The three members of the Yu family were silent.
Except for Yu Daoxing, who didn't know much about the affairs of the clan at the moment, the other two people all believed in Xia Jingyun's words.
They are said to be from a great Confucian family and are a humble gentleman, but how can someone who manages such a large family be a nerd who only knows the principles in books, and at the same time, how can he be ignorant of the general trend of the world.
If they accept this disciple, they will indeed be involved in the chaos in Longshou State, but as Xia Jingyun said, is this something they can avoid if they want to?
If the Yu family is a small and inconspicuous family, they can hide in the mountains and become a unified family, regardless of winter, summer, spring and autumn. But with a huge family here and a prosperous people here, is it easy to leave? It is the best way out. It means having sufficient self-protection power.
Making friends with the Ye family who led the Cao Gang would not interest the Yu family at all in peacetime, but if troubled times were coming, this would make some sense.
But these are not things that the Yu family, father and son, really care about. The Yu family is not completely unprepared for the possible situation.
What they were really tempted by was that if they agreed to this matter, they would be able to make friends with Xia Jingyun, and then with Concubine De and the Prince of Jiaodong.
This kind of thing is very tempting for a local wealthy family whose family lives in a remote corner and whose reputation in the court is not very prominent.
Regardless of whether the world is in chaos or not, a person with outstanding reputation like Xia Jingyun who has proven his ability, and an undisputed orthodox prince like the Prince of Jiaodong will have great advantages in terms of status.
To put it bluntly, such a person can be much more convenient than others even if he rebels.
Therefore, after the old patriarch made eye contact with Yu Zonggu, Yu Zonggu said directly: "Let me think about this matter. Mr. Xia has been traveling all the way. We have already set up a dinner for you and your party to wash away the dust and have a good rest." One night, tomorrow morning, the Yu family will have their own answer, how about that?"
Xia Jingyun also knew that this was the proper meaning of the question, so naturally he didn't say much.
In Yujia's fort near the mountains and rivers, after a summer night of singing birds and mountain streams, after resting peacefully all night, Xia Jingyun heard the result he wanted.
The Yu family agreed.
Xia Jingyun and Yu's old family master agreed on a rough time in advance, so Zong Gu took Yu Daoxing with him to Chuning County, Huai'an County to deal with specific matters on an ad hoc basis.
Before leaving, Xia Jingyun called four guards, handed them a letter, and asked them to send it to a place. Then he took the remaining guards and went to Huai'an with the Yu family's guards. county.
Naturally, such movement cannot be hidden from all parties along the way.
The possible cooperation between Xia Jingyun and the Yu family aroused suspicion from all parties in Longshou Prefecture.
Three days later, the news came to light.
The Ye family of Caobang sent out invitations in the name of the head of the family, Ye Wenhe, inviting all parties in the state to come to Chuning County to gather together to attend the apprenticeship ceremony of his son Ye Mingfeng and to witness his being accepted as the direct heir of the academy by the Yu family.
As soon as the news came out, everyone was shocked.
The focus is not on the superficial apprenticeship of the younger generation, but on the Ye family and Yu family behind this cooperation.
Of the four major families in Longshou Prefecture, there are only two here, and among them is Xia Jingyun, the Imperial Envoy Minister who is known as the second-largest Xianggong Su and has a strong record.
What is this for?
Different thoughts quietly came to life.
There are those who are happy to see this happen, and naturally there are those who don’t want to see it happen.
Deep in the prestigious Hu Family Yayuan, Hu Dingzhao, the head of the Hu family, looked at the invitation in his hand and pondered: "The Ye family, the Yu family, and the imperial envoy, what are they going to do?"
"Brother, I don't think this matter is complicated at all. There have been rumors that His Majesty wants to depose the crown prince. Now that he has failed to depose the crown prince openly and honestly, we can only force it. If we force it, we must first deal with Xiaozhou Mu. ah!"
The second son of the Hu family, Hu Dingming, who had left Chuning County unharmed, had just returned to his hometown for two days. He took a break and leaned on his chair. He first talked about things that had gradually become a consensus at the top of Longshou Prefecture, and then said with a smile: "But I think they It’s just out of his imagination, Xiaozhou Mu has made our Longshou State look like a piece of iron, and our Hu family is helping us, so His Majesty is at a loss what to do, what kind of trouble can these two families cause?"
"Don't take it so lightly."
As the head of the family, Hu Dingzhao's behavior is much more stable than that of his younger brother. "The Ye family seems to have the lowest status among the four families, and is looked down upon by all the aristocratic families because of their origins. However, they have tens of thousands of members of the Cao Gang and have accumulated savings for generations. , has strong strength, but what it lacks right now is nothing more than an identity to enhance the family's status. Although the Yu family is relatively peaceful, it happens to be the one with the highest status and the most respected among the four families. The combination of powerful forces, plus a person known as Xia Jingyun, who is second in rank to Prime Minister Su, is holding the royal flag, so the sky in Longshou Prefecture is not insurmountable."
"Brother, you are worrying too much!"
Hu Dingming sneered when he heard this, "How can a boy from the Xia family have such ability? When he heard about the reputation of my Hu family, he was so frightened that he didn't even dare to interrogate us, so he just let us go. With his modest skills, he still wants to fight with Xiao Zhou Mudou? I’m afraid he’ll be eaten to the point where no bones are left.”
"You are just too arrogant! How do you know that people are afraid of you? What if they are just playing a long game to catch the big fish?"
Hu Dingzhao retorted subconsciously, then suddenly paused and turned to look at his brother, "When you left Chuning County, did you go anywhere else?"
"I"
Seeing his brother's hesitation, Hu Dingzhao's heart sank, and he said sternly: "How long has it been since this happened? You are still hiding it. Are you going to let the Hu family die without a burial place?"
Hu Dingming said quickly: "I went to meet the man named Yuan. Brother, don't worry, the place we met is very secluded. It is in a riverside restaurant outside Huai'an County. We paid attention. There is no tail behind us."
After saying that, he quickly added, "Brother, you asked me to cooperate with that group of people and strive to extend the power of our Hu family in Caogang. I have finished handling this matter, why don't I contact them quickly?"
Hu Dingzhao turned his head and glared at him, exhaling a long and helpless breath, "I hope you really did it secretly and didn't get discovered."
Hu Dingming also breathed a sigh of relief and said: "Brother, I think you think too much of the Xia family's child. He is somewhat smart, but after all, given his age and low background, I don't think he had any basic knowledge at that time. I haven't thought about this, I'm just worried about our Hu family. Let's just pretend it's nothing and arrange our response."
"I hope so!" Hu Dingzhao nodded and ordered: "Get ready and go to Ye's house to watch the ceremony and see for yourself how he is doing."
"Ah? Shall I go?" Hu Dingming said he was not panicking, but when he was asked to go to Chuning County again, Hu Dingming was still a little frightened.
"What? You want me, the head of the family, to go there in person?"
"I'm going! I'm going!"
Hu Dingming quickly agreed, "Then what is our strategy?"
Hu Dingzhao thought for a while, his voice gradually lowered, and the two brothers began to murmur.
——
Two days before the Ye family's apprenticeship celebration, dignitaries from all walks of life have arrived in Chuning County.
As the undisputed person with the highest status in Chuning County, Xia Jingyun also received an endless stream of visitors, entering into the normal rhythm of an imperial minister entering the place.
While chatting, we became more familiar with the situation in Longshou Prefecture.
However, he didn't meet everyone, so he pushed those who were not of a high standard to Bai Yunbian.
Mr. Bai was dissatisfied with his mouth, but his body did not reject him at all. He was greeted and sent away. He was smiling and happy amidst the compliments from others.
Xia Jingyun had just sent away the head of a second-class family in Longshouzhou, and was about to handle some normal official correspondence among the imperial envoys. Chen Fugui came over and whispered: "Sir, Mu Yunchuan and the others are back."
Xia Jingyun immediately stood up and walked to the backyard, where he saw the two guards he had sent out to quietly follow the Hu family's uncle and nephew.
The dusty two people stood up immediately when they saw him. Xia Jingyun walked over, patted their shoulders affectionately, and said with a smile: "Looking at how impatient you two are, it must be very rewarding."
The two of them clasped their fists and said excitedly: "Young Master, you are lucky to have lived up to your fate."
"After you pretended to let the uncles and nephews of the Hu family go, they really thought that you didn't dare to go against the Hu family and relaxed their vigilance. We quietly followed them all the way to the outside of Huai'an County and found them entering a riverside restaurant."
"They met with a group of thieves in a restaurant and talked for more than half an hour. Then the two groups left one after another."
"When we saw the situation and discussed it, we separated from each other. One followed the uncle and nephew, and the other followed the group of thieves to take a look."
"That group of thieves was very alert. I was almost exposed, but I still found out that they settled in Huai'an County."
"As for the Hu family's uncles and nephews, they went straight back to the Hu family after leaving."
"We were delayed for a while, and then we hurried back slowly. We met Jie Dao on the way, but we followed your instructions and pretended to be members of the Cao Gang, but they still didn't dare to take action."
Xia Jingyun was overjoyed and said hello three times, "You have made a great contribution this time! Thank you for your hard work! Brother Chen, please take note of this. After returning to Beijing, we will reward you based on your merits!"
The two of them were also very excited. The young master would never be stingy with rewards. From his tone, a reward of several hundred taels of silver was definitely indispensable.
"But!" Xia Jingyun changed his tone, "You don't have much rest time. Go have a good meal, take a bath and take a nap, and then you will take people to Huai'an County and arrest all these people. Do you have any? question?"
The two guards naturally did not hesitate. The great achievement was right in front of them. There was no need to inject any extra blood. They immediately agreed and then got up and went to the backyard.
Xia Jingyun turned to look at Chen Fugui, "Brother Chen, you should lead the team on this trip. I don't know who the thieves are. I don't trust their strength."
Chen Fugui hesitated and said, "I'm leaving, what will you do?"
Xia Jingyun smiled and said, "I'm at the county government office and I'm not going out. I'll go to Ye's house the day after tomorrow. There are so many people in Cao, so it'll be fine. You move quickly. You might be able to return tomorrow night. There's nothing to worry about. "
Chen Fugui thought for a moment and said, "Young Master must not go out for these two days."
"Okay, don't worry, I still cherish my life." Xia Jingyun felt warm in his heart, nodded with a smile, and then rubbed his fingers lightly, "But I am a little worried about your trip."
He looked at Chen Fugui and said, "This group of thieves dare to plan such a big thing. They are either subordinates of powerful forces or extremely evil people. There were only nine of us originally, and I sent four more. The five of you are afraid We can't do such a thing, the officers and soldiers in the county government are not very strong, even if we bring Brother Lexian's bodyguards with us, there are only seven or eight people, so I'm afraid they won't be able to handle it."
Chen Fugui was confident in his martial arts, but he also knew that if he couldn't defeat the opponent in one fell swoop if he didn't have enough manpower, he would be afraid of endless troubles. Hearing this, he frowned and said immediately: "Can you borrow some people from the Caogang? The Ye family has so many people. There are always good people in the gang, right? Our matter is related to the Cao Gang after all, so they should contribute!"
Xia Jingyun's heart moved when he heard this, and he thought of a good idea.
After about a stick of incense, Ye Wenhe and Ye Hongluan walked into the county government office upon invitation.
After hearing Xia Jingyun's request, Ye Wenhe breathed a sigh of relief. He was still worried about why Xia Jingyun asked him to bring Ye Hongluan with him. He had no other intentions. It turned out to be just because of this.
He turned around and asked, "Nanny, can you choose a few trustworthy experts to follow this Mr. Chen?"
Ye Hongluan glanced at Xia Jingyun and nodded sharply, "Going out together will inevitably attract attention. I often go out, so no one will think anything of it. Let's go back and gather all the people and set off. In the evening, we will go directly to Ye's house on Chuiliu Lane in the county town. Meet at the house!"
Ye Wenhe added, "That is the Ye family's house in the county. You will know it once you inquire about it, Mr. Chen Zhuang."
Chen Fugui naturally had no objection to this proposal, so the matter was settled.
The two parties discussed a few more details. The Ye family went back to make arrangements, and Chen Fugui also began to arrange his own people.
Walking on the road, Ye Wenhe whispered: "I was really afraid that you would say that you could replace that guard Chen to protect Master Xia!"
Ye Hongluan paused, "Can this still happen?"
Ye Wenhe suddenly felt that he was talking too much, "No, no, no, let's go, it will be too late in a while."
Ye Hongluan turned his head and glanced at the county government office, turned around and strode away.
Not long after, Chen Fugui and others broke into pieces, changed their clothes, and left the county office one after another. Then they gathered outside the city and rushed to Huai'an County.
And Ye Hongluan, who was dressed in eye-catching red clothes, had already ridden a red-maned horse and left with her loyal men in a majestic manner.
This secretly planned operation was deliberately concealed by the participants and did not attract the attention of the people in the city. At most, some outsiders appreciated Rouge Tiger's valiant demeanor with their own eyes.
Everyone's eyes were turned to the Ye family, paying attention to this apprenticeship ceremony that affected the hearts of many forces in Longshou State.
In Ye Mansion, Ye Mingfeng looked excited, holding a long-lost book, but could not read a word.
Ye Wenhe and his wife stood far away, looking at the scene in front of them with tears in their eyes.
To untie the bell, one must tie the bell. He could not be admitted to the Yujia Academy, but now he can be accepted as the direct descendant of the Yujia Academy.
Ye Mingfeng's heart was gone. Faintly, the high-spirited, knowledgeable and courteous young man seemed to be back again.
But compared to Madam's excitement and longing, Ye Wenhe felt a little more uneasy.
Xia Jingyun had told him in advance that this good thing, which seemed to be consensual and could not be criticized by others, would inevitably attract opposition from many people.
It would be fine if these people were just dissatisfied, but if they were causing obstruction, it would not be an easy thing to smooth over.
Anyone who dares to stand up in such a situation is not an easy force to deal with.
Ye Wenhe naturally believed in the judgment of outstanding people like Xia Jingyun.
But now that he is seeing his almost useless son rekindle the light of life, if he still fails in the end, then I am afraid it will be completely out of the question.
The Ye family can afford to support an idle person, but the Ye family also needs a qualified heir, and the Caobang also needs a qualified heir.
If that happens, where will the Ye family and the Caobang go?
Will I be forced to have a few more bastards and gamble my luck?
No matter what thoughts were running through Ye Wenhe's mind and how many worries arose, in the summer of May of the 24th year of Daxia Chongning, Gengshen Day, the apprenticeship ceremony that affected many people's hearts began as scheduled!
(End of chapter)
