The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 392 A Double-Edged Sword – The Absence of Court

Zhang Ying's mind works faster than a spinning top!

He had already come up with an idea after only a short while of thinking about it.

He said to Shen Ye with a solemn expression, "The current state of the court is a worry not only for His Majesty and the Crown Prince, but also for me, who is unable to eat or sleep properly!"

"However, Rome wasn't built in a day, and the problems that the Crown Prince mentioned didn't develop overnight."

"In fact, the seeds were already sown in the previous dynasty!"

"Your Majesty, I agree with and support the reforms!"

"However, I believe that such a matter concerning the foundation of the nation is not suitable to be accomplished overnight or in one step!"

"We should take a long-term view and proceed steadily!"

"Only in this way can we avoid ruining a good thing and causing widespread panic and anxiety."

At this point, Zhang Ying's tone was so sincere it was almost honeyed: "Your Highness, throughout history, the starting point for reforms has always been good."

"Whether it was Wang Anshi or Zhang Juzheng, their original intention and purpose was to eliminate the malpractices and revitalize the court!"

"However, one wrong move could have led to complete defeat, and Zhang Juzheng's reputation was tarnished; moreover, many people believe that the decline of the Northern Song Dynasty began with Wang Anshi's reforms."

"Therefore, such an important matter must be handled with utmost care!"

Good heavens, no wonder he's a Grand Scholar. I only mentioned it once, and he's already launched into a long spiel.

Moreover, he cited Wang Anshi and Zhang Juzheng as examples to illustrate his point.

They weren't disloyal to the court, nor were they against reform; they simply didn't want to take too big a step and drag the court into chaos.

With such loyalty, who can say that it's purely for the benefit of those who will be left behind?

Shen Ye calmly replied, "What Prime Minister Zhang said makes sense. However, this is not a reform, but simply a matter of having the gentry and commoners pay taxes together."

"To put it bluntly, it means canceling some of the preferential treatment given to the gentry."

"Zhang Xiang, you're overthinking it!"

"I really have no intention of carrying out reforms!"

Zhang Ying remained calm and continued to patiently persuade him: "Your Highness, the gentry are the cornerstone of the court."

"If the foundation is not solid, the ground will shake!"

"You are now going to change the rules established by the late emperor that favor the gentry and commoners of the land. I'm afraid this will cause dissatisfaction among the gentry and commoners of the land!"

"The foundation of the imperial court must not be touched!"

Shen Ye had long anticipated that persuading Zhang Ying would be difficult, so he smiled and said, "Scholar Zhang, what you say makes sense."

"However, I'm not arguing with you."

"It is true that the gentry are the foundation of the court, but if this foundation is left to its own devices, it will sooner or later become a termite!"

"The collapse of the previous dynasty was simply because the gentry had swallowed up too much of the profits!"

At this point, Shen Ye added insult to injury: "Lord Zhang, I recently looked through historical records from the previous dynasty and discovered that the last Grand Secretary of the previous dynasty couldn't even come up with a thousand taels of silver when the emperor was raising funds."

"I was deeply moved at the time, thinking that this was a model of loyalty and integrity."

"And what happened? When they demanded his salary, he actually pulled out one million taels!"

"Lord Zhang, in your opinion, was this Grand Secretary a pillar or a parasite for the previous dynasty?"

Zhang Ying felt a little sweat on her forehead.

The Crown Prince's words were truly a bit too harsh!
He cited Wang Anshi and Zhang Juzheng as examples, while the Crown Prince countered with the phrase "an honest official worth a million taels of silver," a truly devastating statement.

He usually appears to be a man of high moral character, seemingly unwilling to talk about such trivial matters!
However, when he was extorted, more than one million taels of silver were directly extracted from him.

Think about it, it's a joke.

A Grand Secretary of the previous dynasty, haha, I am a Grand Secretary too!

This metaphor sends chills down your spine.

Zhang Ying pondered for a moment before reluctantly replying, "He is naturally a parasite of the previous dynasty, but I believe that people like him are ultimately a minority."

"In the imperial court, I believe that the majority of people are upright and virtuous."

Shen Ye waved his hand, his smile becoming even more relaxed: "Lord Zhang, you don't even quite believe what you're saying yourself, do you?"

“Some time ago, I told my father about the policy of making the gentry pay taxes in the same way as the common people, and my father also gave his approval.”

As Shen Ye spoke, he took out the memorial again and said, "Grand Secretary Zhang, I think that even if you have different opinions, as a Grand Secretary, once His Majesty agrees to my plan, you will put aside your prejudices and support my decision."

"What do you think?"

Looking at Emperor Qianxi's vermilion comments and listening to the Crown Prince's words, which were gentle yet threatening, Zhang Ying could only lower his head and say, "Your Majesty and the Crown Prince will obey your decision."

"Very well, then I hope to hear Grand Secretary Zhang's voice of support during tomorrow's imperial audience."

At this point, Shen Ye smiled and said, "Grand Scholar Zhang shouldn't disappoint me and my father, right?"

As Zhang Ying walked out of Yuqing Palace, her face turned rather grim.

Although he managed to parry several of the Crown Prince's attacks, there was one thing he had to admit: he was almost forced to say things against his will under the Crown Prince's pressure.

He had no choice but to say these things.

If the crown prince wants to do something in the imperial court, everyone can advise him against it, and even if he gets angry, there's nothing he can do.

Now that the Crown Prince is asking him to speak privately, he can strike precisely and defeat him one by one.

Even if the Crown Prince cannot persuade him at this moment, he can use his status to make him submit!
That's not all; the Crown Prince also demanded that he support the decision to increase taxes on officials and gentry during tomorrow's court audience. What could he do?
Can I say I don't support it?

Theoretically, it seems possible!

However, the consequences were severe.

Losing one's official position is the least of one's worries; there's a real possibility of losing one's head.

With a dark expression, Zhang Ying returned to the South Study and sat there for a while before going home.

At this moment, there were quite a few people waiting in his living room!

For example, Xu Chunping, the Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy; Chen Tingjing, the Left Censor-in-Chief; and the Minister of Rites...

He did not immediately receive these guests, but instead returned to his study to change his clothes and called his son Zhang Tingyu over.

"Greetings, Father!" Although Zhang Tingyu was at home, he still bowed respectfully to his father.

Zhang Ying has always been very fond of this son.

Seeing his polite manners, Zhang Ying waved his hand and said, "No need for formalities. Did Imperial Censor Chen and the others say why they came to see me?"

“Father, they all want you to severely punish the Infantry Commander’s Office!” Zhang Tingyu said, then hesitated for a moment and said, “Father, I think it would be better if you didn’t take on this matter.”

"That petition we prepared before was already starting to go against the rules."

"The Crown Prince came up with something even more ruthless, and had Longkodo beat Lü Baizhou and the others to death during the beating."

"Continuing to cause trouble will not do us any good."

Zhang Ying sighed and said helplessly, "I don't want to take it either, but the public sentiment is so strong, what can I do?"

Zhang Tingyu knew his father's difficulties. As the second-ranking Grand Secretary, Zhang Ying's many students and former officials were an asset, but also a burden.

This means that he has to balance the power of the majority in many things.

If he goes against the wishes of the people, it's fine once or twice, but if it happens repeatedly, he will suffer the consequences.

Zhang Tingyu remained silent; he didn't have any better ideas either.

Just as he was thinking quickly, he heard someone say, "Brother Zhang, would it be convenient for you to come out and meet me?"

Hearing this, Zhang Ying's face showed a hint of helplessness.

Although he didn't want to see this person, he had no choice but to.

Because this person was his important right-hand man, Chen Tingjing, the Left Censor-in-Chief.

"Lord Chen is here, how could I be inconvenienced?" Zhang Ying said, rising to greet him. "It's just that I walked too fast on the way back, so I'm a little restless and want to rest for a bit before we talk."

Chen Tingjing had just entered, looking apologetic. "Lord Zhang, I apologize for disturbing you. I was being presumptuous!"

Zhang Ying waved her hand and said, "We've known each other for years, why are you being so polite? It would be too formal!"

"Tingyu, why don't you pour some tea for your Uncle Chen?"

Zhang Tingyu quickly served the tea, and Chen Tingjing took a sip before saying seriously, "Prime Minister Zhang, I have something important to discuss with you."

After saying this, he just drank his tea and didn't say anything.

Zhang Tingyu was a smart man and knew that what Chen Tingjing said must be of great importance; otherwise, he wouldn't have hesitated to speak up for himself.

He glanced at his father and, seeing that Zhang Ying didn't seem to mind, tactfully smiled and said, "Father, Uncle Chen, I have some things to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

Zhang Ying nodded, and after they were both alone in the room, he said, "Brother Chen, your coming here at this time can't be kept secret from those who are interested!"

Hearing Zhang Ying say this, Chen Tingjing remained calm and said, "Brother Zhang, I am an upright person and have nothing to fear!"

"Besides, I'm not going to hide my visit from anyone."

"Brother Zhang, the deaths of Lü Baizhou and the others have caused widespread panic!"

"The reason I've come to see Brother Zhang today is because someone has proposed to cancel the court session!"

"If that's the case, then..."

Upon hearing the words "dismissal from court," Zhang Ying's expression immediately turned solemn.

He knew all too well what it meant to boycott court, and he knew even better that once court was boycotted, the consequences would be extremely serious.

Even after the Crown Prince discussed with him the matter of implementing a unified tax system for officials, gentry, and commoners, he still did not intend to abdicate.

Because this is the final step!
Once it comes to this point, it basically means that the relationship with the royal family has been completely severed.

This approach may bring temporary success, but it will have endless consequences!

Especially the leading figures among the officials.

His gaze suddenly turned cold as he asked, "Who proposed the suspension of court?"

"Brother Chen, don't tell me you don't know the consequences of a strike."

"If the court is dismissed, regardless of who wins or loses, we'll all be in big trouble!"

Seeing Zhang Ying's cold expression, Chen Tingjing shrugged and said, "I didn't suggest stopping the court."

“I didn’t even know it at first.”

"It was initiated by several young censors from the Censorate. When I heard about it, quite a few people were already in favor of it."

At this point, Chen Tingjing continued, "This is mainly because the Crown Prince went too far, which caused such a backlash."

Zhang Ying's expression shifted as she looked at Chen Tingjing's solemn demeanor.

The Crown Prince's methods are ruthless, but they haven't reached the point of dismissing the court. Once the court is dismissed, it will be a double-edged sword that harms both himself and others!
Is this a spontaneous outburst of public anger, or is someone trying to take advantage of the situation?
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(End of this chapter)