Zhou Zhao had Zhou Zhao's understanding, and Zhu Houcong had Zhu Houcong's vision.

He dared to send Zhang Fujing south because he had known for a long time that he was a fierce man, and also because Liang Chu told him many issues about Guangdong and Guangxi before leaving, and stated that he would cooperate.

Southeast's killing of officials is certainly a chain reaction, but the impression he has formed in the minds of important officials in the imperial court in the past six months is also valuable.

If civil strife does occur, which side has a greater chance of winning?

Even if there are people on the wall in the court, the fear of Zhu Houcong will still have a heavy weight in his heart.

At the end of the day, it's just profit.

Only those who win have benefits, and those who lose only have money.

Zhou Zhao's advice was certainly sound, but it was just a routine emperor's operation.

The matter of the prince's wedding is just the right thing to use to lure the snake out of its hole.

Unexpectedly, this individual genius saw through it without saying anything, and did not dissuade him.

In this case, let the old man suffer less so that the pressure on the courtiers will not be so great.

Zhu Houcong listened to Zhou Zhao's suggestion and was not in a hurry, because he himself did not want to be in a hurry.

When trying out the new law in Guangdong, Zhu Houcong himself was indeed mentally prepared to observe it for five years.

Right now, it's just a new problem in the southeast.

Zhu Houcong gradually became more and more convinced that the killing of officials in the Southeast was indeed not the work of local officials. Zhang Zilin's secret report was sent back every day. The entire Southeast was actually more uneasy and fearful than a conspiracy to cause trouble.

sign.

Therefore, there is a high probability that someone wants to guide the local anxiety in the direction of an outbreak.

There must be chaos first, so that certain people outside Guangdong, Guangdong and Southeast China will have a chance.

The fire of the Sun Jingmen did not cause chaos in the central court, so it could only stir up chaos locally.

In other words... Zhu Houcong also thought about a possibility: maybe some people just wanted to cause chaos in the Ming Dynasty, because the Zhang brothers really did not have the ability and courage to achieve great things.

revenge?

After determining the direction, Zhu Houcong began to write secret orders to Zhang Zilin and Wang Zuo.

Since someone is playing a big game of chess, the strategy in the southeast needs to be adjusted. This game of chess will take a long time.

Now we will collect more information about the southeast under the pretext of investigating the case.

For example, who are the people who translated "Wild Notes" written by Zhu Zhishan and started to build momentum?

…

"Master Marquis, I have already checked the accounts with the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Accounts regarding Kangling's construction supervision."

In Shouning Hou's Mansion, Fang Muxian placed several account books on the desk in front of Zhang Heling and said respectfully: "I have already made clear arrangements with the Ministry of Household Affairs for those imperial houses, imperial stores, and official stores."

Zhang Heling looked at him with hesitation in his eyes.

In the days after his sister Empress Dowager Zhang drove Mao Cheng away because the emperor had no heirs and when the emperor first visited the court, the matter that Fang Muxian suggested cannot be mentioned at all now.

Several months passed, and the emperor never mentioned this matter again, but Zhang Heling was not sure whether Fang Muxian's arrangement was clean.

Judging from the situation in the past twenty years, Fang Muxian is very capable and smart.

Previously, he had helped Zhang Heling brothers continue to supervise the construction of the crucial Kangling Project. He had to deal with the ministers, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of Household Affairs, and he could not escape or escape.

Doesn't that mean it's self-inflicted?

Now……

"Old Fang, what are your plans next?" Zhang Heling stared at him.

"Master Marquis, please be at ease." Fang Muxian replied calmly, "Now as long as you obey your orders, there won't be any problems. If Master Marquis doesn't believe it, just give me a glass of wine. I'm getting older now, so I'll give you a glass of wine."

Serious illness is normal."

Zhang Heling didn't know what to do.

According to what he said that day, a fire in the Rijing clan will definitely make the emperor and his ministers jealous. If the emperor starts killing in anger, not only the courtiers but also the ministers will be in danger, and he will definitely treat the queen mother harshly. In this way, morally speaking,

, in the hearts of the people, the emperor will lose all initiative. From now on, he will either rely on the Queen Mother and be content with it, or something else will happen.

All we have to do is sacrifice the two eunuchs who entered the palace twenty years ago and have lived peacefully and peacefully for many years.

I didn't expect that the emperor would handle it like that.

Zhang Heling did not believe that the emperor did not arrange for someone to secretly investigate this matter, nor did he believe that Fang Muxian said that he would never leave any clues.

This is a secret that only belongs to him and Fang Muxian, not even his sister and brother know about it.

What to do now?

Zhang Heling wanted to kill him just like that, but he didn't know if he might have any backup plans.

Fang Muxian called himself "I'm here" and looked at Zhang Heling with a calm expression.

Although his posture was respectful, there was no fear in his eyes.

"Did you know that His Majesty has already issued a decree, and the Ministry of Rites and the Clan's Mansion are selecting young sons from the clan to be adopted into the clan of the late emperor, and to be granted the title of king and vassal?"

"Since His Majesty made a promise at that time, he had already planted the seeds for today." Fang Muxian was a little surprised, "It was not a delaying strategy? At the national policy meeting, the ministers did not dissuade it?"

Zhang Heling didn't understand: "What's the plan?"

"If the king is granted a vassal status, Empress Dowager Cishou and Empress Zhuang Su have titles. Will they live in the vassal palace or still stay in the palace?" Fang Muxian pointed out the key point, "If Empress Dowager Cishou, Empress Zhuang Su and the late emperor's heirs live in the vassal land, Beijing

Waike has a bloodline that is different from the other kings. If only the heir is to become a vassal, how can Empress Zhuang Su be willing to do so? How can the ministers not know about the hidden worries?"

Zhang Heling vaguely understood: "You mean... Your Majesty is testing this? To lure the snake out of its hole?"

Fang Muxian nodded: "Your Majesty wants to implement the new law, and the world is uneasy. There are bandits in the southeast, and officials are being killed. Your Majesty mentioned that he was the heir of the late emperor, and granted the title of king and vassal. He really wants to wait and see who in the world will interact with him, especially if he sacrifices his heir.

The prince's palace. Princes of the same generation or princes of the late emperor who still have heirs are all the descendants of the prosperous vassal."

Zhang Heling suddenly felt a chill in his heart: The emperor's tricks were too deep, and only people like Fang Muxian could see through them.

His tone was a little trembling: "The courtiers did not dissuade them at the national policy meeting, which means... they also agreed with the emperor to lure the snake out of its hole so as to suppress those with evil intentions?"

"Since your Majesty's reign, since Mao Cheng, and then Liang Chu, Wang Qiong, Chen Jin and other important ministers involved in matters such as Qian Ning and Jiang Bin, have any of them been convicted to death?" Fang Muxian sighed, "The same is true of Empress Sun Jingmen.

There has never been a fight. On the one hand, the ministers are convinced that Your Majesty is not a violent king, and on the other hand, they also know that this butcher's knife will only kill important ministers who cross the line. Knowing that this plan is related to Your Majesty's authority, who dares to cross the line?"

"Then Queen Mother, will I, my Lord, live in fear every day from now on, and become a bait for those who are disobedient?"

But Fang Muxian laughed: "At that time, I advised the Lord Marquis to advise the Queen Mother, and in an emergency, he must choose his youngest son to succeed and listen to the government behind the curtain. Now that things have come to this, I am becoming increasingly passive."

Zhang Heling suddenly felt that he could not be silenced so easily. After all, the situation in the future would be more dangerous and he would be needed even more.

"Then what should we do?" Zhang Heling asked eagerly, "I serve as the emperor's eyes and ears, but I will report all my dealings to His Majesty."

"Of course we have to retaliate. If the Marquis and the Queen Mother don't retaliate, won't the factory guards pay attention?" Fang Muxian nodded affirmatively, "From now on, we can't act as usual anymore. We need to be cautious and not get caught in the wrong. Marquis

, this is for your descendants!"

Zhang Heling's expression was tangled.

Fang Muxian looked at him calmly.

It is difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. Can he, who is used to living a domineering life, really be able to live a cautious life?

What about the children of the Zhang family? Can they all be restrained?

After all, mistakes will be made, and after being punished once or twice, he will eventually become unwilling and miss the past.

What's more, after the Rijing Sect's fire, the Zhang family couldn't look back.

He had to wait for Zhang Heling to figure out some things on his own and express his unsteady intentions before he could mobilize more financial and human resources from the Hou Mansion.

…

As Zhang Zuo, the eunuch in charge of the Qingning Palace, went south to the southeast, with the mission of pre-selecting ladies, he seemed to have suddenly eased the unruly atmosphere a lot.

Zhang Zilin's pace also slowed down, and after returning from Fujian, he focused on water transportation.

A doctor from the Ministry of Justice was left in each province to continue investigating the case on his behalf.

In Guangdong, it was Mai Fu who personally handled the pre-selection of ladies.

"Your Majesty knows that the southeast is very important." On the banks of the Qinhuai River, a well-informed person commented, "This matter is so strange that your Majesty was frightened and angry for a moment. He finally understood that he was instigated by thieves. There can be no chaos in the southeast! If every family is in danger, how about taxes?

?How is the water transportation? What about the cultural context of the Ming Dynasty?"

"It seems that the queen of this dynasty will be chosen from the southeast." Another person agreed deeply, "Aspiring families are unwilling to do so. It depends on which family in the southeast becomes a national relative in one fell swoop."

The girls in Qinhuaihe like to hear this, let alone the new talent show.

For women like them, jumping up on a branch to worship the world is something they have no chance of doing, but it does not prevent them from gossiping.

"Young Master, if you have the opportunity to enter the palace as your queen, why wouldn't you want to?"

The soft words of supplication naturally made some drunken scholars very happy: "If you are a relative of the state, how can you go to the court and become an official to show your ambition? There are many relatives of the state, how many can be passed down to the world? Only the scientific career is

The great road! Once you are a high official, you will rise to prominence in three generations!"
To be continued...