There was snow light outside, but it was a little dark upstairs, and there was smoke and mist, making it hazy.
Looking carefully, there were more than thirty people sitting at the table, drinking tea, occasionally tasting some fruit snacks, and discussing matters.
"Brother Cang is absolutely right." A county gentry wiped his hands with a handkerchief: "Brother Jinde suffered from the cold. I went to see him. He said that he just wanted to live a stable life and really didn't want to be involved in this whirlpool.
go."
"What he's saying is that Ye Qing has led everyone to make a fortune, asked us to pay some tribute, but we all tolerated it, and wants to tie us up to fight with the governor. This is a villain." A middle-aged man sitting next to him put down his tea at this time
, said categorically: "He is the second-ranked man, I heard he is still a seventh-rank Hanlin, a viscount, or it doesn't matter - should we serve him as a pawn across the river?"
At this time, a thirty-year-old man smiled and said: "It's just because the governor is so powerful that we can't get involved. But to be fair, the second-place governor has made us a lot of money."
"Old Ma, are you kidding me - I mean, even if you make some money, can it be compared with the family business?"
"-Even if we make some money off the hook, we can't be tied to him - I heard that he not only offended the governor, but also offended the prince in Beijing. How can such a person last long?"
At this time, several county gentry immediately echoed: "You are right, and without our help, even the second place can make so much money."
"That's right. Without us, how can this wine alliance make money? Not only do we not owe the Ye family, the Ye family owes us."
"If you can get second place in the ranking, you are still talented, but such talented people are usually short-lived..."
Listening to the tone of these county gentry, Cang Guangren gradually felt that he was justified, to the point where he wanted to bite Ye Qing to death. He felt a little emotional, and when he straightened up and was about to speak, a middle-aged man came over. He was from the Ma family.
, this man approached the Ma family master, winked and whispered a few words. The Ma family master was suddenly startled, stared at it, let out a heavy breath, his smile disappeared, and he stood up and bowed: "
Sorry, I have something to do at home, so I will leave first."
"..." Everyone was startled. This is a meeting in Pingshounan to discuss the alliance. No matter how big the matter is, we have to wait until it's over. Why don't you leave the meeting midway and not be afraid of offending everyone?
Just as he was thinking about it, three more people came over anxiously. Cang Guangren frowned, knowing something was wrong, and waved his hand: "Let them come in."
The three people hurriedly agreed "yes"
After entering, everyone was greeted with surprised and surprised looks, but no one said anything. They just watched the three people talking to their family master in a low voice. There were faint words like "Early Court", "Fifth Rank Hanlin", "Magic Formation", etc.
Wait for words.
After finishing speaking, the expressions of the three masters suddenly changed. Although they did not quit directly, they were obviously hesitant.
Then, his housekeeper came in hurriedly and said a few words to Cang Guangren. After he finished speaking, Cang Guangren's expression changed and he said to him: "You go down first."
Waiting for these people to go out, Cang Guangren knew that he could not hide anything, so he said gloomily: "Everyone, I just received news that the imperial court sent an imperial envoy to Yejiazhuang to announce the decree."
"The imperial court promoted Ye Qing to the fifth rank of Hanlin, and also granted the title of Nan Lianzi."
Seeing that all the family princes were changing their expressions, some even stood up in twos and threes and prepared to leave. Knowing that he could not keep them, he did not try to keep them, but just a reminder: "Everyone, please calm down and don't fall into Ye Qing's plan of differentiation.
"No, no," the response was mostly perfunctory. This alliance was originally meant to protect local self-protection. Who would shout loudly and become enemies of the county magistrate?
How can these county gentry understand the difference between an empty title and a real title? In their view, a fifth-rank Hanlin is on an equal footing with a prefect, while an earl is a fourth-rank official. This is not a county commander. What else is a county commander?
Some people even chuckled: "When we are together, we are less likely to be despised and gain more benefits..."
"Yeah, isn't this, the benefits come..." The person who said it was a little proud.
"When it comes to your personal safety, you still have to buy one. This array is more reliable than the county government array..."
"Walk……"
The venue finally ended, leaving only an empty venue. When no one was around, Cang Guangren turned pale, calmed down, and said, "Invite people from the Yu family."
After a while, a man in black came over. When he saw this, his eyes narrowed: "Is this what you said to my Lord, we are united as one?"
Cang Guangren was not angry either: "The Ye family has newly been granted the title of fifth-grade Hanlin. Earl, people's hearts are in chaos. And there is also a magic circle. How much profit can your Yu family make? Don't say you don't know. I can't take this plate."
The man in black was startled, thought for a while, and said: "Please hold on for a few more days. At least the County-South Alliance will not be harmful to your families. The state and county are too far away. Just think about Mr. Lu in the county. I'm sure
You are happy to have checks and balances among all parties. This is a tacit approval of all parties, and it can expand your influence, so why not do it?"
"To expand our influence, we must allocate resources. It's just empty words..." The Cang family's master suddenly stopped and looked at the messenger with a frown: "Do you have a hidden agenda? Forget it, I don't care about this. Now the Ye family is like this.
If you want to form a checks and balances alliance, your Yu family will also have to invest more money and have trade preferences..."
The man in black had an ugly expression. He didn't expect that this trip would have twists and turns. He didn't have the authority, so he only said: "This matter must be reported to my lord."
"Please hurry up." Cangjiajun picked up the tea cup and said he was seeing off the guests.
The man in black turned around and left, secretly cursing these local county gentry that they were all rats and wallflowers...
Yejiazhuang
The wind seemed to have stopped, and patches of snow fell, covering the earth tightly. Hundreds of people greeted them at the door. I don't know who said: "Quiet, the imperial envoy is here."
Suddenly, there were still some sounds that stopped immediately, and there was total silence. Everyone looked out and saw several carriages approaching, covered with blankets and covered with a thick layer of snow.
With a sound, the carriage landed steadily, and an official came out, a frail old man, followed by a group of soldiers. The specifications of the reward this time were different.
"Welcome to your Majesty the Imperial Envoy." At this time, all the people with status stood up and bowed. Now is not the time to kneel down.
When we arrived inside, the incense table was already placed, so the old man stepped forward and stood firm.
Ye Qing, wearing a brand-new seventh-grade official uniform, knelt down and saluted: "I respectfully listen to the edict."
The official had no expression on his face. He took the imperial edict from his own soldiers and slowly read out: "Zhao said: Ye Qing is a pure scholar, I know it well, and you can repeatedly defeat the rebel army and destroy this devil's nest. The national system is the only one."
Justice is rewarded and punished. Now I have Ye Qing plus two grades. I will read it at the Imperial Academy of Jin Dynasty. I also want to read the military merits. I specially give it to the Duke of Nan Lian. You should encourage me. I appreciate it."
"Thank you..."
As soon as he responded, the two fortunes fell. Although they came from the same source, they were not confused.
The Hanlin system consists of the third-rank official rank of the Grand Master in charge of the academy, the third-rank rank of the Chengzhi bachelor and the Hanlin direct bachelor, the fourth-rank rank of the attendant bachelor, and the fourth rank of the minister-lecturer bachelor.
The fifth rank of Hanlin Attendant is the highest official title that a heavenly person can obtain without actually joining the imperial court.
I saw a drop of golden aura, which was only 40% of that of a real eunuch, but it was much richer in both quality and quantity than at the seventh level.
Ye Qing was originally on the second level of Chide. He felt a rush rising in an instant. In the blink of an eye, he reached the peak of the second level. Then there was a sense of noble aura. The color was golden with green. Although the quantity was less, the quality was very high.
, in the blink of an eye, Chi De broke through the peak of the second level and reached the middle and upper level of the third level.
The original stream of luck in the Ye family suddenly became a golden color and continued to exaggerate.
It all happened in an instant. The official waved his hand, and two attendants held a gold plate in each hand, with a set of clothes on each plate.
The former is an official uniform, with a black gauze hat and a gold seal on top, and the latter is a silver crown with four bright pearls shining warmly. This is the noble uniform.
Ye Qing bowed solemnly again: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward, and thank you, Your Majesty the Imperial Envoy."
After conveying the decree, he was no longer an imperial envoy. The official smiled and hurriedly handed the decree into Ye Qing's hands, and personally took Ye Qing's arm and said: "This is really a great grace and a great joy... To tell you the truth, I am really envious."
You took the imperial examination at the age of fifteen and had a smooth journey. You were admitted to the Heavenly Talents at the age of seventeen. Now at the age of twenty-one, you have become a fifth-rank Hanlin scholar and have been granted the title of earl. This is all due to your true talent and learning. You know
Man, who can be dissatisfied?"
Ye Qing stood up and smiled: "I don't dare, I don't dare to receive such praise in front of Master Cen. Master Cen is a famous minister. When the bullet was published, the government and the public were shocked. I really admire him in my heart——
It’s snowing heavily outside, so please come inside to talk.”
This imperial envoy was Cen Ti, who was born with the same Jinshi family. He was an upright man, so his official career was bumpy. He waited until he was about to retire, and finally got the rank of fourth-rank official. Before retirement, he got the job of this imperial envoy.
Ye Qing had obtained the information a long time ago, and still showed some respect. He waved his hand, invited him to the banquet, and secretly said: "I have prepared two hundred taels of gold."
The banquet lasted for an hour, and it was quite cheerful. When the banquet was over, I ordered the waiters again, and after they came out, I took a walk with Lu Shangjing.
"My lord, congratulations. Now that you are an earl, you have a lot more room for success."
Ye Qing felt a wave of heat in his heart. With this status and karma, if nothing else, this red virtue could be perfected, but he felt that there was a bitterness in the sweetness.
He looked at Lu Shangjing and wanted to express his thoughts, but he knew that the other party had known it for a long time, so he just sighed: "I want to calm down this joint, but I don't want to end my relationship with the imperial court and Prince Yu."
"My lord, this is obvious. Although what you are doing now is in line with God's will, it is not in line with the will of the imperial court. Although the imperial court cannot scold you and even has to reward you, it will not give you a status so that you can be justified.
"
"Prince Yujun and his lord have had a good relationship. Firstly, the lord has not officially surrendered to confirm his status. Secondly, Prince Yu is still Prince Yu. How can the Great Cai clan support your separatist rule?"
"To achieve this result is already a great achievement." Lu Shangjing said.
"That's what you said." Ye Qing closed his eyes and murmured: "I'm just still a little melancholy. The officialdom is not controlled by anyone. Alas..."
He smacked his lips and stopped talking.
Lu Shangjing thought about it, and then said: "It is useless to think about this matter too much. My lord needs to relax... This is not useless. At least when the county magistrate sees my lord, he will bow in return, and there will be room for many things."
"The county gentry, who are considered one-sided people in this county, are much smaller in this structure. If they don't understand the relationship, they will probably hesitate, and this new alliance will naturally fall apart."
"The alliance between these county gentry is a small matter, but the gradual break with the governor and the others is a big deal. If I have a status, I will not be afraid. Without a status, I will be passive everywhere... Hey, I will think about how to solve this matter.
"As he said that, Ye Qing pursed his lips, and the joy of the reward disappeared, and he just thought about it.