The Red Mansion Big Liar.

Chapter 522: Enemies don’t get together

"Sir, please wait here. I will meet the Emperor. If His Majesty summons me..."

“Students understand!”

Outside the palace gate, Zhang Yunyi told Wang Hui to wait, greeted the guards at the gate, and then stepped into the palace.

When he was about three meters away from the imperial study, he ran and shouted exaggeratedly: "The emperor is very happy! The emperor is very happy!"

As he stepped over the threshold of the imperial study, he was slightly startled. He then bowed to Emperor Wanlong who was standing in front of the dragon case and said, "I was excited for a moment and I lost my manners in front of the palace. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me!"

Enemies always meet, but I didn’t expect that the Minister of War Li Congwen was also there.

He hesitated for a moment and said, "If Your Majesty has any military business, I'd better wait outside first..."

Emperor Wanlong waved his hand and said, "My dear minister, there is no need to be polite. It's just that there is a little trouble among the refugees in Jiangnan. We have almost finished talking about it. Tell me what the happy event is."

Although the emperor acted calm, Zhang Yunyi noticed that he was frowning.

Hunger and cold give rise to stealing thoughts, while fullness and warmth give rise to lustful desires.

The disaster relief efficiency in ancient times was far less than that of modern times. Even if arrangements were made in advance, there would still be refugees everywhere.

Moreover, the downfall of several prominent families in Jiangnan, such as the Zhen family, was not caused by the annexation of land.

Not only did it fail to arouse the vigilance of the Jiangnan gentry, but it became even worse because it lost the restraint of the Zhen family.

It’s not that the Zhen family played a very good role.

However, when encountering this kind of situation in previous years, not only did the Zhen family account for the majority, but only the aristocratic families that were on good terms with the Zhen family or had the Zhen family's consent could start a war.

The Zhen family and these families did not want to look too greedy, and local officials also needed to achieve political achievements. Although the price of rice was inflated, it was always kept within a certain range.

On the one hand, they annexed land, on the other hand, they provided free porridge to gain a good reputation. In addition, they received disaster relief funds and grain from the imperial court, so they did not cause any trouble.

But now, we are a pack of wolves without a leader. You panic when you see me and I get busy when I see you.

Even though several wealthy households were raided and a lot of money and grain confiscated for disaster relief, the chaos was even worse than in previous years.

Although the chaos is not big, it is still within controllable range.

But Emperor Wanlong had just ascended the throne when such a bad thing happened, especially since there was an emperor above him. How could he not be upset?

Therefore, after receiving the report at the morning court today, Li Congwen was summoned again to discuss the matter as soon as the court was over.

In other words, the person who was disturbed was Zhang Yun逸, and he came to report good news, otherwise, the emperor might not have such a good attitude.

Zhang Yunyi was not surprised to notice that Emperor Wanlong was worried, but happy. He said hurriedly: "Your Majesty is concerned about the country and the people, and works hard to govern the country. He told me to recruit talents in the newspaper and promote Taoism..."

He said a lot of flattering words, then got to the point: "We actually discovered a rare talent!"

Zhang Yun逸 was not simply trying to flatter the emperor, but was thinking about Wang Hui’s interests.

Once the emperor is credited with the ability to judge people, it will not affect Wang Hui's contribution, but will make him more valued.

It's a pity that when Emperor Wanlong heard that it was related to the study of immortality, he couldn't help but feel a little bored.

Zhang Yunyi noticed something and quickly took out Wang Hui's handwriting from his bosom and said, "This man is not only good at making strange weapons, but also has achievements in military equipment. The crossbow he designed is extremely exquisite. Shangshu Li is here too, so why not ask Shangshu to help comment on it!"

After all, he couldn't really predict the future. Seeing that the emperor discussed with Li Congwen in private and believed that there was an invasion of foreign tribes on the border, the crossbow was a timely relief.

The most important affairs of the country are sacrifice and war. Although the emperor did not think that the refugees in Jiangnan could shake the country, he was interested in Zhang Yunyi's evaluation. He ordered Xia Shouzhong to take the handwritten letter and read it for a while before letting him pass it to Li Congwen.

After all, he was not the carpenter emperor of the Ming Dynasty in his previous life, Ming Xizong Zhu Youjiao, who could not see the tricks.

Li Congwen was in charge of the Ministry of War. Although he was not deeply involved in the manufacture of military equipment, he still had some vision.

He hesitated for a moment, then turned to Emperor Wanlong and said, "Your Majesty! This crossbow is quite ingeniously designed, and is even better than the ones used in the army!"

To say that he was slightly better was to flatter himself. After all, the Ordnance Department was under the Ministry of War, and to praise the repeating crossbow in the handwritten document was tantamount to belittling himself.

However, although the value of the crossbow is being downplayed, people don't want to miss it.

Then he continued, "This man is a rare talent in the Ordnance Department. Please hand him over to the Ordnance Department so that he can serve the country!"

Zhang Yunyi sneered, "Ha! Minister Li has a good plan! Since this crossbow is only slightly better than the ones used by the army, it is dispensable for the Armament Department. Why is Lord Li so anxious to get it?"

He mercilessly exposed Li Congwen's little thoughts and said, "Moreover, this person only dabbled in military equipment. On the contrary, the other equipment in the book is closely related to immortal studies and Tiangong Academy. Please forgive me for not being able to give it up!"

After hearing what Zhang Yun逸 said, Li Congwen also became a little anxious and said hurriedly: "This crossbow is related to the safety of the country. How can such a heavy weapon be controlled by outsiders? Your Majesty, please understand!"

Zhang Yun逸 caught him in a dilemma and he got a little anxious and started talking about weapons manufacturing.

But invisibly, it also confirmed that he intentionally belittled the value of the crossbow.

Emperor Wanlong did not have any knowledge of military equipment, but he had a deep understanding of the skills of being an official. He understood the tricks in it and glared at Li Congwen with a little dissatisfaction.

However, although Li Congwen deliberately concealed the truth in order to cover up his shame, his words are not without reason.

In the era of cold weapons, let alone military equipment like crossbows, even the control over iron weapons was quite strict.

He was struggling with this, but Zhang Yunyi had already spoken: "Minister Li, you are joking! What do you mean by outsider? Only your Ministry of War is devoted to the country. Do you think that my Tiangong Academy is a private minister of His Majesty, and therefore an outsider?"

Although they always claim that the world belongs to the emperor, when it comes to the court, the civil officials make a clear distinction between the emperor and the court.

The so-called loyalty is not absolute, which is equal to absolute disloyalty.

Zhang Yun逸 just wanted to take advantage of the situation and make the emperor feel resentful towards Li Congwen.

He seized on this point and pressed on, "Although my Tiangong Academy is not as good as your Ministry of War and is high above the court, I also hope to serve your majesty with all my heart! Not long ago, your majesty allowed me to improve firearms. Now I am kind enough to present the blueprints of the crossbow to your majesty. Tiangong Academy and Xianxue are innovating and improving military equipment, which will be supervised by the Ordnance Department to arm our Daxia soldiers. The two should complement each other, but how come Minister Li said that Zhang was harboring evil intentions?"

His words were so powerful that Li Congwen realized he had been accused and was speechless for a moment.

Zhang Yunyi did not pursue the victory, but retreated to advance: "It's not that I don't want to give up, it's really that the immortal school is weak and needs to be rebuilt. It's rare to have a scholar with profound attainments..."

At this point, he shook his head and said with a conflicted look, "But since we are both serving His Majesty, we should work together. If we can't agree, it will inevitably embarrass His Majesty. Why not invite him to the palace and ask him what he thinks? What does Your Majesty think?"

Originally, after listening to his words, Emperor Wanlong already had a tendency in his mind.

The emperor's mentality is also a way of checks and balances. Being able to divide the power of the Ordnance Department is also in line with his idea.

Zhang Yunyi was so sensible, which formed a sharp contrast with Li Congwen. He nodded in approval and said without comment: "He is actually a scholar. Where is he now? I really want to meet him!"

Zhang Yunyi bowed and said, "I have brought the person here and he is waiting for the announcement at the palace gate!"

Emperor Wanlong immediately made the decision and said, "Okay! Shouzhong, go and summon him to the throne!"

……

(End of this chapter)