Without money, what is the point of being a traitor?

Chapter 698 Yang Dan's Rise

Leaving aside how these two women will tear each other apart in the future, Pei Yuan's immediate priority is to solve the problem at hand.

If Empress Xia doesn't survive the winter, then most of his previous plans will have fallen through.

Besides, Commander Pei isn't the type to renege on a promise after it's been made.

Pei Yuan said to Li Zhang, "I'll have someone send some silver to your nephew later. After you get it, find some reliable people to repair this place properly. Oh, and send some more charcoal too."

Pei Yuan then instructed the two palace maids, "You should light several charcoal braziers to keep the room warm, but remember, when burning charcoal, the doors and windows should not be closed too tightly."

Li Zhang knew that this was Pei Yuan's affection for Empress Xia, so he naturally wouldn't rush to curry favor with her. A little bit of money was nothing to them.

The two palace maids were filled with mixed feelings, but they only responded stammeringly.

It was getting late, so Pei Yuan didn't dare to linger.

They followed the old route with Li Zhang towards Qianqing Gate.

Once they were a little further away, Pei Yuan found a secluded spot and changed his clothes.

Fearing that he might leave any traces or give others leverage, he simply took the eunuch's robe with him as well.

When they arrived at Qianqing Gate, Pei Yuan walked out in the same grand manner as when he arrived.

Li Zhang stayed a little longer, and seeing that no one was asking any questions, he leisurely left.

Once outside the Qianqing Gate, one enters the outer court area of ​​the imperial palace, where Pei Yuan, as a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, has the freedom to come and go as he pleases.

Just as Pei Yuanzhi was embarking on his journey home, feeling quite pleased with himself.

On the long street outside the palace, people were waiting anxiously in the cold wind.

From the moment Zhao Sui saw Pei Yuan enter the palace in the morning until now, his heart had been hanging in suspense. But Pei Yuan didn't come out, and he waited and waited, but Pei Yuan didn't come out.

It was almost noon, and Pei Yuan still hadn't come out.

Zhao Sui's heart sank to the bottom.

He had just realized how he should live his life when the most crucial person who guided him entered the palace and never returned.

At noon, the men who came with him ate a few bites, but Zhao Sui didn't eat or drink a drop of water and kept staring at the palace gate from afar.

Seeing this, the others also lost their appetite.

At first, Zhao Sui was hoping that Pei Yuan would appear in his sight full of energy, but in the end, he even expected that the guy would be covered in blood and fight his way to the city gate.

At least that gives us some hope.

They were disguised as soup vendors, and their weapons were hidden in advance under the white, oily soup in the wooden bucket behind them.

Fortunately, they were unfamiliar faces on this street, so not many people came to patronize their business. Otherwise, after waiting for so long, they would probably have been exposed.

Zhao Sui and his group were already prepared. As soon as Pei Yuan appeared in their sight, they would grab a sharp knife, tie it to their hands, and seize Pei Yuan amidst the chaos.

As a result, we waited until the afternoon, but there was still no movement at the palace gate.

His trusted aide, who had come with him, became somewhat flustered and couldn't help but whisper to Zhao Sui, "Brother, does the Empress Dowager really need to question someone for so long?"

Zhao Sui, now free from the psychological burden of being the bandit leader of Bazhou and no longer needing to maintain the facade of a strategist, answered rather casually, "I don't know either. I'm just a poor scholar, this is my first time in the capital, how would I know what the rules are in the imperial city?"

"Perhaps the royal family just has a lot of rules."

Even so, Zhao Sui had also prepared for the worst.

It's nothing more than returning to Bazhou to raise our banner again and avenge Brother Pei!

Zhao Sui had been starving and freezing all day, and as darkness fell, even the last glimmer of hope in his heart was about to be extinguished.

But then a commotion was heard coming from the palace gate.

A trusted confidant spotted Pei Yuan at the palace gate immediately.

Seeing that no one was around, he gratefully whispered to Zhao Sui, "Zhuge Jiang has come out!"

Zhao Sui looked closely and saw Pei Yuan staggering out of the palace.

After carefully confirming that it was indeed Pei Yuan, Zhao Sui felt a great weight lifted from his heart. Perhaps it was this sudden joy that made him feel neither hungry nor cold.

With his nerves relaxed, Zhao Sui no longer bothered to hide his true feelings and, along with his other underlings, looked at Pei Yuan with his hands tucked in his pockets.

Zhao Sui glanced at it a few times, put his hands in his pockets, and said to his underlings with a sense of unease, "Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. Look at Zhuge Liang and Jiang Gan, who are so fierce, they were still summoned to the palace to be beaten like dogs."

As everyone watched Pei Yuan emerge from the palace, he leaned against the wall with one hand and supported his waist with the other, resting for quite a while before being helped onto his horse by the guards waiting outside.

When the younger brothers thought back to how that treacherous Zhuge Liang had manipulated the Bazhou army into submission, they couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

It's unbelievable that such a heroic figure could also face such a desperate and embarrassing situation.

Zhao Sui, concerned about Pei Yuan's condition, sent his men to Li Shishi's residence to await news, while he caught up with Pei Yuan's group.

Pei Yuan was lost in thought on horseback when he heard someone calling from behind. He quickly reined in his horse and turned around to look.

When he saw Zhao Sui, he remembered the agreement from yesterday.

He quickly signaled to Lu Yong and the others to let him go.

After Zhao Sui arrived, Pei Yuan dismounted to talk to him.

Zhao Sui quickly stepped forward and said, "No need, Commander. It might aggravate your injuries and hinder their healing."

Pei Yuan was taken aback, unsure of Zhao Sui's meaning.

Then Zhao Sui said, "Commander, I've come to say goodbye. I'll be returning to Jiangxi early tomorrow morning. Once I've selected my men, I'll lead them across the river."

Upon learning of this matter, Pei Yuan didn't mince words and immediately promised, "I will send someone to meet you. In addition, I have prepared 20,000 taels of silver for the brothers who come from Bazhou."

“Take the people to Bazhou and then distribute them among them.”

"Whether they spend it themselves or give it to relatives and friends, it's up to them. If..."

Pei Yuan paused for a moment.

Zhao Sui looked at Pei Yuan, wanting to hear what he had to say next.

But Pei Yuan said, "If they don't believe in the superstition and insist on staying, let them stay."

Zhao Sui clasped his hands in a fist salute and said, "Brothers will certainly live up to the commander's expectations!"

Pei Yuan looked around before his horse and selected Qu Chen from among his personal guards, instructing him to travel south with Zhao Sui and help coordinate their journey.

After seeing Zhao Sui off, Pei Yuan returned to his residence.

Jiao Yan'er had already had dinner prepared.

Lu Yong and his personal guards had been waiting outside the palace for a whole day without food, so Pei Yuan moved the food to the main hall in the front courtyard and shared a meal with them.

Halfway through the meal, Pei Yuan suddenly realized he had made a mistake.

Jiao Xiaomei is incredibly persistent. Even if I try my best to cheer myself up, doesn't Jiao Yan'er know whether I'm truly energetic or not?

Won't this little girl get jealous and escalate her behavior even further?
Pei Yuan ate the food, but it tasted like chewing wax.

The next morning, Pei Yuan woke up feeling somewhat dazed.

After the maids reported back several times, Pei Yuan finally understood that Lu Yong had urgent business to discuss.

Pei Yuan sat for a while and seemed to perk up a bit. When Jiao Yan'er heard that Pei Yuan had woken up, she quickly brought him some soup.

Looking at the beautiful girl's blushing and happy face, Pei Yuan thought to himself, if things continue like this, when will he ever have a chance to sneak off with Commander Song?

Besides, when I entered the inner quarters yesterday, I ran into Qingge and Wanyue again. I haven't played with them since I came back...

Pei Yuan immediately said, "Let's not eat yet. Lu Yong has something to discuss with us. It's probably something important that happened at the Thousand Household Office."

Jiao Yan'er was a little disappointed, so she had the breakfast taken away.

Pei Yuan arrived at the front hall, and Lu Yong stepped forward and said, "Commander, Xiao Tong hasn't been released!"

Pei Yuan found it hard to believe. How could Shuntian Prefecture detain Xiao Tong for such a trivial matter of bullying others?
He quickly asked, "Didn't anyone go to retrieve him yesterday?"

Pei Yuan spent the entire day in the palace yesterday, and it was quite late when he left, so he didn't have time to think about this matter.

Pei Yuan thought the matter had been resolved.

It's just an arrogant act of driving away guests, what's the big deal?
Lu Yong replied, "I don't know how, but the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, Yang Dan, found out about it. When Yang Dan learned that it was the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had broken the law, he immediately detained the person. He said that when Da Chao sees Qian Ning, he will ask him how he managed the person."

Pei Yuanzhen wished she could curse Yang Dan's ancestors for eight generations.

He recalled what happened during the Tanggao parade.

That time, when Tang Gao was surrounded by the failed candidates and dragged off his horse, it was Yang Dan who jumped the most enthusiastically, leading the horse and giving him clothes, almost asking the Imperial Guards for a three-minute advertisement.

The parade of the top scholar, the climax of the entire "Renshen Enke" imperial examination, became his personal stage.

After gaining a surge in reputation by riding the wave of the Renshen Imperial Examination, Yang Dan had clearly tasted success and was now setting his sights on the even more prestigious Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Pei Yuan gradually calmed down and thought about it carefully.

Yang Dan, the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, was the number one prefect in the land.

The official rank of the third grade is a very delicate position.

Calling him a local official is absolutely correct, because he is a local official who is in charge of local affairs.

If you were to say he was a government official in the capital, then he truly was.

Beijing is his jurisdiction, so why can't he be considered a Beijing official?
From the perspective of local officials, his equals were the provincial inspectors of the third rank, those above him were the left and right provincial governors of the second rank, and those below him were the left and right councilors of the third rank.

Basically, when you see a governor or an imperial inspector, you still have to call them "father."

From the perspective of officials in the capital, his counterparts were directly equivalent to the Vice Ministers of the Six Ministries and the Left and Right Vice Censors-in-Chief.

That would make him the father of fathers.

During the Ming Dynasty, the promotion of the Shuntian Prefecture Prefect was very flexible, basically a matter of going from heaven to earth in one step.

As for whether it's heaven or earth, that depends entirely on one's reputation.

Given Yang Dan's qualifications and his background as a descendant of the "Three Yangs," he certainly has a lot of room for advancement if he puts in the effort.

No wonder he would rather step on the Renshen Enke (a high-ranking official in the Renshen era) and stop at nothing to boost his reputation.

Having figured all this out, Pei Yuan was able to roughly understand Yang Dan's intention to cause trouble.

Xiao Tong's bullying and abusing of his power was hardly worth mentioning, and such an incident wouldn't really make a big deal out of it. However, if the matter were to involve Qian Ning, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, then it would be a completely different story.

If we can drag Qian Ning into this staged law enforcement incident, we'll definitely gain a lot of prestige.

As for whether Qian Ning would give Yang Dan money...

Pei Yuan was thinking about the parade that had been completely ruined because of the Qingqian case.

I've come to an answer in my heart.

meeting!
Qian Ning deliberately sent people to stir things up, but Yang Dan seized on their weakness.

As long as Yang Dan holds this leverage, Qian Ning will be forced to suppress him and relentlessly boost his reputation.

However, in doing so, Xiao Tong would likely become the victim.

Pei Yuan was furious and couldn't help but curse, "Has this old bastard gone mad?"

Once Pei Yuan understood that Yang Dan was trying to boost performance, he felt a little more at ease.

Okay, so it's for your reputation, huh?

Pei Yuan said to Lu Yong, "You should spread the word that Xiao Tong was arrested by the Shuntian Prefecture for robbing a prostitute with the family of the Minister of Justice in a restaurant."

"Yang Dan wanted Zhang Zilin to do him a favor during the court hearing, which is why he went to great lengths to help with the case."

"This man is actually the magistrate of the Pimp's Mansion."

Lu Yong carefully noted it down and then hurriedly went to take care of the matter.

Pei Yuan couldn't help but chuckle coldly. Given Yang Dan's reputation, his actions would at most become a laughing stock in the marketplace, but wouldn't seriously damage his reputation.

The key point is that Pei Yuan laid bare those things that couldn't be openly discussed.

Whether Yang Dan flattered Zhang Zilin or became the corrupt prefect was not important.

All you need to do is forcefully link the two events, "Yang Dan" and "Ting Tui," together through a strong topic.

For officials of Yang Dan's rank, any change of position required a formal recommendation process.

Pei Yuan cannot ruin Yang Dan, but he can certainly ruin Yang Dan's recommendation to the emperor.

Pei Yuan had gotten into this mess early in the morning and was feeling quite annoyed.

He didn't go back to the inner quarters for breakfast; instead, he ordered a few people to escort him to Zhihua Temple for his shift.

Upon arriving at Zhihua Temple, Pei Yuan had a pot of tea brewed and then lazily rested in the hall.

Around noon, Yun Buxian hurried in to report, "Commander, there's a result from the imperial court."

The only thing Pei Yuan recently had Yun Buxian focus on was the matter of the precious paper money.

As soon as Yun Buxian arrived, Pei Yuan realized what had probably happened.

He quickly sat up straight in the large chair. "What do you mean?"

Yun Buxian said excitedly, "Your Majesty, based on the price of the first year of Chenghua, each coin is worth four coins, equivalent to one string of paper money."

Pei Yuan was overjoyed to hear this, realizing that Zhu Houzhao had indeed taken his words to heart.

Although the official exchange rate for paper money in the first year of the Chenghua reign was only twice that of the official exchange rate in the fifth year of the Zhengde reign, it is still significant.

But this pushes back the version by fifty years!
With such a strong rebound in the value of the Baochao (precious paper money), coupled with the emergence of Pei Yuan, a major speculator, the value of the Baochao is bound to experience a significant surge.

Putting aside other things, Pei Yuan's current large holdings of paper money have significantly reduced the number of paper money on the market.

When merchants pay taxes, one string of paper money can be exchanged for four coins. This huge interest difference will instinctively make them seek to settle in paper money.

As long as Pei Yuan doesn't loosen his grip, and with the help of customs revenue, the market for precious paper money will become more active in the short term.

The market price of the paper money might start to jump right now.

Pei Yuan certainly wouldn't miss this opportunity.

It's time to add fuel to the fire again.

(End of this chapter)