novelSusiti Chapter 108: A Deal
Chapter 108: A Deal
It should be said that Yang Qinyi's question was very insightful.
It should be noted that the reform of the Shence Army system was proposed by Li Deyu.
Throughout the entire process, he was the one who advocated for it, and even the one who presided over it.
Now, when it comes to such a major matter as investigating military personnel records, it is Wang Ya and Linghu Chu, members of the Niu Party, who come to them.
It has to be said that this is quite unexpected.
When faced with this question, Linghu Chu still answered: "Lord Li was the first to propose the reform of the Shence Army, so this matter naturally needs to be discussed with him. However, reform is reform, and clearing up military records is clearing up military records; there are still some differences."
"After speaking with the two governors, Yan Yingzhao will be summoned to the capital. The Minister of Works and I will then discuss the matter in detail with Minister Li."
That's clear enough.
The so-called reform is reform, and the investigation of military records is investigation of military records. The implication is that this matter cannot be hidden from Li Deyu, but the Niu faction will not allow him to interfere casually.
After a moment's thought, Liu Hongyi quickly revealed a knowing smile on his face.
It seems that after the series of events that have occurred, the Niu Party is now getting a little anxious.
Although the matter of the Waiting-for-Leaks Courtyard was still not completely clear, Liu Hongyi had been in the palace for many years and knew a lot, so he could roughly guess some of the things.
However, unlike Li Deyu and others' guesses, he did not think that Du Cong could accomplish this task on his own.
At least, judging from the attitude of Niu Sengru and others, even if they were dragged in by Du Cong, they might still have had the intention of going with the flow.
After all, the Shence Reform was the first major policy implemented by Li Deyu after returning to the capital. Moreover, in order to prevent the Niu Party from interfering, Li Deyu personally took charge of everything, from investigating private loans to coordinating with the Shence Governor's Office, and only used people from the Li Party.
The Niu-Li factional strife has a long history, and it is absolutely impossible for them to sit idly by and watch Li Deyu take such a great credit.
Therefore, it's inevitable that they'll sabotage you behind the scenes.
The incident outside the waiting courtyard was likely a trial balloon for the Niu faction.
If those censors are not punished in the end, or are only given a minor punishment due to the pressure from the court, then it shows that the pressure was effective, and the Niu faction will inevitably take more substantial and further actions.
Unfortunately, both Li Deyu and the Sage were resolute enough in their attitude towards such provocations and challenges.
Therefore, the Niu faction withdrew in time at the court. After all, they still had Du Cong to use as a shield, so they had a way out.
Now that Du Cong is claiming illness and staying at home, it's clear that the original strategy is no longer viable.
In light of this, the Bull Party has now approached them, intending to adopt a new strategy...
"A review of military personnel records is certainly a good thing, but we're at a crucial time during the Shence Army's restructuring. Things have to be done one step at a time, don't they?"
Having figured out the other party's intentions, Liu Hongyi felt much more at ease and smiled as he spoke.
He neither completely refused nor agreed, but waited for the other party's next reaction.
Seeing this, Linghu Chu immediately turned his gaze to Wang Ya, who was sitting at the head of the table. The latter pondered for a moment before speaking.
"It is precisely because this is the time of Shence's reform that it is most appropriate to investigate the military register at the same time. The two commanders are in charge of Shence and should know that in recent years, the military expenditure of Shence Army has increased by a lot. After investigating private loans in the army, the need for the court's supply will increase further."
"The imperial court has suffered considerable losses over the years. If the military register is not thoroughly investigated, it may be difficult to support the enormous expenses of the Shence Army..."
These are real reasons, and they are very convincing when presented.
But Liu Hongyi shook his head and said, "That's true, but that's your business. When the court is in deficit, the Minister of Works should be investigating the finances and salt and iron reserves, and thinking about how to make up for the deficit. You can't just think about cutting the expenses of the Shence Army when something happens, can you?"
After a period of constant maneuvering with Li Deyu and others, Liu Hongyi and Yang Qinyi, the two eunuchs, have basically completed the transformation into outsiders, and they can use such clichés almost effortlessly.
This made Wang Ya frown, but Linghu Chu was clearly prepared for their attitude.
In the imperial court, if you want someone to do something, you can't just talk about grand principles; more often than not, you need an exchange of benefits.
And this is something the Niu Party excels at!
So, he naturally took over the conversation and said, "Gentlemen, I have heard that after the Shence Army reforms this time, the original Shence Army organization will also be reorganized, and the promotions, rewards, demotions and dismissals of many military officers and civilian officials will be re-evaluated."
"Lord Li is inclined to promote a new batch of military officers, but Sikong and I feel that the Shence Army has accumulated many problems over the years. Although some officers and civil officials have made mistakes, most of them were simply following old rules, and it's not entirely true. Perhaps we can give them another chance. What do you two think?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Hongyi and Yang Qinyi's expressions shifted, and a thoughtful look appeared in their eyes.
It must be said that Linghu Chu is a smart man; his words accurately pinpointed their current predicament.
The reform of the Shence Army was a major direction, and its core function was simply to transfer the military positions of the Shence Army to the outer court, thereby strengthening the court's control over the Shence Army and preventing it from being completely controlled by the lieutenant as before.
Therefore, at the institutional level, after the establishment of the Shence Military Governor's Office, the original system of military officers and envoys underwent a complete restructuring. The most obvious change was that some envoy positions that could only be held by eunuchs were now open to both eunuchs and military officers.
Compared to eunuchs who focused on accumulating wealth and had little experience in managing troops, this change was undoubtedly positive for the overall discipline and strength of the Shence Army.
For the same reason, it is foreseeable that in a few years, the power of eunuchs will gradually withdraw from the Shence Army, and eventually, even positions such as the Shence Commander may no longer be held by eunuchs.
This is the price Liu Hongyi and Yang Qinyi paid for their families to completely escape the fate of being eunuch families and transform into a truly aristocratic family with a bloodline.
But this does not mean that there were no conflicts between them and Li Deyu.
In political struggles, it's always a matter of one taking a step back while the other takes a step forward.
In fact, during the reform process, Li Deyu clearly wanted to achieve his goal in one fell swoop.
In other words, he did not only want to complete the institutional reform, but hoped that the new system could eliminate the old eunuch system as quickly as possible.
This is also why the Jingzhao Prefecture has been relentlessly pursuing private lending cases during this period.
Eunuchs rarely directly commanded troops; instead, they mostly held logistical positions. Therefore, they were a major target group in cases of private lending.
These days, the differences and power struggles between Liu Hongyi and Li Deyu have mainly focused on this point.
It was obvious that Linghu Chu had grasped their intentions, which was why he came to them.
In other words, if they support the investigation of military records, Linghu Chu will voice his support for them in court and try to handle private loan cases as leniently as possible in order to preserve Liu Hongyi and others' existing influence over the Shence Army.
This is a deal.
As for the outcome of the negotiations...
"Since you, Minister of Works and Minister of the Palace, are willing, I will present my report together with you when Yan Ying summons me for an audience."
Liu Hongyi made a decision quickly.
Then, all three of them turned their gazes toward Yang Qinyi.
Although the latter had some connection with Li Deyu, he was naturally clear-headed about such core interests. After a moment's thought, he nodded and said.
"That's how it should be..."