Chapter 324: The Root of Resignation
Chapter 324: The Root of Resignation
The daily affairs of the General Administration Office were to be reported to the Ministry of War, such as the increase and decrease of the army, training, equipment updates, soldier pensions, etc. The report of the Liangzhou General Administration Office proposing to recruit 6,000 new soldiers and requiring the General Administration Office to bear the military salaries was sent to the Ministry of War.
Duan Wenzhen, the assistant minister of the Ministry of War, was shocked. Adding 6,000 government soldiers was a common thing, but adding 6,000 recruited soldiers was unheard of and it was a very rare event.
He did not dare to make a decision and quickly presented the memorial to Prime Minister Gao Jiong. When Gao Jiong saw that it was Xiao Xia's signature, he thought of something and came to discuss it with the prince.
It should be the emperor's power to approve the general manager's request, but the emperor's condition became more and more serious day by day, and the royal power was basically handed over to the crown prince. Except for the military order to mobilize the army which was still in the hands of the emperor, all other royal powers were given to the crown prince.
However, for some major events, the crown prince must consult with the cabinet. After all, the crown prince is not the emperor, and many of his powers are restricted by the court.
Yang Yong received a letter from Xiao Xia two days ago. In the letter, Xiao Xia mentioned his request to transfer 6,000 private soldiers to the General Administration Office for recruitment. This was the condition they had agreed on at the beginning. Of course, Xiao Xia also gave a reason.
When Yang Yong saw the memorial from the Liangzhou General Administration, he knew what was going on.
Yang Yong said calmly, "I don't think this is a major military matter. What do you think, Prime Minister Gao?"
Gao Jiong still insisted on his principle and said: "After all, this is recruiting soldiers, not increasing the number of government soldiers. This is a matter of principle. Let's ask the prime ministers to discuss it together!"
Although Gao Jiong was Yang Yong's father-in-law, he never compromised on matters of principle. Deep down, he was firmly opposed to Xiao Xia's memorial. He was worried that if it set a precedent, other governorates would follow suit, which would cause big trouble, especially for the court's finances.
But he also knew that the 6,000 troops Xiao Xia wanted to recruit were the 6,000 private troops of Han King Yang Liang, who were obtained by Xiao Xia, but he wanted the General Administration Office to bear the military salaries.
So he did not reject it immediately, but consulted with the prince and gave the prince face.
Soon, several prime ministers arrived, and Gao Jiong circulated the memorial from the Liangzhou General Administration Office to everyone.
Yang Yong spoke first: "Let me say a few words! First of all, everyone should know that these 6,000 troops actually already exist. They are the 6,000 private troops of the King of Han. At the beginning, I was worried that the King of Han would use these 6,000 troops to launch a coup, so I entrusted Xiao Xia to remove these 6,000 troops.
Because Xiao Xia also wanted to take a great risk, he put forward a condition that the 6,000 troops would belong to him, and the military salaries would be borne by the General Administration Office as recruited soldiers in the future. I agreed to his request, mainly because I was worried that the 6,000 troops would launch a coup, so Xiao Xia's conditions were a little excessive, but I agreed anyway.
"After Xiao Xia got these 6,000 troops, my father knew about it and tacitly agreed to Xiao Xia's use of the Wuhou Guards to wipe out the private army of the King of Han, which shows that my father also had this concern."
The prince's frank opening made everyone at a loss for words. Gao Jiong was silent for a moment and said, "This is a matter of principle. Once this door is opened and other eunuchs ask for recruitment, what will the court do?"
At this time, Yang Su said slowly: "Prime Minister Gao, the principle has actually been broken. The King of Han has recruited soldiers in Hedong on the pretext of defending against the Turks without the consent of the court. It is said that the number of recruited troops has exceeded 80,000. He did not ask the court for instructions at all and directly deducted the military salaries from the taxes in Hedong. It is not said that he is rebelling, but in fact he has established his own regime.
In contrast, Liangzhou took the initiative to apply to the court, and I think it should be approved. Not only has the prince agreed, but this kind of behavior of respecting the court should be encouraged. "
Gao Jiong shook his head. "The King of Han recruited soldiers without authorization, so the court must deal with it severely. But just because the King of Han acted recklessly, should we relax the standards and allow other governors to recruit soldiers as long as they respect the court? If everyone can respect the court, what will happen to the government's finances in the end?"
Crown Prince Yang Yong added: "Xiao Xia also wrote me a letter explaining his intention to recruit soldiers. He was worried that once the emperor was away, the King of Han would take the lead in attacking Liangzhou, so he had to make preparations. First, he would increase the number of troops. Second, he would move the General Administration Office to Songzhou to prevent a surprise attack by the King of Han's army. Third, he hoped that the court would not temporarily mobilize the troops of the Liangzhou General Administration Office to guard the capital, so that he could seize the time to train the army to prevent a sudden attack by the King of Han. He also reminded us in the letter that the King of Han might attack Luoyang, and hoped that the court would increase the number of troops in Luoyang."
Gao Jiong sighed and said, "Your Highness, Xiao Xia is also the governor of Liang County. He requested that the General Administration Office be moved to Songzhou. This can be agreed. We can also agree not to mobilize the Liangzhou troops to garrison the capital, but recruiting soldiers is a matter of principle. We cannot relax this loophole."
Deputy Prime Minister Liu Shu said: "Why does Prime Minister Gao have to be so obsessed with these 6,000 people? His 6,000 people are already a fact, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has also agreed. We can't let His Royal Highness the Crown Prince break his promise!"
Liu Shu was looking at the attitude of the crown prince. Since the crown prince had already agreed to Xiao Xia's conditions, he would naturally not object. Yang Su would not object either. He immediately agreed to recruit soldiers in Liangzhou, and the left prime minister Su Wei also agreed.
Gao Jiong still shook his head. "I'm just saying that the court can't afford the military salaries of recruiting soldiers. I know it's a fait accompli. His General Administration Office can find a way to solve it on its own, but the court's finances can't afford the military expenses of recruiting soldiers, otherwise the court's finances will collapse sooner or later!"
Yang Guang was a little unhappy. He said calmly: "Everyone, raise your hands to show your opinion! Please raise your hands if you agree that the court should bear the military salaries of 6,000 people!"
Yang Yong, Su Wei, Yang Su and Liu Shu all raised their hands, only Gao Jiong remained unmoved.
Yang Yong nodded and said, "Since most people agree, then let's pass it. Xiao Xia will be allowed to recruit soldiers, and the number can be increased to 10,000. However, the court will only bear the military salaries of 6,000 men, and the General Administration Office will find a way to pay for the remaining 4,000 men."
Yang Yong looked at Gao Jiong with dissatisfaction, then stood up and left.
After leaving the East Palace, Liu Shu advised Gao Jiong: "Your Highness said at the beginning that he had already promised Xiao Xia. Even if we give His Highness the Crown Prince a face, why should we embarrass him like this?"
Gao Jiong shook his head. "Is his face more important, or is the court and the country more important? The Fubing system is the foundation of the Sui Dynasty. It is a principle, and principles cannot be traded. He can either dismiss me, or I will never sign and agree!"
Due to the resolute opposition of the right prime minister Gao Jiong, the court ultimately failed to approve Xiao Xia's request to recruit soldiers. Crown Prince Yang Yong had to use a workaround and approved Xiao Xia to temporarily use 200,000 strings of tax money to strengthen Liangzhou's defenses, and at the same time approved the relocation of the Liangzhou General Administration to Songzhou in the south.
However, this incident also made Crown Prince Yang Yong deeply dissatisfied with Right Prime Minister Gao Jiong, which led to his dismissal.
The recruitment of the Liangzhou General Administration Office has come to an end, and Xiao Xia has obtained another pillar of talent, Zhang Liang from Xingyang County. Historically, Zhang Liang was also born in poverty and was frustrated. Later, he joined the Wagang Army and finally surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, and served as prime minister.
Xiao Xia also promoted Zhang Liang to the second-level staff position, making him Pei Wen'an's deputy prime minister, in charge of military affairs.
The other thirty newly recruited staff members were all military officers. They were selected from hundreds of people. Each of them was a talented person. They came from a wide range of places, but mainly from Liangjun, Xingyangjun and Dongjun. They were later called the Liangzhou faction.
Next, the General Administration's Office moved south. Wang Pu had returned from Songcheng County and brought back good news.
Originally, the governor of Liangzhou in the Northern Zhou Dynasty was in Songcheng County. The government office was well preserved and only needed a little repair before it could be used. The Liang County government has already started the repair.
In addition, Songcheng County also has a large number of warehouses, which can also be used after a little renovation.
At this time, Xiao Xia received a reply from the court, agreeing to move the General Administration Office south to Songcheng County.
However, there was no response to his application for recruiting soldiers. This lack of response actually meant that the court politely rejected his application.
Soon after, Xiao Xia received a letter from the prince, in which the prince stated that he would fulfill his promise after ascending the throne. Now Xiao Xia could temporarily use the court's 200,000 strings of tax money to strengthen Liangzhou's military and the expenses of the Migration General's Office.
Xiao Xia immediately discussed with the officials of the General Administration's Office and decided to move the General Administration's Office south as soon as possible.
(End of this chapter)