Chapter 211: New Policies

At dusk, almost exactly at mealtime, Li Shaoyou entered the palace for an audience, and Liu Chengyou took the opportunity to invite him to dine together.

Candle flames flickered, casting a soft, warm glow. Liu Chengyou sat behind the imperial desk, holding a list of names, scrutinizing it with serious attention.

This was the batch of "Su clique" officials that Yang Bin had removed and prosecuted. Perhaps calling them a clique was even an overstatement—this was not a political force with much influence, merely simple transactions of interest. Once Su Fengji fell, Yang Bin took the lead and settled them all. Yang Bin's killing intent was not that great; of the thirty-some people, apart from a few whose crimes were heinous, all preserved their lives.

"This Chancellor Yang—he did the matter before His Majesty even asked." Li Shaoyou narrated from the side: "The above-mentioned persons were not all brought to justice; there are still some local officials who have not yet been arrested and dealt with—I have marked them all. I anticipate that once they learn of the court's changes, they will abandon their posts and flee, hiding among the people."

Liu Chengyou made a simple assessment: "Judging from this, the court's execution capability still needs improvement—to think so many slipped through the net. Once beyond the Eastern Capital, our reach falls short. Is this still the Great Han's realm?"

Liu Chengyou's words clearly carried implicit dissatisfaction with Yang Bin and the insufficiency of the court's authority.

"This realm is, of course, the Great Han's realm!" Li Shaoyou spoke up, volunteering: "His Majesty's heavenly might illuminates the world—there is no way those people can escape justice. I am willing to pursue the fugitives and seek out the hidden on His Majesty's behalf."

"Enough." Liu Chengyou waved his hand: "I established the Wude Office, not to handle such miscellaneous affairs. Arrests and pursuits are naturally the business of prefectural and county officials. Moreover, I have no intention of relentless pursuit."

Setting down the list, Liu Chengyou let the matter drop, and turned to ask: "How is the situation with the imperial army?"

In exchanges with Li Shaoyou, the imperial army was inevitably brought up. In fact, the reason Liu Chengyou established the Wude Office was, to a great extent, to investigate and monitor the military's condition. Half of the Wude Office's intelligence agents were absorbed from military officers and soldiers. As for the overt goals of observing the people's sentiments and monitoring officials—those were secondary objectives.

At this mention, Li Shaoyou instinctively lowered his voice, saying to Liu Chengyou: "The various armies in the capital are generally stable. Only the Imperial Uncle's side..."

"Go on, what has my Imperial Uncle done this time?" Liu Chengyou appeared quite calm.

Li Shaoyou's expression was grave, his voice steady as he reported: "The Imperial Uncle could not bear the tedium of the camp, and openly brought concubines into the army to drink and amuse himself. A military officer admonished him, and was seized by him, whipped until crippled. The day before yesterday, while inspecting the Husheng Army, a war horse was startled and charged; in his rage, he arrested the stable keeper and the groom, breaking their jaws and feet."

"Your Majesty. The Imperial Uncle is vicious by nature and without restraint. Commanding the imperial army, he is corrupt and brutal, handling matters with no sense of justice whatsoever. When soldiers commit offenses, he does not follow law and discipline—his judgments are based entirely on his whims, his punishments severe, his methods cruel..." As he spoke, a trace of obvious anger appeared on Li Shaoyou's face: "Over this period of time, the officers and men of the various armies have come to harbor considerable resentment. If this continues, I fear other upheavals may arise!"

Listening to his account, Liu Chengyou's expression was calm to the point of numbness, but beneath his dragon robe, his hand slowly clenched—if sound effects were added, there would surely be the creaking of bones.

Liu Chengyou had long heard reports of Liu Xin's conduct in the military. Previously, he had already admonished him for his tyrannical behavior, and of course, had also given him some face as the Imperial Uncle. But clearly, judging by recent developments, not only had he not restrained himself, he had instead grown worse.

Struggling to steady the fluctuations of his emotions, Liu Chengyou let out a long sigh: "I am aware of this matter!"

The same answer as last time, but this time the situation had changed enormously. Previously, Liu Chengyou still needed Liu Xin to counterbalance Shi Hongzhao, but now Shi Hongzhao had already been kept by Liu Chengyou in the Western Capital. As for Liu Xin, Liu Chengyou had no intention of tolerating him any longer.

Just as Li Shaoyou said, if Liu Xin were allowed to keep making trouble in the army, disaster would inevitably arise sooner or later. This Imperial Uncle Liu Xin not only failed to serve the function of pacification, but instead exhausted the imperial family's dignity and consumed the army's patience with the Liu clan.

Though he had already formed considerations in his mind, Liu Chengyou did not voice his intentions. Seeing this, Li Shaoyou did not press further. He proactively changed the topic, cupping his hands in request: "Your Majesty, after this month of organizational adjustment, the Wude Office has gradually moved onto the right track. However, merely monitoring the Eastern Capital, its strength still appears insufficient. I request permission to recruit additional intelligence officers."

Hearing this, Liu Chengyou glanced at Li Shaoyou, slowly blinked twice, considered for a moment, then said: "For surveillance and intelligence work, quality matters more than quantity."

At these words, Li Shaoyou lowered his head slightly, disappointment hard to conceal on his face. However, Liu Chengyou immediately added: "The current structure and regulations of the Wude Office are still crude. Go back first and draft a memorial, sorting through the entire organization of the Wude Office, and then we will make adjustments!"

"Yes!" Li Shaoyou perked up at this.

At its founding, the Wude Office was still just a makeshift operation. Li Shaoyou, though capable, was still inexperienced, feeling his way forward like crossing a river by touch. As for Liu Chengyou, even though he knew of the Palace City Office and the Brocade Guard that he could model after, he could not provide "nanny-style" guidance for their development. He was not omniscient. As emperor, he only needed a result—and to put a leash on this secret service organization, with the end of the leash held in his own hand.

On the second day after returning to the capital, once the fatigue had somewhat faded, Liu Chengyou held a court assembly at Guangzheng Hall, sharing with the assembled ministers his reflections and gains from the western inspection tour. He also announced several matters before the court, setting the court's focus of work for the period ahead.

First, continue encouraging agriculture and sericulture, promoting silk weaving. Agriculture is the foundation of the state. At present, Liu Chengyou did not fear a lack of money—he feared a lack of grain.

To lighten the burden on farmers, Liu Chengyou issued an edict abolishing the overdue ox rental. Since the Later Liang, the court had lent plow oxen to the common people for use, collecting rental fees. Over the decades, many oxen had long since died of old age or illness, yet the rental taxes remained unchanged. During this western inspection, Liu Chengyou heard of this matter and decisively abolished it. Of course, the Battle of Luancheng had captured many plow oxen, which were used for rental to promote agriculture—for that portion, the fees should still be collected.

Additionally, the remnants of the "old camp farmland offices" scattered across the Central Plains were abolished. These were institutions under direct official management. Over the decades, the government had long ceased to act, and the farmland offices had rotted to the core—they both bound up large numbers of common people, suppressing their enthusiasm for production, while producing little. Tasteless to eat, yet a pity to discard.

Liu Chengyou issued an edict granting all of that land, housing, and farming implements to the common people. In this era, there was no shortage of land—only a shortage of people. Liu Chengyou simply wanted people to dwell in their houses and till their fields. Likewise, the military colonies that the court had established in the Central Plains and Hebei would continue. In the short term, those would constitute a very large portion of the court's tax revenue.

At the same time, Liu Chengyou issued an edict before the court: officials of all circuits, prefectures, and counties throughout the realm, apart from the regular taxes, were not permitted to levy miscellaneous surtaxes.

These several policies, regardless of how they were ultimately executed, would at least have the positive effect of encouraging agriculture. And as before, if local authorities paid lip service to the court's edicts while acting otherwise, when accounts were settled later in the autumn, this would serve as the basis.

Second, urge all circuits and prefectures to suppress banditry. In the governance of a true king, nothing is more urgent than dealing with bandits. If banditry remained unending, the threat to local production and the stability of order was too great. On this, the court ministers actively approved. And following Liu Chengyou's intent, within the first year of Qianyou, local security conditions would be made the second-weighted assessment criterion for official promotion and demotion. The first criterion was, naturally, agricultural affairs.

Third, as the newly established Great Han lacked sufficient talent, Liu Chengyou resolved to reopen the imperial examinations, selecting the worthy and elevating the capable, to inject fresh blood into the court. Since the chaos of the late Tang, the tribute examinations had been faltering, halted and resumed several times. It was initially decided that the regular examinations would resume in the coming year, giving the realm's scholars some preparation time. However, considering Liu Chengyou's urgent need for talent, it was deliberated that a special examination would be held in the Eastern Capital in the seventh month of this autumn.

Fourth, as the old criminal laws had been in use for a long time—the statutes being archaic in wording, difficult for readers to understand clearly, and the edicts and regulations being numerous in provisions, causing those who consulted them to encounter doubts and errors—and with greedy and cunning types in remote regions exploiting this to commit wrongdoing, gradually forming abuses; now that the realm was in an era of brilliant prosperity, it was fitting to set forth unified regulations, hoping that the people would not fall into punishment and officials would know what to uphold. The Secretariat-Chancellery was ordered to revise and recompile, seeking conciseness and ease of understanding, with Secretariat Drafter Fan Zhi leading several dozen judicial clerks in the compilation.

Fifth, with Chancellor and Grand Academician of the Hongwen Hall Su Yugui supervising the compilation of the national history, all three halls and the Hanlin academicians and literary officials were to receive additional emoluments.