Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

The lights shone brightly, and the music and drums resounded.

"My lord."

An official approached Han Zhang and whispered something to him.

Han Zhang glanced at the scene, then waved his hand, and the eunuch withdrew.

After a moment's hesitation, Han Zhang stood up and gestured for Han Zhang to stop.

The drumming and music suddenly stopped, and all the civil and military officials turned their attention to the past.

"The expansion of the border in Xihe is of extraordinary significance. To show its solemnity, the Emperor has decided to grant a general amnesty, allowing the people to celebrate for three days and the officials to hold a grand banquet for seven days. All civil and military officials may enjoy themselves for seven days."

"For the remaining six days of banquets, remember not to behave in a way that would be considered improper in front of the emperor."

After giving a few instructions, Han Zhang announced in a deep voice, "This imperial banquet is nearing its end. Officials may leave on their own."

When the emperor bestowed a celebratory banquet, all civil and military officials who attended the banquet had to abide by the established etiquette.

Generally speaking, officials are not allowed to leave early unless specifically permitted to do so.

Now that Han Zhang has announced this, it means that all civil and military officials can leave on their own and their freedom will no longer be restricted.

Upon hearing this, all the officials rose in unison, bowed, and said, "We will remember the Grand Chancellor's teachings!"

Han Zhang nodded and returned the greeting.

The civil and military officials then left the stage one after another.

"Zhao'er," Han Zhang called out.

Jiang Zhao nodded, stood up, patted his robes, and stepped forward.

The master and his disciple walked out of the main hall side by side.

During this time, several elderly people from the Korean community, including Wang Yaochen and Zhang Fangping, came up and followed along slowly.

"How is it?" Han Zhang asked, standing with his hands behind his back.

Jiang Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "A man enters officialdom for nothing more than to leave his name in history. Opening up the borders of Xihe and expanding the territory to seven prefectures will certainly leave a name in history, which is the best thing to do."

"Ha ha!"

Han Zhang stroked his beard and nodded.

To leave a mark on history is indeed a pursuit for officials and those who govern.

Jiang Zhao achieved success at the age of twenty-four, which made him even more remarkable and full of vigor.

"but."

Han Zhang cautioned, "For civil officials, it is important to have disciples and former subordinates all over the country. Rapid advancement may not necessarily be a good thing."

"I understand," Jiang Zhao nodded earnestly.

Civil officials and military generals: civil officials govern a region, while military generals guard the frontier.

At a deeper level, both sources of power are imperial power, but the ways in which they are presented are quite different.

In comparison, it is much simpler for military generals to wield power.

With a tiger tally in hand, any soldier who does not wish to rebel must obediently carry out military orders.

Even a scholar with no military background could take command of an army by virtue of the tiger tally.

Without considering extreme circumstances, the only requirement for commanding an army is the emperor's trust.

As for the strategic acumen of military generals, their protégés and former subordinates?

It would be best to have it, but it won't affect anything if you don't!

Especially during the Zhou Dynasty, the confinement of military generals and nobles in Bianjing made the "emperor's trust" even more important.

While military commanders were in charge of the army, their influence was not as significant as one might imagine.

Because the emperor trusts you, you are able to take charge of military affairs and have influence in the army.

Civil officials are different.

The implementation of civil officials' policies relied heavily on their protégés and former subordinates.

For a civil servant to accomplish something, he almost always has to juggle political infighting with practical matters.

Whether in political struggles or in practical matters, one must rely on the support of protégés and former subordinates.

Otherwise, the daily political struggles in the imperial court would be difficult to withstand without the support of protégés and former officials, even for the most resilient person.

Li Di, the Grand Chancellor, was recorded in historical records as having the position of Chancellor but no real power.

The reason for this is that there are too few disciples and former subordinates.

When a military general commands an army, once he issues a decree, his subordinates must obey it if they do not wish to rebel.

Otherwise, even killing demonstrators would not be unacceptable.

It's either rebel or obey—it's extremely extreme.

When civil officials govern the country, they have too few protégés and former subordinates, resulting in an unstable base of support. Political enemies seize this opportunity to attempt to undermine them.

What can you do?

What can we do?

Could it be that I could actually draw my sword and kill those court officials who outwardly obey but inwardly defy me?

For civil officials to wield power, they must act from top to bottom and from bottom to top.

From top to bottom, the emperor attached great importance to it.

Supported from the bottom up, by former students and officials.

Both are indispensable and equally important.

Military generals are different; their main advantage lies in the emperor's trust from top to bottom.

As for whether or not one cultivates good disciples and former officials, this involves the continuation of wealth and status.

If you cultivate your disciples and former subordinates, your descendants will have a greater chance of holding military power.

However, it is not particularly related to the execution of military orders.

Ultimately, a military general can only influence an army of one or two hundred thousand at most.

Civil officials influence hundreds of millions of ordinary people; without their protégés and former subordinates, they are truly incapable!

Because civil and military officials have different logics in wielding power, their directions of development also differ.

Once a military general has performed exceptionally well, he can gain the emperor's trust and have the opportunity to rise to the top.

For civil officials to rise in rank, they had to honestly and diligently follow the bureaucratic system, emphasizing the promotion of their protégés and former subordinates, and forming their own faction.

If one advances too quickly, the foundation becomes unstable, and no protégés or former subordinates are cultivated, then seizing power will be extremely difficult.

"The student council will try its best to accumulate experience in governance and promote former officials," Jiang Zhao replied.

Today, Han Zhang still governs the country.

With no worries about gaining power, Jiang Zhao was able to govern a region for quite some time, carefully cultivating his protégés and former subordinates.

"There are almost no official officials along Xihe Road."

"This time, the five Grand Secretaries will certainly recommend some of their protégés and former subordinates. But no matter how many recommendations they make, the majority of the credit will still be in your hands."

Han Zhang said in a low voice, "Once we control Xihe Road, we will have the qualifications to enter the cabinet."

Upon hearing this, several elderly Koreans nodded in agreement.

Compared to Han Zhang, Jiang Zhao had far more opportunities.

Along the way of expansion, it is very easy to recruit a large number of disciples and former officials.

Some Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, even after decades of hard work, may not be able to match the number of protégés and former officials that Jiang Zhao selected in just two or three years.

Jiang Zhao nodded.

He understands all these principles!

"Zhang Heng, Zhang Dun, Su Shi, Su Zhe, and Zeng Bu are all due for their assignments to the frontier. Let's go together to the border regions in a few days," Han Zhang said.

This was a decision he had made long ago.

For this reason, the time for several people to play music was even deliberately delayed.

Jiang Zhao nodded.

As the sun set, nearly ten high-ranking officials in purple robes, led by Han Zhang and Jiang Zhao, exuded power and authority with every move they made.

Jiang Mansion.

The candlelight flickered, casting dappled shadows.

"Shut up!"

The faint sound of wheels gradually faded, then rose again, and finally disappeared.

Jiang Zhao slowly walked into the courtyard.

"Officer."

As soon as they entered the courtyard, Sheng Hualan happily went to greet him, taking her husband's arm in hers.

For a woman, the greatest pursuit in life is to obtain an imperial title.

She was extremely excited to suddenly receive the title of Lady of the County.

Jiang Zhao smiled gently, put his arm around his wife's slender shoulder, and slowly walked inside.

A glance out of the corner of my eye was enough to surprise me.

"Is this the official robes of a Lady of the County?"

Sheng Hualan was dressed in a blue silk robe with cloud and sea patterns on the bottom. The long robe reached the ground, and her slender waist was gently bound by a blue silk belt. A golden cloud-shaped shawl hung down, and a vermilion sash with a double fish jade pendant hung from it. She was truly elegant and noble, with a graceful demeanor.

"Mm." Sheng Hualan nodded gently.

The beautiful woman has arched eyebrows, bright eyes, and cherry-red lips. A faint fragrance wafts by, making one's heart flutter.

"My wife, you smell so good!"

Chapter 97 Reactions from all parties!

Ningyuan Hou Mansion.

Gu Tingye wore a red robe of a fifth-rank official, with a silver fish pouch hanging from his waist. He was tall and straight, exuding the heroic spirit of a scion of a military family.

"oops!"

Madam Qin walked forward with a look of relief, took Gu Tingye's hand, looked him up and down, and said with a pained expression, "Tingye, you've lost weight."

“Mother.” Gu Tingye was deeply moved.

In this noble household, only his mother doted on him.

His remaining uncles and aunts did their share of slander against him.

Even his father only changed his attitude slightly because of his meritorious service on the battlefield.

Only my mother remained unchanged.

"I will guard the frontier and surely earn a title for my mother!" Gu Tingye said with unprecedented seriousness.

In the past, he had neither the ability nor the connections.

Now, he has become a vessel.

The incident in Hezhou earned him an imperial title for his birth mother.

He wanted to achieve new merits and win an imperial title for his mother, Lady Qin!

His older brother had always targeted him, and he wanted to see if his older brother could earn an imperial title for his birth mother.

"Tingye." Madam Qin's eyes were filled with tears and her eyes were slightly red. "I don't want you to do anything. As long as you live a good life, that's better than anything else."

Gu Tingye nodded emphatically.

The mother and son, though not blood-related, are closer than blood relatives.