Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 216 Investment and Return (Subscription Request)
After about an incense stick of time, Pang Qing left quietly.

Zhang Luan took Zhang Yanling and Qin Yun to their doorstep.

Zhang Luan was also wary of Tan Yun. It was not until he entered the house that he explained the purpose of Pang Qing's visit: "He asked two questions. One was about the origin of Huangshan mica. He asked me to calculate it, but I saw that he was clearly suspicious of me. Son, shouldn't we have told Li Zisheng about our previous visit to Tan Ji?"

"of course not!"

Zhang Yanling said decisively: "It is precisely because we told him that it seems that we are helping him... We are trying to persuade him to turn back..."

"What does it mean to turn back?"

Zhang Luan frowned.

Zhang Yanling replied with a smile: "The shore is on the other side of the Crown Prince. If Li Zisheng wants to help Liang Fang implement the plan of changing the crown prince, he will be stubborn and will die without a burial place in the future."

Zhang Luan said, "From what he said, Li Zisheng doesn't want to get involved in this matter this time... But he still told us what he found out. Deng Changen is working on some colored glass in order to make a telescope. Colored glass... can't it be the same material you use?"

"Dad, are you doubting my professionalism?"

Zhang Yanling said with a smile.

"There are so many talented people in the court, are you sure nothing will go wrong?"

Zhang Luan was still not reassured.

Zhang Yanling grinned and said, "Let me put it this way. Even if I hand over the forming technology to you, without dozens of skilled craftsmen working together for ten or eight years, they simply can't make perfect concave and convex lenses, let alone accurately focus and finally complete the production of the telescope."

Zhang Luan's eyes widened: "That sounds like a lot of effort."

Zhang Yanling nodded and asked, "What else did he say to you?"

Zhang Luan sighed, "He said that Li Zisheng wanted to send a gift to the palace in exchange for His Majesty's smile. He also asked me which of the four things, wine, sex, money and anger, should be focused on."

"Huh? Is he kidding?"

Zhang Yanling asked in surprise.

Zhang Luan said, "I also said that, do you need to ask me this? Your Majesty is naturally not short of fine wine and delicious food. As for wealth...even the whole world belongs to the emperor, how can Your Majesty be short of money? It must be sex and anger!"

"That's right in theory," Zhang Yanling said, "but if Li Zisheng can find several million taels of silver for the emperor in one go, the emperor will definitely look at him differently."

"Hey, stop joking. I told you to go back and study it carefully, and now... I'm here to find you... I wonder what you think?"

Zhang Luan looked at his son with a stern face, looking hopeful: "You don't want to help Li Zisheng, I understand, I also know that you want to leave all the benefits to the prince, now there is really no need for us to have much contact with Li Zisheng. Your sister is already the crown princess, and I can't be an official now, so I can completely ignore him. But... if we cut off contact, will it make us establish a powerful opponent?"

Zhang Yanling nodded slightly and said, "Indeed, in the short term, we still have to maintain a feigned attitude towards Li Zisheng and try to reveal some unimportant news to him... Let me think about it and tell you later!"

Just as Zhang Yanling was about to go into the room to continue drawing the blueprint, Zhang Luan reminded him, "Oh, by the way, Pang Bingkun also said that Deng Changen and Liang Fang are together. Deng Changen is likely to use Liang Fang's hand to present the elixir to Your Majesty... the elixir that was previously presented to Li Zisheng and Wan Ge Lao, but failed. I guess Li Zisheng may want me to help him make the elixir."

"Dad, you are a doctor, not a Taoist priest. Forget about refining the elixir. If you are not careful, you will get into trouble. Besides, I, your son, can't do anything about it."

Zhang Yanling's voice floated out from the door.

……

……

That night, at Liang Fang’s residence.

Zhang Jin, the pacification envoy of the Northern Pacification Division of the Jinyiwei, knelt in front of Liang Fang. There were two brocade boxes on the table next to him. They were the gifts that Zhang Jin brought for Liang Fang.

"Mr. Zhang, my family has lost the emperor's favor. I am afraid that my time in the court is running out, and I will be unable to help you in the future."

Liang Fang acted self-pityingly and deliberately showed her weak side in front of Zhang Jin.

Zhang Jin still knelt on the ground and said respectfully: "Eunuch, you are just having a bad time. Your Majesty will definitely understand your difficulties... After hearing about the Huangshan mica, I also sent people to investigate secretly, hoping to find this item for you."

Liang Fang waved her hand and said, "It's good to find Huangshan Mica, but it's okay if you don't find it. Besides, even if you find it, it's just a tie with the prince. It's not worth being proud of!"

"you……"

Zhang Jin was a little frightened.

Obviously, the most important thing for you, Liang Fang, is to successfully present the telescope before the deadline given by the emperor. Why did you pretend to be in front of me? Besides, isn't it inappropriate for you to mention the fight with the prince in front of a subordinate like me who is almost a stranger?
Relying on the emperor's favor, you have the courage to fight against the prince, but people like us who are small can only look up to the prince and cannot even reach him. Unless you are tired of living, you would think of going against the royal family.

"Do you still remember the incident with Chen Zhun?"

Liang Fang suddenly asked.

Zhang Jin was startled, and then he said with some doubt: "It has been nearly a year since Eunuch Chen passed away. At that time, I was only a thousand households of the Jinyiwei, so I am not very clear about the specific details."

"He has incurred the wrath of God. Do you know why?" Liang Fang said.

"I don't know." Zhang Jin said.

"Alas! Since you are in charge of the Northern Pacification Office, why don't you even inquire about the details? How can you see the big picture from the small details? Humph, he secretly impeached my family, saying that my family embezzled hundreds of thousands of taels of palace gold. Your Majesty didn't want him to make the matter public. Then Empress Wan said in front of Your Majesty that this person had evil intentions, so Your Majesty ordered him to commit suicide."

When Liang Fang said this, there was a cold and spooky smile on her face.

Zhang Jin shrank back and said, "This is the first time I've heard of this..."

"Haha, even now people are still praising him for maintaining his reputation as a loyal official and saying he is a rare good official. They also say that he hesitated to hang himself because he was protecting the wronged civil servants. These are all wishful thinking of those guys who claim to be upright. It is pure delusion."

Liang Fang's eyes flashed coldly, and she said, "I have something I want to ask you for help... Is Zheng Shi, the Left Counselor of the Shandong Provincial Administration Office, currently in the Imperial Prison of the Northern Pacification Office?"

"Yes."

Zhang Jin replied cautiously, "It's about the previous case of lost tribute, but... there's no concrete evidence yet..."

Liang Fang asked: "How does the Northern Pacification Office plan to deal with him?"

Zhang Jin quickly replied: "The case has been reported, and we are just waiting for His Majesty's approval."

Liang Fang gritted his teeth and said, "Faced with a sycophantic official who disrespects the emperor, you don't know how to use some tactics? You should get his confession and ask him to give out the people who helped him in the court."

"This……"

Zhang Jin understood immediately that Liang Fang was planning to have him torture Zheng Shi and force him to confess.

Although the previous case of missing tribute did not involve ministers related to the capital and the Eastern Palace, or in other words, those famous scholars who might speak for the prince were eliminated in one fell swoop, Zheng Shi had the established crime of withholding tribute, so it was reasonable for him to be imprisoned.

Liang Fang has not found any other way to target the officials of the Eastern Palace, so he plans to start with Zheng Shi.

If there is no physical evidence, just create human evidence.

As long as the emperor wants to investigate, evidence is enough.

"Why, can't it?"

Liang Fang threatened, "Zhang Chenshi, you are not helping our family, but His Majesty. As the backbone of the Jinyiwei, you should have known His Majesty's intentions. The Crown Prince of the East Palace... is so weak, how can he inherit the throne in the future?"

Zhang Jin felt sweaty all over.

He was scared to death after meeting Liang Fang only once.

"I don't quite understand what to do." Zhang Jin felt the sweat dripping down his forehead, and he quickly wiped it with his sleeve when Liang Fang turned around.

Liang Fang said: "The Northern Pacification Office should torture Zheng Shi immediately to make him implicate more people. You should also pursue this case relentlessly in the hope of pulling out the radish and bringing out the mud. By then, a group of ministers who claim to be upright will confront you, the Jinyiwei, and even form a sharp opposition with Your Majesty, forcing the Crown Prince to express his position. By then..."

Zhang Jin said puzzledly: "But...Since Lord Liang has said that the prince is weak and can be bullied, he may not come forward to take care of such matters."

"The prince is cowardly, but he is the most benevolent. As long as it involves the people around him, he will not sit idly by."

Liang Fang said sinisterly, "Your Majesty has been in poor health recently. If we make him angry at this critical moment, it would be disloyal, unfilial, unkind and unjust. By then, it won't be long before the replacement of the crown prince is needed."

"what?"

Zhang Jin was horrified after hearing this. He had taken such a huge risk and was almost at odds with the prince, but you didn't tell me what the benefit of doing this would be?
If the crown prince keeps his position as heir to the throne, will I still be able to serve in the court in the future?

Liang Fang said, "Don't worry. In the future, not only will you be the commander of the Imperial Guard, you may even be granted the title of Marquis or Duke. You are helping Concubine Shao and the Fourth Prince now. They will remember your kindness. Do you understand?"

"Oh yes."

After finally hearing the reward he would get after risking everything, Zhang Jin thought to himself, I'm completely on the wrong boat.

"Don't be ungrateful. If the Crown Prince really gains power and consolidates his position as the heir to the throne, do you think you can keep your official position when Huai En comes back?"

After Liang Fang made a promise, she started to threaten them again, smiling coldly, "Now I just want you to find a way to frame them. All the people related to the Eastern Palace must be found out for their misdeeds, and not a single one can be let go. I don't believe that they have no flaws."

"those people……"

Zhang Jin wanted to ask, although those people are related to the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, they are not the key factors in deciding the change of the crown prince, is it necessary to make things so awkward?

Liang Fang sneered and said, "We must completely clip the prince's wings so that he can't fly. If three to five months doesn't work, then three to five years will do. The prince is in poor health and can't stand a few years of hardship. By then, no one in the court will speak for him, and we can use some tricks..."

As Zhang Jin listened, beads of sweat kept falling down.

From what you said, it seems that you are planning to murder the prince.

How can this be a pirate ship?

It's like the gate of hell.

"Do your job well, and we won't treat you unfairly." Liang Fang finally said sternly.

……

……

After Zhang Jin left, Wei Xing, who had been hiding in the dark, jumped out.

"Sir, can this man be trusted? Have you said too much to him?"

Wei Xing was also inexplicably surprised.

What you said earlier, let alone Zhang Jin, made me feel terrified.

You don't mean this for real, do you?
Liang Fang said, "If we don't force him, how will he know which side to lean towards? People in the court must have a clear stance, either left or right. If you want to be an impartial fence-sitter, you will die without knowing how. Zhang Jin has been in the Jinyiwei for so many years, doesn't he even understand this principle?"

Wei Xing suddenly realized, "I understand. Zhang Jin knows that he cannot integrate into Huai En's camp, so he will not be liked by the prince. He can only obey you."

……

……

February twelve.

It is the day of the Crown Prince's wedding ceremony.

Early in the morning, civil and military officials had already entered the palace, ready to attend the ceremony.

The etiquette process is that the Crown Prince has to toast and salute his old father Zhu Jianshen before setting out to welcome the bride. This is a very important step in the welcoming ceremony.

Different from folk wedding ceremonies, royal wedding ceremonies require the presence of ministers as witnesses.

"…Early in the morning, the Minister of the Honglu Temple led two people, dressed in court attire, and the attendants of the Eastern Palace to wait in front of the gate of the Wenhua Hall.

The Crown Prince came out and kowtowed.

The assistant led the two men, the attendants and the guides through the left gate of Fengtian and entered the tent, fully clothed and waiting.

The drums were beaten three times, and the emperor came out wearing a Tongtian crown and a gauze robe with sashes, and the Honglu Temple invited him to take the seat.

He went to the Fengtian Palace, where music played and imperial guards were guarded.

The civil and military officials all wore their best attire and kowtowed, and lined up in groups as usual, and the music stopped..."

All the steps are being carried out step by step. Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Jianshen sitting on the throne looked very tired, and seemed unwilling to attend his son's wedding. However, as this was the tradition of the Ming royal family, as a father, he could not completely ignore his son.

After Zhu Youtang finished his toast, Zhu Jianshen took the wine cup and took a sip, then said, "I will go to meet you, the Prime Minister, to take over my clan's affairs. I will ask you to show your respect."

Zhu Youtang kowtowed and said, "I obey your orders."

Then Zhu Youtang stood up under Zan Yin's instructions, left with the Eastern Palace staff, changed clothes in the newly built tent outside the palace gate, and prepared to set out to welcome the bride.

The historical records state: "The crown prince was led by the Zan and descended from the East Steps to the Danchi. The officials inside and outside the East Palace all led him out from the Fengtian Left Gate. Outside the Wumen Gate, the curtain changed his clothes."

……

……

There was already a huge crowd of people in front of Zhang's house.

No matter whether they knew the person or not, even if Zhang Luan didn't even know who he was, they would come over and join in the fun.

Because this place is located in a prosperous area in the north of the city, adjacent to the Imperial Examination Hall and the Confucian Temple, and Zhang Luan was a student of the Imperial College, many Jusheng and Gongsheng who came to Beijing to take part in the imperial examinations would come to see the scenery, so there were a lot of people wearing Confucian robes in the crowd.

It even seems like if you come to watch the fun and don't wear a formal shirt, you'd feel ashamed to not hold your head up.

"Have you heard? This father-in-law of the Eastern Palace was just an ordinary student in Hejian Prefecture a few months ago. In just a few months, he was awarded the title of tribute student and married into the Eastern Palace. It can be said that he rose to prominence overnight."

"You make it sound like every princess is like this. If you have a sister who is well-educated, gentle, generous, and beautiful, maybe she can become the future uncle of the emperor."

"Don't say that. I heard you're from Shandong... Let me ask you, when the prince was selecting his concubines, did you get any news? Even if there are famous ladies in each family, if they are not from the suburbs of Beijing, they may not have had time to participate in the selection."

"Really? I wonder what the meaning is?"

"I heard that the Royal Concubine Wan in the palace was ill, and they needed the prince to marry her to bring good luck. But the Royal Concubine passed away just after the concubine was chosen and before the wedding was completed."

"Don't gossip about royal affairs. It's a serious sin."

"It's not a secret..."

A group of people were talking there, basically they were candidates from the north, some from Shandong, some from Henan, and even some from northern Zhili.

In the Ming Dynasty officialdom, even if the southern and northern officials were not clearly divided, they were separated by factions. As a result, after the candidates came to the capital, the candidates from the south of the Yangtze River formed their own group, while the candidates from the north tried their best to get together with their own circle.

Who knows if the person I meet today will actually pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi in the future?

When the time comes, when they become officials, even if you fail the exam, you can be taken care of as an official by being a juren.

The officialdom of the Ming Dynasty was a society based on personal relationships. Candidates valued personal relationships everywhere. What they wanted was to be prepared for any eventuality. No matter whether it was useful or not, it would always be a good idea to make more friends.

"A student, even if he became a provincial tribute student, can never compare with us."

A candidate named Hong from Shandong said with a proud look on his face.

But at this moment, a man came over here and said in a thick Sichuan accent: "I don't know who said that the relatives of the current East Palace want to compete with us candidates? Do you have a good match for the East Palace?"

"Who are you?"

The man surnamed Hong immediately glared over.

Then someone beside the Sichuan candidate laughed and replied: "I don't know, this is the champion of the Sichuan competition, he is very knowledgeable."

"What's the connection between the candidates on the Southern List and those on the Northern List? Is it so great to be the first place in the exam?" The man surnamed Hong couldn't stand it, and then he had an idea and asked, "Could it be the first place in Sichuan this year?"

The man with a Sichuan accent introduced himself: "I am the top scorer in the imperial examination. My surname is Liu, my given name is Chun, and my courtesy name is Renzhong."

This means that he was the top scorer in the imperial examination in the 19th year of Chenghua.

Liu Chun then added: "The imperial examinations in this world are the same regardless of north or south. We are here together and it is fate. It is a pleasure to meet you!"

Then someone sitting in a teahouse not far away asked with a smile: "What do you mean by no distinction between north and south? Why are there always more candidates from the south of the Yangtze River, but fewer from the north?"

The speaker was Chai Meng.

Next to Chai Meng sat Zhang Yanling and Qin Zhao, who was dressed in men's clothes.

Qin Zhao came to discuss something with Zhang Yanling that day... It was related to the business that was currently being promoted, especially the soap. It was also because today was the day when the East Palace personally welcomed the bride, some things were inconvenient, so Qin Zhao could only appear in men's clothing.

This makes him look quite heroic.

Zhang Yanling waved his hand and said, "Mr. Chai, why are you telling them all this? If you want to fight, do it yourself, don't implicate us."

What I mean is, if you want to show up, go and argue with them. I have something else to do here, so let's not disturb each other.

The young man was indeed full of energy. Upon hearing this, Chai Meng immediately stood up and walked towards the group of scholars.

Qin Zhao looked at Chai Meng and said with a smile: "This Mr. Chai is quite ambitious."

Zhang Yanling sneered: "A mere student is going to such great lengths to argue with a group of candidates, especially one of whom is a top scholar. He is indeed a young and insolent person who is not afraid of tigers."

"hehe."

Qin Zhao smiled helplessly.

Seeing Chai Meng's indomitable momentum, people who didn't know him would think that he was the top scholar from Shanxi, and was going to compete with the top scholar from Sichuan in talent. Although he might not be good at other things, he had a strong aura.

……

……

Zhang Yanling ignored the dispute over there for the time being.

Qin Zhao was explaining the situation: "...Second Master, the soap is now widely circulated in the capital. It is said that it was a tribute together with the telescope.

"Merchants in Huizhou have sent many people to Huangshan Mountain to obtain Huangshan mica for making telescopes. It is said that they have searched every mountaintop, but have still found nothing. I wonder..."

Qin Zhao came here to find out the truth.

She had never seen what a telescope looked like, but she had samples of soap.

Since these two items were tied together as tribute, it is very likely that the telescope was also made by Zhang Yanling.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Huangshan mica is just an excuse."

"what?"

Qin Zhao was shocked, and then asked, "That means... all the hard work of the people in Huizhou was in vain?"

Zhang Yanling shrugged and said, "They wanted to find it themselves. Who can we blame? Besides, why do they have to find it? Is it really that big of a difference whether there is Huangshan mica or not?"

Qin Zhao had a very cautious look on his face and lowered his voice and said, "As far as I know, a telescope made of Huangshan mica can bring distant objects closer. Is this true?"

"Big brother?"

Zhang Yanling glanced at Zhang Heling who was eating noodles next to him.

Zhang Heling reluctantly slammed the telescope on his waist onto the table.

Zhang Yanling shouted: "Be gentle, don't break it."

"If it's broken, you have to give me a new one."

Zhang Heling said indistinctly.

"Do you have any shame? You broke it yourself and you want me to compensate you?" Zhang Yanling glared at his brother, then said to Qin Zhao, "Look, this is it."

Qin Zhao placed his hand on the telescope, and his whole arm was shaking slightly.

The thing that the emperor asked someone to find appeared before his eyes and was treated like a toy by the eldest son of the Zhang family. It felt like... a priceless treasure was treated as a piece of broken stone and thrown away casually.

"The way to use it is, you need to focus first, then stretch it."

Zhang Yanling taught Qin Zhao how to use the telescope correctly.

After reading it, Qin Zhao roughly understood how to use it. He took it and looked into the distance with an expression of disbelief. He quickly put the thing down, fearing that he would damage the telescope and would not be able to pay for it.

"so……"

Qin Zhao wanted to say something, but didn't know where to start.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "We are business partners, so we have to keep it a secret."

"It's natural."

Qin Zhao said solemnly, "I came here without even bringing any escorts with me this time, and I will not let anyone around me know about this, to avoid leaking the news."

Zhang Yanling nodded in approval and said, "If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have shown it to you."

Qin Zhao asked in a slightly excited tone: "So this thing... can also be mass-produced in the workshop in the future?"

"It's natural."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Not only this, but also soap and other things, but right now... it's not appropriate. As you know, the prince has not yet taken power, and the interests behind him are too great, so we can only keep a low profile as much as possible."

"Yes."

Qin Zhao certainly understood the situation behind this.

It is said that Huangshan mica is extremely precious, but you are producing it in large quantities and it is everywhere on the streets. Not only will it be exposed, but you may also be considered to have committed the crime of deceiving the emperor and be used as an opportunity to attack you.

"That……"

Qin Zhao really wanted to ask, if you can make it, but you can’t make it now, isn’t it a waste of such a good thing?
Zhang Yanling took out another thing from his arms and handed it to Qin Zhao: "How about this?"

Qin Zhao took it in his hand and was immediately attracted by the object in front of him. It was another magical item that Liuli could make... a mirror.

As a woman, although Qin Zhao behaves like a man in business, everyone has a love for beauty. Facing such a small round mirror, she couldn't take her eyes off herself in the mirror for a moment.

"This... is also something that our workshop can make?"

Qin Zhao asked.

"That's natural."

Zhang Yanling said, "But this thing is more expensive and has a high scrap rate. It is very difficult to make a better one at present. The firing of colored glaze requires good craftsmen to control the quality. Currently, I am the only one... hehe."

I mean, no one can do it except me.

Qin Zhao said: "It is rumored that the essence of Huangshan mica is colored glaze. It seems that it is true."

Zhang Yanling said, "Don't worry. Even if they know that the two are similar, or that it is actually glass, so what? Has Master Qin seen this thing before?"

"Never seen before..."

Just when Qin Zhao wanted to ask Zhang Yanling to keep the sample, Zhang Yanling took the glass mirror back.

"This is the only side that I cannot give to Mr. Qin for the time being. Please forgive me." Zhang Yanling said, "It should be said that there are two sides. The other side was given to our sister as a wedding gift."

Qin Zhao was envious again when he heard this.

There are only two good things in the world. One is in the hands of the Crown Princess, and the other is right in front of him.

Don't be envious.

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(End of this chapter)