Shen Ao wanted to help the eldest princess, but if Prince Qing came to find him, he would have to give an explanation, at least an explanation that satisfied the other party. Only in this way could everyone be happy.
Shen Ao did not agree immediately, but fell into deep thought, which made the eldest princess sitting opposite couldn't help but beat her drum. She didn't know what Shen Ao was thinking, but she knew clearly that if Shen Ao didn't get it, With Ao's support, it would be impossible for Zhou Xuan to become the right minister of household affairs.
"Mr. Zhongguo, are there any difficulties?" After a long time, seeing that Shen Ao still had no intention of speaking, the eldest princess, who was a little out of breath, had to open her mouth first.
"There are no difficulties, but I have a little doubt. Prince Qing is now very supportive of Daqian Bank. I am afraid that he will come to someone for the position of right minister. How should I deal with it at that time? Can the eldest princess give me some advice?" Shen Ao didn't mean to hide anything, so he spoke out the issues he was thinking about.
"Ah? This..." The eldest princess sat there speechless for a moment.
The eldest princess was of course aware of Prince Qing's overtures to Shen Ao at Daqian Bank. She also knew that the Fan family openly expressed support for Daqian Bank afterwards, which was of great benefit to the issuance of banknotes. Even Emperor Lian knew about this. I was extremely happy after this incident and had already praised Prince Qing for it.
Privately, I am probably even more satisfied with Shen Ao. But at this time, Prince Qing came to visit, and it was really hard for Shen Ao to refuse. After all, he had just supported you, and it would be beneficial to kick him aside. Isn't that right? Is this what a gentleman does?
Once the incident comes out, Prince Qing's face will naturally suffer a bit. But the one who will suffer a greater loss will only be Shen Ao. Everyone will think that he is not a grateful person, so everyone will inevitably stay longer when dealing with him in the future. A few thoughts, this is detrimental to Shen Ao's future development.
Thinking that it was related to Shen Ao's personal future, the eldest princess didn't know what to say. She couldn't let Shen Ao lose personal interests in order to help her, right?
The eldest princess couldn't say this. Even if she said it, Shen Ao would have to agree.
The eldest princess was silent, but Shen Ao smiled and said: "Your Highness, I don't know if it is true that Prince Qing recommends Yushi Zhongyao to seize this position?"
The eldest princess didn't know what Shen Ao meant by asking like this, but she nodded truthfully, "Of course there is nothing wrong with this. This has been filed with the Ministry of Personnel."
"Oh? That's true." Shen Ao nodded, and then asked, "But I don't know if a censor's promotion to the Ministry of War is considered a promotion?"
"Huh?" The eldest princess was confused by Shen Ao's question, but she still nodded after hesitating, "Of course it is considered a promotion. The censor has no real power. He only corrects the atmosphere in the court and impeaches himself. It's just an unpleasant thing, and he is usually very idle. Now that he has such an opportunity to become the head of a staff, it is equivalent to having real power, and it will naturally be regarded as a promotion. Having this qualification will also be of great benefit to his future development. "
When the eldest princess said this, her eyes suddenly lit up. She had already thought of something. When she looked at Shen Ao, she asked aloud, "Dong Zhongguo means..."
"Yes, but this matter still requires the consent of the eldest princess. When the time comes, if Zhong Yao wants to be appointed as a staff member of the Ministry of War, His Highness will also need to contribute, so there should be no problem. Of course, in return, Zhou Xuan will join the Ministry of Household Affairs Prince Qing will definitely help me with the matter of becoming the Right Assistant Minister." Shen Ao laughed, this was the way he thought of to get the best of both worlds.
In this way, the eldest princess's request was met, and Prince Qing also took advantage, so no one would blame him.
"Okay, no problem." Although the eldest princess is a woman, she still has the ability to make decisions, not to mention that she has already made a profit in this matter.
The eldest princess smiled with satisfaction, and Shen Ao also laughed. Shortly after seeing the eldest princess off, Fan Shitong came to the door as expected.
For this leader of hundreds of officials, when Chao Zuopu Shehui came to Xianweiju in person instead of sending someone to invite him, he showed full respect. I have always treated others with respect. His father-in-law, Shen Ao, also made a sufficient gesture and personally greeted him at the door of Xianweiju. After Fan Shitong's soft sedan stopped, he even made the gesture of a junior official and junior, and personally opened the door. He lifted the sedan curtain and helped Fan Shitong walk out of the sedan.
Although Fan Shitong was not young, he did not need anyone to help him get off the sedan chair. Shen Ao just wanted to express a kind of respect, and also to show others that he respects the old and cares for the young, and that he respects the superior.
Fan Shitong was very satisfied with Shen Ao's approach, and then he spoke with his hands at the door of Xianweiju. This scene was seen by many officials and wealthy people who came to dine here. It will not take long for the matter to spread. , it will also be of great benefit to Shen Ao's reputation.
Shen Ao personally led him to the private room on the third floor. After the guests and hosts were seated, there was no one else in the room, and even Xue Fei went outside. After all, he was just an old man, and he would definitely not treat young, strong, and Shen Ao, who has martial arts skills, is not in any physical danger.
With the guests and hosts still seated, Fan Shitong explained the purpose of his visit. Compared to the eldest princess's reserve, this Zuo Pushe was obviously more forceful and spoke straight to the point.
Shen Ao, who was well prepared for this, told Fan Shitong that the eldest princess had come and discussed the results with him.
Shen Ao also did not beat around the bush. He believed that with Fan Shitong's political wisdom, he should be able to understand what he was doing. Of course, when Shen Ao spoke, his tone was very firm, indicating that he had agreed to the eldest princess's request and that he definitely could not do it. changed.
Fan Shitong was a little disappointed by the fact that Zhong Yao, whom he had recommended, was promoted to a staff member of the Ministry of War instead of the right minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs. But it was not a complete disappointment, at least it was rewarding.
Moreover, just after showing kindness to Shen Ao, they wanted him to repay them, which was somewhat of a repayment of kindness, which was not conducive to their purpose of establishing a cooperative relationship with Shen Ao. The long-term strategy is the way to go.
This time, the eldest princess took advantage of her, so next time she will be the one to take advantage. Of course, the most important thing is to prevent King Xiang from expanding. This is what Fan Shitong originally thought. The minimum requirement is that even if they cannot get the position of Right Minister, they must not let Prince Xiang get it. Now it seems that this goal has been achieved.
"That's fine, everything will be done according to the agreement between Duke Zhongguo and the eldest princess." Fan Shitong quickly figured out the joints and expressed his position.
...
Prince Xiang's Mansion.
Another valuable porcelain bottle was smashed to the ground and became garbage everywhere. King Xiang took this opportunity to vent his anger.
The vacancy of the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue is a good opportunity for King Xiang. Once he obtains this position, he will have the opportunity to control Daqian Bank. At that time, the person in charge of any financial matters will still be the loyal Duke Shen Ao. He drank the rest of King Xiang's foot washing water. Li Yun, who only needed the recommendation, went to trouble Shen Ao every day. I couldn't believe that he dealt with this young man a lot.
If Shen Ao is in charge of Guochanglong and Daqian Bank, but does not use it for his own personal gain, King Xiang will not believe it even if he kills him. This may be to judge others by oneself, at least King Xiang will definitely do so in this position This is one of the reasons why Emperor Qianwen would not leave this important department in his hands.
The idea was good, but the result was very unsatisfactory. With Shen Ao's help, King Qing actually joined forces with the eldest princess to push Zhou Xuan to the position of right minister. Shen Ao had already discussed this matter with Rui, the Minister of Household Affairs. We communicated with each other, and the candidate has been reported to the Ministry of Personnel by the Ministry of Household Affairs.
As the Minister of Hubu, he still has a big say in who should be appointed as the right minister of Hubu. It can be imagined that there will not be too much interference from the Hubu, and the final result will be reported to the emperor smoothly, and the matter will be smooth. Almost as close as ten.
Thinking that the planned thing had gone sour, thinking that the eldest princess and Prince Qing had gained benefits respectively, and that he had become a joke, how could Prince Xiang's face look so good? There was a mess all over the place.
A lot of things were thrown, but the anger in his heart still couldn't be completely vented. King Xiang looked at his staff Shi Zitong who was standing in the hall and was shaking all over, and he couldn't help but feel angry.
If this man hadn't avenged his personal revenge, he would have had a good relationship with Shen Ao. But now, he forced the other party to go to Prince Qing and created a strong enemy out of thin air. How could he be willing to do so?
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Prince Xiang casually grabbed a teacup next to him and threw it out. Shi Zitong was unprepared and did not dare to dodge. He took the blow forcefully. He was hit on the forehead and was covered in blood. Flowed down.
"Your Highness, calm down, calm down. It's just the position of a right-hand minister. Give it to them and it won't harm the overall situation." Han Ce, the chief staff officer, stood up and spoke out to persuade.
"Huh? What do you think Mr. Han has to say?" There was still a look of sullenness on his face. He reached out and took another teacup. King Xiang had already thought about it. If Han Ce couldn't tell a reason, he would use the teacup. Teach him a lesson. Although this man had been his teacher, in King Xiang's view, he only saw people who could be used and people who could not be used. As for the teacher-student relationship, he did not take it into his heart at all.
"Your Highness, there is no way. We just lost a game first. As long as we plan well, we may not be able to get it back. After all, your Highness still has the upper hand in the current situation in the court, right?" Han Ce said in a loud voice. . He knew that it would be useless at this time. The best way was to divert King Xiang's attention, so that he could avoid the disaster.