The five bloody heads frightened the 1,000 officials in the capital, causing them to shrink their necks in reflex.
If this guillotine were to cut his neck…
Sima Guang, Ouyang Xiu, Fu Bi, Wen Yanbo, and the other old ministers of the three dynasties were deeply shocked by this scene.
It had been a hundred years since the Song Dynasty was founded, but no Zhizhou scholar-bureaucrat had been beheaded.
No matter how fierce the civil officials were, those who contradicted the emperor or committed crimes were endless. The punishment was only to be demoted. After being demoted again and again, the worst was to be demoted to Qiongzhou, to the ends of the earth, and to continue living a carefree life.
Behead!
Only that "idiot" Bao Zheng would point the guillotine at the royal family.
No emperor had ever done this before. Taizong, Zhenzong, Renzong, and Yingzong were the guardians of the literati.
In today's court meeting, five border officials were killed at once. These Zhizhou were reserve capital officials. As long as time was up, they could become ministers and assistant ministers.
In the Daqing Hall, the ministers were silent. Only Wang Anshi and Su Dongpo were refreshed, looking at the cabinet members who had just besieged them.
Sima Guang looked dejected. If it was in the past, if the Emperor did something wrong, he would definitely come out and refute.
Ouyang Xiu, Wen Yanbo, and Fu Bi thought the same.
However, things were different now. The current emperor was a man of his word. If he said that he was going to cut the official, he would definitely cut the official. He would not demote the official.
If the reform was so bad, why would the Emperor support it?
"Maybe I was wrong this time?”Sima Guang muttered in his heart.
"The Emperor's boldness is extraordinary. He has just defeated Xixia, and his prestige among the people is at its peak. If he were to risk his life to refute, not only would he not be able to keep his reputation, but he would also bring disaster to his entire family.”Sima Guang thought to himself.
After making up his mind, Sima Guang walked out of the class and whispered in the main hall,"
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This lowly subject's thoughts are outdated and old. I can't keep up with Your Majesty's spirit. Your Majesty, please deprive this lowly subject of the position of Prime Minister and give it to Yu Liangxian. This lowly subject was entrusted by the previous Emperor to write a book called The General Mirror of Political Affairs.”
Before Sima Guang could finish his sentence, the ministers who had followed him to resign walked out of the line.
"Sima Guang, zhen had originally thought of agreeing to your resignation, but how can zhen be manipulated by you? Do you want to hang up the crown and gain a lifetime of fame, putting me in the position of a fatuous ruler?”Zhao Xu sneered.
" No, no, Your Majesty, I really can't understand the reform, so…" Sima Guang was sweating profusely. The little scheme in his heart had been seen through by the Emperor, and he felt ashamed.
"You, Sima Guang, are not an incompetent person, nor are you a person who is indifferent to fame and fortune. Otherwise, you would not have been able to sit on the position of Prime Minister step by step. I will not agree to your resignation.”
Zhao Xu hit and pulled, making Sima Guang's face cloudy and uncertain, with mixed feelings.
Ouyang Xiu was much more well-behaved at this time. He stood in the line and held the ivory board tightly without saying a word. He did not want to be killed. The emperor in front of him was a ruthless character. If he disobeyed him, his entire clan might be exterminated.
Over the years, Ouyang Xiu was no longer the hot-blooded reformist. He had become more and more of an indulgent person who placed his feelings in the mountains and rivers. The drunkard's heart was not in the wine, but in the mountains and rivers.
With the Prime Minister acting like this, the others immediately retreated to their seats. Their hearts were jumping in fear. The Emperor's skills as an emperor had already reached perfection.
Wanting to play with the Emperor to advance by retreating was simply asking for humiliation. The crafty Fu Bi was now inexplicably terrified. These days, he had completely taken the wrong path and rebelled against the Emperor everywhere. This was something unimaginable in the past.
It could only be said that the Emperor's thoughts were too mysterious. His Saint Heart was hard to fathom, and he kept it a secret.
"The reform will start from the court. Zhen will announce some changes in the administration of officials.”
"The Political Affairs Hall, the Ministry of Central Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Bureau of Military Affairs. These five yamens are stacked and overpopulated. Today, I will destroy these five yamens and merge them into a new yamen, the Cabinet.”
"The cabinet is made up of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Political Affairs, the Imperial Censor, the Minister of War, and the Minister of Revenue. They have the power to handle the daily government affairs of the court, but important matters must be submitted to me for decision.”
"Fu Bi will be relieved of his official position and will retire. Lü Huacheng of the Privy Council was removed from office and retired.”
"From now on, I will monopolize all the power in the country. The cabinet is only my advisor. The position of prime minister can be taken in turns. As long as one does well, they will have the chance to become prime minister.”
The ministers were all shocked by such an earth-shattering reform--
After announcing the reform in the court, Zhao Xu ordered Wang Anshi to draft various edicts.
At the same time, the Green Crops Law, the Equal Loss Law, the Agriculture and Water Conservancy Law, the Baojia Law, and the Market Exchange Law would be implemented from now on.
Originally, Zhao Xu wanted to reduce the number of redundant soldiers by 500,000, but now that the Liao Kingdom, Xixia, and Jiaozhi were all using troops, he slowed down.
However, the previous military recruitment system was abolished. The imperial court no longer used silver to recruit soldiers. Instead, it was a military recruitment system. Conscription required physical strength and martial arts. It was no longer the previous system where refugees and lazy people were pulled in to eat imperial food.
Zhao Xu knew that without the victory in Xixia, the reform wouldn't have been so successful. Those old antiques would have definitely interfered.
However, with the military merits in front of them, those old antiques would not act rashly. They still had to accept the reform and assist in it.
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