The sage said: “Don’t worry about the scarcity but the inequality.
It can be seen from this that the shortcomings of people's hearts are often due to comparison.
This was the case for Zhan Shanchang at this time.
Zhan Shanchang was the first court official to seek refuge with Zhao Junchen. Before the "Zhao Party" was established, he was already a friend of Zhao Junchen. In the end, Zhao Junchen also defeated the then cabinet minister Wen Guanliang through Zhan Shanchang's relationship, and
He absorbed Wen Guanliang's connections and power and initially established his own power and connections.
Therefore, Zhan Shanchang's qualifications in the "Zhao Party" cannot be said to be immortal, and his contribution cannot be said to be insignificant.
However, Zhan Shanchang's "position" in the Zhao party has always been somewhat embarrassing.
He is senior and has made great contributions, and he thinks he is loyal to Zhao Junchen. However, he is not as good as Chen Dongxiang in terms of ability, not as good as Zuo Lanshan in terms of status, not as good as Huo Zhengyuan in terms of intelligence, and has not been promoted yet.
Opportunity has never been promoted by Zhao Junchen.
In addition, the members of the "Zhao Party" have always been a mixed bag, good and bad. Some people were originally from the "Wen Party", some were originally from the "Yellow Party", and some were opportunistic fence-sitters. Among these people
, those former "Wen Party" officials were the most greedy and had a close relationship with Zhan Shanchang. When Zhao Junchen secretly rectified the "Zhao Party", these people were the key targets for rectification. In this way, Zhan Shanchang was inevitably implicated.
.
Today, Zuo Lanshan has become the chief minister of the cabinet, Li Lide, who was originally inconspicuous, has become a feudal official, Gu Quan, who was just a yes man, has been promoted to the censor of Zuo Qiandu, and Huo Zhengyuan, who recently joined Zhao Junchen, also serves as Shun.
An important errand for Tianfu Yin... Even Chen Dongxiang, a domestic slave with the third surname who had always been despised by others, has now become the Minister of the Ministry of Industry. In just over ten days, he has made a grand entry from a fringe member of the "Zhao Party"
The inner circle of "Zhao Party"!
Only Zhan Shanchang was obviously the most qualified and had a lot of merit. He thought he was loyal to Zhao Junchen. However, he did not get much benefit after joining Zhao Junchen. He only changed from the Minister of Rites to the Minister of Household.
, Zhan Shanchang would inevitably think that the benefits he received were too few, and he felt a little uncomfortable.
Yes, it’s not that we didn’t get benefits. The Ministry of Rites is the well-known Qingshui Yamen, and the Department of Husbandry is the Oil and Water Yamen in the eyes of the world. The transfer from the Ministry of Rites to the Ministry of Husbandry is already an improvement. But compared with other "Zhao Party" officials,
This benefit seems too little!
People's hearts change, and they are most afraid of comparison. This is the key to the problem!
Seeing that an official of the "Zhao Party" who was inferior to him in terms of personality, merit, and loyalty either became a feudal official or became a core official of the imperial court, but his own position remained unchanged, Zhan Shanchang became even more uncomfortable.
Already.
People in official circles are most sensitive to changes in their status.
In recent times, Zhan Shanchang has also clearly felt that his status in the "Zhao Party" is no longer what it used to be.
In the past, although the power and influence of the "Zhao Party" was not as good as it is now, Zhan Shanchang was the third-largest figure in the "Zhao Party" after Zhao Junchen and Zuo Lanshan. At that time, Zhan Shanchang expressed some opinions that even Zuo Lanshan would not do.
He would easily refute it, but now with the joining of Huo Zhengyuan and the rise of Chen Dongxiang, Zhan Shanchang has quietly been demoted to the fifth figure in the "Zhao Party", with Li Lide, Gu Quan and others closely chasing behind him.
Just like today, after Zhan Shanchang expressed his opinion, Zuo Lanshan, Huo Zhengyuan, Chen Dongxiang and others all refuted, without any regard for Zhan Shanchang's face. This was absolutely unimaginable in the past. It was obviously Zuo Lanshan, Huo Zhengyuan, Chen Dongxiang and others.
They already looked down upon Zhan Shanchang.
In addition, when Zhao Junchen was secretly rectifying the "Zhao Party" during this period, many of Zhan Shanchang's close disciples were eliminated, which also gradually weakened Zhan Shanchang's influence in the "Zhao Party".
Putting all these things together, Zhan Shanchang will inevitably have many thoughts in his mind.
However, Zhao Junchen's power within the "Zhao Party" is growing, and Zhan Shanchang does not dare to express his thoughts, but these thoughts are like a seed, which has been quietly planted in Zhan Shanchang's heart and is gradually growing and sprouting...
…
People have limited resources, and no one can always think things through. Even Zhuge Kongming sometimes lost his street pavilion.
Zhao Junchen has been mainly paying attention to the movements of Zuo Lanshan and Chen Dongxiang in recent times. Now he is thinking about the affairs of the Beijing Police and did not notice the changes in Zhan Shanchang's thoughts in time.
On the contrary, Huo Zhengyuan, who has always been good at figuring out people's hearts, looked at Zhan Shanchang thoughtfully at this time, but after a slight hesitation, he just watched what happened without saying anything. After all, Zhan Shanchang was an old man of the "Zhao Party", and Huo Zhengyuan did not
I didn't dare to make any suspicions, I just paid attention secretly.
Just as Zhan Shanchang's mood was changing, Zhao Junchen had already continued: "Let's see which officials we should focus on promoting during the 'Beijing-Cha' period. After you go back today, each of you will draft a list and give it to me.
In the end, I will make the final selection... This matter must be decided as soon as possible so that we can be prepared. The 'Beijing Inspection' is coming soon, and we must make preparations in advance to avoid confusion when the time comes."
Upon hearing Zhao Junchen's instructions, several core members of the "Zhao Party" were overjoyed.
Zhao Junchen's approach undoubtedly sold them a lot of favors and provided a promotion path for their cronies. Naturally, there are no need to mention the benefits.
This decision was also made by Zhao Junchen after careful consideration. Now "Zhao Party" is undoubtedly Zhao Junchen's voice. However, Huo Zhengyuan, Zuo Lanshan and others are unwilling to be left alone. If they just blindly suppress their authority, they will be attacked.
Their enthusiasm will also make them dissatisfied, so Zhao Junchen will cede some of his interests to them when it has nothing to do with the overall situation, so as to unite the majority and stabilize people's hearts.
What's more, the final decision-making power still lies with Zhao Junchen, so he is not afraid that the situation and direction will lose control.
After several core members of the "Zhao Party" stood up and expressed their opinions, saying that they would not let down Zhao Junchen's expectations, Zhao Junchen turned to look at Huo Zhengyuan and suddenly asked: "Scholar Huo is also serving as Shun during this period.
Tianfu Yin, I’m afraid you’re under a lot of pressure, right?”
Huo Zhengyuan nodded and said: "At first, Mr. Zhao, you were suddenly assassinated by gangsters. However, Shuntian Mansion's security was poor at first and it was still unable to solve the case. That's why the position of Shuntian Mansion Yin fell on me. Now I have
After taking over Shuntian Mansion for more than half a month, the case was still unable to be solved. All the officials could not help but express some criticism. Fortunately, the Ministry of Punishment and the factory guards were there to share the pressure. Moreover, the situation in the temple had changed unpredictably some time ago. The overt and covert fighting between major parties attracted everyone.
No one paid attention to me in a short period of time... But now the situation in the temple has gradually stabilized, and the incident of your assassination, Mr. Zhao, has been mentioned again, and even His Majesty has asked about it several times, so the pressure has gradually increased.
"
Zhao Junchen nodded, his face full of apologies, and said: "I'm afraid we need to find a way to delay it for a while, Master Huo. Putting this case in your charge is like having an extra sharp sword in our hands, but this
I need to keep the sharp sword for now, the timing is not right, and I don’t want to stab it out too quickly... Besides, just in case, with this sharp sword in hand, we can have one more thing during the "Beijing Investigation"
A trump card."
Huo Zhengyuan looked embarrassed and said: "I'm afraid it won't take too long. The location of Shuntian Mansion is extremely critical. All parties are keeping an eye on it. If we delay for too long and fail to solve the case, I'm afraid it will be left to others.
With the handle, this position can no longer be maintained."
"Don't worry, I won't let you delay for too long. I'm ready for who this sword is going to hit and how it's going to hit!"
Zhao Junchen said slowly, a cold light flashed in his eyes.
When Huo Zhengyuan saw Zhao Junchen like this, he was slightly startled at first, then thoughtfully, and finally said, "I understand, I'll do my best."
After the business talk was over, the expression on Zhao Junchen's face became a little more relaxed, and he finally talked about his personal matters, and said with a smile: "I believe you all know that in three days, I will officially accept Fang Ru as my side room. I once
I ask Mr. Zuo Ge to invite you all to witness the ceremony on your behalf, and I hope that you will come to the banquet and watch the ceremony together."
In the eyes of everyone, Zhao Junchen taking a concubine is just a trivial matter after all. Although the special banquet guests are a bit of a fuss, the "Zhao Party" people will naturally not deliberately violate Zhao Junchen's thoughts because of such a trivial matter.
So they all agreed with smiles, saying that they would definitely go to the banquet and watch the ceremony in three days.
At the same time, in the Prince's East Palace, Prince Zhu He held a memorandum in his hand and pushed the door into Zhao Shancai's study with a somewhat uneasy expression.
In the study, Zhao Shancai was sorting out the recent intelligence. After seeing the appearance of Prince Zhu He, he did not feel any surprise. He just quietly put the information aside, raised his head and asked: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you have to shut up and think about it."
There is no time in the world, and today is the last day. Is His Highness’s memorandum of reflection ready?”
In the past ten days, Zhao Shancai was still suffering from illness. Now his face was haggard, his skin was yellow, his cheeks were sunken, his figure was thin, and even his hair was thinning. But for some reason, the illness was obviously getting worse, but Zhao Shancai's
My energy becomes fuller and higher, and my eyes become brighter and sharper.
Upon hearing Zhao Shancai's inquiry, Prince Zhu He nodded, a wry smile flashed across his face, and then, like a student handing in an assignment to his teacher, he handed the memorial in his hand to Zhao Shancai for review.
In fact, this was already the seventh memorial written by Zhu He. However, after the first six memorials were given to Zhao Shancai for review, Zhao Shancai expressed dissatisfaction every time and even outlined many errors and omissions to Prince Zhu He, saying that
After Emperor Deqing saw these mistakes and omissions, not only would he not forgive Prince Zhu He, but he would blame Prince Zhu He again for his shallow ideas.
Therefore, during these ten days, Prince Zhu He revised his confession six times. Now he finally had the final draft, but he was still worried that Zhao Shancai would point out the errors again and asked him to take it back and revise it again.
On the other side, after Zhao Shancai carefully reviewed the memorial from Prince Zhu He, he finally showed satisfaction and nodded: "This time, everything was finally written to the point. Your Majesty must have seen His Highness's expression of self-reflection.
After the memorial, I will definitely express my satisfaction. As long as His Majesty is satisfied with His Highness's repentance, we will still have a lot to do in the future."
After hearing Zhao Shancai's words, Prince Zhu He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhao Shancai attached great importance to this memorial. Even if a certain word might cause ambiguity, he would circle it for Prince Zhu He to revise again. Prince Zhu He spent a lot of money in order to make this memorial perfect and meet Zhao Shancai's requirements.
After a lot of time and effort, Zhao Shan finally expressed his satisfaction, and Prince Zhu He was naturally much more relaxed.
After secretly heaving a sigh of relief, Prince Zhu He said: "Since Mr. Zhao is also satisfied with this memorial, I will go to the palace to see my father and submit this memorial."
Having said this, Prince Zhu He hesitated again, glanced at the desk in front of Zhao Shancai filled with books and papers, and then at Zhao Shancai's withered face, and said again: "Mr. Zhao's condition has not recovered during this time.
If there are any signs, it’s better to rest more. There is no need to work so hard. I will still need Zhao Shancai’s help in many places in the future..."
With that said, Prince Zhu He sighed and planned to turn around and leave the study.
During this period of time, Prince Zhu He also warned Zhao Shancai to pay attention to rest many times, but Zhao Shancai refused to listen. Instead, he took all the time to plan various things for Prince Zhu He, so Prince Zhu He also knew that his advice might be
It still didn't work, but he still couldn't help but say it. After saying it, Prince Zhu He couldn't bear to see Zhao Shancai continue to work hard, so he planned to leave the study.
"Your Highness, please wait." However, just as Prince Zhu He turned around, he heard Zhao Shancai's plea to stay.
Upon hearing Zhao Shancai's request to stay, Prince Zhu He was slightly startled and asked, "What else does Mr. Zhao do?"
Zhao Shancai took out a brochure from his hand, handed it to Prince Zhu He, and said: "For this period of time, I have been looking for some available talents for His Royal Highness, and now I have finally achieved some results. This brochure is the list.
There are twenty-one people in total, and some information about them is also listed in detail... Among these twenty-one people, nine are currently serving in the capital. Now that the 'Beijing Inspection' is coming, His Highness the Crown Prince had better seize the opportunity and focus on promotions.
Give them a try, and with their help in the future, we can have more help in the temple."
After hearing what Zhao Shancai said, Prince Zhu He nodded seriously.
Zhao Shancai had a very high vision, and Prince Zhu He naturally valued the talents that caught his eye.
After taking the booklet, Prince Zhu He browsed it carefully, then nodded and said: "I remember these people, and I will definitely try to reuse them in the future, but... the number is a bit too small, there are only twenty-one people."
, and most of them hold official positions below the seventh rank. I am afraid that even if I focus on promoting them, I will not be able to provide help in a short time."
Zhao Shancai sighed and said: "Talents who must not only have noble character and not be contaminated by officialdom, but also have outstanding abilities and be able to do practical things are so rare. I can find these twenty-one people, which is already very rare."
It’s not easy. Your Highness, does he know why most of the elites in the imperial court are concentrated in the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Imperial College? Why are the corrupt officials always more capable in officialdom? And the elites are often lacking in ability?"
Upon hearing Zhao Shancai's inquiry, Prince Zhu He looked a little embarrassed.
He has always relied on the support of the Qingliu people in the court, which is why he has such a reputation now.
However, even Prince Zhu He had to admit that most of the Qingliu officials in the imperial court were talkative people with high ambitions and low abilities. If they really wanted to do something practical, these Qingliu officials would often succeed more than fail.
After hesitating for a moment, Prince Zhu He sighed: "Although I don't want to admit it, the elites in the court are indeed lacking in ability. Although they have noble character, they are not as good as those corrupt officials and treacherous ministers when doing practical things. Why is this so?
I have never thought about such a situation, so I ask Mr. Zhao for advice!"