Chapter 28: Being able to speak out and dare to make suggestions Chancery desk. In the morning, officials coming and going from the Secretariat were coming in and out, presenting official documents and various files from the entire country. When these people passed by the gate of Shangshu Tai, they would pass by Shangshu Ling Chen Jiao who was standing there silently. Chen Jiao received a notice early this morning saying that the emperor would come to the Secretariat in person in the morning. As the Minister of the Chancellery, Chen Jiao naturally had the responsibility to welcome him. However, people of different levels had different reactions when they passed by Chen Jiao standing at the door. The low-level clerks, holding bamboo slips and official documents, walked hurriedly by the side with their heads down, not even daring to look at them, for fear of offending the bad-tempered Shangshu Ling. The Shangshulang were more natural and would bow when passing by. Seeing that their superior did not look at them or react, they would leave one by one. When Chen Qun entered the Secretariat, he patted Chen Jiao on the shoulder. Sima Yi just walked by without saying a word to Chen Jiao.
Cao Xiu and Cao Zhen came together. As Cao clan members who were not involved in government affairs, the lives of Chen Jiao and Sima Fu had nothing to do with them. Cao Zhen even circled around Chen Jiao before walking away with a smile. The sun gradually rose higher, shining on Chen Jiao's face, forming a layer of fine beads of sweat. But Chen Jiao had no choice. He had to stand here and wait for the emperor, for Sima Fu, for himself, and more importantly, for the face of the Shangshu Ling. It cannot be said that Sima Fu's affair was related to Chen Jiao. It should be said that it was planned jointly by Chen Jiao and Sima Fu. According to the court's laws, the Zhongshu passed the imperial edict to the Shangshutai. In theory, the Shangshutai did have the power to reject the opinion and return it to the Zhongshu. However, whether to reject the opinion also depends on the person. At least when the previous emperor Cao Pi was in power, Chen Jiao never rejected Cao Pi's order once. Yesterday, the two secretaries were at the emperor's banquet. From the perspective of others, it was as if Chen Jiao and Sima Fu had refuted the emperor. Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, Chen Jiao and Sima Fu are seeking fame in the name of giving advice. The two knew that the emperor had just ascended the throne and was unlikely to kill the ministers for their advice. On the contrary, they might even commend the ministers who dared to give advice, in order to gain the reputation of being a "wise ruler". Moreover, he could also seize some power back from the two powerful officials in charge of recording the affairs of the Shangshu. Therefore, when the imperial edict was delivered from the hands of the Minister of the Secretariat Liu Fang to Sima Fu, the on-duty minister of the Secretariat, Sima Fu did not follow the recent practice of handing the edict over to the four regent ministers. Instead, he gave the order directly to Chen Jiao. Giving Shangshu Ling was also in accordance with the system! The system did not say that he should be given the title of Recorder of Shangshu Affairs, nor did it say that he should be given any assistant minister. But politics is often like this: the laws written on paper are often not as good as the commonly accepted rules. Giving it to Chen Jiao is no problem, of course, and it complies with the system and procedures. But where do you put the assistant ministers? Another factor that disrupted the plans of Chen Jiao and Sima Fu was that after Emperor Cao Rui received the advice yesterday, he immediately ordered the Secretariat to carry out the original intention. This is where the trouble comes in. Should the decree be given to the ministers? If so, what should be said if it was not given the first time? If it is not given to the ministers, then all the consequences will have to be borne by the two of them.
After discussing with Sima Fu in the morning, Chen Jiao decided to let Sima Fu hide in the Shangshutai duty room to avoid the limelight. Chen Jiao, the official head of the Shangshutai, stood at the gate to welcome the emperor. It's funny to say that Chen Jiao, the Minister of the Chancellery, is still sharing the same office with Wang Si, the Minister of the Chancellery, two months later. There really is no extra room. Just as Chen Jiao was standing in the sun sweating, the emperor's carriage slowly arrived outside the Shangshutai gate. Seeing the emperor's carriage stopped at the door, Chen Jiao suddenly knelt down on his knees and saluted the emperor. Cao Rui had just opened the curtain of the carriage and saw Chen Jiao kneeling on the ground, and he couldn't help but be surprised. At this time, Cao Rui did not know that Sima Fu's invitation to refute the incident was planned by Chen Jiao and Sima Fu. When Cao Rui saw Chen Jiao kneeling on the ground, he thought that there was no need to welcome him in such a grand manner, so he got out of the car and helped Chen Jiao up with both hands. Seeing Chen Jiao's respectful expression and the beads of sweat that had begun to drip down his face, Cao Rui asked, "How long have you been waiting, Lord Chen?" Chen Jiao still held on to a glimmer of hope at this time: "Your Majesty, I am the Minister of the Chancellery, and welcoming Your Majesty is my duty." Chen Jiao paused, then said with a trembling voice: "May I ask your Majesty what business do you have in the Shangshutai?" Cao Rui didn't think much about it: "I came to the Shangshutai this time to take a look at the documents myself." As soon as Cao Rui finished speaking, Chen Jiao bowed deeply and spoke loudly to Cao Rui. "I, Chen Jiao, advise that the affairs of the Secretariat are my responsibility, not something that Your Majesty should handle personally." "If Your Majesty believes that I am incompetent as the Minister of the Chancellery, then please dismiss me from my post." "Your Majesty, you should return to the palace." After Chen Jiao mustered up the courage to say the above words, he became less afraid as he spoke and looked at Cao Rui with a determined expression. This…… Are all ministers nowadays so tough? Cao Rui was a little unsure. He just wanted to go to the Secretariat to look at the records of yesterday's documents to see whether Sima Fu concealed anything in the report, and also to see what the ministers were busy with yesterday. In the early morning, when the palace gate had just opened, the four people who were sent out for questioning last night, Cao Zhao, Cao Shuang, Guanqiu Jian and Zhong Yu, came to Cao Rui to report what happened last night. It was almost the same as Cao Rui expected. Grand Marshal Cao Xiu and General Cao Zhen, both relatives of the Cao family and generals who led troops, kept out of the matter and said that Your Majesty was very kind-hearted and that people like Sima Fu who were seeking fame should be sent to the Supreme Court to be punished. Sima Yi’s reply was that it had nothing to do with me and he knew nothing about the question. Chen Qun was even more interesting. When Zhong Yu knocked on the door of Chen's house, Chen Qun frowned at the drunken teenager. Zhong Yu did ask questions, but Chen Qun said he had nothing to say. Chen Jiao's waist was still bent, and he was still in a salutation posture. But in Cao Rui's view at this time, Chen Jiao was a person similar to Sima Fu. Why are you pretending to be a loyal minister here! As the Emperor of Wei, Cao Rui wants to go to the Secretariat to look at the documents. As the Minister of the Secretariat, do you dare to use your official position to threaten him with this matter? Cao Rui narrowed his eyes and looked at Chen Jiao. Everyone around him didn't dare to breathe. The Shangshu Ling confronted the emperor and stopped him from entering the Shangshu Terrace. This kind of thing rarely happens once in a hundred years. Cao Rui understood that if Chen Jiao was honest, then there was no reason to hinder the emperor's inspection. Instead, he should welcome the emperor in and take the initiative to report on his work. Zhou Yafu did not stop the emperor from entering Xiuli Camp! If Chen Jiao, the Shangshu Ling, is like this, then is there any need for the position of Shangshu Ling to exist?
There will be no more Shangshu Ling in the future! It is time for this position, which hinders the implementation of government orders, to be swept into the trash. Although he was thinking about how to deal with the Secretariat in his mind, there was no expression on Cao Rui's face. Cao Rui took a half step forward, smiled and used his sleeve to wipe the sweat off Chen Jiao's forehead. "Minister, why are you so anxious? I received the advice yesterday. I came to the Secretariat not only to read the documents, but also to commend Sima Fu for his courage to speak out and give advice!" Chen Jiao raised his head abruptly when he heard that, but at this moment, a hint of regret appeared in his eyes. (End of this chapter)