Chapter 39: When the axis is in the middle, everyone shows their magical powers

into the night.

"What is Gao Gong waiting for?" Lu Diaoyang muttered to himself.

This was a problem that troubled him all day.

Gao Gongting's reaction to Yang Bo's betrayal was too calm.

Even the impeachment of Gao Gong was like a punch to cotton - Gao Gong did not resist at all.

Was it because of the two imperial edicts that Gao Gong finally realized that neither the Empress Dowager nor the Emperor could tolerate him?

Or did he see Lu Diaoyang's impeachment and realize that it was Zhang Juzheng's intention behind it, and become disheartened?

No matter how hard he thought, he couldn't convince himself, and the more he thought, the more confused he became.

Lu Diaoyang walked to the door of his house with doubts.

Because he was lost in thought, he didn't notice that the servants didn't come out to greet him today, nor did he even notice that none of the lights in the house were on.

He pushed open the side door of the yard and walked into the yard as if in a trance.

It was not until he pushed open the door that he suddenly realized that it was pitch black inside and out.

He was about to react.

Suddenly, two lights came on in the house.

There were candles in the hands of two people on the left and right of the main seat.

He immediately looked over and saw Feng Bao sitting upright on the armchair.

He leaned forward, raised his head suddenly and looked at Lu Diaoyang.

Feng Bao looked gloomy and said in an aggressive tone: "Minister Lu, I know what Gao Gong is waiting for."

"But Minister Lu caused me to lose the East Factory. Can we still trust you?"

……

In Gao Gong's mansion, the study was still quiet.

Gao Gong, who was at the center of the controversy, was in his study, rewriting a memorial requesting his dismissal.

There was no sign of anxiety at all, as if he was really re-copying it because it was damaged.

Ge Shouli pushed the door open and happened to see this scene.

He stood aside, not saying a word, just waiting quietly.

Gao Gong looked up, then lowered his head and continued writing: "Yu Li, I've told you several times, come in and close the door."

Yuli is the courtesy name of Ge Shouli.

The two have a special friendship.

In the early years of Longqing, Ge Shouli served as the Minister of Revenue. At that time, Xu Jie led his men to besiege Gao Gong. Even though Gao Gong had almost no ability to fight back, Ge Shouli still supported Gao Gong without reservation.

After Gao Gong was defeated, Ge Shouli also petitioned for his dismissal.

When Xu Jie retired and Gao Gong came back to power, he immediately promoted Ge Shouli to the position of Chief Censor.

The two can be said to be close friends who have been through thick and thin together and have each other's backs.

Such a big event today seemed to bring Ge Shouli back to several years ago when Gao Gong was besieged by Xu Jie.

That's why he came to visit at night despite the public opinion.

It was extremely urgent, but this was the first sentence I heard when I walked in.

Ge Shouli looked at Gao Gong who seemed fine, sighed, turned around and closed the door.

Then he turned around and looked at Gao Gong: "Yuan Fuduan is really good at cultivating his energy, which makes me look like I have a bad character."

Even he couldn't tell whether Gao Gong remained calm in the face of danger or was beginning to have thoughts of retreating.

Gao Gong hummed, "It needs some further polishing."

Ge Shouli was even more surprised that he was still in the mood to joke at this time.

He asked in confusion: "Yuan Fu knew that Yang Bo was going to turn against us?"

He racked his brains to figure out why Yang Bo acted this way.

Could it be that he was resentful because he had promised Wang Chonggu a place in the cabinet?

Or is there some other conspiracy with Feng Bao or Lu Diaoyang?

Gao Gong shook his head: "I am not a worm in his stomach, nor do I control the Jinyiwei of the East Factory, so how can I know what he thinks."

These words made Ge Shouli's confusion reach its peak.

He simply stopped thinking about it and asked directly: "Gao Suqing, stop keeping me in suspense."

Seeing that Ge Shouli was in a bad mood, Gao Gong finally put down the pen in his hand.

He laughed and said, "Of course I didn't know Yang Bo would do this, but..."

He restrained his smile and continued, "It's just that I was prepared."

Ge Shouli was puzzled: "Have you prepared for this?"

Gao Gong nodded: "Not only Yang Bo, even if it was you who suddenly wanted to impeach me, I wouldn't be surprised."

Ge Shouli remained silent.

There is nothing wrong with what he said, but it would be strange if you feel comfortable hearing him use himself as an example.

With such a bad temper, it’s no wonder he has few friends.

Gao Gong naturally did not have such delicate thoughts, and he did not care what Ge Shouli thought.

He continued, "Just wait and see. Besides Yang Bo and Lu Diaoyang, there are many more people staring at me."

When one reaches the position of the Minister of Six Ministries, he represents more than just himself.

Not to mention the Ministry of War, even the Ministry of Rites, which seems to have little power, has been controlling the lifelines of academies and imperial examinations for many years.

Perhaps it is because the combination of propaganda, diplomacy and education has an unparalleled influence among scholars.

Not to mention Lu Diaoyang and Yang Bo, and the group of Jin Party and New Party members behind them.

No matter who comes, we can't take it lightly.

But...if you want to do big things, how can you expect everyone to unite around you?

Why can Gao Suqing do something that even the emperor can't do?
He was prepared to deal with spectators, traitors, and enemies.

Just as he said, even if Ge Shouli betrayed him, he would still remain calm and consistent.

Ge Shouli was stunned and did not understand the meaning.

He frowned and asked, "Not just Yang Bo? Who else?"

Gao Gong stood up and said, "Only God knows."

……

Lü Diaoyang looked at Feng Bao quietly and said in a deep voice: "Lü is the Minister of Rites and a scholar of the Hanlin Academy. He is a second-rank official and a senior official of the imperial court!"

"How dare you trespass into my mansion, Feng Bao!"

At this moment, his anger was greater than his curiosity about Gao Gong's plan as mentioned by Feng Bao.

How dare a mere eunuch trespass into his mansion!
He still has this attitude of taking whatever he wants, does Lu Diaoyang really have a temper made of clay? ?
Feng Bao responded: "What a great court official!"

He suddenly smiled, bowed deeply, and said in a serious tone: "Well, my East Factory has been cut down, and the officials of the court have to make the decision for me."

Lu Diaoyang didn't dare to accept this gift and quickly moved aside.

Most of his anger was dissipated by Feng Bao's behavior.

He just insisted for the sake of appearance: "What do you mean by your East Factory? That is the East Factory of the Ming Dynasty, the East Factory of His Majesty."

Feng Bao chuckled, stood up and approached Lu Diaoyang: "Anyway, it's not the East Factory of a high-ranking official like you, right?"

"So, Minister Lu just watched me get demoted?"

Feng Bao held on to this matter tightly, and Lu Diaoyang finally couldn't stand it anymore.

He softened his tone and said, "Feng Dayong, you saw me at the court meeting yesterday. I was dragged away by the emperor and I was at a loss."

"Do you want me to throw a tantrum in court?"

Feng Bao looked gloomy.

This was also something that caught him off guard.

Unexpectedly, the situation took a sudden turn. Within just one day, the East Factory was gone.

He asked, "What did Minister Lu say in front of Queen Mother Li?"

If it were in the Cining Palace, he would know what they were talking about, even the buzz of a fly.

However, as luck would have it, Zhu Xizhong, as an official from the outer court, could not meet him in the palace, so he went to the Qianqing Palace.

Those people are all from the Jinyiwei over there. If they can't protect Zhu Xizhong's privacy, then his position as the commander of the Jinyiwei would be in vain.

So, until now, he still has no idea what happened yesterday.

Lü Diaoyang glanced at Feng Bao and said calmly, "Yesterday, Empress Dowager Li asked me why the censor impeached me and what the ancestral law was."

"Zhu Xizhong is beside me, so I can only answer truthfully."

Answering truthfully would be disadvantageous to Feng Bao.

The two of them knew this very well.

After hearing this, Feng Bao dismissed the two eunuchs who were holding lamps and asked them to guard outside the house and not let anyone approach.

Then he said to Lu Diaoyang: "What about Li Jin?"

Lu Diaoyang told the truth: "When I went there, the father-in-law and Duke Cheng were already there." "Li Jin was also recommended by Duke Cheng. It is unknown whether he had a tacit understanding with the father-in-law."

From an outsider's perspective.

As soon as there was news of impeachment of Feng Bao in the outer court, the emperor's father-in-law took Zhu Xizhong to see the empress dowager.

It just so happened that Zhu Xizhong recommended someone from Empress Dowager Li's maternal family.

It is hard to say whether there is a connection between them.

As for why the emperor suddenly pulled him to meet the empress dowager, whether it was a whim or a tacit understanding, Lu Diaoyang didn't dare to think too much about it.

Seeing Feng Bao's grim expression, he could only appease him, "Feng Dayong, Li Jin is a relative of the emperor after all. After Gao Gong retires, we can find a reason to impeach the relative of the emperor for interfering in government affairs."

Whether such distant relatives are in-laws or not depends entirely on the thoughts of court officials.

It was Mr. Lu who said that it was in line with etiquette, but it does not represent the attitude of the censors.

After hearing this, Feng Bao didn't feel any better.

Instead, he became furious: "Wait for Gao Gong to retire? I'm afraid I'll die in his hands first!"

Lu Diaoyang's expression changed as he understood the implication of the words.

He immediately asked, "What does this mean? And what is Gao Gong waiting for, Feng Dayong just mentioned?"

Feng Bao snorted coldly.

His act was just to take the lead in the conversation, not to really blame anyone.

Cooperation is beneficial to both sides, so he naturally knows what anger he should endure.

Feng Bao took out a memorial from his bosom and handed it to Lu Diaoyang: "I copied this from the lobby of the cabinet. Minister Lu may wish to take his time to read it."

Lu Diaoyang's expression changed: "How dare you go to the cabinet to steal books!"

Even if the target was Gao Gong, Lu Diaoyang would never tolerate this.

He could go to the cabinet and secretly copy memorials today, but he dared not even think about what he would dare to do tomorrow.

Feng Bao said nothing.

Lu Diaoyang took a deep look at Feng Bao and could only say that he was worthy of being Feng Bao. Even if the East Factory was gone, its importance should not be underestimated.

He also understood that this was not the time to be fussy.

Although he felt disgusted, he still accepted the memorial.

The words on the cover are crooked, obviously because they were done in too much haste.

Lu Diaoyang didn't take it seriously at first, but after flipping through two pages, his face changed drastically.

He was so shocked that he lost his voice: "How dare Gao Gong!?"

……

Gao Gong chose a seat on either side and sat down, fiddling with his robe casually.

There is a kind of willful and naturalness.

Although he has a bad temper, he is able to remain calm when faced with critical situations.

He motioned for Ge Shouli to sit down as well: "Don't worry about who stands up to oppose me, let's just do our job step by step."

Ge Shouli sat down, but he didn't understand what was meant. "But the palace has been urging you again and again, plus Yang Bo's impeachment, this is forcing you to write a letter of resignation, how can you still do your work?"

Gao Gong handed over the retirement memorial he had just written, saying, "It's just right that you're here."

"This is my petition to be dismissed. I will send it to the Ministry of Public Administration tomorrow morning."

Ge Shouli stood up suddenly.

"Prime Minister..."

Gao Gong reached out and held him down: "Be patient."

Ge Shouli's tone was very anxious: "Is the Prime Minister really going to retire?"

Gao Gong looked into Ge Shouli's eyes and suddenly became very serious: "Yu Li, I said, you remember it."

Ge Shouli immediately sat up straight.

Gao Gong slowly said, "After I submit my memorial, the Tongzhengsi will not send it to the palace immediately. It will take me half a day to process it."

"Tomorrow's court meeting, you will submit another memorial on my behalf."

He took out a memorial from his sleeve and gestured to Ge Shouli.

Ge Shouli was puzzled: "Why doesn't the Prime Minister go to the court for the meeting?"

From the sound of it, he submitted both memorials on behalf of others, but what about himself?

Gao Gong shook his head: "I have other important matters."

Seeing that he didn't explain clearly, Ge Shouli could only nod helplessly and took the memorial handed over by Gao Gong.

All I saw were a few large characters written on the screen in an elegant and flamboyant style: a memorial on five urgent matters concerning the new policy.

Ge Shouli didn't know the details and just turned over two pages.

He muttered, "When the emperor hears government affairs, all government offices must follow the old rules of our ancestors and have the emperor personally answer them. This shows that government orders come from the emperor, and the ministers dare not interfere..."

His face changed drastically, and his heart was like thunder and lightning!

What does it mean to get a personal answer from Yuyin?

When the cabinet had something to report, the emperor would personally answer whether it was allowed or not.

Originally, the Cabinet submitted the matter to the Imperial Household Department, which then consulted the two palaces and the emperor.

Now that Yuyin has to answer in person, what role does the Silijian have? ?
This is essentially to abolish the Imperial Household Department!

And this memorial was the one Gao Gong wrote to seize the power of the Imperial Household Department!
He read a few more posts and felt terrified.

"If there are any that have not been drafted but have been approved directly, we will let the ministers make a clear report before they can be implemented."

The internal comments are the imperial edicts.

If an imperial decree still needs to wait for the cabinet to make a report, what is the point of calling it an imperial decree!?

This clearly means that an imperial decree cannot be implemented without the approval of the cabinet!
Ge Shouli almost didn't dare to look down anymore.

"Officials and civilians should carry out their original speeches when necessary. There is no reason to keep them in the court without issuing them... I hope that all official speeches will be issued in the future."

This speech is a memorial to the emperor. What does it mean that it has no reason to be kept in the palace without being issued?

That is, the emperor cannot keep any memorials without sending them out.

This means that even the emperor’s privilege of keeping it in the palace is restricted!

He was terrified and finally didn't dare to look at it anymore. He closed it suddenly: "Prime Minister..."

Gao Gong consulted him about the matter of the real power of the prime minister.

But he didn't expect Gao Gong to go to this extent!

No wonder!
No wonder Gao Gong said that he would not be surprised even if Ge Shouli turned against him.

When he saw it for the first time, his legs were already trembling with fear and he almost wanted to leave.

Gao Gong shook his head: "Do your best and leave the rest to fate."

……

Feng Bao said angrily: "He is not only trying to kill us."

"He is going against the entire inner court, even the emperor and the two empress dowagers!"

If what is said in this memorial is really followed, not to mention the Imperial Household Department, even the two Empress Dowagers will no longer be able to interfere in government affairs, and the Emperor will have to go through the Cabinet for everything. How can this be tolerated?

After reading the memorial, Lu Diaoyang still couldn't calm down for a long time.

High Arch...

This is Gao Gong? He is indeed Gao Gong!
A personal answer from Lu Diaoyang was enough to make him lose his mind.

If the ruler and his subjects get along well with each other, and the emperor can handle so many government affairs, it would not be presumptuous to say this.

The question is, how did the cabinet come about?

It was because the emperor could not handle so many government affairs that he established the Cabinet and the Imperial Household Department.

There can be several cabinet ministers, but there is only one emperor.

How could one possibly foresee all the major events in the world? Not everyone has the talent of Emperor Taizu Gao.

By then, won’t the cabinet still have the final say on most matters?
What’s even more outrageous is that the current emperor is only ten years old!
You want the Emperor to answer it himself? How should he answer?
How can a 10-year-old emperor rule the world? Didn't you say that? Now you want Yuyin to answer it in person?
Not to mention the restrictions on the emperor's imperial edicts and the prohibition of keeping them in his possession.

What kind of cabinet is this? This is actually the prime minister's office!
How dare he do that? No one in the inner court, the two palaces, or the emperor would support him.

He is so confident, what else can he do?

Lu Diaoyang raised his head and looked at Feng Bao: "Gao Gong dared to submit such a memorial, he must have something to rely on!"

"Feng Dayong, something has changed, go and call back Elder Zhang!"

Feng Bao glanced at Lu Diaoyang and said unhappily, "Do I need you to tell me?"

"Mr. Zhang has accidentally suffered from 'heatstroke' and will have to return home to recuperate in two days."

Lu Diaoyang didn't care about Feng Bao's attitude.

He just held the memorial in his hand, lost in thought.

How did the situation come to this?

　Gao Gong, the Grand Secretary of Dingmao, said that there are five urgent matters for the new policy: 1. Hearing government affairs in the imperial palace. All the reports from various government offices should be made according to the old rules of our ancestors, and the emperor should personally answer them, so that the government orders come from the emperor, and the ministers dare not interfere. 1. After returning to the palace after attending court, the emperor should report the affairs twice according to the old rules of our ancestors. After reading them, he should send all the draft bills of the cabinet to be reviewed. If they are indeed ready, they can be issued. In this way, the feelings of the people below can be communicated, corruption can be eliminated, and the emperor can also know the affairs of the world. One thing must be reported in person, so that it can be fully understood. I hope that after the court session, he will occasionally go to the Wenhua Hall and let the ministers come to see him. If there are urgent and important matters, he can also allow the ministers to ask for an audience from time to time, or report them after the lecture. In this way, the matter can be detailed and the feelings will not be blocked. Not only will the wisdom be enlightened day by day, but the power will not be transferred to the lower level. 1. If things are not discussed, there will be mistakes. The cabinet officials in the imperial court are set up to review the draft bills, which is to discuss and deal with them. I hope that the Emperor will send all memorials to the Cabinet for review and detailed drafting. If they do not meet His Majesty's requirements, they will be sent to the Cabinet for further review. If there are memorials that have not been reviewed but have been approved by the Emperor, we will let our ministers make a clear report before they can be implemented. This will help to resolve various issues and avoid the malpractice of false pretenses. 1. Officials and civilians should stop writing when necessary and should not keep them in the cabinet. Moreover, since the original memorials have been kept in the cabinet, it is impossible to verify whether they have been reviewed by the Emperor. If the matter is urgent, it will be wrong to submit them again. I hope that all original memorials will be issued in the future. If there are any that have not been issued, please submit the original manuscripts. If there are any memorials that have not been issued by the Ministry of Public Administration, the Ministry of Finance will make a clear report. This will help to resolve various issues and avoid suspicion from the ministers in the inner court and confusion from the outer court.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)