Promotion Letter for the Chief Executive

Of course, it is just an exaggeration to say that there is no food available on Dongnan Road.After all, after so many years of accumulation, it can still last for a while.It's just that it's absolutely impossible to last a whole year, or even if it lasts, it will hurt your muscles and bones, and it will take longer to recover, so you need to ask the court for help.

In fact, from the moment he sent people out, King Qi had already started to feel uneasy.

He always felt that these few ideas given to him by Ping An back then might be waiting for today.But what to do?It was because he didn't consider the consequences and used the method given by Ping An, so naturally he could only swallow the bitter fruit.After all, he knew from the beginning that Ping An was on Zhao Can's side.It's just a fluke mentality.

King Qi met this nephew and knew that Zhao Can was not the kind of soft-hearted emperor.It's just that when the person I sent sent a letter back saying that Zhao Can hadn't seen anyone at all, I was still a little flustered.

As the number one counselor, Cui Yujun naturally had to give King Qi an idea at this time, so that he might as well secretly send people out to buy food, reluctantly insist on it, and wait for the opinion of the capital.However, King Qi seemed to wake up suddenly at this time.He realized that even if he did this, he would definitely not be able to buy food.

Zhao Can started planning a few years ago, but now, how could there be such a loophole?

After hesitating for two days, he finally gritted his teeth and decided, "Go to the capital alone!"

"My lord!" Cui Yujun turned pale with shock.

Ever since Prince Qi's family was dispatched to Luozhou to guard the ancestral mausoleum, they never returned to the capital.In the beginning, it was a kind of punishment and disregard for them in the capital, but later on, it became a kind of pride of Prince Qi's mansion - among so many clans, only their clan has the most special status, occupying all the way , There is no need to be afraid of the court at all.

And now, King Qi actually took the initiative to go to the capital?

"You don't have to persuade Gu." Qi Wang waved his hand, "Gu's mind has been decided. You can't wait for the people in the southeast to sit quietly at the gate of Qi Wang's mansion before trying to figure it out."

Although King Qi seemed a little naive in some matters, and spent a lot of money on weekdays, his desire to develop Southeast was also very sincere.He doesn't have too much ambition, he just hopes that he can manage the southeast better, so that the imperial court can't intervene, and let the world know the capabilities of King Qi's family.

This idea has been passed down from generation to generation, and it is almost becoming the obsession of their lineage.And Prince Qi's Mansion has long regarded the southeast as its own territory, and the people in this land are naturally its own people.

It has to be said that Prince Qi's Mansion has actually done a pretty good job on this.At least most of the people in the southeast recognized Qi Wangfu very much, otherwise, Qi Wang would not have such confidence.

That being the case, it is King Qi's responsibility to make these people live well.

It was precisely for this purpose that he adopted Ping An's suggestion.But now, the southeast is indeed beginning to get richer, but even greater hidden dangers have emerged.So far, no matter whether this is a safe strategy or an accident, there is no other way but to bow to the court.

King Qi was straightforward, since they all wanted to bow their heads, what's the difference between sending someone and going in person?Anyway, they are all faceless.

And if he was present, Zhao Can couldn't do too much.If you just send someone there, it would be good to be treated coldly like now.

Cui Yujun frowned, "Even so, the lord doesn't need to go in person, it's better to let the officials go first, inquire about the news, and then make plans." He said and looked at King Qi, "Your lord, it's easy to go to the capital, and then you can go to the capital." It will be difficult to come back."

For so many years, the capital side has been waiting for an opportunity to get them back so that Southeast can be in their hands again.If the king of Qi took the initiative to send it to the door now, how could the emperor miss such a good opportunity?

Why is King Qi not aware of this?But he knew better that there was no other way.

……

When Zhao Can received the news that King Qi was coming in the capital, he smiled at Ping An, "It's done."

"So confident?" Ping An asked.

Zhao Can slightly raised his eyebrows. With King Qi's temperament, he was willing to take the initiative to come to the capital, so he must be submissive. How could he not have confidence?It's just, "It's a bit difficult for him to be so sensible." He frowned.

Ping An knew what he meant.This round was originally intended to weaken the power of the Qi Palace and bring the southeast back under the control of the imperial court.It was very smooth before, but now that King Qi has given in to this softness, Zhao Can will inevitably have to be a little scrupulous when he makes a move. He can't be too strong, otherwise it is very likely that people will think that the emperor has no benevolence and righteousness, and he, the emperor, is ruthless. point.

After all, strictly speaking, Prince Qi's Mansion did not do anything excessive. The situation before became like that, but it was the result of the connivance of the royal family.And now that King Qi is so knowledgeable, everyone in the world will stand on the weaker side.Besides, King Qi is still an elder in terms of status, so he caused too much trouble, and his reputation is not good when it spreads.

With all these things, Zhao Can couldn't help wondering whether King Qi had already guessed what he meant, so he came here to show weakness?

It's not impossible.Although he looked at it and always felt that King Qi was not so smart, otherwise he wouldn't have fallen to this point, but he couldn't deny that the other party might be smart once.After all, that is also the royal family member who is related to him by blood, who rolled over in Vanity Fair with the glory of the royal family surnamed Zhao.

"It's nothing," Ping An said. "If he is really sensible, we can avoid a lot of trouble. Some methods are different after they are used."

Although after thousands of years, someone will judge his merits and demerits, as long as Zhao Can is good enough, even some flaws on his body will not affect his achievements, but the reputation of killing relatives is really too bad.Zhao Can can tolerate even those brothers who once wanted his life, so naturally there is no need to do anything to King Qi.

After all, King Qi hadn't done anything after all, and from Ping'an's point of view, regardless of his other aspects, he was still qualified in governing the southeast.At least it didn't make the local people need the court to clean up the mess.

In fact, Ping An also thought that if King Qi really had the ability to govern a place, it might be possible to entrust him with some tasks.It can be regarded as a share of Zhao Can's worries.

It's just that it's not suitable to mention this matter to Zhao Can.Because for the emperor, the first thing to guard against is his own clan.Because others want to overthrow him, they can still be called treason and usurped the throne, but if it is also a person with the surname Zhao, the situation is quite different.

The word "orthodox" can sometimes be very clear and clear, but sometimes it can become very vague, depending on what is needed.

Since Ping An knew that it was Zhao Can's bottom line, he naturally wouldn't bring it up lightly.

"Okay, just as you said." Zhao Can thought for a while and said, "If he cooperates actively, we can indeed save a lot of trouble."

Because both sides were well prepared, after King Qi really came to the capital, the contact between the two sides was almost without fireworks.Both of them roughly know each other's bottom line, and it doesn't take much effort to test it.

At the very beginning of the negotiation, King Qi directly offered the conditions he could accept, "I will not interfere in Southeast's affairs in the future."

His idea is very simple, if he doesn't care about it, the imperial court will naturally have to take over the southeast.You don't need to mention other conditions by yourself, they will definitely be fulfilled here.After all, when the time comes, the people in the southeast will also be Zhao Can's people, so he can't ignore them.

So he just needs to show that attitude.

But that's just the beginning.Because Zhao Can obviously wouldn't be satisfied with this, he quickly put forward his own request, "The Qi Palace will move back to live in the capital."

This is to completely separate Qi Wangfu from Southeast.

After all, even with the guarantee of King Qi, there is a saying that "the emperor is far away from the high mountains". If King Qi continues to live in the southeast, it is hard to say whether he will intervene in the affairs there.Zhao Can can't do anything here, and it's easy to be taken advantage of.

In addition, Prince Qi's Mansion has been run for generations in the southeast, so there are naturally some loyal confidants.And Ping An asked King Qi to hand over this power completely.

It's not that he is so afraid. After all, when he was in Luozhou, he had already tried it out. There should be a very powerful person in the Qi Palace.But what he needs is such an attitude, which shows that the Qi Palace has completely surrendered to him.

Even though he had been prepared for a long time, the king of Qi did not expect Zhao Can to be so sharp, and immediately offered two conditions that he was not willing to agree to at all.

"Too much deceit!" He yelled in front of the decree official, "It is absolutely impossible for Gu to agree to these two reasons!"

King Qi didn't like Zhao Can before, and now he hates it even more.

He originally thought that this matter would be over if he showed weakness, but he never expected that Zhao Can would come up with such a condition, pinching his weakness and putting him in a dilemma.

Cui Yujun frowned, "Your Majesty, I have said before that the attitude of the imperial court is not clear, and we must not act too weak, lest we be despised by them. Now I am right. Your Majesty is not negotiating, he is clearly insulting me." Prince Qi's Mansion!"

"I don't know!" King Qi looked at him distractedly, "But we have no other choice, what should we do now?"

"Or... delay?" Cui Yujun said, "I have also inquired in the capital for the past few days. It turns out that the current situation in the court is not optimistic. Even if you agree to their request, Wang Ye, they may not agree Bring us some food!"

"What?" King Qi was shocked, "Tell me carefully, what is going on?"

Cui Yujun then told the news he found out.There was a famine this year, and there was another accident in the south of the Yangtze River, so most of the imperial court's current grain storage was transferred to the south of the Yangtze River, and there was no surplus food for the southeast.What's more, the people of Dachu will also have to eat in the future, so where will the food come from?

"The imperial court's current grain storage will never last until next summer's harvest." Cui Yujun said, "Even if we show weakness, they won't be able to produce grain. Your lord, please think again!"

Hearing this, King Qi staggered back a few steps, staring at him with a pale face, the long red hem of his clothes dragging on the ground, like a cripple lying on the ground after a storm.He murmured, "How could this be...how could it be...?"

"Therefore, please think again, the prince, the court's conditions must not be agreed!" Cui Yujun hastily said loudly.

However, King Qi's reaction was completely different from what he thought.He shook his head quickly, "No, no... This matter can't be dragged on any longer."

"My lord?" Cui Yujun was puzzled.

At this time, King Qi finally recovered from his senses, and the expression on his face changed from dazed to determined, "The matter cannot be delayed any longer. We must settle the matter when the court still has food in stock, and watch the food arrive at the gate with our own eyes. Go southwest! If it drags on, the people in the southeast will have no way out!"

Cui Yujun was stunned.He didn't expect that after persuading him for a long time, it actually made King Qi's mind more firm.It's just that it's impossible for him to say the words that ordinary people want him to die, so he has no choice but to remain silent, using this method to express his disapproval.

But King Qi couldn't care about his attitude anymore, he turned around and went out. He was going to see Zhao Can and explain his attitude to him. It would be best to have food shipped to the southeast tomorrow!

Zhao Canting said that King Qi asked to see him, but he was also full of puzzlement.After all, King Qi had been avoiding meeting him face-to-face during this period of time—Zhao Can somewhat understood his mentality, and it was nothing more than feeling ashamed to bow his head in front of him.So I have been dealing with officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Households.

It is indeed very surprising to come here so suddenly.

After King Qi was invited in, his attitude was not as unruly as before. Although there was still some discomfort in his expression, there was no doubt that he bowed his head.Zhao Can didn't know why this change happened, but there was no doubt that it was beneficial to them.

So he winked at Zhang Dongyuan, motioning for him to take someone away.After all, it is best not to have outsiders present for the next thing to say, lest King Qi feel embarrassing.

After everyone had gone out, he said, "Uncle Qi is in such a hurry to enter the palace, but what's the matter?"

King Qi stared at Zhao Can without saying a word, as if he wanted to see something from him.

It was only then that Zhao Can noticed that King Qi, who had always been very concerned about his image, looked a little embarrassed now.His clothes were wrinkled and his temple hair was slightly disheveled. It was obvious that something happened and he hesitated.

"if……"

"I agree to all your conditions." He was about to speak when he was interrupted by King Qi, "I will stay in the capital, and we will also leave all our manpower in the southeast to you."

After saying this, he suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, as if he had finally broken free from some kind of shackles. Although his face was pale, his eyes gradually calmed down. He looked at Zhao Can, "But tomorrow I will see Grain truck heading to the southeast!"

In the blink of an eye, Zhao Can suddenly understood what was going on.I am afraid that King Qi made such a compromise because he knew the current situation of the court, in order to obtain enough food for the southeast.

For a moment, Zhao Can felt a little uneasy.

He remembered Ping'an's evaluation of Qi Wang, saying that although he looked like a complete dude, he would really consider the people in the southeast, and he had been doing so.It shows that there are merits in him, and if it is used correctly, it may also be beneficial to Zhao Can.

Zhao Can didn't take it seriously at the time, after all, with the extravagance of the Qi Palace, where did the money come from?It's nothing more than people's fat and people's ointment.In addition to disapproving, he also felt annoyed that Ping An would say good things for King Qi, so King Qi was even more disdainful.

But now he doesn't think so.

"Okay." Zhao Can nodded in response, "I believe that Uncle Qi Wang will not regret making this decision."

"Then I will take my leave first." King Qi said stiffly with his back straight.After finishing speaking, without waiting for Zhao Can's reaction, he turned and left.

Zhao Can stared at his back, thinking for a moment, Zhang Dongyuan and Ping An came in from outside, Ping An asked, "I don't think King Qi's complexion is very good, what did you say?"

"He said he would agree to our terms." Zhao Can couldn't help shaking his head as he spoke, "I never would have imagined that this matter would go so smoothly." He thought it would take a few months.

However, although the king of Qi has already agreed to this matter, in fact, it is not a one-off thing to really take over the southeast.It will take at least two or three years for a smooth transition.Fortunately, now that the court has the food that the people in the southeast want most, and King Qi has actively cooperated, it will be easier for them to return to their hearts.

Zhao Can quickly called the chief executives over to discuss this matter. The next matter will naturally be handled according to formal procedures. He only needs to keep an eye on it a little bit.

After the discussion was over, Ping An came over and asked him, "Fenglou, how do you plan to arrange King Qi?"

"How to arrange it?" Zhao Can was a little surprised, "Reward some mansions and fields, just like other royal family members." He paused, and then asked, "Do you have other ideas?" Although it was a question, but He used an affirmative tone.

"Well." Ping An said, "You should also know that when the first emperor was here, I mentioned that we should organize people who are good at the royal family, let them use their strengths, and write a book about it. .

"Write a book and talk about it?" Zhao Can raised her eyebrows slightly, "Do you think they can do it?"

"Of course." Ping An nodded affirmatively, "In fact, a truly powerful era requires not only martial arts and martial arts, but also many other aspects. The basic necessities of life in this era, banquets and entertainment, and even the production of acrobatics... All these things that are denounced by orthodox scholars as "doing nothing" are the flesh and blood and pulse of an era, making it appear real."

And when it's the turn of these eating, drinking and having fun, who else is better at it than these clans and royals who take this as their life goal?

Because they were feared by the emperor, they could not join the army, become officials, or even do business. The imperial court would distribute money and food to support them.

If you have money and leisure, don't you have to find some fun for yourself?This kind of fun had to be something that the emperor would not be afraid of, so naturally it could only be the luxury food and clothing that people can enjoy, or the opera, acrobatics and those "uncanny skills and obscene" fine things that are disdained by the mainstream.

Although these things were mentioned from time to time in previous books, the book on the formation of the system obviously did not.And the people who were organized in the library before Ping An obviously wouldn't do these things.Because fundamentally, they don't admit that these things can be passed on like "sage words".

So Ping An simply set up another team to do this.It should be noted that playing to the extreme is also a very remarkable skill.Although those self-proclaimed orthodox scholars look down on these things, they don't find it a problem to enjoy them on weekdays.

Besides, the imperial court has to spend money to support them anyway, so if they find something to do for them, the money is not wasted.

Zhao Can has nothing to do with this, just as Pingan said, it's not bad to find something for these people to do, lest they have any thoughts.He thought for a while and said, "You want King Qi to take the lead in this matter?"

"I haven't seen anyone who is more proficient than King Qi in this aspect. But if you have one, it doesn't matter if you replace it with someone else." Ping An said.

"That's all, that's it." Zhao Can thought for a while, shook his head and said, "Do as you want."

"Then I'll go talk to King Qi?" Ping An asked tentatively.He had already noticed it before, and Zhao Can seemed a little unhappy about speaking for King Qi. ——Speaking of which, since he became emperor, Zhao Can's heart seems to have become smaller and smaller, and he can feel unhappy if he just says a word to others.

However, this time Zhao Can did not show displeasure, but said, "Let's go in a few days, wait for him to recover."

Pingan thinks it makes sense. At this time, King Qi has just handed over the hard work of several generations of management to the court. Although he has prepared for it, it is still as painful as cutting flesh, right?Talking to him at this time would undoubtedly make things worse, and maybe it would make him feel that Zhao Can was going to continue to insult him!

"I see." He nodded and said, "Now that the problems in Jiangnan and Southeast have been solved, can our improved grain be distributed?" If we act quickly at this moment, some places in Jiangnan can still receive more. One season of crops can somewhat relieve the situation. "

Zhao Can pondered for a moment, then said, "That's fine, it's not too late for this matter. Zhang Dongyuan!"

"The slave is here."

"You have always been in charge of this matter, so let's leave it to you this time." Zhao Can said.

Zhang Dongyuan knelt down excitedly to thank him.He knew what Zhao Can meant. His current position was originally intended to be reserved for Ping An, but it was just for him to make a transition.Now that Zhao Can gave him the credit for this overwhelming contribution, he will naturally be able to retire after completing this task.

At that time, Zhao Can will naturally not treat him badly, and will reward him with a lot of property, maybe he will be appointed as a benevolent official and let him go back to his hometown to retire.

For an eunuch, who can't be an official or join the army, his status is like a servant girl. This step in life is the ultimate.Even Wang Lixin, the great eunuch he admired the most before, could not do this.

With this incident, maybe he will be recorded in the history books, how can Zhang Dongyuan not be excited?