How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

Deep in the quiet and elegant courtyard, there are jagged rockeries and gurgling springs, which fall into the green lake and stir up layers of delicate ripples, which are interwoven with the ripples caused by the koi in the pond, forming a vivid picture scroll, showing a natural artistic conception.

Beside the rockery, a man in a navy blue brocade robe was twirling a fishing bait between his fingers, teasing the fat koi in the pond. His relaxed and at ease look could be seen from his back alone.

Until a burst of hurried footsteps came closer from afar, and a minister hurriedly walked up behind him, with sweat dripping down his forehead, and reported in a low voice: "Sir, everything has been arranged properly, and it will not affect you in the slightest."

The man did not turn around, but continued to calmly scatter the bait on the water.

The fat carps in the pond flapped their wings, splashing countless water.

After a long time without a reply, the minister secretly wiped his sweat and continued, "Shen Yuan is now deeply favored by your majesty, and he has overthrown Yang Qinghui in one fell swoop. His power is like a raging fire that is growing stronger day by day. I am afraid that over time, it will be even more difficult to shake his foundation. Shouldn't we make plans as soon as possible to prevent future troubles?"

"Shen Yuan is innocent and has military strategy. If Your Majesty wants to protect him, no one can do anything about it." The man said in a cold tone, "Your Majesty intends to pave the way for the Crown Prince. It is not wise to confront Shen Yuan head-on. The best strategy is to create a rift between the Crown Prince and Shen Yuan. The Second Prince and the Crown Prince have always been at odds, so you can use this as an opportunity to do something about it."

"Your Excellency is right." The minister thought for a moment and then asked doubtfully, "Then, are you really going to let bygones be bygones regarding Liang Wanda's matter?"

The man chuckled, "I really misjudged Liang Wanda in the past. I didn't expect him to be such a sensation. He actually had a secret relationship with the officials in the court and laid out the Tianfu plan for me to realize my great cause."

"Is this great plan of the Heavenly Palace really useful?" the minister asked puzzledly.

"As he said in the letter, Yizhou has a lot of fertile land. If the flood problem is solved, it will become a prosperous paradise, affecting the lifeblood of the dynasty. If I can control this precious land, the benefits will be innumerable. Although I will lose a few people, I will gain the benefits of the paradise, which is a long-term plan."

After the man finished speaking, he sighed again and said, "Let's spare his life for now. If Tianfu's plan fails to work, we can have a scapegoat to take the blame."

Upon hearing this, the minister nodded repeatedly and repeated his words three times before bowing and taking his leave.

The man did not leave, still staring at the koi in the pond. At a certain moment, he reached out and gently grabbed a fish that had poked its head out. With a slight movement of his fingers, the carp died instantly.

He casually threw the dead fish back into the pond, and the koi in the pond were frightened and scattered in all directions, not daring to approach.

I only heard a calm voice saying, "What a pity for the Ministry of Revenue, which is such a fat fish."

……

The downfall of Minister Yang caught everyone by surprise.

If the anti-corruption actions in the past were just minor actions like weeding in the fields, which were trivial but did not get to the root of the problem, then the actions today can be said to be uprooting towering trees, with such overwhelming force that everyone in the government and the public were horrified.

Countless pairs of eyes, either filled with fear or hatred, instantly stared at Shen Yuan, who was at the center of the vortex.

He was like a fine steel sword that had been tempered a hundred times and was sharp and razor-sharp. He suddenly appeared out of nowhere with unstoppable force and opened the prelude to the chaos in the court.

However, Xie Chengze, who was reckless and unreliable, hid himself well, concealed his achievements and fame, and became a person that all the ministers disliked when they mentioned him.

In order to consolidate his own image, Xie Chengze even sent someone to carry a sedan chair and take him to the Ministry of Revenue, determined to get back the 10,000 taels of silver. His inconsistent words and deeds showed his greedy and stingy face to the fullest.

In the court, Xie Chengze did not forget to pave the way for his life as a rich and powerful second-generation emperor. Before going to court, he would sit on the chair prepared at the front of the hall and start to call out names and provoke at the top of his voice.

For example, on this day, he called out the name of the Minister of Works, forcing him to come over, and then he said, "Can your Ministry of Works build an iron cart that can travel a thousand miles a day and carry a hundred people? What? No? Then what's the use of you? If this iron cart is built, why do the soldiers have to walk thousands of miles every time they go out to fight, and can't catch up with the support of the war?"

Minister of Works:?

Are you dreaming? Who could have created this?

For example, on this day, he called out the name of the Minister of Rites, forcing him to come over, and then he started to speak forcefully, "Do you, the Ministry of Rites, know where we can grow a lot of grass that can keep out the cold? What? There's none in Jian'an? Then won't you send people to foreign countries to look for them? Are you waiting for them to come to you?"

Minister of Rites:?

Are foreign countries a place where you can come and go freely? Are you sure you can come back alive after going there?

Even the three bureaus were defeated, especially the Salt and Iron Bureau, which was so confused that it began to doubt its life. "No way, no way, no way, someone has been in charge of the Salt and Iron Bureau for so many years and still hasn't found a way to refine fine salt? No way, no way, no way, someone has been digging mountains and mining for so many years and only knows about iron, copper, gold and silver and nothing else!"

How can this be a lucky star for our dynasty? This is clearly a disaster star!

Xie Chengze's ghost lingered around, and even after the court session, he would pick up a minister and keep him to have some trouble, which made everyone in the court even more panic-stricken. Every morning when they opened their eyes, they would find the figure of the Second Prince swaying before their eyes.

It gives me a terrifying feeling of being called upon by the old teacher to answer questions when I was studying in private school.

On the fifth day, as soon as Emperor Jian called for the end of the court, all the ministers left in a hurry to avoid being caught by Xie Chengze. However, unexpectedly, a figure as fast as a rabbit appeared faster than them.

Xie Chengze was seen limping out of the door with a cane, and he walked faster than them with all their arms and legs!

As he walked, he shouted loudly, "This crappy court session is finally over! You guys can continue! I'm going to take a break! Hahahahaha——"

Ministers:...

Going to rest again?!

It's fine if they are tortured every day, but they can even rest in the morning?!

Damn jealous!

-

As soon as the man in Chenghuan Palace retired, the invitation flew into Su Mansion again.

At the same time, Sheng Yiren's invitation was also delivered to Su Qinghe, inviting him to have a secret meeting in the private room of Wangyue Tower in the evening.

Su Qinghe hesitated for a long time while holding the two invitations. Finally, he returned the invitation to Chenghuan Palace on the grounds that he was too weak due to long-term illness and might not be able to keep the appointment. Then in the evening, he dressed up as a servant and left through the back door, heading to Wangyue Tower alone.

In the private room, Sheng Yiren was wearing a men's robe. Her originally fair and smooth cheeks had turned yellow and rough, and her eyebrows were also made a bit rougher. She looked like a slim man with a little bit of good looks who loved to put on makeup. The shrewd light flashing in her eyes revealed a bit of the sharpness unique to merchants, which made it difficult to see her true identity.

She sat upright on a wooden chair, repeating the words she had prepared in her mind. When the door of the private room was pushed open, she stood up suddenly. But when she saw that the person coming was Su Qinghe, she suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, "It's you."