OBS Chapter 185 Many contradictions
Chapter 185 Many contradictions
On the fifth day of June in the first year of Yongxing in the Song Dynasty, more than a month after the death of Emperor Renzong, Grand Tutor Pang, who was originally recorded as having passed away in March, also came to the end of his life.
After saying goodbye to his family one by one and discussing his final political propositions, the 76-year-old Pang Chunzhi met with Han Ming, the deputy privy envoy of the current dynasty.
In June of the first year of Yongxing (the eighth year of Jiayou), Pang Chunzhi passed away at the age of seventy-six.
In June of the same year, he was posthumously awarded the title of Sikong and added the title of Shizhong, with the posthumous name of Zhuangmin.
Outsiders were unaware of the conversation between the two, but after the death of Grand Tutor Pang, the descendants of the Pang family, led by the eldest son Pang Yuanlu, all defected to Han Ming's side.
The cause of the incident was that after the new emperor came to power, the Secretariat headed by Han Zhang and Zeng Mingzhong wrote a letter to the emperor, hoping to appoint the chief official of the Sansi Yamen, which was in charge of the court's finances.
As a result, all the powerful nobles and lords who reached a certain level in the entire city of Bianjing hoped to hold the purse of the Song Dynasty.
The first one to be recommended is the Duke of Qi, who has been deeply involved in the Sansi Yamen. As the Duke of Qi who has been in charge of the Salt and Iron Bureau under the Sansi Yamen for many years, he is in charge of the country's tea, salt, mining, industrial and commercial taxes, rivers and canals, and military equipment. He is familiar with this set of financial procedures.
The second is Wang Jiefu, who was once a judge of the Ministry of Revenue and is currently the acting editor of imperial edicts. As an official from the Ministry of Revenue, he is in charge of coordinating financial revenue and expenditure and grain transportation, and is also the best candidate.
Then there is the unexpected figure of Prince Pu, Zhao Zongquan. As a member of the Zhao clan in the court, the minister entrusted by the late emperor, and the leader of all the kings, 'Brother Quan' is now the most popular dignitary in the capital.
He was appointed as the Three-Commissioner mainly because the royal family headed by the new emperor did not want the financial power to fall into the hands of others, and they also wanted to check and balance all parties, so they put forward Comrade Lao Zhao.
Finally, of course, there is our Deputy Privy Envoy Han, the real Prime Minister Han of the current dynasty.
Now that the three military, political and financial institutions are holding a meeting, Mr. Han will also walk in square steps and sit in one of the main seats openly.
The one who proposed that Han Ming take charge of the Three Departments was Pang Yuanlu, the son of Grand Tutor Pang and the then Secretary of the Ministry of Rites.
For this reason, even the Zhongsan Doctor Pang Yuanying (second son), the Dali Temple Secretary Pang Yuanchang (third son), and the Chaofeng Doctor Pang Yuanzhong (fourth son) all clearly supported Han Ming in taking charge of the Three Departments.
For a time, literati and officials at all levels, led by the Pang family, submitted petitions requesting that Han Ming concurrently serve as the Three-Division Envoy.
The new emperor Zhao Zonghao's hands were shaking as he looked at the documents in his hands.
If he was not mistaken, more than half of the officials in the court actually asked Han Ming to serve as the Minister of the Three Departments while serving as the Deputy Minister of the Privy Council.
What kind of situation was this? They were entrusting all military and financial affairs to one person, along with Han Zhang, who was in charge of the Secretariat. Was his Han family taking over the entire government?!
Zhao Zonghao was very angry. He felt that some of these ministers were unscrupulously forming cliques for personal gain and openly using him, the new official, as a puppet.
But he had never imagined such a situation. The previous emperor had been in power for a full forty-two years.
Although the new emperor attaches importance to these old ministers and powerful officials, it does not mean that he has no ideas of his own.
For this reason, Zhao Zonghao directly rejected the proposal of Pang Yuanlu and others, and did not even discuss it with the Secretariat. He directly issued an edict to appoint Prince Pu Zhao Zongquan as the Three-Division Envoy.
As a result, our "Brother Quan" became the Prime Minister within less than half a year of arriving in Beijing.
However, Zhao Zonghao's decree also aroused an atmosphere among the old ministers, who believed that the emperor was openly defying the court's legal system.
"How could you issue an imperial decree without the approval of the Secretariat? Your Majesty, this is a violation of the imperial system—!"
Han Zhang held the jade sceptre and scolded Zhao Zonghao in person.
"Have you ever seen a group of ministers colluding to force the emperor to make personnel appointments or dismissals?!"
The new emperor's voice was no smaller than Han Zhang's. After all, he was used to being arrogant and domineering when he was the Prince of Yong. Now that he was in power, he was always constrained in every way and could not do whatever he wanted like when he was a prince.
He had been annoyed with these old guys for a long time. They always boasted about how right they were and scolded him, the emperor, like a three-year-old child.
It has been just over a month since he ascended the throne, and the Secretariat has rejected countless of his orders.
I want to build a new imperial garden, and these people want to interfere with it by using the money from the imperial treasury. They say that the previous emperor was frugal and caring about the people, and never touched a single cent of the imperial treasury, and I should follow his example.
And when I want to eat something good, or use high-quality ingredients to make something to enhance my personal enjoyment, these old guys will jump out and criticize me for being extravagant or wasteful.
This fucking emperor is so good at being a king, but the more he sits, the more he sinks back. How can this be comfortable?!
Zhao Zonghao never thought that Emperor Renzong restrained himself from all these things for forty-two years, reducing his human desires to the lowest level.
Although Song Renzong was not a wise and virtuous ruler admired in ancient and modern times, he was indeed a man who knew himself, did not act recklessly, restrained his desires, sympathized with the lower classes, and was very obedient and listened to advice and sat on the throne.
In this respect, many emperors in history could not compare with him.
As a member of the royal family, Zhao Zonghao enjoyed the extravagance and wastefulness of Wang Si.
But have you ever thought about how difficult it is to be a truly good emperor?
In short, with Zhao Zonghao's rise to power and the change of customs, the entire court began to show a "luxurious trend".
This made the ministers very uncomfortable, and they submitted memorials and suggestions one after another, but were scolded by Zhao Zonghao.
The conflict between the monarch and his ministers became visibly sharper, and the issue of Han Ming serving as the Three Commissioners became the breaking point of the conflict.
"Throughout history, monarchs, whenever faced with issues concerning the future of the state and the well-being of the people, have sought advice from their ministers, pooling their wisdom to achieve stability and security."
"Your Majesty, by being so arbitrary and tyrannical, isn't that putting the people of the world in danger?!"
Sima Junshi, the head of the Censorate, directly scolded the emperor to his face. This might not have been a big deal during the reign of Emperor Renzong, but for the new emperor now, this humiliation was more painful than killing him.
"What? Am I a ruthless and incompetent ruler?! Just because I didn't follow your wishes, and followed your will, is it a disaster that will cause the sky to fall and the earth to collapse?!"
Zhao Zonghao stared at this group of civil and military officials fiercely, his murderous intent not concealed at all.
Han Ming, the main culprit, narrowed his eyes, hugged the jade sceptre and dozed without saying a word, as if the quarrel in the court had nothing to do with him.
Zhao Zonghao and a group of ministers saw his behavior and couldn't help but sigh at his patience.
"If Your Majesty feels that my words are biased, I implore Your Majesty to allow me to retire and return home."
Sima Junshi kowtowed and knelt down.
This surprised many people, and they felt that things had gotten out of hand.
"Master Sima is threatening me—!"
Zhao Zonghao slapped the dragon throne and stood up, with the coldness in his eyes undisguised.
"His Majesty--!"
Han Ming saw that the time was ripe and he could no longer suppress the pressure, so he stepped out and bowed his head.
"Ahem, what does Lord Han have to teach you?"
Although Zhao Zonghao had a certain favorable impression of Han Ming, he was prepared to completely suppress Han Ming one day since the ministers began to form a faction.
"Your Majesty, since the founding of our dynasty, we have never entrusted all military and financial affairs to a single person."
"In my opinion, Prince Pu Zhao Zongquan and Crown Prince Zhao Ceying both possess the talent to help the country and are capable of shouldering this important responsibility. The position of the Three Commissioners should be given to Prince Pu and his son."
As soon as Han Ming finished speaking, all the ministers looked at him sideways. Even Emperor Zhao Zonghao frowned and looked at him in confusion.
What the hell is this guy playing...
"What do you think, Your Majesty?"
Han Ming still looked calm and composed, making it impossible for people to detect what he was thinking.
The hall fell into silence in an instant. No one spoke, and everyone was thinking about Han Ming's intention.
"What does Prince Pu think?"
Zhao Zonghao kicked the ball to Zhao Zongquan, which made the upstart so nervous that he broke out in a sweat.
How could he, a former militia commander, have predicted such a situation?
For the first time, he felt that the waters of Bianjing were too deep and he was somewhat out of control.
"Your Majesty, I will leave it to you to decide!"
This was all Zhao Zongquan could say in the end.
"Okay, then Prince Pu will serve as the Minister of Imperial Clan Affairs and concurrently as the Minister of the Three Departments, and Prince Pu will serve as the Chief of the Ministry of Revenue to assist you."
The emperor's words made many people frown, as if he was trying to put eye drops on Han Ming.
Previously, the ministers had suggested that Han Ming be made Deputy Privy Councilor and concurrently Minister of the Three Departments, but this was rejected. Now, is Zhao Zongquan being made Minister of the Imperial Clan and concurrently Minister of the Three Departments? Isn't this deliberately embarrassing the other party?!
But Han Ming still had no expression on his face. After the court session ended, he walked slowly in front of the team like an old man.
No one knew what Han Ming was feeling at this moment, but at least they knew that this favorite of the late emperor might soon become a thing of the past...