Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 569 Rat Shit (asking for monthly ticket)
Zhang Luan returned home humming a tune, in a very good mood.

It was as if the knot in my heart had finally been untied.

But he did not forget to look for his son. After a short rest at home, he took a carriage out of the city and went to the workshop in the south of the city to see his son who was busy at work.

"What are you up to now, kid? Hasn't the invention of the new loom come to an end yet?"

When Zhang Luan saw his son, he started asking questions.

Zhang Yanling frowned and asked, "Dad, these are all production machines made for the palace weaving factory. They involve the versatility and update of parts. Do you think it's easy? Oh, by the way, what are you doing here?"

"Father has just been to the palace."

Zhang Luan introduced, "I had a meal with your sister, brother-in-law, and Huai En. During the meal, I told you what you taught me. His Majesty... Alas! He showed great concern for Eunuch Huai's condition. He choked up and cried several times... It was heartbreaking for me to see him."

"Ugh!"

Zhang Yanling sighed and said, "My brother-in-law is kind, so he naturally takes extra care of the people around him. This is completely understandable."

"Is he like that to everyone?"

Zhang Luan was a little puzzled by the emperor's son-in-law and asked curiously.

"He'll basically be like this with people he knows well... But things like this have to be determined by how close they are to each other."

Then Zhang Yanling said jokingly, "Just like if you were to die soon, our brother-in-law the emperor would be sad for a few days, but he would be back to normal soon."

"Hey, what are you talking about!"

Zhang Luan was very upset when he heard this. He sat there angrily, sneered, and scolded, "You are deliberately squeezing your father, right? The situation is like this. I met with Li Zisheng yesterday. He told me that Qin Chang might have some conspiracy in secret, and said that he might be plotting against someone... But when I asked, even Li Zisheng himself didn't understand it, and said that he was very uneasy...

"I thought about it all night last night but couldn't figure it out. When I saw Qin Chang today, I didn't look at him in a good light. But later, his words made me feel comfortable, so I didn't take it too seriously... Now that I see you, it's a good opportunity to ask you, otherwise there will always be a knot in my heart that I can't untie..."

Zhang Yanling was holding a booklet in his hand, writing something down while casually responding: "Li Zisheng has a very keen political sense. You should listen to him more, and you will be right."

"Hey, your father is asking you a question, why are you giving such a hasty answer?"

Zhang Luan asked angrily, "I mean, what did Li Zisheng smell? Today, when I met Qin Chang, I still felt a thorn in my heart, but when he saw me off on behalf of your brother-in-law, the emperor, when we left the palace, I felt that he was a very good person. I said whatever I wanted to say...

"What could he be planning for such a frank and straightforward person? He is probably afraid of getting into trouble, so he is planning to let His Majesty know so that he can't be blamed in the future... He can't be planning to turn against Tiangang and depose His Majesty and establish Prince Xing, right?"

"Shh... Dad, be careful with your words!"

Zhang Yanling hurriedly tried to dissuade his cheap father from talking nonsense.

Zhang Luan said: "So I think Li Zisheng is just too sensitive... He is in an extraordinary period now, and officials who once supported him have defected one after another, so he thinks everyone wants to harm him."

Only at this point did Zhang Yanling finish recording everything. He then raised his head and looked at his old father who was analyzing the situation very clearly.

"Go, don't be so serious, speak up!"

Zhang Luan frowned and scolded.

Zhang Yanling shook his head and analyzed: "Qin Chang wants to plot for two purposes... One is for his own personal benefit... Do you think he will do it?"

Zhang Luan's eyes widened and he asked, "Why not? He used to be the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, the top eunuch, stronger than the Prime Minister... but now he is inferior to others, is he willing? If a man does not work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth... what's wrong with him thinking about his own future?"

"Hey!"

Zhang Yanling curled his lips and said, "Dad, you said you have no intention of seeking fame and fortune? I think you are a very sinister person. You even thought of this..."

"Bah, although I don't understand what you are saying, you definitely didn't say anything nice... Who is evil?" Zhang Luan said angrily, "If it's not for him, then who is he doing it for? It can't be for His Majesty, right?"

"Yes, it's for His Majesty, or for the Ming Dynasty."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said.

"For His Majesty, for the Ming Dynasty, he planned..."

Zhang Luan suddenly widened his eyes and asked, "What are you planning?"

Zhang Yanling smiled and asked, "Dad, tell me, who is the biggest obstacle to the stability of the Ming Dynasty and the prosperity of the country...?"

"Ah? You said 'who' instead of 'what'? Oh, you don't mean to say that the biggest obstacle is your father, do you?"

Zhang Luan's face changed, and he said anxiously, "So in your opinion, what he is planning is how to drive me, the minister who contributed the most to His Majesty's ascension to the throne, out of the court... Oh, right, and add Li Zisheng, right?"

Zhang Yanling raised his thumb and said with a smile, "That's right, unfortunately, everything you said was right, father. It's you two! What do you think caused this pot of porridge to go bad?"

"Bah, you actually called your father a rat? You are the rat... I don't believe it! How could such a good person target me? I don't see it at all..."

Zhang Luan had an expression of disbelief, and then he stood there in a daze.

……

……

Qianqing Palace. Tan Chang submitted a memorial regarding the nomination of new cabinet ministers by the Hanlin Academy.

"Your Majesty, the result of the discussion in the academy is that Liu Jian, the Imperial Academy lecturer, will be promoted to the position of Grand Secretary of the Cabinet to participate in government affairs."

Qin Chang introduced patiently, "Liu Shijiang is a Jinshi in the fourth year of Tianshun, and has served three generations of monarchs so far. He also presided over the lectures in the Eastern Palace. He can be said to be very knowledgeable. He is also an old acquaintance of Your Majesty. In addition, he is a legitimate scholar and is highly respected by the civil officials. He is indeed the best choice to join the cabinet."

Zhu Youtang looked at the recommendation memorial from the Hanlin Academy, frowned, and asked, "Apart from Mr. Liu, are there no other candidates?"

Tan Chang replied cautiously: "This is indeed the result of the discussion of the Hanlin Academy...but it will have to be discussed by the Ministry and then the court."

Zhu Youtang remained calm and nodded slightly.

Qin Ji on the side reminded: "In fact, we can ask Eunuch Huai for his opinion on this matter and see if he has a more suitable candidate!"

Zhu Youtang said thoughtfully: "Mr. Xu who entered the cabinet earlier also came from the lecture class of the Eastern Palace. If another teacher from my time in the Eastern Palace enters the cabinet, I am afraid that there will be criticisms in the court..."

At this point, Zhu Youtang said to Qin Chang: "There is no rush for this matter. Let's seek more opinions from all parties. When there are four or five relatively suitable candidates, we can submit it to the court for discussion."

It is obvious that the emperor is not in a hurry to decide on the next candidate to join the cabinet.

This position seems to have been prepared for someone.

……

……

Afterwards, Qin Chang and Qin Ji bid farewell to the emperor and went to the cabinet duty room one after another.

As Qin Ji walked, he turned his head and asked, "Your Majesty, do you want Zhang Guozhang to join the cabinet, but you deliberately don't say it? Should we take the initiative to expose this matter?"

Qin Chang shook his head and said, "Didn't His Majesty clearly say that the next person to enter the cabinet should preferably be a courtier who did not come from the lectures of the East Palace... We must understand His Majesty's intentions and not make random guesses!"

"But……"

Qin Ji thought about it carefully and shook his head, "Zhang Guozhang has only been giving lectures in the East Palace for a few days, and he has basically never taught your Majesty... I always feel that your Majesty is just talking about him."

"Oops!"

Qin Chang said exaggeratedly: "Zhang Guozhang and I have a very good relationship... If there is anything we can do to help, can we not lend a hand? Before Lord Xu entered the cabinet, didn't His Majesty send us to ask for his opinion? He took the initiative to say that he didn't want to join the cabinet, and it wasn't us who deliberately stopped him!"

Qin Ji thought about it and nodded.

It seems that everything is a reflection of Zhang Luan's personal will.

But he always felt that something was wrong.

……

……

Arrived at the cabinet duty room.

Huai En dragged his sick body there to review memorials.

Qin Chang walked over and announced the names of the candidates for the position of Grand Secretary of the Cabinet that the Hanlin Academy had just submitted.

"Liu Jian is one of the most experienced lecturers in the Eastern Palace, and he is highly regarded by the public. It is not surprising that the Hanlin Academy recommended him to join the cabinet."

Huai En nodded slightly after hearing this.

Qin Ji had a different view: "For this kind of self-recommendation within the government, most people just follow the crowd. After all, they can't recommend someone they like in secret... The end result is that as long as a prestigious person puts forward a proposal in public, everyone else can only follow suit."

"hehe."

Huai En laughed. "Mr. Qin, from what you said, do you think that Liu Jian has the most experience in the Hanlin Academy? Or do you think... it would be best to let Zhang Guozhang join the cabinet?"

Qin Ji's face was wrinkled, and he shook his head and smiled bitterly, saying, "This matter has been delayed for quite some time... Ever since Lord Wan left, the cabinet has been dragging its feet on all matters such as drafting bills, and all the pressure has fallen on the colleagues in the Imperial Household Department... If we can appropriately increase the number of cabinet ministers at this time, it will indeed make it easier to handle government affairs... I have no other intentions."

Huai En looked at Qin Ji meaningfully, and said seriously: "I have asked Zhang Guozhang's opinion many times before, and he really has no intention of joining the cabinet. He doesn't even want to be the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue... Oh, by the way, why haven't I seen him report the latest news on the Yellow River engineering in the past few days? It's time to urge him..."

"Ah? A bit anxious?"

Qin Ji said with some surprise.

Huai En smiled and said, "I am not going to live long. I hope that before I close my eyes, I can see the Yellow River successfully change its course and benefit tens of millions of people in the Central Plains... What a gratifying thing that would be!"

"This……"

Qin Ji thought, since you said so, how can I not hurry up and urge them?
But the Yellow River engineering project involves such a huge amount of work that there is a 99% chance that you will not see the day of completion before you close your eyes.

(March 3, please give me a monthly ticket! Thank you for your support!)

(End of this chapter)