Chapter 552: Disappointing Jiang Qingzhi
For Xu Jie, at this stage in his life and career, all his energy and goals were focused on that position.
——The Prime Minister of the Ming Dynasty!
After years of official career and enduring for many years, he is neither a divine tortoise nor a masochist. Only this supreme goal can keep him going until now.
He holds supreme power, points out the way forward, and is powerful and surrounded by thousands of people.
Only then can you live your life without regrets!
Entering the Political Affairs Hall was only the first step. He did not care about being suppressed by Yan Song and his son. This was an inevitable experience. He was mentally prepared.
He felt like a hibernating tiger, just waiting for the coming of spring.
Xiong Jia’s illness was the first ray of spring breeze.
He knew that the Confucians would inevitably put forward him to compete with the Yan Party, and Emperor Jiajing also needed a minister to check and balance the Yan Party to prevent them from becoming too powerful.
At this moment he felt that he was the one that everyone expected.
The only condition is: Xiong Jia either falls seriously ill or... returns to his hometown and waits for death.
As expected, Xiong Jia fell seriously ill and could not get up. The imperial physician was worried and had no idea what to do...
Xu Jie was ready to distance himself from the Yan Party, but!
When I saw the young man, everything changed in an instant.
Xiong Jia woke up.
Just when the memorials from the ministers flooded the central government, he woke up.
The officials who had just flattered him suddenly changed their attitude, as if the previous flattery had come out of their own buttocks.
And the instigator of all this is right before our eyes.
"Lord Xu!" Jiang Qingzhi bowed with a smile.
"Congratulations, Lord Chang Wei is back!" Xu Jie bowed as if nothing had happened.
"Some people are happy that I have returned, while others may be worried." Jiang Qingzhi knew that he had really offended Xu Jie.
When Zhu Xizhong left the duty room, someone told him that Jiang Qingzhi had rescued Xiong Jia.
"My little brother!" Zhu Xizhong sighed, but there was pride in his eyes, "He has offended Lord Xu badly this time!"
"Will he care?" Yan Shifan came out at some point and looked at Xu Jie sarcastically.
"It doesn't matter if you care or not. Having more enemies... especially an enemy like Xu Jie who is good at forbearance..." Zhu Xizhong shook his head, "Qingzhi has helped you and your son, but Donglou didn't show any appreciation?"
The old playboy squeezed Yan Shifan.
Yan Shifan laughed, "Lord Xu."
Xu Jie turned around and Yan Shifan said, "There is a memorial. Please go in and explain it to my father."
Fuck you! Yan Shifan, I am the second in command! I am not your father and son's subordinate or follower!
Xu Jie's eyelids twitched, he smiled and nodded, then went into the duty room.
Yan Shifan looked at Zhu Xizhong, "How is it?"
"Awesome!" the old dude praised.
Yan Shifan looked at Jiang Qingzhi who was approaching and sighed, "But your brother is even more powerful. The entire court was scheming for the position of Minister of Personnel, racking their brains to figure out how to gain benefits for themselves. But as soon as this guy came back to Beijing and made a move, all those scheming came to an abrupt end."
"This is a skill, isn't it?" Zhu Xizhong said with a smile, then walked over and gave Jiang Qingzhi a big hug, whispering in his ear: "Brother is proud of you!"
When the news of Suzhou Prefecture reached the capital, the capital was shocked.
The old playboy booked a restaurant and invited a bunch of old friends to drink to celebrate for his younger brother. His wife also went to Xin'an Lane and had a drink with Li Tian. After returning home, she said drunkenly: "My younger brother's wife has a good alcohol tolerance!"
Jiang Qingzhi patted his shoulder, and after letting him go, Yan Shifan came over.
"After Lord Changwei went south, many people in the capital said that you would definitely fail in Suzhou Prefecture. Sure enough, soon news came that the situation was deadlocked and you were helpless. The scholars in the capital and many officials in the court were celebrating and gloating over your misfortune."
Yan Shifan looked at this much younger nobleman with complicated eyes, "There are more onlookers at the construction site outside the Mo family city because of this. Every day, people are mocking you, saying that when you return in defeat, no one will be interested in the Mo family."
He sighed, "When the news came that you captured the prefect of Suzhou and killed more than a dozen Suzhou tyrants, the capital was shaken." Yan Shifan looked at Jiang Qingzhi curiously, "In many years, this is the first time that someone has attacked the literati. This blow hurts them to the heart. Isn't Chang Wei Bo worried that they will go crazy? After all, the lips and teeth are cold, and the death of the rabbit makes the fox mourn."
Jiang Qingzhi took out a cigarette, paused the cigarette butt in his palm, and pointed to the sky, "The eagle soars in the sky, does it care about the chirping of sparrows on the ground?"
"Sparrow?" Yan Shifan was startled, then laughed and shook his head, and bowed for a long time, "With Lord Changwei not in the capital, the capital is a little less lively. Welcome!"
Ha ha!
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, then went into the duty room with Zhu Xizhong.
"After you went south this time, His Majesty had several encounters with the officials. There was one thing..." Zhu Xizhong said seriously: "Someone suggested establishing a crown prince, and it attracted support.
His Majesty did not express his opinion at first, but then many people agreed with him, and then he spoke up, saying that there was no rush for this matter. However, many people started to argue, citing classics and saying that it was inappropriate not to appoint a crown prince at this moment...
It's almost like you're not young anymore, Your Majesty. Don't you worry about what will happen after you die?"
"You're just bored." Jiang Qingzhi lit up the cigarette, "This is not a simple matter."
Zhu Xizhong nodded, "I knew I couldn't hide it from you. Those people saw that Your Majesty was directly intervening in government affairs, so they wanted to use this move to cause the two princes to fight among themselves, and then they could get some credit for following the emperor."
All this is just to start a fire in the Taoist's backyard.
"Qingzhi." Zhu Xizhong whispered, "Actually...it's not a bad idea to establish a crown prince now. Otherwise, if time goes on for too long, there will be undercurrents between the two princes, and things will become even more troublesome."
"Are you worried that they will each gather a group of people to fight among themselves?" Jiang Qingzhi shook off the ashes of his cigarette.
"Yes." Zhu Xizhong said, "There are not many people who can make His Majesty change his mind, and there are even fewer people who can control the two princes. Your Majesty doesn't care, but you are the only one who intervenes in this matter. Your return will make many people grit their teeth and be greatly disappointed."
Jiang Qingzhi smiled and said, "I like to watch those people get angry but can't do anything to me."
"Impotent rage...well said." Zhu Xizhong laughed.
Jiang Qingzhi left Xiyuan and looked carefully at the capital city he had not seen for a long time. He actually felt like a wanderer returning home.
Very warm and looking forward to it.
When they arrived at Xin'an Lane, a few beggars were huddled in a corner. When they saw Jiang Qing, they all stood up and saluted.
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, and a child ran out sniffling. When he saw him, he shouted, "Uncle is back."
Instantly, the seemingly deserted alley came alive. Men and women, young and old, and neighbors all poured out of their homes.
"Is Uncle back?"
"I'm back." Jiang Qing got off the horse and bowed with a smile.
"My Lord, they said that you killed many corrupt officials in Suzhou Prefecture this time. Is that true?"
"Corrupt officials can only be killed in the court, and I kill the powerful." Jiang Qingzhi said with a smile.
"Oh my! Those powerful people are even more powerful than corrupt officials!"
"The tyrants in the south are local tyrants."
"No one in the South can suppress them. We in the North have to do it."
"Is Long Wilbur from Suzhou?"
"Bullshit, my uncle has settled down in Xin'an Lane, so he is naturally a Beijing native."
Two old men from the neighborhood started arguing, rolled up their sleeves and prepared to fight. Their children and grandchildren hurried to persuade them to stop fighting, and Jiang Qingzhi took the opportunity to run to the front door of the mansion.
Fu Cheng and his servants greeted them outside the gate.
"I've met my uncle."
Jiang Qingzhi nodded, and Fu Cheng came over, "Everything is fine at home."
"It's hard work." Jiang Qingzhi said.
He went to the backyard impatiently.
"Meet my husband."
Li Tian and her maids were waiting outside the backyard gate to greet them.
Although the husband and wife feel a little strange when they meet, a kind of tender warmth flows between them.
After taking a shower, I returned to the room. There was a small bowl of noodle soup on the table. It looked very plain, with a handful of green chopped green onions garnishing it.
"My dear, please eat something to fill your stomach first." Li Tian took the side dish handed to her by the maid, which was pickled peppers.
Jiang Qingzhi couldn't help but salivate when he saw the pickled peppers. He sat down and picked up the chopsticks.
"The harvest in the farm is good this year, and Han Shan even sent us a few rabbits. I think he is a little worried about being replaced, and he wants to open his heart to show his loyalty..."
The noodles may look plain, but they are full of flavor.
Good noodles and a bowl of soup. The soup is cooked to perfection. It looks light, but it tastes so fresh and fragrant after taking a sip.
"When the weather gets cold, Duoduo is too lazy to go out and spends the whole day on the roof looking south."
The pickled peppers were quite spicy with a hint of sourness. Jiang Qingzhi ate two of them in a row and his appetite was immediately whetted.
"A few cats came to our house to look for Duoduo, but Duoduo ignored them. At night, we could only hear cats calling from the roof. Yan'er couldn't help but say it was too noisy, and the cats never came again from the next day."
Jiang Qingzhi took a sip of soup and asked, "Do you still understand human nature?"
Li Tian shook his head, "They were all driven away by Duoduo."
Jiang Qingzhi waved his hand, and Duoduo jumped onto his lap, lying lazily.
"You've made progress." Jiang Qingzhi stroked its back and said with a smile.
"My husband is tired, take a rest!" Li Tian cleaned up the dishes very naturally, not like a noble princess of the Ming Dynasty at all.
Jiang Qingzhi was feeling a little sleepy, especially after eating.
He fell into a deep sleep on the recliner.
When I woke up again, it was already early morning the next day.
This was the first time Jiang Qingzhi slept for such a long time.
Touching his rumbling belly, he quietly got up and went out.
It was getting colder outside. The waning moon in the sky looked a little bleak, and the sound of the maid snoring in her sleep could be heard in my ears.
The yard was illuminated by the white moonlight, and coupled with the cold air, it gave me a feeling of being isolated and secluded from the world.
Jiang Qingzhi went to the kitchen to make himself a portion of fried rice, then squatted outside the door to eat, startling the yawning cook who came in.
Jiang Qingzhi gave instructions yesterday that there is no need for training today.
"Master, wake up!"
But the silly Sun Chonglou still shouted.
Suddenly, Jiang Qingzhi heard all kinds of noises coming from the entire alley.
"Boss, wake up!"
"Dad, it's still early!"
"Didn't you hear that shout? It's more accurate than the crowing of a rooster. Hurry up and get up."
The sound of cocks crowing, dogs barking, and people talking in a bustling atmosphere...
At this moment, someone knocked on the door.
Jiang Qingzhi went to open the side door himself.
Outside the door, Tang Shunzhi, dressed in cloth, held a long stick in his hand, his eyes warm, "Qingzhi!"
"Mr. Jingchuan!"
"I just came from out of town. Some people smashed up your place and got driven away."
(End of this chapter)
