Some people are used to being the ones in power. They have always been the only ones to bully others. Now that the situation has reversed and they have been stripped of their face, they can tolerate it for a while, but if the perpetrators are not punished at all, it will inevitably sting their self-esteem and arouse their anger. The will to resist.
This is the case for the Guanlong nobles.
They themselves can be suspicious, strife, and plotting against each other, and they are even on the verge of falling apart. But now that they are being bullied like Fang Jun, the face of the entire Guanlong noble family has been trampled to the ground. Once their hatred of the same enemy is aroused, maybe The long-standing alliance can continue.
This is seriously contrary to Fang Jun's original intention, so it is difficult to see how much confusion His Majesty Li Er caused to Fang Jun.
It’s not just Fang Jun. Looking at Cheng Yaojin’s expression, you know that he can’t feel His Majesty Li Er’s pulse either...
The silent Cheng Chubi wondered at this moment: "Your Majesty's punishment is very light, isn't it a good thing?"
Cheng Yaojin glanced at his slow-thinking son, sighed to himself, and said angrily: "You can only eat and sleep with your brain, how can you think about such things? Remember this in the future, Use your brain less and use your hands more. If you have any questions, just ask Erlang. Just do whatever he asks you to do, and I won’t hurt you."
Everyone has different talents. My son is a bit stupid, but he is a good material for leading troops. He has an upright personality and a deep sense of loyalty. He is usually not easy to socialize with, but once he gets to know someone, he can make the difference between life and death.
It doesn't matter if you have no brains, just follow the smart people. The worst thing is that you are trying to be smart.
He knew that Cheng Chubi and Fang Jun had grown up together and were considered life-or-death friends, and Fang Jun treated his friends with the same heart and righteousness. With his protection, Cheng Chubi would definitely not suffer.
Even though Fang Jun is now firmly on the side of the prince and against King Jin, he is too deeply involved with the royal family. Therefore, even if the prince loses power and King Jin ascends to the throne in the future, he will still have to reuse Fang Jun, otherwise the royal family will be completely divided. After all, The interest entanglement between the princes of Hejian County, Jiangxia County, and His Majesty Li Er's princes and princesses and Fang Jun is really too great.
Once the King of Jin wants to target Fang Jun, he will inevitably arouse opposition.
Many times, the emperor cannot do whatever he wants...
As long as Fang Jun remains standing, there is no need to worry about Cheng Chubi's future.
Cheng Chubi was scolded by his father, but he didn't take it seriously. Instead, he said matter-of-factly: "Of course I have to listen to Erlang. He won't harm me."
The tone is sincere and the feelings are sincere.
Naturally, good brothers should share weal and woe, advance and retreat together, share blessings and share hardships, just like Changsun Huan and other treacherous people, whom Cheng Chubi disdains.
Cheng Yaojin smiled bitterly at Fang Jun and said, "This kid is stubborn. Erlang should pay more attention to him in the future to make sure he doesn't get into big trouble."
Fang Jun nodded happily: "Uncle, don't worry. Although Chu Bi and I are not brothers, we are like brothers. We have been very close to each other for so many years and have never even had a quarrel. We should cherish each other and never betray each other."
These words are not polite. Since he came to the Tang Dynasty, the connections he left behind and the new people he has made since then are countless. However, Cheng Chubi is the only one who follows him wholeheartedly. As long as he says a word, he will go through fire and water without hesitation. .
If a person can have such a pure friend in his life, what more can he ask for?
You should take good care of yourself.
After three rounds of wine and five dishes, the wine table became more and more lively. The two families were already close to each other. Now that they were together, Cheng Yaojin, the elder, did not have the airs of an elder at all. He made dirty jokes one after another and talked. Wuji has a bold personality and makes the atmosphere lively.
After the banquet, the Cheng family sent the Fang family outside the gate together, watched the carriage slowly drive away, and then returned to the courtyard.
On the carriage, Fang Jun looked back at this scene and couldn't help but admire him.
He naturally understood that Cheng Yaojin's original intention of inviting him to the house for a banquet today was to better maintain the relationship between the two families. Although they were not allies who would live and die together, they should at least advance and retreat together and trust each other. , This will not only be conducive to the current situation, but also allow the prince to ascend the throne in the future, and unite to occupy a more favorable position among the potential ministers.
This old guy looks rough, and behaves like a demon king all day long, but in fact he has an extremely keen insight into the political situation, and he is a thief and a thief...
Otherwise, why did it survive the three dynasties of Taizong, Gaozong, and Empress Wu and still stand firm and end well?
They have real abilities.
For example, the scene of the whole family standing at the door to see each other off is actually unnecessary. The two families are family friends, and having a banquet at the house is nothing, not to mention that Cheng Yaojin is still the elder. But standing at the gate to see her off in such a grand manner, in addition to expressing their attention, is also equivalent to announcing to the outside world that our two families advance and retire together, and share weal and woe.
This is to express our attitude to Fang Jun and even the prince. Since we have chosen the East Palace, we must clearly declare to the world that we will cut off our own escape route and will never do stupid things that seek to please both sides.
From then on, he took a clear stance and went all out in the battle for the reserve.
This kind of approach not only made the prince grateful, but even if the King of Jin was lucky enough to ascend the throne in the future, he would not be able to vent his anger on such a family with a clear sense of right and wrong - you can't oust all the opponents, or even kill them with one knife, right?
In political struggles, the most annoying thing is the fence-sitters who wait for the wind to tip both sides, either completely neutral or leaning towards one side, trying to fish in troubled waters to please both sides, and often end up becoming inhumane inside and outside...
*****
Duke Wei's Mansion.
In the side hall, a brass hot pot is placed on the table. The charcoal fire in the chamber is burning brightly. The soup is boiling and rolling. The mutton and vegetarian dishes are boiling and floating, and the aroma is overflowing.
Li Jing and Su Dingfang sat opposite each other, each scooping up food from the hot pot with a pair of chopsticks, putting it in a bowl, dipping it in sesame sauce and stuffing it into their mouths. They were so hot that they opened their mouths to inhale, and they were sweating while eating. From time to time, they picked up wine glasses and clinked them to drink. One bite, very satisfying.
Li Jing picked up a pair of chopsticks and cut the mutton as thin as cicada wings, put it in the soup, rinsed it, dipped it in sesame sauce and stuffed it into his mouth. He chewed it without any image and praised: "Fang Er's stick is really full of tricks. Who would have thought that this guy would actually dare to attack the yamen of the Ministry of Personnel, and that the dignified left minister of the Ministry of Personnel would be rounded, flattened and humiliated by him like a dolphin? He is really audacious."
Su Dingfang swallowed the cabbage in his mouth, took a sip of wine, exhaled, and said with a smile: "Duke Wei is on official business with Fang Jun in the academy. Is it possible that you don't know what he is like? He usually seems arrogant and domineering, and he acts wantonly, but in fact he is the worst. It's a matter of making a decision before taking action. If it weren't for everything that followed, it would definitely not have gone so far."
Now in his mind, Li Jing, the person he admires, ranks first, and Fang Jun undoubtedly ranks second.
Just imagine, after the tradition of all dynasties focusing on the Northern Xinjiang, the Western Regions, and the Southern Barbarians, we could break through the mortar nest to form a navy, open up countless routes, conquer countless overseas lands, and earn a steady stream of money through sea trade. Wealth, what an earth-shattering feat this is?
It can be said that half of the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty today is supported by huge amounts of money imported from overseas, and this half of the credit is due to Fang Jun.
It’s not an exaggeration to say “create the world”.
Li Jing put down his chopsticks, picked up the wine glass, took a sip, and said with a smile: "Of course I know Fang Junzhi's temperament well. Although this guy is young, he has a lot of ideas. Many guys who claim to be sophisticated have been defeated by him. Indeed, there are It's a good idea. But I'm afraid he might have miscalculated this time. Even if he had a clever plan, he probably wouldn't have guessed that His Majesty actually issued such a decree..."
However, when the topic came to this point, it was obvious that it was a imperial dispute that he himself did not want to get involved in, so he changed the topic again and asked: "Now that the Eastern Expedition is imminent, although you are the commander of the navy, you are in charge of the most powerful navy in the Tang Dynasty. Master, but because he came from Fang Jun's sect, he must have no chance to fight with the army and gain meritorious service. But why take this opportunity to fulfill his long-cherished wish? In my opinion, the Western Region is not stable. Fang Jun has great trust in him. You If you ask him to help transfer to the Western Region, he will definitely agree."
Su Dingfang picked up the wine pot and poured wine into the wine glasses in front of the two of them, then took a sip from the wine glass and sighed: "Times have changed, times have changed. At the beginning and end, I wanted to imitate Wei Huo wholeheartedly, and sealed the wolf as Xu. Chasing death and chasing north, even if you die in battle on the frontier, you will die a worthy death. But now that you have served as the naval commander, in charge of the most powerful navy in the Tang Dynasty, and you have traveled across the seven seas and expanded the territory for thousands of miles, you have just realized that the world is so big that it cannot be measured. The Western Region is not a big deal. What? On the sea, there are still countless islands and hundreds of kingdoms in the East, South and West. They can maneuver their ships across the sea and spread the majesty of our Tang Dynasty to all directions. Wherever the navy goes, all countries will surrender and powerful enemies will be defeated. , how can it be compared to the thirty-six countries in the Western Region?"
