Five hundred and ninetieth chapters change the rules
"Is there any gossip in the harem recently?"
After leaving Kunning Palace, Zhao Ji took a walk and asked Zhang Yan beside him. Under his vigorous promotion, the other party had become the head of the harem officials. Moreover, through his deliberate guidance, he continued to cultivate his ears and eyes.
"Yes." Zhang Yan saluted respectfully and then explained,
"A few days ago, Concubine Zheng saw the beautiful faces of the two daughters Wei and Qiao, so she privately asked them if they were willing to serve His Majesty. The two of them had no objections and chose to agree. However, for some reason, Concubine Liu was
After learning about it, we gradually started talking about it."
"Emperor's sister-in-law, how did you get involved with her?" Zhao Ji frowned. This woman is not a fuel-efficient lamp. Is it possible that she is up to something?
"I don't dare to criticize Empress Liu, but this matter did spread from the palace people around her." After a pause, Zhang Yan seemed to hesitate again and asked tentatively,
"There is one more thing. I wonder if I should report it to Your Majesty?"
"I promoted you to be the head of the internal officials, and I am constantly increasing the power in your hands. The purpose is to completely control the harem. You should be aware of this."
"You are so confused. You shouldn't have any scruples. You deserve death." Zhang Yan fell to his knees with a plop and replied tremblingly.
"If you know your mistakes and can correct them, you can do no good. This is your first time in charge of a high position, so it is understandable that you have been negligent. However, this will not happen next time. Let's get up first." Zhao Ji reprimanded the other party, but did not take any action.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Hearing these words, Zhang Yan was relieved and bowed again before slowly standing up.
"Tell me, what makes you so worried?"
"It's also about Empress Liu." This time, Zhang Yan replied without any hesitation,
"The younger one spread his eyes and ears in the palace and found out some things. Although Empress Liu was honored as Queen Yuanfu, she was extremely dissatisfied with Queen Yuanyou's similar revolt and often cursed her in the palace. In addition,
In addition, in recent times, a palace attendant beside him has been out of the palace many times on errands, and I sent someone to follow him and found out that he was secretly communicating with a stranger."
"It's so troublesome!" Zhao Ji's eyes flashed coldly and he asked,
"What is the identity of the stranger? Have you found out?"
"He is a servant of Academician Cai's residence in Hanlin Academy."
"oh!"
Hearing this, Zhao Ji couldn't help but be a little surprised. This Bachelor Cai was none other than the famous Cai Jing in later generations.
After he succeeded to the throne, in order to maintain the excessive stability of power, he did not make any major changes to the officials in the DPRK. Therefore, he did not pay much attention to this person. Unexpectedly, he couldn't hold it in anymore and jumped out on his own initiative.
"Do you know the content of the letter?"
"The official pardons me, but this matter involves a lot of things. I dare not alert the enemy? So I did not continue to investigate."
Zhao Ji pondered slightly, Zhang Yan's character was cautious, and he had the power to control the internal officials. Without his orders, he still did not dare to intervene rashly with the external court.
However, this is also good. Keep the inside and outside clear, so as not to have too much power and end up with unwanted thoughts.
"The Liu family still has people watching over them, and every move must be recorded. As for the officials from the outer court, I have my own considerations, so you don't have to worry about them."
"This slave obeys your order."
As he moved forward slowly, Zhao Ji was thinking about Cai Jing's matter. Why did the other party have contact with the Liu family? It was probably for power, and this inevitably involved the old and new party struggles.
After he succeeded to the throne, he respected Empress Dowager Xiang very much, and he revived Empress Yuanyou and Meng Shi. This would definitely send some kind of signal, and both the old and new parties would inevitably be ready to move.
However, although Mrs. Liu was respected by him as Queen Yuan Fu, it was just a sign. Cai Jing was so cunning that he could not fail to see the pros and cons.
Zhao Ji was suspicious and vaguely guessed that there might be other reasons why Cai Jing jumped out.
But at this moment, a palace official came in a hurry and reported:
"Your Majesty, there is a report from outside the palace. The four princes want to see you."
"Oh, you're back to Beijing so soon?" Zhao Ji was interrupted from his thoughts, but he was not angry at all. Instead, he smiled as if he had expected it,
"Let them come in, I will wait here."
"According to the order." The palace man did not dare to hesitate and immediately turned and left. At this time, Zhao Ji suddenly straightened his expression and looked at Zhang Yandao,
"I want to discuss important matters with all the royal brothers. You go and make arrangements. Don't let anyone disturb us later."
"This slave takes the order."
…
In the back garden, under the eaves somewhere.
Zhao Ji sat at the table, looking calmly at the four figures standing side by side in front of him. They were none other than his four royal brothers.
After succeeding to the throne, according to the results of the discussions between the prime ministers and the ruling officials, these four people were re-canonized. The Nine Emperor Brother Zhao Bai was promoted from the original King of Shen to the King of Chen, Zhao Yu was promoted from the King of Shen to the King of Wei, and Zhao Si was changed.
He was granted the title of King of Cai, and Zhao Sijin was granted the title of King of Ding.
Zhao Ji had no objection to this, or in other words, under the current situation, it would be useless even if he objected.
"They are all from our own family. Ninth Brother, Twelveth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Brother don't need to be polite, just sit down."
"Thank you for your grace." Hearing such a gentle tone, the four of them immediately felt relieved and bowed their thanks. No longer restrained, they all sat down around the table.
Zhao Ji was silent for a while, and then suddenly asked:
"Since I came to the throne, I have rarely communicated with my four brothers. The sun is shining today and it is a rare opportunity. Therefore, I would like to ask, what do you think of me, Zhao Song Tianxia?"
"This..." The four of them looked at each other, and before long, Chen Wang and Zhao Bai took the lead in replying,
"Since Taizu founded the country, several generations of emperors have worked hard to govern. In a hundred years, the Song Dynasty was the most prosperous and prosperous in the world."
"What the Ninth Brother said is true. Now that the Eleventh Brother has inherited the throne, and with the loyal and loyal help of the whole court, he will definitely be able to create greater glory and govern the Song Dynasty even better."
"The two brothers are right. Brother Eleven is born with outstanding talents and is a well-deserved candidate for the position."
Zhao Si, the youngest, couldn't help showing a hint of astonishment in his eyes when he heard the unstinting praise from his three brothers. However, he did not dare to hesitate and nodded in agreement.
"Haha." Zhao Ji smiled, but ignored the insincere words of several people and asked again,
"In that case, what do these brothers think, whose world belongs to them?"
"Of course..." This time, Zhao Si was the first to speak, but in the middle of his words, he suddenly saw his twelfth brother Zhao Si winking at him desperately, and he felt as if his throat was stuck and he couldn't continue.
"There are no outsiders here, everyone can speak freely." Zhao Ji glanced at Zhao Si, and suddenly reminded him with a half-smile,
"After all, they all have an indissoluble bond with the Purple Fairy."
"What, official, you..."
Hearing the title of Purple Fairy, the four princes suddenly couldn't sit still, and they all stood up suddenly, with expressions of alertness on their faces.
"What are you four brothers doing? Sit down quickly." Zhao Ji seemed not to notice the uncertain expressions on the four people's faces, and still smiled warmly. Seeing that the other party was completely silent, he couldn't help but pretend to be angry and said,
"Why, you can't resist the decree?"
"I dare not"
"Brother I don't dare."
"..."
The four of them sat down again, but they felt uneasy in their hearts.
The Purple Fairy had a mysterious origin and had great magical powers. Countless clan members were controlled by him, and eventually formed a strange alliance. Although most of the clan members did not have much real power, taken together, they formed an extremely powerful alliance. Huge power.
Resistance? Faced with a force that is too powerful to comprehend, no one is willing to resist, not to mention that the other party has promised to provide unimaginable benefits in the future. Therefore, everyone made the same choice invariably.
No one knows what Purple Fairy's plans are. However, everyone knows in their hearts that there will definitely be big moves in the future, most likely related to these thousands of miles of land.
However, now it seems that everything was wrong. The emperor actually knew about this matter as well, which meant that he was also a member of his own side and was a friend rather than an enemy.
"It's the same question just now." Zhao Ji asked again without explaining anything.
"Brothers, do you think whose world belongs to me, the Zhao family, or these countless scholar-bureaucrats?"
"Since the officials have asked this, I will no longer have any reservations." Chen Wang Zhaobai said with a serious look on his face.
“When Taizu established the dynasty, in view of the troubled times in the late Tang Dynasty, when military generals were domineering and separatist, he emphasized culture over military affairs and centralized power in the central government. In this way, the world was able to achieve peace and prosperity for a hundred years.
However, now that more than a hundred years have passed, some things have changed. The number of literati has become larger and larger, their ambitions have also expanded, and they continue to compete with the imperial power. Now it has become difficult to control.
In this way, it is difficult to say whether this world belongs to my Zhao family or to the scholar-bureaucrats."
"Brother Ninth..." After hearing Zhao Bao's blunt opinion, the expressions of the other people suddenly changed dramatically. However, they didn't know how to stop it.
"What are you afraid of? Since the officials are waiting in the same boat as me, what do you have to worry about?"
"this……"
These people are not fools, and they naturally understand what the Nine Emperors Brother means. Since the Purple Fairy also controls the official family, then her goal is definitely not the throne.
Then I thought about it again, and that's right. With that person's magical power, he had no interest in the power and wealth in this world. In the past, it was just a wild guess by myself and others.
"Are the officials going to take action against the tens of thousands of scholar-bureaucrats in the world?" Seeing the looks on his younger brothers' faces, Zhao Ji knew in his heart that he had figured it all out. He turned his head to look at Zhao Ji and asked again.
"Tell me what you think?" Zhao Ji smiled and did not deny it.
"This..." Zhao Bai paused, seemed to think about it for a while, and then said,
"To be honest with the officials, in order to compete for the throne over the years, I have also gathered a force under my command. I think the same is true for Xiao Twelve and Xiao Thirteen. They originally planned to disperse after the officials succeeded to the throne, but because of The Purple Fairy's request has been preserved. However, even so, facing the countless scholar-bureaucrats in the world, it is still just a mantis."
Zhao Ji looked at this Nine Emperor Brother and had to say that he was indeed very knowledgeable and had a very clear understanding of the situation in the world. He did not interrupt and waited for the other party to continue.
"Of course, this is just what I thought before. Although we, the descendants of the clan, are severely restricted, we are not comparable to ordinary people. At the very least, all classes of scholars, farmers, industry and commerce can participate. Now, all these forces are combined together to
A powerful alliance led by the government will definitely have the ability to change the world."
"Brother Ninth forgot, there is still an army." At this time, Zhao Si reminded him.
"Yes, this is also our biggest weakness, but it needs to be considered by the officials."
Zhao Ji nodded and looked at Zhao Ji with burning eyes. Although this matter was a bit difficult, if it was really successful, it would definitely be a major event that would go down in history. When he thought of this, his heart felt like it was on fire.
"You have to eat in one bite and do things step by step. Don't rush, otherwise you may be self-defeating." Zhao Ji gave the other party an approving look, but there was a reminder in his words.
"I will definitely go all out and live up to the official trust."
After getting the affirmative answer, not only Zhao Bai, but also Prince Ji were also ecstatic. They are all young people in their twenties, and they are still young and full of energy.
Of course, these people are not fools. If it weren't for the mysterious Purple Fairy behind them, they really wouldn't dare to have such extravagant hopes. Everything is just following the trend.
…
The news that the four kings suddenly returned to Beijing and were summoned by officials in the palace could not be concealed, but no one knew what they were talking about.
The officials in the court were even more confused. Among the four princes, except for the youngest Zhao Si, the other three had all competed with the officials for the throne.
If nothing else goes wrong, neglect is inevitable, and you may even be scorned. However, the reality is completely different from expectations. Instead of being ignored, it now seems that the officials are very close to these brothers.
In fact, all officials have the same view on today's officialdom, that is, the divine will is unpredictable. After taking the throne, neither the new party nor the old party has ever made a clear statement about Prime Minister Zhang Dun.
The new party leader who once strongly opposed his ascension has also not been criticized in any way and is still very important.
This was a bit confusing. Everyone couldn't figure out the official situation, so they had to muddle along in a daze and cautiously. They didn't dare to say anything except about their own errands.
Of course, this matter only caused a flurry of discussion, which quickly dissipated as several princes left the capital.
At the moment, the triennial imperial examination has attracted countless people's attention. Under the leadership of the Ministry of Rites, the provincial examination started on time as always.
"I wish you good luck in the exam..."
"I wish my brother to be named on the gold list..."
"The examination room is damp and cold, my son should pay attention to his health..."
"..."
Outside the Gongyuan, there was a sea of people. Countless relatives and friends came to see them off, saying auspicious blessings. Countless students entered the examination room with excitement and worked hard for their future destiny.
However, what no one knows is that in the palace at this time, Zhao Ji is sitting in front of the desk, looking at a list on the table carefully, with a half-smiling expression. On the list, there are dozens of names written densely on it.
Name.
After a pause, he seemed to have thought of something, picked up the writing brush on the side, and wrote continuously in the blank space at the bottom of the list, adding a few more names, and then put it down with satisfaction.