Chapter 17 The Sixteenth Concubine's Plan

It's already three poles in the sun.The incandescent sunlight shone on the glazed tiles of the Forbidden City, reflecting lavender light.The season has come to midsummer, and the vast North China Plain is already sweltering with heat, but in the Qianqing Palace, there is still a cool breeze, refreshing and pleasant.Compared with a few days ago, the Qianqing Palace has taken on a completely new look, and many of the furnishings have been updated. The most conspicuous thing is that all the porcelain plates with erotic pictures in the Xinuang Pavilion have been removed and replaced with a few shelves of books.Moreover, most of the eunuchs and maids in the palace have also been replaced.Zhang Gui, the eunuch in charge of the Qianqing Palace, is now in charge of the Fengxian Palace temporarily, where Emperor Longqing's Zi Palace is placed, and Zhang Gui is in charge of all the sacrifices.The eunuch who took over as the eunuch of the Qianqing Palace was Qiu Deyong, the former steward of the Compassionate Ning Palace.These changes are all due to the fact that the Qianqing Palace has its new owner - Zhu Yijun, the fourteenth emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

However, after the death of Emperor Longqing, all officials across the country changed into mourning clothes of green clothes and horn belts.Officials in Beijing go to the Huiji Gate to participate in a seven-day kneeling ceremony before they go to the Yamen to do business every day.At the same time, the crown prince Zhu Yijun's enthronement ceremony is also in full swing.A country cannot be without a king for a day, let alone entrusted by the late emperor.On the second day after receiving this edict, that is, on May 26, Gao Yi, a new cabinet minister who is also the Minister of Rites, published the "Encouraging Jinyi Notes" as stipulated in the ceremony, and hoped that the crown prince will be here soon. The throne, and another copy of "Notes on Enthronement Rituals" prepared by the Ministry of Rites is attached.Then, on May 30th, civil and military officials, as well as military and civilian representatives, all came to Huiji gate to persuade them to enter.These are all procedures in "Yiying etiquette".Although there is nothing in it, it must be carried out meticulously.The crown prince received the "Encouragement Form", and he also gave an answer in accordance with etiquette. This answer was also drafted by the cabinet: "Looking at the papers, it shows that Qing and others are concerned about the country, and they are concerned about the sorrow and the unification. I can't bear to hear about it, so please don't allow it."

This went back and forth twice, and on June 2, Zhu Yijun came to the Wenhua Palace in a uniform and accepted the third persuasion from the officials.Being an emperor is certainly a joy that is admired by all people, but for a ten-year-old child who is still immersed in the pain of losing his father, these boring red tapes are really a painful torture.Sitting on the altar of the Wenhua Palace, Zhu Yijun called the cabinet, the five government departments, the six ministries and other ministers into the hall after listening to the reading official read the third esoteric and difficult "Persuading the Table" presented by the officials. After some discussions, the decree will be issued according to the cabinet vote:

Qing and other co-words express their feelings to three, and they have already learned their sincerity.The position of heaven is the most important, sincerity is difficult to be empty for a long time, and Kuang's death is in the bow, dare not be inferior, and obey what you ask. The prince finally agreed to ascend the throne. According to the auspicious day selected by Qin Tianjian, Zhu Yijun held a grand enthronement ceremony on June 10.Early in the morning, Zhu Yijun sent Zhu Xizhong, Duke of Cheng, Zhang Rong, Duke of England, Xu Congcheng, Prince Consort, and Jiang You, Marquis of Dingxi, to the northern and southern suburbs, Taimiao, and Sheji Altar to pray.He himself came to his father's Zigong, and after the priest was ordered, he changed into a crown of guns to tell the heavens and the earth and the ancestors.Then he kowtowed to his father's coffin and two mothers.After the ceremony was over, he came to the Zhongji Hall, and accepted the congratulations from all the officials amidst the sound of Shan Hu Long live drums.He also sent envoys to declare to the world that next year would be the first year of Wanli.

Three days before his enthronement, Zhu Yijun moved into the Qianqing Palace according to the regulations.Because he was too young to take care of himself, his mother Li Guifei moved in with him.When the sound of gun salutes, music playing, chanting and the deafening sound of three shouts of long live from the Zhongji Hall crossed the palace barriers and entered the Qianqing Palace, the new emperor's aunt and biological mother, Empress Chen and Concubine Li, were sitting In the small living room outside the west side of Qianqing Palace.Concubine Li Gui is now living in the West Side Room, while Empress Chen still lives in Ciqing Palace.After the little emperor came to court, Concubine Li Gui sent someone to invite Empress Chen over.As soon as the two of them sat down, a group of court ladies, about seven or eight, rushed in together, the first one was Concubine Li's personal maid, Rong'er.They were all dressed in bright red auspicious clothes, and there were clusters of flowers inlaid with gold inlaid with amber on their hair temples. They were all neatly dressed and beaming.As soon as they entered the room, without waiting for Concubine Li Gui to react, they knelt down in unison and shouted: "My servant congratulates the Queen and Concubine Gui."

Seeing the elation of the maids, Concubine Li Gui also had a smile all over her face. She pointed to Rong'er who was kneeling on the ground, turned her head to Empress Chen and said, "Sister Empress, look at this group of magpies. .” Empress Chen forced a smile, and said: "The new emperor is enthroned, and there will be no excitement without magpies." "Do you think they are really congratulating you? They saw you coming, and they came to find a reason to ask the two of us for a reward." "Ah?" Empress Chen suddenly understood, and said hastily: "When the new emperor ascends the throne, the ladies in the harem will be rewarded as usual."

"The ghosts already know these rules, so they can't wait, don't you, Rong'er?" Concubine Li Gui deliberately put on a straight face.Rong'er knew that her master was in high spirits right now, so she wasn't afraid of her. Looking at her master, she pouted and said, "Your Majesty despises slaves. We follow Your Majesty, and we already have inexhaustible glory and wealth. I still care about rewards. Our sisters have invited all of us here at the moment, originally to give a gift to the empress." "what gift?" Rong'er took a few steps forward on her knees, opened a brocade box she brought with her, took out a piece of embroidery and handed it over.

Concubine Li Gui took it and shook it open to see that it turned out to be an embroidered statue of Guanyin about five feet long and two feet wide.She ordered the two court ladies to stand up and lift up the embroidery. It was a Haitianxia color brocade made by the Weaving and Dyeing Bureau of the palace. On the brocade was embroidered a Guanyin holding a clean bottle with goose yellow silk thread. It is as big as a real person, dignified and beautiful, and lifelike.Concubine Li Gui liked it very much when she saw it, and asked, "Where did you invite this?" Rong'er blinked mischievously, and replied with a smile: "Goddess, this Guanyin was invited from the heart by the servants."

"what?" Rong'er giggled and said, "We sisters spent three days embroidering this Guanyin statue." "You embroidered it yourself?" Concubine Li looked at the embroidered Guanyin again, and said happily, "It's hard for your filial piety and skillful craftsmanship." Ronger said again: "Madam, please take a closer look. Who does this Empress Guanyin look like?" When she saw this embroidered image of Guanyin at first glance, Concubine Li felt that she was plump, generous, beautiful and dignified, and her appearance was very familiar, but she couldn't remember who she looked like for a while, so she asked Empress Chen: "Sister Queen, who do you think she looks like?"

Empress Chen looked at the embroidered statue of Guanyin, then at Concubine Li Gui, and said with a smile, "I don't think this embroidered statue of Guanyin looks like anyone, just like you." "Like me?" Concubine Li Gui was taken aback, staring at Rong'er. Rong'er replied: "I would like to report to Empress Li, the empress is very accurate. The servants embroidered this Guanyin according to the image of Empress Li." "Amitabha, sin, sin." Concubine Li clasped her hands together and said, but there was still a joy in her brows, and she continued, "I really like this Guanyin picture, but I dare not accept it when you say it like this."

"Your Majesty is being modest," Rong'er said sweetly, "People in the palace have already spread the word that Your Majesty is the reincarnation of Guanyin." "The more I talk, the more shameful I am. How can I dare to compare with the merciful and compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva." Even though Concubine Li Gui said so, she still ordered her maid to reward Rong'er and her sisters with five liang of silver each.After they withdrew, Concubine Li Gui listened attentively to the movement from Zhongji Hall.I could only hear the drums still beating from time to time, so I couldn't help but sighed and said: "Jun'er is only ten years old, and now he is going to be the emperor. There are so many things in the world, how can he handle it?" Ever since Emperor Longqing passed away, Empress Chen suddenly felt that her status had dropped a lot. Although she was still higher than Concubine Li Gui in terms of status, because Concubine Li Gui was Zhu Yijun's biological mother, everyone in the palace tried their best to curry favor with her. she.Empress Chen was left out in the cold, but fortunately she has always been tolerant and never argues with others.In addition, she also noticed that Concubine Li Gui respected her as always.Therefore, I didn't feel particularly sad, and now she took the lead of Concubine Li Gui, and she replied: "Although Jun'er is young, who would dare not listen to him when he sits on the emperor's seat? Emperor Mu Zong said this when he was alive. If you want to treat the emperor easily, you only need to make good use of two people. One is the eunuch who is in charge of ceremonies, and the other is the chief assistant of the cabinet." Concubine Li Gui nodded, and replied in a deep voice: "This is true, but these two people are a little unreliable. When the emperor was alive, they didn't dare to do anything. The situation is different now. Jun'er is young, you and I They are all women, if they want to deliberately bully you, what can you do?" "That's true." Speaking of this, Empress Chen suddenly remembered something, and asked again, "What should I do with the four little prostitutes that Feng Bao caught?" "It hasn't been dealt with yet. Feng Bao said that after the new emperor ascends the throne, he will ask for an order." "Feng Bao is loyal." "Yes, he is Jun'er's big companion. Apart from you and me, he is the third person who has feelings for Jun'er. Yesterday, when I was chatting with him, when it came to worrying about Jun'er, he fell in love with him." I came up with an idea. I invited you here today to discuss this matter with you. " "What's up?" "Feng Bao said that the Buddha Dharma is boundless, the kindness is universal, and the new emperor ascends the throne. If he can devote himself to the Buddha and seek the blessing of the Bodhisattva, the dragon seat will definitely be secure." "That's the reason, but you can't let the emperor recite scriptures all day long." "Not only chanting scriptures, but also becoming a monk." "Become a monk?" Empress Chen was taken aback, her expression changed, and she said hastily, "It's not absurd to let the great emperor leave the country and society and become a monk." Concubine Li smiled and shook her head, and replied: "My sister misunderstood, what Feng Bao meant was not to let Jun'er become a monk, but to find a substitute for Jun'er to become a monk." "Oh, that's a good idea. It's just that the person you're looking for must be reliable." "That's natural. I think it's not too late. I'll leave this matter to Feng Bao and let him handle it as soon as possible." "Okay." Empress Chen nodded in agreement, and then asked, "How to deal with those four little molesters, you must ask Feng Bao to answer." Concubine Li Gui replied: "Not only the four little prostitutes, but also the demon king Jiusi was also arrested by Feng Bao, and they are now locked in the Dongchang Prison." When mentioning Wang Jiusi, Empress Chen lingered and said angrily, "I don't think there is any need to delay this matter any longer. Let Feng Bao try it quickly and punish him severely." Concubine Li Gui nodded, and replied: "Sister Empress said yes, it's just that Feng Bao still can't let go of things now." "Why?" "Elder Sister Empress forgot, above Feng Bao, there is also Meng Chong, the eunuch who is in charge of ceremonies." "what?" Empress Chen was silent for a while, Concubine Li Gui looked at her face and asked tentatively: "Sister, look, did you replace Meng Chong?" Empress Chen was taken aback for a moment, and asked, "Look at this matter, who should be in charge?" "Of course it's the emperor." Li Guifei replied immediately, and then said: "Jun'er is only ten years old, and the tall beard in the cabinet is unreliable. We can only decide on this matter." Empress Chen thought about it, and felt that Concubine Li Gui's words made sense, so she nodded in agreement. After the enthronement ceremony of the new emperor was over, Gao Gong returned to the cabinet from the Zhongji Hall, and just as he was resting on the couch, he heard someone outside talking to the clerk on duty in a hurried voice, as if there was something urgent.From Emperor Longqing Bintian to Emperor Wanli's ascension to the throne, Gao Gong has been restless for more than 20 days.National mourning and enthronement are both major national events, and the etiquette procedures are complicated and complicated. Besides, it involves royal authority, and every link must not be sloppy; Come on, although the Secretary of General Administration and the six ministries and six departments will deal with these issues in a step-by-step manner, all matters that need to be requested must be sent to the cabinet for review.Although Zhang Juzheng and Gao Yi are capable ministers, they both know Gao Gong's authoritarian nature, and never intervene in any sensitive matters. Holding it alone.Therefore, during the time when the imperial power changed, Gao Gong was so busy that his feet never touched the ground, and he never had a full night's sleep.Just squinting his eyes at this moment, the voice outside made him unable to fall asleep again, he rubbed his eyes and moved to bed, pushed the door to come out, only to see the clerk sitting there alone. "Who were you talking to just now?" Gao Gong asked. The document hurriedly stood up and replied: "Looking back at Master Fu, it's Han Yi." "Han Yi? What about others?" "He said that he has something urgent to report to the adults. I think the adults are too tired, and I want the adults to sleep for a while, so I let him go." "Han Yi said so, there must be something urgent, you go and call him back." The clerk agreed with a "yes" and left quickly.After a while, Han Yi was brought back.Han Yi left the chief assistant duty room last month and was promoted to the official department.Hu Ke also came with Han Yi and Luo Zun. The two came to Gao Gong's room, and after the official ceremony, Han Yi couldn't wait to say: "Yuan Fu, Feng Bao, the eunuch, actually asked us to kowtow to him." The nonsensical sentence made Gao Gong puzzled by Monk Zhang Er, but seeing the resentment on the faces of the two of them, knowing that there was a reason, he couldn't help reprimanding: "I think you, Han Yi, are still useless. Now he is the head of the six subjects, but why he acts so hastily and speaks incoherently, what happened, please tell me carefully." After this scolding, Han Yi was no longer so restless, but sat upright and respectfully explained what he wanted to report clearly: In the morning, the new emperor held a grand enthronement ceremony in the Zhongji Hall, and congratulated all the officials according to the arrangement of the officials of Honglu Temple. They entered the palace in batches for pilgrimage, and when it was the turn of the six divisions and the thirteen censors to go in to congratulate, they found Feng Bao standing next to the throne of the new emperor Zhu Yijun.The officials bowed three times to the emperor and shouted long live, Feng Bao didn't back down, but with a wicked smile on his face, he enjoyed the three worships and nine kowtows together with the emperor. "Is there such a thing?" Gao Gong asked. "Looking back, Mr. Fu, this matter is absolutely true," Luo Zun replied after taking Han Yi's words, "There are more than 80 people who participated in the court celebration as officials of the Ke Dao, and all of them can testify." Hearing what the two said, Gao Gong wanted to have a seizure at that moment.But when he thought about it again, he held back.During these times, there are two figures that are always spinning in his mind, one is Zhang Juzheng, and the other is Feng Bao.After the death of Emperor Longqing, although the political situation of the imperial court has not changed for the time being, all forces are secretly competing.Zhang Juzheng went to work in the cabinet every day, humming or haha, but he didn't see any abnormal behaviors that caught his attention.But Feng Bao was different. He was jumping up and down at these times with arrogance. According to Meng Chong, Feng Bao was deeply trusted by Concubine Li Gui, and he went to the Palace of Compassion and Peace several times a day.He knew that Feng Bao had long coveted the position of eunuch as the supervisor of ceremonies, and now Meng Chong, who was sitting in this seat, was no match for Feng Bao in any respect.It is precisely because of this that Gao Gong's mood has been depressed.He knew in his heart that once Feng Bao and Zhang Juzheng formed a political alliance, the consequences would be disastrous.Therefore, he was always thinking in his mind, how to win by surprise, so as to put Feng Bao to death in one fell swoop. Seeing Shoufu bowing his head in deep thought, Han Yi and Luo Zun didn't dare to speak out, and they didn't dare to say goodbye, so they had to sit by the side, the situation was a bit awkward.It was mid-afternoon at this time, and the scorching sun outside the window made people sweat at a glance.The ear-piercing chirping of cicadas suddenly sounded from the old locust tree in the yard, and passed through the screen window into the duty room, awakening Gao Gong who was in deep thought. He rubbed his swollen eyes and saw the two proud The student looked nervous, and immediately suppressed his worries, forced a smile, and asked: "Why don't you two talk?" Han Yi and Luo Zun looked at each other, Han Yi signaled Luo Zun to answer, Luo Zun then said cautiously: "As for what we just reported, we are here to ask the chief assistant for an idea on how to deal with it." Gao Gong asked back: "You said, how to deal with it properly?" Luo Zunben is a careful person. In addition to handling daily government affairs, he pays special attention to the allusions of the dynasty, so when talking about things, he often quotes scriptures and classics, and must be well-founded. Because Liu Jin was favored by the emperor, he also did whatever he wanted, with arrogance. The emperor asked him to perform sacrifices to the family temple, but he dared to walk alone in the imperial court. All the people with him were ashamed of fright, but frightened by Liu Jin's lust, no one dared to say anything. Later, Liu Jin fell out of favor and put him to death, and this incident became a legitimate reason to take his life. Compared with Liu Jin, Feng Baozhi's actions today are even worse. Liu Jin just took the imperial path that only the emperor can walk. However, Feng Bao sat on the Danchi throne with the emperor in full view, and this happened when the new emperor ascended the throne. According to the crime of usurpation in the Daming Law, Feng Bao should be executed immediately." "Well," Gao Gong nodded, cast a glance of approval at Luo Zun, but still refused to express a specific attitude towards this matter, and then asked Han Yi, "What do you think?" Han Yi pondered Gao Gong's thoughts, and replied cautiously: "According to Yu Sheng, if you don't take the opportunity to get rid of Feng Bao, you will have endless troubles." "That's it." Gao Gong slapped the table, and was about to continue discussing this topic, when suddenly he heard someone shouting in a high-pitched voice: "The emperor's decree has arrived——" Before he finished speaking, a dental eunuch had already entered Gao Gong's duty room.Han Yi and Luo Zun hurried into the document room next door to avoid it, and Gao Gong knelt down to accept the order. The Yapai eunuch shook out a small horizontal scroll of yellow silk, and read word by word: Zhongzhi: From now on, Meng Chongsi will be dismissed from his position as the eunuch in charge of printing, and Feng Bao will take over and continue to be in charge of the East Factory.The cabinet knows.This is it. Hearing this central purpose at first, Gao Gong felt as if his head would explode.According to the constitution, the emperor's edicts should be drafted by the cabinet. The phrase "If you don't go through the Fengge Luantai, what is the name of the edict" is a historical fact that ministers are familiar with.In addition to the cabinet, the General Secretary and the Six Divisions also have the right to review and refute the emperor's edict at any time.This was originally the charter established by Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, but after several emperors, political affairs became more and more corrupt.The supervision of imperial power cannot be carried out seriously.Sometimes when encountering difficult matters, the emperor didn't want the cabinet to hinder him, so he directly issued an order to the cabinet.This kind of edict is customarily called Zhongzhi. Gao Gong, who values ​​power and responsibility, has always been dissatisfied with the central purpose of bypassing the cabinet.What's more, on the first day of Emperor Wanli's ascension to the throne, there came this decree to promote Feng Bao.As soon as this wind blows, won't the cabinet become the ears of the deaf in the future-a decoration?The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, Gao Gong, who was kneeling on the ground, forgot to accept the imperial edict. "According to the order with a high arch—" The Yapai eunuch yelled again in a high-pitched voice, and Gao Gong reluctantly reached out to take the yellow silk scroll.According to the usual practice, he should reply "Chen Zunzhi", but he didn't say these three words, but got up and walked back to sit on the grand teacher's chair, and put the horizontal scroll of yellow silk on the table.The Yapai eunuch saw all this and couldn't help asking: "Mr. Gao, how do you think the slave will go back to pay the order?" Gao Gong raised his eyes and saw that the eunuch Yapai was smiling all over his face, hiding the air of "riding a donkey is not afraid of a tiger". His anger could no longer be restrained, so he slammed the table hard and shouted: "Zhongzhi, huh! Whose purpose is this Zhongzhi, I need to find out. The emperor is only ten years old, so young? He knows what Zhongzhi is, huh? You guys did everything, Sooner or later, you will be driven away!" The Yapai eunuch is used to giving orders when he goes out of the palace, and he is used to bossing around. He has seen such a posture.Seeing Gao Gong's black head and black face jumping like a thunder and black evil star, he didn't dare to argue, like a frightened rabbit escaping from the cabinet. Han Yi and Luo Zun could clearly see what happened in the duty room from the crack in the door of the file room.Intuitively, they felt that Gao Gong had caused a catastrophe.After the Yapai eunuch walked away, they came out from behind the door, Gao Gong was still angry, and asked them: "Did you all hear what happened just now?" "I heard it all." The two replied in a low voice. The duty clerk came in at this moment and handed Gao Gong a towel that had been wrung out.Gao Gong took it and casually wiped away the profuse sweat on his head, then picked up the herbal tea from the teacup and rinsed his mouth, and finally his mood gradually stabilized.He sighed and said: "The old man is over 60 years old. He has been an official for more than 30 years. He has gone through the Jiajing and Longqing dynasties. He has seen so many changes in the court. The personnel metabolization of victorious and disabled people has long since passed away. Tired of seeing it. In fact, when I turned sixty, I had the heart to retire. Wandering in the forest, with springs, stones, and nature accompanied by the evening scenery of mulberry and elm, why not do it? How could the late emperor hold my hand when he was in heaven? , asked me to assist the young master to keep the Great Ming Dynasty, and the emperor's image will last forever. If I resign and return home, I will be disloyal to the late emperor. This sacred duty of the Minister of Guming is so that the old man is neither left nor right. I I wanted to imitate the ancient sages, obey the law instead of wisdom, and serve the public and not private. But, who can understand the painstaking efforts of the old man? You have seen what happened just now. The emperor bypassed the cabinet and issued the imperial decree. Let Feng Bao succeed Meng Chong. This decree was made so quickly, and you will not be given any chance to turn around. You say, does a ten-year-old child in the new emperor have such a brain? Wang Zhen and Liu Jin are two big traitors who disturbed the court and turned the court into a miasma. Compared with Wang Zhen and Liu Jin, this Feng Bao is even worse to the extreme. He has sores on his head and pus on his feet. If you let him become the chief executive, he will make things difficult for the government, and he will make us, the three officials, nine ministers, and ministers of the Ministry and Academy rely on him and let him drive you. Who would want to see such a situation!" After Gao Gong finished speaking, he leaned back in the chair, raised his face, and stared at the painted roof in a trance.Han Yi and Luo Zun are both Gao Gong's disciples for many years, and they have learned a lot about the thunderbolt-like temper of the seat master, but they have never seen him so sad like today.Both of them felt depressed immediately, neither of them would speak for a moment, and the room was deathly silent. "Yuanfu," after being stunned for a long time, Luo Zun finally plucked up the courage to speak, "You are the Optimus Prime of the imperial court, what is Feng Bao, at best, you are a dog in human skin." Gao Gong still stared at the beam, without saying a word.Han Yi followed Luo Zun's words and said: "Feng Bao is a dog, which is true. But the owner of this dog is the emperor and the imperial concubine. As the saying goes, if you beat a dog, you have to look at the owner. On the first floor, can Yuanfu be so worried?" "Contradictions between the inner court and the outer eunuchs have always existed since ancient times." Luo Zun likes to fight for victory in everything, and now he puts up a theory. The law of the Ming Dynasty was enacted, and all eunuchs who dared to intervene in politics were punished with the death penalty of skinning. Emperor Taizu's rule of law was extremely strict, and in his hands, several eunuchs were skinned." As soon as Luo Zun finished speaking, Han Yi pushed forward: "What you said is true, but since Emperor Taizu, have you heard of any other eunuchs who were skinned for meddling in politics?" "But this decree of Emperor Taizu has not been abolished!" "Abolished is not abolished, it's just empty words!" Hearing the argument between the two, Gao Gong suddenly stood upright and sat upright on the grand teacher's chair, his eyes swept over like lightning, and asked quickly: "Why did you become an empty text? You two are the top speech officials in the world right now. Have you thought about this issue?" Luo Zun replied almost without hesitation: "It's because of the corruption of political affairs, and the lack of principles and laws." "Well said," Gao Gong's eyes flashed a hint of imperceptible excitement, and he pointed to Han Yi, "Why are political affairs corrupt, Han Yi, tell me." Han Yi thought for a while and replied: "The ancients said that the death of the three generations is illegal, and the death is due to those who did not enforce the law." Gao Gong nodded slightly, and said: "You all understand these principles. The ministers of the Ministry are all law enforcement officers, and they all exercise the power of picketing. In today's government, it can be said that the wise are in power, and the capable are in office. However, our Why are political affairs still as corrupt as ever?" "It's hard to get back." Luo Zun muttered. "This is one of the reasons," Gao Gong said decisively, "but there is another more important one. What we discussed just now belongs to the way of ministers. The key role here is the way of the monarch. , politics will naturally be clear. On the contrary, it would be strange if political affairs are not corrupt.” Speaking of this, Han Yi and Luo Zun dared not answer.Gao Gong ignored the palpitations of the two disciples, and pushed the axis of "Zhongzhi" on the table with his hands, and said contemptuously: "You said that the Zhongzhi was in the hands of Emperor Taizu. Can you get it? In the hands of Emperor Chengzu, can you get it? But now? Our new emperor is the fourteenth emperor of the Great Tomorrow. , Is this the misfortune of our courtiers, or the great fortune of our courtiers?" At this point, Gao Gong stopped talking, obviously he wanted to hear the answers of the two disciples.Han Yi glanced at Luo Zun, saw that he was sitting there with his head hooked and didn't intend to answer, so he replied in a low voice, "Of course it's unfortunate." "You answered well, but this is common sense." Gao Gong stroked his long beard habitually, and his usual resolute expression returned to his face. "The difference between misfortune and great fortune is only a thought." Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty once said to his courtiers that "governing the country is no different from healing the sick. When the patient recovers, he must be taken care of. If there is any offense, he will die. The same is true for governing the country. When the world is at peace, you must be cautious. If you are arrogant Yi, will lead to defeat.' Today, the imperial court is far from being defeated. There are only one or two traitors. I am old and live in the Ninth Level, so I can't see all the world's affairs, even if I see the world's affairs, I can't tell right from wrong for a while. The first emperor saw this, so he let the old man take the lead to be the Minister of Guming. Anything that the Holy One doesn't understand If there is someone who obeys the law and orders, I, the minister who cares about orders, have the responsibility to remonstrate directly for the benefit of politics and religion. Of course, not every minister can do it if he violates Yan Yan's orders. Jie killed Guan Longfeng, Han Zhu Chao made mistakes, all of which were the consequences of violating Yan Yan's orders. But as the emperor's eyes and ears, how can he be loyal and rescue him for his own safety, regardless of the danger of the whole country?" Gao Gong made a generous speech, and let the two officials see the demeanor of the chief assistant in their minds, Han Yi took the opportunity to say: "Our six subjects and thirteen department officials discussed the matter of Feng Bao taking the throne today, and split up. I don't know what to do with the chief assistant's intentions?" Gao Gong thought for a while and said: "Impeachment on this matter, I am afraid I will shoot myself in the foot. The emperor's biological mother Li Guifei dotes on Feng Bao, how can ordinary things bring him down? In my opinion, the game is divided into two steps. Let's go. First, although our government regards the world as the public, we have to adapt to specific matters. Now that the key role in the Forbidden City is Li Guifei, we have to try to win Li Guifei's support. Second , Feng Bao must have done a lot of bad deeds over the years, you should send people to search separately as soon as possible, for this poisonous snake, if you don’t move, you must hit it on the seven inches.” "Yuanfu's arrangement is extremely appropriate, students should do it as soon as possible." After Han Yi finished speaking, he and Luo Zun got up and said goodbye.When they reached the door, Gao Gong called them back again and told Luo Zun, "Go and tell Mr. Zhang, the household department, to ask him to allocate another two hundred thousand taels of silver from the Taicang bank and send it to Concubine Li." "This..." Luo Zun looked suspicious, he was stunned for a while, and then answered cautiously, "Send it to Concubine Li Gui, there must be a name." "Fortunately, you are still familiar with the allusions, this name is not known yet," Gao Gong said with a smile, "When the new emperor ascends the throne, he must order a batch of head jewelry and distribute them to the concubines in the harem. Now the emperor is a child, but this etiquette It cannot be subtracted, let the emperor's biological mother preside over it." Luo Zunxin knew that this move was to please Concubine Li Gui, but he didn't want to point it out, he just said hesitantly: "Yesterday, I went to the household department to visit Mr. Zhang, and he told me about his suffering for a long time, saying that Emperor Bintian and Xin The emperor's ascension to the throne cost more than 600,000 taels of silver, and now the national treasury is empty, and if we don't increase revenue and reduce expenditure, the salaries of officials will not be able to pay." "I know the difficulty of the household department," Gao Gong said with a gloomy face, frowning, "but it is also a sum of money that must be spent. You go and tell Mr. Zhang that everyone must work together to overcome this difficulty, and what happened in the future , with my high arch carrying it, no one can do anything for him, Mr. Zhang." "yes." Luo Zun agreed, and left the duty room together with Han Yi.