Tibet

At noon, Li Ye invited Wei Jiansu and Yan Zhenqing to have dinner at Danfeng Restaurant.

Although Li Ye rejected Yan Zhenqing's petition to disband the inner guards, he also appreciated Yan Zhenqing's courage to serve the people and his subordinates and pointed out the harm of the inner guards to him. Otherwise, he would not have known that the inner guards had reached the point where people and gods were angry and the people were resentful. To the point of boiling.

Yan Zhenqing could tell that he was not in a good mood. He lowered his head to eat gloomily and remained silent.

Li Ye poured him a glass of wine with a smile and said: "A founding hero who has repeatedly made great achievements, but he was killed just after the founding of the country. What do the soldiers in the world think?"

Yan Zhenqing stiffened his neck and said, "But if it is a general who has a bad record and has done countless harm to the people, killing him can also serve as a warning to the morale of the army!"

"It's not even a question of harming the people!"

Li Ye asked calmly: "Are the internal guards guilty of wantonly raping women and killing people?"

"That's not the case for the time being, but extortion and arbitrary arrests make the people's faces change after hearing about it. This is not an isolated phenomenon, it is already common. It is an indisputable fact that the internal guards have become the black sheep. Your Majesty, the world has been peaceful, and the internal guards have indeed There is no need to exist anymore. The meritorious officers of the inner guard can be promoted and arranged separately, and other government functions can be strengthened. Your Majesty, the inner guard is an army, and the army is not suitable for managing peace and prosperity! "

Li Ye smiled and said: "Cui Yuan's son is selling illicit salt. If it weren't for the internal guards, who would have been able to investigate this case. In fact, I have already determined the nature of the internal guards. Catch the big ones and let go of the small ones. The internal guards only care about the big ones." For major cases that cannot be handled by the local government, such as those that cannot be handled by the Salt and Iron Supervision Bureau, the Taxation Department, the Private Inspection Department, the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Dali Temple, they will naturally seek help from the internal guards. Five Saints members were collectively poisoned and murdered in Suiye. These major cases can only be investigated by the internal guards. Yan Shangshu said that the internal guards are useless. This is not fair. "

Just as Yan Zhenqing was about to speak, Li Ye stopped him with a wave of his hand, "We all know that Deyaka, which is made from afurong, is a poison. Excessive intake of Deyaka will make you addicted, making you look haggard and difficult to give up for life. But Deyaka It is also a great pain reliever when used in small amounts.

Everything has two sides. The key depends on how the user uses it. A knife can be a good kitchen tool or a murder weapon. An internal guard is a sharp knife. If used well, it will benefit the country and the people. If used poorly, it will benefit the country and the people. It is a disaster for the country and the people. Yan Shangshu cannot regard it as a savage beast just because the internal guards are not properly managed for a while, and insist on killing it quickly. This is a bit of a waste of food because of choking. "

Next to him, Wei Jiansu also nodded, "Wei Chen supports your majesty's point of view. The key is that the system has not kept up. In the past few years, the internal guards have made many great contributions. In the past two years, a small group of internal guards have bent the law for personal gain and corrupted the internal affairs." Wei Chen also believes that if the system keeps up with the system, Nei Wei can indeed make a big difference."

Although Yan Zhenqing was upright, he was not stupid. The disturbance of the people by the inner guards was not the real reason why he asked for the abolition of the inner guards. It was the surveillance of the officials by the inner guards. On the surface, it seemed that the officials were caught for prostitution, but if you think about it carefully, it is extremely horrifying. The internal guards are always monitoring the officials. When officials gather to have a meal, they are all monitored by the internal guards. This is the reason why Yan Zhenqing asked for the abolition of the internal guards.

At this time, Yan Zhenqing also understood what the emperor meant. It was impossible to abolish the internal guards. Reforms could be made in the system. He sighed in his heart. If he couldn't abolish it, he could only settle for the next best thing and see how to change it.

While drinking tea, Yan Zhenqing took a sip of tea and asked, "Does Your Majesty have any ideas about the reform of internal defense?"

Li Ye nodded, "Yan Shangshu's memorial was handed to me on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month. I have been thinking about it throughout the New Year. I have two plans. The first one is to streamline the army and simplify administration, as Yan Shangshu said , Now that the world is at peace, the internal defense does not have so many things to do. Forty thousand people are indeed too many, and the internal treasury is under a heavy burden. I plan to reduce the number by 30,000 and let the soldiers go home, leaving only 10,000 elites. "

Yan Zhenqing bowed and said: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Li Ye continued with a smile: "The second step is to reform the system and transform the internal guards from the army to the government. I am planning to set up a Zhuque Hall in the internal guards. The function is exactly the same as the White Tiger Hall in the imperial court. All cases of the internal guards will be dealt with." It must be allocated by the Suzaku Hall. If you get involved in the case without Suzaku's approval, it will be a serious violation. It can range from a demerit to a dismissal and interrogation. If serious consequences are caused, you will be beheaded in public. In this way, what can the internal guards do? , everything that cannot be done is decided by Suzaku Hall.”

Wei Jiansu gave a thumbs up and praised: "Your Majesty's Zhuque Hall is just like the White Tiger Hall, it's really a stroke of genius!"

Yan Zhenqing also nodded, "If this system is strictly followed, then Wei Chen will have no objection."

Wei Jiansu thought about it and asked, "Will the internal guards accept civil cases?"

Li Ye shook his head, "I have set rules for the inner guards a long time ago, catch the big ones and let them go, but the inner guards did not strictly implement them. The reason is due to various special circumstances. Once there is a loophole, everything will be regarded as a special situation, so in the end The best way is to cut it across the board. Even if people come to ask for help in the middle of the night, it is a matter for the Jinwu Guards who are on duty at night and has nothing to do with the inner guards. The inner guards will not accept direct reports from the people, but will only accept reports from the county government and other government agencies. In this way, Those situations that Yan Shangshu responded to will not happen.”

After finishing the meal, Li Ye went back to his imperial study, while Wei Jiansu and Yan Zhenqing walked back to the official room of Zhengshitang.

"Actually, I understand Minister Yan's feelings. The surveillance of officials by the inner guards is indeed criticized, but we must also understand the interests of the emperor. The inner guards have always been a weapon used by the emperor to consolidate the throne, so it is impossible for the emperor to give up the inner guards. Both sides can only seek a balance point that is acceptable to both parties. Since the emperor is willing to make concessions, Minister Yan should not insist on abolishing the inner guards."

Yan Zhenqing sighed and said, "Does the Prime Minister think that the inner guards will still monitor ministers?"

"Of course there will be surveillance!"

Wei Jiansu smiled slightly and said, "But it is different from the general surveillance now, but it is a case-filing surveillance. For example, at the request of the Censorate, a case is filed to monitor a minister. For example, at the request of the emperor, a case is filed to monitor someone. This is called filing a case for surveillance."

Yan Zhenqing nodded, "Filing a case for surveillance is normal, as long as it is not a general surveillance of officials in restaurants, music halls, and dance halls."

"The practice of monitoring officials is often because the superiors are not in a legitimate position or are seriously insecure. Just like the former eunuch party monitored all officials, but our emperor did not have such an idea. This was actually a misunderstanding. The inner guards were executing the emperor's decree that officials were not allowed to visit prostitutes, but the emperor did not ask them to do so.

Once the Suzakutang system was established, this kind of monitoring request was generally proposed by the Censorate, but the request proposed by the Censorate was to be submitted to the emperor by the Political Affairs Hall. If we think it is inappropriate, we can directly propose it to the emperor and ask the emperor to veto it, and the request will not reach the hands of the inner guards. "

"I understand. In fact, I am not against monitoring officials itself, but I am against expanding it. Criminal cases should be monitored. It is inappropriate to monitor a large number of innocent officials."

"Don't worry, the emperor will give us a review after the inner guard reform plan is drafted."

The two walked back to their respective official rooms while talking. Wei Jiansu had just sat down when someone reported: "Report to the Prime Minister, Luo Hao, the Minister of Rites, asked to see him!"

Wei Jiansu nodded. He asked the Minister of Rites to contact Prince Shiguo early in the morning, and there should be news now.

"Please let him in!"

After a while, Luo Hao hurried in, bowed and said: "Meet the Prime Minister!"

"How is it, have you talked to the prince of Shiguo?"

"I talked to him this morning, and he said a lot, but in fact, he just wanted to say one thing over and over again, the loss of Suiye has nothing to do with them!"