Realm of Power

In a wine shop in Xinjing, Zhongbia, located near the window, several Zhongbia scribes were talking in a low voice. In Xinjing in August, countless yellow flowers were scattered in the autumn wind, and the rain gradually increased, often one after another. After the rain, the city was washed clean like a shining gem. News from the south was also impacting the city.

"Have you heard that the court has ordered the northern access road to be opened, allowing the Aden people who caused trouble in Luzhou to attack the northern empire?" "Really or not, if this is the case, then there will be a good show!" With a few points Surprised voice: "Huh! Neither the Imperial people nor the Aden people are good people." , they are not from my race, their minds must be different, let them bite dogs before they are applauded." Someone in the seats looked angrily and said word by word, "When the fighting is exhausted, and the army rises up in the court, we will definitely be able to At one go, we will take back the north and completely drive the empire out of Central Asia."

"The Empire is the most powerful in the world. Even with the help of the Aden people, it is not that simple to drive out the Empire." Some people disagreed.

"Now I, Zhongbia, am no longer what I used to be. Even the vicious Yelu family has to negotiate peace with us. The emperor is the most powerful in the world. Don't forget, during the Battle of Deyang, I, Zhongbia, will The emperor was beaten to pieces and finally had to retreat to the north of the river." "So, this time the imperial court united with the Aden people to advance north, it was really an incredible move." Not only is it incredible, it is simply a stroke of genius. The return of the Holy King is indeed extraordinary. The two clowns, the Empire and the Aden people, are easy to catch! "When the middle-aged scribe said this, he made a low and excited sound from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were wide. He looked at the people listening in the wine shop. If there were a few well-dressed nobles, they would have to show an impassioned expression.

After the court promulgated the order to promote talents, young disciples from all over the world came in droves. The last time there was a promotion of talents was ten years ago during the singing and banquet era. Subsequently, due to cruel wars and turmoil, in the past ten years, , how many Chinese and Bian literati have been squeezed, now that the court has reopened to promote virtuous people, it is natural to go to Xinjing even if you break your head. If you are the first to promote virtuous people, who will care about you if you are unknown? In this case, in order to attract the attention of those powerful people in Beijing, the scribes were very eloquent about the Aden Army's northward march and gave pointers. As long as their words and opinions attracted the attention of the powerful people of the day, they would be very close to becoming famous. It would be even more ideal if his opinions reached the ears of the emperor.

Since the situation gradually stabilized, the Yelu family in the imperial capital signed an armistice agreement with the Zhongbia court, and they were always worried about the huge shadow of the grassland people moving south, and it seemed that they had gone away. It has to be said that the urban recovery ability of the Central Asian region is amazing. It has a huge population base and a stable agricultural social model for thousands of years. As the society gradually stabilizes, the impact of the two defeats of the Imperial Capital has not been completely eliminated. The market became lively again. Scholars and ladies began to bustle in the streets and alleys again, and in front of the most famous Washe Gate in Xinjing, the scene of red sleeves and red sleeves waving all over the building began again. As for the war that was still breaking out in Luzhou in the south some time ago, for people in Xinjing , seems to be a very distant thing, the bloody battle in Luzhou, the fall of the Lu family's headquarters, and the warnings are all just things that are far away. No matter what kind of war, it will never reach Xinjing! But for the court, for those who are interested, this time the Aden Army marches north, it is a war between the central court and the local clans.

Separated by a screen, several Zhongbi scribes wearing green shirts were sitting among them. This elegant room is decorated with separate tables. There are good fish meats and fruits on the tables in front of each scribe, but they are not moved. The bustle of the city outside could not be heard coming in, but it was like in the past. Such weather is perfect for Xu Lingfeng to drink and sing at the same time, but today the windows of this private room are closed, and the sunlight shines in through the window lattice, casting deep and shallow shadows on the faces of these scribes. , everyone looks. They were all extremely serious. The Lu family was defeated miserably in Lujiang, and the court immediately hit them with a series of combined punches. It would be a lie to say that the court did not collude with the Aden people.

"This time the imperial examination is basically to ask each family to send hostages. It is said that even the list has been drawn up and placed on Prime Minister Yu Fenlong's desk." One of them had a gloomy face. The scribe said angrily, "Who can say otherwise? Moreover, the 200,000 Aden troops marching north, the consumption along the way is not a small number." , the court obviously will not pay this money, and it will eventually fall on the nobles from all over the country. The Aden people are cruel, so good that Luzhou is almost empty. They have just entered Shannan, a hundred miles away from Luzhou, and three people in Shannan have been killed. A city was burned to the ground, and even the Fang family, which had been in Shannan Province for more than a hundred years, was completely ignored by the Aden Army. They ransacked their hometown politely. If it weren't for the Fang family's speed, I'm afraid even the third-grade family of the Fang family would no longer exist. The court was simply using local nobles to feed the people of Aden, and then let the people of Aden fight the empire. , the wealth gained was finally enjoyed by the court. It was obviously a borrowing the knife strategy to kill people. If we don't take any action, I'm afraid that when the examination is over, the nobles from all over the country will have no choice but to obey the court." Another scribe said with a solemn expression, "But one thing looks good, that is, everyone thinks The imperial court has ulterior motives for holding the examination for meritocracy at this moment, so everyone is boycotting it spontaneously."

"With the example of the Lu family, who would dare to trust the court! Look at the Lu family and you will know that even if they are as loyal as the Lu family, they are almost abandoned by the center of the court. It is pitiful that tens of thousands of people in the Lu family died in vain. , and was labeled as disobeying military orders afterwards. "Speaking of what happened to the Lu family, everyone was The situation is bleak. Although the Lu family is a military town, in terms of loyalty, it has always been loyal to the court. Now that the court is treating the Lu family like this, who can believe that the court will treat the local clan sincerely? What good can Brother Bi do? Just tell me your suggestion, there are no outsiders here, and everyone has the same goal."

"Yes, Brother Bi said it directly." Hearing the middle-aged scribe's words, the others were moved. Local aristocratic families often influence the whole body, unite with each other, and confront each other. This is also the reason why the central court has been unable to take action, and Now, the court wants to use the sharp knife of the Aden Army's northward march to cut through the mess quickly. How is this possible? If you don't make it easy for me, I won't make it easy for you either.

The middle-aged scribe glanced at the others, "I believe everyone knows what the Central Court lacks most now. Since Luzhou was occupied by the Aden people, the Central Court has been unable to collect the southern tax revenue in the third quarter. , now the entire court is so poor that they can’t even send out winter greetings. After you return, you only need to withhold the court taxes. When the central court is in a hurry, everyone will have the opportunity to sit down and discuss. "The method is good, but if we withhold the finance and taxes blatantly like this, I am afraid that we will be investigated..." Some people looked hesitant. None of the people here are powerful figures on the stage. Some are the core personnel of local clans, and some are the chief advisers and confidants of certain clans. In short, they are all representatives of local forces. Originally, they did not care much about how the Aden people caused trouble in Luzhou, but now the court has allowed the Aden people to move north. Exploded, as a local power that covers the sky with one hand, it has privileges and can enjoy wealth safely. What military affairs are important, what battles determine the destiny of the country, how many soldiers sacrifice their lives to save Wu's crisis. None of this is in their calculations. They only know that no one can threaten the wealth and life of this privileged ruling class, nor can they try to swallow up their profits in vain. They can ignore the court's suppression of the Lu family, but the court It's another thing to act so recklessly and even attack them.

The scribe smiled slightly. "Although Luzhou has been recovered, it has just experienced a catastrophe. Bandits are rampant in the territory. It is normal for the convoys transporting finance and tax to be temporarily blocked. The current plan is to comprehensively boycott the examination of talents. On the other hand, regardless of How can we not let the southern finance and taxation pass? We must use all means to prevent the court from receiving a cent! We must let the Central and Asian courts know that we are not the backyard for the central court to take whatever it wants, let alone throw it away casually! We must let the Central Court know that without us, the Central Court will be unable to move forward! ""Yes, we are not the Central Court's backyard, nor can they take whatever they want." Others agreed, Forget it if it was before. Now that we have experienced four or five years of no control from the central government, without the suppression of the central government, local families are accustomed to doing their own thing. Now if we want them to consciously return to the original state, who is willing to agree? ! The scribe waved his hand to the servant next to him, and soon a covenant agreement was brought up. The scribe first signed his name and seal, and the others signed the seals of their respective families.

Prime Minister's Residence

Yu Fenglong, the prime minister of China and Bibia, came to the officials of the Ministry of Rites to ask about the situation of the examination. It was an important measure to attract local families and was also a benchmark for the attitude of local forces towards the court. However, the situation looked very bad. Eyebrows After reading the report in his hand with a slight frown, he raised his head and looked at an official from the Ministry of Etiquette who was standing solemnly below, and asked in a solemn voice, "How come there are so few people from various clans in this examination, even half of the basic number?" No, was there an error in the registration?”

"Sir, there is nothing wrong with the registration. I can guarantee it with my head. In fact, there are only such a number of children from aristocratic families from all over the country who came to register." The official in the red robe of the Ministry of Rites was already sweating profusely and his body was so frightened. The trembling reply was, "I have a little suspicion. These local aristocratic families are joining forces to boycott the examination."

"Hmph, you are not overestimating your own capabilities!" Yu Feng's nose rhinoplasty snorted incitingly, stood up, and pressed his hands heavily on the table.

"Master, urgent report from the north." The chief butler of the Yu family hurriedly came from outside and handed a report with both hands. Yu Fenglong took the report, opened the cover with his fingers, glanced over it, and his face couldn't help but change color slightly. The empire actually opened up its arms sales to the southern forces. This was indeed an accident. The consequences of the reshuffle of the Imperial Capital West Road began to show. The originally monopolized arms trade was broken.

Closing the report in his hand, Yu Fenglong suddenly laughed. He couldn't help but picture Tang Yu jumping with hatred. The empire suddenly let go of arms trade with the south. It didn't matter much to him, but to the military For Fang, it was like a bolt from the blue. "Have you sent a copy of this report to the military department?"

"It's just been delivered, it hasn't been sent to the military yet," the old housekeeper replied.

"Send a copy to the military department." Yu Fenglong raised his eyebrows, handed the report back to the steward, and said coldly, "Yachotang's finances are depleted, and it's time for the military to bear part of it."

It is no secret that the military secretly sells old and replacement weapons, and this traditional practice has a history of more than a hundred years and is no longer an open secret. Now that the empire has interfered with it, the military's weapons sales may have There is no profit. Who doesn’t know that the Imperial Arms is the best, and the price of the ordnance on Imperial West Road is also quite low. If the military department has the same price as Imperial Imperial West Road, it will suffer a big loss.

Yu Fenglong seemed to have thought of something, and suddenly called the housekeeper again, and asked, "Also, I would like to ask the military department on the way, have you decided on the candidates sent by the military department to Luzhou? Luzhou, under the Lu family's decades of management, can be said to be a target." It's a piece of iron that can't be inserted or poured with water. If the people from Aden hadn't knocked on the door of Luzhou, we still wouldn't know about Luzhou. When can we return to the court? In order to prevent the Lu family from returning to Luzhou, I, Yu Fenglong, have already been punished by the army. I hope the military department can confirm the candidate as soon as possible. I don’t care who he is, I only have one request, and that is to arrive in Luzhou. The first thing after that was to uproot the Lu family's power in Luzhou with all their strength. "Yes, I understand."

The butler trembled slightly, took the report and left, "Luzhou..."

Yu Fenglong took a deep breath, rubbed his temples, and stretched his arms tiredly. For some reason, he always had an unknown feeling in his heart. He used the power of the Aden people to severely damage the Lu family, and was forcibly detained three times. Years of military expenditures will no longer be a concern within ten years. It is not necessary for local officials to boycott the examinations for the promotion of talents. Importantly, what the court wants is an excuse to launch an attack. As long as the Aden Army enters a war with the empire, the court's 100,000-strong army will take advantage of this gap to clear out those regional clans who resist the central court one by one. These places Without the Lu family's military strength as a guarantee, what kind of trouble could it cause?

As long as all the local efforts are returned to the central government, the name of Yu Fenlong, the wise prime minister of Zhongxing, is destined to be written in the history of Central and South Africa. With Yu Fenlong's current status and identity, in addition to power, he is seeking to be remembered in history.