Chapter 957
: Nothing More Than Grouping for Warmth
Chapter 957: Nothing More Than Grouping for Warmth
Jiangnan,
Inside the Jinling City Prefectural Office,
Jia Yucun had already set up a banquet in the hall to entertain the inspector general Jing, the official in the same palace, Ma Tongpan, and the magistrate of Hutong. The fire on the table flickered like a solitary lamp in the darkness.
I don’t know how long I waited,
There was a sound of footsteps in front of the palace gate.
"Master, I took the visiting card and went to the Inspector General's residence, but the housekeeper said that Lord Jing was busy today and could not attend the banquet."
An old butler in brocade clothes stood there respectfully, with a trace of worry on his face. After he finished speaking, he said,
"Master, do you want me to go again?"
I spoke carefully, fearing that the master would blame me.
Jia Yucun sneered and waved his hand.
"It's obvious that he won't come. It's useless to go again. Even if Lord Jing wants to come, he can't come now. The court has sent another inspector. Jiangnan is such a big place, and the court has sent one inspector after another. There are too many masters above, who can serve well? Has Lord Ma come?"
After a few words, Jia Yucun's eyes were gloomy. How could the good Jiangnan area become so chaotic? He wanted to make further progress by relying on the relationship with Eunuch Yang, but who would have thought that the people from the palace were so cruel and ruthless. They had to report the matter of destroying the dikes and flooding the fields. Although the court had let the matter of the civil unrest in the south of Beijing go lightly, it might not be that they would not investigate it later. Who would be the one to take the blame? It could only be the people in their prefectural government office. It was unknown whether it was three people or two people.
"My lord, the judge is not at home. I asked the steward of his house and he said that Master Ma has been at the Jiangnanchun Restaurant these days, accompanying Eunuch Yang and serving him."
The old housekeeper lowered his head and thought for a while. Now the situation in the government offices was tense and it was not as easy to find out as before.
"Yes, that's right. They are all trying to curry favor with their superiors. The affairs of the prefectural government should be put aside. However, there are things that some people don't know after all. The more people get involved, the more some things cannot be left in a muddle. Since the big Buddha cannot be invited, we can only discuss it with the scattered Buddhas. When will Lord Hu come?"
Jia Yucun showed a hint of cold smile. He was panicking now and was busy looking for a way out. What was he doing before? There was an Inspector General, a Eunuch Yang from the Textile Bureau, and now a Supervisor Su who had not yet arrived. There might not be another one coming. Jiangnan was getting more and more lively anyway.
"Master, Lord Hu will be here soon. When I went to Lord Hu's house, Lord Hu had been staying at home since he returned from Jiangbei. I took the visiting card and explained my purpose. Soon after I sent it in, the housekeeper of Lord Hu's house replied that Lord Hu would be here soon. He also told me that Lord Hu would bring something very important."
He bent his body slightly, thinking that it was only Lord Hu who needed to rely on him to do things. In this way, Lord Hu could still advance and retreat with him in the yamen.
"Oh, something extremely important, but what did it say?"
Jia Yucun's eyes lit up. If Hu Wenxuan called it something extremely important, it must be of great importance.
"My Lord, the steward didn't tell me, so I don't know."
The old butler shook his head. Such confidential matters were not something that a servant like him could hear.
While the two were talking, the servant's words came from outside the door.
"Master, Lord Hu is here,"
"Please quickly,"
Jia Yucun's mouth curled up slightly. He thought that since it was so important, he would not tell the servants. He gave the old housekeeper a look and asked him to go down and make arrangements. The housekeeper nodded and quietly withdrew.
Just waited a moment.
The door opens,
Tongzhi Hu Wenxuan came in, exhausted.
"Brother Jia, I'm late,"
Hu Wenxuan was wearing a dark robe and a hat on his head to cover his face. After he walked in, he took off the hat, revealing a face full of vicissitudes.
Jia Yucun was stunned. He had never expected that he had changed so much after not seeing him for so many days. How could it be so?
"You're not too late, Brother Hu. Please take a seat. I wonder why Brother Hu has changed so much?"
Jia Yucun stood up to greet him. When he came closer, he could see him more clearly. He was wearing a cloth shirt with patches on some places. In addition, the edges of his bamboo hat were quite worn, which meant that he wore it often. If it weren't for that familiar face, his thin figure, and the way he was dressed, he really wouldn't have been recognized.
Hu Wenxuan put his bamboo hat on a chair beside him and looked at the familiar lobby. He was overwhelmed with emotions and turned around to salute Jia Yucun.
"Brother Jia, I am not talented and I just came back today,"
There seem to be many grievances.
Jia Yucun stepped forward quickly, lifted him up with both hands, and said in a voice that he would not accept it.
"How can you be like this, my dear brother? You and I have served in the same office for many years, and we are closer than brothers. Why do you still need to follow these etiquettes? Come on, sit down and drink some warm wine to warm yourself up."
Without further ado, he pulled Hu Wenxuan to sit at the table. Then, the lights in the room were turned on again. The housekeeper came in with warm wine and two food boxes. He took out three plates from them. One was filled with Jiangnan specialty crispy pork, one was filled with golden beans, another was filled with braised beef in soy sauce, and there was also a pot of sake. There were only these four dishes on the huge table.
Seeing the empty space around him, Hu Wenxuan finally realized that there might be only two of them at the banquet tonight. He understood what was going on and felt a little depressed. He took the wine pot first and filled the two wine cups on the table.
"Brother Jia, I am not talented, so I will drink first as a sign of respect."
"Okay, come on, do it."
The two of them seemed to know what was going to happen next. They each drank a glass. Then, Jia Yucun asked first,
"I wonder how the jade that was sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the capital is being mined after you went to Jiangbei?"
It's called mining, but it doesn't mean that there are other means. Eunuch Yang is urging him to do it, and there are special memorials from the internal affairs department. These have all been approved by the court. How to deal with them is really difficult for him.
It would have been fine if he hadn't mentioned this. After he did, Hu Tongzhi's face darkened even more. He took the wine pot, filled a cup with wine, drank it, and sighed;
"Brother Jia, since I went to Jiangbei, I have unsealed many stone mines and ordered them to be mined all night without rest. All the people in the prison were sent there. Who knew that a flood would come at that time? The people in several mines didn't have time to evacuate and all died. That's half of the people died."
At this point, Hu Wenxuan's face turned red. It was not difficult to find out who did what. Having worked in the government office for many years, everyone knew what the three people did. He knew what was going on. Those patrol officers were all the men of the judge Ma Guangcheng.
"There are so many people involved. Even the dead can be compensated with money to keep their mouths shut, but how are we going to deal with the jades that the Ministry of Internal Affairs wants? How dare we deal with three ships of jade? The mines in Jiangbei are not rich. I wonder how Brother Hu will solve it."
Although there are many jade mines in Jiangbei, they were all left over from the previous dynasty, or rather, from the previous dynasty’s predecessor. They have been mined here for several generations, and the rich mines have become poor mines. Even if there are some, they need to be dug deeper. It is still unknown when the three ships of jade required by the Ministry of Internal Affairs can be dug out. So, where did the jade sent to the capital come from?
"Haha, how can we solve it? We can only solve it from the dead bodies. This flood killed so many people. In Jiangbei, many people built houses with jade. Since the flood has come, these are ownerless. I can only ask Eunuch Yang to mobilize the Yangzhou army to search everywhere. We have barely gathered three boats of jade. They are just washed with river water, just like they were just mined out." Hu Wenxuan smiled bitterly. From now on, the people in the five counties of Jiangbei are living in misery. I studied the teachings of the saints hard, but now I am doing the opposite of what I learned. Alas,
Seeing Hu Wenxuan's helplessness, Jia Yucun remained silent. He wanted to withdraw now, but he couldn't. He still had to discuss how to protect himself.
"Brother Hu, let the past be the past. I invited you here today to discuss the future. Judge Ma is not in the government office when he is on duty. He has been serving at the Jiangnanchun Restaurant for three or five days. He has climbed up the social ladder, but no one cares about you and me. Do you understand?"
"How could this be? Didn't Lord Jing rely on you and me to turn the fields into mulberry trees?"
Hu Wenxuan was confused. It was well known that Ma Guangcheng was close to Eunuch Yang. Lord Shen from the Weaving Bureau had been in and out with Lord Ma many times. He had also heard about Lord Ma in Jiangbei. But why didn't Lord Jing take any action now? You know, the matter of converting farmland into mulberry trees had caused a lot of trouble in Jiangnan, but he was the leader. Now that something had happened, it would not be easy for him to retreat.
"Humph, relying on you and me, even if he doesn't speak, this is the court's national policy, how can you and I shirk it? Let me tell you one thing. There is another Bodhisattva coming to the court to serve as the Supervisor of Jiangnan. As for who he will supervise, it goes without saying."
Jia Yucun stroked his beard, finally seeing the change. He picked up the chopsticks, picked up a piece of braised beef, put it into his mouth, and chewed it gently.
"Come, brother, try this old flavor from the Jiangnan Street. The first time we had a drink together was so simple. Do you still remember it?"
Hu Wenxuan was still pondering Brother Jia's words. The court had sent someone again, and it was an inspector. Whose person could it be? Could it be that the governor, Lord Zhuang, had taken action? This was simply a series of twists and turns. After hearing Brother Jia's words, he finally turned his eyes to the table in front of him. There were three dishes and a pot of wine. They were exactly what they had ordered at the tavern on the corner.
Thinking back to these, my heart moved slightly. I picked up the chopsticks and picked up a piece of braised beef in soy sauce and put it into my mouth. It was salty and sweet, with a strong flavor of soy sauce. It was really the original taste.
"Brother Jia is thoughtful. It really feels like the old days. If so, I wonder who this inspector is who can make Lord Jing restrain himself a lot."
Perhaps it was a little funny, but the situation changed. When Lord Jing came to Jiangnan, he was suppressed by Lord Zhuang everywhere, and he was in trouble everywhere. When Eunuch Yang came to Jinling from the capital, Lord Zhuang was suppressed again and had no voice. As a result, Lord Jing and Eunuch Yang joined hands to do many "big things."
Now there is another inspector coming to the capital, who could this be?
"Haha, oh my, you asked the right question, brother. Let's try this crispy meat. It's not only fried crispy, but also smeared with honey. It tastes much better than before. As for who you asked, who is this person?"
Jia Yucun smiled slightly, lowered his head and leaned forward to whisper in her ear;
"The person who came is a little strange. He is a censor named Su Chong. I used my connections in the capital to find out that Su Chong is a student of Lu, the Minister of Personnel."
Jia Yucun did not lie. After learning the news, he immediately sent someone to contact Jia Zheng, the second master of Rongguo Mansion, to inquire about the origin of this person, and also gave Rongguo Mansion a gift. Who would have thought that Rongguo Mansion would become a royal family, which led to today's scene and the secret talk with Hu Tongzhi.
"What? Censor, Lord Lu's people. This is really difficult. If Lord Zhuang and Lord Su who are here are to face Lord Jing and Eunuch Yang, who will they listen to? The officialdom in Jiangnan will probably be in chaos."
Hu Wenxuan's eyes widened in disbelief that the cabinet would make such an arrangement.
"Brother Hu, we don't care who you listen to. You have to leave documents when you do things in the future. The matter of converting farmland to mulberry trees has been full of twists and turns. Now the gap in the Xinbei dike has been blocked, and General Leng said that it can be widened by more than double by directly filling it. The other dikes need to be reported to the court. It would be best to set up a river governor in Jiangnan. In this way, the matters on the canal and on both sides of the canal will have nothing to do with us."
"What, Brother Jia? This is a serious matter that could offend people. You should know that since the court established the Governor of the Grand Canal, it has assigned the task of repairing the canal to the Grand Canal Office, with local assistance. If you bring up the canal office, the officials on both sides of the canal, as well as the Governor of the Grand Canal, will probably impeach Brother Jia."
Hu Wenxuan was about to persuade him when he suddenly stopped talking. Could it be that Brother Jia wanted to take this opportunity to leave?
He stared at Jia Yucun's face blankly, and saw Brother Jia pick up the wine cup in his hand, take a sip carefully, and nod.
"On this memorial, not only my name is on it, I took the liberty to write your name on it as well. There is another one. Two of the four newcomers in the imperial examination are the students of Marquis Luo Yun, and the remaining two are the students of Lord Nan of the Wuying Palace. We need to make good use of them. Of course, you have to be tactful. Brother Hu, from now on, you and I will advance and retreat together."
Jia Yucun raised his cup with both hands and looked at Hu Wenxuan steadily. In the whole government office, or in the whole Jinling officialdom, only the two of them could stick together. In the end, even if someone wanted to take the blame for them, they would have to think twice, because the county magistrates under them were all under their control.
Hu Tongzhi naturally understood. Only if the two of them huddled together for warmth could they support each other. After all, there was a Ma Guangcheng in the yamen. If there was another one, the yamen would really be finished. He rolled up his sleeves, and Hu Wenxuan also raised his glass with both hands. The two glasses clinked together, and the two of them raised their heads and drank it all in one gulp. Everything was said without words.
Outside Jinling City,
On the canal to the north, there was another ship with its sails hoisted and floating on the river. For officials heading south, the Ministry of Personnel had specially approved a document to the Governor's Office of the Canal Transport Office, requiring two ships to be left at the Beijing dock for emergency use. Therefore, Su Chong was able to ride the ship safely, relying on the friendship of his teacher in the Ministry of Personnel. This trip to the south was comfortable.
The night is getting darker.
Su Chong led two servants to the bow of the ship. A gentle breeze blew, and the northern scenery was gradually left behind. The scenery along the way was slowly filled with the gentle atmosphere of the south of the Yangtze River. The green trees on both sides of the river swayed in the wind.
But in his heart, he had already drifted to Jinling City. Lord Zhuang, the governor of Jiangnan, had always been close to his teacher and had served in Jiangnan for many years. He had deep roots and could be relied upon. However, Eunuch Yang from the Weaving Bureau and Lord Jing, the inspector of Jiangnan, were from the Imperial Household Department in the capital and the Prince Zhongshun's Palace. In addition, the national policy of converting farmland into mulberry trees was also promoted by Lord Prime Minister Li. The details of the situation were still unknown.
This time, we have to investigate the breach of the Xinbei dike, and the other is to implement national policy, which is really difficult. If it is really the Jinling Tongpan Ma Guangcheng who ordered it, it is for national policy. This dirty water involves the Imperial Household Department of the court, and when it is related to the palace, it is a crime of disrespect.
I guess I was a little impulsive.
My thoughts followed the ship southward, the river water was split apart, and the water kept pouring in. For a moment, my heart was in a mess.
Suddenly, a greeting came from behind.
"Sir Su, dinner is ready. It is just some simple food on the ship. Please come into the cabin to eat."
Looking back,
At the attic staircase of the second-floor ship, under the illumination of a lantern, a burly Dong Wan, a captain of the Canal Transport Guards, came down the stairs and clasped his fists, saying,
Seeing that it was someone familiar who was escorting him, Su Chong clasped his fists and returned the greeting;
"Captain Dong, you are too polite. It is rare to be able to eat hot meals on a ship. How can you be picky? I wonder if Captain Dong has ever been to Jiangnan. What can you say there?"
His eyes were bright, as if he was asking something. In the Jiangnan area, apart from the local officials who knew the inside story, the rest were the people from the Canal Transport Office. They knew much more than the officials.
"Haha, not really, but I might know some familiar things. At the beginning of the year, I went to Jiangnan with the Marquis, so I know a little bit. Lord Su, please come in, let's eat and talk."
Dong Wan smiled. Lord Su was so young, yet he dared to go to the dangerous place of Jiangnan. Thinking of what the chief official of the Governor's Office had personally told him, Dong Wan dared not not say anything. They were almost at Nantou Wharf.
"Okay, since Captain Dong sincerely invites you, please come."
The two of them were polite to each other, feeling strange, but they still went up to the second-floor cabin living room one after the other. When they entered, the palace lanterns were brightly lit, illuminating the wall decorations in the cabin.
In the front cabin's living room, near the window, there was a table with six steaming side dishes and a pot of sake on it. Although it was not as good as what we had eaten on the road, it was rare here.
After the two of them sat down, Dong Wan took the wine pot first and filled the wine cups on the table for them, and then he spoke.
"Sir Su, I am a rough man who only makes a living on the river. I travel all over the country and only know about river affairs. As for the rest, I am no match for you. If I say something wrong, please forgive me."
Without waiting for Su Chong to speak, he picked up the wine cup and drank it all, with a look of joy on his face.
Su Chong, who was sitting opposite him, couldn't help laughing. Captain Dong was really an amazing person.
(End of this chapter)