A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 113: Without you, it is very important to me! (Three more chapters)
Li Kun did not dare to show the money to others, so he quickly held it in his hand and saluted Song Xuan again.

I have to say that once people become generous, it is quite easy to make friends.

Especially the treatment of these jailers is really average.

Song Xuan waved his hand and walked out of the county government office on his own.

"Twelve Lang, Twelve Lang, wait a moment."

The cook pulled the shopkeeper over and shouted a few times.

Song Xuan turned around and saw that the shopkeeper of Qinglou was out of breath and the cook was also panting. He joked:
"Boss, are you here to collect the debt from me?"

The owner of Qinglou wanted to laugh, but because he ran a little fast, he patted his chest hard.

He directly took out the gold leaf from his hand and stuffed it into Song Xuan's belt while tidying up his robe.

"Shi Er Lang and the prime minister of the dynasty ate at my Qing Lou. It's truly a great honor. How could I just waive the cost of one meal?"

"Not to mention receiving praise from the prime minister of the current dynasty, an opportunity worth a thousand gold!"

The owner of Qinglou finished speaking in one breath and then began to breathe heavily. He was old, and especially because he was good at running Qinglou, he hadn't run for a long time.

Song Xuan didn't refuse: "The shopkeeper is just working for someone else. If someone behind the scenes asks about it, it won't make things difficult for you, right?"

"I've long heard that Song Twelve is intelligent. One of his poems made the entire Song City vying for praise. Come to my Qinglou for dinner someday. I wonder if you can appreciate some of his calligraphy."

During the three days that Song Xuan was in jail, various versions of the story had already spread like wildfire outside.

But what remains consistent in many versions is that Song Xuan is indeed a rising talent.

Otherwise, could it have made the famous poet Liu Sanbian cry after reading it?

This is the effect of celebrity endorsement.

What's more, scholars in the Song Dynasty were always sought after by people from all walks of life.

"Easy to say, easy to say."

Song Xuan thanked the shopkeeper and said, "That Dou Chou is still trying to invite me over to plot against me. I want to see what other tricks he can come up with. We'll talk later."

When the shopkeeper of Qinglou heard this, he was stunned at first, then he also saluted solemnly:

"Twelve Lang, please be careful."

Inside the inn.

Dou Chou called his former student Gu Zimo, who was one of the Tongpans of Yingtian Prefecture.

"Master, I went down to collect taxes these past few days, how could this happen?"

Dou Chou sighed deeply, and at that moment he realized that Gu Zimo was not staying away on purpose.

It was because of his presence that when Dou Han came to Yingtian Prefecture, he sent a servant to serve him.

The rest are all taken care of by Gu Zimo here.

"Zimo, please be patient for a while and hide under my bed. Whether I can overturn the verdict depends on your testimony."

"As long as my mentor can redress his injustice, it doesn't matter if I suffer some grievances."

Gu Zimo turned his back to Dou Han and asked softly, "Will your presence attract Song Xuan's attention? He's always been smart, so he'll be extremely careful even if he comes there."

"Han'er, turn your face away. When Song Xuan arrives, just pretend to be asleep. Don't reveal your brother's presence."

"Dad, I'll pay attention."

Dou Han's eyes were filled with rage. Song Xuan, just wait for me!

At this moment, the servant, whose butt was swollen and unable to move, came up hurriedly and said that Song Twelve had arrived downstairs.

Gu Zimo immediately crawled under the bed, and Dou Chou asked the servants to see if they could see it.

When Song Xuan went downstairs, he met the waiter.

He quickly shouted, "Boss, it's Song Twelve who's here in our store."

The shopkeeper, who had been standing at the counter counting the bills, immediately lifted the table and came out to greet him when he heard that Song Xuan was coming.

In short, after the commotion that day, Song Xuan was able to come out safely and was naturally sought after by many people.

"Is Shi Er Lang here to stop by or stay the night?"

"That stinky Dou asked Prefect Yan to tell me he wanted to apologize to me and asked me to come over. I don't think he meant it sincerely."

Song Xuan had a smile on his face: "I want to see what tricks he can play."

When the shopkeeper heard this, he immediately played the role of a local party member:

"Xiaodou, is there someone in Douchou's room?"

"Someone just went in. I think it's Gu Zimo, the judge."

"Shi Erlang, this Gu Tongpan might be Dou Chou's backup plan, so you better be careful."

"Thank you both for your reminder." Song Xuan bowed to them and said thank you: "I will bring some friends over for tea some other day."

"Hahaha, no problem, no problem. The silver money that Shi Er Lang used last time hasn't been spent yet."

The shopkeeper signaled the waiter Xiaodou to lead the way for Song Xuan.

The last time Song Xuan took out the gold leaves, he was very surprised, but he was even more surprised after hearing about Song Xuan's deeds.

We in Songcheng also have some good men!

Compared to the high-ranking Hanlin scholar, Song Xuan is an ordinary citizen and a member of the same vulnerable group as them.

Song Xuan's behavior naturally aroused the simple views of the local people, who sympathized with and secretly supported Song Xuan who dared to resist high-ranking officials.

It is normal for these people to tip off Song Xuan now.

Song Xuan walked towards the second floor, and Gu Zimo had already hidden himself.

"Shi Er Lang, do you want to cover your face with a clean towel?" Xiao Dou took one out of the tray. "The smell in the room is too strong."

"Hahaha, thank you."

Song Xuan accepted this kindness. In fact, he had stayed in prison for two nights and the smell on his body was quite strong.

After the mask was removed, Song Xuan pushed the door open and went in.

"This smells like a cesspool, you bastard."

Song Xuan breathed a sigh of relief outside the door before stepping in. He glanced at Dou Han, who turned his head and pretended to be asleep. Then he saw Dou Chou also lying on the bed, looking at him with his eyes open.

"You came?"

"Yes, I am here."

"You shouldn't have come."

"Shouldn't I come?"

Song Xuan's eyes showed doubts: "But I'm already here."

Gu Zimo, who was lying under the bed and eavesdropping, forced himself to purse his lips, fearing that he would laugh out loud.

It was a serious occasion, and he didn't understand why his mentor would say such things.

And this student named Song Xuan actually said such nonsense.

Was it really him who brought down his mentor, rather than Prefect Yan who was behind the scenes helping out?

Otherwise, how could this matter reach the ears of the emperor so quickly?
It usually ends in the mansion and everyone is subdued.

silence.

There was a long silence.

Finally, Dou Chou was broken by the pain and opened his mouth to say:

"sit."

Song Xuan didn't look under the bed. He even suspected that Dou Han was Gu Zimo in disguise.

"What are your plans for next?"

Listening to Dou Chou's question, Song Xuan's smile remained unchanged:

"Go back and take a shower. It's really uncomfortable to stay in prison for a few days. I'm afraid I'll get lice." Dou Chou knew that Song Xuan was just trying to fool him. He just sighed.
"Hey, it turned out like this all of a sudden. You made me lose miserably."

"Is it miserable?" Song Xuan sat on a round stool and dusted off his clothes.

"You can still lie here and say this, with people serving you, but those people you killed in the past never had the chance to say how miserable they were."

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

"Your son has misbehaved more than once, and you've cleaned up his mess more than once." Song Xuan leaned forward slightly.
"It's just that you hit a wall this time. It's not that you know you're wrong, but you're scared!"

Dou Chou was caught on the spot and gritted his teeth in anger.
"You're a perfectly healthy person, but you spent three days in jail and ended up with a future that my family has only had for five generations. What else do you want?"

"I was just one step away, just one step away, and I could have become a prime minister and revitalized my Dou family. But you ruined everything."

"destroyed!"

"Heh." Song Xuan chuckled.
"Some people are just one step away from becoming emperor, and you're just one step away from becoming prime minister. Little do you know that this is the chasm between them, and some people never make it across their entire lives."

After several rounds of confrontation, Dou Chou found that Song Xuan was indeed a sharp-tongued kid.

Even though I bowed my head just now, he didn't show any smugness.

It’s not easy.

"There was originally a misunderstanding between us. Name your price and I'm willing to compensate you to settle this matter."

"Ah."

Song Xuan wanted to spit at him, his true colors were finally revealed.

"Master Dou, how you settle the accounts is your business. For me, money is money and business is business."

Dou Chou's face turned a little gloomy. He found that Song Xuan was indeed a young man with a proud character and was not easy to fool.

In the matter of overthrowing himself, he only brought the public opinion that was against him, and the rest was left to those upright and scheming villains to push.

Now he is staying out of the matter. Not only has he become famous by stepping on the reputation of my Dou family, but perhaps the lyrics he wrote have even been passed on to the government.

In addition to what Cao Li said when he came today.

Wasn't there any instruction from the Queen Mother behind this?
Dou Chou knew that even if the eunuchs and relatives made mistakes, Empress Dowager Liu would ask Cao Liyong to warn and reprimand them.

But Cao Liyong was very ruthless to these people.

He also offended a group of people with connections, but he didn't care.

Dou Chou once despised Cao Liyong in his heart, thinking that he was just a pawn being used by others. Now, before he saw Cao Liyong being dealt with, he was dealt with first.

How could he accept this result calmly?

Coupled with what Song Xuan had just said, Dou Chou was completely defeated:

"what on earth do you want?"

Song Xuan has been practicing archery since he was a child. He not only has excellent eyesight, but also good hearing. He felt that there was someone under Dou Chou's bed.

So he stamped his feet deliberately, hoping to suddenly make a noise and scare him.

Seeing no response from under the bed, Song Xuan smiled again: "I've been in jail for so long, my legs are a little cramped, please forgive me."

Gu Zimo was indeed startled by the sudden voice, but he quickly restrained himself from making any sound.

Everything is for my mentor!
In fact, Dou Chou's rhythm was interrupted by Song Xuan again. Just when Dou Chou was about to bring up the topic:

"Master Dou, which is more important to me, money or you?"

"I!"

Dou Chou pointed at himself arrogantly:
"As long as I stay in this position, your future career will be guaranteed."

"You come from a farming family and have no support in the court. If you have someone like me to look after you, you will definitely rise to prominence in the future."

Song Xuan raised his eyebrows slightly: "Think about it again."

Dou Chou said very reluctantly: "It's not money, is it?"

I just used money to tempt Song Xuan, but he didn't fall for it.

How can I like money again now?
Of course, what Dou Chou doesn’t want even more is that he is not as good as money!
"Think again."

"That's still me."

Dou Chou was very confident that no scholar could refuse the opportunity to have a successful career in officialdom.

If there is no noble person to promote you, it is simply a pipe dream to want to become a high-ranking official just by passing the imperial examination.

How many Jinshi have emerged from the Song Dynasty since its founding?

The number has long been less than 20,000.

How many of these people can become prime minister?
Not to mention being a prime minister, how many people can be better than a prime minister!
Song Xuan sneered and dusted off his legs:

"Master Dou, let me tell you, neither you nor money is important to me."

Dou Choudou was confused by Song Xuan and asked quickly, "Then who is important?"

"Without you, it's very important to me!"

Dou Chou was immediately irritated by Song Xuan. He ignored the pain in his legs and sat up, pointing at Song Xuan and said:
"Can you say that again!"

"Without you, it's very important to me!"

"roll."

Dou Chou grabbed the pillow and threw it at Song Xuan, but Song Xuan dodged it by turning his head, and the pillow hit Dou Han's injured leg, causing Dou Han to scream in pain.

There was no way to pretend to be asleep and listen anymore.

"Don't worry."

Song Xuan knew that the judge was still eavesdropping under the bed. Since he was here, he had to give him a hard time.

Otherwise it would be a fucking waste of time.

Song Xuan still had no intention of leaving:
"Master Dou, even if I choose you and you keep your promise to promote me, let me ask you, there are many students who have served you over the years. What positions do they hold now, and what rank are they?"

Dou Chou saw that Song Xuan's question did not seem to be false, but he no longer wanted to say anything more to Song Xuan.

Although he was from a famous family and many Jinshi scholars came to serve him, few in the court could help him make further progress.

There are more and more Jinshi, and the territory of the Song Dynasty was originally small, and now there are too many officials.

Where are there so many responsibilities for him to fill?

Those prime ministers are still trying every means to place their own people in power.

Otherwise, once Dou Chou got into trouble, Lu Yijian would have found someone to replace him and confirmed his guilt.

silence.

There was still a long silence.

The person on the bed was silent, and the person hiding under the bed was also silent.

After so many years, Gu Zimo is now only a Tongpan of the sixth rank.

The Song Dynasty had its own set of mutual supervisory relationships at the local level, but the Tongpan was at the lowest level of the local supervisory system.

"So you're trying to trick me with words you can't even fulfill for your own students. Do you really think I'm a three-year-old?"

Song Xuan stood up, not wanting to waste any more words. Too much would make them realize that they had been exposed.

"You've been a Hanlin scholar for too long. It's fine if you look down on us, but you have the audacity to look down on the government."

Song Xuan sneered, "What do you mean I spent three days in jail in exchange for five generations of your Dou family's fortune? It was obviously you who messed up, yet you insist on blaming others."

"Even if you didn't mess with me, your good-for-nothing son would have hit some tough wall in the future."

"Your behavior now is truly laughable, making everyone look down on you, a descendant of a famous family!"

After Song Xuan finished speaking, he strode away without looking back.

On the other hand, Dou Chou seemed to have lost his soul to Song Xuan. He lay straight on the bed with lifeless eyes.

(End of this chapter)