Sun Jiao's residence in Beijing was visited by Yang Tinghe specially that day.
This greatly surprised Sun Jiao, who went out to greet him personally and respectfully invited Yang Tinghe to the main hall. He originally wanted to invite Yang Tinghe to sit on the main seat, but Yang Tinghe politely sat down on the guest seat beside him.
"Why did Yang Zhongtang come to the old man's house in person?"
Sun Jiao seemed flattered, but in reality he kept him at arm's length.
Although he and Yang Tinghe were old friends and were older than Yang Tinghe, Yang Tinghe's current status in the court was not comparable to that of his minister of household affairs.
Yang Tinghe said seriously: "I came here this time to discuss a private matter with my brother."
Originally, court officials should not work anymore after returning to the palace. As for ministers visiting relatives and friends, it is still allowed. However, if they are accused of discussing court affairs in private, they will be criticized as misbehavior, and may even be suspected of forming cliques for personal gain.
These are things that decent ministers should avoid.
Sun Jiao looked embarrassed and said: "I came to the capital alone to take up my post. Now that I don't have any family records with me, what private matters can I talk about?"
In fact, Sun Jiao was deliberately pretending to be Hutu.
The Empress Dowager Jiang has sent people to tell him more than once, asking him to put the daughter he brought with him on the list of candidates for the queen. According to the Empress Dowager Jiang, as long as your daughter goes to apply for the election, she will definitely enter the palace smoothly in the end.
Even if you are not a queen, you can enter the "choose three" stage and become a high-class concubine.
Sun Jiao repeatedly refused, so how could Yang Tinghe not take action?
Yang Tinghe said: "I came here for my concubine's wedding."
Sun Jiao sighed: "It's a shame to say that I have a little daughter who accompanied me to the capital. I took care of him. This old man... often has difficulty moving and needs her to bring tea and water. In addition... I don't have a daughter."
I don’t plan to marry her off so early.”
It was almost a direct rejection.
Mention my daughter's marriage?
It’s better to avoid talking about it!
Yang Tinghe took out a scroll and handed it to Sun Jiao: "This is a list of the princes from aristocratic families in the capital. Many of them are young talents. In terms of talent, learning and moral character, many of them are worthy of your concubine."
Such directness made Sun Jiao very anxious.
"Why does Yang Zhongtang force others to make things difficult?" Sun Jiao said with a bitter face.
Yang Tinghe said: "When it's time for my daughter's family to discuss marriage, as a father, he shouldn't stand in the way."
Sun Jiao shook his head and said: "Jiefu, since you are one of our own, I will tell you the truth... When the old man returned to Jiufeng Mountain, the master of Shixing Palace sent someone to give away the land and agreed to get married, but the old man refused.
The old man’s meaning is very simple. He does not want to use his daughter’s marriage to cling to the powerful.
"But I never thought that the young master of Prince Xing's Mansion, who originally had the intention of marrying my daughter, has become the current Holy Emperor. This is the reason why the Queen Mother has always been thinking about it. The old man has no intention of marrying a daughter, and he has a relationship with the Holy Master. Even if it is the old man's intention,
Let the little girl never marry, so as not to be criticized by others, and I don't want the old man to get the reputation of being ignorant of current affairs."
Sun Jiao is also considered sincere.
He even told me about his original relationship with Prince Xing’s Mansion, and explained that when old Prince Xing shamelessly came to get married, he was rejected by me, but now he ascended to heaven and became the emperor. Now I don’t dare to marry my daughter, otherwise
It will be suspected of deceiving the emperor.
Yang Tinghe shook his head: "Times have changed a long time ago. Besides, the selection of the new emperor and empress has generally been directed. The Ministry of Rites has already submitted the list. Brothers who are like-minded should not be entangled in old things."
Sun Jiao couldn't help but feel angry.
Love is not about your girl being noticed by the emperor, right?
Is it so easy to say sarcastic words here with empty words and white teeth?
I have promised that my little daughter will not get married, but you are still so stubborn. You insist that I marry my daughter to someone else, and the marriage is settled. Do you believe that I will not let my daughter choose the queen?
Yang Tinghe said: "If you are an ordinary person, or if you are not in the eyes of like-minded brothers, there is a suitable candidate here. If you like him, I can help you make peace."
"Um?"
Sun Jiao was confused.
Yang Ting and Mingming came up with a whole list, but in the end they only talked about one person?
Who?
It can't be your son, right?
I heard that your second son Yang Dun is quite good at making things. There are a lot of rumors about the romantic affairs in the romantic field. You don’t want my daughter to marry him as a concubine, do you?
There are no doors!
"It's Zhu Hao."
Yang Tinghe said it bluntly, "This boy comes from Anlu Prefecture, the same hometown as Sun Lao. He is the number one scholar. He works hard in Hanyuan and has a bright future as a young talent. According to Quanzi who works with him, his literary talent is also very good.
I have a poem he wrote here, please take a look."
With that said, Yang Tinghe handed Sun Jiao the "Linjiang Immortal" written by Zhu Hao before.
Obviously it was impossible for Yang Shen to assume Zhu Hao's name. With his status as the number one scholar and his father's status in the court, it would be very embarrassing if someone discovered that he was assuming someone else's name.
But it is impossible to say that Yang Shen is not jealous of Zhu Hao's talent. When he saw Zhu Hao write a poem that was unparalleled in the world, he was envious and could only follow the agreement to spread the word to the outside world, but deliberately did not say who wrote it.
He neither pretends to be famous nor takes the initiative to reveal Zhu Hao’s name.
Such fermentation by public opinion and word-of-mouth spread made people think that this poem was written by Yang Shen. This in itself is an impersonation, but I don't dare to face it.
Sun Jiao's old face wrinkled.
With just one word, you want me to recognize a young man?
Do you think that young man is Su Dongpo or Lu Fangweng?
But when Sun Jiao patiently read this poem, he was shocked.
Although Sun Jiao is not a famous poet, he has read a lot of books in his spare time over the years, so he still has basic appreciation ability. Besides, this poem is definitely the best in terms of lyrics and artistic conception.
"Is this... really written by Zhu Hao?"
Sun Jiao obviously didn't believe it.
He has seen Zhu Hao.
A young man, although he still can't understand why the new emperor asked Zhu Hao to come forward as a lobbyist, and he still doesn't understand why Yang Tinghe helped Zhu Hao come to negotiate the marriage. It seems that both parties regard Zhu Hao as "one of their own".
But Zhu Hao must have political leanings, right?
Furthermore, why should Jiang Lun and Tang Yin be so respectful to Zhu Hao?
Now I actually see that Zhu Hao can write unparalleled poetry?
Yang Tinghe said: "It is indeed his work, Quan Zi witnessed it with his own eyes. After reading it, I also started to appreciate the talent. With his literary attainments, he will definitely be able to make great achievements in the court in the future. This is much better than ordinary young men from aristocratic families.
"In addition, this Zhu Haonai is a descendant of Zhongliang. His father is a general of Jieyi in the Ming Dynasty, and his grandfather is a member of the Imperial Guard of Qianhu. He has lived in Anlu for twenty years. From his character, talents, knowledge, and family background, he should be worthy of your concubine, right?"
Sun Jiao really wants to say, you don't really think of him as an ordinary Jinyiwei kid, or an ordinary number one scholar, right?
But Sun Jiao would not pierce this layer of window paper, which seemed to him to be very thin.
Sun Jiao said: "I have told you about the difficulty of being an old man. It is really inconvenient for my daughter to get married. Please don't mention it again. My daughter...is really not worthy of such a top scholar. Alas!"
In fact, they are not top picks, but real top picks."
Usually when people praise a young hero for his talent, he is said to be the number one talent, with a compliment.
And Zhu Hao is the real number one scholar, so he doesn't need flattery from others.
Yang Tinghe sighed: "If my concubine's marriage is delayed because of old things, it really shouldn't be the case. It's better for me to be the matchmaker for this reason. As long as we agree with each other and nod, there will be no deviation."
Sun Jiao almost cursed.
Don't you understand human speech?
I don't want to get involved in court disputes, and I don't want to marry my daughter to the royal family because I don't want to stand on your opposite side.
Likewise, I don't want to offend the new emperor and the queen mother by siding with you.
My current position is so embarrassing, why do you insist on forcing others to make things difficult for me like the Queen Mother?
"Let's discuss this later. Since you are here, Jiefu, let me prepare a banquet. Please be sure to stay and have a few drinks with Jiefu..."
…
…
No matter what Yang Tinghe said, Sun Jiao just disagreed.
Logically speaking, it was just a marriage between children, and even the chief minister of the cabinet came to the house in person. Sun Jiao had to show some face no matter what.
But the problem is, the person putting pressure on him is the emperor's wife.
Do you think that if Yang Tinghe comes to your door in person, I will sell you a favor?
Do you know how many times the old lady told me alone about my daughter’s marriage? It’s true that Yang Tinghe is the chief minister, but she is still the Queen Mother.
If I give you face, that means I don’t give face to the Queen Mother, that is, I don’t give face to the emperor. How can I get along in the future?
Sun Jiao was devastated after sending Yang Tinghe away.
Fortunately, Yang Tinghe didn't have the shamelessness to stay at home for dinner, otherwise he wouldn't know what to say to Yang Tinghe at the dinner table.
Just when he was preparing to take a rest and have a good dinner, someone came here to report: "Master, someone is coming from the palace."
"It's really endless!"
Sun Jiao was helpless.
But he could only bite the bullet and come out to greet him.
When he saw that the person coming was the most trusted eunuch around the emperor, Zhang Zuo, the eunuch in charge of the ceremony, Sun Jiao was startled again.
In order to discuss the marriage with the two families, the Queen Mother even sent out Zhang Zuo?
"Old Sun!"
Zhang Zuo was very polite, kind-hearted, and bowed to Sun Jiao whenever he saw him.
Sun Jiao quickly invited Zhang Zuo to come in.
"Mr. Sun, in fact, you should have guessed the purpose of our visit... I heard that Mr. Yang Ge was here before?"
When Zhang Zuo arrived at the main hall, his attitude was completely different from that of Yang Tinghe, and he was more respectful to Sun Jiao.
Sun Jiao thought to himself that the new emperor was quite well informed.
But I think you guys are here, you can't come in a hurry after hearing the news, right?
Have you seen it outside?
"Yes." Sun Jiao nodded.
Zhang Zuo said with a smile: "Let us guess, Mr. Yang Ge will not come here for official business. Maybe it is for private business, or related to Ling Qianjin's marriage?"
"this……"
Sun Jiao was helpless.
He said in his heart, my daughter is going to be treated as a commodity. The two sides are fighting back and forth. Not only are they secretly competing, but now they also have to compete with each other in a battle of wits and courage?
Zhang Zuodao: "Let us guess again, does Mr. Yang Ge want Mr. Sun to marry me, Zhu Zhuangyuan, who was born in Anlu?"
Sun Jiao said: "Eunuch Zhang, since you have guessed everything, if you have anything to say, just say it."
Zhang Zuo pursed his lips and smiled: "I'm ashamed to say that the Queen Mother also felt that she was too hard on Mr. Sun. But the list of candidates for the queen has been finalized. The Queen Mother said that if Mr. Sun wants to marry Zhu Zhuangyuan,
Let the matter be settled like this. We cannot delay the life-long event of Ling Qianjin."