With the arrival of Emperor Deqing's imperial edict of rewards, the atmosphere in the Zhao Mansion reached fever pitch again.
After seeing the word "Baochen" on the royal plaque, the guests gathered around Zhao Junchen and expressed their congratulations to Zhao Junchen again. Many people were envious beyond words, and they felt that Zhao Junchen was like this.
The day was really full of scenery.
Zhao Junchen still had a humble attitude and responded cordially to the congratulations of the guests. Then he ordered someone to enshrine the imperial plaque with the word "Baochen" engraved on it, and then invited the eunuch Zhang De to attend his wedding banquet, and Zhang
De obviously also wanted to take the opportunity to get closer to Zhao Junchen, so he naturally agreed happily.
Next, the wedding process progressed step by step, and Liang Fuchen became Zhao Junchen's officiant. Witnessed by many distinguished guests, Cui Qianxue was called out, and she and Zhao Junchen performed the husband-and-wife ceremony, followed by a banquet.
At the beginning, all the guests took turns toasting to Zhao Junchen, taking the opportunity to get closer to Zhao Junchen, and Zhao Junchen responded enthusiastically. With the enthusiasm of the guests, the wedding banquet became more and more lively.
In the end, the wedding banquet on this day was a feast for both the guest and the host. Even Liang Fuchen, Li He, and Wang Shou, the core ministers of the temple, gave Zhao Junchen enough face. They all left after the ceremony, and waited until all the guests were gone.
After leaving, it was already a quarter to three o'clock in the evening.
All the hustle and bustle often leads to exhaustion in the end.
After sending away the last guest, the exhausted Zhao Junchen slumped down on his seat in the main hall of Zhao Mansion, feeling that this day was much more tiring than any other day.
Especially at the banquet, when they exchanged glasses and toasted each other, although Zhao Junchen's wine glass was quietly replaced with water later, Zhao Junchen still drank too much. Now he only feels gastrointestinal discomfort, the smell of alcohol has hit his brain, and his body is full of alcohol.
Not even comfortable.
Seeing Zhao Junchen like this, Fang Ru, who had been hiding in the back house for a day, just felt distressed. She didn't care about the affairs of the Zhao family, so she quickly brought a cup of sobering tea and handed it to Zhao Junchen, saying softly: "Today is really...
Thank you for your kindness, please drink a cup of tea and take it easy."
Zhao Junchen nodded feebly, took up the tea and drank it all in one gulp. After Fang Ru took the empty cup, he quickly refilled the cup with new tea for Zhao Junchen, and Zhao Junchen drank it all in one gulp again.
After drinking two cups of sobering tea, Zhao Junchen's alcohol odor and gastrointestinal discomfort finally eased a little, and then he began to close his eyes and rest his mind to relieve fatigue, while Fang Ru walked behind Zhao Junchen and stretched out her hands to pray for him.
Zhao Junchen massages his temples.
After a long time, Zhao Junchen's energy finally recovered a little, and his mind became a little clearer.
Then, Zhao Junchen reached out and held Fang Ru's delicate hand and said, "No need to press it anymore, I'm much better."
Seeing that Zhao Junchen's tone became stronger, Fang Ru also breathed a sigh of relief and returned to stand in front of Zhao Junchen.
At this time, Zhao Junchen had returned to his usual calmness and wisdom, his eyes flashed with thought, and he asked: "Have you made arrangements for the plaque given to you by His Majesty?"
Fang Ru nodded quickly and said: "I have ordered the imperial plaque to be hung in the back hall for worship... Mr. Sir, Your Majesty wrote the word 'Bao Chen' on this plaque. What do you mean?"
Zhao Junchen was silent for a moment and said slowly: "The word 'Bao Chen' has been used many times in ancient times. The clear meaning is that the emperors trust their respected ministers, but... if we take the literal meaning,
It is appropriate to interpret it as a minister who collects treasures, and it is more in line with my position in His Majesty's heart... In addition, the word 'treasure' also means precious and beloved, so even if it is interpreted as a favored minister or a jester, it is not unreasonable...
All in all, how to interpret these two words ultimately depends on His Majesty's wishes... Haha, Your Majesty still refuses to give me a guarantee after all!"
Fang Ru also sighed and said: "Yes, if the words on this plaque are 'loyal minister' or 'virtuous minister', or 'pillar of the country' or something like that, it means that your majesty has personally recognized the future status of the husband, which is quite
It's like a gold medal for immunity from death... It's a pity that it's just the word 'Bao Chen', neither up nor down. It seems glorious and glorious, but it is of no use."
Zhao Junchen smiled softly and said: "Isn't this the consistent style of our Majesty's reward for his ministers? It has always been flashy... What's more, the gold medal for immunity from death in our Ming Dynasty has never been valuable. After Taizu founded the country, almost all the veterans around him
Everyone has a gold medal to avoid death, but how many people have died a good death? Emperors have been ruthless since ancient times, so we don’t need to have any illusions, let’s follow our own plans.”
Fang Ru nodded slightly, but her expression was a little heavy.
If Emperor Deqing is willing to give Zhao Junchen some guarantees, he can always feel a little more at ease, and Zhao Junchen will not be so tired.
Unfortunately, in essence, Emperor Deqing was an extremely stingy emperor and was unwilling to give Zhao Junchen even a false guarantee.
After seeing the change in Fang Ru's expression, Zhao Junchen didn't want Fang Ru to bear too much pressure like him, but he smiled and comforted: "Ru'er, don't worry, several of our plans are going smoothly now. According to the results yesterday,
According to the information received, Li Chuan and Xiao Xuan have already controlled nearly half of the local government offices along the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal on my behalf, and will soon go to the local government offices along the Yangtze River. By then, the results will be further increased;
Our plan to infiltrate the inner court and the military town also went very smoothly. Li Ruan has become the supervisor of the Shaanxi-Gansu border and will soon be further reused. With his scheming methods, it is possible for him to become the eunuch of the Chief of Ceremonies in the future.
Moreover, we have gradually penetrated several military towns near the capital, and we will only need two or three years to fully control them;
In addition, the money and lifeblood of the imperial court have now fallen into our hands. As long as we further control the merchants in various places, we can affect the rise and fall of the entire imperial court, and my reputation among the government and the public will soon be further improved..."
Hearing Zhao Junchen's relief, Fang Ru naturally understood what Zhao Junchen was thinking, and also didn't want Zhao Junchen to worry about her, so she quickly smiled and said that she was not worried.
But in fact, Zhao Junchen and Fang Ru knew very well that everything they did only slightly increased their chance of victory. If Emperor Deqing or the next Ming emperor wanted to deal with Zhao Junchen, Zhao Junchen
The hope of survival is still slim!
Without him, no matter how many officials, merchants, and military generals Zhao Junchen controlled, when the Ming emperor made up his mind to eradicate Zhao Junchen, how many of these people would be willing to follow Zhao Junchen and fight to the death?
The emperor of the Ming Dynasty could also grant all kinds of benefits that Zhao Junchen had given them. Although Zhao Junchen was holding on to their handles, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty could also declare these handles invalid... When it came time to decide the outcome, there could be ten
It is considered good if one out of ten people is willing to follow Zhao Junchen.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen and Fang Ru still dare not be optimistic about their future destiny. If Zhao Junchen's current plans can be summed up, they can be summed up in six words: "Do your best and obey fate."
It is precisely because of this that Zhao Junchen decided to go to Shaanxi and Gansu for an adventure next!
After Fang Ru learned about Zhao Junchen's plan, although she was worried, she had no objection after all.
Just when Zhao Junchen and Fang Ru fell into silence, Xu Qingyan quickly walked into the main hall with an excited look.
Xu Qingyan is not that smart, and his vision cannot see that far, so he is always much happier and more relaxed than Zhao Junchen and Fang Ru. Many trivial things will make him feel satisfied and excited.
This was the case for Xu Qingyan at this time.
I saw Xu Qingyan waving an account book, walked quickly to Zhao Junchen, and said with satisfaction: "Young Master, all the gift lists sent by the guests today have been counted! Hehe, all the gifts added up, even for the house
There was no room for it, so the accountants took inventory and found that the total value of the overt and covert gifts was at least seven to eight hundred thousand taels! In addition, there were also some rare treasures that could not be valued for the time being. If these rare treasures were included, what would our country be worth?
One time, I earned as much as one million taels of silver!"
Speaking of this, Xu Qingyan's expression became more excited, and he said: "Master, we have been spending money like water during this period of time. The money we have saved over the years is about to be spent. I was a little distressed at first, but not
Thinking about it, Huang Yourong first sent over 4 million taels of silver from confiscating the house, and now a large sum of money has come in! The house's savings are finally much richer, and we can hold on for a while longer!"
After speaking, Xu Qingyan handed the gift account book to Zhao Junchen.
Seeing Xu Qingyan like this, Zhao Junchen couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. After reaching out to take the account book, he flipped through it and asked, "How is the situation at the flowing water table?"
Xu Qingyan curled his lips and said: "We have set up ninety-nine tables of running water banquets and provided the people with good wine and food for free. What else can we do? We spent nearly ten thousand taels of silver. The people are short-tongued and always have to say a few words.
Good words."
Zhao Junchen smiled again and said: "If ten thousand taels of silver can buy a kind word from the common people, it is already a good deal."
At this point, Zhao Junchen was suddenly startled, staring at the line of words in the gift account book with some surprise.
The guests who attended Zhao Junchen's wedding banquet today mostly handed over the Zhao Mansion's bright and dark gift lists, and the congratulatory gifts were often light and dark. The bright gifts were often only worth a thousand taels of silver, but the real gifts were often as high as
Zhao Junchen was not surprised to receive a gift worth one million taels if the gifts from two to three hundred guests were added together.
Of course, high-ranking court ministers such as Liang Fuchen, Li He, and Wang Shou naturally disdained to please Zhao Junchen, and their congratulatory gifts were often only superficial.
Therefore, the catalog of congratulatory gifts for these people is also listed separately at the top.
But the name at the front is unexpected: Prince Zhu Heyu!
Unexpectedly, Prince Zhu Heyu also sent congratulatory gifts to Zhao Junchen!
The congratulatory gifts are not many and not precious. They are just an ancient book, a handle of gold and jade, and two hundred taels of silver. But the meaning it represents is worth pondering.
"The prince...is finally coming to his senses?" Looking at the gift list, Zhao Junchen secretly thought: "But...is it too late? His Majesty has already made up his mind to depose him. His Majesty's character has always been stubborn.
Once you make a decision, you won’t change it easily... not to mention..."
On the other side, seeing the change in Zhao Junchen's expression, Fang Ru asked, "Ms. sir, what's wrong?"
Zhao Junchen closed the gift account book, shook his head and said: "Nothing."
As he spoke, Zhao Junchen looked up at the sky outside the room, only to see that the sky was getting darker and the sun was already setting.
After seeing Zhao Junchen's actions, Fang Ru's expression flashed with sadness, but she soon returned to normal, and said: "Ms. sir, it's getting late, Miss Cui... Madam, she is already in the new house.
You've been waiting for a long time, you'd better go see her quickly, today is the wedding night, but you can't treat your wife coldly."
Zhao Junchen glanced at Fang Ru, but he could see through Fang Ru's thoughts at a glance, and said slowly: "Ru'er, you have to understand that you are the only one who can help me share everything."
A very simple sentence, but it made Fang Ru's eyes brighter. She nodded and said softly: "Ru'er understands."
Zhao Junchen nodded, then stood up and said, "In that case, I will go see her."
After saying that, Zhao Junchen walked towards the back house, and Xu Qingyan quickly followed.
Fang Ru stood in the main hall in a daze for a moment, then turned around and left, instructing the Zhao family's servants to clean up the mess of today's wedding.
*
On the way to his new house, Zhao Junchen felt a little complicated.
Cui Qianxue is a good girl, but Zhao Junchen is not a good match for her.
Cui Qianxue is very simple, and the life she expects is also very simple, which is just a good husband and wife who cherish each other, but Zhao Junchen is too complicated. Choosing Cui Qianxue as his wife is out of political considerations, even for today's wedding
There are also many interests involved.
To be honest, Zhao Junchen likes Cui Qianxue, but liking does not mean love. Zhao Junchen just thinks that when he is with Cui Qianxue, he does not need to spend too much effort and is more relaxed. But Cui Qianxue admires Zhao Junchen very much. However, Zhao Junchen has always
They can't understand where Cui Qianxue's feelings for him come from.
Zhao Junchen is very sure that he will never treat Cui Qianxue badly in the future and can still let Cui Qianxue live without worries, but Zhao Junchen cannot give Cui Qianxue everything she wants.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen has very complicated feelings about Cui Qianxue.
However, when Zhao Junchen came to the door of his new house, he put aside the complicated thoughts in his heart.
Since everything is a foregone conclusion, there is no need for too complicated considerations. From a certain point of view, in this era of parents' orders and matchmakers' words, it is not a bad thing for Cui Qianxue to marry Zhao Junchen, at least.
Zhao Junchen can always respect women and will not treat her badly, but he just cannot have a heart-to-heart relationship with her.
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen felt much calmer, and then he reached out and pushed open the door of the wedding room.
