Chapter 2: The Sudden Change of the Grand Master
At the next morning court session, the ministers stood on both sides as usual. The emperor sat facing south, with civil officials on his left and military generals on his right. Liu Hu stood at the front, yawning and looking listlessly at the civil officials and military generals on his left and right.
Looking at the nails on his hands, Liu Hu was very bored and said to the ministers indifferently: "If you have something to say, please report it. If not, please leave the court."
The emperor sat on the dragon throne and had long been accustomed to attending court in this way. Originally, there were not many things he could decide on. Now that Liu Hu became the grand tutor, he had even fewer government affairs to handle.
"I have something to say." Zhou Pin, the Minister of the Imperial Household, stepped forward and spoke.
The Minister of the Imperial Household was a third-rank official in charge of all the horses in the Ministry of War, which was actually a horse keeper. However, this person was extremely good at flattering people, and Liu Hu had some impression of him.
"Although our Great Qian is peaceful now, there are still covetous enemies around us. We should be honest and upright. The Prime Minister is the head of all officials, but he was extravagant at his birthday party. It is shameful. It is said that the Prime Minister's family has to invite people from Lingnan to make tofu. Don't I have tofu to eat when I go to the capital?"
Everyone knew that Grand Tutor Liu Hu and the Prime Minister were not on good terms, and Zhou Pin was from the Ministry of War, so he listened to Liu Hu's words. Naturally, his words attracted many supporters.
"That's right, extravagance and waste are the most shameful."
"As the head of all officials, you should set an example."
They all sighed and said that, indeed, flattery is a skill.
The reason why he was able to rise to the top was that he knew how to speak at the right time. All the ministers knew about the Prime Minister's birthday party, but only Zhou Pin thought of filing a complaint.
The prime minister couldn't pretend to be dead at this time. He glared at Zhou Pin, stepped forward and said, "I'm not being extravagant in celebrating my birthday. It's just that my daughter has a very good relationship with the tofu-making woman. Seeing that the woman was too poor, I sent someone to pick her up."
"That woman offended the local dignitaries in Lingnan, so no one dared to buy her tofu. Both mother and daughter lived a miserable life. This old minister is doing good, not evil. Moreover, the money I use is the salary I have saved for many years. I am not corrupt and have no guilt."
Prime Minister Chen Yang is honest and upright. He is devoted to the Daqian Empire and is willing to work hard until his death. Although he is against Liu Hu everywhere, Liu Hu has never taken the initiative to provoke him, only because Liu Hu admires such people.
Having different positions does not necessarily mean becoming enemies.
Perhaps, if Liu Hu were in the position of prime minister, he would do the same as him.
Normally, Liu Hu would not do anything to the prime minister at such times, and his subordinates also knew what Liu Hu meant, and most of them just wanted to embarrass him, but this time, they mentioned Lan Xin.
Especially Chen Yang's last sentence: offending the local dignitaries, the mother and daughter lived a miserable life. It hit Liu Hu deeply in the heart.
Thinking of this, Liu Hu hurried forward to help Prime Minister Chen Yang up, and said repeatedly: "The Prime Minister is a wise man, benevolent, righteous and restrained, known to the gods, and has made great contributions to the world. He is indeed a good minister of Daqian. How can the birthday party be mediocre? I request Your Majesty to use the money from the national treasury to hold a birthday party for the Prime Minister, and all the civil and military officials in the court must attend."
After saying this, Liu Hu turned his head and looked at the emperor sitting on the dragon throne. His tone was no longer as friendly as it was to the prime minister, but rather commanding.
Liu Hu's words shocked all the civil and military officials in the court. They didn't understand why the Grand Tutor and the Prime Minister said this?
To please the prime minister? There is absolutely no need. If he wants, the Grand Tutor can issue an order to dismiss the prime minister on behalf of the emperor at any time.
Want to take the money out of the treasury? That's even more unnecessary. The key to the treasury has always been in the hands . The emperor doesn't even know how much money is in it.
However, after the Grand Tutor said this, the other ministers dared not say anything else, and followed Liu Hu and shouted: "We, the ministers, beg you to use the country's money to reward the Prime Minister."
The sound echoed in the palace, and the emperor's dissatisfied expression immediately appeared in front of everyone, but it was fleeting and no one else noticed it.
I was like a fish on the chopping board, with no military power in my hands. All officials except the prime minister were at odds with me. Even the eunuchs around me were selected by Liu Hu. Every night when I talked in my sleep, they would be reported to the Grand Tutor's Mansion the next day, without a single word missing.
"The Prime Minister is the pillar of the country and should be respected. All arrangements must be made by the Grand Tutor." The emperor looked at the officials kneeling on the ground and pretended to sympathize with them.
"Long live the emperor," the ministers said weakly after hearing the emperor's words.
As if he had gotten used to his ministers' attitude towards him, the emperor nodded and signaled to his ministers.
After the court was adjourned, the originally aloof prime minister was suddenly surrounded by many people, all wanting to curry favor with him. After all, the Grand Tutor had spoken for the prime minister today .
Instead, Zhou Pin became a laughing stock. He was the object of everyone's envy just now, but now he is more like a joke.
He flattered the horse but ended up hitting the horse's hoof. He wanted to please the Grand Tutor, but ended up offending him.
Some people have even noticed that this time the Grand Tutor spoke for the Prime Minister with the obvious intention of easing the relationship between the two. It seems that the Grand Tutor quite likes people with upright and incorruptible personalities.
Grand Master, you really value talent!
The prime minister was still in shock. To be able to become the prime minister was definitely not an ordinary person. He had opposed Liu Hu many times before. In his opinion, he and Liu Hu had long been irreconcilable and there was no room for easing.
Could it be that he wanted to flatter me to death? He wanted me to hold a birthday party with great fanfare, and then use this opportunity to eliminate me?
Then the Prime Minister hurriedly shook his head. After years of bargaining, he knew Liu Hu's character well. If he wanted to eliminate him, he would never use such means. When it came to major issues, Liu Hu was still very reasonable, otherwise he would not be alive until now.
However, Liu Hu's attitude was really unpredictable, and the prime minister was in no mood to continue chatting with these people. After a few simple words, he hurried home.
Looking at the Prime Minister's appearance, Liu Hu smiled slightly and said to Ah Si, "Get up and return to the palace."
