Chapter 1611 Everyone Passes

The development of the situation really made the old man say it.

The next day, something happened in the cabinet, which greatly stimulated Prime Minister Zhang.

According to the rules of the cabinet, three days after the first assistant minister left office, the second assistant minister could move his seat from the right side of the cabinet hall to the left side. The younger generation of the Hanlin Academy and the cabinet officials all wore red robes to the cabinet to congratulate the new first assistant minister on taking office.

Although the emperor and Zhang Xianggong were still pretending to argue, on the tenth day, a group of Hanlin scholars could no longer wait and urged Wang Xijue to go to the cabinet to congratulate them.

The old king had already received Zhao Hao's instructions, so naturally he said to wait and see. It would not be too late to agree to the imperial edict that the Prime Minister should go into mourning.

However, the Hanlin scholars were unwilling to wait any longer. The president of the academy had limited control over these talented people. Except for the group in the science department, who were sent by Zhao Hao to Xiangshan Academy to study scientific knowledge in seclusion, the rest of them put on red robes and swarmed into the cabinet.

Seeing this, the Zhongshu Sheren and Sizhilang did not dare to delay any longer. They quickly changed into red robes and rushed to the main hall to congratulate Lu Diaoyang.

Although Lu Diaoyang did not move his seat to the left, he could not resist the crowd's encouragement and actually accepted their congratulations...

Yao Kuang, who stayed in the cabinet on behalf of Prime Minister Zhang, watched coldly and reported the matter to Zhang Juzheng and Feng Bao immediately.

When Feng Bao heard this, he ran to tell the Queen Mother.

"The Emperor didn't issue an edict to appoint the Lu as the Prime Minister, but these bastards dared to stir up trouble and embarrass Mr. Zhang?!" Empress Dowager Li was so angry that she was shaking all over and slammed the table and cursed:

"Mr. Zhang was able to suppress the evil trends in the past few years! Now they see an opportunity and can't wait to jump out?!"

"Your Majesty is right." Feng Bao nodded and said sinisterly, "The East Factory has learned in the past few days that many people have been colluding secretly to force Mr. Zhang to mourn quickly, so that they can live a comfortable life for a few years and don't have to worry about their land being surveyed!"

"Dream on!" Li Cai'e sneered, revealing the ruthlessness that helped her rise to power. "Have the emperor write a note to the cabinet - tell Lu Diaoyang that even if Mr. Zhang submits a hundred resignations, he will not approve it! And have all the six ministries, nine ministers, and all the officials in the court write letters to persuade Mr. Zhang to stay! Anyone who dares not to write will be a traitor!"

"Your Majesty, this is a good idea. Let's screen everyone like a sieve and drive away those who want to make trouble. Only those who are left will be loyal!" Feng Bao flattered loudly and immediately went to Wenhua Palace to tell the emperor a message.

Zhu Yijun was also very angry when he heard this, but what made him angry was not that someone congratulated Lu Diaoyang, but that someone did not take his words seriously.

This greatly stimulated the sensitive self-esteem of the fifteen-year-old emperor. Oh! Just because I treat Mr. Zhang with great respect, you don't take me seriously? Are you worthy?

Wanli immediately wrote a note and asked his eunuch to deliver it to Wenyuan Pavilion.

In the Wenyuan Pavilion, Lu Diaoyang had just seen off the Hanlin officials who came to congratulate him and was wondering whether to move his chair to the left, when he received this highly targeted and insulting imperial edict.

Lu Ge Lao was petrified on the spot. This slap in the face came too fast and too loud. He was just short of pointing at his nose and scolding him, "Who the hell are you? You want to be the Prime Minister? Are you worthy? How many times do you deserve it?"

He knew that he might not be able to keep Zhang Xianggong, but he would definitely not be the one who had the last laugh. After today's congratulations, he was out of the Emperor and the Empress Dowager's hearts forever.

Lu Diaoyang walked towards the prime minister's chair on the left, sat down slowly, and couldn't help shedding bitter tears.

He originally thought that since everyone had been teaching for five or six years, the difference shouldn't be that big...

However, he was wrong, it was just this big.

In the emperor's heart, he only recognized Zhang Xianggong as his teacher...

~~

Dashamao Hutong.

After hearing the news Yao Kuang brought back, Zhang Xianggong smashed the teacup with a dark face.

"It is said that when a person leaves, the tea gets colder. When a person leaves, the tea gets colder. Bu Gu hasn't left yet, but people's attitude has already changed! If he really leaves in the future, what will happen?" Zhang Juzheng said angrily to Li Yihe, Wang Zhuan and other confidants:

"Xia Guixi, Yan Fenyi, Xu Huating and even Gao Xinzheng, without exception, were all liquidated after leaving office! If Bu Gu leaves, I think he will inevitably be put on the list!"

"What you said is right, sir!" Li Yihe was the number one advocate of seizing the love, and he immediately echoed: "Many people have been dissatisfied with the performance appraisal system for a long time, and they are even more afraid of the land survey! If sir is in mourning, they will definitely abolish all the new policies, in order to prevent sir from making a comeback, and they don't know how to harm a registered commoner!"

The last few words hit Zhang Juzheng's biggest soft spot. He was used to supreme power and could not imagine what kind of situation he would be in if he suddenly lost everything. He also knew that he was not broad-minded. He had killed many people over the years. For example, if he returned to his hometown to mourn, would the Liaowangfu family retaliate?

Thinking of this, Zhang Juzheng gritted his teeth and said, "I have made up my mind. I won't leave!"

"Great!" Li Yihe and others cheered. They immediately divided the work on the spot and prepared to actively run around, urging all officials to quickly submit petitions to retain Zhang Xianggong, paving the way for him to "stay helplessly".

~~

Zhao Hao didn't go out with them, because he had more important work to do, and he had to keep vigil with Si Xiu...

However, there are finally fewer people coming to pay their respects, so Zhao Hao doesn't have to work himself to death like a praying mantis.

But the direction of the situation did not make him happy. Although he had been hanging around his father-in-law these days, the atmosphere of love-stealing was too fanatical, and he could not open his mouth to persuade his father-in-law to think twice.

Zhao Hao looked up at the dark clouds in the sky, sighed and lit a cigarette. It's really hard to stop the rain and the marriage.

Just as he was worrying, he heard a heavy footstep approaching from afar. Zhao Hao looked for the sound and saw Li Yihe moving his fat body towards him. His face, which was always smiling like Maitreya Buddha, was now covered with frost.

"Who made Sanhu Gong angry?" Zhao Hao handed a cigarette to Li Yihe.

Li Yihe held the cigarette with his carrot-like fingers, and Zhao Hao lit it for him with a lighter. Li Sanhu took two puffs and then sighed:

"Alas, your Zhang Han has lost his mind, what an ungrateful thing, he actually refused to take the lead in writing a letter to keep my husband!"

The Minister of Personnel is a high-ranking official, theoretically a great chancellor who can compete with the chief minister of the cabinet. Of course, if Yang Bo came to face a particularly strong chief minister like Zhang Juzheng, he would be in trouble.

But no matter what, the Grand Chancellor is the head of the Nine Ministers after all, so being able to petition to retain the Prime Minister is of great significance. Moreover, Zhang Han was promoted by Zhang Juzheng. So Li Yihe went to the Ministry of Personnel excitedly early in the morning, ready to start with him, and then find someone else to succeed.

But Zhang Han hit a wall. Facing Li Yihe's request, Zhang Han just pretended to be confused and said:

"The university students who come to the funeral should be given more grace; this is the matter of the Ministry of Rites, what does it have to do with the Ministry of Personnel?"

In the end, he did not agree to submit the petition.

Li Yihe was so angry that he came out and cursed. Zhang Han, this nerd, was able to replace Yang Bo as the Grand Chancellor, but it was all thanks to Zhang Xianggong's strong support and promotion! How can you cross the river and then destroy the bridge?

He turned back to Dashamao Hutong angrily, intending to complain to Zhang Xianggong, but he calmed down instantly when he saw Zhao Hao. Zhao Hao was the coordinator and future leader of the Jiangnan Gang. If he reported Zhang Han directly, he would be embarrassed.

He angrily told Zhao Hao the whole story, and then reassured him, "Of course, I know that this is definitely not what the young minister meant, and you can't control the great prime minister."

"Who said it wasn't? I told them as soon as I got back to Beijing, asking them to cooperate with my father-in-law's actions." Zhao Hao nodded with emotion, and said helplessly: "But these ministers in their sixties and seventies have their own ideas. They listen to what I say if they want to, and pretend not to hear if they don't want to."

"They don't even listen to the emperor, so it's normal that they don't listen to you!" Li Yihe spat fiercely and said, "We need to replace them all and let the younger ones take over!"

"Mr. Sanhu, calm down." Zhao Hao hurriedly advised: "Even if you want to replace someone, you can't do it at this critical moment? Otherwise, won't it give people something to talk about? Replacing the Minister of Personnel because of such a small matter is like throwing a stone into a toilet - stirring up public anger?"

"Hmm..." Li Yihe reluctantly agreed, but snorted disdainfully: "You bastard Minister of Personnel, you have to recognize him, otherwise he is just shit!"

"It's just a fart, but we have to hold it in for now." Zhao Hao smiled bitterly and said, "How about this, I'll go and persuade him again and see if it helps."

"Okay, that's exactly what I mean." Li Yihe nodded heavily and said, "Then you should go quickly. If this matter gets out, it will have a bad impact."

"I'll go right away." Zhao Hao put out his cigarette, took off his white hat and the linen cloth on his body, and went out to meet Zhang Han.

~~

In the Ministry of Personnel, the Shangshu is on duty in the room.

The Minister of Personnel Zhang Han sat in the middle, the Left Vice Minister Zhao Jin and the Right Vice Minister Shen Shixing sat on the east and west sides respectively. Zhao Hao sat in the first seat at the bottom.

"This is my second time to come to this duty room. The last time was ten years ago," Zhao Hao skillfully brewed Kung Fu tea, intending to steal the show. But the three big men in the Ministry of Personnel all looked relaxed, as if this was natural.

Needless to say, Zhao Jin cannot even write two Zhao characters with one stroke. So whether they are biological brothers or not, they are better than biological brothers.

Shen Shixing and Zhao Hao have been friends for ten years, and the connection between the two families is much deeper than outsiders see.

Although Zhang Han was not very familiar with Zhao Hao, he and Zhao Liben were both Jinshi in the same class, and they had known each other for more than 40 years. In recent years, the two old men lived together in Beijing, and they spent time together whenever they had nothing to do, and their relationship heated up rapidly. So he treated Zhao Hao as his own grandson.

While Zhao Hao was brewing tea, he said to the three adults with deep regret: "At that time, the Grand Chancellor was Yang Yupo and the Junior Chancellor was Wang Zhigao. At that time, I felt that they were high up and out of reach. I didn't expect that ten years later, the officials in charge of the government would become my family members."

Zhao Jin couldn't help but laugh and said, "If that's the case, then when we met at the breakfast stand in Caijia Lane eleven years ago, could you have imagined that we would be brothers today?"

"If I could think of it, I would have treated you to something delicious." Zhao Hao couldn't help but laugh, and everyone burst into laughter.

After laughing, Zhang Hanfang said to Zhao Hao calmly: "I have drawn a line between your father-in-law and me. I have discussed this with your grandfather. Besides the fact that I don't want to see the social order go to waste, I am also expressing my opinion on your behalf--"

He said seriously: "You are the leader of our Jiangnan Gang. More than 500 young disciples are looking at you. You are their teacher. You can't let them down!"

(End of this chapter)