Chapter 111 Before the Yulin Change (4k, please subscribe)
Listening to Su Bai's report, Su Ze couldn't help but sigh how lucky he was to be able to get an orange follower when the store just opened.
[The inconspicuous Egret Messenger Cao] is indeed an outstanding professional. It is also thanks to Su Bai's intelligence that Su Ze is able to grasp the intelligence of the Zhang Mansion.
In the historical timeline before Su Ze traveled through time, Zhang Zhongyu did not submit the memorial until the next year, that is, in February of the second year of Shengui, and what followed was the Yulin Rebellion.
The Yulin Army surrounded the Secretariat and demanded an explanation from the court. None of the ministers in the Secretariat dared to go out. The Yulin Army threw stones at the eaves of the Secretariat and gathered at the residence of Sikong Zhang Yi to ask for an explanation.
Zhang Shijun, the eldest son of Zhang Yi, who returned to Luoyang after making meritorious service in the expedition to Jizhou, hurried back to Sikong Mansion and knelt on the ground begging for mercy from the Yulin Army. He was beaten to death by the Yulin Army. The sick Zhang Yi was also beaten severely. The Zhang Mansion was set on fire, but the instigator Zhang Zhongyu fled to the next door Shamen Temple and escaped.
I don’t know if it’s the butterfly effect of Su Ze’s time travel, or if he changed history, but it’s only the first year of the Shengui era, and Zhang Zhongyu has already written a letter requesting the suppression of military men.
According to the current situation in Luoyang, there are rumors among the Yulin Army that the court wants to stop the imperial army from selling southern goods, and there are also rumors that the army will be forced to give up the profits from the southern goods trade in recent years.
The rumors are getting more and more outrageous, and the Yulin Rebellion is likely to happen.
There was only one question left, Su Ze asked Su Bai:
"How is Sikong Mansion's defense?"
"Very strong."
"Zhang Yi comes from a branch of the Qinghe Zhang family in Jizhou. The family is very powerful, with tens of thousands of tenants in Jizhou. They once controlled Longyou. After returning to Luoyang, they still have about 200 elite soldiers guarding them."
"Sikong Mansion is the residence of the Three Dukes. It has strong walls and corner towers and arrow towers. It is very difficult to break through."
"If Zhang Zhongyu hadn't lived in the other mansion, there would have been no way for me to sneak in."
This is what confuses Su Ze. The Yulin are "rebellious" rather than "rebels". Based on Su Ze's understanding of the combat effectiveness of the Imperial Guards, they really don't have that combat effectiveness.
Moreover, the Northern Wei Dynasty had not yet reached its final chaotic period, and the management of the arsenal was very strict. Those "petitioning" Yulin had no weapons.
Otherwise, when the Yulin army besieged the Shangshu Terrace, they would not have picked up stones to attack the Shangshu Terrace.
How did such a group of unarmed Yulin soldiers capture the Sikong Mansion, which was heavily guarded?
Su Ze always felt that there were other hidden secrets that he didn't know about.
But no matter what, Su Ze needs this opportunity to profit from the chaos.
Historically, after the Yulin Rebellion, the court only executed the eight people who led the rebellion afterwards. Most of them were probably ordinary soldiers, and their names were not recorded in history books.
Cui Liang, the Minister of Personnel of the Secretariat, proposed to stop the age limit to ensure that officers of the Imperial Guards could be appointed according to their seniority, which appeased the middle and upper echelons of the Imperial Guards.
And then it's over.
The imperial guards of a country surrounded the highest administrative organ and killed the father and son of important officials of the dynasty. The case ended here.
This incident also made the entire north see the weakness of the Wei court, and the prestige of the court was further reduced.
The uprisings that broke out one after another in various places after that, as well as the later "Six Garrisons Rebellion" and "Heyin Rebellion", can all be traced back to the influence of the Yulin Rebellion.
What Su Ze can gain from the Yulin Rebellion depends on his attitude.
As one of the five battalions of the Imperial Guards, the Tunqi Battalion also has a considerable reputation among the Imperial Guards.
Su Ze, the commander of the Tunqi Battalion, is also a middle- to high-level officer of the Imperial Guards. However, as the commander, he has been staying in the camp to train the troops. However, he has also been making friends with the grassroots soldiers of the Yulin Army and has quietly gained considerable influence.
If Su Ze was too active in the Yulin Rebellion, he would lose points in the eyes of the court. If he performed too outstandingly, he might even be killed as the leader. After all, Su Ze had no family background at all, and his family would not be able to protect him if something really happened.
However, if Su Ze behaved too passively during the Yulin Rebellion, it would greatly damage his reputation in the Yulin Army.
Both he and his son were in the Yulin Army. It could be said that the Yulin Army was Su Ze's only foundation.
In order to get out of the Yulin Rebellion unscathed and gain reputation from it at the same time, Su Ze has already made a comprehensive plan.
Tomorrow is the day when the system store will be refreshed. Before the final preparations are completed, Su Ze only hopes to spawn some useful followers.
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Today is the day of the imperial court meeting. Only on this day every month will the young emperor Yuan Xu put on his dragon robe, sit in the Taiji Hall, and accept congratulations from all officials.
The nine-year-old little emperor was gradually growing up, and his eyes and eyebrows showed the shadow of his father, Emperor Xuanwu.
Behind the emperor's throne is a pearl curtain, and behind the pearl curtain is the little emperor's biological mother, the Empress Dowager Hu Chonghua of the Great Wei.
Seeing that the little emperor looked more and more like his father, Empress Dowager Hu always felt an irrepressible resentment.
The court of the Northern Wei Dynasty was extremely cruel, and the cruelest of all was the system of "killing the mother and keeping the son."
Any concubine in the harem who gave birth to a prince would be sentenced to death by the emperor, so the concubines were unwilling to give birth to baby boys, which also led to the fact that Emperor Xuanwu had no heir after he ascended the throne.
Hu Chonghua disagreed. She said to her attendants, "How can the emperor be without a son? Why would he be so afraid of his own death that he would not have a son in the royal family?"
After she became pregnant, she said to the child in her belly: "If it is a boy, he will be the eldest son. I will not refuse even if the boy is born or I die."
Later, Hu Chonghua gave birth to a prince and was immediately made the crown prince. For her sake, Emperor Xuanwu abolished the system of killing the mother and keeping the son, and made Hu Chonghua a concubine.
Although she gave birth to a prince, Hu Chonghua was still not the empress. The empress of Emperor Xuanwu was the niece of the powerful minister Gao Zhao. After Emperor Xuanwu's death, it was Empress Gao who was first made empress dowager.
If Gao Zhao had not failed in the power struggle, Empress Dowager Gao would have become a nun, and Yu Zhong, Cui Guang and other ministers of state would have supported Hu Chonghua as the empress dowager. Now Hu Chonghua would be just a concubine dowager, and she would not even have the chance to be buried with Emperor Xuanwu after her death.
Therefore, Empress Dowager Hu had complicated feelings towards her late husband. Although she was favored by the harem at some time, Emperor Xuanwu never made her empress for various reasons.
This complicated emotion was also projected onto her son Yuan Xu. Empress Dowager Hu treated members of the royal family with great leniency. She also rehabilitated the father of Princess Shouyang, Prince of Pengcheng Yuan Xie, and even doted on Yuan Ziyou, who accompanied Yuan Xu in his studies. However, she was very distant from her own son.
The princes who grew up in the palace were all relatively precocious. The nine-year-old Yuan Xu could already feel the sense of alienation from his mother. Having lost his father at a young age and lacking maternal love, Yuan Xu projected his emotions onto the attendants around him. Liu Teng, the Grand Chamberlain who often went in and out of the emperor and the empress dowager's bedrooms, became the person Yuan Xu trusted the most.
Routine court meetings were more of a ceremonial nature, and real court affairs were generally not discussed at the meetings.
The real court affairs were usually discussed and handled with the princes and ministers at the small court meetings presided over by the empress dowager. Yuan Xu had not yet taken power and only had to attend the small court meetings every month. However, he had been trapped in the harem for a long time, and the big court meetings were the only time when the young emperor could see the ministers and show his majesty. Therefore, Yuan Xu was very excited after attending the court, and looked at the ministers in the Taiji Hall curiously.
Finally, the little emperor's gaze fell on the chief of the important ministers in charge, Prince Qinghe Yuan Yi.
Yuan Xu initially felt respect for his uncle, the Prince of Qinghe.
Everyone in the world spoke highly of the virtuous reputation of Prince Qinghe, and when Yuan Xu first ascended the throne, he also regarded Prince Qinghe as an idol to learn from.
However, as the emperor grew up, the rumors about the relationship between his mother and Prince Qinghe also reached the little emperor's ears.
From this time on, the image of Prince Qinghe gradually collapsed in the little emperor's mind, and all the memorials that Prince Qinghe submitted later to advise the emperor were regarded by the little emperor as lies to deceive the world and steal his reputation.
The ceremonial nature of the court would make people drowsy. Empress Dowager Hu yawned behind the curtain. When the ceremony came to an end and they were about to leave, the little emperor suddenly said:
"I have heard that the wise and famous kings of ancient times were good at listening to the opinions of their subjects. Do you have anything to advise me?"
After saying this, the little emperor almost stopped breathing nervously. This sentence was taught to him by the Grand Chamberlain Liu Teng. He also observed the movements behind him, fearing that his rash actions would anger his mother.
However, Empress Dowager Hu did not react at all, and neither did His Majesty's ministers. The grand court meeting was originally a ceremonial meeting, and who would have the time to prepare a memorial to offer advice?
Just when the little emperor was feeling disappointed, a young voice shouted:
"Your Majesty, I, the Imperial Censor Zhang Zhongyu, have a memorial to advise Your Majesty!"
After he said this, the entire Taiji Hall fell silent. Zhang Zhongyu mustered up his courage, stepped out from the line of low-ranking officials, and held the prepared silk book high above his head.
There are really loyal ministers in the court!
Yuan Xu was a little excited. He quickly said to the eunuch beside him, "Call Zhang Zhongyu to come forward and ask for an explanation!"
Zhang Zhongyu had never been in the spotlight before. He walked to the Jade Steps tremblingly and said, "I heard that Emperor Xiaowen selected scholars based on their ability and distinguished their surnames and family backgrounds, which led to the two dynasties of civil governance. Now, there are crude and unsophisticated military men who are fortunately included in the list of selected officials. I request that the selection criteria be set separately to exclude military men and not allow them to be included in the list of clean officials!"
As soon as Zhang Zhongyu finished speaking, the entire Taiji Hall fell silent. However, the arrow had been shot and there was no turning back. He could only continue reading his memorial.
Zhang Zhongyu listed the huge profits the imperial guards made from the southern goods trade and the arrogance of the imperial guards in Luoyang.
Yuan Yi, Prince of Jiangyang, who was also standing in the ranks of the regent princes, showed a hint of a smile on his ugly face.
The fact that Zhang Zhongyu was able to write a letter at the grand court meeting was naturally all arranged by him.
Yuan Yi first contacted the eunuch Liu Teng to secretly influence the young emperor, and then instigated Zhang Zhongyu to write a letter to expose the problems of the imperial guards in public.
All this was naturally intended to attack the general in charge of the imperial guards, Prince Qinghe Yuan Yi.
After Prince Qinghe Yuan Yi regained favor, Yuan Yi, who had repeatedly tried to sow discord between Yuan Yi and Empress Dowager Hu, became uneasy, fearing that Prince Qinghe would retaliate.
Yuan Yi was in charge of the Menxia Province, and the memorials submitted by Zhang Zhongyu, a small official, would most likely not be delivered directly to Empress Dowager Hu, let alone be seen by the young emperor.
That's why Yuan Yi arranged such an opportunity for Zhang Zhongyu to raise the issue of the imperial guards in front of all the court officials.
After Zhang Zhongyu finished speaking, silence fell in the Taiji Hall.
The little emperor stood up from the throne. Zhang Zhongyu's memorial made him hear words that he could not hear in the palace, and made him understand things that the palace did not know!
Our Great Wei does have loyal ministers!
How many years has it been since the imperial army went to war? It is obviously unreasonable to continue to retain their privileges of selling southern goods.
No one has ever mentioned such a thing to the court!
The little emperor looked at Qinghe Prince Yuan Yi again, and suddenly remembered that it was this Qinghe Prince who was famous for his wisdom who was in charge of the imperial guards. So that's it!
The young emperor Yuanxu, who thought he had figured out everything, was about to approve Zhang Zhongyu's memorial when Empress Dowager Hu spoke from behind the pearl curtain:
"The Forbidden Army is of great importance, and we cannot just believe one side's words. Your Majesty should wait for the results from the officials before making a final decision."
As soon as Empress Dowager Hu finished speaking, several important officials, led by Prince Qinghe, came forward. Prince Qinghe held a scepter in his hand and bowed to the Emperor and Empress Dowager on the Jade Throne. He bent down and said:
"I have already reported the case of Sitong City to the Queen Mother. The Henan Prefecture and the Capital Officials are also investigating. Your Majesty, please wait until the matter is fully investigated before making a final decision."
The little emperor blushed, but the empress dowager and the important ministers in charge of the government had reached an agreement, so he could only sit down reluctantly.
King Yuanyi of Jiangyang looked at the commotion at the grand court meeting with a half-smile on his ugly face.
Although Zhang Zhongyu's petition was suppressed by the Queen Mother and Prince Qinghe, the seeds of resentment had already been planted in the little emperor's heart.
As the emperor becomes more powerful, the conflicts between him and the ruling empress dowager and the regent ministers will become more and more serious.
Even a wise emperor like Emperor Xiaowen had a fierce struggle with the regent Empress Dowager Wenming before he took power. The Empress Dowager Wenming even tried to depose Emperor Xiaowen at one point.
Zhang Zhongyu's attack was just a test arranged by Jiangyang King Yuanyi. As the little emperor grows older, such attacks will only become more and more fierce.
Among the important officials, the Minister of Personnel Cui Liang saw everything.
In the eyes of important officials including him, this memorial to the court was just a simple political confrontation.
Yuan Yi, the Prince of Qinghe and the prime minister, joined forces with the queen mother to block this round of attack.
But this attack was not without its beneficiaries. Cui Liang looked at Zhang Zhongyu standing in front of the Jade Steps and thought that he could give more consideration to Zhang Zhongyu the next time the Ministry of Personnel evaluated and transferred people.
All the important officials who were able to stand before the Jade Emperor had seen too many such political struggles, and they did not take this matter seriously.
Everyone was thinking about how to take sides, whether the people attacking King Qinghe had any backup plans, and whether King Qinghe would give up some benefits in order to stop the attack. The most tempting one was of course the privilege of monopolizing southern goods.
As for the imperial guards used by both sides to fight? Who would care about the thoughts of those peasants?
This is how the princes and ministers in the court calculate. They regard the entire Wei Dynasty as a chessboard. They carefully calculate each move, wanting to get the greatest benefit from each move.
But they didn't know that the game of chess for Wei had quietly become a dead end.
When the news from the court quickly spread to the imperial guards, Su Ze murmured:
"The wind originates from the earth and rises from the end of the green."
(End of this chapter)