Wang Gang and Hai Chaoyun left Sheng Mansion after a sweet moment and went to the Ministry of War to report.
He was appointed by the official Zhao Shu as the right minister of the Ministry of War and a fourth-rank official.
When Wang arrived at the Ministry of War, he immediately showed his official status, and then someone came to receive him. However, it was not the Minister of the Ministry of War, but Tan Wenjun, the left minister of the Ministry of War.
The Ministry of War is one of the six departments under the Shangshu Province, and is responsible for the selection of military attaches, military status, weapons, military orders, etc.
It sounds like it is very important. In fact, after the founding of the Song Dynasty, the Privy Council and the Three Yamen were established, which significantly reduced the authority of the Ministry of War.
Nowadays, the Ministry of War has become a fictitious department, with only the authority to manage militiamen in various places. The regular army of the Song Dynasty is all deployed by the Privy Council and the Sanyamen, and the Ministry of War cannot interfere.
The Right Minister of the Ministry of War is an adjutant to the Minister of War, the first-in-command of the Ministry of War. Together with the Left Minister, he is considered the second-in-command of the Ministry of War.
However, the ancients respected the left, and the status of the left minister of the Ministry of War was slightly higher than that of the right minister.
Tan Wenjun is a very gentle middle-aged man, and his attitude towards Wang Gang is also friendly, and he can even be said to be harmless to humans and animals.
After all, after the Ministry of War was decentralized by the Privy Council and the three Yamen, it became a pension department, and there was less competition.
Wang Gang didn't have any objections to this part-time department. He had just experienced a battlefield battle and needed a part-time department to adjust.
What's more, Wang Gang also knew in his heart that if he returned to Beijing as an official, it would be impossible for him to be transferred to a department with real power.
Because of his age, a fourth-grade official in his early twenties is already out of line. If he were to hold real power again, the big guys in the court would not agree!
After Wang Gang reported, he received his official uniform, but instead of returning to Sheng Mansion, he was recruited into the palace.
When the official Zhao Shu heard that Wang had just returned to Beijing, he immediately sent eunuchs to the Ministry of War.
This is the third time Wang Gang has entered the palace. The first time was for the palace examination, and the second time was when he entered the palace to express his gratitude after winning the first prize. After that, he was released as an official.
This time Zhao Shu did not summon Wang Gang in the palace, but chose to meet in the back garden.
"Sheng Aiqing, it's been a hard journey!" Zhao Shu was very happy when he saw Wang Gang. He took his hand and sat down without letting him salute.
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Thank you for your hard work." Wang Gang said modestly.
Zhao Shu smiled and said: "I know that you have worked hard in Qingzhou and made great achievements this time. The right minister of the Ministry of War has wronged you."
"I don't dare." Wang Gang replied.
Zhao Shu said with a bitter face: "You shot and killed Xia Emperor Li Liangzuo, which is a great achievement. It is reasonable to say that you can be granted a title of marquis. However, the Queen Mother felt that you became famous at a young age and held a high position, which would make you easy to be proud and complacent, so she suppressed you."
When I first took charge of the throne, I was constrained by many constraints, and there were some things I couldn’t control myself!”
Wang Gang lowered his head and listened to Zhao Shu complain, but he didn't dare to say a word.
Although he was an official in other places, he also heard about things that the emperor and the queen mother did not deal with.
Zhao Shu was adopted as the late emperor's son so that he could successfully succeed to the throne, and the Queen Mother was regarded as his adoptive mother.
It's just that this adoptive mother is obviously a restless person.
At the beginning of Zhao Shu's succession, the Queen Mother united with many ministers and asked for the government to be heard behind the curtain.
You must know that Zhao Shu is not a child emperor. When he ascended the throne, he was already in his thirties and was old enough to govern himself. He did not need the Queen Mother to assist him.
However, the Queen Mother finally succeeded in listening to politics behind the curtain, and she always had to have a hand in major affairs of the court.
What's even more outrageous is that the Queen Mother is still holding on to the Emperor's jade seal. The Emperor must ask the Queen Mother to use the seal when issuing an edict.
The conflict between the emperor and the queen mother became increasingly intensified, and the court gradually divided into three factions.
pro-empress faction, royalist faction and centrist faction.
Logically speaking, Wang Gang should belong to the centrist faction, but he had offended too many people when he attacked the gentry and local tycoons on Jiangnan West Road. In the end, it was Zhao Shu who stepped in to protect him.
Therefore, many people in the court thought that he was a royalist.
Wang Gang himself didn't care.
"Don't worry, you can stay in the Ministry of War for a period of time to accumulate qualifications. When the opportunity arises, I will transfer you to serve in the Privy Council." Zhao Shu promised.
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am actually quite good at the Ministry of War. I can learn from all of you."
Zhao Shu comforted Wang Gang for a while, and then let him go out of the palace and go home.
But as soon as the king reached the palace gate, an old eunuch stopped him.
"Master Shanda, please stay. The Queen Mother invites you." The old eunuch pinched his throat and said to Wang Gang.
Wang Gang realized that the moment he stepped into Bianjing, he had already fallen into the game between the emperor and the queen mother.
Zhao Shu did not dare to refuse the Queen Mother's decree, and Wang Gang certainly could not.
He followed the old eunuch to the Queen Mother's Shoukang Palace.
After entering the Shoukang Palace, Wang Gang saw a curtain with an unclear figure behind it.
"How dare you not kneel down when you see the Queen Mother?" the old eunuch screamed.
"Your Majesty, I forgive you. My legs were injured on the battlefield and I cannot kneel down." Wang Gang said, neither humble nor overbearing.
A voice came from behind the curtain: "Since Shanda people have been injured for the country, they will be given a seat without having to kneel down!"
The old eunuch reluctantly brought a chair, and Wang Gang sat down without any courtesy.
The Queen Mother began to say a few words that were neither salty nor bland, mostly to comfort Wang Gang. They were no different from what Zhao Shu said. Wang Gang didn't take it seriously.
Until the Queen Mother said: "I heard that the six daughters of the Sheng family are gentle, virtuous, and talented. I am in need of a smart and capable female official."
Wang Gang frowned, naturally he didn't want Sheng Minglan to enter the palace to serve an old woman.
"To report to the Queen Mother, my sixth sister has been betrothed to another family and will get married soon. I may not be able to serve the Queen Mother."
"Oh! Which family is the child betrothed to?" the Queen Mother asked curiously.
Wang Gang said: "It's He Hongwen from the He family, my grandmother's best friend."
"The He family! I know you, and the He family even checked my pulse," the Queen Mother said.
"It's just that I heard that He Hongwen's child is a bit unstable and may not be a good match."
As soon as Wang Gang heard this, he understood that the Queen Mother was threatening him.
Who is He Hongwen? He is just a descendant of the He family. How can the Queen Mother know him? Anything that is not stable is all fiction.
The Queen Mother just wanted to tell Wang Gang that even if He Hongwen and Sheng Minglan were engaged, neither could get married without her consent.
In this era where imperial power is more important than anything else, the Queen Mother's word can make the He family cancel the engagement.
Wang Gang hated being threatened. He asked himself why he was targeting himself like this since he had never offended the Queen Mother.
"If the Queen Mother is in need of someone to serve, I can write to Your Majesty to choose more beautiful girls." Wang Gang moved out of Zhao Shu.
"Mr. Shanda, the Queen Mother uses your sister to look after your Sheng family. Why do you still want to resist the decree?" the old eunuch said with a pinched voice.
Wang Gang turned his head to look at the old eunuch, and murderous intent burst out from his whole body. The old eunuch staggered and fell to the ground in fright.
This move is an upper-level skill in Neijiaquan. The eyes combined with the fist's evil spirit can seize people's minds. Wang Gang has never used it before. This was the first time he used it after experiencing a life-and-death battle and when Neijiaquan broke through again. Unexpectedly
The subject is a eunuch.
The old eunuch was so frightened that he trembled all over and his pants started to get wet.
The Queen Mother behind the curtain was very displeased and beat the dog to look at its owner. Wang Gang's move was no less than a blatant provocation to her.
"Okay! Do you want to rebel? How dare you use violence in the Queen Mother's palace." The old eunuch became angry and wanted to recruit someone to capture Wang Gang.
Wang Gang said innocently: "Why did this father-in-law fall innocently?"
The old eunuch's face turned blue and white. Wang Gang did not touch him just now. He was frightened by the killing intent in Wang Gang's eyes. When the matter came to the officials, Wang Gang took the matter for granted.
Wang Gang turned around and said to the Queen Mother: "If the Queen Mother has anything to do with me, why should I embarrass my sister?"
"Bold." The Queen Mother finally couldn't sit still and stood up and said angrily: "I think you are being pampered and spoiled. Do you think that after winning the battle, you can ignore me?"
Wang Gang said confidently: "I don't dare. I have never considered myself a hero. Being able to win a battle is a soldier who sacrificed his life for it. If the Queen Mother feels it is inappropriate, she can take off my official uniform."
After saying this, Wang Gang took off his official uniform in front of the Queen Mother. Not only that, he also took off all his underwear, revealing the hideous scars on his upper body.
Wang Gang has numerous large and small scars on his body, all of which were left when he defended the city. Some are new wounds, some are old wounds, and some have not fully healed.
The Queen Mother stood behind the curtain and saw the scars on Wang Gang's body through the gap. She could no longer get angry and sat down helplessly.
The old eunuch was a little ashamed when he saw Wang Gang's scar.
Because every scar on his body represents his dedication to the Song Dynasty.
"That's all, please step back. I'm tired too." The Queen Mother said in a low mood.
Wang Gang picked up his clothes, wrapped them around himself, and then walked out of the palace gate.
After the old eunuch saw Wang Gang out of the palace, he arranged for the young eunuch to see Wang Gang off while he went back to change his pants.
While Wang Gang was dressing and walking, he kept thinking about where he had offended the Queen Mother.
But after thinking about it all the way, he couldn't figure out the reason when he arrived at Sheng Mansion.
Wang Gang suppressed his doubts for the time being, and when he walked home, he found that Sheng Hong and Sheng Changbai had already returned home from get off work and had been waiting for him to come back for a reunion dinner.
The reason why it is called a reunion dinner is because Hua Lan, the eldest son of the Sheng family, Mo Lan, the fourth son, Ru Lan, the fifth son, Ming Lan and Changdong, the seventh son, all returned home.