Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

In the Yangxin Hall, apart from Jin Shang, there are only four major military aircraft: Duan Zhun, Huo Peng, Dong Yi, and Gu Tao, as well as King Beijing, Chief Governor Li Meng, and Right Governor Wang Ning.

Jia Cong's heart moved. This was the inner circle of Nobushige Ikon. Even Guan Pu and Jiang Feng were excluded from the circle. He came in. I don't know whether it was a blessing or a curse.

"Your Majesty, Jia Cong, comes to see the Emperor."

"Pingshen." Emperor Xifeng raised his hand and said, "I invite you all to come here today just to discuss one thing, the Nine Domains."

"The Nine Domains were originally established by Taizu to prevent border troubles at the beginning of the founding of the country. Now it has been nearly a hundred years. The borders have been consolidated and the national strength has been strengthened. However, the princes of the feudal lords and the general soldiers of the border towns are constraining each other. They have ordered many gates, and the benefits are getting worse. , I only see its disadvantages, and there seems to be no reason to establish a vassal state. Dear friends, please give me some advice."

Huo Peng came out of the squad and said: "What the emperor said is absolutely true. I believe that now is a good opportunity to withdraw from the vassal state."

The remaining people were either the instigators, had known about it for a long time, or had heard about it and hurriedly spoke in agreement.

Emperor Xifeng said: "What is the good opportunity Huo Aiqing mentioned?"

Huo Peng said: "I think there are three good opportunities.

Firstly, His Majesty’s civil, political and military achievements have been at their peak in recent years. At Chacai, he put down the Zhongshun and Tu Fei rebellions, and his prestige is as high as that of Taizu. This is the right time;
Both the Nine Border General Military Offices are full of talented people. They have been controlled by the feudal kings for a long time, and they control the dangerous passes in various places. If the imperial court has an edict, how can anyone not fight to the death? This is a favorable location;
After experiencing this rebellion in all three cities, all the traitors and sycophants were expelled. All the civil and military officials in the court and in the country were loyal and loyal people, all of whom were united in serving the Holy Emperor. There were no more people who were at both ends, sitting on the wall and looking out for the wind. This is the harmony of humanity.

With these three things, why worry about the uncertainty of big events? "

"Huo Qing's words are very kind." Emperor Xifeng nodded slightly and looked at the others.

Dong Yi said: "In addition to what Mr. Huo said, there is another benefit. This year, the Jiangnan summer tax has been brought to Beijing, with a total of 20 million taels, which is several times that of previous years. This shows the effectiveness of the new law.

Coupled with the shortfall in collections and the confiscated money stolen by the rebels, the treasury is now full and can adapt to changes, and the time has come to withdraw from the vassal state. "

Li Meng was afraid that all the good things had been said, so he hurriedly said: "What the two officers said is absolutely true. After the rebellion was suppressed, the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army carried out strict rectification, eliminated a group of old and weak soldiers, and added a group of elite soldiers from the local guards. Now the 12th regiment camp of the capital and the 8th camp of Xishan are all ready to go out to repay God's grace."

Emperor Xifeng smiled slightly and said, "Do you mean that the vassal vassal should be reduced?"

"Exactly." Everyone said in unison.

"Okay, since cutting down vassals is beneficial to the country, how to do it needs to be considered. Throughout the ages, there have been many cases of chaos caused by cutting down vassals, and you are well aware of this. Judging from the situation of the country and dynasty, is there any good strategy?" Emperor Xifeng road.

Huo Peng said: "I think that reducing the vassal state is a dangerous strategy, and we should not be cautious. If we want to reduce the vassal state, we should introduce new laws first and fill the treasury to ensure safety.

Nowadays, it is already popular in areas south of the Yangtze River, and it should be implemented in Beizhili and other places as well. "

Everyone has no objection. Whether it is Jia Cong's approach in Liaodong or the results of the new law implemented in Jiangnan, it is visible to the naked eye. The thicker the treasury is, the higher the success rate of reducing the vassal state will naturally be.

Gu Tao said: "I agree, the new law is a good way to strengthen the trunk and weak branches. Now that Zhongshun, Tu Fei and other rebellious powerful people are not in the way, the implementation of the new law will be successful."

Emperor Xifeng nodded and said, "This is a very good statement."

Huo Peng said: "Now Shuntian Prefecture Yin is not doing things well, looking forward and backward, and is not a good minister of the new law. I recommend Li Chao, the prefect of Jinling, to take over. This person has achieved outstanding results in promoting the new law in Jiangnan and is worthy of this post."

Gu Tao also said: "Li Chao made great achievements when he was the prefect of Suzhou. He has outstanding talents and is highly recommended by his ministers."

Emperor Xifeng said: "Since the two beloved ministers recommended him, he will be transferred immediately and he will also issue an edict to all states in the world to strictly implement the new law. If there is any hesitation and disobedience, they will all be dismissed."

"Yes."

Duan Zhun said: "Your Majesty, what I just said is the preparation for the reduction of the vassal state. I have some brief opinions on the matter of reducing the vassal state. I would like to ask the Holy Master for instructions and the advice of all my colleagues."

Everyone is busy and humble.

"I love you, but it's okay to say so." Emperor Xifeng said.

"I believe that the reduction of vassal status should not be done too hastily, too clearly or too harshly.

Those who are too hasty can easily provoke their counter-intentions and lead to major changes;

Those who are too clear-minded can easily see through the reality of the court and deal with it calmly;

Those who are too harsh will easily encourage them to share the hatred of the enemy and join forces to resist the law. "

King Beijing praised: "Mr. Zhun has hit the nail on the head, his words hit the nail on the head."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Emperor Xifeng smiled and nodded, and said, "Does Mr. Zhun have any good ideas?"

"I don't dare. I think the reduction of vassal status should be divided into four steps.

The first step is to persuade the feudal lord. The third day of the next month is His Majesty's Longevity Festival, and the princes of each vassal prince have come to the capital one after another to congratulate them. At that time, they can give banquets, give gentle advice, and invite all vassal princes to come and live in the capital to consolidate the imperial line. Their titles and fiefs will be inherited by the princes, so as to stabilize their lives. Loyal and traitorous. "

Jia Cong said: "Mr. Zhun, what will happen if they refuse to accept the call?"

Duan Zhun said with a smile: "If he can't shirk it, he must have ulterior motives, which is disloyal. Therefore, there is a second step, threatening the vassal.

It is necessary to ask Duke Ding to take action and pass the secret decree of the Holy Emperor to the Jiubian General Army, ordering them to reorganize their military equipment, monitor the vassal king's tribe, guard the dangerous passes, and strictly prevent them from causing chaos. "

Jia Cong said: "This is not difficult. Before that, Jinyiwei and Dongchang can jointly screen the generals from the nine sides one by one, and promote and transfer all the people who are close to the palace on weekdays, not only to cut their wings, but also to Don’t make it alert.”

Duan Zhun said: "Ding Guo Gong is well versed in military affairs. This is extremely true."

Emperor Xifeng also nodded and said, "What's the third step?"

"The third step is to warn the vassals. The imperial court should use thunderous force to uproot one of the vassals and kill one to serve as a warning to hundreds. This vassal must be rich, powerful, cunning and stubborn, otherwise it will not have a deterrent effect."

King Beijing said: "After such a vassal was eliminated, all the vassals were frightened, and the imperial court issued another edict to accuse his evil deeds, as a warning and to provide comfort. All the vassals should pass on the edict and make a decision."

Huo Peng said: "What the prince said is true. After all, the imperial court did not want them to confiscate their homes and exterminate their families. It just asked them to pass their titles to the prince and return him to the capital. It is not harsh in terms of emotion and reason, and it also avoids such things as 'birds' The rumors of "Jin Gong Zang".

"Shan, what's the fourth step?"

"Destroy the feudal vassal." Duan Zhun smiled slightly, and finally Tu Qiong dagger said: "When the kings return to the capital, their prince is young and ignorant, has little talent and virtue, and suddenly occupies a high position. How can he control the hearts of the people? And his brothers How could you be so angry?

At that time, Your Majesty will once again follow the method of extending favor, split up the vassal, divide the various princes, reduce their military power, merge the state capitals, send out officials to govern, and censors to supervise, then the vassal will be weak and will not survive. "

"Okay, what a clever idea." Everyone clapped their hands and praised.

Jia Cong secretly sighed that Jiang was still too old. If Duan Zhun used these tricks one by one, it would be possible to easily defeat the Nine Fans. After all, the Nine Fans were not of the same mind. There were strong and weak, virtuous and foolish. If a feudal clan collapsed, it would be very easy. May cause chain reaction.

Emperor Xifeng said with a smile: "Jun Gong is really my Kong Ming."

Duan Zhun hurriedly bowed and said: "Your Majesty is so complimentary that I dare not accept it."

The major political policy has been decided, and everyone discussed it for a long time before it came out.

"Gu Xiang, please stay. Please take a step to speak." Jia Cong thought of something and hurriedly called to Gu Tao. "Oh? What's wrong with Zilong?" Gu Tao said with a smile.

Jia Cong said: "The Northern Division found out that a certain official had done something illegal. Therefore, he is now under the sect of Prime Minister Gu. It is inconvenient for him to be executed without instruction, so he reported to Cong."

Gu Tao was shocked. Since Jia Cong spoke in person, this person was in big trouble. He quickly asked: "Who is it?"

He didn't ask what was going on. If Jin Yiwei wanted to convict someone, wouldn't he be afraid that he wouldn't be able to find a reason?
"Mei Jiarong." Jia Cong said: "This person was originally from Hanlin. He was first a member of the old party, and now he has joined the sect of Prime Minister Gu. After the last big change, he was promoted to the rank of Shaoqing of Dali Temple."

Gu Tao nodded slowly and said, "Did this person offend Zilong?" He knew that Jia Cong would not take the target lightly. Since he spoke, there must be something wrong with this person.

Jia Cong smiled faintly without hiding it and said, "It's not like he offended me, it's just his bad conduct.

The Mei family and the Xue family of Jinling had an engagement, but for some unknown reason, they regretted their engagement a few days ago, which made the Xue family lose face.

Cong is the son-in-law of the Xue family, and he is also ashamed of it. Moreover, this man was capricious in the Qin Dynasty and the late Chu Dynasty. He is a villain. It is not sincere to defect to Gu Xiangxiang this time. "

Gu Tao was shocked, this happened? After thinking about it again, I realized that Mei Jiarong must have seen the emperor's intention of using Jia Cong as a sword. He was afraid that the Jia family would not end well and would harm him, so he regretted the relationship.

Otherwise, with Jia Cong's current power, who wouldn't be happy to be able to have a relationship with him?

"Zi Shi is too reckless, how could he do such a treacherous thing." Gu Tao sighed and wanted to save him. After all, he was one of his own, so he added, "I asked him to come and kowtow to Zi Long to apologize. How about that?" ?”

Jia Cong shook his head and said with a smile: "Prime Minister Gu, you and I have a very close relationship, and Cong won't hide it from you. This man is so courageous. A small official as big as a sesame seed and a mung bean dares to touch a tiger's butt. If Cong doesn't deal with him, , and told others that Dao Cong is a Bodhisattva who is weak and can be bullied."

Gu Tao smiled bitterly and shook his head. Knowing that Jia Cong was determined, he no longer defended himself with death, and said, "How to deal with Zilong's intention?"

"According to my original intention, I must get rid of him quickly. However, for the sake of Prime Minister Gu's golden reputation, it doesn't hurt to spare his life. In two days, there will be a censor to advise him. How to deal with it is up to Prime Minister Gu to decide. Stop." Jia Cong said.

Gu Tao thought for a while and realized that it was impossible to offend Jia Cong for a mere Mei Hanlin, so he said, "How about being demoted to the smoky land of southern Yunnan and becoming a county magistrate?"

Jia Cong cupped his hands and smiled: "Cong has no objection."

"Okay, I will start immediately to eliminate these black sheep." Gu Tao said.

"Thank you, Mr. Gu."

"Hey, it's me who thanks you."

Gu Tao smiled and waved his hand. After all, Jia Cong took care of his face and informed him in advance so that he could have time to rearrange the manpower. Speaking of which, Dali Temple was also an important department.

If Jinyiwei suddenly attacks, I am afraid that the position of the young minister of Dali Temple will not be preserved again.

Jia Cong said goodbye with a smile. At his current position, if he wants to punish officials below the rank of minister, he doesn't need any conspiracy. He can just say hello. Who dares to offend him for an insignificant official?
However, today Huo Peng's proposal to transfer Li Chao to Beijing was beyond his expectation. This boy was lucky. He took advantage of Jia Yucun and took advantage of the new law. He moved from Suzhou Prefecture to Shuntian Prefecture in one year. Yin became an important minister in the court.

Jia Congxuan was relieved when he thought that he was a disciple of Huo Peng and Gu Tao, and that he was considered a member of the new party with upright roots.

No matter if you come to Duzhong, you are not afraid that you will not have a chance to deal with him under your nose. Do you think that you can rely on the new party to be safe? Innocent.

A sneer flashed across Jia Cong's lips, and he sentenced him to death in his heart.

After returning home, he told Pang Chao about Duan Zhun's strategy of "persuading the vassal, threatening the vassal, warning the vassal, and dismantling the vassal" to reduce the vassal.

Pang Chao touched his palm and praised: "Mr. Zhun is far-sighted and mature. This is an excellent strategy."

"Sir, do you think it's possible?"

"If you think about it carefully, there seems to be no safer way." Pang Chao nodded.

"Is it profitable for Cong to reduce the vassal status?" Jia Cong asked.

Pang Chao smiled and nodded: "To warn the vassals, destroying one vassal will frighten all other vassals. As for which vassal to destroy, it is very important."

Jia Cong hurriedly asked: "Which vassal should be destroyed?"

Pang Chao said: "Mr. Zhun has already said that those who are wealthy, powerful, cunning and have ulterior motives should be eliminated. There are many vassal kings who meet this condition.

If we go to destroy the King of Liang who is thousands of miles away and go on an expedition, the gains will outweigh the losses. Therefore, we should add one more thing: this vassal should not be too far from the capital, and destroying it will be beneficial to the overall situation in terms of military tactics. "

Jia Cong said: "The closest ones to Shenjing are King Jin of Datong Town and King You of Jizhou Town. Should one of them be destroyed?"

Pang Chao smiled and said: "No. When Qin destroyed the six kingdoms, it adopted a strategy of establishing close ties and attacking far away to prevent them from collaborating to compete, so as to gradually expand its territory.

Now, on the contrary, we should attack close friends from far away, firstly to cut off their escape routes and form alliances, and secondly, to shock them even more effectively. If even the vassal king in the distance can be destroyed, how much less the one nearby? "

Jia Cong's heart moved and he asked, "What do you mean, sir?"

Pang Chao said: "That's it...but you can't say this method, so as not to arouse suspicion. At that time, you can ask Prime Minister Jiang and Prime Minister Guan to present this serial plan."

Jia Cong put his hands on his hands and said with a smile: "Sir, you are really my filial piety."

Pang Chao smiled and said, "Does Zilong want to compete with Meng De?"

Jia Cong smiled slightly and said: "It's too early to talk about it, but it's better to think about it when you see the wise."

Pang Chao laughed.
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Jia Cong returned to the inner house. He first told Baochai about the punishment of the Mei family, and then asked Daiyu about the affairs of the two houses. He learned that Daguanyuan had finally established rules in the kitchen, and nodded happily.

"Hey, where are you... Jin Chuan'er?" Jia Cong suddenly stopped the little girl who was serving tea. He saw that she had a melon-shaped face, a delicate and delicate figure, and a delicate figure, like a weak willow supporting the wind. Her expression was shy, which was different from Daiyu's before. Somewhat similar.

"My slave Liu Wu'er, please pay your respects to the Duke." Wu'er hurriedly knelt down.

Daiyu smiled and said: "Wu'er has come over. Since you kissed me, I will be placed beside you to serve you. There are few girls around you, so Jin Chuan'er will not be too tired."

Jia Cong smiled and said: "Get up. If you don't understand or lack anything in the future, just tell your sister Jin Chuan'er or Ping'er."

"Yes, I will obey the Duke's instructions." Wu'er lowered his head and did not dare to look at him. Thinking of his mother's words, his face had already turned red.

Jia Cong said: "Well, go ahead. Don't do menial work since you are weak. Please ask the imperial doctor to take a look at her." The latter sentence was addressed to Daiyu.

Daiyu smiled and nodded, looking at Wu'er's back as she hurried away, and said, "I think she is a good person these past two days. It's difficult for you to save another good person because of your intentions."

Jia Cong said hurriedly: "I heard people say that Wu'er has a bit of your character. He just loves the house and the bird. Otherwise, I wouldn't remember it."

Baochai and the others next to him all laughed. This bastard knew how to adapt to circumstances, but Liu Wuer did have some shadow of Daiyu.

Daiyu's pretty face turned red, and she said angrily: "What a good thing, you are using me as a raft. When you wanted Qingwen in Rongqing Hall, was it because she looked like me? You were just talking nonsense!" But she felt very satisfied in her heart.

Qingwen chuckled and said, "That's it. Madam's words have cleared up my doubts for several years."

Everyone laughed. (End of chapter)