Chapter 1238 Crisis

"Ah, oh..." Zhang Juzheng calmed himself down and signaled his attendant to go out and close the door.

During this time, his mind raced, with countless thoughts passing through his mind, including whether he should change his ways.

But he dismissed the idea in an instant. He was not a fence-sitter...

After the door of the duty room closed silently, Zhang Juzheng asked in a deep voice: "Brother Dazhou, where did these two letters come from?"

"I said I don't know, do you believe me?" Zhao Zhenji smiled bitterly. He was an honest man and would not lie. "I also questioned Cao Daye. He said someone stuffed it into his door yesterday. After he saw it, he was filled with righteous indignation and wrote a letter of impeachment overnight."

"Stuffed into the crack of the door?" Zhang Juzheng twitched his lips, unable to believe this absurd statement.

He knew that Cao Daye was a fellow Sichuanese of Zhao Zhenji, and that Zhao Zhenji had close ties with the Taizhou School. Since Wang Xinzhai, most of the Taizhou School's disciples were skilled in fighting dragons and snakes with their bare hands, and their followers were from all walks of life.

He guessed that it was probably one of Yan Shannong's disciples who secretly opened the letters of Zhang Siwei and Wang Chonggu. He learned from the contents of these two letters that within just one month, Xiao Wei had written eight letters to his uncle. With such a high frequency, it was hard not to attract attention.

"Well, it must be like this..." Zhang Juzheng was secretly certain. He took a deep look at Zhao Zhenji and thought that it was true that one cannot judge a person by his appearance. This Sichuan boy actually had such a deadly killer move.

"There's nothing I can do if you don't believe me, but Cao Daye comes from a family of officials. There's no need for him to fabricate lies and frame the people of the court just to get ahead." Zhao Zhenji spread his hands and said.

"That's right." Zhang Juzheng nodded and thought to himself, I didn't say the letter was fake, I was asking how you got it!

Seeing that he couldn't get any answers, he changed the subject and asked, "What are you going to do, Brother Dazhou?"

"They handed the impeachment to the cabinet, so of course I handled it impartially." Zhao Zhenji also stared at him and said, "I just saw that you were too close to Minister Gao, and I was afraid that you would be implicated, so I came here to let you know first."

"Thank you for your kindness, Brother Dazhou." Zhang Juzheng clasped his fists and thanked him, saying, "This is a serious matter. Please allow me to think it over carefully."

"What are you thinking about?" Zhao Zhenji said, throwing his sleeves. "Don't think I can't see that you are also very frustrated under the command of Gao Ge Lao. That Gao Huzi is arrogant and domineering, and he doesn't care about others. Although he still respects you, he only treats you as a tool... What's the point of being a tool? Not to mention the hardships and humiliation, once you lose your usefulness, he will abandon you like a worn-out shoe!"

"Oh..." Zhang Juzheng's face turned red. It was true that a bystander sees things more clearly. He didn't expect that he would be so ridiculous in the eyes of others.

"Let's not talk about the distant past. Take the last victory at Xifengkou. Was it Gao Huzi's credit? No, it was you, Zhang Taiyue, who went against the crowd and employed Tan Lun and Qi Jiguang, and you have been supporting them with all your might. They have been silent for three years before they finally made a stunning debut!" Zhao Zhenji continued to sow discord while the iron was hot, saying, "But at the last minute, all the credit was taken away by him. As a result, everyone from top to bottom is praising Gao Ge Lao for his incomparable wisdom. What about you, Zhang Ge Lao? You can't even be called 'relatively wise'."

As he said this, he glanced at Zhang Juzheng and sneered, "I don't mean to cause trouble, but Gao Huzi picked peaches and didn't say a fair word for you. I definitely can't stand it if it were me."

"Alas, as long as we can expel the Tartars and defend the capital, what does it matter whose credit it is?" Zhang Juzheng smiled awkwardly, but looking at his fake smile, it seemed that Zhao Zhenji had really touched the thorn in his heart.

"Okay, even if you, Zhang Taiyue, are of high moral character, this time's tribute from Altan is different from the one at Xifengkou. This time it's condoning evil and bringing disaster to the country and the people! Do you also want to get involved and be infamous for all eternity?" Zhao Zhenji asked in a raised voice.

"Brother Dazhou, you are too kind." Zhang Juzheng frowned slightly.

"Altan Khan has been violating the border for decades, and his hands are stained with the blood of our Ming people. From Yumen Pass to Shanhaiguan, his evil deeds are known to everyone! If we make peace with this great enemy today, it will be like the Han Dynasty's marriage and the Song Dynasty's submission, which will be a loss of power and humiliation of the country!" Zhao Zhenji said indignantly: "Moreover, once this precedent is set, it is equivalent to announcing to the world that rebellion does not matter. As long as you submit in the end, the charges can be wiped out, and you can still hold a high position and enjoy a generous salary! Who would not dare to rebel in the future? The fall of our Ming Dynasty is just around the corner!"

"Brother Dazhou, you are worrying too much." Zhang Juzheng shook his head slowly and said, "Whether it is marriage or tribute, it is because the enemy is strong and we are weak, and we cannot defeat them, so we ask for peace. The initiative lies with the other party. Now my Great Ming is relying on the power of the new victory, not because we cannot defeat the Mongols. It is the Mongols who want to pay tribute to us, and the initiative is on our side. It is not the same thing at all."

"How is it not the same thing?" Zhao Zhenji snorted, "What if Altan pays tribute today and betrays tomorrow? Can you guarantee long-term peace on the border by making him a prince?"

"No." Zhang Juzheng shook his head.

"Then why do you still support..." Zhao Zhenji had a look on his face that said 'you are so confused'.

"Border defense cannot be slackened for even a day. How can we rely on whether the Mongols abide by the contract for the defense of the Ming Dynasty? Even brothers cannot guarantee that they will not betray each other, so how can I be guaranteed that the Mongols will always abide by the contract?" Zhang Juzheng said solemnly:

"Besides, the two sides have been fighting for two hundred years. What does it have to do with tribute or betrayal? If we can reduce the war for a few years by paying tribute, it will be a gain. Even if the Tartars betray us again in the future, can the harm be greater than continuing to fight? At least we have a chance to recuperate and prepare for war, right?"

Zhang Juzheng's words were upright and clear, leaving Zhao Zhenji with no room for rebuttal. If he continued, it would seem that he was a petty person who wasted public resources because of personal grudges.

Zhao Zhenji suppressed his chaotic mood and asked with a dark face: "So, you are going to follow him till the end?"

"Bugu is a minister of the Ming Dynasty, not anyone's retainer. I support everything that is beneficial to the country and oppose anything that is harmful to the country!" Zhang Juzheng said righteously.

"Well, it seems that we have different paths and cannot make plans together!" Zhao Zhenji waved his hand, signaling the other party to stop talking. He came to Zhang Juzheng because he was also the teacher of Emperor Longqing, and some words would be a hundred times more effective if he said them himself.

On the other hand, if Zhang Juzheng was also brought in, there would be four people in the cabinet, a ratio of three to one. In addition, Chen Ge Lao was also forced out by Gao Gong before, so even if Emperor Longqing loved his Master Gao, he knew how to make a choice.

Unfortunately, he didn't expect that even after he had already revealed his trump card, Zhang Juzheng was still stubborn and refused to change his mind.

This time, I have revealed my cards in advance...

Thinking of this, Zhao Zhenji picked up the seal and letter paper on the table in a bad mood and walked straight out of his duty room.

"Brother Dazhou." Zhang Juzheng called from behind.

"..." Zhao Zhenji stopped and felt a glimmer of hope.

"Let's just forget it, okay? Including Zhang Ziwei, everyone is doing this for the good of Ming Dynasty." But Zhang Juzheng advised: "There's no need to make it a fight to the death, right?"

Zhao Zhenji was silent for a moment, then turned back and said sternly, "I have also said that negotiating peace will lead to the destruction of a country. This is not directed at him, Mr. Gao. No matter who advocates this, I will fight to the end!"

After saying this, he closed the door and walked out resolutely.

~~

Zhang Juzheng stood there for a moment, pinched himself hard to force himself to calm down, and then paced in the duty room to think of a solution.

This is undoubtedly a big crisis. If it goes wrong, the tribute will fail and even Gao Gong will fail. So how to resolve this crisis? More importantly, what will he lose and what will he gain?

After a while, Zhang Juzheng stopped suddenly, his eyes flashed, he realized that this was not a bad thing at least for his side!

Having made up his mind, Bu Gu's long beard began to flutter again. He solemnly told his attendant, "Please invite Eunuch Feng to meet at the old place tonight."

After saying this, Zhang Juzheng went out and went upstairs to meet Gao Gong again.

"Hey, uncle, why are you here again?" Seeing him coming back, Gao Gong took off his hat and asked jokingly, "Why, haven't you figured it out yet?"

"Brother Suqing, something happened!" Zhang Juzheng had a gloomy face. He asked Shen Yingkui to go out and close the door, and told Gao Gong exactly what had happened.

After listening to this, Gao Gong was stunned for a long while. After a long time, he picked up the white jade pen holder on the table and smashed it to pieces.

"Eh——fuck you!" He burst out in Henan dialect in frustration, roaring, "Fuck you, Zhang Siwei, that bastard, patted his chest and told me that his Shanxi merchants' communication channels were very safe, but in the end, they saw everything!"

"Did the content of the draft really come from the perspective of the minister?" Zhang Juzheng asked in a deep voice.

"He hasn't come these past two days, so will I send someone to show it to him?" Gao Gong said very depressedly, "But it's hard to say whether Chu Xiu has told him about it."

"Alas, I have long advised Brother Suqing not to let these ignorant people in the underworld know the secrets. They are too frivolous!" How could Zhang Juzheng let go of this opportunity to sow discord?

"Alas, I am just guessing, don't jump to conclusions." Although Gao Gong still insisted, his expression showed that he was already frustrated. He rubbed his temples, forced himself to cheer up and said, "Let's think about how to get through this level first."

"Yes." Zhang Juzheng nodded.

"Uncle, what do you think?" Gao Gong asked.

"Things have come to this point, and we can no longer hide them." Zhang Juzheng said in a deep voice: "Even if we keep this impeachment letter, they can still spread it everywhere. Then we will be in a more passive position!"

He emphasized, "Especially the contents of those two letters. If the cabinet is involved, not only will the tribute proposal fail, but we will also be unable to defend ourselves!"

"Yeah..." How smart was Gao Gong? After Zhang Juzheng's advice, he immediately understood the pros and cons and heard his hidden meaning - at this moment, he had no choice but to pass on the blame to protect himself.

(End of this chapter)