Prime Minister

Chapter 1153 Political Differences

Chapter 1153 Political Differences

"Sanlang, you should chase Zhang Zi out now! Otherwise, these people in the court will lose their sense of the world."

The person who spoke was Han Zhongyan.

Han Zhongyan now serves as the judge of Sinong Temple together with Kumamoto, and his official position is the direct scholar of Longtu Pavilion.

The rank of officials in the Song Dynasty was generally determined by their original rank. But in the later period, the original rank was not so important, and the official rank was determined by the cabinet title and position.

Han Zhongyan was promoted to this position because of Zhang Yue's recommendation and the government's emphasis on old officials.

In the study of Zhang's residence, Zhang Yue did not speak. Huang Lu said, "I think so. Zhang Zihou is a man of good words and eloquence. Your Majesty trusts him very much. If he is not dismissed, his harm will be worse than that of Li Chengzhi."

Li Chengzhi, the Minister of the Three Departments, opposed Zhang Yue's revision of the labor service law, and was exiled by Zhang Yue and became the governor of Ruzhou.

Zhang Yue couldn't help but smile when he saw Huang Lu and Han Zhongyan were so indignant.

Huang Lu frowned and said, "The Prime Minister can still laugh at this time."

Han Zhongyan said, "Yes, Sanlang, don't hesitate. If Zhang Dun refutes you in public, you may lose face, but no one will be afraid of us anymore."

In the court, they were privately known as the "Zhang Party".

For example, Cai Que, Xu Jiang, Wang Anli, Han Zhen, and Xue Xiang are not considered to be Zhang's party. They have their own factions. They can only be said to be political allies of Zhang and Yue. They have areas for cooperation, but they may also turn against each other in the future due to political views.

This is similar to the relationship between Wang Anshi, Han Jiang and Chen Shengzhi back then.

Those who can truly be called party members must first be consistent in their political views.

The first one to be identified is Huang Lu.

Huang Lu is known as the second-in-command of the Zhang Party. Some people jokingly say that Zhang Yue can be absent from the Zhang Party, but Huang Lu cannot be absent.

Sometimes Zhang Yue also feels that since Huang Lu is around, he might as well be a mascot.

Huang Lu's successor was originally Chen Mu, but now he has been replaced by Han Zhongyan, who is like a "party whip" and shouts for war and killing all day long.

Zhang Yue's relationship with Huang Lu and Chen Mu is like Wang Anshi's relationship with Lu Huiqing and Zeng Bu.

However, their relationships with Zhang Yue are different.

Zhang Yue felt that he was often led by Huang Lu and Han Zhongyan on specific matters, and called them his godfathers.

Zhang Yue said to the two of them, "Do you think that when you look at me, you are still looking at me from behind a bull?"

Huang Lu and Han Zhongyan burst out laughing.

Looking at the back of the ox, Wang Yan and Wang Dao were talking. Wang Yan was humiliated by his own people and was hit in the face with a dinner plate.

Afterwards, Wang Yan and Wang Dao left in the same ox cart. Wang Yan pointed to the back of the ox being whipped in front of him and said to Wang Dao, "Look, is my face the same as this ox's back?"

Zhang Yue took out a round fan and waved it in front of his chest, saying, "I've heard a saying that in this world, you need both face and substance. You can't save face even if it's stained with dust, and you can save substance even if you bleed."

Zhang Yue was the prime minister and the leader of the Zhang Party. How could he be contradicted again and again?

Huang Lu, Han Zhongyan nodded: "That's what I mean."

Zhang Yue said: "But if we want to save face, we must win in an upright manner and not let people gossip about us."

Zhang Yue said to the two men, "My dispute with Zhang Zihou is not a personal grudge but a matter of state. Just like my dispute with Wang Shugong and Lu Jifu, don't use other means."

"Zhang Zihou is different from Li Chengzhi. I am in charge of the three divisions, and Li Chengzhi doesn't listen. Since he is a subordinate, there is no need to reason with him. Just leave it alone."

Huang Lu asked, "How does the Prime Minister plan to fight for it?"

Zhang Yue said: "Since we are arguing about national affairs, let people speak. The Xining Reform was to 'benefit the country', while my Yuanfeng administration is to 'benefit the people'."

"Power can suppress rebellion temporarily, but not forever. The final victory or defeat still depends on the 'will of the people'."

"Those who are righteous will have many supporters, while those who are unrighteous will have few. The long-term plan is to turn the people against you!"

Although Huang Lu and Han Zhongyan often argue with Zhang Yue, they are not as good as Zhang Yue in terms of general direction, depth of planning and far-sightedness.

Zhang Yue asked: "Has Yingzhong arrived in Beijing?"

Huang Lu said, "It should take another two or three days."

"He came to see me immediately after he arrived in Beijing."

……

Two days later, Chen Guan arrived in Bian Jing, exhausted.

After he was released from prison, he was appointed as the chief secretary of Huzhou. However, before he had completed his term, he was ordered to be transferred to Beijing for another appointment.

"The student has met the teacher!"

Chen Guan bowed to Zhang Yue.

Zhang Yue smiled and helped Chen Guan up, saying, "Huzhou is a great place! My nephew, the top scholar Zhang Ziping, served here and was reluctant to leave."

"You've been in office since you were a local, and it seems you've eaten a lot of fish and shrimp."

Chen Guan said respectfully: "I am a student who is in charge of local affairs. I remember the teacher's teachings, put what I have learned into practice, and study practical knowledge. I have indeed benefited a lot."

Zhang Yue smiled and said, "It looks like you have made some progress."

"Please ask the teacher to test you."

Zhang Yue smiled and said, "Sit down first."

After the two of them sat down, Chen Guan handed Zhang Yue a pen and said, "This is the best pen in Huzhou. Although it is not as good as the one in Xuanzhou, I bought it with my personal salary as a gift to you."

Zhang Yue said solemnly: "Okay, I have received countless pens, but yours is the most precious."

After Zhang Yue accepted it, he said, "Do you know why I transferred you to Beijing?"

Chen Guan said: "I don't know."

Zhang Yue said: "I plan to hold a meeting in Beijing similar to the 'Shiqu Pavilion Meeting' or the 'Salt and Iron Meeting'."

"We must discuss the direction of the new policy before Li Xian presents his captives and before the Western Regions envoys come to Beijing to pay tribute."

Chen Guan was slightly thoughtful.

Zhang Yue said: "I will arrange for you and Su Ziyou to represent me when the time comes. You and Ziyou are well versed in the classics and have experience in local administration. I think you will be able to handle the task!"

"Yes." Chen Guan accepted the order.

Zhang Yue said: "You may also know that the current national policy is still generally based on the Xining New Deal, but this policy cannot last long."

"National issues are 'the whole country agrees'. It's useless for you to raise them there. Your Majesty has regretted the Xining policy. And the court, like Zhang Dun and Pu Zongmeng, are still holding the banner of the Xining policy and are unwilling to change their ways. If this continues, the new policy will surely fail."

Chen Guan said: "I thought that the Xining New Deal was Wang Anshi's method, but since you are now in charge of the country, you cannot completely follow the Xining method."

Zhang Yue nodded. Chen Guan was indeed his most proud student and immediately understood what he meant.

In terms of the interpretation of the scriptures, Chen Guan was the one who inherited his mantle. At the same time, in another time and space, he was also the only person who could make Zhang Dun speechless and take the initiative to admit his mistakes.

Zhang Yue used Su Che to deal with Lu Huiqing before, and now he uses Chen Guan to deal with Zhang Dun. This is basically the idea.

It would be against etiquette for me to come forward and debate with Zhang Dun. After all, I am his cousin, and it is not reasonable for a younger brother to educate his older brother.

Of course the most important thing is that I am worried that I won’t be able to win the debate.

Zhang Dun's momentum in defending the new law...tsk tsk tsk...

Even Sima Guang was about to cry when debating with him during the Yuanyou period. He also privately found Su Shi and Zhang Dun and said, "Brother, forget it. Please give me some face in the court."

Zhang Dun listened.

But when he was banished from the capital, he did not forget to let Sima Guang eat the sword.

Zhang Yue said to Chen Guan: "The principles of the world can be roughly divided into four schools."

Chen Guan asked, "Didn't the teacher say that one is from the principles of heaven and the other is from human nature?"

Zhang Yue said: "Yes, this is a general statement. What do you think are the differences between my political views and those of Wang Shugong, Su Zizhan, and Sima Junshi?"

The political views of Wang Anshi and Sima Guang are the South Pole and the North Pole.

As for attacking the Dangxiang, Sima Guang believed that it was impossible to win, and it would be a waste of money and manpower. It would be a huge burden on the people's livelihood in Shaanxi and Sichuan and on the national finances, and the people would live a hard life.

Wang Anshi advocated fighting against the Dangxiang. After they were conquered, the people of Shaanxi and Sichuan breathed a sigh of relief, and the court also saved a lot of money. From then on, the people no longer had to bear such a heavy burden.

Besides, if you, Sima Guang, don’t advocate attacking the Dangxiang, will the Dangxiang not attack you?

Wang Anshi considered it from a rational perspective, while Sima Guang considered it from a human perspective.

It's like in order to lie down, one person thinks that if I work hard to make money now, I can lie down in the future, while another person thinks that I work hard to make money just to lie down, so I might as well just give up.

So what was the difference between Zhang Yue’s attitude towards the new law and that of Wang Anshi and Zhang Dun?

That is, the principles of nature and human nature must be combined.

He advocated attacking the Tanguts, which was consistent with Wang Anshi, but he considered that he had to proceed from reality.

Many people work hard today and want to see results tomorrow.

It's just like studying. In order to get good grades, I force myself to read for sixteen hours every day. If I want to be lazy, I will study hard.

But what? People who try too hard often can't hold on for long.

Wang Anshi, you have been carrying out reforms for so long, and they have benefited the country, but what about the people? There is almost no benefit at all.

If you want to continue the reform, you must let the people truly benefit from the reform and gain the support of the people before you can move forward.

At all times, people should be the foundation of our governance.

Without the support of the people, the reform would be difficult to sustain. Once the government dies, the reform will certainly be abolished.

We must proceed from reality when doing anything. The most difficult thing in the world is persistence rather than hard work.

It's like a family earning money and wanting to buy a big house. In addition to saving money, they also need to treat themselves to a big meal from time to time. If they eat tofu and pickles every day, their health will be ruined first. As a result, you accuse me of always wasting money and delaying the progress of buying a big house.

In the eyes of Wang Anshi and Zhang Dun, you, Zhang Yue, are using the banner of the new law but are actually doing things that oppose the new law.

Zhang Dun criticized Zhang Yue today, saying that he only knew how to attack and build the Tanguts, and could do nothing but build bunkers and infrastructure. How long will it take for you to destroy the Xia Dynasty? You wasted all the money the court spent.

What about Su Shi?

He had no idea of ​​supporting or opposing the new law. His theory was that each matter had its own principle. Everything should be analyzed on a case-by-case basis without preconceived ideas.

It’s like the highest level of martial arts is to have no sect, and having a sect is inferior.

The problem with Su Shi is that he thinks everyone is as smart as he is. Without a sect or a banner, you can't call on more people.

When it comes to politics, it all comes down to which side has more people and more power.

Zhang Yue said to Chen Guan: "There are generally four types of differences in the world's political affairs. Generally speaking, that's it. You must remember that Zhang Zihou and I are only fighting for national affairs, and there is no personal grudge."

Chen Guan heard this and said, "I understand. But it's not easy for the teacher to walk this path!"

Zhang Yue nodded and said, "Yes, so sometimes you are destined to endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens."

At this point, Zhang Yue stood up and said, "But the things in the world are like looking at the back of an ox and the horse shooting at the east wind."

"Let them talk. Once you accomplish your goal, you can turn around and watch them laugh at you."

At this point, Zhang Yue smiled and said, "But at that time, I felt it was unnecessary."

ps: The ideas for this chapter come from Mr. Jin Guantao’s Ten Lectures on the History of Chinese Thought.