On the way back to the East Palace, Liu Jin talked less than before.
The 'abnormality' of today's morning meeting was not within his expectation.
He has known the foreign minister's urinary nature for many years, and he has recognized a dead end, which is that he will not give up until he achieves his goal.
But how to explain today's experience?
The prince, is he still the prince before?
Thinking about it carefully, I suddenly have no interest in playing with the 'magic weapons' and various toys that I used to love.
In the past, I was naughty and out of control, causing trouble every day.
Now, I am quiet, introverted, and do my own thing most of the time, and I also think about things quietly.
Has he ever seen such a prince?
Until the evening, he stayed with me more carefully than usual.
The prince didn't seem to care about him. If he talked more, the prince would respond to him. If he talked less, the prince would let him go.
At night candles were lit in the temple,
In this age without electric lights, many things are inconvenient after dark. Even if there are candles, the light is not enough.
Zhu Houzhao is still satisfied today.
Except for accidentally cheating Yang Tinghe at the end.
But thinking about it, he should also be an open-minded person. The future chief minister shouldn't care so much, right?
After he felt at peace, he stood under the eaves outside the Xie Fang Hall, looking at the stars in the sky, and felt a sense of loneliness.
Although there were people coming and going in the East Palace, and he had to be served by dozens or hundreds of people, it seemed that he could only stay silent most of the time.
Fortunately, in his previous life, he was accustomed to being alone, so living in a noisy metropolis was a last resort.
More often, he still thinks, if possible,
There is no need to go to work, clock in, or write weekly reports, but just enjoy time every day and read a few books. This seems to be called life.
Now, it's just about right. At least you can get enough sleep, right?
The next day,
Liu Jin stood at the door to report. Because the door opened and let in the sunlight, it formed a sharp contrast with the shadows inside the house.
"Your Highness, Li Min would like to see you."
"Li Min?"
Liu Jin replied: "Li Min is Zuo Yude of Zuo Chunfang. That is... Yang Tinghe's boss."
Zhu Houzhao seems to have some realization.
"Let him in."
"yes."
It didn't take long before I saw a man in his fifties with a beard that reached his chest come in.
He didn't even look at himself, he knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, Zuo Chun, visits Zuo Yude and Li Min, to see His Highness."
"Mr. Li, please get up. Liu Jin, bring a stool to Mr. Li."
This is not an excessive preferential treatment.
However, he was unwilling to get up, which surprised Zhu Houzhao, so he looked at this person carefully.
"Your Highness, I am here today to beg you to punish me."
This was said very suddenly, making people confused.
"What crime is Mr. Li guilty of?"
"I hold the position of Zuo Yude, and I am responsible for teaching and assisting His Highness. I also have the responsibility to control my subordinates. However, first, I have not fulfilled my duties and have not been able to teach His Highness a word. Second, Zuo Zhongyun Yang Tinghe I was left alone to report, and for some reason I violated taboos. Every time I think about this, I feel really guilty in my heart, so I sincerely ask Your Highness to punish me for my crime."
When he said this, it was easier to understand. But it was unexpected.
For the first time, Zhu Houzhao truly felt the power of the system.
It gives everyone a role. No matter whether the role is high or low, there is actually a limit for how to act.
You can cross over, but the consequences are unpredictable, even if you are the emperor.
If a person wants to fight against all this, it cannot be done just by talking about it.
Because the enemy is not a specific person, but an invisible rule.
"Mr. Li, please get up first." He was in a daze, and it was not easy for a man over fifty to keep kneeling.
He thought to himself, actually... I knew that being a good prince and a good emperor was also very difficult. He had anticipated this before, so what did it mean?
The emperor can order people.
If the person receiving the order cannot do well, you can just kill him.
Like Emperor Chongzhen, when one failed, he was replaced by another.
But that cannot govern the country.
Moreover, if the ministers in the court always fail to cooperate with you and hold you back, you can still do everything, but it will require a lot of energy.
Zhu Houzhao was thinking and kept silent.
Li Min is also hard to talk to.
"Mr. Li, in what year did you get the fame?"
Li Min was surprised and kept silent for a long time. What was he suddenly talking about?
"Fortunately for the guilty minister, the late Emperor did not give up on him. In the 20th year of Chenghua, he became the number one scholar in Jiachen Branch."
Good guy, No. 1 pick.
Yude and Zhongyun are really different. Youyude and Wanghua are also number one.
"Ten years of hard study is not easy. How many champions have there been in the past three generations? I can't bear to be dismissed so easily. Besides, I also want to ask Mr. Li for more advice in the future."
Confucianism emphasizes that scholars should die for their confidants.
Li Min is a man with a beautiful beard, and he is also the kind of scholar who pays special attention to the pomp and pomp of a scholar. To put it bluntly, his brain has been cleansed by the scholarship of saints.
Now he was asking for forgiveness, but the Crown Prince comforted him with gentle words, which really made him deeply moved.
"Your Highness! How can I repay your kindness to Your Highness?!"
"Of course I have done my duty and served the country and the people. As for the matter of pleading guilty, there is no need to mention it again." Then he asked in a leisurely tone, "Has Yang Tinghe's matter caused any criticism?"
Li Min replied: "His Majesty praised His Highness for his filial piety and intelligence, but Yang Tinghe was not investigated...but there were discussions outside the court..."
"Since my father doesn't pursue the case, Mr. Li, why are you bothering?"
Li Min was a little embarrassed, "...I feel ashamed of Your Highness."
Zhu Houzhao sighed in his heart,
He would not punish Yang Tinghe, as this would give people the impression that the prince abandoned them when he was done with them. Then what would it be like for others to do things for him in the future?
On the contrary, what would it be like if working for him had good results?
Even if these are not mentioned.
Even for Yang Tinghe, Zhu Houzhao had to find a way to convince him and obey his orders in the future.
But at the same time, he cannot protect Yang Tinghe too much amid criticism.
If you say this, it’s like yellow mud sticking to your crotch—it’s not just shit, it’s shit.
Even if Li Min, as his superior, goes to show Yang Tinghe's attitude, he can't say anything.
This is inconsistent with his original intention,
But it is a necessary compromise,
That’s why it is said that politics is the art of compromise.
I just don’t know if Yang Tinghe can understand his intention? Come to think of it...it should be understandable that Mr. Shofu has a broad mind, right?
In addition, Li Min doesn't know the prince's intentions now. How can he guess the thoughts of a seven-year-old child?
But now that the prince is present, whether the officials of Zhan Shifu are promoted or demoted, employed or expelled, it is natural to ask the prince for instructions.
"How should Yang Tinghe deal with it? Your Highness, please give me your instructions."
Zhu Houzhao frowned immediately when he heard this. This question was quite deliberate and unpleasant!
Especially when he spoke kindly for a long time.
Because this question is difficult to answer.
The answer is no need to deal with it? Well, the prince actually takes the initiative to protect you, so Yang Tinghe will be hated by others.
Answer disposal? Well, the prince wants to deal with you, what else do you have to say?
No matter what, his boss was determined to take over Yang Tinghe.
But we can’t just say that Li Min’s thoughts are wrong.
If it were Zhu Houzhao himself, he would probably do something in his position.
Otherwise, if people step on your bottom line and you don’t do anything, wouldn’t you be stepping on them every day in the future?
Things in the world are too difficult to say.
Zhu Houzhao opened the window and fell into silence looking at the red wall outside.
He passed through a wall in the Forbidden City and realized that there was still a wall outside the wall.
