The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 501: His future is decided by Bingkuan
After the court meeting ended, Zhu Youtang was walking on the way back to Qianqing Palace, with Li Rong next to him holding an umbrella.

"Didn't everything stop?" Zhu Youtang said.

Li Rong reminded: "Your Majesty, there are still some Yuxingzi. You should take care of yourself. If the road is slippery, it is better to have Luan Jia carried over."

Zhu Youtang smiled and shook his head and said: "It's just a few steps, nothing. Has Marquis Weining informed you?"

On that day, only Li Rong, the Supervisor of Ceremonies, accompanied Zhu Youtang to attend the court meeting. On the same day, Wang Chun, the Marquis of Weining, was ordered to transfer Datong to serve as the commander-in-chief. This was another move by Zhu Youtang in planning the northwest.

Li Rongdao: "I have sent someone to tell him to come to the inner court after the meeting, and my servants will go there to greet him."

"Ah."

Zhu Youtang looked up at the sky and said, "This rain is good. It seems that this year's drought should be alleviated, right? With Bingkuan here, the Ming Dynasty will soon have good weather and people can live and work in peace and contentment."

Li Rong was stunned for a moment.

To what extent did the emperor trust Zhang Zhou?
Does the next rain have anything to do with Zhang Zhou?

This rain was neither brought by Zhang Zhou's prayers nor predicted by Zhang Zhou's prophecies. It was just an ordinary rain. How could it be so closely related to Zhang Zhou and even related to the fate of the country and the people's livelihood?
Can't understand!

……

……

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youtang met with Wang Chun and specifically explained to Wang Chun the precautions for going to Datong.

"You don't have to force anything." Zhu Youtang said, "My father's reputation in the army is not low. You don't need to express yourself after you go there. After a few years of experience, the military and political affairs in the north will be able to rely on you. By the way, Bingkuan also Mention it to me and ask your second brother to go to the northwest, but I haven't chosen a job for him yet."

Wang Chun knelt on the ground and was so excited that tears filled his eyes after listening.

In addition to being good at giving gifts and flattering people, everyone in the Wang family is also a "drama artist".

This is due to Wang Yue's influence.

What outsiders can't understand is that Wang Yue, as a famous general in the Ming Dynasty, actually likes to flatter and use some unconventional methods to win over... And Wang Yue has obtained the current status of the Wang family through this. Wang Chun himself has no other abilities. , naturally I can only learn from my father’s skills first.

"I will do my best to repay the emperor's favor." Wang Chun kept telling his loyalty in front of the emperor.

Zhu Youtang nodded and said: "Nowadays in the northwest, it is also a time for employment. Your Wang family can be considered a loyal family, and I can trust it. It's just that this matter in the army involves too many entanglements, and I can't tell you in detail. Please listen to Bingkuan more."

Don't listen to the emperor but listen to a minister?

Even Wang Chun was not easy to agree to.

Li Rong explained from the side: "Your Majesty's intention is for Marquis Weining to listen more to Cai Guogong's opinions on running the army. It was Cai Guogong who recommended you to Your Majesty this time. You can neither let down His Majesty nor let down Cai Guogong's recommendation." .”

Only then did Wang Chun agree, kowtowed and said, "I accept your order."

"Ha ha."

Zhu Youtang stood up with a smile, walked to Wang Chun, helped Wang Chun up personally, and said with a smile, "Wang Qing, you are still too reserved. In fact, you should learn from Bing Kuan. You can be carefree wherever you go. There is no need to kneel here." , I am not that kind of harsh person. There is no need for so many etiquette between monarchs and ministers."

Wang Chun was already in tears at this time.

It felt... as if I was going to hit him to death immediately to repay Zhu Youtang's kindness.

Zhu Youtang was about to talk to Wang Chun again and take the opportunity to gather people's hearts. Li Rong saw a young eunuch at the door passing a message and hurried over to ask about the situation.

"What's going on?" Zhu Youtang looked over.

Li Rong came over and whispered something into Zhu Youtang's ear.

Zhu Youtang said: "She still has the nerve to come and ask for an audience? How could I have said that in the first place? Let her wait outside. At Wang Qing's house, I have a map here, which I usually read. I will give it to you. After you take it back, Study carefully, and Datong’s military affairs will depend on you in the future.”

Giving a map as a gift has little value in itself, but "the courtesy is light but the affection is heavy." The emperor is willing to give the map he has seen every day. What an honor is this?

Wang Chun would inevitably think, maybe even Zhang Zhou wouldn't be treated like this, right?
Of course, this map was drawn by Zhang Zhou, and the one given to the emperor was naturally very detailed, but there is no problem in making several copies. Zhu Youtang just used it to express his trust and care for Wang Chun.

……

……

After Wang Chun left, Princess Yongkang, the guest who had been waiting outside, was able to come in and ask for an audience.

"My sister, I would like to send my greetings to the Emperor. Brother, may you have a long life. My sister must pray to God every day and don't dare to slack off." Princess Yongkang said.

Zhu Youtang waved his hand and said, "Okay, there's no need to use the same rhetoric you used against the emperor's grandmother to deal with me. Let's talk about what you have to say."

What Zhu Youtang means is, I don’t believe in Buddhism, so why are you doing so many things?

Princess Yongkang said: "Brother Emperor, my sister came here to apologize to you for my previous impulse. I misunderstood Brother Emperor's intention before, and thought you had some misunderstanding about... Mao Ren. This time he can be in the northwest." Meritorious service depends entirely on the support of the emperor brother."

"It's not me, it's Bingkuan!" Zhu Youtang corrected, "The trouble you made earlier made me very embarrassed. Would someone I trust deceive an eldest princess' consort?"

Zhang Zhou wanted to trick Cui Yuan because he was jealous?
Just asking you if Cui Yuan is qualified?

Princess Yongkang quickly put on a smile and said: "My sister also knows that I feel sorry for him, so she wants to ask the emperor to be a peacemaker. Mao Ren will still rely on him in the Governor's Mansion in the future."

"Let's talk later."

Zhu Youtang seemed careless.

At this time, Cui Yuan only took credit for the battle in Shigoucheng. Because it was due to the situation, Cui Yuan acted loyally and bravely, but it was nothing to Zhu Youtang. It would have been someone else to lead the troops in that situation. Attacking can probably achieve a similar effect.

So for Zhu Youtang, he didn't plan to think more highly of Cui Yuan in the future.

Mainly because this sister left a very bad impression on him...

Let your family lead the army on an expedition, and you will make trouble, and you will please and even make excuses when you get the credit. Do you really think that the Ming Dynasty's royal family is named Zhu, and you, a married princess of the Zhu family, can do whatever you want?
I give it to you so you can have it. If I don’t give it to you, just hold it back.

Yongkang said hurriedly: "Farewell, brother Huang, Mao Ren finally got a chance to come forward. Besides, he has always wanted to serve the court. This wealth will not go to outsiders. His loyalty is worthy of trust."

Zhu Youtang glanced at his sister and didn't reply for a while.

But the eyes seem to say that the loyalty of your family member can probably be trusted, but your loyalty is obviously greatly compromised.

"Or are you talking about the emperor brother, someone maliciously slandered him in front of you?" Yongkang was also unforgiving. Seeing that the situation was not right, he immediately showed his aggressive side.

"Bastard!"

Zhu Youtang was also annoyed and said sternly, "What do you mean by this? Don't you want to say that Bingkuan mentioned him in front of me, so I didn't give him a chance?"

"No, that's not what I meant." Yongkang quickly denied, "My sister heard that you sent Marquis Weining, the eldest son of the Wang family, who was just doing some military honors in the army, to be the commander-in-chief of Datong. It shouldn't be difficult to give Mao Ren an errand, right? There is no need to stay in the border town and come to the capital to help the emperor train the soldiers of the capital camp. With his ability, he can manage a battalion. "

Zhu Youtang said with a face full of displeasure: "I don't even know what to say about your temper! I have my own arrangements for how to employ people in the army, so why do you need to tell me what to do? Didn't you say that you knew you were wrong? That's fine, as long as If you ask Bingkuan to agree to my dispatching errands to him, no matter what Bingkuan says to dispatch for him, I will agree to it!"

"Brother Emperor, what do you mean? Do you want me to ask my sister to beg Zhang Bingkuan?"

Yongkang was unhappy when he heard this.

Even if I come to you as a peacemaker, you can't play tricks on others.

Zhu Youtang said: "It is up to you to settle the troubles you have caused. I am embarrassed to mention to Bingkuan the appointment of Cui Yuan as an officer. Bingkuan is the Minister of the Ministry of War and knows the most about military affairs. He must know Cui Yuan’s character and his potential very well. Is there anything wrong with me listening to him and assigning errands to Cui Yuan?”

"But he..."

Yongkang was so angry that he almost stamped his feet.

Then her tone softened and she said as if pleading to her brother, "Brother, please stop teasing my sister. I really know that I am wrong. I went to see the Empress Dowager before because I didn't want to be a widow. Now Mao Ren is gone. With military merit, it’s time to transfer him back. No matter how you say it, Zhang Bingkuan is still a minister, and there are some things that I can’t say.”

Zhu Youtang said with an expression that it had nothing to do with him: "Then you wait until Cui Yuan returns to the capital and the Ministry of War has negotiated before sending him errands. You can figure it out yourself! If you have nothing to do, go back. You won't be allowed to do it again in the near future. There is no need to go to the palace gate, especially to your imperial sister-in-law’s side!”

"I..." Yongkang looked aggrieved, but then he lowered his head and said as if he had given in, "My sister, please leave."

……

……

"I'm really ignorant. I don't know what she is doing. Even if she is a person with the imperial surname, would anyone be so troubled by her?"

After Zhu Youtang watched Yongkang leave, he was still angrily, as if he cared about it very much.

Li Rong on the side could see some clues.

In the past, Zhu Youtang was more like a "noodle". Even though he was a great person and was said to be the wise king of the Ming Dynasty, in fact, Zhu Youtang really liked to take care of those trivial things about his mother-in-law and mother-in-law.

If it weren't for the fact that he was the eldest son of the Ming Emperor and became a king, perhaps he would be more suitable to be a housewife.The emperor said that he did not mind his sister's offense to Zhang Zhou. He really cared about it and was not just talking about it.

Li Rong said: "Then Your Majesty, would you like to build a bridge secretly and talk to Cai Guogong?"

"No need." Zhu Youtang said, "I haven't thought about how to use Cui Yuan. His temperament is too upright. Someone told me before that he has neither the experience of being an official nor the experience of running the army. His temper is too straightforward." Stupid, sometimes he does what others tell him to do. This is both a benefit and a disadvantage. If he is asked to follow a certain strategy to manage an army for a long time, he is not capable of doing so."

Li Rong thought for a while, nodded and said: "What your Majesty said is absolutely true. Prince Consort Cui has little experience in interacting with people in official circles."

Zhu Youtang said: "Such a person is an outlier in the imperial court. How to use it depends more on where the need is. I believe Bingkuan can consider this. Also, if Cui Yuan cannot handle family affairs well, I will still I really don’t want to use him, so I’ll leave this problem to Bingkuan.”

Li Rongxin said.

Having a princess as an aunt in the family, although it has the convenience of being a relative of the royal family, is not necessarily a good thing.

You Cui Yuan is really a woman who succeeds and fails. Who makes you have no status in the family? This mother-in-law in your family is too strong and makes His Majesty tired of you?

……

……

Cabinet value.

When the three cabinet ministers came back, they were faced with such a big problem that all three chose to remain silent in front of it.

The emperor finally couldn't help but add a fourth cabinet minister.

In the 12th year of Hongzhi when Zhang Zhou rose to power, there were rumors that the emperor wanted to add a cabinet minister, or even replace one of the current three cabinet ministers. However, in order to balance the relationship between Zhang Zhou and the civil servants, the emperor never mentioned this matter. Come to the table and talk.

But recently, Zhu Youtang directly mentioned this matter during the banquet, and he also praised Wang Hao among the several bachelors of the Hanlin Academy. Recently, he also praised Wang Hua many times, so that now the Hanlin Academy system Everyone is talking about the possibility that the new cabinet ministers will be Wang Hao and Wang Hua.

As for Li Jie, Jiao Fang, Zhang Yuanzhen and others who had prospered in the Hanlin system before, it seems that they are not among the possibilities for promotion this time.

of course.

For the Hanlin Academy system, there is one person who can never be bypassed, and that is Cheng Minzheng. As for whether the emperor will promote Cheng Minzheng to join the cabinet, this matter is still unclear, although Cheng Minzheng will not appear at the Jingyan Festival recently. Although he is in talks, he is always a strong candidate for cabinet minister, and he is the third candidate.

After the three of them sat down, Li Dongyang first raised the topic: "His Majesty was very picky about the vote today. It seems that His Majesty's previous mention of the candidate for the new cabinet minister was not just a whim. It seems that he has been thinking about it for a long time and has a plan in mind."

Xie Qian said: "It's just a matter of increasing food and wages in the northwest. It stems from the local financial deficit in Datong. After so many years of fighting, Datong has a deficit. It's not a problem that just a few of us can solve. Don't go to the Ministry of Household Affairs now. They didn’t even ask the Ministry of War for the trouble, and they didn’t even ask about the Xuanfu’s grain reserves. Is this all to be blamed on us?”

Obviously Xie Qian had complaints.

In the past, the relationship between the cabinet ministers and the emperor was harmonious, and the emperor basically would not cause trouble to the cabinet.

But now with the rise of Zhang Zhou, the emperor seems to dislike the ministers no matter what, which makes the three cabinet ministers a little depressed.

Li Dongyang pushed a memorial to Liu Jian, but did not ask Liu Jian for his opinion on the memorial. Instead, he followed the previous topic and said: "If we really want to add another person, we should do what I mentioned to your majesty before. Yes, transfer Cheng Keqin here, or say..."

We no longer talk about how to stop it.

The three-person iron triangle structure of the cabinet has been established since Xu Pu took office in the 11th year of Hongzhi. It was originally thought that the emperor would add cabinet ministers in the 12th year of Hongzhi to ensure the normal operation of the cabinet.

But until the 14th year of Hongzhi, the emperor did not add any more candidates. He fully considered the face issues of the three cabinet members and made them the actual prime ministers.

For people like Zhang Zhou who are familiar with history, they know that this iron triangle is very stable and will last for many years until Zhu Houzhao ascends the throne.

But for the authorities, the emperor has given you three years to form a stable relationship with the court, which is considered to be the most benevolent and righteous. The increase should be increased. After all, the normal operation of the court is more important, and other yamen cannot change it. Even though you have been replaced by a new minister, your cabinet is still an old man, right?
Liu Jiandao: "Who do you think is more suitable?"

Xie Qian smiled and said: "I think Wang Dehui is more suitable. If there is any money and food arrangements in the future, with him here, won't I need to worry about the errands of the household department?"

My son Wang Shouren is the general manager of Xuanda, and I, Wang Hua, am the cabinet minister. When it comes to local money and food arrangements in Xuanda, I am the one who draws up the votes. I don’t believe you, Wang Boan, as a son, dare to challenge me?

As for the taboo principle...

It doesn't exist at all. Even if he wants to avoid suspicion, it should be because the son avoids me, rather than because the son rises, I will end his official career. Both father and son are orthodox Jinshi origins. This pattern has never been seen between the government and the public. It is rare, but there are basically no people who can reach such a high level. As for Wang Shouren being awarded a title directly based on military merit... no one expected it.

Li Dongyang shook his head directly, meaning that he disagreed with Xie Qian's view.

Xie Qian asked curiously: "The one you like is definitely not Wang Jizhi, right? He has a lot of contacts with Zhang Bingkuan."

Wang Hao has obviously been designated as an "alien" by the three cabinet ministers for a long time. Even when they meet in normal times, they can talk happily. However, Wang Hao is still Zhang Zhou's "seat teacher" in the provincial examination. In addition, Wang Hao has been promoted to the rank of servant one after another. He was a bachelor and a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy because of the emperor's favor to Zhang Zhou. In addition, Wang Hao did not say that he would make great efforts to exclude Zhang Zhou in the past two years. This made Xie Qian very wary of Wang Hao. powerful.

Li Dongyang looked at Liu Jian and said, "Yang Jiefu, in a few months, will you be able to serve and return to Beijing?"

Xie Qian frowned when he heard this, and then his eyes fell on Liu Jianjin.

Yang Tinghe.

In the years since Zhang Zhou's rise, he was a man who stayed away from officialdom. This was mainly because Yang Tinghe was returned to Shu by the emperor in the spring of the 12th year of Hongzhi's reign to "visit relatives". Then he encountered the mourning of his mother and a 27-month filial piety period. Plus leaving more than a month early...Yang Tinghe perfectly missed almost all interactions with Zhang Zhou.

Liu Jian did not give an answer, but simply wrote lightly: "In fact, Liang Shuhou is not a bad idea."

The popular candidates Wang Hao, Wang Hua, Cheng Minzheng, Liu Jian and Li Dongyang did not mention any of them, but they made a fuss about Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu. Obviously, in their opinion, these two people seemed to be more suitable than others.

Li Dongyang said: "In the past two years, Shu Hou has been too reclusive and low-key. He has never done anything in the court. He even had a demerit from Honglu Temple at the Sutra Banquet. I'm afraid he doesn't have enough reputation."

"Otherwise?" Liu Jian said, "It's best not to get this matter out of control."

The implication is that we cannot say that the next person to join the cabinet must be ours, but we cannot give up on recruiting and recommending him because of this.

Cheng Minzheng and Wang Hao can basically be ruled out because they are not our people.

Wang Hua can be won over, but because of Wang Shouren's relationship and the fact that his actions are not in line with our expectations, he has to stand aside as much as possible.

As for Li Jie, Jiao Fang, Zhang Yuanzhen and other bachelors, the emperor did not regard them as candidates. They became bachelors, but the emperor put them aside. This means that bachelor's degree is the limit of their officialdom. Don't even think about joining the cabinet.

Then choose from the “new and cutting-edge”.

Obviously Liu Jian is most optimistic about Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu, but Liu Jian prefers Liang Chu to Yang Tinghe.

Xie Qian asked with a smile: "Shu Hou didn't make any achievements, but at least he didn't make any big mistakes. He just made a few mistakes in annotating and expounding the scriptures, which is nothing."

Obviously after thinking about it, Xie Qian also believed that Liang Chu was more suitable than Yang Tinghe.

Li Dongyang asked: "Are you worried that Yang Jiefu has been away from officialdom in the past two years since he returned to Shuzhong, and that his intentions are unclear and his relationship with Zhang Bingkuan is not clear enough?"

Liu Jian chose to remain silent and not answer such a sensitive question.

Obviously Li Dongyang had a very good relationship with Yang Tinghe, and Liu Jian was afraid that he would say the wrong thing, so he asked Li Dongyang to convey the words to Yang Tinghe, which would affect the internal harmonious relationship.

For Liu Jian, he still regards Yang Tinghe as "one of his own".

Xie Qian said: "Zhang Bingkuan was able to determine that Jiefu's mother was seriously ill before he returned to his hometown, so that Jiefu could rush back before his mother's death and serve him on the bed, which fulfilled his reputation of filial piety. Such kindness allowed him to It is not good to betray him easily. If he is allowed to join the cabinet, I am afraid it will also affect his work."

The implication is that instead of finding someone who doesn't yet know whether his attitude towards Zhang Zhou is tough or soft, it is better to find someone who has been opposed to Zhang Zhou from the beginning.

Even in terms of ability, Liang Chu may not be as good as Yang Tinghe, but the key point is... Liang Chu and Zhang Zhou are not of the same mind!
"Let's find out." Liu Jian said, "Binzhi, it's up to you. In fact, this matter depends more on His Majesty's attitude, but if it involves courtship, you must always be prepared. I don't want to be like last time, Hanlin There will be no more twists and turns in the selection of the bachelor. Even if Jie Fu cannot join the cabinet after his return, His Majesty promised to let him supplement the position of bachelor. I still remember this."

"Ah."

Li Dongyang nodded.

When the emperor was considering candidates for Hanlin bachelors, he also considered Yang Tinghe and Liang Chu according to the cabinet's proposal. However, at that time the emperor was very determined to let Yang Tinghe return to Shuzhong to visit relatives. At that time, he also said that after Yang Tinghe returned to the court, he would stay with him. The position of a Hanlin bachelor.

Now, instead of being a Hanlin bachelor, it is also very good to be a bachelor of study or a bachelor of lectures.

As long as Yang Tinghe can be promoted after coming back, Li Dongyang can give him an explanation, and it will not be considered as pushing Yang Tinghe to the opposite camp.

……

……

Palace gate.

When Yongkang came out, her carriage had been waiting for her, and her nurse, a woman in her 40s, came to greet her and personally brought her a horse stool.

Yongkang's biological mother has passed away, and the closest family member to her in the family is this wet nurse.

"Is the eldest princess unhappy?" The wet nurse was half a mother and could see that Yongkang was in a bad mood.

Yongkang said angrily: "I thought that the emperor's brother could directly transfer the consort back and find a job in the capital camp, but unexpectedly he started to give me problems. Maybe the emperor's brother never thought of his brother-in-law seriously."

After all, the wet nurse came from the palace, so she quickly advised: "Nobles, be careful what you say."

Yongkang was a little indifferent and said: "Brother Huang actually asked me to ask Zhang Bingkuan, and also said that Zhang Bingkuan would decide on the prince-in-law's errands. Is this to prevent his sister from coming to power? If you don't want to give, just say so, don't give me such a difficult problem, let me I have to lose face and ask for help, I absolutely can’t!”

(End of this chapter)