Chapter 963. The conspiracy in the imperial study (End).
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After Emperor Deqing saw the "Zhao Party" growing in power, he always wanted to split the "Zhao Party" and alienate Zhao Junchen's members.
At the beginning, Emperor Deqing's target was Zuo Lanshan, thinking that Zuo Lanshan was the elder of the pavilion after all, and must be unwilling to be controlled by Zhao Junchen. Who would have thought that Zuo Lanshan was actually a man with no ambitions?
In the face of Emperor Deqing's repeated hints, he remained calm and pretended that he did not understand the profound meaning of Emperor Deqing at all, which made Emperor Deqing quite angry.
Then, Emperor Deqing's target turned to Zhan Shanchang.
Of course, Zhan Shanchang's status, ability, vision, etc. are all ordinary, far different from Zuo Lanshan. Emperor Deqing did not dare to expect Zhan Shanchang to have the ability to split the "Zhao Party" and fight against Zhao Junchen. Emperor Deqing this time
He just wants to take Zhan Shanchang into his own hands and let Zhan Shanchang become his secret chess and eyeliner ambushing Zhao Junchen. He can report Zhao Junchen's every move for him at any time. He may even play a huge role at certain critical moments!
The reason why Emperor Deqing chose Zhan Shanchang was also very simple, that is, Zhan Shanchang's ability and knowledge were ordinary, and he was not taken seriously by Zhao Junchen, so he must have resentment in his heart.
Zhan Shanchang was the first member of the imperial court to seek refuge with Zhao Junchen, and even brought his distant relative Tong Guan, the political envoy, to Zhao Junchen's sect. When Zhao Junchen overthrew the former cabinet minister Wen Guanliang, Zhan Shanchang took the greatest credit.
, made great contributions.
Logically speaking, Zhan Shanchang should be an important and indispensable core member of the "Zhao Party".
But in fact, in the past year, Zhan Shanchang's status in the "Zhao Party" has been gradually marginalized.
In the past year, many core members of the "Zhao Party" have been promoted one after another and given lucrative jobs - Li Lide, the former minister of the Ministry of Punishment, was sent out to become the chief envoy of Shandong, and Chen Dongxiang was promoted to the position of worker.
Huo Zhengyuan also served as the Minister of the Ministry of Finance, and Zuo Lanshan became a minister of the cabinet!
However, only Zhan Shanchang, the oldest among the "Zhao Party", only changed from the Minister of Rites to the Minister of Household Affairs. He is still a third-rank official. And because he is not good at managing money and accounting, he does not have many people in the Household Department.
With real power, most of the time he is just the yes man behind Zhao Junchen.
Under such circumstances, Emperor Deqing believed that Zhan Shanchang must have resentment in his heart. As long as he showed his intention to accept him and secretly encouraged him, Zhan Shanchang would definitely abandon the dark side and change his family!
Unfortunately, Emperor Deqing still miscalculated this time.
Although Zhan Shanchang was not taken seriously by Zhao Junchen and had a lot of resentment in his heart, Zhan Shanchang would really not be happy if he were asked to abandon the "Zhao Party" and switch to the "Emperor Party".
Officials from various factions in the temple simply cannot appreciate the comfort and happiness of the "Zhao Party" officials!
After Zhao Junchen established the "Zhao Party", he has been using the power of the "Zhao Party" to promote changes in various systems of the imperial court, which can be said to have achieved remarkable results.
The most important thing is that every time Zhao Junchen promotes a change, he will establish a corresponding trading company and take advantage of the opportunity to seek countless benefits. Members of the "Zhao Party" also invest in shares!
Whether it is "Sichuan Salt Development", or "Commercial Tax Rectification", or "Agricultural Reform", members of the "Zhao Party" have reaped a lot of benefits and seized the lion's share of the profits!
Just when officials from various factions in the temple were terrified and couldn't sleep at night because of a bribe, various businesses in which officials of the "Zhao Party" participated were already spread all over the country.
And when they exhaust their efforts and use all kinds of tricks, the "Zhao Party" officials only need to sit at home and receive huge sums of money in dividends!
To this day, all "Zhao Party" officials have reached a consensus - reform is a good thing! Conservatism is a bad thing! Only by vigorously reforming the court's accumulated shortcomings can we benefit the country and the people, and can the country be stable. The key point is
They can also get a lot of oil and water themselves!
From a certain perspective, the current "Zhao Party" can be renamed the "reformists"!
In this way, the "Zhao Party" has unified interests and unified ideas! Compared with other factions in the imperial court, it has gradually become essentially different.
Under such circumstances, "Zhao Party" officials became increasingly unable to abandon Zhao Junchen.
Take Zhan Shanchang as an example. He can receive a large amount of dividends every quarter. Some of these dividends come from "Yue Rongfang", some from "United Shipbuilding", and some from Sichuan Salt. Every year there are
Benefits of hundreds of thousands taels!
Even if it is a seemingly unprofitable "agricultural reform" plan, Zhao Junchen has established a corresponding commercial bank, which will soon make a profit, and Zhan Shanchang's quarterly dividends will be able to increase by then!
Zhao Junchen has countless reform plans hidden in his heart, and the benefits will only increase in the future.
The most important thing is that Zhan Shanchang did not receive salary for nothing and receive dividends for nothing! Whenever Zhao Junchen promoted these reforms, Zhan Shanchang also put in a lot of effort. Whenever Zhao Junchen founded a trading company, Zhan Shanchang was even more devoted.
A lot of real money!
Therefore, once Zhao Junchen collapses, Zhan Shanchang will not only lose a large amount of quarterly dividends, but all his hard work and investment will also be in vain!
Under such circumstances, "Zhao Party" officials and Zhao Junchen have been tightly tied together, forming a community of interests that they will never abandon easily!
The same is true for Zhan Shanchang. Even if he has some resentment in his heart and thinks that Zhao Junchen has treated him badly, he is still unwilling to abandon Zhao Junchen easily!
It's a pity that because of Emperor Deqing's will, Zhan Shanchang quickly lost his choice!
*
After Emperor Deqing's target turned to Zhan Shanchang, he quickly hinted his attitude to Zhan Shanchang.
But at the beginning, Zhan Shanchang's attitude was just like Zuo Lanshan's. He did not respond to Emperor Deqing's hint at all and just pretended that he did not understand what Emperor Deqing meant.
Seeing Zhan Shanchang's attitude, Emperor Deqing was immediately furious. He felt that Zhan Shanchang despised the imperial power and did not know how to praise him!
After all, Zuo Lanshan was a pavilion elder, and Emperor Deqing would have some scruples when targeting him, but Zhan Shanchang was just a minister, and Zhao Junchen could not support him even though he was thousands of miles away, so Emperor Deqing wanted to rectify it
He couldn't be simpler!
Taking advantage of the opportunity for various factions in the court to criticize the "Zhao Party", Emperor Deqing quickly dismissed Zhan Shanchang from his official position.
If that was the case, Zhan Shanchang wouldn't be too worried. He would just wait eagerly for Zhao Junchen to return to the capital, hoping that Zhao Junchen would support him and make the decision.
But soon, Zhan Shanchang discovered that something was wrong. After he was dismissed from his official position, the imperial censors were still unwilling to let him go. They continued to impeach him every morning, and the charges became more serious!
Just this morning, Emperor Deqing suddenly issued an order to confine Zhan Shanchang to his residence and asked Dongchang to send personnel to inspect him.
If this situation continues, Zhan Shanchang will die without a burial place before Zhao Junchen returns to the capital!
After seeing Emperor Deqing's attitude, Zhan Shanchang was immediately frightened!
Although he is reluctant to part with the interests of "Zhao Party", these benefits are nothing compared to his own life and the future of his family.
So, after struggling for a whole morning, Zhan Shanchang finally made up his mind and went to the palace to see Emperor Deqing.
Unfortunately, the timing of Zhan Shanchang's visit to the palace was also unlucky, and he happened to encounter a conversation between Emperor Deqing and the seventh prince Zhu Hejian.
The conversation between Emperor Deqing and the Seventh Prince Zhu Hejian was related to the inheritance of the Ming Dynasty. Naturally, the replacement of the crown prince and the prince would not allow others to disturb it.
So Zhan Shanchang kept kneeling outside, waiting hard for Emperor Deqing's summons.
While waiting hard, Zhan Shanchang thought that Emperor Deqing had completely given up on him, which was why he had not summoned him for a long time, and he was even more frightened to death!
When Zhan Shanchang entered the imperial study, his arms were trembling, his head was covered in cold sweat, and his face was bloodless.
Zhan Shanchang's behavior was not only because he felt uncomfortable after kneeling for too long, but also because he was frightened by Emperor Deqing.
After seeing Emperor Deqing, Zhan Shanchang immediately saluted, bowed to the ground, and said in a trembling voice: "The guilty minister Zhan Shanchang, pay homage to your Majesty! Long live your Majesty! Long live your Majesty!"
Emperor Deqing glanced at Zhan Shanchang from the corner of his eyes, with a trace of disdain flashing across his expression, and asked: "You are entering the palace to see me at this time, but because you have already figured out your future position?"
Zhan Shanchang nodded repeatedly, showing a firm attitude, and said loudly: "As your Majesty's minister, naturally you will always be loyal to your Majesty! You will only be loyal to your Majesty alone!"
There was a smile on Emperor Deqing's old face, he stroked his beard and nodded: "As a minister, it is natural to be loyal to the emperor... Such a simple truth, but some people just can't understand it! If all officials are like you
With this awareness, I will be much more relaxed when I govern the world!"
Seeing Emperor Deqing's attitude, Zhan Shanchang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said quickly: "Your Majesty, please give me your orders! From now on, I will do whatever you ask me to do!"
Emperor Deqing thought about Zhan Shanchang's ability and mind, but shook his head gently and said: "I don't need you to change anything. What you did in the past will still be done in the future! 'Zhao Dang' has suffered a lot during this time."
It's a tragedy. When Zhao Junchen returns to the capital, he will definitely try to save everything... Although you have lost your official position as Minister of Household Affairs, but you are an old man of the 'Zhao Party', Zhao Junchen will definitely protect you with all his strength. I'm here
We will also secretly cooperate with you to restore your official position!
The trouble during this period is not necessarily a bad thing! After the official is restored to his original position, you must prepare a generous gift to express your gratitude to Zhao Junchen, show a loyal look, and take the opportunity to further draw closer the relationship between the two parties! Zhao Junchen
When Junchen sees that you not only have no resentment, but also send you generous gifts to thank you, he will definitely use you more and more, and then..."
Having said this, Emperor Deqing deliberately lengthened his voice.
Zhan Shanchang immediately said: "Then, I will monitor Zhao Junchen for Your Majesty and report to Your Majesty Zhao Junchen's every move in the future in detail!"
Emperor Deqing nodded lightly and said: "You don't have to go to the palace to report in person. There are too many people watching my Forbidden City. If you come in and out frequently, Zhao Junchen will soon notice something unusual... Let's do this.
There is a steward in your house named Li Houde. If you have any news in the future, just tell him... I will not hide it from you, Li Houde is from Dongchang."
Hearing what Emperor Deqing said, a flash of horror flashed in Zhan Shanchang's eyes!
He never expected that Emperor Deqing would have an informant in his palace!
This Li Houde has been in the Zhan family for more than three years, and he has secretly conveyed many messages over the years!
Thinking of this, Zhan Shanchang was even more in awe of Emperor Deqing's methods, and he quickly bowed his head again and said: "My lord, I understand!"
*
However, he said that after this meeting in the imperial study room, in the following days, the impeachments against Zhan Shanchang by the imperial censors gradually decreased, and Emperor Deqing also quickly removed the factory guards from inspecting Zhan Shanchang.
However, the various factions in the imperial court continued to criticize the "Zhao Party" without interruption. Almost every day, officials from the "Zhao Party" were dismissed from office.
Zhao Junchen also knew this situation, so after he left Huamachi Camp, he has been working hard to return to the capital as soon as possible.
Only five days later, Zhao Junchen had already walked half the distance, entered Shanxi again, and arrived at Taiyuan Fucheng.
After arriving in Taiyuan City, Zhao Junchen decided to take a rest. On the one hand, the traveling in the past few days really made everyone exhausted, and on the other hand, it was also because Zhao Junchen wanted to take the opportunity to meet Zhang Xun's tribe!
The relationship between Annan Bo's Zheng family and the imperial court was very tense. Not only was the imperial court afraid of the Zheng family, but the Zheng family also somewhat rejected the imperial court.
Therefore, if Zhao Junchen had direct contact with the Zheng family, he would be getting twice the result with half the effort. He wanted to establish a connection with the Zheng family through Zhang Xun's relationship.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen wanted to meet Zhang Xun's tribe and find a suitable informant. After Zhao Junchen took him into his own hands, he could represent Zhao Junchen and get closer to the Zheng family of Annanbo.
relation.
After arriving in Taiyuan City, not to mention the grand welcome by Shanxi merchants and Shanxi officials, Zhao Junchen met all the descendants of Li Xun that night under Li Xun's arrangement.
However, after meeting and talking with them, Zhao Junchen was a little disappointed.
Although Li Xun was an incompetent and corrupt official, his upbringing was extremely rigorous, so most of his descendants were rule-abiding people who not only lacked courage, but also lacked adaptability!
The importance of the person who has connections with the Zheng family is naturally self-evident. As long as this person can please Annan Bo Zheng Zhilong, the cooperation between Zhao Junchen and the Zheng family will be much smoother.
According to Li Xun, as Zheng Zhilong grew older, he became more and more fond of the younger generations, but he still did not get rid of his pirate style. The young people he liked were the kind of warriors with perseverance and fearlessness.
, or he is the kind of clever person who is fickle and optimistic.
In short, this is what Zheng Zhilong looked like when he was young.
Unfortunately, none of Li Xun's descendants meet these standards.
Just when Zhao Junchen felt embarrassed, something suddenly moved in his heart.
Then, Zhao Junchen turned his attention to Xu Qingyan beside him.
He suddenly discovered that whether he was a brave warrior with a strong character and a fearless character, or a clever person with a flexible and optimistic character, there were such people all around him!
Among them, Xu Qingyan is undoubtedly the clever person with a mercurial and optimistic personality!
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen suddenly asked: "Qingyan, what do you think of Li Xun?"
Xu Qingyan didn't know what Zhao Junchen meant, so he just said casually: "What's so interesting about a dying person? You see, the officials and merchants in Shanxi no longer take him seriously!"
Zhao Junchen nodded, but changed the topic and said, "Then, how about I let you recognize him as your godfather?"