Chapter 222: Cai Jing in the Courtyard, the successor of Cai Dang
After they walked out of the Yamen and said goodbye, Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun felt something was wrong the more they thought about it.
Before the two came to the yamen of the Ministry of Rites, they made up their minds that no matter what happened to Sima Guang today, they must let the Ministry of Rites cooperate to put those messy rumors to rest.
This is also what Cai Jing meant when he came from Gongyuan.
If the rumors continue to brew, those candidates who did not obtain the test questions in advance may take advantage of the situation to cause trouble, and some officials who were not paying attention to the matter may also be attracted.
If it attracts the attention of some censors, it will be even worse.
A while ago, Cai Jing and his party were fighting to the death with them over the matter of Song Min. Now if those censors catch their pigtails, they will definitely not let go easily...
Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun also knew the seriousness of the matter, so they made up their minds before coming.
Originally, it would have been enough for one person to discuss this matter, but they still came together in two people just to show the determination of the Ministry of Punishment and Party Cai!
But I didn't expect that Sima Guang's methods were even more clever, and he deceived the two of them with just one sentence.
It wasn't until they left the Rites Yamen and let the cold wind blow that the two of them gradually relaxed.
Suppressing rumors doesn't mean that if you issue a notice on the same day, it can be completed on the same day. You have to leave time for the notice to spread and people's reaction time...
(change first and then change)
And what they lack most now is time!
Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun wanted to catch up with Sima Guang again, but when they looked up, they saw that they had disappeared.
At this time, a creaking sound came from behind. It turned out that all the officials of the Ministry of Rites had left, and now the last official left had locked the door.
That's it, now the yamen of the Ministry of Rites are closed, and the big seal is left inside.
There is no notice with the seal of the Ministry of Rites...it would be better not to issue it.
The two of them were walking on Tianjie Street, surrounded by many low-level officials.
There were constant whispers in the crowd, and the topic that many people were discussing was the exam and the leaked exam questions.
Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun looked at each other, and both of them realized the difficulty of the matter. The former said solemnly: "Come back tomorrow morning!"
Gao Xun also nodded solemnly, and the two of them followed the flow of people and continued to go to Hanguang Gate.
The sky was getting dark, and low-ranking officials were walking on Tian Street. But even so, these two crimson-robed ministers were still very conspicuous among a certain kind of officials.
The orange-red sunset reflects on it, reflecting the intoxicating colors.
Unfortunately, it was sunset.
On the second floor of the Yamen of the Ministry of Industry, Guan Peng was looking out of the window at the two servants walking on Tian Street. The setting sun filtered in through the window, and patches of orange-red light shone on his face and body.
"Sima Shilang left so quickly just now, and now these two people have been standing here stupidly for such a long time. It seems that this matter has not been negotiated at all."
Standing next to him was Yan Lide, the left minister of the Ministry of Industry.
Yan Lide just glanced at it, turned around and sat down, sipping the tea one cup at a time, unable to say anything.
Seeing this, Guan Peng shook his head slightly: "Shilang Yan, you don't have to worry too much about this matter."
"Nowadays, the rumors in the capital and the court are very strange. Maybe Cai Jing and the others will be in trouble..."
Yan Lide just sighed: "Shilang Guan, I just didn't think about it for a while, just take it a little longer, just take it a little longer..."
The last time Su Ling'a was drinking at his house, she accidentally said something that the deputy examiner had decided.
Although Yan Lide was very drunk at the time, his younger brother Yan Liben was sober at the time and told his brother the next day.
Yan Lide later asked Su Ling'a, but Su Ling'a followed Wu Shenglan's advice and did not continue.
So Yan Lide didn't take it seriously and just thought it was Su Ling'a's drunken gaffe.
But it wasn't until the candidate for the deputy examiner appeared that day, and Cai Jing and others paid tribute to the academy, that the news about the appointment of the deputy examiner gradually spread, and it was said that he had a nose and an eye.
Only then did Yan Lide suddenly wake up, and Su Ling'a no longer hid it from him, but told him the source of the news.
After hearing this, Yan Lide's eyes immediately darkened.
The deputy examiner who has been fighting for so long has spent energy and money to establish connections with Cai Jing, belittle Cai Jing's gangsters, provide money, and help, just to let them say a few good words in front of Cai Jing...
He even went so far as to get into trouble with Lu Yin, the minister of the Ministry of War, and other ministers for this deputy examiner spot.
When the deputy examiner was first selected, Yan Lide was disappointed with the result, but he was not very angry.
After all, Han Mulu also has a huge advantage among several competitors.
He is originally a member of the Cai Party, so he has a natural advantage in this regard, and he also has money. He is willing to spend money to open up joints. This is something that neither Yan Lide nor Lu Yin can compare with.
So whether it was Lu Yin, Yan Lide, or other ministers, everyone was convinced, at least they didn't have any big complaints.
But now I tell him that this deputy examiner has already been appointed, and neither Yan Lide nor other assistant ministers can accept it!
What does this mean? Treat people like fools?
Yan Lide almost fell ill from anger at that time, and it took him nearly a month to calm down.
Today, Guan Peng followed Yan Song's wishes and came to the Ministry of Industry to discuss the next amount of money for dam construction after the year, but after the discussion, Yan Lide did not let him go immediately.
He heard from Su Ling'a that the first deputy examiner was the left minister of the household department. He and Han Mulu were in the same household department, so he got the first-hand news.
Now Yan Lide wants to ask him whether the rumored thing is true.
Guan Peng naturally gave him an affirmative answer.
Now his mentality has changed, from trying his best to hide it at the beginning to showing off now.
After all, so many people know about it, so no matter how hard you hide it, it will be obvious.
"Is this really what His Majesty told you?" Yan Lide looked up at Guan Peng without giving up.
"Of course it's true."
Yan Lide let out a long sigh.
He did not blame His Majesty the Emperor for not telling him earlier, because given the situation of confrontation between the two sides at that time, there was simply no way to tell.
Even if His Majesty the Emperor at that time reminded these ministers, they would not believe it, but felt that he was trying to sow discord.
And as long as this kind of thing is leaked in advance, Cai Jing's people can immediately change the candidates and turn the true news into false news, such as replacing Han Mulu with Song Qiaonian from the Ministry of Rites...
Thinking of this, Yan Lide sighed heavily again.
Seeing him like this, Guan Peng hesitated for a moment and then whispered: "And on the day when the examiner's date was set, Cai Pushe and Wang Zongbo went to the palace to be holy. It is said that His Majesty said something at that time..."
"What are you talking about?" Yan Lide raised his head.
Although what Guan Peng said was vague and confusing, Yan Lide knew that since he said it, it was definitely not nonsense.
Guan Peng sighed: "Although I don't know whether it is true or not, it seems that His Majesty finally changed his mind. He no longer insists on letting the ministers from Zhongshu Province and Menxia Province serve as deputy examiners. He only intends to let you and Mayor Lu from the Ministry of War
Serve as deputy examiner."
"I?"
Yan Lide was immediately stunned.
"Not bad." The official nodded and said no more.
"Then...then what did Cai Pushe say?"
Now it seems that His Majesty the Emperor's proposal has obviously not been adopted, otherwise the deputy examiner would not be Han Mulu.
"It is said..."
Guan Peng coughed twice and recalled: "It is said that the eldest uncle didn't say anything about the recipe at that time, but grandpa said that this was the common opinion of all the ministers in the six departments and could not be changed."
"Otherwise, it would be bad if it is delayed any longer and the test is delayed."
Yan Lide clenched his fists even more when he heard this.
Guan Peng sighed secretly: "Mr. Yan, the matter has been finished, so I won't disturb you any more."
Recently, Yan Lide has tended to move closer to the Heshen party. Although Guan Peng wanted to stop him, he also understood that now was not the time. It was best to leave Yan Lide alone for a while.
When Guan Peng left Bengbu Yamen, Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun had also arrived at Cai Mansion.
Cai You was waiting for Xin'er at home. When he saw the two of them coming, he hurriedly greeted them.
"Two uncles, what did the Ministry of Rites say?"
Deng Xunwu shook his head, Gao Xuan looked at it and said angrily: "Today is too late, we have to wait until tomorrow."
Cai You didn't show any harsh expression, but nodded: "Then the Minister of Sima resigned early today, and the Ministry of Rites can't handle it?"
Yes, this is another way of saying it, turning incompetence into a force majeure factor.
The tops of the high boots were a bit unhinged. Knowing that Cai You was doing this for their own good, he nodded warmly.
After hearing this, Cai You quickly returned to the table and added a few more words to a piece of paper, then rolled it up.
"Uncles, my nephew, if you'd like to excuse me, I'll go to Gongyuan first to deliver food to my father."
"Be careful on the road."
But Xuanwu just stared at this sentence and let him go.
When Cai You left the study, apart from the family trees of the attendants, only Deng Xunwu and Gao Xun were left.
The two of them looked at the dimly lit study in front of them, and couldn't help but recall the lively scene when Cai Jing was there.
At first, Cai Jing and Han Mulu went to Gongyuan first, but now even Song Qiaonian is no longer there.
Looking at the empty study room, the two of them had an inexplicable feeling of desolation and desolation in their hearts. They looked at each other in silence, not knowing what to say.
But both of them also knew that this was just an illusion.
Although Mr. Cai is not here now, Cai You is.
Everyone didn't pay much attention to it before, but after experiencing this incident, Deng Xunwu and Gao Jun discovered that Master Cai's eldest son actually had so many advantages.
He is calm in the face of danger, calm in situations, knows how to advance and retreat, has a sense of proportion, understands the ways of the world, respects his elders, and is extremely decent in all aspects...
Even if Mr. Cai is not here now, he can still stabilize the situation very well, and he has played a role that cannot be ignored in just a few days.
Cai Dang really has a successor, and he is also a talented person!
The successors of Cai Party on the other side moved very quickly and arrived at Gongyuan in a short time in a sedan chair.
"Master Cai is here again to deliver food to Master Cai."
The soldiers guarding outside the Gongyuan came up to him with smiles.
Cai You said with a smile: "My father is not around, and as a child, I cannot take care of myself. I am always worried that he will not eat well or sleep well, so I deliver meals more frequently."
When the soldiers nearby heard this, they all raised their thumbs and praised: "Master Cai is really the most filial son in the capital."
"Yes, Mr. Cai is also lucky to have a son like Mr. Cai!"
"If that boy of mine could have one of Mr. Cai's fingers, then I would be willing to die..."
Caiyou was not confused by these rainbow farts, but looked at the leader Dingding with a smile and handed over the food box in his hand.
"This officer, please search for food and send it to my father as soon as possible."
Cai You asked: "Today I helped him make a white fungus soup that moistens the lungs and relieves cough, so I came a little late. If I send it to him, the old man will probably starve."
"Hey~ Why should I check the rice delivered by Young Master Cai?"
The leading soldier just lifted the lid of the food box, looked at it casually, then closed it again, smiled, waved to the food, and said to the surrounding soldiers:
"Okay, I'll deliver the food to Mr. Cai. You guys can watch carefully here."
Cai You smiled and said nothing, watching the soldier's back walking into the Gongyuan, then turned and left.
Just like that, a small note appeared on Cai Jing's desk.
After Cai Jiang read it, he would often sigh and put the note on the oil lamp beside him, letting it burn to ashes.
Han Mulu frowned at the side: "What? Mr. Cai? They two didn't succeed?"
"Difficult, difficult, difficult!"
The financial handrail took a few more steps and kept shaking its head.
Even if it is too late to calm down the rumors today, let alone wait until tomorrow?
Fortunately, they still have time.
To be honest, Cai Jing is not worried about finishing the exam tomorrow, nor is he worried about the candidates staying at home the day after tomorrow.
Because the exam lasted three days in the examination room, the amount of charcoal that could be brought in was limited. During these days, I could only eat cold rice, drink cold water, and sleep on a wooden board, and I had to spend all my energy on solving the questions.
Once these three days are over, even a tough guy will lose half his life.
Cai Jing himself has personal experience and experience.
Candidates who go home after taking the exam usually sleep soundly all day, and then wait until the next day to enter the exam room again, leaving no time to care about anything else.
What Cai Jing is worried about is that after three exams, the storm will break out again.
It won't be over by then.
"Master Cai, what should we do now?"
Han Mulu was worried and looked at Cai Jing helplessly.
"Just do whatever you have to do."
Cai Jing looked at him with a look of disdain and took a long breath: "Whenever big things happen, we need to calm down. At this time, there is enough chaos outside. We can no longer mess up our own situation."
"Now that you and I are in the Gongyuan, we can't do anything, so just wait."
"Recuperate your energy in the Gongyuan and deal with the mess after you get out."
"Yes, Mr. Cai."
Han Mulu breathed a sigh of relief, and finally seemed to have a backbone.
Cai Jing ignored him and stood by the window with his deputy, squinting and looking out the window at the night.
From a young scholar who just entered the officialdom to his current situation, it can be said that Cai Jing has eaten more salt than many people have eaten, and he has experienced countless ups and downs in the court.
But even so, this situation still makes him feel very difficult...