Chapter 138 Ambition

Upon hearing this, the important officials who were prostrating themselves on the ground trembled all over.

To be honest, although "Tui Bei Tu" is famous, the language is vague and difficult to understand. Moreover, later quacks have mixed it with a large number of fabricated folk songs and prophecies, making it extremely difficult to distinguish the truth from the false. Such a nearly forged prophecy book is of very low quality. It would be fine if it was just discussed in secret during leisure time, but it was actually discussed openly in the central government, when the emperor and his ministers were talking, in front of all the well-read university scholars. It was so absurd that it was like asking ghosts and gods instead of caring about the people.

But even if it is ridiculous, what can we do now? Once power expands, it is bound to be abused; in recent years, the majesty of Feixuan Zhenjun Wanshou Emperor has increased rapidly with the victories in several foreign wars, and his actions have become more and more unscrupulous. Public opinion was weak, civil officials were at a loss, even local interest groups were fed by maritime trade and had no say, the constraints on imperial power had been reduced to a certain point, and it was difficult for anyone to express opposition in front of the emperor.

So, Lord Yan and Lord Xu were really far-sighted. Absolute and unrestrained imperial power is indeed a very dangerous double-edged sword. It takes extremely strong talent to control such power, which is definitely not something that ordinary people can do. When talking about Emperor Xiaowu of the Han Dynasty, most of the historical materials focus on the Witchcraft Rebellion in his later years, in which he went crazy for no apparent reason and killed all nine generations of his clan, with his sword slashing from Ganquan Palace all the way to Chang'an East Road. But if we look at it from a broader perspective, before Emperor Wu went crazy in his later years, he had actually been sitting on the throne without any constraints for decades, enjoying absolute freedom without any restrictions. The wine of power is the most corrosive to the bones and the heart, and it can change human nature. The fact that Emperor Wu managed to hold on for decades before losing control and going crazy shows that he has first-rate self-control in the world.

On the other hand, it may have taken Master Feixuan less than half a year from the time he was freed from his restraints to his complete fall. Emperor Wu of Han might have experienced the struggle between heaven and man at the top of the world, and finally failed after trying his best to subdue his inner demons, and was alienated by power into an inhuman monster; but as for Master Feixuan, there was basically no struggle, no resistance, and no helplessness; overall, he slipped into the trap of power smoothly and even impatiently, just like a fly finally flying into the cesspool it had longed for.

If virtue does not match one's position, disaster will surely occur. Generally speaking, people like the old Taoist priest who are good at playing dirty and lying down for three minutes can only play power games, and there is no way to break free from the shackles and liberate the complete version of the imperial power, so the destructive power is actually relatively limited, at most it can clean up every household; this is also one of the excellent matching mechanisms in the East Asia region. But now, due to some inexplicable external plug-ins and inexplicable coincidences, Master Feixuan actually broke free from the constraints of the original rules. The destructive power that burst out in an instant is probably...

Elder Yan knew about this first, and knelt down sincerely:

"'A guest is coming from the West' must refer to a guest from the West. The Spanish in Southeast Asia are rebelling, and there is a word 'West' in it. This must be the meaning of the prophecy."

"What does 'stop at the east' mean?"

Lord Yan is not a fortune teller, so how would he know what "Tui Bei Tu" means? Being able to guess the emperor's intention and put the blame of "guests coming from the west" on the Spaniards was already an extraordinary performance of an experienced person; as for forcing the interpretation of "stopping in the east", isn't that embarrassing? He could only kowtow:

"I am ignorant and stupid, so I beg for your guidance."

"How can you say that the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion is stupid?" The emperor smiled faintly, "As for your request for my instruction, I have nothing to say, I just made some guesses: 'stop at the east', where is the east of the west? Isn't it the Central Plains? There are guests coming from the west, stop at the east, the guests from the west seem to have a strong desire for the Central Plains."

After a few words of instruction, everyone prostrated themselves together, sincerely praising the wisdom and intelligence of Master Feixuan and Master Wanshou. Their insights were far beyond those of ordinary people and had given them great inspiration - of course, most of these words were nonsense; the area east of Europe was so vast, how could it be confined to a corner of Middle-earth? Given the current situation, it would be more appropriate to say that Westerners are plotting in the Middle East. But the emperor's words are true: the value never lies in truth but in characterization. These few lightly-worded riddles have given everyone enough hints:

The True Lord wanted to deal with the Spaniards, accusing them of "coveting the Central Plains."

This sentence is enough. Anyway, this is not a joint trial by three judges, and no one will defend the Spaniards' innocence. The temporary workers in the External Affairs Office lowered their heads obediently, respectfully accepting Master Feixuan's metaphor, and did not dare to make any comments. Although his authority has expanded, Zhenjun still has the same gloomy and secretive style as before; the orders he issues are mostly hints, riddles, and prophecies that are left unsaid, and the people below need to try their best to guess, think, and do things in fear and trepidation according to their guesses. If it is done right, the glory will naturally go to the emperor. If it is done wrong... the emperor did not order it to happen at all. This is the cabinet's own decision. What does it have to do with Feixuan Zhenjun, who is as pitiful as Bai Lianhua?

Everyone understands this style, so even if they don't like it, they have no choice but to obey. After the Chief Minister Yan Ge Lao finished asking for instructions, it was the turn of the Second Minister Xu Ge Lao to step forward:

"Your Majesty is very clear-sighted. The Spanish do have evil intentions. The Foreign Affairs Office reported the other day that Spain is in the South China Sea..."

The emperor held a cane and didn't mind:

"I didn't ask you about the war, and you don't have to rush to answer about the war situation. These are your duties, so don't come to the palace to disturb us. When we discuss matters in front of the emperor, we discuss the overall situation."

All the important ministers were silent, but the corner of Prince Mu's mouth twitched. Well, it’s the familiar blame-shifting speech again, with the attitude of pushing the blame onto others and giving up everything, “You guys handle these things. I have a lot of things to do, and I need to focus on the overall situation”! The overall situation will never go wrong, the emperor's original intention is always good, and if there is a mistake, it can only be due to poor execution by the lower levels. As important officials who have been with the emperor for a long time, everyone is very familiar with this routine.

But no matter what, no matter how much they pass the buck, no matter how bad the situation is, the presence of such a sentence at least acknowledges that the Foreign Affairs Office has a considerable degree of freedom in handling Spanish affairs. He did nothing himself, but always allowed his subordinates to do some things. This was much better than the later emperors.

Even if the emperor is in a bad mood, he still needs to ask for instructions. Xu Shaohu bowed again:

"Previously, according to the emperor's order, 3,000 musketeers were transferred from the capital to the nine border defense lines. Qi Yuanjing led the training in preparation for the future use of troops in the north and the destruction of the country. Now Qi Yuanjing wrote to the Ministry of War, saying that the rectification has been quite effective, but the consumption of muskets is huge, far beyond expectations. He doesn't know much about firearms, so he doesn't know how to..."

Since rockets and muskets were widely used in naval battles, figures like Qi Yuanjing quickly realized the huge potential of firearms. Therefore, he wrote to the central government several times, requesting the promotion of firearms in the nine border areas that were defending against Mongolia, and using the advantages of weapons to reorganize the defense line - judging from the performance of muskets and rockets on the battlefield, as long as the army was well organized, it would be enough to quickly form an overwhelming combat force; the enemy's strength could be reversed in an instant, and if they seized this opportunity and used troops in time, even sweeping across the northern desert and sealing off the wolf's lair would not necessarily be a delusion.

This was a major event that would lay the foundation for eternity, so Qi Yuanjing prepared the memorial very carefully and thoroughly, hoping to win the favor of the central government and use it as a stepping stone to display his talents in the future. However, the memorial was unexpectedly submitted directly to the Forbidden City and attracted the attention of the emperor who was in confinement. For some unspeakable reasons, Master Feixuan always paid extra attention to people like Qi Yuanjing and Hai Gangfeng, and was willing to take the time to read the memorials after receiving them. Qi Yuanjing's articles were plain and sincere, to the point, and really spoke to Master Feixuan's mind.

You must know that the emperor of the Da'an Dynasty had very limited strategic room to guard the national border. Once the nine-border defense line collapsed, the cavalry would be able to rush straight to the outside of the capital's city walls within seven or eight days, and the emperor would not even have time to react. There is danger at his side and deadly calamity at his throat. Even a coward like Zhenjun would never dare to neglect the military affairs in the north. Therefore, as soon as the memorial was submitted, it immediately alarmed the emperor. The old Taoist priest, in a rare act of arbitrary decision-making, approved Qi Yuanjing's memorial with his imperial pen, and transferred Qi to the nine borders to take on the important task of rectifying the military affairs of the border troops.

In just a few years, he climbed up the ladder from a hereditary officer to a core general in charge of border defense. Such a fast rise was truly jaw-dropping. No wonder Qi Yuanjing was cautious and always thought of danger and retreat. Whenever he had a little achievement, he would immediately write a letter to demote himself, hoping to withdraw in time and avoid criticism.

It's a pity that the True Lord finally caught a reliable and useful tool man, so how could he let go of him for no reason? The emperor was silent for a moment, then spoke calmly:

"Firearms are the responsibility of the Foreign Affairs Office. What does the Foreign Affairs Office say?"

Making firearms was the job of the Prince of Mu, so the Prince stepped out to pay his respects, bowing his head without saying a word.

The emperor asked him, "So many firearms factories have been built in the north and south in recent years. Are there enough firearms?"

What else can I say? The prince said honestly: "It's enough."

"Since it is enough, then don't cry poor." The emperor said: "You can handle the affairs of the nine borders at your discretion."

"As you command." The prince said, "But please forgive me for my stupidity. I would like to ask your Majesty whether the expansion and renovation of the firearms factory, or even the development of new weapons, must be coordinated with the nine borders and the garrisons in various places?"

As soon as these words came out, the air around him immediately stagnated. The ministers who had gathered on all sides did not dare to say a word, but they all turned their heads to look at him, feeling horrified and surprised, unable to explain themselves - you know, the words "consider it" and "discuss it" were the emperor's usual way of giving instructions, highlighting an ambiguous wording to pass the buck, and never giving a clear explanation; and the people below understood what he meant, and would never ask this question without any color. Now that everything has been clarified, doesn't that mean the responsibility lies with the emperor?

Perhaps it had been decades since he had seen such a question, and even the True Lord himself was stunned for a moment, and then he said in a sarcastic tone as usual:

"You are a good questioner. Unfortunately, if the other cabinet scholars had answered the question, they would not have asked such an extra question."

The prince replied seriously:

"Of course. The cabinet ministers are all well-educated people, and they know everything in the world. But I am so poor that I can't even recognize a few of 'Confucius said' and 'The Book of Poetry says'. If I don't ask more questions, I am afraid that it will ruin the strategy of His Majesty."

Master Fei Xuan: …………

To be honest, if someone else had replied like this, the old Taoist priest would have suspected that he was intentionally mocking and despising the imperial power; but when the prince said this... well, things like "poor ink" and "can't recognize a few big characters" really don't sound like lies. Speaking the truth in such a straightforward manner has an indescribable effect.

Telling the truth in government affairs always has unexpected effects. The emperor was stunned for a moment and did not reply immediately. The prince's nervous character did not fall, and he actually asked another question:

"I still need your Majesty's instructions."

This is coming step by step! In other words, Mu's cultural level was well-known far and wide, and no one suspected that he was deliberately concealing his shortcomings; otherwise, based on these two ignorant replies, he would at least be charged with a crime of disrespect. Even so, the emperor still endured it again and again before he said the crucial statement that could almost determine most of the future situation:

"good!"

This sentence is so crucial and important that it can almost be regarded as a promise worth a thousand gold. Mu Shi did not even bother to appease the extremely dissatisfied emperor, and immediately bowed his head and agreed, confirming this key point:

"I obey your order."

·

Except for the one time when he was defeated by the Prince of Mu, the emperor had no problem communicating with the central government. With just a few questions, he was able to unload all the heavy burdens and clear a space for himself to lie down, so that he could return to his leisurely days in the Western Garden. If we ignore the inappropriate episodes in the middle, this can also be regarded as a great strategic planning, commanding the country, and being extremely elegant and dashing. The emperor was generally satisfied. After explaining everything, he finally had an impulse and decided to reveal some secrets that he had been considering for a long time.

"In the past six months, the Jinyiwei have been buying goods and gathering information from sea merchants. They all say that the Spanish are blessed with a piece of land called 'America' beyond the oceans, which is rich in products and gold and silver, and they dominate the world with it. Is this true? What exactly is this 'America'? You should also make a careful visit."

When this was said, others just obeyed. Only the prince, who had shrunk back into the crowd with his hands down, had his eyes jump. He carefully raised his head and glanced at the emperor vaguely.