At the same time,
In the Prince of Yu's manor.
Xu Jie, Gao Gong, and Zhang Juzheng all stood in the main hall. The Prince of Yu was also pacing anxiously.
The matter of Zhu Mo killing He Maocai placed the greatest pressure on the reformist faction, especially Xu Jie, and then the Prince of Yu.
It was he himself who had recommended Zhu Mo to the Prince of Yu. Now that something had happened, the Yan faction would surely seize the opportunity to retaliate, and the blame would fall upon the reformists. If the Emperor were to become enraged, the Prince of Yu would not be able to escape implication, for it was the Prince of Yu who had first mentioned Zhu Mo, leading Xu Jie to recommend him. And the reason the Prince of Yu suddenly brought up Zhu Mo involved the eunuch Feng Bao in the palace, and whether Feng Bao had intentionally relayed the message or mentioned it inadvertently, no one dared to question...
But ultimately, it all came down to misjudging the person!
For this reason,
The Prince of Yu had been unable to sleep for two days.
"Alas, why did His Majesty believe his nonsensical words! As soon as this Zhu Mo went down, he caused an earth-shattering mess. If my father blames me, what am I to say? It was you who kept praising him, which is why I thought of recommending him... Alas... I should have insisted on Gao Hanwen's strategy back then!"
Xu Jie was instantly ashamed and lowered his head, saying, "Your Highness, this old servant, alas, this old servant was negligent... This Zhu Mo, he can write excellent pronouncements, but he cannot get things done... He went down there and killed a second-rank Surveillance Commissioner without seeking imperial decree or drafting official documents. As the Second Grand Secretary, I will confess my fault to the court tomorrow!"
Gao Gong also sighed and said, "I said at the time that this Zhu Mo was young and impetuous. What he said about the anti-Japanese debt and state-run banks was unheard of; it was a deception to fool ghosts! How could it possibly succeed? Now that he has killed a provincial governor, will the wealthy households of Jiangnan still be willing to donate? Yan Shifan was not wrong, wasn't it just about donations? What are they talking about being high-minded and grand? Now he has caused trouble!"
As the atmosphere grew tense, Zhang Juzheng remained silent.
He was a rare talent in the three hundred years of the Great Ming. Although his priority was conflict, truthfully, from the bottom of his heart, he greatly admired those who dared to act, even feeling a sense of kinship. And last time at Yongding River during the farewell, Zhu Mo had expressed some resentment, which made him feel that he had fallen short of the demeanor of a senior statesman. If he were to add insult to injury now, it would be inexcusable...
Moreover,
As soon as he heard that He Maocai had been killed, his first thought was—
Does he have a fallback plan?
Judging from his experience, Zhu Mo's decisive action of killing a second-rank official indicated that he was determined to proceed. However, based on his previous strategies, it seemed unnecessary to go to such lengths?
This meant: he had more formidable moves that had not been revealed at all... The strategies proposed in the imperial court earlier were just a preliminary approach to gain everyone's agreement for his dispatch, and once in Jiangnan, he would act according to his own will?
Thinking of this,
Zhang Juzheng couldn't help but shudder—
This young man, not yet twenty years old,
How could he be so ruthless?!
At this moment,
He no longer cared about the Prince of Yu's feelings and said directly:
"Your Highness, although Young Master Zhu's strategy is rough, its grand vision aims to solve fundamental problems, which is bound to cause upheaval... With such a bold approach, perhaps he has more tricks up his sleeve? In my opinion, the success or failure of Young Master Zhu's strategy is yet to be determined. Let us wait and see..."
Fallback plan?
Yet to be determined?
A person under twenty can still contend with old Yan Song?
Has Zhang Taiyue gone mad?
The Prince of Yu was instantly enraged and said, "Master Zhang, he has caused such a huge disaster, and you still say he hasn't failed? The Emperor has been meditating in the Yuxi Palace all day. What if he flies into a furious rage?"
Xu Jie also said, "Taiyue, if it's wrong, it's wrong. Don't stubbornly refuse to admit it... What we need to consider now is how to clean up the mess? We all bear responsibility for his killing a provincial governor without imperial decree..."
Gao Gong angrily said, "Zhang Taiyue, you were the one who recommended him as a Hanlin attendant! He is so rash and arrogant and has already caused immense trouble. Are you still speaking for him? If that happens, will you bear all the responsibility alone?"
Zhang Juzheng was also furious upon hearing this—
This was discussed by everyone at the time. Wasn't everyone in agreement? You, Gao Gong, even called Zhu Mo a rare talent back then. Why are you changing your tune now? Zhu Mo has not yet failed, and you are already kicking him while he's down?
He immediately straightened his chest and said frankly:
"We are the leaders of all scholars and reformists in the world. If we always compromise, it will never be the way to victory! If we do such a thing as kicking someone while they are down, all the scholars in the world will be completely disheartened with us!
We would rather wait longer than confess our fault first! Ultimately, only an accomplice to Japanese pirates has been killed. As for Zhu Mo's strategy, I believe he still has backup plans. It is not yet a success or failure, and we can still wait and see..."
As soon as he spoke,
Several people felt that what he said was reasonable and proper. He Maocai was, after all, an accomplice to Japanese pirates... They could at least put up a fight, or let the censors speak, or let Tan Lun say a few words, saying that Zhu Mo acted decisively out of concern for the overall anti-Japanese situation...
Xu Jie immediately nodded, "Yes, that makes sense. Then let's wait a bit longer..."
...
At the same time,
In Yuxi Palace, the capital.
Lü Fang gently put down the jade pestle in his hand, feeling that his hands had not trembled like this in decades.
Immediately, he picked up his reading glasses and read the secret report from beginning to end, word for word, three times. When he regained his senses, he felt as if his soul had already flown to the highest heavens.
The distance from the outer hall to the inner chamber's Eight Trigram Altar was about three to four zhang, but Lü Fang's walk now felt incredibly difficult, his legs weak.
Zhu Mo,
Zhu Mo had actually killed the Surveillance Commissioner He Maocai! And it was the Embroidered Uniform Guard who did the killing... Although he was an accomplice to Japanese pirates, if Yan Shifan and his ilk made a fuss, it could likely stir up considerable trouble.
Lü Fang, who had managed the Eastern Depot for thirty years, had never encountered such an uncanny figure.
How would he report this to His Majesty?
He knelt before the Eight Trigram Altar, holding the secret report with both hands, holding his breath with all his might to prevent the sound of his heartbeat from disturbing Jiajing's meditation.
However, Jiajing had not been meditating recently; he had only been sitting on the Eight Trigram Altar daily, indulging in pleasant memories of the past.
At this moment,
He had also anticipated that something had happened in Jiangnan and said slowly, "Lü Fang, I don't want to look anymore. Just tell me, did Zhu Mo run into trouble in Jiangnan?"
"Reporting to Your Majesty, uh, this, um, this servant, this servant doesn't know how to say it. Your Majesty should just look for yourself..."
Jiajing took it, read a page, and threw it away, his heart surging with emotion—
This Zhu Mo,
He actually did something so significant?
A commoner, without rank or title, actually killed a second-rank Surveillance Commissioner? And it was done by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, in front of all the officials of Jiangnan?
Jiajing paused, unable to discern whether his heart was filled with anger or joy. In a daze, he suddenly remembered Zhu Mo in the small courtyard down the street, his amiable appearance, how different he was from the person in the secret report!
He threw all three pages of the secret letter away, crossed his arms behind his back, and walked out of the palace gate. Lü Fang followed closely behind, not daring to exhale.
"Lü Fang, what do you think?"
"Your Majesty, this servant does not know..."
"You don't know?..."
Jiajing sighed and continued, "Indeed, I don't know how I feel either..."
He had initially worried that Zhu Mo would suffer a loss, which is why he had sent Zhu Qi and also given Lü Fang the Emperor's Longevity Emperor's Iron Tablet for self-defense... He never expected that Zhu Mo would order Zhu Qi to kill a second-rank official, and Zhu Qi and the others, perhaps out of concern for the iron tablet, had no choice but to obey...
Even more ruthless was: according to Zhu Qi's account, he seemed to have no idea it was the Emperor's Longevity Token? Then he was even more ruthless! Ruthless to the extreme...
Still worried about him suffering a loss?
How could he ever suffer a loss?
Clearly, others were suffering losses because of him!
This brat! He should have let him start from the very bottom, sent him to a remote county as a magistrate, given him nothing, and then see how he would manage!
Jiajing was both angry and felt a complex emotion. He felt that he had never been defied like this in his life, an indescribable discomfort, yet in the depths of his heart, there was a hint of secret joy—
This brat, after all, has some ability... To stir up such a stir and cause the court and the public to boil, it cannot be said to be entirely useless... But the cleanup and damage control now falls upon me.