Chapter 652 Yanqi's Brain
For the noblemen of the Ming Dynasty, their life path was determined from the moment they were born.
The eldest son inherits the title, which is a path to wealth and honor. The other sons divide the family property and set up their own families. After two or three generations, they become ordinary people.
Not to mention illegitimate sons, most of them live like quails, being smart and trying to please their biological fathers and stepmothers, just to ask for more benefits when the family is divided.
But you didn't crawl out of your stepmother's womb, so who would give you any benefits?
Most of the benefits go to the eldest son.
Some people in later generations wondered why most of the family property was left to the eldest son. First, the couple had to rely on the eldest son for support in their old age. Second, the more resources the eldest son had, the more stable the family would be.
Who doesn’t want wealth and prosperity to last for thousands of years?
Therefore, the eldest son is a treasure to a powerful family.
The couple of Duke Cheng worked hard for many years, and the old playboy’s waist broke countless times. They planted a lot but reaped little, but the vast acres of fertile land finally bore the fruit of Zhu Shitai.
The deeper the love, the heavier the responsibility.
So Zhu Shitai grew up under the high pressure of his parents, studying, practicing martial arts... and finally a big fight broke out, pretending to be crazy...
But no matter what, the future of Chengguo Mansion belongs to Zhu Shitai.
Therefore, in the eyes of outsiders, unless this young duke is so crazy that he cannot come out to see people, his future life path is also fixed.
Like his father and grandfather, he became a close minister to the emperor and then enjoyed great wealth and honor...
"You came to me because you wanted me to have a fight with your parents."
Jiang Qingzhi was standing outside the Duke's Mansion at this moment, and Zhu Shitai lowered his head.
"Why doesn't the second master come in?" the doorman greeted warmly.
"How many of the children of the rich and powerful in the capital join the army?" Jiang Qingzhi sighed. Just when Zhu Shitai was in despair, Jiang Qingzhi patted his shoulder and said, "Forget it."
"Second uncle." Zhu Shitai was overjoyed.
"I owe you!" Jiang Qingzhi smiled.
Zhu Xizhong was taking a day off today and was sleeping at home. When he learned that Jiang Qingzhi had something urgent to do, he got up while muttering that Chunri was sleeping well.
"Da Lang wants to join the army."
As soon as they met, Jiang Qingzhi used one sentence to freeze Zhu Xizhong's yawn. He slowly looked at his son standing beside him and asked, "Join the army?"
"Yes." Zhu Shitai said, "I want to join the army!"
The Duke's wife smiled and said, "Wait a bit! In two years, you can go to the army and hang out for a while."
The so-called fooling around in her mouth is to gild. She gilds herself for two years in the army, and then returns home with a "glory" and is welcomed by three thousand soldiers...
That's too far!
Zhu Shitai looked at Jiang Qingzhi silently.
The little brat is cunning... Jiang Qingzhi said: "Da Lang means to join the army honestly."
He looked at the astonished Zhu Xizhong and his wife with satisfaction and said, "Start from the bottom."
"How can that be possible?" The Duke's wife immediately responded, "Swords and guns are blind on the battlefield. If something goes wrong..."
"Old Zhu can only adopt a son from the clan." Jiang Qingzhi took out a cigarette, seemingly joking, but actually a warning.
You have to be mentally prepared for this.
The Duke's wife stood up suddenly, "Absolutely not!"
Jiang Qingzhi looked at Zhu Xizhong, "Old Zhu."
Zhu Xizhong hesitated for a moment. "Back then, Zhu relied on martial arts to gain honor and wealth. Logically, Dalang should join the army. But I only have this one son..."
"This is a two-sided matter." Jiang Qingzhi said, "The line of Duke Cheng has been close ministers to the emperor for many years. If this continues, it will become rotten and stinky."
At any time, the powerful and wealthy at the founding of a country are very enterprising, but by the time their children and grandchildren come around, they have mostly become parasites.
"You can just say that I am a parasite." Zhu Xizhong said self-deprecatingly, "But as a parent, who doesn't want their children and grandchildren to be parasites?"
"Living like this is like being a walking corpse." Jiang Qingzhi said, "The so-called revival of a dynasty is the same as the revival of a family. A hero suddenly emerges from among the parasites and kills everyone..."
The family can live in wealth and prosperity for another one or two hundred years.
Just like in the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu revived the Han Dynasty and allowed it to survive successfully for a long time.
"Besides, you all know Dalang's personality. As the saying goes, a bystander sees more clearly. Dalang is a restless person in his bones. If you force him to follow the so-called prosperous road you have paved, I think this kid will really go crazy."
In history, Zhu Shitai was really crazy.
"But..." The Duke's wife thought Jiang Qingzhi was exaggerating, but when she looked closely, she found that Jiang Qingzhi was more serious than ever.
At this moment, Zhu Shitai looked at his parents calmly, as if they were not talking about him.
This kid!
After all, it is out of control... This frustrating thought occurred to Zhu Xizhong and his wife at the same time.
"If he joins the army, the family must be prepared for him to die on the battlefield." Jiang Qingzhi stood up. "If he doesn't join the army, I can't guarantee his future."
Zhu Shitai later became a madman, but fortunately he left behind offspring.
Jiang Qingzhi stopped talking here and immediately said goodbye.
Even if he is the second uncle, at this time, the decision can only be made by Zhu Shitai's parents.
Walking out of the Duke's Mansion, Jiang Qingzhi saw Wang Ze.
"The commander asked Chief Wilbur to come over."
Wang Ze glanced at Jiang Qingzhi, thinking of the last time the Yanqi successfully got the servant of the Linqing Marquis' Mansion before the guards of the Bo Mansion, which caused a cheer inside. But it was clear that Jiang Qingzhi didn't take it seriously.
"But are there any clues?" Jiang Qingzhi asked.
"After the Linqing Marquis' Mansion was raided, Liao Chen has not moved. He even closed the door to visitors!" Wang Ze said, "Our people are watching. The Liao family's servants who go out to buy groceries don't even bargain. They don't say a word from the time they leave to the time they return."
"The old ghost is quite cautious!" Jiang Qingzhi sighed.
"Who says it's not true?" Wang Ze said, "But many famous people in the capital say that Liao Chen is highly respected. Besides, being a son-in-law and being a father-in-law are two different things..."
Yesterday, an official submitted a memorial, seeking to hold Liao Chen accountable.
Unexpectedly, the famous scholars in the capital rose up in opposition... A daughter who is married off is like water spilled.
In the palace, Yan San was giving orders to his men.
"Keep an eye on those families, especially the children and grandchildren of the boatmen. If they show any unusual movements, take immediate action."
"Yes."
A eunuch entered the hall, "Commander, Chief Wilbur is here."
As soon as Jiang Qingzhi came in, he felt a solemn and murderous atmosphere. The three eunuchs in the hall glanced at him with extremely sharp eyes.
You bastard, you refuse to admit defeat!
Jiang Qingzhi smiled. In the Taoist's words, Yanqi became a reckless man, who was unreliable and needed Jiang's brain to come up with advice.
Now that the brains have come to the rescue, the reckless men are obviously a little dissatisfied.
"Sit down. Have some tea." Yan San said with a smile.
"Don't laugh if you can!" Jiang Qingzhi said.
"That's perfect." Yan San pinched his cheeks. "The boatman who drove the boat back then has long been dead. But we have someone keeping an eye on their family. Someone has contacted them recently, but we didn't alert them. We are keeping an eye on them in secret now."
A eunuch smiled and said, "What a coincidence! No one has thought of keeping an eye on them for all these years."
Long Wilbur, your brain seems to have forgotten something?
Jiang Qingzhi took out the medicinal cigarette and paused on the back of his hand, "This matter! I think it's a trap."
"A trap?" Yan San frowned, and there was more doubt and suspicion in his dark eyes.
"Why didn't the boatman jump into the water to save the emperor after he fell into the water?" Jiang Qingzhi lit up the incense, missing the guards at home. "Why didn't anyone investigate the matter afterwards?"
Yan San said: "The boatman went into the water later... You mean..."
"I bet that the boatman must have died after the death of the late emperor and before Your Majesty came to Beijing!" Jiang Qingzhi said lightly.
He heard a gasp.
"Has Chief Wilbur checked the boatman?" Wang Ze asked.
Jiang Qingzhi shook his head. "The emperor's fall into the water was seen by the outside world as the result of a joke. The ministers also thought so. Even the queen mother. But if it were anyone else, the boatman would not hesitate if he was carrying the emperor and fell into the water..."
He looked at Yan San. "The sooner you get into the water to save people, the greater your merit. Why did the boatman delay getting into the water? The late emperor fell ill not long after returning to the capital. At that time, all the officials in the capital and the empress dowager were only concerned about the late emperor's illness and ignored this matter."
Yan San hesitated for a moment, "It's not that we ignored it, but... the late emperor had always been in good health, and at first no one connected his illness with the drowning incident."
"That's right." Jiang Qingzhi said, "The previous emperor passed away, and the matter became a big deal. Those people are worried that someone will follow the clues... Especially when Your Majesty ascends the throne, if he is determined to investigate this matter. Once the cause and effect are found out, the succession to the throne will be more natural. And the Queen Mother in the palace will no longer be able to suppress Your Majesty."
Your son was killed by someone. As soon as I ascend the throne, I will find the murderer and avenge the late emperor.
In this case, Empress Dowager Zhang naturally could not join forces with Yang Tinghe to suppress Emperor Jiajing.
After cutting off the knife that was stabbing at him in the palace, Emperor Jiajing, who had one less enemy, could fight Yang Tinghe and others without any scruples.
"Believe it or not, His Majesty has definitely checked the boatman!" Jiang Qingzhi said with a smile.
Yan San said: "Let's go back later to verify this matter. If it is true..."
"Since those people have started the fight, why would they leave any trace behind?" Jiang Qingzhi shook off the ashes from his cigarette. "They must have killed all the people who knew about it. In this day and age, it's not difficult to burn an entire family to death, right?"
"Then why did someone contact the boatman's children and grandchildren?" Wang Ze asked.
"It's nothing, someone is panicking!" Jiang Qingzhi looked at everyone and said calmly, "They want to draw your attention over there. But the more they do this, the more it proves that the previous direction was correct... Let's go!"
After Jiang Qingzhi left, Yan San immediately asked to see Emperor Jiajing.
"Not long after I ascended the throne, I ordered Lu Bing to take people to investigate the boatman." Emperor Jiajing stroked the jade cone, "but the boatman had been dead for more than a month."
Seeing Yan San's embarrassed expression, he asked, "But what did you find out?"
Yan San didn't care about his face and told Jiang Qingzhi's analysis.
"If that's the case, why not alert the enemy?" Emperor Jiajing said dissatisfiedly: "Qingzhi's idea is that since the previous direction is correct, Liao Chen is a suspect. Just question the boatman's children and grandchildren and make the best of a bad situation..."
Yan San understood, "Once they find out that the boatman's children and grandchildren are unaware, then... they can only continue to throw out bait. This is like drinking poison to quench thirst!"
Hey!
We really didn't expect this!
Yanqi then took action and got the result on the same day.
"The boatman's children and grandchildren really don't know what happened back then. As for the scholar who was in contact with his family, his wife died, and he fell in love with the boatman's granddaughter and wanted to marry her as his successor..."
"Fuck!" Yan San couldn't help but swear.
"Commander!" Wang Ze was ashamed, "It is just as Long Wei Bo said."
"We...really lack brains!" Yan San slowly looked at his subordinates, "You guys have been making a fuss recently, so we Yanqi will handle this matter ourselves. Who still has such an idea now?"
The eunuchs bowed their heads.
"We've invited Chang Wei Bo to come. Well, we're in the wrong this time, so let's go to Xin'an Lane ourselves."
(End of this chapter)
