Prime Minister Wei sat in the courtyard, quietly looking at his foolish son, his eyes full of weariness.
He only had one son, but he was directly abolished by Zuo Chongming, which was equivalent to cutting off his spiritual support.
Compared with his mental state a few years ago, Wei Tao now has gray beard and hair, deep wrinkles, and a strong sense of twilight in every move he makes.
However, Wei Tao knew that he couldn't cross it and had to grit his teeth and hold on.
Because if he completely collapses, the official camp headed by him will instantly fall apart and be divided up by other camps.
By that time, there would be no hope for him to avenge his son.
At this time.
The housekeeper came over and said softly: "Sir, Shen Xingjian, the academic officer of Taiyuan College, is here to visit and is already waiting in the hall."
"Um."
Wei Tao came back to his senses, took a deep look at his son, got up and hurried to the side hall.
As soon as he crossed the threshold, Shen Xingjian hurriedly greeted him: "Student Shen Xingjian, pay your respects to the teacher."
Wei Tao smiled and waved his hand for him to sit down: "There is no need to differentiate between you and me, teacher and student."
"Thank you, teacher."
After Shen Xingjian sat down, he took out a booklet from his sleeve: "Teacher, the students sent to Jinyun Province for training have received urgent news recently."
Wei Tao looked through it and said, "Tell me more."
"is teacher."
Shen Xingjian took a deep breath: "After the champion was retaliated by the barbarians, he enlisted the forces in the far west to start a full-scale war with him. The two sides were fighting in full swing."
"Recently, a secret realm has appeared in the southern wilderness. It is said to be the location of the ancient sword pavilion. Zuo Chongming led his people there and has now penetrated deep into the secret realm."
Wei Tao narrowed his eyes and nodded: "What else?"
Shen Xingjian continued: "Due to the full-scale war between the two sides, the barbarian masters evacuated Congyun Mansion, and the imperial reinforcements marched straight in, and now they have regained the lost ground."
Wei Tao raised the corners of his lips and said softly: "Conquer Cong Yun Mansion and wash away the shame of the imperial court. The champion has made great contributions to this matter and deserves a heavy reward."
Shen Xingjian smiled bitterly: "Normally, this should be the case, but now the government is causing trouble over this matter..."
"Oh? Why?"
Wei Tao frowned and asked slightly puzzled.
The pain of losing a son in his old age was a big blow to him. In addition, the disputes between officials in the court and the central government became more intense because of the appointment of the crown prince.
As a man with rich experience in officialdom, he simply used the excuse of illness to temporarily stay away from political affairs and prepare to take action when the situation becomes clearer.
But everything has two sides. Although he stayed away from right and wrong by doing this, his understanding of court affairs was not as timely as before.
Wei Tao frowned and said in a deep voice: "The Holy Lord's body is obviously getting worse day by day. He is quite afraid of the champion."
"Everyone is well aware of the relationship between the champion and the officials in the court. This matter should be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Why is there a dispute?"
Shen Xingjian replied: "Because some people think that the champion started the war because of personal hatred, and it was just a coincidence that he recovered the lost territory, which has nothing to do with him."
"Hey, this is really... the most ridiculous thing in the world."
"Who says it isn't?"
"etc."
Wei Tao seemed to have thought of something, and the sneer on his face suddenly froze. He raised his head and asked, "Who has proposed and supported this statement?"
Shen Xingjian didn't know what he meant, so he frowned and replied: "Some people from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel, as well as the Zhenfu Division, and the generals of the border army..."
"Sure enough, sure enough..."
After hearing this, Wei Tao's face turned pale: "Have you noticed that Zuo Chongming has no grudges against these people?"
Shen Xingjian shook his head and said: "That's not right. When Zuo Chongming challenged Tianjiao, the children of these people also went to fight."
"do you died?"
"Ah this..."
"Compared to those who died, those who were crazy...their heirs were only defeated in the battle. What kind of hatred is that? What's more, victory or defeat is a common thing for military strategists."
"what do you mean……"
Wei Tao said firmly: "It's either a coincidence or Zuo Chongming did it deliberately."
Shen Xingjian's face trembled, and he said in disbelief: "This, how could this be done on purpose?"
"Why isn't it possible?"
Wei Tao closed his eyes: "When he used the Tathagata Palm in the arena, he knew that the Tathagata Temple in the far west would definitely react."
"As long as this is confirmed and he has a way to convince the other party, he will naturally be able to take advantage of the situation and start a war with the barbarians."
"There are Buddhist temples everywhere in the far west, and there are many masters. The barbarians in the southern wilderness must be prepared to be prepared. It is certain that the masters will be withdrawn from Congyun Mansion."
"In this way, the imperial reinforcements guarding the border will be able to find opportunities to take advantage of the opportunity and take back Congyun Mansion..."
Shen Xingjian's pupils shrank, as if he was extremely horrified: "This, this..."
Wei Tao sighed: "For Zuo Chongming, it is not difficult to achieve meritorious service. He is afraid that his achievements will shock his master, but others are different."
"If you think about it carefully, the credit this time is so great. If Zuo Chongming takes the first credit, what other credit does the imperial reinforcements have?"
"What's more, they don't have any big hatred against Zuo Chongming, and now that they have gained so much credit for nothing, will they be willing to let it go?"
"So, they must stand up and oppose it, because only by excluding Zuo Chongming can the credit fall to them."
Having said this, Wei Tao fell into silence.
After a long time, he sighed sadly: "This is a... business led by Zuo Chongming."
That’s right, it’s business!
Wei Tao thought about it for a long time and felt that this word was the most appropriate.
The most terrifying thing about Zuo Chongming is that he has a thorough understanding of human nature, grasps the pros and cons, and dares to make choices.
This person understands human nature well and knows who needs what most. In order to achieve his goal, he dares to throw out huge benefits as bait.
Many people think that Zuo Chongming is a man with deep scheming and endless schemes.
But if we gain insight into Zuo Chongming's actions, it is not difficult to find that the methods he uses are not clever and he has always taken advantage of the weaknesses of human nature.
But the scary thing is that he is willing to spend money and give up profits.
To put it simply, he gave too much.
"Did you know..."
Wei Tao said in a low voice: "The Holy One has two choices. Either wait until the war is won and the ministers advise him to give a reward, and then he can ascend openly or secretly."
"Either when the war fails, the Holy Spirit can use the pretext of provoking war and causing suffering to the people to unleash his thunderous wrath on Zuo Chongming."
"But now that the war has not ended, Cong Yun Mansion has been recovered, and the credit is not his. This is equivalent to setting up the Holy Shang."
"Teacher, why is this? Your Majesty can wait until the war is over before taking action."
"It's too late, it's already too late."
Wei Tao smiled bitterly: "The matter of recovering Congyun Mansion may seem insignificant, but it is a cake that cannot be ignored, but now it is cut first."
"Next, if the war is victorious, and the monk from the far west moves into the wilderness of the southern border, it has nothing to do with the imperial court, so the Holy One will naturally have no excuse to reward him."
"If the war is defeated, Zuo Chongming will only provide backup. The forces in the far west will suffer the most losses, and the Holy One will have no excuse to punish him..."
Shen Xingjian was dumbfounded and couldn't believe it: "Is this so?"
Wei Tao sighed and said: "What's more, the matter of establishing a crown prince is getting more and more intense, and the Holy Emperor is bound to be unable to spare too much energy."
"In addition, Zuo Chongming never expressed his disapproval, nor did he do anything wrong. In the end, he had to ignore it and let it go."
Shen Xingjian opened his mouth and said harshly: "This kind of person is too scary."
Wei Tao nodded lightly and sighed: "Based on Zuo Chongming's current performance, none of the many princes vying for the throne... can be his opponent."
"He is too young and is on the border. As long as he does not commit heinous crimes, he will be able to rise steadily. Who can control him then?"
"But teacher..."
Shen Xingjian frowned: "If you want to gain a foothold in this world, you must not only look at your brains, but also your strength. The Holy One shouldn't be so afraid, right?"
"Strength? Haha, strength?"
Wei Tao laughed out loud: "He has reached the Guiyuan realm in just a few years, and has even mastered his unique skills quite profoundly. With such understanding and talent... you actually think that strength is his shortcoming?"
Shen Xingjian was a little desperate: "...According to what you said, no one can control it?"
"Not really."
Wei Tao shook his head and said with a sneer: "Don't forget, although he has a great future, his current strength is limited."
"If he really forces the Holy One to the point where he is helpless, or if the Holy One is on his deathbed, with the Emperor Wu's nature, he will not hesitate to lower the butcher's knife..."
He had to admit that as a minister, Zuo Chongming was the only one in history who could push the emperor to such an extent.
Wei Tao asked casually: "I read in the booklet that the remnants of the Liansheng Sect have appeared again?"
Shen Xingjian pondered and replied: "Well, it seems that a new leader has been elected, and the new leader is somewhat capable, and he can actually make Zuo Chongming suffer."
"This is a good move."
Wei Tao gave the order after careful consideration: "Send someone to contact him secretly and provide appropriate help so that the Liansheng Sect can delay Zuo Chongming's growth."
"is teacher."
Shen Xingjian nodded and then said: "One more thing. I heard that Zuo Chongming has forced the forces in the Xiyun Mansion into desperation. Should we..."
Wei Tao nodded and said: "Give the Liansheng Sect a hint and let them do it. After all, we represent the imperial court and our identity must not be exposed."
"Students understand." Shen Xingjian nodded in agreement.
"in addition……"
Wei Tao narrowed his eyes and whispered: "If you want to spread the news to those princes, if you want me to show my support, you have to make Zuo Chongming uncomfortable."
"Kill someone with a borrowed knife? The teacher is smart."
Shen Xingjian's eyes flashed and he couldn't help but praise: "Even if Zuo Chongming guesses the reason, he will never dare to take revenge on the prince. He will only be dumb and eat coptis."
"If he dares to take action, it will be equivalent to handing the handle to us. It will be easy to deal with Zuo Chongming."
A cold look appeared on Wei Tao's face, and he said in a hateful voice: "If he doesn't make a mistake, if we press on him step by step, he will always be forced to make a mistake."
This is the only way he can think of currently to deal with Zuo Chongming.
Due to his status, Emperor Wu could not attack Zuo Chongming directly. As a minister, Wei Tao did not mind helping him.
Zuo Chongming could endure it for a while, but could he endure it for the rest of his life?