I studied in modern times

Chapter 701: The Intricate Network of Relationships
December 23, the first year of Yuanyou.

As soon as Zhao Xu woke up, Feng Jing came to him and reported: "Everyone, this morning, as soon as the palace gate opened, the Left Counselor Xian Yuquan, the Supervisory Censor Shangguan Jun, the Secretary of the Central Secretariat Zeng Zhao and others arrived at the inner east gate and handed in a letter, begging to see the two palaces and everyone..."

Zhao Xu was not surprised and just laughed.

It is normal to come and apologize.

It would be shocking if he didn't come to apologize!
So Zhao Xu asked, "Who will come?"

"The Secretary of the Central Secretariat Su Che..."

Zhao Xu hummed and sighed, "It really is him!"

Su Che was still too naive and too trusting.

But this is Su Zhe Su Ziyu, a person who easily trusts others and is easily moved by some seemingly high-sounding reasons.

This is his advantage and also his disadvantage.

"What does the grandmother say?" Zhao Xu asked.

"The Empress Dowager is claiming to be ill and refuses to meet us..." Feng Jing replied.

"Where's the queen mother?"

"The Empress Dowager went to the Qingshou Palace early to offer condolences..." Feng Jing said.

"Oh!" Zhao Xu stood up and said, "Help me wash and have breakfast first."

It's time for this play to come to an end.

It's time to show our true colors and use this farce to set some rules!

Since he ascended the throne, Zhao Xu's attitude towards the outside world has been one of humility, acceptance of advice, generosity and benevolence.

Regardless of whether they were relatives by marriage, royal family members, civil officials, military officials, or eunuchs, he always showed kindness to these people most of the time.

This naturally helped to consolidate his position and power.

but……

An emperor who only has grace but no authority will not be respected, and will be taken advantage of by others.

The typical one is Renmiao...

Thinking of those days when the literati and scholars had spit on the face of the Ren Temple, and the imperial guards with weapons in their hands attacked the front of the palace...

The local soldiers would even threaten the imperial court with rebellion, forcing it to back down...

Just thinking about it, Zhao Xu couldn't help but shudder.

He knows that rules must be set!

Things like this time, where the Secretariat dared to revoke the imperial power and remove ministers from office based solely on rumors, must never happen again.

You are the Secretary of the Central Secretariat, and your duty is to write imperial edicts for the Emperor!
To return the prefix, there must be a legitimate and reasonable reason!

You are not censors, and you do not have the power to report things based on hearsay, nor do you have the power to publicly accuse a minister without any evidence!

……

Zeng Xiaokuan went out from the inner east gate and entered calmly.

He glanced at the officials in green and red robes who were kneeling and prostrating themselves in front of the Inner East Gate.

Although he didn't show it on his face, he couldn't help but snort in his heart.

"You actually want to attack me!" Zeng Xiaokuan thought to himself, "Don't you even look at who I am?"

Even the right prime minister of the time, Lu Gongzhu, had to call him: My dear brother Lingchuo!
"Chun Guan, the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager are waiting for you in the Qingshou Palace..." Liang Weijian, who was beside the Grand Empress Dowager, came forward with a smile.

"Thank you for being the supervisor!" Zeng Xiaokuan bowed.

Because of the incident involving Ye Kangzhi, the two of them didn't talk much.

But any discerning person can see that Liang Weijian and Zeng Xiaokuan are not only familiar with each other, but also have a very good relationship!
This is also the advantage of the prime minister's children.

Their fathers and grandfathers had extensive connections both in the court and in the palace.

Although these connections are not enough to help these people get promoted, there is no problem in keeping them safe.

Zeng Gongliang served in three dynasties, and the connections he left in the palace were no less than those of others!

……

Zeng Xiaokuan, when he arrived at the Qingshou Palace.

He happened to pass by the Secretary-General Zhang Shangying.

The two of them passed each other by the wrong way in front of the East Shanghe Gate in front of the Qingshou Palace.

Zhang Shangying stopped for a moment and bowed to Zeng Xiaokuan.

It's normal etiquette for subordinates to greet their superiors.

It was this bow that let Zeng Xiaokuan know that Zhang Shangying had already handed the things to the Qingshou Palace.

Zhang Shangying was a core member of the New Party and belonged to the Zhang Dun faction within the New Party.

It seems to have nothing to do with him.

but……

Can two new parties be created with one stroke?
What's more, Zhang Shangying's deceased brother Zhang Tangying was the Palace Censor during the Zhiping and Xining periods.

Back then, it was the Han Jiang brothers, Zhang Tangying and his father Zeng Gongliang who helped Wang Anshi get the position of Vice-Chancellor.

Cuofei Zhang Tangying's father died in the fourth year of Xining. Zhang Tangying returned to his hometown to observe the mourning period and died at home due to excessive grief that year.

Among the prime ministers in the court of the Song Dynasty today, there must be a place for him!

With this bond of friendship, Zhang Shangying will also help him!
……

Zeng Xiaokuan followed Liang Weijian and walked into the Qingshou Palace from the East Upper Gate in front of the Palace.

The moment he stepped into the hall, his entire demeanor changed completely.

Even his body posture changed from walking with his head held high to bending over.

He looks honest, simple and sincere.

Led by Liang Weijian, he came to the hall and bowed four times toward the curtain: "I am Xiao Kuan, the Minister of Rites, and I have come to see you by the order of the two palaces... I respectfully wish you the best of health!"

"Lord Zeng is here!" The Empress Dowager was obviously very happy inside the curtain. She even changed the way she addressed Zeng Xiaokuan from "Chunguan" to "Lord Zeng": "Hurry up and get up!"

"Liang Congzheng, give Mr. Zeng a seat."

Zeng Xiaokuan bowed again to express his gratitude.

Then he heard the Empress Dowager behind the curtain say: "My dear Zeng, do you know that the Secretary Zhang Shangying came to see me and the Empress Dowager just now..."

"He brought the original imperial edict that the previous emperor issued to commend Ye Kangzhi..."

"I also brought the documents about the case in which Ye Kangzhi was framed..."

"It's truly shocking!" The Empress Dowager sighed, with a hint of gnashing of teeth in her tone!

no way!
She had really had enough of the past few days!
The scholars and officials in the outer court would often write letters to the emperor, insinuating that "the state should appoint virtuous people first" and "since our ancestors, there has never been a person who "serves the inner court officials" as a frontier official."

In short, they just wanted to force her to do what those people said.

It seemed as if if she didn't listen, the world would be in chaos and the country would be destroyed.

Now, she can finally hold her head high!
The imperial edicts and directives written by the previous emperor, which were treasured in Ximing Pavilion and sent by Zhang Shangying, completely revealed the truth!

She appointed Ye Kangzhi, who was not only morally corrupt, but also a villain who would do anything to get promoted and escape punishment.

But he is an upright, just, honest and capable minister!

Wherever he took office, he was praised by the people.

As an official in Jingyuan and Shaanxi, he was responsible for ensuring food and fodder.

He is also a gentleman who fights resolutely against the domineering eunuchs!
People like this should be promoted and employed!

She had a keen eye for talent, was not afraid of pressure from the outside court, and insisted on employing him, truly showing the demeanor of "the female Yao and Shun of the Song Dynasty."

Thinking of this, the Empress Dowager said to Zeng Xiaokuan: "I really wronged you this time!"

"Let those people who are just making groundless accusations spread rumors and almost make you suffer an unjust accusation!"

Zeng Xiaokuan bowed and said, "As the Minister of Rites, I should set an example and accept the whipping from all directions."

When the Empress Dowager heard this, she praised him and said, "This is a true minister!" "What do you think, Empress Dowager?"

"Your Majesty is right!" Empress Dowager Xiang's voice came from behind the curtain: "Chun Guan is indeed a truly wise minister!"

"Wei Chen doesn't dare!"

"When my father was alive, he often taught me that as a minister of the country, it is my duty to be loyal to the country, and it is my responsibility to accept humiliation for the country..."

This made the Empress Dowager very comfortable.

"If all the ministers in the court were like you, there would be no need to worry about the world being unclean." The Empress Dowager sighed, and her meaning also hinted at something.

She liked this minister more and more.

When something went wrong, he did not argue but took all the blame and did not cause any trouble to the emperor, his father, or the court.

Now that he has been rehabilitated, he keeps quiet and maintains a humble attitude.

Unlike those people...

One by one, they were all arrogant and did not take her, the Empress Dowager, seriously at all.

Why didn’t I notice such a minister before?

It seems that he should be promoted in the future.

But she had no idea that Zeng Xiaokuan and his father Zeng Gongliang actually had a close relationship with Lu Huiqing!
Among them, Zeng Gongliang was Lu Huiqing's senior - they both graduated from Quanzhou Prefecture School.

When Lü Huiqing went to Beijing to take the imperial examination and later entered officialdom, in the initial stage, the first venture capital came from his old senior classmate Zeng Gongliang. In the second year of Jiayou, Zeng Gongliang recommended Lü Huiqing to go to Beijing to take part in the imperial examination, and he was successfully admitted and appointed as the academician of Jixian Academy.

The reason why Lu Huiqing and Han Jiang had such a quarrel when they were in the court was because of this.

In addition to his personality reasons, the biggest reason is that when Lu Huiqing started his career, he worked in Han Jiang's court. He tried his best to curry favor with Han Jiang, but was not in Han Jiang's eyes.

From Han Jiang's perspective, this is like the younger brother back then, who after gaining power, jumped over the head of the older brother and wanted to act tyrannically!

Can this be tolerated?

I can't stand it! I have to kill him!
So both of them left Beijing!
But when Han Jiang resigned as prime minister, he recommended Wang Anshi as his successor, which left a little room for reconciliation between the two.

Last year, Han Jiang took the initiative to write to Lu Huiqing to communicate about the reform and adjustment of the new law.

Lu Huiqing wrote back immediately, starting with the following: Your humble servant, the Hedong General Manager and Pacifier, in charge of Taiyuan Military and State Affairs, Huiqing bows his head and kowtows to the benevolent Prime Minister, Duke Kangguo, Han Gongzi Hua.

Unexpectedly!

This pair of former enemies, who had been feuding for more than ten years, have reconciled!
However, this matter was kept extremely secret, and the only people who knew about it were probably Han Jiang, Lu Huiqing and Zeng Xiaokuan.

Han Jiang has been working to get Lu Huiqing to return to Beijing or go to Xihe.

This is a political deal.

The person who was mediating and facilitating the relationship was Zeng Xiaokuan, a person who was trusted by both parties.

This was also extremely secretive, and no one else knew about it except the three of them.

Today, negotiations are still ongoing.

In the past few days, Zeng Xiaokuan, apart from being busy with Ye Kangzhi's affairs, has been busy at home, passing messages to Han Jiang and informing Lu Huiqing's representative, Lu Shengqing, the Hebei Transport Envoy who has already entered the capital to prepare to attend the grand court in the first month of next year, of Han Jiang's conditions.

The conditions of both parties are already very close.

In some time, when Han Jiang officially retires, it will surely shock the world.

Because, in all likelihood, after retiring, Han Jiang would, as usual, put Lu Huiqing's name on the list when recommending talented people to assist in government administration, thus staging a Song Dynasty version of the reconciliation between generals and ministers, and forgetting all grudges with a smile!

And, this is politics!
Everything is possible!
……

Zhao Xu finished his breakfast, wiped his mouth, and then walked slowly in the imperial garden.

The weather in Bianjing City has been pretty good these days, and the sun even came out today.

Therefore, even in the morning, the temperature in the Imperial Garden is still acceptable.

At least, Zhao Xu didn't feel cold wearing the sable coat sent by the Liao Kingdom.

That is, some time ago, there was heavy snow in the city of Bianjing, and many vegetables planted in the imperial garden were frozen to death.

Zhao Xu walked to the vegetable garden and looked at the few remaining cabbage seedlings, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Poor Wen Xunniang and her colleagues worked hard to take care of the farm day and night, but a severe cold and heavy snow destroyed most of the fruits of their labor.

The Yangzhou white cabbage sent by Zeng Bu was almost completely destroyed.

Fortunately, these cabbages survived the heavy snow!

Zhao Xu looked at them as if they were rare treasures!
This is a treasure!
As long as they can survive until spring and leave seeds, they can survive when planted again next year.

Then, you can eat fresh cabbage in Bianjing in winter!

Zhao Xu was just looking at these lucky ones that had survived tenaciously when Shi Deyi came to his side and reported, "Everyone, the Minister of Rites Zeng Xiaokuan just came out of the Qingshou Palace."

"Oh..." Zhao Xu laughed: "I think the Grandmother will be very happy, right?"

"It is said that the Empress Dowager had a very pleasant conversation with him."

"Yeah!" Zhao Xu nodded.

The Zeng family, like the Lu family, are both good at building connections in the palace.

In the Shaosheng era of Zhao Xu's previous life, even Zeng Gongliang and Zeng Xiaokuan, father and son, had passed away long ago.

But there were still people in the palace who spoke well of the Zeng family of Quanzhou, and would mention the achievements of Zeng Wenjing from time to time.

Therefore, Zhao Xu was not surprised at all that Zeng Xiaokuan could please the Empress Dowager.

Because Zeng Xiaokuan must have known the Empress Dowager's temper and preferences long ago.

With the right medicine, it is naturally easy to find the pulse.

Therefore, Zhao Xu has always been hiding his true preferences.

Try not to let outsiders know what he likes.

What he reveals to people must be what he wants to guide.

For example, arithmetic, and Shen Kuo invented and advocated the theory of "investigating things and seeking knowledge".

"Is there anything else?" Zhao Xu looked at Shi Deyi, who seemed to be hesitant to speak.

"Hmm..." Shi De said, "Just now, Sheren Guo (Guo Zhongxiao) came to report that the newly appointed Zhongshu Shilang Song handed in a note at the inner east gate, requesting an audience with Your Majesty..."

"Mr. Su?" Zhao Xu exclaimed in surprise: "What's the matter, Mr. Su?"

Among the ministers in the court, the one most respected by Zhao Xu is Su Song.

It's not just because Su Song is a mellow elder, he is also his indispensable assistant now.

Many things depend on Su Song.

At the same time, it was also because Su Song was the only minister in the Yuanyou era of his previous life who did not show his butt to him when he reported to the court. Instead, he respected the authority of the little emperor and asked him for instructions again and again without getting tired of it - even if Zhao Xu never responded.

Shi Deyi whispered, "I heard that Prime Minister Su came to the palace to plead for Zeng Zhao."

Zhao Xu was stunned for a moment: "Zeng Zhao?"

Then he remembered: "That's right..."

Although Su Song's ancestral home was in Fujian, his father and grandfather had moved to Runzhou (Zhenjiang) long ago, and his family tomb is also in Runzhou.

The Zeng family of Nanfeng also moved to Runzhou during the time of Zeng Yizhan.

So, they are from the same hometown.

In addition, Su Song had a very good relationship with Zeng Zhao's two brothers, Zeng Gong and Zeng Bu.

Especially with Zeng Gong, they have a close relationship and share the same ideals!

Back then, Su Song, Zeng Gong and Wang Hui jointly wrote a far-reaching book, "Biographies of Women".

In addition, if Zhao Xu remembered correctly, in his previous life, after Su Song passed away, his last words designated Zeng Zhao as the person to write his epitaph.

In the Song Dynasty, scholars and officials would usually ask their most admired younger generations to write their epitaphs.

One is to make a name for oneself, and the other is to satisfy oneself.

so……

Zeng Zhao is in trouble now. With Su Song's good character, he will really save him and he will definitely save him!

(End of this chapter)