Please call me Your Majesty!

Chapter 129: Song Xun, a salt merchant from Jiangnan, revolted, marking the beginning of the chaos in the Zhou Dynasty.

However, Chu Shizhao also knew in his heart that it was impossible to take down the Wang family in one go.

Due to various reasons, even for the stability of the court, Emperor Yongjin would not allow Chu Shizhao to overthrow the Wang family.

However, Chu Shizhao wants to choose one to shoot at.

The Wang family is now the apparent leader of these famous families and big clans in Jingzhao.

To the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Wang family was like the Yan Party during the Jiajing period and the Sima family during the early Wei and Jin dynasties.

It is worth mentioning that the Yan Party can be controlled, but the Sima family has grown to an uncontrollable state.

During the Zhou Dynasty, when Emperor Yongjin was still alive, the Wang family was also under control. However, after Emperor Yongjin's death, the Wang family quickly expanded into a parasitic force like the Sima family.

For example, Wang Huai, the nephew of Wang Conghui, immediately became a local warlord when the world was in chaos.

Therefore, no matter what, Chu Shizhao would try his best to limit Wang's influence in the court.

Moreover, the Great Zhou Dynasty is now facing a very obvious financial crisis.

The country is now in turmoil and someone has to take the blame. In addition, there are deficits in various places and the people can hardly make ends meet. For Emperor Yongjin, such deficits must be made up no matter what. However, how can he make up such a huge deficit in such a short time?

Then we can only take action against people.

The reason why Emperor Yongjin wanted to investigate Wang Ruizhen was that Wang Ruizhen was a minister cultivated by Emperor Yongjin, and touching him would not have far-reaching consequences.

Wang Ruizhen has consumed so much land and donated so much over the years. It’s hard to say how much wealth he has amassed, but it can at least get him through this period of time.

The purpose of getting rid of him was to fill the deficit in the national treasury.

However, investigating and prosecuting Wang Ruizhen is only a temporary solution and cannot actually solve the problem.

If the financial problems of the Zhou Dynasty were to be improved, the first thing to do was to make the tax revenue higher than the treasury expenditure.

Then we have to change the law.

Working backwards, Chu Shizhao still had to unify the internal voices first before he had a chance to reform.

As supporters of the old system, how could the Wang family possibly support Chu Shizhao's reforms, because they only benefited from the commission in the middle.

If you change the law, what will they eat?
This means that no matter what Chu Shizhao does, whether it is for self-protection or for the sake of the country, he will sooner or later have a decisive battle with the Wang family.

Well, first of all, Chu Shizhao must stand firm and maintain the moral high ground.

At this time, the value of "Public Security Memorial" is reflected.

Just when Chu Shizhao wanted to say something else.

Outside the Wude Hall, a young eunuch with a pale face and no beard came to greet him respectfully and said, "Your Highness, Prince Jin, His Majesty has summoned you to the Taiji Palace."

Chu Shizhao bowed slightly to his brother, the Crown Prince.

He immediately walked out of the Wude Hall.

Chu Shixu was quite surprised and suspicious at this moment.

Because he had thought of many possibilities, but he had never thought that Chu Shizhao would actually want to touch the Wang family, which was his mother's family.

Moreover, Wang Shi actually made great efforts to enable my father to establish himself in Chang'an and firmly secure the throne.

Everyone felt that the Wang family was an unshakable force during the Yongjin period.

But why did Chu Shizhao, who had no foundation at all, dare to draw his sword against Wang? Could it be that his father wanted to take action?

No matter how hard Chu Shixu tried, he couldn't figure out Chu Shizhao's thoughts, but he soon had an idea that was terrifying when he thought about it more carefully.

Could it be that it was the emperor's instruction?

Is this going to attack the Queen Mother?
In recent days, Emperor Yongjin has been more moody than before, so Chu Shixu has no idea what his father is thinking.

As the Prince of the East Palace, he actually did not hold any great power. The person who truly controlled the center of power was his father who lived deep in the palace from beginning to end.

This made Chu Shixu very dependent on Wang's power.

At this moment.

Inside the Taiji Palace, Emperor Yongjin looked at the memorial in his hand calmly.

He gave Chu Shizhao a lot of power.

The greatest power among them was that Chu Shizhao could submit secret memorials to him, which was a treatment only enjoyed by close ministers in the Yongjin Dynasty.

Chu Shizhao has already laid on file Wang's record all the crimes she committed over the years, relying on the royal favor to do whatever she wanted.

Emperor Yongjin certainly knew this.

How could he not know these things?

Because to some extent, Emperor Yongjin and Wang were also partners.

Every penny of silver that passes through Wang's hands will eventually be turned into wealth and fall into the hands of Emperor Yongjin.

If Emperor Yongjin did not know the date of his death, he might have continued to use the Wang family. After all, it would be very difficult for him alone to ensure that the finances of the Great Zhou Dynasty would not collapse.

The Great Zhou is now on its last legs. Oftentimes, the money for disaster relief is scraped out from various places. It is no exaggeration to say that it is robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Emperor Yongjin really didn't want to take action unless it was absolutely necessary, but the influence of the Wang family was about to shake the position of the next emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

No matter who succeeds.

The existence of the Wang family is an extremely unstable double-edged sword for their successors.

"Father." Chu Shizhao bowed as he entered the palace. He then said, "You summoned me. Is there something?"

"Fourth Brother, I have read your memorial." Emperor Yongjin said calmly, "Do you have any prejudice against the Queen?"

"I have no prejudice." Chu Shizhao thought for a moment and immediately replied, "It's just that Wang's business has been in Chang'an for many years, and his disciples are everywhere. I was very worried, so out of curiosity, I checked some of their business dealings."

"There is nothing wrong with these businesses." Emperor Yongjin whispered, "There is no need to delve into it."

"I hope that the emperor will let me go to be a vassal." Chu Shizhao said without hesitation: "The Wang family is powerful. If my brother succeeds to the throne in the future, I will definitely suffer from it."

"Rather than spending half my life imprisoned in Chang'an, it would be better to let me go to a distant place and live as a free and easy prince."

Chu Shizhao could naturally see that the Wang family's powerful influence was due to the connivance and even the instigation of Emperor Yongjin.

However, Wang was a tool of Emperor Yongjin, not a tool of Chu Shizhao.

Emperor Yongjin could choose not to help Chu Shizhao, but he could not protect Wang Shi to the death. If he did, Chu Shizhao would die.

So as long as Wang is still alive, Chu Shizhao has no choice but to leave.

Otherwise, he would just follow the simulation and launch a coup with Huan Sheng.

Emperor Yongjin did not expect that Chu Shizhao's attitude was so firm. He wanted to keep Wang, but did not want Chu Shizhao to leave.

At this point, Emperor Yongjin still wanted to balance the relationship between the two. But Chu Shizhao did not play by the rules at all.

Either Wang gives way to Chu Shizhao, or Chu Shizhao becomes a fiefdom.

It’s not that Chu Shizhao is being aggressive, but now he has to race against time to push these things forward.

If Chu Shizhao is left in Chang'an, he will become a puppet who can do nothing, so it is better to let him go.

"The Queen is still alive, and the Wang family is a large clan. They can still be of use in my hands." Emperor Yongjin paused.

Chu Shizhao said bluntly: "If father wants to kill me, he can do it now. Why be so shy?"

"Which of the things I am doing now can satisfy their wishes?"

Emperor Yongjin took a deep breath and said, "So what are you going to do?"

Chu Shizhao said seriously: "May the Great Zhou be safe and sound."

Emperor Yongjin's expression changed immediately.

Chu Shizhao added, "Father, I do not want to ask what your plan is, but I want to tell you that the Wang family has achieved its current status because of your grace."

"But they can also develop ambitions that they shouldn't have. When a tool has ideas that they shouldn't have, they are no longer a tool."

"Besides, if Wang Shi got 100 taels of silver and gave 50 to your father, and you still feel grateful to them, wouldn't that be the most ridiculous thing in the world?"

"After all, all the people in the world are the subjects of the emperor. If the Wang family plunders wealth from these subjects and they eat half and share the other half, and the emperor has to thank them, isn't that confusing right and wrong?"

"All I did was to try to protect myself, because I know very well that if my brother succeeds to the throne one day, people like me who stand in their way will not have a good ending. If the emperor really loves me, then let me go and become a vassal."

Chu Shizhao said this very seriously, and at the same time explained all the things that Wang might do.

For example, how to control the court, how to undermine power, and how to get involved in the most important authority of the court. What Chu Shizhao said was extremely true. Even the details of how Wang's ideas on using people were supplemented.

This is not something Chu Shizhao made up, but rather something that actually happened in the simulation. Saying it again makes it seem more real.

Who made Wang Huai do so many things that were not beneficial to the Great Zhou Dynasty? For example, he went against Chu Shizhao's order despite the order of Emperor Yongjin, and he did many things that he could obviously do but he pretended not to do them.

Emperor Yongjin did not believe it at first, thinking that all the power of the Wang family came from him, and that Wang Conghui had been quite restrained for many years, and the entire Wang family was wholeheartedly submissive to him.

However, Chu Shizhao narrated many details in detail, including how Wang amassed wealth and power under his nose.

These words are far more terrifying than directly attacking Wang.

When the seeds of doubt are planted in a person's heart, no matter how good the previous people have done, they will find clues.

Emperor Yongjin's expression immediately became heavy.

He was stunned for a long time and said, "Is Wang's ambition really that great?"

Chu Shizhao continued: "If Father doesn't believe me, you can try to pretend that you are unwell and that the dragon is ill."

"If Wang Shi is the same as before, then I am overthinking it. But if Wang Shi starts to lean towards my brother, then you should be careful, father."

"This means that the Wang family does not care who they serve. As long as someone is willing to give them status, wealth, and power, they will be loyal to that person."

"My elder brother can also replace my father in their hearts."

Emperor Yongjin seemed to have felt a pain, and his expression became more serious, "How rebellious!"

Chu Shizhao laughed and said sincerely, "Father, I have heard that power can corrupt a person's heart. Fathers and sons can scheme against each other for power. This is just like businessmen in the secular world. They can do anything to fight for family property."

"But I actually hope that Father can take care of his health." Chu Shizhao stood up and wanted to say goodbye: "If Father is interested, he can try to see if the children of the Wang family have any ulterior motives."

"If possible, I would rather be at your father's side and be a happy king."

Chu Shizhao didn't say anything else. After bidding farewell to Emperor Yongjin, he left the palace.

The next day, the Wude Division welcomed a soldier named Dou Li.

During this period, Chu Shizhao had been recruiting a group of knights to come to the capital, and Dou Li happened to be a famous knight in Cangzhou.

Rangers have a bad reputation in the countryside, and many people regard them as a kind of "green forest hero".

However, Chu Shizhao already knew Dou Li's background thoroughly through simulation, so he couldn't help but be more careful when recruiting some knights to come to the capital.

When the time is right, Chu Shizhao will come forward to recruit the other party.

Chu Shizhao was quite confident about this matter. After all, Dou Li came from a powerful family and was not a pure commoner, so he was very ambitious for fame and success.

He didn't want to be looked down upon by his fellow townsmen, but according to the current situation, it would be difficult for a local tyrant like him to have any chance to make a name for himself in Chang'an.

Huan Sheng was already a powerful figure in Liangzhou, but when he came to Chang'an, he still had to work hard and was suppressed by others.

In the East Palace, Dou Li's "status" is really not qualified now.

There they look at 'background' first, then 'diploma'.

Instead, it gave Chu Shizhao many opportunities to attract these talents.

Now Chu Shizhao's team is still too weak. He has to arrange people for the Wude Division, the court, and the three prefecture armies.

But all in all, up to now only Huan Sheng and Yang Fang are real people. Even Dou Li has just arrived and has not yet been brought into Chu Shizhao's camp.

If Chu Shizhao wants to grow fully grown, he still needs some time to develop slowly.

However, Huan Sheng's singles ability was still outstanding. In just half a month, his position in the Ministry of War had improved significantly.

Huan Sheng, who was "highly valued" by Emperor Yongjin, was obviously treated with courtesy by others.

Huan Sheng, who had just shown signs of gaining momentum, also began to privately win over those ministers who were frustrated under the suppression of the big families.

In fact, many people are not optimistic about King Jin.

It has been an unwavering principle since ancient times to establish the eldest son as the heir rather than the youngest.

However, due to the fact that he was not valued, Huan Sheng still gathered a small team to keep each other together.

Even though many people still remain on the sidelines, when two or three people are willing to work with Huan Sheng, it will be the starting point of success for Chu Shizhao.

However, a war report from the southeast soon disrupted Chu Shizhao's plans.

A mutiny broke out in southern Fujian. A salt merchant named Song Xun started a rebellion in southern Fujian. The government troops in southern Fujian mutinied again and failed to stop Song Xun's rebel army.

Things in the court were not yet settled, and the sudden attack of this rebel army made Chu Shizhao anxious again.

Because the rebellion of the rebels was the prelude to the chaos in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Chu Shizhao had thought about a rebellion, but he had never imagined that the timing of the rebellion would be so coincidental. The rebellion occurred just as Chu Shizhao was developing his grain storage system.

If Chu Shizhao now sits idly by and allows this rebellion to grow, the war will soon sweep across the entire Jiangnan region, endangering the entire world and causing a chain reaction of rebellions.

Chu Shizhao would never let his father be so foolish as to allow a commander like Lu En to sit back and watch the rebels grow and lead the government troops to support the enemy.

If it really doesn't work, let Chu Shizhao take charge personally. That's better than other "virtuous ministers" who just work but don't put in any effort!
(End of this chapter)