Back in the capital, Chen Yuan didn't stay for a moment, and went to the palace to recover his life. This is the rule of being an official in ancient times.

Xiao Huangmen reported first, and then came back to tell Chen Yuan, saying that His Majesty was no longer in the palace and asked him to go to Miaoying Temple to meet him.

Chen Yuan did not delay and went straight to Miaoying Temple.

Zhu Di is more angry, kills a lot, is not in the right position, and is old and in poor health, he is prone to nightmares, so he likes to go to a clean place like the temple.

Miaoying Temple is located in the north of Fucheng Gate Street, was built in the Yuan Dynasty, the original name of the Great Shengshou Wan'an Temple, was burned, the Ming Dynasty was renamed Miaoying Temple when it was rebuilt. Because there is a pagoda painted with chalk throughout the temple, it is commonly known as the White Pagoda Temple.

Most of the buildings in the temple are built by the Qing Dynasty, only the white tower survived in the fire, it is a relic of the Yuan Dynasty, it has been more than 700 years so far. In the middle of the courtyard stands the white tower, the tower steps can go straight to the base of the tower, the top canopy is hung around the 36 pairs of copper openwork tassels and wind chimes, the breeze blows, the bell is pleasant.

The Sanskrit sound was curling, and Chen Yuan listened to it, and unconsciously felt calm in his heart.

The emperor was here, naturally there were no pilgrims, he looked at the white tower, and his heart rose with a sense of amazement. In ancient times, there were no such things as cranes, and these high-rise white towers all represented the wisdom of the people.

Zhu Di was taking refuge in the garden behind the Buddhist hall, with chilled watermelons on the table.

At this time, it was already the middle of June, the weather was very hot, Zhu Di took off his boots to the side, a little eunuch was pinching his legs, and when he saw Chen Yuan, he beckoned him to pass.

"Your Majesty."

Zhu Di pointed at him and smiled: "Sit down!" This trip to Shandong, you are very hard! ”

Wang Zhen had already moved the chair, and Chen Yuan thanked him and sat down.

"Doing things for Your Majesty, the duty of a minister."

Of course, Zhu Di is most concerned about the corruption case in Shandong, after all, what he said in the chapter is not detailed enough, and when he sat down, Chen Yuan spoke in detail again, telling everything he saw throughout the whole process.

Including his assassination, including Li Xiangxiang's killing of him, of course, quietly hid the matter of the White Lotus Sect, just saying that the people hated Li Xiang very much and came to help him.

Zhu Di said angrily: "These dog officials, corrupt, should really be killed!" Gao Sui did a good job, what Li Xiang did, people and gods were angry, such a person who was inferior to pigs and dogs, even became a member of the court, governing one side for me, he was angry, a traitor who brought disaster to the country and the people, even if he peeled the skin and grass, it was difficult to eliminate the hatred in his heart! ”

Zhu Di scolded a few words angrily, and began to sigh again: "Since the founding of the country, the imperial examination has established strict punishment laws to put an end to corruption, Hu Weiyong's case, the Lanyu case, regardless of the ministers of the DPRK and China, the emperor's relatives and relatives, the imperial examination will never be soft on them, since I ascended the throne, I have also repeatedly ordered and reaffirmed strict investigation and heavy punishment, but these people, why are they repeatedly banned?" ”

Chen Yuan sighed: "When I was studying before, I heard a theory called hierarchical demand theory? ”

"Hierarchical needs theory? What is this? Zhu Di was confused.

"This theory was put forward by a Westerner, and his human needs are divided into five levels from low to high like a ladder, namely: physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, respect needs, and self-actualization needs."

Chen Yuan explained little by little.

Zhu Di understood, and suddenly said: "That is to say, people first meet the most basic needs, and then they will realize their own ideals and do things for others." ”

"Yes, no one is perfect, if a person can't even meet their own basic living needs, how can they take care of other people. According to the minister's understanding, officials all need to support their families and make friends, but our Ming Dynasty's fortune is very small. When they become officials, they can't even support their families, so they will naturally cut off their heads, and even if they lose their heads, they will also embezzle, which is necessary for their survival. ”

Zhu Di was shocked, but not surprised, Chen Yuan's words, many times just surprised him, he was silent for a long time, and then said: "It is not easy for the emperor to fight the country, when the country was first built, the huge Yangzhou City, there were only dozens of households, the Central Plains was in turmoil, and the people were not able to make a living, so everyone was allowed to cut down on food and clothing, and give the people a way to live, otherwise, what is I doing to lay down the Ming Dynasty?" Isn't it just that they are oppressed by the Mongols, and the people have no way to live? ”

"Yes, however, Your Majesty can be selfless for the people, and some officials will also be selfless for the people, and you can also advocate officials for the selfless people, but it is impossible to require all officials to be selfless for the people, because, for most officials, they are also ordinary people, but they either have ancestral virtues, or they have obtained them through their own efforts, and if they still live a hard life after hard work, they are no different from ordinary people? Who wants to do that? There is no one in the world who wants to work hard, because it is the same if you work hard. ”

Zhu Di didn't seem to understand when he heard it, and said: "Look at what you said, it seems that you are looking for a reason for them to be greedy, and they are greedy and reasonable." ”

"No, Your Majesty, I'm telling the facts, and I'm also thinking about how to reduce the number of corrupt officials."

"What do you think?"

"According to the minister's view, it is almost impossible to eradicate corruption, or that sentence, human nature is too complicated, and some evil people, such as officials like Li Xiang, are hopeless, but we can indeed think of some ways to reduce corruption and eliminate the rule of officials."

Zhu Di became interested, motioned to Chen Yuan to eat watermelon, and asked him to talk while eating.

Chen Yuan took two bites and said: "The world is progressive, reform is necessary, time changes, we must find a better way to manage, such as now, Yongle is prosperous, the population and economy are much better than when the Ming Dynasty was built, and they have shed blood and suffered too much with their grandfather to fight the world, so they cherish the hard-won peace very much, and they can still live a poor life, but their descendants have grown up in a good environment, and it is impossible for them to understand why they want to live a poor life, thereforeHis Majesty has been merciless in punishing corruption, but there are still people who continue to break the law. The first reason is that in order to survive, they have to be greedy. ”

Zhu Di listened quietly, this theory is really shocking, but when you listen carefully, it makes a lot of sense.

"Second, Your Majesty can know that the Qin State Shang Ying changed the law, and the Shang Ying set up a wooden piece at the gate of the city, which is the legislative system, the meritorious person is rewarded, there is a punishment, and finally the whole country abides by it, so that the whole country is united, and only then can it become the strongest country from the weakest country, and finally dominate the world. The reason for this is that there is a law, and things are done according to the law, even if Shang Yang is gone, the law is preserved, and the world is in accordance with the law, not people have the final say. The law is the rule, but people have to look at the wise, for example, a state, when you encounter a confused prefect, the result will inevitably be a mess. ”

Zhu Di thought so, and his eyes became brighter and brighter.

"Third, the problem of supervision, our imperial history is too restricted, the grade is too low, and many people just dare to speak up, but there is no real talent to learn, not to stay in the place, to investigate the wind and rumors, this is a big drawback, there is a saying, there is no investigation, there is no right to speak, the imperial history also needs to strengthen management."

Chen Yuan sorted out his thoughts and said a bold idea: "I know a system called separation of powers. ”

"Separation of powers?"

"Yes, the separation of powers is immediately the doctrine and system of mutual restraint and balance between the legislative, executive, and judicial powers of the three state powers, which are exercised by state organs with different functions. The form of political organization in which the three major institutions coexist and check and balance each other. Just like His Majesty's way of being a king, the various legal provisions enacted by His Majesty and scholars, the administrative organs headed by the six ministries, exercise the system formulated by His Majesty, and the judicial organs headed by the procurators are to ensure the fairness and fairness of the laws of the country. If individuals abuse the system, the consequences are bound to be out of control. ”

Chen Yuan's words were bold and reckless, too advanced, shocking the world, and Zhu Di was dumbfounded.

The emperor's power is restricted, I am afraid that Zhu Di will be furious when he says this, Chen Yuan hurriedly said: "The minister is just talking casually, Your Majesty just listens to it, and the minister is talking nonsense." ”

Of course, Zhu Di would not agree in his heart, the supremacy of imperial power, how could he accept that the emperor's rights were restricted, but the rights of the six ministries and the rights of the envoys could be considered. There are some points of view, he still agrees, however, some words are also taboo, Zhu Di is naturally uncomfortable, and said lightly: "Okay, you have also finished the errand in Shandong, this matter will end here, I gave you a marriage last year, because of state affairs, it has not been held for a year, this time I come back, there should be no big deal, you go back and make good arrangements, pick up the daughter of the Jian family through the door, the old man of Jianyi, have said a few times in front of me." ”

Chen Yuan's heart was agitated, yes, the marriage agreement has been down for so long, and every time he can only think about her silently, it's time to get married. Zhu Di must be unhappy, but he hasn't had a seizure yet, so Chen Yuan hurriedly retreated. What I said today is too much.

After Chen Yuan retreated, those words kept echoing in Zhu Di's ears, although his words were very rebellious, but they were indeed rare good words for governing the world, as he said, only by abiding by the law can it last long. Zhu Di is familiar with history, and he knows deeply that the Qin State can unify the world, is it because there are many Ming monarchs? Not at all, there are more faint monarchs than Ming monarchs, but relying on the laws left by Shang Ying, the monarch can be weak or faint, and the law is still there, and the country will be strong.

Change the law, Zhu Di muttered.

I don't have the energy anymore, but what about the latecomers? If the laws of the Ming Dynasty can't last long, once there is a faint king, won't it be as short-lived as the Yuan Dynasty?

Chen Yuan, I pave the way for you, I hope you don't let me down.

Zhu Di thought for a long time, and suddenly made up his mind and asked Wang Zhen to pass Liu Guanlai.

Liu Guan was still handling affairs in the Wenhua Palace, and when he heard that His Majesty had summoned him, he hurried to Miaoying Temple to see him.

"Minister Liu Guan, see Your Majesty."

Zhu Di slowly turned around and said coldly: "Liu Guan, you did a good thing." ”

Liu Guan was shocked, did His Majesty know something? No, it's impossible, there's no living mouth, it's impossible to find out, he stubbornly said: "Your Majesty, the minister is guilty, but I don't know where the guilt comes from?" ”

Zhu Di said angrily: "Are you blind? Shandong, don't you want to explain it to me? ”

Liu Guan's face turned blue all of a sudden, his feelings were still investigated, it was useless to quibble, he didn't have time to scold his subordinates for being unreliable, he knelt on the ground and pleaded guilty.

Zhu Di's chest rose and fell, and he gasped for a long time before he said: "If it is according to the previous temperament, I will definitely kill you, you have no family background, I think you have followed me for almost twenty years, you will resign tomorrow." ”

"Your Majesty—Your Majesty—"

"Huh?"

Liu Guan's body trembled, knowing that he was finished, His Majesty said that he did not want to kill him, it was for the sake of the face of the King of Han, His Majesty must have been disappointed in the King of Han, but he couldn't show it and cause a backlash. No, Chen Yuan, I won't lose, he swore secretly in his heart. On the surface, he suddenly looked old and trembled: "Minister-Minister, thank Your Majesty Longen." ”