"That's right..."
Old Yan Song's face was very gloomy, and it only slightly eased now. After all, this might be the most difficult counter-attack opportunity in his life. Once lost, it would be irretrievable. He had calculated everything, but he never expected Zhu Mo to refuse to give up and sneak back. He also didn't expect that the common people were no longer the same common people as before. How did the Qingnu in the Tunken Guard in Jiangnan suddenly change their ways? Logically speaking, these common people could be easily suppressed. Why did they resist this time?
Yan Song was eighty-three years old after all. He had rarely left home twenty years ago, and in recent years he hadn't even returned to his hometown. Everything in this world depended on his subordinates to tell him. After hearing so much, there might have been great deviations from reality...
He took a long breath and said leisurely:
"Everything has changed... Why has everyone changed..."
He shook his head again and said with a wry smile:
"Han Zhang, they don't understand. You tell me, why did people's hearts change? Hmm... Let's talk about Zhang Juzheng first. How dare he forge an imperial decree? When did the common people in Jiangnan dare to confront powerful families? And those scholars, like He Xinyin, why are they so capable? And those firearms, I've always been wondering why you didn't know about the firearms in the gunpowder bureau... Haha, I'm old... The world is unbearable to look at..."
Luo Longwen also felt a little sad—
After all, this biggest figure in the Great Ming had not left home for more than ten years. How could he know the changes outside? In the past two years, since Zhu Mo appeared, this world had indeed been changing, and changing very rapidly... The reason was unclear. In short, his group of people had been on the decline... Even Old Yan Song, with his astute mind, was overwhelmed...
"Esteemed Elder, you don't need to worry too much. Your subordinate speculates that we just lack luck... If we talk about mistakes, there are really not many mistakes, just too bad luck... Let's take a break, wait, and things will eventually get better..."
Luo Longwen was still smiling, but he felt helpless in his heart.
Yan Song nodded, patted his shoulder, and sat back on the couch, holding his head up, and closed his eyes.
Yan Shifan sat over, massaging his back, and said:
"I've said it long ago, we people have been spoiled by living in luxury all these years... We dare not do anything! Look at them, what do they dare not do? Zhang Juzheng even dared to forge an imperial decree!"
Everyone was also indignant.
Luo Longwen thought of something and reminded:
"Zhang Juzheng is indeed daring, but your subordinate believes he still dares not forge an imperial decree... After all, Elder Chen is in charge now, and the Crown Prince is overseeing the government. What good would it do him to forge the Crown Prince's decree? I think there must be some inside story..."
Yan Song sighed:
"You're right, naturally there is an inside story... Han Zhang, can you guess it?"
His mood was extremely bad today. Apart from Luo Longwen, who had a good mind, he didn't want to bother with anyone else. At this moment, he only chatted with Luo Longwen.
Luo Longwen bowed and said:
"Esteemed Elder, your subordinate has also roughly guessed. Could it be, could it be the Emperor..."
As soon as the word "Emperor" was uttered, the room fell silent.
Yan Shifan's mind was very quick. He immediately thought of something, clapped his leg with a "snap," and blurted out:
"Feng Bao!"
Everyone also reacted immediately!
If Feng Bao had spoken to Zhang Juzheng, it would be difficult to define this matter. It could be said to be forging an imperial decree, or it could be said not to be, existing in between. And the Crown Prince was probably unaware of this matter. But the problem was, the Crown Prince was the Emperor's son. According to the teachings of the sages, if the father made a decision for his son, the son could only accept it... The Crown Prince was currently in this awkward situation... And the Crown Prince's embarrassment was the taboo of all officials. No one dared to expose this old wound...
Therefore,
This matter could only be regarded as the Crown Prince's will!
So,
Zhang Juzheng did not forge an imperial decree!
Everyone's minds raced, and they let out a string of sighs—
The Emperor acting this way meant that he regarded the people present as enemies... Even the Crown Prince was not trusted, and Chen Yiqin would also be very awkward.
"Father! We can't take this loss! We must make Zhang Yu recant! What is that confession he wrote? What is it? It's clearly coercion! Father, listen to your son, this is the last time, we have to fight for it..."
Yan Song stared at him fiercely. After a while, he said coldly, "If he recants, what if they present other evidence?"
Yan Shifan retorted this time:
"Father! Zhang Yu is the Imperial Envoy, and Zhu Mo and the others are imprisoning the Imperial Envoy! They forced the Imperial Envoy to write a confession, isn't that rebellion?!"
Everyone, although afraid of Yan Song, deeply agreed with these words. But Yan Song just glanced at Luo Longwen, and Luo Longwen said slowly:
"Young Grand Secretary, please don't be angry... Wan Cai also sent word back to Old Yan saying that Zhu Mo did not force Wei Shi. It was the leaders of the reformist officers who wanted to whitewash themselves. They all swarmed him, saying that if he didn't write clearly, they wouldn't let him leave..."
Everyone immediately cursed out—
"Zhu Mo, the villain!"
"Too wicked!"
"Killing with a borrowed knife!"
"He's not human at all!"
Thinking of this, everyone was both shocked and angry.
Yan Song shook his head, gave a wry smile, and sighed:
"Those gentry in Jiangnan... are also opportunists. Everyone in this world is an opportunist, it all depends on where the wind blows... They are afraid of the Yan family falling, so they naturally flock to us... What's so strange about that..."
As he spoke, he stood up, paced a few steps, his emotions already calmed, and said indifferently, "Whatever Zhu Mo does is not surprising... But the Emperor doing this is unusual..."
He, Yan Song, could be said to be the foremost strategist of the present. As soon as he heard that Zhang Juzheng had issued a secret order in the name of the Ministry of War, he guessed that Jiajing was behind it. He naturally also guessed that Feng Bao was involved, and Jiajing was hidden behind it, letting Prince Yu swallow this bitter pill. The purpose was, naturally, to preserve the achievements of the reform in Jiangnan.
But this way, Prince Yu would be very fearful, and Chen Yiqin would also be very uneasy. What to do next? Whether to depose the Crown Prince might even be under consideration.
Originally,
He thought Jiajing had compromised. Perhaps Zhu Mo had touched upon something that could not be changed. Jiajing, considering the stability of the overall situation, had first legitimized the Crown Prince. There was naturally a test for the Crown Prince. As long as the Crown Prince passed the test, the world would not be in chaos. Chen Yiqin was also shrewd and had put forward a compromise plan. As long as there were no major accidents, it could indeed lead to a stable transition.
But if Chen Yiqin successfully assisted the Crown Prince through this hurdle, it would likely be his turn to deal with the Yan family next. After all, the gentry of the world were watching. The new master had emerged, so the old master should be phased out. Chen Yiqin, in league with Zhang Juzheng, Xu Jie, and even Zhu Mo, would form an overall situation. His Yan family would bear the brunt of the accounts of the past twenty years, and where would they find a good ending then?
If this event had happened a few years earlier, he, Yan Song, would have gone home without a second thought. After all, Jiajing would not have done anything to him and his son. But it was different now. Jiajing had repeatedly expressed his extreme dissatisfaction with him. If he failed this time, his clan would be exterminated! Not only his Yan family, but none of those present could escape.
He clearly remembered that at the poetry discussion in the Huangji Hall last time, Jiajing personally said that the Qingci guests had possessed the old Daoist. The meaning was already very clear. In Jiajing's eyes, his Yan family father and son were already more heinous than Yang Tinghe and his son... If he did not contend, where would there be a way to live? In fact, it was from that day onwards that he, Yan Song, made up his mind to fight to the end no matter what...
This time,
The reason he felt so frustrated was that this move was a crucial step to reverse the decline—
As long as Zhang Yu firmly held onto his original faction and the gentry in Jiangnan, and reversed the achievements of the reform, Chen Yiqin and the Crown Prince could not shake him off. Then, no matter what they did, just like in the past twenty years, the Yan family would still control the world. After all, the Yan family provided tangible benefits, huge benefits, and benefits that would be passed down through generations to the powerful families of the world. And others could not achieve this, so they naturally could not compete with him...
But somehow, perhaps it was really too bad luck, even the sinister Zhang Yu failed. Was this heaven's will to destroy the Yan family?