Seize Fang Jun's property?
Cheng Yaojin didn't know how to do this and had never even thought about it. He and Fang Jun were close friends for many years. Even though Fang Jun had been close to Li Ji before, he understood Li Ji's cold and selfish nature best. By nature, Fang Jun and Fang Jun couldn't even urinate in the same pot. Even if they didn't part ways, they would inevitably become estranged from each other.
But I am different. I have helped Fang Jun many times and received strong support from the court. The interests of both parties are almost the same. To this day, the Cheng family still has a fleet following the navy to traffic valuable goods to countries in the East and Southeast Asia, making a lot of profits. .
Besides, even if he coveted Fang Jun's family fortune, none of his sons would agree...
But since his father-in-law dares to covet Fang Jun's family property and can say it casually in front of him, it is obvious that he has already made up his mind about this matter.
It seems that the Shandong aristocratic family's support for King Jin is not generally great, perhaps to the point where they give everything to each other and depend on each other for blessings and misfortunes...
Cheng Yaojin naturally knew the purpose of his father-in-law coming in person today, but he kept silent and waited for the other party to speak first.
There is a big difference between asking oneself and mentioning it to the other party, being active and passive...
Fortunately, Cui Xin was very satisfied with his son-in-law, so he didn't hide his tricks at this moment, and simply said bluntly: "The clan has reached a consensus that the Shandong aristocratic families have united to support the King of Jin in seizing the rightful son. This matter has There is no need to retreat, it has already been accomplished, and I hope my virtuous son-in-law will support me.”
Cheng Yaojin was also very straightforward. He shook his head and said: "The prince is the crown prince of the country, and his honor and righteousness lie in it. I have been entrusted by your majesty to guard the capital. How can I do anything to conspire against those rebellious ministers and traitors? I advise my father-in-law not to do it either." You have to be deceived by others, and if you make a mistake, you will be hated for eternity!"
The Shandong aristocratic family has been suppressed since the Sui Dynasty and has been away from the center of the court for decades. Although it is still able to run smoothly and maintain its reputation, it has not tasted the power of the center for a long time. It is inevitable that its ambitions will decline and they want to continue to maintain the "Five Surnames and Seven Hopes" "'s position is extremely difficult, so it is understandable that he wants to take advantage of the current change of imperial power to take risks and seek maximum benefits.
But he, Cheng Yaojin, was already a very popular minister, and it was impossible for him to become Prime Minister, so why would he take any risks?
So he has been swinging between the crown prince and the king of Jin, and finally made the decision to stay out of the matter and not help the two. Anyway, no matter who takes the throne in the end, he needs to command Zuowu Wei to calm the situation. Even if he does not have the merit of Conglong, the new emperor will ascend the throne. There is no difference in rewards based on merit.
Why bother to help King Jin?
It should be noted that the battle for imperial power is the most cruel. The winner will be honored with the title of Dabao Ninth Five-Year Plan, but the loser will have no chance of survival and will have no choice but to die with his family and children without a burial place. The hidden prince Li Jiancheng was a precedent. Cheng Yaojin didn't want his hands to be stained with the prince's blood...
Cui Xin took a sip of tea and said with a smile: "How can I ask you to send troops into the palace to kill the prince? I just need you to wait for the end no matter what the situation is."
Cheng Yaojin pondered for a moment, but did not refuse outright. His father-in-law knew his position and could still come to act as a lobbyist. There were obviously other reasons, so he looked at the other party and said nothing.
Let's talk about the conditions, but he doesn't think the other party can give him the benefits that will make him change his mind...
Cui Xin put down his teacup and said calmly: "The King of Jin promised that after he ascends the throne, he will follow the example of the old emperor's feudal world. Princes and meritorious officials can go to the fiefdom to establish their own country and establish the center of the vassal. The descendants will forever guard the vassal country and serve as the country's vassal for generations to come. I have secured the land of Shandong for you."
No matter how determined Cheng Yaojin was, he couldn't help but widen his eyes and feel shocked.
Feudal world!
Just as Fang Jun's poem said at that time, "I am looking for a prince three thousand miles away." Which man is not a man with ambitions as high as the sky and anger as high as the sky? He is still the Duke of the country and is only one step away from becoming a king. However, in the era when people with different surnames were not allowed to be crowned kings, this step would never be taken.
If it was really possible to feudalize a land and be king forever... who could remain indifferent?
When His Majesty wanted to implement the policy of feudalism, the reason why Zhenguan ministers, princes and princes in the imperial court all opposed it was not because they were indifferent to fame and fortune, but because they all saw His Majesty's temptation. No matter how tempted he was, he had to sternly refuse, otherwise His Majesty has determined that he has the ambition to seal the territory from all over the world. Do you still want to die?
But now is a real opportunity. The King of Jin relied on the powerful families in Shandong and Jiangnan to ascend to the throne. He must also rely on these two powerful people to stabilize his court and secure the throne. Any promise will definitely be fulfilled!
The land of feudal Shandong... isn't that a proper "King of Lu"?
The king of a country!
Cheng Yaojin breathed heavily, suppressing his frantic heartbeat, and looked at Cui Xin with burning eyes.
At this moment, I couldn't care less about whether the other party coveted Fang Jun's property, or whether I would become the other party's accomplice in embezzling Fang Jun's length...
It feels unbearable.
At this time, some soldiers came in and reported: "To report to the commander-in-chief, His Royal Highness the Prince has sent someone to invite the commander-in-chief to come to the palace to see him."
"Oh, I see."
In response, when the soldiers retreated, Cheng Yaojin poured tea for Cui Xin and said: "It's not that I don't believe in my father-in-law, nor is it that I am indifferent to the matter of breaking the soil and making the king... It's just that the prince has a rightful name. If Supporting the King of Jin is tantamount to treason. It will definitely be stained with misdeeds and be infamy for thousands of years. I cannot push the descendants of the Cheng family into a pit of fire for the sake of immediate interests."
Cui Xin said calmly: "My dear son-in-law, you can rest assured. Your Majesty's love for King Jin is known to both the government and the public. It is not a secret that he has wanted to appoint King Jin as his heir several times. Although for various reasons, he failed to depose the prince and appoint King Jin, but How can there be no legacy? There must be a legacy."
Cheng Yaojin thought about it and still felt that he should be more cautious: "Just the edict alone is not enough. Although the prince is cowardly, he has never made any big mistakes, and his reputation for benevolence is quite popular. This is also the reason why His Majesty has not been able to save it easily." , there is a sudden edict to depose him, and people in the world may not be willing to believe it."
Everything must be done in a correct and correct manner. If you want to depose the prince just because of the imperial edict, do you really think that everyone in the world is a fool?
These days, although the court is controlled by aristocratic families, and family interests often come first, and morality and justice are only paid lip service to, there is still no shortage of people who claim to be loyal, upright, strong and benevolent. The so-called posthumous edict will naturally depose the prince, which is simply wishful thinking.
The strength of the East Palace is not weak in the first place. The Sixth Army of the East Palace under the leadership of Li Jing is already a strong force in the world. Although the Youtun Guards are now under the control of Li Daozong, they are all Fang Jun's old troops. As long as Fang Jun raises his arms and calls out, , there will definitely be a crowd of responders, not to mention that Li Daozong has always been close to the prince, who knows whether he will switch sides and completely side with the prince?
If there are some self-proclaimed righteous people who contribute from the side, even if the King of Jin has the support of Shandong and Jiangnan, the winning rate may not be very high.
Overall, the risk is too great.
Cui Xin still looked indifferent and said slowly: "Don't worry, how can you do it if you have no name? Your Majesty was seriously injured in a fall from his horse in the Liaodong Army. During this period, someone was ordered by the prince to offer the medicine of mercury to your Majesty, which contained a highly poisonous intention. Your Majesty is still aware of the murder of Your Majesty, and there are all the witnesses and material evidence. How can Your Majesty allow the prince to serve as the crown prince of the empire? However, at that time, the Guanlong mutiny caused chaos in the entire Guanzhong, which caused the decline of the country and the ups and downs of the court. I have to put aside the matter of Yi Chu for the time being and take care of state affairs. But Your Majesty is far-sighted, how can you not make preparations in advance and leave a legacy to pass the throne to the King of Jin?"
Cheng Yaojin was greatly shocked. He understood in an instant: "Chu Suiliang?"
Cui Xin nodded and said: "Back in the Liaodong Army, it was Chu Suiliang who was coerced by the prince and presented the poisonous mercury medicine to His Majesty. However, Chu Suiliang's conscience found that he could not bear to harm His Majesty, so he confessed everything. And Your Majesty has a deep love for licking calves. Even though he knew that the prince had done such unfaithful, unfilial, and ungrateful things, he still wanted to give the prince a good death... Alas, a father's love for his son is amazing. But the prince is vicious. Instead of repenting, he went even further and colluded with the monks who made elixirs for His Majesty to secretly increase the dose of arsenic by ten times, causing His Majesty to fall into coma and fainting twice, which was a pity."
Cheng Yaojin didn't believe a word of this. It didn't make sense.
He had seen that monk several times before, but His Majesty Li Er got it from someone unknown. He trusted him, so how could he be bribed by the prince? Moreover, when refining the elixir, it is not just the monk who operates it alone, but many Taoist priests assist him. Poisons such as arsenic are not allowed to be increased by even one and a half points, let alone ten times more?
But now that monk must have fallen into the hands of King Jin. Naturally, Mikixia can say whatever he wants. In addition, His Majesty's confidants like Chu Suiliang have turned against him... Not to mention how many people believe it, it's just reasonable. It already makes sense.
That's it.
How can there be so much good and evil, right and wrong? In the end, it's just that the winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. As long as it makes sense in theory, as for whether this truth is true or false... it's not that important.
He nodded and said: "In that case, I will go to the palace now to appease the prince. You also ask King Jin to start trouble quickly, otherwise things will change if it is too late."
As for the King of Jin, Yuchi Gong, and even Xiao Yu, Chu Suiliang and others are all in the Taiji Palace, how can they raise troops to start an uprising... Since Cui Xin has come to his side to lobby, presumably the King of Jin and others are at this moment He had already escaped from Tai Chi Palace.
If it is blocked by a mere palace wall, how can we talk about usurping it and achieving imperial hegemony?
Moreover, he also believed that His Majesty Li Er must have prepared a backup plan in advance to help King Jin have the opportunity and ability to counterattack in an unfavorable situation...
After seeing Cui Xin off, Cheng Yaojin put on his armor under the service of his own soldiers and ordered: "Go and inform General Niu and my eldest son that they must not act rashly without my military order. Even if someone attacks the city, they will only If you can defend the city gate, you are not allowed to go out to fight."
"Here!"
"No matter whose military order it is, you are not allowed to obey it until I come back from Taiji Palace. Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed!"
"Here!"
After a series of military orders were issued and everything was arranged, Cheng Yaojin put on his helmet and armor and rode with dozens of soldiers to Tai Chi Palace in the rain.
The iron hooves of the war horse roared on the streets paved with bluestones, and the rain splashed on the ground. It was menacing and murderous, and spread far away in the quiet rainy night. Residents nearby felt nervous when they heard the sound. .
The flames of war are spreading, and we don't know where this most majestic city in the world will go, and how many people will be swept up in this battle to seize the inheritance.
The prosperous and prosperous era, where people lived and worked in peace and contentment, may all disappear with the passing of His Majesty Li Er, and the world will most likely fall into the chaos of the late Sui Dynasty again.
Living in troubled times, the people are like grass and are as humble as dogs and pigs...
