Chapter 78

If it were the original Zhao Junchen, with his domineering nature and short-sightedness, only knowing how to curry favor with Emperor Deqing, Zhou Shangjing would naturally not take him seriously and would have many ways to deal with him.

However, no one could have predicted that after his trip to Luanan Prefecture, Zhao Junchen not only changed his personality but also developed a deep and cunning strategy. Although Wen Guanliang was considered a mediocre talent in Zhou Shangjing's eyes, his ability to resolve the issue with Wen Guanliang so cleanly and decisively, even if it was due to various factors, was enough to make Zhou Shangjing view Zhao Junchen in a new light.

Now, Emperor Deqing is sowing discord between Zhou Shangjing and Zhao Junchen, and both Zhou Shangjing and Zhao Junchen understand his intentions. However, the emperor's methods, justified by righteousness and propriety, are both covert and overt. As a minister, it is difficult to effectively resist, and at most, one can only pay lip service while acting otherwise.

Liu Chang'an is still on his way to his new post, and Ma Sen is still handling the handover at the Ministry of Personnel. Therefore, the officials of the Zhou Shangjing and Zhao Junchen factions can still coexist peacefully for now.

But once Liu Chang'an becomes the Deputy Minister of Personnel and Ma Sen becomes the Deputy Minister of Revenue, even if Zhao Junchen and Zhou Shangjing can maintain their composure and restraint, the officials under their command will inevitably face open and covert conflicts.

In the political arena, one's actions are often beyond one's control. If you cannot ensure the interests of your subordinates, they will abandon you. In the face of conflicting interests, even if they know that Emperor Deqing is intentionally causing this, Zhou Shangjing and Zhao Junchen must still confront each other to avoid a fate similar to Wen Guanliang's.

Zhou Shangjing is not afraid of such conflicts. After decades in the political arena, he is already accustomed to them. However, some events in Jiangnan and Emperor Deqing's upcoming southern tour have disrupted his plans, putting him at a disadvantage.

Therefore, Zhou Shangjing must prepare early, and in his eyes, Fang Ru is a useful pawn.

If this pawn is used well, during Emperor Deqing's southern tour, Zhou Shangjing might even force Zhao Junchen into a deal.

This deal is what Zhou Shangjing is most concerned about now.

"Wokou..."

After Xue Gui left, in the empty main hall, Zhou Shangjing muttered to himself. Despite his deep scheming, his tone now carried a hint of deep-seated hatred.

...

While Zhou Shangjing was plotting against Zhao Junchen, not far from Xueshi Alley, there was the residence of the Grand Tutor Xiao Wenruan.

As the Grand Tutor, Xiao Wenruan has always been responsible for the specific education of the Crown Prince Zhu Heyu.

Xiao Wenruan has always had his own views on how to educate Zhu Heyu.

In Xiao Wenruan's opinion, Emperor Deqing is not a good emperor. His governance is limited, yet he is ambitious and obsessed with imperial strategy. He often tolerates corrupt officials for the sake of so-called stability, leading to the corruption of the Ming Dynasty's bureaucracy and the suffering of the people. In the long run, this will inevitably lead to great turmoil.

Therefore, under Xiao Wenruan's guidance, Crown Prince Zhu Heyu is completely different from Emperor Deqing. He is capable, upright, close to virtuous officials, and distant from sycophants. He understands human ethics and hates evil. In Xiao Wenruan's eyes, such a Zhu Heyu is the ideal good emperor.

However, the events in the court recently have made Xiao Wenruan doubt whether his decisions were correct!

Xiao Wenruan is already old and has not attended the early court sessions for a long time, but he is well-informed about what happens in the court.

The ideal emperor Zhu Heyu, in his eyes, has recently failed to even deal with the newly influential corrupt official Zhao Junchen. How can such a Crown Prince become a good emperor in the future? Shocked, Xiao Wenruan began to re-evaluate his previous views and actions.

"Could it be that I was wrong?"

Thinking this, Xiao Wenruan sighed softly.

Hearing Xiao Wenruan's sigh, Lu Chunxiao was taken aback and asked, "Teacher, why do you sigh? Is there something troubling you?"

Lu Chunxiao is not only the Deputy Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate but also Xiao Wenruan's student. He was reporting the current situation of the Censorate to Xiao Wenruan.

After coughing a few times, Xiao Wenruan raised his head and said, "Nothing, continue."

"Yes," Lu Chunxiao respectfully replied and continued, "Since Li Chengru became the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, I have been working with him to try to reform the Censorate. However, despite Li Chengru and I being the heads of the Censorate, the censors have the right to impeach and often pay lip service while acting otherwise. Despite our best efforts, progress has been slow."

At this point, Lu Chunxiao's face showed signs of fatigue, clearly indicating that the recent political struggles have left him both physically and mentally exhausted.

It has been over ten days since Zhao Junchen was appointed as the Minister of Revenue. Unlike the slow handover between Zhao Junchen and Zhou Shangjing, Li Chengru took up his post at the Censorate the next day and began working with Lu Chunxiao to reform the Censorate.

Unfortunately, after more than ten days, not only has there been no progress, but the situation in the Censorate has become even more chaotic.

Seeing the fatigue and guilt on Lu Chunxiao's face, Xiao Wenruan sighed and said in his usual weak voice, "Don't be in a hurry. This is normal. The Censorate is the mouthpiece of various factions in the political arena, with the most complex and intertwined forces. The important ministers in the court are all watching. It is difficult to straighten things out in a short time, and it is hard on you and Li Chengru."

Lu Chunxiao quickly said, "It is my fault for troubling you, teacher."

Xiao Wenruan nodded and continued, "I am old and in poor health. You often accompany the Crown Prince, so you must remind him more. Before we fully control the Censorate, he must not conflict with the other officials in the court. The emperor's appointment of Li Chengru as the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate shows both his intention to protect the Crown Prince and to test his abilities. If the Crown Prince can fully control the Censorate, having the court's mouthpiece in hand will put him in an invincible position. Therefore, reforming the Censorate is the top priority. At this time, do not be distracted or provoke others unnecessarily."

After Lu Chunxiao respectfully agreed, Xiao Wenruan saw that his worried expression had not diminished and sighed, "Don't worry. The Left and Right Censors are all our people, and the Censorate is a gathering place for the court's clean officials. Although some corrupt officials and villains have been planted, we still have the advantage. Even if they have their own backers, as long as we are patient, the Censorate will not be lost."

As he spoke, Xiao Wenruan coughed a few times, and his demeanor became even more listless. He was too old, even older than Zhou Shangjing, and just speaking for a while had left him exhausted.

Seeing Xiao Wenruan's condition, Lu Chunxiao showed concern and said, "Teacher, don't worry. I and Li Chengru will definitely get things done."

As he spoke, not wanting to delay Xiao Wenruan's rest, Lu Chunxiao was about to get up and take his leave.

However, just as Lu Chunxiao was about to turn and leave, Xiao Wenruan suddenly said, "Send someone to Hunan to ask if the old man He Ming is still in good health. My health is deteriorating, and in a few days, I plan to resign. I want to recommend him to succeed me as the Grand Tutor. If he is willing, have him come to the capital as soon as possible."

Although Xiao Wenruan's tone was calm, Lu Chunxiao was shocked!

He Ming, whom Xiao Wenruan mentioned, was Xiao Wenruan's predecessor as the Grand Tutor. Unlike Xiao Wenruan, He Ming was more skilled in teaching imperial strategy, but these things did not suit the Crown Prince Zhu Heyu's personality. Emperor Deqing also did not want Zhu Heyu to be exposed to these things too early, so he let He Ming retire, even though He Ming was only in his early fifties at the time.

After He Ming retired, Xiao Wenruan took over as the Grand Tutor and held the position for over ten years.

After being shocked, Lu Chunxiao quickly asked, "Teacher, are you planning to retire? You know, the Crown Prince cannot do without you."

Xiao Wenruan smiled, "I am old, and I have realized that serving as the Grand Tutor for too long and having too much influence on the Crown Prince is not a good thing. The Crown Prince should also learn other things now."

Lu Chunxiao, however, rarely contradicted, "But, He Ming, the Crown Prince doesn't like him, and the emperor doesn't like him either..."

Xiao Wenruan shook his head, "So, you must keep this a secret from the Crown Prince. After I resign in a few days, the emperor will appoint He Ming as the Grand Tutor. Even if the Crown Prince doesn't like He Ming, it will be too late to oppose it. As for the emperor... after these recent events, he will agree."

Hearing Xiao Wenruan's words, Lu Chunxiao hesitated for a moment but ultimately agreed.

After Lu Chunxiao left, Xiao Wenruan, who had already made up his mind, did not show any signs of relief.

As he had said, he had taught Zhu Heyu for too long and had too much influence on him. Zhu Heyu's personality and character were already set.

At this point, would Zhu Heyu still accept He Ming's teachings?

Thinking of Zhu Heyu's straightforward personality, Xiao Wenruan had no confidence.

...

Zhou Shangjing and Xiao Wenruan's thoughts and actions were unknown to Zhao Junchen, who had his own plans.

In the following half month, Zhao Junchen continued to focus his main efforts on consolidating his faction. In his view, regardless of what might happen in the future, stabilizing his foundation and internal unity was the top priority.

Through Zhao Junchen's efforts, this consolidation had already shown initial results. At least, the new and old officials who had joined Zhao Junchen were now familiar with each other, understood who their allies were, knew what they needed to do under Zhao Junchen, and understood Zhao Junchen's personality and rules.

On the other side, with the help of Fan Binqi, who was both an open enemy and a secret friend, after a half-month of discussions, the re-auditing of the Ministry of Revenue's accounts finally received Emperor Deqing's approval.

However, in reality, before receiving the emperor's approval, the relevant officials of the Ministry of Revenue had already been re-auditing the accounts, and they were now close to completion. What remained was just a matter of formality.

The new accounts of the Ministry of Revenue, while not perfect, were difficult to criticize.

In a sense, it was only at this point that the Ministry of Revenue was truly under Zhao Junchen's full control. Other factions would no longer be able to cause trouble for Zhao Junchen through the Ministry of Revenue.

Because, no matter how they reviewed the new accounts, Zhao Junchen and the Ministry of Revenue, at least on paper, were completely clean officials.

As for the old accounts of the Ministry of Revenue, they would soon disappear in an accidental fire at the Ministry of Revenue.

...

Eliminating one potential threat, Zhao Junchen was in a good mood that day. The self-mockery and confusion from half a month ago had been buried deep in his heart.

After the morning court session, on the way back to his residence, sitting in the sedan chair, the scent of tofu pudding wafted over, and Zhao Junchen smiled and said, "Stop the chair."

Xu Qingyan, who was following the sedan chair, hearing Zhao Junchen's voice and seeing the familiar tofu pudding stall by the roadside, understood Zhao Junchen's thoughts and subconsciously pouted.

Since half a month ago, after accidentally eating tofu pudding at this stall, Zhao Junchen often came here after court sessions to have a bowl of tofu pudding. He had become a regular customer and seemed to really enjoy the taste.

Xu Qingyan did not understand this. In his opinion, the tofu pudding from this stall was just average.

However, for such a trivial matter, Xu Qingyan would not question it, so he naturally ordered the bearers to stop the sedan chair and waited quietly outside.

A moment later, Zhao Junchen changed into casual clothes in the sedan chair and came out, leading Xu Qingyan towards the tofu pudding stall.

On the other side, at Xu Qingyan's wave, the bearers carried the empty sedan chair away. This was Zhao Junchen's specific instruction; he did not want to draw attention at this time.

Following Zhao Junchen, Xu Qingyan complained, "Young Master, if you like the tofu pudding so much, why not hire the old man who makes it to work in our residence? He can make tofu pudding for you every day, and we won't have to squeeze in with the common people. Besides, I think the tofu pudding here is just average, not as good as what our chefs make."

Zhao Junchen smiled, "You don't understand. Eating tofu pudding here is not just about the food; it's also about the atmosphere. Since tofu pudding is a common food, it only tastes good when eaten with the common people."

Xu Qingyan shook his head and said nothing more. He did not understand Zhao Junchen's reasoning and could not argue with it.

Pushing through the bustling crowd, Zhao Junchen led Xu Qingyan to the tofu pudding stall. Since the morning court session ended early, it was now breakfast time for the common people, and there were no empty seats around the stall.

"We have to wait again," Xu Qingyan muttered.

Zhao Junchen shook his head and smiled, saying nothing, just standing there and waiting quietly.

In fact, as Xu Qingyan said, the tofu pudding from this stall was just average, even worse than what the chefs at the residence made. But Zhao Junchen liked eating tofu pudding here.

Half a month ago, Zhao Junchen was still somewhat confused. By chance, he had a bowl of tofu pudding here. At that time, except for Xu Qingyan, none of the other customers knew his identity, and he was just one of the common people. Sitting among the noisy crowd, eating a simple meal he hadn't had in a long time, Zhao Junchen felt a long-lost sense of peace.

So, coming here to eat tofu pudding was not because the tofu pudding was particularly good, but because Zhao Junchen wanted to relive the memories and feelings of his time as a commoner, to hold onto his increasingly rare sense of self.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ps: This is the second and third update of the day, combined into one chapter!

Previous page AD starts

Previous page AD ends