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Zhou Shangjing was a powerful official with the most far-sighted vision, the deepest government, and the most brilliant methods in the Ming Dynasty for hundreds of years.
Zhou Shangjing's plans are always far-reaching, comprehensive, and hidden. Before he is sure of victory, he never takes risks and never reveals his true intentions prematurely. He is always patient, meticulous, and low-key. Perfect and prepared, and quietly waiting for the best opportunity to appear; when Zhou Shangjing finally starts to take action, it often means that Zhou Shangjing's plan is close to success, and then the officials will be at a loss and the situation will change. scene.
In the past twenty years, this situation has happened many times without incident.
In recent days, although Zhao Junchen's city government methods have grown a lot, they are still not as sophisticated and experienced as Zhou Shangjing. Therefore, Zhao Junchen naturally could not guess that Zhou Shangjing wanted to use him to "raise thieves for self-respect" and " The thought of "draining misfortune eastward".
However, Zhao Junchen is a villain, full of despicable thoughts in his heart, and he is best at judging others by himself. He never believes that there is unreasonable goodwill between politicians. Zhou Shangjing secretly takes care of him and treats him differently. Zhao Junchen He had always been suspicious and secretly vigilant. Zhao Junchen was not unguarded against Zhou Shangjing's ulterior motives.
Therefore, even if Zhou Shangjing suddenly saw him, Zhao Junchen would never surrender without the ability to fight back.
Of course, being prepared is one thing, but being able to defeat Zhou Shangjing in the end is another.
At this time, Zhao Junchen did not know Zhou Shangjing's secret instigation, nor did he know the changes in the minds of the "Zhou Party" officials. He just noticed Zhou Shangjing's quiet attention to him, and bowed to Zhou Shangjing from a distance, with a very respectful attitude. .
Zhou Shangjing still nodded to Zhao Junchen with a look of appreciation on his face.
After that, there was no communication between the two.
*
"Master Zhao, you are frightened!"
"Master Zhao, after hearing the news of your assassination, I have been worried and restless. Now that you are safe and sound, I feel relieved!"
"I heard that after the assassin who assassinated Mr. Zhao was caught by Xichang, he was intercepted and killed on the way... but he didn't know who the mastermind behind it was. He was really audacious! Such unscrupulousness, Do you still have court laws and regulations in your eyes?"
"Please rest assured, Mr. Zhao, my subordinate has ordered the Sanfa Division to find out the real culprit and catch the mastermind as soon as possible. This matter must not be left alone!"
"Master Zhao..."
Outside the Meridian Gate, when Zhao Junchen appeared, the officials were quiet for a moment, but soon many officials rushed to Zhao Junchen, expressing condolences with concern or indignant rebuke. In an instant, more than ten officials gathered around Zhao Junchen, and the scene was quite lively.
Many "Zhao Party" officials originally wanted to get close to Zhao Junchen and ask Zhao Junchen about the matters to be paid attention to and their respective tasks in this morning's meeting. However, due to such circumstances, the "Zhao Party" officials could not squeeze in Zhao Junchen for a while. around.
Regarding the eagerness of these officials, Zhao Junchen reacted somewhat indifferently, and only responded indifferently.
Because these officials in front of them are all opponents of the imperial government's rectification of commercial taxes, and their positions are extremely firm! In other words, they are all Zhao Junchen’s political enemies in the DPRK and China! Nowadays, their various behaviors are definitely not to please Zhao Junchen or to seek refuge with Zhao Junchen, but because they have heard some news and know that Zhao Junchen's assassination is related to the court's rectification of business taxation, so they For fear that they would be implicated, like Shen Changmao, they also wanted to find opportunities to express their positions and reduce their suspicions.
However, after all, they are not Shen Changmao, and Zhao Junchen will not ask for anything from them. Moreover, Zhao Junchen deliberately linked his assassination with the court's rectification of business and taxation, just to deal with these people in front of him, so Zhao Junchen naturally I won't show off to them - after all, these officials in front of me are all "suspects" in the assassination of Zhao Junchen!
After seeing Zhao Junchen's cold and distant attitude, these officials quickly left angrily.
Then, a group of "Zhao Party" officials quickly took over their positions, gathered around Zhao Junchen, and asked Zhao Junchen about the countermeasures for today's morning meeting. After Zhao Junchen gave a few instructions to everyone in the "Zhao Party" , but before the morning court had started, he suddenly left the crowd of "Zhao Party" people and walked towards Shen Changmao not far away.
Seeing Zhao Junchen's actions, all the officials were shocked!
After all, Zhao Junchen and Shen Changmao are not only political enemies, but according to rumors in the market, Shen Changmao is the biggest suspect who sent someone to assassinate Zhao Junchen!
At this time, why did Zhao Junchen have a private meeting with Shen Changmao?
In fact, due to the influence of rumors, the attention Shen Changmao received today was not much lower than that of Zhao Junchen. Many officials pointed at Shen Changmao and talked about it, making Shen Changmao feel quite uncomfortable.
When Shen Changmao saw Zhao Junchen's actions, he was slightly stunned.
But soon, Shen Changmao reacted, knowing that Zhao Junchen wanted to fulfill the deal between the two, and took the opportunity to show his trust in Shen Changmao, and Shen Changmao could also take the opportunity to express his position to counterattack the market. rumors.
Therefore, Shen Changmao also left the crowd of "Shen Party" people and greeted Zhao Junchen.
After the two met, they both smiled and looked affectionate. While talking in low voices, they were even more intimate, as if the relationship between the two was not only not political enemies, but close and die-hard allies.
But in fact, the seemingly cordial meeting and conversation between the two was just a gesture. Although it attracted the close attention of officials, the conversation between the two did not have any substantive content and was just hypocritical politeness.
*
False politeness has always been a required course for politicians. Unfortunately, neither Zhao Junchen nor Shen Changmao are good at this. It actually requires a lot of skill to say something without repetition and without actual content. Therefore, Zhao Junchen and Shen Changmao Shen Changmao soon ran out of words.
Fortunately, just when Zhao Junchen and Shen Changmao were about to run out of words, the sound of bells and drums rang out from the Meridian Gate, and then the palace gate of the Forbidden City slowly opened, and today's morning dynasty was finally about to begin.
At the same time, all the officials were refreshed!
Yesterday, first Zhao Junchen was assassinated, and then Xichang was attacked. Zhao Junchen’s assassin was also silenced. This incident shocked the government and the public, and Emperor Deqing must have been extremely shocked and angry!
Therefore, today's morning meeting is bound to be a turbulent scene!
But I don’t know who will be unlucky in the end? Who will benefit?
Either expecting or worrying, all the officials with different thoughts entered the Forbidden City one after another, preparing for the upcoming changes in the situation!
*
As expected by the officials, Emperor Deqing attached great importance to today's morning court.
When the officials entered the Huangji Hall, they didn't wait too long. Emperor Deqing showed up, and anyone could see the anger in his expression.
When all the officials knelt down to welcome him, before the great eunuch Zhang De shouted loudly, "If you have something to do, please report early, but if nothing happens, leave the court." Emperor Deqing snorted coldly, and said angrily: "Yesterday, Zhao Junchen, the Minister of Household Affairs, was assassinated. It makes me both shocked and angry, but also chilled! Such a bad incident could happen near the bustling city at the feet of the emperor, and in broad daylight! How bad is the public security in the capital? And who is it, who can be so lawless? How dare you flout the court laws and regulations like this? Shuntian Mansion, Sanfa Division, and the 26th Guards of the Capital City actually allowed this kind of thing to happen. They were unprepared beforehand and helpless afterwards. How derelict and incompetent were they?!"
Following Emperor Deqing's loud rebuke, the relevant officials from Shuntian Prefecture, the Imperial Procuratorate, Dali Temple, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Fifth Military Governor's Office were all frightened. They knelt down to plead guilty and shouted in unison, "I am guilty!"
Seeing the performance of these officials, Emperor Deqing not only did not calm down, but his anger became even higher. He continued to reprimand loudly: "Guilty? Of course you are guilty! You are stupid and incompetent. You don't want to be loyal to the court on weekdays, but you only know how to fight for power and gain. As a result, the imperial court has been ruined, civil laws and regulations have been corrupted, and the centuries-old prestige of the imperial court has been lost in one day! Are you more than guilty? You are guilty of a grave crime!"
After saying that, Emperor Deqing's eyes flashed, and after a quick glance at Zhou Shangjing, his angry eyes suddenly stared at Xue Gui, Yin of Shuntian Prefecture, and Zhang Bochong, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment!
These two people are Zhou Shangjing's die-hard confidants and important friends! Public security in the capital and court laws and regulations are also within the scope of their responsibilities, so they will be most implicated in the assassination of Zhao Junchen.
Although Emperor Deqing and Zhou Shangjing have temporarily stopped fighting and are in the stage of cooperation, if they can use the assassination of Zhao Junchen to eradicate Xue Gui and Zhang Bochong in an honest and fair manner and take the opportunity to weaken Zhou Shangjing's influence, Emperor Deqing will definitely Never miss an opportunity.
Therefore, after Emperor Deqing came to court, he did not first seek to talk to Zhao Junchen, the protagonist of the assassination. Instead, he put on an extremely angry look. He just wanted to use the topic to take advantage of Zhou Shangjing and the "Zhou Party" officials before they responded. When he came over, he dismissed Xue Gui and Zhang Bochong from their official positions and settled the matter in advance.
However, Zhou Shangjing had been fighting openly and secretly with Emperor Deqing for many years, so he knew everything about it, and he had naturally guessed what Emperor Deqing was thinking.
Therefore, Emperor Deqing was about to ask Xue Gui and Zhang Bochong for questioning, but Zhou Shangjing was the first to go out and report to Emperor Deqing: "Your Majesty, I want to impeach Xue Gui, Yin of Shuntian Prefecture, and Zhang Bochong, Minister of Punishment, for dereliction of duty and negligence! "
Upon hearing Zhou Shangjing's speech, everyone in the court, including Emperor Deqing, was stunned.
Xue Gui and Zhang Bochong are Zhou Shangjing's die-hard cronies and important cronies. This is a well-known fact. Why did Zhou Shangjing impeach them first? Could it be that Zhou Shangjing already had the consciousness of exterminating relatives for justice?
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ps: Computer crashes have been frequent in recent times. I asked someone to repair it. It turned out that the fan had accumulated dust and stopped spinning at all.
…(To be continued ~^~)
