Fu Shanhe

Chapter 452 Last Words
Xuanfu, a temporary imperial palace.

"How are the two Grand Secretaries' health?"

Emperor Yongning asked with concern.

He wanted Jing and Li to die sooner, but not now.

Once the imperial expedition begins, there is no turning back; victory is imperative.

A few days ago, two people tried to help him, but he found it troublesome. Now, with no one to help share the burden, a whole bunch of tasks have fallen on his shoulders.

The lack of experience led to a series of problems.

"Your Majesty, the imperial physicians have diagnosed that the two Grand Secretaries suffered from a combination of anger and cold, which triggered their old ailments."

If he rests and recuperates peacefully, he might be able to pull through.

......"

Xu Zhongen answered with a nervous expression.

Deep down, he was speechless.

For some reason, the emperor himself disliked whoever became a Grand Secretary and would confront them head-on.

He made a complete mess of the relationship between the emperor and his subjects.

Almost every so often, a court official would be driven to illness by the emperor's antics.

There are many civil officials in the court, and a large pool of candidates; it doesn't matter if a few die of anger.

But Jing and Li were different; they were both driven to their deaths, and the court could not find anyone to replace them.

Without a middleman, those arrogant and fierce soldiers from the noble faction are not easy to control.

Without sufficient political maneuvering, it is easy to cause trouble.

"Tell the imperial physicians that they must save the lives of the two Grand Secretaries."

"They can take whatever medicinal herbs they need from the inner treasury!"

Emperor Yongning said with a gloomy expression.

The war had barely begun when two cabinet ministers died; the political impact was extremely negative.

It's unknown how future historical records will portray him.

"tyrant"?
"A tyrannical ruler"?
Or something else, but it's impossible to find a good word.

After all, Jing and Li were both great contributors to the Great Yu Dynasty.

Even if civil officials wanted to write something recklessly, they had to consider the reactions of the Jing and Li families.

One person's prominence does not necessarily qualify them as a prominent family.

Besides Jing Guoliang and Li Yuan, many other members of the Jing and Li families also serve in the military.

Among the younger generation, the Li family has the Marquis of Hanshui, who guards Annam, and the Jing family has Jing Yifeng, the commander of the right wing army.

The two families could each produce double-digit numbers of generals, deputy generals, and brigade generals.

With the addition of relatives and friends, his influence spread throughout the military.

If recorded factually, this emperor who refused to listen to advice was a villain.

In order to downplay the disgraceful role played by civil officials, a series of scandals might be fabricated, and the emperor might even be made the scapegoat.

"According to the order!"

Xu Zhongen readily agreed.

The emperor's decision at this time was undoubtedly correct.

If Jing Guoliang and Li Yuan get into trouble, the morale of the army will inevitably suffer a severe blow.

If the people below suspect that the emperor is behind this, a mutiny might even break out.

With the emperor in the military camp, it would be far too easy for the military to launch a coup.

……

"Lord Duke, it's time to take your medicine."

Master Zhu said slowly.

Since Jing Guoliang fell ill, their world has collapsed.

The Great Yu Dynasty had a serious hierarchy of contempt between civil and military officials.

Scholars who sought to serve as advisors to military generals were always looked down upon by literary figures.

Taking this step meant their careers were now tied to Jing Guoliang.

With their own master serving as the Grand Secretary, they naturally exude great power and prestige.

After working as a staff member for a few years, it would be a natural progression to enter the imperial court as an official.

With the political resources of the Duke's mansion, their career advancement after entering officialdom was much faster than that of ordinary Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations).

"I won't drink it."

Who knows if this medicine will cure the illness or kill it!

Jing Guoliang coldly refused.

The series of disturbances occurring in the army did not escape his notice.

Even while lying in a hospital bed, he remained fully aware of the battlefield situation.

The emperor was indecisive, and a group of incompetent civil officials were playing the role of Zhuge Liang in front of him, which seriously affected strategic decision-making.

He had argued his case at first, but after falling out with the emperor, he lost all his spirit.

Even if you do your best, you still need to be appreciated.

If it weren't for the greater good, he would have resigned and returned to Beijing to retire long ago.

"My lord, things shouldn't have come to this!"

Master Zhu hurriedly offered his advice.

The medicine was prescribed by the imperial physician. Suspecting that the medicine was defective was tantamount to saying that the emperor wanted to harm him.

At a different time, in order to seize power, perhaps such a tragedy would have occurred.

We're on the battlefield now. If we kill this leader of the aristocratic faction, there will really be a mutiny.

At the very least, the Jing family will definitely rebel.

After all, the emperor has taken action, so it's inevitable that they'll eliminate any potential threats at all.

If you don't want to be bound, then you have no choice but to fight back.

At a time like this, even a mutiny in just one town could lead to the failure of the entire campaign.

With the loss of these hundreds of thousands of elite troops, the Great Yu Dynasty was doomed.

Emperor Yongning only wanted to seize power, and he had no enmity with the Great Yu dynasty, so he wouldn't do something so foolish as to shoot himself in the foot.

Human hearts are unpredictable!

"Fortunately, I am not the only one in charge of the noble faction, otherwise, in His Majesty's eyes, I would be the contemporary Sima Yi."

It seems that during the time when Grand Secretary Pang was in power, there were rumors that he was a contemporary Sima Yi.

In the end, Grand Secretary Pang died suddenly in office. Whether it was a genuine sudden death or an inevitable one, who knows!

Jing Guoliang has dropped another bombshell.

With a loud bang, the medicine bowl shattered on the ground, leaving Master Zhu, pale-faced, speechless for a long time.

Once the rift between ruler and subject lasts a lifetime, there is no going back.

However, while Jing Guoliang could voice these complaints, he couldn't accept them.

If even a single word were to leak out, it would immediately cause a huge uproar.

The fact that the emperor couldn't do anything to Jing Guoliang doesn't mean he was powerless to deal with him.

Even though the Duke's mansion is protecting them now, there will come a day when they can no longer be protected.

Compared to the Duke of Cheng, who was bedridden, the young Emperor Yongning was clearly more likely to live.

They're just waiting it out, waiting for the day they'll settle the score.

At that time, a nobody like him would be guilty of a serious crime that would lead to the execution of his entire family.

"Your Excellency, you mustn't say such things!"

Master Zhu advised in a fearful manner.

In fact, suspicions about the death of Grand Secretary Pang have never ceased in the court.

Especially after the accident involving Grand Secretary Wan, these suspicions reached their peak.

However, everyone kept these thoughts to themselves, and no one ever dared to say them aloud.

Jing Guoliang was clearly angered by the emperor, which is why he voiced these speculations.

"Don't worry, these are my words, and I would admit them even if they were spoken before the Emperor. They won't implicate you."

Even if there is to be a political purge, it will have to wait until after I'm dead.

As long as I live, no one will dare to mess with me!

Jing Guoliang said, lacking confidence.

Illness comes like a mountain.

No matter how powerful one is, one is vulnerable in the face of illness. Realizing his health was failing, he had no choice but to plan for the future of the Jing family.

Saying such things at this time may seem arrogant and domineering, but it is actually done on purpose.

The sound was deliberately amplified so that it could be heard by people outside and reach the emperor's ears.

This approach might not have worked for other emperors, but it was certainly effective for Emperor Yongning, who valued his reputation.

Fearing rumors and gossip, the emperor had to be cautious in dealing with the Jing family.

As long as the emperor doesn't immediately take action against the Jing family after his death, it will buy them time.

With the political resources he left behind, it's unrealistic for him to continue ruling the country, but he can still protect himself.

As long as the Jing and Li families continue to stick together, no one will dare to reach out to them, no matter how the situation in the court changes.

If you encounter an idiot, just kill him.

……

At the same time, Li Yuan, lying in his hospital bed, was also thinking about his future.

"Father, Imperial Physician Zhou has arrived."

Li Sen stepped forward and said.

"Let him go back. I'm busy right now."

Li Yuan, whose train of thought had been interrupted, said irritably.

He had a personal physician who was always there to treat him, so he knew his health better than anyone.

When it comes to medical skills, the imperial physicians who treated the emperor might not be as good as the folk doctors.

After all, medical training requires a large number of cases and extensive travel.

Diseases are geographically specific, and so are traditional Chinese medicine practitioners.

Everyone has their own strengths, and everyone also has areas of blind spots in their knowledge.

Imperial physicians trained in the Imperial Medical Academy can only be said to be well-versed in medical books; their actual medical skills depend entirely on luck.

The truly skilled are genuinely skilled, while the slackers are truly slackers.

In any case, when seeking medical treatment in the palace, the most important thing is to maintain a steady and reliable approach, rather than to cure the disease.

Just look at the lifespans of the powerful and wealthy in the palace to know that the big hospitals are full of scoundrels.

"Father, these people were sent by the Emperor. It's not right to just send them away like this!"

Li Lai couldn't help but offer some advice.

The emperor sent his imperial physician to treat the patient, but the physician refused to even see him, clearly showing a lack of respect.

Most importantly, this is not the first time they have been refused.

"idiot!"

"At a time like this, how can I let outsiders know about my illness!"

Li Yuan immediately reprimanded him.

The Li family's situation is different from the Jing family's.

The Jing family mainly operated in Dayu, so they had to give the emperor some face and couldn't refuse certain requests.

However, the Li family had two marquises in one family. Although Li Mu served as an official in Dayu, he had a great deal of autonomy.

This is equivalent to the Li family having one foot outside the Dayu system.

Let alone something as trivial as not letting the imperial physicians in; even if the imperial physicians were beaten out with sticks, the emperor would pretend he knew nothing.

Even if he were to die one day, the Li family would still have someone to support them, and the political impact would be much smaller.

"Father, please calm down!"

"The doctor said that you need to rest now and must not get angry."

The three of them advised in unison.

The Great Yu Dynasty governed the world with filial piety, and the concept of filial piety had long been deeply rooted in people's hearts.

All three of them received Confucian education from a young age, and the concept of filial piety was deeply ingrained in their bones.

Despite feeling that their father's attempt to cover up the truth was pointless, their deep-seated filial piety wouldn't allow them to openly contradict him.

"Hey!"

"Alright, now that things have come to this, there are some things you should know."

Despite his apparent high position and great power, and the emperor's deep trust in him, he was not as powerful as he appeared.

In fact, since the current emperor ascended the throne, our relationship has been very tense.

Your Majesty harbors deep resentment towards every regent.

Given the chance, he would love to tear us to pieces.

Of the eight regents, very few died peacefully.

Even those who received imperial praise were merely for show; their descendants were often sidelined after entering officialdom.

The reason why Jing Guoliang and I were able to remain active in the court and even eventually dominate the government was because the court could not do without the support of the noble faction.

For the sake of the stability of the country, His Majesty has temporarily chosen to compromise, but deep down he probably wishes we were dead.

There's no need to be alarmed. Although such a relationship between rulers and their subjects is not common in history, there are still relevant cases.

Throughout history, few powerful ministers have met a good end; their fate is sealed from the day they assume the position of regent.

Compared to those civil officials, Jing Guoliang and I are considered lucky, as we still have leverage to gamble with His Majesty.

But that's all in the past.

With the father's health deteriorating, the Li family will inevitably have to strategically shrink their influence in the court.

During this process, there will inevitably be those who take advantage of our misfortune and try to wipe us out in one fell swoop.

During my father's reign, he frequently infringed upon the interests of the civil service, and they will certainly retaliate.

However, these are the enemies in the open, and they cannot shake our foundation.

Besides the enemies in the open, you must be even more wary of the enemies in the shadows.

His Majesty is not magnanimous, so it is quite normal for him to hold a grudge against the Li family.

However, it won't be so easy for him to attack us; he'll need a dog to openly lead the charge.

Within the nobility faction, there were also fools who were envious of the power of the Jing and Li families.

If someone instigates us, they might betray us at a crucial moment.

In short, if my father passes away, the Li family will face great trouble.

If it were someone else who took action, that would be fine, but if it was the emperor stirring things up behind the scenes...

Those connections you've made in the past may not be reliable when it comes to crucial moments.

When it really comes down to it, the only person you can rely on is your cousin, Mu.

The Marquis of Hanshui was far from the political center, yet he commanded over 100,000 elite troops.

I don't know much about the specific development, but with Mu'er's abilities, he must have made a name for himself.

According to the law, your younger brother will inherit the title after your father's death.

He is still too young to manage the Marquis's mansion; he needs your assistance.

When you encounter problems, you can ask your cousin Mu for his opinion.

If the situation really deteriorates and there is no place for us in the capital, we should move our whole family south to seek refuge with him!
Write a letter on behalf of my father, telling him that the world is about to descend into chaos, and he must not give up the position of Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi...

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Before he could finish speaking, a coughing fit occurred.

"Father……"

The three rushed forward, but before they could offer any advice, Li Yuan waved them off.

"I am fine."

"He won't die anytime soon."

"We must finish explaining everything today. If I get confused later and forget to tell you the key information, you'll be in big trouble."

"His Majesty is indecisive. Jing Guoliang and I both fell ill at the same time, and he has no reliable ministers to advise him."

Judging from the current situation, the probability of winning this battle is very low.

He secretly told the clan members that on the battlefield, their priority should be self-preservation.

In the event of defeat in the war, simply bring His Majesty back to the capital safely.

Don't get involved in any of the subsequent power struggles; just focus on protecting your own little corner of the world.

......"

Li Yuan's confession completely changed the understanding of Li Sen, Li Lai, and Li Long.

If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn't have known that their father was under so much pressure.

The idea of ​​a harmonious relationship between ruler and subject is all just a facade for outsiders.

The emperor was wary of these ministers, and the ministers, fearing the emperor might kill them, were constantly seeking a way out.

(End of this chapter)