Lu Gang has arrived in Lin'an and made a handover with Hu Yun.
Lu Gang was about thirty-five or six years old. He was a Jinshi and had a steady and generous character, which is quite the legacy of his ancestors. He started from the position of chief secretary and served as chief secretary, county magistrate, and county magistrate. He was also promoted to the general magistrate of Xuanzhou.
In retaliation, he was demoted to the county magistrate again within less than two years.
Chen Qing valued Lu Gang very much. After coming to Jingzhao, he appointed him as the governor of Ezhou. Only one year after taking office, he was promoted to the special envoy of King Yong and was stationed in Lin'an. He took office directly from Ezhou to Lin'an.
In the Changfeng Tea House, Hu Yun was drinking tea with Wang Mu. After the handover, Hu Yun had to assist Lu Gang for another ten days to let him become fully familiar with the situation before leaving.
But today is already the eighth day, which means that the day after tomorrow is the last day, and Hu Yun will set off back to Jingzhao the day after tomorrow.
"Do you think Lu Gang is qualified?" Wang Mu asked with some worry.
Hu Yun smiled slightly and said: "Don't worry, His Highness has a very good eye for seeing people. Special Envoy Lu is a weakling, much more difficult to deal with than me."
"He seems to be very gentle and easy to deal with!"
"It's true, he is very gentle, very generous, and indeed easy to deal with, but this is just the surface. He is extremely principled, much stronger than me. It is impossible to hope that he will give in. He will not kill people, but he will
When he gets angry, his counterattack becomes more than just a slap in the face, so I say he’s a thorn in the side.”
"Hey! I really hope you don't leave and continue to stay, but since you have been promoted, I still want to congratulate you!"
The two of them drank tea instead of wine, and Hu Yun smiled again and said, "Don't worry, Lu Gang will definitely do better than me, and it will be good for you to have a good relationship with him!"
"How do you say this?"
Hu Yun lowered his voice and said: "Everyone said that Lu Wei would become the prime minister and become Lu Qingshan's successor, but I feel that Lu Wei cannot become the prime minister. What King Yong really values is Lu Gang, and Lu Gang is Lu Qingshan's successor."
Wang Mu hesitated and said: "Lu Wei is King Yong's confidant, King Yong should trust him more!"
"These are two different things!"
Hu Yun smiled slightly and said: "You don't have to be a confidant to be the prime minister. King Yong is thinking about how to govern the country. Although Lu Wei is also capable, he is still inferior in talent and learning, and he is not as mature and stable as Lu Gang."
Wang Mu nodded, "I understand what you said. During the era of the Xuanfu envoys of Sichuan and Shaanxi, King Yong used his confidants. He needed to stabilize his territory and status. In the era of King Yong, he began to introduce Zhao Kai, Lu
For a prestigious foreign bureaucrat like Qingshan, during the Yong Kingdom era, His Highness would have to consider Jiangshan Sheji. At this time, his status had been completely stable. It was no longer important whether he was a confidant or not. What was important was whether he could become a famous prime minister. Compared with Lu Wei,
Lu Gang indeed has more of the temperament of a prime minister."
"You're right, that's it, one generation per era."
In the afternoon, Lu Gang met with Shen Jiangnan. This was the first official heading west that Lu Gang met. Officials who defected from the imperial court to Jingzhao have a special name, called "officials heading west."
As the eldest grandson of Lu Yihao, Lu Gang is also knowledgeable. He knows very well that Shen Jiangnan is the eldest grandson of the Shen family in Huzhou. Every move he makes represents the attitude of the Shen family, and the Shen family is one of the six aristocratic families in Jiangnan, Lin'an Mansion
The Qian family, the Yu family in Yuezhou, the Shen family in Huzhou, and the three major families of Lu, Fan and Gu in Pingjiang.
These Jiangnan aristocratic families all had strong financial resources and great influence. It was only with their support that the Southern Song Dynasty court could gain a firm foothold in Lin'an.
For example, the Shen family has been a Jiangnan family since the Sui and Tang Dynasties. Shen Zhenzhu, the crown prince of Emperor Li Yu of the Tang Dynasty, was born in the Shen family of Wuxing. Being able to marry into the royal family of the Tang Dynasty, one can imagine the financial resources of the Shen family.
The Shen family even influenced the Ming Dynasty. The richest man in the Ming Dynasty, Shen Wansan, was born in the Shen family of Huzhou. Shen Wansan went to Nanjing to meet Zhu Yuanzhang, largely to represent the Jiangnan plutocrats in negotiating with the Ming emperor, but Zhu Yuanzhang did not accept him, and soon It may be related to the old enemy Zhang Shicheng. These Jiangnan plutocrats supported Zhang Shicheng. Zhang Shicheng's defeat was actually the Jianghuai faction represented by Zhu Yuanzhang defeated the Jiangnan faction represented by Zhang Shicheng.
Lu Gang knew very well that when Shen Jiangnan went to Jingzhao, it was actually the Shen family who took sides. He pondered for a moment and said, "I'm a little worried that if you go to Jingzhao, will the Shen family attract revenge from the court?"
Shen Jiangnan shook his head and said: "My father told me that if the court wants to deal with the Shen family, it will be against the entire Jiangnan family. The court does not dare to do this."
Lu Gang nodded, "It makes sense! Special Envoy Hu will return to Jingzhao the day after tomorrow, so you can go with him on his ship."
Shen Jiangnan bowed and said, "Thank you so much!"
Lu Gang smiled slightly and said: "I plan to visit your father in two days. Can you ask him for me if it is convenient?"
"I will go home today to ask my father, and then I will come back the day after tomorrow. May I ask Special Envoy Hu, when will we set off the day after tomorrow, and where will we meet?"
Hu Yun, who was standing next to him, said with a smile: "At around 00:00 the day after tomorrow, you come to the Beijing News office, and then we will set off at dawn!"
Shen Jiangnan said goodbye and left. Hu Yun smiled slightly at Lu Gang and said, "Brother Lu Xian, have you seen that the Western Army's recapture of Yanshan Road has a huge impact! Even the Shen family in Huzhou has begun to turn to Jingzhao."
Lu Gang said lightly: "I believe this is not a decision made by the Shen family. These Jiangnan aristocratic families have been marrying each other for hundreds of years. They are intertwined and intertwined. They are all prosperous and suffer losses. The Shen family must be in harmony with other families. The family has discussed it, and the Shen family will take the lead."
Hu Yun said with a smile: "When you said this, I remembered a metaphor His Highness King Yong told me. He said that many things are like icebergs floating on the water. What we see is the iceberg floating on the water. A small mountain, but there must be an even bigger iceberg beneath its surface, but we can’t see it. Shen Jiangnan’s journey to Jingzhao is just a small iceberg, but behind him, there must be the choices of the entire Jiangnan family hidden behind him. ."
When Chen Qing returned to Beijing, he received the news that Zhang Miao, a political official, had died of a sudden illness three days ago at the age of sixty.
This news really made Chen Qing deeply saddened. Zhang Miao and Zhou Kuan were Wang Yan's staff and had a close relationship with Chen Qing. After Wang Yan was deposed, he handed them over to Chen Qing, and they have been assisting Chen Qing ever since. The people around him worked hard and worked tirelessly, making great contributions to Chen Qing's growth from a weak to a strong step by step.
Zhang Miao's heart has been bad for the past two years, and this year's situation is particularly bad. She often suffers from chest pains. Zhang Miao submitted her resignation to Chen Qing, and Chen Qing agreed. She waited for Hu Yun to come over to replace Zhang Miao. Unexpectedly, Zhang Miao had not yet He had no time to enjoy family happiness, but he suffered a heart attack and died in the official room of the Internal Affairs Hall.
Before Chen Qing had time to return home, he went directly to Zhang Miao's mansion. Zhang Miao's eldest son, Zhang Xianchu, took several brothers out of the mansion to meet His Highness King Yong. As soon as they met, the brothers burst into tears.
Chen Qing comforted them with red eyes: "It's my fault. He should be allowed to rest early. He shouldn't be so tired!"
"My father's greatest wish is to become the founding prime minister of His Highness. This is also the most important reason why he refuses to rest. Now that the Yong Kingdom has been established, my father has no regrets."
Chen Qing nodded, "I'm going to offer your father a stick of incense and see him off on his last journey!"
Chen Qing asked for a white filial piety belt to be tied around his head and walked towards the funeral shed surrounded by the Zhang brothers.