A lingering sound of zither strings, carrying a hint of melancholy, drifted into the main hall.
Everyone discussing state affairs immediately fell silent.
After listening carefully for a while with his eyes closed, Fiji said, “Your Highness, this zither music must be from Her Highness the Concubine, I presume. Such a great calamity indeed makes it difficult for one to calm down immediately.”
“Yes, but thankfully Father Emperor has been laid to rest in the imperial tomb. This news has brought some peace to Mother Concubine.” Xiao Ming said.
At the mention of past events, Fiji and Luo Quan both felt a touch of sadness.
Seeing this, Xiao Ming said, “Councillor Fei, you have returned at just the right time. All the officials and their families from Chang’an have now been settled. However, these officials cannot remain idle forever, so I plan to have them go to Bowen Academy to study governmental knowledge to adapt to Qingzhou’s administrative system.”
Fiji had also been worried about this matter these past few days. As soon as he returned, many officials came to inquire about news. At this moment, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. He said, “Your Highness, Qingzhou’s administrative system is vastly different from Great Yu Empire’s old system. Do you intend to continue using this administrative system?”
“Precisely. In my opinion, Great Yu Empire’s official system is already outdated, and many officials are too ignorant. If they cannot understand the changes in the current world, they might as well go home and take care of their children.” Xiao Ming’s tone was decisive.
Now that the world had entered the Age of Exploration, Great Yu Empire’s backward system and ideology severely lacked competitiveness. He did not want his fief to regress again because of the arrival of these officials.
Precisely because of this, he intended to send these officials to Bowen Academy to study, allowing them to understand the current cutthroat world.
At the same time, at Bowen Academy, he could also boldly introduce more knowledge, as everything was now up to him, and he didn’t have to worry about Chang’an’s reaction.
Fiji glanced at Pang Yukun. This former petty censor had now become the Chief Grand Councillor of the fief. At this moment, Pang Yukun smiled slyly, as if Xiao Ming’s handling of the officials pleased him greatly. He had been bullied by these officials quite a bit in the court back then.
Circumstances had changed, and now his own position was quite awkward. According to Great Yu Empire’s official ranks, his position was higher than Pang Yukun’s, but according to Qingzhou’s official ranks, Chief Grand Councillor seemed to be the highest position.
In official circles, equivocating was an essential skill. Fiji was well aware of the current situation, so he decided to firmly stick to equivocating to avoid saying anything wrong, “Your Highness’s actions must have Your Highness’s reasons. I am of shallow talent and dare not comment rashly.”
Xiao Ming rolled his eyes. He knew Fiji would say that. Compared to Pang Yukun’s sharp tongue, Fiji was clearly more cunning.
However, he also had a way to deal with it, so he said, “Councillor Fei, since Great Yu Empire’s old official system is no longer suitable, I must arrange a position for you. There are still eight missing in the Nine Grand Councillors. If Councillor Fei doesn’t mind, how about serving as one of the Nine Grand Councillors?”
“Your Highness, what virtue or ability do I possess to hold the position of Grand Councillor? Wouldn’t this displease the officials of Qingzhou?”
Although Fiji said this, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. He had been left out these past few days, and what he feared most was being sent home to retire. He never expected Xiao Ming to put him in the Cabinet with a single sentence.
Although the title wasn’t as grand as Chief Grand Councillor, he knew that the Chief Grand Councillor was merely an organizer, and there wasn’t much difference in power. Secondly, Xiao Ming’s arrangement probably also had the intention of balancing Pang Yukun’s power.
Having held a high position for so many years, he clearly understood that what a monarch most feared was a single party dominating the court, because this would severely limit the monarch’s power and even sow the seeds of rebellion.
And according to his understanding, back then, due to the extermination of powerful families, officials were scarce, and Pang Yukun recommended a large number of officials to enter Qingzhou’s bureaucracy. Now, these officials implicitly formed a small group led by Pang Yukun.
Although Pang Yukun was upright and incorruptible, this was definitely a hidden danger for Xiao Ming. Precisely because of this, he guessed that Xiao Ming intended to diversify the composition of the bureaucracy to make it more complex.
“Councillor Fei worries too much. The Fei family has served as high officials for four generations, and your disciples and former subordinates are all over the world. Furthermore, you have never formed factions for personal gain, and you are also my father-in-law. The position of Grand Councillor is certainly not unwarranted.” Xiao Ming said with a smile.
Pang Yukun also said, “Councillor Fei’s reputation precedes him. If you cannot hold this position, who else can?”
“This…” Fiji hesitated, then said, “Your Highness’s kindness is too great, I can only accept it without humility.”
“Hahahaha…” Xiao Ming laughed heartily, “In that case, the matter of the Chang’an officials studying at Bowen Academy will be entrusted to you.”
“Uh…”
Fiji froze for a moment, revealing a bitter expression. Unknowingly, he had fallen into Xiao Ming’s trap.
These officials from Chang’an had always been a headache for everyone. Even Pang Yukun sometimes found it inconvenient to deal with them, as the conflict of official ranks was quite awkward.
Now, after a circle, this hot potato still landed in his hands.
Pang Yukun suppressed a smile. These days, they had all seen Fiji’s intentions. This elaborate plan finally made Fiji have to brace himself and accept the task. Furthermore, Fiji’s entry into the Cabinet was also an encouragement to other officials.
And with Fiji in the Cabinet, they could also feel at ease going to Bowen Academy to study.
After discussing Fiji’s matter, Xiao Ming looked at Luo Quan, who was chatting animatedly with Niu Ben. Niu Ben and Luo Quan were both famous generals of Great Yu Empire in the past. Now, with Niu Ben and then Luo Quan, these two famous generals were both in his army.
Moreover, the generals from the Firearm Battalion came with Luo Quan this time, which precisely compensated for the shortage of generals in the army. Furthermore, according to the current situation, expanding the army and preparing for war was imperative.
Having taken Pengzhou this time, he might have to recruit some soldiers from Pengzhou to supplement his military strength.
Since war was inevitable, he could only sustain war with war. Precisely for this reason, he chose the Prince of Wei as his first target. After all, the Prince of Yong’s fief was short on food after the drought and was also very barren, truly a burdensome asset.
Moreover, to obtain weapons, the Prince of Yong had been exporting various minerals to Qingzhou, so occupying it or not was essentially the same.
“General Luo, these days, you haven’t mentioned serving in the army. Have I been remiss in some way?” Xiao Ming asked at this time.
Luo Quan bowed upon hearing this and said, “Your Highness has been very considerate to me, so there is no question of neglect. It is simply because I can no longer keep up with Your Highness’s army. Rather than that, it would be better to let Luo Xin and Luo Hong show their skills. I will just retire to the countryside in Qingzhou.”