Zhao Tingzhi was sitting in the study reading a book. While he was reading with great interest, he suddenly heard footsteps outside the door.
There was only a bang, and Zhao Mingcheng kicked the door open.
Zhao Tingzhi came from a humble background and was one of the most polite people. This meant that he would rather starve to death than be rude.
Moreover, it would be too courageous for him to kick in the door when his eyes were low. Naturally, he was angry and threw the book on the desk, just to see who had kicked in the door.
There was a golden light behind the man, and he walked in carrying two mud legs wrapped in coarse cloth.
"father--"
Zhao Mingcheng chuckled.
Zhao Tingzhi was still stunned in the hall for a long time, "Defu——"
"it's me."
Zhao Mingcheng's body is so solid now.
Zhao Tingzhi stood up suddenly. He took Zhao Mingcheng's hand and looked left and right at Zhao Mingcheng.
"Why are you so dark and thin, and as hungry as a monkey?"
The young master who was pampered and pampered at home turned into a monkey after a few months of hard work. Zhao Tingzhi looked at him with distress written all over his eyes.
"Father, I stayed in the military camp for three full months and five days."
Zhao Tingzhi was moved to tears. After being silent for a while, he wiped away his tears. "Okay, if you can endure the hardship, follow me."
"Can the promise that dad made with me be fulfilled?"
"What's up?"
"If we can stay in the army for three months, the things on the fold..."
Zhao Tingzhi wondered, "Did you join the army just because of your family fortune?"
"One code means one code. Father, you won't break your promise, right? Father is a dignified censor, Zhongcheng."
"Here, I will give it to you as promised. But you have to tell me first. Since you have joined the army, what do you want so much money for now?"
Zhao Mingcheng hesitated for a moment, and then told everything he had seen and heard in the army.
"I'm worried that this trend will spread. The Forbidden Army, which is known as the most powerful army in the Song Dynasty, actually has so many ridiculous things inside."
Zhao Tingzhi looked at Zhao Mingcheng thoughtfully, thinking that he was just going out to see the dark corners of the world for the first time, so he told him the truth, "Such things are common in every corner of the Song Dynasty.
And it has never disappeared in all dynasties. If you want to correct this trend, it is not an easy task."
"Is it really the case in all dynasties? I don't believe it. It's just that a clever woman can't make a meal without rice. If I have a certain strength, I can change some things, which is better than doing nothing and watching the Song Dynasty decline."
Zhao Mingcheng said this unintentionally, causing Zhao Tingzhi to become speechless for a while.
Zhao Tingzhi hurriedly grabbed the corner of Zhao Mingcheng's clothes and said, "Boy, did you meet someone outside and they were whispering in your ears? Tell me honestly, what are you going to do with this money?"
Zhao Mingcheng thought that his father must have had some evil intentions, and the rebellion could only be considered adultery.
"I just want to get some money and show it off to my brothers."
Zhao Tingzhi naturally shook his head after hearing this. "Don't show your wealth to others. Why have you forgotten everything I taught you before?"
Zhao Mingcheng didn't say anything. Okay, isn't this a trick on me? If all the precious money becomes his own, he won't be able to do anything he wants.
Zhao Mingcheng was thinking about leaving the study first...
"I was a poor scholar. When I was young, I had no assets at home. I could only use the money for a month. I was very diligent and frugal. Later, I passed the first-class Jinshi examination and gradually accumulated family wealth. Then I married your mother and gradually accumulated family property.
We are here today. Of course I understand how you want money."
"When the school was built during the Xining period, I was elected as professor of Deng, Di Erzhou, and general magistrate of Dezhou. At that time, the late emperor was on the throne and rewarded the soldiers with money. However, the county governor was corrupt and failed to pay the soldiers in time. When the soldiers learned about this, something was wrong.
Angry, he rushed into the government office with a white truss."
"The county guard didn't dare to do something right, so he escaped alone, and other officials also ran away. Only the old man sat in the lobby, asked about the situation, immediately took out the money from the treasury, distributed it, and punished those who took the lead in making trouble.
, those soldiers finally calmed down."
"I, Zhao Tingzhi, dare to do things that others cannot do. But all the talented people in the world denounced me. Su Shi called me a villain who amassed money and was capricious. Look at what Su Shi has done for the people. Every day
Who does he drink wine and eat meat, and the pear blossoms overwhelm the begonias? Even though his articles last forever, has he really treated the people well and done something beneficial to the country?"
Zhao Mingcheng was stunned, "Dad, you mean, Su Shi has scolded you before?"
"Yes, he not only scolded me himself, but also scolded me in front of the late Emperor in the court, and even wrote to his friends to scold me."
"But isn't he a great writer?"
Zhao Tingzhi laughed loudly after hearing this, "A great writer? You talk about being a great writer and I want to laugh. Sima Xiangru was a great writer, and he was talented in literature, but he only wanted to have rich clothes and food. Li Bai was a poet, but he didn't understand anything about politics, so he squandered all his money."
Wealthy, he finally married his two young daughters to the Cowherd."
"Du Fu is a poet, but his children have never had a full meal since they were young. As you said, Su Shi is a literary giant, and he writes good poems. But observing his life, in addition to quarreling with the emperor, he also quarreled with us.
,Has he ever done anything serious?"
Zhao Mingcheng thought hard, and it seemed that he had never heard of it.
"Father, you seem to despise Su Shi."
"I naturally despise Su Shi, let alone Huang Tingjian. In my mind, there are only two heroes in ancient and modern times. One is the current Wang Xianggong. He was an upright man throughout his life and advocated reform. Unfortunately, he was bewitched by treacherous villains in the later period.
In the later stages of the reform, it had lost its original flavor."
After Zhao Tingzhi said that, he looked at Zhao Mingcheng again, "You'd better forget this last sentence after hearing it."
"Father, don't worry."
"There is another person, that is Gao Shi." Zhao Tingzhi stroked his beard and looked proud when talking about him, "Looking at each other with bloodshed, death has never been a matter of consideration. If you don't see the hardships of fighting on the battlefield, till now
I still remember General Lee.
This is his famous line. It's just that he writes good poems, that's just one of them. What I admire most about him is that he doesn't just write poems. I think after the Anshi Rebellion, he joined the army and led troops to quell the rebellion. This is what I really think about him.
Gentleman."
"Some people are blindly obsessed with the right and wrong of officialdom, talking about innocence and uprightness. But I have never seen an innocent and upright person who really saved all the people from suffering because of him. In my opinion, there is no distinction between loyal and traitorous officials.
.”
"Nowadays, there is a person who deceives superiors and subordinates for the sake of the people. To the king, this is disloyal. But there are also people who only obey the emperor's orders. To the emperor, he is a first-class loyal minister. But if
If the king asks him to oppress the people, he will do it. Is this considered a loyal minister?"
Zhao Mingcheng was stunned after hearing these words.
"Son, things in the world are not as simple as right and wrong. Some people in the history books seem to be gentlemen, and their names are left in history. That is because someone has erased all their bad deeds; and some people in the history books are full of evil.
It’s just because some people have erased their good deeds.”