Time flies, and half a year has passed in a blink of an eye.
Ever since he lost his last confrontation with Gao Pangshi in front of the prince and was "demoted two levels by the emperor and temporarily ordered to serve as the original official for meritorious service", Feng Bao has behaved extremely honestly.
Now, not only has he restrained himself a lot in accepting bribes, but when faced with Gao Pragmatism, the Chief Eunuch Bingbi of the Bureau of Ceremony, the Admiral of the East Factory, and the dignified number two figure in the inner court always smiles with his face, just like a The dog that originally planned to bite someone was kicked in the face and made a miserable look.
Not only that, in many public occasions, when Feng Bao faced high pragmatism, his performance could no longer be described with words such as humility, politeness, and respect, but should be described with words such as submissiveness, humiliation, and servility. to describe.
Because this situation was so abnormal, loyal ministers from outside the court inquired about it, hoping to know the reason. I don’t know which Zheshe figure with great supernatural powers and hands and eyes was the first to come up with the joke about "The Gao Shi recited the witty words and defeated Feng Du Gong". The outer court suddenly realized in amazement and praised the young master of the Gao family. The best candidate to accompany the prince, some people even joked that Gao Shidu was the current "little pavilion elder". Everyone laughed and said nothing, but also acquiesced.
Gao Pragmatic had to accompany the prince at all times when he was in the palace. When he returned to the palace, he not only had to attend to his own schoolwork, but also had to take care of his career progress from multiple directions, so he never knew what the outside world thought of him. It wasn't until this day that the disciples under the Gao Gongmen gathered again. After meeting Gao Jingshi, they all unanimously called him "Xiaoge Lao". Gao Jingshi was shocked to know that he was given such a nickname by the outside world.
After the surprise, a chill ran down my spine.
Not only did he not feel complacent about his so-called "power" at all, but he saw the danger in it at a glance.
Xiao Ge Lao? What a "Xiao Ge Lao"!
Dare I ask who was the last person known as Xiao Ge Lao? What's the result!
That was Yan Shifan, and finally the son of Yan Song who was beheaded!
The first thing that came out of Gao Pingshi's mind at that time was the famous sentence "Do you want me to live on the fire?"
When he calls out the phrase "Xiaoge Lao", it is equivalent to comparing himself to Yan Shifan. This guy was finally executed and there was no one to rehabilitate him. You can imagine what kind of character he is. He will definitely be sung in the opera. The white-faced traitor.
To go deeper, I am Gao Pragmatic and I am Mr. Xiaoge, so who is Mr. Laoge? Are you implying that my third uncle, Gao Gong, is the second Yan Song?
How vicious are the intentions!
He has been a pragmatic man for two lifetimes, but he never thought of becoming a foolish and loyal minister like Bigan. Although he has his own ideals and ambitions, he insists that it is meaningless to be "good at seeking the country but poor at seeking the country" - if you can't even seek for yourself, how can you have the chance to seek for the country? Even if you are given some time to seek your country, how much of your achievements will be retained after your reputation is ruined? How many members of your clan family are left?
Apart from a sigh for future generations when they read history, nothing can be left behind.
Ha, then I am here to "generate electricity for love"? Oh, not only does it generate electricity for love, but the electricity generated is also used by Dr. Yang, the King of Thunder and Lightning, for electrotherapy on himself?
I'm afraid I'm not crazy!
Therefore, the first priority of a high-pragmatic official is to protect oneself, and after that comes things like displaying one's talents and developing one's ambitions. He doesn't feel any shame about this. He feels that this is like our army after the failure of the counter-encirclement and suppression campaign. It is great to stay where you are and fight for your ideals, but it can leave the revolutionary fire behind and spread it all over China in the future. Isn't it right? Great?
Greatness is good, but wisdom is more important. Never sacrifice lightly until the last moment.
Therefore, a person like him certainly does not shy away from judging his opponents with the greatest malice. For example, the words "Xiaoge Lao" made him subconsciously suspect that Feng Bao was responsible.
This is very possible, because Feng Bao suddenly changed his attitude after suffering a loss half a year ago, which aroused Gao Pragmatic's vigilance. He did not feel that Feng Bao had given up the struggle at all - at his position, it was Can you just give up if you say you give up?
If you take a step forward, you will reach the top of the blue clouds; if you take a step back, you will reach the abyss!
Who else could really take this step back?
Did Li Shimin have a way out before the Xuanwumen Incident? Did Zhu Di have a way out before the Jingnan Campaign was launched?
Feng Bao had no retreat, because Gao Gong couldn't retreat either - his sense of responsibility and mission made him unable to tolerate the possibility of a second Liu Jin appearing in the future, so he also had no retreat.
Although Zhang Juzheng finally chose to ally with Feng Bao in history, if Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng were swapped now, Zhang Juzheng would not accept Feng Bao - I have Meng Chong, a minister of ceremony who is not very good but obedient enough. If you cooperate, what do you need Feng Bao to do?
Can you be as obedient as Meng Chong? impossible!
There is a new pig on the table. Apart from eating more, it doesn't have much trouble. Anyway, I am behind the decision. But if there is a fox on the table, do you think it will be as obedient as the pig?
No, it will make its own decisions, even pretending to be powerful!
This contradiction is simply irreconcilable, and with Feng Bao's wisdom, he is able to see this, so all his goodwill and weakness, no matter how extreme, even if he tastes the King of Wu's poop like Gou Jian did, Its fundamental purpose is nothing more than to paralyze the opponent and wait for an opportunity to deliver a fatal blow.
It's just that Feng Bao is not a mediocre person after all. He is not like the villain in some TV series. He always strives to do stupid things. He doesn't seem to be worthy of being a traitor unless he is domineering and showing off his teeth and claws. Feng Bao's behavior was just the opposite. Not only did he show obedience in front of Gao Gong, but he was as afraid of neglecting him as a newly-entered eunuch when meeting a senior minister. He even behaved respectfully in front of Gao Pragmatic.
This gives people the illusion that now, from the palm print to the first stroke of the pen, the Chief of Ceremony has become the lackey of Mr. Gaoge, and the general trend of the world is under the control of Mr. Gaoge.
Because of Feng Bao's unusual "coincidence", the pressure on Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji in the cabinet suddenly increased. Even though Li Chunfang was still the chief minister and Zhao Zhenji was still in charge of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, as the "inner court" as a whole "turned to" Gao Gong, The voting plans of Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji were frequently called back and asked to be redrawn, but Gao Gong's voting plans were always directly approved "approved" without any difficulty. The two of them felt like there was a big mountain pressing down from above their heads. Breathless.
In fact, the actual impact of this move on Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji was very small, because the emperor was not unwilling to listen to what Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji had to say, but the Director of Ceremonies always found some inexplicable reasons and asked Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji to draft it again - the actual content may be There is no change at all - over time, the authority of the two elders will naturally be seriously affected.
Under this situation, Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji had no choice but to ask Chen Yiqin for help.
