From a son-in-law to a favorite of the empress

Chapter 613

As we all know, Zhou Yuan is needed in this war.

Wen Tieli was captured, and the old nobles couldn't even raise their heads. His Majesty's murderous intention also made them a little timid. They were afraid that if they went to Sanbian and lost again, and couldn't defend the Mongolian cavalry, everything would be over.

Under various factors, they didn't dare to speak up. If the old military heroes didn't speak up, would they send local military generals? Wu Dingzhong and Pang Lixing were still reorganizing the army and recruiting soldiers. They couldn't leave at all, and their status was not enough to lead the entire Sanbian.

In the final analysis, the entire Jin Dynasty lacked talented generals. Only Zhou Yuan and Song Shanao were qualified to be marshals at this moment.

But Song Shanao was old after all.

Apart from Zhou Yuan, there was no one else.

But Zhou Yuan didn't want to go.

He wiped the ass of the Jin Dynasty everywhere, and these court officials shit everywhere. As soon as they said something, he went there. That was too aggrieved.

Since they want to use moral kidnapping, Zhou Yuan chooses to fight them to the end.

He looked at Deng Bochi and said calmly: "Master Deng said it well. As a minister, you should be loyal to the country and share the worries of the king. This is a matter of course."

"When I, Zhou Yuan, was still a commoner, I dared to fight the bandits with a sword in Yunzhou when facing riots. Is it considered loyal?"

"During the Liangjiang Rebellion, I, Zhou Yuan, was just a hundred households of the Jinyiwei, but I dared to defend Lin'an Prefecture and fight the rebels to the death."

"Rectifying the capital, traveling thousands of miles to serve the king, recovering the Central Plains, bombarding the Eastern Tartars, each and every one of these things, isn't it loyal to the country? Isn't it sharing the worries of the king?"

Say At this point, he said sternly: "However, you cabinet ministers, who hold high positions and command all officials, should have set the rules and regulations for the people and set an example. Why do you sit back and watch the country fall and the country hang in the balance?"

"Deng Bochi! You are the second assistant of the cabinet! What contribution have you made to the country? When have you ever shared the worries of your majesty?"

"The Jiangnan salt business has accumulated serious problems. When I was fighting hard in the south, you impeached me, poked me in the back, and even claimed to be sick and did not attend court, threatening the emperor. You are not only disloyal to the court, you are simply guilty of death!"

When these words came out, the whole court was shocked and there was an uproar.

How can such a thing be put on the table! Officialdom, party struggles, power, these are all potential rules and competitions that have existed in every dynasty. If they are put on the table, no one can get anything done.

Deng Bochi's face became even uglier, and he trembled and said, "You... you dare to say... you dare to say that I am disloyal?"

Zhou Yuan said, "Not just you! How many loyal and wise officials are there in this court?"

He simply declared war, pointing at everyone present, and said, "There are hundreds of officials involved in the corruption in the salt administration. Don't you know about it?"

"Yang Guozhong! As the chief minister of the cabinet, you have the responsibility to supervise all officials. The Jiangnan salt administration is so corrupt, do you dare to say that you didn't know about it and didn't report it? Do you dare to say that you didn't cover it up? Do you dare to say that you didn't take the money?"

" Good! If there is none of these! Then how come you don't know anything? Do you think the cabinet chief minister is a mascot? Just to be displayed in the court? You are dereliction of duty! "

"Wang Lun, as the Minister of Works, why don't you know that Lianghuai has built ten private salt drying yards and embezzled 1.8 million taels of silver from the national treasury?"

"Xu Shigong is the culprit of private salt. You are in the cabinet with him. Why didn't you notice it at all? Are the accounts and expenses of his house so clean!"

The whole Golden Palace was silent, and everyone's face was extremely ugly.

Greed? Who is not greedy? The corrupt officials in the world are like the sand of the Yellow River, and the honest officials are rare.

Even sometimes, how much the officials below take and how much the emperor above takes are tacitly understood and proportional. This is a struggle between the power of the monarch and the power of the prime minister, and it is also the way for the monarch and his ministers to get along.

If these things are put on the surface, how many are clean? If they are all killed according to the law, then are there any officials in the court?

Zhou Yuan was clearly so angry that he wanted to overturn the table.

Seeing that they didn't say anything, Zhou Yuan continued, "Why are you all keeping your heads down? Aren't you very talkative!"

"Wen Tieli defended the three borders. You said that I, Zhou Yuan, was just lucky. If it were other generals, they could also recover the Central Plains and drive out the Eastern Tartars. The Jin Dynasty would fight many wars. I, Zhou Yuan, was just favored."

"I, Zhou Yuan, will satisfy you and give you all the opportunities. I have driven away the Eastern Tartars. I can't still take the credit for Mongolia. I'll give it all to you!"

"Send your own people, I believe you will be successful."

At this point, Zhou Yuan said coldly, "But remember to sign a military order before going out. After all, I, Zhou Yuan, have always signed one."

"Do you dare? Do you have the guts? Do you have the ability?"

"You are all in high positions, but you are full of petty gains and party struggles. Are you loyal to the country? Bah, you are worthy of saying this?”

“They are just sitting there doing nothing but eating and drinking, not making progress, and only care about power and interests. Where is the country and the people!”

Empress Zhaojing finally spoke: “Lord Zhou, be careful with your words.”

She didn’t think Zhou Yuan was wrong to scold him. On the contrary, she felt very happy and relieved, but scolding couldn’t solve the problem.

She said slowly: “Civil and military officials should perform their duties, and the Great Jin will have its own time to revive. At this time of national crisis, the situation in the northwest is critical, and we must work together.”

Zhou Yuan bowed and said: “Your Majesty, it’s not that I am petty, but I am not satisfied.”

“For more than two years, what I, Zhou Yuan, have done for the Great Jin is obvious to all. Have they ever acknowledged my contributions? Have they ever respected me? They have long been blinded by interests, and they are only afraid of me.”

“I was busy rebuilding the country, and they were busy finding faults in me and digging holes for me. "

"Now, the northwest is in trouble again. This time I will give them the chance."

"The fight against Mongolia is up to you ministers."

Deng Bochi was furious and said, "Zhou Yuan! In the Golden Palace, you spoke wildly, like a child in the market, and you didn't take His Majesty seriously. You are deceiving the emperor!"

Zhou Yuan said, "I, Zhou Yuan, serve the country and share the worries of His Majesty. I rely on practical actions, while you rely on shamelessness and words."

"Your Majesty, I recommend Lord Deng Bochi to lead the expedition. I believe that with his loyalty, he must be willing to go."

Deng Bochi said, "Everyone has his own specialty. How can a civil servant lead the army to go to war? This is a move that will harm the country!"

Zhou Yuan said coldly, "Aren't your actions harming the country?"

Until this time, Yang Guozhong spoke faintly, "Duke Weiguo is heartbroken about the ruin of the good situation in the northwest. I understand. ”

“However, the Great Jin Dynasty is not only about the northwest, nor is it only about military affairs. We are also helping Your Majesty in other areas, but the Duke of Weiguo doesn’t understand it very well.”

“There are no generals available in the court for the current turmoil in the northwest. Please take the overall situation into consideration and lead the troops to fight.”

This is a very experienced remark. He cleared himself of all charges and brought up the so-called “overall situation”.

Zhou Yuan said: “The northwest is in danger, you want me to fight. The world’s officialdom is in danger, I ask Prime Minister Yang to resign and return home, how about that?”

Yang Guozhong did not answer, but said to Empress Zhaojing: “Your Majesty, our Great Jin Dynasty has been established for 400 years, and contradictions in all aspects have accumulated deep, and official corruption is indeed serious, which needs to be rectified urgently.”

“However, governing a large country is like cooking a small fish, especially officialdom, which should be simmered over a low heat and gradually improved. ”

“As the chief minister of the cabinet, I should set an example, gradually summarize the problems, analyze them, and determine the way to rectify them. This is a long-term plan.”

“However, the situation in the northwest is critical. We should make a quick decision and not delay. Otherwise, the danger of Hetao may become a danger to the entire Jin Dynasty.”

Otherwise, how could he be the chief minister?

The pattern of his speech is different. He considers everything from the perspective of the entire court without any personal emotions.

Empress Zhaojing could only nod and say, “What Yang Qing said is very right. We should speed up the response to the situation in the northwest.”

“However, since Duke Weiguo is unwilling to go to war, the cabinet should recommend military generals to lead the troops to go to war.”

“The list should be finalized within three days at the latest.”

“Dismissed.”