Ming Dynasty: At the beginning of the game, Lao Zhu resigned and retired.

Some things can only be said to friends;

There are some things that can only be said to elders;

There are some things that can only be said to your own wife...

But at least Xie Jin felt that there were some things that he had been holding in his heart for a long time, and now that he met Master Hu, he could finally talk about them.

Only in front of Master Hu did he not care about being embarrassed or whether his words were stupid.

In front of other people, he still has some of the baggage of a child prodigy.

No matter what, you have to pay attention to your image.

But in front of Master Hu, I have completely lost my image.

In terms of talent, ability, vision and every aspect, Master Hu is much better than him.

The key point is that Master Hu is now outside the Three Realms and not in the Five Elements, so he is not involved in the court struggles at all.

This is even better.

Just then, Shopkeeper Biao strode in carrying a large black iron pot.

"Hey, everyone, here we come!"

"Come on, let's put the stove on first!"

"Okay, enjoy your meal. I've warmed up the wine for you. Please take your time to drink and eat. There's no rush!"

"If you need anything, call me. I'm next door!"

Manager Biao is indeed a smart man. Look at the arrangements he has made. He has a clear plan for advance and retreat.

He is obviously a man from Northeast China, but he manages this place in a way that he doesn't look like a Northeastern Chinese at all.

As soon as Manager Biao left, Master Hu impatiently picked up a piece of pickled cabbage and a large piece of meat for his daughter.

"Come on, girl, try it. Eat the pickled cabbage together with the meat."

"Try the taste now, it will taste even better after it stews a little bit!"

"Let's just eat slowly, there's no rush!"

The little girl is also a carnivore. Seeing these large pieces of meat is so beautiful.

Without even thinking, he opened his mouth and stuffed it in.

After chewing it twice, her big eyes began to light up, and she started yelling before she even swallowed the meat in her mouth.

"Daddy, this meat is so delicious!"

Master Hu smiled and rubbed the other person's little head.

"It's delicious, so let's just eat it slowly!"

"No hurry, look, there are so many, we can eat to our heart's content today!"

"Mmmmm, Daddy, you eat too!"

The little girl is really Mr. Hu's sweetheart. Even when she comes across her favorite food, she still remembers to greet Mr. Hu.

Hearing the maid's greeting, Master Hu felt a lot warmer in his heart.

As the fire slowly cooked the big pot of sauerkraut and pork, bubbling, a strong smell of sauerkraut mixed with the aroma of meat began to rise in the room along with bursts of milky white steam.

After eating several mouthfuls, Mr. Hu felt that he had finally tasted authentic Northeastern cuisine. He first wiped the mouth of his little girl, and then took a sip from the wine glass.

After Master Hu had finished everything, Xie Jin finally spoke.

"Mr. Hu, what do you think my future path should be?"

"This incident really scared me!"

"Ok?"

Master Hu looked at Xie Jin, who had a nervous look on his face and none of his usual playful and angry self, and a question mark popped up in his mind.

"Isn't it just a petition filed under your name? Why did it scare you like this?"

"There are many ways to cheat people in the officialdom, so what does this mean?"

Xie Jin smiled bitterly and drank the wine in the glass in one gulp. He sighed and then continued.

"Master Hu, my father is also a government official. I have been exposed to the cruelty of government struggles since I was a child."

"But it doesn't matter, it doesn't scare me!"

"Everyone is competing for interests, so even if it's frame-up or something like that, as long as the bottom line is low enough, they can still do it."

"But what really scared me this time was that the person who helped me pass on the fake letter was an old servant I brought from my hometown!"

When Xie Jin said this, he poured himself another cup, drank it all in one gulp, then poured again and drank again.

After drinking three cups in a row, Xie Jin looked at Master Hu with his eyes flushed.

"Mr. Hu, can you imagine how I felt at that time?"

"That's an old servant who has taken care of me for ten years and stayed in my house for twenty years!"

"In the end, I was arranged by an outsider with just one word, and then I was sold out!"

"At that time I...ha..."

Please...collect 6_9_book_bar (Six//Nine//Book//bar)

Xie Jin hadn't finished his words, but when Master Hu looked at him, he somewhat understood why he behaved that way.

Obviously, for Xie Jin, his greatest fear comes from the betrayal of those around him.

Although Xie Jin knew that the officialdom was corrupt, he did not expect it to be so corrupt.

This is really omnipresent.

You know, in this era, the old servant who has been in the Xie family for twenty years, as mentioned by Xie Jin just now, is the kind of person who truly shares the honor and disgrace, life and death with the Xie family.

Moreover, according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, slaves who had signed death indentures were the property of their masters, and if they were beaten to death, they only had to be reported and fined.

But the result?

Such a person betrayed!

It would be strange if Xie Jin, a newbie in the officialdom, could tolerate this.

Master Hu did not answer Xie Jin's question immediately. Instead, he took a big bite of meat, swallowed it carefully, wiped his mouth, and then answered slowly.

"What you just said is bullshit!"

"Hmm? Mr. Hu, what do you mean by that?"

Being scolded by Master Hu was a perfectly normal thing for Xie Jin.

What he cares about is why he was scolded.

Or in other words, where exactly did I go wrong?

Master Hu glanced at him and said unhappily.

"You just kept saying that you have known since childhood that the officialdom is a cannibalistic place, where all that matters is interests and calculations."

"But actually?"

"Aren't you actually frightened?"

"Think about it carefully. Last time, I explained the conflict of interest here to you and Xiao Fang very clearly, right?"

"On one side is His Majesty who wants to enforce the imperial power, and on the other side is the Jiangnan family who wants to protect their own interests."

"Each side is a behemoth here, involving tens of millions of people and their interests."

"With such a big piece of fat meat here, do you think the two sides will be gentle and polite in the fight for it?"

"Do you think they will treat you well, me well, and everyone well?"

"That's why I said you were talking nonsense!"

"You don't realize at all that these two sides have already reached a life-and-death situation."

"Since you can't even save your own life and property, what does it matter if you use ruthless means?"

After Master Hu's explanation, Xie Jin was completely silent.

He stared blankly at the wine glass in his hand, his eyes full of confusion.

So I'm the fool?