Chapter 238 A Sharp Knife (Father Rong)
Rong Pingyuan stood in front of a small house on the outskirts of North City. The house was not big, with only two rooms, a bedroom and a kitchen.

If you want to go to the toilet, you have to carry the toilet bucket early in the morning and empty it into the cesspool a mile away.

His Majesty appointed him to be granted the sixth-rank official title and allowed to enter the Hanlin Academy.

He thought he could start to make a big splash, but he was wrong.

Among the top three, he was the only one sitting on the bench.

He arrived at the government office on time every day, but his superiors gave him nothing to do.

Looking at the people coming in and out of the government office, he felt a sense of powerlessness for the first time.

In this intricate network of relationships, he is just an outsider. He has no connections and no relationships.

He was just like when he was a child and his eldest brother took him to the county for the first time, and he got lost and stood at the intersection at a loss.

He holds an official position of the sixth rank and receives salary from His Majesty, but now he has nothing to do.

No one taught him what to do, but it’s okay, he has been doing this since he was a child, so he learns on his own if no one teaches him.

He began to look through the files, and after finishing the ones related to Jianwu, he started reading the ones related to Changyuan.

He had never seen His Majesty since the palace examination, but he knew about His Majesty from the files.

During the Changyuan period, the princes fought for power and Your Majesty, who was Prince Ding at the time, was marginalized.

He kept a low profile, and waited patiently for a while. In one fell swoop, he eradicated the corrupt officials who were entrenched in the tax collection of the Ministry of Revenue, and in the process, he also brought out the relatives of the clan who were claiming to be the Empress Dowager’s relatives.

When Rong Pingyuan saw this, he still didn’t understand why the roots of the foreign relatives were still taking root in the court when they had obviously been eliminated.

It was not until later that he realized that all of them were just pawns in His Majesty’s hands.

It all depends on how the player plays chess.

During the Changyuan period, everyone was fighting fiercely, but Prince Ding, who was marginalized, flourished until he became an existence that no one could ignore.

When Prince Ding ascended the throne, some of the people there died, some went crazy.

In the end, the only one who survived was the Queen Mother’s biological son, Prince Qing.

After ascending the throne, Your Majesty took drastic measures and used both kindness and severity.

At this point, Rong Pingyuan finally understood how he, a student with nothing, could have won the top three places in the first imperial examination in the fourth year of Jianwu. This was not the result of a struggle between His Majesty and the old ministers.

And now he is the number one scholar, but he has more leisure time than the second and third place winners. How can this not be the result of the struggle between the old ministers and Your Majesty?

Not all officials attended the court meeting, only officials above the fourth rank attended.

He had never attended court. Only when he was in the government office could he learn about court proceedings from the disputes in the court.

He doesn’t think he is smart, but he must be a hardworking person who is willing to learn.

Therefore, the first memorial he wrote, about dividing the power of the prime minister, offended a group of old and entrenched ministers.

It was easy for the conservatives headed by Qin Xiang to suppress him, a minor official with no background at all.

But the next day, he was summoned into the palace by His Majesty.

Eunuch Cao, who was beside His Majesty, personally received him at the palace gate.

If it were anyone else, they would have surely prepared the red envelope by now, but he was in financial difficulty now, and apart from the money he sent back home, it was barely enough for him to live in Beijing.

Not only did Eunuch Cao not change his face at his “stinginess”, he even smiled and said to him, “Sir Rong, the only person His Majesty can summon at this time is you, besides the Prime Minister.”

Rong Pingyuan bowed his head and said, “Thank you for taking me there personally. I’ll invite you to have some tea when you’re free.”

Eunuch Cao knew that this young newly crowned number one scholar came from a poor family and had no extra money to give as gifts. He did not care about the money, but was more concerned about establishing a good relationship with this person before he became the right-hand man of the emperor.

He has been in the palace for so many years, and he was able to become the chief steward of Your Majesty when Your Majesty had only been on the throne for four years. Naturally, what he cares about is not those petty gains.

Eunuch Cao reminded, “Lord Rong is all alone in Yanjing, without many ties, so he can help His Majesty solve problems efficiently.” Rong Pingyuan couldn’t help but look up at Eunuch Cao.

Eunuch Cao did not say this to him for no reason. The Prime Minister Qin and the Prime Minister in the court were both prime ministers during the previous emperor’s period.

He is also a capable minister left to Your Majesty by the late emperor.

However, capable ministers also have a problem, which is that their power is too great and conflicts with the imperial power.

As an old official, he has been immersed in officialdom for so many years and has formed his own circle in the court.

If the circle of old ministers poses a threat to Your Majesty, how can Your Majesty not be worried? !
He came from Fengyang and came to Beijing cleanly without any interest involved.

If Your Majesty wants to choose a knife, he is the best one to use.

Rong Pingyuan lowered his eyelids, “Thank you for your advice, eunuch.”

Eunuch Cao smiled knowingly, “It’s not really a suggestion, the opportunity is fleeting, you have to seize it yourself, sir.”

He stood in front of the imperial study, took a deep breath, and stepped through the door. From then on, he stood on the opposite side of the court officials.

The moment he stepped over the threshold, the emperor behind the imperial desk looked up.

Meng Zhicheng looked at his figure coming in against the sunlight, and behind him there seemed to be a halo spreading around him.

The young man was unexpectedly relaxed and tough.

To deal with those old bastards, we need someone like this, smart, calm, and not yet involved.

Rong Pingyuan, “Your Majesty, Rong Pingyuan pays respect to you.”

Meng Zhicheng put down the cinnabar pen in his hand and said, “I saw a very interesting memorial. Although it was stopped by the Secretariat, it finally came to me.”

Rong Pingyuan lowered his head and said nothing. He was embarrassed in the government office yesterday, and today he was summoned to the palace, and there was also the advice of Eunuch Cao.

He knew that his memorial had caught the emperor’s eye.

Meng Zhicheng leaned back and said, “I feel that Lord Rong is wasting his talent in the Hanlin Academy with that bunch of nerds.”

Rong Pingyuan, “I eat the emperor’s salary and worry about the emperor. Wherever I am, I am willing to help your majesty solve his problems.”

Meng Zhicheng’s lips curled up, “I do have a good place, suitable for Lord Rong to display his strengths.”

Rong Pingyuan slowly took a breath. The place he wanted to go most was the Secretariat, even if it was just a small position of remonstrance.

But the Secretariat is under the control of the two prime ministers. If he goes in, it will be even more difficult than in the Hanlin Academy.

After a while, he heard the emperor behind the imperial desk say, “I think that although Lord Rong is young, he is upright and not fussy about trivial matters, so he is suitable to go to the Censorate.”

“You have just entered the court. If I were to let you be the chancellor, I’m afraid your shoulders would be too narrow to handle it. You should first be a censor.”

Your Majesty’s meaning is very clear, the position of Zhongcheng is reserved for him.

Rong Pingyuan’s heart fell to the ground with a thud.

He wanted to fight for the people and for the dawn, but now His Majesty wanted him to sharpen his knife against the court officials.

The man kneeling on the ground did not respond. Meng Zhicheng narrowed his eyes slightly, “Why, Lord Rong is unwilling?”

Rong Pingyuan’s eyes flickered slightly, and he instantly thought of Eunuch Cao’s words.

——It’s not just a reminder. Opportunities are fleeting, so you should seize them yourself.

He needs a chance to stand out.

Only this one time.

He can only be a sharp knife.

“My lord, I am willing.”