At night, Gu Boyang sat blankly in the inn.
Since that day, his prestige among the people has plummeted.
Everyone saw the sharp contrast between King Fu and King Rong.
In fact, this is not just a question of whether one is frightened by thunder, but a comparison of "courage". The rumor that King Rong is less courageous than King Fu has actually been circulated among the people for a long time, and it has been confirmed today.
So, about other rumors about King Rong, are they really just "rumors"?
Obviously, with the confirmation of this one thing, other things have also been accepted by everyone.
Then, Gu Boyang, who spread false news, was naturally despised by everyone.
Although, in theory, he is still defensible, but who made Gu Boyang be led astray in the later period, and he insisted on promoting the merits of King Rong, but as soon as the facts came out, he was naturally slapped in the face.
Especially the job he took as the leader has created a situation where there are no exams and no officials to do the work. It has aroused the dissatisfaction of quite a few people. After all, compared to this so-called "big thing", most of them People are more concerned about their own future. I didn't say it was because the "general trend" was with them before, but now that the general trend has gone, they immediately showed their dissatisfaction.
Gu Boyang sat in front of the table, his face a little gloomy, and the flickering candlelight reflected his face.
The princes are already alienating him. Today he went to visit several ministers, but he was also shut out. This was something that was impossible some time ago.
These days, he has enjoyed enough of his status among the stars. Even the officials in the court greeted him with smiles when he came to his door. Now the huge gap makes him feel very uncomfortable.
This is only second, but more importantly - he messed up.
His task was to mobilize the people to put pressure on the court and contact as many ministers as possible to join their side. It was obvious that this had failed.
Gu Boyang gritted his teeth, then spread out a piece of paper on the table and began to write a letter in a hurry, preparing to seek the next step.
Then it was handed over to a loyal servant for delivery.
As luck would have it, almost shortly after the servant left the inn, several Jin Yiwei disguised themselves and came outside the inn where Gu Boyang lived. In the name of Luo Sigong, they began to monitor the man named Gu Boyang from today on.
Just missed it.
…
South Zhili, Changzhou.
In an academy.
After reading the letter from the capital, a middle-aged man named Gu Xiancheng became furious and cursed:
"This waste!"
He was also an official of the imperial court, and his highest position was the doctor of the Literary Selection Department of the Ministry of Personnel. However, he firmly opposed the merger of the two kings, so Wanli directly dismissed him.
However, this dismissal brought him great prestige, and his friends in the court, Ye Xianggao and others, still maintained contact with him. This allowed him to still intervene in the court even though he was a civilian. thing.
And he did not waste his reputation. He immediately gathered some people at Donglin Academy in Wuxi to give lectures and discuss politics at the same time.
Relying on his reputation as "loyal and outspoken", as well as the fact that many officials were demoted because of the appointment of the crown prince, they all gathered with him, making the academy instantly famous, attracting many scholars, and gaining the initial ability to influence public opinion. , many officials influenced by the Donglin lineage also entered the court, making them more powerful.
However, after all, Gu Xiancheng's family is not the only one in this world. Not far to the south, there are business robbers. Although Dongqian Academy was suppressed during Zhang Juzheng's administration, its scope of activities was limited to Ningbo Prefecture and other places. After the death of Zhang Juzheng, they became active again. Now there are signs of rebirth. Many related Wangxue academies have begun to be established in various places in the Ming Dynasty.
There are also many scholars who originally planned to come to Donglin, but they were attracted by them. After all, it was a once-popular existence.
In order to maintain his influence, Gu Xiancheng planned to use some off-the-beaten-path tricks, which led to the "Worry and Risk Hongyi" that spread all over the world.
And Gu Boyang is his nephew, and his actions are also part of Gu Xiancheng's plan. Now that he messed up, how can he not be angry?
"Brother, what happened?" someone next to him asked.
He is Gu Xiancheng's younger brother, Gu Yuncheng.
Gu Xiancheng handed over the letter and said dissatisfiedly:
"My original intention was to stir up a wave of public opinion and question why the emperor did not appoint Prince Rong as the crown prince. At the same time, I wanted to direct the topic to the four people in the cabinet to tell the world that your Majesty did not establish a crown prince, and acted slyly with these four people and even secretly supported them. It’s about the emperor.”
"In this case, the scholars and the people are all on our side, and even His Majesty has to change his will and make King Rong the crown prince, and the four cabinet members will inevitably step down! By then, we will be able to achieve what has been done Xiang Gao, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, was brought into the cabinet and initially assumed power."
"With the addition of Sancai, Yunzhen and others, wouldn't it be possible to promote people of our generation? Our party will be complete! And we can also take this opportunity to greatly improve our reputation... Look ahead For two days, I gave a speech in the academy and criticized the imperial court. The occasion was unprecedented! More than a thousand people listened to it, which was an unprecedented occasion!"
"According to the plan, within a few years, we will be able to control the court in the countryside, drive out evil and evil, and bring justice to the court!"
Gu Xiancheng slammed the table hard, ambition flashing in his eyes.
Although he was dismissed from office, he never planned to die peacefully in the countryside. His eyes were always focused on the court.
Once the plan is successful, he can control the world with his commoner body. At that time, he will be the Prime Minister without a throne! But now his plan has a huge problem, and this started in the capital.
"Boyang is in the capital, and by taking advantage of his status as an imperial examination candidate, he can not only further pressure His Majesty, but also take the opportunity to make friends with people in our party. If done correctly, it is not impossible to make more than a hundred students into our party. The imperial examination is a major matter for the country. Now that all the imperial examination candidates are rebelling against it, Your Majesty will be under great pressure, but what about now?"
"Pray for rain once, and it's all over! How come the public opinion has reversed, it turns out that they are from the capital! It depends on whether you pray for rain, whether it is wise or not! As long as we grasp the etiquette, we will be invincible ! Now, who else is willing to make friends with him? Who else is willing to work with him to persecute the emperor? "
"The great situation has turned into a debate between two factions! If someone supports it, the emperor will have hope. How can we force him to establish a prince? If the establishment is not changed and the cabinet is not changed, our scholars here will soon follow the trend and disperse. of!"
(End of chapter)
