Chapter 87: A Show of Power (Please Read on Tuesday)
"If the envoy wishes to do so, I have no objection."
Mo Chou was stunned for a moment, then seemed to understand something and said lightly.
I'm backing you up, but you don't need it... Are you too self-righteous, your confidence swollen from your numerous achievements? Do you think you can do it without His Majesty's help?
Or is it simply a desire to demonstrate my abilities, impress me, and change my impression?
It doesn't matter, the female prime minister doesn't care.
Although she had a premonition that Zhao Duan would definitely seek her help after entering Lihua Hall.
After all... a treacherous villain who bullies the weak and fawns on the powerful, can usually act arrogantly in front of low-level officials and the people.
But if you are facing the children of powerful and influential people whom you cannot afford to offend, your knees will probably be weak, and this has nothing to do with your ability or skills.
Mo Chou had no doubt that Zhao Duan was smart and capable.
But she also knew that the smarter people are, the more they know how to "assess the situation" and even curry favor with the powerful.
Well, if that's the case, there's another possibility:
Even the man surnamed Zhao had no intention of establishing his authority, but was colluding with the wealthy and powerful people in Lihua Hall and was close to them.
Based on Zhao Duan's terrible character, this possibility is not small...
But if Zhu Kui were here, he would definitely feel a pang in his heart, because every time his envoy showed such a smile, it meant that someone was going to be in trouble.
…
After a while, the carriage arrived outside the imperial court. Zhao Duan got off alone, leaving the female prime minister waiting outside.
The imperial yamen is a whole complex of buildings, and each hall has its own courtyard with its own entrance and house.
Opposite the main entrance is the "Governor's Hall" where Ma Yan worked.
There are nine halls scattered on the left and right, and behind them is the famous "Imperial Prison" dungeon.
"Master Jisi! I haven't seen you for a long time. I miss you so much."
As soon as Zhao Duan announced his arrival, his old acquaintance, Captain Zhou Cang, greeted him with a big smile:
"The Governor is busy and cannot leave, so he has asked me to wait for a long time and lead the way for the police."
Can't get away? You're not avoiding me, are you? I feel like I've called you "senior brother" for nothing... Zhao Duan smacked his lips and nodded happily:
"In that case, thank you for your help."
Zhou Cang smiled and said, "Your Excellency is too polite. Please follow me."
The two of them walked along the stone road towards Lihua Hall. Occasionally, servants and officials passed by along the way, and they all looked at them sideways, obviously having heard of the new commander who was parachuted in.
"The governor has ordered me to explain the situation to you. If there is anything you don't understand, feel free to call me at any time." Zhou Cang said as he walked.
Zhao Duan smiled and said:
"Before I came here, I had heard a little about Lihua Hall. I heard that it was a group of unruly people. Is that true?"
Such a sharp start... Zhou Cang replied awkwardly: "This... is indeed true."
Zhao Duan asked curiously:
"Will the Governor tolerate it? With his authority, if he really wants to eliminate it, will it be difficult?"
Zhou Cang sighed and said with a wry smile:
"The Governor has Your Majesty's backing. If he is determined to take action regardless of the cost, even a few stubborn diseases will be easily overcome, but..."
He hesitated, as if weighing the pros and cons, and finally lowered his voice and chose a euphemism:
"Your Excellency, you know that since the establishment of the Imperial Court, most of the successive governors have not had a good end."
Zhao Duan understood immediately!
In his previous life, he read history and found that the chief officials of institutions such as the East and West Factories and the Embroidered Uniform Guard often had a tragic end and later became victims to appease the anger of court officials.
But there are exceptions.
For example, Lu Bing, the leader of the Jinyiwei in the Ming Dynasty, absorbed the experience of his predecessors and paid great attention to currying favor with powerful officials when he was an official, and he benefited from both the emperor and the prime minister.
He worked for the emperor openly and for the powerful officials secretly, licking the boots of both sides, walking in between, and finally getting away with it unscathed.
Influenced by film and television dramas, Zhao Duan once believed that the secret service agencies were lawless and had great deterrent power over the ministers.
But after opening the history books, I found that the situation was complicated.
For example, Lu Bing once knelt down and begged for forgiveness from the then Prime Minister, crying bitterly... and then he turned to his political enemy and bit him to death. This is a later story.
Return to Dayu.
Although Ma Yan did not curry favor with Li Yanfu and Yuan Li, he was still a human being after all.
He is loyal enough to work for the empress, but he also considers himself and tries to reduce the hatred value of the official group.
Therefore, Ma Yan would tolerate some people who there was no need to offend.
The group of people in Lihuatang belong to this category.
Thinking of this, Zhao Duan suddenly realized that his Zhenbao and the old villain Yuan Li had put him in this position. Was there another consideration?
"I see." He nodded slightly and asked again:
"Then tell me, who in Lihua Hall is it difficult to offend?"
Zhou Cang exhaled silently and said carefully:
"Not counting the newcomers and the few who were kicked out from other halls because they didn't fit in, as for the rest who have backgrounds, you don't need to be in awe of them, considering your relationship with His Majesty.
As long as it's not too much, a little offense is fine, but there is one exception, and I absolutely cannot tolerate it. His name is Li Lang, and he is also the biggest troublemaker in Lihua Hall.
"Sounds familiar. Which young master is he?" Zhao Duan frowned.
"Princess Yunyang's son." Zhou Cang said in a low voice.
Zhao Duan suddenly realized!
Princess Yunyang is a very famous person. She is the old emperor's sister, and the empress has to call her aunt.
However, because of his young age, he was only about ten years older than Xu Zhenguan.
A true royal noble.
The reason why Qin Qu was able to get into the Beijing circle was because he got close to Prince Consort Yunyang. However, what Princess Yunyang was most famous for was not her noble status.
But the word "dissolute".
Although she is the aunt of the empress, she openly keeps a lover and often seeks out handsome young men to play with her in her house. Her husband is always surrounded by green lovers and can be called the number one divine turtle in Dayu.
"Princess Yunyang's offspring?" Zhao Duan raised his eyebrows.
No wonder it's so hard to offend. Both Ma Yan and him are dependent on the royal family.
It’s okay to offend foreign officials, but if you offend members of the royal family... you will always have to be more cautious.
…
…
As he was speaking, he walked through a side door and entered a courtyard.
In the center of the courtyard, there is a huge pear tree with lush branches and leaves.
On the branches, green-skinned pears hang, not yet ripe.
Turn left and you will reach the inner hall, with a plaque with three large gold-plated characters "Lihua Hall".
It was already past the hour of dawn, but the hall was empty. A few chairs were scattered crookedly around a large "conference table".
There was only one female official who was dozing off on the table.
Zhao Duan:? ?
"Cough!" Zhou Cang looked embarrassed and coughed with his fist clenched.
"Where are the others? Didn't the Governor inform you that the new Chief of Police would be arriving today? Did he want you to wait?"
The sleepy female official was startled and stood up suddenly, still dizzy.
He looked to be in his early twenties, with a handsome appearance. Half of his face was marked with a red mark, and there was a string of crystal at the corner of his mouth.
Maybe she was sleepy and looked stupid, which reminded Zhao Duan of the image of female college students entering the workplace in workplace movies and TV dramas.
His eyes were clear and stupid, as if he would bow ninety degrees and say "Private Marseille" in the next moment!
Qian Kerou stayed up late last night reading a storybook and wasted time.
This was not a big deal in the past because there was no official in Lihua Hall and everyone was disorganized and undisciplined.
Reporting for work is just a formality, skipping work at any time, and dozing off are commonplace.
But today was different. In her confusion, she recalled the new police chief taking office and explained tremblingly:
"They're all here, playing cards in the back... I, I'll go call them right away!"
With that, he started to walk away. After taking two steps, he remembered to turn around and salute his new boss. He was surprised to see Zhao Duan's handsome face. He was stunned for a moment and whispered:
"Please wait a moment, sir."
He just ran away.
Zhou Cang rubbed his hands awkwardly and explained, "I clearly informed you yesterday..."
"It's okay," Zhao Duan's face was not angry, but smiling, as if he didn't care at all:
"Oh right, what was that just now..."
"Oh, a newcomer to the government office. He doesn't have much background. He was hired to fill a family member's position. He's a common warrior." Zhou Cang introduced him. "He's one of the few obedient subordinates in Lihua Hall."
The “minority” you mentioned, is it the “only one”... Zhao Duan complained in his heart, and the smile on his face became brighter.
Good, very good. He was very satisfied with the defiance on his superiors on the first day.
After all, if everyone was obedient, how could he establish his authority? After all, he wasn't some devil.
"There are so many talented people here, and they really please me." Zhao Duan said calmly, leaning against the big pear tree in the yard.
Zhou Cang was sweating profusely and felt a cold wind blowing.
But Zhao Duan had already walked straight into the lobby and glanced at the weapon rack next to the wall.
Then he turned around, leisurely sat in the main seat at the end, closed his eyes and waited.
Thanks to 20211209143041377 for the 100-coin reward support
(End of this chapter)
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