Insufficient balance

  On the surface, Fujian is now completely under the control of the military government, and Chen Jingyun has become the number one master of Fujian. However, in reality, there are also various factions within the Fujian military government, with open and secret struggles and contradictions constantly emerging.

  Among them, Chen Jingyun controlled the military power with one hand, and Zheng Zuyin and other gentry had no hope or confidence to compete with Chen Jingyun for military power. On the financial side, An Hualin, arranged by Chen Jingyun, firmly grasped it. These two can be said to be Chen Jingyun's bottom line, naturally not allowing others to touch, let alone Zheng Zuyin and others, even Lin Wenying and other high-ranking military officers of the original Tongmenghui were mostly arranged in virtual positions, and the actual military power under their hands was controlled by Chen Jingyun's trusted followers.

  Junquan Finance Chen Jingyun did not let go, Zheng Zuyin and Lin Wenyin and other factions put the target of contention on other rights of the military government, such as the positions of various department heads and deputy heads, etc.

  For example, the Supervision Department, the original head was Kui Lin-yang, who was recommended by Zheng Zu-yin. However, in less than a month, Lin Wen-ying and others found a large number of handles, with corruption and bribery amounting to over 80,000 yuan. For this reason, Lin Wen-ying and others went to Chen Jing-yun overnight and asked Chen Jing-yun to remove Kui Lin-yang from office.

  "Governor, this kind of thing can never be spoken first, today he Qiu Linyang can embezzle and accept bribes of 80,000, tomorrow he will be able to embezzle and accept bribes of 800,000, the day after tomorrow it will be 8 million!" Lin Wenyin has been serving as the Minister of Military Affairs for some time now, and is considered a high-ranking official. As the leader of a group of old Tongmenghui members in Fuzhou, he naturally had to come forward at the first opportunity when this kind of thing happened.

  After listening to Lin Wenyin's account, Chen Jingyun was also shocked. Many officials within the military government were corrupt and took bribes, which he knew all too well. However, since the military government was newly established and its foundation was unstable, and he himself did not have a strong team of officials under him, even if he dismissed them, most of the new officials would still be Zheng Zuyin's people. Therefore, during this period, Chen Jingyun had been turning a blind eye as long as they didn't interfere with his expansion of military control and financial power, and basically did not intervene in internal affairs of the military government.

  But today, I heard that even Kuilin Yang, one of the nine heads of the Supervision Department, was corrupt and accepted bribes, with an amount exceeding 800,000 yuan in just a few months. If this goes on for a year, won't it add up to tens of millions?

  That made him very angry!

  Chen Jingyun did not make a statement at the first time, nor did he go to see Kui Linyang, who was being escorted by the guards and had already turned pale. Instead, he cast his gaze towards Zheng Zuyin.

  "Director Zheng, what's your take on this matter?"

  At this time, Zheng Zu Yin's face didn't look good either. The whole military government knew that Kui Lin Yang was his personal recommendation. At the beginning, he had spoken very highly of him, almost to the point of exaggeration. And then, in just a month's time, he was caught and exposed, how could this not make him angry?

  Lin Wenyin's face was cold and smiling, Zheng Zuying suppressed the anger in his heart and said calmly: "Director, Kuilin Yang, as the head of the Supervision Department, knows the law but breaks it. I think he should be severely punished, otherwise, it will not convince the masses! However, the military government is newly established now, and it's not suitable to make it public at this time!"

  Seeing Zheng Zuoying not taking the first opportunity to protect his own people, but instead adding insult to injury, Lin Wenyin on the side was also a bit surprised. Later, Kuilin Yang, who was being escorted by the guards, cried out: "I'm innocent... Governor Rong, spare my life!"

  Chen Jingyun couldn't help but admire Zheng Zuoyin's thick skin. Others in his position would probably have to admit their mistake and resign, but Zheng Zuoyin just talked about severely punishing Kui Linyang without showing any sign of remorse.

  However, it's not the time to turn against him yet. Chen Jingyun doesn't have a strong reputation in the military government's civil system at present. If Zheng Zuyin is suddenly pulled down, it will greatly affect the stability of the military government. Taking a step back, even if Zheng Zuyin is removed, Chen Jingyun won't be able to find a suitable candidate to support the various complex civil affairs of the Fujian military government for the time being. The successor would either be one of Zheng Zuyin's trusted followers or someone from Lin Wenyin's side.

  Chen Jingyun said calmly, "Since the matter is clear, let's follow the rules and take him down for questioning before making a decision. However, in order to maintain the military government's prestige, it's better to announce that Kui Linyang resigned due to illness."

  After hearing his own disposal, Kuilin Yang did not continue to cry out, but was dragged out like a dead dog by the guards.

  Lin Wenyin is clearly very satisfied with this move, they have spent a lot of effort to grasp the handle of Quilingyang, and have been hiding in silence for some time, until today when they finally pulled Quilingyang down.

  Chen Jingyun took a sip of tea and continued: "Now that the position of Director-General of the Control Yuan is vacant, do you have any suitable candidates to recommend?"

  Zheng Zuyin did not open his mouth this time, he was not stupid and knew that Kui Linyang's mistake this time was caused by Lin Wenyi and others. The governor Chen Jingyun above also had no intention of asking for punishment while watching the play. Kui Linyang fell down, if he continued to recommend people who didn't know what was good for them, he would probably not be able to get off the stage.

  Lin Wenyi exclaimed excitedly: "I nominate Mr. Wei Shengtian!"

  Wei Shengtian, the special envoy sent by Sun Wen to support the Fuzhou Uprising before the uprising, did not become one of the nine department heads after the success of the Fuzhou Uprising, but instead served as a senior advisor in the civil affairs department of the military government. Later, when Zheng Zuyin and others gradually split with Lin Wenyin and others, Wei Shengtian also often interacted with Lin Wenyin. Suddenly bringing him up today undoubtedly means that he has thoroughly joined forces with Lin Wenyin.

  Chen Jingyun still did not express his opinion and instead asked Zheng Zuoyan: "What does Director Zheng think!"

  Zheng Zuoyin's expression didn't change as he said, "Although Mr. Wei is not from Fujian Province, he is an old member of the Tongmenghui and a main leader of the uprising; his qualifications are sufficient to be the head of this Supervision Department."

  "However, the Supervision Department bears the heavy responsibility of supervising officials, so the selection of its head still needs to be cautious."

  Chen Jingyun was somewhat annoyed by the almost superficial struggle between the two, and did not intend to take sides. After thinking to himself for a moment, he began to select suitable candidates on his own.

  So far, there are not many people in the military government who belong to Chen Jingyun's faction. Among the nine department heads, only one, An Hualin, is on his side. As for the deputy directors, the Deputy Minister of Civil Affairs, Gao Zejian, has been getting close to Chen Jingyun recently and seems to be leaning towards him. Chen Jingyun intends to keep him in the Ministry of Civil Affairs to counterbalance Zheng Zuyin and cannot easily transfer him. There are also several other deputy directors who have secretly or openly pledged allegiance to Chen Jingyun, and there are many other mid-to-high-level officials within the military government. However, these people are basically not capable of taking on the heavy responsibility of being the head of the Supervision Department.

  For a time, Chen Jingyun was unable to find a suitable person from his own faction to take the post of Director-General of the Control Yuan.

  After some deliberation, I ruled out the names that came to mind one by one. Since I couldn't find someone from my own side to take on the role, and didn't want to let Zheng Zuyin or Lin Wenyin's people take it either, I decided to look for a neutral person instead.

  After some thought, he suggested: "How about Han Cheon-ho, the Vice Minister of Justice?"

  Han Chenxu, a 40-year-old native of Fuzhou, studied in the United States at an early age and returned to China after graduation to engage in business. He later joined the Advisory Council as a member. At the time of the establishment of the military government, he was recommended by many people to be the Deputy Minister of Justice because he was one of the few who had studied law while studying abroad. However, the Minister of Justice was strongly recommended by Zheng Zuyin, but he didn't have much real ability, so most of the work in the Ministry of Justice was supported by Han Chenxu. Of course, these are secondary, and what's more important is that, as far as Chen Jingyun knows, this person doesn't have any factional or clique mentality, nor does he get along with Zheng Zuyin and others, nor is he familiar with Lin Wenyin and others. Even Chen Jingyun himself has only met him a few times, making him a relatively neutral figure.

  Chen Jingyun recommended him today, on the one hand, he valued his talent, and on the other hand, he also valued his neutral attitude.

  Lin Wenyi saw that his recommended Wei Shengtian was first rejected by Zheng Zuyin, and then again by Chen Jingyun, making his face look a bit ugly. However, he wasn't stupid either, knowing that even if he continued to support Wei Shengtian, there was no way he could win. Han Chenxu knew this person too, knowing that he was like a stone in the toilet, both smelly and hard, not getting along with anyone, neither from Zheng Zuyin's side nor Chen Jingyun's side.

  Even if we can't get it ourselves, let's support neutral people. In short, Zheng Zuyan must not be allowed to have a good time.

  After some thought, Lin Wenyin said: "Han Chenxu's talent and temperament are both qualified for this position!"

  Zheng Zuyin did not object to this either. Kui Linyang's downfall meant that his own side lost the position of the Supervisory Department. What he cared about was Wei Shengtian, who was recommended by Lin Wenyi, and he didn't care about others. He also agreed at once: "I agree with the Governor's opinion!"

  Chen Jingyun nodded: "That's good!"

  In this way, the storm triggered by Qu Lin Yang was calmed down overnight. The next day's newspaper had a small message in the corner: Director General of the Control Yuan, Qu Lin Yang, due to serious illness, has resigned as Director General of the Control Yuan. The position of Director General will be taken over by Vice Minister of Justice, Han Chen-hsiu.

  Han Chen-xu never thought that overnight he would become a political celebrity of the military government, with Zheng Zu-yin, Lin Wen-ying and even Governor Chen Jing-yun all recommending him as the head of the Control Yuan. Before he could even react, the news was already in the papers, and during this brief process, no one had even asked if he was willing to take on the role of head of the Control Yuan.

  Han Cheon-ho was also not a person of the faction, although he had not received any prior notice, but when he was officially recommended as the Minister of Audit and Inspection, he did not decline, but took office on the same day.

  Before taking office, he made a special trip to the Governor's Mansion because he heard that it was the Governor who first proposed him as the Director-General of the Supervision Department. Although he maintained a neutral attitude towards various factions within Fujian at present, there were still some superficialities that needed to be done.

  However, after meeting with Chen Jingyun, he talked for two hours and came out directly to take office at the Supervision Department. At the first time, he dismissed several important officials of the Supervision Department who were promoted by Kui Lin in the past, and did not give Lin Wenying any face. Several people from the Revolutionary Party also resigned. Within a few days, more than half of the original mid-to-high-level officials in the Supervision Department left. At the same time as vigorously rectifying the internal affairs of the Supervision Department, the Supervision Department under his leadership formally implemented its most important function - supervising all officials. Within a short period of time, it continuously accused several high-ranking military government officials, with a strong intention to reform the military government.