Chapter 44 Regional Competition

Jing Yue looked at the seven points, some east, some west, some high, some low, utterly confused.

There seemed to be no pattern?

Jiang Chen, however, became excited after seeing the seven marks.

He also marked Zhao Liting's place of origin on the map.

Seeing Zhao Liting's place of origin marked, Jing Yue's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Your Majesty, the places of origin of these seven people are all south of the Yangtze River! And Zhao Liting's place of origin is north of the Yangtze River!"

Jiang Chen nodded heavily, "That's right!"

As he spoke, Jiang Chen marked Xu Changqing's place of origin as well, also north of the Yangtze River.

Now, the situation was very clear!

This was an attack on Xu Changqing and Zhao Liting by ministers belonging to the south of the Yangtze River!

Jiang Chen looked at the map for a long time, then suddenly said, "Jing Yue, where is the former Minister of Revenue, Du Guangsheng, from?"

Jing Yue knew this like the back of his hand, saying, "Du Guangsheng is from the Southwest."

"That's right!"

Jiang Chen nodded heavily.

Previously, the Ministry of Revenue was controlled by Du Guangsheng, who was from south of the Yangtze River, so there was peace.

But now, the Ministry of Revenue, whether it was the Minister Xu Changqing or the Vice Minister Zhao Liting, were all from north of the Yangtze River.

This was a struggle for the Ministry of Revenue by the southern ministers!

As for the other Vice Minister of Revenue, who had a weak presence, Jiang Chen, if he remembered correctly, seemed to be from Liangguang (Guangdong and Guangxi provinces).

Because Jiang Chen was very impressed with his Mandarin accent.

In other words, the people they really wanted to support were not the Left Vice Minister Zhao Liting, but the Right Vice Minister Huang Fengzhu!

Jing Yue found it hard to understand after listening to Jiang Chen's analysis.

"Your Majesty, are they impeaching simply because the Ministry of Revenue is not under the control of the southern ministers?"

Jiang Chen smiled and said, "Jing Yue, sometimes, competition between regions is much more intense than you imagine!"

Although Jiang Chen was very sure of this conclusion, he decided to test it first.

The next morning in court, no minister impeached Xu Changqing and Zhao Liting again.

Jiang Chen was not surprised by this, because Xu Changqing was on leave at home, and Zhao Liting was being held in the prison, so the current Ministry of Revenue was operating under the management of Huang Fengzhu.

After the ministers reported, Jiang Chen said indifferently, "Gentlemen, the Ministry of Revenue is a very important department of our Great Wei."

"Now Minister Xu is temporarily recuperating at home due to illness, and Zhao Liting is suspected of attacking his superior. But the Ministry of Revenue cannot stop operating for a day."

"Who do you gentlemen think would be more suitable to take charge of the Ministry of Revenue temporarily?"

The sudden topic caught many ministers off guard.

There was a commotion in the hall. Although it was chaotic, Jiang Chen still heard the name mentioned the most, which was Huang Fengzhu.

Of course, this did not surprise Jiang Chen.

Logically speaking, Huang Fengzhu, as the Right Vice Minister of Revenue, should indeed be the best candidate to be temporarily responsible for all matters of the Ministry when the Minister of Revenue and the Left Vice Minister were absent.

After a while, Jiang Chen looked at Yang Yongqi, "Minister Yang, you are the Minister of Appointments, what are your recommendations?"

Although Yang Yongqi had been an official all his life, he was a little unable to figure out Jiang Chen's intentions at this time.

He knew very well that Jiang Chen valued Xu Changqing, and he did not understand why Jiang Chen would take the initiative to suggest finding someone to take charge of the Ministry of Revenue temporarily.

But Jiang Chen asked, so he could not refuse to answer.

After thinking for a while, Yang Yongqi said, "Your Majesty, according to convention, promotions should be made from the top down. The Minister of Revenue and the Left Vice Minister are temporarily absent, so naturally the Right Vice Minister should be responsible for all matters of the department."

There was nothing wrong with this statement.

Jiang Chen nodded, seemingly approving of Yang Yongqi's words.

But he did not express his position.

Yesterday, after discovering the reason for this impeachment, Jiang Chen specifically looked at the places of origin of the main ministers in the court.

The place of origin of the Minister of Appointments, Yang Yongqi, was a bit special, falling right on the banks of the Yangtze River.

So Yang Yongqi's thoughts should be relatively neutral.

Seeing Jiang Chen nodding, the ministers thought that this matter had been decided.

But unexpectedly, Jiang Chen suddenly asked the Minister of Rites, Wen Fengli, for his opinion.

Wen Fengli was originally standing there calmly, and was very surprised when he heard this.

But he did not hesitate at all, saying, "This minister agrees with Lord Yang."

Jiang Chen nodded, Wen Fengli was a genuine Jiangnan (south of the Yangtze River) native, this answer was not beyond his expectations.

Jiang Chen looked at the Minister of Justice, Wu Zuo, and said, "Minister Wu, what do you think?"

Wu Zuo had wanted to speak for a long time, and upon hearing this, he said, "Your Majesty, this minister believes that the Ministry of Revenue is related to the people of the world, and is also a pillar of our Great Wei court."

"If we are to choose a person to temporarily take charge of the Ministry of Revenue, then Lord Huang naturally has no problem."

"But if it is to take charge of the Ministry of Revenue for a long time, this minister believes that further discussion is needed."

After Wu Zuo finished speaking, although Jiang Chen's eyes were still looking in Wu Zuo's direction, his peripheral vision had already looked at several ministers from south of the Yangtze River around Wu Zuo.

As Jiang Chen had expected, when Wu Zuo finished his last sentence, these ministers glared at Wu Zuo.

This situation made Jiang Chen no longer doubt his previous judgment.

Wu Zuo happened to be a northerner.

Before Jiang Chen could comment on Wu Zuo's words, the Left Vice Minister of Appointments, Ouyang Shuo, stood up.

"Your Majesty, this minister believes that Lord Wu's words are inappropriate."

"As Lord Wu said, the Ministry of Revenue is a pillar of our Great Wei, and since it is a pillar, it must be treated with caution."

"Lord Huang has served as the Right Vice Minister of Revenue for many years, and is very familiar with the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue. May I ask, who in our Great Wei court is more suitable to manage the Ministry of Revenue than Lord Huang?"

As soon as Ouyang Shuo's words fell, several voices of agreement immediately rang out.

Wu Zuo could not help but look unsightly. He looked back at Ouyang Shuo and said, "Lord Ouyang, Lord Xu is only temporarily recuperating at home, and is still serving as the Minister of Revenue!"

Ouyang Shuo was choked by Wu Zuo's words, and said, "I'm just making a hypothetical statement."

Seeing that other ministers were about to join in, Jiang Chen coughed heavily, and the hall immediately fell silent.

"I have heard all of your opinions."

Jiang Chen's gaze fell on Huang Fengzhu, "Lord Huang, what do you think yourself?"

Huang Fengzhu stepped forward and said, "This minister believes that I am capable of taking on the important task of managing the Ministry of Revenue!"

His words were sonorous and forceful, full of confidence.

Jiang Chen turned his face to the side and said, "Lord Huang, what did you say?"

Huang Fengzhu was stunned, thinking that his voice was too low, so he raised his voice and said, "Your Majesty, this minister believes that I am capable of taking on the important task of managing the Ministry of Revenue!"

His voice was so loud that it echoed throughout the hall.

Jiang Chen still said, "What are you saying? I can't quite understand."

This behavior made even a fool see Jiang Chen's attitude.

He was clearly dissatisfied with Huang Fengzhu serving as the Minister of Revenue!

Before Huang Fengzhu could recover, Jiang Chen said, "Minister Xu has been recuperating at home for two days, he should be able to return to his post."

"The Ministry of Revenue will still be managed by Xu Changqing."

Jiang Chen's words directly finalized the matter.