Time passed slowly, and by the time the cabinet came to their senses, it was already past the time to get off duty.

The sky gradually darkened, and the lights were bright in the distance, and a group of forbidden troops passed by from time to time.

Then, I saw Yan Song put the brush in his hand back in its place and proposed to everyone: "Why don't you come here today, what do you think?" ”

Regarding Yan Song's proposal, everyone naturally had no opinions.

After everyone had sorted out the accounts sent by various departments and the notes that had not yet been drafted, they left the cabinet one after another.

Because Yan Shifan supported Yan Song, the speed of movement inevitably slowed down, and soon, the father and son were far behind.

The father and son walked slowly in the Forbidden City, on the road paved with neat stone slabs, without saying a word.

Then, I saw Yan Shifan retract his gaze from a distance, and couldn't help but sigh with emotion: "Father, what you said earlier is right, that Xu Jie, as expected, did not play tricks, and signed the bill from the Ministry of Industry quite happily!" ”

When Yan Song heard this, he stopped, raised his head and glanced at Yan Shifan, and immediately said in response: "Now that the treasury is full, not to mention the five million taels of silver expenditure of your Ministry of Industry, and the expenditure of 12 million taels of silver from the Ministry of War, Xu Jie signed without even frowning!" ”

When Yan Song said this, he paused for a moment, and then said to himself: "When the accounts of the remaining departments are clear, and then the tickets are drafted, there will be nothing important this year, and you can have a good year with peace of mind!" ”

When Yan Song's words fell, I saw that Yan Shifan's face was full of schadenfreude.

After seeing that there was no one around, Fang lowered his voice and said: "Father is really like a god, just by passing the departmental ranking, that group of officials turned against each other, and even fought in public!" ”

"I'm afraid they're not having a good time this year!"

When Yan Song heard this, the expression on his face did not change much, he just shook his head and said slowly.

"If this matter is not for His Majesty's acquiescence, it will never be possible to go so smoothly, Yan Shifan, do you understand what this means?"

As soon as Yan Song's words fell, he saw that the gloating expression on Yan Shifan's face disappeared in an instant, and was replaced by a look of horror that could not be concealed.

Then, I saw Yan Shifan come back to his senses, looked in the direction where Yan Song was, and asked tentatively, "Father...... Father, you mean, Your Majesty's side ......"

Yan Song took in the expression on Yan Shifan's face, and after a moment of silence, he asked: "Well, this is natural, do you think that Your Majesty can't see this little trick we played?" ”

"In the final analysis, it's just that Your Majesty also wants to take this opportunity to beat those officials well!"

After listening to Yan Song's explanation, Yan Shifan's pupils suddenly contracted.

Then, as if he had suddenly thought of something, he looked in the direction where Yan Song was and asked.

"Father, could it be that not long ago, that group of officials openly gathered, and then, in front of His Majesty, asked His Royal Highness King Jing, who was stranded in the capital, to leave the capital immediately and return to the fief?"

Hearing this, Yan Song nodded, and then added: "Not only because of this matter, but also because of the last time the group of speech officials, on the grounds that there were ghosts and gods in the Tribute Academy, Shangshu asked Your Majesty to postpone the examination held in the Tribute Academy. ”

"And this, without a doubt, violates His Majesty's taboo!"

After listening to Yan Song's explanation, I saw an expression of hindsight on Yan Shifan's face.

Then, I saw him leaning down and respectfully responding: "Thank you father for solving the child's doubts, the child understands!" ”

"Alright, it's not too early, let's go back quickly!"

"Yes, Father!"

After that, the father and son quickened their pace, came to the place where the sedan chair was parked, and returned to Yanfu in the sedan chair.

……

After helping Yan Song to the study, Yan Shifan went straight back to his room.

Just as he was about to rest early, he heard a slight knock at the door.

Seeing this, Yan Shifan frowned slightly, and commanded: "Come in!" ”

The voice fell, only to hear a 'squeak', the door of the room was pushed open, and after a while, I saw the butler step in.

After entering the room, the butler did not hesitate at all, and immediately took out a letter from his sleeve, leaned down, and said respectfully: "Little Pavilion Elder, here is a letter sent by your student Gao Hanwen!" ”

After learning the news from the housekeeper's mouth, the resentment in Yan Shifan's heart that was disturbed dissipated a lot.

Then, I saw him wave his hand and command: "Oh, Hanwen's letter, show it to me!" ”

When the housekeeper heard this, he immediately stepped forward and handed the envelope in his hand to Yan Shifan's hand.

After taking the envelope from the butler's hand, I saw Yan Shifan wave his hand quite casually, and ordered: "Okay, there is nothing for you to do next, let's go down first!" ”

"Yes, Little Pavilion Elder!"

Seeing that he had delivered the letter, the housekeeper bowed to Yan Shifan and left, and when the housekeeper left, he also took the door of the room with him.

After the housekeeper left the room, he saw Yan Shifan open the letter in his hand, and browsed the contents on it with great concentration, only to see that it was written.

"Teacher, student Gao Hanwen, long time greetings, the teacher has been in good health recently, it has been a while since the student came to Banju to take up his post, and during this time, the things he has seen have deeply touched the student.

"Banzhou, just like you said before, teacher, the place is thousands of miles, the people are fierce, there are many nationalities, there are many contradictions between various nationalities, and there are constant vendettas between each other, teacher, you have entrusted the important task of educating the people to the students, and the students are extremely grateful!"

"In addition, students got to know many children of clans and nobles who came to Banshu to serve here......"

After Yan Shifan finished reading all the contents of the letter, he put it aside casually, and said with emotion: "I really didn't expect that Gao Hanwen would be able to have a relationship with that group of clans and noble children!" ”

"You know, I just wanted to take this opportunity to let him stay away from the center of power and spend the rest of his life in peace, but who knew that it was a blessing in disguise......"

"No, I need to ask my father about this matter and see what to do next!"

Thinking of this, I saw Yan Shifan carefully put away the letter in his hand and left the room quickly.

……

When Yan Shifan walked through the courtyard to the study, he suddenly found that even though it was getting late, the light in the study was still on.

In the study, the orange candle flame faintly reflected Yan Song's figure.

Immediately, I saw Yan Shifan take a deep breath, and after calming down his good mood, he knocked on the door of the study.

After this, I only heard a dull voice from the study: "Who? ”

"Father, it's a child, a child has something to ask his father!"

"Well, come in!"

When the words fell, Yan Shifan did not hesitate at all, and immediately pushed open the door of the study and stepped into it.

Seeing Yan Shifan coming, I saw Yan Song take his eyes off the books in front of him, then took off the reading glasses he was wearing, raised his head, pointed to the vacant seat on the side, and commanded: "Sit down first!" ”

"Yes, Father!"

When Yan Shifan heard this, he didn't excuse himself, and sat straight on the vacant seat on the side.

Not long after he sat down, he heard Yan Song's voice ringing in his ears: "It's so late, is there anything wrong with me?" ”

"Father, here is a letter from Gao Hanwen, the child's student!"

After Yan Shifan finished speaking, he took out the envelope from his sleeve and respectfully handed it to Yan Song.

"Didn't that Gao Hanwen be sent by you to Banzhou to be in charge of Huang Ping and Baitian Xue Palace, could it be that something happened?"

Yan Song said this, and took the letter from Yan Shifan's hand.

Facing Yan Song's slightly puzzled gaze, he saw Yan Shifan shake his head and explained: "No, father, it's not like this, Gao Hanwen mentioned in the letter that he had a very happy conversation with the children of the clans and nobles who were sent to Banzhou by His Majesty, so the child would like to ask you for advice......"

After listening to Yan Shifan's excuse, Yan Song nodded, then put on reading glasses, opened the letter in his hand, and browsed the contents on it.

After a long time, I saw Yan Song take off his reading glasses, and said with emotion: "You know, that Zhang Yuangong is the son of the British Gong Zhang Rong, and your student Gao Hanwen can actually take this opportunity to climb the relationship with the British government, and his future career will definitely be smooth sailing!" ”

Yan Song paused for a moment when he said this, and then continued to add: "Anyone can see that these clans and noble sons were sent to Banzhou by His Majesty for training, and when the time is ripe, they will be transferred back to the capital by His Majesty and entrusted with important tasks!" ”

When Yan Shifan heard Yan Song's words, a look of hesitation appeared on his face at the right time, and he turned to ask: "But father, the child is worried that if His Majesty really lets the clan and the nobles return to the court at that time, I am afraid that things will get out of control, and if they don't get it right, they will make trouble to the point of forcing the palace......"

When Yan Song heard this, he just glanced at Yan Shifan casually, and said coldly: "Yan Shifan, don't forget, Your Majesty is a person who has experienced the Great Rites Discussion, and Your Majesty will not take such a scene in your eyes!" ”

"Besides, whether it is the lifting of the sea ban or the implementation of the integrated payment of grain by the officials and gentry, no matter how great the resistance in the middle is, won't Your Majesty finally accomplish these things?"

Yan Song seemed to be quite emotional about this, and after taking a sip of the teacup soaked in wolfberry water on the table, he sighed to himself: "Alas, when Your Majesty has the assistance of the clan and the nobles, it will no longer be a scene of the civil official family dominating the court!" ”

Yan Shifan took in the lonely look on Yan Song's face, and immediately, he saw that he had organized the language in his mind, and said carefully: "Father, you don't have to worry too much, don't forget that the child was not long ago, but in front of His Majesty, he proposed a special assessment for the clan and nobles!" ”

After Yan Shifan finished speaking, after recalling for a while, he recounted the test method he had mentioned in front of everyone in the cabinet again.

……

"For those clans and nobles who did not pass the imperial examination and entered the official career, they had to set up an insurmountable barrier on their heads, and limit the official positions they could hold, civil officials could only achieve the highest four grades, and military attachés could only go to the point of partial generals!"

"Civil officials start from the county and assist the county magistrate in managing the county government, and military attaches start from the inspection and are promoted according to their merits!

"And this part of the sect and nobles who have passed the examination will be delegated to the grassroots level, and they should be given additional goals and assessed regularly, but if the assessment is not successful, there will be punishments, and if they complete the goals, there will be rewards."

"Every six months or at the end of the year, an assessment will be conducted, and if the assessment is not carried out three times, he will go to his official position, besides, the current secretary of the ministry is Hu Zongxian, he is our person!"

Just as Yan Shifan was still recounting his thoughts freely, he didn't notice that the expression on Yan Song's face had quietly changed.

I saw Yan Song retract his gaze from Yan Shifan's body, looking like he hated iron but not steel, and said to himself.

"Hu Zongxian is not our person, he is His Majesty's person!"

"Yan Shifan, a fool, thought that he could take this opportunity to restrict those clans and nobles, but he didn't know that this was lifting a stone to shoot himself in the foot!"

Yan Song knew very well in his heart that the fire that Yan Shifan lit for the clan and nobles would burn to himself sooner or later.

If these assessment methods are verified by those clans and nobles and proven to be feasible, then Your Majesty will definitely promote them to the whole country!

At that time, whether central or local, all officials of the Ming Dynasty from top to bottom will be subject to the constraints of the examination law!

And the beginning of all this is because Yan Shifan is smart and wants to use these methods to restrict those clans and nobles.

When Yan Song thought of this, his whole person became more and more annoyed.

Immediately, I saw him slam the table and reprimand: "Yan Shifan, you idiot, do you really think that Your Majesty didn't see your intentions at the beginning?" ”

"Your Majesty is just a plan, and after this set of assessment methods is proven feasible in the clan and the nobles, Your Majesty will definitely promote it to the whole country, Yan Shifan, you pushed everyone into the fire pit!"

After listening to Yan Song's reprimand, Yan Shifan reacted in hindsight.

At this time, in Yan Shifan's mind, the scene after the implementation of the test method kept appearing, which made him break out in a cold sweat.

Then, I saw Yan Shifan's face full of panic, looked in the direction where Yan Song was, and asked cautiously, "What about ...... Father, what should the child do next? ”

"If these assessment methods are really promoted to the whole country by His Majesty, then the child, as the person who proposes these methods, will definitely be hostile to the civil and military officials!"

Yan Song took in the expression on Yan Shifan's face, sighed helplessly, and said slowly: "So far, what else can I do, I can only break the jar!" ”

"Since these assessment methods will be promoted to the whole country sooner or later, it is better to wait for Your Majesty to raise this matter and clearly show his support, so that in the future history books, it may be able to leave some good name!"

When Yan Shifan heard Yan Song's words, his face was full of annoyance, he leaned down and reported respectfully: "Yes, father, the child understands!" ”

After this, I saw Yan Song retract his gaze from Yan Shifan's body, waved his hand, and commanded: "Okay, it's not too early, go down and rest!" ”

"Yes, father, the child will leave!"

After Yan Shifan finished speaking, after bowing to Yan Song, he left the study directly.

……

After Yan Shifan left the study, he saw that Yan Song's face was full of dark and inexplicable looks.

Yan Song knew very well in his heart that the reason why he was able to sit firmly in the position of the first assistant of the cabinet for more than 20 years was because of his absolute loyalty to the emperor.

In exchange, some of his small actions in private were also tacitly approved by the emperor.

It can be said that Yan Song is a knife in Jiajing's hand, commanding hundreds of civil and military officials for him, and attracting hatred by the way.

And above the court, there is absolutely no one dominant force allowed to exist, and it is precisely because of this that the emperor will turn a blind eye to the Qingliu led by Xu Jie.

Under the deliberate guidance of the emperor, the struggle between the two sides has always been carried out in a tepid way, far from the point of tearing the skin.

Once the strict party clears the stream, and one of the parties has a tendency to flip the table, the emperor will immediately stand up as a referee and call it off, and those who are disobedient will only have a dead end!

And when it comes to this position, whose ass is clean, in the final analysis, it is nothing more than a difference in position!

At present, the forces of the two sides have reached a strange balance between the DPRK and China, and in a short period of time, no one can help anyone.

The Ming Empire, which was originally twilight and dying, also began to glow with a second spring under the emperor's hard work, and its national strength gradually flourished.

Then, I saw Yan Song slowly get up from behind the bookcase and blew out the candle flame in the study.

Then, with the support of the maid, he leaned over and walked out of the study.

At this time, under the cover of night, the sky is dotted with stars, and if you stand under the starry sky and look up, you can feel the infinite vastness and tranquility.

I don't know how long time has passed, but I saw Yan Song retract his gaze and say to himself silently: "Xu Jie, Xu Jie, you still haven't seen the situation clearly, between us, you have me, I have you, no one can do without anyone!" ”

"If I had died of illness, you thought you would have been able to sit on the throne of the first assistant of the cabinet?"

"No, Your Majesty's butcher's knife has already been sharpened, do you think that your family, what you did behind your back, can you hide from Your Majesty?"

"You Xu Jie is not greedy, but you can't stand the family behind you, and in the name of your Xu Jie, you are reckless and wantonly annexing land!"

After this, I saw a slight self-deprecation on Yan Song's face, and he thought so: "If you are implicated, then I, the head of the cabinet, will also be the head!" ”

After finishing his feelings, I saw Yan Song returning to the room to rest with the support of the maid.

……

Yan Song was supported by the maid, and after returning to the room, a maid soon stepped forward and brought a basin of hot water for Yan Song.

Then, I saw the maid waiting on the side step forward, took off Yan Song's shoes and socks, and then carefully put Yan Song's feet into the hot water.

At the same time, the quilt has also been warmed by the bed warmer, and after Yan Song washes his feet, he can go to bed directly.

After soaking for a while, I saw Yan Song lift his feet, and the maid on the side saw this situation and hurriedly wiped the water on Yan Song's feet with a silk cloth.

After doing this, Yan Song came to the bedside with the support of the maid.

At this time, there were two bed-warmers lying on the bed, and when Yan Song arrived, I saw the two bed-warmers get up from the bed and said respectfully: "Master! ”

When Yan Song heard this, he responded imperceptibly, and then let the two bed warmers untie their clothes.

After that, Yan Song lay down in the quilt that still had body temperature, and if you sniffed carefully, she could still smell the girl's unique body fragrance.

After tossing and turning in bed for a long time, Yan Song still didn't feel much sleep, and what had happened in the recent past kept flashing in Yan Song's mind like a slide.

"Alas, it's been really eventful recently, I didn't expect Your Majesty to plan to check the acres of land and curb land annexation, not only that, but also sent Zhao Zhenji to Zhejiang to investigate the situation of land annexation."

"Then, in order to cover up the real purpose, His Majesty even did not hesitate to let the cabinet come forward and smoothly divert the attention of the government and the opposition by assessing the rankings of various departments and then issuing year-end bonuses."

"Right now, no one has mentioned the incident of the Yuan family in Jiaxing, which was in a uproar in the capital before!"

"Your Majesty is really a last resort, but in this way, it is inevitably too exciting!"

After sighing with emotion, Yan Song planned to continue to brew sleepiness.

Just as Yan Song was about to fall asleep, a flash of inspiration suddenly flashed in his mind, and he saw him suddenly support his body from the bed, and muttered to himself: "No, things are not so simple, Your Majesty is clearly paving the way for the implementation of the assessment law!" ”

Just now, Yan Song suddenly thought of the assessment methods mentioned by Yan Shifan, one of which is that an assessment will be conducted every six months or at the end of the year.

In this way, it can also explain why Jiajing asked the cabinet to come forward and evaluate various departments before the end of the year, and then issue year-end bonuses according to the evaluation results.

"The reason why Your Majesty chose this time is that in addition to diverting the attention of the civil and military officials, there is also a more important purpose, which is to let the civil and military officials in the court gradually get used to this evaluation system imperceptibly."

"When all civil and military officials have become accustomed to this evaluation system, the resistance to His Majesty's thorough promotion of it will be much smaller."

"This time it's a radish, and when the corresponding assessment method is officially implemented, what falls is a stick!"

Yan Song was shocked by the thought that suddenly popped into his mind, and he couldn't calm down for a long time.

"This time, it can not only cover up His Majesty's real purpose of wanting to inventory the acres of land and suppress land annexation, but also imperceptibly influence the civil and military officials to prepare for the next reform!"

"Hey, that's killing two birds with one stone!" (End of chapter)