A family of loyal martyrs, starting with nine wives to continue the family line.

"Your Majesty, the recruitment notice has been posted for three days, and the area outside the palace gates is already packed with people!"

Li Huai rushed into the Hall of Supreme Harmony carrying a stack of rosters, his robes askew from running, but his face was filled with undisguised joy.

Wei Zhao had just finished approving the document regarding the deposit of the confiscated silver into the treasury when he looked up at him.

"Not enough room?"

"There's really no room."

Li Huai slammed the roster down on the table, his voice rising a mile:

"There were former officials who had been demoted to Lingnan by Lu Song, county magistrates who had escaped from Qingzhou, former water conservancy officials from the Ministry of Works, and several old clerks from the border army who said they could calculate grain and clear the military households. There was also... there was a bunch of poor scholars who knelt outside the palace gates and refused to leave, saying that if Emperor Xinwu really did not care about family background, they were willing to risk their lives for the new dynasty."

The expressions of the former officials in the hall changed immediately.

Wei Zhao saw it.

it is good.

It's good that you're scared.

These people used to rely on their family background, their old political connections, and mutual recommendations, treating official positions like fields next to their ancestral graves, building them up generation after generation.

Now that the recruitment notice has been posted, and so many capable people have suddenly appeared outside, they are naturally afraid.

I'm afraid I'm not irreplaceable.

I'm afraid that someone will kick my pride and dignity to pieces.

Wei Zhao felt a little relieved.

Money and supplies are the bones, while talent is the blood.

What the new Wu Dynasty lacks now is not officials who know how to kowtow, but people who can rebuild the county government, clarify the accounts of the granaries, and resettle the displaced people.

What's the use of kneeling?

Back then, Lu Song had no shortage of dogs kneeling at his feet.

Wei Zhao opened the first register.

"Han Shou-zheng?"

Li Huai immediately said:

"When Lu Song's faction embezzled disaster relief grain, he wrote a memorial impeaching them and was demoted to post station manager. After the chaos in Qingzhou, he and his three sons defended half of the county town until they ran out of food and had to retreat."

Wei Zhao paused for a moment.

"Let him enter the Ministry of Revenue, not as a nominal title, and first investigate the old accounts of disaster relief in Qingzhou."

The Minister of Revenue standing next to him twitched his face, wanting to speak, but then swallowed his words back.

Wei Zhao didn't even look at him.

It's too late to realize this now.

That's the knife he wanted.

Why does the Qingzhou Holy Fire Cult have 300,000 members?

It's because the old dynasty's disaster relief was a complete disaster; the powerful ate grain, the officials ate silver, and the common people ate dirt.

To quell the Holy Fire Cult, killing Zhang Yan alone is not enough; we must bring up these old grievances and let the world see that the new Wu Dynasty is truly capable of taking action.

"Feng Zhi," Wei Zhao continued reading.

Li Huai flipped through the booklet:

"The former Water Conservancy Officer of the Ministry of Works had repaired the Huai River dike. Lu Song disliked that he refused to credit his clansmen for the credit and kicked him out of the capital. This man had a bad temper and cursed three officials from the Ministry of Rites at the palace gate, saying that they didn't even know which way the ditches flowed, except for taking turns to kowtow."

Someone coughed once inside the hall.

Wei Zhao almost burst out laughing.

Good guy.

This person is usable.

"Send him to the Ministry of Works."

Wei Zhao said, "Don't give him a high position yet. Give him a position, give him a plan, and let him inspect all the canals and waterways in the capital region. If he wants to curse, let him curse. Whoever gets angry enough can come to me."

Li Huai lowered his head to write it down, barely able to suppress a smile.

At that moment, he suddenly felt that the new dynasty was really different.

In the past, the imperial court did not lack intelligent people, but rather positions where intelligent people could speak.

Now that Wei Zhao has created an opening in the system, those who were previously suppressed, such as the old guard, the poor, and the border officials, will emerge on their own.

Wei Zhao turned a few more pages.

There were former apprentices of physicians who knew how to cure plagues, chief craftsmen who knew how to forge crossbows, a retired military clerk from the Northwest, and a few down-on-their-luck scholars. Their answers to the questions were not eloquent, but their writings on disaster relief were very practical.

The more Wei Zhao looked, the more his brows furrowed.

The people have arrived.

But that's not enough.

These people can patch up holes, provide emergency relief, and prevent the Xinwu Dynasty from collapsing immediately.

However, to suppress the old officials, the ten rebel kings, and the Holy Fire Cult, they still needed someone who could silence all the scholars in the world.

A real flag.

He raised his hand and closed the roster.

"Where is Fang Zhaoru?"

The hall fell silent.

A vice minister from the Ministry of Rites whispered:

"Your Majesty, Lord Fang has been inactive in court affairs for many years. After Lu Song became prime minister, he invited him to come out of seclusion three times, but he refused to see him each time. Now, although the recruitment notices for talented people are numerous, there has been no response from Lord Fang yet."

Wei Zhao looked at him.

"No response, or did you simply not dare to go and invite them?"

The vice minister immediately broke out in a sweat.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty has sent someone."

"Who should we send?"

"Minister of Rites"

Wei Zhao smiled.

Principal of the Ministry of Rites.

What a fine official in the Ministry of Rites!

Who was Fang Zhaoru?

A veteran of three reigns, with disciples and former officials all over the country, he was the old man who dared to slam his fist on the table and curse Lu Song as a "traitor to the country" in front of Emperor Yuanxi.

After Lu Song became prime minister, he resigned and went into seclusion, refusing to accept his salary.

Why would you send a high-ranking official from the Ministry of Rites to knock on the door of someone like that?

Is this asking someone to come, or dismissing someone?

The anger in Wei Zhao's heart slowly began to rise.

These former officials verbally called for recruiting talented individuals, but secretly they wished Fang Zhaoru would leave.

With Fang Zhaoru's arrival, all of them—the fence-sitters, the old parasites, and the hypocrites pretending to be virtuous—will have their true colors exposed.

Old things aren't necessarily good.

But he is famous.

Sometimes reputation is a weapon.

What Wei Zhao lacks now is this invisible army.

"Qingyun," Wei Zhao suddenly spoke.

Su Qingyun looked up from the side.

"Go there yourself."

Su Qingyun didn't ask why, she just closed the account book.

"Should we invite Lord Fang to the capital?"

"right."

Wei Zhao said, "Take my imperial edict with you. Don't put on airs as an emperor. Just say that the Xinwu Dynasty is short of people, and the whole country is short of people. I'm asking him to come out and scold people."

Su Qingyun paused for a moment, then smiled.

"Should we invite him out to swear?"

"If he wants to curse me, that's fine too."

Wei Zhao leaned back in his chair, a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth:

"As long as the criticism is correct, I will listen."

The former officials in the palace felt a chill run down their spines.

Wei Zhao saw this and sneered inwardly.

You may fear Fang Zhaoru's scolding, but I do not.

The worst thing for a new dynasty is not being criticized, but having no one dare to speak the truth.

The whole hall kneels and shouts "Long live the Emperor!" It looks pleasing, but it also makes death quicker.

Su Qingyun stood up and bowed.

"I'll go right away."

Wei Zhao nodded, then added, "Bring some medicinal herbs, but not gold or silver. Giving him money is like insulting him."

Su Qingyun's smile deepened.

"Zhao'er knows how to ask for help now."

Wei Zhao glanced at her.

"Don't praise me, I'm afraid."

Hua Jieyu, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but chuckle softly.

The atmosphere in the hall relaxed slightly, but Wei Zhao's heart remained uneasy.

If Fang Zhaoru could come, the recruitment notice would transform from an imperial edict into a gateway for scholars across the land.

Those scholars who are still observing will take a step because of him.

Local governments will also know that the new Wu Dynasty is not just about confiscating property and killing people; it is also about re-establishing the imperial system.

But if he doesn't come...

It's not that there's no way, it's just that we'll be missing the most labor-saving knife.

Three days later.

Su Qingyun returned to Beijing.

Wei Zhao was reading the latest military report from the Holy Fire Sect in the Taihe Hall.

Su Qingyun came in.

She was still covered in the dust of the road, and her eyes looked tired. She had neither Fang Zhaoru's business card nor any official documents for inviting him to the capital.

Wei Zhao glanced behind her and his eyelids twitched.

no one.

wrong.

There was a person.

A woman in white followed behind Su Qingyun, her face veiled, her figure slender, and she walked very slowly.