Family Rise: Beginning with Grandfather

"The humble official Zhen Shijie pays respects to Lord Yang!"

In the hall of the Marquis's mansion, Shuntian Prefecture Yin Zhen Shijie bowed to Yang Zhengshan.

Yang Zhengshan greeted him with a smile and enthusiastically helped Zhen Shijie up, "This Marquis has long admired Lord Zhen, haha~~"

He and Zhen Shijie were just familiar faces. They didn't have much interaction on weekdays. They could only see each other during the morning court, but Yang Zhengshan rarely went to the morning court, so he was barely familiar with them.

However, Zhen Shijie was born in Pingyuan Province, Liaodong, and the Zhen family was the largest wealthy family in Pingyuan Province.

When Liaodong was hit by a severe drought, with the secret support of Yang Zhengshan, many officials and wealthy businessmen in Pingyuan Province were confiscated by the court, and many of them were members of the Zhen family.

By the way, there was also Zhen Yang, who was also considered a member of the Pingyuan Zhen family.

Of course, whether it was the wealthy businessmen who were confiscated that year or Zhen Yang, they actually had little to do with Zhen Shijie.

Zhen Shijie is a fairly honest official, and he is also very capable.

After all, the position of Shuntian Prefecture is not an ordinary official position.

There are many powerful people in Kyoto, and the cases handled by Zhen Shijie, the Shuntian Prefecture, are mostly about powerful people. Without real ability, he can't sit firmly in the position of Shuntian Prefecture.

But Zhen Shijie has been the Shuntian Prefecture for ten years. The most amazing thing is that he has a good reputation among the people of Kyoto, which shows that he is still very fair in his conduct.

The two of them exchanged some polite words, and Zhen Shijie talked about business, "Lord Yang, this visit is for the impeachment of Zhou Yushi, and I think Lord Yang also knows about this."

"Well, I know, but I have already asked my children at home, and they didn't go to the bookstore on that day." Yang Zhengshan said.

Yang Zhengshan was a little depressed by this incident.

Zhen Shijie smiled and said, "It's not that I don't believe Lord Yang, but I have been ordered to investigate this matter, so I have to come and ask."

Yang Zhengshan was not angry. Although this matter made him feel depressed, it was not incomprehensible.

Zhou Ningwei would definitely not make a false accusation. After all, this matter concerns his daughter's reputation, and Zhen Shijie should come to inquire.

"Or I will call the boys back home and let Lord Zhen ask!"

Zhen Shijie waved his hand hurriedly, "No, no, I believe that the Marquis will not deceive His Majesty. I have a portrait here. Lord Yang can check it in the mansion first."

"If there is no, then it may be that someone pretends to be the Marquis of Jing'an and is doing evil outside."

As he said, he took out a portrait from his sleeve and handed it to Yang Zhengshan.

Yang Zhengshan looked at the portrait and suddenly had a bad feeling in his heart.

This portrait looks familiar to him!

It can't really be someone from the family.

"Who is this?"

"I just asked the owner of the bookstore, and the owner said that the customers that day were a master and a servant, both of whom were teenagers in their teens, and they were also regular customers of their bookstore. This is the portrait of the servant." Zhen Shijie said.

Yang Zhengshan's mouth twitched slightly, this might be true.

Since he is a regular customer, it means that he often buys books there, so it is unlikely that he is pretending.

"Lu Shou! Go ask who this is!"

Although he felt familiar, there were so many servants in the Yang family, and he didn't know who some of them followed.

Lu Shou looked at the portrait and hesitated to speak.

"Just say it." Yang Zhengshan said in a deep voice.

Lu Shou said: "My Lord, this is the young master Jiang's side of the year!"

"Young Master Jiang!" Yang Zhengshan was startled, and then his expression became strange, "Jiang Feng!"

"Yes!" Lu Shou said.

Yang Zhengshan's face was dark, "Go and call them over!"

"Yes!"

After Lu Shou left, Yang Zhengshan looked at Zhen Shijie, "Master Zhen, is there some misunderstanding here?"

"Misunderstanding? I don't know what Lord Yang means?" Zhen Shijie asked.

Yang Zhengshan smiled and said, "My grandson is only seven years old this year!"

Jiang Feng is Jiang He's youngest son. He just turned seven this year and is now being enlightened in the Yang family's school.

You said that a seven-year-old child teased a good girl, which is a bit too much.

Zhen Shijie was also stunned, "Not more than ten years old!"

Yang Zhengshan pulled his beard, "My grandson is indeed growing up a little anxiously."

A moment later, Lu Shou came with Jiang Feng and Danian.

"Grandpa! You are looking for me!" Jiang Feng ran to Yang Zhengshan.

Jiang Feng is indeed only seven years old, but he looks much taller than a seven-year-old child.

It is said that nephews take after their uncles. Although Jiang Feng is Jiang He's son, his figure is obviously more like that of the Yang family. Like Yang Mingcheng, he is tall and big, and looks like a child of about eleven or twelve years old.

Yang Zhengshan rubbed his head and asked, "Did you hug a lady in front of the Li Family Bookstore a few days ago?"

"Li Family Bookstore?" Jiang Feng was stunned for a moment, thought about it, and said, "No, I just helped her up when I saw her about to fall."

Yang Zhengshan looked at Jiang Feng. This child has been well-behaved since he was a child. He is not as naughty as Chengyou Chengzhang. If he says he has done anything bad, Yang Zhengshan will not believe it.

And he is only seven years old. Does a seven-year-old child know what teasing is?

Yang Zhengshan looked at Zhen Shijie, who couldn't help but smile and said, "It seems that Zhou Yushi has made a fuss!"

Although the customs of Darong tend to be conservative, they are not so conservative that boys and girls cannot touch each other.

If it is a teenager, there may be some concepts about men and women, but for a seven-year-old child, this matter can only be said to be a misunderstanding.

After the matter was clarified, Zhen Shijie said goodbye, and Yang Zhengshan personally escorted him out of the mansion.

Since it was a misunderstanding, Yang Zhengshan thought that an explanation would be enough, but he never expected that Zhou Ningwei would still not give up. After learning that Jiang Feng was only a seven-year-old child, he submitted another memorial, saying that men and women should not touch each other, which is a courtesy. A seven-year-old child is also a man and has a beast heart.

In the study, Yang Zhengshan looked at the memorial sent by Emperor Yanping again, and his face was a little ugly.

A seven-year-old child helped a ten-year-old child, making it seem as if he had done something bad and corrupted the morals.

Especially this sentence that a seven-year-old child also has a beast heart, damn, isn't this scolding his grandson as a beast?

"Damn, this old-fashioned old man!"

"Go call Wu Zheng over!"

Yang Zhengshan walked out of the study angrily and shouted to Li Chang who was guarding outside the door.

A moment later, Wu Zheng came to the study.

"My Lord!"

Yang Zhengshan said, "Check this Zhou Ningwei to see if he is really honest!"

He didn't know Zhou Ningwei at all. If Zhou Ningwei hadn't impeached him, he wouldn't even know that there was such a city inspector in Kyoto.

If this Zhou Ningwei was just old-fashioned, it would be fine. Yang Zhengshan didn't bother to argue with him.

But if this Zhou Ningwei was a hypocrite, don't blame Yang Zhengshan for being rude.

...

Wu Zheng's ability to do things is naturally needless to say. In less than two days, he checked Zhou Ningwei thoroughly.

"My Lord, this Zhou Ningwei was born in poverty, but he has a large courtyard with three entrances in Dongcheng!"

"And this Zhou Ningwei has four concubines. His little daughter is born to the concubines. She looks pretty, but her temper is a bit willful!"

"That, I heard~~"

Wu Zheng hesitated to speak.

"What did you hear?" Yang Zhengshan glared at him and spoke hesitantly. What did he keep from me in suspense?

Wu Zheng chuckled and said, "I heard that his youngest daughter fell in love with Young Master Jiang."

"..."

Yang Zhengshan's eyes twitched.

"That means they are relying on my grandson!"

Wu Zheng nodded, "It should be. Zhou Ningwei has three daughters. The eldest daughter married the grandson of Shen Ming, the vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, and the second daughter married Yang Pu, the Marquis of Wu Jing, as a concubine! It is said that the Marquis of Wu Jing helped his second daughter unintentionally, so he shamelessly came to the door and said that the Marquis of Wu Jing ruined his daughter's reputation."

Yang Zhengshan completely understood that this was a scam, and Zhou Ningwei was a professional scammer.

The Marquis of Jing'an Mansion still has a good reputation in Kyoto, especially in marriage. Many daughters from powerful and noble official families want to marry into the Marquis of Jing'an Mansion.

Just because the Yang family has the family rule that 'a man can take a concubine only if he is 30 years old and has no children', countless powerful and noble housekeepers and daughters yearn for the Yang family.

Although Jiang Feng is not a descendant of the Yang family, he is the grandson of Yang Zhengshan and has always lived in the Marquis' Mansion, just like the descendants of the Yang family.

Zhou Ningwei probably mistakenly thought that Jiang Feng was the grandson of Yang Zhengshan.

In Yang Zhengshan's eyes, grandsons and grandsons are the same, but in the eyes of outsiders, there is still a difference between grandsons and grandsons.

The biggest difference is that one is surnamed Yang and the other is surnamed Jiang.

Zhou Ningwei wants to marry into the Yang family, but the Yang family definitely looks down on them. Yang Zhengshan looks down on the Zhou family's family style.

"This dog official is too rude!" Yang Zhengshan was so angry that he laughed.

"Marquis, do you want to punish him?" Wu Zheng asked.

Yang Zhengshan looked at him curiously, "How to punish?"

Wu Zheng chuckled, "There are many ways in the underworld, such as arranging a fire pit!"

"What is arranging a fire pit?" Yang Zhengshan didn't understand these.

Wu Zheng explained: "It's just to find a woman to seduce him, and then let the woman's husband catch him in bed!"

Yang Zhengshan raised his eyebrows. Isn't this a trap?

"Will he be fooled?"

Wu Zheng said, "Zhou Ningwei is extremely lustful and often hangs out in the red-light district."

Yang Zhengshan stroked his beard and thought, "To deal with him, we must make him lose his reputation!"

Damn it, you dare to disgust me, do you really think I am easy to mess with?

"You go and make arrangements, and then make a bigger fuss, and it's best to let everyone in the capital know about it."

Wu Zheng smiled a little evilly, "My Lord, just wait and see!"

What has Wu Zheng been doing these years?

Helping Yang Zhengshan collect all kinds of information.

In the past, Wu Zheng mainly targeted the court, but in recent years, because Yang Zhengshan came to Kyoto, his focus on collecting information has been on all kinds of gossip.

To collect gossip, you naturally have to deal with all kinds of people.

In Kyoto, all those people who meet Wu Zheng respectfully call him Master Wu.

It is a face-saving thing to be able to call Wu Zheng Master.

What is Master Wu's identity?

One of the guards of Jing'an Marquis's Mansion, a ninth-rank warrior.

The former identity represents that Master Wu has a backer, and the latter identity represents that Master Wu has strength.

In the eyes of those people, Master Wu is definitely a big shot, no worse than those officials in the government office.

Master Wu asked you to do something, that means he thinks highly of you.

…

After receiving Yang Zhengshan's order, Wu Zheng immediately came to an underground gambling house in the southern city of Kyoto.

The manager of the gambling house, Liu Dashan, saw Wu Zheng and his eyes lit up.

"Master Wu, oh, what wind brought Master Wu here, please come in!"

Liu Dashan grinned with a mouthful of yellow teeth and greeted him with a flattering smile.

This Liu Dashan is a big shot in the Kyoto world. He has several gambling houses and brothels and hundreds of brothers.

Of course, he also has a backer.

Wu Zheng is not sure who his backer is, but it should be an official in Shuntian Prefecture.

His official position will not be too high. After all, although gambling houses and brothels make money quickly, they are not high-end places. The powerful and the officials look down on these places.

Wu Zheng has only met Liu Dashan a few times, but his brothers are very familiar with Liu Dashan.

His brothers are naturally the guards of the Yang family.

If this matter was not ordered by Yang Zhengshan, he would not come here in person, and let his brothers run a trip.

Wu Zheng nodded calmly, "I have something to ask you to do, find a quiet place!"

The underground gambling house is full of smoke and Wu Zheng doesn't like it.

"Please come, Master Wu!" Liu Dashan hurriedly invited Wu Zheng to the small courtyard behind the gambling house.

"Hurry up and serve tea to Master Wu!"

In the main hall, Liu Dashan kicked the younger brother next to him, who shuddered and hurried to make tea for Wu Zheng.

When the tea came, Liu Dashan bared his yellow teeth, "What does Master Wu want?"

Wu Zheng took a sip of the tea and put it down.

This tea is too bad and not to his taste.

Master Wu usually drinks Donglingchun tea. Not to mention ordinary tea leaves, even imperial tea is just so-so in his eyes.

"Do you know Zhou Ningwei?"

"Zhou Ningwei, the patrol censor of our South City?" Liu Dashan said.

There are five patrol censors in Kyoto, divided into five cities: East, West, North, and Central.

Wu Zheng nodded, "Prepare him a set of fire storage, make a big fuss, and it's best if the whole city knows about it."

"This~~" Liu Dashan hesitated.

Although Master Wu is powerful, this patrol censor is not easy to mess with. If you are not careful, it will cost someone's life.

Wu Zheng glanced at him, "Don't worry, nothing will happen!"

Liu Dashan heard this and was relieved, "With Master Wu's words, I feel relieved!"

Wu Zheng nodded, then took out a small porcelain bottle and put it on the table, "This is the bone-strengthening pill from the Imperial Hospital, it's your reward!"

After that, he got up and left.

Liu Dashan picked up the small porcelain bottle and chased Wu Zheng with a smile on his face, "I'll give it to Master Wu!"

Although the bone-strengthening pill is an ordinary pill, it is not something that ordinary warriors can buy.

How much money you spend is just a small matter, the key is whether there is a channel.

In Yang Zhengshan's hands, this bone-strengthening pill is rubbish, but in Liu Dashan's eyes, this bone-strengthening pill is a rare treasure.

After sending Wu Zheng away, Liu Dashan looked at the bone-strengthening pill in his hand and thought about it, then he went out and came to the door of a mansion.

In the mansion, he met Zhuang Feiyu, the Tongpan of Shuntian Prefecture.

Zhuang Feiyu is one of the six Tongpans of Shuntian Prefecture, in charge of the patrol in the city.

Liu Dashan reported Wu Zheng's order to Zhuang Feiyu in detail.

In the study, Zhuang Feiyu, who was in his forties, thought to himself, "What a cruel method!"

If this happened to other people, it would ruin their reputation, but it would not be fatal.

But if it happened to a censor, and it was known to the whole city, it would be an extremely bad thing.

The censors of the Censorate have always claimed to be clean and upright, and they are also responsible for inspecting all officials. If they lose their morals, the result can be imagined.

Being ridiculed is inevitable, and they will also be demoted.

Zhuang Feiyu knew why the Jing'an Marquis' Mansion targeted Zhou Ningwei, because he was the one who investigated the case of Jiang Feng molesting a good girl.

But he still underestimated Yang Zhengshan's cruelty.

Yang Zhengshan wanted to ruin Zhou Ningwei's reputation.

What Liu Dashan did could only ruin Zhou Ningwei's reputation, but it could not make Zhou Ningwei lose his job and fame.

"Sir, do you want to do this?" Liu Dashan asked cautiously.

Zhuang Feiyu glanced at him, "Do you dare not do it?"

Liu Dashan smiled awkwardly, "I dare not, let alone Jing'an Marquis Mansion, even if it is Master Wu, I can't afford to offend him!"

"Then hurry up and do it!" Zhuang Feiyu said unhappily.

You can't afford to offend Jing'an Marquis Mansion, but I can?

"Yes, yes, I'll do it right away!"

Liu Dashan hurriedly left the study.