After completing this thought transformation, Chu Ge suddenly felt enlightened.
As the saying goes, it is not easy to learn well, but it is easy to learn badly.
Being a good official always comes with too many constraints. Many means cannot be used, and many bottom lines cannot be breached.
But once you give up the idea of being a good official, give up all moral constraints on yourself, and look at the problem from a different angle, you will find that many problems are not completely unsolvable.
In the final analysis, being a good official is going against the grain. It means I am in the light and the enemy is in the dark.
Just like Wang Wenchuan, is he a good official? of course.
No matter how the old party attacks him, it cannot deny his personal morality.
Wang Wenchuan was an incorruptible man, and he did not even have any entertainment activities. His only pleasure was to write books and advocate reforms for the country.
But his implementation of reforms meant that the old party headed by Wen Junshi could use every means to attack him.
If any problem occurs during the reform, the old party can put the shit basin on his head; even if there is a drought or locust plague in any year, the old party can say that it is because Wang Wenchuan messed up the reform, causing anger and resentment.
This phenomenon reminded Chu Ge of a saying: The keyboard warrior is invincible.
Those who do practical things always have to deal with various contradictions and consider a series of issues, while keyboard warriors can remain invincible as long as they seize their loopholes and attack them continuously.
But what if we really let those keyboard warriors go up and do things? It will only become more messy.
Wang Wenchuan faced such a problem at that time.
Because he is a practical person, and the emperor himself is not strong-willed, he will always be defeated by the old party's persistent and unremitting attacks.
But what if Wang Wenchuan changed his mind?
What if he does not go all out to promote reform, but instead finds ways to protect himself? Then, the offensive and defensive momentum will change.
When the old party is doing things, he can attack wildly without any bottom line. In this way, the status of both parties changes instantly.
Once Wang Wenchuan also becomes a keyboard warrior, his destructive power as a keyboard warrior will never be weaker than Wen Junshi.
Many people attacked Wang Wenchuan, saying that he engaged in party strife.
There are even many people who, in the process of studying history, say that Wang Wenchuan's reforms started the party struggle in the Qi Dynasty and planted the seeds of the Qi Dynasty's demise.
But in fact, this is obviously a misunderstanding.
In Chu Ge's view, Wang Wenchuan was too kind during the reform process.
Although the old party has been criticizing Wang Wenchuan for engaging in cronyism, in fact, Wang Wenchuan used his own people to implement reforms, which in itself is a blameless behavior. Is it possible that your old party is clearly against me and I still want to give you high-ranking officials generous salaries?
Wang Wenchuan only drove these old party members out of the capital and relegated them to local places, but he neither relegated them to a barren land like Lingnan, nor did he dig up dirt on them for retaliation, jail them, or even give some to the old party. Interceding with members who have been wronged is obviously a very generous act in a political struggle.
On the other hand, after Wang Wenchuan was dismissed as prime minister, Wen Junshi and other old parties came to power and immediately abolished the new law and relegated all these new parties to Lingnan. This directly led to the old and new parties being at odds with each other and starting a long-term party struggle.
No matter how you look at it, Wang Wenchuan did not initiate this problem.
This may be because Wang Wenchuan and Wen Junshi, as famous officials at the time, had their own bottom line. Although the two people had completely different political views, they had very good personal ethics and even felt sympathy for each other.
But after a review, Chu Ge felt that Wang Wenchuan's kindness was indeed meaningless.
From a future perspective, the struggle between the old and the new parties is inevitable.
Political struggle is inherently a matter of life and death, and Wang Wenchuan's kindness will not change the future political direction of the court.
The kindness towards these old parties has directly led to these old parties still attacking the new law endlessly even when they go to the local level, or trying every means to be uncooperative, and even blaming the new law for natural disasters.
The long-term party struggle is precisely because the new party and the old party have never been able to eliminate each other. What if one party completely wipes out the other? Then there would be no issue of party strife.
Therefore, Chu Ge decided to do it thoroughly.
Take the traitorous minister Yan Maoqing of the Great Sheng Dynasty as an example. When have you ever seen him be kind to his political opponents?
When was there not a time when someone was framed for any crime and put to death?
Of course, if there is any benefit to Wang Wenchuan's doing this, of course there is.
Although Wang Wenchuan was finally dismissed from the prime minister and died in depression, at least he did not suffer particularly severe retaliation. Compared with other important ministers who failed in the reform, he had a good death.
Therefore, his kindness can be regarded as a good relationship for himself, and it did not lead to the tragic ending of death and annihilation of the family.
But for Chu Ge at this time, this made no sense at all.
Therefore, Chu Ge quickly determined the preliminary combat strategy.
Now that you have decided to be a traitor, you must make two points clear: First, get rid of all the ethics and bottom lines. I must protect myself wisely, I must do whatever it takes, and I must be the winner of political struggles!
Second, there must be no mercy towards political opponents, and they must be exterminated at every opportunity. If you don't oppress your political opponents to death, is that still called cronyism?
After confirming these two points, Chu Ge suddenly realized that his future became suddenly bright.
Although the reform has not yet been discussed, it is at least certain that after such operations, he will definitely be able to sit in the position of Prime Minister for a long time.
The game gave him ten years to win the Battle of Uuzhu. His first priority was to survive the ten years and not fail in the first year.
"Then the next step is to analyze carefully and from which angle we should start to attack political opponents."
Chu Ge has decided to take action on the old party.
But it is not easy to move these old parties.
At this time, the leader of the old party was Wen Junshi. Chu Ge had fought against him several times before and knew that this person was very difficult to deal with.
First of all, Wen Junshi doesn't have much to criticize in terms of personal ethics, which is exactly the same as Wang Wenchuan.
Secondly, Wenjun is extremely talented and knowledgeable, and his debating ability is also first-rate. In the eyes of later generations, some of his arguments were of course a symbol of backwardness and conservatism, but at that time, they were very confusing and could even be unanimously recognized by everyone from the emperor to the ministers to the common people.
After all, at that time, Wen Junshi's thoughts represented orthodoxy.
On the contrary, Wang Wenchuan's reform concept seemed unconventional and shocking, and was opposed by most scholar-bureaucrats.
In the end, it was still the question of the emperor.
The emperor's character and the political situation of the Qi Dynasty determined that it was difficult for the party struggle at that time to have any decisive results. The emperor was very concerned about his own reputation. Important ministers like Wang Wenchuan and Wen Junshi who were famous all over the world, even if they fell. , will not be completely liquidated.
Even if Wen Junshi was demoted, he still had great appeal and influence, and could still influence the emperor's judgment.
Therefore, if you want to engage in party strife to bring down Wen Junshi, you have to think of a feasible method.
This method must be effective, and effective methods are often methods without a bottom line.
Chu Ge frowned and thought hard, walking further and further away on the path of the treacherous minister.
“In ancient times, what was the most effective way to bring down someone through political struggle?
“It’s not about framing him or using his power to suppress others, it’s about making the emperor hate him.
“As long as the emperor starts to hate him, then he is not far from being finished.
“If you want to make the emperor hate him, you have to analyze the emperor’s character and prescribe the right medicine.
"What does the current emperor hate most? In other words, what does he care about most?
"political reform?
“No, reform will not work.
“Because it’s not yet certain whether the results of the reform will be good or bad.
"Wenjun was really opposed to the reform, and his rhetoric was also very misleading, and the emperor would not dislike it.
"Like Yan Maoqing, I want to find the point that the emperor desires most, and then use this as a breakthrough to put Wenjun to death..."
As Chu Ge analyzed, a plan gradually emerged in his mind.
The ancient political system was highly centralized, with the emperor holding the highest power. Therefore, the most effective way to bring down someone is to make the emperor hate him.
For example, Yan Maoqing's downfall did not lie in his corruption and bribery, but in the emperor's change in his view.
Before, the emperor felt that Yan Maoqing could make money for him, so he allowed all Yan Maoqing's behavior to go unchecked and indulged infinitely; later, the emperor realized that Yan Maoqing's existence had become too big to be eliminated, and even affected his own money making, so he was able to vigorously suppress the entire Yan Party. Uprooted.
In history, Wang Wenchuan did not do well at this point.
Because he has his own character and is not completely determined to do things from the emperor's standpoint.
Or to put it bluntly, he did not act like a dog to the emperor in a down-to-earth manner.
Why was Wang Wenchuan dismissed by the emperor? It was because he and the emperor had different views on some issues, and the stubborn Wang Wenchuan was unwilling to fully accept the emperor's views.
As for Chu Ge, he has no such moral baggage at all.
Now that you have decided to be a treacherous minister like Yan Maoqing, you must make up your mind to be a dog to the emperor; and in the process of being a dog to the emperor, you cannot always just do your own thing, you must always figure out what the emperor wants and wants. Whatever you do, do it first.
In this way, the emperor's recognition and tolerance for himself will become higher and higher, and he can successfully suppress dissidents.
And after using the emperor's hands to kill political opponents, he had the initial ability to control the emperor.
After Chu Ge thought for a while, he had already thought of a perfect entry point.
After planning the entire plot from beginning to end, he started the trial again.
…
Three different talent cards appeared in front of Chu Ge.
[Xin: Impassioned Speech (Blue): Your speech becomes more infectious and persuasive. 】
[G·Strong-willed (Blue): You are strong-willed and have strong ability to withstand pressure, and you will also become more stubborn. 】
[Geng·Act in a low profile (blue): You act in a low profile and it is not easy to attract the attention of others. 】
After thinking about it for a moment, Chu Ge tapped lightly on his talent of "keeping a low profile".
This talent was replaced by Chu Ge after he failed to clear the level last time, but he had not chosen it before.
Because it makes no sense.
Wang Wenchuan himself is the leader of the reform and the current prime minister. What is the use of keeping a low profile?
Comparatively speaking, impassioned speeches can convince the emperor, and firm will can allow him to push the reform as far as possible. For Wang Wenchuan, who is determined to reform, these are both useful talents.
But now, Chu Ge has decided to be an unscrupulous Wang Wenchuan with no bottom line, so the talent of keeping a low profile is more useful.
The smoke in front of him dissipated, and Wang Wenchuan, played by Chu Ge, appeared in the political hall again.
There are still provisions of the reform in front of us.
Only this time, Chu Ge did not touch the details of these provisions, but directly pushed them aside.
A provision was redrafted.
Then, he called the servants in the mansion over: "Prepare the car, I want to enter the palace to meet the Holy Spirit."
…
Soon, Chu Ge came to the palace and met the emperor.
As the current prime minister and the emperor's confidant, Wang Wenchuan's favorability in the emperor's heart was at its peak at this time.
But Wang Wenchuan felt that there was room for further improvement in his favorability in the emperor's heart.
During the Qi Dynasty, the status of officials was still relatively high, and the emperor would give him a seat in such a situation, and this time was no exception.
"Wang Qing came here this time to discuss the new law?" The emperor's attitude was naturally amiable.
Chu Ge nodded: "Exactly.
"Officials, please take a look. This is the official law that I have just drafted."
The emperor was stunned for a moment, and then took the document handed over by Chu Ge: "Official law?"
Obviously, the emperor's expression was blank.
Because this so-called "official law" was not part of Wang Wenchuan's reform, he naturally had doubts.
In the emperor's opinion, Wang Wenchuan was a very thoughtful minister and also a very stubborn minister. The emperor and his ministers had discussed the new law many times before. The emperor already knew Wang Wenchuan's general idea, but he had never heard of any official law?
At this time, other laws and regulations had not come out, but an official law was issued first, which really surprised the emperor.
However, unexpectedly, the emperor still read the contents of the official law seriously.
The content of the official system law is very simple. There are two articles in total, both of which are aimed at reforming the official system.
Article 1 promulgates a set of standards for promotion, appointment and removal of officials. Official promotions must be based on this standard and no longer go through the prime minister.
The second article is to restore the three-province system in the name of restoring the old system of the Liang Dynasty. The core of the three-province system is to divide the power of the prime minister, who is responsible for the Menxia Province and the Zhongshu Province respectively. In this way, the emperor could issue orders directly to officials in the three provinces.
In layman's terms, the previous prime ministers had great power, and officials' promotion and salary standards needed to go through the prime minister. Officials in the three provinces were also directly responsible to the prime minister. Now, these powers were effectively returned to the emperor.
Although there were only two short pieces of content, the emperor read it for a long time.
Even when he looked up, there was confusion and disbelief on his face.
Of course, there is also a bit of joy mixed in.
"Wang Qing, what does this mean?"
Obviously, the emperor didn't understand what Wang Wenchuan in front of him was thinking.
Is the emperor moved?
Of course it’s exciting!
He even felt that Wang Wenchuan in front of him suddenly became his confidant and the roundworm in his stomach.
Even this official law does not look like it was thought up by Wang Wenchuan, but more like it was thought up by the emperor himself...
Chu Ge couldn't help but smile.
Familiar? Deja vu? Do you have a tacit understanding?
That's right, because this is what you came up with...
What he called the "official system law" was actually the "Yuanfeng restructuring" that the emperor himself carried out after Wang Wenchuan's New Deal.
These two contents have not changed at all, they are all the contents thought up by the emperor.
Naturally, this restructuring was carried out very smoothly. After all, it was something the emperor was determined to do.
At that time, Wang Wenchuan did not agree with this restructuring.
The reason is simple. This restructuring actually weakened the power of the prime minister and strengthened the imperial power.
A large part of the promotion, appointment and dismissal of officials, as well as the powers of the three provinces, were taken back from the hands of the prime minister and returned to the hands of the emperor.
Wang Wenchuan is the Prime Minister himself and does not want others to restrict him. How could he agree to such a thing?
From the perspective of later generations, this restructuring did give officials a fixed position and reduce the court's expenditure, but this impact was limited to the central government and had little effect on local governments.
Moreover, to a certain extent, it has led to a reduction in administrative efficiency.
Its deeper impact was to strengthen centralization and weaken the power of the prime minister, which was a solid step forward in disguise for the emperor to make arbitrary decisions and avoid the supervision of officials at all levels headed by the prime minister.
So in the final analysis, this is a restructuring to limit the power of the prime minister and strengthen the imperial power.
That's why the emperor was so confused.
As the prime minister, why did Wang Wenchuan limit his own power? Isn’t this what you feel after eating enough...
Although this restructuring plan is too tempting, and it can even be said that it is exactly what the emperor has been thinking about, but Wang Wenchuan proposed it, but he always feels that there is some trap in it...
That's why the emperor was confused.
Chu Ge smiled slightly.
This was part of his plan, and he had naturally prepared his words in advance.
"Do the officials still remember that when the officials asked: 'The scholar-bureaucrats are really displeased by changing the legal system, but why are they inconvenient for the people?' How did the Wen Jianyi respond?"
The emperor was stunned for a moment and said: "Wen Jianyi said, 'To rule the world with scholar-bureaucrats, not with the common people.'"
Chu Ge nodded: "This official law is my answer to the official's advice."
When he said these words, Chu Ge's acting skills exploded and his expression was sincere.
Coupled with the talent of "keeping a low profile", he looks like a harmless little sheep who is dedicated to the king.
Sure enough, the emperor's eyes sparkled with brilliance.
And this brilliance was even brighter than when Wang Wenchuan told him about the reform.
"Wang Qing, please tell me in detail!"
Seeing the emperor's eager look, Chu Ge knew that he had made the right bet.
If you want to be a treacherous minister, a powerful minister, and want to dominate the government, what is the first step?
It is to make the emperor trust and completely inseparable from himself.
Take Yan Maoqing for example.
Are his abilities exceptional? Have you ever learned from others?
He is considered excellent, but compared to those cheating figures of his generation, he has no advantage.
His real advantage was that he firmly grasped the fact that the emperor liked to practice Buddhism and make money, making himself irreplaceable.
Therefore, he was able to dominate the government and use the power of the emperor to suppress all those who disobeyed him.
Chu Ge was doing the same thing at this time.
This emperor did not like to practice Taoism, nor did he like to make money. He was not one of the famous faint emperors in history. In other words, it is basically impossible to please him with material enjoyment.
On the contrary, it may be delayed or even blocked by him due to corruption and bribery or loss of personal ethics.
So what does the emperor care about most?
It can be seen from his determination to reform that what this emperor cares about most is to be able to accomplish something.
Moreover, he actually distrusts courtiers and prefers to keep power in his own hands.
It was precisely because he did not trust the courtiers that he repeatedly dismissed Wang Wenchuan as prime minister; it was precisely because he wanted to keep power in his own hands that he carried out Yuanfeng's restructuring, bypassing Wang Wenchuan and taking back part of the prime minister's power in his own hands. .
Judging from the results, regardless of whether Wang Wenchuan agrees or not, this restructuring will be carried out.
If this is the case, then why not do it as a favor and take the initiative to hand over these powers?
Use these powers that are bound to be lost to make a pledge.
From the emperor's perspective, Wang Wenchuan changed from a prime minister with his own ideas to a tool that obeyed the emperor's words and was very useful.
This kind of retreat to advance will not only make Wang Wenchuan's position more stable, but also use it to launch a heart-breaking plan against Wen Junshi and other important officials of the old party.
From the emperor's point of view, Wang Wenchuan had turned to him very wisely and obeyed his advice. Wen Junshi and others who stubbornly believed that "the emperor and scholar-bureaucrats rule the world" looked disgusting.
Therefore, Chu Ge took this as an entry point to start his dialogue with the emperor.
The next step is to make the emperor realize how disgusting Wen Junshi and others are!
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