Chapter 19: A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains
"In this case, isn't the humiliation Gao Yaokang suffered yesterday meaningless?"
"More than that! Cheng Fang's beating was in vain."
Zhou Pu was also stunned for a moment. He knew that today's fund-raising meeting, with all the forces entrenched, would be extremely dangerous.
As an official of the Ministry of Rites, in accordance with the patriarchal etiquette system of ordering elders and younger ones, they naturally did not want Zhao Huan, the eldest son of the emperor, to take risks in the fund-raising conference.
Zhao Huan grinned and chuckled: "Master Zhou, can I go in now?"
Zhou Pu's face was gloomy and uncertain, and he cursed in his heart that this guy was ignorant and could not persuade the damn ghost with good words.
Since Zhao Huan insisted on going in to die, Zhou Pu was too lazy to pay attention anymore and immediately waved his hand to signal the guards to let him go.
Under the strange gazes of the surrounding people, Zhao Huan, with his concubine and servants in tow, walked through the gate with their heads held high.
Zhu Lian hesitated again and again, but couldn't help but ask: "Where did you get so much money?"
Considering that he is a martyr in the northern frontier, he is unwilling to reveal his identity.
Zhao Huan smiled mysteriously and said seriously: "I said I picked it up, do you believe it?"
Zhu Lian's face suddenly turned cold and he looked away directly, not bothering to look at Zhao Huan again.
Being ignored by his beloved concubine, Zhao Huan couldn't help but touch his nose. When can he melt this iceberg?
At the same time, Zhao Ji had just sat down in the Sanxiu Hall in the inner garden of Genyue when the eunuch who sent a message came to his side.
"Your Majesty, King Ding made a big fuss at the garden gate, blackmailed the officials of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and threatened to gouge out the eyes of the children of the Ministry of Household Affairs."
Zhao Ji couldn't help but sneered. It must be that Zhao Huan was so angry that he couldn't enter Gen Yue Garden and broke the jar.
The fund-raising meeting is about to begin, and we will definitely not let this "small flaw" disrupt the plan.
Tong Guan, who was beside him, also started teasing in a weird way: "Since His Majesty personally visited Prince Ding's Mansion, Prince Ding's temperament has changed drastically. He has become erratic, violent, and moody."
"It must be caused by the resentment in my heart and nowhere to vent it."
Mentioning this unsatisfactory son, Zhao Ji's eyes were full of contempt: "Let this guy go crazy for one more day."
At this moment, the messenger eunuch reminded in a low voice: "Your Majesty... King Ding has entered Genyue Inner Garden."
Zhao Ji, who had been calm and calm just now, suddenly turned pale.
Tong Guan was also stunned for a moment, Zhao Huan had already spent all his money, and even if he sold iron, he still couldn't get enough money.
What's more, Zhou Pu, a noble official, guarded the garden gate and allowed Zhao Huan to roll around and fight fiercely, but he couldn't get Zhou Pu to give in even half a step.
Could it be that Zhao Huan swam in from the Jinglong River?!
"what happened!"
Faced with Tong Guan's low shout, the messenger eunuch was startled and said tremblingly: "In order to block King Ding, Mr. Zhou deliberately raised the qualification to participate in the meeting to five thousand taels of silver. As a result... King Ding directly took out three
Ten thousand taels of silver..."
What?!
Zhao Ji and Tong Guan looked at each other with incredible expressions in their eyes.
Thirty thousand were gone, and another thirty thousand came!
How much money does Zhao Huan have in his hands? If it weren't for Zhou Pu guarding the door, Zhao Ji would even suspect that his good-for-nothing son had forged banknotes!
Tong Guan's face was extremely gloomy. He instructed the Ministry of Revenue and the Gao family to join forces to strangle Zhao Huan. He paid such a heavy price, but the result was nothing more than a dream.
Why can’t this damn useless prince be crushed?!
"Your Majesty, we must not let King Ding attract the attention of the righteous people in the world, otherwise he will take the opportunity to talk nonsense and arouse public opinion."
"Doesn't he have thirty thousand taels of silver in his hand? As long as he is forced to hand over the silver, without the money in his hand, even if he stands in the most prominent position, he will inevitably be marginalized."
"In Genyue Garden, the loudness of the voice depends on how much money you have."
Now that the matter has come to this, Zhao Ji has no choice: "My dear Prime Minister, I will leave all the power to decide the palace to you."
Tong Guan was secretly happy, this meant that no matter what he did to Zhao Huan in the future, he would no longer have to ask about Zhao Ji's intentions.
He hurriedly saluted: "Even if this old slave is shattered to pieces, His Majesty's name will go down in history!"
Outside Sanxiu Hall, celebrities, dignitaries and righteous men from all over the world have already taken their seats.
As a prince, Zhao Huan naturally sat close to the gate of Sanxiu Hall. In the entire inner courtyard, apart from Zhao Ji in the hall, Zhao Huan was the most eye-catching.
Under the gaze of everyone, Tong Guan stepped outside the door and stood in the middle of the steps.
"The emperors of the past dynasties fought bloody battles with the Jin people to restore the lost territory of the Han people!"
"Nowadays, the Jin people have stationed troops in the northern border and repeatedly invaded the country. However, our national power in the Song Dynasty has declined, and natural and man-made disasters continue."
"In these troubled times, Your Majesty, with his great talent and great strategy, turned the tide and took back the seven states. What a feat is this?"
"We are even joining hands with people with lofty ideals from all over the world to raise funds and take back the remaining Kyushu in one fell swoop!"
"The Holy Power is mighty!"
Under the leadership of Tong Guan, everyone present raised their arms and echoed.
For a moment, a deafening roar echoed throughout Genyue Garden.
Feeling the enthusiastic atmosphere at the scene, Zhao Ji was in high spirits, as if he had firmly sat on the throne of a famous king through the ages.
Zhao Huan, who was sitting at the lower table, curled his lips.
"How shameless! What time has it been? You are still playing word games."
"Recapture Jiuzhou in one fell swoop? Those who don't know better think that the Song Dynasty will mobilize its troops and fight to the death with the Jin people."
"As everyone knows, after the fund-raising meeting, the foolish king and his ministers will hold the money, kneel down in front of the golden man, beg for mercy, and pray for the golden man to give charity to Jiuzhou."
"Then it's a cliché drama where the golden man raises his arms and shouts, and only children make choices. I want everything."
Tong Guan winked, and the four eunuchs carefully held a scroll in front of them.
"Your Majesty's mind can encompass the whole world, how can you let all the righteous men return empty-handed?"
"This financing will be in the form of an auction."
"This first auction item is a picture of mountains and rivers thousands of miles away!"
Zhao Huan, who was listless just now, suddenly became nervous.
What? A picture of a thousand miles of mountains and rivers?!
My cheap dad really spent a lot of money in order to make money, and even put these "heavy treasures" up for auction.
As the four eunuchs carefully unfolded the scroll, the mountains with exquisite painting skills and exquisite beauty slowly came into view.
"Holy shit!"
Zhao Huan was instantly moved. If he treasured this and passed it on to future generations, wouldn't it be an inexhaustible wealth?
At this moment, Tong Guan's voice sounded.
"This painting of thousands of miles of mountains and rivers has a starting price of one thousand taels of silver. The highest bidder will win."
Is there anyone at the scene who doesn’t know the goods? Everyone is competing to bid.
"Only one thousand taels of silver? This is too conscientious! I will pay you one thousand five hundred taels!"
"I have long heard of the name of the Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains map. Today I can see the authentic work. It is indeed a miraculous workmanship! I am willing to treasure it with two thousand taels of silver."
Just then, a high-pitched voice sounded.
"I'll pay five thousand taels!"
All eyes at the scene were focused on Gao Yaokang.
Cheng Biao, the Minister of Household Affairs, saw that Gao Yaokang had attracted attention. He immediately stood up and flicked his long sleeves.
"Prince Ding, are you really planning to hand over this thousand miles of land to others?!"