For the people of the Great Song Dynasty, the fifth year of Yuan You and the sixth year of Yuan You were really two eventful years. The court has successively changed one left minister and two right ministers one after another, the first two of them resigned on their own, which can be regarded as preserving decency, but Liu Zhi, the right minister who was replaced in the spring of the sixth year of Yuanyou, was really repelled by the empress dowager, and even this last trace of dignity as a minister was not preserved. After Liu Zhi was demoted and released, Su Zhe took over as the right minister. And Liu Zhi was demoted together with Yin Wang Yansuo of Kaifeng Mansion, and the post of Yin of Kaifeng Mansion was taken over by Lu Tao. Soon, Su Shi, who was far away in Hangzhou, received an edict from the Empress Dowager and became the Taishou of Hangzhou. At this time, Fan Chunren, the left minister, was over sixty years old, and Su Shi, who had served as a right minister, was in the prime of life, and the courtiers knew that as long as his term of office expired, the empress dowager would definitely transfer him back to the center to take over as the left minister. Since then, the party struggle between the two parties has lasted for three years, and finally ended in the complete victory of the Shu party.

On the day Liu Zhi and Wang Yansuo left Beijing, Jinlin Building and Jinle Fang reopened. The people of Bianjing flocked to appreciate the demeanor of the new "Princess Lingyun" Lou Qingshu Lou who was praised by the Empress Dowager at the Zhengdan banquet. However, before the singing, everyone in the building tearfully mentioned the former "Princess Lingyun" to the late autumn. Speaking of the late autumn, the people of Bianjing remembered the unwarranted disaster in Jinle Fang not long ago, and they were even more concerned. Xiang Wanqiu is the first "Princess Lingyun" since the beginning of the singing of "The Complete Biography of Yue", the people of Bianjing have always liked her appearance and singing, and the death of everyone fell from the building that day to anger the people, and they did not hesitate to ask for an explanation for her gathering in Kaifeng Mansion. Yin Wang Yansuo of Kaifeng Mansion also had to petition for a crime because of this matter and asked to be released.

In order to mourn everyone, the atmosphere had been brewed extremely sad, and when the Fengbo Pavilion was opened, Lou Qingshu, who was dressed in white, knelt outside the palace gate in the wind and rain to ask to see the faint king. There was no need for her to sing a word, just seeing her slender and tough back, the people of Bianjing had already applauded one after another.

At the same time, Murong Fu was summoned by the Empress Dowager. Seeing this slightly haggard Murong Fu respectfully saluting himself, his thin body seemed to be blown by the wind, the Empress Dowager only sighed in her heart and said in a low voice: "Calm down." I heard that you were sick some time ago, but now you are feeling better? ”

"Empress Dowager Xie inquired, Weichen was only a little sick, and now he is getting better." Murong Fu replied in a flat tone, neither aggrieved nor complaining.

The Empress Dowager shook her head, and said gently: "The Kaifeng Mansion envoy prevented your servants from seeking medical treatment, and the mourning family has ordered a division to interrogate, and they will definitely give you justice." After a while, let Sun Yuan take the pulse for you again. ”

"Empress Dowager Xie." Murong Fu knew that the Empress Dowager was appeasing him, so he accepted her kindness peacefully. In fact, Murong Fu's vomiting of blood that day was originally caused by a rush of anger and attack on the heart, and Qiao Feng's strong internal strength was far more effective for him than ten or eight imperial doctors. It's just that Murong Fu was at home at that time, and Yin Wang Yansuo of Kaifeng Mansion ordered the messenger to guard Murong Mansion to monitor his actions, which naturally made Murong Fu extremely unhappy. So, I took the opportunity to have a seizure.

The mourning family originally thought that the court was full of benevolent gentlemen, but they didn't want Liu Zhi to be the queen of the court, and if they were crazy, the mourning family repeatedly reprimanded him and didn't know how to restrain him. If it weren't for the anger of the crowd caused by Jin Le Fang's incident with the girl, I am afraid that he would still be doing mischief in the court. The Empress Dowager frowned again, obviously Liu Zhi's domineering had made her jealous. The previous rulers of the Great Song Dynasty were as famous as Han Qi, rigid as Wang Anshi, and virtuous as Sima Guang, although they were arbitrary, at least they were still extremely respectful to the royal family. Only Liu Zhi dared to stretch out his claws to the imperial power. At the beginning, Cheng Yi accused the Empress Dowager that she should not be alone in the court when the little emperor was sick, and the Empress Dowager dismissed Cheng Yi; Cai Qu's Chegaiting poem case implied that the Empress Dowager was a martial queen, and the Empress Dowager exiled Cai Qu to Xinzhou. Now, Liu Zhi contradicted the Empress Dowager and intercepted the edict without permission, how could the Empress Dowager spare him?

At this time, Murong Fu was walking outside the Qingshou Palace with the Empress Dowager, and when he heard the Empress Dowager sigh like this, Murong Fu stepped forward and motioned to the palace maid who was accompanying him to step back, and stepped forward to support the Empress Dowager's arm. Murong Fu took the initiative to get close, and the Empress Dowager couldn't help but glance at him sideways, but seeing that Murong Fu was as beautiful as a variety of pearls, she didn't refuse after all.

"The Empress Dowager, Liu Xiang knows that the rules in the court can restrain the gentleman, but not the villain. Wechen thinks that when the law is rectified / atmosphere! Murong replied.

The Empress Dowager pondered for a while, and suddenly said: "Once this rule is established, it is the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty that are in charge, but I am afraid that Fan Xiang will not dare to do anything." ”

Murong Fu smiled lightly and said in a low voice, "The Empress Dowager only needs to propose two. First, the impeachment of hundreds of officials in the background must be based on evidence; Second, if an official who has been degraded or degraded has no merit, he will not be exempted from his crimes. The princes of the court will definitely support the empress dowager. The two items proposed by Murong Fu both hit the pulse of the hundred officials of the imperial court. Hearing the news and things in Taiwan has put everyone in danger of themselves, and they only want to do less and make fewer mistakes, and their efficiency will naturally decline. As long as you control the mad dog of Taiji, what is the point of being stricter? In addition, today's court is full of old parties, and the new party is often degraded, and with the second article, there is no longer fear of the new party's counterattack.

In the court, courtiers fought and played games with each other, and the same was true between monarchs and ministers. The Empress Dowager gave these two benefits to the ministers, and it was logical to mention the rectification of the atmosphere and strengthen the imperial power. After all, most of the princes who can stand on the Daqing Hall are still deaf and clear-sighted, and they will not be as arrogant as Liu Zhi to manipulate the imperial power. The Empress Dowager obviously understood this truth, and immediately smiled: "Although Murong Qing is young, this insight is outstanding. ”

"The Empress Dowager praised it falsely." Murong Fu hurriedly humbled himself and said. "But there is one thing, dare to ask the Queen Mother to do it. Ever since the princess ...... said this, he suddenly shook his head and smiled bitterly. "Weichen's health is not as good as before, but I am afraid that I will give the official family after the illness, and the minister will be released."

Murong Fu's three-year term of office had not expired, and he suddenly asked to be released at this time, even though the reason was high-sounding, the Empress Dowager was still a little surprised, and after thinking for a while, he knew that it must be the words "Sumen's lackey, climbing the dragon and phoenix in vain" that hurt his heart. The Empress Dowager pondered for a moment and said, "The official family trusts you very much, and this matter will be discussed later." "The Empress Dowager is old and spicy, and knows that her grandson is a little withdrawn, and her heart is very inclined to the new party. She is old, and she doesn't know how many springs and autumns there are left. Now seeing that Murong Fu gets along well with his grandson, and he himself is talented, he wants to keep him by the little emperor's side and slowly imperceptibly treat the little emperor.

Murong Fu saw that his request was not approved, so he said no more, and chatted with the Empress Dowager for a while before leaving. Fortunately, the Empress Dowager also knew that Murong Fu had suffered a lot of grievances before, and now it was a bit unreasonable to refuse his only request. Therefore, he soon issued an order to Murong Fu to assist Fan Chunren in sorting out the rules of the imperial court for improvement.

Fan Chunren knew that although the Shu Party had Su Shi as the leader, it was Murong Fu who could really give orders and convince people. Fan Chunren was worried about taking over the reform of the imperial court system, and the Empress Dowager had this summoning order, so she hurriedly invited Murong Fu to come to the palace to discuss. Reforming the imperial court bureaucracy, improving the efficiency of officials, and saving administrative costs were originally what Murong Fu was bent on doing. Fan Chunren relied on him with the heart, and Murong Fu naturally put forward his own opinions on dividing the boundaries between imperial power and ministers' powers, opening the channel for officials to be promoted to official status, clarifying the evaluation items of officials' tenure, and eliminating the corrupt atmosphere of officialdom. Murong Fu came through time, and his vision was far greater than that of contemporary elites, and his suggestions were to the point and easy to operate, which made Fan Chunren stunned.

Fan Chunren led the governors of the three provinces and six ministries at all levels to finally clarify the items of restructuring in August of the sixth year of Yuan You, and the Empress Dowager was relieved of the reform of the bureaucratic system from top to bottom. Because this reform was carried out slowly by touching the stones, and instead of reducing the number of personnel, several bureaucratic organs such as discipline inspection and supervision were set up, so that the huge number of redundant officials in the Northern Song Dynasty was settled, so there was no large-scale opposition. The reform of the bureaucratic system was a profound reflection and innovation of the bureaucratic system by the court officials in the Northern Song Dynasty, and after the reform, the problem of redundant officials in the Northern Song Dynasty was effectively improved, and the rules for the appointment and dismissal of officials were also improved. At the same time, due to the implementation of the two rules of starting with officials and refining the evaluation standards for tenure, the cost of official corruption has been further increased, which has effectively curbed the corruption atmosphere in the imperial court, and laid a solid foundation for the future expansion of the territory and herdsmen in the Great Song Dynasty.

Murong Fu was busy with the reform of the bureaucratic system, and he was a little negligent and slack in the storytelling work of the Chongzheng Palace. In October, even if he was as dull as the little emperor, he also faintly felt that Murong Fu had been running to Qingshou Palace under the pretext of restructuring for several months, but he was not as good as before. On this day, Murong Fu finished his storytelling work and was about to say goodbye and leave, but the little emperor suddenly said: "If Murong Qing is fine, would you like to sit with me for a while?" ”

The little emperor had this request, and Murong Fu had to stay even if he had something to do, so he bowed down and said yes. The little emperor smiled slightly, and asked Murong Fu to accompany him back to the Funing Palace. As soon as the two of them sat down in the Funing Palace, a waiter brought refreshments. After the little emperor casually greeted Murong Fu with a few words, he quickly entered the topic and asked about the restructuring.

Although Murong Fu was very disappointed in the little emperor's temperament, he did not fool the little emperor with perfunctory thoughts. Seeing that the little emperor was concerned about the restructuring, he immediately explained the benefits of the reform of the bureaucratic system and the difficulties he would face.

The matter of restructuring was originally very complicated and cumbersome, but listening to Murong Fu's words, it was orderly and clear, and the little emperor couldn't help nodding again and again when he heard it, and only sighed: "The matter of restructuring is gradually advancing from top to bottom, and it is really safe." ”

"Exactly," Murong Fu also nodded, "The regulations of the imperial court affect the whole body, and it is not an exaggeration to say how safe it is. Nowadays, such a restructuring is from small to large, which is convenient for the imperial court to closely monitor, and if there is any disagreement, it can be terminated immediately. The so-called country is people-oriented, as long as it does not hurt the people, no matter how it is changed, it will not hurt the muscles and bones. ”

"Murong Qing is old and seeks the country, this is the blessing of the people." This restructuring further strengthened the imperial power, and the little emperor was naturally happy to see it, and immediately praised Murong Fu with a smile. "There's just one thing that Murong Qing hasn't thought about in detail."

When Murong Fu heard this, he immediately raised his eyebrows, bowed and said, "Please also ask the official family to show me." ”

"Official!" The little emperor said in a deep voice, "The officials who were originally at home could halve or even not give them to them, and as for the officials, the income was even lower. If the system is reformed, more idle officials come out to do things, where will the money come from? ”

"If the tax revenue of the imperial court is insufficient, you should try to open it up. If administrative costs are reduced by throttling, the imperial court's control over the local government will inevitably be weak, and it will be even more unable to collect taxes. Isn't this a vicious circle in the long run? Murong Fu immediately laughed.

When the little emperor heard this, his face was gloomy, and he said coldly: "It was because of this that my father was determined to reform back then, but what is the end now?" ”

Murong Fu stared down at the dishes in front of him for a while, and said quietly for a long time: "Official, where can I squeeze oil and water from the cracks in the stones?" ”

Murong Fu's words were so straightforward that the little emperor couldn't help but lower his voice. "It's a pity that people like Murong Qing are loyal to the country, after all, they are in the minority."

Murong Fu saw that the little emperor was so awake, and immediately raised his head and smiled: "The official family is wrong, the richest person in this world is not Confucian!" ”

The little emperor wanted to ask again, but Murong Fu was no longer willing to answer, so he only shook his head lightly and was about to get up and leave.

How did the little emperor look at the twilight outside and only smiled: "Unknowingly, it has come to this time, why don't Murong Qing accompany me to eat?" After that, there was no need for Murong Fu to answer, and people were served wine and food.

The little emperor was so enthusiastic, what else could Murong Fu say, so he had to get up and thank him. During the banquet, Murong Fu saw that the waiter who was holding the pot and pouring wine for him actually had a big beard in a very breakthrough way, and he couldn't help but look at it twice.

Seeing this, the little emperor immediately smiled and introduced Murong Fu: "Tong Companion is Li Xuanzheng's disciple, and he is also the person who can be used by my side. ”

The tall bearded eunuch also put down the wine jug at this time and saluted Murong Fu. "Slave Tong Guan, I've seen Lord Murong." Tong Guan, a powerful eunuch of the Northern Song Dynasty and one of the six thieves, has been in charge of the army for 20 years. When he was in power, he did everything wrong, promoted sycophants and flattered his incompetent people, and demoted the generals with outstanding military achievements one by one, destroying the military and political foundation of the Northern Song Dynasty. It can be said that in history, the invasion of the Jin soldiers returned with a full load, and the first thing to thank was Tong Guan's 20 years of hard work.

Such a eunuch boss who was in Huizong was actually pouring wine for himself at this time, and Murong Fu couldn't help but be dumbfounded. I saw that he was trying his best to maintain a calm look on his face, and bowed slightly and said, "Pavilion Chief Tong is polite." Being able to thank him calmly instead of violently killing Tong Guan on the spot, Murong Fu also appreciated his forbearance.

After three rounds of wine and five flavors, Murong Fu saw that it was getting late, so he had to say goodbye again. Unexpectedly, when he stood up, he felt dizzy before the word "Xie" could be spoken.

When the little emperor saw it, he immediately smiled and said: "Murong Qing is drunk, Tong Companion, quickly help Murong Qing to go to the apse to rest for a while." In his voice, he couldn't hide his joy.

Murong Fu's amount of alcohol was practiced with Qiao Feng, where could he get drunk with a few glasses of light wine. He saw that the little emperor's face showed a hint of almost treacherous joy, and the cold air surged, and he hurriedly pushed Tong Guan with a palm. Tong Guan was burly, his skin and bones were as hard as iron, but he didn't know that he was pushed by this Si Swenwen Murong Fu casually, and he felt a suffocation in his heart, and immediately took a few steps back, fell on his back, and fell to the ground.

Murong Fu couldn't take care of Tong Guan at this time, only to see him kneeling down on one knee, supporting the ground with one hand, and gasping for breath: "The minister loses his honor, and the minister retires." After that, he didn't care what the little emperor's face was, so he just broke away a few more attendants who surrounded him and staggered towards the outside of the hall.

Tong Guan clutched his chest and gritted his teeth and moved to the little emperor's side, and said in a low voice: "Official, you can't let Lord Murong go like this!" "The idea of drugged Murong Fu was Tong Guan's idea. If Murong Fu is allowed to leave this door innocently, what will happen to the little emperor, Tong Guan doesn't know; But he himself is obviously going to be broken into pieces.

The little emperor also knew that Murong Fu was deeply favored by the Empress Dowager, and if he went to the Empress Dowager to complain about today's matter, he was afraid that his throne would not be guaranteed. Only if Murong Fu is dumb and can't say that he can't say anything about his suffering, he can be at his mercy in the future. Thinking of this, the little emperor only turned his heart sideways, gritted his teeth and said angrily: "Don't you have long eyes?" Murong Qing is drunk like this, why don't you help him go to the apse to rest? ”

At this time, the attendants also understood that things were not simple, and everyone was hesitating, when a voice suddenly came from outside the hall: "The Queen Mother has arrived!" ”

Hearing that the Empress Dowager Xiang was suddenly killed, the little emperor immediately turned pale and had no master. Tong Guan beside him was more shrewd than him, and hurriedly stepped forward and knocked over the wine jug on the table.

After a while, the Queen Mother stepped into the hall.

The little emperor's knees weakened, and he immediately knelt on the ground, and stammered: "Erchen...... The son has seen it, and the queen mother ......"

Murong Fu, who was covered with cold sweat, also knelt down with great difficulty. "Wechen has seen the Queen Mother." As soon as the words fell, he could no longer support his heavy head, so he had to put his forehead on the ground and gasp slightly.

The little emperor never got married, and the harem palace ban was still in charge of the Empress Dowager Xiang. She originally heard that the palace ban was approaching and Murong Fu was still left in the Funing Hall by the little emperor, so she came to take a look, but she unexpectedly bumped into such a strange situation. After all, Empress Dowager Xiang was smart, and after looking left and right for a while, she already realized that something was wrong, hurriedly waved her left and right, and asked sharply: "Official, what's going on?" ”

"Erchen, Erchen......" The little emperor was sweating and gray, and he couldn't speak.

"Queen Mother," Murong Fu suddenly relieved his breath at this time and raised his head. "The official family just set up a banquet to entertain Weichen, and Princess Shushou was mentioned during the banquet." Wei Chen unconsciously drank a few more glasses, and then he lost his manners. ”

"Yes, yes," the little emperor heard Murong Fu's words, his eyes lit up, and he hurriedly agreed. "Erchen is about to order someone to send Murong Qing out of the palace."

The Empress Dowager Xiang was full of suspicion, looking at the little emperor, he was happy to have escaped death; Looking at Murong Fu, his expression was calm and he couldn't see the slightest clue.

Empress Dowager Xiang didn't know what to do, and Murong Fu had already said: "Empress Dowager, it's getting late, please leave the palace immediately, so as not to cause gossip." ”

Murong Fu's sentence finally reminded the Empress Dowager Xiang, and she immediately said: "In this way, the official family will be settled earlier." Murong Qing, you leave the palace with the mourning family. ”

Murong Fu left the Funing Hall with the Empress Dowager Xiang and her party, and saw that the Empress Dowager turned her head to look at him again, and before she could speak to the Empress Dowager, Murong Fu had already preemptively said: "Thank you Empress Dowager!" Today's events, the Queen Mother forgot about it. ”

Seeing that Murong Fu's face was getting more and more ugly, Empress Dowager Xiang pondered for a long time and finally sighed helplessly: "That's it, you should leave the palace quickly!" ”

"Thank you, Queen Mother!" Murong Fu hurriedly bowed and left the palace without looking back. It wasn't until he got into the carriage waiting outside the palace gate that he bent down with great difficulty and coughed twice, spitting a mouthful of blood on his sleeve caused by the impact on his heart. I saw Murong Fu expressionlessly take out the silk handkerchief to wipe off the blood stains between his fingers, and slowly pulled the silk handkerchief and the dirty cuffs into his palm and slowly tightened his five fingers, his face was instantly extremely gloomy, and an uncontrollable murderous aura burst out from his body!