Zheng Zhilong let out a sneer. "Surrendering at that time wouldn't necessarily have led to a good outcome. The Ma Shiying and Gao Hongtu case caused such a massive uproar, yet that Little Emperor decided to execute them anyway."
When Zheng Zhilong mentioned this, Zhu Yujian could not help but say with deep admiration, "He is truly a youth, possessing such unstoppable courage. If it were I.."
He shook his head without saying a word, but he also knew in his heart that Zhu Ci dared to do this because he held military power, every single one of the military generals was his confidant.
Recently, he also implemented sweeping reforms, separating military funding into an independent budget and establishing some kind of military tribunal, ensuring that from then on, the scholar-official group could no longer interfere in matters of military funding and provisions.
Zhu Yujian did not know if the scholar-official group had protested, but judging by the timing of Ma and Gao's appearance, it looked very much like a counterattack by the scholar-official group.
It was a pity that this counterattack was forcibly suppressed by Zhu Ci. It was foreseeable that, in the future, it would not be easy for the scholar-official group to launch a counterattack.
Envious?
Of course I am envious. Who wouldn't want to be an emperor whose word is law?
Unfortunately, he did not have military power in his hands, so he had to bind Zheng Zhilong firmly to his warship.
Zheng Zhilong knew very well what Zhu Yujian was thinking. He pondered for a long while before saying, "There is indeed hope if Your Majesty wishes to take a gamble. The Young Emperor's reputation is currently in tatters, he has offended many scholars; Your Majesty could certainly recruit them. Furthermore, the scholar-official group under his command is bound to be full of resentment; perhaps you could recruit a few of them as well."
As soon as Zhu Yujian heard it, he knew he had just hit upon Zheng Zhilong's concern.
Zheng Zhilong feared nothing else, except for the possibility of his hard-earned fleet being stolen by others.
He sat up straight and asked, "Oh? I wonder who you think is capable?"
The Young Emperor's subordinate, Right Censor Huang Chunyao.
“Him? This man has no reputation, the things he does are not particularly clever.”
Zheng Zhilong said nonchalantly, "But he, his students, his friends and family are the backbone of the current Young Emperor's forces. Moreover, he should have seen those firearm blueprints. If a person like that is dismissed over a trivial matter, even after a thorough investigation, he is not reinstated but instead demoted to Left Censor, does he not feel resentment in his heart?"
Zhu Yujian actually did not like Huang Chunyao either, because he also looked down on the people under Zhu Yousong's command back then.
However, Zheng Zhilong made a valid point; this person was worth getting to know.
Huang Chunyao was stunned when he saw the person sent by Zhu Yujian to persuade him.
He also never expected that he would become an object of contention during his lifetime.
Oh, to be more precise, the one who was turned.
Before that man could even finish speaking, Huang Chunyao jumped up. "Someone, drag him out!"
The scholar who had come to persuade him said unhurriedly, "Censor Huang, my Emperor is thirsting for talent; why must you be so aggressive? What the Young Emperor can give you, my Emperor can also give you, he can even promise you a peerage."
Huang Chunyao immediately changed his tune and said, "No, take him away and hold him for judgment."
The scholar raised his head and said, "If you dare touch me, my master will certainly not.."
He was gagged and dragged away before he could finish speaking.
Huang Chunyao wiped the sweat from his forehead, thought for a moment, immediately called Hou Dongzeng over.
Hou Dongzeng was also stunned after hearing this: "Who is this person? How can they be so bold?"
Huang Chunyao said, "It seems to be the son of the former Yingtian Prefecture Prefect."
Hou Dongzeng let out a sneer after hearing this. "I know this person. Back then, his father cheated for him, helping him breeze from a mere scholar all the way to a juren. Over time, he actually started believing he was something special. In the end, the essay he wrote for the spring examinations was complete nonsense, yet he still thinks he's being suppressed. I never expected him to actually throw his lot in with Zhu Yujian."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Huang Chunyao and said, "Unshheng, that Zhu Yujian must have taken an interest in you because you were once the Emperor's confidant and know many secrets. That is why he sent people to lobby you. You must think this through carefully."
Huang Chunyao said crossly, "I don't have brain disease!"
If it weren't for His Majesty, Huang Chunyao would still be lost somewhere right now. He had known His Majesty since they were both in lowly positions, His Majesty had even saved his life. Never mind that His Majesty was merely removing him from his post; even if His Majesty were to kill him, he would never betray His Majesty.
Moreover, this dismissal is not a bad thing.
His sudden rise to a high position had indeed caused psychological issues; as soon as things stabilized in Great Ming, he wanted even more power.
When he was dismissed from his post and stayed at home under investigation a few days ago, his mind slowly calmed down, he suddenly felt a sense of lingering fear.
Even if what he did was not quite the same as a coup, it was not much different; wasn't the purpose of inviting Ma Shiying and Gao Hongtu back to exert control over the Emperor?
If he hadn't been blinded by greed, he would have been able to figure it out; how could the one sitting on the throne now be so easily controlled?
He had truly been misled by the Emperor's earlier words about returning great powers to the Grand Secretariat and the Censorate.
The Emperor had indeed relinquished some power, but he had only relinquished minor matters; when facing major matters, he handled them without any hesitation, no one could even defy his will.
Only the idea of embarking on another Personal Expedition was talked him out of by the Grand Secretary.
Considering the current situation, the Emperor has indeed delegated administrative affairs to the Grand Secretariat and granted supervisory powers to the Censorate, but he still holds military power firmly in his hands. He even used the cases of Ma Shiqi and Gao Hongtu to completely separate the military, ensuring that neither the Grand Secretariat nor the Censorate can control the military in the future.
What is there left for this Emperor to fear?
It was only because they were blinded by the separation of powers the Emperor had spoken of back then. At the time, they thought the Little Emperor was truly naive, but the result was that they were fooled, subsequently, he firmly grasped military power in his own hands.
Of course, military power alone certainly cannot govern a country, but the problem was that he was accomplished in both civil and military affairs.
Even if Huang Chunyao had a head full of boiling water, he still wouldn't betray Zhu Ci, let alone what Zhu Yujian has to offer.
A maritime merchant controlling military power, an emperor who has failed to seize military power to this day—no matter how you look at it, there is no future here.
The question now is whether or not to tell the Emperor?
To be safe, it should not be said; after all, speaking it aloud would cause the Emperor to become suspicious.
Why did Zheng Zhilong not look for anyone else and instead chose him? Was it because his resentment had been discovered by others?
Hou Dongzeng did not dare to offer any suggestions for a moment. Last time, his suggestion had nearly led everyone into a trap; how could he dare this time?
Instead, Huang Chunyao slammed his hand on the desk for emphasis and said, "I will go and request an audience with His Majesty!"
Hou Dongzeng asked worriedly, "Is it truly nothing to worry about?"
Huang Chunyao thought for a moment and said, "If it's spoken, there will certainly be no trouble, but if it's not spoken, that's not a certainty. Our Emperor has very extensive channels of information; there is nothing he cannot know, only things he chooses not to know."
If the Emperor finds out about this before we go, the nature of the matter will be entirely different.
Hou Dongzeng thought about it and found it to be quite reasonable.
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: Oh, someone's getting smarter. A kitty holding a lollipop and crossing its legs. jpg
Next update tomorrow morning at six o'clock
Chapter 157
In fact, Zhu Ci had never thought about establishing any kind of intelligence network—or rather, it wasn't that he hadn't thought about it, but rather he felt that instead of setting up intelligence channels to monitor the civil and military officials, it would be better to train more spies to infiltrate the Qing Army.
However, it was a case of unintended success; the several textile mills under his command were practically hubs for all sorts of rumors and insider information.
Huang Chunyao said that entering the palace meant entering the palace.
Although he had been demoted, when he served as the Left Censor, the Emperor had granted him and Fu a pair of waist tokens so that they could move in and out of the palace without applying in advance.
Of course, this privilege was limited only to the previous administration, even then, one still had to apply in advance to have an audience with His Majesty.
Zhu Ci was somewhat surprised to hear that Huang Chunyao wanted to see him.
Ever since the Ma Gaoyi case had gradually subsided, Huang Chunyao had been behaving himself for quite some time, rarely appearing before him unless absolutely necessary. Why had he suddenly come here requesting an audience with the Emperor? Surely, something must have happened?
It turned out that something really had happened.
After hearing the whole story, Zhu Ci could not help but laugh: "It seems they are also feeling uncertain. Hmm, go find Chen Zilong and tell him to keep an eye on things. There might be many people being lobbied lately; you should keep watch together with Chen Zilong."
As soon as Huang Chunyao heard this, he knew he had made the right gamble this time. He felt much more relieved and kowtowed, saying, "Your servant obeys the Imperial Decree."
Zhu Ci watched him in silence for a long while. He had originally intended to say a few words, but in the end, he simply said, "Go, do your work well. I am watching."
Huang Chunyao's mind shifted, without saying much, he withdrew.
After he left, Fu immediately came over, when he encountered Huang Chunyao, Huang Chunyao bowed to him respectfully.
Fu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. This former Left Censor looked much more honest, his temperament had become much more steady, lacking that previous sense of restless, overbearing energy.
What else did the Little Emperor say to him?
Fu had just entered and had not yet had time to pay his respects when he heard the Little Emperor say, "It seems Zheng Zhilong wants to follow Zhu Yujian down this dark path to the very end."
Fu thought of Huang Chunyao and asked thoughtfully, "Do they want to turn Huang Unshheng?"
Zhu Ci looked at him in surprise. "My dear minister, you are truly uncanny; I haven't even said anything and you have already guessed it."
Fu explained, "Neither Prince of Tang nor Zheng Zhilong has any connection with Censor Huang. If it is related to Censor Huang, this must be the only matter."
Zhu Ci gave a light snort. "They certainly have quite the imagination."
Fu said carefully, "Zheng Zhilong may not be particularly loyal to the Prince of Tang."
Zhu Ci leaned over the desk and asked with great interest, "What news have you obtained?"
Fu said, "Zheng Zhilong had intended to make contact with me before, but for some reason, there has been no news since."
Zhu Ci understood: "Then I see."
He spoke as he casually handed a letter to Fu, "News has come from Zhu Ying; the fleet was attacked by the Zheng family fleet at sea."
Fu took the letter and glanced down at it, unconsciously frowning.
Zhu Ci saw his expression and wanted to laugh. "Heh, so you've finally met someone with handwriting even uglier than mine?"
Zhu Ying was very ambitious nowadays; even while running ships, he did not forget to read and practice his writing.
It was evident that the previous claims of being unable to read or study were merely excuses; when one truly wants to learn, one can always learn something.
However, because he was also a beginner, his handwriting was beyond words.
The reason Zhu Ying dared to use such ugly handwriting to write to Zhu Ci was simply to indirectly show that he had been studying diligently and was not lacking in ambition, so that the Emperor would not forget him.
However, what surprised Zhu Ci was that although Fu Zhi frowned, he actually didn't say a single word and didn't comment on Zhu Ying's handwriting at all.
So, all that tireless enthusiasm for teaching was used entirely on him, was it?
His Majesty was very dissatisfied.
Fu Jiangxin handed the letter to Wu Xia and said, "From the looks of this letter, the Admiral of the Fleet doesn't seem to have suffered much."
The rank of Admiral of the Fleet was the military title Zhu Ci gave to Zhu Ying.
Originally, he had no intention of giving Zhu Ying an official position, as the maritime business belonged to Zhu Ci, not to the Great Ming.
He had always maintained a clear distinction between public and private matters, at a time like this, he could not grant an official position.