When he left the capital a year ago, Guo Cong made up his mind to live in seclusion in the countryside from now on, ignoring the world's affairs, but when things grew legs, he would come to the door by himself.

When Han Ruzi was still looking at the capital from afar, meditating on what was happening in the palace and not knowing the essentials, Guo Cong, who was also far away from the capital, had already heard about the general situation of the princes' struggle for the throne, and had no choice but to go on the road with two students who sent letters, and returned to the capital a month ago.

Rao is like this, this old Confucian, he still knows far more about the situation in the capital than ordinary ministers.

Guo Cong was not in good health, Han Ruzi ordered someone to bring a comfortable soft chair for him to sit on, and Yang Feng had a chair exclusive to him, next to the bookshelf, relatively far away from the tired Hou behind the desk, so that he could leave the conversation without a trace, and he could also join at any time.

After the servants retired, there were only three of them in the study, and Guo Cong acquiesced to Yang Feng's existence and began to persuade the tired marquis to withdraw from the battle for the throne.

Han Ruzi didn't expect Guo Cong's visit, let alone that he would make such a request to himself bluntly, thinking about how much energy it took to let this old master say more content during the lecture.

He didn't get angry, and smiled: "For the sake of Da Chu Jiangshan? What virtue do I have, although participating in the competition for the throne will affect the safety of the Great Chu River? ”

Guo Cong's heavy breathing made Han Ruzi think about the great cause of the old general's house, but there was a difference, the latter was thick and powerful, like a bellows being pulled hard, and the former was heavy and soft, always like the last time in his life.

"The minister chooses the emperor? No, no, there has never been such a thing since ancient times, and Da Chu must not set this precedent. ”

Han Ruzi has a history book in hand, which records the deeds of ancient times, which is quite absurd, but as Yang Feng said, there are several records in it, if you think about it from another angle, it is very similar to the minister choosing the emperor, and after the whitewashing and modification of the historian, it has become obscure.

Han Ruzi did not recommend this history book to Guo Cong, and said: "Please believe Mr. Guo, I will never want to set such a precedent, but the situation is so ......"

"The situation can change." Guo Cong, who has always been elegant to the point of being a little cowardly, was a little aggressive at this time, "If there is only one prince competing for the throne, then it is not the minister who chooses the emperor." ”

Han Ruzi glanced at Yang Feng, couldn't help but smile, there were many doubts in his heart, and he decided to mention the most eccentric one first, "Although the matter of the minister choosing the emperor is strange and unetiquette, it is very good for the minister, why is Mr. Guo opposed?" ”

"Here's the problem, how easy it is for the tired marquis to say the words 'unetiquette', but this is not an anthill, this is a broken embankment, all previous dynasties have died here, and Da Chu must not repeat the mistakes of the past. Just because the election of the emperor is good for the minister, I am against it, once the minister tastes the sweetness, it will be difficult to give up, and the future emperor will be elected by the minister, and the tired marquis will accept it? ”

"Hmm...... Not unavoidable. "Han Ruzi actually didn't think about things that far.

"What if the emperor elected by the ministers is not surnamed Han?"

"Not really."

"There's a lot of power, so why not? The election of an emperor with a different surname is not the worst result, the minister usurps the imperial power, and naturally someone usurps the throne, and the following offenses will become a common practice, and eventually everyone chooses himself as the emperor, the world is in chaos, divided, and the Great Chu is dead, and the Central Plains will also fall from a state of etiquette to a powerful place. ”

Guo Cong is really a rotten Confucian, Han Ruzi is a little tired of this conversation, he seems to have returned to the past, listening to the lectures in the Lingyun Pavilion and listening to it drowsy, but now he has a choice after all, so he interrupted the old gentleman's etiquette and said: "Okay, the emperor can't be chosen by the minister, but why do you have to let me quit?" Guo Shi thinks I'm not worthy of being an emperor? ”

Guo Cong sighed, hesitated for a while, and said: "Tired Hou will be a good emperor, but the timing is not right, I persuade Tired Hou to quit, but also to save your life." The current situation is obvious, the champion Hou is the orphan of the former prince, has won the support of most ministers, the least controversy, and it is also in line with etiquette, the champion Hou is destined to return, and the right to elect the emperor is not considered to fall into the hands of the ministers. ”

"And the King of the East China Sea." Han Ruzi was angry, but he still didn't show it, he planned to listen to Guo Cong's words, after all, this represented the opinion of many Wenchen.

"After meeting the tired marquis, I went to see the king of the East China Sea and persuaded him to quit too."

"Guo Shi thinks the King of the East China Sea will agree?"

"I have to give it a try, if it doesn't work, I'll go and persuade Mrs. Cui, he has already intended to support Champion Hou before, it should be easy to change his mind, without the Southern Army as a backer, the King of the East China Sea should quit."

"I'll think about it." Han Ruzi said perfunctorily.

Of course, Guo Cong could hear it, and he sighed again, "The person that the Tired Hou relies on is nothing more than the Northern Army of Mancang City, everyone says that the Northern Army is loyal to the Tired Hou, but I don't think so: There are many sons and daughters of the Northern Army, how can there be a father and brother who support the champion Hou, and the younger brother and nephew who switch to others?" The rumors must not be believed, someone has already gone to check the facts, once the truth is revealed, the tired marquis will not get the support of the minister, why risk the great danger to fight for the unobtainable? It is not advisable to go against time and disobey fate, it is better to retreat bravely from the torrent and enjoy wealth and prosperity. ”

This is close to a direct threat, but it is a very powerful threat. With the cooperation of Chai Yue and others, Han Ruzi did exaggerate the support of the Northern Army for him, and planned to use this as a basis to seek the support of ministers in the court, and in turn show it to the Northern Army hundreds of miles away. This is a game that requires delicate operation, and one wrong step may lead to the Northern Army and the minister abandoning Han Ruzi at the same time.

So far, it is the champion Hou who has gone wrong, and Han Ruzi has been benefiting. He looked at the old gentleman opposite and speculated on the strength of this person and his followers, "Guo Shi has to support the champion Hou?" ”

"I don't support anyone, it's just that the champion Hou is the emperor, and it brings the least chaos." Guo Cong paused, "If you change to a tired marquis, I won't object." ”

Han Ruzi laughed, when he was the emperor, the only person who said anything for him was a eunuch, not a minister or a Confucian scholar, he stood up, "The kid is stubborn, without the guidance of Master Guo, how do you know the weight of etiquette?" But I'll have to give me a little time to think about it. ”

Han Ruzi had nothing to consider, but he didn't want to refuse in person unless it was necessary.

Guo Cong struggled to stand up, "Tired Hou just think about it, wait for the news from the Northern Army, and it's not too late for Tired Hou to make a decision." ”

Guo Cong sighed again, as if he wanted to say something, shook his head, and left. Han Ruzi personally sent it to the gate, returned to the study, and said to Yang Feng in wonder: "Guo Cong has been a master for many years, and there are not a few ministers in the Guozi Prison, and the competition for the throne has nothing to do with him, why did he come out and come to troubled the water?" Is it really for the sake of so-called etiquette? ”

When Guo Cong persuaded Han Ruzi, Yang Feng never spoke, nor did he see him off, and then he smiled, as if he had just won a battle, "Tired Hou should be happy, the water surface is turbulent, which means that there are fish under the water, and Guo Cong comes forward, which means that there are big fish." ”

"You'll have to explain it to me." Han Ruzi was completely confused.

Yang Feng stood up, walked a few steps, suddenly stopped, and said: "Xungui talks about ancestors, military generals talk about military exploits, people in the rivers and lakes talk about friendship, businessmen talk about interests, and Wenchen talks about benevolence and etiquette. ”

"Hmm." Han Ruzi still didn't understand.

"Where did Wenchen come from?"

Wenchen ...... From the reader. ”

"That's right, there are thousands of people who can read, how many people can become Wenchen?"

"There are not many, so there are scientific examinations, recommendations, and materials that can be selected from many readers."

"Will Wenchen forget the reader?"

"Wouldn't it? No, it is very clear in the history books that military generals were used when the country was founded, and Wenchen was used when defending the country, and after Wenchen took the throne, he always vigorously promoted the status of scholars, and this dynasty was no exception. ”

"Scholars, in turn, will influence Wenchen."

"Those scholars who fail to make the list can influence the ministers of the DPRK and China?" Han Ruzi didn't believe it.

"Scholars are not only scholars who fail to make the list, but also people who refuse to participate in scientific examinations, and people who are hidden in the court and do not want to be big officials.

Han Ruzi suddenly remembered that Yang Feng had been a scholar in the past, and this eunuch was reluctant to elaborate on his previous experience, but he obviously knew a lot about scholars.

"Guo Cong is the one who has a reputation?"

"Don't use the word mastery, that's a bit too much, but Guo Cong must be very influential, otherwise, he wouldn't have returned to Beijing to participate in this matter."

"What about Luo Huanzhang? The impact seems to be even greater. Han Ruzi remembered another lecturer.

"Luo Huanzhang has a great influence, but he refuses to conduct scientific expeditions, after all, he is separated from the imperial court, and he still can't compare with Guo Cong."

Han Ruzi thought for a while, "But I still don't understand, why should scholars oppose the princes competing for the throne, this can improve the status of Wenchen, and naturally it will also improve the status of scholars." ”

In any case, Han Ruzi does not believe that this is just a matter of "etiquette".

"Perhaps, Guo Cong and these scholars feel threatened, and feel that they will eventually lose their influence on Wenchen."

"Threatened by whom?"

Yang Bong didn't answer, and fell into deep thought, as if he was trapped by some difficult problem.

"Hopeful?" Han Ruzi gave his own answer, he admired the ability of the Qi Seeker, but he still felt that Yang Feng was a little too overestimating the strength of these people.

Yang Feng opened his mouth and did not mention the hopeful, "Guo Cong's old traitor is no less harmless than Prime Minister Yin, and the tired Hou dealt with it very well just now, never offend this kind of person in person." ”

"I'm afraid it's only a matter of time."

"No, no, Guo Cong actually brought good news to the tired marquis."

"Good news?"

"Well, Guo Cong made it very clear that he doesn't support anyone, it's only because the champion Hou has the advantage that he hopes that Hou and the King of the East China Sea will withdraw." Yang Feng paused, "This shows that Guo Cong is not optimistic about Champion Hou at all, which is also the position of a scholar." He also said that there are many sons and daughters of the Northern Army, and they will never disobey their father and brother - this is to remind the Tired Marquis that you can only defeat the champion Hou with the support of the nobles. ”

Han Ruzi was stunned, but he didn't hear Guo Cong's "kindness" at all. (To be continued.) )