Cen Wenwen was silent for a moment and did not answer Xiao Yuzhi's concerns. Instead, he asked: "Brother Shi Wen, what do you think Fang Jun's status will be when the new emperor ascends the throne in the future?"
He is nearly 20 years younger than Xiao Yu. He is not yet in his 60s, but already has white hair and is suffering from chronic illness. On the contrary, Xiao Yu, who had to move to Chang'an after the fall of his country and became a hostage of the former Sui Dynasty, is red-faced and energetic. , judging from the current state of the two of them, it is very likely that he will die a few years earlier than Xiao Yu...
Xiao Yu held the tea cup in his hand, considered it for a moment, and said: "Fang Jun is talented, capable, and has made great achievements. His influence in both the military and political circles cannot be underestimated. Especially the East Palace family, when the prince is deposed, everything will be lost." All have been suppressed, and they are bound to take refuge under Fang Jun's wings. Only his leadership will form a force that cannot be ignored. When the new emperor ascends the throne, the first priority is to appease the court, and then he can exclude dissidents. It is almost inevitable to win over Fang Jun. Once Fang Jun enters the center, with his ability and foundation, he will achieve great success in the blink of an eye... Therefore, Fang Jun may not be able to dominate the world in the future, but his weight is inevitable for a while."
As the saying goes, "it is easier to invite gods than to send them away." As long as Fang Jun enters the center and becomes the prime minister, it will be as difficult as climbing to the sky to suppress him.
Even His Majesty Li Er, who is so prestigious, can only move Fang Jun to an idle position instead of expelling him from the court completely.
Today, Fang Jun has full wings and a big tail...
Cen Wenwen nodded and said: "That's right, but Brother Shi Wen also ignored one thing. Although Fang Jun will soar to the sky in the future, there is still a big difference between the king of Wei and the king of Jin. of."
Xiao Yu suddenly realized: "This is natural. King Wei and Fang Jun have a close personal relationship. The two have cooperated closely in establishing education in the past two years. King Wei has great trust in Fang Jun. Once King Wei comes to the throne, he will definitely reuse Fang Jun and even fully accept Fang Jun." Jun's ideas are implemented in the world. In comparison, the King of Jin is more afraid of Fang Jun. Even if he has to win over Fang Jun in the future, his trust is limited after all."
After hearing Xian Ge and knowing the meaning, he understood the reason why Cen Wenwen asked this question - since Fang Jun's rise is inevitable, he should try his best to prevent the other party's biggest advantage, so that his side can take more initiative.
In short, support the King of Jin, attack the King of Wei, and try your best to assist the King of Jin to become the crown prince and ascend the throne in the future...
After thinking about it, Xiao Yu said: "This is not difficult. Compared with the King of Wei, the disadvantages of the King of Jin are that he is younger and has lower prestige. The government and the public may not be convinced. But there is also an advantage, that is, he has lived with His Majesty since he was a child. , the relationship between father and son is deeper than that of several brothers. When Queen Wende was dying, she never forgot about His Highness Prince Jin, and she may not have told His Majesty to take good care of him in private. "
Prince Jin is not His Majesty's youngest son, but he is the youngest legitimate son born to Queen Wende, and his status is extraordinary.
To this day, Xiao Yu still remembers that when His Majesty Li Er was always stubborn and even Wei Zheng tried to persuade him, only Queen Wende's soft words could comfort him. Therefore, the Crown Prince, King Wei, and King Jin are not only His Majesty's legitimate sons, but also because they were born to Queen Wende, their honor and favor are even more solid.
As long as Queen Wende had said a word or so in favor of King Jin, it would most likely have led to His Majesty's tendency to establish a heir apparent...
Cen Wenwen nodded in approval and added: "In addition, King Wei is precociously intelligent, but has an exaggerated personality. He has long been criticized by both the government and the public for being 'similar to Emperor Yang'. Once he becomes the emperor, he may be able to repeat the great successes of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty." His Majesty must have concerns if he repeats the same mistake."
Xiao Yu nodded repeatedly.
Can the public opinion affect the ownership of the throne, especially after the crown prince is deposed, let His Majesty Li Er continue the path of "abolish the elder and establish the younger", ignore the King of Wei, and instead appoint the King of Jin as the prince? Objectively speaking, the impact is very small and almost negligible.
"Ancestral succession" has been a rule of the Han Dynasty for thousands of years. To depose a prince is to risk the world's disapproval. How can you depose two elder brothers in succession and support the youngest son?
But when this trend became popular in the court, making all civil servants, military officers, and royal family members agree with it, the impact would be great.
As for how the comments such as "The King of Wei is similar to Emperor Yang" are openly noisy in the court and spread among the nobles, it depends on each person's methods...
People's opinions make gold and bones are destroyed. If things go on like this, it is enough to shake the mind of His Majesty Li Er.
The means are very simple, just support and suppress others, but the simplest means are often the most effective.
Cen Wenwen had his eyebrows drooped, as if his energy was a little low. He sighed softly and said slowly: "I am exhausted mentally and physically, and I have nothing to do. I rely on you, Brother Shi Wen, to take care of these things."
This seems to be a bit of a shirk, but Xiao Yu doesn't want it. He says with concern: "Your health is important. You are only over fifty years old. You will have a good life in the future, so you should be careful and rest. Just don't worry about this. I will bear it with all my strength.”
Whoever presides over this matter will take the risk of "slandering the prince", but the greater the risk, the greater the benefits.
Unifying the civil servants from both sides of the court to criticize the King of Wei, once successful, will bring Xiao Yu's prestige and power to a higher level. In the future, Cen Wenwen will not be in office due to illness, and who else in the government and the public will be able to compete with him?
*****
It is always said that "the general trend of history is vast, those who follow it will prosper, and those who go against it will perish." However, every fragment and every node of history is created by people. All living beings are ignorant, but there will always be outstanding people standing in the long river of history, swaying the tide and leading the direction of the wind, making history appear according to their will, which will ultimately benefit the common people or bring disaster to the common people.
Goodness and evil, right and wrong, history has no ifs.
…
In the Wude Palace, His Majesty Li Er put aside the mountains of documents, drank tea, and told Wang De to repair the various palaces in Taiji Palace as soon as possible.
"The Duke of Liang's Mansion occupies half a square of land, and the buildings are row upon row. It has been renovated in just a few days, and they are all ready to accommodate guests. I am the most powerful person in the world, but the Tai Chi Palace has not been completed for a long time. Those What are the officials from the Ministry of Works and the Shaofu doing? Later, you go to the two yamen of the Ministry of Works and the Shaofu in person and tell them to speed up the progress. Within ten months, I will move back to Ganlu Hall."
His Majesty Li Er's face was unkind and angry, and his tone was extremely dissatisfied.
The Taiji Palace had gone through wars and was in dilapidated condition, with many parts of the palace suffering serious damage. After he returned to Beijing, he had to drive the prince back to the East Palace and occupy the Wude Palace for temporary resettlement.
But on the one hand, he wanted to depose the prince, and on the other hand, he drove the prince away, which always made His Majesty Li Er feel guilty of "taking over the magpie's nest"...
But what is there to feel guilty about?
It was he who risked his life and launched the "Xuanwumen Revolution" to snatch this world from the hands of Emperor Gaozu and Prince Yin Li Jiancheng. It was also he who worked hard and worked hard for more than ten years to make the world prosperous. He could give it to whomever he wanted. And it’s stipulated that it can only be given to the prince?
So this sense of guilt for no reason made him extremely uncomfortable...
Wang De bowed and obeyed, but complained in his heart, no matter how grand and luxurious Liang Guogong is, it is just a palace of the Duke of Guo. No matter how simple the renovation is, your place is still a palace. The regulations are different and the scale is different. How can there be any comparison?
But seeing that His Majesty's face was darkened and his anger was faint, he did not dare to offend his words and remonstrated directly. He thought that later he would go to the Ministry of Industry and the Shaofu to put pressure on him. As for whether it could be completed as scheduled, it was not up to him. Responsibilities...
His Majesty Li Er vented for a while and felt slightly relieved. He took another sip of tea, thought for a while, and then said: "I was away in the Eastern Expedition, and the prince made a great contribution to sticking to the country. He must have been too worried and did not think about food or food. His body was originally weak. You are weak. Such torment may lead to the root cause of the disease. You can send some of the high-grade mountain ginseng I brought back from Liaodong to the prince so that he can replenish his health."
Wang De felt a chill in his heart and quickly agreed.
The prince's body is indeed weak. When he fell from a horse, he not only injured his legs and feet but also damaged his internal organs. However, after years of recovery, he has no serious problems. However, His Majesty's words and actions have confirmed that the prince is "weak in body and has weak roots." The statement "loss" must be to spread public opinion on Yi Chu in the future...
There is a sign leading to the inner chamber outside the door, and it is said that Li Junxian wants to see him.
Wang De took the opportunity to resign and came to the door to summon Li Junxian to see him. He rushed to the two yamen of the Ministry of Industry and the Shaofu to convey His Majesty's decree...
Li Junxian entered the study and saw His Majesty Li Er walking back to the Imperial Palace and sitting down. He hurriedly stepped forward and saluted, handed over a list of names, and then said: "The general has been ordered to supervise the Duke Liang's Mansion. This is the invitation." The guest list for the banquet.”
Seeing His Majesty Li Er pick up the list and look at it, he added: "In the meantime, Zhang Xingcheng, the Minister of Civil Affairs, who had not received the invitation, personally came to congratulate and presented congratulations. However, he was humiliated by the Duke of Yue and left angrily... "
"Oh? Tell me carefully."
His Majesty Li Er put down the list in his hand and asked about Zhang Xingcheng.
This list did not exceed his expectations. Apart from a few princes, the only ministers in the court were Li Daozong, Ma Zhou and others. They were considered close friends of Fang Jun. It seemed to be just an ordinary family dinner. But His Majesty Li Er knows that Fang Jun wants to use this "family banquet" method to convey his strong connections and influence to the outside world - even if it is just my best friend or relative, it is not something that just anyone of you can do. Provoked.
This is Fang Jun preparing for the possible suppression and criticism. Otherwise, once the outside world sees him as losing power and his status plummeting, people who covet his huge wealth will swarm in. Although Fang Jun is not afraid, he is very annoyed...
On the contrary, Zhang Xingcheng came uninvited and had some skills.
Li Junxian then explained the incident in detail. Many servants of the Fang family and Zhang Xingcheng's attendants were present at that time. Li Junxian only made a brief investigation afterwards, and even understood every conversation between the two at that time. The writing is not bad.
After saying that, Li Junxian stood with his head bowed to one side. His duty was to monitor the officials. As for the emperor's decision, he could not and did not dare to interfere.
His Majesty Li Er touched his beautiful beard, concentrated for a moment, and said in a deep voice: "The Shandong family... is restless."
