HLnovel Chapter 950 A drastic change in temperament
Chapter 950 A drastic change in temperament
Zhang Ping'an understood the unspoken meaning: he himself wanted to be the pillar of the family first, leaving enough shelter for his descendants.
All of this is predicated on him being strong enough.
"what do you mean……"
Seeing that Zhang Ping'an had offered a way out, Li Chong quickly followed up: "My idea is very simple, which is to squeeze out Li Chong. In the court, it's like rowing against the current; if you don't advance, you fall behind. As one of the best among our peers, as you have seen, he is now greatly favored by His Majesty and enjoys immense prestige. If we let him continue like this, it's only a matter of time before he excludes the two of us. His ambition is no less than that of the Prince of Qin!"
Zhang Ping'an already knew this, so he followed up by asking, "What do you want to do, and how do you want me to cooperate?"
Li Chong narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "First, we'll cut off his wings in the army, and then we'll strip him of his influence in front of His Majesty."
Zhang Ping'an shook his head: "It will take time and the right opportunity to cut off his influence in the military, but it's not too difficult. However, his influence in front of His Majesty will probably be difficult to manage in the short term."
"Oh, what do you mean?" Li Chong asked, puzzled.
Zhang Ping'an didn't want to recount everything that had happened in Yangning Palace, so he simply sat up straight and said earnestly:
"If you trust me, don't plant people in front of His Majesty to sow discord. Cut off Cui Ling's escape route first, and then take the next step. Besides, His Majesty might dislike him on his own before we even have to lift a finger."
Li Chong seemed thoughtful upon hearing this, knowing that there must be some inside story he didn't know.
Zhang Ping'an continued, "Moreover, there is one person we cannot ignore, and that person is Zheng Ping. Although he is a eunuch and is naturally not one of us, his influence in the harem is absolutely not to be underestimated. I think we should still build a good relationship with him, as he will definitely be of use when necessary."
Li Chong agreed with this, "but he's quite low-key."
Zhang Ping'an smiled faintly: "It's better to keep a low profile. Keeping a low profile will not attract attention. There are only so many masters in the palace, but tens of thousands of palace servants. No one knows the palace's every move better than these palace servants. After Eunuch Liang's death, Zheng Ping is undoubtedly the number one eunuch."
“Yes, that’s true,” Li Chong nodded.
He then offered his sincerity, saying, "I've heard that you've been trying to place your protégés in the Ministry of Revenue. Perhaps I can help you. You can draft a list and have it sent over."
"Okay, thank you very much," Zhang Ping'an said without refusing.
Upon hearing this, Li Chong raised his teacup, beaming, "Then I wish us a successful collaboration!"
"The cooperation went smoothly!" Zhang Ping'an lightly raised his glass and clinked glasses.
The exchange of benefits can sometimes be that simple.
Things that were once thought to be out of reach are now within easy reach.
It was already late when they parted ways with Li Chong and returned to their residence.
After Xu Shi finished serving Zhang Lao Er, she went to bed. Xiao Yu'er was still writing furiously in his study. The provincial examination was coming up soon. Although he had a powerful background, he still needed to put in a lot of effort to get a good ranking so that he would have more options when Zhang Ping'an helped him with the palace examination later.
"Turn on more lights when you read at night, otherwise it will hurt your eyes," Zhang Ping'an reminded her as he went to check on her before returning to his room.
Little Fish was so engrossed in writing that he was startled by the sound for a moment before he realized what was happening. He looked up, rubbed his neck and wrists, and laughed:
"Dad, you're back? It's alright, it's bright enough here!"
"Hmm, where's your cousin Pengpeng?" Zhang Ping'an asked again.
Little Fish pouted, somewhat unconcerned, "I don't know, they've probably already retired for the night!"
“This child…” Zhang Ping’an frowned slightly and said nothing more.
After giving her son some more instructions, she went back to her room.
…………
Time continued to pass by unnoticed. Zhang Lao Er's injuries were healing quite well, and his eye disease was under control. He could now go out for fresh air in a wheelchair. However, he was still not as energetic as before, and his temper was not as good as it used to be.
Xu was worried about Zhang Lao Er's health, and she was also afraid that something might happen to the old man, which would be a burden to her son and grandson.
The situation in the court recently is indeed not very optimistic. It's not that there are problems with governance at the bottom, but that the officials have gradually noticed that Zhou Pu's temperament has changed drastically since the beginning of the year.
If he was once a gentle and refined gentleman, he is now a capricious monarch who often flies into a rage over trivial matters during morning court sessions. He may reprimand officials lightly, or even strip them of their official hats or imprison them, leaving the officials bewildered and trembling with fear.
Although he cannot be considered a tyrant yet, signs of his eccentric temperament have already begun to emerge. A monarch with extremely unstable emotions is not a good thing for the court or for the country.
However, with rising stars like Cui Ling and Li Chong providing strong support and promoting scions of aristocratic families to official positions, most of the veteran officials from powerful families turned a blind eye and no one dared to offer any advice.
Zhang Ping'an didn't understand what this meant at first, but he gradually realized that Zhou Pu wanted to take this opportunity to eliminate dissidents, while at the same time making the aristocratic families and new nobles who supported him check and balance each other, like crabs holding each other in check, so that no one could do anything to the other, thus consolidating his throne.
This tactic is not sophisticated, but it is effective because it is direct. Many emperors in previous dynasties have used it, but none of them were exceptionally capable. Zhou Pu himself did not possess such political acumen, and if he did it wrong, he would be playing with fire and getting burned.
The only benefit of this matter is that the court officials are no longer as perfunctory as before.
Some shrewd individuals gradually figured out Zhou Pu's preferences and began to offer him rare treasures and interesting trinkets they had collected from various places to help him pass the time.
Zhou Pu kept those he liked and rewarded them, which further motivated these people, and it was clear that the atmosphere in the court was about to go astray.
Zhang Ping'an hesitated several times before speaking.
Grand Tutor Qian saw things clearly and advised, "Each monarch has their own style. We are subjects, and there is a difference between monarch and subject. If anyone dares to think that they can ask a monarch to do something as a subject, then they are incredibly foolish. Everything should be done in moderation. We are still within that range, so don't make things difficult for yourself."
“I understand, and it is precisely because of this consideration that I did not submit a letter,” Zhang Ping’an said.
Grand Tutor Qian nodded with appreciation in his eyes, "That's right! I heard you're planning to arrange a marriage between your family and the Li family?"
Zhang Ping'an knew his father-in-law must have already received the news, so he didn't hide it from him. "We have this idea, but let's talk about it after Heming finishes his imperial examination in a few days!"
Grand Tutor Qian's attitude was relatively mild, more composed than his eldest son Qian Ying, and he also had a longer-term vision. "This is good. The Li family is a family with a rich heritage, so it's not like we're doing our children a disservice."
"It's mainly because Heming likes it himself; this kid has been decisive since he was little," Zhang Ping'an said with a smile.
The father-in-law and son-in-law hadn't had such a peaceful conversation in a long time, and the atmosphere was quite pleasant. Grand Tutor Qian wanted to bring up the matter of remarrying again, knowing that his grandson no longer minded about it.
But after thinking about it, he decided against it. Things were different now; this son-in-law was no longer someone he could control.
Maintaining this relationship might be better than forcing a marriage upon you.
They say experience counts, and it's fortunate that it wasn't mentioned, otherwise Zhang Ping'an's slight goodwill towards today's conversation would have been greatly diminished.