"Is it only for these few days? What about the rest of the time? Won't A Yu miss me? "Shang Junlin was still not satisfied.
"Then what does Your Majesty want to think?"
"I think of A Yu every moment of every day." Shang Junlin hinted.
"Oh, I know." Shen Yu dragged her tone. "Your Majesty wants me to think of you all the time?"
"Yes." Shang Junlin nodded reservedly.
Shen Yu lifted her head from Shang Junlin's arms and smiled. "Your Majesty, do you know what you look like now?"
Shang Junlin was in a good mood after achieving his goal. He gently stroked Shen Yu's waist. "What I look like is not important. A Yu, don't forget what you promised me."
What promise? Shen Yu was about to ask when she suddenly remembered that Shang Junlin was talking about what had happened just now. She bumped into the man's arms again and said in a muffled voice, "I know. I will think of Your Majesty more every day."
Shang Junlin put one hand on Shen Yu's back and stroked her long hair. He felt a sense of satisfaction.
They stood under the waning lights, far away from the hustle and bustle, forming a world of their own. The harmonious atmosphere between the two did not allow anyone to interrupt.
After quietly hugging each other for a while, Shang Junlin let go of Shen Yu and the two continued to walk along the small path.
"After today's incident, the aristocratic families should be more relaxed about Fang Jiayi." After all, Shang Junlin had her weakness. Even if they opposed, they would not be as confident as before.
"I have given them some time to relax. It depends on what they choose." Shang Junlin's tone was emotionless when he mentioned the aristocratic families.
"I saw the girl from the Fang family just now. She was at ease in the crowd of students and was not restrained at all. The other people she interacted with were not as calm as her." Not wanting to spoil Shang Junlin's mood, Shen Yu casually changed the topic.
Fang Jiayi's attire today was more neutral. She didn't wear a woman's extravagant and complicated dress, nor did she wear too many red hairpins in her hair. This allowed people to know that she was a woman at a glance, and she didn't look out of place with the overall atmosphere of the Qionglin Banquet.
"We have also noticed that she has a good relationship with the top scholar and the third flower." While sitting upright, Shang Junlin had been paying attention to the movements of the people below.
Compared to the others, Fang Jiayi was indeed more willing to talk to Jiang Huaiqing and He Chengyu. Unlike the others, when the two of them conversed with her, they didn't act strangely because of her identity as a woman. Even if the others tried their best to restrain themselves, there would still be a trace of something wrong in their words and actions.
The atmosphere of the banquet was lively. The students discussed their knowledge with each other, and the bolder ones would directly ask the officials questions.
Some of the aristocratic officials were simply unable to sit still. The Emperor could leave the banquet as he pleased, but they couldn't. Even if they were anxious to solve Yi Jianming's matter, they could only sit there and force a smile. They couldn't show the slightest hint of abnormality.
Lord Yi knocked on the table. "Have you sent someone to deliver the news to the two officials?"
"Don't worry, Lord Yi. I have already sent someone."
Because their grades were close, Fang Jiayi, He Chengyu, and Jiang Huaiqing's seats were also close. Fang Jiayi was attentive and noticed that there weren't many aristocratic officials present.
She asked in a low voice, "Did something happen just now? A few officials had strange expressions. Young Master Yi also didn't attend. I remember bumping into him when I just arrived. "
The matter was temporarily suppressed, so Jiang Huaiqing couldn't say it out loud. He said in a low voice, "He did something and happened to run into His Majesty."
After a few sentences, the two sides naturally changed the topic.
The other two cabinet ministers received the news from the Qionglin Banquet and went to their usual meeting place to discuss in detail that night.
The two cabinet ministers were from the aristocratic Feng family and Duan family respectively. They had a lot of authority among the aristocratic families in the capital.
After taking their seats, the two of them dismissed the servants.
Lord Feng asked, "What does His Majesty mean by this?"
Lord Duan said, "It's obvious that His Majesty is forcing us to make concessions. Otherwise, based on His Majesty's usual temperament, he would've dealt with them on the spot without giving us any time to react."
Lord Feng said, "That's true. His Majesty is still the same as before. He won't listen to advice."
Lord Duan said, "If he could listen, then he wouldn't be him. Have you forgotten what happened when he just ascended the throne? The previous Emperor wanted him to leave Prince Yue in the capital to recuperate. He ignored the objections of the officials and directly sent him away. How many officials did he deal with back then? "
Lord Feng said, "Prince Yue is also an incompetent person. Otherwise, why would we be in such a difficult position?"
Lord Duan said, "If it were up to me, he had wanted to kill Prince Yue for a long time. This time, when Prince Yue was imprisoned, he took advantage of the fact that no one could refute and directly pinned the mastermind behind the fraud on Prince Yue. It's extremely difficult for Prince Yue to turn the tables."
Lord Feng said, "They contacted us and said that they want our help. Should we do it?"
Lord Duan said, "There's no hurry. We'll have to wait until the end to see the results."
Lord Feng said, "Then what about the imperial examinations this time? Are we really going to do as he wishes? "
Lord Duan said, "What else can we do? He's determined to promote people from humble backgrounds to go against us. Now, he's even allowed women to enter the imperial court as officials. Sooner or later, he'll destroy his own great wall. "
The next morning, during the discussion about women entering the imperial court as officials, there were fewer objections. Other than Fang Jiayi's position, everyone else's positions were more or less decided.
As the weather became warmer and warmer, Shen Yu spent more time outside the house. Imperial Physician Gu also said that it was appropriate for him to walk outside more.
Shang Junlin was very concerned about Shen Yu's matters. After hearing Imperial Physician Gu say that it was good for Shen Yu to walk outside more often, he would take Shen Yu outside whenever he had time.
Shang Junlin originally wanted to let Shen Yu practice martial arts to keep fit, but Shen Yu flatly refused. After being reborn, he only wanted to be as comfortable as possible.
In the evening, after finishing dinner, Shang Junlin put down his work and held Shen Yu's hand to take a walk in the small garden outside Yuzhang Palace.
"Feng Family and Duan Family?" Shen Yu's footsteps paused. He had an impression of these two families because in his previous life, these two families had secretly sought refuge with the King of Yue. Before the King of Yue ascended the throne, they had done a lot of things for him.
"The Feng Family and the Duan Family have actually been entrenched in Da Huan since the founding of Da Huan Empire. However, their real heyday was during the late period of the previous Emperor's reign. At that time, the previous Emperor favored treacherous officials and allowed the power to fall into the hands of the aristocratic families who had been eyeing them covetously. The Feng Family and the Duan Family benefited the most."
Seeing that Shen Yu was interested in the Feng Family and the Duan Family, Shang Junlin explained more.
"When I first ascended the throne, I dealt with a lot of people. The Feng Family and the Duan Family were very sensible, so I couldn't do anything to them."
At that time, the imperial court was too chaotic. First, the previous Emperor had caused a lot of trouble. Capable officials were either forced to resign or were framed and executed. Those who were left behind were mostly in cahoots with the treacherous officials. Shang Junlin's foundation in the imperial court was not stable. He had seized the throne with military power and there were very few people who could be used. After massacring those treacherous officials who had caused chaos in the imperial court, there was a large gap in the number of officials who could be used.
Shang Junlin had no choice but to temporarily use the officials from the aristocratic families who were relatively obedient. However, the consequences of doing so were endless. The aristocratic families and the imperial power would fight. If the aristocratic families were the most powerful, the imperial power would definitely be threatened.
After ascending the throne, Shang Junlin attached great importance to the imperial examination and used the officials from humble families. This was also to balance the power of the imperial court. Only when the various powers kept each other in check could long-term stability be maintained.
"Right now, the Prime Minister is the only person in the cabinet who is not a member of the aristocratic families. The aristocratic families occupy two positions in the cabinet. Who does Your Majesty intend to use to replace one of them?" Shang Junlin's intention was to ruthlessly suppress the aristocratic families.
"Fang Jun."
"The Prime Minister and Official Fang are both in the cabinet. If both of them are in the cabinet, it will be much more convenient for Your Majesty to do whatever you want."
Shen Yu lowered his eyes and pondered. With the book he had read in his previous life and the information he had obtained from Shen Qingran, as well as the help of Shen Yue in this life, he would definitely be able to bring out many new things that would be beneficial to the development of Da Huan. If the aristocratic families were to obstruct him, these things might become a sharp weapon for the aristocratic families to seize power.
In his previous life, Shen Qingran had brought out many things that had benefited the aristocratic families. The aristocratic families had become stronger day by day and had made a mess of Da Huan. Shen Yu did not want to make a wedding dress for the aristocratic families.
"A Yu's proposal regarding the reform of the business system has not been announced to everyone yet. Before the time is right, we still need to wait."
"There's no need to rush. Every major change cannot be completed overnight. Moreover, the cement issue has only just begun. It will be more foolproof if there are no other problems."
"A Yu still understands me." Shang Junlin sighed.
"Your Majesty, when will Jiang Huaiqing's appointment be announced?" Shen Yu wanted to see what kind of path Jiang Huaiqing would take in this life without those accidents.
"Soon. If there are no accidents, these two people will be able to enter Hanlin Academy."
Although the official position at Hanlin Academy would not be too high, what was more important was the significance of this starting point. Entering Hanlin Academy was equivalent to taking half a step into the cabinet.
Jiang Huaiqing had a good attitude. Even though he had not been officially appointed because of Fang Jiayi's matter, he was still happy every day.
He Chengyu had sent a letter to his family saying that he was the top scorer in the imperial examination and would not be able to return to Jiang Nan for a while. Even if he were to be transferred out in the future, he would not be sent to Jiang Nan as an official.
After dealing with his own matters, He Chengyu came out of his room. "Huaiqing, didn't you say that you did not have enough paper and pen last time? A new shop opened in Beijing. Do you want to take a look?"
Jiang Huaiqing was sorting out his and He Chengyu's books. The spring sun was good, so he took them out to dry in the sun.
The place to dry the books almost occupied the entire small courtyard. These books were brought from home, and some were bought after coming to Beijing. Jiang Huaiqing heard the sound and turned around. "Yes."
He did not have enough paper and pen. These days, He Chengyu had given him some. Jiang Huaiqing was embarrassed to keep taking advantage of He Chengyu.
Under the sun, the young man's jade-like body was even more dazzling. He Chengyu was dazzled. He pursed his lips and walked over.
Shen Yu fell into a dream of his previous life. He had not dreamed of his previous life for a long time. He did not know if it was because he had been thinking about his previous life recently that he had such a dream.
In the dream, it was a rainy day. He was lying on the bed. The quilt seemed to weigh a thousand pounds, making him unable to breathe.
"Thump, thump, thump." The sound of footsteps was getting closer and closer. Shen Yu struggled to open his eyes. He saw Prince Yue, who had changed into an imperial robe, standing by the bed and staring at him with dark eyes.
"Shen Yu, you see, no matter how unwilling you are, we will still ascend the throne. You cannot change our destiny."
No, that's not right!
Shen Yu struggled to get up, but he could not move. He was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat.
"A Yu, wake up …"
A familiar voice came through the heavy rain. Shen Yu struggled to open his eyes. He was startled by the face that suddenly enlarged in front of him.
Seeing the fear in his eyes, Shang Junlin moved back a little. He reached out and stroked his sweat-soaked hair. "A Yu, why are you so afraid of us?"
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