After soliciting Zhu Hao's opinion, Zhu Si officially posthumously named Xiaozong as the "Imperial Uncle Kao", and the matter of making the Empress Dowager Zhang the "Imperial Aunt" was decided.

Although there are many opinions in the court, there is a foundation for the Zuo Shunmen incident, and the emperor even chased Zhu You? The matter of the imperial examination has been decided...... This incident didn't make a big difference.

After the matter was decided, Zhu Si specially called Xi Shu and Zhang Xuan to the Qianqing Palace and commended them.

“…… Thanks to you, I can sit back and relax this time! ”

Zhu Si behaved very happily.

There is a big one, I became the emperor, and everyone in the world had to listen to my spirit, which made Xi Shu and Zhang Xuan feel a lot of pressure.

Xi Shu said: "I'm afraid that someone in the court will ask for a reconsideration of this matter afterwards." ”

"I'll see who dares!"

Zhu Si was unceremonious, and threatened in front of the two, "Whoever dares to play, I will let him know the end of doing this!" If anyone among the civil officials dares to discuss it in private, thinking that I am not benevolent or filial, or does not obey the ancestral system, it is a private discussion of the government and politics, and I will be severely punished! ”

Xi Shu had no choice but to accept the order, but Zhang Xuan on the side seemed very calm.

Anyway, when Zhang Xuan was helping the emperor do these things, he expected that the emperor's attitude was extremely firm.

"Hey, thanks to Jing Dao, he does things to reassure me." Zhu Si was about to go to see Empress Dowager Jiang, and before the two of them retreated, he praised Zhu Hao with a smile.

Xi Shu didn't think anything of it, but Zhang Xuan didn't feel good in his heart when he heard it.

Didn't I do this for you?

Zhu Jingdao that kid, when he heard that he was going to discuss the ceremony, he knew that His Majesty relied on him a lot, but he went to Xishan to hide and relax, and after the incident, the credit returned to him?

That's unfair, isn't it?

Xi Shu asked, "Your Majesty, I don't know how much effort Zhu Shilang has made in this matter?" ”

"I don't need him to do anything, what he did before is enough, I absolutely trust him, can't I?" Zhu Si's rhetorical question made Xi Shu feel that he was completely superfluous.

This is to find yourself unhappy.

"Okay, you guys stand down, recently I heard that Zhang Tianshi of Longhu Mountain is coming to the capital, I want to study Taoist affairs, but I'm afraid that there will be more problems with etiquette, you help me keep an eye on it...... The next step is to posthumously seal the temple number to the emperor, and it should be as soon as possible. ”

Zhu Si didn't seem to be satisfied, and he wanted to further push the big gift discussion down.

Xi Shu and Zhang Xuan were silent this time.

……

……

The two came out of the Qianqing Palace and walked outside the palace under the guidance of the eunuch.

There was nothing to say all the way, the two of them went out of Zuoshun Gate, there was already a sedan chair waiting in front of the palace gate, here Xi Shu was about to get on the sedan chair, Zhang Xuan walked over and said: "Xi Shangshu, can you take a step to speak?" ”

Xi Shu nodded.

This is not the first time that the two have spoken alone, now their identities are quite different from before, Zhang Xuan also understands that it is not so easy to suppress Xi Shu, even if Xi Shu has his credit, but now Xi Shu is the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, there is no need to treat him Zhang Xuan as a superior.

"Regarding Jingdao, I don't know what Xi Shangshu thinks?"

Zhang Xuan asked bluntly.

Xi Shu said: "Bingyong, if you want to say that it is inappropriate for Your Majesty to respect Dao, don't mention it again." In fact, even Fei Ge Lao already knew about this matter, and even if the DPRK and China did not make it public, it would not mean that they were all kept in the dark as before. ”

Zhang Xuan couldn't help but be shocked when he heard this, thinking that he had mentioned Zhu Hao in front of Fei Hong before, and Fei Hong's indifference to him made him feel a chill on his back.

obviously wanted to use Fei Hong, the head of the civil official, to suppress Zhu Hao, but it seemed to backfire, making Fei Hong feel that he Zhang Xuan was a two-faced person.

"Could it be that Xi Shangshu told the truth?" Zhang Xuan asked.

Xi Shu shook his head: "Are there fewer people in the court who know about this?" There are Liu Ge Lao and Tang Ge Lao in the cabinet, and their relationship with Jing Dao is extremely close, even if they reveal a little bit of tone, others still don't understand? Moreover, His Majesty's current emphasis on the Tao of Respect still does not make the people of the court and China wake up? ”

Zhang Xuan was speechless.

In the past, Zhu Hao could also be used to run to the civil official group as an undercover agent, trying to launch an attack, making it difficult for Zhu Hao to gain a foothold in the court, the problem is that it is no longer the time when the conservatives are in power, even the first assistant Fei Hong is a neutral, and the emperor's high pressure makes the civil officials silent, and no one cares whether Zhu Hao's position is left or right, in the eyes of the civil officials, Zhu Hao has become an insignificant figure.

Xi Shu said: "But there is one thing, I can tell you, Your Majesty seems to have to choose someone to enter the cabinet." ”

Zhang Xuan was stunned.

There are now five people in the cabinet, even if Yang Yiqing returns to the dynasty, the biggest possibility is that he will be the secretary of the ministry, of course, it is also possible to enter the cabinet directly, so the emperor still plans to increase the number of ministers? Wouldn't this seem like the Ming cabinet was too bloated?

"Two options, one for you and one for ...... It's respect. ”

Xi Shu continued to tell him what he knew.

Zhang Xuan shook his head: "It is absolutely impossible, with the time to enter the court with Jingdao, how can Your Majesty easily let us enter the cabinet?" Xi Shangshu, I think the most likely person to enter the cabinet is you. ”

Xi Shu shook his head: "Just taking care of the affairs of the Ministry of Rites has made me anxious, and the matter of entering the cabinet is not in my mind for the time being." Bingyong, if you want to enter the cabinet, you might as well go to Jingdao to build a good relationship, as long as he recommends, I think you have a great chance. ”

"Xi Shangshu ......"

"You don't have to say it anymore, you have also seen Your Majesty's attitude, with your current strength, it can't be compared with Jingdao at all, you still put away that mind and conscientiously complete the errand entrusted by Your Majesty...... You also know that your foundation is short and unstable, so why do you have to engage in such a senseless dispute? ”

Xi Shu seemed to be very indifferent to Zhang Zhang, and he didn't want to form an alliance with the other party at all, but what he said was definitely good to Zhang Zhang.

You Zhang Bingyong don't think that others can't see it, you have a lot of opinions about Zhu Jingdao, and even wooed others to confront Zhu Jingdao many times, but have you ever thought that whether it is the emperor's trust or personal ability, you are far from Zhu Jingdao.

Even the ability to make a stumbling block in secret, I'm afraid you can't beat it.

Only when you have a solid foundation, your strength is strong enough, you can do a few more practical things, and you have won the trust of the emperor, can you have a chance to bring down Zhu Jingdao, and you are asking for trouble at all now.

……

……

Zhang Xuan felt very cowardly.

But he also agreed with Xi Shu's statement, that is, it was difficult to match Zhu Hao now, and Zhu Hao did not confront him head-on, and hid directly in Xishan.

In this way, the emperor still trusted Zhu Hao very much, which made Zhang Xuan very depressed.

"It seems that we can only wait for that old Yang to enter the court to fundamentally reverse the current bad situation." Zhang Xuan began to think about the next person who could form an alliance in his heart, and that was Yang Yiqing.

But Zhang Xuan obviously underestimated the determination of Yang Yiqing and other old ministers in governance, Yang Yiqing returned to the court, perhaps showing his appreciation for Zhang Zhang, but after returning to the court, he ...... How can you not guard against the rise of Zhang Zhang?

In the final analysis, you Zhang Xuan is also a cutting-edge, although Zhu Hao is the top-notch one among the cutting-edge, but if you want to fight against Zhu Hao, why do you have to unite with you Zhang Zhang?

Historically, Zhang Zhang's relationship with Fei Hong and Yang Yiqing was not good, almost to the point that the two could not coexist.

……

……

In the Hanlin Temple, the stone? Meet Jia Yong, a Hanlin scholar.

And the stone? The purpose of coming to the Hanlin Academy was to take advantage of the emperor's idea of adding another cabinet minister to promote Jia Yong to the cabinet, so as to increase the influence of the Protector faction in the cabinet.

After all, there are already two ministers on the side of the Yili faction, Shi? felt that it was necessary to introduce Jia Yong into the cabinet to enrich his own strength.

But Jia Yong is obviously not enthusiastic about entering the cabinet.

"I have no intention of doing anything now, and I also asked Your Majesty to resign, but Your Majesty will not allow it."

Jia Yong sighed and shook his head, before he continued, "Or transfer me to Nanjing, so it is easier than floating in the whirlpool of the power struggle in Beijing." ”

Stone? Said: "You are the same age as me, just past the age of the sixtieth year, and everyone who entered the machine in the court is all of this age, why should you give up on yourself?" ”

Stone? Usually friends with Jia Yong, and his political views on the Great Rites are also the same, but now Feng Xi has retired, Shi? Naturally, he can only pin his hopes on Jia Yong, hoping to join hands with Jia Yong to transform the cabinet into a place where civilian officials are in power.

Jia Yong said: "Even if I enter the cabinet, what can I change? ”

Stone? He sighed and said, "Do you know why Your Majesty wants to add more cabinet ministers?" ”

Jia Yong shook his head and said he didn't know.

Stone? Said: "Recently, rumors have spread in the court, saying that Fei Zhongtang is not a good choice for the first assistant in His Majesty's mind, and His Majesty may intend to take Liu Renzhong as the first assistant, and Tang Yin has not much time in the cabinet, and after the two of them retire, there will definitely be a vacancy." And Huang Gongxian himself thinks that he will not stay in the cabinet for long. ”

"What?"

Jia Yong frowned.

Now the cabinet of five people, it looks very full, the result of listening to the stone? As soon as I said it, I realized that Tang Yin was bound to retire in the cabinet, and Fei Hong and Huang Zan also said that they might suddenly become officials one day, didn't that mean...... In the end, only Liu Chun and Shi remained? Two?

If this is the case, then the significance of his Jia Yong's entry into the cabinet is reflected.

The two of them can't deal with Liu Chun?

Squeeze Liu Chun down, and the cabinet will become the world of the Protector faction again, after all, Liu Chun's age is there, and Liu Chun still has the old problem of chest paralysis, who knows when he will suddenly burp up?

"Now in the court, Your Majesty appoints many traitorous villains, and the only thing I can think of is you."

Stone? said, "The rest of the candidates, such as Mengbi and Jiuhe, are not mature enough, and at the moment, you are the only one who is the best person to join the cabinet to assist me." ”

Jia Yong was silent for a while.

Now the emperor just released a rumor, saying that he wanted to add a cabinet minister, but the direction has not been decided, Shi? He has begun to agitate.

Jia Yong couldn't help but wonder, your entry into the cabinet was the road paved for you by Jiang Ge before he retreated, and he was not His Majesty's preferred candidate, why do you think that I am eligible to enter the cabinet as recommended by you?

Jia Yong smiled bitterly: "But...... I really can't do it, what do you think of Zhong Ming? ”

Zhong Ming is Zhai Luan's cousin.

Stone? frowned and said: "Zhong Ming is the squire of the Southern Rite Department, but there are rumors that His Majesty will summon him as a squire...... With his qualifications, I'm afraid there is still a distance from entering the cabinet. ”