"Qiuzhen is here, sit down."
In the study, Zhang Siwei came in pragmatically, his face looked a little better, and he squeezed out a smile.
Of course, Gao pragmatic couldn't sit down directly. After smiling and coming forward to greet him, he sat down when Zhang Taizheng said "please sit down" again.
Zhang Siwei saw that he had made great achievements and returned, but he was still neither arrogant nor impetuous, and was polite and polite. He laughed and said: "Qiuzhen has done great things in Guangxi! Originally, your trip to Guangxi was just a temporary measure, but unexpectedly... ...Haha, it’s really unexpected.”
That is, don’t tell me that you didn’t expect it. I didn’t expect to do such things before I went to Guangxi.
"Uncle, to tell you the truth, my nephew himself didn't expect that he would have such an opportunity."
Zhang Siwei waved his hand and said with a smile: "It can be seen that although things in the world are unpredictable, successful people are always those who can best seize opportunities."
Gao Pingshi smiled and raised his eyebrows slightly: "Mr. Shen Ge is also good at seizing opportunities. Uncle, don't you think so?"
"You are worthy of the truth-seeking spirit of 'partial division in Annan'. Why, you just heard Tai Zheng say that I was impeached, and you already knew what Shen Rumo wanted to do?"
Zhang Siwei seemed to know the rules here, so there must be another reason for his displeasure.
However, what is the meaning of "partially teaching Annan"? In order to take the credit for this, the imperial court now counts the credit for defeating Annan as "partial force"? It doesn't matter, the wolf soldiers are chieftain soldiers, so it's not too much to say they are partial to the division.
In fact, he misunderstood this. This statement is a folk saying - the people also hope that this is the court's strategy.
Gao pragmatically rolled his eyes slightly and said: "Mr. Shenge, it's just a test to see what kind of style your new Yuanfu will have after he comes to power... tough or gentle."
"Is that just this?" Zhang Siwei shook his head and said, "Also, you continue."
Gao Jingshi was slightly surprised. It seemed that he had underestimated his uncle before. In the original history, he was first favored by Gao Gong, promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and was trained by his side. After Gao Gong stepped down, he became a Gao Gong. The leader of the Jin Party, a party ally, was actually highly regarded by Zhang Juzheng and recommended as his second assistant.
Gao Jingshi didn't think it was strange at first. Putting Gao Gong aside, Gao Jingshi just thought it was Zhang Juzheng who was trying to win over the Jin Party. But looking back now, when Zhang Juzheng was in power, he himself said that he was "not an assistant, but a photographer." So what was the need to win over a mere Jin party?
It can be seen that Zhang Siwei must be capable. Not only can he see what the leader wants, but he can also do things for the leader that he has thought about but cannot say.
Therefore, Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "Uncle, I have a sharp eye. My nephew thinks that in addition to testing, Mr. Shen Ge may also want to attack your prestige before you take over."
"Hahahahaha!" Zhang Siwei laughed loudly and said: "Okay, okay, it seems that there is indeed a successor to the practical school lineage. Gao Wenzhenggong should have closed his eyes under Jiuquan. To tell you the truth, when I just learned the news , I was extremely angry, and after I came back and got angry, I slowly realized the true meaning of it. The future life is terrible."
Gao Pragmatic raised his hands and said, "Otherwise, if my nephew was in the position of my uncle, I'm afraid he would be even more angry, and he might not be able to calm down and think about the key to it even now."
Zhang Siwei waved his hand and said: "You don't have to be too modest. In the past ten years, I have watched you grow up. Do you know what your temper is? I have never seen you angry in these ten years."
As he spoke, he couldn't help showing a hint of inquiry and said, "Speaking of which, I'm a little curious, how did you develop this temperament?"
Gao Pragmatic smiled bitterly and said: "My nephew always calculates things to the worst-case scenario. In this way, no matter how bad the situation is, it is usually not worse than expected, so it is difficult to be angry."
Zhang Siwei laughed and said: "Is this considered as thinking about defeat before thinking about victory? This is the same truth."
Then, without waiting for a pragmatic answer, he continued to ask: "When it comes to victory or defeat, since you like to think about the worst situation first, then tell me, this time Yuan Fu will retire, what is the worst situation for the practical learning lineage in the future? ?”
Gao pragmatically said: "There are two points: in the long run, I am afraid that I will not be able to take over the job; in the short term, I am afraid that my uncle will be framed."
"If I am upright, I am not afraid of the slanting shadow. If I am falsely accused, they can only use these few reasons, but the emperor knows very well that it will not play a big role." Zhang Siwei looked at Gao Pragmatic and said: "But you said that Qinghuang will not accept it. But what does it mean? Not to mention that Yuan Fu and I have their own students, but just talking about Gao Wenzhenggong's students, there are already some students in the ministry, how can they not accept them? "
This is not easy to explain, because according to normal people's thinking, after Zhang Siwei takes over as the first assistant, he still has more than ten years to take his time. By then, not to mention his own students should all be promoted to a relatively high level. The key to the high position is Gao Gong's former students. I'm afraid someone will be able to join the cabinet long ago.
Even if Xu Guo is going smoothly, isn't he just a student of Gao Gong? Now he has joined the cabinet.
But historically, Zhang Siwei's official career was interrupted by his parents, his grandparents. The two elders passed away one after another, and Zhang Siwei had to worry about staying at home. Then, due to the death of his parents one after another, he was so sad that he also died of illness.
Gao Pragmatic had no choice but to say: "I heard from the teacher that before he left, he would recommend Mr. Pan Shuilian to join the cabinet. At that time, there will be two masters from the practical school and one from the Xinxue cabinet. They seem to be evenly matched, but since we are preparing for the worst, we have to assume The other party is fine, but something happens to us, such as Ding You goes to the cabinet... I would like to ask uncle, if you or Mr. Xu Ge are not in the cabinet, can the successors of my practical school sect be better than the ministers of the Xinxue sect in the next few years? Be the first to join the cabinet?"
This statement is a bit unlucky. Generally speaking, you shouldn't speak like this. However, Gao Pragmatic has just explained that it is "preparing for the worst." Therefore, Zhang Siwei couldn't say anything. He just pondered and said a lot of practical lessons. , the successor of Xin Xue appeared in his mind.
After a while, Zhang Siwei's face turned ugly and he said, "I'm afraid it's not good."
Gao pragmatically asked: "What's wrong?"
"If the situation you mentioned occurs in three or four years, the most promising ones are probably Wang Xijue and Wang Jiaping. If we push it back two or three years, there will be Zhao Zhigao, Zhang Wei, Chen Yubi, Shen Yiguan, and Zhu Geng. Of course, Wu Dui also has a chance." Zhang Siwei's face was ashen and he said: "There is only one Wang Jiaping here who is from the north, and the rest are from the south. Although Wang Jiaping is from Shanxi, he always seeks fame and reputation, and has an aggressive temper. , not what I like."
Gao pragmatically spread his hands: "Look, this is a big trouble."
In addition to Wu Dui, a hardcore practical school, Chen Yubi is the son of former great scholar Chen Yiqin. Chen Yiqin has always been neutral. His son basically has the same style, so I won't talk about it for now.
The remaining Wang Xijue is from Suzhou, South Zhili, Zhao Zhigao is from Jinhua, Zhejiang, Zhang Wei is from Nanchang, Jiangxi, Shen Guanyi is from Ningbo, Zhejiang, and Zhu Geng is from Shaoxing, Zhejiang.
These places are all strongholds of Xinxue, and their political attitudes are self-explanatory.
Wang Jiaping, who was a member of Datong, Shanxi Province, was still a loner. Even the Jin Party refused to accept him, and he refused to join the "party". His style of dealing with things was just one word: squirting.
Gao Pragmatic has a slight impression of Wang Jiaping in history. It only took him two years to go from being an official in Japan to the Sixth Ministry, and then to join the cabinet, which is the best in the history of the Ming Dynasty. After he entered the cabinet, he was originally the last person in the cabinet, and since everyone else was from the south, he, a Shanxi native, did not have much say. However, cabinet members died one after another, and the remaining Xu Guoshen Shixing resigned at the same time. The filial son Wang Xijue went home to visit relatives, and Wang Jiaping was inexplicably chosen as the first assistant.
However, Wang Jiaping did nothing in his position as chief minister. He just kept getting angry with the emperor and submitted his resignation to scold the emperor. But after Wang Jiaping resigned as prime minister, the "gentlemen" thought endlessly. When Gu Xiancheng would recommend cabinet ministers in the future, it was because he insisted on writing Wang Jiaping's name. Zhu Yijun was so angry that he almost died. In anger, he immediately asked Gu Xiancheng to pack up and go back to his hometown - —So an organization called the Donglin Party was born in the Ming Dynasty.
Therefore, although Wang Jiaping is from Shanxi, he is definitely unreliable. His only interest is to defy the emperor and do things? nonexistent. To be honest, this kind of person just wants to join the Pragmatic Party, but Gao Pragmatic would not agree, even if he has the leadership and support.
Wang Xijue is an outstanding person, but he has been introduced in the previous article, so I won’t mention him.
As for Zhao Zhigao, Gao Pragmatic has a fair impression of him. The main reason is that although this person may not have much ability, he is generally not bad at least. However, this person lacks responsibility and means. Whether he is an enemy or a friend... he is actually relatively good. It doesn't matter.
Of course, in history, during Zhao Zhigao's tenure, Ming Dynasty did something that will be talked about by future generations - resisting Japan and aiding Korea. This may be the most glorious and praised thing of the Wanli Dynasty, but Zhao Zhigao, the first assistant, is known for being old and useless. Perhaps it was precisely because the planning and coordination of the expedition to Korea was so arduous and there were so many changes that the cabinet ministers' weaknesses were exposed. So the emperor despised his ministers, and because of the emperor's contempt, the power of the cabinet was even more despised.
In history, during the era when Gao Gong was in power and when Zhang Juzheng was in power, his words were basically honest. Relying on this inertia, when Shen Shixing and Wang Xijue were in power, they were still somewhat cautious about their speech, but this completely changed in the Zhao Zhigao era. He wrote a couplet to himself as a motto and code of conduct:
Return the authority and blessings to the Lord, return the power to the six ministers, ask for excuses from relatives and friends, and give public advice to the platform.
Be sincere in order to serve the superiors, clean oneself in order to be a common official, cut off loyalty to the virtuous below, and remove selfishness in order to eliminate dangerous sycophants.
In other times, this may have been just a political gesture. In the past, cabinet ministers openly used this kind of lofty couplet, secretly tried their best to seize power, and then shouted "the power of the cabinet is getting weaker" and "everything will come to an end" to avoid the aftermath. However, Zhao Zhigao clamored to give back his power. As soon as he made a gesture, his power was snatched away. It was amazing.
Because Zhao Zhigao returned power to the Six Ministers, he has no power. He has no power, so why should others take advantage of him? It would be extremely kind if you don't step on him to get the upper hand.
Of course, the way of speech in the late Ming Dynasty did not produce kind people.
So Zhao Zhigao said angrily: "The same cabinet minister used to be powerful and had some power, so he would follow him to seek advancement. Today he is weak and his power is divided, so he would attack him to gain fame!"
It's a pity that Zhao Zhigao was caught even saying such angry words and was questioned: The cabinet minister is the emperor's assistant, how can he care about the importance of power?
Zhao Zhigao was old and frail, and the real people in charge were Zhang Wei and Shen Yiguan, both of whom were recognized as sinister. The two of them fought for power with the officials all day long, plotted against their opponents, and made countless enemies. In the end, Zhang Wei was demoted to civilian status by Wanli, and Shen Yiguan almost capsized because of the Chu Zong case. So from this perspective, Zhao Zhigao's weakness is actually a way to protect himself.
When Zhao Zhigao became the first assistant, he was already suffering from old age and illness. Du Men was ill and had numerous begging and doctoring appointments. Zhu Yijun ignored him.
In fact, the emperor is also difficult to act. If you agree, there will be gossip about you driving people away. In his early years, Zhu Yijun happily approved the retirement of high-ranking officials. The cabinet always asked the emperor to retain him a few more times to show the emperor's continuous love and grace, which annoyed him. Later, he simply ignored him after receiving the resignation. It's good this time, the cabinet minister's retribution has arrived. The chief minister of Zhejiang had no way to resign. No matter how he asked for resignation, the emperor would not respond. In the end, he suffered from internal illness and was reviled by officials externally, and died in office.
Later, there were Shen Yiguan and others, but he came to power too late, and Gao Pragmatic was too lazy to pay attention to it for the time being - in history, although Shen Yiguan entered the cabinet in the 22nd year of Wanli, by the time he became the first assistant, it was already the 30th year of Wanli. Gao Pragmatic was absolutely sure. He had already come to power at that time, so he was too lazy to think about this insidious villain now.
As for Zhang Wei, his problem lies in seizing power and ostentation. His political career was completely ended due to the demon book case, which need not be mentioned for the moment. But he had one thing that interested Gao Pragmatic. After the Imjin Japanese Rebellion broke out, the Ming Dynasty sent troops to rescue. At that time, Zhang Wei advocated setting up officials in the Eighth Route of Korea and stationing them in the fields. Because this move was suspected of annexing Korea, it was not adopted.
But Gao Pragmatic is very interested in this proposal. Although it is troublesome that Zhu Yuanzhang's troubled Emperor Taizu listed North Korea as a country without conquest, Gao Pragmatic has recently pioneered a new idea: retain the country's government and control its The country's military, political and financial power - yes, it is the "Annan Plan".
He always felt that if Zhang Wei held such an attitude towards North Korea in this life, he would be able to cooperate with him a little bit, even if the two sides were not comrades in the same trench, but politics...
Gao Pragmatic thinks a lot, but Zhang Siwei doesn't have time to think so much now. He just wakes up.
Don't look at it now, even if Guo Pu is gone, he will still be the replacement chief assistant, but as Gao Pingshi said, once he or Xu Guo has a slight problem, the situation of the cabinet will change drastically.
Of course, relatively speaking, the problem of Xu Guo's resignation may be smaller, but what if Zhang Siwei goes to the cabinet on his own?
Although he didn't want to think so, Gao Jingshi's mention of the word "Ding You" just now really made him a little nervous. Both of his parents are not in very good health. Although last year, Gao pragmatically asked Li Shizhen to come over for help, Li Shizhen said that their two elders' health was caused by their poor living habits in their early years, especially their eating habits - too Families who are particular about eating may have problems with their food. For example, washing rice until the water becomes completely clear is actually a bad habit.
So Li Shizhen just prescribed some warming medicine, and then advised them to "eat in the ordinary way." I don't know if they would listen.
Zhang Siwei became nervous and suddenly turned to Zhang Taizheng and said: "How long until you leave? After you leave, go back to Puzhou immediately to see if your grandparents are in good health. If there is any problem... please tell the truth, Li Can you still ask for help by the lake?"
