A piece of paper

For an official, strong ability is certainly important.

Being thick-skinned is also a way for an official: the imperial court in the capital had been under the rule of Princess Bai'an for some time, and had a certain understanding of her temperament. They knew that she was a ruthless and hard-hearted person, and no one dared to act rashly; at the local level, especially in the wealthy areas of Huguang, there were a few officials who were stubborn enough not to hand in their resignations, but they said a lot of disrespectful words after drinking, mostly making fun of Princess Bai'an's gender and rich marriage history.

Princess Bai'an did not give them time to beg for mercy. The time they had to wear official hats was the same as the time it took them to travel back and forth between the capital and the local areas - basically, their positions were liquidated within ten days.

Of course, the reason for dismissal would not be secretly talking about the leader, but employees who dare to talk about the leader in public generally cannot have other secrets.

Just like pulling a carrot, he pulls the pigtail and hits it right away.

Within ten days, the officials in Huguang changed several times.

When the ten-day date came and the court was reopened, even the trembling old minister, who looked as if the sky was about to fall, came to the court as if nothing had happened.

Others teased him: "I thought the old man would let me sacrifice my blood to show my loyalty and die to make Princess Bai'an suffer a little bit~"

The old official looked straight ahead and said, "The court has nurtured me, cultivated me, helped me, and protected me for all these years. How can it allow me to be so willful and abandon the people?"

Others: If you loosen your grip on Yuhuan a little, it might seem less utilitarian.

Men, especially men in office, are the best at self-ventilation. It takes at least one or two hundred years for a representative minister of remonstrance to die in the Golden Palace.

Now if I calculate with my fingers, I guess that year has not yet arrived.

If you want to make progress, don't make mistakes.

Under the crisis of being optimized, the civil and military officials of the court have unified their cognition, clarified their direction, and strengthened their beliefs. Let's go all the way north and work until we cry. The Ministry of Rites took the lead in proposing this year's KPI. We fully support the enthronement of Princess Bai'an! We will strive to complete the preparations for the enthronement ceremony in two months! New dragon robes and other things are guaranteed!

Immediately afterwards, the Ministry of War responded: The Two Imperial Guards, Xijiao Camp, and Jingji Divine Soldiers Camp are always ready to be inspected!

With the active response of the six ministries, the plan for Princess Bai'an's coronation ceremony was quickly implemented.

The Ministry of Rites originally wanted to make a big fuss and create a stir to please the new leader, so they made a very long shopping list and ambitiously promoted Princess Bai'an as "the greatest emperor of all time."

The Ministry of Revenue wanted to tear the Ministry of Rites to pieces: Damn it, you are the most sensible person in the world, if you have the ability, just pay all the money!

Oh shit.

After Old Man Hu from the Ministry of Revenue finished cursing with gnashing teeth, he turned around and carried some Hui ink to the gate of the Qiao family, avoiding the father and son of the Qiao family. He first gave Chen Fu a pot of peach blossom wine, and then went to find Xianjin.

She cried, "It's not that we don't have money, it's that all the money has a use. The two islands in the east are restless, we have to be vigilant at all times, and the military expenditure in the west can't be cut. With such a long list, where can I get the money! Where can I get the money!"

Old Man Hu was crying: "It's just too much money, I can't keep it. I've really run out of options, so I came to you - others may not know, but how can I not know the relationship between you and that person? There are some things that only you can say!"

Old man Hu only hated that he was old and ugly, and had no other way to please this hidden power center. He could only beat his chest and take advantage of his age and seniority: "No matter what! Anyway, I have no money, no money!"

Xianjin was stunned: the imagined business war - shorting the opponent's stock price; the actual business war - watering the opponent's money tree to death!

Imaginary political struggle - I am the mantis stalking the cicada, but the oriole is behind me, and I will kill you by surprise with a sudden counterattack;

The actual political struggle—the crazy old man went crazy on the spot: I don’t care, I don’t care, I don’t care!

Xianjin scratched his head and thought for a while: "The Grand Princess has gone through a lot of hardships, so she won't accept some extravagant gifts if you don't ask. The rest can't be reduced. If the Ministry of Revenue is really in trouble, I will find a way."

Old man Hu burst into tears, thinking in his heart: The eldest princess is now over 40 years old, so she can work for another 30 or 40 years without any problem. By the time the young princess takes over, he will be exactly 90 years old, which is the right age for innovation!
A scholar dies for a confidant!

Xianjin doesn’t even know that he has a 90-year-old fan.

After seeing off Old Man Hu, he wrote a letter back to Nanzhili. He originally wanted to find the Xuancheng Chamber of Commerce, but after thinking about it, he decided to go the route of Old Xiong.

Lao Xiong was appointed as the head of Nanzhili. Jiangnan has always been prosperous, so a little bleeding is not a big deal.

After Xianjin sent a letter, Xiong Youyou and her son Cui Ayuan came over in grand style.

The mother and son are now waiting in the side room of Marquis Zhongwu.

Everyone got off their horses, Qiao Fangzhi explained the specifications of the New Year's Eve family dinner, Qiao Hui went to the West Hill, Xianjin took off his cloak and went into the house, Xiong Youyou was holding the chubby eldest son Cui Yuan, and was eating sweet potato pancakes with red peat. When she saw Xianjin coming in, she put her eldest son aside, stood up and greeted him: "But I am exhausted! First I took a boat and then a carriage, and after arriving in Beijing, I hurried to take a bath and change clothes at the post station - I have to eat lunch later before leaving."

Xianjin opened his arms and hugged Ayuan, saying repeatedly: "Ouch, ouch - it's too heavy, auntie can't hold me anymore!"

Xiong Youyou slapped Xianjin on the back of his hand: "You can't say you've gained weight or become fat in front of a child! You can't say you're smart! You can't say you're good-looking!"

What the hell.

Xianjin nodded happily: "Okay, okay - our A Yuan is really an ugly little bean sprout."

Xiong Youyou was satisfied. After not seeing each other for three years, she was not unfamiliar. She looked very good. It was reasonable. Her uncle was firmly in the powerful position of the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture, her husband Cui Heng had a prosperous career and was promoted to the prefect of Xuancheng Prefecture. Her eldest son was well-behaved and started school smoothly. There were no bad things at home. The only troublemaker, her mother-in-law, was left in Jing County. Now, after handing her eldest son to Aunt Zhang, she ate the golden candied dates calmly.

Halfway through the meal, he took out a thick red silk from his bosom and pushed it to Xianjin's side: "They are all silver banknotes. Baohezhai can exchange them, and Qiujitang can also exchange them. Not only Xuancheng Prefecture, but also the chambers of commerce in Huai'an Prefecture, Songjiang Prefecture, and Chuzhou Prefecture have expressed their intentions in it."

Xianjin turned around and took out a booklet from the drawer, saying he was going to write down the name.

"What are you remembering? Last year we exempted taxes, the year before last we built a canal, and the year before last we fought the Tartars and the Japanese. The capital was not at peace either. Now we finally have a peaceful life, so we can't be too shabby for the sake of respectability. You come from a merchant family, so you know that business is not all about money-grubbing middlemen. You know which dynasty is good and which is bad. What's more, you have a relationship with Nanzhili. Anyone who doesn't support you is a coward!"

"Even Mr. Shang, who runs a printing workshop, Mr. Zhen on the river, and the three big families of the Xuancheng Chamber of Commerce have contributed money."

Xiong Youyou put the money into Xianjin's arms: "It's not much, but it's a token of Nanfang's love."

The Ministry of Revenue has no money, but it still has to get things done.

It's not just the coronation ceremony, there are also military training, dike building, snowstorm relief for victims, and city repairs. It's a new dynasty, so what doesn't cost money?

Xianjin accepted it.

Well, just think of it as them buying original shares.

Xiong Youyou fell back comfortably. "My uncle urged me so much. I wanted to go to Beijing after the New Year. But he urged me so much that he said, 'You guys are leaving before the end of the twelfth lunar month?'"

Xianjin nodded: "Yes, we have to go to the northernmost part, the Nurgan Commandery."

Xiong Youyou smacked her lips, "I heard that the original Lord Feng was dismissed from his post, and you two really can't sit still. You left the prosperous capital and insisted on going to a cold place. Is Master Qiao willing to follow you around the country without any status or position?"

Xianjin:?
She made it sound like she was denying the eating.

Haven’t eaten yet!

"What do you mean you follow me without any status? There are Tartars in the northwest, Japanese in the east, and a Rakshasa in the north. He is going to train troops and guard the city, and I am going to do business with the Russians and break through the wall of Shanhaiguan. We all have our own things to do." Xianjin also ate a sweet potato: "What's more, I promised that I would give him an explanation when the situation in the court stabilizes."

Xiong Youyou recalled that she had previously taught Xianjin to "nail down Qiao Baoyuan and never let go."
It's superficial, really superficial.

Xiong Youyou laughed, sighed, and said with some regret: "In the past, when we were very young, we were in your original shop, making tea and roasting peanuts. Now your bloodline has seen the light of day, Qiao Hui survived the disaster and rose to a high position, and Chen's Erlang also passed the imperial examination. He was obviously the second place in the imperial examination, but he asked to go to the most difficult Yumen Pass to be a seventh-rank county magistrate."

Time is such a funny thing.

Xianjin also leaned back.

The word Jing County is a bit far away from her.

It was like the days of rebirth after death, with glass shards mixed with rock sugar, but when I looked back, they melted away in the gentle time.

"The Chen family."

Xianjin smiled.

Xiong Youyou also smiled: "Chen family."

"The old lady from the Chen family also passed away years ago." Xiong Youyou said.

Xianjin nodded. She knew about this. When Chen Fu went back, she also observed a hundred days of mourning in the capital - this was a favor. No matter how many twists and turns there were, it was undeniable that the Chen family had provided her with food for more than ten years.

"Before she passed away, the old lady pounded the bed and couldn't speak. She called Chen Erlang to her bedside and talked to him for a long time, saying that she regretted, that she was sorry to him, and that if she could do it again, she would say all kinds of things." Xiong Youyou was the one who knew Xianjin best during the Xuancheng period. She smiled and shook her head as she spoke: "The old lady must have heard about your extremely wealthy status. Before she got sick, she urged Chen Erlang to come to the capital to study and find you. After she got sick, she regretted it every day."

Xianjin said nothing.

There is a kind of storybook that makes everyone who has ever made things difficult for the protagonist beat their chests and stamp their feet, and have a miserable end.

She didn't want to be the protagonist, nor did she want to sing this kind of script.

The light boat has passed the tens of thousands of mountains.

Other people's regret or guilt has nothing to do with her.

Xianjin raised his eyes and looked at the heavy camphorwood boxes stacked among the flowers.

As for life, if you firmly believe that it is full of twists and turns, then it is a bumpy road; if you firmly believe that it is a smooth road, then it will definitely be smooth sailing.

My life is in my own hands, not in the hands of others, not in the hands of heaven, not in the hands of fate, not in the hands of luck.

Only by me. (End of this chapter)