The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 278 Stick Your Head Out

"Uncle Liang, you absolutely cannot miss this Dongtang Banquet."

Inside Cui's residence, Cui Zan looked at his son in front of him seriously.

Cui Zan's son was named Cui Hong, and he was studying in the Imperial College at that time.

His personality was different from his father's. He was upright and serious. When the ritual and legal school and the metaphysical school of the Imperial College fought, he was the first to take action.

Because of his upright character, he easily offended others, but Cui Zan was not angry. He admired his son's character very much and felt that his son had the talent to be an imperial censor.

At this moment, upon hearing his father's words, Cui Hong did not choose to obey. Instead, he asked, "Is it proper for a gentleman to spontaneously attend a banquet without being invited?"

Cui Zan shook his head. "For the sake of justice, etiquette and laws can be temporarily ignored."

"Your Majesty is now in power. I asked you to attend the banquet not to please or flatter His Majesty, but to understand His Majesty."

"Your Majesty has great strategic plans and ambitions, but you are too young. I'm afraid your impatience will harm the world."

Cui Hong frowned. "Do you want me to find out what His Majesty has to say?"

"This is even more of a mean-spirited act."

Cui Zan remained calm and continued, "This is for the sake of the Great Wei. Your Majesty is now in charge of the government, and we should assist you with all our strength. Your Majesty is young and has no experience in governing the country. With so many distinguished people gathered at the East Hall banquet, I'm afraid someone might instigate Your Majesty to do something unfavorable."

"I do not mean to harm Your Majesty. Your Majesty once said: Those who know their ruler or father has made a mistake but do not admonish him are not loyal or filial."

Cui Hong was still a little unhappy, but he nodded to show his obedience.

Cui Zan was about to give other instructions when a servant came in hurriedly and whispered a few words to him.

Cui Zan was shocked and quickly stood up, asked Cui Hong to leave, and walked out of the inner room.

"Mr. Xun."

"Mr. Cui!"

When Cui Zan walked out of the mansion, Xun Yi was standing at the door.

When Xun Yi saw Cui Zan coming out, he hurriedly bowed to greet him.

Cui Zan hurriedly returned the gift and took him into his own mansion.

No one expected that after the downfall of the Three Dukes, Xun Yi would become the biggest beneficiary. Overnight, he became the actual head of the Secretariat, the real prime minister of the empire, and the emperor's number one minister.

Xun Yi did not become elated by this sudden promotion. He seemed more humble and cautious than before.

Perhaps because several people who were arrogant and celebrated before things even started died tragically recently, Xun Yi temporarily learned from their lesson and did not make a fuss about it.

The two of them walked all the way to Cui Zan's study and then sat facing each other.

Now, many ministers in the Secretariat have suffered heavy casualties. Several leaders such as Lu Yu, Wang Guan, and Fu Gu have fallen, leaving only a few old ministers such as Xun Yi, Cui Zan, Guo Zhang, and Yuan Kan.

Among these remaining people, Xun Yi's status and reputation were undoubtedly the highest.

Xun Yi asked seriously, "Have you heard about the General Zhendong sending people to Luoyang?"

Cui Zan nodded, "Of course I heard about it."

Xun Yi sighed deeply and then said, "Your Majesty has appointed Guanqiu Dian as the Chief Censor and is planning to use the son of Governor Wen to reorganize the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry."

Cui Zan was stunned. “I haven’t heard of this before.”

Xun Yi said helplessly, "Your Majesty is young, and the ministers you have recruited are also young. These people have no experience in governing the country. Your Majesty is in a hurry to let them ascend to high positions. This is definitely not a good thing."

"I heard that there was a man in Song who was dissatisfied with the short growth of his seedlings, so he went to the fields and pulled them up one by one by hand. Your Majesty's behavior now is no different from that of the people of Song at that time."

When Cui Zan heard this, he quickly lowered his head and dared not say anything more.

Seeing you've been so honest these past few days, I thought you'd made some progress. How come you've forgotten how Gao Rou and the others died?
He can also pull up seedlings. Not only can he pull up seedlings, he can also pull up human heads!

If I had known, I wouldn’t have let this guy in!
Cui Zan couldn't help but complain in his heart. He felt that Xun Xi was really crazy.

The emperor just killed someone, and the blood on the knife hasn't been wiped clean yet, why are you sticking your head out?
Xun Yi looked at Cui Zan's pale face and said seriously, "Don't be afraid."

"I don't mean to harm Your Majesty."

"Gao Rou and other traitors plotted a rebellion, but we did not participate. Now, we are your Majesty's subjects. As your Majesty's subjects, we must help your Majesty govern the world."

"Your Majesty is intelligent and a benevolent ruler, not a tyrannical king."

"Even if our ideas differ from your Majesty's, as long as they benefit the world, your Majesty will not make things difficult for us. Your Majesty appreciates ministers who offer advice."

"Since Emperor Wen, the appointment of high-ranking officials within the imperial court has always been decided through court meetings. It's the discussion among the ministers who determines the appointment. There's no reason Your Majesty can directly issue an order." "Previously, when Gao Rou rebelled, the ministers were suspected of being in cahoots with him, so Your Majesty couldn't identify him. But now it's different. The imperial court has been purged, and we're all Your Majesty's ministers. We should participate in these matters again."

Xun Yi’s words were very appealing.

But Cui Zan knew that he just wanted to take back the right of appointment again.

After Cao Pi, the appointment of important officials to the court often required the support of other officials. The emperor could not simply appoint anyone to an important position.

This was actually a lesson learned from the Eastern Han Dynasty. In the end, the sale of official positions in the Eastern Han Dynasty was so rampant that even the three highest officials were sold. Although not everyone was qualified to buy them, such behavior still greatly angered the scholar-official class.

Therefore, in the Wei Dynasty, personnel power was divided layer by layer, and the temple took back the recommendation power from the local areas. However, this power did not fall directly into the hands of the emperor, but was transferred from the hands of external officials to the hands of court officials.

Xun Yi looked at Cui Zan who was unmoved and immediately smiled bitterly.

"Mr. Cui, I know what you are thinking, but this is not something I can decide."

"Chen Qian and Zheng Mao have dismissed and promoted countless people in recent days, completely disregarding the original system. The ministers are restless and the officials are terrified. They all come to me and ask me to stand up and make the decision for them."

"What else can I do?"

Since ancient times, the position of "prime minister" has not been easy. The prime minister has to reconcile the conflicts between the emperor and his ministers, try to remain neutral, and while being loyal to the emperor, he must also treat the ministers well and protect their interests.

Of course Xun Yi was afraid of the emperor, but he could not ignore his ministers.

He continued, "Lord Cui, the Secretariat is now led by the two of us, and Lord Zheng has never been involved in anything."

"Even if I didn't come to you, the ministers would have come to visit. Now we should support each other and solve this problem together."

At this moment, Cui Zan just felt a headache.

When they reach a certain position, many choices are no longer up to them. A group of interest groups will automatically appear around them, and these groups will lead them to do things. If what they do goes against the interests of the group, the consequences will be very serious!

As the three dukes fell one after another, the ministers began to surround them.

Cui Zan looked at Xun Yi calmly and said, "Lord Xun, I have heard all this a long time ago. However, Your Majesty is now eradicating the traitors with unstoppable momentum. We are all suspected of treason, and Gao Rou is still imprisoned and has not died."

"Lord Xun, it's best not to worry about this appointment and dismissal matter right now, and try your best to appease the ministers."

Xun Yi wanted to say something but stopped himself. Looking at Cui Zan who was unwilling to help, his face was full of sorrow.

"Your Majesty is young and full of vigor. If you don't help me this time, I'm afraid something big will happen in the court."

Xun Yi stood up, turned around and left without saying anything else.

Cui Zan did not go to see him off.

Cui Zan no longer cared so much about the ministers at this moment. His clan suffered heavy casualties, and his connection with the ministers was much weaker. The most important thing was that he was just an ordinary Shangshu now. Even if something happened, it would be Xun Yi's responsibility. Why should he rush to get involved?

Xun Xi had just returned to his mansion and had no time to rest when another distinguished guest came to visit him.

This made Xun Xi very angry. These people were indeed targeting him!
"Greetings, Lord Xun!"

The visitor was very polite and bowed respectfully towards Xun Yi.

But Xun Xi's expression was not good. He looked at the young man in front of him and said unhappily, "No need to be so polite. It's my fault for being late. I made Mr. Feng wait for so long in front of my house."

The young man had a simple and honest face. He seemed completely unaware of Xun Yi's sarcasm and quickly said, "I dare not, I dare not, and I didn't wait too long."

Xun Yi snorted coldly, "Mr. Feng, what's the big deal?"

This man was called Feng Xun. His grandfather Feng Fu had served as the Inspector of the Sili Army, and his father Feng Yuan was the prefect of Ji County today. He himself became the Inspector of the Central Army because of his family's close relationship with the Sima family.

At this age, being able to serve as a captain in the central army means he has a bright future.

However, his bright future did not last long. In this coup, he and Sima Gan and others were implicated by the emperor. Not to mention their future, they almost lost their lives. They were finally released a few days ago and were able to continue their activities.

Xun Yi had a good relationship with his father.

Feng Xun lowered his head and said helplessly, "Lord Xun, all the ministers want to know about the appointment. Knowing that my father is on good terms with you, they asked me to come and ask you."

Xun Xi's face was dark. Feng Xun talked about friendship. In fact, what he wanted to say was that all the ministers knew that he had come to his mansion.

If something suddenly happened to Feng Xun and he was held accountable by the emperor, the ministers would also know the reason.

This is clearly intimidating and threatening myself.

Xun Yi sneered, "I will discuss the appointment with His Majesty myself. What does this have to do with you? You are still young. You should read more and improve your knowledge instead of meddling in the affairs of the court!"

"only!!!"

(End of this chapter)