"Luoyang, North Palace."
Cao Rui was in the study handling affairs with Lü Fàng, the chief librarian, when Zhong Yù entered slowly from outside.
Zhong Yu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Minister of War Hua Xin, Prefect of Chenliu Liu Shao, Prefect of Anping Lu Yu, and General of the Central Defense Forces Huan Fan are waiting outside."
Cao Rui looked at Zhong Yu and nodded slightly as a gesture, then continued speaking to Lü Fàng.
"Lord Liu, this matter should proceed slowly rather than quickly. Haste makes waste. Once you return, go through the documents with Sun Zhongshu and compile a list of all local schoolmasters, including their qualifications, achievements, and shortcomings."
"Is half a month enough time?"
Lü Fàng bowed and replied, "Half a month is sufficient. The schoolmasters mainly come from Luoyang, Yecheng, and Xuchang. The records of the schoolmasters in Yecheng and Xuchang are available in Luoyang."
"The remaining schoolmasters and officials in various regions are not very numerous. If we report in detail every three months, by the end of this month, we should be able to receive the reports for the first three months of this year in Luoyang."
Cao Rui lightly nodded: "Since the impact in the other regions is minimal, go ahead and compile the information for Luoyang, Yecheng, and Xuchang first so that I can review them."
"At your service." Lü Fàng bowed and left the study after receiving the task.
Lü Fàng was actually a bit confused. The emperor suddenly seemed interested in the schoolmasters' affairs and even wanted all the records and lists of schoolmasters.
Perhaps, Your Majesty intends to separate the schoolmasters from the Ministry of Rites?
This idea only briefly flitted through Lü Fàng's mind. At that moment, Lü Fàng felt a bit complicated.
The Ministry of Rites, in a nutshell, is responsible for both upward and downward communication. The memorials submitted by the officials to the emperor are compiled by the Ministry of Rites and presented to the emperor. The emperor's orders to ministers or the Secretariat are also drafted and sealed by the Ministry of Rites before being issued.
It is essentially a department responsible for confidential matters.
When the late Emperor Cao Pi, during the year 220 of the Huang Chu reign, changed the schoolmasters' agency from directly reporting to Emperor Cao Cao to reporting to the Ministry of Rites.
This was a behavior intended to reduce the workload of Emperor Cao Pi himself, but it also increased dissatisfaction with the Ministry of Rites on another level.
It's good to know a lot, but in Lü Fàng's view, knowing too many secret matters is not necessarily a good thing. If the emperor were to take them, Lü Fàng would actually be pleased with the outcome.
As for Sun Zhi, it's unknown what he thinks about this.
After a short while, Zhong Yù led four people—Hua Xin, Liu Shao, Lu Yu, and Huan Fan—into the study.
After all, Hua Taiwei is a high-ranking official. Emperor Cao Rui stood up and smiled to greet him, "Today, as Minister of War Hua comes to the palace, is there anything you wish to instruct me on? Please take a seat quickly."
After paying respect, Hua Xin slowly sat down on the chair. To his surprise, sitting down turned out to be incredibly comfortable and effortless.
Hua Xin bowed and said, "At your service, Your Majesty. Today I came to the palace to report my views on the issue of legal reform."
Cao Rui nodded in acknowledgment, then looked at the other three: "Lord Liu, Lord Lu, and Lord Huan are also here. I have met Lord Liu in Chenliu before, and Lord Huan is even more familiar to me. Lord Lu has been in Jizhou, and this is the first time I have seen him."
Lu Yu bowed again and said, "Your Majesty, Lord Lu Yu pays his respects. It is an honor to be able to see your majesty today. I am not very frightened."
Cao Rui smiled and waved his hand, "You three, also find a seat to sit. There's no need to be afraid. I'm not going to eat you."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." The three men bowed and then, as if by agreement, sat down on the chairs behind them.
Cao Rui noticed that Liu Shao and Huan Fan seemed more at ease, while Lu Yu was sitting on only half the chair and looked more serious and tense.
This is something to be observed and noted. Let it be as it may.
Cao Rui sat back down at the desk and then asked Hua Xin, "Minister of War, what are your thoughts on the matter of law reform that you wish to discuss with me today?"
Hua Xin spoke with a composed expression, "Your Majesty, I propose that the matter of law reform be handled by me to ease Your Majesty's burden."
Cao Rui raised his eyebrows slightly, showing a bit of surprise. But a few moments later, he smiled again.
"How did you come to such an idea?" Cao Rui looked at Hua Xin.
Hua Xin combed through his white beard and said, "I have also been thinking about it for a few days before coming to recommend myself to Your Majesty to take on this task."
"Law reform is a matter of great importance, and previously in the court, Your Majesty's instructions as well as the discussions among the ministers have all aimed to make this round of law reform as perfect as possible to eliminate the accumulated flaws of Han Dynasty's laws over four hundred years."
As Hua Xin spoke, a smile also appeared on his mouth: "As the head of the three grand officers, I also wish to establish some merit for Your Majesty in the new era of Taihe."
Cao Rui deliberately teased: "As a minister of war, you are already a minister of war. What else do you need to accumulate merits for?"
Hua Xin shook his head and smiled: "I am also thinking about my descendants!"
"The matter of law reform seems complicated with many aspects, but fundamentally, it is necessary to integrate Your Majesty's philosophy into the new laws. The rest are just details. Such a major undertaking indeed requires a grand officer to lead it."
Cao Rui quietly looked at Hua Xin, as if trying to explore the real thoughts of this old minister.
After being stared at by the emperor for a few moments, Hua Xin no longer concealed his thoughts and directly said, "Just take the previous debate in Luoyang. Clock Zhu and his party supported the restoration of corporal punishment, while Wang Zhizhi and his party opposed it."
"It seems that I might as well find a middle ground for Your Majesty."
"Ha ha ha." Cao Rui laughed: "Hua Taiwei speaks candidly and truly, a true scholar!"
Actually, the position of the three grand officers is more ceremonial than practical.
During the Western Han Dynasty, the three grand officers, in addition to being nominal heads of the nine ministries and engaging in theoretical discussions, were also top officials in the court who could handle some "affairs" on behalf of the emperor.
For example, things like solar eclipses, earthquakes, natural disasters, etc.
Ministers will quickly submit memorials, saying that the court governance is not good. The emperor will feign attention and then send one of the three grand officers home.
The three grand officers also represent a political status, with the ability to establish their own government offices, recruit officials, and officially recommend senior officials to the court. They even have the meaning of assisting in government affairs.
However, after Cao Pi became the emperor, there were many changes.
The Secretariat of Wei state was evolved from Cao Cao's Wei kingdom's Secretariat, not the Han Dynasty's Secretariat.
As Cao Cao, as the ruler of Wei, handled important matters across the empire, the Secretariat of Wei naturally took over the functions of the Han Dynasty's Secretariat. With the Han Dynasty's Secretariat becoming obsolete, the nine ministries (jinci) under it were mere decorations.
When the friends of the late Emperor Cao Pi, such as Chen Qun and Sima Yi, entered the Wei Secretariat after taking over the Han Secretariat, the authority of the Secretariat became even more important, and it took away many actual powers of the three grand officers and the nine ministries.
In essence, Hua Xin has little actual work to do now! Moreover, the current emperor enjoys holding secret meetings with his advisers and attendants in the palace to engage in backroom politics, and rarely consults with the three grand officers.
Cao Rui could naturally understand some of Hua Xin's feelings.
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Your Majesty, I understand the intentions of the three grand officers."
"Clock Zhu hopes to restore ancient corporal punishment, thus reducing the death penalty and punishing crimes."
"Master Wang does not want to restore corporal punishment but prefers to govern the laws in a more lenient manner that appears more gentle to the people, which is consistent with his consistent philosophy when he was the Minister of Justice."
"If the Lord of the Army can find a middle ground, it is indeed the best thing."
Hua Xin nodded vigorously: "In my opinion, both of them arguing non-stop are somewhat biased."
"What is called 'punish the past to prevent the future' or 'kill one to scare a hundred' is something that the court is responsible for executing and reconciling. I would just say to Your Majesty, if there are more people who are guilty of capital crimes, then it would be better to pardon more of them. Why should we resurrect corporal punishment?"
"Before leaving, I had read the 'Left Passages of Zhuo's Annals' again."
Hearing Hua Xin's words, Liu Shao, Lu Yu, and Huan Fan, who were seated below, all simultaneously looked towards the emperor.
Cao Rui began to think after hearing this.
In this era, those who do not read or study the classics are basically unable to speak coherently.
During the Han and Wei periods, the Five Classics were like the idioms commonly used by people in later generations. For example, if one wants to describe a complex and terrifying, panicky state of mind when facing an enemy army's attack, four characters 'all things are soldiers' are enough.
Just now, when Hua Xin mentioned the 'Left Passages of Zhuo's Annals', he talked about how Zheng's Zai Dan cast the penal code and was criticized by Su Qingang, who was an official from Jin. In his letter, he wrote: "If the people know there is a penal code, they will not be afraid of the upper class."
Although Su Qingang's statement is based on a very early version of law, its fundamental meaning is that if the ruling authorities write the law too clearly, then the people will not be afraid of the ruling authorities but will be afraid of the law itself.
While Cao Rui may not have been widely learned, he was indeed well-versed in the required texts such as the Five Classics and the 'Left Passages of Zhuo's Annals'.
After thinking for a moment, Cao Rui immediately understood what Hua Xin meant.
Cao Rui looked seriously at Hua Xin: "Does the Lord of the Army mean that laws cannot be known, and thus their power cannot be measured?"
If the penalties are unknown, then their severity is unmeasurable?
Hua Xin repeated the emperor's words a few times, slowly nodding and saying, "What Your Majesty said about 'laws cannot be known, then their power cannot be measured' should be limited to the death penalty itself."
"The other ordinary crimes are not involved."
Cao Rui understood Hua Xin's meaning. It was not that there should be no rule of law; rather, in the most critical area, where the death penalty is determined, the court should have greater discretion.
Indeed, it was the same man who, during the reign of Emperor Yan of Han, personally "led" Empress Fu out of the palace at the command of Cao Cao.
Used to being the behind-the-scenes player.
Cao Rui nodded: "Your Majesty, I see that we have reached the same understanding. I promise you that later, I will order the Secretariat and the government departments to assist the Lord of the Army in doing this matter of law reform."
Hua Xin was just about to speak when he was interrupted by Cao Rui.
Cao Rui asked, "Then, Lord of the Army, you must give me a guarantee that this matter will be handled splendidly."
Hua Xin smiled and said, "After all, I am already seventy years old. I can naturally control the overall direction for Your Majesty, but for specific details, it is still better for the younger ministers to take care of it."
Hua Xin pointed to the three people sitting beside him: "I believe these three are all capable of doing great things for the country." (End of this chapter)
