Sima Guang was making plans in secret, and Wang Anshi was also making the final personnel arrangements.
Among them was a man whom he had long wanted to recruit under his command.
It's just that the timing was wrong before.
This person is Zhang Fei.
"Grand Master Wang, your presence is a great honor to my humble abode."
Zhang Fei bowed and said.
Wang Anshi could not help laughing when he saw him stutter out such a sentence. He waved his hand and said, "That's enough! That's enough! It's better not to say such polite words."
"I'm really not very good at socializing. I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, Grand Secretary Wang." Zhang Fei said embarrassedly.
He was still somewhat unfamiliar with the etiquette of the Song Dynasty. In fact, most of the time, he was just learning lines from TV dramas, but no one paid much attention to it.
Wang Anshi laughed and said, "It seems that all your eloquence has been used in court. But not knowing those red tape is not a bad thing."
"Thank you for your understanding, Master Wang."
Zhang Fei smiled and extended his hand again, saying, "Master Wang, please."
After arriving at the hall and sitting down, Wang Anshi got straight to the point and said, "I won't play dumb with you, kid. I came here this time because I hope you can come to the court to help me reform. Are you willing?"
Zhang Fei didn't expect that Wang Anshi was even less polite than him and spoke so directly that he was stunned.
If you invite me politely, I can also refuse politely.
No hurtful feelings!
How can I refuse your direct invitation
Wang Anshi saw that he was silent, so he asked again: "Why don't you answer?"
"I... !"
Zhang Fei hurriedly said, "I am flattered that Grand Secretary Wang thinks highly of me."
"I've already said it, so stop being polite and just give me an answer." Wang Anshi waved his hand.
Zhang Fei said: "How can a humble person...!"
"What are you talking about?" Wang Anshi interrupted him.
Zhang Fei said: "No."
“… … !”
But faced with such a straightforward answer, Wang Anshi was stunned and asked, "Why?"
Zhang Fei hesitated for a moment and said, "Because I also want to invite Wang Daxueshi to come to the bookstore to be an espionage person."
Wang Anshi was incredulous: "You...what did you say?"
Zhang Fei asked, "I wonder if Grand Secretary Wang is willing to do so?"
"Asshole!"
Wang Anshi slammed the table and stood up. Just as he was about to scold Zhang Fei, he suddenly sat down again and said, "You mean, everyone has their own aspirations."
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "That's right. My benefactor recommended me to the court, but I declined."
Wang Anshi asked curiously, "Do you think that court officials are worse than an ear-writer?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "That's not the case. It's just that my current success makes me enjoy everything at the moment. I enjoy seeking justice for those who have been wronged. I don't want to make any changes for the time being."
Wang Anshi said: "Although each person has his own ambitions, men's ambitions are still greater."
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "So I still need to gain some experience, so I'll start by helping a commoner."
Wang Anshi smiled and said, "Okay! I won't force you. If you change your mind one day, you can come to me."
"Thank you for your appreciation, Grand Secretary Wang." Zhang Fei bowed and said, "Although I don't plan to become an official, I can still help Grand Secretary Wang with his reforms."
Wang Anshi was slightly stunned, then nodded and said, "That's true, you have helped me a lot before."
He thought that with Zhang Fei's talent, he might be able to help him more among the people.
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "Master Wang has helped me a lot. This is mutually beneficial for us. This kind of cooperation can continue."
Wang Anshi laughed, "What a win-win situation."
Zhang Fei was not an indispensable part to him, but he admired Zhang Fei's talents and hoped to promote him.
Since Zhang Fei is unwilling, he won't force it.
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "Perhaps soon I will be able to benefit from it with Mr. Wang again."
Wang Anshi said, "What do you mean?"
He is still very interested in working with Zhang Fei.
Zhang Fei kept it a secret, "We'll tell you later."
After chatting for another half an hour, Wang Anshi got up and left. He was really busy now, and being able to come in person to recruit Zhang Fei really gave Zhang Fei enough face!
Zhang Fei personally saw him off to the door, but when he returned to the hall, he found Xu Zhiqian was already sitting inside.
"I must hire a doorman to watch over the back door."
Zhang Fei said viciously.
Xu Zhiqian pursed her lips and smiled: "How about borrowing one from my house for you temporarily?"
"That's no use."
Zhang Fei glared at her and sat down.
Xu Zhiqian said: "Why is it useless? At least I can make sure you don't go through the back door of my house."
“… … !”
Zhang Fei suddenly realized, "Yes! I think I went to his house through the back door as well."
Seeing Zhang Fei's face turn red, Xu Zhiqian smiled and said, "But you really don't know how to appreciate your blessings. How many people in the world want to be officials in the court, but can't, and you, the emperor invited you, but you refused. Now Uncle Wang invites you again, but you still refuse. If this gets out, I'm afraid many people will envy you to death."
Zhang Fei snorted: "How can a swan understand the ambition of a sparrow?"
"You... How can a swan know a sparrow?" Xu Zhiqian was stunned for a moment, then chuckled and asked with interest: "But to be honest, the ambition of a sparrow seems to be more difficult to guess than that of a swan. What is it?"
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "Of course he is rich, has many wives and concubines, and has many children and grandchildren."
"Well, that's insightful." Xu Zhiqian couldn't help but smile, but then added: "But this is not your ambition."
Zhang Fei was stunned. "What do you mean?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "If you think so, then you would have entered the court as an official long ago."
“… … !”
Zhang Fei didn't know how to refute.
Xu Zhiqian examined it and snorted softly, "Sooner or later I will guess what you are planning."
If you can guess, I will marry you. Zhang Fei said: "Okay! You guess! Hehe..."
"What are you guys talking about so happily?"
Suddenly, a laugh was heard, and Xu Zun walked towards me slowly.
“Daddy!”
Xu Zhiqian stood up hurriedly.
Zhang Fei saw Xu Zun coming from the side, thinking, both father and daughter like to go through the back door. But then he thought, well, this also proves that they don't treat me as an outsider. Anyway, I went to his house through the back door, so it doesn't matter, as long as it's fair.
Zhang Fei also stood up and greeted him, "My benefactor."
Xu Zun smiled and nodded.
He knew that Zhang Fei had already learned of the official's identity, but if Zhang Fei didn't mention it, he wouldn't ask. He was really too ashamed to talk about this matter!
"Dad, why did you come back so early today?" Xu Zhiqian asked curiously.
Xu Zun laughed and said, "I was invited by the Court of Criminal Justice this morning to attend a meeting. There was nothing else to do in the court, so I came back directly."
Xu Zhiqian asked, "Why did the Court of Criminal Justice ask you to attend the meeting?"
Xu Zun said with a smile: "This new official has three fires when he takes office!"
Xu Zhiqian frowned and asked, "Uncle Sima?"
Xu Zun nodded.
Although the Court of Criminal Justice has greater power than the Dali Temple, the two are not subordinate to each other.
The key point is that Sima Guang is now the Vice-Chancellor, which is very different. The Vice-Chancellor can exercise the power of the prime minister and of course has the power to convene meetings of the judicial department.
Zhang Fei frowned and asked, "Could it be that Grand Secretary Sima wants to deal with the benefactor?"
Xu Zun waved his hand: "No, no, although I have different ideas from Sima Xueshi, he is not so stingy. He invited me today because he hopes to reform the current judicial system."
"reform?"
Xu Zhiqian looked at Xu Zun in surprise.
Everyone is discussing Wang Anshi's reforms, but I never thought that Sima Guang also wanted to reform.
This is such a surprise.
Xu Zun said with a smile: "Sima Junshi and Wang Jiefu have always been dissatisfied with each other. Now that Wang Jiefu wants to reform, Sima Junshi will not fall behind him. In fact, it is better this way, so that they don't quarrel again."
As expected of Sima Guang, this trick is really good! I can't wait to give you a thumbs up. Zhang Fei couldn't help but feel secretly happy.
Xu Zun suddenly glanced at Zhang Fei and asked, "Zhang San, what do you think about this?"
I guess Sima Guang also guessed that Xu Zun would come to ask me, so why don't I just go with the flow. Zhang Fei pondered for a moment and said, "After these few lawsuits, I personally feel quite embarrassed."
"Excuse me?"
Xu Zun and his daughter said in unison.
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "Your Excellency also knows how much the people in Kaifeng Prefecture hate me."
Before Xu Zun could speak, Xu Zhiqian said, "They are paid but don't want to work, and they have the nerve to blame others. This is really absurd."
Xu Zun waved his hand and said, "Prefect Lu is definitely not such a person."
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "What you said is very true. The main affairs of Kaifeng Prefecture are the people's livelihood and finances of the prefecture, and the trial of cases is secondary.
My frequent complaints have forced Kaifeng Prefecture to devote too much energy to the lawsuit, which may lead to putting the cart before the horse. After all, a lawsuit can only redress the grievances of one person, while a policy mistake will bring disaster to the people of the entire prefecture."
Xu Zhiqian asked: "Do you mean to separate the two?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "It's not two, it's four."
"Four?"
Xu Zhiqian asked curiously: "What are those four?"
Zhang Fei said: "Administration, justice, trial, prosecution. Take Kaifeng Prefecture for example, Kaifeng Prefecture is only responsible for administration, dealing with finance, people's livelihood, and water conservancy construction.
Among them, the main ones are the Tongpan and the County Wei, and there is also a Judicial Department, which is responsible for maintaining public order and investigation. However, the final trial is handed over to the trial office such as the Siliyuan. However, there must be a department in the middle that is responsible for supervision and prosecution.
The key is that these four yamen are not subordinate to each other. In this way, these four departments can supervise each other. At the very least, if the prefect breaks the law, he will be prosecuted. "
Xu Zun nodded repeatedly after hearing this, feeling overjoyed.
In terms of legal system construction alone, the Northern Song Dynasty should be regarded as the peak of feudalism. Neither the Han, Tang, Ming or Qing dynasties were as perfect as the Northern Song Dynasty.
This is because Zhao Kuangyin himself attached great importance to criminal justice. In addition, the Northern Song Dynasty's idea of dividing power meant that various judicial departments had checks and balances on each other, which was good for judicial construction.
Xu Zun quickly understood the merits of this system of public security, procuratorial and judicial organs. "What you said makes sense, but if we do this, will it make the entire trial process more complicated and require more funds?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "It will only become simpler, not more complicated."
Xu Zun said, "What do you mean?"
Zhang Fei said: "Not every prefect is as familiar with the law as my benefactor. Once you encounter some officials who don't know much about the law, the lawsuit will become complicated.
Having specialized officials handle specialized matters will help, once they get used to it, many cases can be tried quickly, which is actually more convenient.
As for the funding issue, I can't help you, but I believe that Sima Daxueshi will find a way to solve it."
Xu Zun nodded slightly.
Xu Zhiqian, who had been with Zhang Fei day and night, saw that he was speaking without hesitation again, so she said, "Since you have an idea, why didn't you tell my father at the beginning?"
Even for a genius, this judicial structure could not have been a sudden inspiration; it must have been thought out long ago.
Zhang Fei smiled bitterly and said, "Even if I had said it at the beginning, there would be nothing I could do."
Xu Zun laughed and said, "Your greatest skill is not to argue in class, but to know when to say what to say, so that it will be most useful."
"Isn't this the method used by the ear-pen man?"
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "But if you want to discuss this reform plan with Sima Daxueshi, don't say it was my suggestion."
Xu Zun asked: "Why?"
Zhang Fei said embarrassedly: "Because many ministers in the court are dissatisfied with me. If they knew that it was me who did it, I'm afraid it would cause a lot of trouble and would backfire."
Xu Zun stroked his beard and nodded.