marquis of jingan

Chapter 1464: Reconciling the World
Master Shen stopped writing with the brush in his hand, looked up at Zhang Jian, was slightly stunned, turned his head to look at the imperial city, then looked at Zhang Jian, and laughed softly: "This is not a surprise. Senior brother is a Jinshi in the first year of Hongde, and has been in the officialdom for nearly 30 years. Even if it is based on seniority, it is his turn to be the prime minister. Besides..."

"If Zhang Xiang hadn't deliberately suppressed you for a few years, you might have been promoted to Zhongshu a long time ago."

Zhang Shangshu…it should be Zhang Xiangye who poured himself a cup of tea. After taking a big sip of the tea, he shook his head and smiled, “When I was young, I had a lively personality. If you don’t suppress me for a few years, I will never be able to calm down. I have already understood my grandfather’s painstaking efforts.”

At this point, he sighed: "Although I have the help of Ziheng today and am lucky enough to be appointed as prime minister, it is a pity that my grandfather will never see it again."

When Zhang Shang retired, he was nearly seventy years old. He returned to his hometown of Yuqian. Although he was able to recuperate and spend more than ten years of his later years in peace, he passed away a few years ago.

However, the old prime minister did not suffer from any serious illness when he passed away, so it could be considered a happy funeral.

"I didn't help."

Master Shen was silent for a while, and then continued, "It was because His Majesty favored Senior Brother that he was able to enter the Secretariat. Moreover, Senior Brother's position was originally reserved for Senior Brother. Although Senior Brother is still serving, he is no longer in the court. It is reasonable for this position to be given to Senior Brother."

At this point, Master Shen smiled and said, "In the past twenty years, Ganquan Academy has become more and more prosperous, especially after the establishment of Ganquan Academy in Jiankang. In the past ten years, dozens of Jinshi have been produced. In the future, those who graduated from our academy will probably have to follow the lead of our prime minister, Senior Brother."

Zhang Jian glanced at Shen Yi and said unhappily, "I haven't studied in the academy. At best, I can only be considered half a member of the academy. If they really want to find someone to rely on, they should rely on you, Ziheng."

"It's not like they haven't relied on others before."

Mr. Shen also took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and said calmly: "When my brother and I were in charge of the northern region a few years ago, many people from the academy came here. After I dealt with those people from the academy, they stopped thinking of joining me. They might even scold me privately for being ungrateful and seeking fame."

Master Shen smiled carefreely: "Besides, I am still in charge of the army, so I am not suitable to be the head of the academy. This position must belong to my senior brother."

Zhang Xiang looked at Shen Yi and said softly, "Ziheng has never thought about entering the Secretariat to become a prime minister?"

"I?"

Master Shen smiled dumbly: "How can I be a prime minister? Since I started leading the army, there is no possibility for me to be a prime minister."

He paused, then continued, "Zichang has some potential. At his age, if he can hold on for another ten or eight years, he might have a chance to enter the Secretariat. By then, our Shen family will be able to produce a prime minister."

Zhang Jian smiled softly and said, "But five years ago, His Majesty appointed you as the Grand Secretary of Zhongji Palace."

Anyone who entered the Secretariat and became a prime minister would be given the title of Grand Secretary. Among the several Grand Secretary titles, the Grand Secretary of Zhongji Palace was the most respected. The chief ministers of all dynasties, such as Yang Jingzong and Wang Dan, all held the title of Grand Secretary of Zhongji Palace.

And Shen Yi is the first Grand Secretary of the Zhongji Palace who does not hold the position of Chief Secretary since the establishment of this system!
Shen Yi was slightly startled, then shook his head and said, "It's just an empty title. Brother, you know that I couldn't be given any more titles ten years ago. Giving me the title of Grand Scholar of Zhongji Palace is just a consolation."

Zhang Jian seemed to be thinking about something.

"It makes sense."

As he spoke, the newly promoted prime minister looked around and whispered, "Ziheng, I always feel that something is strange in the court recently. Do you have any news? Let me know in advance."

Master Shen looked at the documents on the table and said with a smile, "If you want to communicate, that's easy. Look at how many things are going on in my Governor's Office right now. Brother, you are an expert in this field. Stay here with me for an afternoon today and help me deal with all these documents. I will tell you the direction of the court."

Zhang Xiang was a little hesitant.

"All the documents that can be sent to you must be handled by you. I can't suppress these things."

Mr. Shen said with a smile: "Brother, please approve it, and I will stamp it."

"The seal I, Shen Qi, stamped means what I meant. Those sneaky people will behave themselves."

Zhang Xiang was really curious. In addition, he was about to be officially appointed as the prime minister. He had to see the direction of the court clearly and could not make any mistakes in order to secure the position. Therefore, he gritted his teeth and said, "Okay, I'll have someone send a letter to the Ministry of Revenue to ask for half a day off."

Mr. Shen nodded happily, took the initiative to move out of his seat, and put the brush in his hand into Mr. Zhang's hand.

It has to be said that Zhang Jian, with nearly thirty years of official career, is very adept at handling official documents. For some things that Shen Yi needs to think about, he only needs to glance at them and then give a more appropriate reply.

Mr. Shen, who was in charge of stamping the documents, was even a little flustered.

In this way, the two brothers worked hard for an entire afternoon, and finally dealt with most of the documents piled up in the Governor's Office. After Zhang Xianggong finished writing the last word, he didn't have time to rub his sore wrist, but grabbed Mr. Shen's sleeve and said, "I've worked hard for you for half a day, you can't run away."

Master Shen reached out to pour him some tea and said with a smile, "What are you talking about, Senior Brother? Am I that kind of person?"

Zhang Jian looked straight ahead, his expression was self-explanatory.

Mr. Shen poured him some tea and said with a smile, "Drink tea, drink tea."

After Zhang Xianggong finished drinking half of the tea in his cup, Shen Yi also took a sip of the tea and said softly: "In the next six months or so, Senior Brother must be more careful in doing things and only do his own job well. Especially when the Secretariat is discussing matters, Senior Brother must pretend to be deaf to all matters that require standing on the north and south sides."

Zhang Jian frowned: "What do you mean?"

Shen Yi shook his head and said, "Then I'll be more straightforward."

He looked at Zhang Jian and whispered, "In the next few months, there will definitely be some turmoil in the court, and it will be quite a turmoil. Some important officials, especially those whose hearts are in the south, will be removed."

Zhang Xianggong frowned and said, "The officials in the court all came from the south. When some people were removed, the radish pits were left, and the radishes who came up to replace them were still these people."

“There is no way to change the situation.”

Mr. Shen hummed and said, "That's the crux of the matter. That's what I want to say."

"Your Majesty wants to balance the forces of the north and south so that Da Chen can take root in Yanjing. So after pulling out some radishes, the radishes that come up to replace them cannot be the original southern radishes."

Zhang Xianggong was even more puzzled: "Where are the northern radishes in the imperial court?"

"Yes, I have."

Master Shen said quietly: "It's quite a lot."

Zhang Jian was stunned, then suddenly looked up at Shen Yi and murmured, "An old Qi surrendered minister!"

"Ah."

Shen Yi lowered his head to drink tea and said quietly: "This is a big deal. Brother is a new prime minister, so you need to be careful and don't get shocked."

"The reason why Senior Brother was able to enter Zhongshu so smoothly is probably because he is not obsessed with the South."

At this point, Master Shen glanced in the direction of the imperial city again and said silently: "I just hate that a bitch is going to take advantage of me."

……

As the territory expands, the issues that Emperor Hongde thinks about will definitely change accordingly.

For example, when he was in Jiankang, he only needed to think about the affairs of the small court in the south, but now, he must and must care about the world.

And if the officials in the court are not urgently adjusted, this new Da Chen will definitely have various problems.

The most prominent issue is not the issue of moving the capital. No matter how powerful the southern gentry are, it is unlikely that they will move the capital back to Jiankang.

The most acute issue is the balance between the North and the South.

The most acute issue in this balance between the north and the south is scientific research.

The world has been unified for ten years, which means that the scholars in the north have participated in the imperial examinations at least three times.

And till today, there are not many people in the north who actually pass the imperial examinations.

If this contradiction is not reconciled, there will be many problems in the future.

Emperor Hong De was anxious to deal with this issue and even asked Shen Yi to cooperate with him for this reason.

And only he, an emperor with unparalleled prestige, has the ability to reconcile this issue.

Just as Shen Yi was talking to Zhang Jian, at this moment, in Ganlu Palace.

Zhou Yuanlang knelt on the ground, touched his head to the ground, bowed deeply, and spoke in an extremely pious voice.

"I… thank your majesty for your grace!"

(End of this chapter)