Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 81 Doubt

Shopkeeper Qin once again visited Zhang Luan in person.

This time she did not travel with Wang Ji, but brought with her another Huizhou merchant representative, Li Wuwei, who had business dealings with her and usually lived in the capital. The two families went together to give gifts to Zhang Luan.

"Mr. Zhang, we are here on behalf of the Huizhou merchants to thank you for benefiting our hometown of Huizhou... Previously, we got the miracle medicine from Mr. Wang and promoted it vigorously among the Huizhou people in the capital. No one was infected in this wave of smallpox epidemic. Mr. Zhang is very kind. We Huizhou merchants have always been the most polite. You helped us, and we are here to thank you."

Li Wuwei is responsible for speaking politely.

He was about fifty years old and looked a bit plump, which was because he was a sedentary businessman in the capital and rarely went out and lacked exercise.

Zhang Luan smiled and said, "It's just a small favor, not worth mentioning...Now the imperial court is vigorously promoting the cultivation of medicine. Sooner or later, smallpox will be eradicated in China. I am very relieved."

Li Wuwei looked at Manager Qin with a smile, thinking that Zhang Luan in front of him was really shameless. He was so shameless that he said that smallpox would be eradicated by his hands. How could it be so simple?
If there is a reversal in the future, who knows who will be the unlucky one!

Although Li Wuwei is responsible for livening up the situation today, in terms of status among the Huizhou merchants, Manager Qin is above him, because in many businesses Manager Qin is the "Party A", and Li Wuwei needs to act according to Manager Qin's mood.

But this time, Manager Qin didn't say anything. He probably meant that you just need to follow our previous plan.

Li Wuwei continued, "There is one more thing. I am ashamed to say that we have always admired Lord Li, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and the Minister of Public Administration, but we have a distant relationship with him. We would like to get to know him, give him some gifts, and ask him to do something to benefit our Huizhou hometown, but unfortunately we have no way to do it."

"Oh?"

Zhang Luan asked curiously, "Is it Li Shilang, the Minister of Lizi Province?"

Li Wuwei and Manager Qin were both very surprised. Zhang Luan actually called Li Zisheng by his full name?
Li Wuwei nodded heavily: "That's right."

Zhang Luan thought about it for a while, then said with a little hesitation: "If you really don't have any connections, I can introduce you, it's not impossible."

Now Li Wuwei had to quickly turn his head to look at Shopkeeper Qin, meaning that you should say it.

Shopkeeper Qin asked curiously, "Mr. Zhang, how did you get to know Minister Li so well? Or is he also very interested in your deeds?"

Zhang Luan likes to show off in front of others, especially when he first met the Huizhou merchants, they looked down on him. He knew that these people were rich and wealthy. Now that he has some power in his hands, when should he not show his strength in front of this group of people?

"That's right. Initially, it was because of the matter of curing smallpox. One of my relatives, my sister-in-law's husband, took me to meet Minister Li. He was very concerned about the people's livelihood in the capital. In addition to sending people from the Imperial Hospital to help me grow medicine, he also made some arrangements. Minister Li was very reasonable and courteous..."

Zhang Luan praised Li Zisheng a lot in front of others.

Li Wuwei and Manager Qin both felt that Zhang Luan was bragging.

The two looked at each other, and the awkward expressions clearly said... this person never tells the truth.

Because they had heard and known that Li Zisheng was known for being mean and ungrateful. Although many people in the court supported Li Zisheng, they were more of friends based on interests, and they all saw that Li Zisheng had a great say in front of the emperor.

Some people described Li Zisheng as the equivalent of the Minister of Personnel of the Ming Dynasty without an official title. Basically all personnel appointments and dismissals in the court had to go through him or be exploited by him.

Under this premise, it was difficult for them to understand how Li Zisheng became a wise and virtuous minister in Zhang Luan's mouth?
Shopkeeper Qin couldn't bear to listen any longer and interrupted Zhang Luan: "We want to see Mr. Shen, the Minister of Public Administration first."

"Do you want to see Ruxue? That's easy. I'll send someone to invite him over right away." Zhang Luan said casually.

Shopkeeper Qin was afraid that Zhang Luan might hurt his back due to boasting, so he tried to smooth things over: "Don't be in a hurry, you can make an appointment later."

Zhang Luan didn't think he was exaggerating at all, and patted his chest and said, "What's the big deal? I can't invite Minister Li to come right now, but I'd like you to come and learn it. It's very easy.

"If you have any questions, you can talk to him. I just happened to be planning to ask him about something. Come to think of it, I'm a little worried myself."

……

……

Lizi provincial government residence.

As dusk approached, the people in the mansion were eagerly waiting.

Li Zisheng, the person involved, closed the door and refused to see visitors that day, leaving only his most trusted guest Pang Qing by his side to be responsible for external contacts and to gather information. "Master, Zhao Yuzhi entered Deng Changen's house early this morning. They have been secretly preparing to use the Imperial Censor to accuse you of compiling secrets, confusing the public, and even interfering in the affairs of the royal family. Now they are all staying in Deng's house and have not come out.

"We have sent several groups of people to Shandong to gather information. The report now is that no earthquake has occurred as of yesterday afternoon..."

Zhao Yuzhi, who was good at the art of spirit communication, was introduced to the emperor by the eunuch Gao Liang as a Taoist priest and was favored by the emperor. However, her status was far inferior to that of Ji Xiao in the past and Li Zisheng and Deng Changen now.

It was precisely because Li Zisheng became the emperor's most favored minister after Ji Xiao lost power that the alchemists around the emperor regarded him as a powerful enemy and united to suppress him.

Li Zisheng said angrily: "I also predicted the earthquake at Mount Tai through the spirit writing. They were not convinced and made their own calculations. Why are they attacking me?"

Pang Qing and Shen Lu both looked over with awkward expressions.

They both knew very well that Li Zisheng did not figure it out on his own, but learned it from Zhang Luan. They were all wondering, why is Lord Li still pretending in front of us?

"Don't they know who they are? Will the censors listen to them? They want to impeach me. Humph, are they sure they can find someone to help? They won't be impeached as well, right?"

Li Zisheng asked angrily again.

Pang Qing replied: "Master Dao, this matter has been investigated clearly. The person who was responsible for impeachment is Zhang Shanji, the military officer. This person is quite resourceful."

When Li Zisheng heard Zhang Shanji's name, he gritted his teeth.

This Zhang Shanji once served as the Left Censor-in-Chief of the Military Department. He was demoted for something and did a very shameless thing.

"Ming History Biographies 195" records:
"...Zhang Shanji, the Left Imperial Censor of the Military Department, was demoted. He was summoned because of his secret technique and was involved in the conspiracy against the eunuch Gao Ying. He then petitioned to be reinstated as an Imperial Censor, which was considered shameful by scholars."

Since being reinstated by Emperor Chenghua, Zhang Shanji relied on his good relationship with the eunuchs and secretly flattered Deng Changen, and was quickly promoted to the position of Bingke Dushizhong. Now he has joined forces with Deng Changen to impeach Li Zisheng.

This made Li Zisheng feel like he was being targeted and he was extremely angry.

"Didn't the Royal Guards also send people to investigate? Have they reported back now?"

Li Zisheng suddenly thought that the emperor was also concerned about whether there was an earthquake in Mount Tai, and that was considered an "official" channel, so the news was more authentic.

Pang Qing said: "People have reported back one after another, but they all said that there was no earthquake. I heard that the person in charge of this matter is Mou Bin, a captain of the Imperial Guard. This person does not make friends with officials inside and outside the capital, and he has not returned to the capital yet."

"Snapped!"

Li Zisheng slammed the armrest of the chair and stood up suddenly.

Shen Lu, who was sitting next to him, also quickly stood up.

Li Zisheng paced back and forth for a while, then glanced at Shen Lu and shouted, "Look at who you recommended! What magical powers does he have? How dare he make such a fuss by causing an earthquake?"

Shen Lu smiled bitterly and thought, you insisted on listening to him and even reported it to the emperor like a possessed person. I couldn't stop you even if I wanted to. Can you blame me for this?

Pang Qing advised: "Master, the situation is far from being out of control. What happened in Mount Tai yesterday may not have spread to the capital yet. Relax your mind for now."

"Humph!"

Li Zisheng sneered, "Taishan is not Ningxia. Do you need to travel a whole day and night to get a piece of news? It's already night."

Shen Lu hurriedly comforted him: "Minister Li, please be patient. Once something happens, it is normal even if it is delayed for a day or two."

Pang Qing agreed: "That's right. As long as there is an earthquake in Mount Tai, it doesn't matter even if the timing is not right."

"Humph!"

Li Zisheng was suddenly speechless. He glanced at his two men and shook his head, "Then when will it happen, and I will say that I have predicted it correctly? Go check it out again. I want to know the exact news!"

(End of this chapter)