Daming talker

Chapter 664 Fruitful
During the two months from the end of the 19th year of Wanli to the beginning of the 20th year of Wanli, the court could not be said to be in great turmoil, but it was definitely a period of great change.

The situation of the court was continuously transmitted to Suzhou through official documents, official reports and other channels, but there was inevitably a certain delay.

By the twelfth month of the nineteenth year of the Wanli reign, although Zhao Canlu, the governor of Yingtian, was still holding on in Suzhou, he had already fallen into a situation of internal and external difficulties.

At this time, he still did not dare to enter the city. He took his personal soldiers to the Snake Temple outside the south city in the middle of winter.

The public opinion front was completely lost, and the whole city was talking about the joke that "the Governor of Yue people took bribes from Wu to supplement Yue", and even the eunuchs from the Suzhou and Hangzhou weaving factories came to "cooperate".

Moreover, this situation was angrily reported to the court by officials from Suzhou. Although no punishment was imposed, it was difficult for colleagues to speak up for them.

After all, it is difficult to explain his motives for accumulating wealth in Suzhou publicly, so the saying that "the Governor of Yue collected money from Wu to supplement Yue" became popular.

Then the good news was that the long-awaited anti-tax storm occurred, but the bad news was that the storm occurred in the neighboring Songjiang Prefecture, and did not happen in Suzhou.

What happened in Songjiang Prefecture could not be attributed to Lin Tailai at all. Governor Zhao was not powerful enough to call a horse a zebra and accuse Lin Tailai of something.

Up to this point, Governor Zhao, who was completely passive, relied on his stubbornness to hold on in the Snake Temple.

He firmly believed that as long as he waited, there was hope, but if he didn't persist, there would be no hope at all.

As long as Lin Tailai cannot remove him, he must keep going.

But in the eyes of Mr. Lin, Governor Zhao was already a dead man, just like the national army trapped in Shuangdui Ji during the Huaihai Campaign.

After dealing with the first wave of social pressure and sorting out the various industries of the Lin Group, Mr. Lin was finally able to relax a little and was in a good mood.

Most indicators are good. For example, the silk output of the industrial park has accounted for one-third of the entire Suzhou city.

Although the growth of the engineering industry has stagnated, key industries such as rice, grain and logistics are still continuing to grow.

Mr. Lin, who had some free time, took a break from his busy life and personally escorted Feng Menglong to Shantang Street to "plant the flag."

At the beginning, Lin Tailai promised, "Anyone who can defeat Governor Zhao will be rewarded with 2,000 taels of silver and will be granted the title of Lord Shantang Street."

As a man of his word, Jin Zhijibu must keep his word! So Mr. Lin took Feng Menglong to Shantang Street today.

He wanted to use this opportunity to showcase and consolidate his public image to all Suzhou people. After all, he had not been in Suzhou for nearly two years.

Shantang Street District is roughly the section between Changmen and Tiger Hill, and is one of the three major commercial districts outside the Suzhou city wall today.

After leaving Changmen, heading northwest, you will reach Shantang Street. As he walked, Lin Tailai glanced at Feng Menglong and asked unhappily:
"Today is the great day for you to start your business. Aren't you happy? Why don't you smile?"

Feng Menglong said with a bitter face: "You should know that I am not interested in this."

Who wants to join a society? He also wants to take the imperial examination!

Mr. Lin said domineeringly: "No matter what your ambitions are, we must take over Shantang Street today!
Otherwise, wouldn’t the world think that I, Lin Tailai, am not trustworthy? "

Shen Yongjia, the second master of the Shen Mansion, was also following nearby and could not help but advise: "Shantang Street was originally the territory of the Xu family in Huqiu. How can we use someone else's territory as a reward?"

The relationship between the Xu family and the Shen family in Huqiu is quite special, so Mr. Shen had to give some advice out of consideration for their relationship.

Lin Tailai replied, citing classics: "Isn't that what the Zhou emperor did? I am following the example of the previous kings!"

Master Shen Er said again: "You have already occupied two of the three major blocks outside the city. Why do you want more than Shantang Street?"

Lin Tailai snorted coldly: "The books of the ten-mile carriage are all mixed together, how can there be other seals in the city? As the saying goes, the feng shui treasure land belongs to those with virtue.

The Xu family relied on the virtue of your Shen family to occupy Shantang Street. Now that the Xu family's virtue has declined, isn't it reasonable for Shantang Street to change its owner?

The poem says, "Huangchu wants to learn from the Tang and Yu dynasties, Sima will come and follow his example."

Master Shen: “.”

Lin Tailai, you are always talking in imperial language. Can we continue the conversation today?
In the morning, the law enforcement team of the Lin Group began to enter Shantang Street and expelled Xu's men like pouring boiling soup on snow, with almost no resistance.

There was a representative standing in front of each business, waving a small colorful flag, warmly welcoming the Lin brand forces to move in.

In the afternoon of the same day, the Shantang Street District Municipal Management Office was established with the unanimous support of all businesses, and Feng Menglong became the first general manager, fully responsible for the district's municipal administration, fire protection, sanitation, public security, and fee collection.

Lin Tailai patted Feng Menglong on the shoulder and said, "If it really doesn't work, you can do it for a year or two first, and then we can talk about it after the storm has subsided."

Seeing that nothing could be done, Mr. Shen stopped nagging. After all, he had tried his best and had no regrets.

Lin Tailai said to Master Shen: "When I first started, the first serious threat I encountered came from the Xu family in Huqiu. At that time, my hall was destroyed by the Xu family.

This has been my inner demon for many years. Today, I have seized the Xu family's foundation and finally avenged my previous shame and defeated my inner demon! "

Shen Yongjia: “.”

Although I understand that you, Lin Tailai, want to give Mr. Shen a way out, but can you be more perfunctory?
How can the Xu family become your inner demon? Are they worthy?
No longer dwelling on the issue of Shantang Street, Mr. Shen talked about another matter: "The Xu family sold the other half of the Humble Administrator's Garden to me."

The Humble Administrator's Garden covers an area of ​​200 acres and is located in the northeast of the city. It is the largest garden in Suzhou today.

The year before last, the Xu family lent the Humble Administrator's Garden to the old leader Wang as the new main venue for the literary conference, which angered Lin Tailai.

Later, Lin Tailai put pressure on Prime Minister Shen, and the Xu family had to compensate Lin Tailai with half of the Humble Administrator's Garden, which was about 110 acres.

However, Lin Tailai later returned to the capital and did not return to Suzhou for nearly two years. He did not take good care of the half of the Humble Administrator's Garden he had obtained.

The other people in the family didn't understand Lin Tailai's intention and didn't make any decisions on their own, so they just left it there.

Hearing that the Xu family sold the other half of the Humble Administrator's Garden to Mr. Shen, Lin Tailai sneered, "They are afraid that I will find a chance to take the other half away as well. They are smart this time."

Mr. Shen said, "Let's make a deal. You have 110 acres of Humble Administrator's Garden, and I have 90 acres. Can you give me 10 to 20 acres?"

Lin Tailai answered without thinking: "No way!"

Is this a question of 10 to 20 acres? This is about who is the largest garden in Suzhou!

With an area of ​​110 acres, it is the largest garden in Suzhou, and it is worthy of its status as the richest family in Suzhou!
If we give ten or twenty acres to the other side, then the other side will be first!

Master Shen said dissatisfiedly: "You are not in Suzhou all year round, what's the point of occupying the first place? It is better to give it to the Shen family, so that I can gain face and it can play a better role in my hands.

After all, you, Lin Jiuyuan, have great ambitions and want to run the world, but I only have the face of Suzhou, so what can I do?"

The two men walked towards the Changmen Gate while bickering. Just as they were getting confused, they saw someone guarding the Changmen Gate, shouting to Lin Tailai, "Urgent report from the Communications Department!"

Then the man walked quickly to Lin Tailai and reported in a low voice: "The secret memorial of the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister was leaked, which mentioned the matter of enthronement. The court was in an uproar, and the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister have both resigned!"

Lin Tailai was slightly stunned. This seemed both unexpected and not unexpected.

In history, there was indeed an incident of secret memorials being leaked, which led to the resignation of both the First Minister Shen Shixing and the Second Minister Xu Guo.

Unexpectedly, the Deputy Prime Minister in this time and space has been replaced by Wang Xijue, but the cabinet still could not escape this disaster, and the inevitability of history is still operating tenaciously.

But after a moment of shock, Mr. Lin quickly came to his senses and returned to normal. After all, he was mentally prepared for this and had a stronger psychological resistance.

Besides, now that Lin Tailai holds the positions of Minister of Personnel and Minister of War, the "civil and military stewards", and with Zhao Zhigao's support in the cabinet, it doesn't matter who the Prime Minister is.

Speaking of this, Lin Tailai recalled that Yan Song, the Lord Yan, was known as a powerful traitor. He also had civil and military stewards under him, but they were only Langzhong of the Ministry of Personnel's Wenxuan Division and Langzhong of the Ministry of War's Zhifang Division.

He himself held the positions of Minister of Personnel and Minister of War, and his positions were higher than Yan Song's.

Lin Tailai seemed fine and was even in the mood to compare himself with his predecessor Yan Song, but Mr. Shen was unable to recover from the sudden shock.

Having been the son of a cabinet minister for eleven years and the son of the Prime Minister for eight years, he has long been accustomed to the identity of the prime minister's son. Moreover, he is not mentally prepared to lose this identity!

Without this identity, what else would I be?
"Are you okay?" Lin Tailai asked with concern.

Although Mr. Shen had regained consciousness, he said nothing and walked towards the city in silence.

After passing through the Changmen Gate, Mr. Shen suddenly said to Lin Tai: "I don't want the area of ​​your Humble Administrator's Garden anymore."

I don’t know if it’s because I started to adapt mentally to the new changes, but I even lost the courage to compete for the first garden.

Lin Tailai opened his eyes wide and asked, "Are you testing me by saying this?
Don't worry, I have always been consistent in treating my relatives and friends and never forget my original intention. This will never change because of my status!

So how about you give me another 20 acres? Then I can have 130 acres here, and the title of the largest garden will be more secure. "

Master Shen: “.”

Is this what you mean by being consistent and never forgetting your original intention? But if you think about it carefully, it really is being consistent and never forgetting your original intention.

"Is it OK or not?" Lin Tailai asked urgently, feeling like he was adding insult to injury.

"No!" Master Shen said very firmly, "Twenty acres is not enough! At most I can give you ten acres!"

".That's fine." Lin Tailai nodded. This way, he would have 120 acres, while the second place would only have 80 acres, so the lead would be more secure.

Then Lin Tailai said, "By the way, I plan to continue to call it the Humble Administrator's Garden. You can change the name of your garden. I think the name Shenyuan is very good!"

He calculated again in his mind that he currently owned Canglang Pavilion, Taohua Temple, and Humble Administrator's Garden. He should have surpassed the Xu family, which only had Lingering Garden and West Garden left, and become the king of Suzhou's garden circle, right?
After traveling through time for nearly eight years, from a teenager to a young man, I have achieved a new achievement!

After returning to the Lin Mansion, Mr. Lin went to discuss the tidying up of the Humble Administrator's Garden with his wife, but found that his wife was looking at paintings in the study.

Mr. Lin took a look and asked, "Are there any new paintings?"

Wang Shiwu replied, "Prefect Tu sent me a painting of the Admonitions of the Court Instructress to Women, which is said to have been obtained from the Xiang family in Jiaxing. Please judge its authenticity, my husband."

It was another famous painting that was in the middle school textbooks. Lin Tailai pretended to take a few glances at it and said with finality, "It's an authentic work! I said so!"

Then Wang Shiwu said with emotion: "I don't know how much effort Mr. Xiang Yuanbian put into collecting these famous paintings.

Unfortunately, our descendants do not cherish them, and paintings often end up in our Lin family, which is really embarrassing."

Mr. Lin suddenly remembered something and told the servant outside the door, "Go to the government office and ask Magistrate Tu that I have finished the appraisal and he can take the painting back!"

After all, this prefect came to office together with Governor Zhao, and he is not one of their own in the camp, so he will need more tests.

When the prefect sent the painting, he probably didn't know the news that Prime Minister Shen Shixing had resigned.

Now the news of Shen Shixing's resignation has reached Suzhou. Let's see if the prefect will regret it.

Half an hour later, the servant replied, "Master Tu said that it is inconvenient to keep the painting in the government office, so we should leave it in the Lin Mansion."

He's smart! Lin Tailai commented to himself, and then hung up the famous paintings in his family collection and admired them happily.

So far, the ancient paintings at the middle school textbook level include "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains", "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", "The Goddess of the Luo River", and "The Admonitions of the Court Instructress to the Court Ladies".

As for the authentic works of Qiu Ying, Tang Bohu, Wen Zhengming, Zhu Zhishan and other Suzhou gang artists, there are dozens of them.

It is truly an authentic work. Wen Zhengming’s grandson Wen Yuanfa was forced to sign his own signature as proof!

After eight years of time travel, in addition to the field of garden art, I have also made fruitful achievements in painting collection, which makes the journey worthwhile.

Lin Tailai thought about it again, which other famous paintings would be easier to obtain?

Last time, Prefect Tu said that Qian Yiben, who had bribed him with the "Picture of the Goddess of the Luo River", also bought the Tang Dynasty's "Picture of Five Oxen". It seems that I have to have a detailed discussion with Qian Yiben after returning to Beijing.

In addition, the famous "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" fell into the hands of the eunuch Feng Bao, and Feng Bao was put into the inner treasury after his property was searched.

The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty does not seem to have any obsession in this regard. You can find an opportunity to ask the emperor to reward you with "Along the River During the Qingming Festival".

For example, if someone made a great contribution in Korea and asked for a painting, would the emperor have the nerve to refuse?

With a garden in the left hand and a collection in the right hand, Lin Tailai felt that the Lin family was beginning to break away from the vulgar tastes of the nouveau riche.

After hearing the news from the capital, Zhao Canlu, the governor of the Snake God Temple outside the South City, was ecstatic!
Heaven rewards those who work hard and unexpectedly sends down such a miracle. A turning point has indeed appeared!
Shen Shixing and Wang Xijue both resigned, and Wang Jiaping became the Prime Minister. Doesn't this make the situation better?

Although I can’t figure out how Wang Jiaping can help me out of this predicament, it’s good news after all! What I need now is good news!
So Governor Zhao ordered his personal soldiers in the camp to prepare to return to the city and go back to the Governor's Office in the city!
Now that the Prime Minister has been replaced by one of our own, we can no longer be afraid of trouble! We must be more proactive, so that we can create opportunities for the Prime Minister to intervene directly!

(End of this chapter)