I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 479 Xu Jie's Heart is as Calm as a Mountain

Seeing that his father was angry, the filial son Xu Kun hurriedly tried to persuade him.

"Master, Cai Guoxi is the right deputy governor of Jiangsu Province, so don't even think about touching our Xu Mansion. This time he doesn't have the support of Lord Hai. Besides, with the master at home, he is like a stabilizing force."

"No!" Xu Jie walked around the pavilion with his hands behind his back, looking very irritated. "Father has not yet worried about Cai Guoxi's affairs."

"Master, what are you angry about?"

Xu Jie shook his head slowly, his face ashen.

"The feud between Cai Guoxi and my Xu Mansion is known to everyone in the court and the public! His appointment as the Right Deputy Envoy of Jiangsu Province will definitely be in charge of the land survey in Jiangsu Province. Anyone who is not a fool knows what this means to my Xu Mansion.

No one in the court told me about this important matter. Not only did Uncle Zhang tell me, but none of my two hundred disciples in Beijing wrote to remind me.

Finally, I learned about this matter from the "Political Gazette".

Second brother, do you know what that means? "

Xu Kun's face turned ugly, and he couldn't help but complain, "Uncle Zhang, you ungrateful bastard!"

Xu Jie leaned on the stone table and slowly sat down. He felt extremely conflicted.

He knew that the relationship between teacher and student would not last long.

After the former Prime Minister has left the central government for three to five years, my cup of hot tea will be almost cold, and the relationship between teacher and student will be almost the same.

But it’s only been a short time since I left, less than half a year, and it’s already become so cold?
This shouldn’t be the case. Uncle Zhang is not that kind of person.

But the facts were clear: when Cai Guoxi was appointed as the Right Deputy Envoy of Jiangsu Province, none of his students in the capital wrote to him to tell him, and Zhang Shuda did not write to him either.

It's so heartbreaking.

After feeling chilled, Xu Jie felt a surge of panic in his heart.

He felt as if he was suddenly thrown into the boundless sea, and was thrown into the air by the waves, with no direction, and then fell into the valley, sinking continuously.

As the heart was floating and undulating, Xu Jie's panic grew stronger and stronger, as if an invisible hand was tightly grasping his heart, squeezing it so tightly that he couldn't breathe. Finally, his heart was crushed and drifted away in the wind, leaving his entire chest empty, with nothing else.

I never thought that after a lifetime of ups and downs in officialdom, I, Xu Jie, would end up being deserted by my friends and relatives, with no one to rely on.

How pitiful, sad and lamentable!
Xu Jie supported the stone table with his left hand, stroked his chest with his right hand, lowered his head and closed his eyes.

Xu Kun was still there denouncing Zhang Juzheng and others for their ungratefulness, but his words were like a group of flies, first circling around Xu Jie's ears, and then flying away, so far away that they seemed like mosquitoes in Suzhou, buzzing there.

"Master, master!"

A steward came running over, holding up his shirt, sweat all over his forehead.

Xu Kun, who was still denouncing the traitor, was interrupted and angrily asked, "What's the matter?"

"A letter, an urgent letter from the capital."

Before Xu Kun could react, he felt a figure flash past him. He was so scared that he dodged to the side. When he opened his eyes, he saw that it was his old father.

He rushed to the steward at lightning speed and stretched out his hand.

"letter."

The steward quickly handed over the letter with both hands.

Xu Jie picked it up with both hands and held it high. In the sunlight, he finally saw the signature clearly. The loneliness and panic on his face disappeared, and a kind smile appeared on his face.

"Uncle has sent me a letter. All right, as long as he has sent me a letter, that's all.

The second one.

Xu Kun quickly responded, "Master, my son is here."

"Go get your father's reading glasses."

"Yes."

After a while, Xu Kun came running over hurriedly with a pair of tortoise-shell reading glasses in his hand and handed them to Xu Jie who sat back at the stone table.

Xu Jie calmly opened the envelope, took out the letter, put on his glasses, squinted his eyes, and read it carefully in the sunlight.

Zhang Juzheng first apologized in the letter, and then explained the reason for the delay in writing.

Cai Guoxi was appointed as the Right Deputy Governor of Jiangsu Province. As Xu Jie had expected, it was Gao Gong's doing.

However, Zhang Juzheng felt that the situation was not very urgent. After all, Cai Guoxi would have to go to Yangzhou to take up his post before he would have the opportunity to take action against the Xu family.

Even if Cai Guoxi takes office, he will not take action immediately.

Above him were the governor and the provincial governor, on his left was the left deputy provincial governor, and on his right were other right deputy provincial governors. He had to establish initial relationships with these superiors and colleagues, and only when the situation was set right would he go to Suzhou and Songjiang to supervise the land survey.

After all this, I will have to go at least next year.

So Zhang Juzheng asked a fellow student to write a letter to inform his teacher. As a cabinet minister and the Minister of Personnel, he had to keep an eye on the new "Official System Regulations" that were being promulgated and the "Official Performance Evaluation System" that was being piloted in the six ministries and temples of the central government.

He also had to fight with Gao Gong secretly.
As a result, when the fellow student had finished writing the letter and was polishing it, he was suddenly called to join the special investigation team for the major case of treason by the feudal lords. For more than ten days, he could not even return home, let alone send the letter.

By the time Zhang Juzheng learned of the situation, it was already too late. He hurriedly wrote a letter and had it sent urgently by the Ministry of War, which had to be sent over 600 miles.

The more Xu Jie read, the happier he felt.

I was not wrong. Zhang Juzheng and his disciples still remembered my mentor. My cup of tea was still warm.

Zhang Juzheng gave a brief introduction to the current situation in the court in the letter. Xu Jie nodded secretly, thinking that it was almost what he expected.

After reading it, Xu Jie handed the letter to Xu Kun with a hint of pride on his face.

"Second brother, you should also take a good look.

In the future, don't be so reckless, be patient. You, why your father dare not let you enter the official career, is because you are not good enough in cultivating your energy!"

Xu Kun nodded in agreement, took the letter, read it, and then started to curse Gao Gong again.

Xu Jie took off his tortoise-shell reading glasses and slowly folded them up, with light shining through his cloudy eyes.

High arch!

You are a vindictive old man. I knew you would take revenge.

it is good!
Don't think that I can't do anything to you just because I've left the court! "Second brother, there's something you need to do with all your heart."

"Master, what's the matter?"

Xu Jie finished his explanation in detail, and finally gave a stern reminder, "Second Brother, you must do this carefully and select a few careful and reliable people. The most important thing is not to let any news leak out. Remember?"

Xu Kun had a complicated expression, and finally nodded, "Master, I understand."

A few days later, in a small courtyard in Suzhou, Jiangnan, the left side room was converted into a study. Two scholars sat opposite each other on a desk, chatting animatedly over several stacks of manuscripts on the table.

Scholar A patted the two stacks of manuscripts and said with satisfaction: "The story of Xu Wei is finished, and the story of Zhang Juzheng is also finished. They are well written and can be engraved after proofreading.

But we don’t need to worry about the engraving, the owner will make the arrangements, we just need to hand in the manuscript.”

Scholar B said flatteringly, "That's good, as long as you are satisfied. What about my book fee?"

Scholar A laughed, "Don't worry, the master is very generous. In addition to the book fee, there is also an additional fee for writing. I guarantee you will live happily for two or three years.

but"

He patted another stack of manuscripts and said, "I think this book about the Prince of Xiyuan is too thin."

Scholar B was stunned. "Thin?"

"Yes, it's not rich enough. I think I can write about the prince's life in the palace."

Scholar B asked hesitantly, "Is it appropriate?"

Scholar A chuckled, "Why is it inappropriate? He is the prince, not a eunuch! How can he not have emotions? He is fifteen or sixteen years old, how could he not like beauty?"

Scholar B laughed twice, "Brother, I mean, what if, what if, what if the prince doesn't like women, but likes men?"

"Homosexuality? The love between a man with a broken sleeve and a man with a long penis? Well, that's more appealing, but it's another story, another book. We're discussing this book now.

You see, the prince has hidden seven beauties in Chonghua Palace, each of them is extremely beautiful. We unfold the stories of the prince and the seven ladies one by one. How many chapters can we add and how much money can we make?
A young man in red and purple riding under the morning sun, bathing in the spring breeze. They are a talented scholar and a beautiful woman, we are a prince and a beautiful woman, there must be a gimmick! "

"It's good, I tried to write one or two chapters, but some people said they were not good."

"Well, who is it?"

"Old Ding and Old Wu, who drew the illustrations, love to buy books and read them. They are serious gentlemen who pay for reading. They read the two chapters I wrote, and bah! What the hell? Not good!"

Scholar A rolled his eyes and said, "You must have written it poorly!"

Scholar B was anxious, and said with his neck straight, "After all, I am also a famous writer in Jiangnan, and I am well-known in the private edition book industry!"

Scholar A quickly held him down, "Look at you, you're getting anxious again. Haha, brother, don't be dissatisfied. Listen to me, you must have written too innocently, not erotic and explicit enough!"

Scholar B was stunned, "Not sexy enough?"

Scholar A's mouth was watering. "If you write something erotic and passionate, those gentlemen will definitely scold you, calling you vulgar and shameless, and then secretly buy your works."

Scholar B's eyes lit up, but then he looked helpless: "Brother, what you said makes sense. But I still can't write it."

Scholar A asked in surprise: "Why?"

Scholar B looked away, "Little brother, little brother, I am still a virgin, I don't know where to start with such erotic and explicit things."

Scholar A looked at Scholar B and said unhappily, "You can only write about innocent love stories, so what's the point of writing about birds?
Books nowadays are either full of fighting and killing, with the emotions in them just as embellishments, such as "Journey to the West", "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and "Outlaws of the Marsh".

Or write out your emotions nakedly, like the latest hit in the book market, "Plum Blossoms."

Scholar Yi was delighted, "Brother, do you also like to read "The Best Plum Blossoms"? "

Scholar A said quickly, "This is not the point. Who writes about pure love in vernacular novels nowadays? Even the stories about talented scholars and beautiful women, such as The West Chamber, also have stories about secret meetings at night and erotic words. The most vulgar is the most elegant."

Scholar A talked a lot, and finally said: "In short, we have to write the several story books that the master has ordered. Only after we finish writing them can we get the money."

At the same time, in the Jinyiwei Yamen in the capital, Song Gongliang introduced the two people to Zhu Yijun.

"This Wang Shiqiu, Taifuzi Qiu, was a hundred households of the Ningxia rear guard. He guarded the border of Ningxia for eight years. The Jinyiwei selected him as a secret agent for the various vassal states and sent him to wander around Huguang. Then he was recruited by Zhu Linhu, the Prince of Shou'an of Jing, and was called Brother Qiu.

This Fang Zhiyuan, whose given name was Huaide, was originally a servant in Jiangyin. He escaped from his master's home and wandered around the world for several years, where he learned a lot of skills. By chance, he was recruited by Zhu Heluo, the Prince of Yanning of Lu.

This kid is very careful and sharp-eyed. He found Wang Shiqiu's flaws but did not expose them. He even asked to join. "

Zhu Yijun was delighted when he heard this, "Why?"

"Your Highness, the Princess of Yanning County coveted my body. I refused several times, but I still fell into her trap. If this matter is exposed, I will definitely be torn to pieces by the Prince of Yanning County, so I ask Brother Wang to save me from this sea of ​​suffering."

Zhu Yijun smiled and motioned Song Gongliang to continue.

"Wang Shiqiu and Fang Zhiyuan made great contributions in the investigation of the Six Feudatories Rebellion. The Jinyiwei awarded them the rank of Xuanwu Xiaowei and Xiaowei respectively."

Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "I heard about your deeds and came to see you specially. I also brought the medals awarded to the two Qingche Shuzhang by the Central Military Command Office of the Rong Government.

Songdushi, you should grant them the title."

"As ordered!"

Wang Shiqiu and Fang Zhiyuan stood straight with solemn expressions. Song Gongliang said to them, "Because your achievements are special and difficult to publicize, we will not publicly confer honors on you."

After he finished speaking, Song Gongliang hung the medal ribbon of the Qingche Shuchang on the chests of the two men.

"Serve the country with loyalty and determination!"

Wang Shiqiu and Fang Zhiyuan shouted in unison.

Zhu Yijun looked at the two men and suddenly thought of something. He asked Song Gongliang, "How should we arrange for them?"

"Your Highness, Wang Shiqiu is a martial artist and he said he wanted to return to the border army. Minister Fang Zhiyuan plans to transfer him to the Pacification Division to specialize in investigating and handling cases."

"They have been immersed in the filth for several years. We need to find a place for them to cleanse their souls. It just so happens that the military academy around Lord Hai needs to be rotated. We can transfer them there so that they can be well influenced by Lord Hai."

Song Gongliang's eyes lit up and he turned around and announced the order to the two of them.

"What? To protect Hai Rui, the Great Lord?"

Wang Shiqiu and Fang Zhiyuan widened their eyes, unable to believe it.

(End of this chapter)