Chapter 569: Prime Minister
Chapter 569: Prime Minister
On April 315th, the th year of Yongjia in the Jin Dynasty () and the st year of Jianyuan in the Han Dynasty, it was sunny.
Before Liu Can was about to leave the palace, he turned his head and looked towards Yanming Palace.
Yanming Hall was the Eastern Palace and the residence of the Crown Prince Liu Yi.
Liu Can has been fighting in Guanzhong for more than a year, and his reputation is growing. Now he is the Prince of Jin, Prime Minister, and in charge of the Chanyu Terrace, holding a high position of power.
The majesty with which he traveled was even more majestic than that of the Crown Prince.
At the beginning of this month, because the King of Zhongshan once again mobilized the Di and Qiang people of Fengyi to travel east, some people went to the palace of the Crown Prince to complain. Perhaps their words were a little disrespectful, so they were immediately reported to the Emperor Liu Cong.
Liu Cong sent 5,000 soldiers and horses from the four guards of the Eastern Palace to Hanoi, placing them under the command of General Anxi Liu Ya. He also ordered General Guanwei Bu Chou to lead soldiers to guard the Eastern Palace, isolating it from the inside and the outside, and not allowing Liu Yi to attend court meetings.
The Crown Prince is already a bird in a cage.
Thinking of this, Liu Can burst into laughter and rode out of Pingyang at full speed.
Liu Yi is no longer a concern. Sooner or later, the power to govern the Di and Qiang people will be taken away from him. Liu Can is in charge of the Chanyu Terrace and is in charge of the affairs of the Six Barbarians, but the Di and Qiang people in Fengyi County are not under his jurisdiction. They have always been under the control of Liu Yi.
In fact, this is a historical issue.
Because Liu Yuan married Queen Shan, who was born in Fengyi Di, as his wife. Legally speaking, Liu Yi was the legitimate son, while Liu Cong was the illegitimate son.
After Liu Yuan's death, Crown Prince Liu He succeeded to the throne. He took the initiative to deal with his brothers and was successful at first, but was eventually defeated by Liu Cong and killed.
It was actually reasonable for Liu Cong to kill his brother. After all, it was Liu He who started it first, so he couldn't just sit there and wait for death, right? Therefore, the officials of Liu Han could forgive him on this point.
But who would succeed Liu He after he was killed? Shouldn't it be another legitimate son, Liu Yi?
This was the dilemma Liu Cong faced back then.
Fortunately, he had high prestige and strong ability, while Liu Yi was too young. After making a compromise (making Liu Yi the crown prince), he reluctantly ascended the throne.
But now, times have changed. Liu Cong's throne has long been consolidated, and he has cleansed up the court. There are almost no people who support Liu Yi, so he no longer conceals his intention to pass the throne to his own son, rather than having the throne be passed down from brother to younger brother.
Placing Liu Yi under house arrest was only the first step. The next step was to strip him of his governing power over the Diqiang tribe in Fengyi County - the Diqiang tribe in Fengyi numbered as many as 100,000 people.
Happy, happy!
More than a thousand riders traveled south along the post road towards Hedong.
The area outside Pingyang City looks more prosperous.
People speaking with local, Guanxi and even Henan accents were weeding in the fields.
The Xiongnu herdsmen didn't care about the crops in the fields at all. If they had the time, they would rather drive their livestock to the mountains on both sides of the Fen River to graze.
The land in Bingzhou is good, with lush vegetation and abundant rainfall. In the same place, you can only raise one sheep on the grassland, but here you can raise five to ten, or even more.
Liu Can also saw soldiers going out of the city for training.
Those should be the imperial guards. They are strong and powerful, well-equipped, and their killing sounds are deafening.
It's all mine from now on!
Liu Can laughed again and rode his horse forward.
"Prime Minister, why don't you stay in Pingyang to assist in the administration? I think the emperor has the same intention." Zhao Ran caught up and asked in a low voice.
Zhao Ran was originally a general under Sima Mo, but later defected to Liu Han and is now quite favored by Liu Can.
This time when he went to Beijing to report on his work, he brought Zhao Ran with him and received many rewards.
"You think I don't want to." When Liu Can mentioned this, his face turned ugly: "But Chen Yuanda got in the way."
In fact, Chen Yuanda's advice to stop Liu Can from staying in Beijing to assist in the administration was the direct reason, but not the main reason.
The fundamental problem was that both Chang'an and Hebei needed a person of high position and power to take charge of the overall situation. Looking at the court, Liu Can and Liu Yao were the only suitable candidates.
Since the national policy of "crossing Yong and Bing" was established, Guanxi has been given higher priority than other places. Therefore, adjustments were made later, with Liu Can taking charge of the overall situation in Guanzhong, and Liu Yao responsible for guarding against Liu Kun and Tuoba Yilu.
After Shi Le was defeated and lost Yecheng, Liu Yao had to take into account the war situation in Hebei and it was even more impossible for him to act rashly.
Therefore, Liu Can lived in Chang'an as the prime minister, pacifying and attacking the remaining forces of the Jin State. At the same time, he "recorded the affairs of the Shangshu" and assisted in handling state affairs, which was somewhat similar to the nature of the Xingtai.
But this made Liu Cong unhappy because he had to deal with heavy government affairs and did not have much time to enjoy himself.
Earlier, when Liu Can was still in Pingyang and Shao Xun had not yet risen to power, Liu Cong often feasted in the harem, sometimes not waking up for three days, or not going out for a hundred days, which was very absurd.
But he felt it didn't matter. He just needed to leave the political affairs to his eldest son Liu Can, and he would be responsible for enjoying life.
Now that Liu Can had gone to Guanzhong, he had to review memorials, hold court meetings, inspect local areas, and train troops, and he had neglected the beauty, which made him very uncomfortable.
This time, Liu Can went back for a month, and Liu Cong entrusted all political affairs to him. He stayed in the harem alone and did not come out for a whole month.
Now that Liu Can was gone, Liu Cong came out of the harem and began to take over government affairs.
To a certain extent, this father and son actually have a lot of mutual trust.
After testing the talents of several sons, Liu Cong determined his successor early on, worked hard to pave the way for Liu Can, gave all power to him, and had great trust in his eldest son.
Liu Can was probably also very moved.
This father and son, at least so far, are truly loving and filial.
As for Liu Can, he was actually willing to stay in the capital and gradually take control of power. However, that old dog Chen Yuanda said that Guanxi was more important and asked him to stay in Chang'an and wipe out the remaining forces of the Jin State.
Liu Can was speechless, and besides, other court officials and even nobles from various tribes also supported Chen Yuanda, so the matter was settled.
There is no doubt that Chen Yuanda has been hated by Liu Cong and Liu Can, father and son.
Liu Cong hated that he couldn't let himself enjoy life to the fullest - it was outrageous.
Liu Can hated that he could not let him stay in the capital to take charge of the power - helpless. "Prime Minister." There was a sound of horse hooves, and Jin Zhun came over and said loudly: "The Prime Minister lives in Chang'an, which is a move to consolidate the foundation. There is no need to worry."
Liu Can slowed down his horse and asked curiously, "Why do you say that?"
Jin Zhun was originally a Central Guard General. After the disastrous defeat in the Battle of Gaoping, he suddenly lost his position and was demoted several levels. He was appointed as a herdsman, and he could not even see Liu Cong. He had to deal with horse manure all day long, which was very miserable.
But he was unwilling to sink into despair, so he quickly got in touch with Liu Can and won his trust with sweet words.
Just this month, Liu Can recommended him as the governor of Beidi and followed him to Guanzhong.
Jin Zhun was also very decisive. He brought his own tribe, that of his brothers and nephews, totaling more than 5,000 tribes, and moved to the north with the approval of the imperial court.
This means he is determined to do it with Liu Can.
In fact, he still had some resentment towards Liu Cong. This man was too mean and ungrateful. After all, the Jin family was also a Xiongnu noble family. Why humiliate them like this? Damn it, if you don't use me, your son will still have to use me when you die in the future.
As for why he was so sure that Liu Can wanted to use him, the hermit had his own clever plan.
First of all, he had a tribe directly under his jurisdiction, and joining Liu Can would strengthen his power, which would be of great use to Liu Can, who had not yet ascended the throne and was not even the crown prince.
Secondly, Liu Cong and Liu Can, father and son, are both lustful ghosts! This can be used.
"Prime Minister." Hearing Liu Can's question, Jin Zhun was full of energy and immediately said, "The situation in the court is treacherous and unclear. Although the emperor has imprisoned the crown prince, he has not deprived him of his power. Obviously, he has some concerns. If the prime minister wants to take a further step and enter the East Palace, he has to wait a little longer."
"Besides, the King of Bohai and his men have not completely given up. The princes are even in charge of the imperial guards and are secretly forming cliques. We must be on guard."
"If the Prime Minister is in Chang'an and can command the people in Guanzhong, hundreds of thousands of soldiers will be at his fingertips. Why should he be afraid of Liu Yi, Liu Fu and others?"
"The emperor is in his prime, healthy, and the foundation of the country is extremely solid. The prime minister only needs to manage Guanzhong for a few years. By then, with the support of the people of Guanzhong, the emperor can abandon his worries and directly depose Liu Yi and make the prime minister the crown prince. In this way, the great event will be settled."
Liu Can nodded repeatedly after hearing this.
In the case that he could not return to Pingyang in a short time, his only choice was to manage Guanzhong with all his heart. Moreover, this was in line with the national policy, and it was convenient for him to ask for people, soldiers, and money, and unknowingly expand his own strength and hollow out the court.
The only problem is, it takes time.
If the emperor continues to get drunk for three days and stay in the harem for a hundred days like he did in the early years, it is hard to say how many years he can live.
Fortunately, it has become less common in the past two years.
Shao Xun's strong rise shocked the entire court, and even the emperor was somewhat worried.
During this visit to the capital, he heard many rumors about Shao Xun, especially the letter of accusation, which made the emperor so angry that he cursed loudly and wanted to lead the army on the spot to settle accounts with Shao Xun. The ministers persuaded him to stop.
The emperor is a very vengeful person, and he must want to kill Shao Xun now.
Actually, it’s good this way. With this hatred supporting me, I hope he won’t mess around again.
"You say..." Liu Can suddenly reined in his horse, turned around and looked at his followers, and asked, "Where will Shao Xun fight this year?"
"Shi Le."
"Shi Le."
"Shi Le..."
Everyone's answer was the same, perhaps because it was an obvious fact.
Liu Can suddenly fell silent.
He began to worry a lot and could better understand the concerns of the civil and military officials in the court.
More and more people are discussing Shao Xun inside and outside Pingyang.
He presided over several court meetings, and almost one-third of the memorials submitted were related to the situation in Hebei, and Shao Xun was mentioned in all of them.
This is a serious concern - this is Liu Can's perception, and it is also the consensus of all civil and military officials in the court.
Everyone has a sense of crisis.
In this situation, we should actually unite and avoid any internal fighting.
Perhaps, this is the important reason why Chen Yuanda and others asked him to return to Guanzhong as soon as possible - if he continued to stay in Pingyang, the hidden contradictions might surface and intensify prematurely.
However, even though he understood, he still could not forgive Chen Yuanda.
My father is narrow-minded, but I am also his son.
You guys are only loyal to the Han Dynasty and don't really care who becomes the emperor of the Han Dynasty.
"After we return to Chang'an, you can find a chance to discuss this matter." After Liu Can calmed down, he said to everyone, "Let's see if we can get out of Lantian Pass and give Shao Xun a hard time."
"Yes, sir." Everyone responded in unison.
Starting from Lantian County near Chang'an, there is a mountain road that leads directly to Nanyang, namely the Lantian-Wugu Road.
Just as pass cities were built at different locations on the Hangu Valley Road during the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were also two pass cities on the Lantian-Wugu Road.
Close to Nanyang is Wuguan.
Located in Lantian County is Yaoguan, where Liu Bang defeated the Qin army. During the Northern Zhou Dynasty, it was moved to another place to build a pass city, called "Qingni Pass". In the Tang Dynasty, it was moved to another place and called "Lantian Pass". In fact, this is because there are many dangerous places in the southern border of Lantian County, all of which can be used to build pass cities. Because the locations of pass cities were different in different dynasties, their names were also different.
Liu Can wanted to give it a try. If he had the spare strength, he would send troops out of Yaoguan to see if he could capture Wuguan, break into Nanyang, and mess up Shao Xun's hinterland.
Of course, this is just a battle plan and does not mean it should be executed now.
For now, his most important task is to wipe out the remaining forces of the Jin army in Guanzhong as soon as possible and consolidate the rule of the Liu Han court in the local area.
(End of this chapter)