A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 139: Success Doesn’t Have to Be My Own (Part )
Song Shou knew that Zhang Fangping had returned home to announce the good news and was not in Songcheng, so he spoke to him with a smile on his face.

When Yan Shu saw Song Xuan coming, he was about to turn around, but he heard:

"Mr. Yan, it's been a long time since we last met."

Yan Shu was too well-mannered to ignore it, so he nodded slightly.

"I thought Mr. Yan would also give a speech today. After all, Mr. Yan has made great contributions to the academy's success."

Song Xuan didn't feel that Yan Shu was uncomfortable at all.

Because the things he said at home that day were facts that had already existed.

The group of ambitious people in the court were not unaware of this, but they were just pretending to be deaf and dumb.

The current Song Dynasty system cannot be said to emphasize culture over military power. Instead, it emphasizes culture over military power, and places more emphasis on civil governance to curb the excessive expansion of military power.

This group of scholars and officials were "jealous" and madly suppressed military generals, and the craziest period was before Di Qing's death.

After all, Di Qing grew up from a country boy with no family background to the highest military leader of the Song Empire.

Who wouldn’t envy someone who gets promoted several times across levels in a short period of time?
In the later period, in order to let Di Qing serve as the Privy Councilor, Renzong did not hesitate to get rid of several prime ministers and locked up the prime ministers and himself, demanding that they agree to this. If they did not agree, the emperor would not let them go out.

This incident was used by some people with ulterior motives to continue to stir up factional disputes, especially the scholar-official class, who were jealous of Di Qing and took advantage of him.

They were all selected from among thousands of scholars, and did not rise to high positions as imagined.

But what about Di Qing? He was a military man, yet he was appreciated by the emperor and given a high position and generous salary, and was admired by so many soldiers and people.

He must be cured.

Regardless of whether Di Qing was a cautious person, he was almost labeled as a military man like those in the Five Dynasties who came to power through military rebellion.

However, Song Renzong did not believe this set of words at all, and instead trusted Di Qing more and more.

To the extent that in the later period, most of the civil servants in the court impeached Di Qing, and anyone who did not step on him was considered a loner.

Whenever there was a disaster such as a flood, heavy snow, or fire in a certain place in the Song Dynasty, it was because Di Qing was the Privy Councilor.

There were also rumors spread widely, with bizarre reasons such as his dog suddenly grew horns and glowed at night.

The ministers wanted to choose Di Qing and devour him.

As long as Di Qing stops being the Privy Councilor, all those strange phenomena will disappear and the Song Dynasty will return to stability.

The Song Dynasty ruled the country together with the literati. Renzong was an honest man. According to etiquette, if something went wrong in the world, the emperor would go outside barefoot and pray to God.

His physical condition was already poor in his later years, and with the cold entering his body, he fell ill during the fight with his ministers, so there was no one to protect Di Qing.

In the end, Song Renzong could no longer bear the pressure while lying on his sickbed, and he realized that only by letting Di Qing leave the capital temporarily could his life be saved.

Unfortunately, half a year later, Di Qing died of exhaustion and carbuncle on his beard.

Since ancient times, there have been few commanders who are good at fighting wars and have a keen political sense.

Not all generals can survive in the quagmire of the central government.

Di Qing's trusted general Jia Kui was determined not to enter the central government. He lived a stable life outside and almost no court officials attacked him.

Yan Shu saw that Song Xuan was as calm as ever.

Song Xuan still had a gentle smile on his face, and he realized that he was really sulking!
But Song Shou was here, and he was unwilling to bow his head, so he just replied lightly:
"I just did what I had to do. There's nothing to brag about to others."

"Oh, oh, oh." Song Xuan immediately exclaimed:

"I understand. Prefect Yan's awareness is not something that ordinary people can understand."

"This is called success doesn't necessarily depend on me, but I must be part of it."

Yan Shu was praised by Song Xuan's poem and coughed in restraint:
"What are you talking about?"

Song Shou was attracted by Song Xuan's words. He had to admit that what Song Xuan had just said on the stage was not something that could be written by someone else.

His personal style is too strong, and even if it is imitated, not everyone has the talent.

Song Shou snorted and laughed when he saw Yan Shu's face pretending to be serious.

He even picked it up.

I don’t know who said what big words not long ago, but now they have all been thrown aside.

Song Xuan also smiled and didn't say anything more. Who doesn't want to hear good things?

Especially this kind of educational achievement was extremely impressive for an official of the Northern Song Dynasty.

If this group of students can pass the imperial examination three years later, everyone will have to praise Yan Shu.

Yan Shu immediately took the initiative to speak: "It's less than three months until the exam, do you want to sign up?"

"Of course." Song Xuan waved his folding fan and said:
"I'm not like Wang Yaochen, who insists on taking the imperial examination. I'd rather stay in the capital and become an official. It would be better if I could be sent to the northwest."

Song Xuan's thinking is different from that of most people. Many people are not willing to go to a difficult place like the Northwest.

Moreover, the imperial court also took good care of the newly-appointed Jinshi scholars, usually sending a group of them to the south and other places, and promoting some experienced officials to serve as officials in the northwest and other places.

The situation over there is too complicated and something could easily go wrong.

The imperial court rarely transferred new scholars when selecting and employing people.

of course there are exceptions.

Su Xun's second brother Su Huan was directly assigned to Baoji as the chief clerk. This was also the reason why Su Xun's father was relieved to let his third brother go to Shaanxi and other places to study in the future.

After all, there is someone in the family who is an official and can take care of the family.

"What's so good about the Northwest?"

Yan Shu glanced at Song Xuan and said, "With so many places in the Song Dynasty, is there no room for you to govern one of them?"

"Does the Song Dynasty really have a lot of territory?"

Song Xuan's words choked Yan Shu, and he immediately glared at Song Xuan:
"Shut up, and don't say that kind of thing anymore."

The territory of the Song Dynasty was greatly reduced, and Song Taizu used the Jade Palace to draw a line in the Yunnan area, saying that he only wanted this much land.

Of course, this is understandable. In their eyes, people further south are all savages and there is no point in educating them.

The forest is dense and full of poisonous snakes and insects, making it really not suitable for living.

It was not until Mu Ying led a large number of soldiers to immigrate there that he gradually took control of Yunnan and other places.

"I see you're always looking to start a war. If a large number of military generals with outstanding military achievements appear, and there's no one left to be crowned, and the events of the Five Dynasties repeat themselves, can you bear the responsibility?"

"Mr. Yan." Song Xuan covered his face with a folding fan.
"You can't just avoid war if you want to. At least if our generation fights, maybe our descendants won't have to fight for three generations."

"If we don't fight, then our descendants will be beaten for three generations."

"Besides, I'm sure you've seen my policy paper. We both know why Dean Fan only posted half of it."

Yan Shu was certainly aware that Li Mingde, the King of Western Xia in the northwest, had begun to provoke on the border. He had become very arrogant since he defeated the 500,000-strong Liao army.

He had to admit that Song Xuan's predictions in that policy paper were correct.

Xixia had ambitious plans, and Li Mingde was preparing for him to become emperor.

"Hey."

Song Shou sighed. Even though he always looked down on Song Xuan, he had to admit that Song Xuan's words made sense. Whether it was against Xixia or Liao, war would break out sooner or later. Peace would never last for generations just because of a piece of paper.

Whether it is the Song Dynasty or the Liao Dynasty, as long as an ambitious emperor appears in the future, he will tear up this contract and conquer more territory for himself.

Compared to Emperor Zhenzong who relied on forging the Book of Heaven and going to Mount Tai to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth to "mark" his achievements, many ambitious emperors would prove their achievements through foreign wars.

Especially since the Song Dynasty was still an ununified country.

In the future, the emperor will definitely want to prove himself.

"Peace between Song and Liao has lasted less than twenty years. No one would easily start a war."

Yan Shu walked slowly with his hands behind his back:

"As for Xixia's provocation, the Song Dynasty will not tolerate it. You, Song Twelve, should keep your thoughts to yourself. The soldiers on the frontier are no match for the Xiang army. It is not your turn to lead the charge."

"That's right. For now, you should focus on reviewing your lessons and try to pass the test."

Song Shou had high hopes for Zhang Fangping and naturally did not want to be led astray by Song Xuan, so he also spoke:
"This year, there will be over 3,000 students taking the exam in Yingtian Prefecture alone."

"Three thousand people?"

Zhang Fangping felt that his twelfth brother didn’t say as much.

"Maybe there will be more than 5,000 people."

As the prefect, Yan Shu had a general understanding of the students in the seven counties.

Even if he was a little more lenient in selecting candidates, and did not require a one in a hundred chance of success, the pass rate would still not exceed three percent.

"Wow."

Zhang Fangping was finally surprised: "Twelfth Brother, the competition is quite fierce."

Song Xuan also nodded: "I didn't expect there would be so many people."

"It's good that you know it." Yan Shu still advised:
"The imperial examination is not comparable to an entrance exam. You two should not be arrogant."

"clear."

Song Xuan thought about what his class teacher Wang Zhu said again. He should practice Xikun style more recently and memorize the Four Books and Five Classics more clearly.

Although Song Xuan had memorized those classic quotes, he would forget them over time, unlike Zhang Fangping who had the gift of photographic memory.

For others, memorizing those words is as common as eating and drinking water, but ordinary students can only work hard in this regard.

"Prefect Yan, have you come up with a plan for that matter?"

Yan Shu was a little confused when he heard Song Shou suddenly use such a formal address.

Which thing are you talking about?

Seeing Yan Shu's expression, Song Shou found it quite funny.

Doesn't Yan Tongshu want to ask Song Xuan for his opinion on everything in front of him?

It is understandable that a prefect has an aide.

Which of the prime ministers in the court doesn’t have his own aides?

Most of the aides in this group are the prime minister's think tanks.

They are responsible for summarizing information, participating in the decision-making process, providing professional advice, and even helping the prime minister with special tasks.

This was also the method that Lu Yijian used to successfully overthrow Li Di after killing Li Di's aides, forcing him to vacate his position and get out of the core of the court.

Fan Zhongyan and Wang Anshi both served as aides-de-camp and accumulated rich political experience.

Song Shou felt that Yan Shu had no need to be too arrogant.

Besides, as an official, you always have to delegate some tasks to your subordinates.

If you don't give them the opportunity to perform, how can you prove their respective abilities and how can you promote them in the future!

Now that Zhang Kang has gotten over the Dou Chou incident, he has followed Song Xuan's advice and gone to survey the nearby rivers himself. Once he has a clear idea in mind, he will consult someone with knowledge about rivers.

When the time comes to start construction, he will have a clear idea in mind!

Then this credit belongs to Zhang Kang, and no one will take it away easily.

Most of the people above Zhang Kang are known for their ability to judge people.

Therefore, Song Shou believed that many things could be left to his subordinates.

"It's about Qi Shunbin. He has been running the academy for so many years, and three generations have been doing so. He has long since left a mark on Yingtian Academy."

Song Shou wiped the sweat off his beard:

"Even if Qi Shunbin doesn't care, if he can't handle it properly, Fan Xiwen will always blame him, which will be detrimental to his subsequent teaching tasks."

Yan Shu couldn't figure out how to do this for a moment, but he didn't want to ask Song Xuan actively.

Song Xuan, on the other hand, was very understanding and extended his finger:
"Don't worry, Mr. Yan, I have a good idea."

Yan Shu immediately understood Song Shou's intention and glanced at him:
"Tell me, I'll listen, what's the best idea?"

So the three of them looked at Song Xuan.

"Actually, I came up with an idea when Dean Qi was crying. I'd like to ask Mr. Yan for your consideration. Is it suitable?"

"Just tell me."

Song Shou felt that Song Xuan was like those ancient counselors, who first tried to clear himself out of the matter, and then the success or failure was decided by the lord.

I really don't know where he learned this bad habit.

Song Xuan habitually put on armor before speaking:
"It is imperative that Master Fan be promoted to the academy's dean, as only one person can enforce government orders. Cutting off others' misconduct will benefit the academy's development."

"But the Qi family has worked diligently for Yingtian Academy for so many years, and it is heartbreaking to see them withdraw so disgracefully. Once the rumor spreads, it will make those who sponsored the academy hesitate. After all, not everyone is selfless."

"So I think that Xianggong Yan can represent the government and appoint Qi Shunbin as the honorary president of Yingtian Academy to express his gratitude to the Qi family for their efforts over the years."

"Honorary Dean?"

Yan Shu showed a puzzled look in his eyes, and then listened to Song Xuan's smiling explanation:
"It's just like the clay Buddha in the temple. It doesn't have to do any work. It's just a raised signboard, a lucky charm."

"Good guy, that's what it is."

Yan Shu glared at Song Xuan.

After death, people are made into clay Buddhas and worshipped.

Are you planning to build a shrine for someone?
However, even the young Fan Zhongyan had a shrine enshrined in the place where he served as an official, so Song Xuan's idea was not excessive.

It is a good solution.

"Prefect Yan, this idea proposed by Song Twelve is feasible."

Song Shou gave a positive reply, they were all deans.

One does not have to do anything and can still shine; the other is the real dean, who is in charge of everything.

Yan Shu did not want to praise Song Xuan in person, lest he become arrogant, so he just said:
"Let me think about it when I get back."

(End of this chapter)