Officialdom is like a battlefield, and it is a killing field.

If you are not careful, you will lose the whole game, and you will only lose one game on the chess field, and in the officialdom, you may lose your life. Zhang Juzheng is naturally very familiar with this truth, and the reason why he was able to become the first assistant of the Ming Dynasty was precisely because of Gao Gong's carelessness.

Thinking about Yan Chong's fate back then, Zhang Juzheng's mood seemed a little depressed, he could let go of the high arch, and others might not be able to let him go in the future, and even, Zhang Juzheng believed that once those people gained power in the future, in order to "kill the chicken and show the monkey", in order to let the world see the result of provoking them, it is estimated that his fate is definitely not much better than Yan Chong.

At that time, I am afraid that it will not only be my own life that will be lost!

Zhang Juzheng would never tolerate himself making such a mistake, and because of this, when Zhang Siwei did such a thing, he could still accept everything calmly.

Because he knows what is best for him.

And now, neither Zhang Siwei nor Shen Shixing are suitable to be the second assistant, and both of them are eyeing the position of the first assistant!

But now it's a dead end!

"Shoufu, since Shoufu has been forging ahead, I am about to rise in the Ming Dynasty. When the ship reaches the middle stream, if you don't advance, you will retreat, and now it is between advance and retreat, and it is at the juncture, and you must not make the slightest mess, so the subordinates think that Shen Shi will not act as a second aid! ”

In the face of Shoufu's silence, Fu Zuozhou, as his cronie, of course can't be silent, and this is also the reason why Shoufu came to him, some words, no matter how ugly they are, they must be said, and Shoufu must not be allowed to make the wrong choice!

"Anyone in this court can be a secondary assistant, but he can't!"

Regarding Fu Zuozhou's directness, Zhang Juzheng did not hide anything, but nodded and said.

"However, Ziwei Zhishi has become a foregone conclusion, and it is impossible to comfort him in the court."

These words are telling Fu Zuozhou that now that the matter has become a foregone conclusion, I want you to come just to give you an idea to break the situation.

Of course, Fu Zuozhou understood what Shoufu meant, and he suddenly became a little anxious.

"Shoufu, in this way, Shen Shixing is bound to become the head of the hundred officials in Jiangnan, once he is in the position of the second assistant, the hundred officials in Jiangnan are bound to do everything possible to help him become the first assistant, and then disintegrate everything that the first assistant has worked hard to manage! At that time, he will definitely be the enemy of Shousuke! In the past, the hundred officials in Jiangnan were a group of dragons without a leader, but once Shen Shixing became the first assistant, everything would be different, with a leader, at that time, there must be a resurgence of party struggle in the court, and even if the first assistant wants to implement reforms, I am afraid that he will be constrained! ”

Looking up at Zhang Juzheng, who looked solemn, Fu Zuozhou said solemnly again.

"Please also ask Shoufu to try to keep Zhang Cifu, although he is ambitious, but in the end, in his opinion, except for the salt method, there is nothing else that he values."

Fu Zuozhou's words were very straightforward, Zhang Siwei and others were born in the salt merchant family, so the imperial history official in charge of salt affairs said that the destruction of salt affairs in the world was because of Zhang Siwei and his family. Salt merchants influence the political situation with their strong financial resources, and Zhang Siwei, as the spokesperson of salt merchants, only values the salt law and only sees whether his family can profit from the salt law, so he naturally supports the reform.

Many of the so-called "reforms" are in fact more or less the same, and those who support the reforms often want to profit from them, and those who oppose them often do so because their own interests are harmed.

Although Zhang Juzheng is very grateful to Fu Zuozhou for his directness in his heart, his directness makes people feel very uncomfortable, after all, whether it is Wang Chonggu or Zhang Siwei, they are all supporters of Zhang Juzheng and value the salt method...... Does this not mean that you sit back and watch them profit from the salt law?

Even if it's true, it can't be put on the table and said! There are some things that you can see through, but you can't say them thoroughly!

Zhang Juzheng, who knew the resistance to reform, chose to form an alliance with Zhang Siwei back then, and then attacked the Nanzhili lineage, so as to promote reform, of course, this kind of cooperation is not without a price, the price is the salt law, that is, the Wang family and the Zhang family and other Shanxi salt merchants have obtained more lucrative benefits from it.

But...... It's a well-known secret!

"Ziwei's resignation has become inevitable, and this matter doesn't need to be mentioned again!"

Glancing at the box resting on the desk again, interrupting Fu Zuozhou's words, Zhang Juzheng said seriously.

"I invited you here this time just to discuss this matter with you, and as for the rest, I don't need to talk about it today."

Although Zhang Juzheng didn't say it so directly, Fu Zuozhou still heard that he had said the wrong thing, and hurriedly remedied.

"It's the subordinate Meng Lang, but since the second assistant is the second, Shen Shixing is bound to become the second assistant, this is the rule of the cabinet for many years, this rule cannot be broken, and if it is broken, it will inevitably cause a backlash from others......"

Fu Zuozhou, who pondered for a moment and knew that the matter was irretrievable, could only think of other ways in his heart, and suddenly his eyes lit up, and then he looked at Zhang Juzheng and said.

"Actually, the subordinate has a suggestion, I don't know if I should say it or not!"

"Tell me about it!"

The reason why Fu Zuozhou was called over was because Zhang Juzheng wanted to hear his advice. If it weren't for the fact that there was no way, he wouldn't be so distressed, there was really no way.

"Shoufu, the reason why Shen Shixing can't be made a second assistant is because he has Jiangnan Shilin behind him to open his eyes, once he becomes a second assistant, it will inevitably lead to turmoil in the imperial court, and there must be party disputes. Therefore, the subordinate felt that as long as there was a person with older qualifications than him who joined the cabinet, he would naturally not be able to become a secondary assistant, and it would be impossible for officials from the south to make a big show and incite turmoil in the government and the opposition. ”

Fu Zuozhou said as he looked at Shoufu, and his suggestion made Zhang Juzheng's brows tightened.

"Seniors, what's the ...... in this cabinet?"

Suddenly, Zhang Juzheng's voice stopped, he looked at Fu Zuozhou and said,

"You mean Lu Tiaoyang! But he's already done! ”

Seeing that Shoufu understood what he meant, Fu Zuozhou hurriedly said:

"Lu Tiaoyang can be called the dry material of the country, it was because of physical reasons, but the ministers heard that now his old illness has been cured, fortunately, the emperor is heroic, and he must not want the old minister to be buried in the countryside, so he will definitely make an order to enter ......the court."

There was an edict from the emperor, which clearly suggested that Zhang Juzheng ask for an edict to summon Lu Tiaoyang into the court.

Lu Tiaoyang!

Thinking about this name, Zhang Juzheng couldn't help but hesitate, after all, when Lu Tiaoyang was the second assistant, he was also a threat to him. Even later, Lu Tiaoyang asked Zhishi one after another, because the relationship between the two deteriorated, would he be cocooned and bound by inviting him to the court? Will he be his enemy?

Looking at the locust tree outside the window, Zhang Juzheng was a little distracted.

This trick is a trick to drive away the wolf!

"This ...... What if he opposes reforms? ”

Faced with Shoufu's question, Fu Zuozhou shook his head and said.

"Shoufu, Mr. Lu Ge still supports reform, and he is a Gengchen, he will never abolish the public for personal reasons, as long as it is beneficial to the Ming Dynasty and the people of the world, he will definitely support it. Besides, he is from Guangxi, even if he is a second assistant, he will not have any impact on the DPRK situation, but Shen Shixing is different. ”

Fu Zuozhou's suggestion brought him back to his senses Zhang Juzheng pondered for a long time, he kept thinking about all kinds of possibilities in his heart, but in the end, all the possibilities came down to one sentence "Lu Tiaoyang is a Gengchen", yes, he is indeed a Gengchen, and he will indeed not abolish the public for personal reasons, but people will always change, what if he changes?

Then, he thought to himself, how could he change when he reached that age?

After figuring everything out, Zhang Juzheng sighed and then said:

"Everyone in the world says that the old man is alone, but who knows that the old man is walking on thin ice in the position of the first assistant! I, Zhang Juzheng, have always been forced to such a point......"

After sighing, Zhang Juzheng's face looked a little strange, as if he himself did not expect that one day he would face such a choice, after all, everything in the past was in his hands, so as he is now, he did not hesitate to drive the wolf and gobble up the tiger, this plan ...... It's too dangerous!

After thinking about it, Zhang Juzheng waved his hand again.

"You go back first."

There was neither a yes nor a denial, it seemed that everything was as usual, but in fact everything had changed.

After Fu Zuozhou left, Zhang Juzheng leaned on the circle chair, frowning and thinking, after a long time, after sighing, he picked up the pen, first wrote a note, and then wrote a letter. When the letter was written, he called the servant and commanded.

"Send this letter to the letter bureau, and ride eight hundred miles to Guilin."

Then he sat for a while, as if remembering something, and then he got up again, left the study, and came to a side courtyard in the back house. The windows in the courtyard were filled with light, and the figure could be faintly seen through the window paper, and when he walked in, there was a maid who blessed him.

"The maid has seen my uncle."

"Xuan'er is still studying?"

"The young master is still reading in the study, maid, maid, the maid will call him."

"No, no, I'll just go over."

Nodding silently, Zhang Juzheng walked into the study, and the person who was reading at the desk probably didn't notice him at all because he was too focused.

Looking at his focused appearance, Zhang Juzheng sighed again, the man came back to his senses, looked up and saw the comer, a flash of joy flashed in his eyes, and when he was about to speak, the look in his eyes dimmed again. He got up first.

"My nephew has seen my uncle."

Nodding silently, he glanced at him again, and Zhang Juzheng said.

"The ship has arrived, you ...... Pack up and get ready to head south. ”

After saying this, Zhang Juzheng shook his head again and sighed, and then turned around and left, whether he paused when leaving......

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