Doctor Amnesiac, but not completely amnesiac

until--

He saw a man sitting down and smiled at him.

He was the only man sitting in this hall.

That is......

The new Shaofujian?

Cai Yan was stunned.

He had only had one impression of this person - at a court meeting more than half a month ago, it was this person who, in order to avoid being punished by the emperor, deliberately reported to the emperor in front of everyone the case of the extermination of Manager Wang's family.

Then, this person never appeared in front of him again.

Oh I got it.

Cai Yan also smiled and even nodded slightly to the man as a greeting, and the other party responded in the same way.

Then he turned back and knelt on the ground respectfully facing the other man who could sit in the hall, without saying a word, waiting for his own end.

For such people, they are willing to stand up at the last moment of a game and let those in the game who are already powerless to save the situation see themselves.

It is the greatest kindness.

Chapter 94: Settlement Time

"Since you all agree with me, the Yulin Guard and the Palace Secret Service will work together to find out the truth!"

The emperor stood up and began to reap the fruits of his victory.

"Mr. Gao, you don't know the priorities of things, and you don't know the difference between right and wrong. What's your intention in saying such things?"

Gao Cheng could only kneel on the ground and remain silent.

"This matter is the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court. As the Minister of Personnel, you do not consider the responsibilities of your own department, but instead reach out to other places and presumptuously discuss my decision. Do you think you can speak for me?"

"I dare not! I have absolutely no such intention!"

Gao Cheng didn't dare to accept this hat, but this hat was not meant for him to wear - when he said this, the emperor was looking at Prime Minister Cai.

"Gao Cheng is incompetent and has made irresponsible comments on state affairs. He will be demoted one rank and fined one year's salary! The post of Minister of Personnel will be temporarily replaced by Assistant Minister Zhang Jin."

"I obey your command - thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!"

"I obey your command... Thank you, Your Majesty, for your forgiveness."

One of them was ecstatic, the other was heartbroken.

"Prime Minister Cai, I don't know what I mean, but is there something wrong with it?"

"Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven. Thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the Emperor. How can it be inappropriate?"

Cai Yan still knelt there steadily, accepting all the emperor's orders without saying a word of objection.

In the court, all the dignitaries were still standing or kneeling, staying where they were.

——But it just happened that Cai Yan had already been able to trigger the feeling of being isolated and helpless.

"Minister Chen, please stand up. And you—I will not let you suffer an unjust accusation."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The officials of the Ministry of Revenue stood up one after another and expressed their gratitude.

"Then let's end today's court meeting here - next year, I hope to see a brand new Dayan."

The emperor stood up and walked towards the harem.

"Your Majesty, please get up."

Eunuch Zheng followed him as usual.

All the officials left the stage one after another, except Prime Minister Cai, who was still kneeling there, not moving.

Everyone looked at the back and had their own thoughts in mind.

God, it changed back to normal.

It was not until all the officials in the hall had left that a young eunuch trotted over to Cai Yan and spoke in a low voice.

"Prime Minister Cai, the emperor heard that you are still kneeling here, and asked you to get up quickly and go home. Today is New Year's Eve - His Majesty will not forget to give you food."

"Thank you, father-in-law."

After the young eunuch left, Cai Yan stood up tremblingly and shook a few times.

It had been a long time since he had knelt for such a long time.

Turning around, he found that there was another person in the hall.

"Prime Minister Cai."

Qiao Yelan sat in a wheelchair and bowed.

"The Shaofujian is still here. What's the matter?"

"I have difficulty walking, I wonder if Prime Minister Cai would be willing to condescend to give me a ride?"

"Why not? It's not condescending for me to push you - after all, the wisest one is the teacher."

Cai Yan patted the hem of his robe and staggered a little at the first few steps, but quickly adjusted himself, walked behind Qiao Yelan, and pushed him out of the hall.

"I wonder how Your Majesty will deal with me?"

Cai Yan was also a little puzzled. Logically speaking, the emperor should have killed him as well, or at least forced him to retire and return home - but in the end, he only took down Gao Cheng, and didn't even mention him at all, and went straight out of the court. He couldn't say anything, which made him speechless.

"Prime Minister Cai, you are joking. You are the Prime Minister of Dayan, second only to the emperor and above all others. You are also a pillar of the court. His Majesty relies on you very much - how could he punish you?"

Qiao Yelan’s words made Cai Yan suddenly realize something.

"I see - Chen Fan defected, Gao Cheng was dismissed, and today I knelt in the palace to be punished by all officials. I am already a tiger with its claws and teeth plucked out, with only a piece of skin left on my body. Naturally, I am no longer a threat. Therefore, to Your Majesty, I am now a 'newcomer' in the court without any foundation, and you can trust me more than anyone else."

"The Prime Minister is the Prime Minister. He has been immersed in the officialdom for so many years. I only said one word and it has already been exposed."

Cai Yan burst out laughing.

"Forget it. It has come to this. What's the point of using such official language?"

"Whether you put on or take off the mask, it is easy. But putting it on and taking it off at the same time is the most tiring."

"...That's very well said. I feel really relieved now."

The old man's voice no longer had that sense of fatigue, but instead had a carefree feeling of having let go of everything.

"If you had been so thoughtful when Your Majesty first ascended the throne, and had assisted Your Majesty instead of being blinded by greed, you would have become a great monarch and minister - and things wouldn't have ended up like this today."

There was a hint of regret in Qiao Yelan's words.

"Once you enter the officialdom, you have to climb up. If you don't have this intention, why bother staying in the capital and tossing around up and down - looking for a piece of land and being a parent official for life, there are indeed people who choose to take this path, but there are even more people who don't choose this path."

"When the late emperor was alive, I was very cautious and tread carefully. When the crown prince was regent, I was loyal and devoted. I did all this to continue to climb up the ladder - to satisfy my ambition."

Cai Yan showed no sign of regret.

"I failed to see your tricks because of my lack of ability. Due to my greed, I only thought of taking this opportunity to pressure the Ministry of Revenue, but you took advantage of the situation and pushed the Ministry of Revenue to the emperor. And because of my ambition, I promoted Gao Cheng, which led to my complete failure at the court meeting today. There is no room for recovery."

"You can say that ambition and greed are the driving force behind my falling into your trap today, but if it weren't for these ambitions and greed, how could I be the Prime Minister today? Ambition is my success, and ambition is my failure. Success and failure all depend on me, so why should I regret it?"

Qiao Yelan paused for a moment.

He felt a little regretful that he could not see the heroic figure of the old man behind him at this time. It could be said that it was something he regretted.

"Your Majesty used Chen Fan to suppress me, and transferred the case from the Dali Temple to the Palace Yulin Guards and the Secret Service in the court, which was equivalent to holding the handle of Chen Fan's smuggling - so Your Majesty will definitely not touch Chen Fan for the time being, otherwise Chen Fan would not dare to act so exaggeratedly today."

"If the Minister of Personnel is someone who has been suppressed by Gao Cheng and me, and the Minister of Revenue is someone who has just gained a foothold by betraying me, then there is no better candidate for the position of Prime Minister than me - because I can no longer win them over."

Cai Yan said calmly, he had thought it through, the emperor actually didn't want to do anything to him today. In the final analysis, what the emperor wanted was that the court could not unite against him - so getting the Ministry of Personnel was much more important than taking down the prime minister.

"In turn, the two ministers will truly do their best in their positions, because they know very well that their memorials will have to go through your hands. If they have loopholes, you will definitely use your utmost energy to cause them the greatest trouble."

Qiao Yelan added.

"Indeed, this is probably what Your Majesty wants to see - I will be a loyal minister and serve as Prime Minister until my death."

The old man's voice suddenly lowered.

"But, this does seem a little strange to me. Although some positions in the court have been changed, they have all been filled in the end. You are already a third-rank official, but there is no new position for you. Logically, my position as prime minister should have fallen into your hands."

"I'm just a businessman. I don't have the huge ambitions like you."

Qiao Yelan said gently.

"You don't have to be too self-deprecating. Your Majesty also believes that if the Grand Tutor is unwilling to take over the position of Prime Minister, then no one else is qualified to replace you. Your ability is only slightly weaker in political schemes, but when it comes to government affairs, the gap between you and me cannot be measured by reason."

Cai Yan was silent for a while before speaking again.

"Your Majesty, aren't you afraid that I will join forces with Chen Fan again? Although he has betrayed me this time, in the officialdom, only interests matter."

"Since His Majesty has retained your and Minister Chen's positions, it is naturally because he is absolutely sure - I also believe in Minister Chen's loyalty."

Cai Yan:?

Is this some kind of bad joke time?

He tried hard to think about the reasons why Chen Fan was loyal to the emperor, but he always felt that it was so pale and powerless - at least he had a way to cooperate with Chen Fan again.

"You can do whatever you want, but the prerequisite is that you must do your job well. Although your Majesty is gentle today, he is not always so gentle."

Qiao Yelan didn't care about what Cai Yan said.

He would never know even if he racked his brains how Qiao Yelan convinced Chen Fan - and if Chen Fan still wanted his head, he would not tell the truth.

If Cai Yan is willing to continue guessing and struggling in his position, then let him do what he wants. It is also a good thing to give the emperor some eye drops - so that he won't start looking for the dragon gate as soon as he has free time.

Wei Yanwu is a very good chess piece, but Qiao Yelan doesn’t want this chess piece to be always being watched by others, otherwise he would feel a little embarrassed to use it.

After leaving the palace, the servants of Cai's mansion were shocked, but dared not say a word. They just turned away and dared not even look at him.

Cai Yan looked meaningfully at Wang Zhi, who was guarding here and came over to take Qiao Yelan's wheelchair. He said nothing more, turned around and got on the frame of his own bicycle.

"Let's go, Eunuch Wang. His Majesty is still waiting for my report."

--------------------------------------------

"What's the situation now, Cai Yan?"

"They have recognized the reality, but they still have a glimmer of hope, and still want to use officialdom to gain more political capital for themselves in the future."

Qiao Yelan's voice no longer had the tenderness and warmth that she had when she was chatting with Cai Yan.

"He has tested me and provoked me. Although he seemed to have admitted defeat, from beginning to end, he never said a single word about wanting to retire or be transferred to another idle position. It is obvious that he is still not considering how to retire safely while sitting in this position of prime minister."

The emperor snorted coldly.

A person who has not considered retiring will naturally be thinking about advancing - in other words, Prime Minister Cai still wants to do something with his position as prime minister.

"I will not give him any chance to be reinstated - it would be fine if he just does his job as Prime Minister honestly, but if he dares to do anything else, he will know how powerful I am!"

"Your Majesty, please calm down. Cai Yan is now alone. No matter how much he wants to stir up trouble, he will definitely need manpower. I think it would be better to postpone the action of shackles on the Prime Minister for the time being."

Qiao Yelan expressed his thoughts.

"My dear, feel free to speak up if you have any ideas."

The emperor waved his hand. He was now in a period of infinite trust in Qiao Yelan.

"Your Majesty is now in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, but you have to hold the imperial examinations to recruit new people. It will take more than a day or even several years for these new people to be able to enter the court. Your Majesty still has to rely on the officials in the court to maintain the prosperity of Da Yan."

"The Shaofu has just begun to expand, and the intelligence network is just beginning to take its first steps. Therefore, it is still difficult to determine who is truly loyal to Your Majesty - but it is clear at a glance who is not truly loyal to Your Majesty."

A fan of the Great Purge, Hercules' personal Minister of Internal Affairs, and Vladimir the Great's razor, His Excellency Qiao Yelan put forward his own insights based on his rich experience.

"In other words, after today, anyone who can still be won over by Cai Yan and speak for him in the court must be disloyal to His Majesty. Although innocent people will be harmed, this is enough to distinguish between loyalty and treachery before the Shaofu truly obtains intelligence on all officials."

The emperor narrowed his eyes slightly. Qiao Yelan's words opened the door to a new world for him.

Yes, Cai Yan is the enemy. If passers-by support Cai Yan——

Those passers-by are also enemies.jpg

"So you might as well be a little gentler, don't put too many restrictions on Cai Yan, and just watch from the sidelines. If someone tries to curry favor with Cai Yan at this time, or if he can get someone to work for him, then your majesty can put them on the list and never hire them again."

"My dear minister, you have indeed made a good suggestion. Indeed, if I want to control Da Yan, I still cannot do without these people in the court. This method can really distinguish loyalty from treachery."

The emperor approved it on the spot.