Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 454 I am not interested in politics
While Yang Tinghe and Yang Yiqing were bargaining over the Minister of Rites, people in the imperial city were also somewhat confused about Lu Ting's solo move.

At the beginning, they read Bi Zhen and Gu Dayong's petition with great interest because it had nothing to do with them.

Moreover, Bi Zhen also shouted out words like "The country has supported eunuchs for a hundred years, and they have died for their loyalty and righteousness today", which sounded very passionate and exciting.

The impact of these two people's memorials also aroused the interest of many eunuchs in the palace and guards outside the palace.

If the governor of the Western Factory and the eunuch guarding Shandong can play like this, then so can I!

I can also be patriotic. I can also write a petition to the emperor to let the world have its say and express my ambitions.
Unexpectedly, Lu Ting's memorial seemed to have stirred up a hornet's nest, causing a huge backlash in the inner court.

It’s because the person recommended by Lu Ting is called Xie Qian!

Xie Qian was a member of a faction that was strongly opposed to the inner court.

Since Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, the two sides have been fighting a life-and-death struggle.

The final result is:
The "Eight Tigers of Zhengde" headed by Liu Jin forcefully killed and dispersed some of the old people of Hongzhi who colluded with the outer court; Xie Qian retired and left; Liu Jin, who showed his ability and emerged as a rising star, jumped from a lowly position as the chief of the Bell and Drum Department to the head of the inner court; then Liu Jin took full control of the government, began to reform and promote Liu Jin's new policies.

Now Liu Jin is finished. If Xie Qian comes back as a victor, he will definitely intensify his attacks against the inner court.

As a result, many eunuchs in the inner court were completely confused as to why Lu Ting would make such a decision.

No, what does this have to do with you? You have nothing to do with yourself.

Even the Emperor Zhu Houzhao was very unhappy about this, because Xie Qian was more powerful than Yang Tinghe and would be more detrimental to his ambitions.

Fortunately, Lu Ting had secretly sent someone into the palace to deliver a message, asking the emperor to be patient.

Zhu Houzhao then kept silent.

As a result, Yang Tinghe secretly asked for a meeting with Zhu Houzhao for less than a day.

That's right.

The first person to jump out was Yang Tinghe, who was also from the Qingliu camp.

Yang Tinghe was completely passive in this matter.

He had absolutely no legitimate reason to prevent such a prestigious and reputable top civil official from returning to the court.

Even those who support him don't dare to come out and express their opinions.

Would the Ministry of Rites dare to stop Xie's move? Would the Censorate dare to stop Xie's move? Would the six departments dare to stop Xie's move?
They couldn't even say that Lu Ting was secretly colluding with Xie Qian and trying to form a clique.

That’s Xie Qian!

Wrongly accusing a eunuch of joining a clique with him.

Is this still a human being?!
You can't even fool yourself with this kind of words.

So Yang Tinghe thought about it and decided that there was only one person who could press the pause button on this matter and prevent Xie Qian from being reinstated, and that was the current emperor.

Only the emperor, who is outside the rules, can arbitrarily suspend Xie Qian's reinstatement and withstand everyone's firepower attacks.

While Zhu Houzhao was confused, after listening to Yang Tinghe saying something like "the strict teacher Xie is about to come back", he suddenly remembered Lu Ting's words and immediately realized it.

Yang Tinghe certainly didn't want Xie Qian to come back. After Xie Qian came back, many of his disciples and old friends immediately responded, and no minister in the court would care about him, Yang Tinghe.

Now, as the only one who can stop Xie Qian from coming back, don't I have the qualifications to bargain down the price to Yang Tinghe?
Zhu Houzhao did not expect that the vacancy of the Minister of Rites would create such a great opportunity for himself.

As for Lu Ting, since he had given a warning in advance, he must have expected this.

Zhu Houzhao's opinion of Lu Ting changed drastically all of a sudden. This guy is quite good.

Looking at the pages of paper written on the cloth in his hand, Zhu Houzhao couldn't help feeling a little excited.

More updates, love to read!
The Minister of Personnel Yang Yiqing obviously also realized that Yang Tinghe was likely to do something tricky.

But he didn't expect that Yang Tinghe would actually compromise with the emperor for this.

In order to prevent Lu Ting's status as a eunuch from bringing negative impact to this insightful memorial, Yang Yiqing is still trying hard to protect Lu Ting.

On the one hand, he believed that Lu Ting had been very capable since he defeated the rebels in Bazhou with great ease since he took over as the commander-in-chief of military affairs.

Such a capable person must be able to distinguish right from wrong.

On the other hand, Lu Ting was the commander on the front line and had a clear understanding of the people's sentiments in various places.

What Lu Ting said was very credible and was widely recognized by civil and military officials in the court.

On the other hand, Lu Ting, although a eunuch, was able to recommend Xie Qian, the former Grand Secretary, who had an excellent reputation and advocated limiting the power of eunuchs. It can be seen that his thoughts were purely public-spirited.

Since it is made out of public interest, it should be left to public judgment, rather than worrying about his identity.

Lu Ting, who had been waiting for Yang Yiqing for a long time, saw Yang Yiqing come out to speak for him, and immediately asked someone to express his position to Yang Yiqing.

I, Lu, really have no selfish motives at all. Please stop speaking for me, so as to avoid misunderstandings among the civil and military officials in the court.

Yang Yiqing looked at the naive Eunuch Lu, and then thought about Eunuch Zhang Yong, who had captured a tattooed guy some time ago and wanted to make himself a marquis. For a moment, he felt that he had met him too late and had wasted half his life.

Just as Yang Yiqing was thinking about how to continue to push Xie Qian to return to the court.

Suddenly, an imperial edict came from the inner palace.

When everyone heard this, they all looked strange. It turned out that the emperor rejected the candidate directly because he did not want to trouble Xie Xueshi.

Many officials were puzzled and also bewildered by the emperor of the time.

No, what does this have to do with you? You have nothing to do with yourself.

Yang Yiqing, who was thrown a bucket of cold water, was very sensitive to this and directly asked the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict, "Did the Prime Minister come to the palace to see the emperor?"

The eunuch Kuang Le who delivered the imperial eunuch was an ordinary eunuch in the Imperial Household Department. He knew that the official in front of him from the Ministry of Personnel was an ally of the boss Zhang Yong.

Although he didn't say anything, he gave Yang Yiqing a meaningful look.

Yang Yiqing understood immediately and became furious.

In front of the officials of the Ministry of Personnel, he could not help but curse, "It was the thief who pretended to be arrogant and criticized Wang Qiong, but he did not expect that he was even worse than Wang Qiong."

Seeing this, the eunuch Kuang Le, who was delivering the imperial edict, said softly, "Grand Secretary Yang is the Prime Minister. Isn't it natural for him to see the emperor if he has something to ask?"

"Besides, don't the Prime Minister and the Emperor have the power to express their opinions on the appointment of one of the Seven Ministers?"

Kuang Le seemed to be trying to help explain, but in fact he was hinting that the reason why Xie Qian could not be reinstated this time was because Yang Tinghe went to the emperor to make arrangements.

No matter what deal the emperor and Yang Tinghe made, he, a servant, helped the emperor to pass the buck because of his ignorance and lack of rigor in his words, and also helped the ally of Zhang Gonggong, the seal holder of the Imperial Household Department, to pit Yang Tinghe. How big a mistake could this be?
When the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict left, Yang Yiqing felt a little uncomfortable.

Originally, he hoped to borrow Xie Qian's power and work together to defeat Yang Tinghe.

Now that Yang Tinghe has denied this matter, it is almost equivalent to slapping Yang Yiqing in the face in front of all the civil and military officials in the court.

Naturally, Yang Yiqing refused to give up and made the matter a hot topic.

Although Yang Tinghe tried his best to deny it, many people with discerning eyes knew that the one who would suffer the most from Xie Qian's return would be Yang Tinghe.

Therefore, although many officials expressed their belief in Prime Minister Yang's integrity, they all believed in their hearts that this incident was most likely done by Yang Tinghe.

This caused Yang Tinghe's reputation to plummet in the eyes of many neutral officials.

Although Yang Yiqing dealt a blow to Yang Tinghe's reputation, it also made more neutral parties realize that in the game between the two, Yang Tinghe was still the one who took the initiative.

Just when Yang Yiqing was feeling extremely depressed, he returned home after finishing his official duties one day and suddenly heard that the eunuch Lu Ting, the commander of the Imperial Stables, had sent him a letter, expressing his wish to visit him.

Theoretically speaking, given Yang Yiqing's identity, it would be difficult for him to meet such a person privately.

However, since Lu Ting came back from the front line where he supervised military affairs, he has been keeping a low profile at home and has not been involved in the affairs of the inner court, as his military rank has not been determined and his future position is also awaiting confirmation.

In addition, Lu Ting's tactfulness this time made Yang Yiqing very fond of him. After hesitating for a moment, he agreed to meet Lu Ting.

After the servant who delivered the visiting card returned, Lu Ting, who had received the confirmation, immediately followed the instructions of the mastermind and went to meet Yang Yiqing.

Although Yang Yiqing had a good impression of Lu Ting, he still had the deep-rooted vigilance of a civil official against eunuchs when he came to visit Lu Ting.

After the greetings, Yang Yiqing asked Lu Ting directly about his purpose. "Eunuch Lu is an important official in the inner court. Is there something important that you came to see me this time?"

Lu Ting pretended to be frank and said, "Before, I was dissatisfied and wrote a letter to the emperor, which caused some criticism. It was all thanks to the Heavenly Official who spoke up for me."

Before Yang Yiqing understood Lu Ting's intention, he didn't want to cause any more trouble and was about to make some excuses.

Then Lu Ting said, "Before I submit my petition this time, I want to hear Yang Tianguan's opinion."

Yang Yiqing was a little surprised when he heard this, "Eunuch Lu is going to write another letter?"

Lu Ting sighed, "Yes. Although the candidate I proposed last time was rejected by the emperor, since I have started this, I must see it through to the end."

After hearing this, Yang Yiqing thought to himself, could it be that Lu Ting’s silly behavior before was just a feint, and the person who was really colluding with Lu Ting was about to surface?

He thought for a moment and asked calmly, "Who does Eunuch Lu like?"

Lu Ting said without hesitation, "I am not very knowledgeable, so I naturally trust the judgment of the scholars and officials in the court. Since the last time I proposed Xie Qian, the scholar Xie, was widely recognized, then it must be good to compare it with the standards of the scholar Xie."

Yang Yiqing was surprised. "Compared to the standards of Master Xie?"

Lu Ting said, "Not bad."

This was not what Yang Yiqing had expected. He could not help but ask, "Who does Eunuch Lu have his eye on?"

Lu Ting said very frankly, "Former Nanjing Minister of Personnel Wang Hua."

Then he gave his basis, "Xie Qian was the top scholar in the 11th year of Chenghua, and Wang Hua was the top scholar in the 17th year of Chenghua. They were both outstanding literary talents and the best of their time."

"After they passed the imperial examinations, they both served as Hanlin editors. They fully meet the rigid requirements of being a minister of the Ministry of Rites and must be from the Hanlin. Moreover, in terms of rank, they are both high-ranking officials, which is enough to convince the public."

"Mr. Xie is upright and honest, and he is irreconcilable with the traitor Liu Jin. Minister Wang is also of high character. Under the suppression of the traitor Liu Jin, he refused to submit and eventually resigned from his post."

“They are both from Yuyao and have similar hometown support.”

"What do you think of this candidate, Yang Tianguan?"

Yang Yiqing was almost stunned when he heard this.

Because this candidate is absolutely perfect for him.

What is Yang Yiqing’s political foundation?
It’s against Liu Jin!

Being against Liu Jin is Yang Yiqing’s political correctness.

Not only was Wang Hua politically correct in opposing Liu Jin, but he also got full marks in terms of his place of origin.

Because Liu Jin and Jiao Fang's party not only targeted people from Jiangxi, but also singled out a person from Yuyao!

In other words, as the person who overthrew Liu Jin, Yang Yiqing was naturally a political ally of Yuyao Wang Hua.

Moreover, as Xie Qian's second best choice, Wang Hua, the former Minister of Personnel, who is so similar to Xie Qian in all aspects, can easily gain the approval of those who originally supported Xie Qian.

Moreover, Wang Hua was a very good person with a gentle personality. He served as Zhu Houzhao's lecturer for many years and was rarely involved in struggles between the court and the public. There was almost no force opposing him.

Yang Yiqing couldn't help but sincerely praise, "Eunuch Lu is indeed a man of great insight."

When Lu Ting heard Yang Yiqing say this, he immediately said, "Since Yang Tianguan also thinks it is appropriate, I will express my personal position tomorrow."

Yang Yiqing thought about it and said clearly, "Very good."

After saying this, Lu Ting deliberately hesitated for a moment. Yang Yiqing was a little surprised and asked, "Does Eunuch Lu have something else to say?"

Lu Ting hesitated and said, "In Yang Tianguan's opinion, what is the possibility of this candidate being approved?"

Yang Yiqing said without hesitation, "It must be this person."

After saying that, Yang Yiqing was no longer on guard against Lu Ting and started to explain, "You are right. Wang Hua is very similar to Xie Qian in many ways. Xie Qian is highly respected. His reinstatement was blocked by Yang Tinghe for no reason. This must have aroused the indignation of many people."

"If Wang Hua is nominated, after the last failure, many people will vent their dissatisfaction with Yang Tinghe by supporting Wang Hua."

"Yang Tinghe's prestige has just plummeted due to his obstruction of Xie Qian's return to the court. How could he possibly show his domineering image again for a good man like Wang Hua? So I think this candidate will definitely be approved."

After listening to this, Lu Ting suddenly understood, and then said to himself with some admiration, "So that's why, no wonder you do this."

Yang Yiqing asked curiously, "What is Eunuch Lu talking about?"

Lu Ting came back to his senses and quickly smiled, "What Yang Tianguan said makes sense. I admire him very much."

Yang Yiqing was also in a good mood and said with a smile, "What's the big deal? It's just some under-the-table calculations."

If this turmoil ends with Wang Hua becoming the Minister of Rites, then Yang Yiqing will make a fortune.

The new Minister of Rites, Wang Hua, would naturally be inclined towards him, which meant that Yang Yiqing would have an additional ally at the level of the Seven Ministers.

However, Yang Tinghe will inevitably be looked down upon because of his despicable act of blocking Xie Qian. As this rise will inevitably disappear, the structure of the court will undergo new changes.

(End of this chapter)