After Yuan Shao returned to Luoyang with the news of Jizhou, Liu Wei was both helpless and angry.

For Han Fu, Liu Wei never expected him to be Yuan Shao's opponent, and sent him to Jizhou, just hoping that he could slow down Yuan Shao's expansion of strength a little. Even if Wei Gen and their assassination in Yecheng, Liu Wei only had the mentality of giving it a try. Regarding the irresistibility of some history, sometimes Liu Wei is also very reluctant to accept his fate.

What made Liu Wei angry was Gongsun Zhan's performance.

The imperial court's reward for Gongsun Zhan was not insignificant, and he was promoted from a small Liaodong Changshi to a Youzhou general who was in charge of a party's military power. This is not only the relationship between him being a disciple of Lu Zhi, but also the local forces who fancy him in Youzhou and envelop him.

Usually no matter what kind of contradiction he and Liu Yu had, the court would try its best to reconcile it. You must know that Liu Yu is a relative of the Han family, an important minister relied on by the imperial court, and Gongsun Zhan is just a son of a local wealthy family, at most he is a rising star, and the imperial court puts him at the same level as Liu Yu, and reconciles and forbears, which has given him a lot of face. However, this time Gongsun Zhan's attack on Jizhou was already an intolerable disobedience to the imperial court.

Even Lu Zhi showed great anger towards him as a student, not only wrote a handwritten letter to reprimand, but also deliberately published a revelation in the "Luoyang Times" to sever the master-apprentice relationship with Gongsun Zhan.

Yuan Kui also took the opportunity to express Liu Bian's suggestion that the imperial court should crusade against Gongsun Zhan, exaggerate Gongsun Zhan's harm to the imperial court and his disobedience, and try his best to weaken Yuan Shao's influence on Jizhou. even said that Yuan Shao's self-leadership of Jizhou was a matter of urgency to obey power in order to prevent the traitor Gongsun Zan from encroaching on Jizhou.

Many courtiers were indignant when they were bewitched by him, and the court advocated severe punishment of Gongsun Zhan. Although the ministers were noisy, Liu Wei still maintained a sense of sobriety and sanity.

If there is chaos today, the princes of all sides are ready to move. In particular, the sudden rise of the two brothers, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, one in the south and one in the north, has become a huge threat to the imperial court.

Yuan Shu is so happy with his achievements, brave and unplanned. Although it is entrenched in Huainan, the damage to the imperial court will not be great, at most it will be a temporary scabies. Yuan Shu belongs to the kind of person who is ambitious and incapable, while Yuan Shao is immobile, both capable and ambitious, and is really a big trouble for the imperial court. So all along, Liu Wei has focused on Yuan Shao.

Now the situation in Jizhou and Youzhou is quite a bit of a three-legged taste, after the defeat of Gongsun Chan retreated to his hometown of Liaoxi, after suffering from the lack of logistics base, Gongsun Chan presented himself as the Taishou of Liaoxi, occupying a place in Liaoxi to recover his vitality. Yuan Shao led Jizhou from himself, and Gongsun Zan was already incompatible. And Liu Yu is a loyal man, and he and Gongsun Chan also fell out completely. For Yuan Shao, although Liu Yu is not evil on the surface, Yuan Shao's ambition is very big, and Liu Yu is not a fool, how can he not see it, and he is also careful to beware.

Although the three of them have no possibility of cooperating, they also play a subtle role in pulling each other in. Therefore, Liu Wei adopted an indifferent attitude towards Gongsun Zhan's disobedience, and the hope in his heart was that Gongsun Zhan could replace Han Fu to suppress Yuan Shao's development and buy time for the imperial court.

In order to calm the indignation of the courtiers, Lu Zhi suggested to Liu Wei that several important ministers such as Han Rong, the great Honglu, the executive Jinwu Hu Muban, and the general master Wu Xun go to Youzhou to investigate the truth of the matter.

Next, Liu Wei quickened his pace and moved towards the Yuan family.

The first thing to be solved is the Taifu Yuan Kui, who is entrenched in the court and forms a party for personal gain.

The way to solve Yuan Kui can be very simple, make up a few charges, and send a team of soldiers and horses to capture and kill Yuan Kui. The secret service of the Unified Investigation Agency also prepared several plans to assassinate Yuan Kui in a silent manner. It's just that what Liu Wei has to consider is the impact on the imperial court after killing Yuan Kui by violent means.

The attitude of Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, and the attitude of Yuan Kui's party of scholars and doctors. After all, Yuan Kui was a trusted minister arranged by Emperor Ling, and he had a great reputation in the world, and his impact on the reputation of the imperial court after being eliminated by violent means. Even at odds with Yuan Kui, Lu Zhi, an important minister on whom Liu Wei relied on was strongly opposed to such a direct means to settle the Yuan family.

Liu Wei summoned the trusted cronies of the imperial court, Wei Yi, Jia Xu, Lu Zhi, Xun Yu and Zhao Yun, to Haolongyuan and secretly discussed a plan to get rid of Yuan Kui.

Lu Zhi and Xun Yu are upright and advocate the right way, but they are not good at conspiracy and power. Wei Yi and Zhao Yun couldn't say anything about it, at most they were the executors of the plan. The only one who can really speak can only be the master of scheming - Jia Xu.

"The fourth generation and three dukes of the Yuan family, the protégés are all over the world, and there are many henchmen in the court, if Your Majesty wants to get rid of Yuan Kui, you must first cut off his wings, and then put it in the cabinet. At that time, he has no party affiliation and no power in his hands, just like a marionette holding in the palm of his majesty's hand, and it makes no sense to kill him or not. Jia Xu preached to Liu Wei.

Liu Wei nodded and said: "Wen He's words are exactly what I want, but there are many henchmen in the Yuan family, and how to get rid of them all at once still needs to be discussed in detail." ”

Liu Wei's worries are not unreasonable, the Yuan family has many henchmen, and the good and the bad are mixed. If you look for it, you can also find a lot of incriminating evidence. However, it is unrealistic to convict them all on this basis, and such a hard-line approach will inevitably cause turmoil in the court. The others also had the same idea, and for a while most of them couldn't find a better way, and they all frowned.

In the end, Liu Wei still asked Jia Xu: "What does Wen He think about this?" ”

Jia Xu had actually been prepared for this, and when he saw Liu Wei asking, he replied with a smile: "Your Majesty, don't worry, has Your Majesty forgotten about the restructuring of the court?" ”

Liu Wei was stunned for a moment, and then immediately understood what Jia Xu meant.

The restructuring of the imperial court has always been part of Liu's big plan, and it is also a precursor to future reforms. As early as the beginning of the succession, Liu Wei had carried out military restructuring, and at that time he had just succeeded to the throne and was fledgling, so he forbears the political restructuring of the imperial court and does not implement it.

At this time, Liu Wei's position gradually stabilized, and the restructuring of the court was put on the agenda. Jia Xu has seen Liu Wei's big plan, and he naturally understands the restructuring of the court. A while ago, Liu Wei had already revealed some words to Lu Zhi and others about the restructuring, and Lu Zhi and the others were not surprised to hear this at this time, and after thinking about Jia Xu's words carefully, they also felt that it was a good idea.

The reform of the imperial court will inevitably lead to personnel changes, and Liu Wei can take this opportunity to purge the courtiers who were pro-Yuan Kui, or remove officials, or transfer key departments. The means are gentle, and they can't cause much backlash, and they can be done quietly.

Jia Xu's idea is good, and it has been unanimously approved by everyone. Next, Jia Xu put on a list of Yuan Kui's henchmen, who are die-hard elements who need to be suppressed and excluded, and who are grass on the wall and can be co-opted and bought. All of them are analyzed one by one and marked on it.

This list has actually been collected and sorted out since Wei Yi was in charge of the Coordination Society, and it was gradually improved after Jia Xu took over. There are not only henchmen on Yuan Kuiming's face on the list, but also some of Liu Wei's henchmen. There are also some people who are secretly bribed and befriended, and there are even the names of several officials in key departments on them, Liu Wei couldn't help frowning when he saw it.

Wei Yi also saw the names of the people on the list on the side, his face turned pale for a while, and he hurriedly apologized to Liu: "Your Majesty, the minister was overlooked for a while, and he didn't find that these people betrayed the court. ”

Jia Xu explained for Wei Yi: "This matter is not a dereliction of duty on the part of Zhongxian, but that these people have colluded with Yuan Kui only recently. Yuan Kui befriended them with a thousand gold, and then promised them a high-ranking official, which made them tempted to join them. ”

Lu Zhi also saw the list, and said worriedly and indignantly: "Yuan Kui's collusion with these people must be a bad intention." Your Majesty should get rid of them as soon as possible, so as not to cause chaos. ”

Liu Wei was silent, thinking about the countermeasures to this matter. Although the people on the list are not important ministers, they are important figures at some key points, and Yuan Kui is actually releasing a signal when he woos these people: he has given up the political game of intrigue and is ready to do it.

In fact, I have begun to have such thoughts these days, and the two sides coincide. You've been battling back and forth for a few rounds, and it's time for a final break.

Seeing that Liu Wei was silent, Jia Xu said the plan in his heart: "The Yuan family is the fourth generation and the third duke, and Yuan Kui is a famous man in the world and an important minister of the imperial court. His Majesty has always been jealous of his fame and forbearance from him. Now that he has evil intentions and intends to endanger the community, His Majesty can get rid of him with a plan! ”

Jia Xu's plan Liu Wei naturally understood it, and led you into the urn. A satisfied smile appeared on Liu Wei's face.

In the next few days, Liu Wei summoned Lu Zhi and others to the Maolong Garden several times to discuss the reform plan of the imperial court. It wasn't until the beginning of May that the entire plan was implemented, and Liu Wei was ready to implement it.

The first thing that began was still military reform. Compared with the first military restructuring at the beginning of Liu Wei's succession, this restructuring is more deepened.

In May of the fourth year of Guangxi's reign, Liu Wei first issued an edict to implement a dual military system of regular army and militia in the areas controlled by the imperial court.

The regular army, such as the Third Auxiliary Army, the Xiyuan Army, the Northern Army, etc., the soldiers received high salaries from the imperial court, were well-equipped, and had strong combat effectiveness. All supplies were provided by the imperial court, training in peacetime, and fighting in wartime. The implementation of the conscription system, with good treatment to attract the elite to join the army. The number of people is generally maintained at about 10,000 to 50,000 people, and they are collectively known as the government army. Later, in order to stabilize the border, a border guard army was set up, which is also a kind of government army, and the treatment is higher than that of ordinary government army. Moreover, in order to prevent the army from rebelling, after the reunification of the whole country, a system of changing guards in the army was also implemented, and every five years the guard was changed, and the government troops living in the interior had the opportunity to change to the border to become border guards. This not only solves the problem that soldiers in the interior are prone to corruption and degeneration without war, but also prevents the long-term stationing of the army from forming a separatist rebellion.

The militia is similar to the government soldiers during the Tang Dynasty, adopting the means of conscription, and is composed of urban and rural people. The militia is not paid or paid a small amount, and its equipment is provided by itself or paid by the state in wartime. The vast majority of militia training is not used for foreign warfare, but for defending cities, so that there is no need for too strict training. There are many types of militia, such as the Tuntian soldier who is in charge of the tuntian, and the militia standing soldier who can be retired after three years of service. Even the dozens of security guards in charge of law and order composed of the city or the countryside (which were the administrative units at the bottom of the Han Dynasty) are also counted as a kind, and there are many different types.

In order to ensure the supply of soldiers, Liu Wei issued an edict to implement a compulsory military service system in the areas controlled by the imperial court, stipulating that all men between the ages of 20 and 40 from the princes to the Li people must serve in the army and become a reserve during their lifetime. As for what kind of army to choose, there is no requirement. You can go to the government army and start a career as a professional soldier, or join the militia standing army that has been retired for three years, or even become a security soldier who goes out for half a night to patrol every night.

In order to improve the treatment of soldiers, Liu Wei issued an edict that all people who joined the army would be exempted from forced labor and agricultural taxes, and anyone who held government office would consider whether you joined the army in your resume. From the simplest imperial examination to illustrate, two people with the same test score will give priority to those who have joined the army, if everyone has also joined the army, you must consider whether you are in the government army or the militia. Generally speaking, the government army has priority over the militia, and the standing soldiers in the militia have priority over the tuntian soldiers and the armor protection soldiers. If it's the same class, you'll consider whether you've fought a war or not, and compare the military merits of the two. This criterion is also used in the evaluation and promotion of officials.

Similarly, in order to revitalize the martial spirit of the Han Empire and establish a military power, Liu Wei issued an edict stipulating the policy of knighthood for military merits. The people of the Great Han can only obtain knighthoods through military exploits, but it does not mean that they must go to the battlefield with a sword to fight. If you support the war, you'll also receive a knighthood for military merit. For example, when a war breaks out, the prime minister provides logistical support to the front line or participates in related military decisions, and after the war ends, the prime minister will also receive corresponding military merits to be knighted. From a young age, a big merchant provides free grain, grass and weapons and other logistical supplies to an army that he is optimistic about, and if this army wins the war, then the merchant who provides grain and grass weapons will also get corresponding military merits.

This move can not only improve the status of businessmen, but also solve the problem of military spending. However, Liu Wei was also afraid that the national army would become a tool of interest for the merchant group, and stipulated that the logistical support provided to the army could only be through the military department, and could not directly contact the army it supported. Merchants are like betting on horses, the court announces which armies are involved in the war, and the merchants put their money on the armies they like. Of course, this provision does not necessarily limit the participation of merchants, and anyone in the Han Empire who is interested in contributing to the country's territory and wants to be knighted can participate. However, the war of providing an army requires extraordinary things, and it can only be done by the big men and merchants. Later, in order to satisfy the "heart of serving the country" of those small and medium-sized businessmen or those with insufficient assets, the imperial court stipulated that several people could jointly support the army, and the military merits obtained at that time would also be distributed to them according to the amount of capital contribution. Or you can provide a part of the support, for example, the military cost of the whole campaign is 100 million yuan, if you only provide 1 million yuan of support, then you can only get 1% of the military merit. Of course, you can also accumulate military merit points through the military merit point system to achieve the military merit required for knighthood.

Liu Wei abolished the existing titles of the twelve marquis of the Han Empire and restored the five princes and sons of the pre-Qin period. However, the corresponding fiefdom has been abolished, at least without the administrative power of the fief. In this way, the emergence of separatist forces is avoided. After obtaining the title, at most you can get the tax commission of the fief, which cannot be directly claimed from the fief, but can only be issued regularly by the imperial court. The knighthood has become more of a symbol of honor. However, in the later period of Guangxi, Liu Wei established the House of Nobles, which gave the nobles who obtained the title the right to participate in state affairs.

For the advancement and acquisition of knighthoods, Liu Wei adopted a military merit point system. Ordinary soldiers can earn merit points by killing or capturing the number of enemy soldiers, and one point is earned for killing one person. (In order to protect the population, Liu Wei promulgated the "Prisoner of War Labor Law", and the army stipulated that the prisoner of the enemy could double the points.) Small merchants can also earn knighthoods over time through military merit points. High-ranking generals earn knighthoods by attacking or defending a place, and if you accumulate ten miles, you can get a baron, and enjoy a tax commission for one mile; Conquer counties with less than 100,000 people to obtain a viscount, and enjoy a tax commission of less than 10,000 people; If you conquer a county with more than 100,000 people, you can get an earl, and enjoy the tax commission of a county with more than 10,000 people; If you conquer the size of a county, you can get a marquis and enjoy the tax commission of a county; Conquer a state to earn a duke and enjoy a state's tax commission.

Each title is divided into three classes, and there are two types: hereditary and lifelong. The hereditary system means that the title can be passed on to future generations, and the lifelong system means that your title can only be enjoyed by you, and the title will be cancelled when you die. The hereditary title can only be obtained for the work of opening up the territory of the Han Dynasty, while the title of lifelong system is the merit of defending the territory. For example, if you defend a county, you will be given a lifetime earl. The first-class title receives a 30% tax commission for the corresponding fiefdom, the second-class title receives a 20% tax commission, and the third-class title receives a 10% tax commission.

Vaguely, Liu Wei also revealed the idea of setting up the "king", but it was unanimously opposed by Lu Zhi, Xun Yu and others.

"Gaozu swore an oath by cutting off the white horse, and those who are not surnamed Liu will not be crowned kings!" Lu Zhiyi was rhetorical against Liu.

Liu Wei was speechless. In fact, even if it is really crowned king, this title will not cause much harm to the Han Empire, after all, the new title system has no fiefdom and no administrative power, although the prince is noble, it can only be a symbol of the highest honor, but Lu Zhi and others do not agree. For them, the setting of the title of duke has been reluctantly accepted by them, and the setting of the prince is even more impossible.

They were all cronies, and Liu Wei couldn't force them to set it up regardless of their ideas, so he had to give up the prince for the time being. Liu Wei then issued another edict, once again reiterating the policy of separating the military from the government of the local government. The edict was harshly worded, ordering the governors of all prefectures and counties to immediately surrender their military power and obey the imperial court. However, the effect of this edict was not very good, and the princes in various places still went their own way and refused to surrender their military power. However, Liu Wei did not particularly mind the effect of this edict. This is just to follow Guo Jia's idea and give these local warlords a final warning, and then the imperial court, which occupies the name of righteousness, can take action against them.

In addition, there is no need to elaborate on some minor reforms, such as restoring the establishment of 500 people in the existing military system, setting up a subordinate governor, and adding a military commander to assist the lieutenant generals.

After the promulgation of the plan for the restructuring of the army, what followed was Liu Wei's drastic restructuring in the court.

To be continued, stay tuned for the next chapter.