Chapter 285
"Cheng Qing is exempt from the courtesy!"
In Xicheng Villa, when they learned that Cheng Shijie was coming, Queen Zhang and Queen Zhou met Cheng Shijie together. After all, Queen Zhou is a womanly family. If she meets foreign ministers alone and she is still a mature man, she has to avoid some suspicion.
To be fair, Cheng Shijie has never met Queen Zhang. When they met for the first time, I saw that although Empress Zhang was dressed in casual clothes, without any makeup or makeup, her graceful and luxurious demeanor could not be concealed.
"I wonder why the Queen came to Liaodong?"
Empress Zhou smiled and said: "I want to come to Liaodong for a visit, isn't it possible?"
"Okay, of course!"
Empress Zhou looked at Cheng Shijie and said: "Your Majesty has long heard that Liaodong is developing well. Unfortunately, he cannot leave the palace and come to Liaodong. So I asked me to take a look at Liaodong for your majesty. I can bring the prince here to learn from Cheng Qing." study!"
"How can I serve as the prince's tutor? I..."
Before Cheng Shijie could finish speaking, Queen Zhou interrupted: "This is a sacred decree!"
"Can't refuse?"
"Can't refuse!"
Cheng Shijie sighed and said: "Your Majesty is putting me on the fire. If this news comes out, those bird-feather ministers will make me hiss!"
"Cheng Qing, you are now the prince's guardian. You must pay attention to your words and deeds and teach the prince bad things!"
Cheng Shijie also knew that he could be the prince's Taibao even if he didn't want to. Fortunately, he was not asked to serve as the Crown Prince's Grand Master. Of course, the Crown Prince's Grand Master needed a prestigious minister to serve. Cheng Shijie could not take the position just because he wanted to, nor could he not be the one he didn't want to be. The emperor has never been a reasonable creature. You have to do what you are told, and there is no room for bargaining.
"Prince, come and see the Taibao!"
Zhu Cixiang came over and saluted Cheng Shijie.
It can be seen that Prince Zhu Cixiang is a timid person and is a little afraid of Cheng Shijie. When he walked towards Cheng Shijie, he kept his eyes on Queen Zhou, for fear that Queen Zhou would not see him at a glance.
"Greetings to the Crown Prince!"
"You're welcome, Prince!"
Cheng Shijie touched his body and found that he did not carry anything. The only Mauser pistol could not be given to the prince. He had to take out his dagger. This kind of dagger is a product of later generations. The scabbard is made of wood and has a long sheath. About one foot three inches. The total weight is 580 grams, which is very suitable for children like Zhu Cixiang.
However, what Cheng Shijie didn't expect was that Zhu Cixiang did not reach out to take Cheng Shijie's dagger, but instead asked: "Taobao..."
Cheng Shijie patted Zhu Cixiang's head gently: "Call teacher!"
The term "Prince Taibao" was not a good word in later generations. It was a title for gangsters and spies, such as the Gestapo.
Zhu Cixiang was angry: "You are so bold, how dare you confront the lonely king..."
Cheng Shijie actually didn't want to be the prince's teacher. He taught the prince that this was the private domain of the civil servant group. Now that he has become the prince's teacher, the civil servant group will bite him like a mad dog and spare no effort to deal with him. Of course, Cheng Shijie was not afraid of the civil service group, but he didn't want to cause trouble.
For a kid like Zhu Cixiang, the best way is to let him retreat when the difficulties arise.
Thinking of this, Cheng Shijie did not coddle Zhu Cixiang but gave Zhu Cixiang another blow.
This time, Cheng Shijie restrained his strength, but it still hurt Zhu Cixiang so much that he almost burst into tears.
"you……"
Cheng Shijie said angrily: "You're a big kid, you're a lonely king. How can you fight with that old fox in the future if you're so rigid? Who taught you this? Rules are dead, people are alive. When?" , what is the occasion, what is your identity, in terms of family, I am your uncle, in terms of theory, I am your teacher, from now on you and I should be treated as each other in front of me, don’t call me a loner, it’s annoying to hear it!”
Zhu Cixiang had tears in his eyes. He looked at Queen Zhou, but Queen Zhou did not scold Cheng Shijie. He remembered what Queen Zhou told him when he was in the Forbidden City.
Queen Zhou told him that if he got along with Cheng Shijie, he would stay in Liaodong for a while and learn something from Cheng Shijie. This was an irresistible temptation for this child who was only six or seven years old.
From Beijing to Liaodong, this child who was born in a deep palace and grew up in the hands of a woman tasted the taste of freedom for the first time. In his heart, he didn't want to go back so soon and continue to live that kind of stinking rule with so many rules, as if he had to mention it. Life like a string puppet!
His father asked him to study among Cheng Shijie, the greatest military and political genius of the Ming Dynasty. This was his only chance to leave the Forbidden City. In order to stay in Liaodong for one or two more years, what did it matter?
Zhu Cixiang rubbed his sore head and bowed: "I'm sorry, I was wrong, teacher... Oops!"
Cheng Shijie hit Zhu Cixiang on the head again and said, "Do you know why I hit you?"
Zhu Cixi shook his head in confusion.
Empress Zhou and Empress Zhang looked at Cheng Shijie and Zhu Cixiang quietly. Neither of them made a sound. Judging from Cheng Shijie's behavior, Cheng Shijie was completely different from the teachers in the palace. Of course, everyone was the teacher of Zhu Cixiang. They are all gentlemen, but they all have a bit too much of a literati vibe.
The first lesson Cheng Shijie gave to Zhu Cixiang was to teach him how to think outside the box. As a prince who grew up in the palace, he began to learn etiquette as soon as he could speak.
What is etiquette?
To put it simply, you can’t do this and you can’t do that.
Cheng Shijie looked at Zhu Cixiang and said, "Because you are too weak!"
"weak?"
Zhu Cixiang was very puzzled.
"You have to remember that if someone slaps you for no reason, the first thing you should do is never admit your fault or surrender, but fight back, and then ask him why he slapped you. This is the true nature of a man! "
Zhu Cixiang was even more confused at this time.
Ming Dynasty is a country that pays attention to respect and inferiority. The education he received since childhood is to respect teachers, be filial to elders, and obey rules. Cheng Shijie is his teacher and his uncle. No matter in which dimension, Zhu Cixiang should not Fight back.
This is the wisdom of Confucianism. Although the emperor is supreme, there are people who can control the emperor, and that is the emperor's mother, elders, and teachers.
One more thing I can say here is that the most ruthless person in the Tang Dynasty was actually Wu Zetian. Historically, Wu Zetian’s mother, Li, was the niece of Yang Xiong, the Duke of Hongnong Yang, and the daughter of General Youwuwei and Doctor Yang Da of Zuo Guanglu. , but this Yang, like Wu Zetian, lived a very long life, and was still in good health after living for more than eighty years.
This was the only person who could use the name of his elders to suppress Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian directly took the initiative and concocted the scandal of Rongguo's wife Yang's affair with He Lanminzhi, thus blocking the only possibility for Yang to interfere with Wu Zetian.
Zhu Cixi asked in confusion: "Teacher, too?"
"The teacher must be reasonable, and your Majesty must also be reasonable!"
Cheng Shijie continued: "Your father can't do whatever he wants. Some ministers refuse to implement his imperial edict, and the Sixth Section and the cabinet can refute it. So, in this world, everyone must be reasonable, you You can kill anyone without any guilt, but of course, no one can beat you unscrupulously and without reason!"
Zhu Cixi still didn't quite understand.
But Queen Zhou understood Cheng Shijie's words. It was precisely because of Cheng Shijie's teaching that Cheng Jialong, after Hu Liangan scolded Cheng Jiayue, wanted to vent his anger on Cheng Jiayue who had been wronged. Cheng Jialong had no scruples about living there as his queen.
Finally, Zhu Cixi seemed to understand, and he cautiously punched Cheng Shijie.
Of course, this punch seemed to scratch an itch.
"Didn't you eat? Try harder!!"
Zhu Cixiang's face turned red, and he kicked Cheng Shijie's calf as hard as he could. It felt like he had hit a pillar, and the pain made him jump holding his feet and bursting into tears.
"That's right. You are going to be the king of a country in the future. If you can't fight back or retaliate, why should you be the king of a country? You can just be a sandbag or a spittoon."
Cheng Shijie smiled faintly and said: "If anyone teaches you to repay kindness with kindness, and if anyone asks you to be generous, just throw his child into the well and see if he can repay kindness with kindness, and if he can be generous. If anyone teaches you kindness for no reason, A slap in the face, and you slap him in return!”
With that said, Cheng Shijie handed the dagger in his hand to Zhu Cihong.
"Thank you teacher!"
Zhu Cixiang thought for a moment and said, "Teacher, are you trying to encourage students to be brave and aggressive?"
"Isn't it good to be brave and fierce?"
"If everyone wants to be brave and aggressive, then won't the gentle and simple customs that our Han people have cultivated for thousands of years be completely ruined?"
"Who told you that we Han family members are gentle and honest?"
"Is not it?"
"If the children of the Han family are gentle and simple, how can they defeat the Huns? If the children of the Han family are gentle, why do they have the heroic spirit to kill our strong men even if they are far away? If the children of the Han family are gentle, why do they say that wherever the sun and the moon shine, Wherever the river goes, are they all the officials and concubines of the Han Dynasty?"
Zhu Cihong nodded repeatedly, thinking that General Cheng was good, and the principles he taught were completely different from those taught by the scholars who accompanied him. He really liked what he heard. Zhu Cihong asked, "What if we can't defeat him?"
"If you can't beat him, come back and practice. Once you've practiced, go fight again, or get a group of people to go over and beat him up. Anyway, you can't stand it. Do you understand?"
Cheng Shijie left, leaving Queen Zhang and Queen Zhou stunned.
Empress Zhang looked at Cheng Shijie's back and said: "Queen, let the prince study with General Cheng, I'm afraid good fortune or misfortune is unpredictable!"
Queen Zhou shook her head and said: "Actually, what General Cheng said is unreasonable? When Emperor Taizu Hongwu was still alive, it was not that he had never lost a battle. How had he ever flinched? And Emperor Shizongwen's five expeditions to Mobei , made seven voyages to the West, and led all nations, but now, Mongolia has rebelled, the slaves have rebelled, and Shaanxi, Henan, including Huguang, how can there be any pure land in the world?"
Queen Zhang opened her mouth, but did not refute Queen Zhou.
Isn't what Queen Zhou said unreasonable? How cruel were slaves in the past? But in recent years, when have slaves dared to cross the line? Because Cheng Shijie clearly told Jiannu that as long as he dared to cross the Hun River, Cheng Shijie would lead the Ning Navy to fight Jiannu to the death. Jiannu's cavalry never invaded Datong, Xuanfu and the Ningjin defense line again.
When Cheng Shijie returned to Ning Haijun General Mansion, Cheng Jiayue was flying a kite. When she heard that Cheng Shijie was back, her eyes burst with light, she threw away the thread in her hand and ran directly towards Cheng Shijie.
Cheng Jiayue cheered: "Dad is back! Dad is back!"
Cheng Jiayue opened her small arms and rushed forward. Cheng Shijie jumped off the horse and took a step forward to pick her up. He spun her around in circles several times and shouted, "How are you? In the past few months when I was away from home, have Jiayue been obedient?" ?”
Cheng Jiayue nodded happily and said: "Jiayue is obedient. She eats well and sleeps well. She doesn't play by the river or the well. No matter where she goes, she always looks for Sun Pu and Mao Yu to keep her company... But her father is not at home. No one tells Jiayue stories, so she can't sleep at night!"
When Zhu Weiti saw Cheng Shijie coming back, she breathed a sigh of relief: "My husband, you are back. During your absence, she stuck to me all day long and asked me to tell her stories. I almost made her sad." died!"
Cheng Jiayue said aggrievedly: "People like to listen to stories. If you don't listen to stories, you can't sleep..."
Cheng Shijie laughed and said, "Okay, daddy will tell you a story tonight!"
Cheng Jiayue clapped her hands and cheered: "Great, I want to hear the story of Cinderella!"
With the return of Cheng Shijie, the entire Ning Haijun Military Mansion seemed to come alive in an instant. All the servants showed happy smiles, tea was served to those who were served, snacks were served to those who were served, and meals were prepared attentively.
Cheng Shijie asked: "Where is Jialong?"
Zhu Weiti said without hesitation: "If he is not in the mansion, he must be in Jingjing Town!"
"Race Town?"
Only then did Cheng Shijie remember that Chen Guodong had reported to him about the events in Jingjing Town. He also guessed that Cheng Jialong must have known about his affairs and had gone into hiding.
In fact, Cheng Jialong did hide.
Because he knew that Cheng Shijie would definitely be very busy when he came back. Sure enough, just as Cheng Jialong guessed, the food had just been served when Sun Zhiwan, the second director of the Liaoning Management Committee, came to report on the work.
"Yongyan, you came just in time. Have you had dinner?"
"not yet!"
"Then let's eat something together and chat while we eat!"
Just as Sun Zhiwan picked up his chopsticks and picked up a piece of mutton, a servant reported that Sun Chengzong was here.
Sun Chengzong came to see Cheng Shijie because of the visit of Queen Zhou and Queen Zhang to Liaodong. He was afraid that Cheng Shijie would say or do the wrong thing.
Cheng Shijie put down his chopsticks and stood up to greet the teacher Sun Chengzong: "Students meet the teacher!"
"Come here to have some food for me!"
"Then let's eat together, come and add some food!"
Just as Sun Chengzong sat down, Yang Yunniang came over.
Although Yang Yunniang is the deputy director of the management committee and the president of Liaodong Bank, at home, Yang Yunniang is Cheng Shijie's nominal concubine, and her status is much higher than that of a concubine who has no name or status.
When Queen Zhou came over this time, she also brought several canonization edicts. Not only did she make Cheng Jiayue Princess Changping, but she also made Yang Yunniang and Jin Qiaoer the second-grade imperial wives. In the future, the children born to them would only need to be worshiped by Zhu Wei. As Ti's mother, she can enjoy the treatment of legitimate son and legitimate daughter.
Yang Yuniang was serving wine on the side. Soon, Chen Zilong, Song Yingxing, Xie Zongze, Xie Jinglin, Zhou Yandong, Chang Yu, Shen Mingyu and others arrived one after another.
Cheng Shijie had no choice but to chat with everyone while eating.
Through conversations with everyone, Cheng Shijie realized that Liaodong no longer needed his guidance, and Ning Haijun Group began to move forward on its own.
Starting four years ago, Cheng Shijie, with the help of Sun Yuanhua, established Ning Haijun and the interest group Ning Haijun. Now this interest group owns hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of land and has a population of more than 10 million. Of course, if Counting the indigenous people of Luzon, there are more than 20 million people.
However, neither Cheng Shijie nor Liu Qingsong in Luzon, including everyone in the Ning Haijun Group, think that the natives of Luzon are human beings. In the eyes of all of them, only the people of the Ming and Han Dynasties are human beings, and everyone else is not human.
The development of Liaodong is getting better and better, especially in the 36 counties in the seven prefectures of Liaodong. Cement roads have basically been built between counties. The cultivated farmland is slightly lower than last year, only maintaining an area of 87 million acres. Among them, more than 20 million acres are planted with cotton and flax. This kind of cash crop has only about 65 million acres of real grain fields. There are also more than 15 million acres of vegetables.
Liaodong has passed the most difficult period. Every household has food in stock. The problem can be seen from the dogs in Liaodong. Nowadays, almost everyone in Liaodong has a dog, because there is more food, so they can raise a dog.
More than 25% of the people have horses at home. The biggest problem in Jinzhou now is the disposal of horse and cow dung. Tens of millions of kilograms of horse dung every day can pile up into a hill. At this time, the avenue has turned into an extremely dense "minefield". When walking on it, it is difficult for you to avoid stepping on the things pulled down by those beasts. Those guys who had prepared baskets and dung forks were getting ready to pick up dung.
However, Liaodong is now very short of human resources. Many factories are unable to expand production capacity due to a shortage of workers, especially the salt fields. The coarse salt produced by the salt fields has piled up into hills. It is said that as many as 70 to 80 million stones of coarse salt are produced due to insufficient packaging personnel. It cannot be converted into refined salt for sale.
The biggest problem is that there are too few potato and sweet potato processing plants in Liaodong. Because the processing is not timely, tens of millions of pounds of sweet potatoes and potatoes are lost every year.
Hearing this, Cheng Shijie said: "Stupid, why don't you raise pigs? We in Liaodong can't even eat all the pork now, right?"
"You can definitely eat all the pork, and you can raise pigs..."
Chen Zilong smiled and said: "Commander, you don't know something. This pig ate spoiled sweet potatoes and potatoes, but it grew faster and fatter!"
Chen Zilong is not a zoologist. What he said is actually not accurate. Pigs will be poisoned if they eat spoiled sweet potatoes and sweet potatoes. However, when harvesting potatoes and sweet potatoes in Liaodong, they will sort out the broken and damaged sweet potatoes in advance and then put them away. Fermented together, the fermented sweet potatoes and potatoes may look bad, but the problem is that these fermented sweet potatoes and potatoes actually promote the growth of pigs.
Sun Zhiman said: "Commander, thanks to Wang Zheng, if it weren't for the fire ox he invented, Liaodong..."
"What fire cow?"
Sun Zhili kept talking and making gestures, and Cheng Shijie finally understood.
What kind of fire cow is this? Isn't this a steam engine?
Many people say that it was machine guns and artillery that forced the cavalry to lose their living space. In fact, it was not machine guns that made the cavalry withdraw from the stage of history, but steam engines, trains and railways.
Although the cavalry has advantages in mobility, it is completely useless in front of steam engine trains.
Cheng Shijie put down his chopsticks and said, "Let's go see the Fire Ox!"
(End of chapter)
