The reform of the system, a major issue of the imperial court, is not an official who has long been serving in the outside appointment who can participate in discussion, let alone that Lu Jian is now still on leave of absence.
After being relieved of his position as the Prefect of Xu State, whether to remain in Luoyang, be transferred elsewhere, or retire with honors and leisurely pursuits, it all depends on the word of the emperor.
Although Lu Jian is now so old, his career has little pursuit left, but it is still inevitable to feel some nervousness. Pursuing retirement benefits is still necessary.
Beside Lu Jian, Sima Yi looked at Wei Zhen with an inquiring gaze, and Wei Zhen nodded lightly in response.
Sima Yi understood the implication and immediately bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, during the years of Jian'an, the political situation was chaotic, and during the years of Huangchu, major policies were newly established. The court's focus for all the states and counties has been on maintaining stability."
"The three persons Your Majesty mentioned just now, Wen Huan is stationed in Jiang Xia, guarding the border and performing his duties loyally. Du Jie is in the Hedong region, ensuring that the imperial troops have enough clothing and food, and his merits are often topped among all the territories of the empire."
"Lu Jian has served the Cao family for forty years and has accumulated great authority in Qing and Xu, making him a significant asset to the court's control over these regions."
"These three individuals all have reasons for long service in their respective posts."
Cao Rui nodded, supported Lu Jian's arm and pointed to a chair on the side of the study, saying, "Lu Jian, please take a seat. I want to chat with you more today."
Just now, Sima Yi's words were very affirmative about Lu Jian, and Lu Jian's heart was slightly calmer. After thanking the emperor, he slowly sat down.
Cao Rui also returned to his throne, "The words of the Prime Minister are clear to me."
"During the years of Jian'an, the court acted in such a way because it appointed officials based on ability and was a wise choice to cope with the chaotic era."
"In the years of Huangchu, the court continued this precedent, which was a necessary move to trust and stabilize the regions."
"But now it's the third year of Taihe, and we're nearly into the fourth year. The state should at least appear in a proper manner."
Cao Rui looked at the three ministers in the study, shook his head slightly and said, "Not like General-in-Chief who can't be replaced, a governor, a prefectural governor, or a state prefecture governor. Can't the government do without one?"
"If it's really like that, then there's a problem with the administration of officials, a problem with the central government, and a problem with the court!"
Lu Jian heard these words and wanted to stand up, saying in his mouth, "This is my fault, as a minister, I should have found a replacement earlier……"
Cao Rui waved his hand to signal Lu Jian to sit down and interrupted him, "Lord Lu has no fault. There's no need to say anything more. The emperor always acts openly, only discussing systems, not referring to you personally."
"Yes, I understand." Lu Jian hesitated for two moments before bowing and responding.
Cao Rui looked at Sima Yi and Wei Zhen and asked, "What should we do according to the Department of the Ministry?"
Sima Yi's expression was calm and composed. He turned his head and looked at Wei Zhen for a moment. The meaning in his eyes seemed to say that the Ministry of Personnel was under your jurisdiction, so this matter should be proposed by you.
Wei Zhen took a deep breath and said, "Your Majesty, the appointment of officials is a fundamental matter of the state, concerning the use of state power as well as the structure and stability of court officials."
"As the Left Hand Chamberlain, today I only discuss the governors of provinces, the mayors of counties, and the heads of districts. Matters related to the military are beyond my ability and should be addressed by the Ministry of State Security."
Cao Rui nodded: "OK, Master Wei, please go ahead."
Wei Zhen said, "The system of the Great Wei followed the Han system, and during the Han dynasty, there were originally three mutual exclusion laws. Therefore, few officials in the late Han period were able to succeed in their hometowns."
"One of them is to avoid one's hometown. Neither state, county, nor county may use people from the local area."
"The second is to avoid close relatives by marriage. If someone from State A and someone from State B are in-laws, then neither of them can serve as the governor of State A nor can they serve as the governor of State B. The same applies to counties and districts."
"The third is to avoid conflicts of interest in appointments. If someone from State A serves as the governor of State B, then people from State B should not serve as the governor of State A, nor should they serve as the heads of counties or districts in State A."
"Wei Zhen looked at the emperor, "Your Majesty, since the years of Jian'an, Emperor Wu's war office has sought to stabilize the locality by using local officials. They have long broken the restrictions of the Three Mutual Exclusion Laws. How can we even talk about imposing limits on their terms?"
"In my opinion, the first step to rectifying the official system is to reinstate the Three Mutual Exclusion Laws, thereby showing the impartiality and non-partisanship of the court."
"Please show the order of the emperor."
Cao Rui lightly tapped the desktop with his hand, but did not answer. For a moment, he thought about many things.
After a moment, Cao Rui spoke and asked, "Lord Wei has asked the emperor a question. The emperor has two questions for the Department of Secretaries."
Mentioning the Department of Secretaries meant that Sima Yi and Wei Zhen were working together. Both bowed their hands and indicated that they were responsible.
Cao Rui asked, "The Governor of Yang State, Jiang Ji Jiao Zitong, is a native of the state. However, among all the ministers of Great Wei handling affairs in Yang State, none is superior to him."
"How should this matter be addressed?"
Sima Yi responded immediately, "The Three Mutual Exclusion Laws and term limits can be exceptions in border war zones."
"Jiang Ji, Wen Huan can all follow this example."
Cao Rui replied promptly, "Granted."
"The second thing, Yang Ji, who is in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, has given me a list. Among the important officials and court eunuchs in the central government and those in Luoyang, those who come from Siling, Ji Provinces have accounted for more than 60%."
"Liu state, Biao state, Qing state, Xu state, Yang state, Jing state, Liang state, Meng state, Qin state and Yizhou……These ten states add up to less than 40%."
"If the Three Mutual Exclusion Laws are implemented and continue to cycle endlessly, won't the official system of the Great Wei become increasingly unbalanced?"
Cao Rui's words directly silenced Sima Yi, Wei Zhen, and Lu Jian.
Firstly, Your Majesty's statement is undoubtedly true.
The proportion of more than 60% doesn't require anyone else to point it out. Just take the Western Study and Eastern Study as examples. Sima Yi is from Siling, while Wei Zhen, Dong Zhao, and Man Chong are all from Jun state.
Among the nine officials, Chang Lin and Sima Zhi were from Siling and Hanoi Counties, while Gao Rou was from Jin state, and Cui Lin was from Qing state. Tao Xin and Cao Ke were from Yu state……
This obvious administrative problem has almost been overlooked by the central government of the court.
The reason may be quite simple. The important officials in the court are almost all from these few places, so who would consider the interests of people from You, Bing, Qing, Xu, Yong, and Liang regions?
Even someone like Wei Zhen, who is above reproach, has not considered the native place from a purely geographical point of view!
Secondly, there is no solution to this problem.
Siling, Ji, and Yun, Yu are the core foundation of the Great Wei. How can one forsake the foundation for trivial matters?
Looking at the silent Sima Yi and Wei Zhen, Cao Rui still didn't stop and asked, "How can the Department of Secretaries not help the emperor with this burden?"
If it were ordinary affairs, Sima Yi and Wei Zhen could still have a back-and-forth with the emperor. According to the emperor's temperament and wisdom, he would not refuse any beneficial discussion.
Allowing for discussion does not mean allowing for argumentation.
The problem is right in front of you, how can it be solved?
Sima Yi, as the Chancellor and the Record of the Ministry of Secretaries, is actually the highest-ranking official of the Department of Secretaries.
Seeing no way out, Sima Yi decided to gamble and bowed his hands, saying, "Your Majesty, I have a plan that may help alleviate your worries."
Cao Rui nodded with satisfaction: "The emperor has always believed in the wisdom of the Chancellor. Please try to speak."
Sima Yi furrowed his brow and bowed, saying, "Jiang Ji said almost 70% are for officials and eunuchs in the central government."
"I just estimated roughly in my mind that the proportion of three-level officials in the state, counties, and districts of Great Wei is roughly 60-70%. But I still want to instruct the Ministry of Personnel to carefully calculate this, so that we have a basis for our actions."
Cao Rui nodded: "That's right, we should rely on data."
"What then?"
Sima Yi said, "After determining the data, the Ministry of Personnel should consider the native place when selecting officials. For example, in three years, we could gradually reduce the number of officials from these four states from more than 60% to 60%. Within ten years, it could be reduced to 50% and so on."
"However, I still want to remind Your Majesty, these four states are the essence of Great Wei. While we can reduce the proportion, we cannot neglect or appoint incompetent officials solely based on their place of origin."
Cao Rui said, "The wisdom of the Chancellor is trustworthy. Do it like that!"
"I have finished asking. The Three Mutual Exclusion Laws are also approved. Lord Wei, please continue."
Wei Zhen coughed lightly, "What I didn't mention earlier is the restriction on the term of office for officials."
"Three years are too short, and eight to ten years are too long. I propose a term of five years for officials in states, counties, and districts."
"Those who have served for five years, unless the emperor personally issues an edict to allow them to stay, must be transferred in all other cases, and cannot be delayed or extended with any excuses."
Cao Rui turned his profile to look at Lu Jian: "Lu, with your long experience in Qing and Xu, do you think five years is enough for a position like the Governor of Xu state or the Prefect of Donghai?"
Lu Jian thought for a moment and answered cautiously, "Your Majesty, if during the year of Jian'an, it was not enough. But according to the current national situation during the Taihe era, a term of five years is sufficient."
"If you think five years is not enough, then it's either incompetence or vanity, with no other explanation."
Cao Rui nodded: "What does the Chancellor think?"
Sima Yi thought for a moment, adding a supplement to Wei Zhen's words: "I think the officials in the local areas can be like this. But the officials in the central government are special appointments, and their positions are not related to their local employment. Therefore, the term of five years should not be used."
Cao Rui understood Sima Yi's meaning.
Reform should be implemented step by step, and one cannot suddenly ignite the fire to its peak.
If the central government also operates on a five-year term, Sima Yi's position as the Recording of the Secretariat and Gao Rou's position as the Director of Justice would no longer be necessary.
How can one possibly cut themselves with their own knife?
Cao Rui nodded satisfactorily. If things could progress to this point, it would definitely bring about significant changes compared to the old system, and the officials of Great Wei would also have a healthy flow.
The gaze turned to Lu Jian, and Cao Rui said, "Since Lu Jian is old and sick, he should retire and rest in Luoyang after returning."
"The position of the Shaofu has been vacant for a long time, and the affairs are usually handled by the Shaofu Zheng, who does not need to worry about labor and exertion."
"Lu Jian will take on the position of the Shaofu for one term. After all, it is one of the nine ministries; isn't that enough to reward your nearly forty years of service to the Cao family?"
Lu Jian was somewhat surprised.
The Shaofu, as one of the nine ministries, was responsible for collecting revenues from mountains, seas, and lakes in Han times and managing handicrafts. It also managed the clothing, treasures, and fine food used by the emperor personally. It was like the emperor's own money bag.
Although Great Wei had the Secretariat encroach on the powers of the nine ministries, consolidating finance under the Ministry of People and manufacturing under the Ministry of Works, the Shaofu was left with only one function—serving the royal palace. This was a far cry from the Han Dynasty's Shaofu, which was ten thousand eight thousand miles apart.
But at least it is one of the nine ministries!
Moreover, Your Majesty has just spoken clearly that in the past, the affairs of the Shaofu were handled by the Shaofu Zheng. Lu Jian can take office and then slough off his responsibilities for retirement.
This generous favor was something Lu Jian had never imagined before returning to Luoyang.
Your Majesty is indeed generous!
Lu Jian immediately bowed and thanked, "I, Lu Jian, thank Your Majesty for his great grace!" (End of this chapter)
