Chapter 1512: Even This Court Has Cast-Aside Talents

The interpreter received the order and left. Zhao Pu couldn't help but let out a soft sigh, his mind still unavoidably turning over certain aspects of the Lingnan pearl-harvesting case. Clearly, he had not yet given up on his ideas regarding the follow-up policies on this matter.

Just because it couldn't be resolved at the moment didn't mean changes couldn't be made in the future. Once an opportunity presented itself, he would still offer his counsel. At the very least, judging from his previous exchanges with Emperor Liu on this matter, the Emperor's stance had shown some signs of softening.

Although Zhao Pu had always primarily catered to Emperor Liu, as the Chief Chancellor of the court, he was far from being merely the Emperor's echo. He was also a man of strong convictions, and when it came to things he believed should be done and were worth doing, he was quite persistent. Without these qualities, he could never have presided over the revision and implementation of national policy over these past several years.

Of course, sighs were inevitable. He, Zhao Pu, could be considered the most powerful of all the chancellors who had served the Great Han over the past twenty-five years. Yet even so, the constraints he faced were not light. Many matters truly were not his to decide with a single word or to handle entirely on his own authority—especially when they involved Emperor Liu.

However, none of this could shake Zhao Pu's resolve. Having spent many years in officialdom and immersed himself in politics for so long, he had come to see the nature of power with relative clarity.

Even imperial authority was not unlimited. Even with Emperor Liu's formidable abilities, governing the state inevitably came with concerns and reservations—let alone for someone like Zhao Pu. If he could govern entirely according to his own wishes, he would not merely be Chief Chancellor, but a power-wielding chancellor.

Emperor Liu had already given him a vast political stage, allowing him to enter the halls of power and fully display his talents and realize his ambitions. That was already rare and precious, and he should be content with it.

"Chancellor!"

A familiar voice sounded. Looking up, he saw a figure of no great stature—it was Pan You, a Secretariat Drafter who had taken up his post not long ago, but was among the officials accompanying the eastern tour.

Pan You was easy to recognize, his face extremely distinctive—because it was very ugly. Among the central ministries of the Great Han, he was probably the ugliest of all. As a result, Pan You was quite famous, even if all the fame was negative.

The Great Han's philosophy of selecting and appointing officials was primarily based on merit, regardless of background, and appearance was not a major criterion. However, that was ultimately just an idealized state. Of the current bureaucrats of the Great Han, it could be said with certainty that at least half of the appointments took family background into consideration.

As for appearance, although it was not among the explicit written criteria for official selection, those doing the selecting would inevitably harbor some bias in their hearts. Judging people by appearance was not something to be advocated, but it was indeed a common reality of the human world. Liking the beautiful and disliking the ugly was only natural human sentiment, and in the selection of officials, being good-looking was likewise an advantage.

Perhaps there was no shortage of those who were outwardly splendid but inwardly hollow, yet those with ugly faces always had to put in extra effort to gain recognition. Unless one's brilliance was so extraordinary as to dispel others' almost instinctive prejudice, the ugly always lived a harder life.

In the court of the Great Han, it wasn't that every man was a handsome gentleman of distinguished bearing, but there were indeed few who were ugly. And someone like Pan You, whose ugliness was so distinctive, so refreshingly unconventional and uniquely his own—he was the only one.

Moreover, because Pan You came from surrendered officials of Jiangnan, a group that was not part of the mainstream of the Great Han's power structure and was marginalized, he naturally faced even more contempt.

Yet despite all this, he still managed to work within the Hall of State Affairs, staying close to the center of the Great Han's power—which itself testified to his extraordinary qualities.

His extraordinary qualities lay in two aspects: first, he possessed considerable learning; second, he had encountered benefactors in succession—first Han Xizai's posthumous memorial recommending him before his death, and later Zhao Pu's promotion of him.

Within the court, factions often proliferated, and Pan You belonged to two factions. One was the Jiangnan faction, a background he could never shed. The other was the reformist faction—he held unique insights into current affairs, people's livelihoods, and the state's institutions, had formed his own political philosophy, and had put forward his own reform proposals.

The more than twenty years of Emperor Liu's reign had itself been an era of great transformation. The court had undergone multiple reforms, and even into the Kaibao era, this continued—the nation's major policies were always in flux.

A talent like Pan You, under normal circumstances, would have found a place to exercise his abilities, and might even have received significant appointments. But the reality was quite the opposite: Pan You not only failed to gain recognition and regard, but was instead increasingly alienated and ignored.

It wasn't because of his famously ugly face—Emperor Liu was, after all, a man who had risen above vulgar tastes, and judging people by appearance was not his style.

If one had to explain it, one could only say that Pan You was born at the wrong time. Every major policy direction of the court, every reform and innovation of the Great Han, was carried out only with Emperor Liu's approval.

How to change, how to reform, how to implement—all were overseen by Emperor Liu, while the concrete execution was handled by capable ministers and wise chancellors like Zhao Pu. It was not something a mere Pan You could presume to direct.

Pan You had reformist ideas and policy proposals, but his ideas and proposals did not win Emperor Liu's approval. He proposed implementing reforms modeled on the Rites of Zhou, which ran completely counter to Emperor Liu's philosophy of governance.

It could not be denied that some of the governing concepts and political philosophies of the ancient Rites of Zhou would never become outdated and possessed tremendous vitality. Many later reformers had also invoked the name of the Rites of Zhou while carrying out their reforms—Wang Mang, Yuwen Yong, and others, for example.

Even in the current Great Han, among its many institutions, a great deal of thought and philosophy had evolved over a thousand years on the foundation of the Rites of Zhou. But Pan You's proposals ultimately did not suit Emperor Liu's wishes.

The Rites of Zhou's philosophy of blending Confucianism and Legalism, with virtue as the primary and punishment as the auxiliary—this Emperor Liu could not accept wholesale. Although Emperor Liu himself was transcendent, standing above ritual and legal systems, what he had always insisted on was rule by law as the foundation, with punishment as primary and virtue as auxiliary.

What Emperor Liu hoped for was that everyone would follow the rules and abide by the Great Han's legal system, that everyone would assume their respective roles within the Great Han's social governance framework—those above not oppressing those below, those below not defying those above.

This was something Pan You had clearly failed to grasp, which doomed him to difficulty in gaining significant appointment. Moreover, some of the specific policies he proposed—such as restoring the well-field system and establishing cattle registries according to the Rites of Zhou—were outright reversals of history. Not only would the court oppose them, but even among the common people they would struggle to gain acceptance. There was simply no soil for their implementation.

On top of that, Pan You's personality was inherently withdrawn—likely an inevitable consequence of growing up amid contempt and ridicule. Whether in political discourse or remonstrance, he was excessively rigid and fierce, which truly made him unlikable.

In the past, there had been no shortage of people who dared to remonstrate directly with Emperor Liu, and most of the time the Emperor accepted their counsel gladly. Even when he did not adopt their advice, he would simply smile and let it pass.

But that depended on the person. And who was Pan You to expect special leniency from Emperor Liu? In fact, had it not been for Zhao Pu's promotion, Pan You would never have had any chance of rising to the position of Secretariat Drafter.

As for what Zhao Pu appreciated about Pan You—perhaps only Zhao Pu himself knew.

"What is it?" Zhao Pu looked at Pan You with a calm gaze, entirely unaffected by his ugly appearance. No matter how ugly a person was, one grew accustomed to it after seeing them enough.

Pan You's expression was equally composed as he respectfully presented a memorial, saying, "This is a draft document concerning the procurement of epidemic-treatment medicinal materials from the private sector. I have already prepared it, and I ask that the Chancellor review it!"

At present, the Central Plains' fight against the epidemic faced its main problem in medicine. The shortage of medicinal materials was acute, and relying solely on the court's pharmaceutical bureau for supply was insufficient. Therefore, the central government had decided to allocate funds and begin large-scale purchasing of various medicinal supplies from the private sector.

As for the field headquarters, the 2.3 million strings of cash it carried were not for Emperor Liu's use during the tour—they were specifically earmarked for disaster relief. Since the floods began, the court had already allocated more than ten million strings in total for disaster response and relief efforts.

Although Zhao Pu trusted Pan You's drafting abilities—during his time at the central government, Pan You had never made a mistake in this regard—he still took the document and read it through carefully before breaking into a smile and ordering the seal to be applied.

"It can be issued now!" Zhao Pu said, looking at Pan You. "As for the funds, draw them from the field headquarters' special allocation!"

"Yes!"

"You may go!"

"Chancellor!" Pan You remained where he stood and called out softly again.

Zhao Pu's attention was piqued. He looked at him, his manner still gentle, and said, "Is there something else?"

"I have a request..." Pan You opened his mouth, seeming somewhat troubled. After hesitating for a moment, he said in a low voice.

"Is there some difficulty? Speak frankly, no need to hold back!" Zhao Pu said.

Pan You took a deep breath and solemnly clasped his hands in salute: "I report to the Chancellor: the position of Prefectural Administrator of Puzhou has yet to be filled!"

Zhao Pu raised an eyebrow and said, "It's still under consideration, but it should be decided soon. The disaster situation there is not light either, and without a person in charge, we can't keep relying on the assistant officials to handle the emergency. Why—do you have someone to recommend?"

Pan You said with a serious expression, "To answer the Chancellor: I wish to go and try myself!"

"Oh?" Zhao Pu was genuinely surprised this time, and his gaze carried a hint of scrutiny: "Quite a few people have their eyes on your Drafter position. Choosing to leave the central government for a local post is a rare choice indeed. Why do you have such an idea?"

Pan You sighed and said, "Drafting edicts and imperial decrees is not my forte. Since I have no place to exercise my abilities, I would rather go to Puzhou and do some practical work for the people!"

It was fortunate that it was Zhao Pu—if anyone else had heard Pan You speak this way, they would hardly have tolerated it. The Secretariat Drafter, who handled the court's confidential affairs, was a position of immense importance. Yet in Pan You's mouth, it seemed like mere empty formalism—and this was a position Zhao Pu himself had advocated promoting him to.

"Have you made up your mind?" Zhao Pu did not press further for the reasons—he understood them well enough in his heart. After a moment of deliberation, he asked.

"If the Chancellor does not disdain my humble worth, I hope you will grant my wish!" Pan You said.

"In all my years, you're probably the only one, Pan You, who would come asking me for a post to your face!" Zhao Pu said with a light sigh, half-jokingly.

"The Chancellor's kindness in promoting me—I will never dare forget it!" Pan You said.

"Enough. The reason I employ you is that I value your abilities! You have strong convictions, but it is precisely this temperament of yours that is too rigid and fierce!" Zhao Pu sighed.

"Inborn nature is hard to change. I have caused the Chancellor difficulty!" Pan You said.

"Go on down for now. I will consider this matter!" Zhao Pu neither agreed nor refused.

Seeing this, Pan You's expression grew anxious, and he wanted to say more, but a single look from Zhao Pu stopped him. As for his performance, Zhao Pu was somewhat disappointed—and at the same time, inexplicably felt a sense of relief.

This Pan You was still not suited to serving as an official in the current court. He was merely someone capable of getting things done—otherwise, with his poor ability to read the room, he would have been swept out by Zhao Pu long ago.

But after all, he was someone I had personally promoted—no matter what, I had to back him up. Previously, there may have been some worry: if Pan You got into trouble, it would implicate me.

Now that he has volunteered to serve in the provinces, it is not a bad choice after all—at least, the provinces are not as conspicuous as the central court, where one is easily targeted.