Chapter Three Hundred and Fifty-Three Where to Stand?
Zhu Wanhong seemed to be questioning Zhu Hao, but there was a sense of grievance in his tone, as if someone owed him money and he was earnestly persuading him to pay back the money.
Tang Yin, who was kneeling next to him, became cautious and thought about the several meanings contained in Zhu Wanhong's words.
Zhu Hao smiled and pretended to be confused and said: "Why can't I understand what my uncle said? I was born in the Zhu family and grew up in the Zhu family. I have never been negligent towards the Zhu family. How could I become a target of the family? Mr. Tang,
You know me best, do you think so?"
Tang Yin glared at Zhu Hao.
I know what a ghost you are!
You are so thoughtful, but in the past two years, in front of me, have you done enough to deceive the Zhu family? Do you still want me to support you?
"Nephew, you must be honest."
Zhu Wanhong spoke earnestly, "Before the summer flood last year, while you suggested that Prince Xing build a river embankment to prevent floods, you also used a trick to hand over the warehouse located in a low-lying area on the river bank to the Zhu family, making the Zhu family think they had made a big deal, but in the big
After the water arrived, the Zhu family almost went bankrupt. Isn't this your fault?"
Zhu Hao asked in surprise: "Uncle, I didn't force the Zhu family to snatch the business of our orphans and widowers, right? Besides, those warehouses are not ours, they are all rented by us. The Zhu family took them and used them to stack goods.
, in the end, when a natural disaster came and the warehouse was flooded, can this be blamed on me?"
Tang Yin thought to himself, if I don’t blame you, who should I blame?
You must have calculated that there was going to be a flood and deliberately handed over the warehouse to the Zhu family. Isn't this a pretext for taking action against the Zhu family?
Thinking about it again, that’s not right, whose side am I on? Why do I feel that I share the same problem with Zhu Wanhong and feel sympathy for each other?
Zhu Wanhong said: "Okay, I don't blame you, but it's obvious that the Zhu family has suffered a lot, right?"
Zhu Hao spread his hands: "I deeply regret this. But it was a natural disaster, not a man-made disaster. We can't let God take the blame, right?"
"hehe."
Zhu Wanhong smiled and said, "Then we have to talk about you providing colored glaze beads as a tribute to Prince Xing's Mansion... You know that if this thing is used as a tribute, the Zhu family who took the colored glaze workshop of your third room will imitate it as soon as possible and return it.
He deliberately did this to make the glass beads highly praised and popular in the palace, but now the Zhu family has started to imitate the glass beads..."
Hearing this, Tang Yin pricked up his ears.
He has never been able to figure out what role Zhu Hao played in this matter, nor why Zhu Hao wanted to give the Zhu family another chance to make a fortune.
Zhu Hao interrupted Zhu Wanhong.
"Uncle, the use of glass beads as a tribute was unintentional. Mr. Tang can testify to this. It was Prince Zhang Fengzheng who wanted to save money and cut ties with the local magistrate and refused to send gifts together. Finally, he found me...
Time is approaching and time is urgent. Where can I find tributes? I just made a few glass beads to make up the number...
"Who could have guessed in advance that this thing would be liked by His Majesty and praised by both the government and the public? I am not a fortune teller... Besides, even if this thing becomes popular in the world, the Zhu family must have made a lot of money by imitating it, right?
The Zhu family doesn't want to thank me for taking out the glass beads as a tribute by chance, and by chance, its value has greatly increased, giving the Zhu family an opportunity to make money... Is this also my fault?"
After hearing Zhu Hao's explanation, Tang Yin had an idea in his mind.
Yes, this guy is right.
Jin first offered glass beads, but after a series of reactions, it was probably a bit far-fetched to say that Zhu Hao was doing it deliberately.
The emperor regarded the glass beads as rare treasures and rewarded them to his favorite concubine and close ministers. This was something that no one could have predicted beforehand. In the end, the Zhu family copied it and made a fortune... Zhu Hao's role in it was considered marginal. .
"hehe."
Zhu Wanhong sneered twice, "Nephew, you are trying to trick the Zhu family into a ditch."
Tang Yin asked hurriedly: "Zhu Qianhu, how do you say this?"
Zhu Wanhong said: "I, the Zhu family, were favored by the emperor and ordered by the late emperor. In the early years of Hongzhi, my family moved to Anlu with Prince Xing's Mansion. I have always shouldered the responsibility of supervising Prince Xing's Mansion... Mr. Tang, please forgive me for speaking too much. Zhi, you are from the palace, don’t take it personally.”
Tang Yin waved his hand: "It's okay."
I thought to myself, isn’t this all obvious?
If the Zhu family wasn't monitoring Prince Xing's Mansion, why were they sent to Anlu?
"There is also an allusion here. In the last years of Chenghua, there was a traitorous concubine in the court, and there was a plan to depose and establish the crown prince..."
Zhu Wanhong seemed to be telling a story, just telling when the Chenghuanian prince Zhu Youtang was born and how he struggled to survive in the palace.
Tang Yin stretched out his hand to interrupt: "These are old things. I have heard about them for a long time, so there is no need to say them clearly."
The implication is, do you think I, Mr. Tang, are stupid? Even if there are not many rumors about what happened back then, I don’t close my eyes and listen. Naturally, I understand why the late emperor sent people to monitor Prince Xing’s Mansion. It was because Prince Xing was in Concubine Wan Gui. With his support, he almost snatched the throne from the late emperor.
Zhu Wanhong continued: "Let's be more straightforward. My Zhu family is valued by the imperial court and has a special mission. And this glass bead...if it was made by my Zhu family, it will be paid tribute by Prince Xing's Mansion first...Zhu Hao, don't you Do you think this will make the Zhu family lose the trust of the late emperor and live up to the court's expectations?"
When Tang Yin heard this, he took a breath and turned his eyes to Zhu Hao.
After Zhu Wanhong, an "outsider", pointed it out, Tang Yin instantly understood the stakes.
Tang Yin said: "That means, if in the future, Your Majesty learns that the glazed beads he admires were originally made by the Zhu family, but were sent to Prince Xing's palace as tribute, will he feel that the Zhu family is disloyal?"
Zhu Hao smiled and looked at Tang Yin: "Mr. Tang, even if you understand in your heart, you don't have to explain it so straightforwardly, right? This is all your imagination, okay? Am I such a deliberate person?"
Tang Yin thought to himself, if you are not the boy, then who is?
No wonder you want to take advantage of the Zhu family. Your feelings are to drive a wedge between the Zhu family and the court.
But... wouldn't this explanation be a bit far-fetched?
Tang Yin turned to Zhu Wanhong and said, "Zhu Qianhu, if you want to blame Zhu Hao for this, I'm afraid it's a bit too much. If the Zhu family was worried that imitating glass beads would cause other people to misunderstand, why did they continue to imitate them? The reason behind it , Zhu Hao alone cannot calculate it in advance, there are many coincidental factors involved, what do you think?"
Zhu Wanhong smiled and said: "Mr. Tang, you are really a master at pretending to be confused. Let me start with Zhu Hao's premeditation before the summer floods. Aren't I just telling you that things may seem coincidental, but in fact they have been planned long ago? If not The Zhu family lost a lot of money after the flood. Will the Zhu family go out of their way to imitate glass beads?"
"hiss……"
Tang Yin took another breath of cold air.
Looking at Zhu Hao's cute little face with a big smile, I feel like my scalp is numb.
"Mr. Tang, you are from the palace. Let me ask you a question. I am afraid that my nephew has already known about his preparations for the tribute to the palace? Has he been given enough planning time?"
Zhu Wanhong asked another very sharp question.
Tang Yin thought about it carefully and was secretly shocked.
He immediately remembered that before the Xia floods came, King Xing once summoned people from the palace to discuss matters, and specifically called Zhu Hao. At that time, he didn't understand the reason, so he asked specifically. Zhu Hao replied that the palace wanted to draw a line with the local magistrate.
Due to the boundaries, gifts to the emperor for the Qianqiu Festival must be sent separately, and they will be honored by him...
Then Zhu Hao planned the whole thing and waited for the Zhu family to take the bait?
Tang Yin thought to himself: "If all this is true, then how terrible is this kid's plan?"
Zhu Hao spread his hands helplessly: "Uncle, can we talk to each other properly? When the younger generation meets the elders, they don't express their feelings or anything. If you feel that the Zhu family's counterfeiting of glass beads is inappropriate, you can go and inform your grandmother.
State the stakes clearly, and I believe grandma will listen to you."
Zhu Wanhong pouted and made a strange sound from the corner of his mouth: "Speaking of my eldest nephew, if you don't regard yourself as a member of the Zhu family, do you think I should regard myself as one?"
"..."
Tang Yin was speechless for a moment.
This guy came to criticize Zhu Hao, saying that Zhu Hao had forgotten his roots. He also deduced Zhu Hao's conspiracy to the point of perfection. Finally, he said, don't you regard yourself as a member of the Zhu family?
Then why don't you talk nonsense to Zhu Hao?
Zhu Hao looked embarrassed: "Uncle, you..."
"Oh, Zhu Hao, don't be surprised. As a member of the Zhu family, we are actually often pushed by the overall situation of the court... Your grandmother is too scheming, and her calculations cannot escape the kindness of a woman."
Zhu Wanhong began to analyze his mother.
Zhu Hao shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Haha."
"If your grandfather is planning for the future of the family, while your grandmother only focuses on immediate interests, to put it bluntly, women's vision is too short-sighted. Unlike us men, everything they do is centered on serving the overall situation."
Zhu Wanhong continued to brag.
When Tang Yin heard this, he wanted to slap this guy in the face. Seeing how careless you are, why are you talking about the overall situation?
An innocent smile appeared on Zhu Hao's face, and his tone was somewhat complimentary: "What uncle said makes sense."
"It is precisely because your grandmother is short-sighted that she is easily taken advantage of by you!" Zhu Wanhong turned to glare at Zhu Hao.
Zhu Hao was a little speechless now.
He wanted to say, uncle, is it interesting that you are always panting so loudly?
If you want to criticize me, then criticize me to the end. Who did you learn this roundabout way of praising me and criticizing me? You couldn’t learn it from Yuan Zonggao, right?
Zhu Wanhong sighed: "Actually, I don't blame you. Ever since King Xing transferred me back to Anlu, the court's trust in the Zhu family has been almost nonexistent. Otherwise, the Zhu family would not have been idle in Anlu for many years.
In terms of actual authority, I currently have... not even enough manpower to support a hundred-household camp."
Zhu Hao said: "Then why doesn't the uncle think about trying to get the Zhu family to leave Anlu?"
After hearing Zhu Hao's words, Zhu Wanhong and Tang Yin stared at Zhu Hao at the same time.
Previously, Zhu Wanhong was talking to himself, and even Zhu Hao's quarrels were just jokes. At this time, Zhu Hao finally started to fight back.
Zhu Wanhong said: "The Zhu family was ordered by the emperor to stay in Anlu, why did they leave?"
"Uncle, you are a smart man. I won't talk in circles with you. Let's talk plainly first."
Zhu Hao said, "You should know better than me the status of Prince Xing's Mansion in the court. If a real dragon appears in the future, won't my Zhu family be overturned overnight?"
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Additional update today, there is another chapter at noon!