we want to rectify the administration, it will be extremely difficult. The only way to succeed is to avoid this complicated relationship, start anew, and then promote the reform of the administration."
Zhao Xu was surprised and asked, "Starting a new business?"
Wang Anshi nodded and said, "I suggest that Your Majesty set up another department specifically for reform, and the laws issued can be directly issued to the localities without going through the Secretariat or the Privy Council."
Zhao Xu nodded thoughtfully, "Sir, what you said makes sense. If we do this, we can temporarily avoid the chaotic administration in the court."
The reason why Zhao Xu asked Wang Anshi to come today was entirely because of the conversation with Zhang Fei. He also knew in his heart that in the administration of the Song Dynasty, a decree might not be implemented even after circulating in the central government for a long time, let alone its execution.
It’s impossible to have more than a dozen government offices taking care of one thing!
But if we want to rectify the administration of officials, given the current situation, it will take at least ten years, so don’t even think about it.
This really made Zhao Xu feel a little hesitant.
How could Wang Anshi not know this? But now that power is so dispersed, how can you rectify the administration of officials? You have to concentrate power first and then rectify it.
His solution was to set up a temporary central institution, not play along with them, first take back the power and use it specifically for reform, which included rectifying the administration of officials.