Finally, after Huang Yourong thought for a moment, he agreed to Zhao Junchen's second request.
After all, for Huang Yourong, none of Zhao Junchen's requests were too big a deal, and none of them would harm his own interests.
Then, the luncheon at the Zhao Mansion was finally ready, but Huang Yourong refused Zhao Junchen's invitation and left the Zhao Mansion quickly, seemingly making up his mind that he did not want to have more in-depth contact and communication with Zhao Junchen.
Already.
In the living room of the Zhao Mansion, looking at Huang Yourong's leaving figure, Gu Quan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly said in a cold voice: "I don't know how to praise! This Huang Yourong is so old and confused. He still thinks that he is still a high-ranking cabinet minister? He is obviously already one.
A phoenix is worse than a chicken, but it still has to act like a pavilion boss! Mr. Zhao, you gave him the imperial envoy's fat job. How big a benefit is this? How many people in the whole court are jealous? If Huang Yourong had a little more sense.
, you should take the initiative to seek refuge with us! After he was overthrown and lost power, what else was left besides the reputation of a former cabinet minister? Mr. Zhao, you take the initiative to win over him because you think highly of him, but in the end, he dared to refuse in person. You really don’t know what is good or bad!
"
During the conversation between Zhao Junchen and Huang Yourong, Gu Quan had been watching. Naturally, he saw Zhao Junchen's intention to win over Huang Yourong and Huang Yourong's polite refusal, so he couldn't help but feel a little aggrieved.
Of course, Huang Yourong was the former Pavilion Chief after all. Even though he was now defeated and lost power, his power still existed, so Gu Quan only dared to say these words after Huang Yourong left.
On the other side, after Zhao Junchen heard Gu Quan's indignation, he still looked unconcerned. He just took a sip of the tea and said slowly: "Don't worry, Huang Yourong just left the cabinet not long ago.
The reserve of some pavilion elders is a matter of course, and I don’t expect to be able to win him over now. The words I just said were just a test. But..."
Having said this, Zhao Junchen narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "Huang Yourong is a greedy person, greedy for both power and money. Although he is a little resistant now, when he tastes the sweetness of power and wealth again, he will definitely
He will be unable to stop, and when the time comes, he will take the initiative to fight for us without our arrangements. When he does more and more things for us, everything will no longer be up to him. Now is just the beginning."
Gu Quan had never dared to question Zhao Junchen's decision, but seeing how much Zhao Junchen valued Huang Yourong, the fallen former cabinet minister, he still couldn't help but ask: "Sir, why do you value Huang Yourong so much? If we talk about vision and means.
, he may not be as good as the great scholar Huo Zhengyuan, the elder Zuo Lanshan, and the minister of the Ministry of Industry Chen Dongxiang; in terms of popularity and connections, he has already betrayed all his relatives during this period, even the young master Zhang Cheng, the minister of rites Lin Wei, who were originally opposed to him.
His loyal old man didn't think much of him now; why would he spend such a high price and effort to buy someone like him? Huang Yourong was right about one thing, he is now a has-been old man with no power.
That’s all.”
Zhao Junchen shook his head with a smile and said: "What? Are you not convinced? Do you think we have suffered a loss by recommending him as the Imperial Envoy? But in fact he is the best candidate! We can also reap some benefits by making him the Imperial Envoy.
If someone else is allowed to become the Imperial Envoy, we may not even be able to eat any scraps of food. In comparison, letting him become the Imperial Envoy is the most beneficial result for us."
After a pause, Zhao Junchen continued: "In addition, a person must take a long-term view and not just look at the present. Although Huang Yourong is useless now, it does not mean that he will be equally useless in the future. Thirty years in Hedong and thirty years in Hexi. The current situation in the court is changing so fast, maybe he will be useful soon, and by that time, our benefits will be far greater than our investment today."
While speaking, Zhao Junchen's eyes flickered slightly, as if he was thinking about something, but he did not explain further to Gu Quan.
On the other side, seeing Zhao Junchen looking enigmatic and confident, Gu Quan hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not ask Zhao Junchen about his detailed plan.
Obviously, Zhao Junchen would not explain such long-term considerations to him in detail, so Gu Quan would not ask for trouble.
In the end, Gu Quan just bowed his head and said: "Your Excellency is so wise that I can't live up to my rank."
*
In fact, there is naturally a reason why Zhao Junchen spent so much money to win over Huang Yourong, and it is not just about the immediate benefits.
Consistent with Zhou Shangjing's judgment, Zhao Junchen also does not believe that Shen Changmao can stay in the position of chief minister of the cabinet for too long, even if Shen Changmao now has the support of the "Zhao Party".
After Shen Changmao falls from the position of chief minister of the cabinet, I am afraid the ending will be very miserable. By then, the power connections of the "Shen Party" will become a piece of fat that everyone wants to take a bite of, and Zhao Junchen has recently Everything I have done during this period is to prepare for a rainy day and prepare in advance.
During this period of time, the "Zhao Party" and the "Shen Party" have gradually deepened their cooperation and improved their relationship, which is one of Zhao Junchen's preparedness measures. When the two parties cooperate, Zhao Junchen wants to infiltrate the forces of the "Shen Party" and bribe "Shen Party" It will naturally be much easier for him to become a party official, deepen the favor of the "Shen Party" towards him, etc. With these preparations, it will be much easier for Zhao Junchen to incorporate the forces of the "Shen Party" in the future.
In addition, Huang Yourong is also one of the secret chessmen in Zhao Junchen's imagination! After the collapse of the "Yellow Party", the "Shen Party" and the "Zhao Party" jointly divided the power and connections of the "Yellow Party", and now the "Shen Party" Many of them are former "Yellow Party" officials, such as Lin Wei, the Minister of Rites, Zhang Cheng, the young master, and others. They have become the main cadres of the "Shen Party", and Huang Yourong's influence on these people still remains. It cannot be underestimated.
In this way, if Zhao Junchen can successfully buy Huang Yourong, when Shen Changmao collapses, Zhao Junchen can directly use Huang Yourong's influence to recruit those former "Yellow Party" officials in the "Shen Party", and You can also secretly connect with these former "Yellow Party" officials to further incorporate the forces of the "Sink Party" and expand your results!
In this way, if everything goes well, after Shen Changmao falls, Zhao Junchen can completely swallow up most of the resources of the "Shen Party"!
By that time, the power of the "Zhao Party" would be enough to compete with the "Zhou Party", and even Emperor Deqing would not dare to touch Zhao Junchen easily.
Therefore, compared with the final harvest, the benefits given to Huang Yourong now are really not worth mentioning, they are just fishing bait.
It just pointed out a way to make money for Huang Yourong, but if it can be exchanged for more than half of the "Shen Party", this deal will naturally be the most cost-effective!
From this aspect, Huang Yourong did not misunderstand Zhao Junchen. The benefits Zhao Junchen gave Huang Yourong were not out of kindness, but to reap several times the benefits in the future!
Of course, these ideas are still just assumptions, and Gu Quan is not a core figure in the "Zhao Party", so Zhao Junchen does not intend to explain it to him in detail.
Before Shen Changmao officially falls, "Zhao Party" is still a staunch ally of "Shen Party", and it is better to keep certain intentions in mind for the time being!
…
Well, the first update! There are three updates today.
Also, thank you for your birthday wishes.
Book club group 710791, everyone can chat together.