There were many things that were not fully explained in the conversation between Gao Pangshi and Li Chengliang, but the key issues were already explained.
What was not explained clearly was why Gao Pragmatic kept beating Li Chengliang, and even today he took the opportunity to ask Li Chengliang to find an opportunity to retire. The reason for this was still unknown to him until Li Chengliang left.
To be clear, Gao Jingshi did not intend to attack the entire Tieling Li family, but gave Li Chengliang a chance to retire with success. This Gao Jingshi hinted to Li Chengliang that the Li family members should step out of his wings and fight on their own. It can be seen that, and in the end, he even bluntly stated that he would create opportunities for Li Chengliang to replace Spyker.
Li Chengliang's current Ning Yuanbo is only a surname, which means that it cannot be hereditary. If the surname can be replaced by a noble, then the Li family of Tieling will no longer be a simple general, but a noble who "resides with the country" Home.
In terms of status and wealth, the noble family is certainly far superior to the so-called generals. After all, a family like Jiangmen has always been associated with war. When it can fight, it will naturally prosper, but if it cannot fight, its collapse will be around the corner. There are even those who are unlucky. Yesterday they were in charge of the White Tiger Hall, and now they are in jail. If you are not careful, your wife, children, old and young will be implicated.
But the nobles are different. Although the nobles of the Ming Dynasty often cannot gain any real power, their positions are extremely secure. Unless there are special circumstances such as rebellion or heirloom, Spyker means eternal wealth.
Moreover, there are no viscounts or barons in the Ming Dynasty, and the lowest title starts from earl. There are less than 100 people in the two capitals and thirteen provinces in the country. How noble is this? To put it bluntly, the status of the nobles of the Ming Dynasty is stronger than that of the clan.
Because of this, Li Chengliang was in a daze when he left. Even he himself couldn't tell what his mood was at that moment, whether he was happy, worried, or inexplicably melancholy.
It stands to reason that as a general, Spyker is really the highest goal. Since you can easily get Spyker, what is there to hesitate about?
As for the level of his title, Li Chengliang is also self-aware. At present, the Ming Dynasty is not worried about overthrow. It can even be said that in the past ten years, the Ming Dynasty has been on the verge of revival. In this case, he has not contributed to the destruction of the country, how can he get a higher title than an earl?
Let’s not go too far, Gao Pragmatic himself can actually be regarded as a person who has “the merit of destroying a country”, but does he have a title? No, the court didn't even mention it, and no one even thought that his great achievements in Annan and Dingbei would be worthy of a knighthood.
Although this was due to the fact that the high and pragmatic status was still far away at that time, it was also a rare direct expression of the title of Ming Dynasty. In fact, apart from the founding of the country and Jingnan, how many people were later awarded titles for their military merits? Except for the special case of Wang Wenchenggong, the rest of the credit is nothing more than the descendants of Yin Guan.
But Li Chengliang's quota of Yin Guan has been so large that even his sons can't use it up, and it has begun to be used by his nephews. What's the point of giving more Yin Guan?
Li Chengliang was riding on his horse and thinking to himself: Hereditary Ning Yuanbo, this is probably my last goal in life, right? I just don’t know how Gao Qiuzhen plans to create a great achievement for me that is enough to earn the Spyker Award...
After walking for a while, Li Chengliang suddenly turned to Li Pinghu and asked, "Pinghu, what are your plans for this life?"
Li Pinghu was stunned when he heard this, and said in astonishment: "Pinghu didn't understand what the commander said... Just fight. Fight with the commander. You can kill with ease, and you can also steal some wealth, women, and what else?" A good plan?"
Li Chengliang sighed and said, "What if I don't fight anymore?"
"If you don't want to fight?" Li Ping and Hu asked in astonishment, "Then what are you going to do?"
"What to do... I haven't thought about it yet, but I guess I will go to the capital to be raised." Li Chengliang raised his head and looked at the crescent moon in the night sky, and said in a distant voice, "Maybe I am drinking tea and fishing. Make a grandson?"
Li Pinghu scratched his head and said nothing. Li Chengliang turned his head, glanced at him, and said nothing more.
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After Gao pragmatic sent Li Chengliang away, he returned to the flower hall. The tea sets in the flower hall had been completely changed, and more importantly, the people inside had also been changed.
Huang Zhiting was holding a purple-red gradient Yu Kiln tea cup and was admiring the magnificent colors on the tea cup under the lamp. When Gao Pragmatic came in, she said without raising her head: "I still can't tell, what is it?" This kind of kiln transformation is considered to be the best, but nowadays the Yu kiln is led by your porcelain factory, so your set should be rare in the world, right?"
Gao Yongshi sat down in front of her, glanced at the newly replaced tea set on the table, and replied: "Speaking of which, I don't know much about porcelain appreciation, but Jia Ci is a good expert. What you see now One set has a name, called 'Purple Air from the East', and I heard it was one of the best sets last year."
"If I sell it, how much money can I get for it?" Huang Zhiting finally raised her head and asked.
"It's hard to say. Although people say, 'Even if you have a fortune, it's not as good as a piece of Jun porcelain', after all, I have used this set myself..." Gao pragmatically said, waved his hand and said: "Zhi Ting, are you here to talk about porcelain with me? If you like it, just take it when you return to Annan."
Huang Zhiting chuckled, shook her head and said: "You are really a hands-off shopkeeper, you don't even understand your own things."
Gao Pragmatic said in astonishment: "Why do you say this?"
Huang Zhiting put down the tea cup, but picked up another tea tray and showed it to Gao Pingshi: "Look at the bottom of this tray. There is the word 'Long Wen' engraved on one side alone. This is a unique piece of Jinghua porcelain." , only for the use of you, Gao Longwen... How dare I take Annan back and break your family's rules?"
Gao Pingshi took the tea tray in surprise and said, "Is there anything else?" It turned out that in addition to "Jinghua Porcelain" and "Made in the Ten Years of Wanli", there was also a small seal engraved word "Long Wen" on the bottom of the tray. .
He thought about it and suddenly understood his mother's intention - this trick was actually learned from him, which was to artificially divide "grades". It is conceivable that the price of Yu kiln is already ridiculously high, and now such a type is created. If Gao Pragmatic gives "Long Wen Yu Porcelain" to others in the future, the value it represents must be much more valuable than gold.
However, Huang Zhiting's words were obviously meant as a joke. Gao Pingshi could only smile helplessly, then changed the subject and asked, "Did you hear the conversation I had with Uncle Ning Yuan just now? What do you think?"
Huang Zhiting picked up the tea cup again with one hand, spread it out with the other hand, and said: "I don't know what kind of friendship or festival you have with him. What can you think if you listen to him so cluelessly? You really want me to Speaking now, I can only express my doubts: Why can't he continue to do it? Doesn't he obey your orders? "
Gao pragmatic shook his head and said: "That's not the case."
Huang Zhiting said: "Oh, it seems that his family is too powerful? Just like the Cen family back then, the court tried every means to fight with the Cen family and promote civil strife in the Cen family, so as to ensure the stability of Guangxi - —Liaodong also has the same attitude, right?"
Gao Pragmatic did not expect that Huang Zhiting would interpret it from this perspective. Sure enough, people with a chieftain background first consider problems from the perspective of "own strength", which is a habitual thinking.
But think about it, although her words are not comprehensive, they cannot be considered wrong. The current situation in Liaodong where the Li family is the dominant family in Tieling is indeed not what the court wants to see. The reason why no one cared about it before was simply because the situation did not allow it, which meant that Li Chengliang at that time was irreplaceable.
To put it bluntly, this is the reason why Zhu Yijun wanted to be pragmatic and beat Li Chengliang. After all, when it comes to military exploits, status, identity, and background, it seems more pragmatic and easier to beat him.
Thinking of this, Gao Pragmatic couldn't help but sigh: Fortunately, I am a civil servant, otherwise I would have been beaten by others. And if there is no such candidate, I am afraid that the emperor will be the only one to go to battle and beat me.
Seeing that he didn't answer, Huang Zhiting looked puzzled and asked, "Did I make a mistake, or was I unfortunately right?"
Gao Pingshi also picked up the tea cup in front of him, took a sip, and said: "Half and half."
However, Huang Zhiting didn't seem to be very interested in Li Chengliang's affairs. Hearing this, he said indifferently: "Come on, it doesn't matter how you arrange him. Judging from your conversation just now, you don't need help from others... If not As for other things, I will go and rest first." After that, he stood up.
Gao pragmatic also stood up: "I'll see you off."
Huang Zhiting rolled her eyes at him and smiled: "No, it's only a few steps away. What are you giving me? You can just think about your plots." Before she finished speaking, she went straight away, leaving Gao Pragmatic behind. He shook his head helplessly.
Could my image in her eyes be directly linked to the conspiracy?
A night of silence.
On the second day, Gao Jingshi had just gotten up when a servant sent a message saying that Uncle Ning Yuan had sent a gift to congratulate the master on his newfound responsibilities. At the same time, he left a letter saying that since Futai had returned to Beijing to report on his duties, he would serve as the general manager. The soldiers could not stay away from the defense area for a long time, so they rushed back to Guangning overnight. Any disrespect will be forgiven.
Gao pragmatic took Li Chengliang's letter and looked at it. There was nothing special in the letter, just like what the servant conveyed. He turned to take the gift list and looked at it. Most of what Li Chengliang gave were some literary toys, mainly calligraphy and paintings, and occasionally a few pieces of jade from the previous dynasty. They were also in line with the current official rules, but they were of a higher level. , there is nothing particularly suspicious.
Although these things should have been prepared in advance, it can also be seen that Li Chengliang did not have much hostility towards him. Until the previous situation, he still held the attitude of "peacefully resolving disputes".
It seems that the original history of Li Chengliang spending a lot of money in the capital to find people to speak for him should be credible. Although he had ambitions, they were limited to a corner of Liaodong, and this ambition was not to separate one party, but to ensure that he already had status and wealth in Liaodong.
Since he has such a mentality, he will definitely consider his proposal last night.
Gao pragmatic sighed in his heart: I am actually doing this for your own good. If you listen to my advice and retreat bravely, the records in the future history books will be much better than the original history. And as long as I deal with a few hidden dangers in Liaodong, your Li family's wealth will last longer.
As for the 40,000-strong army, I'm not greedy either. I'll leave it to your Li family when the time comes, but... you have to give it to your sons. Isn't that too much?
Starting from Dongchangbao, we basically followed the post road back to Beijing. However, after arriving at Panshan Horse Post, we diverted to Luyang Horse Post, eliminating the need to go to Guangning.
There is nothing to describe along the way, except the welcome and farewell by local officials and generals, which can be ignored.
When they arrived in the capital, Gao Pingshi left Fubiao's servants at Jianxinzhai Villa in the northwest suburbs of Beijing as usual. He and Huang Zhiting each brought dozens of people into the city.
After entering the city, Gao Pragmatic naturally went to his residence, but Huang Zhiting refused to go with him this time. Instead, he insisted on going to the Annan Guild Hall - this Guild Hall was newly built after Annan was included in the annexation. It was originally the villa of a wealthy Suzhou businessman. hospital.
The wealthy businessman started to get involved in maritime trade last year and ran the Susi business. The main route was from Suzhou to Guangzhou, and then from Guangzhou to Jingang. At first glance, he knew that this route would inevitably need the care of Beijing's Nanyang Fleet, and it also needed to establish good relations with the Annan area. Therefore, the news that Annan wanted to open a guild hall in the capital reached his ears, and he decided to move it to another place without saying a word. The hospital took it out.
Of course, he still collected money, but he only charged the cost price and didn't make a single tael of silver. Smart businessmen all know that not making money at this time is to make more money elsewhere.
The Ministry of Rites also sent a foreign minister to ask Huang Zhiting where she planned to live. As the deputy tribute envoy of Annan, the Ministry of Rites was also responsible for arranging accommodation.
Huang Zhiting still insisted on living in Annan Guild Hall. Gao Pragmatic couldn't persuade her, and he knew that she wanted to avoid gossip, so he had to let her go.
When Gao Pingshi returned to his residence in the southeast corner of Shichahai, he found someone waiting outside the door.
Chen Ju, wearing a bright red silk flying fish suit, came up to him with a smile, cupped his hands and said: "High School Prime Minister, you are fine. Our family has been waiting for you for more than an hour."
Gao Jingshi had already dismounted when he saw Chen Ju. At this time, he also cupped his hands with a smile and said: "I heard earlier that Brother Wanhua (Chen Ju, also known as Wanhua) was promoted to the admiral of Dongchang. I should have come to congratulate him in person. Unfortunately, I was busy fighting at that time..."
"Hey, you're being ridiculous when you say that. I beg you to be honest, when you were promoted to Liao Fu, our family couldn't go. There's nothing you can do about it." Chen Ju said with a smile: "Huang Zhangyin happened to be here today. It’s worth it. He really can’t spare the time, so he asked our family to apologize to the high school prime minister on his behalf.”
It turned out that with the return of Empress Dowager Li and the fall of Chen Hong, the inner court finally established a new "team" after a long period of time. After Zhu Yijun hesitated for a long time between Huang Mengyu and Chen Ju, he finally chose to let Huang Mengyu take over as the new Chief of Ceremony, while Chen Ju took over Dongchang.
However, perhaps as a kind of balance, perhaps as compensation for Chen Ju, the "personal eunuch", Zhu Yijun did not let Chen Ju step down as the imperial eunuch, but reversed history and made him the chief eunuch of the ceremony. As eunuch Yi Bingbi, he also held two powerful positions: the governor of the East Factory and the chief seal of the Royal Horse Supervisor.
The reason why I say "reverse" is because Gao Gong had previously requested that the Dongchang and Yuma supervisors should not be held concurrently by one person, and this had been implemented for some years.
When this happened, Zhang Siwei was actually quite embarrassed, because both Huang Mengyu and Chen Ju were highly pragmatic allies. Now that they were promoted, it would have been a good thing, but the emperor asked Chen Ju to be both the Dongchang and the Royal Horse Supervisor, and It destroyed Gao Gong's practice back then.
In the end, Zhang Siwei had to bite the bullet and express his opposition, and Chen Ju himself resigned several times. Then the emperor said that this was just a temporary arrangement, and that a new imperial horse supervisor would be selected after one year at the latest. This time the matter was pushed back.
Gao Pangshi exchanged a few simple greetings with Chen Ju, and then asked about his purpose. Chen Ju smiled and said, "Do you really know the purpose of our visit? The emperor is anxious to see you, so he asked us to wait here. As soon as you arrive, I will take you to the palace to meet the Holy Spirit - you can go to the Ministry of War and the Metropolitan Procuratorate tomorrow."
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