Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

At the same time, in Changchun Palace, the chilly spring air turned into dark clouds, all condensing on Empress Chen's face. From time to time, cold lightning flashed in the dark clouds, shining through her majestic and cold phoenix eyes, dispersing the steaming heat from the incense burner, and the whole room was filled with cold.

Several palace maids stood in the corner, not daring to breathe. They had never seen the queen so angry. They all wanted to hang their heads in their crotches, as if they were afraid that the murderous intent in her eyes would turn into sword light and chop off their heads in mid-air.

Queen Chen took another look at the evil book in her hand, her eyes slightly closed, and her fingers that were holding the book turned white from squeezing it too hard. One could imagine the rage in her heart.

After a long time, he slowly placed the booklet on the mahogany table and waved his hand gently.

The few serving palace maids and female officials seemed to have been pardoned. They hurriedly bowed and bowed, and then retreated as if they were escaping from the palace of hell.

"Xiao Anzi." Queen Chen spoke slowly, her tone as cold as ice.

"Your servant is here. Please give your instructions, Your Majesty." An Wenyao hurried in and bowed in response.

"What do you think about this?"

An Wenyao pondered and said, "I think this matter is strange. Perhaps someone wants to deal with the first and second princes at the same time to gain the throne, or someone is secretly instigating the first prince to attack the second prince.

No matter which situation it is, the first and second princes will suffer, while the other illegitimate princes will benefit."

Empress Chen sneered and said, "You are right. I haven't made a move yet, but some people can't help but take the initiative. What does His Majesty say?"

An Wenyao said: "When His Majesty learned about this, he was furious and ordered the East Factory to investigate the case thoroughly. He has already arrested a number of officials from the Imperial College."

Empress Chen raised her eyebrows and said, "It seems that Li Shouzhong, the chief priest of the Imperial College, is related to the Jia family by marriage."

"Yes. Li Shouzhong's only daughter married Jia Zheng's eldest son Zhu and had a son named Lan."

Empress Chen nodded slightly and sneered, "She has a very deep plan. She not only wants to deal with my son, but also wants to deal with Jia Cong. Isn't she afraid of getting a stomachache? Who do you think is the mastermind behind this?"

An Wenyao said: "I only have some guesses.

One is that the New Party members, who were already at odds with Jia Shaobao, were afraid that the Second Prince would use Jia Cong after ascending the throne, so they killed two birds with one stone.
Second, there may be some ambitious princes who think that if they are not the eldest prince or the second prince, they can win the favor of the emperor and seek the throne;
Third, there may be people in the court who have formed a clique and want to support a certain illegitimate prince, so they act on their own and execute first and report later, hoping to gain the credit of following the emperor.

Fourthly..."

Seeing that he was hesitant and dared not speak, Empress Chen said calmly, "Do you think it might be the emperor's instruction?"

"I wish you would die." An Wenyao knelt down hurriedly.

"No, you are right. It is possible."

Empress Chen snorted coldly. The emperor knew that his health was deteriorating, and he was afraid that after his death, the emperor's relatives and powerful ministers would dominate the world, so it was understandable that she deposed Sun Can and Jia Cong first.

Empress Chen hesitated for a moment and said, "Go and find out who is stirring up trouble. Also, send someone to tell Can'er and Chi'er to study behind closed doors. They are not allowed to go out and cause trouble, and they are not allowed to write letters to defend themselves. The emperor will make the final decision on right and wrong."

"The slave obeys the order."

As An Wenyao left, another young eunuch came in and said, "Your Majesty, Princess Ruyi wants to see you."

Empress Chen's eyes moved slightly, knowing the purpose of his visit, and said, "Announce."

Ruyi walked into the palace quickly and saw that Empress Chen looked a little haggard. She fell at her feet with a heartache and said, "Mother...you...take care of yourself."

Empress Chen smiled faintly, raised her hand and helped her up, saying, "My child, thank you for missing me. The ground is cold, get up quickly. Come and sit beside your mother. What's the matter?"

Seeing that Empress Chen's temples had already had a few more strands of silver hair and the wrinkles around her eyes were becoming more and more obvious, she could not help but feel a pang in her nose and wanted to shed tears. She quickly suppressed her sadness and said, "Mother, do you know about the case of the evil book in the Imperial College this morning?"

"Are you talking about this?" Queen Chen pointed to the book on the table.

Ruyi took a look and said in a hateful voice, "That's right. It's clear that someone has ulterior motives and wants to frame Big Brother and Second Brother."

Empress Chen nodded and said, "Not only that, even Ruyi's husband will be implicated."

When the Empress revealed her purpose, she said shyly, "Mother... I didn't come here for him. I was afraid that you would get angry and get sick, so I came to the palace to see what you were thinking about."

Empress Chen stroked her temples and smiled, "Your Majesty, I understand your feelings. Your Majesty, I am not an inexperienced little girl, how could I get angry for no reason? Your father will make a wise decision on this matter, so don't worry."

Ruyi felt relieved and said, "Brother Cong asked me to ask mother what to do next."

Empress Chen asked, "What is his plan?"

Ruyi stuck out her tongue and said, "He said that during the period of mourning, it is not convenient for me to show my face in public. Only Chunqiu knows me and blames me."

"This cunning boy knows how to protect himself." Queen Chen laughed and said, "Then tell him a message for me."

"Mother, please speak."

"A person of integrity is not afraid of his own shadow, and a person of high moral character has no reason to worry about disputes. No matter who is stabbing people in the back, good will prevail over evil. The emperor and the officials of the court will give an explanation to the people of the world."

Empress Chen's words were powerful and even had a bit of an air of looking down on the world.

Ruyi said hurriedly: "Mother is right, I will remember it."
-
In the small courtyard next to the Grand Council, several bigwigs of the New Party were taking a break from their busy schedule to drink tea and chat. The topic they were talking about was naturally the "Demon Book Case".

"Sir, who do you think is so bold as to forge a demonic book and confuse people?" Huo Peng pondered.

Duan Zhun shook his head slightly and said, "I can't guess. But it's definitely not from Young Master Jia's instruction. Once this book is published, the Second Prince will be in danger."

Dong Yi smiled and said, "Your Majesty may not think so. He may think that Jia Shaobao can't wait any longer and wants to test the waters."

Huo Peng smiled and said, "That's right. Besides, Li Shouzhong, the chief priest of the Imperial College, is a relative of the Jia family. He will help us out of both emotion and reason. I think it will be difficult for Jia Shaobao to stay out of this matter."

Duan Zhun understood what the two meant and nodded slightly, saying, "We can follow the trend and help the emperor relieve his worries."

"Mr. Jun is wise." Everyone quickly echoed.

Gu Tao suddenly asked, "After this incident, the first and second princes may not be able to handle the important tasks. Among the other princes, who does the Duke-in-Chief prefer?"

Huo and Dong both looked solemn when they heard this. They sat upright and turned their heads to look at Duan Zhun. This issue was more important than Mount Tai and it concerned the direction of government in the next few decades, so it must be carefully considered.

Duan Zhun shook his head and smiled, "The foundation of the country is the emperor's family affairs, and it seems inconvenient for a minister to interfere. The emperor is wise and intelligent, and he will know how to judge people.

I am nearly 70 years old, and I am very old. Even if I want to take care of future affairs, I am powerless. I can only ask you gentlemen to take care of it." He said, cupping his hands.

Everyone hurriedly bowed in return, saying, "Why do you say that, Lord Zhun? You have stood for three dynasties and have great prestige. You know the emperor's mind very well. If you don't point out the way at this critical moment, I'm afraid that villains will gain power in the future, and the new policies we have worked hard for more than ten years will be in danger of being abolished at any time. Isn't it a matter of eternal regret?" Duan Zhun frowned slightly and said, "It doesn't seem to be that serious now, right?"

Huo Peng hurriedly whispered, "Didn't the Duke notice that His Majesty seems to have lost some weight after the New Year?
I am afraid that there will be unexpected events. The successor may not have the great talent and vision of the emperor, and may not seek to forge ahead, but he must preserve the achievements of the new law and must not let our life's hard work go to waste."

Dong Yi nodded and said, "Yes, we don't seek to revive the country, but to maintain the status quo. I think it shouldn't be difficult, right?"

Duan Zhun nodded slowly and said, "You gentlemen have far-sighted and far-sighted ideas. I will find an opportunity to make suggestions on this matter."

Dong Yi asked, "There are so many princes, who will inherit the throne?"

Duan Zhun said: "If you want to establish the heir, the tenth prince will do; if you want to establish the eldest son, the third prince will do; if you want to establish the virtuous, the fourth or fifth prince will do; as for the sixth and seventh princes, they are not fit to be monarchs; and the eighth and ninth princes, although they are extremely intelligent, their reputations are not good enough to lead the crowd."

Huo Peng said in a deep voice, "What the Lord said is correct. The Tenth Prince has a strong and kind character, and he has a close relationship with the Jia family. He has long been deceived by them. Moreover, the Yingchuan Chen family, relying on their deep roots, has always been hypocritical in their obedience to the new law. Once the Tenth Prince takes over the throne, I am afraid that the new law will suffer setbacks."

Dong Yi and Gu Tao also said, "Good. You can choose one from three, four, or five. As for who to choose, you still need to carefully select it."

Duan Zhun closed his eyes slightly and nodded. Regardless of his position, as a civil servant, it was his nature to always want to support someone who was easy to control as emperor. Only in this way could the talents of the scholar-officials in governing the world be fully utilized.

After all, there have been only a handful of emperors as diligent and capable as the current one over the past thousands of years. And to the civil service group, as long as the emperor does not cause trouble or act outrageously, they can be praised and called the Holy Son of Heaven.

At this time, a military official came with a young eunuch to deliver a message.

Huo Peng asked, "Eunuch, what instructions does Prime Minister Dai have?"

The young eunuch said, "The Minister of Internal Affairs ordered me to tell the Prime Minister and the other ministers that Li Shouzhong and others are being detained in the prison for questioning about the case of the evil book. I would like to ask what you think of this case?"

Everyone looked at each other and knew that Dai Quan was trying to curry favor with the New Party and drag everyone else into the water. However, this was an open conspiracy and everyone had no choice but to take the bait. After all, this was indeed a great opportunity to get involved with the Jia family. Therefore, they all nodded slightly and signaled Huo Peng to speak.

Huo Peng said: "Please reply to the Minister of Internal Affairs and tell him that we believe this case is by no means accidental. There must be someone behind the scenes who is trying to manipulate public opinion to force the emperor to abdicate. This is truly a sinister act and a heinous act.

Ask him to do a thorough investigation for the sake of the country and the people, and find out the culprit, so as to calm the public opinion and clear the world."

"Yes." The young eunuch turned and left hurriedly.

Huo Peng and others smiled slightly. As long as the East Factory wanted, there was no confession that could not be obtained. Li Shouzhong was not a patriot who would rather die than surrender. When even begging for death would not work, he would naturally give in.

At this time, the "culprit" designated by the New Party was reading the latest war report sent by Goryeo at home. He learned that Seoul was captured without bloodshed with the cooperation of Goryeo's "enlightened faction". The entire Goryeo court was subdued, and King Lee Sun was deposed and imprisoned for life.

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Look, sir, Yan Shuangying has learned to use his strategy to attack the enemy instead of relying on force. War is indeed the best school. He will become a talent after fighting this battle."

Pang Chao smiled and said, "He asked you to tell him who should be made king."

Jia Cong said: "Let him just appoint a kid with no foundation, it's just a temporary transition anyway."

Pang Chao asked, "Brother Cong, do you really want to destroy the Kingdom of Goryeo?"

Jia Cong sneered and said, "Of course, otherwise, wouldn't it be just playing house if I sent troops from afar?
The Koreans are despicable and shameless, and are arrogant. Even though they are now submissive to the Celestial Empire, they may not respect the Celestial Empire in their hearts. They are just relying on the Celestial Empire for protection.

Once our country's fortune declines, they will surely rebel, and even retaliate against us for the humiliation we have suffered for thousands of years. How could Cong allow this to happen?"

Pang Chao said: "In that case, what we are doing now is not enough."

"Did the teacher teach me?" Jia Cong asked hurriedly.

Pang Chao said: "Now you have eliminated the tyrants, distributed money and grain, and distributed land equally, which is enough to win the hearts of the people. But it is just to lure them with benefits and subdue them with intimidation. In a few decades, new tyrants will still emerge, enclosing land and harming the people. The people will still live in dire straits. What can we do? Are we going to kill them again?
Don't forget, they were all born under your rule and follow the laws you issued. If you kill them by force, there will be chaos and the rich will rebel. "

Jia Cong said: "Master, what you said is very true. What should we do?"

Pang Chao said: "We must completely cut off their culture and clothing, so that Goryeo and the Central Plains are indistinguishable from each other. Then it doesn't matter who governs, and the Goryeo people will no longer reject outsiders."

"Yes, yes, how do we do it?"

Pang Chao said in a deep voice: "If you want to destroy a country, you must first destroy its history; if you want to destroy its history, you must first destroy its language, writing, and customs.

Therefore, after Emperor Qin Shi Huang unified the country, he burned books and buried scholars alive, and required the standardization of wheels and writing. This was for this purpose, and you can follow his example.

When the new ruler ascends the throne, Goryeo will be conquered. At that time, the Goryeo script will be abolished and replaced with Chinese.

The systems and regulations of Goryeo were all based on the Dawu Hui Dian. The format, form, and style of correspondence between government offices were all modeled after those of the imperial court. The clothing, ranks, and titles of officials and their wives were also the same as those of the imperial court.

Regardless of age, all the people there must speak Mandarin, write Chinese, learn Chinese etiquette, wear Chinese clothes, and follow Chinese customs. The imperial examination system is also modeled after that of the Ming Dynasty.

Then he sent people to compile the history of Goryeo in order to clarify the distinction between the master and the servant of the Celestial Empire and Goryeo over the past thousand years and to set the record straight.

A few years later, when Mandarin and Chinese characters became popular, troops were sent to collect all the books in Goryeo and burn them all, replacing them with the classics, history, and miscellaneous works of the imperial court. After a few decades, Goryeo would no longer exist.

Jia Cong laughed and clapped his hands, saying, "Very good, let's do it. The people of Goryeo have strange customs and are unwilling to obey the king's rule. They should be educated with the teachings of Confucius and Mencius.

Sir, you can carefully draw up a plan and have Shuangying and others follow it. Also, add one sentence: Don't be polite to the Koreans. Anyone who doesn't obey will be killed."

Pang Chao nodded in agreement.

"Once we've dealt with Goryeo, Japan will be the next." Jia Cong said with a smile.

Pang Chao thought for a moment and said, "Brother Cong wants to gradually erode that 'first island chain' you told me about?"

Jia Cong did not shy away from saying, "That's right. Only by obtaining this chain can the country look over the Pacific Ocean and then compete for the world, the real world."

"Pacific Ocean? Where is it?" Pang Chao was stunned.

"Yes, it is the boundless ocean to the east of us."

Pang Chao smiled bitterly and said, "I am old and have little knowledge. I am afraid I am not up to such an important task."

Jia Cong smiled and patted his thin shoulders, saying, "Sir, you are too modest. Actually, I don't understand much either. Let's learn as we go."

Before Pang Chao could answer, he heard a personal soldier at the door come to report that the eldest lady of the West Mansion had sent a maid to ask for a meeting.

Jia Cong sighed, knowing that it was Li Wan who sent someone to invite him, so he excused Pang Chao and left. (End of this chapter)