Chapter 268 Shocking the Capital
"Shen Zheng was too aggressive in this matter, but he is a lone minister. You can help him more in the court. Okay, I'm tired." Prince Huai was reporting to Emperor Liang about some things that happened. Emperor Liang was just taking a rest, not ignoring the matter. In his opinion, Shen Qingzhou went to the martial arts competition to win a wife today just like Lou Zhijing did last time. This time it was because of the aggressiveness, and one person led three departments.

This sounds like a good thing, but everyone understands that your main job is the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture. You are in charge temporarily and can be removed at any time. If there are merits, others can reap the rewards, but if there are mistakes, you will be the one to take the blame.

This is also the reason why the ministers unanimously agreed. Do you think this is a good thing? This is the cooperation between the Crown Prince and Prince Yu’s faction, and it is also the result of the neutral party not helping either side.

Emperor Liang didn't care. After all, the person above him was the Minister of the Secretariat, so nothing could go wrong.

……

Su Mansion.

"Although Shen Zheng is capable, he is too young and speaks without thinking, so this matter will be difficult." Mei Changsu remained silent after hearing Li Gang's summary.

"metropolitan."

"Shen Zheng is a man who is decisive in his actions. This time he seems to have been provoked by someone, but it may be that he wants to go further."

"Master, this is impossible."

"Why not?" Mei Changsu asked seriously.

"Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Rites, and Ministry of Punishment. The Ministry of Rites is easy to deal with, as there are regulations from previous years, and it is unlikely to make a big mistake. However, the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Punishment have different responsibilities, and their status is not high enough, so they are out of tune with the hundreds of officials and court officials."

“This is exactly what I am confused about.”

Mei Changsu had also consumed a lot of energy in the past few days. Emperor Liang had suffered from narcolepsy since the Heavenly Sacrifice Ceremony. The spies from the Jiangzuo League had also received news that it was indeed nothing serious. However, Shen Qingzhou had suddenly become angry and was given the responsibility of commanding the three departments by someone with ulterior motives.

Almost everyone thinks that he is young and energetic, but Mei Changsu is different. Shen Qingzhou is too capable, but he can't think of any way for Shen Qingzhou to break the deadlock.

When Princess Nihuang learned about this, she was also confused, but she could not help with this matter.

For Shen Qingzhou, the solution to break the impasse is simple. Everyone is thinking about integrating resources, but for him, all he needs to do is rebuild.

At this moment, he is truly the best in the world. Although he cannot conquer the whole world by himself like his original body, but fighting a few battles with his talent is a piece of cake. The longer the time, the stronger he will be. Now, the entire Jinling government office has been filled with his talent. To him, it is a war fortress. In the government office, he can fight against an army of 50,000 alone.

Time is his friend. The longer the time goes, the stronger he will be. When Jinling City becomes a storage pool of his talent, he will be able to conquer the world alone.

"Lord Shen." After the court meeting, Shen Qingzhou came to the Ministry of Justice. He and Cai Quan were old acquaintances. Although this man did not act like him, being righteous to the point of paranoia, he was considered a good official for the people.

"Lord Cai, I hope we can work together in the future." Shen Qingzhou said.

"That's inevitable." Cai Quan was actually a little indignant, but he was a gentleman after all, so he didn't say anything. The two people were of the same rank, and he originally thought that the position of Shangshu was already in his pocket.

It's not that he is arrogant. It's that after the Shangshu was dismissed, there was no one else who could be used except him. People from other departments were parachuted in and were not familiar with the affairs of the Ministry of Justice.

However, he also felt sad that a good official like Shen Qingzhou still couldn't survive in the court.

"This is where the case files are." Cai Quan bowed. Shen Qingzhou stayed for a while and went to the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel, which were not far away.

Then he went out of the city, to a deserted place, and started reciting two poems with his tongue as powerful as thunder.

"Being a teacher is a real name, who is worthy of a thousand years."

"Success is due to Xiao He, and failure is also due to Xiao He."

One poem is about the prime minister, and the other is about Xiao He. With such a luxurious lineup, not only can it be about the affairs of the three departments, but also about the affairs of the world.

These two poems are of no assistance to combat power, but they are sufficient for political affairs. Over the years, he has basically experimented with some poems he memorized in the real world because of "Song of Righteousness". Of course, there are still some that he has not been able to write until now because of his lack of talent.

These two poems made him clear-headed and able to see through some twists and turns in political affairs. However, it did not mean that he had to act according to the behavior of these two people. He still put justice first.

Day two.

"Why has the case of the Gunzhou City Tongzhi not been reviewed even after half a year?"

"Sir Shen, this is my humble servant's responsibility. The matters are complicated and I have other matters on hand." A middle-aged man stepped out. He looked humble, but there was pride in his words. He was from Prince Yu's party.

"I see. In that case, you should focus on the case at hand and hand this matter over to someone who can handle it. As for you, your name is Zhang Tong. Someone has reported you for accepting bribes. This government is in charge of the Ministry of Personnel. I have already brought your appointment and dismissal letter.

Also, your brother-in-law has been bullying men and women in Zhang County outside Beijing. Jinling Prefecture has received a report and has been secretly investigating for a long time. It just happened to find out the truth recently.

The evidence is irrefutable, and the Jinling government has sent people to arrest him and review the case documents, which have also been brought here."

Shen Qingzhou didn't look up as he wrote various comments on various documents, but Zhang Tong's face had already turned pale.

"Master Shen, this."

"Don't think too much. This is not retaliation. I didn't know you were causing trouble today. If we want to clear up the chaos, the Ministry of Justice is crucial. I want the Ministry of Justice to be clean. Take them away."

"Wang Ya."

"Sir Shen, I can hand over the position to the Vice Governor of Gunzhou."

"Okay, you should know what happened, take him away."

Many officials in the Ministry of Justice were terrified. They could never have imagined that Shen Qingzhou was so bold. You have the responsibilities of the Ministry of Personnel, but no one thought you would dare to do this.

Cai Quan was also shocked. He was beside Shen Qingzhou, watching Shen Qingzhou making comments on various documents. Even as an old official from the Ministry of Justice, he felt a sense of admiration for him. Many things that could not be said in the documents, as well as matters of shirking responsibility, were all pointed out and refuted by Shen Qingzhou.

Of course, this only shows that Shen Qingzhou is capable, but he is really too bold. It's okay for him to take the princelings, but he also takes the neutral followers without giving face to anyone.

If this continues, the Ministry of Justice will have almost no one available. However, for Shen Qingzhou, there is a very useful saying: the thing that is least lacking is people. There are a lot of scholars waiting to become officials.

However, there are also some disadvantages in this. It is easy to make mistakes if you have not done many things. But the reason why Shen Qingzhou has been consuming his talent is that he is exerting his full strength.

Now, he can only mobilize 500,000 talents, and the remaining 300,000 talents, only about 10,000 are consumed on the emperor, and the rest are the full strength of the two bosses. Of course, it may not be their full power, but it is enough.

On this day, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel were coming in and out, and various documents were issued continuously. The two Shangshu seals beside Shen Qingzhou were constantly used. The first thing Shen Qingzhou did was to clear out the pests in the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel. Although there were also some in the Ministry of Rites, it was not a department with real power, so there were fewer things to do.

Prince Yu and the Crown Prince were completely unaware of his actions. By the time they realized what was happening, the Shangshu seal had already been pressed.

Let me put it this way, when Shen Qingzhou was the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture, he had quite a few cases involving powerful people on his hands, and only now has he begun to truly mobilize all three fronts.

The yamen runners are arresting people everywhere, and the Ministry of Justice is also cooperating. The Ministry of Justice is corrupt from top to bottom, and many of the people working there have not been corrupted. In the capital, they can only follow orders and can't do anything. Now, they are actually happy to arrest their superiors.

"Your Highness, Shen Zheng is going too far."

"Your Highness Prince Yu, help me."

The Crown Prince and Prince Yu reacted and did not go looking for Shen Qingzhou. Now it is useless to look for him. They have to go to His Majesty. The matter has indeed become a big deal. If it continues like this, the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice will have to shut down. Even if Shen Qingzhou is dead, the impact will be too great.

However, Emperor Liang was still sleeping soundly, and Shen Qingzhou had increased the dosage. He would not be able to wake up within three days, so he wanted to take this opportunity to transform the three parts.

Prince Huai was also under pressure from Prince Yu and the Crown Prince, but the thing had already been done and he had no choice but to hold on. Although he was timid, he knew that Shen Zheng was in the same faction as him.

In just one day, the Ministry of Justice imprisoned 33 people, the Ministry of Personnel imprisoned 18 people, and the Jinling government arrested a large number of accomplices. The name of Shen Yanwang had already spread throughout the capital.

Prince Yu and the Crown Prince also went to look for Shen Qingzhou, but the other party stayed indoors and refused to come out, so there was nothing they could do.

Su Mansion.

"Brother Lin Shu, Brother Shen's actions have a great impact."

"It's more than a big deal. He has offended almost all the officials in the court. Although it's a good thing, it's too hasty." Mei Changsu was shocked.

"Master, Shen Zheng's actions are impartial and not partisan. Everyone's crimes are clear and have been posted outside."

"Of course, this is not a party struggle. Now, Prince Huai is timid and relies on him. But if the emperor goes to court, he will become the public enemy of all officials and dare not do anything bad. That is his difficulty."

"Is there any way to help? Brother Shen is truly pleading for the people." Princess Nihuang still had a good impression of Shen Qingzhou. She had a secret. If she hadn't known about Lin Shu's existence, she would not be opposed to marrying Shen Qingzhou.

"He is too stubborn, and he has a plan in mind. It is obvious that he has been collecting evidence for a long time and has been holding back. He just got the power and he rushed to settle the accounts. I think he knows that this is his only chance. But I didn't expect that he has such a strong sense of public interest and no selfish desires."

Nihuang felt a little sweet after hearing these words. It seemed that apart from herself, Shen Qingzhou was only focused on work.

At night, Jinling had not yet been built into the city that never sleeps in Shen Qingzhou's mind, and there was still a curfew. In the Jinling government office, Shen Qingzhou was still working, hunched over the desk. He was also racing against time, but he was also slightly influenced by the prime minister and worked his ass off.

"Brother, this kid is really a good person."

"Good people don't live long, get started."

"Do it."

"kill."

"Brother, why are there so many people?"

After a few words of dialogue, a dozen assassins appeared.

"Brother, where is this?" However, a gust of wind blew by, and seeing the fog all around, the dozen assassins panicked. At this moment, Shen Qingzhou glanced at the dozen people walking around outside, but didn't care. This government office was his place of residence. For ordinary people, it was already a face-saving thing to be able to come in without his permission.

This is the Eight Diagrams Formation, which he uses the most. It is even a formation with a fantasy color. This government office is full of righteousness and can even resist a sneak attack by others.

These assassins were panicking, but they actually knew that Shen Qingzhou must be on the Langya List, although he had not been ranked yet, so the chances of killing him were slim.

But he did too many things, and many people knew it. More than one person wanted him dead, and they worked together. Many people didn't want him to live. It was okay before, but he had just taken control of three departments and dismissed more than fifty officials in one day. Too many people were scared.

When it was getting light, and the assassin had not returned yet, many people realized that they had failed and they had to find another way.

……

On the second day, there were 23 clerks under the Ministry of Justice and 52 clerks under the Ministry of Personnel. This was even more exaggerated, but some of those who were frustrated felt happy.

Many people are afraid that something might go wrong, which might shake the foundation of the country, but since His Majesty is silent and Prince Huai has no idea, this is the only way.

The third day was better. The Ministry of Personnel sent down a few people, but the Ministry of Justice did not. It was impossible that all of them were corrupt officials. It was not that they did not want to, but that they did not have the power to do so. Of course, there were also some who adhered to their own principles or who had not been investigated yet.

Because the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel were short of staff, the Crown Prince and Prince Yu both intended to have someone stir up some trouble, but unexpectedly, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel handled it cleanly.

After a careful investigation, it is found that Shen Qingzhou is indeed very capable. He has mastered all the internal rules and regulations, as well as the way of doing things. All the Ministry of Justice needs to do is to go out and arrest him.

Many ordinary people were extremely happy. They had been oppressed for a long time and had never seen such a scene before, especially since this was the work of the respected Lord Shen.

Ordinary people are nothing, but former officials and some powerful people really hate and fear Shen Qingzhou, but also have a little respect for him.

I admire his ability. He handles the responsibilities of Jinling City, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Personnel by himself. Even with so many people missing, the work did not stop.

The remaining people in the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice did not dare to show off and just worked in a hurry.

In just three days, he had taken control of the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice. Many of the people he temporarily promoted already supported him in their hearts. Everyone wanted to be an official. Of course, being an official is not easy and there needs to be a set of procedures.

Now, everyone knows that Shen Qingzhou will not survive. Even if His Majesty goes to court and faces rejection from all the powerful people in the court, he has to respect this gathered force.

But something went wrong.

"I want to see His Majesty. How dare you stop me?" Concubine Yue wanted to rush into the emperor's bedroom, but was stopped by someone.

"Your Majesty, His Majesty has personally said that, except for Prince Huai, no one can enter the bedroom without his consent." said the imperial guard.

This was indeed what Emperor Liang meant. He was also afraid that if he fell asleep, the Crown Prince or Prince Yu would come in and kill him. Concubine Yue, the Queen, and others should also want to become the Empress Dowager as soon as possible.

He is not afraid of Prince Huai. He has no strength and there is no benefit for him to kill him. The only two people plus Prince Jing can be supported by the court officials.

"Nonsense! If Prince Huai harms His Majesty, can you take responsibility?" Concubine Yue said. Of course, she said it angrily. She wanted to check what kind of condition Emperor Liang was in.

Back in the bedroom, looking at the paper ball, His Majesty was fine. She was a little distressed, Your Majesty, what are you thinking about.

In fact, Emperor Liang was in good condition, but there was one thing: the shorter the time he had been awake in the past two days, the better his spirits became.

……

"Lord Shen, isn't this a bit too bad?" Prince Huai has also arrived at the Jinling government office. He has not slept well in the past two days as he is under too much pressure.

"Your Highness, please rest assured. If anything happens in the future, I will take all the responsibility." Shen Qingzhou said. It's okay to be timid, but at least he is obedient.

"Sir Shen, what about our father?" He was also afraid of being punished.

"Your Highness, there is no need to worry too much. In fact, I have something to say to Your Highness. Although His Majesty's life is not in danger, he will remain in this condition for at least a year." Shen Qingzhou said softly.

"What, Lord Shen, this?" Prince Huai said in surprise.

“Your Majesty is actually suffering from a soul-losing disease. Sleep can indeed improve his previously exhausted body, but it consumes his spirit.

When I was young, I suffered from these symptoms and recovered only ten years ago. Therefore, I know the cause of this disease.

I am just worried that if the truth is revealed, the Crown Prince and Prince Yu will fight and the country will be in chaos, so I specially recommend Your Highness to be the regent."

"Is this true?" The expression on Prince Huai's face became strange. Shen Qingzhou understood that he was the regent. If he got rid of Emperor Liang, could he become the emperor?

"Your Highness, His Majesty must have made adequate arrangements around him, and Your Highness has never had any power outside. Once the news is exposed, the first person to die will be Your Highness." Shen Qingzhou said, and also scared Prince Huai awake.

Prince Huai has come to his senses. He is now the regent only because Emperor Liang is still alive. Everyone obeys Emperor Liang and does not take him seriously at all.

"Master Shen, what should I do?"

"Quickly take control of the court. When His Majesty wakes up, I will be able to control my own forces and stand on equal footing with Prince Yu, or even surpass them."

"This." Prince Huai said that he couldn't do it. He had nothing, so how could he win people back?

"Don't worry, Your Highness. Although I am not involved in party disputes, I have always hated evil. I will clean up the court and Your Highness will promote some people. This will be easy.

Let's prepare for the worst. If His Majesty doesn't attend the court for a long time, Your Highness will at least have the power to protect himself and won't be killed by traitors," Shen Qingzhou said.

"Lord Shen, that all depends on you." Prince Huai thought about it and felt that now, he and Shen Zheng were grasshoppers on the same rope.

The most important point is that if his father's condition continues for a year, he, as the regent, will definitely be regarded as a thorn in the side. He can give up being the emperor, but he must have the power to protect himself.

……

"Your Highness Prince Huai, Shen Zheng has listed charges against us, and we must pay close attention to them." At the court meeting, Prince Huai was under a wave of pressure.

Although the assistant ministers of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel were also in the court, they did not say a word. They knew that, in fact, these two departments were controlled by Shen Qingzhou in just a few days. Where did he get so much energy?

"The evidence is irrefutable. The censor can explain in detail where the mistake is."

"This." No matter what, Shen Qingzhou does not follow the rules, but he really does not target innocent people.

Prince Yu and the Crown Prince were also upset. How come they couldn't find any pain points in Shen Qingzhou? Only now did they realize that, in addition to the crime of buying an official position, his character seemed to be too great.

I have been helping the poor since I was a child, and until now, the only person I can mock is Princess Nihuang.

Princess Nihuang, the Crown Prince and Prince Yu all had an idea. Shen Qingzhou had no flaws, so did Princess Nihuang?

"What is this?" Outside the residential building, there is a building with the name of Shanmin Primary School hung on it, and many people are standing around watching.

"This is a school built with the support of the Shen family business to teach children to read. It was approved by Lord Shen."

"Why learn that? You can't make money from it." Children also have to work.

"If you don't go, I'll send my daughter there. I heard she'll provide meals and you can probably make some money, but I don't know how she does it."

"Make money, San Gou, go in and study hard, and make a lot of money."

In Jinling city, many teachers have received many invitations to teach children to read and write. Many people are unwilling to leave, thinking that how can knowledge be passed on so easily to poor families? However, some people are willing to leave.

All of a sudden, all the hidden tricks that Shen Qingzhou had laid exploded. The school did not make money, but which real estate developer funded it was a prerequisite for obtaining the land. It was not a university, but just a primary school.

"When a person is born." Listening to the childish voices of children coming from the bright classroom, many ordinary people are grateful in their hearts. It's not that they don't want their children to succeed, but they know that they don't have the ability to do so.

The most important thing is that you can really make money. If you write some words, some business will buy them in bulk, as if it were some charity or something.

This was necessary in the early days. In feudal society, children were also part of the labor force. If there were no benefits, they would not go to school even if it was free.

Many people don't say anything about his behavior, but in the eyes of ordinary people, it adds a lot of points. Everyone can distinguish between good things and bad things.

"I'm not as good as him." Mei Changsu visited more than a dozen academies in one day. In some places, residential buildings had not been built yet, but there were already academies. When he returned to the Su residence, he felt for the first time that he was not as good as Shen Qingzhou.

He is compassionate, capable, courageous, not afraid of offending people, and has great martial arts skills and is eloquent. He is one of the most powerful poets in the world. Each label is scary. This is the vision of the times.

These were all arranged by Shen Qingzhou before. He was still handling the official business of the three ministries personally. The Ministry of Rites now had a lot of things to do. For example, the Ministry of Rites was in charge of education. Otherwise, it would be difficult to open so many schools. Although they could open them themselves, there were procedures above. As long as they were standardized, Emperor Liang would have to recognize them even if he appeared again.

Shen Zhui from the Ministry of Revenue was also extremely distressed. It was too unfair for Shen Qingzhou to integrate three ministries. He had the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel. He could not control any officials except those above the fourth rank. The rest were really decided by his word. Half of the high-ranking officials in the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Personnel were killed by him, but the ministry was still able to operate. However, everything came at a price. Everyone was guessing whether Shen Qingzhou slept or not. It seemed that they could see him at any time and he did not miss any time to go to the construction site.

The Crown Prince and Prince Yu continued to quarrel and still did not take Prince Huai seriously. Half a month later, Emperor Liang still did not show up, and everyone felt something was wrong.

But everyone also knows that Emperor Liang does show up occasionally, and only those around him know that his sleepiness does not harm his body, but he does not have the energy to deal with other things.

"No, no." Mei Changsu actually had some guesses, but there were some things he didn't dare to think about. Why did he feel that Emperor Liang had something to do with Shen Qingzhou?

This was something Prince Yu and the others had never thought of. Emperor Liang's behavior would not be good for Shen Qingzhou. However, Mei Changsu was different. The Jiangzuo League had a strong intelligence presence, and he discovered that the officialdom of Daliang was changing at an incredible speed.

For example, the Ministry of Personnel introduced a performance evaluation system half a month ago, which was actually to get officials busy and deal with things. This was Zhang Juzheng's reform, and Shen Qingzhou directly copied it.

If he was not the Minister of Revenue, he would have used the Single Whip System as well. This performance evaluation system made many officials miserable, but it did provide motivation.

(End of this chapter)