Domineering Daming

The three of them were startled, who would come so late.But soon the three of them fell silent. No matter who came, it might not be a good thing.

Zhou Yingqiu thought for a while, then said: "Please come to my study."

Mrs. Zhou was startled, and quickly stopped her and said, "Master, it's so late, it's better not to see you."

Zhou Yingqiu shook his head, his face became a little more serious and he said: "The visitor is not kind, you can't avoid it." After speaking, he strode out of the gazebo and walked towards the study.

When they arrived at the study room, they were surprised to see Zhou Yingqiu, the late-night visitor, and quickly stepped forward to pay homage: "I pay my respects to Mr. Gu Ge."

The person who came was Gu Bingqian, the elder of the cabinet!

Gu Bingqian took a few steps to help Zhou Yingqiu, looked him up and said with a smile, "Master Zhou, didn't you expect that?"

Zhou Yingqiu's heart turned when he saw Gu Bingqian, but his face remained motionless and he said, "Mr. Gu Ge came to visit late at night, and I am very flattered."

Gu Bingqian looked at Zhou Yingqiu, waved his hands in a kind and generous manner like an elder, and said: "Master Zhou, don't be nervous, this cabinet department is here to ask for advice."

Zhou Yingqiu naturally knew about the relationship between Gu Bingqian and Wei Zhongxian, and probably guessed his purpose this time, but he still put on a show, and said in a sincere and fearful manner: "Ge Laozhe has been dismissed from office, if you have any orders, just speak up."

Gu Bingqian's smile became more and more amiable, and he said: "Your Majesty Zhou doesn't need to be courteous, and the cabinet doesn't go around around the corner. As long as Master Zhou tells me who the big Buddha behind you is, the Minister of the Ministry of Industry must be Master Zhou."

Zhou Yingqiu's expression remained unchanged, he thought about it for a while, and said, "Mr. Gu Ge, you will not be involved in this matter."

Gu Bingqian narrowed his eyes, smiled more and more, and said for a moment of silence: "If Mr. Zhou can help thread the needle, I will give you a hundred acres of fertile land in this pavilion."

Zhou Yingqiu bowed slightly, lowered his head, hiding his expression.

This Gu Bingqian was at the center of the cabinet. Although he also participated in the struggle between the two parties, he stood tall and looked far. After calming down for a while, he might have seen some flaws in him.

Zhou Yingqiu didn't feel that he was the opponent of Gu Bingqian, an old fox, so he said a little more carefully: "Gu Ge is really insightful, why don't you go to Mr. Fu?"

When Gu Bingqian heard this, the smile in his eyes grew stronger, as if he was sure of winning, he said: "Master Fu is too intrusive, but Master Zhou seems to be wandering away all the time, no one cares."

Zhou Yingqiu knew that Gu Bingqian might have guessed something, but he couldn't be sure. In other words, he couldn't find a suitable person to ask.

Zhou Yingqiu pondered for a while, and said: "I don't know what is Gu Ge's nomination certificate?"

Gu Bingqian was very familiar with these things, and the creases on his old face seemed to melt away with a smile: "Master Zhou, don't worry, as long as you see the real Buddha, there must be enough money for sesame oil in this pavilion."

Zhou Yingqiu nodded and said: "Very well, I will walk around for the old man tomorrow, and I can't guarantee success or failure."

Gu Bingqian, as the elder of the pavilion, will soon become the second assistant, so he still has some confidence. He smiled and said: "Master Zhou, if you have anything to do in the future, just come to my house."

Zhou Yingqiu always responded calmly, until he sent Gu Bingqian away, he stood at the door, looking at the dark sky with a strange expression, and said to himself: "This old Gu Ge's posture today is really to seek asylum. Is it?"

Chapter 173 Sun Chengzong returns to Beijing

"It's snowing again."

Yao Qingqing stood in front of the stairs with a broom, looked at the snowflakes falling all over the sky, and said with a light smile.

Zhu Xu sat on the recliner, with a steaming tea set on his left, looked at the falling snowflakes and laughed, "It's so white, it's so clean."

Yao Qingqing naturally didn't understand the meaning of Zhu Xu's words, and chatted while sweeping the snow on the steps: "Your Highness, I heard that your majesty is ill."

Zhu Xu's expression changed, he nodded and said, "Well, it's all right, I just caught a cold."

In fact, Queen Zhang did not catch a cold, but a postpartum sequelae.This kind of sequelae does not appear all at once, and can only be discovered and endured slowly in the years to come.

It was snowing heavily, but there wasn't a lot of snow. Yao Qing cleaned it up relatively easily, and said, "The emperor is also sick. This time it seems to be very serious. Your empress is very worried."

Zhu Xu picked up the teacup and sighed silently.

Zhu Youxiao passed on Zhang Yanyao's abnormal love for Ke Shi, squandering his body recklessly, so that the small snake venom turned into a curse poison, which was so serious that it was difficult to control.

Yao Qingqing also knew that such a topic could only be mentioned casually, and soon they chatted about other things.

After a while, Cao Huachun and Cao Wenzhao walked over from outside, while patting the snow on their bodies, they bowed and said, "Your Highness."

Zhu Xu glanced at the two of them, and said with a smile, "How is it, what's going on outside?"

Cao Wenzhao straightened his clothes and said with a smile: "Your Highness, there are indeed. I heard that many people from the Eunuch Party have recently submitted a letter to resign, and many people from the Donglin Party have entered Beijing at this time."

Zhu Xu also laughed when he heard it. The so-called ebb and flow is nothing more than that.

Cao Huachun glanced at Yao Qingqing who was not far away, approached and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, I heard that King Xin has submitted more than a dozen petitions, and he seems to want to seal them as soon as possible."

Zhu Xu didn't expect this, he handed the two of them a cup of tea, wrapped his clothes again and said, "Well, but Brother Huang won't let him go, most likely he's just confined in the palace."

Cao Wenzhao also agreed, saying: "Your Highness's prediction should be correct. It has been three days, and the emperor still has not issued an order to dispose of Wei Zhongxian. He should still be hesitant."

Zhu Xu took a sip of tea, and said: "Well, I asked Gu Bingqian to write a letter to the emperor, and gave him the steps to postpone the disposal."

The two Caos were startled and looked at each other, and it was Cao Wenzhao who said in a puzzled tone, "Your Highness, why do you always... show mercy to this Wei Zhongxian?"

Zhu Xu took a piece of dim sum and stuffed it into his mouth, and smiled vaguely: "You want to ask, why am I always so soft-hearted towards Wei Zhongxian?"

Zhu Xu repeatedly suppressed Wei Zhongxian, but each time he was merciful and spared his life.Cao Huachun and Cao Wenzhao nodded at the same time, looking at Zhu Xu curiously.

Zhu Xu took another sip of tea, and said slowly, "Because it will be of great use for me to keep him."

Both of them were taken aback: "Useful?"

Zhu Xu didn't explain much, and changed the subject: "I heard that Lord Sun is back?"

Seeing that Zhu Xu refused to say more, Cao Huachun had no choice but to follow Zhu Xu's words: "Yes, it is said that the emperor intends to keep Mr. Sun."

Zhu Xu sat there, his expression still, but he sighed again in his heart.

Although Wei Zhongxian has fallen, some things still happen as usual.Sun Chengzong left Liaodong, and his successor would inevitably be a member of the Donglin Party.Now the mainstream idea of ​​the Donglin Party is to withdraw the army and civilians from Liaodong and stick to Shanhaiguan.

In this way, Ming Ting and Hou Jin will completely switch offense and defense. Strategically, they have already failed and can only wait to be beaten.

Cao Wenzhao saw that Zhu Xu didn't speak, so he said again: "Your Highness, Gu Bingqian, are you just letting him go like this? He will be promoted to chief assistant soon."

Zhu Xu sneered and said, "This shameless old man still wants to cooperate with me. He really looks down on me. Use it when you can use it, and let him fend for himself when he doesn't use it."

The two Caos were too shy to compliment Gu Bingqian's character, and they both nodded upon hearing this.

Zhu Xu didn't want to pay attention to Gu Bingqian who didn't understand the situation at all, so he turned his head to look at the two of them and said, "How is Master Yang?"

Cao Wenzhao bowed slightly, and said, "Your Highness, Lord Yang is very proud of the spring breeze. It is said that there are many horses and horses in front of the gate, and it is very lively, and it is very likely that he will be promoted to Yushi of Youdu soon."

Yang Lian's official promotion was fast enough, he was promoted to three ranks within a year, and he was not far away from joining the cabinet.

Zhu Xu also knew that, as the only remaining veteran of the Donglin Party, it was normal for Yang Lian to be promoted to this position.

However, the Donglin Party is now clinging to King Xin and Wei Zhongxian, and the ruling and opposition parties have even affected the entire Ming Dynasty. Even the generals at the border have written letters one after another. If this continues, it may be the beginning of a new round of strife.