Deng Muzhi is somewhat similar to Ding Yunyi's brother-in-law Ye Yuan, and they are both a bit smooth.
But compared with Ye Yuan, Deng Muzhi's life experience is much more prominent. His great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were all well-educated Confucians, and they also created a miracle since the founding of the Ming Dynasty: they all became bachelors of the Hanlin Academy.
This is an amazing thing.
None of the leading scholars of the Hanlin Academy would be qualified unless they were great Confucians of the time. To have three from one discipline in a row was a shock to the world. Because of this, the scholars in Suzhou and Jiangnan were all headed by the Deng family.
At that time, Wei Zhongxian was so powerful that he was still polite to the Deng family and did not dare to show any slights to the Deng family in order to prevent the criticism from scholars in the world. Members of the Donglin Party often rushed from Wuxi to Suzhou to ask for advice.
During the reign of Tianqi, the emperor personally gave a plaque: "A family full of scholars, three bachelors in a family."
As a result, he became famous all over the world.
In Deng Muzhi's generation, things have changed a bit. Deng Muzhi was also talented and smart since he was a child. He was known as a "child prodigy" and had won the third prize.
It's just that this person is not very interested in being a "Hanlin, bachelor", but he is very interested in being a local official. He knows that being a capital official is not very profitable, but being a local official will naturally bring him a lot of money.
Therefore, he tried his best to move from the county magistrate to the prefecture, and then to his hometown of Suzhou. When he became the prefect of Suzhou, he was only thirty-three years old, and he was considered a very promising young official.
This man is also greedy, but he is so greedy that no one can catch him. Therefore, he is known as an "upright official" in Suzhou, which is really rare.
This time, when he saw Ding Yunyi coming to Suzhou, he knew that he had saved the life of the most famous person in the dynasty, Wang Chengen, and had just made great achievements. He was promoted to an official position by the emperor and was favored by the emperor, so he immediately felt grateful.
.
He was smart enough to organize a family banquet in the name of his wife and invite Ding Yunyi to his home for dinner. It also appeared that the two of them were very affectionate and their relationship was extraordinary.
When Ding Yunyi agreed, Deng Muzhi was overjoyed. He didn't know Ding Yunyi's taste preferences, so he asked his wife to prepare more dishes from various places, but he was still worried. He also invited chefs from several famous restaurants in Suzhou to his home and carefully warned that the dishes did not need to be cooked.
A lot, but it must be precise.
When Ding Yunyi arrived, Deng Muzhi changed into casual clothes and went out to greet him.
Ding Yunyi came on horseback, followed by a sedan. Deng Muzhi knew that it must be Chen Yuanyuan. On the day Chen Yuanyuan made his debut on the stage, he accompanied Wang Chengen and was unable to go in person. When the matter was over, he realized that Chen Yuanyuan had been replaced.
Wang Chengen redeemed himself and was betrothed to Ding Yunyi.
How could his power compete with that of Wang Cheng'en? Therefore, he could only say nothing in his heart. I didn't expect to be able to see Chen Yuanyuan today, who was already famous in Suzhou without even combing her bun.
"Deng Huangtang."
"Ding Shenrong!"
As soon as the two met, they held hands and the sedan behind them dropped down. The maid opened the curtain of the sedan and saw a woman walking out of the sedan: "Chen Yuanyuan has met Mr. Deng."
After speaking, Deng Muzhi looked up and was stunned.
He has seen many beauties, but this is the first time in his life that he has seen such a stunning one. He really didn't expect that there are such stunning beauties in the world.
"Please. Please." After Ye Yuan came back to his senses, he hurriedly covered up his gaffe and said repeatedly.
Ding Yunyi smiled and didn't take it seriously. Which man in the world was not so lost when he saw Chen Yuanyuan for the first time?
Entering the home, Deng Muzhi's wife Deng Dou was already waiting there. She also came from a scholarly family. When she saw Ding Yunyi, she said, "I have met the general and my wife."
After a few polite words, Deng Muzhi invited Ding Yunyi and Chen Yuanyuan to sit down. This was a family banquet, and he also asked his wife to accompany them.
After toasting, Deng Muzhi asked the question he was most concerned about: "General Ding, the rogue bandits are harassing Anhui. Even the imperial tombs were dug up by these treacherous rebels. Suzhou is not far from Anhui. I wonder if the rogue bandits will invade Suzhou."
?”
"Unlikely." Ding Yunyi shook his head and said: "Commander Hong Chengchou and Commander Hong have personally led the army to suppress the army. The rogue bandits do not dare to stay in Fengyang for a long time. They should go to Luzhou and Anqing, then flee into Hubei, and then turn into
In Henan and Shaanxi, even if there are occasional bandits harassing Suzhou and other places, they are just scattered bandits and are nothing to worry about."
"The remnant soldiers are also very fierce." Deng Muzhi sighed: "General Ding, how many years has it been since Suzhou experienced war? The weapons are almost rusty, and my brother is a civil servant. Once the traitors arrive, how can we resist? Think about it.
If this is really the case, all life in Suzhou will be in ruins. As a court official, my brother is really worried about not being able to protect the people."
Ding Yunyi smiled. The prefect was a little timid. Yes, in history, after Zhang Xianzhong conquered Fengyang, some rogue bandits did enter Suzhou, Wuxi and other places, but the number was small and their fighting power was poor. They were defeated in a short time.
The local annihilation caused almost no damage to several places, and Deng Muzhi was too worried.
"Don't worry Huangtang." Ding Yunyi comforted him: "Yun Yi will be delayed here for a few days. If the thieves come, they will arrive in these few days. Yun Yi will just help Suzhou drive away these bandits."
Deng Muzhi was overjoyed when he heard this.
In fact, although he was worried about the rogue bandits invading Suzhou, he was not as afraid as he appeared on the surface. He had studied the rogue bandits, and they were just relying on the strength of their numbers. Once they were separated from the main force, they would not be able to do anything. All they had to do was close the city gates tightly.
In less than two days the bandits will disperse on their own.
The reason why he acted so worried was simply because he wanted to make good friends with Ding Yunyi and keep him in Suzhou for a few more days. If he had to do something in the court in the future, his father, who was the Minister of War in the capital, and the emperor
Wang Cheng'en, the most famous person around him, thought that he was respectful and diligent to Ding Yunyi, so he would always give him some face and take care of himself.
Now that Ding Yunyi had agreed, Deng Muzhi diligently persuaded him to drink and asked about some local customs in Fujian and Taiwan. Ding Yunyi casually talked about it, which made several people admire him and admire him endlessly.
Deng Dou was chatting with Chen Yuanyuan over there. Deng Muzhi thought that he could not neglect Ding Yunyi's wife, otherwise if one day Chen Yuanyuan blew a few words on the pillow, Ding Yunyi would have a problem with him. Then all his hard work today would be in vain.
Already.
"Mrs. Ding, Ding Shenrong and I hit it off as soon as we met, and his wife is like my sister-in-law. I propose this glass of wine to Madam." Deng Muzhi raised his glass and said.
"Thank you, Master." Chen Yuanyuan took a sip of wine, put down the glass, and smiled: "It's just that I'm not a wife, I'm just a concubine beside the general."
Deng Muzhi already knew that with Chen Yuanyuan's background, how could he be Ding Yunyi's first wife? Then he pretended to scold himself a few words, and said intentionally or unintentionally: "I made a mistake, so don't blame me for joining the army. It's just a beauty matching a hero. That's the best. I
I would like to take the liberty of asking which family Mrs. Shenrong is from?"
Ding Yunyi was a little embarrassed. What Ye Yuan was worried about that day finally happened. He took concubines first without marrying a wife, and his face turned red: "It made Huang Tang laugh. Yunyi only has three concubines and has not yet married a wife."
When Deng Muzhi heard this, he was startled at first, and then his eyes showed joy. God help me! He just pretended to be indifferent: "Very good, very good. If a man cannot be a general or a prime minister, what is the use of marrying a wife? Ding Shenrong is a young hero, not one of us.
Ordinary people can compare, I expect that Ding Canrong will be the commander-in-chief before he is thirty years old."
What's the good thing about not marrying a wife? Besides, he didn't marry an eldest wife. It wouldn't be a glorious thing if he got three younger wives first and spread the news. This Deng Huangtang flattered people, but he was able to flatter people to the point of feeling comfortable. Ding Yunyi thought to himself
road.
"Your Majesty, Minister Ding, and the two brothers-in-law of Shenrong, I have met them all, especially Minister Ding. He and my father were officials in the same dynasty and took care of each other. They were in perfect harmony. I didn't expect that my nephew would have to
It is truly a brother's honor to get to know Ding Canrong."
When Deng Muzhi brought up the relationship between his family and the Ding family, Ding Yunyi didn't know whether it was true or false, so he could only make a few casual remarks.
I heard before that the Deng family has been a great scholar for generations. His great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were bachelors for three generations. They were proud people. How come this Deng Mu is nothing like him?
Although he was a general and had a higher rank than him, he was a civil servant and he was in Suzhou, so there was no need for him to flatter himself so deliberately.
After thinking about it, it's still because of me and Wang Chengen, otherwise I really wouldn't have that much face just by myself.
Seeing that the meal was almost finished, Deng Muzhi winked at his wife. Deng Dou understood and walked in. After a while, he came out with a wooden box. Deng Muzhi smiled and said: "Shenrong, you and I are
My family friend, Shilang Ding and I have a master-disciple relationship, I should have called you my brother, but I am deeply favored by the Holy Spirit, so I don’t dare to take the liberty of doing so."
The more Ding Yunyi listened, the more funny he became. Deng Muzhi actually kept calling him his teacher. Deng Muzhi opened the wooden box and said, "Come into the army and come with your wife. Brother, there is no preparation. This little thing will
I hope you won't dislike it if you send it to join the army."
Ding Yunyi looked at it and saw that it was a small knife. There was nothing unusual about the small knife, but the strange thing was that the handle was made of ivory, and the entire blade seemed to be made of gold.
This is a treasure.
Before Ding Yunyi had time to refuse, Deng Muzi had already closed the box and moved it in front of Ding Yunyi: "Shenrong, if you refuse to accept it, you will not take the friendship between our two families seriously."
He brought out this big hat, and the official atmosphere has always been like this. If he doesn't want it anymore, he will inevitably have a pretentious excuse. If he finds the other party in the future, it will be very difficult. Ding Yunyi can't shirk it, so he bites the bullet and accepts it.
After that, he became related to Deng Muzhi.
Seeing Ding Yunyi accept it, Deng Muzhi felt very happy and bought him a few more drinks.
Seeing that the sky was getting dark, Ding Yunyi stood up to leave. Deng Muzhi didn't stay long and sent Ding Yunyi and Chen Yuanyuan out.
As soon as he came back, he called his wife into the inner room: "Madam, did you hear that Ding Yunyi only took concubines and never married a wife?"
"I heard it." Mrs. Deng Dou nodded, and suddenly thought of something: "Do you want to..."
"Yes, I am about to marry Deng Lianyu to this person." Deng Muzhi said without thinking.
"Master, please think deeply." Mrs. Deng Dou said hurriedly: "Lianyu was originally married to the Lu family in Changshu. Later, the Lu family offended Wei Zhongxian and the family was defeated. But his son, Lu Yanhan, was still alive. How could I go back on my words?"
?”
"The Lu family? What is the Lu family?" Deng Muzhi sneered: "When I was the Minister of Taichang Temple, I still gave him some respect. Later, I died in prison and all my property was confiscated.
After Wei Ni's fall, he did not see the imperial court rehabilitate him. Lu Yanhan? Do you know what he is doing now? Living in a dilapidated temple, relying on the charity of monks to barely let himself starve to death, and still having wishful thinking
He wants to obtain fame. He also doesn’t think about it. The family is in such a state of decline that they can’t even fill their stomachs, so why should they revitalize the Lu family? The Lu family will never be able to turn around in this life.”
Mrs. Deng Dou was a virtuous woman, and the more she listened, the more anxious she became: "Sir, although I say so, Lianyu has been married to him since he was a child. The Deng family has a strict upbringing. Although he only met Lu Yanhan a few times when he was a child, he has already treated him as a child.
As her future husband, she secretly cried a few times when she knew that the Lu family had collapsed, but she was determined to wait for Lu Yanhan to get the honors before marrying him. Now the master suddenly wants to betroth her to someone else. With Lianyu's loyal character, he will inevitably marry her.
Resist with death."
"Resist with death?" Deng Muzhi didn't care at all: "My father is gone now, my mother has been practicing Buddhism all year round, and the eldest brother is the eldest brother. Doesn't he dare to listen to me?"
Deng Dou boldly said: "Sir, my Deng family has been studying for generations and has a scholarly family. If I do such a renegade thing, I am afraid of being laughed at. I ask you to think again."
"You are stupid." Deng Muzhi reprimanded unhappily: "It is ridiculous to marry Lianyu to a poor boy like Lu Yanhan. A few years ago, the plague was rampant. Unfortunately, my father was infected and passed away. I had no one in the court.
Now. Isn’t it God’s will to put Ding Yunyi in front of me now? He is the minister of the Ministry of War, he himself is Wang Chengen’s savior, and the Holy Spirit values him so much. His future future is limitless, and he has become mine.
Brother-in-law, I have more room for twists and turns. I am also thinking about the Deng family. As for that Lu Yanhan..."
He pondered for a moment: "He came to see me the year before last, but I kicked him out. This time I sent someone to Changshu, gave him a few taels of silver, and told him to leave far away and never come back again. All I told the outside world was that he was dead.
He is dead or missing. He is a beautiful young lady in a boudoir. Should we ask her not to marry for the rest of her life?"
Having said this, he glared at his wife fiercely: "You are soft-hearted, and you must not talk about Lu Yan and Han Wei's death in front of Lianyu. Otherwise, I will divorce you with a divorce letter!"
Mrs. Deng Dou was almost in tears.
My husband only thinks about his future and never considers others. He pities his sister-in-law and waits eagerly for her future husband to revive the family business and then marry her. However, how could he have imagined that he would be betrayed by his own brother.!~