"Sir, I have something important to report!"
Seeing Chen Dongxiang suddenly kneel down, his voice was deep and his expression was serious, Zhao Junchen smiled slightly, knowing that under all the pressure from him, Chen Dongxiang finally dared not take any chances and finally confessed the matter. [No pop-up novel website]
So, as if he was surprised, and as if he had expected it, Zhao Junchen looked down at Chen Dongxiang who was kneeling in front of him, frowned and asked: "Mr. Chen, what's going on? You and I are just meeting in private to chat, what is going on? Is it so serious? Do you still need to give such a big gift?"
Having said that, Zhao Junchen did not let Chen Dongxiang get up, nor did he have the slightest intention to help him.
Naturally, Chen Dongxiang would not take Zhao Junchen's pretentiousness seriously. He just lowered his head and said loudly: "Master Qi, at noon today, I was invited to meet at Yue Ke Lai Restaurant, where I met Mr. Huang Yourong's confidant and Wen Wen. Huo Zhengyuan, Grand Scholar of Yuange, actually wanted to encourage me to betray you, my lord, and join Huang Yourong, but my lord has flatly rejected me! Please forgive me!"
Zhao Junchen said with a half-smile, "Oh? Did you really reject it flatly?"
Chen Dongxiang looked firm and said in a deep voice: "I am loyal to you, so how can I pay attention to Huang Yourong's solicitation? Of course I refused on the spot!"
Chen Dongxiang's report can be described as avoiding the important and minimizing the important, with mixed truth and falsehood, but Zhao Junchen did not delve into it deliberately.
In the officialdom, there is always truth and falsehood between each other, and hypocrisy is regarded as the norm, as long as everyone can get along in terms of face and does not harm their respective interests. No one will deliberately expose these hypocrisies. If someone really exposes these hypocrisies, it will only make everyone look like fools.
finally. Zhao Junchen just looked Chen Dongxiang up and down for a few times, then finally stretched out his hands to help Chen Dongxiang up, and said with a smile: "Mr. Chen, since you have categorically rejected Huang Yourong's solicitation, now you take the initiative to confess... although it is a little late. A little bit...but I have already proven my intention, so why am I guilty of it, why should I kneel down to apologize? It's too serious, get up quickly."
See Zhao Junchen personally helping him. The strength of his arms did not seem to be fake, and Chen Dongxiang did not dare to be too coy, and just stood up following Zhao Junchen's support. But his attitude was still respectful, he lowered his head and said: "Thank you for your understanding, sir! I will definitely be loyal to you in the future and follow the strength of dogs and horses!"
"It's good that you have such thoughts." After Zhao Junchen said this, he suddenly sighed again. Said: "It's just. Since Huang Yourong wants to recruit you this time, it's a pity that you refused so quickly. Otherwise, if you can take the opportunity to sneak into Huang Yourong, it might be a good thing... …What a pity…”
Hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Chen Dongxiang was slightly startled and said as if he had some realization: "Sir, what do you mean...?"
Zhao Junchen explained patiently: "Actually, you also understand that I took the initiative to provoke a conflict with Huang Yourong this time. It was because I wanted to expand the power and influence of us people in the court. To put it bluntly, I was greedy for the forces in Huang Yourong's hands. I just want to grab it for myself. Unfortunately, although I am confident that Huang Yourong will be overthrown, there are not many ways to absorb the influence of Huang Yourong's forces. If you can take the opportunity to lurk among Huang Yourong's party this time, In the process, we have established a good relationship with Huang Yourong's officials. When Huang Yourong collapses in the future, it will be much easier for us to influence and absorb Huang Yourong's power."
Having said this, Zhao Junchen shook his head repeatedly and sighed: "This was originally a good opportunity, but it is really a pity."
Zhao Junchen naturally knew that with Chen Dongxiang's cautious temperament, it would be impossible for him to defect to Huang Yourong's faction decisively now when faced with the instigation of rebellion by Huang Yourong's faction. However, if Chen Dongxiang really "categorically refused" the solicitation of Huang Yourong's faction as he said, it would not be possible. Even more impossible.
Therefore, the reason why Zhao Junchen said such words was because he wanted Chen Dongxiang to take the initiative to ask for help.
On the other side, after hearing Zhao Junchen's explanation, Chen Dongxiang finally understood why Zhao Junchen wanted to meet him in such a secret way.
It turned out that when Huang Yourong's group was thinking of instigating a rebellion against Chen Dongxiang, Zhao Junchen not only did not feel wary and in danger because of this, but instead wanted to take the opportunity to carry out a "counterintuitive plan"! And can be the first to take over Huang Yourong's power when Huang Yourong falls in the future!
Thinking of this, even with Chen Dongxiang's high self-esteem, he couldn't help but admire Zhao Junchen's foresight.
Therefore, after pondering for a moment, a look of determination flashed in Chen Dongxiang's eyes, and he said: "If your Excellency wants Xiaguan to take the opportunity to lurk with Huang Yourong, there is still a chance. Although Xiaguan categorically rejected the recruitment of Huang Yourong's group, , but Huo Zhengyuan doesn’t seem to give up, so as long as the official’s attitude softens a little and he takes the opportunity to lurk under Huang Yourong’s family, it won’t be difficult. It’s just..."
Having said this, Chen Dongxiang paused slightly and glanced at Zhao Junchen hesitantly.
Seeing the change in Chen Dongxiang's expression, Zhao Junchen seemed to have already anticipated Chen Dongxiang's concerns at this time, and said: "It's just that the reason why Huang Yourong wants to recruit you is just to use your hands to deal with me. If you After joining Huang Yourong's sect, I will not have any achievements at all, and I will not be trusted and valued by Huang Yourong's group, but is that so?"
Chen Dongxiang lowered his head and said: "Your Excellency, you are aware of thousands of miles, and I admire you."
Zhao Junchen smiled and said: "Of course I have already thought about these."
While speaking, Zhao Junchen took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it to Chen Dongxiang in front of him.
Chen Dongxiang took it respectfully, then unfolded it and felt a chill in his heart.
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It turned out that on this piece of paper, the names of many officials were listed, and next to the names, some evidence of the crimes of these officials were annotated!
The most important thing is that not only all of these officials came from Zhao Junchen's sect, but many of them also had senior qualifications under Zhao Junchen, long before Zhao Junchen annexed Wen Guanliang's power. He had already taken refuge in Zhao Junchen! Although they are just doctors and outsiders of the household department, they have been relying on Zhao Junchen for many years and have made many contributions to Zhao Junchen's control of the household department. He is also loyal to Zhao Junchen!
But at this time, Zhao Junchen suddenly listed the names of these officials and the evidence of their crimes one by one, and handed them to Chen Dongxiang. His intention was already very clear.
Zhao Junchen plans to take advantage of this party struggle to completely eradicate these officials through Chen Dongxiang and Huang Yourong! !
Thinking about these people's loyalty to Zhao Junchen. As well as the credit and hard work he has given to Zhao Junchen over the years, Zhao Junchen's attitude now is even with Chen Dongxiang's selfish temper. At this time, he couldn't help but feel cold in his heart.
Zhao Junchen on the side could naturally see Chen Dongxiang's change of mind.
Zhao Junchen sighed and said, "As you may have guessed, the names of the officials listed on this paper are exactly what you will submit to Huang Yourong in the future! Many of these officials are old people under my sect. In your opinion After taking refuge in Huang Yourong, if you can help Huang Yourong rectify them, I think Huang Yourong will definitely take you seriously."
"However, these colleagues have always been loyal to you, sir..."
Chen Dongxiang looked up at Zhao Junchen and probed cautiously.
Zhao Junchen shook his head: "Since this period of time, my power in the court has expanded too fast, and the disciples I have recruited are all a mixed bag, some are incompetent, some are too capable of doing bad things, and some are Simply put, the spies placed under my sect will be harmful to our future development, so I can use this opportunity to fight against Huang Yourong's party to clean things up."
At this point, Zhao Junchen sighed again and said: "It's a pity that some of them are old people who have followed me in the Ministry of Household Affairs for many years. Their loyalty and ability are not bad, but they were spoiled by me in the past. Yes, but I am too greedy. Now the Household Department is in such a mess that they have made me unable to do anything I want to do.
In fact, I have been giving them opportunities. I not only gave them many other benefits, but also gave them repeated warnings, hoping that they would be more restrained. Unfortunately, these people really have no money, and they act too unscrupulously just because they have my protection! If this continues, the Household Department will be hollowed out by them sooner or later, and the Household Department has always been my foundation in the government. If something happens to the Household Department, it will be detrimental to everyone, so for the sake of the overall situation, even though I know their loyalty and ability, but could only bear the pain and abandon them. "
While speaking, Zhao Junchen looked at Chen Dongxiang in front of him with sharp eyes, and said slowly: "However, the world today is so cruel. If a person cannot see the situation clearly and cannot adapt to new changes, he will always be eliminated. This is especially true in the officialdom. I have clearly given these people a chance, but they have always refused to change, and they can only be eliminated. I think you will understand this, Mr. Chen, right?"
Chen Dongxiang naturally understood what Zhao Junchen's words meant.
Zhao Junchen plans to use Huang Yourong's help to clean up his officials this time, especially since many of them are old men who are loyal to Zhao Junchen. If word spreads, it will definitely have a bad impact on Zhao Junchen's reputation among the factions. Therefore, what Zhao Junchen said was a warning to Chen Dongxiang not to spread this matter.
Therefore, Chen Dongxiang did not hesitate at all, and immediately solemnly promised: "My lord, this is for overall consideration, and I will naturally understand it. Please rest assured, my lord, I will definitely keep this matter secret and will never let a third party know!"
After hearing Chen Dongxiang's assurance, Zhao Junchen showed a happy and satisfied look on his face and said, "Mr. Chen is really smart and always knows everything from the first point. I feel much more relaxed when talking to you, Mr. Chen."
"Your Excellency, you are exaggerating."
Chen Dongxiang lowered his head and said.
This time Zhao Junchen took advantage of the party struggle to clean up his subordinate officials, which was quite a shock to Chen Dongxiang.
If before, Chen Dongxiang had some scruples about Zhao Junchen because of Zhao Junchen's scheming methods, then now the decisiveness and ruthlessness shown by Zhao Junchen in cleaning up his subordinates made Chen Dongxiang in awe.
However, precisely because this incident was so shocking, Zhao Junchen was not afraid to reveal it to Chen Dongxiang, because even if Chen Dongxiang really betrayed Zhao Junchen and made the incident public in the future, it would be difficult for the world to believe it.
On the other side, Zhao Junchen understood what he meant when he saw Chen Dongxiang, and seemed to inadvertently assure him: "It's not an exaggeration. I'm telling the truth. There are really few talents under my disciples now. As loyal as Mr. Chen It is even rarer to have someone who is both capable and intelligent. Now it is really unfair for Mr. Chen to just hold the position of Minister of the Ministry of Industry."
Hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Chen Dongxiang's eyes flashed, but he lowered his head and listened to Zhao Junchen continue without interrupting.
I only heard Zhao Junchen ask slowly: "Speaking of which, the reason why I was able to defeat Wen Guanliang in the court and annexed most of Wen Guanliang's power in the court. Mr. Chen, you deserve the greatest credit, but unfortunately I have never found it. I’ll repay Mr. Chen with the opportunity, Mr. Chen, you won’t blame me, right?”
Chen Dongxiang said quickly: "I don't dare to do this."
Zhao Junchen said: "To be honest, my foundation was not stable at the beginning. Although I knew your talents, Mr. Chen, I didn't dare to reuse you easily. But now, times have changed. It's time for you, Mr. Chen, to show your talents. Speaking of which. According to my plan, when His Majesty ends his tour to the south of Beijing, that is when Huang Yourong falls. But in this way, a position will be vacant in the cabinet. And for the position of the new cabinet and the old , I intend to fight for it with all my strength. After all, it will be inconvenient for us if there is no one in the cabinet."
Listen to what Zhao Junchen said. Chen Dongxiang's body couldn't help but tremble slightly, and he thought of a lot in an instant.
Although Zhao Junchen has some power and influence in the court. But because his qualifications are too low, he cannot join the cabinet and serve as cabinet minister. As a result, the position of Pavilion Senior that Zhao Junchen had won could only be given to his subordinate officials.
Among Zhao Junchen's disciples, only Zuo Lanshan, the current minister of the Ministry of Industry, is left who is qualified and qualified to hold the position of elder.
However, Emperor Chongzhen of the previous dynasty, in order to prevent the cabinet from becoming too powerful and to limit the influence of the cabinet, set rules. If court officials enter the cabinet and serve as cabinet ministers, they are not allowed to hold other actual positions.
In this way, after Zuo Lanshan became the cabinet minister, the position of minister of the Ministry of Industry became vacant!
And Zhao Junchen suddenly mentioned this matter at this time, apparently intending to hand over the vacant position of Minister of the Ministry of Industry to Chen Dongxiang!
From the minister to the minister, he was promoted from the third rank to the second rank. Although he was only promoted by one rank, his treatment and status in the court were completely different.
To put it simply, the position of Minister is just to run errands for the court, while the position of Minister of the Sixth Ministry can already participate in the policy formulation of the court!
For an ambitious person like Chen Dongxiang, this is naturally a great temptation.
Although Huo Zhengyuan also proposed similar benefits before, compared with Zhao Junchen's current promise, it was just painting a bigger picture.
Just as Chen Dongxiang's thoughts were changing, Zhao Junchen had already confirmed Chen Dongxiang's thoughts and said with a smile: "My own qualifications and reputation are still too low, so I plan to hand over the position of the new pavilion boss to Zuo Lanshan. Your Excellency. At that time, according to the rules set by the late Emperor, the position of Minister of the Ministry of Industry will be vacant again, and this position belongs to you, Mr. Chen."
After receiving Zhao Junchen's accurate reply, Chen Dongxiang stood up quickly and said loudly: "Thank you for your support, sir! I will be loyal to you from now on, but I will do whatever I ask you to do!"
Zhao Junchen said with a smile: "We are all our own people. Mr. Chen, you are also talented, so I should do this. As long as Mr. Chen works for me with your heart, this is just the beginning. I only hope that Mr. Chen will not forget today." That’s good!”
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When Chen Dongxiang left Shangxian Building with complicated emotions, Zhao Junchen did not leave immediately.
Firstly, it was to avoid being noticed, and secondly, Zhao Junchen really liked the dishes at Shangxianlou and planned to continue to taste some of the delicious food here.
Soon after Chen Dongxiang left, Xu Qingyan opened the door and entered the private room.
"Qingyan, you came just in time. Sit down and try the dishes here with me. The reputation of Shangxian Building in Beijing is indeed true. It seems that I will come here often in the future. The skills of the cooks here are better than There are many clever things in our house, you should sit down and have a try!"
Hearing Zhao Junchen's greeting, Xu Qingyan was not in the same mood as Zhao Junchen.
Although Xu Qingyan and Fang Ru had different personalities, this time he had the same attitude as Fang Ru. He thought that Zhao Junchen was too careless to just let go of Chen Dongxiang's intention to betray and give Chen Dongxiang such an important task.
Therefore, after Xu Qingyan sat next to Zhao Junchen, although he raised his chopsticks, he was not in a hurry to taste Shangxianlou's delicious dishes. He just frowned and asked: "Master, are you really planning to use this Chen Dongxiang to betray Huang Yourong? I see this Chen Dongxiang is not a good person. Not only is he selfish, but he is also too smart and difficult to control. If we let him pretend to join Huang Yourong this time, he might actually betray you, young master."
Zhao Junchen still looked indifferent and just said: "It is precisely because Chen Dongxiang is too smart and selfish that he will make the best choice for him. And now, continuing to work for me, for him, It's the most beneficial choice. If that's the case, why can't I use him with confidence? What's more, Fang Ru is also helping to keep an eye on it, so what's there to worry about? "
Having said this, Zhao Junchen took a piece of longan and phoenix liver and put it into his mouth. After tasting it carefully, he saw that Xu Qingyan's expression was still a little uneasy and smiled: "It's actually easy to control smart people. Smart people will always make the right decision." choice, and I just need to put the right choice in front of them. If this smart man is not a good person, it will be a good thing for me. At least, he will not blame me because I am a corrupt official. He yelled at me to beat him and kill him. Fortunately, this Chen Dongxiang is not a good person and he is smart, otherwise, I would not trust him anymore."
After hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Xu Qingyan thought for a moment, but couldn't find a reason to refute Zhao Junchen. In desperation, he had no choice but to say nothing more and just taste the delicacies of Shangxianlou with Zhao Junchen.
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ps: It’s still a two-in-one chapter of 5,000 words. (To be continued...)
