The Ming Dynasty: The most ruthless imperial grandson, Old Zhu begged me not to kill him.

Chapter 103 The Huaixi Nobles Seek Refuge with Hu Weiyong

Marquis Fei Ju of Pingliang shook his head with a face full of resentment.

"Let alone bringing Commander Xu here, we couldn't even get through the gates of the Duke of Wei's mansion!"

Everyone was taken aback when they heard this.

"How could that be? Commander Xu is a fellow Huai Xi native, how can you show him no mercy at all?"

Marquis Lu Zhongheng of Ji'an snorted coldly.

"This isn't the first time you've heard of the Duke of Wei's thoughts. Did he ever intervene in the affairs of our old brothers in Huaixi?"

Everyone fell silent upon hearing this.

Duke Xu Da of Wei never interfered in the affairs of these noble families from Huaixi, and even their usual interactions were minimal.

Hou Luju from Henan felt somewhat unwilling.

"Alas, what a pity. With the status of the Duke of Wei, he would be very suitable to be the leader!"

Seemingly sensing something amiss, the gathering of nobles was noticeably less crowded this time, with figures such as Marquis of Changxing Geng Bingwen and Marquis of Yingchuan Fu Youde absent.

Several people gathered here, and the atmosphere felt unusually oppressive.

"Gentlemen, now that things have come to this, what should we do next? I urge everyone to come up with a plan, otherwise, if what we did back in our hometown of Fengyang is discovered, we'll be in big trouble!"

Upon hearing this, everyone shuddered.

The imperial court's rewards were considerable for them.

But for them, who were used to a life of luxury, this amount of money was simply not enough.

Therefore, they hoarded a lot of farmland.

Zhu Yuanzhang hated corrupt officials the most, and if these things were exposed, they would suffer.

Marquis Zheng Yuchun of Xingyang looked at his worried brothers and said with a smile.

"Brothers, there's really no need to worry too much. No matter what, we all have the imperial edict of merit. With that, what can His Majesty do to us?"

At this moment, Marquis Fei Ju of Pingliang seemed to have thought of something.

"Brothers, there is actually another way we can go. Since the Crown Prince has appointed Hu Weiyong as acting prime minister, it means that the Crown Prince intends for Hu Weiyong to succeed him as prime minister!"

"Hu Weiyong is also from our Huaixi lineage. He is currently lacking in power. If we were to join him now, it might be advantageous for us!"

After hearing this, everyone frowned. Their relationship with Hu Weiyong wasn't good, and it was only because of Li Shanchang.

If they were to directly seek refuge with him now, he would probably not be willing to accept them.

Moreover, Hu Weiyong obtained his current position by betraying Li Shanchang, and no one can prove whether he will betray them again next time.

Emperor Shengzong of Tang patted his chest.

"Gentlemen, I think this suggestion is quite good. In any case, Hu Weiyong is also one of our Huaixi people. The reason he betrayed Li Shanchang was because of Li Shanchang's relationship with those Jiangnan gentry. If it weren't for those Jiangnan gentry creating some kind of empty seal this time, Li Shanchang wouldn't have been implicated!"

"Hu Weiyong's handling of this blank seal case has offended almost all the clans in Jiangnan. In that case, the only ones they can rely on are us, their old brothers from Huaixi!"

After hearing this analysis, everyone's eyes lit up.

That makes sense. If it weren't for those scholars, things wouldn't have turned out this way.

Marquis Lu Zhongheng of Ji'an said, cursing.

"I told you long ago that those civil officials were unreliable. If it weren't for them, things wouldn't have turned out like this!"

"These civil officials are truly causing great harm!"

"However, we can also give Hu Weiyong a great gift. I believe His Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince are unaware of the matter concerning the Duke of Han. If we inform His Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince about this matter and plead for Hu Weiyong to become the Prime Minister, what do you all think?" After hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up. After all, he was their old brother, and they believed he would listen to this. With this relationship, they believed Hu Weiyong would definitely stand with them.

"I think this suggestion is good. In any case, Hu Weiyong will definitely remember our kindness. Whether it is Li Shanchang or Hu Weiyong, they are both people from Huaixi, there is no difference!"

"In that case, let's first write a letter to His Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince, and then go to Hu Weiyong to explain things clearly!"

After discussing it, the group wrote a letter and headed towards Hu Weiyong's residence.

Inside Hu Weiyong's residence, after getting out of bed, he went straight into his study and didn't move for a long time.

Thinking about what happened in the imperial court feels like a dream.

Now that he had finally reached this position, everything seemed to have come too easily, giving him a sense of unreality.

After a while, Hu Weiyong came out of the room and shouted loudly to the steward outside.

"Go and inform the six ministers to bring official documents to my residence!"

The steward was extremely excited upon hearing this and hurriedly went out to announce the order.

As Hu Weiyong's status rose, the position of these officials, who were usually seventh-rank officials, also greatly improved.

They were extremely envious when they first saw the stewards in Li Shanchang's residence; now it's finally their turn.

Hu Weiyong sat in his study, waiting for the six ministers to come and pay their respects.

The short time it takes to drink a cup of tea made him extremely anxious and restless.

I straightened my sleeves more than once to see if there was anything amiss.

There was a knock on the door.

Hu Weiyong hurriedly sat back down in his chair, straightened his clothes, and sat upright.

"Come in!"

The steward came in from outside, looking rather annoyed.

Hui was surprised to see the steward enter alone, so he looked behind him and found that there was indeed no one there.

"What's going on? Why are you all alone?"

"Where have the six ministers gone?"

The manager said awkwardly.

"My lord, I sent someone to the residences of the six ministers, only to find out later that they had all gone to the palace to deliver official documents!"

Hu Weiyong was extremely surprised to hear this, and then became very angry.

"What are these guys trying to do? Do they want to rebel? I am the Prime Minister. Their matters must go through the Secretariat and be reviewed by the Secretariat before they can be sent to His Majesty. What do they mean by this?"

Hu Weiyong felt that these six ministers did not take him seriously.

Just as he was about to go out to settle accounts with these people, the manager beside him hurriedly said something.

"My lord, you mustn't! The fact that they sent all of these to the palace at the same time is enough to prove that His Majesty agreed to it!"

"What you're doing is completely against His Majesty, and I'm sure His Majesty would never agree to it!"

Hu Weiyong felt as if he had been doused with cold water upon hearing this.

Yes.

These people don't have the guts to go against me. Since they dare to do this, it must be Zhu Xiong Ying's arrangement.

(End of this chapter)