"I thanked Duke Zhang on behalf of Ci'er. When Ci'er gets older, I and his wife will take Ci'er to Zhang's Mansion for the ceremony of apprenticeship."
Xiang Yan bowed deeply to Zhang Zhibai and said solemnly.
Zhang Zhibai stroked his beard and said with a smile: "Very good..."
Lu Yijian shouted: "I have already given you the meeting gift that should be given to you. Let Kou Ji come out to see the three of me now."
Xiang Yan apologized and left the main hall of Kou Mansion with Kou Tianci.
As soon as Xiang Yan left, the servants of the Kou Mansion were waiting outside the door again. There were only three people in the main hall, Lu Yijian, Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai.
Wang Zeng looked at Lu Yijian and said hesitantly: "Mr. Lu, that piece of ink you gave to Tianci'er just now seems familiar to me."
Lu Yijian snorted and said nothing.
Zhang Zhibai said thoughtfully: "When the prince said this, I also feel that the ink ingot Lu Gong gave to Tianci'er looks a bit familiar."
Wang Zeng tugged at his beard and hesitated for a moment, then said: "It looks similar to the one used by officials in Zishitang."
Speaking of which.
Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai looked at Lu Yijian with strange expressions.
Lu Yijian rolled his eyes and said, "Don't look at me like that, I'm not that mean. Ever since the officials set the rule not to pass things from the palace, I have never passed anything from the palace.
That piece of ink was a reward from the officials when I was promoted to Ping Zhangshi under Tong Zhongshu."
Wang Zeng asked curiously: "Then why do you carry it with you?"
Zhang Zhibai also looked at Lu Yijian curiously.
If Lu Yijian carried a piece of jade or a small gadget like a fan pendant, Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai would be able to understand it. However, if Lu Yijian carried an ingot, it would be difficult for them to understand.
Lu Yijian curled his lips and said: "Assault..."
Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai looked stunned.
Lu Yijian glanced at the two of them and said: "In recent days, I have been having a lot of quarrels with the emperor's relatives, but there has been no result. I just want to imitate Li Di and let loose in the court to see if I can
Awaken the officials."
"Li Di uses the Chaohut..."
"Li Di doesn't feel bad if he throws that piece of iron away, but mine is white marble..."
"But your ink ingot is also valuable..."
"I dropped an ink stick for state affairs. Shouldn't the government compensate me for it?"
"..."
Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai looked at Lu Yijian with disdain.
Lu Yijian, however, seemed not to notice the disdainful looks in their eyes, and had a calm expression on his face.
While the three of them were talking, Kou Ji hurried over from the backyard.
Entering the main hall, after saluting.
Kou Ji bowed deeply to Zhang Zhibai again, "Thank you so much, Mr. Zhang for your love!"
Zhang Zhibai accepted Kou Ji's gift calmly.
After Kou Ji saluted, he sat on the main seat.
As soon as they sat down, Lu Yijian couldn't wait to speak, "Boy, what do you and the officials want to do?"
Kou Ji spread his hands and said with a look of astonishment: "What can I do? Since I returned to Beijing from the northwest, I have been recuperating at home, and I have done nothing."
Wang Zeng had a dark face and stared, "Do you think I, the three of you, are blind?"
Kou Ji said with a confused look: "Why did the prince say this?"
Wang Zeng gritted his teeth and said: "Do you dare to say that the scene that happened in the court today was not planned in advance by you and the officials?"
"How is it possible..."
Kou Ji shook his head and muttered: "You three all know that I always treat the lieutenants of the army well, how can I possibly use the pay and rewards of the lieutenants of the army to do anything?"
Lu Yijian and the three of them rolled their eyes and glared at Kou Ji fiercely.
Kou Ji was obviously pretending to be confused.
Kou Ji refused to admit it, and the three of them had no evidence to prove that Kou Ji and Zhao Zhen planned the matter together, so there was no way to force Kou Ji to admit it.
Wang Zeng said with a sullen face: "We don't care if you and the officials deal with the emperor's relatives. But why don't you two discuss it with the three of us when you use Wu Xun? Wu Xun has taken root in our Song Dynasty for decades, and the tree has deep roots.
, it is so intertwined that if you are not careful, it will cause turmoil throughout the Song Dynasty.
Now the Song Dynasty has just conquered Xixia and defeated the Liao Kingdom. It is time to recuperate and recuperate.
If you two use martial arts at this time, there will inevitably be turmoil in the government and the public, and you two should understand the severity of this."
Kou Ji curled his lips and said: "This matter was promoted by the official family. From the beginning to the end, the official family was the one who made the decision. It has nothing to do with me. If you want to know the details, just go to the official family.
What's the use of looking for me?"
When Lu Yijian heard this, his eyes instantly widened and he shouted: "Kou Ji, how come you still give us three excuses now? You should know that once the warriors unite to cause chaos, our country, the Song Dynasty, will inevitably fall into turmoil.
middle."
Kou Ji smiled and said: "Lü Gong's words are a bit exaggerated. Let's not talk about whether the officials really want to use Wu Xun. Even if they really want to use Wu Xun, it is impossible for the Wu Xun to unite to cause chaos.
The world belongs to officials, not to military heroes."
Lu Yijian gritted his teeth and said, "But martial artists can mobilize troops and horses!"
Kou Ji laughed and said, "Mr. Lu is wrong. The power to mobilize soldiers and horses lies in the hands of the Privy Council and the officials. Without the officials' approval and my nod, who can mobilize the troops and horses?
Dare to mobilize troops and horses?"
Wang Zeng said angrily: "Kou Ji, do you and I and the other three have to pretend to be confused?"
Zhang Zhibai said in a deep voice: "Kou Ji, this matter is of great importance. You and the officials have little experience. It is inevitable that there will be omissions when doing things. In the end, it will really cause a big trouble and it may be difficult to end.
You and the officials are determined to deal with this cancer, and we are also determined to deal with Wu Xun.
Our goals are the same.
If you have any plans with the officials, you can tell us everything, and the three of us can also help with the details and check for any omissions."
Lu Yijian said at the side: "What's the use of talking so much? The three of us are prime ministers, but the officials hide things from us. They don't regard us as prime ministers at all. In this case, why should we be prime ministers? We might as well go back to our hometown to farm.
.
Anyway, the official won’t tell us anything, and he doesn’t need us to help him handle government affairs.”
After listening to what the three said, Kou Ji knew that the three of them were dissatisfied and worried.
What they were dissatisfied with was that Zhao Zhen actually hid something from them and didn't tell them.
They are the prime ministers, they should be the most trusted people by the officials, and they should also be the ones who help the officials handle all major matters.
Now that Zhao Zhen does big things without them, they are naturally dissatisfied.
If Zhao Zhen goes beyond them in doing any important things, then they are not prime ministers.
What is worrying is that after Zhao Zhen dealt with the emperor's relatives, he started to attack Wu Xun without any hesitation and without any warning, without any buffer time in between.
At present, Zhao Zhen has just dealt with the emperor's relatives, and the emperor's relatives' resistance has not yet begun.
Zhao Zhen found trouble with Wu Xun again.
It was like provoking another powerful enemy before completely annihilating one enemy.
Facing the enemy on both sides is very likely to lead to catastrophe.
Kou Ji knew in his heart that if he didn't say something useful, Lu Yijian and the others might not give up.
Kou Ji thought for a while and said in deep thought: "I don't know what the officials are thinking. But I do know that no matter whether it is the relatives of the emperor or the military heroes, even if they make trouble, they can't make any big waves."
Lu Yi, Jian Jian and the other three stared at Kou Ji with frowns.
Let’s leave aside the royal family and relatives for the time being.
The civil servants in the court have been fighting with Wu Xun for decades, but they have not completely subdued Wu Xun, let alone quarreling with Wu Xun. Why should Kou Ji say that even if Wu Xun makes trouble, they will not cause any big trouble.
But the three people did not speak, but stared at Kou Ji, waiting for the next sentence.
Kou Ji analyzed: "Let's talk about the royal relatives first. Among the royal relatives, several princes have died one after another, and most of them are sons and grandsons. They were also sent away or demoted due to many previous changes.
The dragon sons and grandsons who remain in Bianjing today are only seven or eight children aged between three and five years old.
According to the government decree that lasted for three generations, some of them have even lost their royal status.
So there is nothing to fear.
Among the royal relatives, the only ones who can truly represent the royal relatives and speak volumes are the two eldest princesses of Deng and Ji.
At present, the two eldest princesses have been imprisoned in the palace. They are not allowed to leave the palace without official family orders.
Even if the remaining relatives of the emperor want to cause trouble, they cannot make any big waves.
The two eldest princesses of Deng and Ji were the aunts of the official family, so the official family naturally had no way to take action.
But other people can be killed by officials if they want.
The Chai family is an excellent example.
If they really come out to cause trouble, I believe the officials will not mind sending them to Caishikou."
Lu Yijian and the other three nodded slowly when they heard this.
They knew that what Kou Ji said was true.
Since the Eight Kings rebelled, King Chu burned the palace, and King Wei returned to Beijing, most of the royal family's sons and grandsons have been implicated, deprived of their royal status one by one, and sent thousands of miles away.
The three or five-year-old princes currently staying in Bianjing City are too young to survive in a poor land thousands of miles away, so Zhao Zhen granted them a special pardon and let them live.
But that's just them, not their families.
Now they are all sent by Zhao Zhen to take care of them.
There's no way they could cause any trouble.
The only ones who can cause big trouble are the two eldest princesses.
If the two of them got into trouble, Zhao Zhen wouldn't be able to kill him.
Now the two eldest princesses are under house arrest.
Even if the other relatives of the emperor make trouble, they won't cause any big trouble.
Even if there was big trouble, Zhao Zhen would still dare to kill him.
But there are exceptions.
"The Cao family, the Shi family and other families are not only relatives of the emperor, but also military heroes. The power in their hands is not weak. If they make trouble..."
Wang Zeng said worriedly.
If Cao, Shi, Pan, Gao, Li and other families get into trouble, big troubles will really arise.
While the civil servants of the Manchu Dynasty oppressed the military ministers, they still had some leeway and did not break out. They were the ones who were afraid.
Kou Ji heard what Wang Zeng said and said with emotion: "The Cao family has a lot of profitable business, and the Cao family's daughter is now the queen. The Cao family is already rich and glorious enough.
The Cao family will definitely support the official family and will never get into trouble with the official family just for the sake of a little soldier's blood.
The Li family is similar.
Li Zhaoliang now has a lot of profitable businesses in his hands, and it is impossible to take risks for a little blood.
The Gao family experienced a crackdown from the officials, and now they are pointing at the officials to help them get back on their feet. How dare they go against the officials.
Therefore, if Wuxun is used, the real trouble lies with the Shi and Pan families."
Lu Yijian frowned and said, "Shi, the strength of the Pan family cannot be underestimated."
Kou Ji said faintly: "What can you do if you don't show off? If they have the courage to cause trouble, they must be prepared to have their homes confiscated and their clans exterminated."
Wang Zeng said in a deep voice: "What you say is easy. If these families lead troops to cause chaos, they will be in big trouble."
Kou Ji looked at Wang Zeng and said with a smile: "Lead the troops? Where to lead the troops? Since Cao Wei and Gao Chugong left the center one after another, all the 200,000 forbidden troops stationed outside Bianjing City have been returned to the official family.
controlled.
The 200,000 imperial troops and more than 100,000 Xiang troops that Cao Wei brought to Yanyun land are now under the control of Li Zhaoliang and Yang Wenguang.
The Imperial Army stationed in the northwest, as well as the Imperial Army and Xiang Army stationed in Xingqing Mansion and other places, are now in the hands of Wang Kai, Di Qing, Guo Yi, Liu Heng and others.
The remaining part of the Forbidden Army, such as the Zhenxi Army, is controlled by Zhu Neng and I.
The only soldiers and horses they could mobilize were some Xiang troops in southern Xinjiang and one or two forbidden troops in northern Xinjiang.
The Xiang army in southern Xinjiang is nothing to be afraid of.
As long as they dare to cause chaos, the 200,000 forbidden troops in Bianjing City can go over and annihilate them at any time.
As for the one or two forbidden troops in Northern Xinjiang, they were surrounded by hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses in Northern Xinjiang.
If they dared to show their heads, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses would immediately surround them.
Making trouble?
They think beautifully.
I'm afraid they won't even be able to get out of the camp."
Hearing this, Lu Yijian and the other three looked at each other and then all looked at Kou Ji.
Seeing this, Kou Ji was shocked and said, "What are you looking at me doing?"
Lu Yijian gritted his teeth and said: "You and the officials started planning as early as when we were in Xingqing Mansion, right? From the very beginning, the two of you were plotting against Wu Xun. The emperor's relatives were just chasing rabbits and taking them along.
Right?"
Wang Zeng added from the side: "Before you used the martial arts, you thought of the worst consequences after using the martial arts. So you moved your people to important positions early and controlled most of the soldiers and horses in the world. And you will also
The troops and horses that you cannot control for the time being have been isolated and surrounded.
In this way, you dare to attack Wu Xun, and you are confident that Wu Xun will cause chaos.
You guys are really good at calculating."
Zhang Zhibai let out a long sigh and said, "If you hadn't clarified everything today, I'm afraid the three of us would still be in the dark. I have to admit that the schemes you and the officials set up are interlocking and extremely subtle..."
Zhang Zhibai hadn't finished his words of admiration yet.
Lu Yijian gritted his teeth and cursed: "What a cunning piece of shit! He and the officials have completely wiped out the military heroes, but they have not counted their own people. If things come to a head and their own people turn against each other, they will still be the ones who suffer the consequences."
Zhang Zhibai was stunned for a moment, nodded slowly, looked at Kou Ji and said: "The officials asked me to check the whereabouts of all the military pay in previous years. It is obvious that they want to settle old accounts.
If my guess is correct, few people in your hands or those in the hands of the officials are clean.
The three families of Cao, Gao and Li are even more unclean.
What if they became frightened when I checked the whereabouts of all the military pay in previous years, and turned against each other under the influence of Shi, Pan and others?
Then I'm afraid your plan with the officials will come to nothing."
Kou Ji said innocently: "This matter is all a plan of the officials and has nothing to do with me."
Lu Yijian said disdainfully: "Now that we're talking about this, you're still trying to show off to the three of us?"
Kou Ji smiled dryly, "This matter is indeed a plan of the official family. I just checked and filled in the gaps. My role in it is not big."
Kou Ji looked at Zhang Zhibai and continued to smile: "But I can explain some of Mr. Zhang's doubts."
"Say it quickly!"
The three of them, Lu Yijian and others, all urged.
Kou Ji smiled and said: "The official family has given me the power to handle this matter."
Lu Yijian and the other three were stunned.
Before Kou Ji could speak again, Lu Yijian took the lead and said: "The official family has no intention of killing everyone, so I have given you the power to handle this matter. I will let you decide."
Kou Ji nodded slowly and said: "I and the people under the official family have naturally warned them in advance. As long as they give up drinking the soldiers' blood, the official family can forget about it.
If they can't survive without the blood of soldiers, I will also find a way to provide them with a way to make money.
As for other people, it depends on whether they know the taste or not.
If you are interested, you will naturally find me.
As long as they are willing to give up drinking the blood of soldiers, are willing to give up their influence on soldiers and horses, and completely return military power to the court.
Not only will the officials not kill them, they will also give them a way to make money.
If you don't know what you are interested in, there is only one way to die.
The Song Dynasty did not need people who could drink the blood of soldiers and drink it with confidence."
After listening to Kou Ji's words, Lu Yijian fell into deep thought.
The same is true for Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai.
After a long time.
Zhang Zhibai took a deep breath and said: "The officials clearly prepared a way for them to make money, but they didn't tell them. They wanted to see if they had the Song Dynasty in their hearts. If they had the Song Dynasty, they would naturally give up drinking the blood of soldiers.
If you only care about your own interests and ignore the Song Dynasty, you will naturally go against the officials."
Wang Zeng let out a long sigh and said, "The officials are testing people's hearts... but people's hearts cannot stand the temptation."
Lu Yijian said coldly: "I think the officials did the right thing. Those martial artists drank the soldiers' blood to the point of going crazy. If we don't rectify it, one day our Song Dynasty will die at their hands."
When the officials test, they test.
Isn't it right for officials to test their ministers?"
Wang Zeng glanced at Lu Yijian and nodded slowly, "That's right..."
Zhang Zhibai smiled and said: "Now that I know the official's overall plan, I can safely lead people to check where the military pay went in previous years."
Kou Ji interjected: "By the way, let's check how many vacancies there are in the army."
Zhang Zhibai was stunned for a moment and asked: "Secret investigation?"
Kou Ji nodded slowly, "If we investigate clearly, we can't find anything."
Zhang Zhibai nodded and said: "I will make a secret decision about this matter, and when the time comes, I will compile it into a memorial and submit it to the officials."
Lu Yijian said from the side: "I will lead the civil servants of the dynasty to cause more trouble for the military officials so that they will be unable to cause chaos and take care of this investigation."
Kou Ji bowed to the two of them and said, "Then I'll help you two."
Lu Yijian snorted coldly and said to Kou Ji: "Please give the officials a message. If there is such a big event in the future, if the officials don't discuss it with me and the three of them, they will simply kill me and prevent me from being in the court."
Fell into being a prime minister in name only."
Kou Ji laughed and said, "You should tell the officials yourself about this."
Lu Yijian glared at Kou Ji, "If I can tell the officials in person, do I still need you to pass on the message?"
Kou Ji smiled and said, "Then I will tell the officials exactly what you said."
Lu Yijian said calmly: "It's up to you... Anyway, when the officials ask, I won't admit it."
Kou Ji couldn't laugh or cry for a moment.
However, Lu Yijian and the other three had already stood up, waved their sleeves and left the Kou Mansion Courtyard.
Kou Ji sent the three people to the gate of Kou's mansion and returned to the courtyard.
After Lu Yijian and the other two left the Kou Mansion Courtyard, they didn't go far before they stopped.
The expressions on the faces of the three people were solemn as never before.
Lu Yijian said in a deep voice: "The official family is undergoing restructuring quietly..."
Wang Zeng nodded solemnly, "The imperial relatives have been eliminated, and the martial arts soldiers are close behind. After the imperial relatives and martial arts soldiers are completely cleared, it will be our turn."
Wang Zeng's "we" here refers to civil servants.
Zhao Zhen had already taken action against the emperor's relatives and military honors, so how could he leave the civil servants alone?
The three of them have been accompanying Zhao Zhen on government affairs for a long time, and they know Zhao Zhen's character.
Zhao Zhen no longer believed in the national policy of emphasizing culture and restraining military force set by his grandfather and uncle.
The fact that he awarded Zhu Neng, Wang Kai, Yang Wenguang and others dukes is a clear proof.
If Zhao Zhen believed in the national policy of emphasizing culture and restraining military force, it would be impossible to reward so many dukes.
Since he does not believe in the national policy of emphasizing civility and suppressing military affairs, how could he leave only civil servants after dealing with the emperor's relatives and military honors?
Zhang Zhibai said frankly: "I don't care about money, so no matter how the government cleans up, it will not be done on my head. My lifelong ambition is to work for the court and the people."
If the official's actions can make the court stronger and the people richer.
I will definitely support the government without hesitation."
Lu Yijian glanced at Zhang Zhibai, "Now it's not a matter of supporting the government, but whether the government trusts us. The government secretly reorganized the system without consulting us. Doesn't it mean they don't trust the three of us anymore?"
As soon as these words came out, both Wang Zeng and Zhang Zhibai looked unhappy.
As a central minister, it is definitely a very uncomfortable thing to not be trusted by the officials.
Wang Zeng pondered: "The officials should trust us, but this matter is very involved and may turn the world upside down, so the officials dare not tell us easily.
I guess the reason why the officials did not allow the three of us to participate in this matter is because they regarded the three of us as back-ups."
Lu Yijian was stunned and said hesitantly: "You are saying that the officials kept it secret from us so that after the restructuring failed, the three of me would be invited to come out and clean up the mess?"
Wang Zeng nodded slowly and said: "Once the government restructuring fails and the world is in turmoil, only the three of us can come forward to clean up the mess. If we are also involved, I am afraid no one will be able to clean up the mess.
.
At that time, the Song Dynasty will be in danger."