Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 586

Chapter 586: Ministry of Personnel

Beyond the confines of the chessboard lay a much wider world.

The chess pieces that fell from Pei Huaijin’s hands rolled to different places, representing other powerful families.

Pei Que suppressed the Yun family mainly because he blocked their path to wealth, so the Yun family harbored resentment towards him, hence their confrontation, not because Pei Que coveted anything from the Yun family.

However, Pei Que was not greedy, while the others unknowingly reaped considerable benefits—a classic case of “the fisherman reaps the fish.”

Pei Huaijin, seeing his son frowning, smiled with satisfaction. The power struggles in the court often required firsthand experience to truly understand.

“Why are you not saying anything?” Pei Huaijin asked as Mao Cai picked up the chess pieces he had dropped.

Pei Que looked at the retrieved pieces. Each one had its own distinct edges, much like the aristocratic families in the capital—they shared some similar structures, yet were all ultimately quite alike.

“You were expecting this day to come, were you not?” Pei Que looked up, meeting the old master’s deep-set eyes, and suddenly smiled. “You told me before that I have a fiery temper and that I should be more tactful, but that was just my personality. I did not listen, and I ended up doing things the way I always have. So you might as well just wait for me here. Anyway, I was young, and when I make a mistake, I would naturally come to you.”

Pei Huaijin shrugged noncommittally. “That was exactly it.”

He knew his own son’s temperament best.

Pei Que had originally come to discuss the recent situation with the old master, but it turned out that the old master already knew exactly what he was thinking.

Pei Huaijin picked up the general on the chessboard, examined it, and then put the other pieces back in their original positions one by one. “This chessboard is like the capital city. Every move you make affects the others. You were unhappy with the Yun family, and many outside are unhappy with them too. You can be the first to charge out and raise the flag, but you are a commander; you must win with minimal casualties.”

After a pause, Pei Huaijin had put all the pieces back in their positions. “Pei Que, you’ve done well and successfully obtained what you wanted, but every time you make a move, you were the one who takes up arms and goes into battle. Have you ever considered why, as fellow ministers, the old master from the Xu family is more composed than you all?”

“Minister Xu?” Pei Que uttered these three words in surprise.

“Yes, it’s him,” Pei Huaijin said. “Duke Cheng has an upright image, and precisely because of that, he has offended many people and done a lot of thankless work. The Yun family was too complacent at first, which led to their current predicament. Our Pei family has also been in the eye of the storm; only the Xu family has remained unscathed.”

Everyone was a regent; if one fell, the remaining ones would gain more power. Sometimes doing nothing was also a form of progress.

Pei Que thought about Minister Xu. He knew Minister Xu was shrewd and also knew he was not someone to be trusted. “Minister Xu’s character, no matter how you look at it, is all about self-interest. He’s certainly capable of expending so much effort for the Xu family.”

“His capabilities go far beyond what you’ve seen,” Pei Huaijin said, raising his hand. Mao Cai quickly handed him a booklet. “Take a look at what’s recorded here.”

Pei Que flipped through the booklet, becoming increasingly alarmed with each page.

Pei Huaijin waited until his son had finished, observing before speaking, “When the Yun family was in power, they controlled half of the Ministry of Personnel. Now that the Yun family has fallen on hard times, although many of the new officials promoted to the Ministry of Personnel lack connections, they have all actually received financial support from Minister Xu.”

The Ministry of Personnel managed the appointment, evaluation, promotion, and demotion of officials nationwide. It was arguably the most lucrative position among the Six Ministries. Any official with ambition would try every means to cultivate relationships with those in the Ministry of Personnel, and money would continuously flow into the department.

Pei Que’s suppression of the Yun family stemmed from witnessing too much buying and selling of official positions and the unauthorized manipulation of evaluations. Officials who genuinely work diligently were suppressed because they could not afford bribes.

He had originally thought that after the Yun family’s downfall, supporting some officials from humble backgrounds would create a positive atmosphere, but he never expected that several of those officials were actually Minister Xu’s men.

“When the Xu family agreed to attack Xiliang in the northwest, I suspected old master Xu was up to no good, so I sent people to investigate thoroughly.” At this point, Pei Huaijin revealed a worried expression. “I never imagined that for so long, the Xu family had been supporting scholars from humble backgrounds and cultivating relationships with some talented individuals. This shows that the Xu family has great foresight and shrewdness.”

The Pei family also had similar measures, but they only supported their own members and relatives, not those unrelated to the Pei family. Furthermore, once those scholars from humble backgrounds rose to prominence, the Pei family did not deliberately try to win them over.

Because the aristocratic families grew stronger day by day, many scholars who had long been unable to rise to prominence saw it as the aristocratic families suppressing the poor. Therefore, over time, these cynical scholars gradually formed their own faction, and some of them, after passing the imperial examinations, would oppose the aristocratic families. Although they did not have any particularly outstanding individuals, their large group was not to be underestimated.

Pei Que had not expected Minister Xu to be so cunning. “Once they control the Ministry of Personnel, it will be much easier for the Xu family to arrange personnel in the future. Besides, the Xu family is not short of money.”

Among the aristocratic families, even the Pei family would not dare claim to be the wealthiest, because everyone knew the Xu family was extremely rich.

With money and power, it was safe to say there was nothing they could not do.

Pei Huaijin nodded in agreement. “The Xu family’s actions this time show that their ambitions are much greater. The Yun family only wants more wealth and status, but the Xu family is different. I think… they want the entire world.”

Since ancient times, plots to seize power had been common, and even the Pei family had served through more than one dynasty.

But hearing the old master say this, Pei Que was somewhat surprised, as he had never thought of the Xu family this way before. Although he did not consider the Xu family allies, he did not think Minister Xu would have such great ambitions.

However, recalling what Minister Xu had said—such as his envy of Pei Que’s youth and talent and other ambiguous remarks—what seemed insignificant at the time now suddenly made perfect sense.

“If the Xu family truly intends to overthrow the dynasty, what about us? Should we watch the Xu family change the imperial surname, or should we step in to support the Li family’s Jin dynasty?”

Pei Huaijin looked up at the roof. “Under this roof, no matter how capable we are, whether we want a warm life or a life of hardship, we must consider the sturdiness of the roof above us.”

“Pei Que, since you wish to be a subject, you must have the necessary reverence,” Pei Huaijin emphasized. “If you have no regard for the heavens, how can things go well?”