Since the beginning of winter, there have been many snowfalls in Beijing, and in the middle of the night last night, it was sprinkled with goose feather snow, and in the morning a thick layer has accumulated on the ground, and it is covered in silver everywhere.

Liu Jun specially came to the front court Fengtian Temple to enjoy the snow at the gate of heaven.

In the previous dynasty, Fengtianmen was the place where the emperor's imperial gate listened to the government, and there was a throne in the entrance hall, and hundreds of officials worshiped and performed. However, this dynasty is no longer even the Chang Dynasty, so naturally there is no royal gate to listen to the government. Only Shuowang was left to listen to the government of the Qianqing Gate of the Inner Dynasty.

Liu Jun was wearing a sable fur coat and stood on the high Fengtian Gate, watching the snow sprinkled with fluttering.

"Ruixue is a good year." Liu Jun grabbed a handful of snow from the railing and held it in his hand. The soft snow immediately turned into ice, and the ice water was biting, but Liu Jun played like a child and did not let go.

"Your Majesty, beware of frozen hands." Wang Kun, the eunuch who was in charge of the seal of the celebrant on the side, hurriedly said.

Liu Jun threw the ice cube in his hand a few times, and then threw it vigorously towards the square in front of Fengtian Gate. The snow fell into the snow, and Liu Jun clapped his hands, turned around and sat down in front of the throne.

Under the throne, all the ministers who hung the prime minister's participation in politics were given seats, and all of them were full of fear. This is not pretending, the Senate vetoed the official evaluation bill, but the emperor did not respond for three days, and only today did he summon everyone to the palace. It was dried for three days, and these three days really made these important ministers feel uneasy.

If the emperor called them into the palace as soon as possible, or even got angry at them, the matter might not be serious. But it took three days to summon them into the palace, according to the emperor's style, this is already extremely dissatisfied.

Yuan Jixian, the first assistant of the cabinet, Liu Zongzhou, the second assistant Li Banghua, Ni Yuanlu, the senator, Yao Minggong, the representative doctor, Wang Qian, the left privy envoy, Yin Zheng Sanjun of the Shuntian Mansion, and Wang Kun, the eunuch of the celebrant and the seal.

Now there are only these eight people with the title of Prime Minister's Counselor, and they are all waiting for the storm to come.

Wang Kun said with a smile, "The three years of Longhan are about to pass, and this year can be regarded as a smooth year, and the country and the people are safe." Grain production in various places has been abundant, and the imperial court has won successive victories in the use of troops, and there is still a lot of surplus in the treasury this year. ”

Liu Jun just said lightly, "I won't talk about this today." ”

"Yes, Holy." Wang Kun nodded hurriedly.

Senator Ni Yuanlu had to speak.

"Your Majesty, after the founding of the Han Dynasty, the implementation of the new general policy is all Your Majesty's foresight, and many new policies have also begun to play a good role, and the strength of the Han Dynasty today is inseparable from the new policy implemented by Your Majesty. But since His Majesty has entrusted him with the important task of being a senator, then the minister has the responsibility to be responsible for His Majesty. The official evaluation bill, the minister thought that it was not perfect enough. Since the minister thinks it is inappropriate, he cannot let it go against his will. ”

Liu Jun asked him, "What do you think is wrong with this official evaluation method?" ”

"When I returned to the emperor, the minister thought that this assessment method was too strict, and it was not easy for the country to take scholars, and it was often necessary to study hard for 20 years to win the imperial examination."

Liu Jun sneered twice and interrupted Ni Yuanlu.

"Today's big man, the most important thing is officials. Once an official enters the office, he can only go up but not down, and the officials often become local families, inherited from father to son, and the township is completely controlled by the big clans. Many scholars only know how to bury their heads in eight shares, ignore what is going on outside the window, and concentrate on reading dead books, even if they study hard for 20 years, but such officials are useless, and when they take office in the local area, they often have to rely on the staff master and the bottom one. Now the imperial court has increased the admission of talents in the imperial examination, abolished the eight shares, and also held civil service examinations to select officials based on merit, and also gave them training and apprenticeships, all in order to be able to select and cultivate a group of officials who not only understand the subset of scripture and history, but also understand the economy and people's livelihood. ”

But even so, when these people take office, there will still be many people who are not suitable and incompetent. For this part of the officials, they naturally have to be eliminated. The imperial court does not need a corpse vegetarian meal, and there are no incompetent mediocre people. Such a person, to say something unpolite, is even more terrible than those officials who are capable but have corrupt morals. ”

The emperor openly said such a thing, which shocked Ni Yuanlu and the others. In their hearts, especially in the hearts of former Donglin Party like Ni Yuanlu, officials must first talk about ethics and morality, and then talk about ability. Morality is more important than ability, and he would rather choose a mediocre but honest official than tolerate a capable but corrupt official.

But now the emperor actually said the opposite.

Liu Jun swept over the eight people, and finally landed on Ni Yuanlu.

"I know that it is not easy to be an official, and I may not be able to win the imperial examination after studying hard for 20 years. But this is not a reason, the officers of the imperial court have implemented the promotion period and the term of office, the position is linked to the military rank, and the number of positions is also strictly limited, not arbitrarily added or subtracted, from the low level to the senior officer, the number of positions presents a pyramid shape, so each level of promotion has a certain elimination rate, superior and inferior, which is the basis for ensuring the strength of the empire. ”

"Why can't civil servants do this? I not only want to let civil officials also practice this promotion and elimination mechanism, but also break the way that the state only selects scholars through the imperial examination, and also break down the barriers of officials. The imperial examination and the civil service examination are held at the same time, and after passing the imperial examination and the examination, special training and probation are also carried out, and some of them are eliminated in the process. All officials have to start from the bottom, as long as they do well, they can be promoted all the time, even if they are officials, they will eventually have the opportunity to participate in politics like the prime minister like you. ”

"Officials can only go up but not down, and officials can't be officials, all of which are maladministrations and must be reformed."

Liu Jun deliberately slowed down his speech.

"Knowing mistakes and not correcting, being conservative and closed, in the end is misleading the country and the people. Today, I will not come with you to make a false come, I will show my attitude to you and the world today. The capable go up to the mediocre and let the mediocre go down, there is no politeness at all. Ni Yuanlu, I asked you to be the chairman of the Senate, and I expect you to be a gatekeeper for the court, but what you are doing now is not a gatekeeper, but a drag on the court. From this day onwards, you are relieved of all duties, and only your title remains, and go home. ”

All of them were a shock.

Ni Yuanlu himself didn't expect the emperor to directly masturbate him.

Stunned for a moment, Ni Yuanlu got up and took off his beam crown.

"The minister is entrusted by His Majesty."

"Young Master Yao is also old, and he has resigned before, and I have forced you to serve as the first Speaker of the House of Representatives, which is also hard for you. I can't bear to let you work so hard, and today I will allow Young Master Yao to resign as Speaker of the House of Representatives and return to his hometown to enjoy himself. ”

The crowd was shocked again.

removed two speakers in a row, even if Yao Minggong, the speaker of the parliament, is only the speaker of a nursing home, but he still has the title of prime minister. No matter how the Han Dynasty separates powers, this prime minister's office is the highest decision-making center of the Han Dynasty, and the prime minister's participation in politics is equivalent to one of many prime ministers.

But the emperor swore that he was not done today, and he was not finished.

"Wang Kun, you have followed me for several years, you have worked hard, and you have been in the celebrant for three years, I have ordered someone to build a villa manor for you in your hometown to enjoy your old age, you can return to your hometown to raise it."

Wang Kun's face was pale and pale, and he didn't know what he had done wrong.

"Starting next year, the imperial court will fully implement the new law, and officials will serve a term every four years, and there will be a major examination every two years. Each position can be re-elected for a maximum of two consecutive terms, whether it is the prefect or the first assistant. The three of you are also old, so I will not leave you to work hard for another four years, so go back to your hometown this year and enjoy it in peace. ”

"In addition, the eunuch who holds the seal of the celebrant will no longer add the title of prime minister to participate in politics in the future."

"Mr. Yuan."

"The minister is here." Shousuke hurriedly stood up.

"Sir is still in the prime of life, I will hand over the cabinet to you, starting next year, the new law will be officially implemented, I hope that Sir can lead the cabinet for me for another eight years."

Yuan Jixian is fifty-five this year, and he will only be sixty-three in eight years, so he is actually quite young. But the emperor's words are already obvious, Yuan Jixian has been the chief assistant for three years, and these three years can not be counted in the new law's limit of no more than two eight years. But he could only serve two more terms for eight years before he had to step aside.

"Yes." Yuan Jixian replied.

"The former governor of North Korea, Zhang Guowei, took over as the senator, and the former governor of Zhili, Li Shuchu, took over as the representative doctor." Liu Jun first exempted three prime ministers from participating in politics, and now two new ones have been promoted, plus the eunuch who was removed from the title of prime minister to participate in politics, and now there are only seven prime ministers left in the prime minister's office to participate in politics, and the new prime minister is composed of political participation.

Seven people participated in politics, from the Troika, the Privy Council and the Suncheon Mansion, two cabinet scholars, two Speakers, one Imperial Historian, one Left Privy Envoy and one Jingshi Governor.

The eunuch was completely out, and was cleared out of the center of the court, and only one seat was retained in the military circles.

Through this adjustment, Liu Jun once again strengthened the importance of the Prime Minister's Office. In today's Korea-China structure, the cabinet is equivalent to the ****** of later generations, and the Privy Council is equivalent to the general staff. The House of Representatives is naturally the Congress, and the Goshidai is the equivalent of the Supreme Court of the United States.

In addition to these four major yamen, Liu Jun also has the Prime Minister's Office and the Military Aircraft Department, which are nominally the emperor's advisory and advisory bodies, but in fact the Prime Minister's Office is equivalent to the British Cabinet, or China's True Knowledge Bureau, and the Military Aircraft Department is equivalent to the Military Commission.

These two institutions were the emperor's advisory and advisory bodies, but Liu Jun divided the civil and military affairs through these two institutions.

In fact, whether it was the three provinces and six departments of the Sui and Tang dynasties, or the Zhongshu sect of the later Tang and Song dynasties, or the Zhongshu province of the Yuan Dynasty or the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty, no matter which department held the central power of each dynasty, in fact, it was only the emperor to strengthen his own control.

Shangshu Province was formed in the Eastern Han Dynasty, at the beginning of the emperor for the power of the prime minister, and in the Inner Dynasty set up Shangshutai, and finally gradually formed Shangshu Province, and later in the Three Kingdoms period, Zhongshumen and Menxia Province were formed, the purpose is to divide and limit the rights of Shangshu Province.

By the time of the Sui Dynasty, the six ministries of the three provinces were in a unified manner, mainly in charge of the formulation, review and implementation of central decrees and policies. However, in the Sui Dynasty, Shangshu Province was still the most powerful among the three provinces, so in the Tang Dynasty, in order to limit and divide the rights of Shangshu Province, the title of Pingzhangshi under the Tongzhongshu Sect was established, and finally the title of Tongpingzhangshi under the Zhongshu Sect was formed.

After arriving in the Song Dynasty, the Zhongshu, the Privy Council, and the three divisions were divided into three major affairs: government, military, and finance, and the power of the prime minister was divided by the privy envoys and the three envoys. The power of the prime minister, the privy envoy, and the three envoys are on par with each other, and they are not in control.

In the Ming Dynasty, after Zhu Yuanzhang killed Hu Weiyong, he simply decreed that the Ming Dynasty should no longer have a prime minister. Later, cabinet scholars were used to share the responsibilities of the prime minister.

It can be said that whether it is from the prime minister of the Qin and Han dynasties or the three provinces of the Sui and Tang dynasties, as well as the Zhongshu Sect of the Song Dynasty, or the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty, it is actually an effort of the emperor to divide the prime minister and strengthen the imperial power.

The central institutions have been changed in order to achieve a better balance.

The Ming Dynasty abolished the prime minister, later set up a cabinet, and then let the celebrant approve the red, forming the internal and external dynasties, all because of this. It has only been three years since the founding of the Han Dynasty, and Liu Jun is constantly adjusting, but the purpose is the same, in order to form a stable and balanced state, so that the power of his subordinates can check and balance each other, and at the same time, they must cooperate with each other.

By now, it has basically reached a state of equilibrium.

Ni Yuanlu's opposition vote this time made the pattern that Liu Jun had built up a little unstable. If the cabinet proposes the evaluation bill again, the Senate is likely to veto it again, after all, it involves the interests of many officials.

If the cabinet is rejected twice, the head of the cabinet must resign, or the emperor will remove the chairman of the Senate. Of the two, one has to go, after all, after two vetoes, the cabinet and the Senate no longer have a tacit understanding of cooperation.

This is just like in the Ming Dynasty, the cabinet drafted votes, and the celebrant approved the red, if the emperor was dissatisfied with the cabinet's approval of the red and directly changed the instructions, then the cabinet chief assistant had to resign, because this represented the emperor's distrust of the cabinet chief assistant. The emperor doesn't trust it anymore, so how can this cabinet chief assistant still be?

So, under normal circumstances, if the House is rejected once, the Cabinet would have to negotiate with the Senate, either to shelv the bill, or to improve the House until the two sides can agree, at which point it can be submitted for review.

Of course, if there is a fight between the two sides, there is a Senate, otherwise, the cabinet will mention and veto the matter, then the two sides will have to go to one side.

In case after one is gone, there is a third time to submit a bill and the third time it is vetoed, it will be a real big deal. Either the parliament will be dissolved, or the cabinet will be dissolved.

At that point, it's pretty serious.

Liu Jun didn't plan to make trouble to that extent, and he didn't even plan to risk proposing a second bill, so he directly came to the bottom of the kettle and directly replaced the chairman of the Senate today.

Ni Yuanlu was dismissed, but the Senate still had to stay, and even Liu Jun planned to give the House of Representatives a little power. After all, the House of Representatives exists to check and balance the Cabinet, and without the House of Representatives staring at the Cabinet, the Cabinet has too much power.

"The Cabinet will study and revise the law on the evaluation of officials, and then submit it to the Senate for review, and I hope it will be passed before the new year. In addition, both the Ministry of Officials and the Ministry of Military Affairs immediately began to prepare for the first national examination of civil and military officials, which will be held nationwide after the next year, and the examination must be completed before the summer, and after the examination, all civil and military officials will officially begin to serve for a four-year term, and the examination will be held every two years, and the same post will be re-elected for a maximum of two years. ”

"All officials, whether they are martial arts or eunuchs and female officials in the court, all have to complete the assessment and compete for posts after the assessment."

After the assessment, those who are capable will be promoted and those who are mediocre will be demoted, and some officials will be eliminated according to the promotion elimination rate of assessments at all levels that Liu Jun has formulated. Successfully passed the assessment and took up the post. The term of office shall be calculated after taking up the post, and the term of office before the assessment shall not be counted. Therefore, all official positions, after the evaluation in the spring of next year, will be counted in the summer, and there will be a full four-year term, and a maximum of two consecutive terms of eight years. Those who have done a very good job and have outstanding achievements during their tenure can be directly promoted after serving for two years.

The new Prime Minister's Office has seven prime ministers to participate in politics, and each of them has the opportunity to participate in politics for eight years, provided that the emperor is satisfied. If the performance is not good, like Ni Yuanlu, he may not be satisfied for even four years.

But no matter how good he is, he can only work for eight years to satisfy the emperor like Yuan Jixian, the first assistant.

Moreover, the prime minister's participation in politics is linked to the positions of the first assistant and deputy assistant to the cabinet, just as it is linked to the rank and position of the officers. First of all, it is necessary to hold seven important positions such as the first assistant in order to increase the rank of prime minister to participate in politics at the same time.

Liu Jun looked at them and said, "I hope that you Aiqing can cooperate more and be less ridiculous in the future." In addition to the Imperial Tower, the Cabinet, the House of Representatives, and the Privy Council can all be submitted to the Senate, but I hope that before submitting the House to the Senate, we can make preparations, and at the same time, we must communicate and negotiate with the Senate in advance. ”

The Imperial Observatory is a system that specializes in the administration of justice, so Liu Jun does not let the Imperial Observatory have the right to make proposals, they only need to administer justice in accordance with the laws that have been passed. This is just like Liu Jun will not give the Senate judicial power, which is both an athlete and a referee, of course not.

"Mr. Ni, Mr. Yao, and Mr. Wang, the three of you are all heroes of the Han Dynasty, I will not erase or forget your merits, you are also old, it is not bad to return to your hometown to enjoy your old age, don't have any resentment in your heart."

Ni Yuanlu, Yao Minggong, and Wang Kun all stepped forward and knelt down and kowtowed to the emperor.

"Your Ministers are grateful for God's grace."

"I hope you can understand that I am also a hard worker, and you can set an example and make a good start. This year, the imperial court will not only implement an appraisal system and impose term limits, but also an age limit, and officials of the ninth to fifth rank will need to retire and leave office when they reach the age of 55. Officers of the fifth rank or above to the third rank must retire at the age of 60. Officials of the third grade or above must retire at the age of 65, and the prime minister can relax the age of retirement and resignation at the age of 70 if he is in good health to participate in politics. ”

What kind of official is seventy or eighty, and can he still handle affairs? The retirement age of officials was also set to make the bureaucracy more youthful and efficient.

However, Yao Minggong is only fifty-five this year, and Ni Yuanlu is only fifty, which is already ****** at this age, but he is actually very young. But Yao Minggong himself is very mediocre and has no ability, although he was a cabinet elder at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Liu Jun pulled him into the cabinet of the new dynasty and into the House of Representatives, in fact, it is just a number.

Ni Yuanlu used to be a veteran of the Donglin Party, and he once opposed Liu Jun, but now he can't go with Liu Jun, of course Liu Jun kicked them out of the center unceremoniously.

As for the eunuch Wang Kun, it's not because of his morality or anything like that. It's just that Liu Jun doesn't need to rely on eunuchs to divide the power of ministers, and he also dislikes eunuchs for being too involved in politics. At most, eunuchs can be assistants and secretaries, they are inherently insufficient, and they stay in the palace every day, and it is not suitable for them to participate in politics as prime ministers.

Now that the number of eunuchs in the palace is getting smaller and smaller, Liu Jun has slowly let these eunuchs withdraw from the center of the court, just letting them become some assistants in the emperor's private life.

Zhang Guowei and Li Shuchu are both feudal officials of several local governors, and now the imperial court has abolished the post of governor, and a former governor of Zhili and a former governor of North Korea are still resting in Beijing. These two people have rich local experience, Zhang Guowei also held important positions in the DPRK and China, and both of them were 46 or 7 years old, under 50.

Now Liu Jun has transferred these two pragmatic factions and young Zhuang factions to the center and served as speakers of the Senate and the House of Representatives, which is also deliberate.

In fact, these two people are more suitable to work in the cabinet, but Liu Jun finally plans to let these two people serve in the parliament first. Anyway, the speakers of the Senate and the House of Representatives, and at the same time, the title of prime minister, can participate in the decision-making of major affairs of the imperial court.

Li Shuchu was originally the governor of Zhili, and he also had the title of prime minister, but because the imperial court removed all the governors, Li Shuchu naturally no longer hung the title of prime minister after he no longer served as the governor of Zhili, and now he took over as the president of the House of Representatives and returned to the prime minister's office. (To be continued.) )