Looking at Emperor Jianyuan, who was already in the zone, Li Chang'an began to sneer inwardly.
Wow, you're trying to pull this drinking culture game with me, this is interesting.
What was the secret to my ability to earn money in my past life?
Isn't it all thanks to that mouth?
Not only can you drink it, but you can also give it as a gift.
"Your Majesty has worked hard. I wonder what forces are at play in the court."
After a few drinks, Li Chang'an began to probe for information.
It may not be true, but at least it can be of some use.
Emperor Jianyuan thought for a moment and then said, “In this court, the meritorious nobles, led by my uncle, are no longer a force to be reckoned with. They are either hiding in their fiefdoms indulging in wine and women or only concerned with making money.”
"Most of those upright civil officials were disciples of Confucianism. They valued their principles above all else. Whenever the rights of Confucianism were challenged, they would start to spread rumors and join forces to smear others."
"Finally, there are petty people like Chief Minister Yan. They only think about greed for money and power, but they are not a threat."
As Zhou Chao spoke, his gaze never left Li Chang'an's face.
Hopefully, we can glean some of his thoughts from the immortal's expression.
Unfortunately, no matter what he said, Li Chang'an remained calm.
He thought for a moment, then said, "However, this Chief Minister Yan is not entirely clean in private either. I don't know the specifics. These are the three major factions in the court."
"They are called the three major parties, but the people involved are actually very complicated. No one can tell who is who. Sometimes someone may be white, but their heart may be black."
"Moreover, some Jianghu forces have also colluded with some people in the imperial court. The current Ming Dynasty, which is said to be the world of my Zhou family, is actually a power struggle among various forces."
"Outside, there are the Liao and Manchu kingdoms, which frequently invade our borders and covet our land."
“The Heaven and Earth Society occupied Fujian, the White Lotus Sect occupied Jiangnan, and all the major sects ignored the government’s policies and did as they pleased.”
"The court was even more divided, with various factions fighting each other for power and profit. No one cared about the lives of the people of the Ming Dynasty."
Li Chang'an picked up some food, his face expressionless, but in his heart he was analyzing Emperor Jianyuan's words.
After a while, he asked, "Are there any powerful figures behind these imperial court and martial arts forces?"
Zhou Chao paused for a moment, then immediately got up to pour Li Chang'an a glass of wine. He then sat down and slowly said, "I heard that behind Yan Song, there is a terrestrial deity who controls both the Tianxia Society and the Dongxing Gang."
"The influence of noble families has always been in the military. They don't have many experts, but they can form an army of ten thousand. No sect in the martial arts world can defeat the military in a confrontation of more than ten thousand people."
"This last Confucian school, I heard there was a sage named Zhang who lived for more than four hundred years, but I don't know if it's true or not."
Upon hearing this, Li Chang'an's eyes lit up.
"Four hundred years, a Confucian sage?"
"Where does he live? I'd like to pay him a visit."
Zhou Chao looked at his eager expression and was somewhat taken aback: "Well, the Confucian sage lived in Taipingfang. He was very capable, knowing everything from astronomy to geography."
Li Chang'an waved his hand dismissively: "It's nothing. I'm just going to see if he really has lived for four hundred years."
He wanted to find this Confucian sage to see if he knew how he came into this world.
For Li Chang'an, there are only two things in this world that interest him now.
The first task is to reform the Ming Dynasty, and the second is to study the world.
With the Emperor's Armor protecting him, he basically had no worries about safety.
Because the one with security concerns is definitely not him.
"Alright, but I still hope that the immortal will be careful. Confucian scholars are always jealous of each other and like to stir up trouble. It's best to avoid dealing with them."
Zhou Chao was somewhat worried, fearing that this immortal elder might be associating with Confucianists, which would ruin his plans.
Having lost his trump card, the clay Buddha, he felt insecure.
Despite twelve years of painstaking effort, I don't actually have much influence.
It's because my own father delegated all the power.
Li Chang'an waved his hand dismissively, indicating that he was merely paying a visit to this extraordinary figure.
Unbeknownst to them, the Confucian sage was carrying a small bundle, preparing to flee the capital at any moment.
This immortal being, who had lived for four hundred years, looked at the capital city behind him and wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
"Go to hell, that scared the hell out of me! This scoundrel must be some kind of deity descended to earth."
"After the clay Buddha told his fortune, he was struck by eighty-one bolts of lightning. I've been hiding at home and dare not go out. I even dream of my great-grandmother waving to me. I can't stay in the capital anymore, I have to run away."
Zhang Xiansheng wiped the cold sweat that kept pouring down his forehead with a cloth, thought for a moment, wrote a letter, and left it on his desk.
The letter contained only one sentence: Zhang Jiadi, acting in charge of Confucianism.
After he finished writing, he used the waist tag hanging from his belt to cover the letter, then carried the small package and ran away.
Anyway, he dared not stay in the capital. He had lived for over four hundred years and had seen all kinds of storms.
This is a daydream where I see my great-grandmother beckoning to me with Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
He genuinely had never seen it before.
Taking advantage of his drunken state, Li Chang'an kept trying to get information out of Emperor Jianyuan. They drank from noon until late afternoon before he finally got up to take his leave.
Emperor Jianyuan escorted them to their carriages and watched them slowly depart, his expression gradually turning serious.
"Feng Huo, pass on the word and have all the experts protecting Yan Song removed."
"Also, make all the pawns planted among Chief Minister Yan retreat and find a way to get away from Yan Song."
From the shadows, a pale-faced, beardless, and thin eunuch emerged: "Yes, Your Majesty, but must we really abandon Lord Yan?"
"If we abandon Lord Yan, we won't have many people left who can deal with the Confucianists and those nobles."
Emperor Jianyuan sighed and pressed his hand to his head: "What can we do if we don't give up? Yan Song has gone too far lately. If we protect him, I'm afraid this immortal elder will stand directly against us."
After saying that, he turned to the eunuch behind him and asked, "Are you confident that you can defeat that immortal?"
The eunuch thought for a moment and shook his head: "I am somewhat confident that I can defeat Wang Xianzhi of Wudi City and Zhang Zhenren of Wudang Mountain, but as for this immortal, I felt as if I had already stepped into the gates of hell just from having a thought about him."
Emperor Jianyuan remained silent for a long time, watching Li Chang'an's carriage drive further and further away until it disappeared from sight, before finally speaking: "Give up. I hope this immortal master can help my Ming Dynasty out of consideration for my respect for scholars."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The eunuch nodded and withdrew.
The reason why Emperor Jianyuan was able to abolish those indemnity treaties and sit on the throne peacefully for twelve years is because of this.
Aside from the clay bodhisattva who guards the fortune of the Ming Dynasty, there is this eunuch who is unknown in the martial arts world but can rival Wang Xianzhi.
The eunuch's surname was Chen, his given name was Fenghuo, and his courtesy name was Zhuhou. He was the Grand Steward of the Imperial Palace.
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