Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 352 One operation is as fierce as a tiger

Chapter 352: One operation is as fierce as a tiger
Wan'an turned a court hearing in the Wenhua Hall into a court meeting, which put considerable pressure on Zhu Youtang.

After returning to Duanjing Hall, Zhu Youtang was unable to get over his previous excitement for a long time, and kept asking Qin Ji whether he had done the right thing.

this matter……

Qin Ji himself didn't quite understand it.

Zhang Yu, who heard the noise, walked out from the back hall. Seeing her husband's confused and helpless look, she couldn't help but ask about the situation. Unfortunately, she couldn't figure out what Wan'an was trying to do.

"Ask my father, and Yanling."

Zhang Yu made the final decision, "Mr. Qin, can you personally leave the palace for a visit?"

Qin Ji immediately looked at Zhu Youtang, as if waiting for the prince's order.

Zhu Youtang nodded and said, "My dear, please listen to my beloved concubine and leave the palace for a while. I just can't go out. In fact, I also want to sit down with my father-in-law and talk about this matter. I don't know what Elder Wan and the others are going to do specifically, but I feel that this matter seems to be a bit involved."

"Yes."

After receiving the order, Qin Ji went straight out of the palace.

……

The other end.

Wan An and Liu Ji returned to the cabinet duty room. Wan An laughed and said, "How is it? That kid still has no courage at all. He is just a coward. Hey, if the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty acts like this, how can we expect him to lead the Ming Dynasty court back on the right track in the future?"

Liu Ji asked with a smile: "Is the court on the right track now?"

Wan An gave him a blank look and said nothing.

Liu Ji shrugged and said, "Since the prince said to investigate, then we will investigate. I just don't know when Sun Ren should... die suddenly?"

"This matter cannot be delayed."

Wan An thought about it carefully and said seriously, "It would be best if one of us went to his house in person to tell him about the matter so that he would know what was going on. I think in order to protect his family, it shouldn't be difficult to make him... more informed, right?"

Liu Ji smiled and said, "That's right. He is seriously ill now and died suddenly. No one can say anything."

Wan An held out his hand and said, "I don't agree with the idea of sudden death from illness... He was sick, but the way he died must be more particular. Of course, you can declare it to be a sudden death from illness, but when the Jinyiwei investigates, the result presented must be that he was coerced and had no choice..."

"understand."

Liu Ji smiled and nodded.

"Okay then, you don't need to tell me what to do, right? Just go now."

Wan'an has always been a hands-off boss.

As the Prime Minister, I certainly cannot go to see Sun Ren myself, so naturally you have to go.

Liu Ji had a bitter face and thought to himself, I had expected this result a long time ago. Anyway, if there is an investigation, it has nothing to do with you. It's all my fault.

……

Before dark that afternoon, Qin Ji rushed to Zhang's house without stopping.

Unexpectedly, Li Zisheng was there that day.

On one hand, Li Zisheng was still pestering Zhang Luan to drink, and asked Zhang Luan to help him guess the secret, but on the other hand, he was told that the East Palace attendant Tan Ji had arrived, making Zhang Luan in a dilemma.

"Laizhan, what's up?"

Li Zisheng noticed that the atmosphere at the table was not right and asked curiously.

Zhang Yanling, who came in to deliver the message, smiled and explained, "Minister Li, it's like this. The Eastern Palace attendant, Eunuch Tan Ji, came and said he had something important to discuss with my father today."

"Then hurry up."

Li Zisheng stood up happily and said, "I think I should step aside for a while."

Zhang Luan's meeting with the people from the Eastern Palace was not a big deal, because Qin Ji could easily say that he came back to do something for the Crown Princess.

But if Qin Ji met with Li Zisheng, or even conspired with him in private, people in the court would gossip about it.

Because of this, Zhang Luan had no choice but to apologize to Li Zisheng. A little drunk, he went to the backyard with his son.

"Dad, you don't have to worry too much... Even if Li Zisheng goes to the Eastern Palace to meet the Crown Prince now, it won't cause any waves in the court."

Zhang Yanling smiled.

"Huh!?"

Zhang Luan was confused now and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "What the prince wants now is help from others, and Li Zisheng needs you to help him. Isn't this a great opportunity? Don't hesitate!
"Look at the cabinet duo and Deng Chang'en and the others. Do they avoid suspicion when they want to meet someone or see someone? They still do whatever they want!"

About an incense stick of time later, Zhang Luan finished his meeting with Qin Ji and came back to sit at the same table with Li Zisheng. Li Zisheng naturally asked what they had said before.

Zhang Luan told the story of how Wan'an and Liu Ji set a trap for the prince in Wenhua Palace, and mixed in some of his own opinions.

"Haha, are they trying to kill their own relatives for the sake of justice?"

Li Zisheng said in a mocking tone, "Others may not know, but I know it very well. Sun Ren is actually Wan'an's man. In recent years, relying on Wan'an's protection, he has been promoted to the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. He is the most popular person at the time. If it weren't for his lack of qualifications, he might have been the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue."

Zhang Luan was somewhat suspicious and asked, "So, Lord Wan is planning to make the Tongzhou Warehouse incident public? What is his purpose?"

Li Zisheng picked up the wine pot, filled his own glass first, and then filled the glass in front of Zhang Luan, then shook his head and said, "I think things are not that simple, it is probably not a good thing.

"Your Majesty is not in the palace now, but the cabinet is urging the prince to issue an order to investigate the case. This is called usurpation... However, the matter seems serious and the prince has caused a lot of trouble, but the effect..."

"How's the effect?"

Zhang Luan asked quickly.

"It's just so-so!"

After answering, Li Zisheng smiled and explained: "Laizhan, in fact, His Majesty is a very easy person to talk to. In fact, he deliberately pretends to be confused when he knows the truth about some things. In terms of pretending to be confused, no one in the world can compare to His Majesty."

"Oh?"

Zhang Luan still didn't understand.

Why is Your Majesty pretending to be confused?

The whole thing is just the emperor pretending to be confused?
Li Zisheng shook his head and said, "I thought Wan'an and Liu Ji had some clever tricks, but it turns out that they let the crown prince take part in state affairs, so that His Majesty would think that his son has exceeded his authority and become wary, and even think about changing the crown prince. Haha, I think their efforts are purely in vain!"

Zhang Luan's eyes widened and he said, "Minister Li, your view on this matter seems to be different from that of the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince is nervous... He is afraid that His Majesty will blame him for this matter."

"No, it shouldn't."

Li Zisheng first answered Zhang Luan's question confidently, but then he became a little uncertain, "But recently... Alas! I have less contact with His Majesty, and I can't figure out what he is thinking."

Zhang Luan understood as soon as he heard it.

In fact, when it comes to understanding the emperor's character, Li Zisheng can be said to be the most outstanding figure in the entire Ming Dynasty. Otherwise, how could he become the most favored minister around the emperor?
Wan'an and Liu Ji thought they understood the emperor, or they thought they understood the art of power, but many things still depended on the emperor's personal character traits. On the contrary, Li Zisheng was many times more familiar with this than Wan'an and Liu Ji.

"That means nothing major will happen in the court, right?" Zhang Luan asked hopefully.

Li Zisheng nodded, then frowned and said, "What I am most worried about now is that there will be some bad changes in your majesty's dragon body. Everything else... is within the controllable range. As for Wan'an and Liu Ji, you listen to me. If your majesty still trusts me, then I can scare them. Otherwise..."

This is already clear.

Lai Zhan, if you help me gain the emperor's trust, I will help you deal with Wan'an and Liu Ji.

As long as I am in front of the emperor, everything is under control. As for the will to appoint someone else as the emperor, it will never happen.

Zhang Luan said, "Your Majesty's condition is getting worse and will only get worse. Deng Chang'en's actions can be said to have put Your Majesty... in danger. As for the specific time limit, I really can't calculate it. Please don't embarrass me anymore, Minister Li."

"Row."

Li Zisheng gritted his teeth and said, "There is one thing I want to tell you clearly. I didn't even tell Bingkun.

"Deng Chang'en thought that Your Majesty had entered the Chuyun Temple and was isolated from me, but the Taoist priests in the Chuyun Temple and I have a private relationship, and I know a little about what is going on inside. If Your Majesty's condition really changes, I will not let some people succeed in their evil plans even if I risk my life!"

……

Li Zisheng drank a few more glasses of wine and left.

After everyone left, Zhang Luan quickly called his son and told him all of Li Zisheng's last words.

Zhang Yanling sighed and said, "Dad, this Li Zisheng is definitely a character. He was born as a Taoist priest, but he was able to rise to the top of the court in just a few years. His methods are extremely clever, and he knows how to treat people with respect. Even if he has some bad deeds, he is still the number one capable minister in the eyes of the emperor." Zhang Luan nodded, and then asked, "Do you think the prince will value him in the future?"

Zhang Yanling shook his head decisively: "The Crown Prince has always been pragmatic, while Li Zisheng's methods are mostly based on political schemes. To put it bluntly, if the Crown Prince is diligent in the future, there will be no place for people like Li Zisheng who can cover the sky with one hand."

"Isn't that okay?"

Zhang Luan said, "What did he say about risking his life? Do you think he will really... help the prince wholeheartedly? If he surrenders to Concubine Shao and her son, the prince... may be in danger."

Zhang Yanling laughed and said, "Dad, do you think it's that easy to entrust your son to someone else before he dies, or even to change the heir?"

Zhang Luan said, "How can things in the royal family be easy or difficult? Think about the last emperor, who was in Nangong at the beginning, but in the end...he turned the tables! My son, royal affairs are the most ruthless."

"Oh."

Zhang Yanling looked like he was learning something.

He finally understood why Zhang Luan or Li Zisheng thought that Zhu Jianshen might change the crown prince before his death. The key point is that people in the world at that time could not see the overall situation, just like people in the late Jingtai period would never think that Yingzong would be restored.

For the Ming Dynasty, since the imperial power had just undergone drastic changes in the previous generation, it was not impossible for another change to happen at the end of the Chenghua period.

If we look at it from the perspective of history as a whole, the transition of imperial power in the Ming Dynasty was relatively smooth.

The authorities are just confused.

……

The next day.

Just when Li Zisheng got up in the morning, still a little hungover and with a dizzy head, Pang Qing had already run directly to the inner courtyard and arrived at his door.

"Master Dao, get up, get up quickly...something big has happened!"

Pang Qing urged loudly.

Li Zisheng hastily put on his coat, walked to the door, opened it, and shouted, "Don't be so alarmist. If what you said is a big deal, even Tan Chang's dismissal and idleness will be worse, I will show you how to deal with you."

"Your Majesty has returned to the palace."

Pang Qing almost blurted it out.

"What!?"

Li Zisheng was a little confused for a moment. He counted on his fingers and said, "Your Majesty will be in seclusion for no more than six days. Didn't you say you would hold on for half a month?"

Pang Qing said, "Eunuch Wei Tai has come out of the palace in person and is already in the front yard... If he hadn't come to look for me in person, do you think I would have rushed here to see you?"

"This……"

Li Zisheng was still a little confused and even slapped his face hard with his hands.

Pang Qing walked up to him and asked in confusion, "What's wrong, Taoist?"

“I wonder if I’m dreaming.”

Li Zisheng explained, "Yesterday I drank with Lai Zhan and talked a lot, but today... did Eunuch Wei say what he came for?"

"I want you to come to the palace urgently."

Pang Qing asked, "Do you even need to ask this?"

"I……"

Li Zisheng thought, could it be that Deng Changen and his ilk conspired with Wan An and others to trick me into the palace and kill me directly?
Feeling somewhat puzzled and uneasy, he hurried to the front yard to meet Wei Tai.

……

After Wei Tai was promoted to the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, he always kept a low profile. When he saw Li Zisheng, he immediately stepped forward to pay his respects.

"Eunuch Wei, what happened to His Majesty? Has the imperial carriage really returned to the palace?" Li Zisheng asked in rapid succession, "Didn't they say that His Majesty would be practicing Taoism in seclusion outside the palace?"

Wei Tai said with a sad face: "Your Majesty has been in seclusion for the past few days. His health has taken a turn for the worse. He is seriously exhausted mentally and physically. I decisively ordered to interrupt his seclusion and returned to the palace before dawn today... Now the people from the Imperial Hospital are treating your majesty in the Qianqing Palace. So... please... think of a solution quickly."

"Cough cough..."

Li Zisheng felt embarrassed for a moment.

But I was laughing in my heart.

Let you, Deng Changen, show off.

What kind of elixir can cure diseases? What about seclusion and cultivation? Do you really think you are a god?

It's only been six days and your method of treating diseases has been exposed!

Do you think the emperor is a fool?

When the emperor is ill and his condition takes a turn for the worse, the first thing he thinks of is regular treatment. Even if it means hanging on to his life, it is better than just sitting there and enduring the pain by meditating.

"But the matter of curing the disease..."

Li Zisheng also found it very difficult.

I can't cure any illness. The emperor's condition has worsened, so there's no point in coming to me.

Wei Tai said, "The two prescriptions you gave me earlier were both very effective. Your Majesty took them this morning, but unfortunately they were not very effective. Do you think... can you find a new prescription? Or you can invite a miracle doctor to the palace to treat Your Majesty."

Li Zi said with concern that at this critical moment, even if His Majesty knew that the person treating the disease was the prince's father-in-law, he seemed to be unable to care about anything else.

Everything comes first to saving lives!
It's true that you don't know who a serious person is until you are terminally ill.

At least I, Li, knew from the beginning that Lai Zhan was not a charlatan, nor a liar. He was my savior. He not only helped me stabilize my position in the court, but also helped me turn the tide at critical moments.

"Then I will... go and look for it right away." Li Zisheng said, "Please ask Eunuch Wei to wait in front of the palace gate first. I will go to the miracle doctor and come back soon."

……

With mixed feelings, Li Zisheng ran to Zhang's house early in the morning.

When he arrived at the gate of Zhang's house, Li Zisheng rushed straight in, as if saying, "This is my home, I can come whenever I want."

"My Lord, you can't do this."

Chang Shun hurriedly dissuaded him.

Li Zisheng shouted, "I, Li Zisheng, want to see your master. Do you dare to stop me? Believe me or not..."

Before he finished his words, Zhang Luan, who had just woken up from a hangover, walked out. The two of them looked at each other and then fell silent.

Then Li Zisheng realized what he was here for, and hurried forward, holding Zhang Luan's arm and saying, "Laizhan, don't think about the prince and Tongzhou warehouse for now, His Majesty has returned to the palace.

"And your majesty's condition is showing signs of rapid deterioration, all because of that fellow Deng Chang'en. Look... Wei Tai has already been to my house and asked me for medicine.

"Why don't you come with me to the palace to diagnose His Majesty. At this critical moment, we can't be so fussy about small details."

"No... no."

Zhang Luan quickly pushed Li Zisheng's hand away.

"Laizhan, why have you been avoiding it until now? You are a subject, and it is your duty to diagnose the emperor." Li Zisheng shouted.

"This matter...I...I really can't do anything about it."

Zhang Luan hesitated, then thought of something and said quickly, "Wait a minute, I have someone to see... Don't panic, I'll go ask my son first..."

"what?"

Li Zisheng seemed very surprised for a moment.

I thought to myself, I know your son is capable, and most of the time he's very smart, a bit like a little Zhuge Liang.

But you also want to ask him about geomancy, feng kong, and healing?

Isn't that your inherent ability?

Zhang Luan said, "I'll be back soon... wait a moment, wait a moment!"