Zhang Yan stood in the courtyard, looking at a dead tree in the courtyard in trance.
In his eyes, he was like this dead tree, full of twilight and lifeless.
Thinking about it carefully, this dead tree seems to be better than him. After all, in another month, new buds will grow on this tree and it will be full of life. He himself will still spend decades in Zhongshu Province, and on his deathbed
At that time, he became a great scholar of the dynasty, respected by officials and loved by the people.
This is the Zhang family's path, but it is not the path he wants.
When he was young, he ranked second in the imperial examination in the same class. He originally entered the Hanlin Academy and practiced for two years before entering the Sixth Department and gradually promoted. Because of the Zhang family, he skipped the Hanlin Academy and directly entered the Zhongshu Province.
Within a short period of time, he took the position of Vice Minister of Zhongshu.
At that time, he was envied by countless people, and his smooth career was unparalleled among his peers.
But more than ten years later, he is still the Vice Minister of Zhongshu.
Today, there are several people who are not as good as him in the same class of the imperial examination. Some are already ministers, some serve as ministers in the province, and some are appointed as governors of Shangzhou. He is still sitting in the position of minister of Zhongshu.
.
The Zhang family made him successful, but also restricted him. He wanted to escape from the restrictions of the Zhang family, but was bound by countless shackles and could not move at all.
This time, the post of Minister of Rites was not a big surprise, and it would definitely not fall on him.
In the past ten years or so, there have been many opportunities like this, but he could only watch them slip away before his eyes.
Zhang Yan sighed, saw his daughter walking in from outside, and asked, "Prince Run is gone?"
The little girl nodded.
Zhang Yan looked at her and said: "If you want to go out to play, you can find other sisters. You are a big girl now. You can't always hang around King Run like you did when you were a child. There are differences between men and women. You must know how to avoid suspicion..."
Zhang Yan doesn't like Prince Run Zhao Yuan very much. Compared with other princes, he is not motivated at all and only knows how to play. Influenced by the Zhang family's family tradition, he still prefers those who are motivated and hardworking.
Not only that, as a man..., as a boy, he spends all day in makeup and powder, followed by a group of girls. Is this what a man should do?
The little girl raised her head and said seriously: "But he said he would marry me in the future."
After hearing this, Zhang Yan felt even more dissatisfied and said, "Children know what marriage is, you will understand it when you grow up."
Naturally, a girl from the Zhang family must marry from a scholarly family. Even if she marries a royal family, she must be an imperial concubine, not a princess.
The possibility of King Run succeeding to the throne and becoming emperor is the same as the possibility of him succeeding as Minister of Rites.
Almost zero.
But the little girl didn't take his words seriously and curled her lips and said: "He will marry me when he grows up. We hooked up with each other. He also said that daddy will be the minister."
Zhang Yan shook his head and did not take his daughter's words to heart.
There is no love without reason in this world, there is no hate without reason, and there is no such thing as the Book of Rites without reason.
He and Fang Hong, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, are neither relatives nor friends, and there are many people in the court who are suitable for the position of the Minister of Rites. Among other things, Chen Ye, the minister of Huangmen, was a Jinshi in the same year as Fang Hong, and
They are close friends, why should this position be given to me but not to him?
Just because King Run said he wanted to marry his daughter?
Zhang Yan sighed, never thinking about this matter again, and walked out of the house, preparing to go outside to relax.
As soon as he stepped out of the house, he saw a eunuch getting out of the car and said directly to the Zhang family's concierge: "Your Majesty has spoken, and Zhang Yan, the assistant minister of Xuan Zhongshu, has entered the palace."
Zhang Yan was stunned when he heard this.
After so many years as an official, this is the first time that he has been summoned by His Majesty. Moreover, the Lantern Festival has not yet passed and he is still in the period of recess. What will happen if His Majesty summons him at this time?
A bright light flashed in his mind, causing his body to tremble slightly, and he even felt a little dizzy.
…
In the royal study.
Emperor Chen looked at Zhang Yan and said: "The Ministry of Rites is the head of the six departments. I will hand it over to Zhang Aiqing today. I hope you will not disappoint me."
Zhang Yan, who had recovered from the shock and disbelief, immediately bowed and said: "I must work hard and live up to His Majesty's grace..."
He secretly glanced at Fang Hong, the Minister of Civil Affairs, who was standing aside, and his heart was full of doubts. Did Fang Hong really give him this opportunity?
After walking out of the imperial study room, Zhang Yan was still a little confused. It took him some effort to finally confirm that this good thing had indeed happened to him.
Fang Hong walked slowly to Zhang Yan's side, bowed his hands to him, and said with a smile: "Master Zhang, we will be colleagues from now on. In the next provincial examination, the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites will have to look after each other...
"
Zhang Yan nodded and said: "That's nature, that's nature."
In the officialdom, favors come and go. This time he became the Minister of Rites because he inherited Fang Hong's favor. This favor must be repaid sooner or later.
He looked at Fang Hong, cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Mr. Fang..."
Fang Hong smiled and said: "Mr. Zhang, you are very polite. I don't know how the bachelor is doing when he comes in. I plan to pay a visit to you in the near future..."
"My father is in good health." Zhang Yan said with a smile: "Master Fang can come, the Zhang family welcomes you..."
…
From the first to the fifteenth day of the Lunar New Year, these days of recess should have been peaceful. But this year, I don’t know what happened, but several major events happened one after another in the court.
King Kang was assassinated, and Tang Huai was deprived of the title of Minister of Rites. Within a few days, a new Minister of Rites came to the throne. No one expected that he would end up picking up this cheap one, who turned out to be the least noticeable Minister of Zhongshu.
Zhang Yan.
The Zhang family has always been aloof. They don't care about court affairs or party affiliation, and they act in an extremely low-key manner. There are many high-ranking officials in the party who don't even know that there is such a person in Zhongshu Province.
This time, without any warning, he took the position of Minister of Rites and appeared in front of everyone.
After learning that Zhang Yan had taken the position of Minister of Rites, Tang Ning felt a little sad.
When King Duan and King Kang were fighting for power, they relied on power and money to win over the factions. Zhao Yuan was smarter than them all, and he relied on girls.
The most speechless thing is that his move actually works.
The Zhang family is an evergreen tree in the officialdom, and its influence in the court is extraordinary. This time, it must inherit Fang Hong's love. The Zhang family and the Fang family must first form a good relationship, and Zhao Yuan has another invisible person in the court.
of assistance.
There is also his sister from the Wang family. The Prime Minister sits in the center. She is truly inferior to one person and superior to ten thousand people. She can play a decisive role at critical moments.
His sister from the Bai family is also indispensable. The Bai family is in charge of the East Gate Guard, plus Tang Ning's Zuo Xiaowei. The Ling family is Yaoyao's uncle's family. Such a good thing will naturally bring them with him in the future. And Xiao* is not stubborn.
If you get up, you will probably join in the fun.
In this way, Zhao Yuan already has important civil servants and military officers.
As for the six departments, it goes without saying that the official department, Fang Hong's first minister, plus Tang Ning, can completely make the decision, and can continue to increase his bargaining chips in the days to come.
There is no need to worry about the household department. With that old fox Fang Zhe here, there is nothing to worry about.
The Lu family in the Ministry of War can be handed over to Xiao Jue, and Tang Ning can also speak to Zhang Hao in the Ministry of Industry. The Ministry of Rites is Zhao Yuan's future father-in-law. If he doesn't help his own uncle, how can he help outsiders?
Among the six departments, Zhao Yuan already owns five, and the remaining one is the Punishment Department, which does not have much say. This is not a big problem.
These are all Zhao Yuan's assets. If Tang Ning wasn't a little obsessive and felt uncomfortable not getting the six parts together, they could have done nothing now and just waited for Zhao Yuan to finish his obscene development and pick peaches.
Speaking of the Ministry of Punishment, I wonder if Song Yi, the Minister of Punishment, has a daughter in his family, otherwise Zhao Yuan is working hard to get the six parts together...
Tang Ning came back from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and had just walked into the house when Qing'er ran over and said, "Uncle, there are two guests at home..."
Tangning asked, "What kind of guest?"
Qing'er touched her head and said: "It's about being the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment or mentioning punishment. I'll know if I go and take a look."
Tang Ning walked into the side hall, looked at the two brothers Song Yi and Song Qian who were sitting in the hall drinking tea, and said with a smile: "Why are you two here today..."
