When Xu Ding left Renzheng Hall, the sun was already heading west.
The red sunshine shines on the earth, falling on the palace roofs with green glazed tiles, and the vermilion walls, doors, pillars, and windows. It also falls on the bucket cores and foreheads painted with green paintings and interspersed with gold, shining out. Dazzling light.
He stayed in Renzheng Palace for too long, and it was almost time for the palace gate to close. A large group of chamberlains were gathering from all over the palace towards Renzheng Gate. As for the East Drum Tower generation that Xu Ding had just passed through, several side doors to the Introspection and Internal Prison were being closed one after another, and there were sounds of pushing heavy palace doors everywhere.
Across the back door of Da'an Hall, Xu Ding could hear the guards of the brigade and the armed guards of the Shangshu Military Department changing their defenses. The generals shouted orders and the soldiers' boots stamped on the ground.
Xu Ding is the newly appointed Minister Youcheng. In terms of official position, he is already on par with his father, Xu Zhiguo, who was in charge of the government. As the Prime Minister, he could enter and leave the palace at will, and the situation before him seemed no different from what he had seen in the past.
In the 28th year of Dading, Xu Ding promoted Jinshi to become an official, and it has been 25 years now. Starting from Emperor Shizong, who was known as Xiao Yao and Shun, he served four emperors. Because of his father Xu Chiguo and himself, his career had ups and downs three times.
Every time he was demoted, he rose again. And every time he rises again, the result will always be continued relegation.
Most of the ministers of Qianji who served the Kingdom of Jin were like this. Xu Chiguo was like this, and so was Xu Ding himself.
Whenever there is trouble, the Jurchens always need a group of capable officials to take the lead to bear the hardships and infamy. When the matter came to an end, the imperial court found another reason to punish the person who did it, so as to satisfy the Jurchen nobles whose interests were touched.
This is an inevitable routine. No matter which emperor is on the throne or which Jurchen official is on the throne, it is the same choice.
On that day, in order to control the Yellow River, Xu Chiguo appointed countless Han officials at once, and he offended many nobles. As a result, his reputation was ruined in an instant.
However, Xu Ding was promoted due to an alliance with Tu Shanyi, and he went to Daxing Mansion at the critical moment when Zhongdu was under attack. He did many annoying things, such as forcing people to die for Kuosu, and selling noble officials. . By the way, he also advocated launching maritime trade with Ding Haijun, using the money and goods stored in Zhongdu to exchange Ding Haijun for grain smuggled from the Southern Song Dynasty at a high price.
These things cannot be said or even thought about in peacetime. But in times of crisis, someone must have the manpower to do something against all the odds.
If Xu Ding did it, he would have to bear the consequences.
Since two months ago, there have been undercurrents in the DPRK. Some Jurchens have written openly, accusing Xu Ding of violating the law and proposing that he be sent out to serve in the capital. Some even proposed that Xu Ding be arrested and imprisoned. of.
The emperor actually followed the trend and issued an imperial edict, appointing Xu Ding as the Xuanfu envoy to Hedong and the general manager of the military and horse capital of Hedong South Road.
What a joke. In what age are you still doing this trick of burning bridges across rivers?
Xu Ding immediately reported illness and rested at home for a month, but refused to accept the imperial edict. Immediately, countless affairs inside and outside Zhongdu were left unattended, and the city with a population of nearly one million fell into chaos. There were still several groups of troops who could not get their pay and food, and the soldiers became riotous.
As a result, the emperor had to withdraw his previous appointment and instead appointed Xu Ding as Shangshu Youcheng, who was still aware of the affairs of Daxing Mansion.
Xu Ding became the prime minister of the dynasty and came to the palace much more frequently than before.
He felt more and more clearly that everything in front of him seemed to have not changed at all compared to the past, but in fact everything was very different.
Some commonly used routines are no longer so easy to use. Although the emperor tried to boost his authority, he actually had little to do with his important ministers.
Especially in terms of civil servants, those who are somewhat capable and able to do practical things in the Dajin court are all Han'er.
Even if the emperor drives Xu Ding to Hedong, the only people who are qualified to succeed him are Gao Ruli, Zhang Xingxin, Wang Weihan and others, and perhaps Zhao Dingwen, the leader of the Qingliu literati. After all the calculations, there is no Jurchen.
After Tu Shanyi died of illness, there was no longer a prime minister among the Jurchens who could coordinate the government affairs and had sufficient political experience.
In this case, what is the significance of expelling Xu Ding? Switching back and forth, isn’t it the same thing?
This was one of the reasons why Xu Ding was able to insist on not taking office, but the emperor actually allowed it and even gave him a promotion.
Xu Ding sat in the position of Shangshu Youcheng and shouldered more responsibilities. He has to face the emperor who is fighting with his ministers all day long, he has to face the various leading military generals, he has to face the Mongols who may come back at any time, and of course, he has to face the stretched finances and the tragic situation of thousands of miles of red land in the local area.
In this complicated situation, if he wants to do anything, he must first ensure the stability of his power and position and suppress the nonsense of those Jurchens.
However, the political forces that Xu Ding represents are generally the ones left by his father, Xu Chiguo. They can do some practical things, but they are not very good at engaging in political struggles and court criticism. In this case, where does a stable power come from?
For this reason, Xu Ding has always been a little anxious. And there is still no solution to this problem.
Until today, Du Shisheng, an old client of Xu Chiguo, came to visit and provided him with a new choice, which was to reach a tacit understanding with Ding Haijun and join hands.
What a great choice. Prime Minister Shan Shan made the same choice that day, and then he was in power for a while, stabilizing the situation in the Kingdom of Jin under the most difficult circumstances.
Of course, Xu Ding was not as deeply rooted as Tu Shanyi, and he believed that he had no means to control Guo Ning. But he didn't need to control Guo Ning. The two families are civilized and military, one internally and one externally, each has its own agenda. They are just supporting each other for the moment, but what happens in the future will be discussed later.
Xu Ding only needs the Jurchens in the court to think that he can influence or control Guo Ning.
Guo Ning's killing spree in Zhongdu that day has not yet been forgotten; and once the story of him transporting troops and horses by ship and crossing the sea to Liaodong to start the war is spread, many people will be wary of fear.
With Xu Ding having this ally, his opponents in the court would be wary. At least, they would no longer dare to regard Xu Ding as a mere civil servant.
As long as the Jurchens are afraid, Xu Ding can scare them every day like Tu Danyi:
Did you see the tiger behind me? This is an evil tiger! Are you afraid?
Of course, the two families have rarely visited each other before. If they want to join forces, there must be a process of testing each other and contacting each other. Trust between both parties cannot be established overnight. But since Du Shisheng has come before me, why don't I give it a try?
Xu Ding couldn't help stroking his beard and sneered.
Speaking of which, this thing is really funny.
If Ding Haijun colluded with his close servants and deliberately took advantage of the local chaos to expand his power wantonly, the emperor's doubts and worries would be uncontrollable and he would go crazy.
But if Ding Haijun had colluded with the prime minister two months ago and was obsessed with selling horses to make money, even going so far as to violate court laws and grant official positions privately, the emperor would feel relieved again.
Probably in the eyes of the emperor, planning to make money is better than planning to expand, and colluding with the prime minister is easier to accept than colluding with the servants.
And when Xu Ding came forward to explain that Ding Haijun, who was planning to make money, was forced to get involved in the Northeast War, he himself was being forced to stay in the Northeast by the generals, and even his elite soldiers and generals had to be dragged in the bitter cold of the Northeast. Oh...the emperor's smile could hardly be suppressed.
That's all, the emperor has the emperor's position.
Xu Ding walked forward slowly and passed Renzhengmen slowly.
The emperor stood at the height of the west pavilion of the Renzheng Hall and could clearly see many situations in the palace. For example, the provincial officials were walking out with the guards and soldiers on duty, and the officials on night duty were coming in from the Rihua Gate. , check the talisman letters one by one.
When the officials saw Xu Ding passing by, they all bowed their heads.
It seems that news from the palace spreads quickly.
The recently appointed Shangshu Youcheng actually secretly sought an official position in the Shangshu Province for Guo Ning, the military governor of the Navy. It seems that the relationship between the two parties is very close. In this case, Xu Ding's waist is a little harder than before, while the waist of the ministers is a little softer.
As for the court's laws...sometimes, the laws are heaven; sometimes, the laws are nothing!
The emperor snorted angrily. After all, the huge Jin Kingdom had no other strong army capable of fighting except for a Dinghai navy!
Shandong must rely on a stable navy, and Liaodong must rely on a stable navy! Now, Xu Ding also relies on Ding Haijun!
It just so happens that this army and their leader Guo Ning are completely unreliable!
