Chapter 526 Can You Get Hard?
"No matter how high the arch is."

"It's Yang Bo from the Jin Party, Li Chunfang or Gao Yi from the Qingliu Old Party."

In the study, Yan Song sat high on a tiger-skin chair, squinting his eyes and rubbing his hands gently on the stove.

This old man, who once served as the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, is now one of the three highest officials in the dynasty.

He hummed twice.

"Although the previous emperor has passed away, the Jiajing New Deal is something that must be done."

"Whether they are forming cliques in the north or south, or colluding with each other internally or externally, things must be done."

"The Crown Prince is ambitious and it is impossible for him to sit back and do nothing. How many conflicts will arise here? I am afraid we will have to wait until he ascends the throne to see the outcome."

Ascend the throne.

According to the opinions put forward by the Ministry of Rites, there will be three consecutive days of persuasion starting from the day after tomorrow, and then Crown Prince Zhu Zaigui will reluctantly agree to the ministers' request to ascend the throne after the third persuasion.

Then the Ministry of Rites discussed with the Imperial Observatory to come up with an auspicious day for Zhu Zaigui to ascend the throne and become emperor.

According to Yan Shaoting's estimation, this matter must be completed around the 25th or 26th of the twelfth lunar month at the latest.

In this way, the whole country can change the era name directly after the New Year.

Longqing?

For no reason, Yan Shaoting thought of Zhu Zaigui's reign title and smiled slightly.

I caught a glimpse of my eldest grandson smiling silently.

Yan Song also smiled and asked, "They are all out there, running around for the new dynasty. What are you going to do? Just sit at home and smile foolishly?"

Yan Shaoting immediately stood up, picked up his son who was hiding under the old man's sleeve to eat cakes, and slapped the bastard on the butt.

The child is becoming more and more greedy, his face is getting rounder and rounder, and his body is getting heavier and heavier. If this continues, the Yan family, which has always been known for its outstanding looks, will have a fat boy who will ruin their appearance.

Yan Wuyou was caught by his father, hanging in the air, screaming and waving his arms, looking at Zuzu expectantly.

Yan Song leaned back and said, "Your great grandfather only dotes on you. He has no control over your father's training of his son."

Although Yan Wuyou didn't say complete words, he could understand what the adults said. His face suddenly deflated and his paws drooped limply, as if he had resigned himself to his fate.

Yan Shaoting pressed his son straight into a chair beside him.

Then he looked at the old man.

"My grandson is going to have a good talk with a few people. The crown prince is about to ascend the throne, and the beginning of the new year will be the beginning of the new dynasty. We can start planning some things."

Yan Song nodded and said, "Now that the late emperor has passed away, although it is almost the end of the year, we cannot send the annual gifts during this mourning period. You should go there in person."

Old Yan didn't ask his eldest grandson what he was going to discuss, but just gave him instructions slowly.

Yan Shaoting understood the order and left with Xu Wei.

As soon as he walked out of the house, his son's cheers rang out in the house.

After leaving Yan's house, Yan Shaoting and Xu Wei took a carriage directly to the Zhenyuan Marquis Mansion.

The line of Zhenyuan Marquis, since they were granted the title in the second year of Yongle, has truly lived up to the country's wishes and has inherited the title for six generations.

The current Zhenyuan Marquis, Gu Huan, is the sixth generation.

Gu Huan inherited the title in the seventh year of Jiajing, which is thirty-eight years ago.

He has been the governor of the military affairs of the Beijing camp since the Gengwu Rebellion in the 33rd year of Jiajing, which means it has been twelve years so far.

These are old ministers and nobles who have sufficient reputation and experience in the Ming Dynasty.

Standing behind the gate of Zhenyuan Marquis' Mansion, Yan Shaoting silently thought about Zhu Zaigui's arrangements for him to assist in the military affairs of the Beijing camp.

What this meant, of course, was to assist Gu Huan, Marquis of Zhenyuan, who was in charge of the military affairs of the Beijing Camp, and manage the entire Beijing Camp together.

"Guest Yan is here, and the Marquis said earlier that there is no need to announce it."

"I will bring the guests into the mansion right away."

The doorman of the Marquis' Mansion was a middle-aged man, very alert. When he saw Yan Shaoting, he smiled before Yan Shaoting even opened his mouth.

Let the gatekeeper lead the way.

Not long after.

Yan Shaoting saw Zhenyuan Marquis Gu Huan in the east wing of the front hall of the mansion.

"Junior boy, nice to meet Lord Gu."

Yan Shaoting nodded and bowed.

Then he raised his head and saw clearly that Gu Huan was painting a picture in the study in the east wing.

The writing is very bold and unrestrained.

The mountains are solitary and continuous, with tall and steep cliffs, and ravines so deep that they cannot be seen. The sun is shining brightly in the sky, and the steam is rising like the sea.

This is obviously a northern landscape.

If it were the mountains and rivers of the south, the scenery would not be like this.

However, the painting was not yet completely finished, so Gu Huan put down the brush and ink in his hand, looked up at Yan Shaoting, and raised the corner of his mouth slightly.

"You are no longer as carefree as you were before. You look much older now."

The old marquis made a joke, walked to the tea table beside him and waved at Yan Shaoting.

Yan Shaoting hurried forward and said, "The splash-ink painting of the mountains and rivers by the Marquis is really grand and heroic, much more free and easy than the winding and freehand painting of my grandfather."

then.

He was also quick to take the lead and poured the boiling water on the table into the teapot beside him, and then served Gu Huan a cup of tea.

"The younger generation now have children, so they are naturally no longer as free as they were in the past. They have more responsibilities and more things to think about, so they naturally look older."

Gu Huan took a sip of tea, curled his lips and spat out a piece of broken leaves.

He glanced sideways at Yan Shaoting.

"The Grand Master's skill in freehand painting is beyond the reach of us soldiers. Even if we spend decades of effort, we may not be able to achieve half of the Grand Master's skills. That's why I just do freehand painting with splashed ink, casually doing whatever comes to mind. If I add or miss a stroke, it would be like adding a mountain or a ravine, which is purely out of laziness."

Yan Shaoting smiled silently.

Chinese painting is divided into large freehand brushwork and small freehand brushwork, and landscape painting is also divided into southern and northern schools.

The different ways of using pen and ink can lead to completely different meanings.

Seeing Yan Shaoting smiling but not saying anything.

Gu Huan slapped the table and said, "You're here but you don't say anything. Do you still want me to guess?"

But after he asked, he didn't wait for Yan Shaoting to speak.

He immediately said, "Let me guess... Is the Crown Prince planning to have you assist in the military affairs of the Beijing Camp? If so, maybe you will be given the position of Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War?"

Yan Shaoting was not at all surprised that Gu Huan could guess the arrangements made by Crown Prince Zhu Zaigui for him.

In the whole city of Beijing, there are only a few noble families who are worthy of being on the stage.

The Zhenyuan Marquis family, as well as Gu Huan himself, had been deeply trusted by the royal family during the previous emperor's reign.

Otherwise, Gu Huan would not have been able to be the governor of Huai'an and the governor of the grain transport.

It is perfectly normal for him to speculate or know such news through other channels.

Yan Shaoting cupped his hands and said, "My Lord, you are very wise. You guessed what I was going to say right away."

Gu Huan just glanced at Yan Shaoting with some disdain.

"If you ask me, we are truly a family. The Grand Master was like this in the past, and your father was arrogant but he was also like this at heart, and it is still the same when it comes to you."

Gu Huan showed some dissatisfaction on his face: "If there is anything, just say it. If you can do it, I will naturally not refuse, and I can also help. If you can't do it, no matter how much you say, it will be useless. At worst, the door of Zhenyuan Marquis's Mansion will never be open to your Yan family again." Yan Shaoting looked embarrassed, and then nodded and said: "When the late emperor was dying, he ordered me to recover Hetao. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince also mentioned to me a few days ago that he wanted to rectify the Beijing camp inside and outside. For these two matters, I should inform you, Marquis Gu, for both reason and emotion. What the rules should be, you have to make the final decision."

Gu Huan didn't expect that the late emperor actually wanted Yan Shaoting to lead troops to recapture Hetao.

His expression also became a little more serious.

After all, the late emperor truly trusted and respected him.

In an instant, Gu Huan's expression became a little more sad, giving the impression of an old and frail general.

"Now, I am already over sixty years old. I have been doing errands for the late emperor for decades. I am afraid I will not have the opportunity to personally take part in the mission of recovering Hetao. The prince is kind, but his talent is far inferior to that of the late emperor. The best I can do for the rest of my life is to sit in the capital for the late emperor and the new emperor and keep the capital out of trouble."

Gu Huan reached out and swept the teacup in front of him aside.

Then he dipped his finger in the tea and wrote a word on the table.

It’s the character for tiger.

Yan Shaoting looked at the old marquis with some confusion.

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

Gu Huan said: "The general is like a tiger, and the soldiers are like wolves. Tigers walk alone, and wolves walk in packs. Only by driving the tiger and luring the wolves can we win every battle."

Yan Shaoting was still a little confused about what Gu Huan meant this time.

The old marquis spoke up instead: "Your little Que'er has the potential to be a great general, but he will probably have to guard the palace for a long time, and maybe he will take over my responsibility to guard the capital in the future. So, how to reform the Beijing camp and how to train the soldiers, you can do whatever you want, and I will just take care of it for you."

Yan Shaoting immediately stood up and bowed: "Thank you, my Lord."

Gu Huan waved his hand: "I am not saying this to ask you to thank an old man like me, but you should understand that the late emperor treated you with great kindness, and your family is now a well-known hereditary noble family. No matter how the Beijing Army struggles, no matter how strong or weak it is, it can still look a bit like the old days when the country was founded, but that is the root of all of us. So I only have one thing to say..."

Yan Shaoting nodded and bowed his head: "Please give your instructions, my lord."

Gu Huan looked up at the young man standing in front of him.

Really young.

I also take on responsibilities earlier than I did in the beginning.

He said with a firm look, "Just one sentence! Make a good mess of it, so that we can stand up for once!"

After walking out of Zhenyuan Marquis Mansion.

Yan Shaoting looked up at the gloomy sky.

He thought of what Gu Huan said.

Be tough for once.

But I only have an approximate idea as to whether I can get hard or not.

then.

He went from the northwest corner of the imperial city to the southeast corner of the imperial city.

Gaojia Restaurant, located near Ertiao Hutong, Chengqingfang, does serve delicious food.

When Yan Shaoting walked into the restaurant hidden in the alley, he saw that the first floor was already full of diners.

Going up to the second floor, there were several private rooms, and only the one facing the alley remained.

Just as he was about to push open the door, the shop owner hurried up from downstairs.

"Sir, this room..."

The shop owner, with an embarrassed look on his face, blocked the door of the private room while they were talking.

Yan Shaoting was only with Xu Wei at the moment, and both of them were wearing casual clothes.

And he just smiled.

"what happened?"

"Is this room reserved for Elder Gao?"

"No one else can use it?"

The shop owner's face suddenly changed, and he quickly lowered his head, clenching his hands tightly together.

Yan Shaoting smiled and walked forward, stretched out his hand to pull the shopkeeper aside, and then whispered: "Guess, if the emperor died yesterday and the news of Gao Gong drinking with others in your house got out, what would he do?"

The shop owner suddenly panicked.

My legs went limp.

But Yan Shaoting reached out and supported the other person.

"Don't kneel down all the time. This is embarrassing for the Prime Minister."

The shop owner stood there in a daze, not knowing what to do.

Yan Shaoting had already opened the door and was standing in the room. Looking out from the open window, he could just see the southeast corner tower of the Forbidden City.

Gao Gong is a good choice of place.

Yan Shaoting smiled silently, then turned his head to look at the shop owner.

"I came here only because of Yuanfu, and I want your family to earn a few more taels of silver. I'm not here to dig into the matter and find out who is to blame."

"Just serve up whatever Yuanfu ate yesterday."

"But remember, filial piety is a big deal in the country now, so don't send wine up."

The shopkeeper nodded in agreement as if he had been pardoned, and jogged downstairs.

Xu Wei then walked into the house, stuck his head out of the window and looked outside.

"You came here today and said all this. I'm afraid Gao Gong will know it soon."

Yan Shaoting looked at the other party: "So what if he knows? It's not a bad thing to let him know that I'm watching him."

Xu Wei smiled silently and said no more.

Nowadays, the Yan family is basically the first to know about everything in Beijing, whether it is public or not.

This ability is not something that just any company can possess.

And the two of them did not go forward to close the door, obviously there were other people coming here.

Sure enough, it didn’t take long.

A face different from that of the Ming people appeared outside the door.

The Spanish businessman Bai Fugui, who had not been seen for a long time, appeared at the door with a smile on his face.

After confirming that the person sitting in the room was Yan Shaoting, he immediately screamed and walked in with his hands raised.

“It’s you!”

"Honorable Master Yan!"

"I can hardly remember how long it has been since I last saw you, and how long it has been since I last heard your wise teachings."

Yan Shaoting leaned back with disgust and avoided Bai Fugui's hug.

He said in a deep voice: "Come to think of it, you have been doing silk business with our Ming Dynasty for the past few years. I am afraid you have become rich enough to rival a country. Why are you still so..."

Although the silk business was not taken over by Bai Fugui alone, it was taken over by a group of the richest merchants doing business in Ming Dynasty from Ouluba.

But this monopoly business also made him a lot of money.

Yan Shaoting couldn't help but tease, "I heard that you are planning to build a golden city in Europe and marry all the princesses across the English Channel?"

…………

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