Ye Yongjia has been struggling with a question on the road: Should he report this matter to the imperial court? The establishment of the new army may be a blessing for the country, but once the opening is opened to introduce merchants, I am afraid that it will cause endless troubles. It is never a question of who will take responsibility, and such a huge responsibility cannot be borne by a hundred people.

He thought about it for a long time, but there was only a mess in his mind, and at this time, the sun was about to set, and he had already arrived in the capital smoothly.

Ye Yongjia had no choice but to stop thinking about it, and after changing his outfit, he planned to go to the palace to find Niu Yuan. When he arrived in Zhongshu Province, he was told that Feng Xiang had returned early today due to his ill health, so he turned to Liu Zhennian.

In the courtyard of the Prime Minister's Mansion, Liu Zhennian was rocking a bamboo and rattan deck chair under a tree, closing his eyes and recuperating. The chair creaked and creaked, but it didn't affect his ears in the slightest, and when a few voices came from outside the door, the chaise longue suddenly fell silent.

He suddenly opened his eyes and looked out the door, but only saw two vague figures, then sat up and shouted, "Who? ”

"Prime Minister, it's Lord Ye!" The janitor looked back.

Before Liu Zhennian could hear clearly, he saw Ye Yongjia wearing an official uniform and walked over.

"Tinglong?" With a puzzled look on his face, he slowly stood up in his chair.

"Enxiang," Ye Yongjia hurriedly stepped forward to help, "The household department and the lower officials have been thinking about it for a long time, but they still don't agree to the matter of allocating money." So he planned to find another way, so he came back to inquire. ”

"Finding a different way...... What is the meaning? Liu Zhennian signaled that he didn't have to help.

"I went to find a ...... Westerner, he has a lot of intersections with some merchants on the sea. This person wanted to ask the imperial court to open the ban and make Fanshang's gun factory enter the Celestial Empire. Although this can alleviate the current difficulties, I don't know what kind of calamity will be left. ”

"It's best to be cautious, but don't strangle this way," Liu Zhennian nodded slightly, obviously appreciating his idea, "I will help you persuade the household department first, if it can be done, you don't have to go through a lot of trouble; You can go back to inquire in the next few days, and be careful not to reveal this. Don't tell Niu Yuan, he can't control it. ”

"I understand all the lowly duties." Ye Yongjia moved, as if he was about to retreat, but his feet only moved two steps as if he was retreating.

Liu Zhennian saw his thoughts, so he smiled and said, "What doubts does Tinglong have, and he asks directly, why have I ever been wary of you?" ”

Ye Yongjia hurriedly saluted again: "The prime minister treats me kindly, how dare you be wary?" It's just a doubt. ”

"What's wrong with him?"

"I thought that although Zeng Liang was famous, he had not been an official for a long time, and his experience was still shallow, so I don't know why he was chosen by the emperor."

"That's my idea. This person is kind to us, and he is liked by the emperor and a large number of clans, and he also belongs to the same clan as the ministers, so why not use it? As for his current opposition to you, it is also to maintain the power of their scholars, so as not to be led by the nose by the new policy. 'In his position, he seeks his government', which is really understandable. ”

"I don't understand the humble position, you are already a figure in the court, why do you still seek compromise? Replace it with an honest one, which is very beneficial to the New Deal, and the border people will be even more grateful to you. ”

"I've been thinking about these things since I entered Beijing," Liu Zhennian sighed softly, "At that time, things could be called a vigorous and resolute work, and there were corpses everywhere. But after a long time, although they dare not disobey, they have a way to deal with you. For example, if you ask someone to reclaim 100 acres of wasteland, they will reclaim 80 acres. If you ask someone to ask the people to take one piece of cloth, he will have to ask for five. Do less of the good and more of the bad, and the responsibility will only fall on my head in the end. ”

Speaking of this, he still didn't feel happy, grabbed Ye Yongjia's arm, asked him to listen, and sat back on the recliner, as if he wanted to confide in his heart: "I say this, not to complain about how bad these literati are, but because of this, I know a truth, on 'fighting the country' I have a good military power, what if I sit in the country?" It is always up to these civil servants and doctors. I don't shy away from talking about this, the figure who has been able to usurp the throne and seize power throughout the ages, isn't that one who caters to the interests of the scholars in every way to gain their support? As for me, at the beginning, I carried out reforms in a hurry, and everyone was reluctant, and there were few major events. In the past few years, in order to implement the new policy, I finally learned some power skills, and while following their thoughts, I appointed you to reform, and only then did I see certain results, and I implemented it more or less......"

"The old man doesn't talk big, if I were the kind of traitor who deceives the world and steals his name, and only stares at the glory and wealth, I would have dragged the emperor off the throne a long time ago!" He said with a sneer.

"They don't know what I'm thinking, and they all see me as a murderous ruler. This is the first time I have said this......" He swayed on the chaise longue as he spoke, his eyes gradually closed, and a slight snoring sounded.

Ye Yongjia looked at his wrinkled face and was deeply touched. But this feeling is only a glance in my heart, and there are no more ripples. At such moments, he always remembered his father's resolute face, remembered the tragic situation when his father died, and could not let go of this enemy who did not share the sky. His fists clenched, and his sympathy turned to hatred.

Seeing that he was asleep, Ye Yongjia stood up quietly, and was about to turn around to leave, when he suddenly heard a 'crunch' sound on the rattan chair.

"Tinglong, the old man has done a lot of wrong things in the past......" Liu Zhennian tilted his head half-asleep, "especially for you, for the Ye family." I don't expect you to forgive, but I hope you don't have to guard against me at every turn......"

Ye Yongjia pursed his lips, not knowing whether he should agree or not. After being stunned for a while, he heard the familiar snoring sound again, and walked out of the prime minister's mansion silently.

In these most torturous days, Ye Yongjia naturally couldn't be idle. After the day of seeing Liu Zhennian, he wanted to go to Beitang to meet Wu Sijing, but unfortunately it rained heavily and the church was closed, so he had to return in a huff. The road was muddy, so he walked a few steps slower, and when he returned to Beijing, it was already a curfew in the city, so he had no choice but to rest on the post for a day.

The next morning he entered the city, and although the fog was heavy, the sun shone faintly from the sky, indicating that it would be a sunny day.

Ye Yongjia didn't feel tired, still thinking about Wu Sijing, and walked into the door absentmindedly.

"Master," said one of the servants, who suddenly came out of the room, almost bumping into him, "a letter came yesterday at noon from a priest named Priest Wu. ”

Ye Yongjia was shocked, and immediately asked for the letter in his hand and read it carefully.