Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 243 Reader

Li Zisheng took Pang Qing back to his yard through the side door.

It’s not that he didn’t want to go through the main gate, but there were too many people coming to visit him through the main gate, and he didn’t want to have too much contact with that group of people at this time.

Today, Li Zisheng has the unique power to see the emperor at any time. His status in the court is higher than that of the prime minister. Everyone in the court knows that currying favor with him is useful, because he is trustworthy and can basically meet their needs as long as the money is in place. Most importantly, the emperor does not care about the affairs of the people around him, so people naturally come to visit his house in an endless stream.

As soon as Li Zisheng came back, the receptionist placed a visitor list in front of him.

"I don't have time today, let's make arrangements tomorrow."

Li Zisheng pushed the list away and directly refused.

The receptionist was very surprised when he heard this.

You are the most important figure in the court. Your hands are cramped from accepting gifts. If you work a little harder, it will be no problem for you to earn a hundred taels of silver in an hour. Yet you still have the leisure to go out?

But who is this person that you need to meet in person?

Doesn't calling him here show how much you value him?

"Bingkun..."

"In the."

"When you left Zhang's house, you hesitated to speak, but what did you find today?"

Li Zisheng was an extremely sensitive person, and he noticed something unusual about Pang Qing's attitude.

Pang Qing said: "I have met the two young masters of the Zhang Mansion and I think they seem to be very extraordinary."

"What?"

Li Zisheng frowned and asked, "You are telling me about the young master of the Zhang family. Are you planning to join his family after I lose power?"

"Master Dao, are you talking and laughing?"

Pang Qing felt embarrassed after hearing this.

I just mentioned that there was a problem with Zhang Laizhan’s two sons, and you suspected that I was going to betray you?

Isn’t the association too rich?

Li Zisheng said, "Bingkun, I advise you not to look at the basin while eating from the pot. This is not what you, as an aide, should do. By the way, what happened to Laizhan's two sons?"

When Pang Qing heard this, he said, "You have warned me like this, how can I still tell you the truth?"
"There is something going on, but I can't tell what's wrong. I heard from the eldest son of the Zhang family about some business they have been doing recently. It seems quite mysterious. I've been wondering if it has anything to do with the telescope." Pang Qing analyzed.

"Do you think Zhang Laizhan knows how to make telescopes?"

Li Zisheng asked.

Pang Qing shook his head honestly.

"That's it, isn't it? Even Zhang Laizhan doesn't understand, so what do his two sons know? Zhang Laizhan is just like those people who suddenly became famous, eager to cash in on the power at hand, but he was a little too hasty and actually pushed his son out to take the blame... He has been working with me for a long time, how can I treat him badly?"

Li Zisheng evaluated the up-and-coming newcomers with the attitude of a person with experience.

Pang Qing said: "But they seem to have the support of Huizhou merchants behind them..."

Li Zisheng smiled and said, "It doesn't matter how capable a few local merchants are. A little bit of power can make them go bankrupt, right?

"There are so many powerful people in this world. They usually keep those merchants around, slaughter them when the time is right, and then keep them around again... Don't you understand this principle?"

Pang Qing thought, you say I don’t understand, so I don’t understand?
The Huizhou merchants have already realized that they are lambs to be slaughtered, so haven't they begun to actively make friends with the powerful and wealthy and look for backers for themselves?
"Bingkun, let me advise you, even if I really fall into poverty in the future, if you want to seek refuge, it's best to find a top official or a nobleman in the court as your master. After all, the Zhang family is just an in-law. No matter how glorious it is, can it be more glorious than the Wan family in the past? Lian Waner was just a big trouble in the capital. Can he control the affairs of the court?"

Li Zisheng looked very proud.

Look at me, I’m much more awesome than those in-laws.

Pang Qing smiled and said, "You are right. I only want to work for you and do not want to seek refuge with someone else. A loyal servant does not serve two masters."

"hehe."

Li Zisheng was very satisfied and said with a smile, "Then show me your actual actions. Tomorrow I will arrange a table at the Jiaofang Division. I want to entertain the new Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Xu Qiong. It's time to show my skills."

"Minister Xu? Where is Zhang Banxian..."

"Forget about coming to visit. If you want to invite him, I will invite him alone. Although I am visiting him, I still have to avoid letting others know that I am in contact with him. But he may send someone to my house tomorrow, so you should keep an eye on him at all times."

……

……

That night.

After two days of hard writing, Zhu Youtang finally finished copying the first three chapters of The Scholars.

Zhang Yu took it in his hand and looked at it, saying, "It doesn't seem like there's much, why did it take you so long to copy it?"

Zhu Youtang said: "Yu'er, I have tried my best, okay? This is my writing speed, and there are already tens of thousands of words, right? I don't know how Yanling wrote it, it's amazing."

"You're tired of this?"

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "According to Yanling, this is only one tenth of the content of the book."

"what!?"

Zhu Youtang felt a headache after hearing this.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "But your handwriting is very neat. If the emperor sees it, he will definitely think you are very filial. Let's have someone send it over tomorrow."

Zhu Youtang asked, "Why don't you wait until you finish writing before submitting it?"

Zhang Yu shook his head and said, "You have to let the emperor take a look first to see if he is satisfied. If he doesn't like it, then it would be in vain if you continue writing. If he likes it, then we can continue. According to my brother, when writing a story or a play, there must be a hook to arouse the interest of the readers."

"Is that right?"

Zhu Youtang looked down at what he had written, feeling somewhat unbelievable. After all, he had rarely written so many words before, and most of the time he was just listening. "Yanling really knows a lot."

Zhang Yu nodded and said, "You should indeed discuss this with Yanling in the future. No one in the family knows where his wonderful ideas come from...

"My father said that he might have opened his clairvoyance and had innate wisdom, while my mother said that he might have a famous teacher outside. In short, no one in my family could figure out his specific situation."

Zhu Youtang smiled and asked, "Did he help you a lot?"

"Of course."

Zhang Yu said seriously, "He is my brother. If I don't help me, who else can he help? Besides, he is still young and will continue to grow. I don't know how high he will eventually rise. If his wisdom and wisdom can help you, it would be great."

"Uh-huh."

Zhu Youtang nodded.

Zhang Yu said, "You should go and give the manuscript to your father tomorrow morning."

"Do you need me to go there in person?"

Zhu Youtang asked.

Zhang Yu thought for a moment and said, "If you ask Mrs. Qin to do it for you, won't it seem that you are not sincere enough? It is better to go in person... before the morning class. I believe that what you write in person should be presented to the emperor without any obstacles, right?"

"Probably... probably?"

Zhu Youtang himself didn't have much confidence.

In the past, he never felt how important he was in the palace.

But now after getting married, Zhu Youtang obviously felt that people around him respected him much more. Even Qin Chang and Wei Tai, the big stewards in the palace, were respectful when they saw him. This was something he would never have dared to think of before.

"Then let's rest early." Zhang Yu said.

Zhu Youtang's face was full of apology: "I have been busy writing these days and have not paid any attention to you. Are you not angry?"

Zhang Yu rolled her eyes at him and said, "Husband and wife are together for a long time, why bother about that moment? Showing your filial piety is more important than anything else." "Oh."

It was not until this time that Zhu Youtang realized that filial piety sometimes needs to be expressed through means. Otherwise, what is the point of being filial if no one knows about it?

……

……

The next morning, Zhu Youtang personally delivered the copied first three chapters of "The Scholars" to the Qianqing Palace.

Tan Chang was not serving in the Qianqing Palace. After hearing the news, he hurried over from the Silijian, picked up a thick stack of manuscripts and asked curiously, "Is this really written by the prince?"

Xiao Jing, who was in charge of reviewing the manuscript, replied, "It was sent by the Crown Prince himself. I have read it and it is indeed the Crown Prince's handwriting."

"Tsk, tsk."

Qin Chang flipped it open and glanced through it, saying, "At first glance, I thought it was a scripture like the Diamond Sutra, but it turned out to be a folk story? The prince is really thoughtful."

"Mr. Yin, do you think... the prince is being filial?"

Xiao Jing was a little confused.

The prince's gift of the storybook was clearly a delay in his studies and a distraction from his studies, but how come Qin Chang regarded it as a manifestation of filial piety? If the emperor was furious, who would take responsibility?

Tan Chang waved his hand, meaning that Xiao Jing didn't need to worry about it, and then he personally carried the manuscript into the inner hall of the Qianqing Palace.

At this time, Emperor Chenghua had just got up. Because Zhu Jianshen almost never attended the early morning court in recent years and had nothing to prepare for that day, he just sat there with a dazed look on his face, staring out the window, and was indifferent when he saw Tan Chang come in.

"I'm getting older, and I don't even sleep as much as I did a few years ago."

Zhu Jianshen heard the familiar footsteps and knew it was Qin Chang. He sighed with a bleak look on his face.

Qin Chang thought, isn't it? In the first few years, you were partying every night. You would indulge in pleasure until the early morning, then sleep until the sunset in the afternoon, then wake up. After dinner, you would take care of important court affairs, then go out to have fun again, and the cycle would repeat.

It seems that the dragon's body is not in good condition now and it no longer has the energy.

"What's that in your hand?"

Zhu Jianshen seemed to realize that what Qin Chang was holding in his hand did not look like a memorial, so he asked curiously.

Tan Chang smiled and replied, "It was sent by the Crown Prince early this morning. I have read it and it is a storybook. It seems to be written by the Crown Prince himself, for Your Majesty to relieve his boredom."

Even though Zhu Jianshen thought this was ridiculous, he still smiled and said, "When did the prince learn to write a story? What did he write about?"

“I didn’t look closely.”

Qin Chang said, "But after a quick look, it seems to be something from the officialdom."

"Officialdom!?"

Zhu Jianshen didn't take it seriously at first, but when he heard that his son, who had never been in court and had never been involved in officialdom, actually wrote words reflecting officialdom, as a father he naturally became interested.

Zhu Jianshen hooked his finger and said, "Bring it here, let me take a look."

Qin Chang stepped forward and handed the script to Zhu Jianshen.

Zhu Jianshen didn't take it seriously at first. He just opened the first page and glanced at it casually.

After finishing the first page, he continued to read the second page without stopping, and he couldn't take his eyes off it for a long time.

Tan Chang was about to go over to ask about the situation, but he saw Zhu Jianshen waving his hand impatiently and said, "Don't disturb me while I'm reading... You can leave first!"

Qin Chang mistakenly thought that the emperor wanted to find something unreasonable or irregular in the storybook and find fault with the prince, so he bowed and took his leave.

……

……

When Qin Chang returned to the Imperial Household Department and brought the memorials approved by several eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department last night to the Qianqing Palace, preparing to report to the emperor, he learned that Emperor Chenghua still had not eaten breakfast.

"what happened?"

Tan Chang called Cao Run, the eunuch of the Qianqing Palace, to inquire about the situation.

Cao Run said aggrievedly, "My Lord, I don't know what happened. Your Majesty has been holding the manuscript you presented to him since a long time ago and has been reading it until now. I went in to ask for food several times, but was turned away every time."

Tan Chang muttered, "It's really strange."

After saying that, Qin Chang tiptoed into the inner hall.

Sure enough, Zhu Jianshen was still sitting on the soft couch where he had left, holding the manuscript in his hands and reading it carefully. Sometimes his face looked gloomy, sometimes he looked puzzled, and sometimes he suddenly realized and looked happy.

The emperor kept his eyes fixed from beginning to end.

It seems that Zhu Jianshen's emotional state has always been affected by the content of the manuscript.

Qin Chang couldn't help but wonder, is the storybook written by the prince really so charming?

"His Majesty?"

Qin Chang finally plucked up the courage to come forward and ask for instructions.

When Zhu Jianshen heard Tan Chang's voice, he raised his head and asked, "You haven't left yet?"

Qin Chang said helplessly: "Your Majesty, I have already gone to the Imperial Household Department to handle my business, but now I have to come back again."

"Has it been so long? I don't even think..."

Zhu Jianshen stretched out his legs and suddenly signaled Qin Chang to come over to help him. Then he smiled and said, "Oh, oh, my legs and feet are numb from sitting. Let me relax for a while..."

Qin Chang felt relieved when he saw a smile on Zhu Jianshen's face and a little more vigor in his voice.

He helped Zhu Jianshen to sit down at the table and reminded him quietly: "Your Majesty, breakfast has not been served yet."

"Hey, if you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed that I'm actually feeling a little hungry."

Zhu Jianshen touched his shrunken belly and said with a smile, "It's just that this book is too attractive. I was so absorbed in reading it that I missed my breakfast without realizing it... I'll upload it later! It's a pity that this book only has a few pages and I finished reading it in a short time. I wonder what happened to Fan Jin and Hu the Butcher in the back."

The third chapter of The Scholars tells the story of Fan Jin passing the imperial examination.

Zhu Youtang wrote furiously, and it was good enough if he could copy four to five thousand words a day. As a result, what he wrote was not even enough for his old father to read.

Qin Chang asked in surprise: "Your Majesty, is this what is in the storybook?"

Zhu Jianshen nodded and said, "It's not something in the storybook, so could it be that I made it up myself?"

Zhu Jianshen put the manuscript on the table and raised his hand, saying, "How about this, you go to the East Palace in person and ask the prince where the rest of the story is? Ask him to write it down for me to see."

"This……"

Qin Chang was in a bit of a dilemma.

The prince is about to go to Wenhua Palace to study, and you actually let your son delay his normal studies and write storybooks for you instead?

Is there a father like you?

Zhu Jianshen said: "By the way, ask him where he heard these things from. If he has the originals, ask him to show them to me. Hey, this morning passed by so quickly. Time passed in the blink of an eye."

Tan Chang said respectfully: "I will prepare breakfast for you and go now."

"ASAP."

Zhu Jianshen said with anticipation, "I don't know why, after reading the story above, my mind is filled with those vivid people and events. I can't wait to see the following content. If I can't see it for a while, I will be anxious... Tell the prince not to delay and send it to me as soon as possible!"

"Yes."

Qin Chang thought to himself, the prince is now amazing. He actually has a way to show his filial piety to Your Majesty and has won Your Majesty's heart. Why didn't I think of this trick?

(End of this chapter)