It has to be said that Zhu Yi's ability to praise is quite good. At least, as the object of praise, Zhu Qizhen felt very useful.
These words not only satisfied his vanity, but also gave him a step to continue. So Zhu Qizhen nodded slightly and said.
"It is a good thing to rectify the administration of officials, but you must know that everything has a price. The emperor treated the ministers of the court so harshly. Now, in addition to fear, there is also resentment in the court!"
At this point, Zhu Qizhen seemed to have remembered something, and his mood was slightly abnormal, but he quickly calmed down and continued.
"What these ministers in the court are best at is lying dormant and waiting. Now that the emperor has cut off so many connections in the court with his passion, regardless of material considerations, then these ministers who are left behind, even if they don't say anything openly,
, but in the end there must be some dissatisfaction in my heart. This kind of dissatisfaction cannot be seen at ordinary times, but in such a big matter, it will definitely be reflected."
As soon as these words came out, Zhu Yi frowned slightly, thought for a while, and then said.
"Your Majesty, I'll be honest, the emperor's ordering of the court will certainly make the ministers dissatisfied, but as you just said, now the ministers are first afraid of the emperor, and then resentful. If this is the case, then the ministers will also be dissatisfied.
How dare you disobey the holy will?"
Then, the smile on Zhu Qizhen's face became even stronger, as if he remembered something funny, and said.
"So, this is the second mistake the emperor made!"
Zhu Qizhen raised his hand and raised two fingers, his tone becoming more and more confident.
"Fujian nest case!"
"When Zhu Jian told me about this case at first, he suspected that the emperor was deliberately transferring him out of the capital. I was also doubtful. However, after all, colluding with Japanese pirates was a big deal, so in the end,
I still feel that this is just because the emperor needs an important minister to go out and rectify the officialdom in Fujian."
"It's just that now it seems that the emperor was already planning to open the sea at that time. The officialdom in Fujian was dirty and most people were involved with the Japanese pirates. So the emperor's idea was to rectify the officialdom in Fujian first and then discuss the matter of opening the sea.
.”
"Is there anything wrong with this?"
Zhu Yi had a vague understanding in her heart, but she still had a puzzled look on her face and asked.
Seeing this situation, Zhu Qizhen shook his head and said.
"Of course not, so I say that the emperor is still too young and does things with only passion. Zhu Yi, I ask you, if we open the sea, who will benefit the most?"
"this……"
Zhu Yi hesitated and said tentatively.
"Of course it's the people and businessmen along the coast. Once the sea ban is lifted, they can make profits."
"Yes, that's exactly it."
Zhu Qizhen nodded.
"Zhu Jian also told me some of the circumstances of this case before. Nowadays, most of these fake Japanese pirates along the coast are involved with the local gentry, and behind these gentry, there are many court officials, some of whom are in Beijing.
, some are in places, of course, Fujian is the most common. Once the sea is opened, fake Japanese can become serious businessmen, and officials involved with them will no longer be guilty of collaborating with the enemy. Therefore, for them, it is definitely
We support opening up the sea."
Hearing this, Zhu Yi suddenly took a breath of cold air, suddenly realized, and continued.
"But now, the Fujian nest case, coupled with the army's suppression of Japanese pirates, has arrested all the local gentry and officials involved with these fake Japanese and smugglers. There may still be some people in the government, but now
In this situation, they must not dare to take any further action, so it is the emperor himself who single-handedly ruined these people who could have supported Kaihai!"
Seeing that Zhu Yi finally understood, Zhu Qizhen's smile faded slightly and he said.
"That's it. The sea ban is an ancestral system. If you want to open the sea, there are many people in the court who are opposed to it. Now, the emperor himself has grabbed all the help to open the sea. Do you think he can still accomplish this?
?”
Zhu Yi said after thinking about it carefully.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty, it seems that your Majesty is indeed going to do useless work this time!"
"Not necessarily..."
After listening to Zhu Yi's words, Zhu Qizhen shook his head.
Seeing this situation, Zhu Yi on the side couldn't help but feel speechless. Why, I'm saying this behind your back, and I can't just follow you...
But this time, before he could ask, Zhu Qizhen continued.
"What you just said makes sense. After the previous major cases, the officials have long been afraid of the emperor. According to past experience, if the emperor makes up his mind to do such a big thing, he will definitely do it.
, Therefore, even if some ministers come forward to object, I am afraid there will not be too many, and most courtiers will probably not get into trouble on this matter."
Then what are you talking about before...
Zhu Yi's face was a little stagnant, and for a moment, he didn't know how to continue.
Such a look naturally fell into Zhu Qizhen's eyes. He smiled slightly and said.
"What I mean is that this matter can be passed at the court meeting, but... it can't be done. Do you understand?"
This sentence was a bit convoluted, but after all, Zhu Yi had been practicing in the court for so long, and he quickly understood its meaning.
It is not a concept that peace can be implemented through court discussions.
With the emperor's current prestige in the court, it is not difficult to force the court to pass the meeting. The previous incident at Huangzhuang is a clear example. It really made the emperor anxious. He directly issued an imperial edict and disobeyed the imperial edict.
Even if they are thrown into the imperial edict, they will still be able to 'pass' the court meeting.
But, then again, the matter of Huangzhuang is different from the opening of the sea this time. Huangzhuang has a special system, dominated by vassals and eunuchs. Neither of these two forces can be controlled by the ministers of the court.
Even if the local officials want to stop it, and there are holy orders at hand, these vassal kings and eunuchs have the power of the imperial power, and they don't care whether you are a civil servant or not.
Therefore, as long as a consensus is reached with the vassal king in advance, the opinions of the ministers in the court are actually irrelevant. If an imperial edict is issued, they will have to obey it!
However, the opening of the sea is different. This matter is the same as the original reorganization of the army. It involves all aspects, including how to organize the etiquette and status, how to appease the public opinion of the government and the public, whether to increase the number of officers and soldiers to guard, how to cooperate with the local yamen,
Each of these tasks requires full cooperation from the center to the local areas, from top to bottom.
Therefore, if the emperor just relies on his authority to force through the court meeting, it will be meaningless at all. When it comes to the implementation stage, there will definitely be countless detailed problems that need to be solved.
Civil servants are not good at anything else. They are very proficient in prevarication and prevarication. Moreover, they still do things in such a perfunctory way that you can't find fault with them.
When the imperial edict is issued to each government office, the Sixth Ministry will urge the local government offices to handle it. The local government offices will say that other government offices need to cooperate. They will push you back and forth, not only dragging you to death, but also disgusting you to death.
After thinking about this, Zhu Yi felt slightly worried and made up his mind to report these situations immediately after leaving the palace. However, his face did not show it at all. Instead, he showed a look of relief and said.
"Your Majesty's sage and wise judgment are beyond the reach of me. If this is the case, then does your Majesty want me to watch this matter from the other side? Or... add fuel to the flames?"
After thinking about the current situation, the natural next step was what to do. Zhu Yi did not think that the Supreme Emperor in front of him was just telling him so much just to show off.
Not surprisingly, after hearing these words, the Supreme Emperor on the throne felt more and more pleased with the Zhu Yi in front of him. He straightened up and spoke.
"Not only do we need to add fuel to the flames, but we also need to give strong support!"
Ah this...
To be honest, Zhu Yi was indeed a little confused after hearing this.
Is this really something that the Supreme Emperor, who is bent on opposing the Emperor, can say?
Although it is said that after the Supreme Emperor discovered Xu Youzhen's identity, he had already 'guessed' the emperor's intentions and maintained a tacit understanding to a certain extent.
However, Zhu Yi knew very well that in Zhu Qizhen's heart, he was still competing with the emperor. Regarding the things that the emperor wanted to implement, the most the emperor could do was to stand by and not make trouble. If he wanted to give strong support, what on earth was he planning?
?
After hesitating for a moment, Zhu Yi couldn't figure it out, so she had to speak honestly.
"I am stupid, please make it clear, Your Majesty."
Seeing this situation, Zhu Qizhen raised his eyebrows and said.
"I have told you before that if you want to protect yourself and keep the crown prince's position in the East Palace, then you and I must have a place in the court. However, it is impossible to gain an advantage just by pleasing the emperor.
.”
"Because in this way, the advantages we can gain are all within the emperor's control!"
The cautiousness of what he said was completely different from that of Zhu Qizhen, who was slightly joking just now. At the same time, Zhu Yi, who heard these words, immediately cheered up.
He didn't expect that the Supreme Emperor could actually see this level. Yes, if Zhu Yi's true position was discarded and he looked at it from the perspective of a bystander.
Nangong and the emperor have now reached a tacit balance. The emperor gives Nangong the opportunity to accumulate strength, provided that Nangong will not continue to cause trouble in the court.
However, this kind of laissez-faire must have limits. No matter how much the emperor values the court situation, he cannot put himself into it. Therefore, the power that Nangong can expand must be limited and must be within the emperor's tolerance.
But the problem is that in this way, for the Supreme Emperor, the final failure cannot be avoided. Originally, Zhu Yi felt that the reason why the current balance was achieved was that Zhu Qizhen underestimated the situation or underestimated the emperor.
With his ability, I feel that I can gain a little bit of life.
But now it seems that these speculations are all wrong. The Emperor has obviously had his own plans for a long time. Therefore, it is not that the Emperor underestimated the Emperor, but that he had underestimated the Emperor before...
With this thought in his mind, Zhu Yi's expression turned serious and he became solemn and asked.
"So Your Majesty, you want to..."
"Open the sea!"
Zhu Qizhen raised his head and looked across the palace, not knowing where he landed.
"If nothing else, at least in this matter, the emperor's vision is right. In fact, if there is no personal expedition, in a few years, I will restart the voyage to the West. At the beginning, Emperor Taizong sent the three treasure eunuchs seven times
The West has brought back countless rare treasures, which shows that this matter is not without profit."
"Now that the emperor wants to open the sea, then give him a helping hand. I have also heard about the matter of Huangdian. If the sea ban is really opened, the first thing to do is to open the sea to Huangdian. In addition, there will be merchants and others. This
That’s the opportunity!”
At this point, Zhu Qizhen's expression suddenly became a little excited. He leaned forward slightly, stared into Zhu Yi's eyes, and said.
"The emperor thinks he can control everything, but under the current situation, many ministers in the court are opposed, and the officials and gentry in the coastal areas who could have benefited from the opening of the sea have been wiped out. So, if you give your full support in the court
In this matter, your honor will naturally get a share of the benefits after the sea is opened."
"Once this road is opened, you will be a hero of various noble families. Moreover, once the financial resources come, there will be more things you can do."
"At that time, some things will no longer be under the control of the emperor!"
After saying these words, an uproar arose in Zhu Yi's heart, and he realized again that he had indeed underestimated the Supreme Emperor in front of him.
Yes, opening up the sea would bring benefits. Originally, these benefits would be swallowed up by the civil servants who were connected. After all, there were a large number of officials and gentry along the coast, and they were inextricably linked with the smuggling merchants.
Through these officials and gentry, they will be connected to the relationship network of the court. It is very difficult for outsiders to enter the Tao system.
Didn’t you see that when the First Prince’s Mansion first arrived in Zhangzhou, they were all beaten up? This is one of the manifestations of these people’s clinging together.
But now, this group of people has been wiped out by the army, and together with the entire officialdom in Fujian, most of them are empty. Under this situation, once the sea opens, there will inevitably be new forces to fill the local ranks.
vacancy.
If there is no external interference, then the people who will most likely benefit in the end will still be the new local gentry who will grow up later. However, now the Emperor has put forward a new idea.
During this vacuum period, we will use your powerful financial resources and power to seize the opportunity and bite the fattest piece of meat.
Of course, the premise for this is that when the imperial court has taken the lead, it is a matter of whether the nobles, civil servants, or gentry will divide the rest.
To achieve this goal, we must promote the opening of the sea, and it must really play a big role, so that we can have the confidence to divide the interests afterwards and not be fooled by the emperor.
If this thing is done, then on the one hand, the nobles will be grateful to Zhu Yi for opening up a source of wealth, and on the other hand, the Supreme Emperor and his party can take this opportunity to accumulate greater strength.
It’s not just words to say that it’s easy to get things done when you have money. If you want to develop your power in the court, whether it’s buying people’s hearts or helping people solve problems, if you have money to clear the way, you’ll be able to solve at least 90% of the problems.
More importantly, by using the honorable name to engage in trade, the emperor could not control how much wealth Nangong gained through opening the sea, and how many people he used this wealth to win over in secret.
This is the variable that the Emperor has been waiting for!
Even if Zhu Yi does not exist, maybe it is the variable that can change the final outcome!
The best thing about this move is that the emperor cannot refuse it, and cannot refuse it. Otherwise, if the nobles also try their best to prevent the opening of the sea, then this matter may really come to nothing.
So the fact is, this is a bet on whether the emperor has the confidence to control this variable!
This is a conspiracy, and for such a conspiracy, the final result is naturally...