In the inner hall
The lights are brightly lit and warm as spring.
Qin Keqing, Xichun, Youshi, the second sister, the third sister, and Ping'er were seated one by one, with their mother-in-law and maidservants waiting behind them.
Ping'er originally said that he was of low status and could not sit down. Qin Keqing smiled and said that Ping'er was a guest and asked Ping'er to sit down.
Being romantic, delicate, gentle and peaceful, if you meet someone with a similar temperament and treat them with special courtesy, you will only appear approachable and noble in character, without losing your dignity.
Seeing Jia Heng, everyone looked at him. Ping'er, who was a little embarrassed, stood up first and said with a chuckle: "Uncle Heng, please come this way."
With that said, he planned to lead Jia Heng to sit on his chair.
Jia Heng nodded, looked at Ping'er with gentle eyes, smiled and said: "Miss Ping'er, let's sit down to eat together. It's a family banquet. There are no elders here, so you might as well be more casual."
At this moment, Ping'er was wearing a green cotton skirt, with picturesque eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes and peach cheeks. He seemed a little embarrassed under Jia Heng's gaze.
Youshi also smiled and joked: "Your master is not here, so there is no need for you to stand still, just sit down."
Ping'er: "..."
Third Sister You stared at the beautiful Ping'er. After listening to Jia Heng's words, it turned out to be a family banquet and the standing rules her sister said, her eyes flickered and the corners of her mouth curved.
Ping'er thanked him and sat down again.
Jia Heng sat down with Tan Chun, Dai Yu, and Xiang Yun. Under the service of the maid, he gave up.
Jia Heng asked: "Is everything settled properly?"
Qin Keqing smiled and said: "The furniture, clothing and bedding have been prepared and replaced with the best animal charcoal. I will definitely not wrong Sister Xichun."
Jia Heng raised his eyes to look at Xichun not far away, and said softly: "Sister, do you think that courtyard is okay? If it's not suitable, just change it to your own home, wherever you feel comfortable."
Xichun's pretty little face didn't know whether it was the reflection of the lights or her mood, but the cold look disappeared, and she said: "Thank you, Brother Heng. There is no need to change. The courtyard is quiet, quiet, and very warm."
Jia Heng smiled and said, "As long as my sister feels comfortable."
After that, Jia Heng didn't say much, and everyone just picked up chopsticks and spoons and started eating.
After dinner, Jia Heng sat with Daiyu, Tanchun, and Xiangyun for a while. Daiyu said that she wanted to write the couplet so that she could take it back. Jia Heng agreed and wrote the couplet in handwriting. .
Kunning Palace, in the palace, the lights are like daylight, and the fragrance is warm and pleasant.
Behind the curtains, groups of palace maids in bright clothes stood waiting with their hands hanging down. The leading female official was dressed in official costumes with exquisite patterns and exquisite materials.
The crane-shaped copper lamp shines brightly, reflecting on the clothes woven with gold threads on the body. The golden light adds a bit of splendor and wealth.
And Yuanchun's plump face, illuminated by the lights, looked bright and beautiful. She looked like a peach or a plum, especially her fair, pink cheek skin, with a bit of baby fat, but she didn't look like a woman over 29 years old at all. .
Yuan Chun listened to the conversation of several noble people not far away, and when Jia Heng was mentioned, his bright eyes flashed.
During this past two months, she had heard the Queen and the Concubine mention Jia Heng several times in the palace.
Not long after Empress Song, Concubine Duanrong, and Princess Chen Zhi of Xianning had had dinner, they were sitting around a small table, drinking tea and talking.
The Empress of Song Dynasty was wearing a plum blossom embroidered palace dress and a gold hairpin on her head. Her bright and charming face looked a little surprised after hearing Princess Chen Zhi of Xianning describe what she had experienced at the Princess's Mansion in Jinyang. Revealed and said: "He promised to give you the position of meritorious officer in the Five Cities Military and Horse Division?"
Imperial Concubine Duanrong also cast curious glances. This beauty was wearing a sky-blue palace dress. She had practiced dancing all the year round, and her figure was not as plump as a pampered one. Instead, she had a figure that was no less beautiful than that of a woman in her 20s, but her eyebrows were overflowing from the corners of her eyes. Her mature charm reminds her that she is a woman who has given birth to a pair of children.
Chen Zhi said: "He said it at his aunt's place, in front of Brother Wang and his cousin."
Concubine Duanrong's phoenix eyes flashed, and she asked Empress Song, "Sister, what does this position of meritorious service say?"
Empress Song smiled sweetly and said: "Rewarding meritorious deeds and punishing delinquents is the core matter of the Five Cities Army and Horses Division. It is convenient for Ran'er to contact personnel in the Wucheng Army and Horses Division. He clearly takes it seriously."
Would she rather think that it would be great to be given the position of chief registrar, or that it would be great to be given the position of deputy commander of a city. Although he has to take charge of his own role, he is a high-ranking nobleman who really walks around the streets and does things that sink him into a low-level official?
The noble concubine Duanrong smiled softly and said softly: "Later, my sister can call me into the palace and give you a few words."
Since the direction of the Five Cities Military and Horse Division after King Wei opened his palace was basically determined by Emperor Chongping, Queen Song could summon Jia Heng to the palace to give some instructions.
Of course, he is a foreign minister after all. Although he can be seen, he still needs to be accompanied by various female officials.
Empress Song thought for a while and smiled: "That's it, I will pass on the oral instructions tomorrow..."
Suddenly he saw Jia Yuanchun standing aside, his heart moved, and he called: "Yuanchun, come here."
"Your Majesty." Yuan Chun heard the Empress Song's call and quickly stepped forward with light steps and gave her a blessing.
At this time, Princess Chen Zhi of Xianning stared at Yuan Chun, sizing up the female officer, with a thoughtful look on her face.
Empress Xu of the Song Dynasty was in love with Wujiwu, her voice was a little softer, and she said with a smile: "Tomorrow, you will go to Ningguo Mansion to deliver the oral instructions of this palace, saying that I will prepare a small banquet for the opening of the palace next year by King Wei, and invite General Jia Heng of Yunhui. After entering the palace, you will go out to deliver the oral message and reunite with your family by the way. Just remember to come back before the palace door is locked."
As the Lord of the Sixth Palace, Empress Song naturally had the power to deal with "elder palace maids" like Yuan Chun who were not beholden to her. Even sending them back to the Jia family was just a matter of words.
Hearing this, Yuanchun felt mixed feelings of joy and sorrow, and said softly: "Thank you so much for your grace."
I haven't been home for several years, and I don't know how my family has changed. My father still has Baoyu. How have I been these past few years?
Empress Song looked at Yuan Chun opposite with a smile and thought.
It's not like Xia Shouzhong never said that he would let Yuan Chun serve the Holy Sage in order to win over the Jia family, but it was obvious that the Holy Sage had great regard for Jia Ziyu, so it couldn't be too obvious for her to win over him.
"What if the Jia family has gained the honor of a foreign relative, echoes both internally and externally, and is on an equal footing with me?"
But he said that over at Ningguo Mansion, the next day, Jia Heng had breakfast and then went to invite Qu Lang from Jinyi Mansion to come over and tell the story.
In the morning, in the outer study, Jia Heng heard that his servant had come to report, so he put down the pen in his hand and called Qu Lang in to discuss the matter.
After a while, a tall and tall young man in warrior attire walked in, stood in front of the desk, and said with cupped hands, "I have seen you in this humble position, sir."
Jia Heng smiled and said: "Qu Qianhu, sit down."
As he spoke, he walked around the desk and sat down on a chair nearby.
There was a servant who served fragrant tea, which was steaming hot.
Qu Lang sat upright, doubts appearing in his piercing tiger eyes, and asked: "I wonder what's the reason for calling me humble?"
Jia Heng did not spare the circle and said straight to the point: "Qu Qianhu, how many years has King Zhongshun supervised the construction of the imperial mausoleum?"
After hearing this, Qu Lang thought for a while and said: "The imperial mausoleum has been under construction since the 21st year of Longzhi, and Prince Zhongshun has been in charge for sixteen or seventeen years."
Jia Heng pondered: "You recently asked your confidants to check out which company purchased the earthworks, stones and materials used in the construction of the imperial mausoleum? Who were the brick and tile craftsmen used? Investigate this matter slowly and be sure to keep it secret. It’s better to keep it secret.”
Generally speaking, as long as it is a large-scale construction project, corruption of work payments is almost always present. However, it is almost meaningless to try to bring down Prince Zhongshun on the crime of embezzlement of work payments.
But if you add in cutting corners, this is much worse than corruption of work payments.
This is unfaithful and unfilial, cutting corners on father's good soil. In the context of etiquette and law governing the world with benevolence and filial piety, this is enough for a loyal and obedient prince to drink a pot, and he will either die or be disabled.
The various princes in the court are the targets of thousands of people.
Collect evidence first. As for who will expose it, it will definitely not be him. It can be left to the censor.
"Even if there is no cutting corners, just the matter of corruption is enough to make King Zhongshun anxious." Jia Heng's eyes were deep, thinking.
If he had his way, he would naturally find ways to kill him, but whatever the emperor wanted, he had to consider it.
Qu Lang nodded, with a flash of surprise in his heart, and said: "I'll make arrangements for my humble position."
Jia Heng made arrangements and stopped talking about the matter. Instead, he asked, "What have Lu Jingyao and Ji Yingtian been busy with during my absence for more than a month?"
Qu Lang looked solemn, lowered his voice and said: "Sir, Sir, recently Mr. Lu seems to want to intervene in the court's rectification of the salt affairs in the Huaihe River. He has sent a lot of Jinyi to the southern province. It is said that Mr. Jinyi came from Jinyi a month ago. It has something to do with the transfer of manpower to the south."
Originally, Lu Jingyao knew that he had lost a lot of points with Emperor Chongping regarding the Sanhe Gang incident in Dongcheng. He heard that his position as commander of the Imperial Guards seemed to be shaky.
Lu Jingyao was anxious and angry, and after listening to the advice of an expert, he always paid attention to Jia Heng's movements.
For Lin Ruhai's safety, Jia Heng once advised Emperor Chongping to send troops south to Yangzhou to protect Lin Ruhai. After that, he dispatched a group of Jinyi guards to Yangzhou.
Naturally, this could not be completely kept secret in the Jinyi Mansion. After Lu Jingyao learned about it, his mind couldn't help but feel that it might be an opportunity to express himself. It happened that in recent months, the cabinet and the six ministries were discussing the rectification of the Lianghuai Salt Affairs.
Lu Jingyao had an idea and thought that this matter might be an opportunity to make up for his past mistakes, so he sent his capable men south to the Lianghuai Salt Fields to spy on the news.
Jia Heng frowned and said, "Lu Jingyao's move may scare others, so let people pay close attention first."
In his opinion, Lu Jingyao probably watched him act vigorously and resolutely on the Sanhe Gang in Dongcheng as a detective in Jinyi Mansion, and he was trying to imitate the tiger here.
only……
"In the land of Lianghuai, people run it like an iron barrel, and their influence is intertwined. From the salt official to the governor, the vassal and government departments are all in charge. The power of the Jinyi Mansion is strong in Shenjing, but in the land of Huaiyang, The strength is so weak, it is highly likely that it will be self-defeating."
Jia Heng thought about it and sighed.
Really...I can do it.
Qu Lang pondered for a moment and said: "Your Excellency, it is not easy for people under me to keep an eye on Lu Tongzhi, as they can easily be discovered. I recommend someone to you, Zhao Qianhu of Nanzhen Fusi. If Brother Zhao sends someone, he will Much more secretive.”
Without any legitimate reason, people from Beizhen Fusi's department stared at their superiors. Firstly, they had doubts in their hearts, and secondly, their faces were familiar, making them easy to detect.
On the contrary, Nanzhen Fusi, who was dedicated to internally investigating illegal activities, acted expediently.
Jia Heng frowned and said, "Zhao Yi?"
He has a good relationship with Zhao Yi, and he played a role in his promotion to Nanzhen Fusi Qianhu, but that doesn't mean he can be trusted.
"Zhao Qianhu wanted to visit you, but he never got the chance." Qu Lang whispered.
When Jia Heng heard this, his heart moved slightly, knowing that this meant making good friends.
After he became the first-class Yunhui general, coupled with the first army of the Dudu Guo Yong camp, the holy family was rising, and the political banner he set up also gained some appeal.
Old friends like Zhao Yi were somewhat reserved before and only helped with things that did not violate their principles, but now they are obviously unable to sit still.
Jia Heng muttered: "He is also an old acquaintance. If he has this intention, he will secretly send someone to pay attention to Lu Jingyao to see what he is going to do."
Although he knew that Lu Jingyao would most likely turn out to be an anti-dog by painting a tiger, he had no reason to stop Lu Jingyao's positive performance now, because as a colleague of the Jinyi, Lu Jingyao went all over the country to investigate and supervise the two capitals and thirteen provinces, sharing the emperor's worries. This helped Lianghuai Salt Service collects information, which is a manifestation of its due diligence.
Jia Heng turned around and asked, "Where is Ji Yingtian?"
Qu Lang said: "Master Ji has been fine recently, but Captain Qiu has recently been sending people to the north to spy on the Donglu enemies."
Jia Heng looked strange for a moment and said, "After being reprimanded by the Holy One for Lan Qianhu, he became a little smarter."
There are no fools who can hang out in Jinyi Mansion. Lu Jingyao and Qiu Liang were clearly "following" him. Seeing that he got the Holy Family and rose to prominence, they began to look for the "Holy Family Code".
Then, Lu Jingyao went south and Qiu Liang went north.
"Don't worry about it, let Qiu Liang be busy first, but you have to connect well with Lan Qianhu. Since Qiu Liang is so enthusiastic about Donglu, if he is talented, he will be transferred to Peking next spring."
Because the Economic Strategy and Appeasement Department is under the Military Intelligence Department, after its establishment, a large number of manpower will definitely be deployed. Since Qiu Liang is so eager to conquer the enemy in the East, transferring to Northern Xinjiang can be regarded as benevolence and benevolence.
Li Zan was appointed to the Economic Strategy and Comfort Department. As the initiator of the Military Intelligence Department, he recommended one or two people, which was mentioned casually.
When Qu Lang heard this, his expression paused slightly and his heart beat wildly.
As soon as Captain Qiu left, the governor of Beizhen Fusi...
Jia Heng nodded and said, "Let's do this for now. I'll prepare a banquet at my house in the evening. You and Zhao Qianhu can come over and have a party together in the evening."
Since his return, he has not yet invited the generals under Guo Yongying to a banquet, and it was just in time to have a banquet in the evening to discuss the reorganization of the army.
"Yes, sir." Qu Lang responded, stood up, and left.
Jia Heng sat for a while, then stood up and was about to return to the inner hall.
And suddenly at this time, I heard a servant outside reporting, "Sir, the eldest son of the Wang family has come to send an invitation."
"Wang Yi?"
Jia Heng frowned and said, "Just say I'm not here, accept the invitation, and have someone send him back."
The servant said: "The Wang family's uncle went to Xifu first and invited Mr. Zheng. Together they said they wanted to see the uncle in the flower hall, as well as the Xue family's uncle from Lixiangyuan."
Jia Heng's face paused, and he thought to himself that Wang Yi clearly did this on purpose. He was worried that he would not see him, so he first went to Xifu to invite Jia's mother, and then invited Jia Zheng to come with him, and also brought along Xue Da, who was probably watching the fun. head.
He is the head of the Jia clan, so it is impossible for him to leave Jia Zheng alone.
After thinking for a while, he said: "That's it."
In the flower hall
Wang Yi was sitting on a chair made of pear wood, sipping fragrant tea, with Jia Zheng sitting on one side and Xue Pan sitting below him, smiling.
Wang Yi is about thirty years old. He is wearing a finely woven Su brocade robe and a fur cloak. He is tall and straight, with a fair complexion and a tuft of beard under his nose. His gloomy eyes are looking at the paintings hanging in the central hall of Ning Mansion.
The green pine and white crane are painted on it, which means that the pine and crane prolong life.
Wang Yi smiled and said to Jia Zheng beside him: "Uncle, I remember that when Brother Zhen was here, this painting was still a welcoming pine tree. I don't want it to change after just a few months of absence."
Jia Zheng's face looked strange. It was obvious that Jia Zhen was mentioned and it was difficult to answer.
Xue Pan's eyes were as big as copper bells and he said: "Cousin, that's not Brother Zhen's fault."
Jia Zheng obviously didn't want to mention this matter, because the East and West governments are now keeping a secret about Jia Zhen's matter, so he had to change the topic, coughed, and asked: "How many guests did your father invite for his birthday tomorrow? "
Wang Yi didn't want to listen to Xue Pan's nonsense. He never took his eyes off Jia Zheng and said with a smile: "All the relatives in our family have been invited. Prince Beijing, Prince Nan'an, Duke Zhen Guo, Duke Li, and more than ten of their families. I I just sent the invitations."
Jia Zheng nodded, twirled his beard under his chin with his hand, smiled and said: "These are old relatives, it's time to treat them to me."
The political acumen of Mr. Yi Zheng is not enough to judge the internal turmoil.
The prince invited dignitaries from Beijing, Nan'an and the Fifth Army Commander's Office precisely because he wanted to negotiate with the baby tomorrow.
Wang Yi smiled again and said: "That's not all. The guerrilla generals of the 12th Regiment and above have sent invitations, as well as Liang Shilang from the Ministry of Household Affairs, Yang Ge's hometown from the cabinet... these civil servants have also sent invitations."
In the past few days, Wang Ziteng was not without help. At Fang Ji's suggestion, Wang Ziteng had two meals with Liang Yuan, the minister of household affairs, by going to the Ministry of Household Affairs to coordinate the pay of soldiers in the Beijing camp.
Because the title of Minister of the Ministry of War held by Wang Ziteng may not be considered highly in the eyes of some Qingliu who think highly of themselves.
However, Liang Yuan served as an official in the Ministry of Household Affairs as a general official and did not care about his background at all.
The two of them were having dinner together, and while the wine was flowing, Liang Yuan mentioned Jia Heng's domineering attitude. He thought that Wang Ziteng would defend him, but he didn't expect that he would agree with him. So, after going back and forth, the two became friends.
Liang Yuan set up a bridge and delivered a message to Yang Guochang, the chief minister of the cabinet. However, Yang Guochang asked Wang Ziteng to abide by his official duties and do good things for the emperor, but did not see Wang Ziteng.
Although they had not met each other, after several messages and showing support, Wang Ziteng became more confident.
It can be said that Wang Ziteng has everything ready and thinks that he has enough bargaining chips to negotiate with the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
This optimistic mood naturally infected his son Wang Yi.
When Jia Zheng heard this, he looked surprised and said, "Mr. Yang Ge? He will also go to the mansion for a banquet tomorrow?"
No wonder Jia Zheng wasn't surprised. The chief assistant of the cabinet, regulating yin and yang, being courteous to all officials, was given to the prince to celebrate his birthday?
Well, what are you thinking about?
When Wang Yi saw Jia Zheng's reaction, a trace of imperceptible pride flashed in his eyes. He smiled and said, "The invitation has been sent to the Yang Mansion. It has been received over there. I think I should arrive tomorrow."
But he wouldn't say why the chief minister of the cabinet attended the banquet?
It would be good to let his son go there for him.
Jia Zheng said with emotion: "Your father has always been talented, and he has been on the rise since then."
When Jia Zheng, Jia She, and Wang Ziteng were young, they were friends together. Now that Wang Ziteng is getting bigger and bigger, Jia Zheng is not without some envy in his heart.
Upon hearing this, Wang Yi felt even more happy.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Second, don’t wait, although I’m still writing.
