kingnovel Chapter 1310 Cabinet formation, special arrangements
Chapter 1310 Cabinet formation, special arrangements
royal palace.
The nine-tiered jade steps of the Golden Throne Hall appeared frosty in the morning light, and the scales of the red-gold dragon entwined on the dragon pillar were shining in the glow of the sunset glow.
The hall was filled with the aroma of agarwood, and the pearls on the ministers' jade crowns flickered with the tapping of their court robes and jade belts, until the sound of the bronze chimes from the Imperial Household Department pierced through the heavy curtains.
When Chu Ning stepped into the main hall, his woven gold boots stepped over thirty-six gold bricks, and the twelve-chapter pattern embroidered on his black python robe appeared faintly in the flowing light and shadow.
The nine-section white jade belt around his waist was adorned with a red dragon pendant. The hanging bright yellow silk ribbons fluttered with his steps, drawing a few stunning lines on the dark blue background.
The Grand Tutor stood at the head of the civil officials. When he saw the young crown prince approaching the imperial steps, his long grey eyebrows trembled slightly, and he raised the ivory tablet in his hand even more upright.
"See His Highness the Crown Prince!"
The voice of Minister of Revenue Liu Shouren was always three points clearer than that of others, and the peacock patch on the front of his dark crimson official uniform rippled as he knelt.
This capable minister who was in charge of the world's money and grain was lying on the gold brick at this moment, but he glanced at Deng Hongwen beside him from the corner of his eye.
Minister of Rites Deng Hongwen was wearing a dark blue uniform with cloud and wild goose patches embroidered on it. He and the others saluted Chu Ning.
When the fifth drop of water fell from the copper clock in the corner of the palace, Chu Ning turned and faced the ministers.
The morning sun slanted in through the hollow of the Panlong caisson, adding a touch of gold between his eyebrows.
The pair of cold eyes that resembled those of the Emperor of Chu swept over the officials prostrating themselves on the steps, paused for a moment on the trembling tablet of the Grand Tutor, and finally fell on the newly added dragon-shaped chair next to the throne.
"Gentlemen, please stand up." The clear voice had the metallic and stone quality that is unique to young people, but the ending tone was as deep as an ancient bell.
The Grand Tutor was the first to stand up. He noticed that the Crown Prince was not wearing the seven-feathered crown today, but only tied his hair with a green jade crown. He secretly sighed that the crown prince had become more and more sophisticated in how to strike a balance between majesty and kindness.
"Your Highness..."
The old voice of the Grand Tutor echoed under the dome of the hall, and the old minister's hunched back was straight as he spoke.
"Prime Minister Di Wenyao has been transferred to Qin, which has caused a lot of things to pile up in the court. Should we deal with these things one by one at the morning court today?"
Originally, all the affairs of the court were handled by Prime Minister Di Wenyao. Now that Di Wenyao has gone to Qin and the emperor is no longer in charge of state affairs, many memorials have piled up.
Chu Ning's eyes swept across the desk beside him, and indeed, he saw piles of memorials placed on it.
The prince, who had been through many hardships on the battlefield, couldn't help but rub his temples.
Accustomed to being a hands-off boss, he was not used to handling so many memorials at once.
Fortunately, today he came here to adjust the deployment of officials.
As the State of Chu occupied more and more cities, more and more things needed to be dealt with.
"Taifu is absolutely right. These memorials must be dealt with as soon as possible."
Chu Ning raised his eyebrows, turned around and sat on the Panlong Chair, and said in a deep voice: "But I can't handle so many memorials by myself."
"Therefore, I need to promote a few adults to form a cabinet today."
"Ordinary memorials are handled by the cabinet. If the cabinet cannot handle it, it will be handed over to me for judgment."
As soon as these words were spoken, all the ministers in the hall were shocked.
Being able to review memorials means that the cabinet has great power!
If he could become a member of the cabinet, he would be at the pinnacle of power.
Only the Grand Tutor was puzzled and frowned as he asked, "Your Highness, if everything is left to the cabinet to handle, will there be corruption, abuse of power, and malpractice for personal gain?"
Chu Ning had already prepared a plan for this, and said calmly: "The cabinet is only responsible for reviewing memorials, and has no other rights. Moreover, if something goes wrong, whoever reviewed the memorial will be held responsible."
"Now, the ministers whose names I have called out, please stand in line. The first cabinet will consist of you!"
The tutor knew that he could not persuade him, so he turned around and returned to the train.
The power of this cabinet is so great that as a neutral party, he naturally has no chance of getting involved.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, Chu Ning read out the first name: "Grandmaster!"
The Grand Tutor was slightly stunned, then stood up in confusion: "Your Highness, your humble servant..."
Chu Ning interrupted him with his hand, "No one knows the Grand Tutor's abilities better than me. If there is no Grand Tutor in the Cabinet, can it still be called a Cabinet?"
"This... Thank you very much, Your Highness!" The Grand Tutor was moved and bowed.
Then, Chu Ning turned to look at the civil servants and read out the names one by one: "Prime Ministers Yang Wende and Di Wenyao are not in Kyoto, but they are also members of the cabinet."
"From now on, they can handle the memorials from Yan and Qin on their own."
After a pause, he said in a deep voice: "Zhang Xuan, the governor of Liangzhou, has developed Liangzhou very well in recent years and also maintained the relationship between our dynasty and the Zhou dynasty."
"I have decided to promote him to the position of Prime Minister and transfer him to Zhao as a member of the cabinet. From now on, he can handle Zhao's memorials on his own."
The three dynasties that were established were all governed by a prime minister, and these three people were also members of the cabinet, giving him great power.
Needless to say, Yang Wende was the prime minister of the State of Chu, so his ability was naturally second to none.
Di Wenyao has demonstrated his talent from the time he was in charge of Bingzhou in the beginning, to the time he was in charge of Zhao, to his transfer back to Kyoto City to serve as prime minister, and now to Qin.
As for Zhang Xuan, he has worked diligently in Liangzhou in recent years. Not only did he provide military pay and food for Ma Chao's tens of thousands of cavalry, he also traded with the Zhou Dynasty and managed Liangzhou in an orderly manner. It is time for him to be promoted.
But in this case, three of the four cabinet members are not in Kyoto!
Chu Ning also realized this and continued, "Mr. Yang Wende, Mr. Di Wenyao and Mr. Zhang Xuan are not in Kyoto City, so the cabinet still needs manpower."
Looking at his confidant, Chu Ning said calmly: "Liu Shouren, Deng Hongwen, and Jia Yu have been promoted to the cabinet."
When these words were spoken, everyone was a little surprised.
After all, the Minister of Personnel Lu Xiuwen and the Minister of Works Yun Jianye have followed Chu Ning for quite some time, so logically speaking, these two people should be part of the cabinet.
But Chu Ning has his own considerations.
These three people represent three factions.
Liu Shouren represented the native official faction of the Chu State.
Deng Hongwen represents the grassroots faction that rose from the bottom through the imperial examination.
Needless to say, Jia Yu represents the surrender faction, or the outsider faction, who surrendered from other dynasties.
These three people, together with the three prime ministers and the grand tutor, formed a seven-member cabinet.
Upon hearing this, the three of them immediately stepped out of the formation and saluted: "Thank you, Your Highness, for your kindness!"
"Don't be too hasty to thank me yet."
Chu Ning twirled his sleeves, stood up, and said loudly: "After the battle between our dynasty and the State of Chu, we only have less than 200,000 soldiers left."
"Now the four dynasties are forming an alliance and preparing to attack our dynasty. We must expand our military forces."
"The first thing the cabinet will do after forming is to urge the other three places except Qin to recruit soldiers!"
"I am planning to form eight major armies, with an estimated force of about 800,000. Apart from the 200,000 troops we have now, we will need to recruit another 600,000."
"The first test of your cabinet is here!"