I, Jiajing, successfully cultivated immortality

"Old Zheng, tell me, should we take a gamble?"

Zheng Michang couldn't help but panic when he saw He Maocai proposing to him solemnly.

He looked around subconsciously and felt relieved after seeing that he and He Maocai were the only two people in the room.

Immediately, Zheng Michang raised his head, looked in the direction of He Maocai, and lowered his voice: "Old He, do you know what you are talking about?"

"Over the years, without the protection of Mr. Yan Ge and the others, we would have died countless times!"

When Zheng Michang said this, he paused and continued: "You know, Mr. Yan Ge and the others still hold the handle on us!"

He Maocai heard Zheng Michang's words, nodded, and said slowly: "Old Zheng, I understand what you said, look at Shen Yishi, and then look at Ma Ningyuan!"

"Shen Yishi is responsible for selling illegal salt, and Ma Ningyuan is here. Ma Ningyuan has done so many things for Mr. Yan Ge and the others over the years, but in the end, he ended up like this!"

When Zheng Michang heard what He Maocai said, he couldn't help but fell into silence, his expression was gloomy, and he didn't speak for a long time.

Zheng Michang knew very well that he and He Maocai were, at best, just doing dirty work for the Yan family.

Once something happens, or someone needs to take responsibility, they will be the first to be implicated!

Later, Zheng Michang came to his senses, picked up the wine bottle on the table, filled himself with wine, raised his head, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Old He, do you know that on the night when Ma Ningyuan died, I personally sent someone to deliver Mr. Yan Ge's letter!"

"Old Zheng, you..."

When He Maocai heard what Zheng Michang said, his face was full of shock, because Zheng Michang had never mentioned this matter to him.

After that, Zheng Michang's voice was heard again: "When the person I sent to deliver the letter came back, he relayed Ma Ningyuan's last words. Ma Ningyuan hoped that we could take care of his family and relatives for him!"

"Do you still remember what you said when Shen Yishi and Yun Niang set themselves on fire? The fate of the two of us in the future will probably not be much better than this!"

When Zheng Michang said this, he couldn't help but smile sadly, lowered his head and stopped talking.

He Maocai on the side heard Zheng Michang's words and agreed with them, and then said: "Yes, Ma Ningyuan's family members, and we will help take care of them. If something happens to us, who will take care of our family members? "

When He Maocai said this, his face was full of sadness: "Right now, we can't get off the boat owned by Mr. Yan Ge!"

After that, He Maocai changed the topic and continued: "However, we can take advantage of the opportunity of the imperial court to investigate land annexation to achieve something. When the time comes, the governor can also speak favorably for us in front of His Majesty. With just a few words, maybe I can get rid of my merits?"

Hearing what He Maocai said, Zheng Michang's face was full of hesitation. After a long time, he responded: "Old He, those wealthy gentry and landlords are not easy to mess with. The relationships among them are complicated. If you don't pay attention, you will end up... The fate of being shattered to pieces!”

"What Zhang Cong and Zhang Ge were unable to do when they were chief ministers of the cabinet, can we do it with just the two of us?"

He Maocai took in the expression on Zheng Michang's face, nodded, and then said, "Who said there are only two of us? Didn't you say before that the governor came with a mission from His Majesty?"

"We just need to work together to assist the governor in investigating land annexation. You must know that the governor is from a humble background, and his future future is immeasurable. Even joining the cabinet is not difficult!"

"Isn't that what officialdom is like? You have me, and I have you. Having a good relationship with the governor will definitely be of great benefit in the future."

"You know, behind us is the governor, and behind the governor is His Majesty!"

Zheng Michang was moved by He Maocai's words. After struggling for a long time, he slammed the table and said in a deep voice: "Damn it, give it a go, Lao He, let's take a gamble!"

He Maocai was quite excited when he saw Zheng Michang agreeing to his proposal. Then, he picked up the chopsticks and said: "Okay, that's it. Don't just drink. Come, let's eat food." !”

"By the way, Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayou and the others will officially leave for the capital early tomorrow morning. We have to go and see them off!"

"Yes, after working together for so many years, it's time to give him a gift!"

……

After three rounds of wine and five flavors of food, Zheng and He left in a sedan chair.

He Maocai was in a good mood because his inner doubts were answered and the next steps were settled.

As soon as the sedan He Maocai was riding in stopped at the door of the mansion, the housekeeper came up to him and said respectfully: "Master!"

He Maocai heard the words and responded in a subtle way.

In the process of entering the mansion, He Maocai saw that the housekeeper was hesitant to speak. He waved his hand and asked, "What's the matter?"

When the housekeeper heard He Maocai's words, he felt as if he had received an amnesty. He immediately led He Maocai to a deserted place and lowered his voice and said: "Master, not long ago, the Yuan family sent someone here and brought ten thousand taels of silver! "

After He Maocai learned the news from the housekeeper, he immediately frowned and the expression on his face became extremely solemn: "What's going on? Didn't I tell you not to accept anyone's money recently? ?”

When the housekeeper heard He Maocai's words, he couldn't help but panic, and hesitantly tried to defend himself: "Old... Master, I can't help it. They put down the money and left. I..."

Seeing this, He Maocai looked away from the housekeeper, waved his hand, and said: "Okay, take the master and let me go over and have a look!"

When the housekeeper heard what He Maocai said, he felt as if he had been granted amnesty and quickly led the way.

"Master, please come this way!"

"Ah."

Under the guidance of the housekeeper, He Maocai arrived at a side room. After opening the door, several large wooden boxes were neatly placed in the room.

Then, He Maocai stepped forward and opened a wooden box. In the wooden box, silver ingots of excellent quality were neatly stacked.

When the butler on the side saw this, his eyes almost went straight. He had never seen so much cash. This money was enough to buy a mansion in the capital. If he gave all the money to spend, he would spend it in his lifetime. Not finished!

"Hmph, ten thousand taels of silver is really a generous sum!"

After finishing his emotion, He Maocai stepped forward, took out a silver ingot from the wooden box, and played with it casually.

Seeing this, the butler on the side immediately plucked up the courage, came to He Maocai, and asked cautiously: "Old... Master, what do you think of doing with this money?"

He Maocai heard this, glanced at the housekeeper, and said: "Put this money here for the time being. No one is allowed to come near without my permission, sir. Do you understand?"

When the housekeeper heard He Maocai's words, he immediately looked stern, lowered his head, and responded in a deep voice: "Yes, sir!"

After giving instructions to the housekeeper, He Maocai put the silver ingot in his hand back into the wooden box, then left the room with his hands behind his back.

……

The night passed in the blink of an eye, early in the morning, near the dock.

Early in the morning, Zheng Michang and He Maocai came to the pier as scheduled to see off Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou. However, what surprised them was that Zhao Zhenji also came to see them off in person.

At this moment, Zhao Zhenji looked at Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou who were about to leave in front of him, and couldn't help but remind him: "This capital is not like Zhejiang. You must be careful in everything, do you understand?"

Hearing this, Qi Jiguang's face was full of gratitude, he cupped his hands, bowed to Zhao Zhenji and said, "Thank you, Lord Governor, for your advice. I will definitely pay more attention to it!"

After that, Qi Jiguang looked away, looked at the officials not far away who came specially to see him off, and said in a deep voice: "Your Excellency, please take this seriously, let's say goodbye here!"

When the words fell, Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayou and his party stepped onto the sampan without looking back.

Seeing this situation, Zheng Michang couldn't help but sigh: "Oh, the governor has gone to the capital, Gao Hanwen has gone to the capital, and now even Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou have gone to the capital. When will it be my turn, Zheng Michang?" ?”

Gradually, the sky in the distance was dyed orange-red, the breeze blew gently on the water, the water rippled, and the sun came out!

The boat that Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayou and their party were on just became smaller and smaller, and finally turned into a small dot and disappeared from everyone's sight.

Then, Zhao Zhenji looked away, faced everyone, and said: "Okay, go back!"

When Zhao Zhenji finished speaking, everyone leaned down and respectfully responded: "I obey, Lord Governor!"

After that, the officials who came to see him off dispersed and gathered together in twos and threes, chatting.

"Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou are so prosperous now that they can actually be transferred to the capital!"

"This is all the result of Mr. Hu Ge. I heard that Mr. Hu Ge personally recommended them to His Majesty!"

Just when Zhao Zhenji was about to return to the Governor's Mansion in a sedan, He Maocai came to him in three steps and two steps at a time, lowering his voice and saying: "My Lord Governor, I have something important to report!"

Hearing this, Zhao Zhenji couldn't help but have a look of surprise on his face. Then, he glanced at He Maocai and Zheng Michang not far away, and gave instructions.

"This is not the place to talk. You can follow me to the Governor's Mansion!"

"Yes, Lord Governor!"

After that, Zheng Michang and He Maocai took a sedan chair to the Governor's Mansion.

"What do the two of them want to report to this officer?"

On the way back to the Governor's Palace in a sedan chair, Zhao Zhenji had this doubt lingering in his mind.

After all, Zheng Michang and He Maocai are recognized as the backbone of the strict party in the court. At present, he has just taken office as governor of Zhejiang, and his foundation is unstable. There are still many places where he needs to rely on them.

Zheng Michang and He Maocai were also quite sensible. They did whatever Zhao Zhenji told them, and did not go beyond the rules at all. Not to mention how close the two parties are, at least on the surface they are getting along well, getting along well, and seeming to be in harmony with each other.

It is precisely because of this that Zhao Zhenji was confused about the two people's 180-degree turn.

Zhao Zhenji has served as the censor of the Inspectorate for many years and has already developed a "fierce eye". Judging from the attitude shown by He Maocai before, it is clear that he is getting closer to himself!

"Is it possible that the two of them have other ideas and Yan Song instigated them?"

Thinking of this, Zhao Zhenji only felt upset.

Then, he shook his head, suppressed all the chaotic thoughts in his heart, and comforted himself by saying: "That's all, let's take it one step at a time. I want to see what tricks the two of them can do!"

Then, Zhao Zhenji opened the sedan curtain and looked at the scenery to the side.

"Lord Governor, the Governor's Mansion has arrived!"

"Ah."

After the sedan stopped, Zhao Zhenji was seen getting down from the sedan with the help of the bearer, and then stepped into the Governor's Mansion.

……

Shortly after this, the Council Chamber of the Governor's Palace.

At this moment, Zhao Zhenji was seen sitting on the main seat minding his own business. He glanced at Zheng Michang and He Maocai respectively, waved his hand and said: "Sit down, everyone, sit down!"

"Thank you, Lord Governor!"

Zheng Michang and He Maocai, who were not far away, heard this and bowed to Zhao Zhenji before sitting down on their seats.

Soon after Zheng and He sat down, a servant came forward and brought each of them a bowl of hot tea.

Zhao Zhenji picked up the tea cup, took a sip, put it down, then looked in the direction of He Maocai, and asked: "Master He, when we were at the dock just now, you said you had something important to report to me, please tell me. What's up?"

When Zhao Zhenji's words fell, He Maocai stood up from his seat, and after bowing his hands to Zhao Zhenji, he responded: "My lord, I will tell you the truth. Last night, the Yuan family sent someone to the lower official. Sent ten thousand taels of silver!"

"In addition, the Yuan family has repeatedly sent people to lobby the official, hoping that the official can be noble and let Yuan Kui go!"

After He Maocai finished speaking, he lowered his head and said nothing. Zheng Mi Chang's face, not far away, was also full of nervousness.

After all, there is no turning back. To tell the truth about the matter is equivalent to directly expressing your attitude and surrendering to Zhao Zhenji. Now it depends on whether Zhao Zhenji will accept it.

When Zhao Zhenji heard He Maocai's words, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. He had been in official circles for many years, but he couldn't understand the meaning of He Maocai's words.

He Maocai clearly wanted to use the fact that the Yuan family sent someone to send him 10,000 taels of silver to indirectly show his loyalty to Zhao Zhenji.

In other words, it is a certificate of submission.

What He Maocai wants to express is very simple: "Master Governor, look, I have told you everything about the Yuan family sending people to send me money and sending people to lobby many times. What happens next?" It’s all up to you to handle it!”

Seeing that Zhao Zhenji had not responded for a long time, Zheng Michang's heart almost rose to his throat. He could not imagine what they would do if Zhao Zhenji did not accept their surrender.

If this matter spreads, one can imagine the fate of the two of them.

Time passed by slowly, and the atmosphere in the room gradually became stagnant.

Just when Zheng Mi Chang couldn't hold on any longer, he heard Zhao Zhenji's voice without any emotion.

"Oh, Mr. He, logically speaking, there is no need for you to report such a thing to me, right?"

When Zheng Michang heard what Zhao Zhenji said, he couldn't help but feel a thump in his heart, and said to himself: "It's over, it's bad, the governor won't accept our surrender!"

Hearing this, He Maocai immediately raised his head, looked in the direction of Zhao Zhenji, and responded without hesitation: "The governor is the superior officer of the lower official. When encountering such a thing, the lower official is naturally obliged to report it truthfully!"

When He Maocai's words fell, Zhao Zhenji, after pondering for a moment, raised his eyebrows and said with a half-smile: "Master He, before I came to Zhejiang to take up my post, I was the Supervisory Censor of the Supervisory Council. Do you know that I will accept a What is the crime of ten thousand taels of silver in the Ming Law?"

He Maocai heard Zhao Zhenji's words and responded without thinking: "Any official who receives money will be punished according to the stolen goods. Officials will be expelled from their posts and officials will be dismissed. All officials who receive money will be charged with the second-class crime of the other officials. This is consistent." The following number of rods is seventy, and one level will be added for every five sticks. If the stick reaches eighty, he will be hanged!"

Zhao Zhenji heard He Maocai's words, nodded slightly, and said slowly: "Master He is worthy of having served as a criminal for more than 20 years. He is very familiar with many clauses of the Ming Dynasty Law. Well, not bad!"

Zheng Michang on the side couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Zhao Zhenji's tone softened.

At this moment, Zhao Zhenji's face became extremely cold, and he looked directly into He Maocai's eyes and said word by word: "Master He, since you know that this is a capital crime, why do you still accept these ten thousand taels of silver? Say, do you regard the Great Ming Law as a decoration?"

When Zhao Zhenji said this, he paused and continued: "Or do you think I can't cure you?"

Facing Zhao Zhenji's aggressive posture, He Maocai suppressed the panic in his heart, mustered up his courage, and said in a deep voice: "I don't dare, I will depend on the governor's orders!"

After Zhao Zhenji received He Maocai's reply, he nodded, looked away from He Maocai, and after pondering for a moment, he ordered: "Well, sit down!"

"As you command, Lord Governor!"

After that, He Maocai took a deep breath, bowed to Zhao Zhenji, and then sat back on the chair.

It was only then that he realized belatedly that his back was already soaked with cold sweat.

When Zheng Michang on the side saw this situation, the stone hanging in his heart finally fell to the ground safely. This meant that they had passed the test and Zhao Zhenji accepted their surrender.

Then, Zhao Zhenji looked in the direction of Zheng Michang and He Maocai and asked, "Tell me, what is going on? Tell me the whole story!"

"Lord Governor, this is what happened..."

Under Zheng and He's narrative, Zhao Zhenji finally had a more intuitive understanding of the Yuan family in Jiaxing.

"You mean, the Yuan family is not only a powerful landowner, but also a machine owner, with more than 8,000 looms in hand?"

As soon as Zhao Zhenji finished speaking, Zheng Michang stood up and said in agreement: "Yes, Lord Governor, this Yuan family has many connections in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and their connections in the capital are also intricate!"

"On weekdays, when we meet people from the Yuan family, we have to smile and don't dare to offend them at all!"

After listening to Zheng Michang's narration, Zhao Zhenji nodded, then looked in the direction of He Maocai and gave instructions: "When you come down later, return the ten thousand taels of silver to the Yuan family in full!"

When Zhao Zhenji said this, he paused for a moment and continued to add: "Next, we can't leave any clues. I must make Yuan Kui's case a solid case. I want to take a look. , How capable the Yuan family is!"

"Yes, Lord Governor!"

As soon as Zhao Zhenji finished speaking, Zheng Michang and He Maocai stood up from their seats and responded without thinking.

At this time, Zheng Mi Chang's face on the side was filled with unconcealable excitement, because he just heard Zhao Zhenji say the word "we".

In other words, from now on, they will be on the same front!

Seeing that the matter had settled, Zhao Zhenji looked away from the two of them and said: "Okay, let's leave it like this for now. You can go down and get ready!"

"Yes, Lord Governor, I will resign as soon as possible!"

After the words fell, Zheng Michang and He Maocai did not stay in the meeting hall for too long. After bowing respectfully to Zhao Zhenji, they turned and left.

Zhao Zhenji looked at the leaving figures of Zheng Michang and He Maocai, with an inexplicable look on his face.

He had a hunch that Zheng Michang and He Maocai must have noticed something, which was why their attitudes changed so quickly.

After that, Zhao Zhenji was seen slowly getting up from his seat and walking towards the direction of the study room of the Governor's Mansion.

……

Recalling what had happened before, He Maocai still felt a sense of fear.

After all, Zhao Zhenji's aura was so strong that for a moment, he really thought that Zhao Zhenji was going to deal with him according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty.

He Maocai shuddered at the thought of his possible fate.

Seeing Zheng Michang's thoughtful look, He Maocai immediately stepped forward and asked, "Old Zheng, what are you thinking about?"

Hearing this, Zheng Michang raised his head, glanced at He Maocai, a look of joy appeared on his face, and then said: "I'm thinking, what should we do if the governor doesn't accept our surrender!"

"At that time, if the news spreads, both of us will die without a burial place!"

He Maocai also quite agreed with Zheng Michang's words. He nodded and said with emotion: "Yes, if the news spreads, there will be countless people without even needing instructions from Mr. Yan Ge." Attack us and take our place!"

Afterwards, the two came to the place where the sedan chair was parked.

Before getting on the sedan, He Maocai suddenly stopped, turned around, glanced at the Governor's Mansion again, and said silently to himself: "Oh, what a pity, ten thousand taels of silver just flew away like this!" ( End of this chapter)