There was chaos in the palace.
On this day, the two most frequently used words in Jing Kingdom and even in the entire Shengyuan Continent were forcing the emperor to abdicate and purging the emperor's side.
Almost everyone believed that if the Jing Kingdom royal family did not agree to this matter, the officials in Mizhou and Xiangzhou would take more drastic actions.
No one would believe the so-called resignations of those officials. If the royal family really dared to agree to their resignations, Xiangzhou and Mizhou would have dared to announce the purge of the emperor or even independence the next day.
In the Jing Kingdom Palace.
The Minister of Rites Sheng Boyuan sat opposite the Empress Dowager behind a thin curtain.
Sheng Boyuan is tall, with a broad face and a straight nose. He is already in his seventies, but he does not look old. Instead, he looks very strong.
Sheng Boyuan has been in charge of the Ministry of Rites since Mao Enzheng, the previous Minister of Rites, retired and returned to his hometown. He is a man of vigor and courage. Last year, he became a Hanlin and finally became the Minister of Rites.
At this moment, the new minister who was admired by the officials of the Ministry of Rites had helplessness in his eyes.
"My dear Sheng... In this court, there is only one person who can be trusted, you." The Queen Mother's sorrowful voice came from behind the curtain.
Sheng Boyuan sighed softly and remained silent for a long time.
The main strength of the royal family is the military. In the court, when the left prime minister had not fallen, the royal family had the full support of Jiang Hechuan and Cao De'an, so even if they were at a disadvantage, they were able to stabilize the situation.
But now, Cao De'an actually defected to Fang Yun, and Jiang Hechuan was hesitant, which meant that the power of the royalists was reduced to 70% to 80%.
Among the first and second rank officials in the court, most were pro-royal, but only Sheng Boyuan, who was in charge of the Ministry of Rites, was a true royal descendant.
As for other ministers or ministers, they either had close relationships with Cao De'an and Jiang Hechuan, or had aristocratic family backgrounds and their origins were not as pure as Sheng Boyuan's.
People like the Minister of Punishment and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court both have connections with the Holy Court. As legalists, they usually try every means to weaken the imperial power, so it is impossible for them to stand firmly on the side of the royal family at a time like this.
Even when the Left Prime Minister was extremely powerful, the appointment of the Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court required the approval of the Criminal Court.
As for the military personnel, they would charge into battle without hesitation. But now that they are involved in party struggles and court disputes, they have no place to use their skills. What's more, with the Battle of Ning'an and the Battle of Liangjie Mountain, Fang Yun has completely conquered the military generals, and the royal family's trust in the military is far less than before.
"Empress Dowager, I am an old minister whose literary talent is not enough to govern the country, nor whose military talent is not enough to expand the borders. But to repay the late emperor's kindness, I will not hesitate to sacrifice my life! I, the minister, will never coexist with the traitor Fang!" Sheng Boyuan's eyes were wide open with anger, and he completely drew a line between himself and Fang Yun.
The Queen Mother nodded slightly, showing a look of relief, and said: "The late emperor often praised you as a loyal minister and a pillar of the human race. Unfortunately, you are too upright, not as good as Liu Shan in wielding power, and not as smooth as Cao De'an, so you were not appointed as prime minister. I am also confused now. I wonder if it is appropriate for me to ask Jiang Hechuan to be the left prime minister?"
Sheng Boyuan said: "This plan is a stroke of genius, and I admire it very much. As long as Mr. Hechuan is willing to serve as the left prime minister, Fang Yun's path to monopolizing power will be cut off. If Fang Yun really wants to enter the court again, or compete with Cao De'an, or serve as the new minister of literature, it will be difficult for him to stir up trouble."
The Queen Mother sighed and said, "I think so too. However, one day has passed and the Minister of Literature has not replied to me yet. I'm afraid Mr. Hechuan is still hesitating. What do you think of Mr. Jianmei?"
Sheng Boyuan hurriedly said, "Absolutely not! Mr. Hechuan is kind and generous. Even if he knew he was going to block Fang Yun, he had no choice but to take up the post in the face of the imperial edict. But Li Wenying is different. He is a resolute and strong-willed person. If he thinks he has become a shield, he will definitely resign on the spot."
"Then, should Cao De'an be appointed as the left prime minister?"
Sheng Boyuan shook his head and said, "Cao De'an is a smooth and experienced person. As a great scholar, he is not afraid of the royal family, but he is afraid of Fang Yun's deep background in the Holy Academy. He would rather die than fight with Fang Yun. If he had the courage to fight Fang Yun, why would he let Liushan become so powerful? If you let him serve as the left prime minister, he will definitely recommend Fang Yun. At that time, stealing... will not be good."
Sheng Boyuan only said half of the word "steal" and quickly changed his words, almost saying that he would lose more than he gained.
The Queen Mother seemed to ignore it and asked, "In your opinion, who is capable of this important task?"
Sheng Boyuan lowered his head and thought for a long time, then shook his head and said, "Unless the Saint Families are willing to intervene in this matter to fight against Fang Yun, otherwise, no one in the court will do so."
"That Liushan..."
"No!" Sheng Boyuan interrupted the Queen Mother loudly, and then apologized, "Please forgive me for my momentary urgency."
"You can say whatever you want." The Queen Mother's voice was extremely unnatural.
Sheng Boyuan said: "Nowadays, all the officials in the court are eating the Liu Party and getting rich. If Liu Shan is reinstated, you will be the enemy of all the officials and there will be no room for maneuver."
The Queen Mother laughed at herself and said, "I am desperate and will do anything to cure my illness. Yes, I would rather let Fang Yun take the position of Left Prime Minister than let Liu Shan be reinstated. So... if I insist on abolishing the position of Left Prime Minister, what will happen?"
Although Sheng Boyuan is an upright person, he is not stupid. He would not believe that the Queen Mother would really appoint Liu Shan. This should be just her testing herself.
Sheng Boyuan sighed and said, "If you don't want to see the emperor's side cleared and the Qing Kingdom torn apart, you must not abolish the position of the left prime minister."
"Purge the imperial court? Don't the aristocratic families of Jing State exist?" The Queen Mother's voice suddenly rose.
Sheng Boyuan said helplessly: "It would be better if the noble families did not interfere. If they did, Fang Yun would definitely become the left prime minister."
The Queen Mother fell silent.
Sheng Boyuan's meaning was very clear. In the eyes of the noble families, how could a declining royal family compare to Fang Yun? Fang Yun could just take out some magical objects and get all the noble families to help him. By then, the royal family would not only lose face, but would also be forced into a desperate situation.
"What do the civil and military officials in the court say?"
Sheng Boyuan thought for a few breaths and said, "Those petty officials are fence-sitters. Most of them think that the position of Left Prime Minister originally belonged to Fang Yun. Some even say that he risked his life to be buried in the Holy Valley for the sake of the human race, and returned with injuries. If the human race does not even give him the position of Left Prime Minister, it will surely disappoint the meritorious officials."
"Then the people... Never mind, I won't ask."
The Queen Mother remained silent for a long time.
Sheng Boyuan knew the ultimate purpose of the Queen Mother calling him here, so he said: "I will go to the Prime Minister Wen's residence and use all means to persuade him to take over the position of Left Prime Minister. If he does not obey, I will bang my head against the pillar..."
"Empress Dowager, something bad has happened..." A hurried voice came from outside, interrupting Sheng Boyuan's words.
Sheng Boyuan looked outside and saw a eunuch from the palace rushing in, looking panicked, but then he came to his senses and said hurriedly, "I am rude, please punish me, Her Majesty the Queen Mother."
The Queen Mother snorted coldly and said, "No problem, what's the matter?"
The eunuch said, "The Holy Court's special envoy has gone to Jiang's residence and said that he wants Jiang Hechuan to take over the position of the Rites Hall Elder."
Snapped!
The Queen Mother slammed the table beside her, causing the teacup to shake and the tea to splash everywhere. The eunuch fell to his knees in fear.
"What a great Fang Xusheng..." the Queen Mother squeezed out a word from between her teeth.
Sheng Boyuan stood there in a daze. He didn't expect Fang Yun to use the strategy of cutting off the source of the problem. Moreover, it must have been planned for a long time. Otherwise, even if Xu Sheng had omnipotent powers, it would be impossible for him to decide the fate of an elder in just one or two days.