In Zhao Kai's view, Zhao Ji's private return to Beijing was almost a curse for him to return to the West early. Before he died, his son was eagerly preparing to return to Beijing to inherit his ancestral business!
In order to stabilize the situation, Zhao Kai even deliberately sent telegrams to Zhao Ji, Zhao Chen, Zhao Jie and others, telling them that he was fine and was just slightly injured, which did not prevent him from controlling the overall situation.
But even after receiving this telegram, Zhao Ji still returned to Beijing! What does this mean? This means that Zhao Ji does not believe what Zhao Kai said at all!
Whether he was afraid of someone usurping power or worrying that the situation would get out of control, Zhao Ji really rushed back to the imperial capital in such a hurry that he couldn't even take care of the vital food.
You know, Wanliang is an important grain production base of the Great China Empire, and the safety there really affects the life and death of the empire!
What's more, Hezhe in the north of Wanliang City is the rear area of Zhao Chen's army and Zhao Chen's only supply route. Nearly a million troops are currently fighting to the death on the Fengjiang front. If Wanliang is lost and Hezhe is in crisis, then Hezhe will be in crisis.
Toyoe's million-strong army doesn't even have a way out.
At this time, Zhao Ji could abandon ten thousand grains and return to the imperial capital, which is tantamount to disregarding the safety of the empire. How could this not make Zhao Kai feel chilled?
"How dare he come back? Why did he come back?" Zhao Kai was furious on the hospital bed. He ignored all the debris on the ground, grabbed something next to him, and threw it on the cement floor with all his strength.
"Bang!" A bottle of expensive imported anti-inflammatory drugs shattered into pieces, and the liquid inside spread on the cement floor and gradually submerged into the small holes.
The doctor and the attendants stood aside and bowed their heads in silence. They did not dare to step forward to deal with it. What if His Majesty the Emperor wanted to throw something on his head again?
"Come here! Come here!" Zhao Kai was annoyed and had already begun to think about changing the crown prince. He had protected Zhao Ji before, mainly because he was afraid of Zhao Yu, and also because Zhao Ji made him feel more suitable to be Dahua.
The future emperor of the empire. But now, he suddenly felt that Zhao Ji was not a suitable candidate.
Hearing his shouts, the attendants outside pushed the door open and came in. When Zhao Kai saw someone coming in, he ordered: "Summon the Prime Minister! Let them come to me!"
Seeing that Zhao Kai had calmed down, the waiters on standby quickly stepped forward to clean up various broken things on the ground, including the anti-inflammatory medicine imported from the Tang Dynasty that Zhao Kai had smashed just now.
The Ministry of Rites has just sent news that the Tang Empire promised not to sell long-range strike weapons to Fengjiang. The capital of the Great China Empire has temporarily returned to safety, and Zhao Kai theoretically no longer needs to continue digging into the basement.
But Zhao Kai didn't believe this statement and still chose to recuperate in an underground bunker. In fact, he didn't suffer much injuries. Except for a broken leg, all other injuries could only be regarded as skin injuries.
But as an emperor, his image must be protected. Zhao Kai's current image indeed makes him look less like an emperor.
Although the dragon robe is still decent, his head is wrapped with gauze and his feet are still in plaster. In this state, he has long lost his former prestige.
Soon, Zhou Qiang, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and Wang Yucai, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, who had been guarding outside, came to the room. Since Zhao Kai was injured, the most idle ministers among the six ministers were on standby near the basement.
Prime Minister Chu Muzhou was ill and resting in his residence. Shen Chuan, the head of the Ministry of War, could only go back to the Yamen to run errands. Jiang Run, the Minister of Rites, was the busiest time recently, so he could only sit in charge of the Ministry of Rites.
It was already an hour later when these ministers arrived one after another. Seeing these familiar ministers, Zhao Kai finally regained some confidence.
"Li Mingshun!" In front of these ministers, Zhao Kai directly called out the name of his confidant.
"I'm here!" Li Mingshun was stunned, then immediately walked out of the crowd, came to Zhao Kai's bed and bowed to salute.
"If that treacherous son of Zhao Ji comes back, you and your men will capture him immediately! He will be taken... into... Zhao Yu's former residence. He is not allowed to come in or out, and he is not allowed to contact anyone!" Zhao Kai gritted his teeth, but in the end he didn't.
Ordered Zhao Ji to be imprisoned in the prince's residence.
This was a very strong signal. When the ministers standing behind heard Zhao Kai's order, their expressions suddenly brightened.
It seems that this Zhao Ji finally touched Zhao Kai's reverse scale, which made the suspicious and tyrannical Zhao Kai arouse Yi Chu's thoughts.
Chu Muzhou originally wanted to use words to dissuade him, but he was frightened by the sound of cloud bomb explosions before. Recently, he has been in low spirits, has poor appetite, and is sick and easily distracted. After a little hesitation, he stopped.
A chance to get ahead.
Nowadays, the Great China Empire is facing internal and external troubles. In fact, the foundation of the prince should not be shaken anymore. But if Chu Muzhou doesn't say this now, others will definitely not bring trouble to themselves.
The Great China Empire, which was already in turmoil, showed its decline even more after the imperial capital was attacked by missiles. Everyone was thinking about their own affairs, and few people cared about the future of the country.
Think about it, the minister of household affairs in charge of the taxation and treasury of a country actually stayed in front of the emperor's bedside for several days without even asking about the accounts of the household department. How good can the country's economy be?
As the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, Wang Yucai actually no longer cares about political affairs: he had long known that the country's finances were completely ruined, so he simply left all the errands to others.
Continuous wars have made the country unable to make ends meet. The empire's finances have only improved for less than a year with Zhao Yu's help. But that little income has been invested in the development of military industry. How much is left?
The battles for most of this year have been civil wars at home. Regional tax revenue has collapsed, and import and export trade has completely stagnated. Under such circumstances, the household department of the Dahua Empire is now no different from the accounting office of the Beggar Clan.
Already.
Not to mention Zhou Qiang, the official. He used to be a member of the prince Zhao Yu. He was dismissed when Zhao Yu rebelled against him. That is to say, Zhao Kai did not have time to find someone to take over Zhou Qiang's job, so he was allowed to continue to sit in the position of minister.
Such a long time.
Speaking of which, Zhou Qiang's ability to continue to be the Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs is also related to the support he has from the intelligence department of the Tang Empire. If someone had not been operating secretly, Zhao Kai would not have been unable to find a candidate to replace Zhou Qiang.
In an empire, half of the ministers are unemployed or not working hard, and the other half are just dawdling. It has to be said that it is a miracle that such a country can persist to this day.
There was even a moment when Chu Muzhou was worried about Zhao Ji: Taking over such a dilapidated empire, are you really that eager to become a subjugated king?
"I obey!" Li Mingshun bowed his head and agreed to Zhao Kai's order. As Zhao Kai's most trustworthy general, he would definitely complete the mission without any compromise.
This is not about asking Li Mingshun to intercept the missiles of the Tang Empire. It is not technically difficult at all. It is just to capture Zhao Ji. If this can be done, Li Mingshun will not have to mess around.
Dragging his sick body, Chu Muzhou looked at Shen Chuan aside. At this time, he felt that Shen Chuan was the only one who could still think from the perspective of the country.
But Shen Chuan saw Chu Muzhou's gaze and shook his head in an imperceptible manner, indicating that Shen Chuan was no longer prepared to say anything more about the crown prince.
Chu Muzhou sighed secretly. He had already heard Zhao Kai ordering the waiter to prepare a decree for Li Mingshun - as soon as Zhao Ji returned to the imperial capital, he would be arrested and detained in Zhao Yu's former residence.
That's really not a good place. Considering Zhao Yu's current status as a rebel, Zhao Ji will definitely be scared to death when he is taken there.
The Minister of Punishment lowered his head and said nothing. Although he was Zhao Ji's man, it could be seen that Zhao Kai was furious at this time. He did not dare to disobey Zhao Kai's order at this time.
"My dear friends, what do you think of this matter?" After Zhao Kai had made his attitude clear, he deliberately asked the other ministers present in a long voice.
Everyone smiled bitterly in their hearts: You have already given the order, so any opinions we have are of no use! Anyway, this Dahua Empire belongs to your Zhao family, you can play whatever you want, why don't we just watch the fun?
?
"I have no objection." Everyone spoke up together, including those who were silent. For a while, there was even a happy and happy scene in Zhao Kai's ward.
In fact, a few years ago, Zhao Ji's behavior of abandoning his army and returning to the imperial capital without permission would indeed have been considered a serious crime.
It's just that at that time, the empire was not as weak as it is now. Dealing with a prince or even a prince was not a big deal. At most, it would be a period of turmoil, far from being a thorn in the side.
But now that the empire is like this, it is no longer in a state where it can be messed with casually. If there is a slight disturbance, it might cause some big trouble again.
Chu Muzhou wanted to speak again to persuade Zhao Kai, but just as he was about to open his mouth, he saw Zhao Kai looking at him indifferently. He opened his mouth, but in the end he did not spit out a word.
Until Zhao Kai looked away, Chu Muzhou could not say a syllable. It was not until Zhao Kai asked everyone if they had anything else to say that Chu Muzhou finally spoke out a topic that shocked everyone:
"My lord, Chu Muzhou is ill and can no longer see things. I hope your majesty will show mercy and allow me to retire... and return home."
His words suddenly made the ward lively, and everyone wanted to speak out to dissuade him. The emperor over there wanted to detain the prince, and the prime minister here resigned. Isn't this a day that can't be lived?
Unexpectedly, when everyone prevented Chu Muzhou from resigning, Emperor Zhao Kai approved Chu Muzhou's resignation with the coldest words: "Yes! But it's okay to retire, but it's not necessary to return home. The prime minister's
Mr. Chu still lives in the mansion, lest others say that I am not considerate of my old ministers..."
