There was silence for a long time at the scene, but Wang Bingjian, who was the first assistant to the cabinet, opened his mouth first and broke the deadlock, "If Governor Fang forcibly wants to pass the cabinet vote, we will also follow Governor Fang's idea to vote." ”

As long as there is the support of the Xuanjia Army, Fang Yuan can completely bypass the cabinet and go straight to work, and no one can do anything about it. But in this way, it is a typical military intervention in politics, and the cabinet is useless. Previously, he vowed that the original intention of setting up this new cabinet was to involve the gentry, wealthy businessmen, and even representatives of the common people in governing the country, but this became all empty talk.

Fang Yuan stood up abruptly and laughed, "You are all golden and jade, how can I ignore the words of loyalty?" I have already set the rule that in non-war times, in principle, government affairs should be based on the votes of the cabinet, and the Governor's Office can only approve the votes, and cannot interfere with the votes. Since the cabinet is unwilling to vote and has put forward sufficient reasons, let the matter be dismissed for the time being! ”

As soon as he said this, everyone present was shocked.

Zhu Cihuan and Wang Chengen were reluctant, and even the military agreed, but they were rejected in the cabinet, and the two were angry and annoyed. What's even more infuriating is that the hypocrisy system was proposed by Fang Yuan, and now he is suddenly on the side of the cabinet, temporarily shelved, and he can't see what his plans are.

Wang Bingjian and the three of them were not only stunned, but also fearful. At the beginning of their entry into the Cabinet, they all thought that this so-called grass-leaved cabinet was the private land of the Governor's Palace, and that they did not exercise sovereignty at all, and that they had to act according to the face of the Governor's Palace.

Wang Bingjian thought that Fang Yuan was talking back and ridiculing, and he would settle the account with the three of them afterwards, so he hurriedly said, "Governor Fang, we are just talking about suggestions, and we really don't want to go against Governor Fang." ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Elder Wang Ge, I'm really not trying to scare the cabinet. According to the rules, since the Cabinet's opinion is not voted, of course it cannot be implemented. We can't just talk about it, can we? I set up this Cabinet myself, and if I don't respect the Cabinet myself, who will take the Cabinet's words seriously?! ”

The three members of the cabinet glanced at each other, and only then did they confirm that Fang Yuan was not talking back, but really adopted the cabinet's suggestion. The three of them did not expect that this time such an important matter, even the military agreed to the plan, Fang Yuan chose to adopt everyone's ideas, and did not forcibly ask the cabinet to vote, and the respect and trust for this draft cabinet is self-evident.

Xi Benzhen said gratefully, "Governor Fang, please rest assured, this cabinet meeting will never spread half a word. ”

If the Cabinet dares to veto the Governor's Office's proposal, if it spreads, it will be a slap in the face of the Governor's Palace, or even Fang Yuan himself.

Fang Yuan patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, "No, no, Master Xi, this cabinet meeting will not only be passed on, but also spread in a big way. Not only did Jiangnan Daily publish the original words of the meeting, but it could also send first-hand information to Gu Yanwu's Guangming Daily so that they could publicize it. ”

He looked around at everyone and continued, "Everyone thinks that our grass cabinet is the official office of Governor Fang, and it is only responsible for writing and issuing official documents, but in fact, it does not have the power of half a dime. I just want to make all the gentry, wealthy businessmen, and people in Zhejiang and Fujian see clearly through this incident that this cabinet is by no means a puppet who writes official documents for Governor Fang, but is really presiding over government affairs and petitioning for the people! The three of you can do things with confidence, and we will certainly respect the prestige and power of your cabinet. ”

Fang Yuan's move actually caused the Governor's Mansion to lose face once, to establish the authority of the cabinet, and Wang Bingjian and the three of them were so grateful that they bowed to Fang Yuan again.

Fang Yuan and his entourage left the cabinet, and on the way back to Canglang Pavilion, Zhu Cihuan, who had already accumulated a lot of words, humbly asked, "Teacher, that's it for this time?" ”

Fang Yuan Zhengrong said, "Yes, the cabinet is unwilling to vote, so he just did it." ”

Zhu Cihuan continued to ask, "We should respect the cabinet's recommendations, but if everything is done according to the cabinet's ideas, the Wanli Korean War will not send troops." ”

Zhu Cihuan cited this example to remind Fang Yuan that although the cabinet's vote is very important, when necessary, the occasional cadre is also very important.

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Lord Wang, should you be arbitrary, and you have to distinguish whether the cabinet's reasons are sufficient." The establishment of another court is by no means something that a few of us can decide by sitting in a room. Before doing things, it is necessary to conduct full demonstration, and when necessary, it is necessary to release the wind to try the wind direction and public opinion in Jiangnan. ”

Zhu Cihuan suddenly said, "It turns out that the teacher ordered Jiangnan Daily and Guangming Daily to publish all the words of this cabinet meeting, just to ask for directions and explore the hearts of the people in Jiangnan, but in fact, the teacher did not give up the idea of establishing another imperial court." ”

Fang Yuan smiled and said, "Yes, what the cabinet said is indeed a good word, and the establishment of a separate imperial court is related to the interests of all aspects of Jiangnan, and it must not be hasty." This time, we first take retreat as advance, in fact, it is a strategy to kill four birds with one stone, one is to explore the public opinion in Jiangnan, whether it supports the establishment of another imperial court in Jiangnan; the second is to establish the authority of the Cabinet; the third is to pull out and first solve Zuo Liangyu in Jiangxi, as well as Zheng Sen who fled overseas, to completely eliminate his worries; Fourth, the Northern Expedition was a big project, and the opponents faced were not only the imperial court in Beijing, but also other warlords, and even the Manchu Qing outside the border could also participate in the war, so it was necessary to collect at least 10 million taels of military expenditure before the war, which would take one or two years. ”

Only then did Zhu Cihuan know that Fang Yuan had already taken all aspects into account and had taken all kinds of factors into account. Northern Expedition, or learn from Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang to succeed in the first war and unify the world. Either it was the end of the Northern Expedition of the Southern Song Dynasty, the first battle was defeated, the morale of the army was gone, and reunification was far away.

Fang Yuan continued, "Lord Wang, I'll teach you a little bit of Imperial Technique. This time, we have made a big deal of the Cabinet's veto of the Governor's Office's decision to establish a separate court and establish the authority of the Cabinet. In the future, if the cabinet is asked to vote on what plans to be passed, the whole of Jiangnan will think that those plans are all cabinet resolutions, not the governor's office. In the future, all the pots can be thrown to the cabinet, and the governor's palace can go ashore to watch the fire, hehe! ”

Wang Chengen, who had been listening and was silent, couldn't help but praise, "Master Horse, it's really calculating, the old slave is really convinced." ”

Emperor Chongzhen personally went into the water for seventeen years, and changed countless cabinet members, obviously for the sake of the Ming Dynasty's politics, but he also left a mean and unkind evaluation. It's just that he didn't make good use of the cabinet as a shield to bring all the dirty water from himself.

In the 17 years since Chongzhen was in power, Chongzhen's real comfortable life was precisely the so-called 'traitor' - the first assistant of the cabinet Wen Tiren was in power. Because Wen Tiren helped Chongzhen suppress the Donglin Party officials who formed the party, Chongzhen could hide behind the scenes and manipulate it. After Wen Tiren stepped down, Chongzhen could not find a replacement, so he had to go into battle shirtless in person, and the cabinet members changed more and more frequently, and Chongzhen's reputation became more and more stinky.

Fang Yuan's move was to establish the prestige of the cabinet in the open, but secretly he actually asked the cabinet to bear the black pot for the royal family and the governor's palace. If those officials and wealthy businessmen want to make noise, they can go directly to the cabinet, not to the royal family or the governor's palace.

As for whether the old foxes of the cabinet Wang Bingjian saw Fang Yuan's thoughts, it didn't matter at all. If it weren't for Fang Yuan's personal support, they would not have had anything to do with the cabinet in their lives. Now they are all cabinet ministers, managing the government affairs of Jiangnan, and it is also a matter of responsibility to carry a black pot to Fang Yuan. If you don't even want to carry this black cauldron, then it is better to resign directly and replace other people who are more willing to take on the role to enter the cabinet.

Zhu Cihuan learned a vivid lesson today, Fang Yuan's vivid political lecture was grateful, and he saluted respectfully and said, "Teacher, the disciple has been taught!" ”

Fang Yuan said lightly, "Lord Wang, these days, you go to Nanjing to take charge of the government, one is to provide disaster relief, and the other is to rebuild the Nanjing Imperial Palace. Wait until I clean up Zheng Sen and Zuo Liangyu first, and then discuss. ”

He arranged for Zhu Cihuan to provide disaster relief and rebuild the Nanjing Imperial Palace, all of which were measures to enhance Zhu Cihuan's prestige, and Zhu Cihuan gladly accepted the order.

When he came to the south of Suzhou, Fang Yuan suddenly ordered Zhu Cihuan and Wang Chengen to go back to the Governor's Mansion first, and then said to Hu Qi, "Old Hu, we won't go back to the Governor's Mansion for the time being, and follow me to another residence." ”

Hu Qi was stunned and asked, "Where is Governor Fang?" ”

Fang Yuan whispered a name, "Liu Ruyi!" ”

Hu Qi was stunned for a moment, and then understood that the so-called wife is not as good as a concubine, and a concubine is not as good as stealing, Fang Yuan wanted to go to Liu Ru is to steal wildflowers.