What's wrong with me, a powerful minister, supporting a few female officials?

Chapter 201 What a huge python!
Watching the group of high-ranking officials leave the Lizheng Hall dejectedly with their thanks, the Empress felt a secret sense of satisfaction.

Sun Tzu's Art of War is really useful!

There's no need to confront the court officials head-on, nor to use imperial power to suppress them.

Achieve your goal easily in a harmonious atmosphere!
It's certainly a good thing to avoid falling out with the ministers, since governing the country still depends on them.

The final result was that Shen De, the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief, was added.

But it's harmless.

All we need to do is add Chi Wulei to the list of candidates recommended by the court!

Next, they devised a plan to get Zou Houting to step forward and be appointed as the chief examiner, and then found a pretext to transfer Zhang Heng and Shen De away from the capital.

Once Fengming Division finds evidence of Zou Hou's crimes, using the excuse of time constraints, they can no longer postpone the trial. Chi Wulei will then naturally take over Zou Hou's position!

This should be considered the strategy Su Mo mentioned: "openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang pass."
After the court officials withdrew, the Empress reviewed several memorials and felt itchy to talk to Su Mo!
I wonder what that bastard is doing now!
Also, should I personally go to the Fu family mansion to find evidence of Zou Hou's crimes?

What if Nangong Sheyue can't accurately time it?

After reviewing several more memorials, the Empress finally couldn't hold back any longer and said to the chief censor, Hanxiang, "Send me some everyday clothes!"

"I need to leave the palace!"

……

As Xiao Yuan, the chief minister, left the Lizheng Hall, he naturally gave Wang Hao a wink.

The two walked out of the palace together.

Once everyone was clear, Xiao Yuan frowned and whispered, "Lord Wang, do you know what His Majesty means by this?"

"Yang Ji and Wang Hua joined forces to add Chi Wulei to the list of recommended candidates; it must have been at His Majesty's behest!"

Wang Hao stroked his beard gently and pondered, "To be honest, even I, the Grand Secretary, cannot see His Majesty's intentions clearly."

“Wang Hua and Yang Ji have brought up Physician Chi. When the court decides tomorrow, they will definitely vote for Physician Chi.”

"But the court recommendation is made by officials of the third rank or above, as well as the Nine Ministers, the Vice Censor-in-Chief, and the Chancellor. Wang Hua and Yang Ji will get a maximum of two votes, so Physician Chi will definitely be eliminated."

"Given His Majesty's temperament, knowing full well that failure was inevitable, why did he still allow Yang Ji to recommend Chi Wulei, thus needlessly tarnishing his imperial dignity?"

Xiao Yuan frowned and remained silent.

Wang Hao waited for a while, and seeing that Xiao Yuan remained silent, he narrowed his eyes slightly and suddenly asked, "Chief Minister Xiao, who do you think will win this court recommendation?"

After a moment of contemplation, Xiao Yuan slowly said, "We have five iron votes on our side, and we can try to get the other two."

"With He Jiang's vote, plus Zhong Yin's vote, and the Left Censor-in-Chief Song Gao, Shen De will definitely get five or six votes in the end!"

As he spoke, he frowned: "The most difficult one to determine is Yuan Xingdao!"

"On the surface, he has at most three votes, but Yuan Xingdao is always calm and collected. He won't make a move unless he's confident!"

Wang Hao nodded: "What I fear most is that he will join forces with He Jiang to put Shen De and Zou Houtong in court and hand them over to His Majesty for a decision!"

He hesitated for a moment: "Shouldn't Chief Minister Xiao go to He Jiang and find out what he's thinking?"

"The chief examiner of the Soul-Fixing Examination is of utmost importance. We absolutely cannot allow this fifth-rank Lingtai Lang to go up. The candidates recommended by the court must be Zhang Heng or Shen De!"

The fact that the Grand Secretary and the Second Grand Secretary joined forces to recommend a candidate who failed to win the court election was a huge blow to their reputations!

Xiao Yuan nodded slightly, then suddenly changed the subject, lowering his voice to ask, "Lord Wang, don't you think His Majesty has changed a lot?"

A sharp glint flashed in Wang Hao's eyes as he slowly uttered two words: "Su Mo!"

Xiao Yuan nodded slightly: "Does Lord Wang know Su Mo's background?"

"This boy is not even afraid of Zhang Shouning?"

Wang Hao shook his head: "All I know is that this boy was originally a clerk in Changping County, and he had a very close relationship with Xue Shan, the former magistrate of Changping County."

"The regulations for opening up Tianchang County to merchants were most likely proposed by this person and then passed on to His Majesty through the Fengming Division or the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

He hesitated slightly, then lowered his voice even further: "His Majesty must value Su Mo highly!"

"To bestow upon him a tiger-patterned robe and to grant him the title of Marquis of a fiefdom, Gu Feng Shan Zi, truly astonishes this official!"

Xiao Yuan said calmly, "What His Majesty values ​​is nothing more than this person's skill in amassing wealth."

"A mere viscount, enfeoffed in such a desolate place as Lone Peak Mountain, is not worth worrying about."

Wang Hao nodded: "The Grand Secretary is absolutely right!"

"But this kid is indeed quite capable, having come up with a strategy like opening up regulations for merchants."

"In a short period of time, it has brought a lot of extra income to the Ministry of Revenue. Once the other four counties are also included, it will probably bring in five or six hundred thousand taels of silver a year!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuan was immediately taken aback: "So many?"

Wang Hao smiled wryly: "When I heard this news, I was even more shocked than the Grand Secretary!"

"This is only the Ministry of Revenue's revenue; His Majesty's private treasury is the same!"

Xiao Yuan's old face immediately turned bitter.

This was an agreement they reached with His Majesty in person.

If I had known earlier that opening up the regulations for merchants would yield such a huge sum of money, I certainly wouldn't have agreed in the first place.

Wang Hao sighed and said with a wry smile, "Originally, His Majesty forced this henchman of the court to serve as the clerk of Tianchang County, and the censors and officials of the Censorate submitted a great many memorials!"

"Now almost no one mentions this anymore."

Xiao Yuan remained silent.

At the end of the year, officials' salaries, which were originally only paid in half, are now paid in full, mainly due to the extra income from the liberalized regulations.

If the impeachment of Su Mo continues, His Majesty will be furious and rescind the regulations, forcing officials not to shoot themselves in the foot.

Anyone who uses this matter to impeach Su Mo will be an enemy of all officials!
Not to mention other officials, Wang Hao, the Minister of Revenue, would be the first to stand up and angrily rebuke them!

After a long silence, Xiao Yuan finally said, "That Su Mo is not yet of age, how could he have such a wonderful idea?"

"The membership system..."

Xiao Yuan didn't know what words to use to describe this ingenious idea that made people grit their teeth, laugh and cry, or applaud.

Despite constantly draining the wealth of merchants, the merchants still flock to it, vying to send money to the imperial court!

Many of his students and old friends from prefectures and counties that had not yet opened up regulations wrote to him, asking when the Grand Secretary would open up regulations for merchants in their prefectures!
Xiao Yuan gave a wry smile and continued, "Could this be Xue Shan's scheme?"

Wang Hao shook his head: "It's definitely not Xue Shan."

"This man is timid and cautious by nature. Although he is not pedantic, he would never have thought of such a... such an insidious plan!"

Wang Hao paused, then said, "I have already had people secretly keeping an eye on Su Mo's movements."

"However, one has to admire this kid; he's incredibly bold."

"Let him fight Zhang Shouning. Zhang Shouning is becoming increasingly arrogant and domineering; it would be good to let that kid dampen his spirits!"

As he spoke, he stroked his beard and chuckled, "Of course, that kid is no match for the Duke of Anguo."

"Once he's in danger, we might as well lend him a hand; perhaps we can even bring him into our fold!"

Xiao Yuan laughed, "No wonder everyone says Lord Wang loves talent!" "This lad is truly blessed!"

Wang Hao sighed: "I have no choice, the Ministry of Revenue is just too poor!"

"That kid's business acumen is truly astonishing. The two restaurants he runs bring in a thousand taels of silver a day, it's terrifying!"

Xiao Yuan hesitated for a moment: "But this man is His Majesty's henchman..."

Wang Hao waved his hand: "If it were just a centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, I certainly wouldn't dare to lay a hand on him!"

"But don't forget, he is still the registrar of Tianchang County!"

……

Su Mo was unaware that many people were now thinking about her.

Moreover, they are all truly heavyweight figures.

For example, the Empress, the Grand Secretary, the Second Grand Secretary, and the Emperor's brother-in-law!
At this moment, he was holding the waist of the Left Commander of Fengming Division, and they rushed all the way to the Five Dragon Pool of Lonely Peak Mountain!
The first time, when the palm of the left commander was placed on the waist, Lord Nangong initially pretended to raise his whip to strike Su Mo, but Su Mo withdrew his hand very quickly.

But it wasn't long before it was put back on the hook.

Lord Nangong was so angry that he gritted his teeth.

After several such incidents, seeing that this guy was getting more and more outrageous, Su Mo really wanted to teach him a lesson.

We've arrived at Gufeng Mountain!
Outside Shenma Rock, there were several Imperial Guards and three or four farmers.

It's definitely not the right time to draw a ticket to Su Mo.

Su Mo also wisely and nimbly dismounted!
Geng Yi, the junior officer, scurried forward, beaming, "This humble servant greets Lord Nangong! Greetings, Lord Su!"

Several villagers responsible for planting and tending the sweet potatoes also stepped forward to pay their respects to Master Su.

Su Mo nodded and then checked the growth of the sweet potatoes.

They grow better than the ones in my greenhouse.

New buds have also sprouted from the cuttings.

After all, this is Wulongtan, where hot springs converge, with a temperature of around 20 degrees Celsius year-round and plenty of sunshine.

Anyway, we're already here.

Sweet potatoes can apparently be cut into pieces and planted separately.

Su Mo called over several farmers: "Watch closely, all of you!"

"After the sweet potatoes sprout, they can be cut into pieces and planted separately!"

"After cutting the pieces, place them in a cool, well-ventilated place to dry the wounds. Once they have softened and shriveled slightly, then replant them!"

As he spoke, he immediately dug out the sprouted sweet potato.

Seeing Nangong Sheyue riding on horseback, looking at him expressionlessly, Su Mo reached out to Commander Zuo: "My lord, may I borrow your sword?"

Lord Qianhu gave a slight hum, but still drew his crescent-shaped short blade and casually tossed it to Su Mo!
Su Mo weighed the crescent-shaped short blade in his hand. It had a Damascus pattern on it, looked extremely sharp, and the blade was very cold. It was also very heavy, with a density that should be above that of fine steel.

"Sir, what is this knife made of?" Su Mo couldn't help but ask curiously.

Nangong Sheyue coldly replied, "Cold Iron!"

Ok……

This touched on a blind spot in Su Mo's knowledge.

Too lazy to get to the bottom of it, he quickly cut the two sweet potatoes, which had sprouted more than a dozen buds, apart.

Then place it in the shade under the Shenma Rock.

"Keep a close eye on these buds!"

"If you are eaten by mountain rats or wild boars, I will not spare you!"

Su Mo warned everyone a couple of times, then took out a handful of loose silver and handed it to Geng Yi: "Distribute this silver among everyone."

The eyes of the guards and villagers on duty lit up instantly.

Geng Yi thanked Lord Su repeatedly.

Su Mo handed the crescent-shaped dagger back to Nangong Sheyue, his expression turning serious: "My lord, let's get down to business!"

Nangong Sheyue retrieved the short blade and inserted it into his waist, turning his gaze away from the sweet potato tuber.

"Is this tuber edible?"

Su Mo hesitated for a moment, then nodded in the end: "Of course we can eat it, otherwise we'd be afraid of being eaten by mountain rats or wild boars."

Nangong Sheyue narrowed her eyes slightly: "What's the production volume?"

Su Mo immediately shook her head and said, "I don't know about that."

"You'll only know once it grows out."

Then, changing the subject, he asked, "Sir, how did you find that demonic python?"

Nangong Sheyue didn't press the matter further. He took out a small piece of white snake skin from the pouch at his waist.

"Is this the molted skin of a demonic python?"

Su Mo gasped, staring in shock at the shed snake skin.

Good guy!
The scales on a snake's shed skin are larger than those of a pangolin!
One can only imagine how enormous that serpent was!
Nangong Sheyue nodded expressionlessly, then took out a yellow talisman wrapped in a snake's skin and shook it slightly. The talisman instantly ignited without fire.

A cloud of smoke condensed and lingered in front of him.

As Nangong Sheyue cast a spell with his fingers above the smoke.

The smoke suddenly shifted and drifted towards the mountain ridge on the left!

Nangong Sheyue dismounted and quickly walked in the direction the smoke was drifting!

Su Mo was amazed.

Taoist sorcerers have a lot of skills.

He himself seemed to be a fake, knowing nothing about sword control and the Five Thunder Techniques.

I'll have to ask Lady Nangong for some advice another day and get some guidance from her.

He quickly caught up with him!
In the blink of an eye, the two of them followed the smoke and traveled several miles deeper into the mountains and forests.

Turning a corner, one sees patches of cultivated fields, and further away, a few dilapidated thatched huts stand sparsely.

Although it was sunny and there was no snow today, the temperature was still quite cold, and no one was working in the fields.

The smoke formed by the talisman suddenly emitted a hissing sound like a long worm, then its drifting speed suddenly increased, and it went straight into one of the thatched huts.

Nangong Sheyue's pretty face suddenly darkened.

He turned to look at Su Mo and said coldly, "We've found that demonic python!"

(End of this chapter)