There was no banquet for the opera tonight, so Zhang Ning didn't drink, but when he came out of Yang's house, his face was already glowing red. It was obvious that Yang Shiqi was quite satisfied with himself. Even a certain official in the court did not forget to say "Ping An Wan" when he left.
"You have a good book and are very talented." These ministers of the first and second ranks usually don't show off when they see young Beijing officials. Even if they nod to you, it's not easy. How can they bother to talk to you in private? In short, it depends on the situation.
It looked great.
Zhang Ning thinks that he is also a common person. He thinks that since his family has no background, he will be happy to be able to thrive in the capital. Then the various benefits brought by promotion and wealth will gradually be reflected... But now he still has to ride
Go home with the donkey issued by the Ministry of Etiquette.
The wind in the capital is strong, and the cold wind of the twelfth lunar month blows directly on the body, making people shiver all over. It doesn't matter how thick you wear it. It would be great if you can have a sedan or a carriage to travel instead, but there is really no cover when riding a donkey.
As soon as he walked through an alley, he heard the sound of horse hooves behind him. Zhang Ning turned around and saw Luo Yaoniang coming up. He asked the groom leading the donkey to stop. When Luo Yaoniang caught up with her, he asked her, "Oh my god."
It’s all dark, did you come out to say something?”
"I originally wanted to tell you something, but when you asked, it seemed like nothing happened..." Luo Yaoniang looked at him innocently. It could be seen that she was in a good mood.
Zhang Ning said: "Then we walk through this long street together, and you can go back. After all, it is night, and people will see that your father's reputation is not good."
"Yeah." Luo Yaoniang smiled.
Perhaps the two of them should congratulate Zhang Ning and Yang Shiqi for their successful meeting, but they didn't know where to start when they met face to face. Zhang Ning also understood this feeling. Lanterns were hung sparsely under the eaves on both sides of the long street from time to time, but because of the street
It is relatively straight and extends out like a row of lights on both sides. It is quite beautiful. The scene is somewhat romantic at this time... but the wind is too cold, which really makes people less interested in walking. Zhang Ning just wants to get home early.
Could be a little warmer.
It just so happened that Luo Yaoniang also said something that was bad for the atmosphere: "Where did you get so much money?"
Zhang Ning really couldn't explain this clearly. Even if he wanted to explain it truthfully, he couldn't explain it clearly in just one or two sentences. If he was in the mood to talk about it in the room with a warm fire, he was trembling in this situation.
. He said: "My hometown is over there. I grew up in the territory of one prefecture and two counties in Nanjing. I always have some friends and I have my own way to raise money."
Fortunately, Luo Yaoniang didn't catch the matter and ask the truth. After hearing it, she just said: "My father also said that it is a good thing to be kind and make friends with people of good character... But what happened to Zhao Erniang in your family? Just forget it.
Why do you need to buy such a big slave when you buy a slave? I don’t think it is a fuel-efficient lamp!"
It is reasonable for Zhao Erniang to ask her jealous person to pay extra attention to her. Zhao Erniang cannot be described as beautiful, perhaps "coquettish" is more appropriate. Her whole body shows a feeling that can arouse human affection. No wonder Luo Yaoniang specially mentioned it
.
However, Zhang Ning felt no pressure and said earnestly: "She used to be one of my subordinates, and now she lives with me, but it's not what you think."
"What do I think?" Luo Yaoniang said angrily.
"There are some things that I don't want to say casually because it won't be good for others," Zhang Ning said.
When Luo Yaoniang heard that he was actually protecting those girls, as if they were her own and not outsiders, she immediately said unhappily: "Okay, I'm the kind of person who 'can't say anything'!"
Seeing this, Zhang Ning asked the groom to go ahead and wait for him in front. When he and Luo Yaoniang were alone, he whispered: "At that time, in order to catch the rebel Peng Tianheng, who was the mastermind behind the imperial meal poisoning case last year,
You should have heard about it... My poor decision-making allowed Zhao Erniang to fall into the hands of thieves. She was treated inhumanely and almost became a "waste". I asked her to follow us just because I wanted her to have someone to rely on. What happened at that time
I have a responsibility too."
"A useless person?" Luo Yaoniang asked curiously. After all, she saw Zhao Erniang walking and working that day, and there was nothing unusual about her.
There was a hint of gentleness on Zhang Ning's face, and he said in a deep voice: "The left breast was cut off, and the lower body was tortured with red-hot charcoal. The body is in terrible shape."
Luo Yaoniang suddenly froze on her horse, seemed to shudder, and her face changed slightly.
Zhang Ning sighed and said: "Look, she is talking and laughing now. It is not easy to live a life like a normal person. Let's not expose her scars and just pretend that it is nothing. Because you are the one who asked, so change
I won’t tell anyone else.”
"It's quite pitiful..." Luo Yaoniang also showed sympathy. The two were silent for a long time, and she blamed herself and said, "I misunderstood you. In fact, you are not that kind of person. It's all my pettiness! You won't
Bother me?"
Zhang Ning smiled and shook his head, noncommittal.
Luo Yaoniang looked at his side face, her mood fluctuated for a moment. She could feel that this young face looked clean and handsome, but it was very different from those pampered young men. Last time they went to Beijing together, Luo Yaoniang had
What I noticed was that he was so tired that he seemed to have made no sound at all.
This street seemed very long, but it was completed without even realizing it. When the two of them reached the intersection, Zhang Ning said, "Let's go back."
Luo Yaoniang blushed and hesitated to speak, and finally blurted out: "When will you find a matchmaker to propose marriage to my father?"
"How about tomorrow?" Zhang Ning asked seriously.
Luo Yaoniang smiled and said: "You are too impatient." Zhang Ning kicked the donkey and came closer and laughed softly: "Last time I went drinking with colleagues from the former Secretary Affairs Office, and someone mentioned that there was a male prostitute in the north of the capital city.
It’s not against the law. If this continues, I can’t help but go there.”
"How can you talk to others like this!" Luo Yaoniang rolled her eyes at him and said, "Ignore you. I'm going back now." After saying that, she turned around and patted the horse before leaving.
After returning home, Zhang Ning's first question was, "Where is Xiaomei Zhang?" Zhao Erniang, who was getting him hot water, said, "She's already asleep."
He didn't say anything and just sat down in front of the brazier. After walking for a while, it was really cold. He was busy taking off his shoes and socks and burning his feet. At this time, Zhao Erniang said again: "When you were on duty during the day, our wife who didn't come in took the little girl with her.
I went out to play and bought two silk clothes for my little sister."
"Oh?" Zhang Ning had just met Luo Yaoniang but didn't listen to her, so he asked, "How do Miss Luo and my little sister get along?"
"She just doesn't like me, but it seems nice to talk and laugh with my little sister." Zhao Erniang muttered. Zhang Ning then smiled and persuaded: "Miss Luo is a sharp-tongued person, but she is not a bad person. We will get to know each other better in the future.
I won’t quarrel with you anymore.”
Zhao Erniang said: "But then again, if there is someone who doesn't get along with my little sister, that person really doesn't know how difficult it will be to serve him."
Zhang Ning immediately asked: "Is my little sister someone easy to get along with?"
"Don't you know that the boss is her brother?" Zhao Erniang picked up Zhang Ning's feet and put them into the hot water while talking. Zhang Ning let her wait on her, since he was paid anyway. She continued, "The boss is her brother."
Most people would bend down and give way when they see an official, but my little sister has no airs at all and is very diligent and helps with everything."
Seeing Zhang Ning's very interested look, she listened attentively and said: "When there are many people, she is easily ignored. Although she is your sister and a person of status. But once you get to know her,
You will feel very relaxed, and what else..."
"Is it like moisturizing things silently?" Zhang Ning said with a smile.
Zhao Erniang nodded: "Also, when I first met her, I felt that she must be very delicate, and I felt that if there was no one to take care of her, she would definitely cry. Unexpectedly, we soon discovered that this was not the case. Several people in the troupe were sick last time.
Instead, my little sister went to take care of them, just like..." Zhao Erniang remembered something, her face turned slightly red and her voice lowered, "It's like grass that can grow in the cracks of stones."
It took Zhang Ning a while to remember that he had comforted Xiaocao with her childish stories, and the two of them smiled knowingly together.
Suddenly, it seemed that the weather was not so cold anymore, and there was a faint warmth. Zhang Ning said: "If you are willing, I can treat you like a sister."
Zhao Erniang said softly: "Maybe I'm a little older than my boss."
…
Zhang Ning started a very regular life again. In the morning, he put on his official uniform and went to work at the Yamen. He came back in the afternoon and occasionally got together with friends. It was similar to the days when he went to work in his previous life.
Being an official in the capital and being in the center of power are not without opportunities for advancement, but the most important thing on weekdays is to behave well and have a good evaluation. Only at critical moments will someone help speak up. Zhang Ning himself is a relatively well-behaved person, and his duty is
He was quite attentive. Because in the Ministry of Etiquette, a lot of etiquette knowledge had to be learned now, so he often read with his hands in his arms during this time.
In fact, all walks of life are not simple. It was only after he became the head of the Ceremony Department that he discovered that various laws and regulations can be so complicated... Just like he once visited a chemical factory before and realized that the production process of several reaction equations actually requires countless processes.
Pipe valves, a dense stack of paper process.
Fortunately, various institutions in the Ming Dynasty were developing and improving. Zhang Ning was not sure about it, but it did not affect the administration. There were a group of officials in the Department of Ceremony. As long as they asked more and were more friendly, there would be no problems.
In fact, it is not the officials who are most familiar with the work itself, but the staff. Officials are jobless officials. If you do this job today, you may be promoted tomorrow, while the staff may stay in the same position for decades and are not familiar with what they do.
More familiar than at home... If the imperial court lacks countless officials, the entire state machine will be paralyzed.
Zhang Ning found that he was a decent official, at least he had good relations with the people around him and cooperated smoothly, and he was a quick learner. He usually studied hard and could at least roughly understand what the people below were doing;
There is a colleague who is even worse than him. The Jinshi who just passed the exam can only write articles on the Four Books and Five Classics. He was transferred to the Ministry of Rites without knowing anything about it. He was naturally very angry when he was deceived by the scribes, but there was no way to punish the cunning officials because of the lack of knowledge.
You can't get things done if you don't have a person, and his official job is a mess.
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