In the British Palace, under the gaze of everyone, Mr. Zhu Xiaogong looked firm and resolute, as if he was determined to fight for the interests of the East Palace, which made everyone feel ashamed.
Regardless of whether it is radical or not, the fact that Duke Chengguo dared to take this risk at least shows that Zhu Yi is dedicated enough in dealing with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Supreme Emperor.
Of course, sensibility belongs to sensibility, and rationality belongs to rationality.
After being moved, everyone present once again evaluated the possibility that Zhu Yi said.
Obviously, Zhu Yi did not come up with this memorial at the last minute. What he just said actually revealed something.
In terms of motivation, there is no doubt that the core purpose of Zhu Yi's actions was to get back the title of Duke Chengguo.
After all, the emergence of a cabinet in the East Palace is a grand ceremony of the country, which means that the throne is truly confirmed. It should be celebrated by the whole world, and the officials should be rewarded at the most basic level. If it is grand, there will even be an amnesty for the whole world.
If what Zhu Yi said is true, then although he did not clearly express his attitude to the Yang family before the court meeting, the final result was that he basically remained neutral.
In this case, no matter what Zhu Yi's motives were, the reward that the Yang family should give must be indispensable. This is the most basic credibility to gain a foothold in the circle of nobles.
The crime of Zhu Yong, Duke of Cheng Guo, was originally controversial in the court. If a general like Yang Hong came forward to defend him, and the Duke of Cheng Guo's government had the credit for pushing the prince to leave the cabinet, with the combined efforts of many parties, it would be a good idea to get the title back.
Quite possible.
Moreover, don't forget that the most difficult stage of the ceremony of leaving the palace in the East Palace, which is the court meeting, has been passed, and now the process is stuck in the Ministry of Etiquette.
If the Ministry of Rites is not afraid of being tricked by the emperor, it is fully capable of advancing this matter quickly. Now Hu Ming, the chief uncle of the Ministry of Rites, is Zhu Yi's father-in-law.
Although this old fox seems to be protecting himself in the court now, anyone who knows a little bit about him knows that this Hu Shangshu is by no means a person who is afraid of getting into trouble.
Not to mention anything else, the last time the court sent Li Xian to Nanjing is a clear proof.
To put it bluntly, he doesn't want to offend anyone, but he is not afraid of offending anyone, including the current emperor. Otherwise, with his status, it would be Wang Zhi and Yu Qian's turn to steal the show in the court.
In fact, just because he doesn't speak often, once he wants to do something, even the emperor needs to take it seriously.
Normally, Hu Hui remained silent on the affairs of the Chengguo Palace, not because he was afraid of trouble, but from his point of view, he felt that it was not suitable and difficult to accomplish at that time.
In other words, whenever Mr. Hu takes action, he must be able to get sufficient returns.
But this time, there was an opportunity for the prince to leave the cabinet, there was a reason for Yang Hong's argument, and there was a legitimate method. The probability of success was much higher than when the Civil War had just occurred.
Therefore, it is conceivable that if Zhu Yi really goes to seek help from Hu Hui, he will most likely not refuse.
With his help, at least half of the matter for the prince to leave the cabinet will be completed.
The really difficult thing is the young army!
As mentioned before, from the Taizong Dynasty to the Xuanzong Dynasty, the young troops were handed over to the hands of the East Palace for training. This was the favor of the emperor and was not custom-made.
If this is the case, it means that this matter completely depends on the emperor's will.
In view of the special relationship between the Tian family today, everyone present is well aware of the important responsibilities. Perhaps on the surface, the Tian family is respectful and harmonious.
But in fact, what the emperor did was just superficial. When it came to some sensitive powers, such as political power, military power, and personnel rights, the emperor rarely made concessions.
From when the Supreme Emperor returned to the court, there were a group of maids in the Nangong Palace, to the turmoil over the selection of the Yulin guards and the appointment of the commander, and then to forcing the Supreme Emperor to declare in public that he would not interfere in the government affairs.
Every piece of evidence vividly demonstrates this.
There is no doubt that the same is true for Youjun!
Everyone knows that the blood relationship is inexhaustible, so in fact, the existence of the East Palace is likely to become an extension of the power of the Supreme Emperor.
However, the matter of crown prince is very complicated, both for historical reasons and bound by etiquette and law, so the emperor cannot openly block it, but can only make some stumbling blocks secretly.
However, even if the East Palace cannot be prevented from participating in politics, the emperor will definitely not give you the power that can be given or not given to Youjun.
This is also the biggest reason why no one has ever thought about this matter.
However, Zhu Yi's words reminded them that now was indeed the best time to propose the formation of a young army.
Although, this best opportunity is not that good...
Although the imperial court has now passed the charter for reorganizing the military garrison, just as Jiao Jing and others planned before, determining the general direction is only the first step. The real difficulty of this matter has never been in the imperial court.
superior.
Again, if it were so easy to organize the army, the imperial court would have taken action long ago and would not have waited until now.
All government orders must be implemented to be considered successful.
The biggest difficulty in organizing the military regulations is actually the overt and covert resistance of the entire military commander system from top to bottom.
This is completely different from Ren Li's selfish confrontation with civil servants in court discussions.
This method of soft nails is not only used by civil servants, but also by nobles and nobles who have been in the court for so long and are very skilled in using it.
The most basic thing is that when your censor is sent to the local area, he needs the account books of previous years, the military garrison records, and the drill records. If the generals don't want to cooperate, there are many ways to do it.
Simply tell me no, and the stupid ones will give you a perfunctory look, and there are also those who are deliberately making things difficult. They can dig out all kinds of trivial matters in every nook and cranny and lay out a thick table for you to check.
When you really find out what the problem is, they will have countless reasons to wait for you. The thieves came to plunder, it didn’t rain that year, there was an epidemic in the army, and the farming season was delayed.
, they were able to wear down the censor who was sent to investigate the case.
He even asked in a hurry and gave the people below a look that there would be "trouble" in a nearby village or town immediately. Although it was not necessarily a robbery by thieves, it was probably just a fight between two farmers, but in case,
Woolen cloth?
You can’t let others do their duty faithfully and protect the environment and the people, why don’t you let them go!
In addition, there are those who are trying to pull the trigger. The local government refuses to cooperate openly or covertly, and the noble families in the capital will not be idle.
With so many officials sent out by the imperial court, how could they all be as clean-sleeved and as good-natured as Yu Qian?
If the honorable nobles were really ruthless, mobilized their personal connections to investigate, and impeached these people for their past mistakes in office, they would be able to win over a group of them no matter what.
Even if the problem cannot be found for the time being, keep in touch with the local authorities and keep a close eye on them. As long as these people do anything that exceeds the rules or exceeds their authority during the investigation process, a bunch of nobles from the court will swarm them.
The impeachment was enough to make him return to Beijing in despair.
These are all reasonable and legal methods that follow the rules so that no one can find fault. If there are other more drastic methods, if they are really pushed into a hurry, it is not that no one would dare to use them.
In short, the court discussed that the biggest reason why no one followed Ren Li in the charge was that apart from the small thoughts of the two princes, the nobles felt that the real struggle was behind them.
Therefore, Zhu Yicai said that if the imperial court wanted to rectify the military garrison, it would not be possible without paying any price.
Ren Li's fate can indeed shock the nobles, but at most it only makes them dare not openly oppose the reorganization of the army. But these small actions secretly are impossible to stop.
Of course, nobles have various means, and civil servants are not vegetarians. When it comes to this kind of political struggle, they naturally have ways to deal with it.
In the end, it may be that the reorganization is successful and the nobles admit defeat, or it may be that the court is dragged into the quagmire by such soft knives and has to compromise in the end.
Therefore, this is a struggle whose outcome cannot be predicted, and it is foreseeable that the process of the struggle will inevitably be very long.
And if the emperor wants to be sure and smoothly implement this decree, then it is essential to give him a sweet date after beating the stick.
In fact, the marriage between Jing'an Bo and the King of Zhennan, as well as the rewards that Feng Guogong Li Xian and others have received in recent days, can already provide preliminary clues. In addition to supporting the Ministry of War, the emperor is also trying to appease the nobles.
, or at least some of them.
In this case, this is their opportunity!
Zhu Yi's intention is actually very obvious, in exchange for cooperating in organizing the military camp, he will exchange for the power of the East Palace to select and train the young army.
In this way, although the honorable nobles need to give up some of their interests in the short term, they can still be regarded as gaining advancement for their own children or trusted generals.
As long as they can join the young army, they will not only have a good relationship with His Royal Highness, but also have friendships with outstanding children of the same generation. More importantly, with this level of qualifications, they can quickly establish themselves in the army.
heel.
This is actually very tempting for the nobles who are now in a state of poverty.
The only thing we need to worry about is whether the emperor is willing to make this deal.
In other words, will the emperor transfer this part of sensitive power to the hands of the East Palace in order to allow the court to organize the army more smoothly?
No one is sure about this.
Even many people present felt that they would not be willing to judge others by themselves.
As for the reason, it is also very simple.
Reorganizing the military garrison is a matter for the imperial court. Although the emperor is behind it, it is also what the civil servants expect. This can be seen from how hard the civil servants worked hard at the court meeting.
In this matter, the honorable nobles will certainly make all kinds of obstacles, but the civil servants will naturally also use tricks and tricks, and it is still unclear who will win.
Even if the emperor steps aside, the battle will most likely end with the victory of the civil servants.
Although, during this process, the court situation may experience several turmoils, and the entire court may even revolve around this matter for a long time.
However, this price is actually not difficult to accept.
On the contrary, transferring the right to select and train the young army can indeed appease the nobles, make the organization of the army more smooth, and can also maintain the stability of the court to the greatest extent. However, this is equivalent to the emperor taking on the responsibility for the Ministry of War.
pressure.
And more importantly, this will encourage the rapid expansion of Dong Gong's power, or at least the rapid expansion among the nobles. In the current situation of Dong Gong's young age, it is essentially a disguised form of allowing the Supreme Emperor to expand his influence in the court.
This is a harmful and unprofitable thing for the emperor.
Changing places, this kind of behavior of sacrificing one's own interests and considering the overall situation, everyone is sure that the only person who will do this is Yu Qian.
As for the emperor...
Maybe, maybe not, but judging from the emperor's vigilant attitude after the return of the Supreme Emperor, everyone still tends to feel that... there is little hope.
After pondering for a moment, Jiao Jing and Chen Mao organized their words, and were about to speak again to persuade, but they never thought that Zhang Mi suddenly patted the table and said:
"Okay, my young master is so determined, how can we back down?"
"I, the British Crown Prince, are willing to co-sign this memorial!"
Looking at Mr. Zhang who suddenly became so arrogant, Jiao Jing felt helpless and said.
"Second Master, would you like to consider this matter again? I still say the same thing. The matter of the East Palace's appointment has not yet been completely determined. It is indeed too early to consider the matter of the young army."
"I've already suffered enough losses from making such mistakes, so it's better to play it slow and steady."
However, in the face of Prince Consort Jiao's "sincere words", Zhu Yi did not appreciate it and just said calmly.
"If the prince-in-law feels that this move is risky, he can just sit back and watch. I never thought that I would let the prince-in-law take the risk together. After all, this matter may make the emperor angry, and it is not impossible for the person who initiated it to end up like Ren. Wait for the end."
"You have to keep the green mountains alive, right?"
These words were spoken in a calm tone, but they were so sarcastic that they immediately made Jiao Jing's face look ugly.
However, Zhu Yi spoke with the banner of considering the emperor and the prince, so Jiao Jing couldn't find a reason to refute for a while.
As a result, the atmosphere was a little awkward for a while. At this time, Chen Maoqian hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over and said.
"Since we can't argue about this matter, we might as well send a message to the Nangong Palace together and ask the Supreme Emperor what he means. If the Supreme Emperor feels it's inappropriate, then we can stop and just mention the matter of the East Palace leaving the cabinet."
"If the Supreme Emperor also thinks it is feasible, then the young prince might as well give it a try. It might be a good idea to put forward excessive conditions in order to get the emperor to make concessions and promise the East Palace to leave the cabinet as soon as possible."
This is what I said...
Jiao Jing glanced at Chen Mao and sighed secretly in his heart.
Sure enough, although I felt that there was little hope of success, the temptation of forming a young army for the honorable family was still very great.
Ask the Supreme Emperor for instructions?
Jiao Jing didn't even have to think about it. The Supreme Emperor would not consider whether it would be difficult to do something like this to expand the influence of the East Palace. He was only responsible for giving orders, and how to handle it was a matter for his subordinates.
However, Chen Mao, an old fox, still had a trick up his sleeve.
The implication is that if the Duke of Chengguo takes the lead, the benefits will belong to everyone, but the risks will be borne by the Duke of Chengguo.
However, is this really a good thing?
Jiao Jing felt something was wrong for a moment, but he couldn't tell exactly what it was. Seeing everyone looking at him, he had no choice but to nod lightly and said.
"If that's the case, I'm afraid I'll have to take a risk on my young master this time..."