Han Ruzi's original intention was to choose a champion among Nan Guanmei, Shen Daxing, and Luo Shifu, but he didn't expect to hear the words "follow the trend" suddenly.
But these four words are not unique slogans of those who look for qi. Occasionally, they can't explain anything. Han Ruzi asked calmly, "How do you follow the trend?"
Zeng Dangyun was in his twenties, tall, but he looked weak, and he always seemed to be leaning slightly to the left, even when he was bowing and saluting.
"The great power of the gods and ghosts is gone. If the Chu army goes on an expedition, it will definitely win."
"You just said that the Chu army will be defeated without a doubt." Prime Minister Zhuo Ruhe couldn't help but speak, feeling that this person was ostentatious.
"It's not contradictory, the Chu army will inevitably defeat the gods and ghosts, but they will be defeated by the Western countries."
Zhuo Ruhe couldn't help laughing, and the surrounding officials and the candidates who came to face the saint also laughed.
"That's weird." Zhuo Ruhe has been prime minister for a long time, and he knows when it's time for him to speak. If such a question is asked, the emperor can't easily raise it in front of everyone to avoid embarrassment. On his behalf, "The purpose of the Chu army's westward expedition is to help the countries, and they are all allies. How can you say victory or defeat?"
Zeng Dangyun didn't smile, and said sternly: "Hundreds of thousands of Chu troops cost hundreds of millions of dollars just to take a head? After defeating the gods and ghosts, you must keep some of them, right?"
"Of course." The court had made a plan for this. Zhuo Ruhe glanced at the emperor and decided to reveal a few words, "You can follow the example of the Western Regions and send the guards and a small number of Chu troops to restrain them."
"As far as I know, the Western countries are full of contradictions. Otherwise, they would not have been ruled by the gods and ghosts. These contradictions have existed for a long time. It is like the thousand-year war between the north and the south of the Great Wall. It is better when there is a common enemy. When Shan Yu is killed, open and secret struggles will inevitably resume. At that time, all countries will seek judgment from the Great Chu, and it will take half a year or even a year for messengers to come and go. If it is not enough, we have to send more troops again, and if things go on like this, for the Western countries, Da Chu is the new god and ghost, and it will definitely turn against him.”
"Presumptuous! Great Chu never thought of bringing Western countries into the borders of Great Chu, how could he be regarded as a god and ghost?" Zhuo Ruhe scolded sharply.
Zeng Dangyun saluted, "The so-called 'the speaker has no intention and the listener has intention'. Every move of the Great Chu may have other meanings in the eyes of the Western countries, and it will not be decided by the Great Chu at that time."
Zhuo Ruhe was about to refute again, but Han Ruzi waved his hand at him and said to the other candidates, "What do you think?"
Everyone understood that this was another test for the emperor, and Shen Daxing spoke first and said to Zeng Dangyun, "The strategy of restraint has been effective in the Western Regions, why can't it be imitated further afield?"
Zeng Dangyun returned the salute, "The Western Regions and the Great Chu are far apart, so it is difficult to be included in the territory, so the policy of restraint was implemented. From this point of view, the distance and difficulty of the road are extremely important. The restraint is effective in the Western Regions, but it is unknown if it is placed in a farther place. This is a general trend, and it is difficult for manpower to reverse it. Maybe one day, the benefits of the equipment will reach the extreme, and the daily travel Thousands of miles, the army will arrive in the evening, and the Western Regions will be counties and counties, and the extreme west can be restrained."
The crowd laughed again, Nan Guanmei stood up and said: "This statement is too bad, Da Chu has to rule the western land, but to punish the evil and punish the wicked. There are many contradictions among the countries, which can be used to help the weak and eliminate the strong. It was not the Great Chu who sent troops."
"Soldiers and weapons are also weapons. Hundreds of thousands of Chu troops went on an expedition to the West. According to the best possible estimate, the loss is also 10,000 or 20,000. As for the horses and food and grass, there are countless thousands of them. But only to punish evildoers?"
Han Ruzi glanced at Luo Shifu, nodded slightly, Luo Shifu was encouraged, and said: "The so-called punishment of the past and the future, the Chu army's expedition, although it costs a lot, it shows the world with prestige. And Yongyi is very cost-effective.”
Zeng Dangyun smiled slightly, "People today don't talk about things for a thousand years, it's just wishful thinking once and for all, and the gods and ghosts suddenly arise, not to mention a thousand years ago, but who could have predicted a hundred or ten years ago? The enemy changed, I It has also changed, how can we keep the idea of once and for all? The power is like water, and it is necessary to go up and down with it in order to be free.
Luo Shifu's face was slightly red, "According to what you mean, Da Chu has been preparing for war for several years, but the soldiers are Chen Yusi outside, but they want to be anticlimactic?"
"No, the sage does not go against the trend, but can follow the trend, build the momentum, help the situation, and take advantage of the situation. The Great Chu has been preparing for war for several years, and the Western countries are all aware of it, and it is because of this that they dare to resist the gods and ghosts. , to offer a foolish plan: continue to make soldiers outside the fortress, and at the same time send more envoys to the west, agree on the opportunity to start war with the countries, and make a promise to first defeat the enemy chiefs and behead the ones who will be crowned as kings and seated among the kings. Above. The kings of the West will fight for this position without waiting for the Chu army to move, and the head of the enemy chief is already hanging in the northern queer of the capital."
Everyone was speechless for a while, Han Ruzi looked at the five candidates at the door and asked, "Tell me too."
The five people thought they had already been out of the game, and they were shocked when they suddenly heard the emperor's own question. One of them knelt down, and the other four hurriedly knelt down.
The eunuch asked them to stand up, and the five looked at each other. The examinee named Liu Jian replied with a trembling voice: "Isn't this so-called 'king' the new ghost Da Chanyu? If he has ambitions in the future, Da Chu will do it himself. If you have fostered an enemy, it would be better for the Great Chu to replace him."
Everyone looked at Zeng Dangyun again and felt that this sentence made sense.
Zeng Dangyun lowered his head and thought for a while, and said, "If there is such a possibility, the only way to deal with it is Chu Qiang. If Chu Qiang is strong, the enemy will not dare to invade, and no one will dare to be ambitious. If Chu is weak, everyone will covet him, like a god. The ghost is so great, if it hadn't been for the Huns to invade first, he wouldn't have come all over the place."
Shen Daxing had already realized that his previous response was too slick, and it was rare for the emperor to like it. At this time, he hurriedly said: "After a circle, Brother Zeng didn't say anything. What is Chu Qiang? Head of the enemy chief, if the Chu army does not move, wouldn't it show weakness?"
Zeng Dangyun was a little overwhelmed, and lowered his head to think for a longer time, "Show strength instead of being strong, you can get twice the result with half the effort."
Shen Daxing seized the weakness and pursued the victory.
Zeng Dangyun was about to speak, but Liu Jie had already received the emperor's signal, and said, "Okay, today's debate is over, all the students retire."
Ten candidates bowed down to the emperor, were sent out of the palace by the eunuchs, and the ministers stayed behind, waiting for the emperor to choose the champion.
Han Ruzi felt good, and the debate among the students gave him the enthusiasm when he first took over the imperial power. Such a scene has not appeared for a long time.
"Does your Majesty have someone you like?" Zhuo Ruhe stepped forward and asked.
Han Ruzi doesn't care who is the champion anymore, just based on a test paper and a debate, he can't tell who is better and who is worse, and there is no need to rank them immediately, "Qinzheng Hall, let's make a ranking, this year's candidates are all good, No matter who is the champion, I am satisfied."
When Han Ruzi returned the power, the ministers were very happy, and at the same time they were secretly gearing up to win the top spot for the person they supported.
The minister resigned, and there was a fierce battle in the back to Qinzheng Hall, and Han Ruzi waited for the result.
When the room was finally empty, Zhang Youcai brought a few people to pack up. When it was almost time, the others left. Zhang Youcai said, "Your Majesty is very interested in Zeng Dangyun, right?"
"You see it again?"
"Hehe, don't blame me, Your Majesty, I was also taken aback when I heard the words 'follow the trend'. I don't know if he was unintentional or intentional." Zhang Youcai was often by the emperor's side, and he had seen and heard a lot. of this mantra.
"Um."
"Would you like to ask me?"
"Don't worry, wait until the list is down, and then transfer him to the Hanlin Academy." Han Ruzi knew how much attention the emperor's words and deeds received. If he summoned Zeng Dangyun now, he might give the ministers a wrong signal. Rather bad.
"Yes, do you want me to find someone to investigate in private?"
"You?" Confucius Han was a little surprised, Jing Yao had already retired, Jin Chunzhong entered the Dali Temple, and there was no one around Han Ruzi who could conduct private investigations.
"It's not me, it's Chao Jing. I see that he's been busy recently, drinking and hanging out with his fellow villagers every day, and he's not in a hurry to start a family. Why don't he find something to do for him."
After several wars, most of the people in Chao's fishing village died, and there were not many survivors. Han Ruzi had decided not to send them to fight again, but let him do nothing.
"Okay, make it clear to Chao Jing, don't attract attention, don't cause trouble."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Zhang Youcai didn't move, and continued: "I don't dare to pass the decree orally. Is Your Majesty writing something for me?"
Zhang Youcai still remembered the rules, Han Ruzi smiled, picked up a pen and wrote a handwritten letter, ordering Zhang Youcai to find Chao Jing to do business, not to mention the specific content, and to indicate that it is valid once.
Zhang Youcai carefully put away the note, turned to leave, but couldn't help but ask, "Who does Your Majesty think will be the champion?"
"Let the minister decide, can't you wait for a long time?"
Zhang Youcai stepped back with a smile, explained a few words to the other eunuchs, and went to Chao Jing himself.
The emperor liked to be alone, and the eunuchs stayed outside to listen to the propaganda.
Han Ruzi sat for a while, and picked up Huang Pugong's letter again. He was not as angry as at first, but looked at the whole matter more calmly.
He raised his head, looked at the corner, as if there was a person standing there, and whispered: "It is thousands of miles away, self-sufficient, without thinking of the Great Chu, without asking for the emperor, even loyal ministers have the intention of self-reliance, Huang Pugong is not exempt from the common, rather than It is better to take advantage of the situation if you are empty of anger.”
Han Ruzi sighed, and remembered Yang Feng's words, the imperial power is only ten steps away and within a thousand miles, and now he really feels the powerlessness of a thousand miles away.
Luo Shifu obviously did not inherit the mantle of his father, and Han Ruzi was slightly disappointed.
Before nightfall, the Qinzheng Hall sent a list. Just as Han Ruzi had expected, the prime minister won, Shen Dacheng became the new champion, Nanguanmei ranked second, Luo Shifu was ranked second, and several people in the top two, Liu Jian, who dealt with the missteps, was classified into the top three. Zeng Dangyun, who fought with all living beings, also fell into the top three.
The ministers clearly did not like the man.
Han Ruzi didn't hesitate, Zhu criticized the word "read" and sent someone back to the Qinzheng Hall. In the early morning of tomorrow morning, the Ministry of Rites will publish the list, and there are a few happy and some sad.
Early the next morning, Han Ruzi got up to wash up, Zhang Youcai came to wait on him, waited for the emperor to get dressed, and while no one was around, he said, "Your Majesty, Chao Jing has news."
"So fast?" Han Ruzi was very surprised.
"They didn't hide or hide at all. Zeng Dangyun brought the teacher into Beijing with the teacher. His Majesty recognized this gentleman."
"Lin Kunshan."
Zhang Youcai nodded, "Do you want to arrest me?"
Han Ruzi shook his head. He knew that Lin Kunshan, the qi-watcher, came to the door on his own initiative, and there was no need to send someone to arrest him.