Chapter 199: Two strategies to achieve success

In Cheng'en Hall, the scent of incense was burning.

The golden sunlight falls on the green smoke, changing the shape of clouds rolling and unrolling.

Dong Xingshu glanced at the pile of memorials and his expression became more serious.

Three days ago, celebrities in Tianjing wrote letters through various channels, criticizing Zhou Tieyi's "Tianjing News" and vernacular Chinese. He knew at the time that he could not stop it, and finally allowed "Tianjing News" to pass the most difficult hurdle without any danger, allowing Zhou Tieyi to successfully make the leap from a carp to a dragon.

Now, as newspapers began to spread throughout the country, a large number of memorials were continuously transmitted to the court from the hands of famous scholars in forty-nine states throughout the country through various means. In addition to criticizing Zhou Tieyi, they also criticized vernacular Chinese.

It can’t be stopped. It can’t be stopped at all!
The more scholars in the world did this, the more they insulted Zhou Tieyi.

Naturally, the emperor would become more confident in using Zhou Tieyi and protecting him.

As long as Zhou Tieyi doesn't make any fundamental mistakes, even I, as a citizen, can't do anything to him...

Is there no scholar in the world who can understand this?

Of course not. For example, Qingkong Gui and I, although we were a few hours late, we also reacted.

However, even if he and Qingkong Gui were the Minister of Citizens and Minister of Law, and even if they had the ability of the second rank, how could they stop the people from speaking out? Even if they dared to stop them, the scholars in the world would probably not care about their reasons for stopping them, but would turn their guns on themselves, the Confucian traitor who sheltered the "peerless jester".

Only the wisest and the stupidest cannot be changed.

Dong Xingshu looked at the pile of memorials in silence, not knowing what to do with them for a moment.

Yuchi Pojun next to him was extremely happy.

If it weren't for the current fight between Dong Xingshu and Zhou Tieyi, this Simin was at a disadvantage and he would probably have mocked his colleague.

I have been feeling depressed in this court for more than twenty years, and it is time for you, Dong Xingshu, to suffer the consequences!

Dong Xingshu did not review the memorials, but Yuchi Pojun was working very fast today, as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

He did not do anything about those who cursed Zhou Tieyi and reported everything truthfully to the emperor, who would make his own judgment.

By speaking up for Zhou Tieyi, I ended up hurting Zhou Tieyi.

When he turned to a new memorial, Yuchi Pojun stopped suddenly.

"Policies for Soliciting Public Opinions", Zhou Tieyi.

Half a month ago, when Zhou Tieyi wanted to submit a memorial to the emperor, he had to go through Sun Dan, the head of the Zhou family's disciples.

But now, having crossed that hurdle, he could submit the memorial himself.

Yuchi Pojun opened the memorial carefully and began to read it.

The memorial was very simple and only stated one thing.

If the people have political opinions or appeals, they can first write a letter and put it in the mailbox of the Inspection Office of the Zhushen Division. As an organization led by Zhou Tieyi, the Inspection Office also supervises the "Tianjing News". They will report the people's petitions, select important and true matters, and report them to the corresponding departments first. After receiving a reply, they will write down the problems and solutions, and ask for the imperial edict, and then publish it in the "Tianjing Affairs" edition to let the people of the world know.

Yuchi Pojun thought for a long time before he said to Qingkong Gui and Dong Xingshu, who were not very active today, "You can take a look at this kid's new memorial."

As he said this, he spread out the memorial and placed it between the three of them, then picked up the tea and started drinking, but the joy in his heart faded.

Qingkong Gui and Dong Xingshu quickly read through the entire memorial, then they looked at each other, and saw fear and even horror in each other's eyes.

"Go and fetch the copy of 'Request for the Imperial Decree to Issue a Policy'."

Dong Xingshu ordered a clerk to fetch a backup memorial submitted by Zhou Tieyi.

A moment later, when the two memorials were placed together, the three officials all realized what Zhou Tieyi was going to do.

"Requesting the Emperor to issue an edict and issuing a policy", "Requesting the public to submit a policy on public opinion".

Up and down, connecting the universe.

Naturally, there would be no role for the three divisions in this matter.

"Today he said he wanted to seize your authority. At that time I thought he was just young and hot-headed. Even if it was possible, it wouldn't be now. I didn't expect that he had already started doing it and was already halfway successful."

Yuchi Pojun put down his tea bowl and let out a long sigh.

He hoped that Zhou Tieyi was smart and capable, and could carry the banner of military honors to help him fight against Qingkong Gui and Dong Xingshu.

But now Zhou Tieyi was too capable, so capable that the strategies he planned made the right general feel frightened.

He is a man of deep thoughts and far-sighted plans for the country, how could he go to this extent!
Of course, these two strategies are the least harmful to him as the right general. Even if the people want to pay attention to military affairs, they do not have the ability to do so. The country's major affairs are sacrifices and wars, and the emperor will not allow it.

But the authority of the officials in charge of the people and the law is different.

Even if Zhou Tieyi knocked it here and there, it was enough to shake the foundation.

I'm afraid that in the future his Inspection Office will not only be in charge of the God-Slaying Department, but will really supervise all officials and handle the whole world!
After reading it, Qingkong Gui was silent for a long time before he said, "This is a strategy for the country."

Zhou Tieyi seemed to be seizing power, but by giving the emperor a channel to speak and the people a channel to speak, he was actually robbing the officials of their channel to speak.

More importantly, Zhou Tieyi acted with righteousness in this matter. Anyone who opposed would stand against the Emperor of Daxia and the public opinion of the world.

Do you not want the imperial edict to be issued, or do you not want public opinion to be expressed?
Dong Xingshu was silent for a long time before he said, "This is a benevolent policy."

Although people could petition before.

But the bones are cold beneath the drums of the imperial court, and there are no common people in front of the Ministry of Public Administration.

If you want to beat the drum to file a complaint, you must be determined to die. If you want to file a complaint to the Tongzhengsi, you cannot be a commoner.

Moreover, neither of the two petition systems can effectively provide feedback on the petition results to the people.

But the Tianjing Daily provided a new narrative logic.

The news media has the power to supervise the administration of the hundred officials headed by the Three Departments.

This is what Zhou Tieyi really wants!
A narrative logic that is completely different from that of the censors is why it can help Zhou Tieyi tear apart the Ministry of Speech and seize the power of speech.

Without even the underlying political logic and without completing its own narrative, even if it can win over many people, they are just villains gathering for profit.

But if this narrative logic is completed, then Zhou Tieyi can be called a gentleman who gathers together for righteousness.

Those who surround him, Zhou Tieyi, are people of noble character and lofty ideals who dare to advance forward and risk their lives!
Qingkong Gui said in a serious tone, "Even if it is a benevolent policy, it still depends on the person who is implementing it. If Zhou Tieyi really uses this policy to cause party disputes, what should we do?"

Dong Xingshu did not answer.

Because their presumption of guilt does not hold water.

He looked at the pile of memorials criticizing Zhou Tieyi's "Tianjing News". At this time, they had no standing with the emperor.

If it were before, the emperor might have hesitated whether this new "benevolent policy" would be detrimental to the stability of the government.

But now, His Majesty first agreed to the "Policy Requesting the Imperial Edict to be Issued", laying the foundation for the "Policy Requesting Public Opinions to be Issued".

Then, scholars all over the world gave Zhou Tieyi a great assist, which made the emperor more suspicious whether the hundreds of schools of thought in the court were deceiving him, and more certain of Zhou Tieyi's role in sweeping away the dark clouds with his sword.

Finally, Zhou Tieyi handed the sword to His Majesty, and it depended on whether Your Majesty was determined to use this sword.

I, Zhou Tieyi, am just an executor who provides an action plan, and you, the Emperor of Great Xia, are the final decision maker.

Yuchi Pojun suddenly spoke up at this time, "Do you know what he said when he came to my house and asked about Mei Qingchen and I told him to retreat eight thousand miles away?"

Dong Xingshu and Qingkong Gui immediately turned their gaze away. They didn't expect that Yuchi Pojun would be willing to speak for them at this time.

Yes.

Weigh the pros and cons.

This is the nature of the political animal.

"how to answer?"

Yuchi Pojun said seriously, "He said that day that if Mei Qingchen was a perfect man, he would retreat eight thousand miles. And today if Zhou Tieyi is a perfect man, what will happen if we give the three divisions to him?"

······
Exit the Noon Gate and get on the bike.

He Qigong was waiting in the car. Zhou Tieyi had been keeping him by his side these days, which really made He Qigong flattered.

Zhou Tieyi opened the car window and saw the sun hanging high in the sky outside, with golden tiles and red walls, which was extremely majestic.

"What does this twelve-story building look like?"

He Qigong's expression became more and more awed. He had been sitting in the car this morning, so he naturally saw how Zhou Tieyi frightened the citizens and officials with just one word.

This strategy and this spirit are really hard to describe.

“It’s a magnificent sight.”

He Qigong answered seriously.

Zhou Tieyi lowered the curtain and said with a smile, "How is the debauchery in Tianjing?"

He Qigong recalled his inner pride when he first came to Tianjing, and then he saw his poverty when he saw the real prosperity, and then he saw the prosperous scene of Yujing where paper was in great demand, and then he went up to the tower to look into the distance, and his poem overwhelmed the entire literary atmosphere in the tower.

"Eternal elegance." Zhou Tieyi asked again, "By the way, I'm afraid you didn't come to Tianjing just to see this prosperous scene this time, right?"

A white jade chessboard enveloped the two of them, isolating the inside and the outside.

These days, through the Five Emperors and the peach and plum saplings, Zhou Tieyi has been able to initially control this secret treasure.

"It's about the ink stone. I need to report it to the Second Young Master."

He Qigong told Zhou Tieyi everything about Li Jianhu.

Even though he already knew the whole process, and even this process was arranged by Zhou Tieyi.

But Zhou Tieyi still asked about the details of the matter in detail, as if he just knew about it.

After listening, Zhou Tieyi did not show any panic or surprise. He still had a calm smile on his face, and even dimples appeared on his face, as if he had encountered something interesting.

Zhou Tieyi's attitude now seemed normal to He Qigong.

Now, every word and action of Zhou Tieyi will be interpreted in a positive way by He Qigong.

The five colors can dazzle the eyes, and the five sounds can confuse the ears.

The debauchery in Tianjin was even worse than this.

Zhou Tieyi removed the blockade of the white jade chessboard and reopened the curtains. At this time, the self-driving car had arrived at the prosperous area. There were endless streams of carriages and horses shuttling back and forth, and there were bustling noises. On both sides, there were white walls and black tiles, lined up one after another. It was a prosperous and flourishing area.

Suddenly, Zhou Tieyi sighed, "You can see now that I am just trying to hold on to the situation in Tianjing."

Your He family has difficulties, but our Zhou family has even greater difficulties.

He Qigong twitched his lips unconsciously. You call this encouragement and support?

This morning, I saw you almost push Simin's face to the ground.

Zhou Tieyi saw He Qigong's expression and shook his head with a deep look in his eyes, "You don't understand."

He Qigong was unable to find words to refute for a moment. After all, Zhou Tieyi was truly competing against the Three Departments, the Ministry of Propaganda and even the literati of the world. The pressure and decision involved were not something that ordinary people could bear and do.

But He Qigong always felt that it sounded strange to use the word "encouragement and support" to describe it.

"I am stupid."

Zhou Tieyi continued, "Do you know what it means to move the whole body when one hair moves?"

He Qigong's eyes fixed, and he instantly realized the seriousness of the problem. It seemed that the Confucian school would definitely conduct a thorough investigation into the Li Jianhu ink stone case to reverse the decline in the court!
It is absolutely impossible for the He family to take advantage of the situation. At least from what he has seen in the past few days, He Qigong is not so arrogant as to think that he has Zhou Tieyi's ability.

"Please give me your instructions, Second Young Master."

"What do I show you?"

Zhou Tieyi asked back with a smile.

"Do you think the Confucians will only focus on this one thing to attack me? Inkstone, wood, steel, iron, salt, and even the army, which one of them is not something that can take away a layer of my skin?"

"No one is perfect. Everyone has weaknesses. It's already difficult for me to support the court situation."

He Qigong looked thoughtful. He finally understood why Zhou Tieyi emphasized his difficulties.

When Zhou Tieyi was weak before, he targeted the Confucians’ sore spots and attacked them relentlessly, but now that Zhou Tieyi is a little stronger, the Confucians will in turn target his sore spots and attack them relentlessly.

So Zhou Tieyi is now like the head coach, who cannot move at will. If he moves, there will be danger of a complete collapse.

Suddenly, He Qigong thought of what Zhou Tieyi said in Wangshu Tower that night.

"If you are a dog, you should behave like a dog. If others come to bully you, you should always bark for your master."

At that time, I said this to Wangshu, and also to myself...

He Qigong sighed, and sure enough, everything connected.

Ever since he came to Tianjing, the second young master had already guessed what was going to happen, and all the suggestions in the past few days were from him.

Seeing He Qigong's sudden realization, Zhou Tieyi smiled and said, "By the way, the palace rewards I asked Chang Sundan to give to Zhou's disciples and former officials should be delivered to Shantong Mansion in the next few days..."

He Qigong bowed and said, "Second Young Master, I understand. I will return home in the afternoon to deal with things."

Zhou Tieyi took out some iced plum wine from the side and poured a glass for He Qigong with a smile.

What do you understand? I didn't say anything!

······
Siminfu.

After the morning court session, Dong Xingshu returned home and met Cui Yu in person.

After listening to Li Jianhu's story, Dong Xingshu remained silent, as if he was deducing the possibility of the success of this matter and the mastermind behind it.

Unfortunately, even his Taoist method of deduction could not break the authority of one of them, not to mention that one of the nine ancient gods, Taixu Huanzhu, was also involved. His deduction could only verify the authenticity of the whole thing from another aspect.

Dong Xiu De's recent injuries have improved a little. After listening to this, he was even more certain that it was right for him to investigate the Zhou family's former students and officials!
Hence the tone of excitement.

"Father."

Of course he knew that this matter could be big or small. The best thing would be to investigate the inkstones that the Zhou family privately mined in the Taihang Mountains. That would be a serious crime that could shake the foundation of the country!

Dong Xingshu didn't say anything, as if he was thinking about something else. After a moment, he asked Dong Xiude, "Anything else?"

Dong Xiude replied, "The rest of the things are already being investigated."

Dong Xiu De had already mobilized the Confucian forces and investigated all the students and former officials of the Zhou family.

However, Chang Sun Dan had a good way of dealing with things and was always able to react quickly, getting his own people to confess their crimes and be punished first, thus preventing the situation from escalating and involving the Zhou family.

The two sides were in a stalemate for a while, but the net of heaven is vast and long, and nothing can escape it. Just as he had expected, as long as water drips through stone, he will be able to find the flaws of the Zhou family.

This is exactly the case with Li Jianhu!

As long as Zhou Tieyi makes a mistake in this matter and they find evidence of him, the Confucian counterattack against Zhou Tieyi will officially begin.

"not enough!"

Dong Xingshu answered affirmatively.

Just one thing was not enough to make Zhou Tieyi flustered and reveal his flaws.

"Go back immediately and tell your teacher these four words for me."

Cui Yu bowed and said, "May I ask Simin, what are the four words?"

Dong Xingshu walked to the desk and picked up the pen. Dong Xiude immediately stepped forward to help his father grind the ink and wait for the ink to become thick.

Dong wrote four words in running script.

The pawn crossed the river.

On that day, the emperor used Zhou Tieyi as a pawn to force the Confucians into a state of confusion.

Today, his Confucianism can also use Li Jianhu as a pawn and see how Zhou Tieyi responds!
Cui Yu took the four characters and said respectfully, "Yes, Simin."

After Cui Yu left, Dong Xingshu thought about it for a while, and then said to Dong Xiude, "You can continue to investigate other things, but this time you must keep it as secret as possible, don't make a big fuss and let everyone know! That won't work!"

After being scolded by his father, Dong Xiu De realized that his father was talking about him gathering the legitimate sons of the nine tribes in Wangshu Tower to discuss investigating the Zhou family.

That way there is strength in numbers, but the possibility of confidentiality being compromised is also greater.

Chang Sun Dan was able to solve the problems accurately and in advance every time during this month. On the one hand, Chang Sun Dan had his own account book and was able to take ruthless measures. On the other hand, someone on the side of the Ninth Tribe's legitimate son must have leaked the information, so both sides seemed extremely anxious about this matter.

The Zhou family's power was indeed shrinking, and all the students and former officials in the court were also being suppressed.

However, Zhou Tieyi's power is changing step by step, which can resolve the anger of Zhou family's students and former officials whose power is suppressed.

On the contrary, it was the Confucians who did this to help Zhou Tieyi strengthen the foundation and weaken the branches.

Dong Xiu De looked ashamed, realizing how big of a problem he had been in the past month.

"Yes, father."

Seeing that his son had taken his words to heart, Dong Xingshu continued, "Put all these things together and send them to me."

If he doesn't move, then it's fine. But if he moves, he must strike a fatal blow. Dong Xingshu knows this very well.

At the end, he reminded, "By the way, when will Ke Anran arrive in Tianjing? Send him another letter to urge him."

Given the current situation in Tianjin, it requires someone who is equally powerful as Zhou Tieyi to tie down his energy and prevent him from acting recklessly.

　Recommend a book called Nine Thousand Average Astronomy

(End of this chapter)