"You are a born offspring, and you have a romantic surname. Ruthless and affectionate, just look at your smiling face to ask. I am also smart in my heart, with a fake face and a hard mouth. When he wants to promise, how can he respond to his voice when he is ashamed? ”

Yan Song, the first assistant of the Ming Dynasty cabinet, was in the midst of excitement. He hummed the joke of "The Story of the Jade Hairpin" and danced in the book house, with unconcealed joy on his face. A snow-white hair beard is also windless automatic.

The 40-year budget meeting of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty has ended, and the system of centigold has been thoroughly finalized. Everything is moving in too good a good direction to be true, and whether it is the financial operation in the coming year or the financial bureau that will be set up in the future, will further strengthen the strength of the party.

And the emperor seemed to attach great importance to him Yan Ge Lao, and even left him a few words and gave him some things when the meeting ended.

Recalling the grievances of the past year, Yan Song had a feeling of raising his eyebrows.

When the people saw this eighty-year-old man so profligate, they wanted to laugh, but they didn't dare, and they were all uncomfortable.

However, it is rare for the elder to be happy, and it is also a gratifying thing.

Only the old horse of Xiaoge sat at the desk with his face down, looking down and thinking about something.

Yan Shifan's health is not yet very good, as one of the cabinet ministers, and he is also a waiter of the Ministry of Works, but he did not participate in this imperial meeting. Therefore, he patiently listened to his father's words and words just now, and repeated the whole meeting from beginning to end.

According to the system of the Ming Dynasty, most of the ministers suffered from the wind and cold, or suffered from diseases, and could not participate in the court meeting or face the saints before the great good. That's because everyone's body's resistance is different, a small illness may not be anything to a healthy person, but it is fatal to some ministers. If you have an infectious disease, go to the court meeting, and infect everyone at once, then the entire Ming Dynasty will not be completely shut down.

Because of this, Xiao Ge Lao actually missed such a major meeting.

can only rely on his father's retelling to grasp the trend of the new policy of the imperial court.

However, the old Yan Ge was born as a Jinshi, and after entering the cabinet, he didn't like to ask about mundane things, and he had a very strong literary and artistic style. Speaking of things, it is also a narrative and discussion, and from time to time it also brings a poem, sings a joke or something.

Yan Shifan couldn't bear to hear it, he darkened his face and coughed lightly: "Dad, don't say anything useless, let's talk about the key points." He was a little discouraged by this father.

Over the years, the reason why he has been able to sit so firmly in the position of the first assistant to the cabinet is not because he Yan Shifan knows how to figure out the emperor's mind and can write well. If he didn't have himself, my father would not be able to sit in this position for a day.

A while ago, because he was ill, no one came up with ideas on the side, and as a result, the momentum of the Yan Party was much worse than before.

Xiao Ge Lao's tone was not good, and the faces of the subordinates changed greatly, and they hurriedly retreated out of the study room and closed the door.

Hearing his son's cough, Yan Song was a little embarrassed, so he stopped his mouth, snorted a few times, took out a pencil, and wrote a line of words on the paper: "The clouds are in the blue sky and the water is in the bottle." ”

said with a smile: "After the imperial meeting, His Majesty specially stayed for my father to say a few words, and asked me how my body was, and I slept well at night." I gave twenty pencils to my father, this is good, there is gold dust in it, and it is also convenient to use, and if you want to write at any time, you will come with a pen. Not to mention, the cabinet ministers all liked this object, and they all carried a small notebook with them, and once they remembered something, they wrote it down in the booklet, and they would not forget it. The thing is good, even if it is too rich, the cost is not expensive, not to mention, when it is altered, it is necessary to use good white flour steamed buns to wipe it, which is really a waste of food. You need to know that material resources are difficult......"

"That's it!" Yan Shifan finally couldn't bear it anymore: "Dad, my son is asking about Li Jin, what are you doing with me pulling a pencil?" ”

"Isn't it the same thing?" Yan Song looked at his son in amazement, stunned, and then said: "Shifan, the power of my Yan family comes entirely from His Majesty's cronies, relying on your understanding of the holy will and writing good words. If you lose the favor of Your Majesty, you will naturally not be able to talk about any power. Today, Your Majesty left alone to speak for his father, doesn't it mean that his father still has a status in the eyes of the Long Live Lord, and his old man is still thinking about my affection, which is a great joy for our Yan family! ”

"Father's words are wrong!" Yan Shifan was very angry when he saw that his father was so blindly optimistic, but the matter was really important, and he couldn't help him lose his temper, so he forcibly suppressed the anger in his heart and said: "The power of my Yan family does not depend on being able to write a few green words, nor does it depend on knowing how to figure out what to do. From ancient times to the present, those who speculate on the holy will have no good end. Father, the reason why you and I were able to enter the cabinet is because no one knows how to make money better than you and me, yes, money. No matter what the hole in the imperial court looks like, you and I will always come up with a way to tear down the east wall and make up for the west wall, and we must maintain this situation to the point where it will not collapse. Long live the Lord is also old, and he just wants to enjoy his old age in peace, and he doesn't want to toss anymore. Only you, my father and son have this ability. But now, the sky has changed. ”

"But the sky has changed?" Yan Song was stunned.

"In the past, only you and I knew how to manage money in the cabinet, but now, the emperor has let Zhang Juzheng enter the cabinet. This man showed financial means when raising military salaries in the military department, and the methods used in it were only half a point better than me, and with him in the cabinet, he would naturally compare our father and son. In the long run, I am afraid that my father's holy family will only get thinner and thinner. The more Yan Shifan spoke, the more heavy his tone became, and he couldn't help but let out a long sigh: "With my body, I should have known that I should have forcibly participated in this imperial financial meeting." ”

"It's not that serious." Yan Song was a little disapproving, but he knew best as a father about his son's methods and skills. If it weren't for his son, the Yan family would have fallen I don't know how many times.

"Shifan, today's imperial meeting, one is to make a budget, and the other is to discuss the new gold system. What great news! Yan Song was so excited that he frowned: "Isn't Hu Ruzhen short of money, he has thousands of troops and horses in hand, and the five southern provinces are a place of ointment." His Majesty said that he was allowed to set up his own gold bureau and set up cards to collect taxes in the five southern provinces. In this way, with the financial power in hand, he is an unshakable pillar of the southern sky. The matter of the country's suppression of widows, without Governor Hu, it really won't be done. In this way, the imperial court still trusts me very much. This kind of honor is even more than before. ”

"Pillar of the Southern Heavens...... Hey, what about Nan Batian? Yan Shifan smiled sadly: "I'm afraid that death is not far away, as soon as this discussion comes out, not only Hu Zongxian is finished, but even my father and son are dead and have no place to be buried!" ”

"What, how is it possible, you mean Your Majesty is going to ...... To use this to discuss the ...... Except for our father and son......" Yan Song's hand trembled, the pencil was broken, and the tip of the pen pierced into the palm. Although he didn't understand what his son was talking about, what Yan Shifan had said before was untrue, and Yan Shoufu had a blind trust in his son's talent.

"That's right." Yan Shifan's face became gloomy: "Dad, have you thought about it?" In the more than 200 years since the founding of our dynasty, there have been examples of the general and political power of the unified army, and the ability to bypass the imperial court and raise money, food and materials on their own. This resolution was issued to the world in clear text, what if the imperial envoys saw it? ”

"If the imperial envoys see it, it is estimated that they will write to impeach my father and son, and impeach Hu Ruzhen...... At that time, according to the rules, my father and son and Hu Zongxian can only resign to avoid suspicion...... It's a bloody move......"

"That's right, according to the rules of the Ming Dynasty officialdom, it should indeed be so. Not to mention such a military event, when Yang Tinghe was in power, Yang Shen was the top student in the examination, not because he had a father who was the first assistant, and was impeached by the imperial envoys. Yang Tinghe had to make a gesture of resignation. Yan Shifan's depression was even stronger: "If this major event happens, if my father does not resign, his prestige will inevitably be ruined, and his momentum will naturally plummet compared to the past." If you resign from the post of assistant minister of the cabinet, if you are not in your position, you will not seek politics, once people want to calculate my father and son, even if you want to resist, you don't know how to do it. ”

"Yes, yes, what should we father and son do?"

"What else can I do, even this kind of desperate plan has been used, it seems that Long Live Lord really has murderous intentions towards our father and son." Yan Shifan suddenly calmed down: "It's just a procrastination, drag him for a few years." ”

"Procrastination?"

"Yes, drag, we just don't resign from the post of auxiliary minister. As for the Lijin Bureau, it will not be postponed, just let Hu Zongxian do it. Yan Shifan said lightly: "The last time Hu Ruzhen returned to Beijing, didn't we let him raise his own respect, now we have a few cents of gold in hand, and millions of taels are invested in the army every year, and the soldiers are fattened one by one." Since you can get rich without going into battle to kill the enemy, what else do you want? In my opinion, it is not uncommon for this war in the southeast to drag him for three or five years. The longer it drags on, the happier the soldiers become, and there is no way to change who goes to the front line to supervise. And ah......"

He said faintly: "Although my father is old, he knows how to rest his body. I don't want the master in the palace, he is an elixir, and he is lead and mercury, and his body has long been empty, perhaps, he may not be able to live longer than my father and son. Let's compare with each other to see who can survive whom. ”

"Ahh Yan Song screamed and stumbled on a chair, his son's words were already a big rebellion.

Looking at his father in confusion, Yan Shifan sighed: "Father, who made this gold system, how vicious it is. He is trying to put our Yan family on the cusp! Even if this level can pass safely, our family will be greatly injured. ”

Yan Songne said: "It was written by a person named Wu Jie, this person is now with His Majesty, and he is a native of Buyi Mountain." Except for a few people, people outside didn't know that there was such a figure. ”

"Oh, it's him, the one who lost to him last time he wrote green words? It is estimated that since that time, this birdman has thought about stepping on our Yan family. Half of Yan Shifan's face was expressionless, and his broken eyes looked gray. But when he slowly turned his head, his other eyes were full of murderous aura: "I heard that he took the solution yuan, and it is estimated that he will participate in next year's Spring Festival, are they all my father's people on the Ministry of Rites?" ”

"It's all our people."

"Okay, find a way to make him unable to report his name and ruin his reputation." Yan Shifan said coldly: "This kind of lucky villain, I have to teach him a profound lesson." ”

Imperial City, Ministry of Rites.

When it was Wu Jie's turn, it was already two or three o'clock in the afternoon.

I heard that it was Shuntianfu Xianke Xie Yuan, and the little official in charge of registration and recording had a look of envy: "I have heard of your name a long time ago, it is said that Wu Jie, the first name in the undergraduate township examination, in addition to the article, is also very good at writing poetry, but I didn't expect it to be you." ”

Wu Jie was secretly proud in his heart, and was about to be polite, but the little official put Wu Jie's documents on the table: "This name can't be reported." ”

Wu Jie was taken aback: "Please also ask, is it possible that my name is still taboo?" He made a joke of the little official.

Hearing him ask, the little official's face straightened, put away the envy on his face, and said lightly: "It's not that there is anything wrong with your name, the main thing is that you don't look like the yellow book of documents?" ”

"Disagrees?" Wu Jie was a little dazed.

"Yes." The little official pointed to the pile of documents brought by Wu Jie and said, "For example, it is written that you are less than six feet tall, with a thin body, a pointed face, and dark skin, so it is completely incorrect." Look at you, at least 1.70 meters or more, dignified, burly, is this document talking about you? ”

"Ah, that's the reason again?" When Wu Jie heard this, he almost fainted, why did he have a problem with this again. The last time I took the exam, he was in trouble because his appearance didn't match the document. Fortunately, Bao Yingxia was present and proved her identity, so she successfully entered the examination room. I thought it was no big deal, but I didn't expect that when I came to take the Jinshi exam, I had a problem with it again.

If you really can't sign up because of this bullshit, this joke will be a big deal.

It's no wonder that I didn't pay attention to it at the beginning, and because I was too busy, I didn't have time to go to the Yamen of Shuntian Mansion to revise the yellow book of household registration, and now it's a little late to talk about this.

He hurriedly explained: "This is the yellow book I filled out when I used to live in Nanjing, because I was seriously ill, I was still young, and I was born very thin. In the past year, because of proper care, people have grown a little taller, and the whole appearance has changed, and I can't help it. Please also ask for advice on how to handle this matter and what procedures need to be followed. ”

The little official smiled: "Actually, it's very simple, first of all, you have to go back to Nanjing to find the Yingtianfu Yamen according to your current appearance, fill in a new yellow book, and then return to Beijing according to the yellow book opened by the Yingtianfu Yamen Shuntianfeng Yamen to continue to modify the relevant appearance on your household registration." Then, you can go to the official to register, as long as the procedures are complete, there is no problem. ”

"Go to Nanjing to change your household registration at the Tianfu Yamen?" Wu Jie almost collapsed, which was not a good idea.

In these years, the transportation is inconvenient, although there is a convenient water transportation of the Grand Canal, you can go from Yanjing to Nanjing, and it takes two months to go back and forth. This is still on the premise that everything goes well, and if there are other things delayed on the way, there is no need to participate in this spring festival.

Besides, the bureaucracy of the Ming Dynasty is in the same vein as modern society, and even if you get all the documents ready, you can't guarantee that there will be no problems elsewhere.

"Can you not go to Ying Tianfu?" Wu Jie asked.

"That'...... I'm afraid not, because no one can prove that you are Wu Jie! The little official gave him a sympathetic look.

This sentence reminded Wu Jie, he quietly took out a money ticket from his sleeve and handed it over, and said in a low voice: "Wu Jie is the first name of Shuntianfu Township, Xie Yuan, and the seventy-five people who were selected together can mention me to prove that I am Wu Jie." ”

It was a money ticket of ten taels, and the little official was moved in his heart, and quietly accepted it, but said with a smile: "Even so, it can only prove that you understand the yuan, but not that you are Wu Jie." ”

"This logic ......" Wu Jie was completely speechless, knowing that no matter how he explained, it was nonsense, and handed over a money ticket again, this time it was twenty taels.

Seeing this large sum of money, the little official finally became serious, and said in a low voice: "Actually, because this matter is designed to be the authenticity of the identity of the lifter, the official does not dare to make the decision. Although you have made great achievements in the same year, you cannot be used as a witness. Of course, it's not impossible. For example, you can find your teacher...... According to the system of my Ming Dynasty, as long as you have the fame of Jinshi, you can vouch for you......" The voice was lowered, obviously worrying about something.

Wu Jie was overjoyed, stood up suddenly, and arched his hand: "Thank you for reminding me, Wu Jie is going to look for witnesses." ”

"By the way, remember that you must have the fame of Jinshi or above to vouch for it, and it is best to be a famous person in Shilin."

Looking at Wu Jie's back, the little official suddenly sighed and muttered: "The boundless falling trees are falling, and the Yangtze River is rolling." As soon as this poem comes out, no one in the world knows you. It's a pity, it's a pity, Wu Shizhen, you are so talented, but you are obscure, and you make such a big depressing thing, who is to blame? Xiao Ge Lao wants to cure you, what can I do, and I can't help you. I think I'm also from a good background and a scholar, but I want to do this kind of thing against my heart, ashamed, ashamed! ”

After coming out of the Ministry of Rites, Wu Jie thought that this matter was very simple, but after thinking about it carefully, it was a little troublesome.

Originally, it was best to let his mentor Bao Yingxia prove to himself, but unfortunately he is now in Jinan, and there is no way to return to the capital, so he can't count on it.

If you go to the house master Guan Dingyu, that guy seems to have a prejudice against himself.

Huang Jin, Chen Hong?

Don't even think about it, if a scholar asks the eunuch to be a witness for himself, he won't have to mix up in the future, and he will be scolded to death.

Of course, it's best to find the emperor to write a note or something. However, this kind of trivial matter went to the emperor and laughed at it, but I was afraid that as soon as this matter was spoken, it would immediately be labeled as a low ability to do things and unusable in the emperor's mind.

It seems that this road cannot be taken either.

As for the Lu family, it is natural to prove my identity as Wu Jie. But the Lu family and him have already turned their faces, so naturally they will not come to be this good person.

(To be continued)