When the political situation in Liaoyang Prefecture was undercurrent, the contradictions in Yanjing were further intensified. During this period, a major event happened - Yang Dingguo fell ill!

On the same day, Guo Fen dismissed the scholar and the imperial envoy of the revolution, and returned after the decision of cutting the general to the Western Regions, and it had also been stamped with the golden seal of Admiral Tiance, which let people know that Zhang Mai, who was thousands of miles away, respected the decision of the heroine of Xishan very much.

Those old-style bureaucrats and old-school gentry who are dissatisfied with the current political situation do not dare to disobey Guo Fen head-on, but it is inevitable to secretly create some small troubles. It's not that the officials are corrupt, nor are the military generals domineering, it's just that the families of the gentry are taking advantage of the relaxed environment of the Tiance regime.

It involves public opinion, so Yang Dingguo, who is in charge of the correction platform, can't help but put out the fire everywhere, after all, he is old, and this year he has been tired of running and working hard in order to prepare for the construction of the correction and evaluation stations at all levels in Hebei, Shandong, and Henan.

Now that Zhang Mai is not here, Yang Dingguo is one of the backbones of this country, and nothing can happen to him - regardless of state affairs, since Guo Shidao's death, Yang Dingguo and Guo Fen are like a father, and she is difficult to accept that Yang Dingguo is in trouble with family affection - so she rushed to the Yang Mansion in Youzhou City to personally serve medicine.

Yang Dingguo had to be taken care of by the doctor, and he woke up a little, but he also knew that he couldn't be a director, he muttered in his illness, but what he said was only state affairs, Guo Fen said: "Uncle, don't worry about this, someone else will do it!" ”

Yang Dingguo said: "After your father broke off for us, he lost his life. I'm an old bone, as long as I can still move for a day, I can't help but do my duty, otherwise I won't have the face to see the old brothers under Jiuquan in the future. ”

Guo Fen cried when she heard this, this is a gaffe she has never had since she sat in Liangzhou. Thinking that Yang Dingguo is seriously ill now, Yang Yi and Yang Zhuo are not around, the old man lives up to the country, but Guo Fen feels that the country owes him something, Yang Dingguo sees Guo Fen emotional, and his heart is also sad. sighed: "Child, don't be like this, don't be like this, you are all a mother, and you are the mother of a country, you can't cry like this, so that people will think you are weak when they see it." Alas, I am sick even if I can't die for a while. I'm afraid I won't be able to serve the council, but I'm down, and the correction desk can't fall, so I have to find someone to take over. ”

Guo Fen said: "Except for my uncle, who can afford this heavy responsibility!" ”

Yang Dingguo said: "The original intention of the establishment of the correction and evaluation platform was to elect loyal and upright people to speak for the people. After all, a person like me, who retired from the military, was only pushed out of necessity at the initial stage, and it is not really suitable. Now the shelves of the correction and evaluation tables at all levels have been erected. It's better for me to step back at this time. But you have to worry about the election of this big endorsement. ”

When the Correction Desk was first established. The Tiance regime still only occupies a corner of the northwest, so it has set up three levels of country, state, and county, and the imperial history at all levels is elected layer by layer. In Kaifeng, Xiangyang, Liangzhou, Qinzhou, Qufu, and Yedu all added a level of the Metropolitan Correction and Evaluation Station, but the Metropolitan Correction and Evaluation Station is not yet a permanent institution, and it can only be regarded as dividing some of the local powers of the National Correction and Appraisal Station. They are still being selected at the state level.

At the level of the National Correction and Appraisal Desk, in addition to the national congress to be held, daily affairs are usually composed of various permanent central organs of the Correction and Appraisal Desk, or the main discussion of commerce, or the main discussion of religion, or the main discussion of public security, or the main discussion of criminal law, or the main discussion of engineering, or the main discussion of education, or the main discussion of corruption, a total of 16 departments, this is the so-called "16 halls of the correction and evaluation platform", and later with the increase of authority, the affairs became more and more complicated, and the number of 24 halls was added.

Among the twenty-four halls, there is also a non-permanent institution that exists in the first place to rectify the evaluation platform, and the reason for its birth is to respond to the legislation of the Tiance regime -- when Zhang Mai created a hundred laws with the Tiance regime, many laws and decrees were hastily launched, and there must be imperfections and imperfections in them, and the language also needs to be modified, so after each law is enacted, or before every decision is made to abolish a law, the new law or decision must be copied into several copies and handed over to some existing knowledge, It can be said that this is the earliest legislative body in the hands of people who can represent a certain group of people to deliberate.

Not counting Guo Luo, Yang Yi, Luo Fu, Murong Guiying, Cao Yuanzhong and Sun Chao, who briefly joined and withdrew in the middle, there were only nine members who played a sustaining role after customization, and there were only nine members at the beginning, namely the great master of Han Buddhism, Fa Ru, the great master of Tibetan Buddhism, Zong Hui, the high priest of Zoroastrianism, Wen Suhai, the elder of the Ming Sect, Yang Dingguo, the chief justice Zhang De, as well as Zheng Wei and Zhang Yi, and finally Guo Fen.

Later, as the division of labor became clearer, Zheng Wei, who was in charge of the "Tang Dynasty Prime Minister's Seal", and Zhang De, who was in charge of the "World Public Law Seal", withdrew according to the system, so only Yang Dingguo, Guo Fen and Zhang Yi were left among the veteran members of the Lunxian Hall.

From the beginning, the Lunxian Hall was a small circle, and there was no fixed affairs in ordinary times, but it had an extremely far-reaching influence on the power of the system.

Yang Dingguo asked his daughter-in-law to take the "Dai Wan Min Yan" seal for herself, and said: "It stands to reason that this Dai Wan Min Yan seal should be handed over by me personally, but I am like this now, and I can only entrust you." ”

He said that such a conversation was very tiring, and people were uncomfortable, Guo Fen didn't dare to refuse, and after taking over, he said: "Uncle, you can recuperate with peace of mind, there is me!" ”

Yang Dingguo was relieved only when he got her words, and as soon as he let go of his hand, he almost lost his consciousness.

Guo Fen hugged the words of Dai Wanmin, and felt bitter in his heart: "Brother Mai, who has no conscience, ran to the Western Regions to get away, and threw the mess of Yanjing to me, and now this correction platform has also fallen into my hands, how good can I be!" Let's hold a meeting first and quickly nominate a new big endorsement. ”

The title of "endorsement" originally came from Qin Dong's common name for the self-set correction and evaluation of the imperial history, but it was passed down that even the formal correction of the imperial history of Qin Xi also claimed to be the endorsement, and after the "Speech Seal of the People" was released, the person in charge was also called the "big endorsement", and he was the natural chief of the Lunxian Hall and the big steward of the entire correction and evaluation system.

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After Guo Fen went back, he became the patriarch of the Lunxian Hall. On behalf of Yang Dingguo, he issued an order to hold a national meeting a month later to elect a new spokesperson. According to the system, the qualifications of candidates are, first, the nomination of three members of the Ronkendo. Second, there are more than 30 national judges to evaluate the history of the joint recommendation. She is open-minded, open-minded and bold, and sometimes her mind is not detailed enough, so she just wants to quickly elect a new spokesperson, first, to take over the heavy responsibility on Yang Dingguo's shoulders, and secondly, to stabilize the current state affairs.

Unexpectedly, one stone stirred up a thousand waves! As soon as the news came out, Yanjing, which was already disturbed, became even more lively, from officials to gentry, from politics to business, I don't know how many people connected overnight. Exchange messages!

The correction and evaluation platform is a brand-new institution only in the Tiance Datang, although there is no daily administrative power, but it has a very wide range of supervision powers, and this kind of supervision is top-down supervision, as long as the correction and evaluation of the imperial history does not violate the laws and regulations during the term of office, it is not afraid of being recalled, although it is not an official, but it can restrain officials. And the big endorsement of the correction and evaluation station is in charge of one of the "six seals" of the "voice seal of all the people", in accordance with the current legislation. The establishment of the Son of Heaven and the succession of the Prime Minister must be stamped with the seal of the words of the people before they can be considered legitimate.

Originally, Yang Dingguo sat in this position. With his status, no one dares to win the title, and now that Yang Dingguo is ill, this position is about to be vacated, and countless people immediately covet it.

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During this time, Wei Renpu originally got up in the morning to sit quietly and read books, so he went to the teahouse to drink tea at the end of the morning, and listened to some ants who were not elegant and talked about the ownership of the big endorsement there, and sneered in his heart. I was in no mood and walked home.

He participated in the court meeting that day, and because of his selfish intentions, he was reprimanded by Guo Fen, and he was dismissed as an envoy. Although Guo Fen still asked him to temporarily take charge of the monitoring station, Wei Renpu was very ashamed, and felt that as soon as he lost half of his life, he automatically retired from the position of the chief constitution of the monitoring station, and then studied behind closed doors, but he was still enthusiastic about the country he had a part in building - otherwise he would not have stayed in Youzhou and would not have returned to his hometown. His protégé and old friend also knew his mood a lot, so he didn't come to him during this time, and Wei Renpu was also happy and quiet.

However, after the news came out that Yang Dingguo was going to abdicate and make way for Xian, there was a sudden stream of protégés and old visitors, and Wei Renpu remembered that although he was no longer the general constitution of the supervision station, his identity as a "commentator" was still there -- the Lunxian Hall now has 30 members, and except for the representatives of 24 fields, the other six are all people of high moral or respectable morals.

The Imperial History of the Supervision Taiwan Capital and the scholars of the Hanlin Academy were both appointed by the Son of Heaven, so they could be directly removed by the Son of Heaven, but the members of the Lunxian Hall were elected, and Yang Dingguo did not hold a meeting for a day to vote on the removal, and Wei Renpu's identity as a commentator on the Constitution has always existed.

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When he returned home from the teahouse, he saw a few students waiting for him, and Wei Renpu didn't need to ask them to know what was going on -- since he resigned, not only has the operation of the monitoring station been greatly affected, but his protégés have also been in a state of panic.

Wei Renpu didn't wait for them to speak: "I know you have something to say, but if it's a big endorsement, then you don't need to say it!" I went to the post of supervising the General Constitution of Taiwan because I had done something wrong, and my generation of Confucians, we should be honest and shameful, and the position of the General Constitution of Taiwan should not tolerate the slightest dirt! Since I have a moral character, I can't help but take the blame and resign. What's more, the position of the great spokesperson is the will of heaven and the will of the people, and those who are not the great princes of the world are not allowed to steal their positions. I am a loss to be the general constitution of the supervision station, not to mention the big endorsement! ”

A few hard words persuaded the protégés away, but in the evening, Feng Dao suddenly came to invite, Wei Renpu and Feng Dao also have a teacher-student friendship, the teacher can drive away when the students enter the door, the teacher can be inconvenient and rude to invite the students, he came to Feng Dao's mansion, the two met, after sitting down according to the ceremony, Feng Dao drank tea, did not speak, and did not greet, Wei Renpu had the habit of sitting on the monitoring platform, and the person also became sharp, and said: "Feng Shi has not summoned students for a long time, and he was suddenly invited tonight, is it not related to the endorsement of National Taiwan University?" ”

Feng Dao said with a smile: "Ming people don't say secret words, that's exactly the case." ”

Wei Renpu said: "Who does Feng Shi want to promote?" As long as it is a person with both virtue and prestige, the student must have a name! ”

Like him, Wei Renpu, Feng Dao is also a member of the Nonxian Hall, and according to the regulations, as long as the two of them reach a consensus, they can find another member of the Nonxian Hall to complete the election. And the two had a great influence on the gentry group in the Central Plains. The foundation is deep, and if the joint name is very popular.

Feng Dao smiled and said: "The old man is not talking about others, but he wants to find his own ears. ”

Wei Renpu was slightly taken aback and said, "Master Feng is already a scholar!" There is still a lack of enough! ”

"Scholar, ......scholar," Feng Dao sighed: "If the Son of Heaven is trustworthy, this position of scholar will be very useful." Even the son of heaven and the prime minister are not a problem. But if the Son of Heaven does not believe in it, this scholar is just an ornament. How can those who speak on behalf of the people do more practical things for the country's society and the people of the world. ”

Wei Renpu muttered: "We are waiting for the body of sin, the past is not far away, Feng Shi is going to run for the big endorsement, I am afraid of ...... Not quite right, right? ”

"Daoji, you are good at everything, but you are too concerned about right and wrong, and your sense of shame is too heavy." Feng Dao said: "What's more, it's hard to know right and wrong in that matter, and I don't think I'm at fault." But since the mother wants to cut me. The old man has no complaints. It's just that for this big endorsement position, the old man asked himself, after Yang Guolao stepped down, who would be the old man in the four seas? ”

Wei Renpu also felt that with Feng Dao's prestige, it was originally appropriate to take over the endorsement, but what happened a while ago was always quite uncomfortable, and he didn't want to get involved. Nai said: "Niangniang, will you agree?" ”

Feng Dao took out a letter and said, "Tomorrow morning." I will go to Xishan and resign as the head of the Hanlin Academy. As for the position of the big spokesperson, since it is said that it is recommended from the bottom up, then I only need to be recommended by three commentators on the constitution, or jointly recommended by thirty commentators on the imperial history, then it is in accordance with legal principles. No one can stop me. As for whether they can be selected in the end, it depends on their own means. ”

Wei Renpu said: "Then Master Feng came today, is he going to attach the name of the student?" ”

Feng Daohan said with a smile: "Actually, before you, I have already found three treatises, if you are willing to attach their names." That's certainly better. But I invite you today for more than that! Now the twenty-three halls gathered in the capital are three or five in each hall, a total of one hundred and twenty-three, five of whom are your protégés, and sixteen of whom are members of your protégé's family, or their fathers and uncles, or their brothers, and five of whom are your close friends, and those who admire you, at least twenty-six of whom are very influenced by you. A month later, there were 212 people from all walks of life who were ordered to enter Beijing to correct the imperial history, and as far as I know, there are at least twenty or thirty people who have a close relationship with you. Regardless of the people of the Constitutional Hall, among the 335 people who are qualified to put forward the great spokesperson, there are at least 50 people who can be moved because of you. The old man invited you to come tonight, not to ask you to attach your name, but to tell you, old man, that you are willing to go to the correction desk to continue to contribute to the country. As long as I sit in the position of big spokesperson, I will definitely take over the important responsibility of Yang Guolao, and live up to the hope of the Son of Heaven and the hearts of the people. ”

It has been less than three days since Guo Fen announced that he would elect a big endorsement, Wei Renpu didn't expect that in just three days, Feng Dao had already calculated to this point, and even had a thorough understanding of who supported him in Taichung, and it seemed that he was bound to win the position of big endorsement.

However, Wei Renpu still hesitated.

Feng Dao saw that he still refused to agree, and said, "Dao Ji, do you want to go yourself?" If you want to go up yourself, then the old man will immediately stop and do his best to support you up! ”

Wei Renpu said: "Students don't dare, I'm guilty of sin, and I don't dare to do this." ”

"Actually, you are a more suitable person than me, but if you don't go, then you should support the old man." Feng Dao said: "Tiance rose in the northwest, although the marshal is indeed the blood of the Han family, but the establishment of the imperial court, Wu Confucianism actually missed it from the beginning. With this correction platform, this dynasty and all dynasties are afraid that they are different, all dynasties and dynasties, the founding son of heaven has always been a constitution! But in this dynasty, it has been clearly stipulated that unless it is stamped with the words of the people, the constitution is not constitutional, and the law is illegal! The weight of this correction platform can be imagined. However, if you look at the most important Lunxian Hall, the first nine elders, the second Buddhist, the second foreign teacher (he refers to the Zoroastrian Mingjiao here), the first soldier (referring to Yang Dingguo), the first criminal (referring to Zhang De), the woman one (referring to Guo Fen), and the first merchant Zi (referring to Zheng Wei), who can be called Confucianism, is only Zhang Yi, and Zhang Yi is shallow in knowledge, so he really can't be the representative of my Confucianism. Under the law thus enacted, what is the status of my Confucian righteousness? Therefore, this great endorsement position, I am not fighting for myself, but for my Confucianism, this is the battle of Taoism for thousands of generations, and we must not give in because of the righteousness of the moment! ”

Wei Renpu didn't want to agree, but when he heard this, he was still moved by Feng Dao's words. However, after all, he has been trained for many years, and he has not made a clear statement for a while, but he is already inclined to support Feng Dao.

Because Lao Feng is right, now the Central Plains Confucianism has indeed little influence on the legislation of Tiance Datang, and if you want to change this status quo, you really need to make a difference in the selection of the correction and evaluation platform.

After Wei Renpu left, his sons came out from behind the screen, and the eldest said, "Dad, Wei Daoji has stepped down, is it necessary for you to be so disruptive to him?" ”

"Duh! You know what! Feng Dao said: "Dao Ji has presided over several big exams, and often inspects the states, and his foundation is rooted in the people, which is not trivial, Fan Wensu has been in power in Dongshu for so long, and there are only thirty or forty people who can influence him." Li Nuan took advantage of the tax exemption order, and only more than 20 people could be affected, and it was limited to Hebei. When it comes to the election of today's big endorsements, Daoji's influence is greater than anyone else's! ”

The second son said: "If all three of them can support their father, then this election will be nine out of ten, right?" ”

"Not necessarily." Feng Dao said: "The people that the three of them can influence are still intersecting with each other, even if they are all pulled in, plus the ones I can influence, there are only eighty or ninety people, less than one-third of the total, which has occupied most of Hebei, Henan and Shandong. But Guanzhong and Hexi are not under our control. ”

After a pause, Feng Dao said again: "This is from the perspective of geography, if you talk about the field, I don't know if there is no re-election without this big endorsement, and now that I want to re-elect, I will find that the power of the businessmen in Taiwan is really huge." Many of the imperial histories are backed by merchants. In addition, there are not many soldiers, and there are not many soldiers who directly enter the correction and evaluation platform, but there are many military dependents and military dependents who enter the correction and evaluation platform, and many military dependents and businessmen collude with each other to infiltrate, if they can unify and push one person together, then even if my Central Plains gentry work together, I am afraid that they will not be able to resist the enemy! But fortunately, among those merchants now, there is no prestige enough to convince the whole people, Fan and Li have promised to support me, if Dao Ji can also help me, then our chances of victory will be great. ”

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In the territory of the Tang Dynasty, although the gentry still controlled most of the land and population of the Central Plains, the power of the merchant class and the warrior class was now very large, and many military dependents had business behaviors, or married with the merchant clans.

However, as Feng Dao judged, in the merchant circle, except for the special case of Zheng Wei, there are very few successful politicians and outstanding political achievements, unlike Confucianism, who has naturally possessed many highly educated and prestigious talents after thousands of years of training since the weekend. And the famous generals in the military class, although their prestige in this troubled era is far beyond the reach of Confucianism, almost all the famous generals are still in service, so they have not been able to stand up and become leaders.

In the seven or eight days since the news came out, the markets in various places have been disturbed, and the merchant families in Yanjing are connected to each other, but they are in groups of three or five, and there are many small leaders who have emerged, but there are no big leaders who have gathered to echo the heights, and all of them are not in the climate.

At this moment, news came from Xishan: Feng Dao, the head of the Hanlin Academy, resigned from his position! Then there were three members of the Constitution Hall who jointly elected him as the new spokesperson.

As soon as this incident came out, there was a lot of discussion in the market, not only Zheng Ji, Naib and others were anxious, but even Cao Yuanzhong couldn't sit still.

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―――――――――――――――――――――――――― (To be continued......)