met free Chapter 852: Crazy Spoilers
Chapter 852: Crazy Spoilers
As Yang Shaofeng relentlessly spoiled the plot, Zhu Biao's forehead quickly broke out in a fine layer of sweat, which then rapidly condensed into beads and flowed into a river.
That's fucking terrifying!
If someone actually follows the approach my brother-in-law described, it's estimated that within a few years, the entire Ming Dynasty court will become a sieve riddled with holes. After a while, the emperor can comfortably hide in the palace as a mascot.
Well, whether someone becomes a mascot depends on the mood of the officials.
Li Shanchang's face was equally gloomy.
Zhu Biao was worried about the fate of the entire Ming Dynasty, as well as the descendants who would become emperors in the future.
Li Shanchang, however, keenly noticed something amiss in the painting depicted by Yang Shaofeng.
The officials elected by the gentry would first take control of the Ministry of War, and then gradually consolidate military power within the Ministry of War.
So, what about the nobles?
When the officials promoted by the gentry wanted to seize military power, they first had to deal with the nobles and military generals who commanded troops.
Or to put it more bluntly, in order to seize military power, the officials elected by the gentry group would inevitably have to first work hard to suppress the nobles and military generals.
For example, the Song Dynasty used civil administration to suppress military power.
Then the problem is coming.
I am the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet and also a member of a noble family.
The nobles of Huaixi treat me as one of their own, but those civil officials may not necessarily regard me as one of their own.
In other words, they still want to target me?
If I am neither greedy for money nor lustful, and they can't catch me, but still want to kill me, then what is the fastest and most effective way?
Just as Li Shanchang was pondering this in his mind, Zhu Biao couldn't help but ask, "According to what my brother-in-law said, isn't it impossible to guard against?"
Yang Shaofeng nodded with a smile and said, "It's impossible to guard against."
After a slight pause, Yang Shaofeng looked at Zhu Biao and asked, "May I ask Your Highness, is it a good thing or a bad thing to ensure that all children in the world have access to education?"
Zhu Biao replied without hesitation, "Of course it's a good thing."
But Zhu Biao froze as soon as he finished speaking.
If it's a good thing, why would my brother-in-law specifically ask me?
Yang Shaofeng chuckled and looked at Zhu Biao again, asking, "Then may I ask Your Highness, if there is a widow and orphan family in my jurisdiction, and if the children go to school, there will be no one to farm and support the family, and yet I insist on forcing the children of this family to study, what should I do?"
Before Zhu Biao could answer, Yang Shaofeng continued, "Actually, it's quite simple."
“If this family were to sell everything they own to scrape together some money, I might be willing to make an exception and even ask the court for some benefits on their behalf.”
"Of course, if other families also give me some benefits, I can also turn their families into extremely poor families and ask the court for benefits on their behalf."
“If no one gives me any benefits, then I will have no choice but to act in accordance with the laws of the Ming Dynasty. Anyone who forbids their child from attending school shall first be flogged twenty times and then exiled three thousand li away.”
"As for whether they live or die, that depends on their fate."
"In short, I have many ways to turn the emperor's and the court's good policies into policies that benefit me."
"Even if all else fails, we can always find a way to distort the truth."
"Just like I just said, it's about letting children study."
"I can turn something good into something bad."
Cold sweat immediately poured down Zhu Biao's forehead.
Li Shanchang suddenly frowned and said, "That's not right."
Yang Shaofeng was slightly taken aback, and Li Shanchang continued, "As the saying goes, the cicada senses the autumn wind before it blows. No matter what these people are thinking, there will always be clues. It's impossible for them to lay such a big net without making a sound."
"Moreover, since these people have gone to such great lengths to set up such a grand scheme, they must have tested the waters before making any moves, at the very least to find out the attitude of the current emperor and the officials in the court."
Yang Shaofeng chuckled and said, "Prime Minister Li is right. If I were one of those people and happened to control an academy with enough manpower, we could take the first step in testing the waters."
Li Shanchang stroked his beard and smiled, then asked, "May I ask, Your Highness, how can we test the waters more safely?"
Yang Shaofeng said, "Of course, we should start with the imperial examination system."
"For example, they might elect an unlucky guy to preside over the imperial examinations, and all the students they admit will be from the south of the Yangtze River, with no one from the north."
"If the emperor wants to review the exam papers, then say that the students from the north lack knowledge. If that doesn't work, then say that their exam papers contain many forbidden words."
"If you're willing to pick, you're sure to find something wrong with it."
"If the emperor is shrewd enough, he certainly won't let this matter pass easily. In that case, he'll make that unlucky guy in charge of the imperial examinations take the blame."
“If the emperor is not shrewd enough, this matter will be forgotten, and then he can be bolder in his actions in the future.”
Zhu Biao simply smiled and shook his head.
Such a simple test?
how is this possible.
If anyone tries to test me with this, I will send their entire family to Dengzhou Prefecture to do hard labor. I will consider it a blessing from their ancestors for eight generations!
As for testing my father?
Tsk.
It would be better to test me.
At the very least, I will exterminate their three clans and exile them to Dengzhou to do hard labor.
If it were my father, he would have slaughtered his entire clan until their heads rolled, or I would have laughed at him for being unable to lift a knife.
Li Shanchang also stroked his beard and laughed, looking at Yang Shaofeng and saying, "My lord, you've miscalculated."
"Let alone testing His Highness and the Emperor, I would never allow such a thing to happen here."
“If anyone dares to do this, I will definitely report to the Emperor and His Highness and send Xia Yu to investigate the chief examiner, and also investigate the examiners in charge of setting the questions and the scholars they admitted.”
"Moreover, although the Ming Dynasty still has special imperial examinations, there will be at most seven more special imperial examinations before the imperial examination system is completely abolished."
"Trying to test the waters through the imperial examinations is probably a dead end."
Yang Shaofeng glanced at Li Shanchang and sneered, "Since Prime Minister Li has said so, then don't blame me for speaking so harshly."
At this point, Yang Shaofeng looked at Zhu Biao again and asked, "Does this mean that Your Highness will not blame me for anything I say or any assumptions I make?"
Zhu Biao looked at Yang Shaofeng with a completely bewildered expression and asked, "Does brother-in-law think his little brother is stupid?"
You consider my feelings, and I blame you instead? What kind of person am I then?
Yang Shaofeng thought to himself that it might not be so, after all, there really was one person in history who was just as stupid, but that guy was called Zhao Xiaojiu, and was known in the martial arts world as Wanyan Jiumei.
Shaking his head slightly to banish these chaotic thoughts from his mind, Yang Shaofeng said with a smile, "Suppose that Prime Minister Li is no longer in office, I will have someone catch a cold while His Highness the Crown Prince is away from the capital..."
"It just so happens that His Highness does not have any skilled imperial physicians or top-quality medicines by his side."
“If Your Highness has a son, I might be able to collude with the palace authorities to create a particularly precise outbreak of smallpox in the palace, infecting only the imperial grandson and not anyone else.”
Yang Shaofeng smiled meaningfully, "At this point, if I were to test the waters again..."