The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 413: Oppressing People with Power
September eleventh.

The day of the Nanjing Cultural Association.

On the bank of Mochou Lake in the west of Nanjing, many scholars gathered. At this time, debates were going on, and the protagonist of the day was the Lingnan School who had been "invited" by Zhang Zhou to come to the south of the Yangtze River for a competition in the literary world. He is the leader of Lingnan School.

Zhang Zhou was not in a hurry to go to the meeting that day, and the people accompanying him did not include colleagues from the Sixth Department, because everyone in the Sixth Department was on duty except him.

Yin Wuxiong of Yingtian Mansion and Cheng Minzheng, who is about to go north to serve as Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Officials, will go with him as the nominal initiator of this literary meeting. At the same time, there will be another person, Wei Guogong Xu俌.

"I never thought that you, Duke Lai, are not only majestic and heroic, you can kill the enemy and serve the country on the battlefield, but you are also the number one scholar. It is really admirable and admirable."

Xu Wu has been complimenting Zhang Zhou since he met Zhang Zhou.

Because Xu Yu also knows that Cheng Guogong Zhu Fu has completed his experience, and the emperor will send Zhu Fu back to Nanjing at any time to serve as a garrison officer, and he Xu Yu is going back to the capital. As for what his next errand will be, it does not depend on the minister. It seems that the emperor's decision was made, but in fact the emperor was most willing to adopt Zhang Zhou's opinion.

It seems that both of them are Dukes of the state, and their status is equal, and even Xu Chu has the upper hand in terms of qualifications and prestige.

But in fact, Xu Wu also knew that in terms of his current status in Daming, he was not worthy of carrying Zhang Zhou's shoes.

After all, Zhang Zhou and Xu Yu went out of the city, and asked with a smile: "I heard that Wei Guogong recently played a concert, and asked to remove his armor and return to the field because of the disaster?"

Xu Yu sighed and said: "That's right, the old man has been a soldier for half his life, and it's time to cultivate himself. I think I haven't made any achievements in the past few years in the south, but I have been criticized constantly for not being able to do things, saying that I am old and stupid. Disasters and disasters are all caused by me, and I am really ashamed of His Majesty and colleagues, as well as of the common people, so I want to go back to the capital to take care of myself.”

What to live for the rest of my life.

People with power want to hold on to power until their death. How many people give up power voluntarily?
Put it in a better way... In fact, Xu Chu almost said that I want to continue to defend Nanjing, or hold an important position, but others don't agree, why don't you help me talk about it?

Zhang Zhou said: "Does the Duke of Wei know about the recent frequent violations of the Tatar prince?"

"I heard that in the land of Ningxia, the little Tatar prince repeatedly invaded. I heard that the three sides ruled the old Qin, but he was unable to mobilize troops. I heard that Zhijie also went?" Xu Yu mentioned Zhu Feng, It was as if he mentioned his own nephew.

In fact, Wei Guogong and Cheng Guogong are still very good friends. When Zhu Feng was still in Nanjing, he often visited and studied at Wei Guogong's mansion.

Zhang Zhou said: "I don't know what good strategy Wei Guogong has for defending against the enemy?"

"Ahem, no."

When Xu Yu heard it, did he want me to go to the northwest to fight?

There is no benefit in going to that bitter cold place, and losing is even more fatal. You may even lose your title, if you can avoid it.

But he still can't say that I don't want to serve the country loyally for Ming Dynasty. Naturally, I want to find an excuse to evade, "I don't have much talent, I don't want to have a man like Lai Guogong in the army, so I don't have to worry about it. Ha, this autumn is refreshing and the scenery is pleasant."

Seeing Xu Wu's appearance, Zhang Zhou knew that this kind of person would not have any responsibility.

But he is only 50 years old, no matter how you look at it, he no longer has the courage to fight the enemy, he looks like a greasy old man.

Zhang Zhou thought to himself, Daming had such fat-bellied ministers who didn't usually practice the art of war, and didn't pay attention to the drills of soldiers. This kind of people didn't even have the ability to talk about soldiers on paper... It's no wonder that in the middle and late period of Hongzhi in history, In the early days of Zhengde, the Ming border will always be passively beaten.

……

……

Mochou Lake.

Zhu Houzhao was also dressed up that day, and he was in good spirits that day, because Zhang Zhou said that this literary meeting was held for him alone.

He came to the Wenhui just to show off his brilliance, and by the way, Cheng Minzheng would announce in public that the three poems were written by him... The young man likes this kind of pretentious moment when someone has a long face in front of him, so much so that he even forgot to come to the Wenhui What itself is to do.

"Brother Zhu, slow down."

In recent days, Sun Che and others have always called Zhu Houzhao brothers and sisters.

They also sensed that this ten-year-old young master only looked ordinary, but in fact he had a very strong background, a background in the government, and he was a high-ranking official in the court.

Zhu Houzhao pointed to a large platform beside Mochou Lake and said, "What is that?"

"That's Shuiting, the island on the lake, but only those who are invited can enter. People who compete in the literary world today will still enter it." Gong Yeping said, looking back, "Don't look at the recent Nanjing There are many scholars from the city, but in fact only those students from the Lingnan School will be taken seriously, after all, the name of this literary meeting is actually the result of the debate between Zhang Xueshi and the Lingnan School."

Zhu Houzhao excitedly said, "Then I will go in and listen."

Hu Feng said: "I went to the government office in advance, and the government office did not grant a pass, saying that people who are not invited can not enter unless they have an official certificate."

"Official ultimatum?" Zhu Houzhao didn't quite understand these things.

Hu Feng explained: "It is the certificate of being an official. Those who have official rank can pass it by themselves."

Zhu Houzhao muttered, "How high am I?"

Liu Jin leaned over and said, "My lord, you are not an official."

"Hey, yes." Zhu Houzhao said with a smile, "But I am better than them."

Sun Che said with a smile: "Young master, your talent is very good, and you don't necessarily need to be an official to be famous in history. The three poems are also fine. But today, Cheng Xueshi will be present. If he publicly says that the three poems are written by him , I'm afraid you... still suffer from being dumb."

"Go and call Yang Peng." Zhu Houzhao said to Liu Jin.

"Yes."

Yang Peng was in charge of protecting Zhu Houzhao that day.

Yang Peng was protected in secret before, but after Zhu Houzhao lived in the palace, Yang Peng's identity can also be made public.

With Yang Peng, the director of Dongchang, Zhu Houzhao knew that he could walk sideways today and go wherever he wanted.

……

……

"Who is that?"

Gong Yeping and the others watched Yang Peng approaching, and Yang Peng was accompanied by a few able-bodied men, because Zhu Houzhao needed to be protected that day, and there were too many people around him. Everything is still well prepared.

When Sun Che and the others saw the posture of the person brought by Yang Peng, they felt that he was unusual.

"Young master." Yang Peng came over to salute Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao said: "Where's my pass? I'm going to Shuiting, arrange the best seat for me."

"Yes." Yang Peng greeted, "Escort young master to Shangshuiting."

There are three wooden bridges connected to the shore of the water in Mochou Lake.

The wooden bridge was actually blocked that day, officers and soldiers held hands, and those without a pass were not allowed to pass, but with Yang Peng leading the way, it was easy for them to pass the wooden bridge.

Sun Che asked in a low voice: "Brother Zhu, I see that the man is dressed in extraordinary clothes, but he is planning to work in the government?"

Zhu Houzhao said, "My husband brought it here."

"That gentleman of yours really has a lot of face, even the people in the government want to give him some face." Sun Che actually wanted to ask, is he still a student?
A few of us also want to worship such an awesome gentleman.

Gong Yeping asked: "I don't know what is the name of the young master?"

Before, Zhu Houzhao refused to say Zhang Zhou's identity or the Yamen he worked for. When asked about his fame this time, he said, "You can tell that he is a Jinshi just by looking at him."

"No wonder." Gong Yeping said enviously, "He was already a Jinshi at a young age, and he was still working in the Nanjing Yamen. Presumably, he was at least the head of the Six Departments of Nanjing. Wherever he went..."

"Ha ha."

Zhu Houzhao thought about it, and he himself, Mr. Zhang, was indeed an errand in the Sixth Ministry of Nanjing, but he was not in charge of anything, but the secretary of the Nanjing Ministry of War.

It can be considered that Gong Yeping is right.

Went to Tingzhou.

There are still many people.

But unlike the complicated self-proclaimed scholars on the shore, but most of them just join in the fun, the scholars here are obviously of higher rank.

The soldiers of Shuntian Mansion and Nanjing Bingma Division have already guarded the platform, and different schools have their own seats.

Yang Peng said: "Young master, what do you think of waiting for Master Zhang to come here?"

"Okay." Zhu Houzhao said, "Find me a chair and prepare it for them. We don't belong to any school, so just watch the excitement on the side."

Yang Peng quickly arranged for people to move the chairs.

Before they sat down here, they saw local scholars from Nanjing coming over. They had obviously heard of Zhu Houzhao's existence and had seen Zhu Houzhao himself. One of them asked, "Isn't this Zhu Shouzhu the great talent?"

Zhu Houzhao looked over and said, "Who are you?"

"My Li Ying is an insignificant scholar in Nanjing." The other party said, "You claim to be proficient in psychology and can compose poems. You boasted that you came to Haikou at a young age, and you feel extraordinary. You can come here today?"

Sun Che and others felt very embarrassed.

Because they also felt that Zhu Houzhao boasted too much, and they also lost face.

Zhu Houzhao said with a disapproving expression: "It's okay, I have a thick skin, if you feel extraordinary, then be extraordinary. If you are not convinced, go back to the top to discuss and learn, and see who is more knowledgeable."

Li Ying had a sarcastic look on her face, and a group of people walked away with ridicule on their faces.

It seems that they don't even bother to get close to Zhu Houzhao.

After the people left, Sun Che reminded: "Brother Zhu, we are weaker than others now, and the matter of those three poems is not good for you. Don't engage in unnecessary disputes today."

"Come on, I'm here to make a name for myself today." Zhu Houzhao looked confident.

"I'm coming!"

Someone was shouting not far away.

But on a wooden trestle bridge that was set up separately, a group of people dressed in official uniforms came, and among them were Cheng Minzheng, Wu Xiong, Zhang Zhou, Xu Yu and others who had just arrived, and at the same time, people from the Nanjing Imperial Academy many people.

The scholars got excited.

"It seems that there is a Duke of Lai."

The crowd Wuyang Wuyang approached there.

Hu Feng was about to run up to join in the fun, but was pulled by Gong Yeping, and Sun Che also stopped the steps he took...

Gong Yeping asked, "Did you see it the day before yesterday?"

Hu Feng also came over suddenly, squinted his eyes for a closer look, and said: "It's not true, but it seems to be..."

Of the four high-ranking officials who came, they had seen all three of them, and even if they didn't see clearly one of them, all three of them would understand when they got together.

It turns out that Zhu Houzhao dared to come today because he is a member of the "organizer". Doesn't that mean... this kid is not bragging, he really came to "make a name for himself"?

……

……

It is different from Zhu Houzhao who went to Tingzhou.

At the same time, Li Zhaoxian, brother and sister Li Yu, who also came from the capital to participate in this grand event, as well as the people who came with them, have not had the opportunity to go to the island at this time.

"Brother Li, I have asked, but the other party does not believe that you are the son of a grand scholar, so..."

There are also many people around Li Zhaoxian, all of whom are known as "masters" in the study of psychology. They are either Li Zhaoxian's classmates in the Imperial College, or his friends.

"It's about to start! I seem to see Duke Lai." Someone said.

Zhang Zhou has appeared in front of people many times in the capital, and even participated in literary competitions. In fact, there are quite a few people who know Zhang Zhou.

Li Zhaoxian said: "Follow me, report my father's name, I won't believe it!"

When a few people arrived at the bridge, they reported their family names to each other, but the officials didn't even look at them.

"Which yamen are you from?" Most of the people who came with Li Zhaoxian were the children of officials, so they were naturally very dissatisfied with the behavior of the officers and soldiers.

Li Yu's eyes were bright, he gave his elder brother a hand, Li Zhaoxian frowned and looked at his younger sister.

Li Yu said: "They are members of Jinyiwei."

Only then did Li Zhaoxian observe carefully, only to find that, as his sister said, although these people were wearing ordinary official uniforms on the outside, they were lined with Jin Yiwei's flying fish uniform.

When Li Zhaoxian realized that this group of people was not easy to mess with, he quickly pulled a few companions aside.

"Brother Li, are we not going up?" Some people were still dissatisfied.

Li Zhaoxian said: "Where can I see it? I can't hear it here, but I can still see the situation on the stage from a distance, so it's here."

The people walking next to him were still complaining: "Who knew that Yingtian Mansion would be arranged in such a place... What a disappointment! Wouldn't it be better to find a more open place? There are so many places in Yingtian Mansion that are suitable for holding a large literary conference. Are you deliberately not giving us a chance to perform?"

……

……

The center of the cultural venue.

Arranged by Zhang Zhou, the officiant stage was arranged.

The position of the main auditorium can be relatively higher, and there is a certain distance from the opposite viewing platform.

After a few people arrived, they were not in a hurry to sit down.

"Bang bang bang..."

On Tingzhou, there was the sound of cannons.

It frightened the surrounding scholars quite a bit, but in fact it was a blank bomb, it just went off.

There is enough momentum.

Then Cheng Minzheng stepped onto the ceremony stage and announced in public: "I, Cheng Minzheng, have won the great grace of the emperor, appreciate the virtues of the heavens, and the emperor's kindness is in the world...Today, a meeting of the literary world will be held in Yingtian Mansion, inviting Lai Guogong, Wei Guogong, Ying The governor of Tianfu and several colleagues from the Southern Imperial Academy witnessed the discussion of learning in the academic circle. I hope that the scholars of the world can take it as their responsibility to help the community. I invite the Duke of Lai to give a speech!"

After Cheng Minzheng finished speaking.

Zhang Zhou walked towards the main stage from the side.

When the people watching the excitement below saw Zhang Zhou, they were very excited, as the saying goes, they are people who live in the story.

In the past, Zhang Zhou's reputation was too great, and the literary world also left his reputation. It is also "Da Ming Hui Dian" and "Xin Xue Classics", not to mention Zhang Zhou's almost heaven-defying ability to call the wind and rain in the past two years.

Seeing a living person suddenly is no different from seeing a half-immortal.

But the most dumbfounded people present were actually the people around Zhu Houzhao.

Only then did they know... So the "Mr" of the young master Zhu Shou is actually the famous Duke of Lai?
"He he he he..." Hu Feng stuttered as he tugged at Zhu Houzhao's clothes.

Zhu Houzhao shook off his hand, glared at him and said, "Listen to Mr. Zhang!"

Just as he was talking, Yang Peng had come over with Jin Yiwei, who was wearing a flying fish suit with embroidered spring knives, and it happened that the position here was also empty, and Zhu Houzhao and others were directly surrounded in the middle.

And Zhang Zhou on the stage also spoke: "I am Zhang Zhou, with cursive characters Bingkuan, and I have received an imperial edict to go to the south of the Yangtze River to counsel military affairs. Escort the prince of the Ming Dynasty here! Your Highness the Crown Prince is invited to come on stage!"

"Wow!"

The whole Tingzhou was fried in an instant.

Together with the shore, news spread quickly.

And Zhu Houzhao, escorted by Yang Peng, strode towards the steps of the platform.

When he walked up to the stage and stood in front of Zhang Zhou, the three of Sun Che who came with him did not even take a step up the stage even if they were killed. They are now completely surrounded.

Not only Sun Che and the others, but also Zhan Ruoshui and other representatives of the Lingnan School, as well as other representatives of the Jianggan, Weinan, and Eastern Zhejiang Schools, were also surprised at this time, and it was difficult to calm down. Horrible thought... The one who came with Zhang Zhou was actually the heir apparent of Daming?
"See Your Highness the Prince." Zhang Zhou arched his hands and saluted Zhu Houzhao.

Zhu Houzhao said with a smile: "Mr. Zhang, you are being polite. I came here today just to attend a grand meeting in the Jiangnan literary world. I hope you will forgive me for disturbing you."

Someone below pointed to the stage and said from a distance: "Then... isn't that about Zhu Shou who wrote poetry?"

"Is that the prince?"

"Those three poems were written by the crown prince?"

"Damn it!"

Originally, some people were planning to slap Cheng Minzheng's rainbow farts in advance, such as Cheng Xueshi, you are good at writing poems, and your poems are unparalleled in the world, comparable to Li Du... But now they suddenly realized that whoever should belong to them, a ten-year-old boy Lang's treasure is not something ordinary people can take away.

Zhang Zhoudao: "As far as I know, on the way to the south, the prince wrote three poems based on feelings. After arriving in the south of the Yangtze River, they have been presented to the world. I, Cheng Shilang and others read them on behalf of the prince. I am grateful for the prince's deep knowledge, unique insights, and love for talents. I am very grateful for the sincere heart. I also ask the prince to write this poem for the scholars of the world in public, so as to show the prince's expectations for the scholars of the world."

"it is good!"

Zhu Houzhao was very proud.

By the way, he also took a look at those people under the stage who used to look down on him.

Let each of you talk about "injury Zhongyong", today I will let them see what it means to oppress people with power and what it means to be unshakable.

Cheng Minzheng came out in person, pressed the paperweight for Zhu Houzhao, and gave Zhu Houzhao the ink.

Zhu Houzhao swiped his pen.

Started to write his three poems on paper one by one.

After Zhu Houzhao had finished writing, Zhang Zhou said, "Please turn around and invite Nanyong to offer wine, and send this painting over. After it is mounted, it will be used as a warning to the world."

Zhu Houzhao said with a smile: "Mr. Zhang can make any arrangement, it's up to you!"

(End of this chapter)