Chapter 73: Changes
As spring approaches, the weather in the capital is getting better and better. More and more people are walking on the streets, and many young men are making plans to go on spring outings.
The Luchuan Battle, which was hotly debated in the court, seemed to have made little splash among the people. People's lives continued as usual, but there seemed to be fewer people on the streets than during the New Year, and there were far more women than men.
Since Zhu Yuhuan was away, Xu Wangzhi had some free time and went out to have tea with Zhang Zhong and Shi Jing.
In a private room on the second floor, Shi Jing was lost in thought as he gazed at the street scene. Xu Wangzhi and Zhang Zhong came in together and saw him in a daze. They reached out and patted the back of Shi Jing's head, saying, "What are you looking at?"
Shi Jing scratched his head, baring his teeth, and said, "You should pat me gently, what if you pat me silly?"
Xu Wangzhi laughed at her, "You're not very smart to begin with, how could you be any dumber? You've been traveling with me for over a year, and you didn't know she was a princess?"
Zhang Zhong couldn't help but laugh when he heard her say that, but he was afraid of being seen by Shi Jing, so he could only turn his head away and laugh secretly.
Shi Jing was choked by Xu Wangzhi's words and was speechless. He turned his head awkwardly and muttered, "Okay, okay, you have a point..."
"What's out there? You're so fascinated by it."
The three of them sat together at the tea table. Shi Jing said, "There have been fewer people on the streets recently, especially the men. I guess they've been transferred to various places to transport grain."
Xu Wangzhi took a bite of the snack from the Taiping Tea House and said, "Perhaps it's because there are so many women on the street that there don't seem to be many men."
Whether it was Empress Dowager Zhang or Princess Shunde, their involvement in political affairs had a significant impact on the people, and more and more women in Beijing were walking on the streets.
Many women originally gave their fabrics to peddlers to sell, but seeing that the business of Taiping Teahouse was getting better and better, and that the regulations in the city had become much more relaxed, they came out together to sell ready-made embroidery, which looked very fresh.
"Some are, but others may not be... He once ordained many people as monks under the pretext of chanting sutras for the Empress Dowager. Isn't that slavery?" Zhang Zhong sighed and said, "With the Princess away from the capital, all kinds of demons and monsters have come out."
Since Princess Shunde was not in the capital, the emperor was obviously much more relaxed. It was not that he was too lazy to work, but without the princess to consult, there was one less procedure in the discussion process, and it was much "quicker" than when she was there. The emperor also did not have to spend too much time considering policy implementation issues with the princess.
All the staff work that should have belonged to Princess Shunde was handed over to Wang Zhen. Wang Zhen naturally would not take the initiative to ask the emperor to summon the cabinet to discuss matters like Zhu Yuhuan did, and she did not dare to guide the emperor's thinking like her. The court suddenly became Wang Zhen's small court.
Now, both the cabinet and other officials immediately understood the importance of Princess Shunde.
In the past, the eldest princess acted as a "panacea" between the emperor and his ministers, ensuring both efficiency and quality, so the emperor and his ministers were able to work together to decide court affairs.
Even in matters like the military examination, which were decided arbitrarily by the emperor, the princess provided a lot of advice and took the trouble to recommend officials. At least she would not deliberately go against all the officials in the court like Wang Zhen did.
Not to mention ordinary officials, even veteran officials like Yang Shiqi and Yang Pu had to speak kindly to Wang Zhen.
There was no way. The emperor did not restrain Wang Zhen, and these old ministers were obviously not to Zhu Qizhen's liking. At this time, what else could they do except lower their status?
For a time, the court was in turmoil. Although everyone was busy with the battle against Luchuan, it did not affect people's minds from weighing the options between the cabinet and Wang Zhen.
Working for the court wasn't like living at home. If you couldn't get it done now, you could wait until another day. How could you delay public affairs? But if you didn't please Wang Zhen, you wouldn't get things done, and you'd end up suffering for it.
As a result, many people could not help but "join" Wang Zhen openly or secretly.
Xu Wangzhi curled his lips and said, "When she returns from Yunnan, she'll have something to eat with these people."
Zhang Zhong's thoughts were much more complicated than hers. He whispered, "It's hard to say..."
Xu Wangzhi was a little confused and asked, "Why?"
Zhang Zhong's expression grew heavier. "Originally, the Princess stayed in the capital. While she couldn't control the court's personnel movements, she could still sense them and prepare for them. But now that she's gone to Yunnan, it'll take at least a year or two to prepare. By then, the capital will be a completely different place. I'm afraid even the Princess won't be able to fully control it."
Shi Jing frowned upon hearing this and said, "I heard from my father that there seems to be talk of replacing the commander within the Jinyiwei..."
Xu Wangzhi knew that the current commander Xu Gong was one of Zhu Yuhuan's former guards, and the two had a good relationship. Even if Xu Gong could not reveal confidential matters to Zhu Yuhuan at will, it would not be detrimental to Zhu Yuhuan.
Not to mention that Xu Gong could be considered "upright" in a secret service agency like the Jinyiwei. If Wang Zhen replaced him, I'm afraid people would suffer in the future.
Zhang Zhong couldn't help but sigh, "With the Princess gone, the capital has become so chaotic."
He had no official position and heard all these things from his father. He obviously realized that something was wrong. If the situation continued to develop in this way, who knew whether the emperor's original promise to him would still count. Zhang Fu immediately made preparations for the second one.
Even though Xu Wangzhi had never been interested in government affairs, he couldn't help but sigh when he saw the two of them like this.
When the two heard the sigh, they couldn't help but look at Xu Wangzhi.
"Why are you looking at me?" Xu Wangzhi said unhappily, "Aren't you allowed me to worry about my future? The Princess is away, and the Empress Dowager Cihui can't interfere in government affairs. It might even affect my clinic and my students!"
Zhang Zhong heard her say this and comforted her, "Don't worry, Wang Zhen isn't that bold. Your clinic was granted and approved by the Grand Empress Dowager. How could Wang Zhen have such courage?"
Xu Wangzhi's eyes swept back and forth between the two of them, and he couldn't help but say with disdain, "Then why do you two have such expressions? Are you deliberately trying to bluff me?"
"How dare we bluff you?" Zhang Zhong said with a smile, "Except for Yu Qian, the Minister of War, all the people recommended by the Princess have risen to high positions. This shows that the Princess's reputation still has a deterrent effect."
Xu Wangzhi was a little skeptical. "Really?"
"Of course, look at Prince Qing's Mansion and Princess Yongqing's Mansion, aren't they still under construction? How could Wang Zhen dare to intervene?"
Not only these two, but Wang Zhen also felt concerned about anyone and anything that was deeply related to Princess Shunde, and he did not dare to act recklessly.
For example, Zeng Heling and Xue Xuan, who had close ties to Princess Shunde, still worked for the emperor. Xu Yun had already been fawning over Wang Zhen, so Wang Zhen naturally wouldn't intervene. Even Yang Pu, who had once checked on Princess Shunde's schoolwork, was rarely given a hard time by Wang Zhen. But there was one person, Yu Qian, whom Wang Zhen simply disliked.
Wang Zhen had heard a long time ago that Yu Qian did not bring him any filial gifts when he returned to Beijing, but Wang Zhen had no chance to deal with him at that time. Now that Princess Shunde was not in the capital, Yu Qian, who had no relationship with Princess Shunde on the surface, naturally became Wang Zhen's "thorn in the eye and thorn in the flesh".
If they can’t deal with the princess, can they deal with you, an ordinary official?
If Yang Pu had not spoken up for Yu Qian many times, with the two of them becoming increasingly confrontational, Yu Qian would not only find it difficult to continue handling the military examination, but would also soon have to experience a trip to the imperial prison.
Xu Wangzhi nodded and said solemnly, "If I had known earlier, I would have gone to Yunnan with you."
Zhang Zhong said helplessly, "I have something else I want to ask you for help with."
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