Han Shizu

Chapter 2163 Emperor Shizong Chapter 39 Kou Zhun dismissed from his post
When the news of the death of King Andong Liu Wenyuan reached Luoyang, everyone in the court subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief. The old guy was finally dead. This was really a happy event for those powerful people in the court who were hostile to Andong.

Not to mention the distant future, nor the next few decades, at least during the reign of Emperor Jianlong, Anton would no longer be a threat to the court. The combination of the rest of the Anton royal family and the Anton Kingdom was far less threatening than Liu Wenyuan.

Therefore, the court performed the usual funeral rites for the death of the vassal king, and did not hinder the inheritance of the Anton kingship, giving the green light. The court had made up for its understanding of the descendants of the Anton royal family in recent years. Compared with the tiger-like Liu Wenyuan, Liu Jitan was a docile sheep. Even if he was restless, his brothers could still make the court do a lot of things.
It can be said that with the death of Liu Wenyuan, the open and secret struggles that had lasted for decades between the imperial court and the Anton clan, and between Emperor Taizong and the eldest son of the Qin King, finally calmed down and came to a temporary end.

At the same time as Liu Wenyuan's death, the court of the Han Empire had also undergone tremendous changes, presenting a completely new structure. And for the top officials of the empire, any changes ultimately came down to changes in personnel.

Obviously, the personnel structure of the core of the empire had undergone major changes. The people were basically the same, but the Shangshu Ling was replaced, which was the biggest change. Shortly after the Lantern Festival in the eighth year of Jianlong, the "Edict to Dismiss the Prime Minister" was issued. Although it was very sudden, the process was simple and smooth. Kou Zhun, who had served as the "Prime Minister" of the empire for seven years, resigned due to "foot disease".

Of course, Emperor Liu Wenji found him a good place to retire, and sent him to the southeast to be the governor of Huzhou. Although there were many officials appointed by the empire to serve in local areas, the fact that he was transferred from a prime minister to a small governor can only mean that he had suffered a major setback in his career, and that he would sink into ruin for the rest of his life and it would be difficult for him to recover.

Such an opportunity was not easy for Kou Zhun, who was strong-willed, ambitious and had a strong desire for power. In particular, Kou Zhun was only 64 years old, not old for a prime minister, and Kou Zhun had always been energetic and diligent in government affairs. His goal was to achieve the same achievements and reputation as Zhao Pu, the prime minister of Kaibao.
However, all this came to an abrupt end with the issuance of the dismissal edict. The Han Empire was an absolute monarchy after all, and the ruler in power was not a mediocre and cowardly ruler, but a black-bellied emperor who spent eleven years making his throne impregnable and spreading his authority throughout the world.

Liu Wenji was certainly not as powerful as Shizu and Taizong, who did not have the absolute aura of a protagonist, but judging from his performance during his ten years in power, he was by no means as easy to deal with as he seemed.

After losing the emperor's trust, Kou Zhun's position as prime minister was naturally lost. With Liu Wenji's skills, there were many ways to expel him from the court. Exiling him to Huzhou, rather than being demoted to a remote place, was considered a kind of tolerance to save his dignity.

Speaking of Kou Zhun, you cannot deny his insight and talent, as well as his ability to make decisions on major and important matters. At least during his seven years as Shangshu Ling, he made outstanding contributions to the development of the Han Empire.

Kou Zhun's contributions mainly lie in three aspects. First, he assisted Liu Wenji in consolidating the imperial power and removed the dark shadow that shrouded the Han emperors during the Kangzong era. This is fundamental. If he had not kept up with the pace in this matter, Kou Zhun would not have been the Shangshu Ling for so many years.
Secondly, he rectified the administration of officials, fought against corruption, and revived the traditions of Emperor Taizong. He dealt a heavy blow to the corruption, extravagance, and corruption that had resurfaced since Emperor Kangzong's reign, and the authority of the imperial legal system was restored.
The third is something that has never been put on the table, but has been done openly and secretly, which is the suppression of the imperial nobles. Whether it is promoting and cultivating commoner bureaucrats and landlords, or weakening the presence and influence of the noble group in the power center of the court, these are all very obvious political characteristics in the Jianlong era. Of course, the political contradictions accumulated from this are also conflicting.

Therefore, in the position of Shangshu Ling, Kou Zhun was not a mediocre person, on the contrary, he was a capable minister. However, his ability was often accompanied by countless criticisms. It must be said that Kou Zhun also helped Liu Wenji share most of the contradictions and hostility caused by the "Jianlong Reform".

The "anti-Kou Zhun faction" emerged in this political context, and it included not only the nobles whose interests were damaged, but also many commoner bureaucrats from the same class, such as the southern bureaucrats that Kou Zhun had always despised, and many people who could not stand Kou Zhun's strong and even unreasonable style of governance.

In view of this, although Kou Zhun took Zhao Pu as his goal, he could never reach Zhao Pu's level. First of all, he did not have a supreme leader like Emperor Shizu, which was an inherent disadvantage. On the other hand, in terms of how to deal with people, Kou Zhun was also far behind Zhao Pu.

This was a smart man, but his smartness was not entirely liked by the emperor. Both Emperor Taizong and Liu Wenji had similar views. You know, when Xiang Deming was selecting the Shangshu Ling, he had doubts about Kou Zhun and Liu Wenji.

But the final choice of Kou Zhun was also a political choice. At least, this person can do things, dares to do things, and has a strong ability to get things done. In Liu Wenji's journey to the pinnacle of imperial power, Kou Zhun was a pioneer and was very handy. With such an energetic and courageous general, Liu Wenji saved a lot of energy in the process of governing the country and had more room to deal with some difficult problems.

Therefore, even Liu Wenji never denied Kou Zhun's ability, but time passed, the political situation changed, and people's hearts changed. By the seventh year of Jianlong, after suppressing the unruly Andong King Liu Wenyuan, Liu Wenji's position was thoroughly consolidated from inside to outside, and no one could challenge him anymore.

While there was basically no need to worry about the stability of the throne, the empire's political situation and style had undergone a fundamental change, and remarkable achievements had been made in the prosperity of the people. Under such circumstances, if it was just about maintaining political stability and serving the people, Kou Zhun would have been indispensable. In contrast, the adverse reactions caused by Kou Zhun continued to ferment.

The bureaucrats, nobles, those old forces whose interests were violated during the rectification and reform, those groups that still hold great voice and influence in all aspects, their dissatisfaction has gradually accumulated to a very deep level, which makes Emperor Liu Wenji worried.

Of course, if that were the case, it would not have shaken Kou Zhun's position. Liu Wenji was determined and would not easily resign because of opposition from nobles and bureaucrats. The problem still lay with Kou Zhun himself.

First of all, his differences with the emperor in political views were becoming increasingly greater, especially in the selection of personnel. The emperor's reliance on southern literati almost made Kou Zhun disgusted, and he repeatedly prevented Liu Wenji from promoting officials from the south, and also made many criticisms of the University of Political Science and Law.

As for military, finance, taxation, and law, Kou Zhun also had more of his own ideas and concepts, and he put them forward bit by bit. If that were all, it would be fine, but if he pushed for his own ideas as the emperor's will, that would be a big problem.
Of course, Kou Zhun did not do anything that was obviously beyond the limits of authority, but when his words and actions gave the emperor such an impression, his tenure as prime minister was doomed to not last long.

What really made Liu Wenji decide to resign was during his northern tour in the sixth year of Jianlong. While Liu Wenji was planning the affairs of Andong in Youzhou and making military preparations, Kou Zhun was holding him back in Luoyang. He believed that the war should not be taken lightly and that the situation with Andong had not reached that point, so he exercised his authority as the Minister of the Chancellery to stop Liu Wenji's military preparations from Luoyang.

At the same time, when the victory news of the "Sixth Han-Iran War" reached Luoyang, without obtaining Liu Wenji's consent, he responded directly in the name of the Political Affairs Hall and sent envoys to congratulate. He still had reasons. At that time, the court's attention was focused on the civil strife in Andong and could not take care of Anxi;

During the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven in Taiyuan, Liu Wenji received another "interesting story" from Luoyang. It said that Kou Zhun went to inspect the Ministry of Works and questioned a deputy minister. The deputy minister knelt down to talk to him, and was so scared by Kou's majesty that he wet his pants.
In short, there are many "little stories" about Prime Minister Kou, and the contradiction between him and the emperor became increasingly serious. Kou Zhun was an unrepentant person, and his style was difficult to change easily.

When the negative impression prevailed in the emperor's mind, and when the emperor's trust and favorability continued to decline, his fate was doomed. The mediocre people often compared Liu Wenji's generosity to that of Emperor Taizong. However, after getting to know him for a long time, they found that Liu Wenji's generosity was helpless because he "was not in the right position" and faced pressure and challenges from all sides. Many times, he had to adopt some compromising attitudes and measures.

At the same time, Liu Wenji's leniency was more directed at those who were useful to him. Once they were labeled as "useless", even the deepest leniency would fade. Just like Kou Zhun, not fabricating some crimes against him was also a political necessity. After all, Liu Wenji couldn't afford to slap himself in the face.

Compared with the time when Xiang Deming was dismissed from his post as prime minister, the process required observation and waiting, as well as careful decision-making, and even Xiang Deming himself had to ask for resignation. But for Kou Zhun, the process was quick and easy, and it was just a matter of an imperial edict.

Facts have also proved that no matter how powerful and arrogant Mr. Kou was in the past, he was also arrogant in front of the emperor's authority, and finally he could only flee to the southeast in panic.

He was even not allowed to return to his hometown because the emperor wanted him to go to the southeast to see the mountains, rivers and lakes there and see the cultural diversity that he had always looked down upon.
At the same time, Kou Zhun was probably the first prime minister whose dismissal made the whole court celebrate, and almost no one expressed regret or regret except for his close friends.

But no matter what, the era of Kou Zhun in the Imperial Council of State Affairs came to an end completely since the spring of the eighth year of Jianlong, and he was succeeded by the Minister of Personnel, Han Chengjun.

This was another choice that was compromising and appeasing. Liu Wenji did not dare to suppress the noble group blindly. At the same time, the decision-making power of the central court could not be completely controlled by the commoner bureaucrats.

As for Han Chengjun, his ability certainly cannot be compared with that of his father Han Hui, but his basic qualities and resume are sufficient, coupled with his status and the times, he can become the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty. This position is something that even the "Prime Minister" could not hold.
PS: In the eighth year of Jianlong, the ministers of the government hall were: Han Chengjun, the Minister of the Chancellery; Liu Yao, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, the Prince of Xuchang; Zhang Zhibai, the Minister of the Chancellery; Chen Yaozuo, the Minister of Personnel; Yang Yanlang, the Privy Councilor; Wang Qinruo, the Minister of Finance; Ding Wei, the Superintendent; Zhang Jian, the Minister of War; Chai Xirang, the Minister of Rites (the second son of Chai Zongxun and Princess Gaode Liu Jian)
(End of this chapter)