Chapter 485 Conspiracy
The largest item in Jiang Qingzhi's study is books, and the most common type of books is travel notes.
Ancient texts are beautiful, and using ancient texts to record travel experiences looks like a work of art.
When Jiang Qingzhi had nothing to do, he would read a travel journal to relax his mind.
"Those foremen dare not offend the Confucians, so no one dares to take our business."
Hu Zongxian, who was in charge of this matter, came and said, "I went to find the foreman and promised him a big profit, but they said that this business was just a one-time deal."
"If they do business with us, they will be driven out from now on. They are not stupid, so they naturally dare not accept it." Xu Wei stroked his beard and said, "This matter is a bit troublesome."
But Xu Wei is Xu Wei, and he thought of a solution after a moment. "Last time, the Minister of Works Lan Zhen made things difficult for us, and the Minister of Works Jiang Hua felt very sorry for it. All you have to do is ask, and it will be no problem to get some craftsmen from the Ministry of Works."
As he spoke, Xu Wei glanced at Hu Zongxian with an arrogant look in his eyes, "Those idiots thought they could embarrass us like this, but... is this a big deal?"
If he wasn't his good friend, Hu Zongxian swore that he would beat this proud guy who made people want to fight him up.
The craftsmen in the Ministry of Works did not care about the threat from Confucianism. Although the salary of those craftsmen who were employed by the government was ordinary, they could still earn a stable income regardless of drought or flood.
Xu Wei sat down proudly.
Jiang Qingzhi took out a cigarette and said, "It's good to go the Ministry of Industry route, but it seems that we lack confidence."
Hu Zongxian nodded. "The Mohist School must be cautious in its outward expansion. It is not appropriate to rely solely on the support of the court. Once a habit is formed, those people..."
His expression suddenly changed slightly.
"Those people are probably waiting for this."
Xu Wei's expression changed earlier than his, "The Ministry of Industry..."
"I'll go ask." Hu Zongxian got up and went out.
More than an hour later, the news came, "The Ministry of Industry has several major projects recently, and almost all the craftsmen are out in force."
Xu Wei walked into the study with an unpleasant look on his face, "My Lord, I underestimated the enemy."
Hu Zongxian came in afterwards and said, "Don't underestimate those people. One person's wisdom is limited. With the collective wisdom of many, Zhuge Wuhou can only admit defeat."
Three cobblers are better than one Zhuge Liang... Jiang Qingzhi took a puff of herbal cigarette, "Those people must be feeling very proud right now!"
……
"Jiang Qingzhi wants to build the foundation of the Mohist School, and it is outside the capital. We can see it every time we go in and out. This is a provocation from Ci Guoguo!"
Lan Zhen smiled in a restaurant and said, "The most important fortification of the Mohist school must have a workshop and craftsmen. When his so-called things that benefit the country and the people are made, if they are mediocre, everyone will attack them and make them return empty-handed..."
"Without the craftsmen, what can Jiang Qing do alone? It's just a futile cry." Yang Qing on the opposite side laughed.
"The craftsmen are the foundation, but the ones outside the city are the base." Lan Zhen said, "Once the base outside the city is built, Jiang Qingzhi will have a base, and the Mohist School will have appeal. Cut him off!"
There was a sharp look in his eyes. "Those foremen dare not offend the Confucians, so Jiang Qingzhi's only way is to borrow craftsmen from the Ministry of Works. But I have already made preparations. Several major construction projects are starting at the same time. These are all major events that cannot be delayed. Who dares to borrow craftsmen to him?"
"What about Jiang Hua..." Yang Qing asked.
"Minister Jiang has a good impression of Jiang Qingzhi." As the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Industry, Lan Zhen and Jiang Hua have a lukewarm relationship, and sometimes they even have some disputes. "But Jiang Hua is a cautious person, and he is unlikely to take advantage of the situation for Jiang Qingzhi."
"Then this matter is settled." Han Yu raised his glass, "This glass is for Minister Lan."
Since Lan Zhen decided to get close to these people, he naturally had to show his loyalty. He drank some wine and said, "There is another way."
"What method?"
"A method that will make Jiang Qingzhi want to cry but have no tears." Lan Zhen smiled strangely, "I have experienced a lot of construction work, but whenever there is construction outside the palace, the materials will be stolen, more or less.
At first I caught them and beat them, but later when more and more people came, I could only yell and scold them...
Those people saw that there was an opportunity to take advantage, so they rushed forward... Didn't you see that there were so many people, they rushed forward and took away all the bricks, stones and wood, leaving nothing behind?"
"Fools!" Han Yu felt horrified just thinking about that scene.
"Being poor is one thing, but the love of taking advantage is the cause." Lan Zhen said, "Later, I had a few people arrested and interrogated them. I learned that someone said that those materials carried some kind of dragon energy, and if you take them home and offer them as a daily offering, you will be free from all diseases and troubles."
Han Yu's eyes lit up, and he glanced at Yang Qing, seeing admiration in his eyes.
"The Mohist School has been passed down for thousands of years, so I think it has some luck. Those bricks and stones..."
"Take it back and put it aside, and you can use the Mo family's luck to protect your home."
The two of them looked at Lan Zhen with a sense of mutual admiration.
"Minister Lan is wasting his talent as the Minister of Works," Han Yu said seriously.
Lan Zhen smiled and said, "It's just a little trick."
When Jiang Qingzhi looked at the empty construction site, he was so anxious that he almost vomited three liters of blood.
The three of them raised their glasses and smiled knowingly.
……
Wang Er's family originally lived in the slums of the west city of the capital, but later they could no longer make ends meet, so they sold their ancestral home. The family built a thatched cottage outside the city, and he worked for others outside the city, barely supporting his wife and children.
That day, when he came out of the shop where he was working, he heard a few women whispering outside a cloth shop.
Wang Er was exhausted, so he squatted on the side to rest. When he heard a few women mention something about fate, he couldn't help but move over there quietly.
"...They say that the Mohist School has been passed down for more than a thousand years, and that the ancestors of each generation have left behind some kind of luck. Over the past thousand years, the amount of luck they have left behind is terrifying."
"…Now the land outside the city is the foundation of the Mohist School. The bricks and stones have been cast by the ancestors of the Mohist School, adding to their luck. If you can get a piece of it home to worship, it will not only ward off disasters and misfortunes, but also cure diseases and prolong your life!"
"Not only that? I heard that I can make a fortune from this." Wang Er was tempted when he heard about getting rich. When he moved out of the city, he swore that he would make a name for himself in this life and buy back his ancestral home.
You can sell anything, even your body, but you can’t sell your ancestral home. This is the social perception at that time. If you sell your ancestral home, the family will be completely ruined.
Wang Er came over and asked jokingly, "Ladies, is this true?"
A woman gave him a wary look, and Wang Er smiled and said, "I'm just asking."
Seeing that he was wearing shabby clothes, the woman said, "The day before yesterday, someone brought a brick, and the next day my sick mother was able to get out of bed. There was a poor scholar who brought a stone, and the next day someone hired him as a teacher with a generous salary..."
What the hell!
Wang Er couldn't bear it any longer after hearing this, so he returned home and discussed it with his wife.
"I'll get it." Wang Er's wife said, "They can't hit women!"
Wang Er shook his head. "You can't run fast with your body. It will be troublesome if you are caught. That person is the God of Killing. He has a loyal servant named Asura who makes a living by killing people.
Last time, he killed a centurion from the military department, but nothing happened afterwards. Think about it, if the centurion can kill anyone he wants, what are we?"
The woman was scared when she heard it, "Then...you shouldn't go either."
Wang Er pointed at his bare house and said, "Our house is like this. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter. We can only hug each other to keep warm. It rains heavily outside and drizzles inside. The children are so skinny..."
His son was playing in the mud nearby, looking like a skinny puppy.
Wang Er gritted his teeth and said, "As long as there is a chance to make a fortune, I will try it even if it means death."
That night, Wang Er set out with a sack.
"Be careful," the wife advised.
"rest assured."
Wang Er discovered that there were actually quite a few people traveling with him along the way.
Some people carried sacks, some carried bamboo baskets, and the most interesting thing was that some people actually carried baskets.
"Are you planning to take all those bricks and stones back home?" Wang Er thought that this man was too greedy.
Chen Zhan is outside the city at this time, and he will be responsible for evaluating the results of this matter.
Jiang Qingzhi's land was just outside the city where common people gathered. The most common places on the outskirts were taverns and small hotels. Chen Zhan booked a small tavern and asked the owner to set out wine and food outside. He drank by himself, feeling comfortable in the gentle night breeze.
The followers around him kept reporting the latest news.
"A lot of people came, but Xin'an Lane sent five guards to guard the bricks and stones. They all had knives and were shouting loudly. Those people didn't move for the time being."
"It will happen." Chen Zhan admired Lan Zhen who came up with this idea. "This is an open conspiracy, an open conspiracy that takes human nature to its limit. No matter how many tricks Jiang Qingzhi uses, he can't stop it."
The key point is that Lan Zhen completely blocked Jiang Qingzhi's other path through several major events in the Ministry of Industry.
"It's going to be very lively tonight." Chen Zhan looked at the night sky, as if he saw his old friend Fang Zhuo.
The attendant laughed and said, "If all the bricks and stones were snatched away, Jiang Qingzhi would probably be so angry that he would vomit blood."
Bricks and stones can be purchased, but people's hearts cannot be bought... Chen Zhan took a sip of wine, "He is trying to stop a chariot with his arms, which is commendable, but he will inevitably get a bloody head in the end."
In this way, Jiang Qingzhi was forced into a desperate situation step by step.
He had no choice but to give up the land outside the city and return to Xin'an Lane to teach his disciples.
According to their analysis, if development continued in this way, it would take at least fifty years for the Mohist school to gain enough power to compete with the Confucian school.
Fifty years later, will Jiang Qingzhi still be around... This is what Han Yu said at the time.
Everyone then laughed.
Fang Zhuo's suicide was an eternal pain in Chen Zhan's heart. Thinking of his old friend, he felt a surge of anger and said, "Let our people take action!"
"Yes."
Not long after, someone shouted, "We have more people, what are we afraid of? Go ahead!"
As he spoke, a man rushed over.
Those people who were ready to make a move shouted and ran towards the place where the materials were piled.
Chen Zhan smiled and said, "See, I told you it would be lively, didn't I?"
At this moment, a beam of light suddenly projected out from inside.
The beam of light kept swinging, illuminating the excited faces.
"What is this?" Chen Zhan stood up suddenly.
Then, there was singing.
The singing is grand and sacred.
"It's the Heart Sutra!" someone exclaimed.
It was a woman chanting the Heart Sutra.
Damn it!
Everyone, from Chen Zhan to those who were preparing to snatch bricks and stones, were stunned.
(End of this chapter)
