Chapter 202: Reporting to Your Majesty, the crisis in the court has been resolved today.
What is it like to find that the bigwigs of the Royal Party are collectively and seriously discussing a problem that you have just solved?
Zhao Duan felt quite strange.
Inside the side hall, the atmosphere was solemn and tense.
Everyone here is an important member of the warship of the Dayu Dynasty.
At this moment, his expression was filled with fatigue due to the battles between gods in recent days.
"...In short, the situation is now extremely urgent. I blame this old minister for not being able to perceive it in time, allowing the other party to gather so many forces under our noses in the Hanlin Academy.
If a student hadn't learned about it and leaked it, the scholars would have attacked it en masse, discrediting the new policies and even criticizing Your Majesty's character. I'm afraid the situation would have been very difficult."
Grand Tutor Dong sighed, his tired face full of self-blame.
Sitting on the dragon throne, Xu Zhenguan shook his head upon hearing this and said:
"Grand Master, there's no need to do this. I know that you've devoted yourself to the Culture Academy. At your age, you don't have the time to care about so many things. This is what gave some people the opportunity to take advantage of you."
The elegant and handsome Da Qingyi also echoed:
"For now, let's discuss how to counter it."
The Minister of Justice said with a headache:
"I'm afraid it's difficult. Scholars have been involved in politics since ancient times. Many of the scholars in the capital today have families behind them. How could they be willing to surrender? In my opinion, we should divide and conquer, identify the leaders among the students, and promise them benefits. That's the right thing to do."
An official said:
"That makes sense, but is there enough time? Besides, the one who initiated this was Chen Zhengru, and he must have Li Yanfu's support behind him. I'm afraid the 'key members' he selected will be difficult to bribe."
For a time, all the ministers expressed their opinions, but they were all rejected.
Zhao Duan listened curiously and found that this small court meeting was indeed "behind closed doors". Everyone discussed it without hiding anything.
He didn't speak in a vague way. For example, if he said he was bribing the "leading" student, he would say it openly and no one would think there was anything wrong.
If such words were made public, he would be criticized to death by scholars and become an example of a treacherous official.
He seemed to understand that the so-called "own people" were essentially a group of people who did some shameful things and said some shameful words together.
In this way, they can trust each other.
In his previous life, he was puzzled as to why, even though the times had progressed, those bigwigs who enjoyed abundant material possessions and could clearly satisfy their needs would still be exposed from time to time for collectively engaging in perverted behavior.
Every piece of news that comes out is shocking.
One explanation is that rich people have a high threshold and seek excitement, or criticize the ugliness of human nature.
But there is another explanation:
Even though the times have progressed, the most effective way to quickly build trust between people is still to do something bad together.
…
"What does Privy Councilor Xue think?"
During the discussion, someone suddenly asked a question.
The target was the source of the intimidating gaze that Zhao Duan felt when he entered the hall.
Privy Councilor? Xue? Zhao Duan suddenly realized the other party's identity—Xue Shence!
In the Dayu Dynasty, the highest military office was the "Privy Council".
Similar to the "Military Affairs Council", it is responsible for mobilizing and commanding troops to fight.
Together with the Ministry of War, which is responsible for "logistics", they control the millions of soldiers spread across the nine regions and eighteen prefectures of Dayu.
Currently, the highest official of the Privy Council, the "Privy Envoy", is the famous "God of War" of the Dayu Dynasty, Xue Shence.
He had already held this position during the previous emperor's time. Not only did he have outstanding military achievements, but his personal martial arts skills were also unfathomable.
At the beginning, Zhao Duan accidentally solved the "Firearm Craftsman Case" and learned that there was a rebel party hidden in the Privy Council.
That was his first "contact" with the Privy Councilor.
But it was not until today that Fang Fu saw the real person.
He wore a scarlet robe of a second-rank military officer with a square "lion" pattern embroidered on the chest. He had a fair complexion and a short beard under his chin.
The "God of War" of Dayu, who looks to be in his forties or fifties and can vaguely recall the handsome and handsome appearance of his youth, rarely spoke from beginning to end.
Seeing everyone looking at him, he spoke calmly:
"Xue is just a warrior, he only knows how to deploy troops and wield spears and clubs. In my opinion, before the enemy launches an attack, we should first find a crime and capture the main culprits. As the saying goes, to capture the thief, first capture the leader. This way, the effect will be immediate."
Good grief... great minds think alike...
Zhao Duan was amazed and thought to himself, isn't this what I just did?
All the trouble was just to capture the king "Li Yanfu".
The ministers looked at each other, and the Minister of Justice said tactfully:
"General Xue's method is not without reason, but it is so rough that I am afraid it will irritate those scholars, which is not good. If there is really no better method, we should consider it later."
I cursed in my heart, everyone knows how to arrest someone, but the problem is that this is not a good idea.
If you dare to arrest him today, there will be an uproar in the entire capital tomorrow, and a group of passionate young students will stand up in protest.
Xue Shence calmly closed his eyes and resumed his doze:
"Then Xue has no choice."
The ministers sighed.
For a moment, the meeting was deadlocked.
Several countermeasures have their own drawbacks, making it difficult to choose.
The atmosphere in the hall was like the sky outside, covered with dark clouds and extremely gloomy.
In the main seat.
Seeing this, Xu Zhenguan sighed softly, knowing that he had to make the decision himself in the end. When his beautiful eyes swept over the ministers, his gaze suddenly stopped on the little transparent person at the end.
She noticed that the little imperial guard who slipped in halfway seemed to be hesitant to speak.
Past experiences have made the empress no longer dare to underestimate this guy.
Besides, the new policy was originally proposed by him.
Before, Ming Mochou brought him in, perhaps with the intention of hearing his opinion.
"Zhao Qing, do you have anything to say?"
As the empress spoke, the ministers in the hall were stunned for a moment, and then all their surprised eyes focused on someone at the same time.
Zhao Duan seemed to enjoy the spotlight, but he didn't seem embarrassed at all. He cupped his hands and said:
"I have listened to your Excellencies' discussion and have a general understanding of the current situation. However... I believe this discussion may no longer be necessary, as I have already resolved the so-called deadlock. Well... I have come today to report this matter to Your Majesty."
His voice was very flat, as if he was telling a trivial matter.
However, it sounded like thunder to the ears of the bigwigs of the imperial party.
Dong Xuan suddenly looked up, unable to hide his astonishment.
Yuan Li's eyes lit up, full of confusion and anticipation.
The Minister of Justice was stunned, and inexplicably recalled the scene of the three-court trial.
Mo Zhaorong, who was acting as the recorder and holding the pen, raised his head, his eyes widening, and a familiar feeling suddenly surged in his heart... Here he comes again...
Even Xue Shence, who was pretending to sleep with his eyes closed, opened his eyes.
Has he solved the dilemma facing himself and others?
If someone else said this, this group of people would have sneered at it, but if it was Zhao Duan, it made people feel surprised and suspicious for a moment.
brush--
In an instant, many people turned their heads and looked at the empress on the dragon throne with inquiring eyes.
Speculation:
Could it be that Your Majesty has already made other arrangements?
Xu Zhenguan's expression was calm, and despite his icy skin, his facial features did not change much.
However, only those who were very close to her, like Mo Chou, noticed that the subtle movements of the empress's body revealed that she was also shocked.
"Mr. Zhao, please follow me."
Xu Zhenguan slowly stood up and said:
"The rest of you, please take a rest here."
After saying that, he turned around and walked straight out. When he passed the door, he looked straight ahead and whispered:
"Follow me."
…
The sun sets in the west.
In the corridors of the imperial palace, Xu Zhenguan, dressed in white as white as snow, walked gracefully, passing by red-lacquered wooden pillars.
Zhao Duan followed closely behind him, attracting the unexpected attention of many palace servants outside, who then quickly lowered their eyes.
Xu Zhenguan stepped into a quiet and empty room.
Turning around, her expression suddenly changed from that of a majestic god to that of a lively fairy.
She no longer maintained the majesty of a king, staring at him with strange eyes, and said in a hurried tone:
"What did you do behind my back again?"
What do you mean by doing it behind your back... It makes you sound like I'm cheating on you... Zhao Duan was too tired to complain.
I wanted to put on some pretentious tone, but I saw that she was really anxious.
After not seeing each other for some time, even with Xu Zhenguan's cultivation, there was an indelible fatigue between his brows, and even his almost perfect cheeks seemed to have become a little thinner.
He gave up the idea of playing tricks and said seriously:
"Your Majesty, as I have just stated, Chen Zhengru's planned actions will not take place. Furthermore, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the officials of the Li Party will cease their activities at court tomorrow morning."
The more Xu Zhenguan listened, the more incredible he found it. He said quietly:
"You know, talking nonsense is a crime of deceiving the emperor."
Zhao Duan said seriously:
"Before I reported this, I was about to ask Your Majesty to forgive the minor offenses I committed. If Your Majesty does not forgive me, I dare not speak."
Xu Zhenguan was stunned for a moment, as if he had not expected this little imperial guard to bargain with him, and his courage grew...
Rather than being angry, I was more curious.
She hesitated for a moment and said:
"As long as it's not excessive, I can forgive you."
You are not sincere. Whether it is excessive or not is just a matter of your mouth... Zhao Duan complained.
Seeing that the empress was still urging him, he had no choice but to say:
"This is a long story, and it all starts with Li Yinglong..."
Then, Zhao Duan calmly told how he investigated Li Yinglong, learned about Mrs. Lin's case, and followed the clues to learn about the royal family's explosive secrets.
He also tried to plot a "honey trap" to get hold of Li Yinglong's weakness.
He then used it as a bargaining chip to force Li Yanfu to agree, and recounted the whole series of operations in detail.
At the same time, he took out a lot of evidence he had collected during this period from the storage scroll and presented it together.
Finally, he bowed his head and said:
"...I feared delay would lead to unforeseen events, and I was also unsure. Therefore, I met privately with Li Yanfu to finalize this deal without Your Majesty's permission. I also dared to make my own decisions on many of the details, which was truly an overstepping of my bounds.
However, everything I have done is to help Your Majesty, and I have acted in an emergency. My loyalty is unwavering, and the sun and the moon can bear witness to it. Now that things have come to this, I implore Your Majesty to make the final decision. Even if it is a punishment, I have no complaints!"
He held up the "contract" drafted with Li Yanfu in both hands and said loudly.
The female emperor standing opposite him, with her celestial figure and beautiful face, and cold and peerless beauty, had already been stunned.
He lowered his eyes and stared at the respectful young imperial guard in front of him, lost in thought, and remained silent for a long time.
He... actually did such a big thing for himself... without anyone knowing...
Thanks to dodess-moon for the 1500 reward and zuokenanshan for the 500 points reward.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
