The negotiations in Changchun Palace were still very harmonious.
How could they not get along? They are the same kind of people.
Shen Shoufu is a big boss from Suzhou. He has been friends with Zhao Hao for more than 20 years and has been a partner with his father for more than 10 years. Shen Shixing's two sons are students of Yufeng Academy, and the second son is the mayor of Penang, the Malacca Special Administrative Region of the group.
Moreover, Shen Shixing and the nobles had similar demands - they all hoped to continue to retain the emperor in the form of "nominal monarch but real prime minister", and they could be generally called royalists.
For Shen Shixing, his education, his life experience, and his current position as the emperor's tutor and chief assistant left him no choice but to consider the emperor. Otherwise, how would history books evaluate him in the future?
Therefore, Zhao Shouzheng's retirement due to illness is not a bad thing. At least he doesn't have to be grilled by the fire.
In addition, Shen Shixing was also the leader of the civil service group. Putting the imperial power in their own cage was the collective consciousness that the civil service group had been pursuing and passing on for two hundred years.
Now is a great opportunity to knock the imperial power to the ground, making it impossible for it to stand up, but not to the point of dying. It can also make the emperor a talisman for the civil service group to prevent itself from being marginalized by the cadre system.
This is the last chance for the group of civil servants who came from the imperial examination system to stay on the stage of history!
Although they all sent their children to new-style schools and joined the group as cadres, who would give up if it meant keeping their own position as ministers?
According to Shen Shixing's Yin-Yang theory, the reason that could be said openly and the idea that it was not to be told to outsiders reached a consensus at this moment, so of course he had to do it!
As for the three dukes, although they were not stupid, their intelligence was about the same as that of Zhao Zhuangyuan, and the gap with the genuine Zhuangyuan like Shen Shixing was huge. It didn't take long for them to treat Mr. Shen as their own and obey his orders.
It was very easy for Shen Shixing to convince them, using the same Yin-Yang theory.
Yangmian, you have been blessed by the emperor for generations, and have lived a life of luxury. It is really unacceptable that you do not leave any way for the emperor to survive.
On the negative side, who gave your family the iron certificate? Without the emperor, your ancestral title of Duke will also be gone. So since Zhao Hao does not intend to be the emperor, we still have to try our best to keep the emperor. Even if the emperor is just a decoration, it will be of infinite benefit to both of us.
By saving the emperor, the ancestral title can be saved. The Three Kingdoms Dukes were able to think clearly about this simple truth. They naturally strongly supported the plan proposed by the civil officials that "government is by the Zhao family, and sacrifices are by the royal family."
The two sides hit it off and quickly reached a preliminary agreement.
First, the emperor must immediately issue an edict to confess his guilt, explain the truth behind Hai Rui's death, and admit that "everyone is guilty, and the fault lies with me". He must also acknowledge the legal status of the Jiangnan Group. He must immediately release all the imprisoned group employees and related personnel, and provide compensation to the deceased.
Then, after obtaining relevant promises to guarantee the royal status and interests, the emperor can rule the country without any hesitation and grant administrative and judicial powers to his subjects permanently.
As for specific measures, for example, the cabinet will be expanded, and in addition to full-time cabinet ministers, the nine ministers will be included in the cabinet, and republican administration will be implemented in imitation of the Zhou-Zhao Republic. The cabinet ministers will jointly decide on national affairs.
Of course, Zhao Hao must be immediately invited to Beijing to serve as the first prime minister.
When Wanli saw the draft, he naturally rejected it. Ten thousand divine beasts rushed towards the four ministers on the spot.
But the situation was stronger than the person, and he also knew that if he didn't agree, he would be completely alone. Maybe the rebels would bombard the capital tomorrow...
Shen Shixing gave the emperor some psychological massage and gave him enough way out, and Wanli finally had to nod in agreement.
Prime Minister Shen was afraid that the night would be too long and he drafted the imperial edict on the spot, asked the emperor to seal it, and then issued it to the whole country immediately.
He also asked Wanli to write a personal letter to Zhao Hao to explain the misunderstanding and sincerely invite him to Beijing to serve as Prime Minister.
Of course, the letter was already written by Shen Shixing, and Wanli only needed to copy it.
But he still felt extremely humiliated and found it difficult to pick up the pen.
"Just sign your name..."
"No, it must be written in person!" Shen Shixing said firmly: "Your Majesty, what else can you show now except sincerity? If you don't show your sincerity, who will sympathize with you?"
"I don't need it!" Wanli gritted his teeth, but the most important thing was to get through this and continue to be the emperor. "Okay..."
I had no choice but to copy it down, sign my name, and stamp it with my own seal.
Shen Shixing put it into an envelope, handed it to Zhu Shimao and said, "Please, you must hand it over to Lord Zhao in person."
Zhu Shimao tilted his neck and couldn't nod, so he could only give a thumbs up.
~~
Zhu Shimao was asked to deliver the letter personally to show his sincerity. In fact, Zhao Hao received the telegram on the same day.
“Hahahahahaha!”
Zhangjiagang, the headquarters of the local troops. Xu Wei read the telegram and laughed out loud:
"The revolution hasn't even succeeded yet, and someone is eager to jump out and reap the benefits!"
Zhao Hao stood on the balcony of the second-floor commander-in-chief's building, his left hand hugging his right elbow, his right hand holding a pipe, calmly looking at the beautiful scenery of flowers blooming in front of the building.
The guards, dressed in gorgeous uniforms and equipped with percussion-cap pistols, were patrolling vigilantly in front of the building.
In an extraordinary period, even in his own headquarters, Zhao Hao did not dare to be careless.
Because he knew that there were too many people in the world who wanted to assassinate him so that he could go back to the way things were before...
After Xu Wei finished his outburst, he asked Zhao Hao, "How is it? Do you feel uncomfortable? Like you've eaten a fly?"
"But it didn't." Zhao Hao smiled faintly, took a puff of his pipe and said:
"This is all in the title. What is coming will eventually come."
"That girl is really good. Once she comes up with these ideas, she will win over the civil service group." Xu Wei lowered his voice and said:
"The civil service group and the gentry and landlords are one and the same. Except in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong, the common people listen to the gentry and landlords. In addition, the positions of the military generals and nobles are generally consistent, not to mention the princes..."
"What a great skill he has! He has pulled everyone to his side in one fell swoop." He flipped his hand and said:
“This is the awesomeness of the doctrine of the mean!”
Xu Wei's words were always exaggerated, and this time was no exception. But Zhao Hao knew that the imperial system had been deeply rooted in people's hearts for thousands of years, and many people felt that they should have an emperor to be stable. Not to mention those privileged classes who depended on the imperial power.
If we want to overthrow the monarchy, we will abolish their privileges and cut off their dreams. Can't they try to pull back?
"It's not that exaggerated." Zhao Hao laughed and said, "For example, aren't the people led by Alliance Leader Wang considered part of the civil service group? I don't think they necessarily support this 'virtual monarch with real power'..."
"That's because they used too much force before and can't take it back." Xu Wei said indifferently: "But these people only have a market in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong."
"Yeah." Zhao Hao nodded and said, "We haven't put enough effort into other provinces."
"What are you going to do? Just accept it?" Xu Wei looked at Zhao Hao and asked.
"Hehe." Zhao Hao laughed and pointed at Xu Wei with the handle of his pipe and said, "I think you are the most nervous one."
"Of course not." Xu Wei did not deny it and said, "If you compromise, wouldn't all my Three Antis work over the years be in vain?"
"Don't worry. What did I say before?" Zhao Hao said with a smile.
"If the revolution is not thorough, it is better not to have a revolution at all," said Xu Wei.
"That's right." Zhao Hao nodded without hesitation and said, "The revolution must be thorough. Don't give future generations a chance to reverse the situation."
As he said this, he let out a long breath and said, "Only people with the same aspirations can be together. Some people can only walk together for a while, and are destined to go their separate ways."
"Okay, it's good that you have this attitude!" Xu Wei smiled relievedly and said, "I'm really worried that you will become childish."
"Come on, we are all in our forties." Zhao Hao smiled and stretched lazily.
"You've finished grumbling, and I've expressed my stance. Now I want to ask you, have you figured out a plan?"
"I don't have any new tricks. I'll just do the same thing I told you back then." Xu Wei took out an exquisite snuff bottle, put the snuff into both nostrils, then closed his eyes, opened his mouth wide, and sneezed loudly. Fang Qing couldn't help but shudder and said, "Great!"
"Let them jump?" Zhao Hao asked quietly.
"Jump, jump out completely!" Xu Wei waved his hand fiercely and said in a deep voice:
"If they want to talk, then they can talk. In a negotiation, they ask for a high price and pay a low price. If they can't reach an agreement, can they just collapse?"
"Don't send someone who can really make the final decision, just go and talk for a year or two! Only time can reveal a person's true character!" Dubansuan continued ruthlessly:
"Use this time to push the Three Antis campaign to other provinces. We can't just talk about it without doing anything. We need to send working groups to various provinces to mobilize the people to fight against the feudal lords and divide up the land! This is when it will be educational. Once the emperor is killed, the feudal lords will just be dead bones in the grave. When everyone pushes down the wall, it will be impossible to tell who is the opportunist and who is the silent opponent!"
"Arm the people, and destroy any prince who dares to resist! When all the princes are cleared out, the people will be the same as those in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong. Whatever you say will be true!" Xu Wei finished speaking in one breath, and sneezed loudly:
"In short, if you don't mobilize the people, you will definitely lose! Even if you suppress them with your personal prestige, your true colors will be revealed as soon as you die!"
"Isn't that nonsense?" Zhao Hao laughed, patted Xu Wei on the shoulder and said, "In fact, you were hesitant to mobilize the masses before. But I knew who I was and who I was for from the beginning!"
As he said this, he hummed the "Internationale". Oh yes, it is now called "The Uprising Song".
"Rise up, slaves who are starving and cold! Rise up, the suffering people of China! The blood in your hearts is boiling, let's fight the last war..."
"The old world has been utterly destroyed. Slaves, rise up! Do not say we are worthless. We want to be the masters of the world!" Xu Wei followed him and sang:
"There has never been a savior, nor do we rely on gods or emperors. To create our own happiness, we must rely on ourselves!
We must take back the fruits of our labor and let our thoughts break free from their cages. Let’s quickly make the furnace burn red hot, and only by striking while the iron is hot can we succeed! "
He suddenly realized that this song was actually prepared for the present, for the people who were still enslaved.
As long as there are still enslaved people in this world, it will be sung forever, inspiring people to rise up against injustice.
I was indeed overthinking it. When this song spreads across China, how could the world be the same again?
I can't go back, I can never go back...
He was so excited that tears welled up in his eyes, and he wanted to say something corny to Zhao Hao like "I have no regrets in my life".
Suddenly there was the sound of hurried footsteps coming up the stairs.
Chang Kaiche rushed in, breathlessly reporting:
"Report, urgent telegram from Tamro, the Japanese army has landed in Busan!"
P.S. As planned, the book will be finished before the end of the year. The following plot is indeed not suitable for expansion, and it does not fit the tone of our book. Please understand.