Chapter 97: Reactions from All Sides

Capital, Wenyuan Pavilion.

The Great Great Dayu's Chief Grand Secretary, who was almost sent away by the great explosion last night, appeared in everyone's sight with his son's support.

However, his entire complexion was much worse than before.

"I know what you want to say, but at such a time, what we need to do is stabilize the situation.

Other matters, all wait until things calm down before talking.

Especially Magistrate Lu, you must watch the Censorate during this period and not let them come out to add chaos.

If anyone makes trouble, no need to be polite; directly let the Embroidered Uniform Guard take people.

The more at such a time, the less we can be soft-hearted; everything is prioritized by maintaining the stability of the imperial court!"

Song Haidong said murderously.

Being able to become the Chief Grand Secretary, he naturally has his extraordinary points.

Pretending to be a good person in ordinary times is because he is old and doesn't want to continue tossing.

Not wanting to and not having the ability are two concepts; when he decides to do something, he is still that decisive Chief Grand Secretary of the empire.

Repeatedly emphasizing stability is undoubtedly showing determination to all factions.

Even if he is old and frail, and may go to heaven at any time, as long as he is alive, he is the old man with the most power in the Great Great Dayu.

"Grand Secretaries, rest assured, we will certainly go all out to stabilize the imperial court!

I imagine Magistrate Lu will not disappoint either."

Lu Shou's words made Lu Lu Zhifan dumbfounded on the spot.

He didn't know what virtue or ability he had to be named by two cabinet big shots in one day.

But if anyone dared to say a "no" word, I imagine he wouldn't want to walk out of here today.

"Two Grand Secretaries, rest assured, this subordinate will certainly go all out!

Anyone who dares to make trouble at this time is definitely a person with ulterior motives; this subordinate will fight to the death with such unloyal and unfilial people."

The statement of Zuo Ding Yushi-in-Chief Lu Lu Zhifan made many officials with ideas suddenly fall silent.

Power struggle is important, but the premise is being able to survive.

Now the attitude of these big shots is clearly that whoever makes trouble will be dealt with first.

Taking risks at this time, the risk is indeed a bit big.

Countless eyes were cast on the Second Grand Secretary Pang Pang Hengsheng; in the current situation, the one with the most motivation to make trouble is the Qingliu faction.

As the loser of the previous round of political struggle, power reshuffling is most in line with the interests of the Qingliu faction.

"It's not just the Censorate; the Imperial Academy also needs to be paid attention to.

And the academies everywhere also need to be strengthened in management.

With such a change, those careerists will certainly not be able to hold back.

These young students are the easiest to be incited, and we cannot watch them make mistakes.

I think we should issue an edict in the name of the cabinet to the local education officials, ordering them to strictly manage the students everywhere.

Anyone who dares to speak recklessly about political affairs will be stripped of their merit and never be recorded again!"

Pang Pang Hengsheng's operation stunned countless people.

The local scholars are the power of the Qingliu camp; in the past party struggles, these scholars were their important tools.

The Qingliu big shot actively requesting to restrain scholars is definitely the first time in history.

After a short surprise, everyone reacted quickly.

The big picture comes first!

Regardless of how good the current opportunity is, as the Second Grand Secretary of the cabinet, what Pang Pang Hengsheng must consider first is the imperial court's big picture.

If he can't do this, not only will the Emperor not tolerate him, but the knowledgeable people in the imperial court will also get rid of him first.

The Great Great Dayu has raised scholars for so many years; it is definitely not a sudden explosion that can change people's hearts.

……

The changes in the capital were passed to Yangzhou at the fastest speed.

Hearing the bad news, Li Mu was stunned.

What kind of great explosion could have such huge destructive power?

I imagine that concentrating all the gunpowder of the Great Great Dayu in the capital and detonating it in a sealed manner wouldn't necessarily cause such destruction.

It can basically be ruled out as man-made; whoever has such ability, changing the dynasty is an easy thing.

"My Lord, as long as the Emperor is fine, everything will pass!"

Li Mu suppressed the shock and stepped forward to comfort.

The losses caused by the explosion have not been counted for the time being.

But from the information collected so far, the nobility group and the maternal relative group suffered heavy losses this time.

The losses of the eunuch and civil official camps were also not small, but their base was large enough, and there were plenty of candidates.

The nobility and maternal relatives who rely on bloodline for continuation cannot do it; cultivating talent is already difficult, and dying in a wave is completely adding frost to snow.

It is disastrous for the group, but it is an opportunity for the individual.

In officialdom, there is a radish for every hole; the positions vacated above naturally need people to fill them.

With more positions, the competition will be smaller.

As for the resulting power imbalance, that is a matter for big shots to consider, and it won't affect him, this small Battalion Commander, for the time being.

"Things are not that simple; sudden natural disasters will inevitably cause turmoil in the world.

I originally thought that after reforming the Lianghuai salt administration and filling the imperial court's financial deficit, we could start a prosperous age.

Now it seems it will be difficult; the Tianyuan era is truly full of disasters!"

The Marquis of Marquis Wuyang couldn't help but sigh.

Emperor Tianyuan took over a mess from the beginning of his reign.

Relying on a series of political means, he pulled the Great Great Dayu out of the abyss, and he was only one step away from the Tianyuan prosperity.

Unfortunately, heaven did not help, and suddenly a disaster descended.

In this era that advocates heaven-man resonance, droughts and floods can all be attributed to the Emperor's lack of virtue, not to mention this great explosion in the capital.

Compared to the impact on people's hearts, the direct losses caused by the explosion are secondary.

The focus of the imperial court next will no longer be reform, but how to consolidate rule.

"My Lord, we are temporarily powerless about the capital's affairs.

Why not concentrate our energy and solve the problem of Lianghuai salt administration first.

I imagine that at such a time, whether it is Left Eunuch Zuo or Grand Secretary Xu, they all want to return to the capital to preside over the overall situation as soon as possible.

Negotiating the salt administration reform at this time is most likely to reach a consensus in the short term.

Complete the task as soon as possible, and everyone can return with honor!"

Li Mu advised.

Everything is from the heart; as an official of the Great Great Dayu, he sincerely hopes that the imperial court can reverse the decadent trend.

The people's requirements for the imperial court are not high, as long as they don't toss blindly above.

Occasionally behead a few corrupt officials to vent anger for everyone, that would be even better.

The big and small problems encountered by the Great Great Dayu now, in the final analysis, are just one word: "money."

It takes money to support the huge bureaucratic system, and the Nine Borders front line is a gold-swallowing beast.

Solving the money problem solves most of the other problems.

The bad influence caused can be completely diluted by time.

As long as the imperial court is strong enough, people's hearts will not change.

If it really doesn't work, just let the Eunuch Party take the blame.

Anyway, their reputation is the smelliest, and they don't care if it's a bit smellier.

"You are right; this Commander cannot continue to wait and see.

Xu Xu Wenyue sent me a post a few days ago, but considering the plague prevention, a banquet ban was just promulgated.

This Commander wants to lead by example, so I didn't accept his invitation.

Now that the situation has changed, I will send someone to reply to him, and you will follow me to Yangzhou when the time comes."

Hearing the Marquis of Marquis Wuyang's words, Li Mu's head buzzed.

After a long time, these two bright-side rivals have been in contact in private.

What leading by example, it's purely nonsense.

It's nothing more than the two sides not reaching an agreement on interests, making it inconvenient to meet directly.

In the Great Great Dayu, big shots choosing to meet is a political statement in itself.

Real interest negotiations have always happened in private, and most of the time it is the secretaries of both sides communicating and pulling.

Big shots going into battle personally to negotiate is mostly just putting on a show, deliberately acting for the people below to see.

"My Lord, is it inconvenient for this subordinate to go?"

Li Mu asked uneasily.

This kind of high-end game, he, this small Battalion Commander, is not qualified to participate at all.

Although when he was in the capital, he also contacted many big shots with his uncle, those were meetings of family friends.

Besides him, there were other young people from noble families present.

The objects of friendship were also young people of similar age, just to mix a familiar face in front of those big shots.

Being brought to participate in this kind of high-end game as a subordinate, the meaning represented is not ordinary.

"What nonsense; if you are told to go, then honestly follow.

This time, you represent the Zhenyuan Marquis Mansion.

Remember to write to your uncle later, telling him that the favor I owed him, I am paying back now!"

The Marquis of Marquis Wuyang exploded with rough language impatiently.

The capital has undergone changes, and his mind is no longer in Yangzhou City.

For maternal relatives like the Marquis of Marquis Wuyang, the Emperor and Empress Dowager in the palace are the first priority.

Even if his own family suffered not small losses in the explosion, it cannot compare to one ten-thousandth of the two above.

With a backer, he is the noble brother-in-law of the Emperor.

Choosing to bring Li Mu, paying back the favor is incidental; mainly he needs someone to offer advice.

Regarding political means, the Marquis of Marquis Wuyang doesn't think he is a cabinet minister's opponent.

He does have some talents around him, but these people are cautious when seeing him on weekdays, fearing they will say the wrong word.

Bringing them to see Grand Secretary Xu, I imagine they would be suppressed by the other side's aura as soon as they met.

……

In the government office.

"Impossible!"

"This is impossible!"

Heavily throwing the letter to the ground, Xu Xu Wenyue still found it hard to believe this was true.

A great explosion almost took away the Great Great Dayu; it sounds like a fantasy.

"Grand Secretary, no one dares to talk nonsense about this kind of thing."

Hou Hou Huaichang reminded tactfully.

The pain of losing a son superimposed on the political changes, under the double blow, it is hard for anyone to accept.

However, people ultimately have to face reality.

Especially when power is reshuffled like this, the earlier one reacts, the more one can occupy an advantage.

Compared to the unlucky ones who died in the explosion, they who left the capital in advance are the lucky ones.

"Heaven does not protect my Great Great Dayu!"

Xu Xu Wenyue's sigh gave Hou Hou Huaichang a big fright.

This kind of rebellious words cannot be spoken nonsense.

Although deep in his heart, he thought so too, but some things can only be thought, not said.

"Grand Secretary, be careful with your words!"

Hou Hou Huaichang hurriedly persuaded.

He was frightened, fearing that Xu Xu Wenyue would say some shocking remarks in his grief.

"Rest assured, this old man hasn't gone crazy.

Write back to the capital, have them hold a funeral for my son; don't wait for me!

As for the court affairs, wait for me to slow down first, and we will discuss it tomorrow."

Xu Xu Wenyue said with a tragic face.

He has more than one son, but the one who died was the most capable one.

At a young age, he obtained the provincial graduate degree; getting the presented scholar degree in a few years was also a matter of course.

For a family like his, a degree alone cannot explain the problem; the key is the way of dealing with people.

In this regard, the eldest son also inherited his mantle.

It is unrealistic to lead the Xu family to a higher level, but it is enough to keep the family business and continue the wealth.

The successor he painstakingly cultivated for twenty years, now everything is gone.

For a time, he even felt disheartened, but he quickly walked out.

Being able to climb to the peak of officialdom, Xu Xu Wenyue is also a person with firm will, and he is not so easily defeated.

The dead have gone, and the living must continue.

……

Huaian Prefecture.

"Pack up, this humble one wants to return to the capital!"

Zuo Zuo Guangen said with a solemn expression.

The Emperor was seriously injured; for him, it was the sky falling.

In his view, no matter how important the Lianghuai salt administration reform is, it is not as important as one ten-thousandth of Emperor Tianyuan's body.

For civil and military officials, even if the Emperor is changed, the official is still the same.

But eunuchs are different; it is truly "one dynasty, one dynasty of ministers."

There is no shortage of two-dynasty veterans and three-dynasty veterans among the hundred officials, and they can live to become four-dynasty veterans and five-dynasty veterans.

Only eunuchs have never heard of being able to span several dynasties.

If lucky, encountering a kind-hearted Emperor, they can change to a leisurely position to retire.

If encountering a ruthless character, these big eunuchs are the first to be purged.

"Godfather, we can't leave now!

You are an imperial envoy; according to the rules, you cannot return to the capital without an edict before completing the task."

The little eunuch nearby hurriedly persuaded.

The Emperor had an accident, and he was also anxious.

But the more at such a time, the less one can make mistakes.

It was not easy to hug this thigh, and it cannot fall like this.

"With such a change, if this humble one doesn't go back to preside over the overall situation, who knows what those bastards will do.

If I had known the Lianghuai salt industry was so troublesome, this humble one wouldn't have come to join in the fun!"

Zuo Zuo Guangen couldn't help but complain.

Going south was to brush a big political achievement; now the achievement is almost in hand, but an accident happened in the capital.

Fortunately, Emperor Tianyuan was only injured, not directly hung up, otherwise the consequences would be even more serious.

"Godfather, the matter is of great importance; why don't you gather everyone to discuss countermeasures."

The young eunuch took the opportunity to suggest.

This matter involves too much, far exceeding his cognitive range.

Wanting to offer advice, he didn't know where to start, so he could only pin his hopes on a group of Eunuch Party big shots.

"Not bad, this kind of thing really needs to be calculated well.

If there are no accidents, the Emperor's edict is already on the way.

Based on this humble one's understanding of the Emperor, he hates giving up halfway the most.

In order to reform the salt administration, he laid out for several years, and he will never give up easily."

Zuo Zuo Guangen nodded and said.

Although he wanted to return to the capital immediately, things still had to be done.

For the Emperor, the more people are panicked, the more he must remain strong.

If the salt administration reform is successful, it has great strategic significance for the imperial court to stabilize the situation.

With money, soldiers, and righteousness, this world won't be chaotic!

……

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 98 =====