In Liu Ji's view, Fang Jun and Li Jing's move was nothing more than a vicious backstab. After all, the current turmoil in Yi Chu was fierce. At this time, even though the two of them took the initiative to resign, they tried to dispel His Majesty's wariness about the East Palace and thus retain their The prince's reserve position can save the prince's life at the worst...but who will believe it?
In the eyes of outsiders, this must be the result of His Majesty's coercion, in order to achieve the goal of completely cutting off the wings of the East Palace and deposing him calmly.
In this way, His Majesty will inevitably be given the reputation of "treating meritorious officials harshly" and "hiding the bird behind the bow"...
With how much your majesty values your reputation, how can you not be furious?
…
There was a candle in the study room, its shadow flickering. His Majesty Li Er sat behind the desk, motionless and silent for a long time. Liu Ji stood in front of the desk, bowing and sweating profusely. The solemn atmosphere in the room made him breathless. He quietly swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and suddenly felt in his heart that it would be worse than His Majesty's thunderous and furious explosion.
I don’t know when, the upright and upright His Majesty Li Er suddenly became gloomy and unpredictable, and his thoughts were completely unpredictable...
After a long time, His Majesty Li Er took a breath and asked slowly: "What does Liu Shizhong think of this matter?"
Liu Ji's throat moved, thinking, "How can I see this?" How dare I look?
He could only say: "Both the Duke of Wei and the Duke of Yue are honorable ministers of the country, with great military exploits and high prestige. They are also the pillars of the country. No matter why these two people came to the throne to resign together, Your Majesty will not allow it, but will give them a reward." , double the favor to show honor.”
This incident was a huge blow to His Majesty Li Er's reputation. In his opinion, it should be dismissed immediately and the reward increased to dispel doubts from the outside world.
His Majesty Li Er did not speak. He closed his eyes and pondered for a long time, and suddenly said: "I will draft an imperial edict later to approve the resignation and memorial of the two of them. The ministry must approve it and cannot deny it."
The Menxia Province was a bridge between the imperial power and the ministers. All submissions from ministers had to be reviewed by the Menxia Province first and then submitted to the emperor. At the same time, the emperor's will also had to be reviewed by the Menxia Province before it could be promulgated. If the Menxia Province believed that the memorial was Or if the imperial edict is unreasonable, we have the right to refute it.
This was the power of the Menxia Province, but Liu Jie never thought of using this power from the moment he took the position of Minister.
If you refute it to a subordinate, it may be seen as blocking the way of speech, abusing power, and making the courtiers dissatisfied; if you refute it of a superior, it is inevitable that the minister will exercise power and ignore the king, and will be resented by your majesty. So he is diligent, but he does not always follow the rules.
But at this moment, His Majesty Li Er ordered him not to refute, but Liu Ji hesitated. After a long time, he said: "Your Majesty clearly knows that the previous removal of the posts of Shangshu of the Ministry of Military Affairs and General Youtunwei of the State of Yue has caused dissatisfaction among the courtiers and public outcry. Many people in the city are advocating that this is "chaotic government" and have many criticisms against Your Majesty. If you allow Duke Yue and Duke Wei to resign now, I am afraid that they will be regarded as the heroes of the suppression by the outside world, which will have a negative impact on Your Majesty's reputation. Damage, I hope Your Majesty will think twice."
It wasn't that he was really worried about His Majesty Li Er's reputation being damaged, but Fang Jun didn't communicate with him about the matter beforehand. He didn't know what Fang Jun was thinking. What if this is just a method used by Fang Jun to coerce His Majesty, but His Majesty issued a decree and approved it, but the province clearly had the right to refute it but did not implement it, will Fang Jun be resentful?
He was a little afraid of Fang Jun's methods. He finally got into the position of servant, and he only wanted to serve faithfully and diligently, and did not want to get involved in Fang Jun and Yi Chu's affairs.
His Majesty Li Er made a face and said displeasedly: "I have been doing everything in my life, so why should I be afraid of rumors and criticism? You don't need to interfere in this matter, just follow the instructions."
"Here."
Liu Jie didn't have the courage of Wei Zheng to dare to remonstrate directly. As soon as His Majesty Li Er got angry, he immediately gave up. He didn't care whether he would be blamed by Fang Jun, so he quickly retreated.
His Majesty Li Er stood up from his desk, walked to the window and stood with his hands behind his hands. Looking at the heavy rain outside the window in the dark night, he felt full of irritation.
In the past, he sat in the position of emperor with ease. Although there were people around him who had various tricks, but on the whole they were loyal and followed him wholeheartedly to govern the world. In the nearly twenty years since Zhenguan, he had worked hard to govern the world, and the world has begun to fade. He has the appearance of a prosperous age, and can be said to be "the king is wise and the ministers are virtuous, and the people are upright and prosperous in the dynasty". This is one of the reasons why he is confident that he can surpass the Qin Emperor and the Han Dynasty and become "one emperor through the ages".
If his subordinates are all treacherous and sycophantic people like the "Ten Permanent Attendants", even if Li Er is a wise and powerful man, he will not be able to govern the country...
But I don't know since when, those loyal people gradually became alienated from him. On the surface, they still respected him, but secretly they had their own little plans, forming cliques and pursuing their own interests.
Therefore, His Majesty Li Er only feels that there is no minister around him that he can completely trust, and he doesn’t know who to confide his concerns to...
Has the once heroic and majestic Li Er finally become a true "lonely man"?
The night rain was falling, the air was cold and humid. His Majesty Li Er, who had stood in front of the window for a long time, sighed dejectedly. He felt that all his energy was vented as if the river bank had burst. His whole body was empty and weak, and he seemed to have difficulty raising his eyelids.
After returning to the desk, he sat down and took a few breaths. When he saw the pile of official documents and government affairs on the desk, he couldn't help but rub his face, knowing that he couldn't go to sleep now. After struggling for a moment, he called Wang Shoushi, who was guarding the door, in.
He looked tired and said: "I am a little weak in energy, so I will bring you the elixir."
Wang Shoushi hesitated for a moment, then bowed and said: "Your Majesty, it's already late, why don't you take a shower and go to bed, and wait until tomorrow to deal with these official duties? Although the elixir is good, it cannot be taken regularly, for fear of damaging the organs."
Although that food is very effective in refreshing the mind, it is obviously overdrafting the body. In the past, His Majesty only served him occasionally, and the body could bear it. However, recently, he may be under too much pressure, and the intervals between taking meals are getting shorter and shorter. Sometimes, he often takes them in one day. You have to take it three to five times. What if something goes wrong...
His Majesty Li Er braced himself and said impatiently: "I know it well, you don't need to say more!"
Not only were the court officials alienated from him, but even the chamberlains around him were disobedient? What a bastard!
"Here!"
Wang Shoushi did not dare to say anything, so he hurriedly retreated to the side of the room, took a brocade box, took out a red pill, presented it to His Majesty with both hands, poured a glass of water, and served His Majesty to take the pill.
Leaning slightly, His Majesty Li Er's cheeks showed two blushes, and his whole person looked radiant...
*****
In the Duke of Song Dynasty's mansion, it was raining heavily outside the window. A copper hotpot was placed on the table, steaming alone, and the aroma of mutton overflowed.
Xiao Yu raised a glass of wine to Cen Wen, who was opposite him. After finishing the drink, he sighed and said, "I'm too old to have a stomachache. I really shouldn't be greedy for this."
Cen Wenwen put his chopsticks into the hot pot. Instead of eating the mutton, he took out a chopstick of green vegetables and put it on the plate. He dipped it in the sauce and put it in his mouth. While chewing, he picked up the handkerchief next to him and wiped his sweat. He said with a smile: " Such despicable eating methods are really contrary to the status and cultivation of our gentlemen, just like barbarians and barbarians. But if you do it occasionally, you can enjoy it."
Two important ministers and civil servants of the empire actually gathered together to have hot pot on a rainy night. They talked happily and were in a good mood.
However, due to their old age, their stomachs couldn't stand this kind of eating, so they both just tasted it briefly and asked the maid to remove the hot pot and dishes, make a pot of tea, and then turned away from the waiter and leaned against the window to drink tea.
Xiao Yu took a sip of tea and asked: "Regarding Fang Jun and Li Jing's resignation today, do you think the East Palace has completely given up resistance?"
Menxiasheng is the center of the court. I don’t know how many people are keeping an eye on it all the time. If there is any disturbance, all parties will know about it. When Liu Ji left the Yamen of Menxiasheng, the incident involving Fang Jun and Li Jing spread like wildfire. After leaving, the news came to everyone inside and outside the court.
Cen Wenwen put down his tea cup, shook his head and said: "On the contrary, I think this is a way for the East Palace to express resistance. Maybe they don't think they can save the throne, but they want to use a drastic method to save the prince's life."
Xiao Yu frowned: "Why do you see it?"
Cen Wenwen held the teacup in his hand and said slowly: "Fang Jun is a man who always knows how to advance and retreat. He is not very young, but when he acts, he agrees with the principles of the court and can see through the sophistication of people and the mentality of officialdom. He seems to have a supreme The masters behind the scenes guide his every word and action, which is amazing.”
Xiao Yu thought for a moment and said, "Fang Xuanling doesn't have such attainments either."
If Fang Xuanling was really as good as Fang Jun, how could she be suppressed by Changsun Wuji and hold high positions all her life but never truly hold power? Fang Xuanling's Qiancheng, but what he lacks is precisely this precise control of the situation, and the ability to clear away the clouds and get to the source despite the seemingly heavy fog.
Obviously, Fang Jun's series of amazing actions in the officialdom were due to his talent and not the guidance of others.
Cen Wenwen nodded and said: "Fang Jun is not an upright person. When it is time to give in, he will give in without hesitation, but he will never give in for the so-called preservation of the prince's life. With his consistent performance, the more he wants to give in, The more we protect something, the more aggressive we will be, rather than just giving in.”
He had never heard the saying "Seek unity through struggle, and unity will survive; seek unity through concession, and unity will perish." However, summarizing Fang Jun's usual behavior, it is not difficult to come to such a conclusion.
Therefore, he admired and feared Fang Jun in his heart. How could a young man come up with such a penetrating theory just a few years into his official career?
In his view, this sentence can be applied almost perfectly regardless of politics or military affairs...
Xiao Yu understood what Cen Wenwen meant, but he was still puzzled: "But what if he submits this letter and His Majesty approves it? If the lie turns out to be true, then he will be smart."
Cen Wenwen said with a smile: "Isn't there Liu Jie? The Ministry of Menxia has the power to 'refute the edict', and Liu Jie can reject the imperial edict approved by His Majesty. As for whether it is true or not, we will see between the government and the opposition later. You can find out if there are rumors like 'Liu Jie flatters the imperial power and eats vegetarian meals with his corpse'."
Xiao Yu suddenly realized: "To retreat in order to advance, this is forcing Liu Jie to refute His Majesty's will!"
More than just Liu Jie?
Once Liu Jie refutes His Majesty's will, it will not only damage His Majesty's prestige, but also give Him the feeling that "the whole world is against my Yi Chu"...
Everyone is betraying their relatives and leaving.
(End of chapter)
