Fang Kongzheng slowly walked to Pang Yu and looked at the salt pond, "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe that people could float freely in the pond without the worry of sinking."
"It was Mr. Fang who had the strength to ask Young Master Fang to do this proof. After all, not every family can hire dozens of merchants like the Fang family."
Fang Kongzhen smiled slightly, "I think that little friend Pang is not short of money, so he regards money as dirt. He would rather bring back dozens of people's heads than touch the dirty money. If he already has a huge wealth, he should live a happy life with a good land and a beautiful family."
Stop making trouble for others and causing trouble."
Pang Yu heard that he regarded money as dung, and glanced at Kong Zheng furtively. He didn't seem to have any special meaning, and he didn't know how he hid the money.
Then he changed the subject in a low voice and said, "Master Fang's words contain threats. Could it be that three hundred swordsmen and axemen have been waiting behind the wall, just waiting to break the cup as a signal to come out and chop the villain into a pulp?"
As expected, Fang Kongzhen was diverted from his thoughts and sneered mockingly. Instead of answering his words, he took two steps forward and came to the edge of the pool.
When the three people in the pool saw Fang Kongzhen coming, they immediately stopped talking and looked at Fang Kongzhen cautiously.
Fang Kongzheng glanced at a few people and didn't get angry. He just said calmly, "Don't catch the wind and cold in the cool autumn. Go change your clothes."
The three of them didn't dare to say anything, so they quickly got up from the pool and got ashore wet. Qian Bingting didn't go into the water, but they didn't dare to stay for a long time. The four of them bowed to Fang Kongzheng and left the garden quickly, leaving behind water stains all the way.
I didn't dare to say a word in the middle.
Only Fang Yizhi paused at the door, looked back at Pang Yu, and seemed to want to invite Pang Yu to go with him, but seeing Fang Kongzhen's unkind expression, he hurried away without saying a word.
When the four people left, only Fang Kongzhen and Pang Yu were left in the garden.
Pang Yu could also speak louder at this time, "A villain has nothing to gain and he never wants to make things difficult for others for no reason.
He is not as ambitious as Mr. Fang.
I just look forward to having enough food and clothing, buying more acres of land, and raising more houses for concubines.
As long as I have a little money, I don't bother to take care of other things. The most I can do is delve into these side schools."
Fang Kongzheng heard what Pang Yu wanted. The first thing he wanted was money, and everything else was easy to discuss. There was indeed a reconciliation.
He then softened his expression and said, "There is no shortage of fantastic ideas among side sects. Although they are not on the official path of the imperial examination, they can still be regarded as talents."
"I heard someone say that Mr. Fang is a man who cherishes his talents."
Fang Kongzheng knew that Pang Yu was talking about Wang Guohua, so he silently walked around the salt pond to the opposite side, staring at Pang Yu's reflection in the salt pond, "I wonder if that person told Pang Xiaoyou that although Fang cherishes talents, he is more important.
If virtue is not the foundation, talents used in the wrong direction will only lead to more disaster."
Pang Yu touched his chin and said, "That's it. Mr. Fang's tone was solemn, as if he had some thoughts."
Fang Kongzheng was noncommittal, but in his mind, it was Wang Guohua's idea to kill Fang Yinggan as a banner when the chaos broke out.
Fang Yingqian was Fang Kongzheng's cousin. Wang Guohua not only dragged Fang Kongzheng down, but also blamed Fang Yingqian for the civil unrest. Both aspects were related to Fang Kongzhen. Wang Guohua did not consider Fang Kongzheng at all when he acted.
Fang Kongzhen became angry with him because of his situation.
Judging from Pang Yu's tone, Wang Guohua was probably in his hands. Pang Yu could hold back for so long, waiting for the Fang family to negotiate with him. Fang Kongzhen was a little surprised by the young yamen servant's ability to maintain his composure.
The two of them stood opposite each other across the small dead sea. Fang Kongzheng did not continue the topic just now, but looked at Pang Yu and said, "Pang Xiaoyou has achieved great success in independently annihilating the Yunji Temple bandits this time. At this time, we should take advantage of the situation."
, don’t go astray and delay your bright future.”
Pang Yu listened to Fang Kongzhen's harsh tone, but was not angry at all. He looked around and said relaxedly, "Sir, I'm so complimentary. I just tried my best for my hometown. Thanks to all the masters, I luckily got a small amount of merit.
But talking about the future makes the adults laugh. The villain is just a government servant, and it will be over when he reaches the head of the class. Even if he donates his family background, he will be an official at most.
On the contrary, you are a Jinshi, and as long as you ride on the wind, you can rise to nine heavens, so it is best to follow the trend and not create extraneous problems."
Relying on his impression of the government officials, Fang Kongzhen always regarded Pang Yu as a young man in the market, who was at most brave enough to take risks. He originally thought that with the status and strength of the Fang family, as long as he threatened him a few times and gave him some color, Pang Yu should surrender.
I came out of Wang Guohua, and then wrote Fang Kongzheng in the application details honestly.
Unexpectedly, Pang Yu was very calm, but Fang Kongzheng felt as if he had read his mind. He was almost at a disadvantage, so he quickly calmed down and dealt with it carefully.
"It's not that Fang wants to cause problems, it's that those problems have to make things difficult for Fang."
Sure enough, Pang Yu took advantage of the victory to pursue the victory, raised his eyes and looked at Fang Kongzheng with gleaming eyes, "That issue is not something that I can't get past with Mr., it's just a hidden worry. In Pang's opinion, if this person goes to court alive, he will say in his confession that a certain person
The former care of the squire is nothing more. If we talk about a certain general who privately led troops and horses into the Xinjiang area and obeyed the orders of a squire, the two of them ignored the court system, which is no different from rioting.
The heads of those servants were nowhere to be found, perhaps they suddenly appeared from somewhere.
I think the officials who built the Ningfen Patrol Road in Anhui must be there to listen, as well as the Nanjing Military Department's Tang Tiang officer, and the secret friends of Ying Tian Patrol. The news spread through various channels, and it was difficult for Yang Zhixian to cover it up.
You really missed the country squire’s bright future.”
Fang Kongzhen's pupils shrank slightly in an instant, and he realized that Pang Yu had repeatedly studied the chips in his opponent's hands. Although Pang Yu was attacking fiercely, Fang Kongzhen did not panic, because Pang Yu's status and strength were far from him.
.
No matter how good the chips in Pang Yu's hands are, it is ultimately to trade with him, not to harm himself.
"Then little friend Pang, why don't you get straight to the point? You and I don't have to talk in circles anymore. You can just say it bluntly if you have any conditions."
"The villain will only do transactions if he thinks it is valuable. So there is a question. If Wang Guohua is alive, the villain has the miraculous ability to capture the bandit leader alive. If Wang Guohua dies, what good will it do to the villain?"
Fang Kongzheng smiled slightly and said: "That's quite straightforward, but eliminating harm for the people is a great achievement, so why do you need benefits?
Those who talk about profit everywhere may not necessarily be the ones who benefit in the end.”
"Mr. Fang's words are reasonable. There is indeed not much difference between Wang Guohua's death and his life. So for the villain, the best choice is to do nothing and just hand Wang Guohua to the Yamen. Why waste time and effort to increase the number of people?
Kill evil.
At the end of the day, what Sir Fang should consider is what difference does Wang Guohua's life and death make to Mr. Wang, so that we can discuss the rest."
At this time, Pang Yu only knew that the Fang family was an aristocratic family, but he had little idea of the specific strength of the Fang family, and had no idea what kind of official Fang Kong Zhen could be. His guess was that he was just a county magistrate, and he might even never be able to rise again.
Although Pang Yu came to the Ming Dynasty not long ago, he also knew that Ming Dynasty officials could not serve locally, which meant that Fang Kongzhen would never be an official in Tongcheng. At this time, Pang Yu only focused on the transaction in front of him, and Fang Kongzhen just
Just a country official.
Fang Kongzheng pondered for a moment and then raised his head and said, "Dozens of people were killed in Yunji Temple, including several members of the Diggang family. No matter how they went, the imperial soldiers and horses died at your hands.
The only witness at the moment is Wang Guohua. If Wang Guohua dies, the matter will be buried in Yunji Temple, and no one will mention it again, and no one will come to seek revenge."
Pang Yu asked directly, "But even Mr. Fang won't come to seek revenge?"
"What Fang is talking about is all the people related to the Fang family. If Pang doesn't believe it, Zhong Jia can be asked to swear an oath in person."
Pang Yu did not agree immediately. This was his main concern, which was Fang Zhongjia's possible revenge. Wang Guohua was retained to counter the Fang family.
Pang Yu carefully observed Fang Kongzhen's expression. He lacked trust in the form of swearing and wondered whether the ancients took the swearing seriously.
While observing, he continued to test, "Does Mr. Fang have any other requests?"
"Fang Yingqian's name cannot be included in the application details. Fang's name should be ranked first among the squire and thieves."
Pang Yu tilted her head and said, "Mr. Fang just made an empty promise. I will kill people and silence you, and I will seek real profits for you in the application. Based on my many years of trading experience, I am afraid that this matter is not fair."
Fang Kongzhen sneered coldly, "Of course it's more than that. Does Pang Xiaoyou think that this application details can be written easily?
Without Fang's guidance, I'm afraid you would have suffered a bloody blow in this matter."
"If Mr. Fang has any advice, please speak up."
"Pang Xiaoyou, does he know who the Titang officer of the Southern Military Department was ordered to do?"
Pang Yu shook his head honestly. He really couldn't understand the strange official of the Southern War Department.
"If what I have predicted is correct, Officer Titang of the Southern War Department will be ordered to come from Wucheng.
Since he wanted to determine that the slaves were evil, once this was determined, he would go one step further and confirm that the cause was the evil of the gentry.
But he is not here for the Tongcheng gentry."
Pang Yu was dumbfounded. He didn't understand what Wucheng was coming from, and of course he couldn't understand the logic behind it.
Fang Kongzheng said to himself, "The people coming from Wucheng are undoubtedly targeting Zhang Guowei, the governor of Yingtian.
The Titang official did not want to convict the Tongcheng gentry, but wanted Zhang Guowei to come forward and oppose the conclusion that indulging slaves was evil."
Pang Yu asked confusedly, "Why?"
Fang Kongzheng's voice was calm, "Many gentry in Tongcheng are involved with Donglin Fushe, even Quanzi is also a Fushe person.
If Zhang Guowei insists that the chaos has nothing to do with the gentry, but other memorials prove that the Tongcheng gentry did have bad deeds, then the emperor naturally believes that Zhang Guowei is shielding the gentry. The reason for shielding the gentry is that Zhang Guowei formed a faction with gentry, and Donglin Fushe colluded with Zhang Guowei.
, to remotely control the power in Jiangnan, Zhang Guowei, the governor, was the first to achieve this.
If Zhang Guowei agrees with the conclusion that the gentry is evil, it is difficult for the gentry to admit it. With the wide contacts of the Tongcheng gentry, there will definitely be an uproar in the Jiangnan scholars.
To clear his name, he even offended a large number of gentry in Jiangnan.
Zhang Guowei was Qian Qianyi's protégé and was appointed governor of Yingtian. Naturally, he had Dong Lin's local support so that the government orders could be passed smoothly.
If the gentry is offended, its foundation will be shaken.
For Zhang Guowei, the dilemma of characterization and handling of the Tongcheng chaos is just a matter of small steps." Pang Yu was secretly frightened. He seemed to understand what Fang Kongzheng said just now, but at least he knew that the people involved should be
The struggle at the level of governor Tian, Governor Ying Tian was in charge of the ten richest prefectures in the Ming Dynasty, which was basically equivalent to the provincial level.
And Pang Yu himself is a low-level slave. Once he gets involved in a provincial struggle inadvertently, any party can trample this little ant to death if he is not careful.
But at this time, I still don’t know if Fang Kongzhen is deliberately trying to scare him, or if it’s true.
Fang Kongzhen continued, "I can understand this matter, and Zhang Guowei and Li Youcheng can also understand it. No matter what their views are, they will not come forward on their own.
If each family's memorial is to be reasonable and well-founded, it must be based on the initial application details of the Tongcheng County Government.
That's why all parties gathered in Tongcheng to make a detailed application for this purpose.
At present, the details of this matter fall on the hands of the curtain friend and Pang Xiaoyou, and the curtain friend and the hall official are too close, which inevitably makes people doubt the hall official's original intention.
On the other hand, Pang Xiaoyou, a class leader who can write and do calculations, has nothing to do with any officials. When Yang Fangqian understands the situation, the details will definitely fall on you alone.
The governor, the inspector, the Southern Military Department, the sub-inspection road, the Tongcheng gentry, the county magistrate, the magistrate and the people from Wucheng. The governor and the people from Wucheng are the most antagonistic. The rest of the people who are sitting on the fence all have their own agendas. By then, Little Brother Pang will be at a loss.
If you rush to write a detailed application, once you cause displeasure to one of the parties, the money you get in the temple will be nothing more than someone else's wedding dress."
Pang Yu had no time to argue about the money. Anyway, Fang Kongzhen also believed that he had obtained at least part of it. At this time, he stabilized his mind and looked at Fang Kongzhen, "Mr. Fang does have some truth, but even if I know it, then Shen
It’s still difficult to complete in detail, so what’s the use to the next person?”
“You and I will both benefit from cooperation, and we will both lose from fighting.
Pang Xiaoyou should not underestimate the details of this application. This matter has many implications and must be dealt with carefully.
If you still have doubts, you don't have to rush to agree. Now that Fang has said this, Xiaoyou Pang can go back and think about it carefully to see if what I just said is worth what you have done."
..."The person from Wucheng that my second brother mentioned just now is probably a subordinate of Wen Tiren, the chief minister of the cabinet."
He Xianya's voice was a little trembling, "Wen Tiren is originally from Wucheng, and some people in the officialdom refer to him by the place name."
The two looked at each other, their eyes full of fear. The chaos had subsided, Pang Yu had gained both money and fame, and it was time to enjoy the bonus of victory.
How did you know that because of his status as the first person to quell the chaos, he was suddenly assigned the task of writing a detailed document, and was involved in a strange and dangerous officialdom whirlpool.
This is a dangerous whirlpool, because it has already involved the chief minister of the cabinet and the governor of Yingtian.
"These adults want the Tongcheng County Government's application details as a basis, and they all want to write the application details how they want to achieve their respective goals."
Pang Yu remembered Tang Weimin's dealings with Secretary Zhao, and suddenly felt an even greater headache. He rubbed his forehead and said, "Why don't I pretend to be sick? I'll just say that I was injured during the quelling the chaos."
He Xianya whispered, "I shouldn't have disturbed my second brother, but there is something I have to say.
Wang Guohua was seriously ill, but he didn't dare to treat him. He didn't know how long he could last.
Besides, before I came here, my eldest brother said that it was tiring and dangerous for him to keep Wang Guohua in custody these days... I must tell you that he needs more money."
Pang Yu rubbed his brow tiredly, "How much does he want to share?"
"Six thousand in total."
Pang Yu stared at the table for a moment and then looked up at He Xianya, "What about you, third brother, how much more do you want?"
"I'll just...get one thousand more, making the total three thousand."
"Why don't you take six thousand?"
"My subordinates feel that if they take less at this time, they can take more in the future."
Pang Yu smiled and sighed softly. Just as he was about to speak, someone came in at the door.
Pang Yu looked up and saw Ruan Dacheng, whom he had only met once.
He knew that one of these people had gone to Anqing, and provided Wang Gongbi with a sum of money for the expedition, so that the Chizhou soldiers could cross the river.
After all, the other party was a Jinshi. Pang Yu quickly stood up and bowed, "I've met Mr. Ruan before."
Ruan Dacheng stroked his beard, strode forward boldly, then raised Pang Yu's arm and said affectionately, "I just went to Yang Tangzun and Zhouxian Cheng. I heard that Pang Bantou bravely broke into Yunji Temple and wiped out dozens of people with one sword.
You thieves, all living things in Tongcheng, this move will be remembered forever."
Pang Yu didn't expect Ruan Dacheng to be so arrogant. The last time he was in the county government office, Ruan Dacheng didn't even show favor to the county magistrate.
Ruan Dacheng continued, "At this time when the world is in turmoil, Pantou Pang is so heroic and should never succumb to the Tongcheng County government.
If I ever come back to life, I will definitely support him so that the reputation of Pantou Pang for his bravery will reach the imperial court."
After hearing this, Pang Yu had some confidence in her heart. It seemed that Ruan Dacheng also took a fancy to the application form and wanted to list his name in it to gain a reputation as a knowledgeable soldier. In the end, it was for the sake of his rise in the officialdom.
"The little man would like to thank Mr. Ruan for his attention."
Ruan Dacheng took out a banknote from his arms and placed it directly on Pang Yu's desk.
The application process was already a headache. Pang Yu didn't dare to involve more people, so he quickly declined.
Ruan Dacheng grabbed Pang Yu and said, "Pang Bantou must not refuse. I am doing this on behalf of the people of Tongcheng. I have no intention of asking for it. Pang Bantou must not let down the people's good intentions."
After that, he strode out of the door. People were coming and going in the corridor, and Pang Yu couldn't push the banknote around, so he had to put the banknote on the table first and then went to the door to see Ruan Dacheng off.
Ruan Dacheng politely said, "I have founded a literary society called Zhongjiang Society. It not only studies contemporary literature and drama, but also talks about swords and military affairs. Ruan has always believed that when the country is in danger, the spirit of weak scholars should be eradicated.
When a person mounts a horse, he becomes a general and when he dismounts, he becomes a minister. Only then can he be called a pillar.
Although Bantou Pang has no fame, he has great achievements in quelling the rebellion. If Pang Xiaoyou doesn't dislike it, he can join our Zhongjiang Society."
Pang Yu agreed perfunctorily, and Ruan Dacheng said goodbye and left. This person only came with a banknote and didn't ask for anything, but Pang Yu knew that there must be something in return.
But he didn't expect that Ruan Dacheng actually invited him to join the Zhongjiang Society. Scholars at this time all liked to form associations, but only among scholars. At least they had to be scholars and students. No one had ever invited yamen servants to form a association, because in the eyes of scholars, yamen servants
Their status is lower than that of farmers.
It can also be seen that Ruan Dacheng was very interested in fame and fortune. In order to apply for a name, he was able to invite a lowly servant into the literary society he founded.
At this time, a quickie came to the door. He hurriedly said to Pang Yu, "Report to the class leader that someone is looking for you outside the door."
Pang Yu was exhausted mentally and physically, and couldn't help but asked tiredly, "Who is it again?
It doesn't matter, just drive away."
"The villain goes and drives her away."
"I first asked you who was coming."
"It shouldn't matter if it's a rural girl."
Pang Yu was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly walked out of the door. With a quick glance, he saw the small figure of Sun Tianxiu.
Sun Tianxiu was carrying a large backpack and her little face was flushed. She was a little scared when she saw the helper at the eight-character wall. When she saw Pang Yu coming out, she suddenly showed a bright smile.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and said shyly, "Uncle, I brought you new rice and some radishes."
Pang Yu stared at the sweaty smiling face for a moment, then suddenly felt relieved and smiled knowingly.