golden scales

Chongzhen's New Year's Day Dynasty in 23 was more grand than that in 22, which made Emperor Chongzhen quite satisfied.Among them, women served as court officials to congratulate the emperor, unlike previous years where they could only congratulate the empress. This undoubtedly opened a new chapter and triggered a new round of rhetoric in the newspaper industry of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Cihong once believed that the biggest function of newspapers is not only to control the throat, but also to draw people around who are used to accepting and not using their own brains, and at the same time, it also has the effect of diverting attention and conflicts.Since the liberation of Shenjing, the hot spots in the newspapers have not stopped for a moment. As the saying goes, there are waves of unrest and waves, but the impact of information on myself is much smaller.

Moreover, the officials focused on the newspaper's debates, and often ignored some small actions of the crown prince, which made Zhu Cihong very satisfied.

However, after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Zhu Cihong suddenly smelled something bad from the newspaper.

At first it was just a sentence or two in an article, and then a separate small article appeared, but there was only one core, which was to let the emperor take the throne and the crown prince ascend the throne.

No matter which dynasty or generation, such words are very taboo to the emperor, and now the crown prince is also displeased.Well, why do you want to mention this stubble?Even if Emperor Chongzhen wanted to take the Zen throne, he shouldn't have shouted it out from the Wuyi.What's more, everyone knows that the crown prince created the newspaper, and there is a cultural management department under the Metropolitan Procuratorate. If this is left alone, the world will naturally have reason to believe that it is the crown prince himself.

"Is this kind of saying no father and no king?" Zhu Cihong summoned Li Banghua and Li Zhensheng to the Wenhua Palace, and spread out a row of newspapers in front of them. One newspaper even published "Chongzhen Zhongxing!" on the front page!Made by the Crown Prince? "'s editorial, pointing out that today's political affairs are actually decided by the Crown Prince.

Although the "Huangming Bulletin" refuted it in a timely manner and clarified the government affairs procedures, who is in charge of those procedures?What they prefer to see is intense conflict and conflicts.It's like looking at the mountains and not happy with the level!

And the crown prince does fit the protagonist template in the minds of the general public. For example, he was a child prodigy when he was young, and he can turn the tide when he grows up, and he can govern the huge empire to flourish at the age of twenty.

They might grin and gasp after the change of the palace ban: "Human relations are a tragedy!"

But before that, they all had a mind of watching the excitement, and they were afraid that the world would not be chaotic.

"Chief Constitution. Could it be that the civil servants are dissatisfied with me?" Zhu Cihong asked suddenly.

To kill, there are stick kills and kills with praise.

It is undoubtedly a kind of flattery to lift a person to a position far beyond his virtue.No matter how decently the crown prince does and how much he contributes to Ming Dynasty, in this society of human relations, as long as he dares to usurp the throne, his virtue will be questioned through the ages.In this regard, the two emperors Taizong of the Tang and Song Dynasties have already set an example.

Li Banghua raised his eyelids, glanced at Zhu Cihong, and sighed inwardly.

In the way of thinking of civil servants.It is rare to fight tough battles.Unless they are strong, the emperor is weak, or the emperor really touches the bottom line, such as the Dali Conference and the national dispute.Now that the crown prince is strong, the civil servants are weak and disorganized, and they haven't touched the moral red line, they must not be hard-pressed.

With the development of the situation to this point, Li Banghua cannot be cleared up no matter what.In fact, he is not innocent.Without the acquiescence of the chief constitution of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, who would dare to be so blatant.

"I'm old and frail. I can't be reused. Now that there are such omissions, I can only beg for the bones." Li Banghua said in a deep voice.

Li Zhensheng glanced at the crown prince, and said: "Your Highness, the minister is in charge of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and this matter happened. The crime deserves death. Please grant the crime."

Zhu Cihong glanced at Li Banghua, then at Li Zhensheng, and said rather desolately: "It seems that my guess is right?"

It seems that the second stage has been developed, and the civil servants have ended the tandem and started to attack.

Zhu Cihong leaned heavily on the back of the chair.A little tired, he said, "Where did I go wrong?"

Neither Li Banghua nor Li Zhensheng spoke.

After a moment of cold silence, Zhu Cihong finally took a breath and said, "You guys have stepped back, and the censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate still have to do their duty faithfully."

"I'm waiting to retire."

Li Banghua's resignation letter was sent to the cabinet that afternoon, and after the cabinet drafted it, it was sent to the Sheren Section and submitted to Zhu for approval.According to the tradition of becoming an official at seventy since ancient times, he has exceeded the time limit for serving the court.Moreover, he was determined to return to the garden this time, and he even recommended the next Zuodu Censor, obviously there was no room for change.

Zhu Cihong knew that it was impossible to keep him, and it was very inhumane to prevent an old man in his seventies from returning to his hometown.At the beginning, Li Yuzhi couldn't leave because he wanted to stabilize the hearts of the old bureaucrats, which made Zhu Cihong feel quite guilty.

On the 23rd of the first month of the 23rd year of Chongzhen, Li Banghua officially received the emperor's edict, and he became an official with the title of Taibao.At the same time, the emperor also ordered the magistrate of Jishui County, Jiangxi Province, to build a "fair and honest" archway, and set up a monument for Li Banghua to commemorate his achievements.

Li Banghua packed up his belongings early on the morning of the 24th and returned to his hometown.

Zhu Cihong drove to the see-off pavilion outside the city early on. This place is no longer a simple pavilion, but an open-air catering market, providing wine and food for the officials who see off, and even the Four Treasures of the Study, so that they can leave some poems.

Compared with Li Banghua's guard of honor in the Taibao, surprisingly few officials came to see him off.Part of it was because the Metropolitan Procuratorate tabooed making friends and forming cliques, so even their own bosses just sent a farewell message.The other half is the timing of Li Banghua's departure, which is a kind of betrayal to some people.

"After you return to the village, sir, please send someone to send you a letter of safety." Zhu Cihong held Li Banghua's hands tightly. These hands had dried up to the point of skin and bones, but they were as hard as iron.

Li Banghua's eyes were filled with tears, his throat was choked up, and he could no longer speak out.

Zhu Cihong recalled seeing Li Banghua in the restaurant that day, recalling that Li Banghua was in charge of the Metropolitan Procuratorate and acted as a vanguard and scalpel for his reforms, and he was quite grateful.Although there is a young body, the soul that has experienced vicissitudes of life cherishes the sincerity between people even more.

Li Banghua really didn't want to see Zhu Cihong face the overall confrontation of the civil service group, but how could such unspoken rules be said?The loyalty of scholars in the Ming Dynasty is not loyalty to the emperor or the lord, but loyalty to morality.This statement sounds very rebellious, but it has been said badly during the Wanli period.

"Sir, I have traveled thousands of miles, and I don't know how to ask for advice." Zhu Cihong looked at Li Banghua's turbid tears, and his nose was a little sore.

"Leave the matter of the Metropolitan Procuratorate to Li Zhensheng, Your Highness can rest assured." Li Banghua choked up.

Zhu Cihong opened the car door for Li Banghua himself, helped the old Xiantai get into the car, and said: "What else can you teach me, sir?"

Li Banghua's stooped body stopped, turned his head and hesitated to speak, and finally when the crown prince let go, he couldn't help but said: "Your Highness, the old minister is about to travel far away, and there is still one thing I have to say."

"Appreciate further details."

"Among the young officials, there are still some who can enrich their speech." Li Banghua said: "Chen Zilong and Zhou Heng are all available talents."

Zhu Cilang heard some familiar names among the two strangers, and knew that this was Li Banghua's last support, so he nodded and stepped aside, let the servants close the door, and watched the carriage slowly heading south.

Li Banghua sat in the car, took out a silk scarf to wipe away the muddy tears from the corners of his eyes, and leaned heavily on the soft leather seat, feeling as if all the strength in his body had been exhausted.From this moment on, he no longer has to do his best for Daming. It stands to reason that he should be relaxed, but his heart is filled with endless emptiness.

Listening to the rhythm of the horse wheels running over the official road, Li Banghua couldn't help but recall the exhaustion he had when he traveled all the way to Beijing.In any case, the crown prince has changed Daming, and sent Daming to a hard and smooth road.

Just like the official road under your feet now.

In the 23rd year of Chongzhen, at the end of the first month, after Li Banghua left, the wind of public opinion in Ming Dynasty became more and more intense.Some voices against the theory of the Zen position also emerged, but these people were not supporters of the crown prince, but "partners" who spoke ironically.Who built Chongzhen Zhongxing is no longer the root of the problem. The real problem is who should bear the responsibility if the crown prince makes a wrong decision.

At this point, Zhu Cihong saw it very clearly: the civil servants were opposing the Daxing war.

Only Wu Tong knew about his intention to seal the wolf as a Xu, and with Wu Tong's scheming, he would definitely not accidentally leak the news.Then it is very likely that it was deliberately leaked, and it may even be that he himself is promoting this public opinion war against himself.

I believe that it won't be long before Sony and Obai's entry into the court will be uncovered, and information about the actions of the Russians in the Northeast will also be reported in the newspapers.If the discussion of war with Russia was raised from the very beginning, there must be those who advocate the war, but now that this issue has become part of the responsibility for the national destiny, more people will be cautious, and they all have to consider a question: whoever loses ?

What a painstaking effort.

Zhu Cihong really wanted to turn a blind eye to this. Anyway, it is impossible for public opinion to dominate the national policy. If he wants to fight with determination, will the Metropolitan Government still resist orders?Well, the current situation can actually allow the Metropolitan Government to organize public opinion forces to fight against the civil servants.In this way, when the lawsuit reaches the court, there will be checks and balances.

Zhu Cihong also thought of Chen Zilong and Zhou Heng recommended by Li Banghua. It seemed that Li Banghua still couldn't get rid of the civil servant pattern, and hoped that the civil servants would solve it internally instead of letting military officials intervene.

……

"The crown prince made a big mistake. The civil servants were able to unite under the banner of anti-war because they were worried about the expansion of military officials' powers, and even more worried that if the country used large-scale military forces, the power of military generals would definitely rise again. He will If the military officer came to fight the civil servant, wouldn't it make the civil servant more united?"

"Then what to do..."

"Of course, poaching corners from within the civil servants is the best policy. As long as it is between civil officials, there is no problem in saying anything. Once the military officers get involved, they will never die." (To be continued...)

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