When Shang Rong spoke, the veteran officials followed suit.
King Zhou was determined to make Daji his queen, and Fei and You were just taking advantage of this to speak up for Daji.
The court is now divided into two factions, seemingly vying for the position of Queen, but in reality, it is a power struggle between the two factions. The old faction, led by Shang Rong, Bi Gan, and King Wu Cheng, represents the established power of the old faction, while Fei and You lead a new force. These new forces want to grow, which leads to a struggle with the old faction. The old faction is naturally unwilling to relinquish its power so easily, which is why the struggle is so fierce.
King Zhou looked at the group of people below who had fallen into a noisy commotion again, and he was really displeased. He especially disliked the group led by Shang Rong. In the two days since Yun Zhongzi escaped, King Zhou had been bewitched by the mind-controlling spell again and had returned to his old state. He was no longer shrewd. Now, King Zhou was completely infatuated with the restored Daji and naturally doted on her. He wanted to hand over the position of queen to Daji.
Seeing that Fei and You were no match for these veteran ministers, King Zhou was furious. He roared, "How can you make such a scene in the court? If outsiders see this, they'll laugh their heads off!"
When Fei and You saw that King Zhou was angry, they quickly knelt down and begged for mercy. Observing people's expressions was the best skill for these treacherous officials. As soon as they saw that King Zhou's expression was not right, they knelt down and bowed their heads, not daring to say the slightest objection.
But the old ministers were different. Admittedly, they were all shrewd and experienced, but it was precisely because of this that they became somewhat confused as they grew older and saw more of the world.
For example, among the current group of veteran officials, apart from Huang Feihu, Shang Rong and Bigan, they still stand there, only bowing their heads slightly as a sign of respect, relying on their status as veterans of three reigns, believing that King Zhou would not do anything to them, but this time they were wrong.
Perhaps, before King Zhou was bewitched by that spell, he wouldn't have done anything to them. But now, King Zhou was completely out of his mind. Seeing them like this, how could he remain calm? His anger surged, but considering their status, he couldn't suppress his rage. He couldn't do anything to them now, but who knew what would happen later? King Zhou said, "Queen Jiang is dead, and the harem cannot be without a mistress for a day. Consort Su is virtuous, well-educated, and has a good reputation. Therefore, Consort Su shall be made empress. No one shall have any further objections. Court adjourned!" With that, he rose to leave.
Shang Rong, however, was not having it. In his opinion, if it were decided so easily, wouldn't all the previous arguments have been for nothing? Seeing that King Zhou was about to leave, he immediately stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, you must not do this. Although Consort Su has a good reputation, her qualifications are not enough to command respect among the other concubines in the harem. She is not fit to take on such a great responsibility. I urge Your Majesty to reconsider."
King Zhou was even angrier upon seeing this, and said coldly, "I have already said that this matter is settled, and the ministers shall not raise any further objections. Furthermore, the matter of choosing an empress is my personal affair; do you intend to obstruct it?"
Shang Rong, however, was blinded by greed. Hearing King Zhou's words, he still refused to accept them, saying, "Your Majesty is mistaken. As the ruler of Yin Shang, Your Majesty governs the people of Muye. Every action Your Majesty takes affects the development of the entire Yin Shang. Your Majesty's family affairs are state affairs, and state affairs involve the people of Yin Shang. Therefore, Your Majesty cannot act arbitrarily. It is not that we are trying to stop you, but this matter is of great importance and cannot be decided in a few words. If Your Majesty insists on proceeding, I'm afraid this matter will not be convincing to the people. If the people are not convinced, chaos will break out in the court. I urge Your Majesty to reconsider."
Shang Rong was truly dumbfounded. These words were indeed too forceful. They wouldn't have been a big deal on their own, but You Hun seized on the flaw in them. Before King Zhou could speak, You Hun immediately jumped out and said, "Shang Rong, how dare you! The matter of establishing an empress is a family affair of the king. What does it have to do with the public? Consort Su is virtuous and better than any of the other concubines in the harem. Everyone in the world knows this. The king has made a meritorious concubine empress, yet you insist on stopping him and even use the excuse of 'difficult to convince the public' to pressure the king. This is simply outrageous! You all just want to rely on the sister of King Wu Cheng to maintain your power, yet you rely on your status as veterans of three reigns to contradict the king. You even want to interfere in the king's family affairs. Tell me, what are your true intentions? Is this world your world or the king's world?"
Look at those words, spoken with such conviction, they would make a loud thud if they fell to the ground. Shang Rong hadn't expected You Hun to say such a thing, especially since You Hun disregarded his reputation and directly brought up this tacit principle. According to the usual practice in officialdom, everyone understood this matter, but no one would bring it up in the open, otherwise no one would have a good outcome.
Today, You Hun was also in a daze. He thought he had gotten leverage from Shang Rong and wanted to kill him. In his haste, he blurted out these things. After he finished speaking, You Hun was still oblivious to his own fate and stood aside, still feeling smug.
King Zhou's face was ashen. Although he had been bewitched and acted somewhat excessively and foolishly, it did not mean he was a complete idiot. You Hun's words today were absolutely right. If he did not deal with Shang Rong, he would probably lose his position. But how easy was it to deal with Shang Rong? As a veteran of three reigns, Shang Rong had deep-rooted power. If he could be dealt with so easily, he would probably be dead long ago.
Shang Rong never expected You Hun to be so muddle-headed today. Although he had spoken somewhat excessively earlier, it was not what he truly meant. He was loyal to the state and spoke out today because he was afraid that King Zhou would favor the two treacherous ministers Fei and You because of his favoritism towards Daji. The matter of choosing a queen was not of much concern to them. Who actually became queen was not important. What mattered most was the future status of these old-guard forces after the queen became queen. That was what everyone was concerned about. Who would have thought that You Hun would be so muddle-headed as to bring up such things.
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