Being Vézé's secretary was not an easy job. Vézé was busy with work. Even though the party, government, and military had their own team, Vézé still had absolute power to direct the state affairs. Vézé was assigned six secretaries, and the most special one among them was Zuo Zongtang. The other five secretaries were decided by the Ministry of Human Resources. Only Zuo Zongtang was chosen by Vézé using his privileges in human resources.
Zuo Zongtang had read the constitution that Vézé took the lead in drafting. The first article of the constitution stipulated that the Min dynasty was a socialist state led by the Restoration Party and based on the alliance of workers and peasants. Similarly, the Central Committee of the Restoration Party, which acted as the representative of the National People's Congress, passed a resolution. The Min dynasty transferred a series of powers to Emperor Vézé. As long as Vézé was willing, he could completely ignore the decisions of the party, government, military, and judiciary, and make his own decisions.
When there was a conflict between two decisions, Vézé only needed to sign an "Emperor's Decree". Any decisions made by any department must be based on Vézé's personal decision. However, Vézé had always been based on organizational principles. Only when he appointed Zuo Zongtang as his secretary did Vézé use his decision-making power in the party. The longer he worked with Vézé, the more Zuo Zongtang felt that it was rare for Vézé to make such a decision.
During this period, Vézé spent most of his time writing. Sometimes, Vézé could sit there and write for a day and a night. On the night of October 2nd, Zuo Zongtang was on duty. When he arrived outside Vézé's study, he lightened his steps. This was a habit of everyone. It was inappropriate to affect Vézé's work from any point of view.
"Old Zuo, come in. I want to show you something. "Vézé's happy voice came from the study. Everyone knew that Vézé was highly skilled in martial arts. Although the secretaries had never seen Vézé in battle, everyone had heard stories of Vézé leading troops to break through enemy lines from senior officials. Everyone had also seen Vézé's flawless muscles when he trained. When he practiced with the spear, even those who had never practiced martial arts could see that it was an excellent spear technique.
Every time he saw this, Zuo Zongtang couldn't help but touch his well-integrated and bulging "abdominal muscles" from his chest to his abdomen. It was infuriating to compare oneself with others. Vézé, who was skilled in martial arts, had excellent hearing. Even if everyone lightened their steps, Vézé could still distinguish who was outside from the subtle sounds.
Walking into the study, Zuo Zongtang took a stack of papers from Vézé. The title of the paper was written at the beginning, "The Basic Ideas of the Restoration Party".
Reading further, the first article was about the understanding of society. "Productivity development is the fundamental driving force to promote social progress."
Based on the analysis of the stages of social development proposed by Vézé, Vézé made a summary of the role of productivity in the process of social development. In the past, the Shang Dynasty sent their queen, Fuhao, to the west and killed thousands of captives. The people of Zhou were so scared that their children did not dare to cry at night when Fuhao's name was mentioned. During the era of King Zhou, when the Zhou Dynasty attacked the Shang Dynasty, they accused King Zhou of "taking in escaped slaves". When the main force of the Shang Dynasty went to Xuzhou, the Shang Dynasty was able to organize slaves to form an army to fight against the allied forces of the vassals. This was undoubtedly a proof of the changes in social productivity.
The Shang Dynasty's productivity development did not evolve into a stronger social system. Of course, it could also be that King Zhou tried to change the social system, which led to the Shang Dynasty's betrayal to the Zhou Dynasty.
The subsequent China exhibition could undoubtedly be explained as a productivity exhibition. As Zuo Zongtang read on, he became engrossed in it. Jin Liang compared the books he had read with what Vézé had written. He did not agree with some parts, but most of them made Zuo Zongtang feel enlightened.
When he put down the paper while rubbing his sore eyes, he found that it was already dawn. Vézé was still bending over his desk and writing rapidly. The large study table was already filled with manuscripts.
Hearing Zuo Zongtang's movement, Vézé stopped writing. He leaned against the chair and rubbed his eyes with his eyes closed. At the same time, he asked, "How do you feel after reading it?"
"Your Majesty, I kind of understand what Premier Bi said during the day. He praised Your Majesty for developing rubber, spices, and palm oil. Now that I think about it, these are actually great moves to promote productivity. Your Majesty led the development of these things, and actually made the rotten land better. " Zuo Zongtang replied. After that, he paused for a moment and struggled with his thoughts for a while. Finally, Zuo Zongtang said shamefully, "Your Majesty, I thought that the comrades in the Politburo were just flattering me. Now that I think about it, it was my own ignorance. It's funny that I dared to look down on these comrades in the past. It's because my knowledge is so much less than theirs. "
Vézé closed his eyes and smiled. "They have been following me for more than ten years, and they have been learning this every day. It's not surprising that they can understand the main points. On the other hand, Old Zuo, it's not easy for you to understand these things on your own. "
"That's also because of Your Majesty's teachings. If Your Majesty didn't care about me, I wouldn't have been able to see the huge gap between me and the comrades in the Politburo," Zuo Zongtang answered shamefully. After saying this, Zuo Zongtang became excited. He could not help but ask, "But I have a question. Your Majesty, have you never worried that someone would try to seize the throne from you?"
"There are many people who want to seize the throne. It's their business to do what they want. I have my own things to do, and I don't have the energy to seize other people's things and impose them on myself," Vézé replied calmly with his eyes still closed.
If it were not for the fact that he had a good understanding of Vézé, Zuo Zongtang would not have dared to believe that this was an emperor's answer to a usurping dynasty. Vézé was not at all shaken by someone trying to seize the throne. His magnanimity left Zuo Zongtang speechless. Was it that Vézé did not care about the throne at all? Or was Vézé so magnanimous that he could even accept those who plotted against him?
Zuo Zongtang was getting more and more interested in this emperor's inner world. It was very dangerous to probe the true thoughts of a ruler. That tiny piece was basically every ruler's reverse scale, and anyone who tried to touch it would only end up dead. Because of this, Zuo Zongtang could not help but be extremely curious when he saw that he had the chance to pry. His curiosity even overcame his fear of death.
"Your Majesty, aren't you afraid of losing the throne?" Zuo Zongtang asked carefully.
Just as Zuo Zongtang thought, Vézé first laughed mockingly, then slowly said, "Of course I won't be happy when I think about someone trying to seize the throne from me. I will also feel annoyed and uneasy. I will not give up the power in my hands, not because I am afraid, but because even if I can go against everyone in the world and preserve my power until the last breath of my life, I will still lose my power because of death. Many people think that death is a matter of the Heavens, and they can't decide it themselves. But Old Zuo, do you think I am someone who will obediently submit to the Heavens? "
Zuo Zongtang only smiled and did not respond. Even though emperors called themselves the "Heavenly Sons", these children of the Heavens would not easily submit to the so-called Heavens. Alchemy, cultivation, Buddhism, these actions proved that not only did the emperors not want to submit to the Heavens, they even wanted to seize the Heavens' power for themselves. In this regard, Zuo Zongtang did not think that Vézé was any different from the other Heavenly Sons.
"Old Zuo, you must be able to tell that I didn't rely on kindness to get to where I am today. I didn't even win every battle. I've done a lot of human trafficking, murder with a borrowed knife, conspiracies and intrigues, and I've even done quite a few immoral things. I don't want to do these things, not because I don't have the ability to do them, but because I really don't like doing them. "Vézé closed his eyes and said calmly.
Zuo Zongtang remained silent. Vézé was not a shameless person without a sense of justice. He saw with his own eyes that Vézé did it without hesitation, and he also saw with his own eyes that Vézé struggled mentally when he gave those orders.
Vézé continued, "I can sit in this position today because I represent the interests of many people. They may not like me, and they may not be loyal to me. They only know that if they leave the interest group that I represent, they will have nothing. Even if it's for their own sake, they will walk forward with me. "
Zuo Zongtang remained silent. Not long ago, when Vézé's father-in-law, Qi Yuchang, mentioned that Vézé was unwilling to appoint a Crown Prince, he would gnash his teeth in anger. However, this did not mean that Qi Yuchang would stand by and watch when someone tried to overthrow Vézé. Only when Vézé was the Emperor and Vézé's legal system still existed, could Qi Yuchang's grandson have the chance to inherit Vézé's throne. Vézé undoubtedly represented Qi Yuchang's interests. Even if Qi Yuchang's grandson did not ascend the throne, as long as the new Emperor was still around, the Qi Yuchang Clan would be able to step through the door of power that was previously closed to them.
"Of course, I'm not the only one who can do this. All the clever Emperors in history have done this," Vézé said.
Zuo Zongtang agreed with Vézé's words. This was indeed the foundation of imperial power. However, Zuo Zongtang could clearly sense the disdain in Vézé's tone. In that case, Vézé was probably going to talk about the most important part, which was the part where Vézé believed he could surpass the previous Emperors.
"In order to maintain their rule, the Emperors have put in a lot of effort, but they have all failed. Whether it was a few decades or a few hundred years, none of them were able to make their achievements last for a thousand years, "Vézé said mockingly.
"Then what does Your Majesty plan to do?" Zuo Zongtang asked.
"Those Emperors had the ability to establish a dynasty, but they did not continue to push the society forward. Therefore, they stopped at the dynasty they established. Not only did they blindly revolve around the result, but they also let their descendants revolve around the dynasties that were destined to fall. I think I'm better than those Emperors because not only do I represent the interests of many people, but I am also at the forefront of society's development. Moreover, I can point out the direction of the future development of society. " Vézé opened his eyes. He did not look at Zuo Zongtang. Instead, he looked at the documents on the table with a serious expression. His gaze was so heavy, as if he was bearing the weight of thousands of things. However, his expression was so firm, without the slightest fear or uneasiness that would naturally arise when facing great pressure.
"Old Zuo, I'm not like those Emperors who conferred titles to their subordinates. I don't care that everyone is trying to fight for achievements. Many people are definitely dissatisfied with me. I think everyone has a good eye. As long as I am still in power, as long as I do what I want, the new China will not return to the old era. Many of the things they have in mind will never come true. "Vézé patted the documents after he finished speaking.
"Then isn't Your Majesty afraid that you won't represent the interests of many people?" Zuo Zongtang could not help but ask.
Even in the face of such a sharp question, Vézé's answer was still calm. "I once said that the system of the Manchu Qing forces people to lie. In fact, this is not objective enough for the Manchu Qing, because when it comes to social development, most dynasties are lying with their eyes wide open. I wrote these things to let my comrades see the context of the development of the times, to let my comrades see clearly that if a country does not want to perish, it must let society develop. At that time, there will definitely be some people who want to stop the progress of the times, so that the benefits they have already obtained will last for thousands of years to come. However, there will definitely be more people who hope to obtain more benefits from the development of society. Therefore, they will follow me voluntarily or be forced to. As long as I have the majority, I won't have to worry about anyone trying to overthrow me and take away my power. "
Zuo Zongtang still did not understand the specific content of the progress of the times that Vézé was talking about, but he could feel the power in Vézé's heart. Therefore, Zuo Zongtang could not help but ask, "If the progress has reached a point where it can no longer be improved, then what should we do?"
"Can no longer be improved?" Vézé finally smiled. "If it really reaches that point, it is not bad. At most, I will let the imperial power continue to exist. House Wei's rule will last for thousands of years, so what do I have to fear? "
Hearing Vézé say this, Zuo Zongtang felt speechless. This was not self-mockery, nor was it helplessness. This was just Vézé's preparation for that kind of situation. At least, that was how Zuo Zongtang felt.
"The progress of this era has only just begun. Old Zuo, please bear this in mind. Perhaps you already feel that the changes are magnificent, but this is only the prologue. It is still far from the end! "Vézé said firmly.
"Does this mean that I still have a chance to make a name for myself?" Zuo Zongtang could not help but express his thoughts with a joke that was not a joke at all.
Vézé picked up a brush and began to write beautifully on the paper. When he was done, he handed the paper to Zuo Zongtang, then stood up and left.
Zuo Zongtang read carefully, his eyes growing sharper and sharper. It was a poem. The name of the poem was "Spring in the Garden of Qin". The name was "Snow".
The scenery of the Northern Kingdom, a thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of drifting snow. Looking inside and outside the Great Wall, there is only a vast expanse. Up and down the great river, there is no longer a torrent. The mountains dance like silver snakes, the plains ride like wax elephants, wanting to compete with the heavens. On a sunny day, dressed in white and dressed in red, it is exceptionally enchanting.
So many beautiful rivers and mountains, attracting countless heroes to bow down to it. Pity that Qin Huang and Han Wu were slightly lacking in literary talent; Tang Sect's Song Zu was slightly lacking in charm. The proud son of heaven of a generation, Genghis Khan, only knew how to draw a bow and shoot an eagle. Everything is in the past. Counting the outstanding figures depends on the present.
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