Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 297 Return to Beijing? !
"what?"

"Xia Zhibai is leaving?"

"Is your news true? Where did you get it from? Tell me the truth as soon as possible."

Hangzhou Prefecture, Qiantang County.

Zhou Ziliang was handling daily government affairs when he suddenly heard Lin Shijia running over and excitedly saying that Xia Zhibai was leaving. He was startled and his eyes were full of disbelief. He didn't care that the ink dripped on the document and asked hurriedly.

Lin Shijia said excitedly: "Sir, it is absolutely true."

"I'm not lying. This is the letter Xia Zhibai sent himself to deliver."

"Xia Zhibai said that they have been in Zhejiang for more than a month, and almost all the things that needed to be dealt with have been dealt with. At present, the cooks from all sides have made clear their intentions. Those who want to go north have reported to the government one after another, and many have even packed their luggage. Those who want to stay have almost all been arranged to make a living. He has nothing to do in Zhejiang anymore, and it is time to leave."

"This is the document Xia Zhibai personally sent."

Done.

Lin Shijia took out a document from his sleeve and handed it over hurriedly, fearing that Zhou Ziliang would not believe what he said.

Zhou Ziliang quickly reached out, took the letter in his hand, and read it word by word. Only after he finished reading the content of the letter did he finally make his decision.

Xia Zhibai was indeed leaving.

This made Zhou Ziliang look ecstatic.

Zhou Ziliang smiled and said, "I have been searching for something for a long time but still cannot find it. How can I find it without any effort?"

"I had been begging and hoping that Xia Zhibai would leave, but it never happened. Now I don't have much hope anymore, but Xia Zhibai is leaving on his own."

"Good thing, good thing!"

"But is he really leaving or just pretending to leave?"

"Don't make a final feint, come back and catch us off guard."

Zhou Ziliang remained vigilant.

He now dared not underestimate Xia Zhibai at all.

This person was too meticulous, and was too good at judging the situation and grasping the timing. Every move he made was unusual, which made them uneasy. During this period, the people like the Governor had not slept well.

Many people even call Xia Zhibai's name when they talk in their sleep.

It's really off the mark.

This also shows how much pressure Xia Zhibai is under.

Lin Shijia hesitated and said uncertainly: "That shouldn't be the case. Besides, he made it very clear in the letter that he had completed the tasks ordered by the court and there was no reason to stay any longer, so he was ready to leave."

"That doesn't seem to be a problem."

Zhou Ziliang snorted coldly and said in a deep voice: "Don't underestimate the people sent by the court. These people are treacherous."

"No reason?"

"Do you believe this nonsense yourself?"

"If you really want to stay, are you afraid you won't find a reason?"

"Have all the cooks moved away? Have all the cooks who remain in the area been settled? Has the salt factory merger started? So many things have just started, so it's hard to find a reason. If you think about it, you can find a hundred reasons, but it's easy to find ten reasons."

"Besides, Xia Zhibai takes the salt administration so seriously, there's no reason for him to leave so hastily."

"Is there something going on at the court?"

Zhou Ziliang became suspicious.

Xia Zhibai went south with such a big fanfare that it was obvious at first glance that he was not the type to finish things hastily. Now many things have only just begun, but Xia Zhibai is preparing to leave. This is totally inconsistent with what was expected when he came here. How could this not make them suspicious?

Lin Shijia's eyes were uncertain, and he whispered, "Then should we send someone to keep an eye on them?"

Zhou Ziliang glared at Lin Shijia and scolded, "Stupid!"

"Xia Zhibai is an imperial envoy. Is he someone you, a local official, can monitor? It would be fine if he is not discovered. If he is discovered, Xia Zhibai might find an excuse to stay. It is even possible that he is deceiving us so that we will take the initiative to fall into his trap and then gain more space and leeway for him."

"How can we get ourselves into trouble?"

Lin Shijia smiled awkwardly.

He also looked helpless.

This won’t work, and that won’t work either. We can’t just sit there and wait, right?
Zhou Ziliang didn't say anything. He put his hands behind his back and paced back and forth in the room, thinking about something. After a long time, Zhou Ziliang turned around and asked, "What did the Jinyiwei find out about Lin Xian? Is there any new situation?!"

Lin Shijia's face froze.

He pursed his lips and said nervously, "I don't know."

"I did have some contact with Lin Xian in the past, but the relationship was not deep. After hearing some rumors, I immediately cut off contact. Now I really don't know what the Jinyiwei has found out."

"Besides, this is the Jinyiwei, how can I go and ask about it?"

Lin Shijia smiled bitterly. He was too busy hiding from Lin Xian to dare to approach him.

His life is precious.

"What about Duke Xin?" Zhou Ziliang asked again.

Lin Shijia shook his head again.

How dare he send people to keep an eye on Duke Xin?
Duke Xin is in a high position of power and has a special status. He has to invite and please the nobles and the guard commanders on a daily basis. How dare he do anything tricky in front of such people? Isn't this courting death?
Zhou Ziliang frowned but didn't say much.

a long time.

Zhou Ziliang said, "For the time being, just assume that Xia Zhibai is really leaving. Don't send anyone to ask too many questions. Just cooperate with them in leaving. Also, ask the officials of the Salt Transport Bureau and local government offices to be more alert and rush the work at hand. Don't give people any excuses."

"in addition."

"Tell those people in your family to keep quiet recently."

"If Xia Zhibai hadn't been sent away, he would have sent them away one by one."

Lin Shijia nodded and said, "Don't worry, sir. I have already given instructions. Not to mention my family members, even the clerks working in the government office have to behave themselves and do things impartially. They will not cause any trouble."

Zhou Ziliang nodded and said, "That's good."

Then Zhou Ziliang opened his mouth and wanted to give some more instructions, but then he changed his mind and thought that too much talk would lead to mistakes. Giving too many instructions would seem a bit inappropriate, so he didn't say anything more.

"So be it."

"Just know that this happened, but don't take it too seriously. Just continue doing what you should do."

Lin Shijia nodded: "I understand."

"Go down." Zhou Ziliang waved his hand and asked Lin Shijia to leave.

After Lin Shijia walked away, Zhou Ziliang stroked his beard and asked uncertainly, "What is Xia Zhibai up to? Or have I been too nervous recently and got a little jumpy? Does he really want to leave?"

Zhou Ziliang didn’t know.

He couldn't give a definite answer.

However, the news that Xia Zhibai was leaving spread like wildfire.

This news not only frightened the officials of the Provincial Government and the Salt Transport Bureau, but also made Tang He, Jiang Lin and others suspicious.

Because it was too sudden.

It doesn't look like Xia Zhibai's work at all.

Xia Zhibai came to the south with great force, but now he is leaving in such a hurry that it seems a bit anticlimactic, or even a bit hasty. Given Xia Zhibai's previous momentum of not giving up until he achieves his goal, this undoubtedly gives people a feeling of giving up halfway.

For a while, many speculations arose out of thin air.

Some people speculated that Xia Zhibai was not used to living in the south. After all, he was a northerner and could not adapt to the climate and environment in the south. Therefore, after seeing that everything was on track, he wanted to leave quickly. Others speculated that Xia Zhibai was too presumptuous in doing things, which aroused dissatisfaction among some people in the court and ordered him to leave as soon as possible.

Some people also speculated that Xia Zhibai received another decree from the court and had to leave early.

more than this.

The direct guess is that Xia Zhibai has lost the trust of His Majesty, so he wants to return to Beijing as soon as possible to please His Majesty and His Highness.

There are many different opinions, but none of them has been confirmed.

Just as rumors were flying around, Xia Zhibai did start packing his luggage and prepared to return to Beijing.

It's not that I lost trust, nor that I was appointed to another position, nor that I was not used to the local climate. The work is done, but there is not much practical meaning in staying in the south. The temperature in the south is much higher than that in the north. Now snowflakes are falling in the south, but not as exaggerated as in the north.

Heavy snow has blocked roads in many places in the north.

Winter is a time for the world to rest and recuperate.

And this is also the time that Xia Zhibai must strive for.

Because of the road blockage, Zhu Yuanzhang and his son had much less political affairs to deal with, and had more time to sort out the situation in the world. He needed to take advantage of this brief "gap" to add fuel to the reforms in the coming year!

In Yuhang city.

Looking at the light white snow falling from the sky, Xia Zhibai stretched out his palm and tried to catch it. Snow in the south is like this, it melts at the touch and turns into ice water in the blink of an eye. Xia Zhibai withdrew his palm, stopped to look at the sky, letting the crystal snowflakes hit his face.

He whispered, "Auspicious snow indicates a good harvest. I hope next year will be a good harvest year."

“It’s also a prosperous year!”

“It’s time for the world to take a step forward.”

Just as Xia Zhibai was expressing his emotions, Lu Cang's voice came slowly: "Brother Xia, let's go!"

"coming!"

(End of this chapter)