Concubine Li asked with some surprise: "Sheng Guo'er, isn't she the little girl who helped the court bring down the traitor and local bully Gao Jingjie?"
Zhong Shide cried and said: "The imperial concubine doesn't know something. This little girl is not an ordinary person. She acts like Cao Mengde, and her methods are comparable to Zhuge Kongming. She has no tricks left, she is ruthless, and she has no mercy at all towards her enemies. I I heard that Gao Jingjie had a conversation with Sheng Guoer before his death!"
Concubine Li asked curiously: "What did Sheng Guo'er say?"
Zhong Shide paused, cleared his throat and said: "To the noble concubine, Sheng Guoer said that she can't control how many evil things Gao Jingjie did, but Gao Jingjie hindered her from getting rich, so he must be eliminated! "
What a cruel little girl! Concubine Li was shocked after hearing this. It was really shocking that these words could be said from the mouth of a sixteen-year-old girl.
Concubine Li thought to herself, if you have such scheming and scheming at a young age, it will be a big deal when you grow up!
Concubine Li said: "What did she do to your Zhong family?"
Zhong Shide concealed his betrayal of Sheng Guoer and just said: "My family is also in the pastry business and we have cooperated with her before, but it was my family who supported Sheng Guoer at that time. Do you know who she is? My father She is kind-hearted and intends to support the younger generation, but Sheng Guoer took advantage of the opportunity to suppress other opponents and deprived my family of the property. You know that my whole family is loyal and honest people, how could she be such a snake-hearted person? Opponent?"
At this point, Zhong Shide burst into tears and said: "My father was so worried that he became ill, and finally he had no way to save himself and passed away!"
After finishing speaking, Zhong Shide raised his sleeves and wiped away tears.
"How presumptuous! I thought this Sheng Guo'er was a good woman who served the country, but I didn't expect that she has such a heart! I will report it to the Holy One and have her investigated!"
Concubine Li was filled with righteous indignation. She had traditional womanly virtues and could not bear to see women showing up in public without observing moral standards. Sheng Guoer not only showed up but also played tricks, which had already left a very bad impression on Concubine Li.
"No, the imperial concubine is not allowed. Sheng Guoer's holy family is now prosperous. If you go to take care of this trouble, I'm afraid you will run into trouble. I just hope that the imperial concubine can support me so that I can have a chance to revive my ancestral business. I don't want to Let’s continue fighting with Sheng Guoer!”
Of course, Zhong Shide did not want to alarm the Holy One. Sheng Guoer and Meng Xingzhou did not expose the officials who had private relations with Wei Jinzhong and Gao Jingjie. First, they took care of the face of their colleagues, and secondly, the Holy One did not want to break up with these honorable men now. , otherwise it would not just be imprisoning Wei Jinzhong.
But if Concubine Li makes a fuss, it may give the Holy Emperor an opportunity to carry out a general purge. If Sheng Guoer is not removed, she will have to get involved, and a large number of people will be implicated!
Concubine Li calmed down a little after hearing what Zhong Shide said.
Indeed, if he spoke at this time, he might offend the emperor, so he had better observe for a while before speaking.
Seeing that Concubine Li was hesitant, Zhong Shide thought that his words had an effect, so he continued: "In addition to knowing how to cook, Zhong Mingyuan, Weichen's son, also specializes in cooking. I heard that Concubine Li is going back to Jinlong Mansion to visit her relatives recently. "
Concubine Li smiled and said: "I understand, you want me to give you the power to host the palace, right?"
Zhong Shide lowered his head and said with a smile: "Oh, how dare I? I just want to give my family a chance! How can I let the imperial concubine have the reputation of nepotism?"
Concubine Li stood up, and Zhong Shide followed behind to wait on her.
After Li Guifei walked a few steps, she turned around and said, "Let's do this. I have issued a decree saying that it is not appropriate for the government to intervene in the construction of the palace. I will post a list and recruit skilled craftsmen from Jinlong Mansion to come and compete. Wait until the end for you to come. Can’t I just give it to you?”
Zhong Shide knelt down and said: "The Imperial Concubine is extremely intelligent and considerate of her subordinates. Thank you very much for this!"
Then, Zhong Shide took out the peach cake made according to Sheng Guoer's recipe and said, "This is a pastry carefully developed by Wei Chen. It's called peach cake. It's delicious when soaked or eaten!"
"Oh?" Concubine Li's favorite food is pastries. When she heard that some pastries can be soaked in water and drunk, she couldn't help but be very curious.
"Make it and let me try it!"
Concubine Li waved her hand, and Zhong Shide took a cup of hot water and brewed the peach cake, and a crisp fragrance filled the air.
"This peach cake must be drunk while it's hot to have the best taste!" Zhong Shide said to Concubine Li with a smile.
Concubine Li took a bite, and it was indeed very delicious. She praised it and said: "Zhong Shide, you must make more of this kind of food for me in the future. You must know that my stomach is suitable for this kind of soft and glutinous pastry, and it can also be drunk. It's not bad." ,good!"
Zhong Shide thought to himself: "I just want to use everything Sheng Guoer has to achieve my own goals. Why should I fight? Wouldn't it be better to use it as my own?"
Gao Jingjie, Du Boss, Jin Jiayu and others just take themselves too seriously. Since the opponent's things are useful, they should not be jealous. Instead, they should use them for their own use, then analyze her shortcomings, and then Repaying the other person with the same way saves time and effort without leaving any traces. This is the real mastery!
Zhong Shide relied on this to gradually achieve the status of palace chef.
Therefore, those seniors who were defeated by him regarded him as the successor of their own mantle. Instead of hating him, they encouraged him to move on!
After Zhong Shide made up his mind, he told his son Zhong Mingyuan about the next arrangements.
Zhong Mingyuan himself also knew some skilled craftsmen in the capital.
Zhong Mingyuan invited the Chen family, a well-known construction family in Beijing, to help.
The Chen family has been experts in construction for generations. Even the imperial palace in the capital was designed and built by the Chen family. It can be said that they are three talented architects, father and son.
The head of the Chen family is named Chen Huan. He has two sons, Chen Jizhang, the head of the Ministry of Industry, and Chen Liwen, the head of the Chen family's construction. The two brothers have inherited their father's true heritage and are the leading construction experts in the capital.
Zhong Mingyuan and Chen Jizhang were both Jinshi in the same ranking, and they were also classmates. They both studied under the great scholar Shen Boyue. According to the rules of the school, Zhong Zipan was now his brother's uncle.
But since they were little, the Zhong brothers have been with the Chen brothers, big or small. It can be said that they have been friends since childhood.
Zhong Mingyuan was different from his father. Although he was also angry with Sheng Guo'er, after all, Sheng Guo'er had helped the Zhong family make money and solve problems before, so Zhong Mingyuan planned to defeat Sheng Guo'er in construction in an open and honest manner.
Therefore, at the Ministry of Industry, Zhong Mingyuan explained the situation clearly to Chen Jizhang and asked Chen Jizhang for his opinion.
Although they are both young talents, Chen Jizhang is more calm than Zhong Mingyuan.
There was a hint of displeasure on Chen Jizhang's handsome face: "Sheng Guoer really used tricks to get rid of the big businessman Gao Jingjie?"
Zhong Mingyuan nodded and said, "And you won't win openly and honestly by means of creation!"
Chen Jizhang said: "Although I have heard about Gao Jingjie's evil deeds and even sneered at him, since we are competing with others for construction business, we naturally have to use construction methods to win. It is impossible to win by using other methods. Wu!"
Zhong Mingyuan didn't quite understand the truth, but the facts were in front of him. Sheng Guoer still defeated Gao Jingjie by relying on food and food, not by means of creation.
Chen Jizhang smiled and said: "I think, even in terms of construction methods, there is no comparison between these two. Apart from demolition, what else does Gao Jingjie know? What else does he know about construction?"
Zhong Mingyuan nodded and smiled: "Brother Chen is right. I know that Sheng Guo'er. Although she built some weird houses, they are all just gadgets to please the public. How can they be compared with you? This time, the imperial concubine, We need to build a palace, and if your family responds to the call, we will definitely succeed, and we will split the account together then!"
Chen Jizhang shook his head and said, "Old Zhong, you are so calculating. If you take the job, our Chen family will work for you, right?"
Zhong Mingyuan spread his hands and said helplessly: "Brother Chen, what do you mean by this? Don't you come from a family of food and drink?"
Chen Jizhang asked back: "Then why don't you use your family's best diet to find a way to defeat Sheng Guoer?"
Zhong Mingyuan was speechless when asked.
Chen Jizhang paused and smiled: "Old Zhong, people have to learn to use their own things to win honor for themselves. If you rely on me, sooner or later you will not be reliable!"
Zhong Mingyuan said: "To be honest, we just want to get this money to revive our family business. We will not touch the construction job in the future!"
When Chen Jizhang heard this, he felt relieved. After all, the Zhong family had the support of the harem in the court, and what he was most afraid of was that this good brother would take away his family's construction business in the capital.
How could Zhong Mingyuan not know Chen Jizhang's worries? Now he doesn't care about face anymore. As long as he gets this fund and allows the Chen family to continue to accept the royal construction projects, he can get a share of the pie and follow his father's instructions. , use Sheng Guoer's secret recipe and method to attack Sheng Guoer.
Chen Jizhang pondered for a moment and said: "Let's do it this way. My father is no longer in charge of things now. I have the final say at home. You go to my second brother Chen Liwen. He is responsible for the affairs at home now. You go to him and ask him to bring a few people with him." A reliable person will go back with you. I have official business, so I won’t accompany you."
Zhong Mingyuan asked: "When the project funds arrive, will I still deposit them in Taifeng Bank?"
Chen Jizhang nodded, and Zhong Mingyuan smiled.
When Chen Liwen arrived, he was much happier than his brother Chen Jizhang, and he was simpler and more cheerful. When he heard that it was Brother Zhong's business, he immediately agreed. He immediately found five capable men and followed Zhong Mingyuan back to Jinlong Mansion.
After arriving at Jinlong Mansion, Zhong Mingyuan bought a large house for Chen Liwen and others to facilitate their work and rest.
On the first day, Chen Liwen went to survey the terrain of the entire central area of Jinlong Mansion, as well as the mountains and waters of Changliu Mountain, Cuiwei Mountain and Qifeng Mountain, and finally decided to build the palace in the east of Jinlong Mansion City at the foot of Cuiwei Mountain.
Chen Liwen immediately started the design work, and Zhong Mingyuan was amazed by this series of professional operations.
According to Chen Liwen, whether the Chen family can get the project or not, they must design it first and give them the most perfect construction sketch.
If a worker wants to do his job well, he must first sharpen his tools. This is the ancestral motto passed down from generation to generation of the Chen family.
Zhong Mingyuan smiled and said, "It seems that Sheng Guoer has met a real opponent this time!"
