The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 810 New Laws
The laws compiled by Cao Mao and his ministers were done under his intentional guidance.

Cao Mao's guiding direction was naturally the "Laws of Northern Qi".

One of the few legacies left by the Beastial Dynasty to future generations.

Looking at the Han laws from the perspective of later generations, people always feel that the preaching part is more than the practical content, and it is disorganized. It is more like exhortation than law. Until the Northern Qi Dynasty, the laws were constantly inheriting the Han laws, adding to or deleting them.

It was not until the birth of the Northern Qi Law that a new chapter was opened.

And this is exactly what Cao Mao wants now. Although Northern Qi itself has not been able to abide by this law, this law is indeed much more advanced.

A simpler, more rigorous and systematic law will have a huge impact.

The draft that Wei Shu brought this time already had some of the prototypes of the later Northern Qi laws.

There is a general chapter, followed by separate laws of various types, covering different areas. At the same time, a standard is set for punishment, so there will be no arbitrary judgment.

Cao Mao read it several times and was very satisfied with the first draft.

Wei Shu's expression remained calm as he stood aside, seemingly not caring at all about Cao Mao's attitude.

This is a man who does great things.
Up to now, Cao Mao had never seen Wei Shu panic. No matter when, he was always so steady and reliable.

Cao Mao felt more at ease letting this man look after Zhong Hui.

Cao Mao slowly put away the documents in his hands.

"Yes, it is exactly as I said at the time. However, although the famous examples chapter is complete, the other chapters are a bit simplistic. Many things are not mentioned. The deletions are not about the crimes. Of course, it is necessary to be concise wherever possible. For example, in the previous law, picking up other people's fruits and clothes can be regarded as taking possession of other people's property. The level of punishment is determined by the value of the property."

"Such a reduction is best, but this crime cannot be eliminated. Of course, some outrageous crimes can be eliminated. The present is different from the past. Things like drinking party crimes and springtime loitering crimes should be abolished if possible!"

Wei Shu also took note of it seriously at this moment. Cao Mao then stated several of his requests, and then allowed him to go and discuss with the ministers.

In the following days, Cao Mao focused his attention on this new law.

Wei Shu discussed the matter with several other ministers involved and made revisions repeatedly.

After eight consecutive revisions, the new law finally gained a certain degree of recognition, but there are still many things that need to be improved.

In this situation, Cao Mao had no choice but to come forward in person.

Cao Mao had originally said that he would do it himself in order to prevent Zhong Hui from suppressing the others and making the law too radical.

Now, the ministers are arguing endlessly about the improvements, which is the best time for Cao Mao to step forward.

Cao Mao took personal action, and the revision speed suddenly increased many times. On many controversial contents, Cao Mao could calm the dispute between the two sides with just one sentence, and what he said was what it was.

Cao Mao had read through the Han laws and had a certain understanding of many past laws. Over the years, he had never stopped reading. At the same time, he also knew the later Northern Qi laws. After he officially intervened, many difficult problems were no longer a problem.

Either solve the problem or "solve" the person who raised the problem.

The Ganlu Code was finally drafted and completed in a very short period of time, and officially replaced the original new code.

When the Ganlu Code was promoted to various places, local officials did not feel troubled or show resistance to the new code. Instead, they accepted it with pleasure.

The new law, due to its particularity, has caused concern for many officials.

Officials have to control the upper and lower limits of judgments themselves. Sometimes, when political opponents want to deal with them, they attack them on the grounds that their judgments are unfair. However, they cannot say what is fair, and the law does not have an accurate record.

This new law has solved a lot of problems for them, and even people with little experience can use this new law to make judgments.

Everyone was excited.

Cao Mao was even happier.

Of course, Wei Shu was successfully promoted to the position of Pushe because of this contribution.

Everyone is very supportive of this appointment.

Although Wei Shu is low-key, he has never failed in his duties over the years, especially in such a critical position as the Ministry of Justice. He has been able to perform well without making any mistakes. He is really a ruthless person.

Over the years, in order to rectify the administration of officials, Cao Mao had sent countless people to the Ministry of Justice, and each of them was a well-known figure.

Wei Shu was not polite to them, and these people also wanted to dig out something to get rid of Wei Shu.

But until now, no fault of his has been found, no black material has been dug up, and none of the ministers dared to say anything about such a person.

Even Zhong Hui did not dare to be too rude to Wei Shu. His attitude towards Wei Shu and Zhang Hua was completely different.

This man has made many contributions before, and this time he has made such great contributions in legal matters, so his promotion is reasonable.

In this way, the two ministers are complete.

However, Zhang Hua's appointment as the Minister of the Secretariat met with great opposition.

It wasn't just Zhong Hui who disliked Zhang Hua; many of the ministers at the time disliked him. It wasn't clear whether it was because Zhang Hua's background wasn't good enough or because he was simply too favored.

However, this was the emperor's appointment, so they didn't say much. They were just looking forward to seeing Zhang Hua's fun.

Zhang Hua had not taken any action yet, but Yang Hu took the lead.

Yang Hu wrote down all his ideas and presented them to Zhong Hui.

Even Zhong Hui was a little surprised at Yang Hu's efficiency.

He knew that this guy could get things done, but he didn't expect him to be so efficient. Could it be that this guy was just trying to fool him?

Zhong Hui accepted the document but did not meet with Yang Hu.

He had already prepared to impeach Yang Hu in front of the emperor if he was not qualified, but when Zhong Hui looked through Yang Hu's memorial, he was stunned.

This guy thought that instead of performing too many sacrifices, it would be better to partially restore the Han Dynasty's system, not to inherit it completely, but to inherit it with improvements.

The first is the rewards given to the people during the Han Dynasty, such as rewarding the hard-working Li Tian, rewarding the filial and noble Xiao Lian, etc.

Yang Hu divided the different moral qualities among filial piety and integrity, corresponding to diligence, filial piety, kindness, loyalty to the emperor and many other aspects.

According to Yang Hu's idea, every year all places would recommend people who met different moral standards, reward them, and announce their deeds to the local community.

In addition, there is the issue of the three elders system.

Yang Hu believed that the reason why the powerful were rampant in the local areas and the officials dared to exploit the people with impunity was because of the collapse of the Three Elders System.

The Three Elders are not three people, but a virtuous elder in the village who possesses three virtues.

The three elders were not officials.

The Three Elders of the Han Dynasty were located between officials and the people. They were elected by the people in the village. They did not receive a salary, but their privilege was that they could directly write to the emperor.
Their appearance was to protect the people at that time, which was equivalent to elected representatives.

If a local official did something evil, once the letter was sent to the emperor, the official would basically be dismissed.

This idea was very good, but when it came to the Later Han Dynasty, its implementation became very bad. The Three Elders of the Later Han Dynasty existed in name only, and their positions were occupied by people with ulterior motives. They even became accomplices in oppressing the people, so they were no longer seen in public.

Now, Yang Hu wants to start these again.

The three elders are respected elders in local areas. They are responsible for dealing with officials on behalf of the people. They are also responsible for the important duty of educating the people, such as preaching morality to them.

In fact, during this period, the Three Elders System is still quite effective.

What surprised Zhong Hui was that Yang Hu did not inherit everything, but made many changes to the original policies.

This is what surprised Zhong Hui.

Zhong Hui looked at it for a long time, then hurriedly ordered Pei Xiu and Yang Hu to come to his house to discuss matters.

The two men soon appeared in front of Zhong Hui.

Zhong Hui looked at Yang Hu again, and this time, his eyes were no longer filled with disgust and scrutiny.

He even smiled and nodded.

"Yes, I understand why His Majesty values you so highly. You are not like some ministers who rose to power simply by relying on His Majesty's favor. I have read your memorial. His Majesty often mentions this matter. Perhaps you can achieve success this time."

After saying this, without waiting for Yang Hu to reply, he handed the many documents in his hand to Pei Xiu to read.

Pei Xiu looked through it carefully for a moment, and then he suddenly understood.

"Is Zhong Lingjun going to implement the policy of serving as the Minister of State?"

Zhong Hui now holds many official positions, and his title is naturally different in different places. If he is in the court, he is Zhong Situ, if he is in the Secretariat, he is Zhong Lingjun, and if he is making decisions in the palace, he is Zhong Shizhong.

Zhong Hui nodded and said, "You two should cooperate more. If Yang Pushe encounters any difficulties in the future, Minister Pei must help him and not let him get involved with those treacherous villains."

Pei Xiu immediately accepted the order.

Yang Hu was a little confused. Why did he feel like he was forced to participate in Zhong Hui's circle of influence?

Who are those traitors?

Yang Hu frowned, but didn't care too much. He accepted Zhong Hui's kindness. He still wanted to find a time when no one was around to talk to the emperor about this matter.

Zhong Hui was really decisive when doing things. He immediately assigned the work and asked the two to complete these tasks within this year. At the same time, he also put forward some of his own ideas and suggestions for revisions to Yang Hu's original memorial.

Yang Hu and Pei Xiu accepted it humbly and left the place together.

As soon as they left Zhong Hui's residence, Pei Xiu took the initiative to speak, "Don't worry, Lord Yang. There's no such thing as cliques and selfishness within the government. Just work diligently. Your suggestion is excellent. If you have any further instructions, I will certainly do my best to assist you."

(End of this chapter)