The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Ever since Zhang Zhou left Binhai City, Ning Tong has had to adapt to living alone again.

Every day she goes about her business as usual. She has to take care of the business of the theater, the wine shop, etc., and also keep an eye on the situation in the palace. After all, Concubine Xian is pregnant here, and as a good sister, although she is not allowed to visit recently, she has the responsibility to take care of her.

Besides...she also wants to treat people.

Of course, treating Concubine Xian was not allowed, because Zhang Zhou had said before that if she had a conflict with the Queen again, it would be hard to say whether she could save her life.

In addition, now that she has entered the Zhang Mansion, she represents Zhang Zhou and can no longer do whatever she wants as before.

Even so, she still wanted to be a doctor, because she had been a miracle doctor in the capital before, and was respected and even admired by everyone. That was the time when she felt the most accomplished and fulfilled. So much so that when she thought back, it seemed that was the life she wanted.

But now... no one has a cure for his illness. Fortunately, Xie Qian's illness gave her a chance to display her strengths. She also had a certain talent in treating illnesses. With Zhang Zhou's guidance, her understanding of a person's body and illness far exceeded that of ordinary doctors of this era. She was able to prescribe the right medicine and quickly made Xie Qian's condition improve.

In this way, she seemed confused again. The doctor was here, but patients were not common. Even if there were, no one needed him to treat them.

"Madam, these are the account books for the past two months. Some of the expenses have not been listed yet. They will be listed in a month when the big accounts are calculated. The theater and the wine shop are profitable every year, but because they have not been in business for a long time, we can't see much profit yet. Every time the boss comes back, he will repair these places, and it costs a lot of money."

Ning Tong was equivalent to a "mistress" at this time. Although she was not fully responsible for the accounts of Zhang Zhou's business in the city, she was considered to be Zhang Zhou's family after all, so many things had to be shown to her.

The person who was reporting to her was a very capable accountant under Zhang Zhou, namely Huang Zhao.

Listening to the report of the woman in front of her, Ning Tong first thought about the relationship between this woman and Zhang Zhou, and felt a little jealous and defensive in her heart, but when she thought of Zhang Zhou and their relationship as husband and wife, she couldn't help but become distracted.

She thought she could continue to live an ordinary life. After all, she had lived alone from the time she married Zhu Feng to the time she lived alone with her younger sister. It seemed that now was no different from before.

But the biggest difference is that she has become a real wife and has opened certain ink boxes. It seems not so easy for her to keep her mind clear and be a female hero who does not care about worldly affairs or even does not care about worldly affairs.

Ning Tong had been feeling pretty good these past few days, but whenever she thought of Zhang Zhou, she would feel some strange emotions inside.

But after meeting Huang Zhaoshi, some things seemed to burst like a dam, rising in her heart, and she could no longer stop it. Especially when she thought of Zhang Zhou, the feeling made her worse. She tried several times to throw away the things in her mind, but it was obviously not that easy.

Huang Zhaoshi didn't have as many thoughts as Ning Tong. She was just carrying out her routine report, and when she talked about the specific expenses of the theater.

Ning Tong finally interrupted her and asked, "The theater building looks very luxurious, why do you need to spend a lot of money to repair it? Isn't this a loss?"

Huang Zhaoshi heard this and said seriously, "The expenses are very high. Previously, the boss would not easily explain to the people below why. However, if we calculate based on the income and expenses, there should be no loss. After all, the theater has so many guests, it is still very popular."

Ning Tong said: "Why do you always mention income and expenses? I'm not used to it."

Huang Zhao was also helpless in this matter.

I am just a professional manager who runs your family's business. I don't even have control over how you run your business. I am only responsible for recording and calculating the accounts. I don't talk to you about numbers. What else can I talk to you about?
Also, how your family runs the theater is none of my business.
"What year were you born?" Ning Tong asked.

Huang Zhao stared at Ning Tong with wide eyes, not knowing what was wrong with Ning Tong that she suddenly asked such a question, and she didn't know how to answer it.

"How old are you?" Ning Tong asked.

Huang Zhao said, "Twenty-seven."

Ning Tong nodded and said, "You are actually two years older than me. How did you get here?"

Huang Zhao obviously didn't want to talk about her past with Ning Tong. It was a memory that she couldn't bear to look back on. She was once a well-fed and well-clothed young lady, but now she had to work on her own. It still felt very bad.

But under Ning Tong's questioning, Huang Zhao still roughly mentioned the case in Yongping Prefecture and the involvement of that case.

"Why would this happen? You are innocent." Ning Tong felt a little sympathetic when she heard Huang Zhao talking about the past. She probably felt that the local officials and gentry were being oppressed.

Huang Zhao said: "The court opened a mine in Yongping Prefecture, and many local people opposed it. Later, there was a mine robbery incident, and the locals were very unhappy. Later, there were many land issues, and there were conflicts between the court and the locals. Later, after the Jinyiwei stepped in, the matter was settled. After that, Yongping Prefecture was very peaceful and no incidents occurred again."

Ning Tong asked, "Does this count as competing with the people for profit?"

"what?"

Huang Zhao was terrified when she heard this.

Since ancient times, the people have not fought with the officials. Although the local officials and gentry were not considered the people, they still fought. As a result, the court relied on more powerful suppression, and no one in the court spoke for them. As a result, the local officials and gentry were defeated miserably, and then Yongping Prefecture was quiet. Afterwards, Zhang Zhou promoted everything here, and everything went smoothly.

It was against this background that Binhai City was established.

Otherwise, the wrangling and maneuvering at the local level, the trouble-making of some people, and the struggle for moral interests in the court would prevent this matter from moving forward.

Now, a female member of the Zhang Zhou family seemed to support the local officials and gentry and was speaking for them. Huang Zhao was shocked and moved after hearing this.

Ning Tong asked, "How come the affairs of the big family fell on you?"

Huang Zhaoshi's face was slightly sad. She had stopped thinking about the past in the past two years. Now that she suddenly thought about it again, she still felt very wronged: "Originally, I shouldn't have been implicated, but because my family is a member of the Zhao family, my husband's family was afraid of causing trouble. In addition, my husband's family wanted to compete for subsequent interests, so they drove me out and returned to my parents' home. I was exiled and convicted along with my parents' family."

"There are people like this?" Ning Tong became even angrier after hearing this.

She originally thought that Huang Zhaoshi was pretty, and she had some jealousy or strange emotions in her heart. After hearing this, her sense of justice exploded, and she seemed to want to make the decision for Huang Zhaoshi, "Didn't you fight against your family? A married woman should obey her husband. Even if there is something wrong at home, how can I let you get implicated?"

Huang Zhao shook her head and said, "There is nothing we can do. Under the circumstances at the time, almost all families who committed crimes, including my own family, were driven out in this way. They were afraid of causing trouble and dared not get involved with us anymore... Later, I was selected to study in a girls' school, and then... I was assigned this job."

Ning Tong nodded and said, "What about your family? Where are your brothers and sisters and their families now?"

Huang Zhao said, "They are basically all in this city, but they are scattered everywhere, and most of them cannot see each other. Because I have done effective work, my family was allowed to move to my side. Now I can see them when I am off work, which is good enough."

"Yes, with my family around me, I can finally feel some affection. So, he is not completely heartless." Ning Tong sighed.

The "he" she was referring to was naturally Zhang Zhou.

Huang Zhao asked, "Madam, how did you get here?"

Obviously, Huang Zhaoshi was not an ordinary woman. She was also very curious about Ning Tong's background and how she suddenly became Zhang Zhou's close friend. And how she managed to be accepted by Zhang Zhou and become his concubine at the age of more than 20. This was also a very curious thing for her.

"I'm about the same. The Jinyiwei sent me here." Ning Tong said.

"Then, madam, are you also guilty?" asked Huang Zhao.

"Yeah." Ning Tong felt a little helpless when she said this. After all, her crime was mostly self-inflicted, and the people she offended were not some small figures, but the queen and the group of imperial doctors.

Ning Tong saw Huang Zhao's sympathetic look and smiled, "You and I are still different. I will tell you later."

In fact, Ning Tong was too embarrassed to say at this moment that she was originally the legal wife of the powerful Marquis Anbian, and she lived a completely carefree life. It was just that there were some unusual things in the relationship between husband and wife, and she had to find some new life, which led to her current situation.

"The theater costs so much. I think that person wants to be more comfortable when he goes in to watch the show. Does he go there every day when he is in this city?" Ning Tong said.

Huang Zhao thought about it for a while before realizing that "that person" was Zhang Zhou, whom she couldn't even look up to.

"Yes." Huang Zhao said, "The boss often goes there."

"He just likes to be free. He seems to be thrifty, but it's not like him to not spend money. I haven't seen him have any money left in the past few years. He either gave it to the court, built cities, or spent it on theaters. Come to think of it, when he was in the capital, didn't he run to the theater whenever he had nothing to do, and was surrounded by a group of actors all day long?"

Speaking of this, Ning Tong still felt a little uncomfortable.

It was as if her identity and status were not even as good as those of the opera singers in the theater. At least those women could often see people, while she had to stay alone in this city.

"No need to say more, just do what you are good at."

Ning Tong saw that Huang Zhao wanted to continue talking about the accounts, so she waved her hand and said, "I just want to know more about this city. I have been here for a short time and have not really witnessed the rise of this city. It is good here, but it feels like a cage."

Huang Zhao said, "The boss has previously instructed us to prepare a carriage for you. You can leave the city at any time and go for a walk around."

"The more he acts like this, the more I don't want to go out." Ning Tong said, "I want to go to the capital."

"That's fine." Huang Zhao said, "The boss will check the accounts here regularly. Otherwise, Madam can go with the emperor."

"Can?"

When Ning Tong heard this, she suddenly felt a little upset.

Originally, she told Zhang Zhou that she could maintain the peace and quiet here, but Zhang Zhou had only been gone for a month and it was a little hard for her to accept it.

She couldn't help but want to find Zhang Zhou, or hope that Zhang Zhou could come earlier, but she knew in her heart that Zhang Zhou could not always spare several months to come to Binhai City. After all, Zhang Zhou was in a high position now and could not get away.

Huang Zhao said, "Just give the madam's instructions."

"Then let's get ready." Ning Tong suddenly had a smile on her face, and her eyes when she looked at Huang Zhaoshi became much softer.

In her opinion, this was a knowledgeable and interesting woman who at least understood what she was thinking and could help her solve some problems that were not easy to solve on the surface.

"Yes."

Huang Zhao didn't think anything of it.

Because going to the capital to report on her work was originally one of her duties. Zhang Zhou's control over Binhai City can be said to be in all aspects. Zhang Zhou always personally checks the accounts and makes plans.

The biggest problem in building a city still comes from the cost, because this city is almost Zhang Zhou’s own back garden. It was built with his own earnings. He even equipped the city with ports and ships, as well as transportation tools and carriers such as railways.

That was Zhang Zhou's most important basic plan for industrial development.

……

……

In the capital city.

In the theater, Zhang Zhou received a letter from Ning Tong and learned about Xie Qian's specific condition. He also learned that this stubborn old man's health had improved significantly and he would be able to go to work soon.

"Sir, do you have anything else to tell me? These people have done it for you." Sitting next to him was Yang Peng, and he was the one who brought the letter.

Zhang Zhou said, "Eunuch Yang, the capital has been very peaceful recently, isn't that right?"

Yang Peng thought for a moment and nodded, "After the beginning of spring, there has been no major incidents, and the court has been peaceful. Why do you ask this question?"

Zhang Zhou sighed and said, "I was also thinking about what I could do at a time like this."

"Do you want to... make the capital city unstable?" Yang Peng asked with a smile.

Zhang Zhou put down the letter and said, "Thank you, Lord, for your improvement. Who are we doing this for?"

Yang Peng was speechless for a moment.

The emperor knew about Xie Qian's treatment, but the ministers did not know about it, which meant that Xie Qian's illness was kept secret from the court.

Now that he has recovered from his illness, it seems that no one else except Xie Qian will remember his kindness.

But is Xie Qian really the kind of person who knows how to repay kindness?

Zhang Zhou said: "Recently, even the wars in the northwest and Liaodong have calmed down a lot. I am bored and want to do something to improve the military strength of the Ming Dynasty. But I don't know where to start."

Yang Peng smiled and said, "Sir, you have a far-sighted vision that others cannot match. Just tell me where you need help, and the East Factory and the Embroidered Uniform Guard will definitely help you. If you want to leave the capital and go to Xishan or Binhai City, the East Factory and the Embroidered Uniform Guard will definitely protect you." (End of this chapter)