Zongzheng Temple's status among the various ministries of the imperial court has always been somewhat special.
Its responsibilities are to manage the genealogy of the royal family, clan, and relatives, and protect the ancestral temples. If the royal family or relatives violate the law, Zongzheng Temple will be dealt with. Not only that, in order to maintain the dignity of the royal family, the results of Zongzheng Temple's handling are generally kept secret.
.
To a certain extent, this is the privilege of the royal family, and Zongzheng Temple has gradually become a refuge for the children of the royal family.
During the reign of the late Emperor, the power of Zongzheng Temple was further expanded.
If officials of the fourth rank or above in the imperial court violate the law, they can only be tried by Zongzheng Temple.
This gave Zongzheng Temple the dictatorial power, which the Xiao family used to suppress dissidents and protect their own party members. When Zhou Zhong was reforming the law, he once proposed to abolish Zongzheng Temple's dictatorial power, but encountered great resistance in the process.
In the end there was no success.
After the queen succeeded to the throne, many of the rules from the late emperor's period continued, and Zongzheng Temple was no exception.
Now, Li Mu wants to intervene in Zongzheng Temple, which is controlled by the original Xiao family, which is equivalent to weakening the influence of the Xiao family's old party in the court. Of course, Xiao Ziyu, who represents the interests of the Xiao family in Zhongshu Shengzhong, will not agree.
On the contrary, Zhou Xiong, who had a grudge against Li Mu, had common interests with him in this matter.
For the Zhou family, any action to attack the old party is what they expect.
Li Mu looked at Xiao Ziyu and said: "Don't mention the ancestral system to me. All pedantic and backward systems should be reformed and abolished. Zongzheng Temple, such an important department, should not be monopolized by one family. Zongzheng Temple is the Zongzheng Temple of the imperial court.
, is His Majesty’s Zongzheng Temple, not the Xiao family’s Zongzheng Temple!”
Liu Yi and other people in the bookstore were speechless.
When Li Mu spoke, he was still so straightforward, breaking the rules, hitting the nail on the head, and showing no mercy.
Xiao Ziyu frowned. If Zhou Xiong objected, he could still argue with him, but the interests of Zongzheng Temple had nothing to do with Li Mu. His words were completely from the standpoint of an outsider, for the sake of fairness and justice for the court.
No one can be justified in selfishness versus justice.
Li Mu continued: "If you insist on the ancestral system, then all the officials of today's Zongzheng Temple should be held by the Zhou family, not the Xiao family."
Zhou Xiong immediately said: "I agree with what Mr. Li said."
Xiao Ziyu didn't understand. The Xiao royal family didn't offend Li Mu, but the Zhou family had a life-or-death feud with him. Why did he have to speak for the Zhou family?
More importantly, what Li Mu said made him unable to refute.
If he insists on the ancestral system, then the Zhou family will definitely cling to the ancestral system, and by then, they may have nothing.
If he agrees to the restructuring, Zongzheng Temple will still be the current Zongzheng Temple. Officials who enter Zongzheng Temple through the imperial examination must start from the bottom and will not affect the overall situation.
After comparing the two, he quickly made a decision.
A smile appeared on his face and he said: "I am too narrow-minded. Master Li is right. Zongzheng Temple is the Zongzheng Temple of the imperial court. It should be treated equally with all the ministries and should not be independent from the imperial examination..."
Walking out of Zhongshu Province, a smile flashed across Li Mu's face.
Breaking the Xiao family's old party's monopoly on Zongzheng Temple was the first step in his and Zhang Chun's plan.
As for the second step, it is to find a way to break into Zongzheng Temple.
He looked back and walked out of the palace.
In Zhongshu Province, Xiao Ziyu stood in front of Cui Ming and said: "Li Mu proposed that the officials of Zongzheng Temple should be selected by the imperial court in the future. I agree."
Cui Ming frowned and asked, "What does Zongzheng Temple have to do with him? What on earth is this Li Mu doing?"
Xiao Ziyu said: "I think he has no other purpose. This person has no selfish motives in doing things. Maybe he is really dedicated to serving the country."
Cui Mingdao: "There is no need for outsiders to intervene in the Zongzheng Temple matter. This is a deterrent to officials of the fourth rank and above in the imperial court. How can it be handed over to others?"
Xiao Ziyu shook his head and said: "Things are not that simple. To be precise, the current royal family is the Zhou family. If we follow the rules, all Zongzheng Temple officials should be held by the Zhou family. I agree with what Li Mu said, Zongzheng Temple still belongs to the Xiao family for the time being.
If you don't agree, Zhou can immediately replace you. You can discuss it among yourself..."
Cui Ming thought for a moment and realized that the old party had no choice at all.
In other words, they can only choose whether to be devoured entirely in a short period of time or to be eaten away slowly.
"Just follow what he said. No matter what, the Zhou family cannot be allowed to interfere with Zongzheng Temple." Cui Ming thought for a while and said: "Keep an eye on Li Mu. If he has any other movements, let me know..."
…
Returning to the Shendu Yamen, Zhang Chun walked out of the Yamen and asked: "How is it?"
Li Mu nodded and said, "Everything is going according to plan."
Zhang Chun sighed: "I didn't expect that His Majesty would really let you participate in such a major national event. None of the decision-making officials, ministers, ministers of Zhongshu Province, etc., have profound backgrounds..."
Li Mudao: "This is just the first step. Next, we need to break into Zongzheng Temple. This candidate..."
Zhang Cundao: "Let me do it."
Li Mu was surprised. Could the jealousy of a middle-aged man really change a person's character?
Zhang Chun was timid in doing things and always ran away or hid whenever he could. This time he actually took the initiative to come forward, which really surprised Li Mu.
Zhang Cundao: "How to enter Zongzheng Temple, I have no idea yet."
Li Mu said: "Let me think of this method."
As long as Zongzheng Temple is no longer monopolized by the Xiao family, it will not be difficult to arrange for him to enter Zongzheng Temple through various methods. However, Zhang Chun's change of temperament makes it difficult for him to adapt.
Could it be that he also feels that he has offended too many people in God and is planning to give up on himself?
Or has he embraced a new thigh?
Zhang Chun walked straight back to the Yamen, poured two glasses of wine, and said, "To celebrate the smooth progress of the plan, let's have a drink."
He picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp. Li Mu also picked up the wine glass. After taking a sip, he felt the taste was a little strange and asked, "What kind of wine is this?"
"Medicinal wine." Zhang Chun smacked his lips and said, "This is my official collection. This wine is made from deer antlers, ginseng and other medicinal materials that have been used for more than three hundred years. There is also a tiger whip that transforms into a tiger demon. Do you want it?"
If you like it, I can give it to you..."
"puff……"
The sip of wine Li Mu just took in his mouth suddenly spurted out.
Zhang Chun said distressedly: "Don't waste it. This wine can not only strengthen the body, but also help to pass on the family line and have children..."
When Li Mu returned home, he scolded Zhang Chun in his heart.
This kind of medicinal wine is very powerful. It does not act on the mind, but directly acts on the body.
After drinking it, your body will react within a quarter of an hour, and even chanting the Qingxin Jue will be useless.
Zhang Chun has a wife and a family, and he can do whatever he wants to make up for it. There is only one fox in his house that he can only look at but not touch. How should he spend this long night?
Besides, he is a great practitioner of magical powers. His seven souls have been refined for a long time, and he can control the bird yin freely. There is no need for such a thing. As for passing on the family line and having a son, it is even more nonsense. Liu Hanyan is not here, can he have a child with a ghost?
Li Mu secretly scolded Zhang Chun for his boring joke. When he walked to the door, Xiaobai was already standing at the door to greet him.
With an extra tail, she exudes greater charm invisibly, and her figure and face are much more mature than when she had three tails.
Li Mu couldn't help but move his throat, swallowed his saliva, and felt that this action was a bit strange, so he said awkwardly: "What kind of food did you cook today? It smells so good..."
Xiaobai said in shock: "My benefactor came back early today, and I haven't started cooking yet..."
Li Mu strode into the courtyard and said: "Then let me do it. You go to the room to practice. When you are done, I will call you..."
Xiaobai trotted over and said, "Then I will help my benefactor."
As Xiao Bai's cultivation improved, Li Mu found that his concentration on her began to be insufficient, especially when she climbed into Li Mu's bed at night.
This night, Li Mu fell into a dream again.
Early in the morning, he got up early and came to Shendu Yamen.
Stepping into the courtyard of Shendu Yamen, Li Mu unexpectedly saw a figure he had not seen for a long time.
He strode up to Li Si and asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"
