Lu Fang saw his expression soften and also breathed a sigh of relief. However, thinking of the events in Jiangnan, he could not help but worry. He said with emotion,
"Your servant is worried about Jiangnan... Who exactly is this Zhang Yu? How can he be so heartless? Your servant has seen the five policies reported by Zhu Qi and the others. They are simply defying heaven..."
Zhang Yu?
Jiajing murmured for a while and recalled something. He said,
"That Zhang Yu should be in the Dali Temple, right? He writes good poetry, and I heard he can also paint, and has a small reputation..."
Hmph!
Lu Fang hated cruel people the most, and spat,
"Who knows who he is? He writes poetry and paints? Can his poetry surpass Wang Shizhen? Can his paintings compare to that Xu Wei? I think his writings are not as good as Zhu Mo's..."
Jiajing chuckled and said,
"Talent is talent, virtue is virtue. It has always been that treacherous officials write good calligraphy... Do you mean to say that treacherous officials are all stupid? If they were stupid, how could they be so treacherous?"
Lu Fang was still indignant and said,
"Anyway, your servant just doesn't like these people..."
Jiajing nodded and sighed,
"To love good and hate evil, that is the way of the sage..."
Lu Fang was also filled with emotion and said,
"Your Majesty, leaving aside everything else, that Zhang Yu created the 'Bian Fa Xiaowei' (Reforming Colonel), which is truly a wicked deed... Your servant is very worried that the people of Jiangnan will suffer greatly from him..."
Speaking of this,
The two fell into silence.
These two men had governed the country for forty years. How could they not know what a Bian Fa Xiaowei was? Not only was Lu Fang worried early on, but Jiajing was also as clear as a mirror—this was precisely what he feared! This was precisely what he hated!
Granting supervision of the state to Prince Yu was also an opportunity for them to reform and see what they could achieve. The worst outcome, naturally, was such a violent reversal. Jiajing still held a glimmer of hope, but it was now crushed into helplessness. This world, after all, was ultimately a place where people were the least to be trusted...
He sighed leisurely and said,
"Where is Zhu Mo? Doesn't he care? Where is Zhang Juzheng? They initiated this matter, are they really just going to walk away..."
Lu Fang said,
"Those scoundrels in Jiangnan are still reporting as usual. Your servant has also asked Yang Jin to report some more... Zhu Mo is said to have returned to Hangzhou, but he is nowhere to be seen, nor has he appeared. Wu Ming and Wu Liang said that he also intends to stop it, but whether he can ultimately stop it depends on fate... Zhang Juzheng has returned to the capital. No one sees him. The Grand Secretariat has also been suspended. He went to the Ministry of War's duty room, and some scribes heard him discussing state affairs with two vice ministers. He does seem to care about national affairs... A few days ago, I heard he even met Yan Song..."
Oh?
Jiajing was stunned for a moment and said,
"What did he go to see Yan Song for? What about Chen Yiqin? He doesn't see him?"
Lu Fang admired and said,
"Your Majesty is as wise as ever. Chen Yiqin indeed did not see him. After a while, he became anxious and went to see Grand Secretary Yan. It is said he did not stay long, only for a short while before coming out."
Jiajing closed his eyes and thought for a while,
"Did Prince Yu and Chen Yiqin approve of this?"
Lu Fang nodded and said, "What they say is different from what they do..."
Jiajing sighed deeply and said leisurely,
"What is said is naturally different from what is done..."
Lu Fang had spoken for so long, wanting to ask what to do. Seeing that Jiajing remained silent, he could not help but ask, "Your Majesty, we cannot wait... If something happens, then..."
Although he said this, he understood in his heart—
Now that His Majesty had retired to the Daoist palace, it was inconvenient to manage court affairs. Otherwise, all the officials in the empire would gossip, giving an excuse to the villains. But if he did not manage it, and if they were forced to commit a bloody crime, wouldn't Prince Yu be implicated? Not only that, but wouldn't the people suffer?
But he could only say so much on this matter. If he said any more, it would be a taboo of the imperial court.
After a long while,
Jiajing finally said,
"We cannot ignore it, but we cannot manage it openly..."
He paced a few steps, and suddenly had an inspiration. He said,
"Lu Fang, go and tell Feng Bao to find Zhang Juzheng... The matter was caused by Zhang Juzheng and Zhu Mo. They cannot just walk away. Tell Zhang Juzheng to figure it out himself..."
This?
Lu Fang did not understand for a moment and could not help but be surprised.
Hmph,
Jiajing glared at him and stopped talking.
Lu Fang pondered for a while, then suddenly slapped his head and blurted out,
"That's right, that's how it should be!"
He thought of it then—
Feng Bao was a member of Prince Yu's household and usually acted as a liaison between Prince Yu and the palace. This person was also acquainted with Xu Jie, Zhang Juzheng, and others. At this time, if he went to tell Zhang Juzheng to manage the affairs of Jiangnan, it would be equivalent to having two titles, one from the Emperor and one from the Crown Prince. The court officials could neither say it was the Emperor's will nor the Crown Prince's will, but it was slightly related to both. If the officials criticized, the Crown Prince would have to bear it. After all, the Emperor was the father, and the Crown Prince was the son. No one could say anything. This was truly a brilliant strategy to solve the problem.
He immediately said happily, "Your servant will go and do it now!"
Jiajing scolded with a smile,
"You usually seem so smart, but you're just a muddlehead!"
...
On this day,
Zhang Juzheng and Liang Menglong were chatting in the main hall of the Ministry of War. Wang Guoguang had already gone to Jizhou to investigate the intentions of the Tumu (Chahar) and why Yang Bo was so negligent. This was a matter of military affairs of the imperial court. As a vice minister, he could at least personally look into it and ask about it.
Liang Menglong was waiting for Zhang Juzheng's final decision before going to Jiangnan. Otherwise, without a legitimate reason, going would be useless. Zhang Juzheng was extremely troubled. Even after visiting Yan's residence, he had not obtained the desired transaction. That old Yan Song was too ruthless and did not yield an inch. Instead, it turned into him begging for something from him.
After the two sat in silence for a while,
Liang Menglong grumbled,
"Taixue, you can't count on Yan Song. How could he possibly yield? If he were willing to compromise, how would he have gotten to this point!"
Zhang Juzheng nodded and sighed,
"I originally thought that by showing my sincerity, he would at least compromise a little, but it was contrary to my wishes..."
Liang Menglong had always respected him. Seeing him humiliate himself for the sake of the people of Jiangnan this time, he was even more impressed. But how could such a move be effective against someone like Yan Song? He immediately advised,
"Brother Taixue, you are like feeding a tiger with your own flesh, and it's still useless... Haven't the Yan family been like this for twenty years? Think about it, if he made concessions to you, how would he appease those powerful families in Jiangnan? We are not of the same kind as them, so we can't get along!"
Seeing that Zhang Juzheng was still restless, he added,
"Many people saw you throw Zhang Yu out that day. The court has been discussing it for several days... Now, everyone knows that you, Zhang Juzheng, were forced out by them! The matter of Jiangnan is no longer related to you, Brother Taixue... Even if some major bloody incident occurs, it won't be yours..."
Zhang Juzheng was not worried about that. After much thought late at night these past two days, he suddenly felt that the Yan family's actions seemed to have ambitions beyond the small. In the past, he had not thought about it deeply, but after a little consideration in recent days, he had already sensed something unusual—
Zhang Yu's stance clearly indicated that he was going to cause some major trouble, and even explicitly intended to shed blood... But by doing so, wouldn't it tarnish the Crown Prince's noble name? Why would Yan Song do this? What benefit would it bring him?
Upon careful consideration, it was inevitable that one would make associations—
Did they want to completely reveal their hand? Not only did they reverse the reform, but they also discredited the Crown Prince. Would they then use the pretext of attacking Zhu Mo to force the Emperor to abdicate? But who would the throne be given to? Letting Prince Yu ascend the throne, but on the first day having to issue a decree of self-blame? At the same time, making Chen Yiqin bear the blame and become a laughingstock of the world? Would they then turn Prince Yu into a complete puppet?
The more he thought about it, the colder he felt...
It is known that people like Zhang Juzheng have always been called "skilled in governing the country, but clumsy in managing themselves," and therefore have never had a good end. Compared to people like Zhao Zhenji, they were very slow in this regard, and even inferior to their student Liang Menglong, or the low-ranking officials in the capital. These people, if hinted at, could understand the whole story. Yan Shifan only needed to give a hint, and almost the entire world would unite in agreement. Therefore, people like Zhang Juzheng could only achieve temporary success. After their death, they were immediately liquidated, and some were even severely punished while still alive.
Liang Menglong knew his teacher's character well and naturally understood that such a person could not be persuaded by ten cows. Thinking of this, he could not help but sigh deeply.