Idle courtiers

Chapter 387
Li Wei was shocked: "You dare to take Sun Xin, who gave you the power?"

Zhou Nan was upright and awe-inspiring: "As an official of the imperial court, I have the unshirkable responsibility to take care of things that violate the law and discipline. Don't say that I am an official, even ordinary people should report to the Secretary when they encounter injustice. Li Old man, you should think about the consequences of this matter carefully!"

"Okay, you wait."

Li Wei gave Zhou Nan a bitter look, and walked away.

Zhou Nan was not in a hurry, he took out a book from his sleeve and read it leisurely.Anyway, I was studying my homework at home, and it was the same at Li Wei's place.

After this reading, I became excited, and I went to the case, polished my ink, and picked up my pen to write an article based on the exam questions I got from my teacher yesterday.

He now has six papers in hand, and the topics of these papers are different.For sure, it's all fake.

However, it is true that Gu Yanxi, the great guru of Shuntianfu Township Examination, read "The Analects of Confucius" in this issue, maybe he really took the questions from this book.It is also a good thing to do all these papers once, so let's brush up the questions before the exam!
Zhou Nan just came to Li's house and made a big fuss, and was almost beaten to death by Li Gao's men, which can be said to have alarmed the entire Li family.As a result, many servants secretly watched this bold Mr. Li, pointing and talking in low voices.

Seeing Mr. Zhou splashing ink in his study, he was amazed: what a wild celebrity!

I don't feel a little admired.

I don't know how long it took, Zhou Nan finished writing a stereotyped article, and his palms were already sweating slightly.

He put down his pen and wiped his hands with a wet towel.Only then did I realize that those people in the yard outside had disappeared, and the whole yard became extremely quiet, and even the chirping of sparrows could be heard.

Zhou Nan knew that the matter had come to an end, Concubine Li was coming soon, and the Li family was trying to keep the family away.Otherwise, if the concubine of the dignified palace meets foreign officials, it will damage her reputation.

Taking a breath, Zhou Nan tried his best to calm himself down, sat on the chair and waited silently.

There was a sound of footsteps, and Zhou Nan looked up.

However, Li Wei and a woman in costumes came into the room.

That woman, Huo Ran, was Princess Jiashan whom he had seen twice.

What I want to see is Concubine Li. What is Princess Jiashan doing here?
Zhou Nan froze, stood up quickly, and bowed: "I have seen..."

Princess Jiashan interrupted Zhou Nan and said to Li Wei, "Father, is this Mr. Zhou Nan Zhou?"

"Father..." Zhou Nan was confused, why did she call Li Wei his father?What the hell is going on here?

Li Wei: "Yes, my lord, this is Mr. Youzheng Zhou Nanzhou from the Department of Daolu."

Concubine Li nodded: "Okay, father, you can go back first, I will take care of things here."

"Yes, ma'am."

When Li Wei stepped back, Zhou Nan still kept his limbs stiff, with sweat streaming down his forehead.Mistaking Feng Jing for Ma Liang, this oolong is magnified.

At that time, I regarded Concubine Li as the little widow Jiashan, and also thought she was a romantic woman, and her behavior was very disrespectful.If Concubine Li really wants to punish her, she will die without a place to bury her.

No wonder little Wanli is so hostile to him, thinking that when he met his mother that day, he behaved intimately and was accidentally seen by him.

Little Wanli is precocious, although he doesn't understand the relationship between men and women, he must be extremely disgusted with himself, so he sued Jiajing and wanted to put me to death.

Everything has come to light, and I, Zhou Nan, are finished.

This is why the organ was too clever in its calculations, and it cost Qingqing's life instead.

Concubine Li pretended not to know Zhou Nan: "I have heard about Master Zhou's name for a long time, and it is a great honor to meet him today. He is indeed a handsome and upright gentleman."

Zhou Nan thought she was making fun of him, so a cry came from his throat: "Minister...Xiaguan..."

Concubine Li smiled slightly: "It's strange to say that although I met Mr. Zhou for the first time today, it seems like an old friend I have known for a long time. Does Mr. Zhou know the reason for this?"

Zhou Nan: "I don't know." Feeling very distressed, Concubine Li, stop playing with me, and punish me as soon as possible if you want to beat me.Anyway, extending the head is a knife, retracting the head is also a knife, early death is early.

Concubine Li still has that gentle look: "I seem to understand a little bit. The servants and lecturers in the palace are all gentlemen, as gentle and refined as Mr. Zhou, like Master Gao, Mr. Zhang, and the old Li Ge. .Speaking of which, Mr. Zhou still has a bit of portraits with them, no wonder I always feel familiar when I see you."

Zhou Nan: "The lower officials are terrified, and can't afford to be praised by the princess."

"You should be terrified." Concubine Li was still smiling: "You have repeatedly offended my father and elder brother, and now you have arrested my cousin. Although it is for official business, you have already offended the Li family. Are you not afraid? ?”

Scared, of course I was scared, the problem is that I didn't know you were Concubine Li at the time, Zhou Nan was silent and still sweating.

Concubine Li went to the case, picked up the article written by Zhou Nan and looked at it.Eyes lit up: "Good writing, good article, it seems that this is the test question bought by my ineffective cousin Sun Xin?"

Zhou Nan: "Returning to your mother's words, that's right."

Concubine Li put down the manuscript, and looked at Zhou Nan who was still bowing: "Master Zhou, are you hot?"

Zhou Nan: "To see my mother, trembling and sweating profusely."

Concubine Li: "Stay flat and talk properly."

"Yes, ma'am." Zhou Nan straightened his waist, feeling his whole body was sore.

Concubine Li sat on the chair and looked at Zhou Nan: "Master Zhou, you came to Li's house today not just to see me, right?"

Zhou Nan: "There is something I want to ask my mother for help."

Concubine Li said indifferently: "Say it."

Zhou Nan collected his mind and tried his best to calm himself down from the shock: "I am a native of Lianghuai. In my early years, I was from a poor family and had no food and clothing. Later, I entered the county government as an official and made a living. Lianghuai salt is the best in the world. , There are so many people engaged in this business, and the lower officials are not exempt from customs, so they get some salt from the salt merchants to make their hair grow. In the past when the party was strict and the government was chaotic, Yan Maoqing took all the salt for himself and pocketed it. The lower officials There are three wives and concubines and three children to support, and the meager salary alone has reached the point where the whole family can eat porridge."

"Now the strict party has been eradicated, and the court has been renewed. The lower official intends to let his family manage the official salt, and please grant permission from the palace."

Concubine Li: "So that's how it is. I've also heard people say something about Mr. Zhou in his early years. It's really sympathetic. It wasn't a big deal at first. How much do you want?"

Hearing what she said, Zhou Nan was overjoyed: "Thank you, Ma'am, fifty thousand quotations are enough."

Concubine Li was taken aback, [-] yuan was already a first-class salt merchant in Huaiyang.She originally thought that three thousand or two thousand would be enough to attract Zhou Nan, but unexpectedly he opened his mouth like a lion.

That's right, Concubine Li admired Zhou Nan's character and had a good impression of him.But Zhou Nan was so greedy that she was extremely disappointed: "Master Zhou, I am just the princess of the palace. The imperial court has its own system, and it is a great violation to do this for you. Your lord arrested Sun Xin, this is to coerce me The Li family?"

Zhou Nan: "Don't dare, this is for your empress's sake."

Concubine Li smiled lightly: "For my consideration, this is really strange, I would like to hear more about it."

Zhou Nan: "The [-] yuan is not from the lower officials alone, and Zhou Nan accounts for [-]. After all, all the official salts need to be underwritten by me, and there are still many people to support. The other [-] yuan..."

Concubine Li interrupted him: "Are you going to give the other [-] yuan to my father and elder brother? Master Zhou is very kind. My father and elder brother have their own farmland to provide food and clothing. If it is not enough, I can also help them. It doesn't bother you sir." worry."

This is already rejecting Zhou Nan.

Seeing that our Master Zhou had not achieved his goal, his heart moved and he immediately understood what she was thinking.

In real history, Concubine Li was a politician.Later, after taking charge of the government, she also strictly controlled her family, which made the Li family extremely dissatisfied with her.Later, Li Wei and his son sold low-quality cotton clothes to the frontier army, which aroused a heated discussion in the army town and caused a huge disturbance.Concubine Li even thought about arresting these two people and handing them over to the judicial office.

It's not because she doesn't miss the love of father, daughter and brother.As a politician, I really can't tolerate any personal feelings.If you don't deal with them, your position will be unstable.

Later, it was Zhang Juzhong, the chief assistant, who intervened, which allowed Li Wei's father to escape safely.

As far as today is concerned, Li Wei and his son are domineering and domineering, they dare to eat any money, they are people who have no position and no principle, which has caused dissatisfaction among everyone and the prince.

Especially King Yu, his thoughts are directly related to the future status of Concubine Li.

This is also the reason why Concubine Li grounded her father and elder brother. She is afraid that they will make trouble outside and affect her, so how can she let them be salt merchants?

The less trouble, the better.

"Gentlemen don't talk about profits, and empresses admire their virtues. However, the sage said: there is a way to make money." Zhou Nan sorted out his thoughts, and said frankly: "The lower officials are not for the sake of Mr. Li, but for the sake of empresses."

Concubine Li wondered, "What does it have to do with me?"

Zhou Nan: "Just now, I have not finished my speech. The [-] yuan is used as a salt quotation, and the next official will get [-] yuan. Of the other [-] yuan, Mr. Li will take [-] yuan for daily expenses, and the other [-] yuan will be given to the empress."

This week Nan made up his mind to hit him on the head, is this trying to bribe me?Concubine Li couldn't stop shaking her head while laughing. She thought he was an upright gentleman, but she didn't expect him to be a profit-seeking vulgar person.

How could Zhou Nan fail to see the change in her attitude, and said: "Your Majesty misunderstood her dismissal." He lowered his voice: "The most ruthless emperor's family, whether it is the palace or the palace, is the most dangerous place in the world. All parties Characters must be cared for and thoughtful, and near-worthy people should also kiss villains. Especially villains, although they can't do anything, they have to guard against gossip. The villains only have money in their eyes, so they have to be taken care of. Empress a month With only a small salary, it is inevitable that there will be times of distress."

"Ordinary people still have three wives and four concubines, and they want long-term heirs, let alone a heavenly family. There must be unsatisfactory slaves and maids in the royal palace who are desperately seeking a way to make a living. Now the prince has only one son and one seedling, but what about the future? If there is one On that day, it is hard to guarantee that no one will have ulterior motives."

This statement is already blatant, but it directly points to the essence of court struggle.

Concubine Li's face suddenly changed. That's right, the prince has been visiting her yard less and less recently, even only once this month.He just loves the new and dislikes the old, and there are more and more women in the palace. It is hard to guarantee that there will be no more princes in the future.

If he loses favor in the future, there is no guarantee that the people below will not tell the truth, and the position of the prince will be challenged.

To maintain the current status of their mother and son, they need money.

Now there are few people in the palace, and the expenses are not big.

If the prince ascends the throne after a thousand years and a long life.There are more people in the palace, thousands of eunuchs, so many yamen, they all need to be recruited.In addition, the relationship between foreign and foreign countries also needs to be maintained, and even Jinshan Yinhai will not be enough.

If you think about it this way, you really need a stable source of income.One is for himself, the other is for the Li family, and more importantly, for the son.

Why didn't I think of this before, Zhou Zimu really awakened the dreamer with one word.

This person's talent is really awe-inspiring, when the prince succeeds to the great treasure, maybe it will be ten or twenty years later, he can think of it.Concubine Li suddenly had a word in her heart: Those who don't plan for a place can't plan for the world; those who don't plan for a moment can't plan for a lifetime.

This is Dragon Slaying Technique!

A good minister who governs the world, and a hero in troubled times.

Concubine Li sighed slightly: "Hey, the last time Mr. Zhou said 'good grandson', my whole palace owes you his love. Mr.'s family is poor, and I feel pity for you."

Hearing this, Zhou Nan knew that Concubine Li had agreed to the matter, and she was ecstatic in her heart. She bowed her hands and saluted: "I am willing to die for your empress." She simply joined the future queen party.

In Concubine Li's mind, Zhou Nan is already equivalent to geniuses like Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, especially his noble character.She has great admiration for such famous scholars and talents.

She was a little excited that such a person today would only follow her lead.

There is a vague thought in my heart: power is really a good thing, with a big handle in hand, all the talents in the world are in the bag, who says women can't have big ambitions?

Her current mood is as if Liu Bei, who was selling straw sandals, suddenly got Zhuge Kongming's support. It goes without saying that she was very happy, and she couldn't help smiling and said: "Mr. Zhou, why do you need to be so polite? The imperial court works sincerely for the emperor's father."

Looking outside, the poisonous sun in the sky has been covered by clouds, and a slight cool breeze blows into the room, which is very refreshing: "Why is Mr. Zimu's sweat gone?"

Zhou Nan still maintained the respectful posture of cupping hands and bowing: "I dare not sweat with trembling."

"Why are you in the hall?"

"Thinking back, meeting the wrath of the enemy."

"Be flat!" The question was interesting, and the answer was also interesting, Concubine Li smiled softly again.

There was a layer of hairy sweat on her nose, and she looked radiant and dazzlingly beautiful.

In a trance, Zhou Nan seemed to see the gentle woman with a slim figure that night again, twisted the towel and handed it over by accident.

This behavior was repeated countless times when he and Huang Jin were accompanying Jiajing, without thinking about it, it was purely subconscious, and it seemed very natural.

Concubine Li didn't think much about picking it up and wiped her face, only then did she remember that her makeup was smeared, and she was about to ask someone to remake it.Suddenly, her pretty face flushed.

You know, women can only put on makeup in front of their husbands, Zhou Nan is already disrespectful.

The atmosphere in the house became weird.

Our Master Zhou also realized this, and the cold sweat gushed out like spring water again.

It took a long time before Concubine Li regained her composure, and said, "Master Zhou, why don't you go down? I'll ask Li Gao to write back to you about what you said."

(End of this chapter)