Chapter 7

In fact, after careful analysis by Zhao Junchen, he found that there were indeed many unfavorable factors in his current situation.

So many that they could even make Zhao Junchen break out in a cold sweat just thinking about them.

Although Zhao Junchen currently seemed to be in a favorable position, he had too many political enemies and a poor reputation. Even the future emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty, the current Crown Prince, was quite dissatisfied with him.

Among these issues, some could be easily resolved, some could be attempted to be resolved, and some were simply impossible to resolve.

...

The problem that could be easily resolved was the issue of having too many political enemies in the court.

Zhao Junchen, despite his youth and lack of talent or virtue, had risen rapidly to a high-ranking official of the third rank in a short time, thanks to the emperor's favor. How could this not make people envious and jealous?

In fact, there were many who were envious, and many who harbored hatred due to jealousy. The young and arrogant Zhao Junchen of the past had offended many people, thus accumulating even more enemies.

Moreover, the former Zhao Junchen believed that as long as he had the emperor's favor, it was enough. Therefore, he always looked down on those who tried to curry favor with him and had no close allies or loyal supporters.

Having too many enemies was never a good thing. They always watched you in the shadows, waiting for the moment you made a mistake, ready to either push you off a cliff or gleefully kick you when you were down, leaving you with no chance of recovery.

However, although this problem seemed troublesome, it was actually quite easy to solve.

Excluding the so-called "pure stream" faction, the majority of Zhao Junchen's political enemies were hostile to him simply out of envy and jealousy, because the former Zhao Junchen had enjoyed too many benefits—essentially, political enemies were created due to unequal distribution of benefits. As long as Zhao Junchen shared some of his benefits with them, the former enemies would immediately become his most loyal allies and supporters.

Therefore, Zhao Junchen was not worried about this.

...

The issue that could be attempted to be resolved was Zhao Junchen's poor reputation in both the court and the country.

Throughout history, there has always been a "pure stream" faction. They may not have power, but they possessed a significant influence over public opinion, which even the emperor found troublesome. They could guide public opinion and gain the trust of the people.

Throughout history, corrupt officials either ignored or had a "let it be" attitude towards public opinion and influence. Many powerful and corrupt officials were cursed to death or written out of history by the "pure stream" faction.

In the current situation, the reason Zhao Junchen had a terrible reputation in both the court and the country was largely due to the efforts of the "pure stream" faction.

This was a common tactic used by the "pure stream" faction throughout history—first, they would ruin the reputation of their political enemies among the people, making them infamous. Gradually, they would build up public resentment and their own fame and prestige. In the end, they would use public anger and their own influence to force the emperor to take action from the bottom up.

In essence, it was about using public opinion to command the emperor.

When faced with a wise and enlightened emperor or one who valued public opinion, this tactic was very effective. Although simple, it was often successful.

However, Zhao Junchen, while wary of these people, was not afraid. Public opinion could be guided, and influence could be contested. Even within the "pure stream" faction, there would always be some "smart" people willing to be used. Although Zhao Junchen was already a step behind in guiding public opinion and lacked the reputation of the "pure stream" faction, he still had a chance to turn the situation around.

As mentioned earlier, even a corrupt official, if they were good at hiding and guiding public opinion, and did some things to improve their image, could still be seen as a just and upright official in the eyes of the people—especially in a world where information was not freely available.

...

The problem that was fundamentally unsolvable was the Crown Prince's dissatisfaction with him.

This was the most fatal problem.

Emperor Deqing was already over fifty and had long established the Crown Prince, named Zhu Heyu. According to the "pure stream" faction, this Crown Prince was destined to become a wise and virtuous ruler—this gives an idea of what kind of person he was. He was not like Li Shimin or Emperor Kangxi, who were known for their benevolence and ability to recognize and use talent, but rather like Zhu Yuanzhang or Emperor Yongzheng, who were ruthless and intolerant of any wrongdoing.

What kind of people were Zhu Yuanzhang and Emperor Yongzheng? During their reigns, officials would prepare their own coffins before going to court, as they never knew if someone would impeach them or if they had done something that displeased the emperor—such a situation would lead them to the executioner's block.

Who would like such an emperor? Only the "pure stream" faction, who criticized others but did nothing practical!

The Crown Prince never saw Zhao Junchen's contributions to the Great Ming Dynasty's finances. He only saw Zhao Junchen as a corrupt official, and corrupt officials should be executed!

The rumors that Zhao Junchen was Emperor Deqing's illegitimate son and the emperor's favor towards him further deepened the Crown Prince Zhu Heyu's dissatisfaction with Zhao Junchen.

In the memories Zhao Junchen inherited, every appearance of the Crown Prince left him with no pleasant memories. The Crown Prince once listed Zhao Junchen's crimes in front of Emperor Deqing, saying, "Not executing Zhao Junchen would not bring peace to the world." Although Emperor Deqing suppressed this, it still made Zhao Junchen break out in a cold sweat.

If Emperor Deqing were to pass away and the Crown Prince ascended the throne, Zhao Junchen's fate would be predictable.

This was the greatest and most unsolvable crisis Zhao Junchen faced.

...

Thinking about this, Zhao Junchen couldn't help but frown.

"Did the former Zhao Junchen, who acted without restraint, never realize that his seemingly favorable position was actually fraught with danger?"

Faced with such a mess, Zhao Junchen felt an overwhelming headache.

After a long while, Zhao Junchen shook his head, no longer thinking about it, and sighed, "Well, let's just set three strategies for now—first, solidify my position by the side of Emperor Deqing so that he can't do without me; second, win over my political enemies and turn them into allies; third, compete with the 'pure stream' faction for influence and change the impression of me in both the court and the country—gradually improving my current unfavorable situation. As for the Crown Prince, who is intolerant of any wrongdoing, we'll take it one step at a time. After all, the Crown Prince is just the Crown Prince, and he may or may not become the emperor..."

At this moment, Zhao Junchen had fully taken on his role.

"However, after traveling through time, I never thought about revitalizing China or saving the people from suffering, nor did I think about becoming a good official who would do practical things for the people. I only thought about how to please the emperor, how to form alliances, and how to manipulate public opinion. These are not things a good person should do, but rather the typical path of a corrupt official and a villain... Before traveling through time, I would have looked down on such officials, but it seems that in times of crisis, my hypocritical nature is revealed. But, everything is just to ensure my own survival. When one's own life is at stake, who has the luxury to think about others..."

Yes, for his future, Zhao Junchen had considered all aspects, but he never thought about changing his identity and becoming a true upright official.

This was because, before traveling through time, Zhao Junchen worked in the government, and although he did not do well, he learned many things.

One of them was that "one's background determines one's camp," a description of factional struggles that was equally applicable here.

If you wanted to change your identity, stop being a corrupt official, and become an upright one, you could—however, the other corrupt officials who had colluded with you would see you as a traitor, fear that you would expose their secrets, and do everything in their power to deal with you. At the same time, no matter how much you proved that you had repented and turned over a new leaf, the upright officials and the "pure stream" faction would not trust you. Ancient people were often stubborn, and the upright officials and the "pure stream" faction were the most representative. In their eyes, a corrupt official was always a corrupt official and could never truly reform. They might even see your efforts to be an upright official as a conspiracy...

Therefore, if you rashly changed your identity, the result would be that you would be abandoned by everyone.

Moreover, the amount of silver Zhao Junchen had embezzled was truly enormous—2.3 million taels of silver. Even if he did not embezzle a single coin in the next ten years, his past actions were enough for the censors and the "pure stream" faction to impeach him countless times.

The main reason, however, was that based on the memory fragments he inherited, Zhao Junchen judged that although the Great Ming Dynasty still existed, its bureaucracy was still very corrupt. This meant that corrupt officials held more power than upright ones. These powerful corrupt officials were Zhao Junchen's ideal allies, as they had power and shared common goals, such as not wanting the Crown Prince, who was destined to be a wise ruler, to ascend the throne...

Therefore, Zhao Junchen, the corrupt official, would continue to be a corrupt official.

"If God can help you achieve your goals, then the devil is your enemy; if the devil can meet your needs, then you can also declare war on God... Although I am not so unscrupulous, if I can create a favorable situation for myself, then even if I have to wear the skin of a 'corrupt official' and use the power and influence of corrupt officials, so what? As long as my conscience is clear..."

Just as Zhao Junchen finally determined the path he would take, there was a sudden commotion outside his bedroom.