When he was on duty that day, Gu Yuanhui deliberately went around to the yamen of the Hanlin Academy's office and stopped Gu Yunji before he left: "I heard that you were also present when Jia Daoheng was punished for the feast today?" ”

Gu Yunji raised his eyebrows in surprise: "Lord Jia was punished in the morning, and it has only been half a day now, Uncle Cousin, you know so soon?" ”

Gu Yuanhui waved his hand indifferently: "What is this, don't say it's me now, I'm afraid half of the people in the court will know." Jia Daoheng bluntly offended the saint, causing His Majesty to be angry, and he was also beaten by the board, this matter was spreading, but I don't know the specific situation, I heard that you were there at the time, so I came to ask you. ”

"Yes, Jia Daoheng is the duty officer at today's banquet, and Cheng Yan and I are the roll officials, and we did watch the whole process." As he spoke, Gu Yunji told Gu Yuanhui all the before and after Jia Daoheng's punishment.

After listening to the whole story, Gu Yuanhui sighed: "Jia Daoheng, the top eye of the Enke Palace Examination in the first year of Jingfeng, I only heard that he was outstanding in learning, but I didn't want him to have such courage and arrogance. After repeated failed persuasions, he was still unwilling to give up, and finally hit the idea on the head of the scripture feast, and would rather be beaten to the board than speak out to His Majesty, but he is also a character. ”

Gu Yunji was a little surprised when he heard this: "Listen to what you mean, Lord Jia has tried to persuade His Majesty to appoint the emperor's eldest son as the prince before, but failed?" ”

Gu Yuanhui said: "Isn't it? Since the eldest son of the emperor reached the age of studying, Jia Daoheng folded his son from time to time, asking His Majesty to let the eldest son of the emperor go out of the pavilion to study. At the beginning, His Majesty was willing to be perfunctory, looking for various reasons to prevaricate in the past, but later there were many times, His Majesty was so annoyed that he didn't want to deal with him at all, and the folds handed over were often returned to him without looking at them. ”

However, Jia Daoheng was not discouraged by this, and he still made a break every once in a while, and he couldn't move it. Having guessed that he might take the opportunity of the lecture to speak to His Majesty, and fearing that he would be in trouble, he kept putting his days of lecture in the back until all the officials who could serve as the lecturer were all in turn, and then he had to be allowed to give a lecture. ”

While Gu Yuanhui was talking, he and Gu Yunji walked out slowly: "It is said that before today's lecture, Master Hanlin also specially instructed Jia Daoheng several times, so that he could finish the lecture in peace, and not to make trouble. I didn't expect him to promise well on his face, but in fact, he didn't listen to a word, and came directly to this one. ”

Gu Yunji never thought that there was such a story behind it, and couldn't help but ask: "Why is Master Jia so insistent on this matter?" Although he successfully admonished His Majesty in person today, he also angered His Majesty because of this, and he didn't say anything, and he didn't see His Majesty adopt his advice. What's the point? ”

"What's the point? Just ask for a clear name. The Jia family made a fortune in the imperial examination, and by Jia Daoheng's generation, it has been four consecutive generations of people who have entered the Hanlin Dynasty. Mrs. Jia is strict in governing the family, the family style is upright, and most of the children in the family are also promising, everyone takes it as their responsibility to serve the country by entering the imperial examination, and has nothing to ask for power and financial benefits, and the only thing they care about is the reputation of honesty and integrity. ”

"It is the Jia family that has been an official for so many generations, and it is not enough to say how powerful it is. But almost every generation has people who have made a name for themselves in the court, or have outspoken admonishments that anger the heavens, or they have to stick to the rules and refuse to be flexible, anyway, they always have to work against His Majesty, no matter what the end, as long as they can leave a "upright" reputation in the history books, they will be satisfied. ”

"For people like them, as long as they can fight for a good reputation, what is it to take dozens of canes? As the saying goes, 'it doesn't matter if you die', 'leaving a name in history' is the most important thing. Saying that, Gu Yuanhui pursed his lips, obviously disappreciating this, "But Jia Daoheng got his wish this time, but he almost implicated you." ”

Gu Yunji said with relief: "Actually, it's okay, Your Majesty didn't anger us, mainly because he was a little frightened." Even if Lord Jia was so offended, His Majesty only punished him with a court staff, and he was neither imprisoned nor demoted, which shows that His Majesty is angry and still has a sense of proportion in his heart. ”

Gu Yuanhui said: "Although Jia Daoheng's move is a bit aggressive, but in this way, it also happens to put the matter of the prince going out of the cabinet to study, so that His Majesty can avoid it and delay it, and when the time comes, there will be more courtiers who will go to the book, and Your Majesty should not be able to resist for long, and soon let the emperor's eldest son go out of the cabinet to study." ”

In Gu Yunji's impression, Emperor Jingfeng has the courage and means, and he can be regarded as a sensible person, it is hard to imagine that he would do things that violate the ancestral system and shake the country's foundation because he favors the second son of the emperor.

Gu Yunji really couldn't figure it out, so he asked: "Generally speaking, a boy can be enlightened to study when he is five or six years old, but now the eldest prince will be eight years old in a few months, and he has not been out of the cabinet to study for two or three years, is it possible...... Is Your Majesty really determined to abolish the elder and the younger? ”

Gu Yuanhui shook his head and sighed: "If you want to say that Your Majesty has made up your mind, it's not necessarily true, it's more like you can't make up your mind, so you will keep delaying it like this." After all, the princes are still young, and there is no difference in talent and ability. The main reason is that His Majesty loves Concubine Liu Guifei and loves the house and Wu for a while, so he prefers the second prince even more. ”

"The biological mother of the eldest prince is a lowly little maidservant, and when she gave birth to the eldest prince, she died in childbirth, the eldest prince did not have a biological mother to raise, and there was no maternal help behind him, and he was often excluded in the palace, and over time he developed a quiet and forbearant character."

"As for His Majesty, on the one hand, he dislikes the origin of the eldest prince, and on the other hand, he is inevitably affected by the inheritance system of the eldest prince, and subconsciously places higher expectations on the eldest prince, feeling that his character is not dignified enough and embarrassed to be the prince, but he can't make up his mind to give up on him. With such contradictions, His Majesty himself did not think about who to appoint, so he had to drag it out day after day. ”

"But the establishment of the reserve is a major matter of the country, how can it be delayed like this?" Gu Yuanhui frowned slightly, and there was a trace of worry in his eyes, "The second prince's mother, the Liu family, is restless, and because of Concubine Liu's favor over the years, she has become more and more arrogant, causing a lot of trouble, and she always needs Your Majesty to cover it up for them." If they continue like this, their ambitions will swell, and they will have it in the future? ”

When he said this, Gu Yunji was also a little worried: "At present, the courtiers can still support the eldest prince together, but if the prince is not established for a long time, the princes will have different hearts, and it is difficult to guarantee that they will not want to compete for the prince." At that time, the pattern between the DPRK and China will change, and most of the ministers will also stand in line and fight for the prince they support, and fight with each other endlessly. ”

Seeing Gu Yunji's sad look, Gu Yuanhui patted him on the shoulder, and pretended to be relaxed: "You are still young, and you have just entered the court, and we old people are in front of you for big things, why can't it be your turn, what are you worried about?" ”

"What's more, with Jia Daoheng's opening, some prestigious ministers in the court should soon follow suit and put pressure on His Majesty. Maybe on the day of the Wangri Dynasty meeting, they will collectively mention to His Majesty that the prince will go out of the cabinet to study, so don't worry about it. ”

Walking outside the Donghua Gate, Gu Yuanhui glanced at the sky and said: "It's not early, I've been talking about you for a long time today, presumably your lady has been waiting at home for a long time, go back quickly, and talk about it when you have time in the future." ”

Gu Yunji didn't say much when he heard this, and after saying goodbye to Gu Yuanhui, he walked home.