Chapter 593 Current Situation (Part 1)
Changsun Heng'an was shocked.
Changsun Heng'an naturally knew that the Changsun family was about to cooperate with Xiao, Chen, Xie, Zhang and other Jiangnan nobles in the iron factory. He was full of praise for this cooperation. This was the benefit that Changsun Wuji seized the opportunity to force the Jiangnan nobles to reluctantly give up. You must know that since the Jin Dynasty moved south, these Jiangnan nobles have been extremely cliquey and xenophobic.
If we only rely on the verbal agreement between Changsun Wuji and Xiao Yu, even if the Changsun family's iron factory business can enter Jiangnan, there is no guarantee that it will not be squeezed out by the Jiangnan nobles. Xiao Yu was coerced by Changsun Wuji into agreeing to this condition, but he may not fulfill his promise sincerely. Jiangnan is the territory of those noble clans, and it is extremely easy to do something secretly.
Therefore, if the Changsun family can successfully enter Jiangnan, they need some additional means, such as taking advantage of the failure of impeachment of Fang Jun to suppress Jiangnan officials...
But now Changsun Wuji said "all things stop", which means that all the small tricks under the table have been abandoned, and cooperation with the Jiangnan nobles must be upright.
In this case, wouldn't this business become even more difficult?
If you want the Jiangnan nobles to give up the interests that originally belong to them, it would be like cutting their flesh!
Changsun Heng'an was puzzled and asked: "Why is this?"
He didn't believe that the fourth brother, as the head of the eldest son's family, didn't understand how xenophobic the Jiangnan nobles were. If he couldn't convince those Jiangnan nobles, this business would be impossible to start.
"Brother, there is no need to ask more, I know it well." Changsun Wuji thought more.
Over the years, the Changsun family has made a lot of profits by relying on iron factories all over the north, but Changsun Wuji has always known that the foundation of the Changsun family is not these huge amounts of money, but the emperor's favor.
In the past, when the queen was around, no matter how outrageous the eldest grandson's family was, there was no danger, and the queen was there to protect them from the wind and rain. Changsun Wuji once believed that even without the queen, based on his achievements, he could gain His Majesty's complete trust.
But now, Changsun Wuji feels unsure...
What does it mean that His Majesty has the power to monitor all officials, but he knows nothing about it?
It means that he is no longer on the list of His Majesty's complete trust.
Perhaps, His Majesty himself is the only one on this list of completely trusted people, and no one would let His Majesty trust him unsuspectingly, but Changsun Wuji still felt a kind of frightened panic.
Because the Changsun family is actually not that loyal...
In the fourth year of Zhenguan, the eldest son Anye, the third son of the eldest son of the eldest son's family, who was a prison general, was involved in a treason case. He was accused of conspiring to rebel. More than 60 people were involved in the case, and they were all sentenced to death. In the end, because of Queen Changsun's plea, His Majesty Li Er did not kill Changsun Anye, but was exiled to Lingnan.
Now, the eldest son, Sun Chong, is once again involved in a treason case and has been absconding in fear of crime.
However, the Changsun family’s rebellion has a history. To put it bluntly, it has tradition...
For such a family, no matter how meritorious it is, the emperor will inevitably be wary of it.
In the turmoil of impeaching Fang Jun, the initiator was not Changsun Wuji. He just took advantage of the situation and wanted to completely remove the Fang family and his son. Of course, it would be great if we could take the opportunity to pressure the Jiangnan nobles to let go of their resistance and allow the Changsun family to enter Jiangnan.
But now, the mysterious power in the emperor's hands frightened him.
If the emperor's move to suppress the Jiangnan nobles was mistaken for the Changsun family's desire to manipulate the Jiangnan nobles, that would be very bad! If there is any turmoil in the south of the Yangtze River due to His Majesty's Eastern Expedition in the future, the suspicion of his eldest grandson Wuji will not be washed away even with all the water in the river...
Therefore, the iron factories that marched into Jiangnan still needed to continue. Facing the exclusion of the Jiangnan gentry, they not only failed to fight back, but also pretended to be helpless, giving the world the impression that "I want to march into Jiangnan, but I can't."
Whatever happens in Jiangnan from now on will naturally have nothing to do with the Changsun family.
I don’t have that ability!
Don’t you see that even if you want to go to Jiangnan to make some money, you are powerless?
As for canceling the agreement with Xiao Yu, that's even more impossible.
It was impossible for the emperor to not see the tricks Changsun Wuji was behind this impeachment incident. When the iron factory entered Jiangnan, the emperor would think that everything his eldest son Wuji did was just for business, so that the emperor could rest assured.
What does a family that only cares about making money have to worry about?
It's just that it's impossible to explain these words clearly to Changsun Heng'an.
Although Changsun Heng'an didn't know what was going on, he always obeyed Changsun Wuji's advice, so he didn't ask any more questions. Anyway, Shiro was the backbone of the family. If he said so, then just do it!
Perhaps Shiro was worried about the counterattack of the Jiangnan nobles. Could it be that the Changsun family and the Jiangnan nobles really didn't have the strength to compete?
Changsun Heng'an felt a little unconvinced...
*****
The Duke's Mansion of Song Dynasty.
In the study room in the backyard, Xiao Yu sat on his knees on the couch, his face as sinking as water.
Xie Wenju knelt down and sat at the bottom. Opposite him was a middle-aged scribe in his forties with a strange appearance.
This person's name is Gu Dongchuan, who is currently the Minister of Household Affairs. He was born in the Gu family in Jiangnan.
The Xiao family, the Xie family, the Gu family, and the Zhang family are now the most famous and powerful noble families in Jiangnan.
Xie Wenju said excitedly: "This time, I'm afraid Zhang will suffer heavy losses!"
The gentry in the south of the Yangtze River have been thriving for hundreds of years, and naturally there are highs and lows. This time the Zhang family is dragged down by Zhang Fang and will inevitably bear the wrath of His Majesty the Emperor. Their strength will suffer a fatal blow. Even if the whole family is not wiped out, it is certain that they will be devastated.
Every family has gone through thousands of years of hard work from generation to generation to form its current heritage and reputation. Once it suffers a major blow, how can it take decades to recover?
Xiao Yu sighed, her heart filled with the sadness of a rabbit dying and a fox...
He is not as gloating as Xie Wenju because of his opponent's loneliness. His level is more than a step or two higher than Xie Wenju's? He just felt helpless because the Zhang family betrayed him, the Qingliu leader who represented the Jiangnan gentry, at a critical moment. From the emperor's methods and attitude, he could see the imminent decline of the Jiangnan gentry.
It is obvious that the emperor possesses extraordinary secret power and can easily obtain more and more secret clues from the ministers. Although His Majesty does not seem to have any intention of making these clues public, this time it is just that the emperor wants to protect Shuang Jun, or rather He wanted to completely break the resistance of the Jiangnan gentry.
But this is like a sharp sword hanging above his head at all times. Now that the emperor does not use these handles or evidence, who can guarantee that he will never use them?
Once this sharp sword is cut down, a river of blood will flow!
Since the Jin Dynasty moved south, the Jiangnan nobles have ruled almost the entire Jiangnan. Even the government is under the control of the nobles. The emperor's decree has almost no effect in Jiangnan. Whether it is implemented or not depends entirely on the interests of the Jiangnan nobles.
After hundreds of years of operation, these warriors not only grabbed a huge amount of wealth, but also extended their influence to every corner and had de facto ownership.
Jiangnan is like a country within a country...
Xiao Yu could almost predict that the emperor's eyes had been set on this fertile and fertile land, and the Jiangnan nobles would face ruthless suppression by the emperor. How could such a powerful emperor allow the Jiangnan nobles to occupy and control Jiangnan, making this land outside the empire's system?
Facing the emperor's efforts, the Jiangnan nobles had no ability to resist. All they could do was to choose to resist strongly and retain some of their interests, or to honestly allow the emperor to demand it and completely hand over all their rights.
Fang Jun's impeachment trend was a test to show the emperor the attitude of the Jiangnan gentry.
Unfortunately, failed...
But fortunately, the emperor did not become angry because of the temptation of the Jiangnan nobles. Then how the Jiangnan nobles choose next becomes the key. No one knows how much patience the emperor has left.
And the consequences of angering the emperor... no one can bear it.
Xiao Yu made up his mind and said a little lonely: "The Xiao family will fully support Fang Jun."
This decision is equivalent to stating to the emperor: If you want to conquer the east, then Jiangnan will be your base of advancement. From then on, the Jiangnan nobles will follow the emperor's lead, give up the privileges they have had for thousands of years, and honestly An obedient citizen...(End of Chapter)