The Great Wei Dynasty, since the formation of the cabinet.
According to ancestral rules, the number of members has always been strictly controlled at five.
Now, apart from the well-deserved Prime Minister Zhang Zhengming.
In second place was Li Fang, Grand Secretary of the Cabinet and Minister of Revenue.
Although he is not as good as Zhang Zhengming, he has unparalleled prestige.
But he was also the top scholar of the previous dynasty and a famous Confucian scholar of his time.
This day.
In the east of the capital, in the Li Mansion.
"Dad, what's wrong with you?"
Li Fang's son Li Lin returned from a trip to the suburbs.
As soon as I walked into the inner hall, I saw my father with an angry face.
"Isn't it your mother? She allowed your aunt and her family in Longyang Prefecture to run rampant, seize farmland, and bully the village!" Li Fang said, "If it weren't for my strong suppression, I'm afraid the complaint would have been submitted to the cabinet by now."
"And your mother showed no remorse, favoring her relatives and even having a huge argument with me."
Having said that, Li Fang looked up, glanced at her son, and said coldly.
"Tell me, is there a share for you in this?"
This.
Li Lin trembled all over and quickly lowered his head.
Drops of cold sweat oozed from his forehead: "Father, I'm just a figurehead, I didn't do anything."
Sure enough, there is a son.
Hearing this, Li Fang took a deep breath, looking angry at the lack of fighting spirit.
Although he was not an honest official throughout his life, he knew what he should and should not do.
Running rampant and abusing one's power is not a big deal, but occupying farmland can be a serious threat to the foundation of the country.
As the second-in-command of the cabinet, he naturally knew this better than anyone else, and he also understood that if it were to be spread out, it would endanger the entire Li family.
However, his wife and son are involved in this.
Li Fang had no choice. Even if she was angry, she had to suppress it.
However, this warning still needs to be given.
He immediately looked at his son and said seriously, "Well, since you're back, go see your mother now and ask her to persuade your aunt to return the occupied land and compensate her. Also, clean up your act."
"Dad, it's not that serious, is it?" Li Lin said reluctantly, "You are the Minister of Revenue, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet."
"It's just the occupation of a few acres of land. Even if the complaint is submitted to the cabinet, what will happen? Will it be suppressed?"
In his eyes, his father was already one of the highest-ranking officials in the court.
Those who filed the complaint were just a group of powerless and unruly people.
Is it possible to overthrow the second-in-command of the cabinet?
"A few fields?"
Li Fang became angry again and scolded, "Do you think I don't know? Nearly 80,000 mu, is this the small amount of land you mentioned?"
"Also, what if the complaint is submitted to the cabinet? Let me tell you, the one who makes the decision in the cabinet right now is Zhang Zhengming."
"If Zhang Zhengming knew, given his personality, I would have to step down tomorrow!"
If it were someone else, Li Fang would naturally not be afraid.
But Zhang Zhengming is too strong and too upright.
There will be no mercy to anyone who violates the laws of the Wei Dynasty.
He also served as the chief minister of the cabinet for decades.
The power and prestige are so great.
He is completely inferior.
The other party found out that the Li family was behind the incident and instigated relatives to occupy the land.
The end of his official career is a light punishment, and he will probably be sent to the Dali Temple.
Sure enough, when Li Lin heard what his father said, he panicked.
But he soon calmed down and said, "What if Zhang Zhengming steps down and you take over as Prime Minister?"
"As long as you are the Prime Minister, even if the complaints from those troublemakers are submitted to the cabinet, you can deal with them however you want."
Li Fang, who had been furious just moments before, suddenly changed expression as he narrowed his eyes and asked, "What do you mean by that? Zhang Zhengming is the current Grand Tutor and a trusted minister of the late emperor. How could he possibly step down?"
"Dad, I recently heard that the whole court is in turmoil because of the issue of Prince Yan's enfeoffment."
"For this, His Majesty the Emperor not only angrily rebuked the censor, but also directly scolded Zhang Zhengming."
"Those words almost imply that Zhang Zhengming is all-powerful."
Li Lin said, "This shows that Your Majesty has long been extremely dissatisfied with him, and this is your opportunity."
Li Fang heard this and said nothing, but lowered his head in thought.
This statement is absolutely correct.
If you put yourself in their shoes.
As the Emperor of Wei.
What would the emperor think if he had a minister who was extremely powerful, had many students and scholars all over the country, and was also very prestigious? Wouldn't he be wary of him?
Seeing that his father was persuaded by his words, Li Lin continued, "Dad, these past few years, no matter what, Zhang Zhengming has always outmaneuvered you."
"He has been the Prime Minister for many years, and Your Majesty also has opinions about him. Don't you want to replace him?"
Yes, the current cabinet consists of a prime minister and four deputy prime ministers working together.
But in reality? It was completely Zhang Zhengming's one-man show.
Although Li Fang has great power.
But in front of the other party, it is completely not good enough.
You know, he was the top scholar in the previous dynasty, but what about Zhang Zhengming? He had no achievements at all and was just a country bumpkin back then.
Having been oppressed by such a person for decades, Li Fang was naturally extremely dissatisfied.
It is impossible to say that there is no idea of replacing it.
Who doesn’t want to be the prime minister of the cabinet and have all the power in the government?
Li Fang wanted to do that very much.
However, he did not express his opinion.
Instead, he looked at his son and said in a deep voice, "Then what is this opportunity you're talking about?"
"Of course it's about the Prince of Yan's enfeoffment!" Li Lin said, "Right now, the entire court, both civil and military, is trying to persuade His Majesty about this matter, but to no avail. But what if you succeed in advising His Majesty on this matter and achieve something that Zhang Zhengming couldn't even do?"
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