The Capital Examination has not officially begun yet, but there is a surging undercurrent surrounding the situation that stirs up people's hearts.
Before the exam, Sun Ru went out to attend a "township party" in Anlu, that is, having a meal with the people who were taking the exam in Anlu and surrounding counties. After they came back, they told Zhu Hao that he was at the banquet.
The experience above.
"...I'm telling you, sir, things are going big this time."
Sun Ruyu was not surprised, but he was startled when he came up, "I heard Cui Juren from Jingshan say that this Beijing Examination is a game between the two major forces of the DPRK and China. On one side is Jiang Bin, who has just brought down Qian Ning, and now the emperor
It can be said that he has no opponents around him, and there is an urgent need to cultivate civilian forces in the court to counter the forces represented by the chief minister of the cabinet, Mr. Yang Ge... The other side is Mr. Yang himself."
Zhu Hao pretended to be surprised: "Really?"
Sun Rudao: "I also heard that Jiang Bin had close ties with some officials in the court, such as Lu Shangshu of the Ministry of Personnel and Wang Shangshu of the Ministry of War..."
Zhu Hao nodded knowingly.
This is a common tactic used by civil servants in the DPRK. If I can't defeat you, I will slander you behind your back. As the Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Lu Wan will soon be implicated in the rebellion of King Ning and be dismissed from his post and imprisoned. Wang Qiong will be imprisoned because of his quarrel with Yang Tinghe.
Well, the orthodox civil servants have always regarded him as a negative example and often poured dirty water on him.
It doesn't matter whether Wang Qiong is Jiang Bin's person or not. As long as the civil servants think so, the Confucian scholars below will make the same decision. Public opinion alone will sentence Wang Qiong to death.
"Sir, which side do you think we should defect to?"
Sun Ru finally asked the question that was deep in his heart today.
Zhu Hao said: "Oh? Do you have to join a certain party?"
"I think so, sir." Sun Ru said, "It is said that as long as you have not sent greetings to either side of the two parties and have not registered in their names, I am afraid that you will not be able to be on the list this time... This is the case between North Korea and China.
In the game between big factions, no matter how reluctant you are, you still have to choose one side to join."
Zhu Hao frowned: "Then which one do you think is better?"
Sun Rudao: "Logically speaking, we must go together with the Cabinet Chief Minister Yang Da Shi. That is the right path. But the problem is that there are too many people there, and it is very difficult to get to the top. It is better to choose a shortcut. As long as we follow
Jiang Bin, please take a breath, I...forget it, with your knowledge, sir, it will be absolutely easy for you to get the top spot on the list."
After hearing the end, Zhu Hao realized that Sun Ru had been talking for a long time not for himself, but for the sake of his husband.
Although the theory sounds nonsense, since he is so sincere, Zhu Hao will not be harsh.
The so-called game between North Korea and China is unlikely to take place in a fair and just occasion like the test, but the surging undercurrent still exists. When scholars talk about conspiracy theories, they are all good at it and can explain what they have guessed.
It's so vivid, just like seeing it with your own eyes...
What Sun Ru heard about was only limited to the discussions about the people in Anlu. Looking at the entire capital, with so many scholars taking the exam, they would have praised Yang Tinghe to the sky and trampled Jiang Bin, Wang Qiong and others to the bottom.
The abyss has gone.
…
…
The seventh day of the lunar month.
Zhu Hao went to deliver daily necessities to Lou Suzhen.
After Lou Suzhen arrived in the capital, she had been living as a maid of the Zhu family. Household registration checks in the capital were always strict, but because Zhu Hao's nominal owner was a Juren, a high-class person in society, the land security guard who came to check, the Yamen
Others dare not embarrass Lou Suzhen.
Besides, who would have expected that a seemingly ordinary woman would turn out to be Concubine Lou, who was famous in Jiangxi and was officially confirmed to have drowned in a lake?
"...While the young master was away, during the past two days, someone might come to interrogate me, and they could answer each other one by one, or because he felt that I had a maid by my side and had a special status, I unconsciously asked him a few more times...I heard that the capital was implicated in the war in the south.
It’s very wide, and some people use it to cause injustice.”
Lou Suzhen spoke calmly.
Zhu Hao asked Tang Yin before he came, and Tang Yin said that he had not seen Lou Suzhen for more than two months.
Zhu Hao thought to himself, is this waiting for Zhu Chenhao to die before the two of them can develop further? Or... is it going to continue to be ambiguous like this?
After all, Lou Suzhen is not young and has two children. Although her husband has been caught by the court, he has not yet been sentenced to death. Maybe there will be a turn for the better. For example, the emperor feels that King Ning's rebellion has subsided too quickly and the emperor's personal conquest has not been effective, so he simply decides to sentence Ning.
Wang is sentenced to life imprisonment. At that time, Lou Suzhen may still have a chance to reunite as husband and wife...
The situation is extremely complicated. In short, Tang Yin is the one who dare not face reality now.
Zhu Hao said: "Maybe he treats his wife as his foreign wife."
Zhu Hao is young but speaks very directly.
The so-called waizhai is a woman who is raised outside and has no status. It is reasonable for such a woman to have two maids to serve her. Besides, Zhu Hao is a scholar. If others don't know his background, how can they know that he is just a ten-year-old?
A three-year-old boy?
Lou Suzhen has a free and easy temperament and does not care about these trivial matters. She asked: "I wonder if you have any news from the south?"
Zhu Hao sighed: "After the war, Wang Zhongcheng went to Nanjing to offer prisoners. His Majesty did not come in person. He only sent Xu Tai, Zhang Yong and others there. He asked for bribes and then made slanderous remarks. Behind him was the shadow of Jiang Bin...
…”
Lou Suzhen clenched her fists when she heard Jiang Bin's name.
"This is the man who forced Prince Ning to rebel. His thoughts are extremely vicious and he is the leader who brings disaster to the country and the people." Lou Suzhen said bitterly.
Zhu Hao really wanted to say that the rebellion was his own behavior and should not be blamed on others.
But think about it, if Jiang Bin hadn't always brought up Prince Ning's affairs in front of the emperor in order to start a factional fight with Qian Ning, allowing Emperor Zhengde to deprive Prince Ning of his bodyguard, Prince Ning would not have hurriedly raised his troops out of danger, and in the end
It ended badly.
Zhu Hao thought for a moment, could it be that you hate me too?
Although you don’t know it yet, it was actually Zhu Wanhong and I who suggested that he and Jiang Bin use the incident involving Prince Ning as an opportunity to attack political opponents?
Also, Wang Shouren's plan to send troops in advance and King Pingning's rebellion also came from me?
But with or without me, there is not much difference. History will continue to develop step by step. I just gave an early warning to keep everything developing on the right track.
Zhu Haodao: "News came after the New Year, saying that His Majesty arrived in Nanjing at the end of last year, but after entering the city, he did not interfere with local affairs in Jiangxi and only focused on having fun. It is estimated that things in Jiangxi will not be further improved until spring or even close to summer.
trend."
Lou Suzhen looked sad, shook her head and said: "The matter has already happened, and it will make no difference to Prince Ning's palace when the court will investigate."
A look of sympathy appeared on Zhu Hao's face, and he nodded after sighing.
"What are Madam's plans for the future?"
Zhu Hao finally brought up the core topic.
Lou Suzhen stayed in the capital because she came to the capital with Zhu Hao, the "master", to take the exam, and by the way, she heard about the news that Prince Ning's palace was being held accountable by the court.
But as time goes by, knowing that no one in Prince Ning's palace can escape, why should he still stay in the capital? Waiting for Tang Yin to "change his mind"?
Zhu Hao cannot plan the future for Lou Suzhen, it depends on her own choice.
Lou Suzhen shook her head: "I have no plan."
Apparently Lou Suzhen herself was confused.
In fact, like Tang Yin, she has already relaxed her mentality. At their age, it might be best to keep their relationship as flat as water. Do they really want to get together as soon as possible?
What is the purpose?
Have another baby?
Since we know that living together will bring some negative things in the future, it is better to remain friends as we are now, write poems and paint together for the rest of our lives, and live up to our acquaintance.
But the problem is... maybe Tang Yin himself feels that if he takes the initiative, others will misunderstand him as "a toad wants to eat swan meat", so he doesn't even have the courage to be friends. In addition, Tang Yin is not the one who leads this matter. Now he
I fell into extreme low self-esteem and doubt. I felt that I wanted fame and wealth but not fame and wealth, and status but not status. Why should I accept Lou Suzhen?
"Mr. Tang has been mentioning you lately."
Zhu Hao suddenly mentioned something.
"Yeah?"
Lou Suzhen looked calm and asked, "What did he say about me?"
Zhu Haodao: "When I talked about you writing poems and paintings when you were in Nanchang, I mentioned that my wife's talent and learning are admirable, and also mentioned..."
I can't edit anymore.
Lou Suzhen said: "There is no one who is more talented than Mr. Xiang in the world, but his ambition is not in the court. Even if he is bound by the matter of rejuvenating the prince's palace, I am afraid he cannot tie his heart. When he left Nanchang, it was mostly because of
Pursue inner peace.”
This perspective is quite unique.
Zhu Hao thought to himself, is this a kind of sympathy?
Poor you Tang Yin, you always feel that no one in the world understands you. This woman understands your thoughts very well. From the time when you were successful as a young man in bright clothes and angry horses, to when you failed in weightlifting and wandered around the world, without special opportunities, your life would have been different.
Maybe it will shine in the court.
No matter how much I help you, you can only be mediocre. Even you yourself feel that your ability is not worthy of the status you have now achieved in Prince Yu Xing's Mansion.
Zhu Hao smiled and said: "My wife understands him. He just wants to live a comfortable life growing peach blossoms in Peach Blossom Temple. I even took him to Anlu. Maybe I hurt him."
Speaking of what they had experienced together, which was sending Tang Yin out of Nanchang and heading to Anlu, Lou Suzhen had a relaxed smile on her face. She also thought about how destitute Tang Yin was at the beginning. Who could have expected that the situation between the two of them would happen today?
reverse.
"Although Mr. Wang has no intention of going to court, his feelings for the country and the people are still there. This is why he has stayed in Anlu. He also wants to do something practical for the people."
Zhu Hao said.
Lou Suzhen nodded: "I have also heard of Mr. Sir's experience in Anlu. He deserves the praise of serving the people wholeheartedly."
"So I hope Madam can encourage him and let him continue to work for the court." Zhu Hao made a request.
This can be regarded as giving Lou Suzhen a reason to survive.
Persuade Tang Yin to continue serving the country and the people!
Isn’t your life meaningless?
Then I will create one for you.
Lou Suzhen shook her head: "I am so virtuous and capable. Besides, my husband is hiding in the palace, so I'm afraid it will be difficult to do much for the country."
Zhu Hao smiled and said: "To be honest, I have some knowledge of the Book of Changes, and I have calculated that in the past two years, a real dragon will appear in Prince Xing's palace..."