“Born into a life at court, with a hatpin in his hair, if in old age one can retreat to the mountains and fields to tend to one’s own little garden, isn’t that a kind of joy?” On the Bronze Sparrow Platform, Lu Zhi gazed off at the distant white clouds and yellow grasses, mumbling softly to himself.
Shao Xun had personally brought over two reclining chairs.
In his heart, he thought that Lu Zhi was truly disheartened, badly dealt a blow.
This blow came from many directions, the most immediate being complaints caused by the land tax reform.
Although Shao Xun had since limited the land taxation area to within the twenty prefectures of Liang State, the adverse effects had already taken root.
On top of that, the scholars from Hebei were not close to him, filled with doubt inside and feeling suppressed.
Holding the same official position, a Hebei man losing out to a Henan man—even without any shady dealings, even just due to inferior talent—could cause that Hebei man to feel targeted and grow resentful.
Moreover, Henan folks suppressing those from Hebei was an objective fact.
This was not a conclusion that could be overturned simply by listing Hebei officials present in the court.