Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 151 Status Change
Jia Lian said nothing and looked at Emperor Chenghui calmly, with a little pity in his eyes.

Wouldn't it be nice to be a foolish king? Why do you want to be a wise king who makes a difference?

It doesn’t sound good when you lie down, but it’s comfortable!

Why does my heart ache when I think of the modern history of another time and space?

After a short break, the meeting continued. Emperor Chenghui changed his previous practice of listening to opinions and looked around before speaking directly.

"The general is away, and the emperor's orders are not accepted. Prince Teng is awarded the title of General of the Western Region and governor of the Western Region. He is in charge of military and political affairs. He makes decisions on the spur of the moment and does things cheaply. If he is below the third rank, he will be killed first and then reported. Following the army chief, Zhou Lin, who is loyal and brave, is awarded the title of Honglu Temple. Shaoqing, select your entourage and interpreter to send an envoy to Rus to question the Rus Empire about what it wants and whether to go to war."

Emperor Chenghui accepted the suggestion of sending two envoys. The Ministry of Rites selected officials to visit the Ottoman Empire. The governor of Guangdong and Guangxi was responsible for ship interpretation and other corresponding matters, and came up with a suitable plan as soon as possible for the emperor and the cabinet to make a decision.

The news of the dispatch of the mission during this cabinet meeting appeared in the "Beijing Minsheng News" the next day. The first-hand news brought huge sales and soon aroused heated discussion in the capital.

Jia Lian also accepted a task to write a commentary on the incident.

After being locked up in a small dark room for an afternoon, Jia Lian wrote a review of about 3,000 words. After Emperor Chenghui read it, he had someone give it to Li Heng.

"I went to meet my in-laws today. The Wang family specially sent people back to their hometown in Jinling to deal with those ignorant tribesmen. Your father-in-law told me that the steward that day had his legs broken, and several tribesmen were grounded for one to three years. Very happy, What a pleasure!”

Regarding Jia Lian's marriage preparations, Jia Zheng, as the second uncle, had no involvement at all and seemed to have completely disappeared. Mrs. Wang, who was originally the main force in preparing for the wedding, also chose not to speak at all. Jia Min, the person in charge of organizing the wedding, did her job.

Faced with Jia Min's explanation, Lai Da did not dare to show any slightness. After all, things are different now. In the past, the big house was hidden in the Dongkua Courtyard, and some things were asked to be done by the housekeeper. At that time, Lai Da was bent on pleasing Jia Mu and Jia Min. Second bedroom. In the current situation, Lai Da can only pray to God and pray to Buddha to protect Jia Lian from forgetting the slight neglect in the past.

No, as soon as Jia Lian came home from get off work, Jia She, who was glowing with red face, came to the door.

"Shuzi, why didn't you say a word?" Jia She picked up the cup again, and Jia Lian smiled: "I'm still used to my father being like this. I think my father will feel the change in the attitude of the Wang family the most."

There is a lot of money to be made during the preparation period, so naturally there is no need to mention it. The main thing is to save face, very face.

As long as it didn't delay things, Jia Mu would turn a blind eye, and Jia Min didn't see anything. She just told Lai Da that the purchase should be done accordingly, and no mistakes should be made. If something goes wrong, you should know who will be unlucky.

Feeling that he had lost face, Jia She turned around and left cursing. On the way back, Jia She still silently recalled in his heart, from when his second wife married Wang, to when the Jia family had to shift their resources to Wang Ziteng, and when the eldest family moved to the east cross courtyard.

Where did this change come from? Jia She went back and thought for a while before he figured it out, starting from the time Jia Lian walked to the study. Calculating the time carefully, Jia Lian could only go to the study for twenty days. The Wang family sent people back to Jinling. I don't know how many horses had to be killed in the round trip.

Jia She was naturally willing to do a job that looked good on his face, so Jia Min had no intention of resisting Jia Min's arrangements. He really just did whatever he was asked to do, and he was a father who prepared for his son's marriage. Of course, Jia She would not delay in getting some benefits from it.

The article also spends a certain amount of words praising Emperor Chenghui, "The emperor's heart has reflected thousands of miles, and he has learned both Chinese and Western knowledge, so he has this magical writing." 】Flattery must be photographed, and it must be done in a level and natural way.

Jia Lian reacted indifferently to this and just looked at him calmly without saying a word, watching him perform alone.

The preparations for the wedding received a positive response from the Wang family. Jia She, who had always been lazy, became very enthusiastic during the preparations for the wedding.

In his comments, Jia Lian briefly talked about the grievances between the Ottoman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire, pointing out that although the Ottoman Empire was not as big as before, it was still a huge empire. He also pointed out that the Ross Empire's ambitions for sea access and the need to stabilize the northern border made it very necessary to contact the Ottomans, who had no strong relationship.

As for Wang Ziteng's arrangement, not a word appeared in the newspaper, but it was only circulated among senior officials.

Jia She, who usually acted like an old man, was dancing so happily that he wanted to jump up and down.

Because of this, Jia She realized that the attitude of the Wang family today was particularly refreshing!

Later, Jia She came to Rongxi Hall and reported the results of the Wang family's trip to the old lady. When the attitude of the Wang family was mentioned, Jia She couldn't help but glance at Mrs. Wang. Mrs. Wang, who had not yet recovered from the pain of losing her son, was in low spirits with her head hanging down.

Jia She's mood quickly became stable, after all, Jia Lian's eyes were not very warm.

It's true that Jia She is a waste, but he still has a basic IQ. Since Jia Lian was captured by the emperor at his first stop to observe politics, Jia She's status outside has also improved. If you think about it carefully, it is not difficult to understand that with all kinds of auras such as being a noble, a relative, a champion, and winning the emperor's heart, no one would be stupid enough not to be optimistic about Jia Lian's future. Most people even concluded that he was regarded as a future cabinet minister. nourish.

The words spoken in a calm tone were like a basin of cold water, completely calming Jia She down.

A month in the study to observe politics passed quickly. For Jia Lian, the biggest gain was that he learned to look at problems from the perspective of the entire Zhou Empire. Looking at the issue from the perspective of the emperor and ministers, any decision can really affect the whole body.

Today is the last day. When Jia Lian was dealing with the memorial, he saw the memorial from Sun Huazhen.

Sun Huazhen has the right to report directly without going through the cabinet. But this old gentleman's first memorial after taking office in Liangjiang followed the normal process and did not go directly to the emperor.

There are two red circles drawn by Zhang Ting'en and Kong Zhao on the memorial, indicating that they have read it and did not attach any relevant opinions.

The specific content is very simple. After the handover was successfully completed, Kong Zhao ordered the governor of Jiangnan and Jiangbei to make a positive and positive response to the issue of clearing the summer tax this year. At the same time, Sun Huazhen also summoned representative officials from Jinling and Suzhou. Gentlemen, I hope they can cooperate with the court on the matter of clearing debts between the two rivers.

So far, officials and gentry in Liangjiang have not responded positively to this. Sun Huazhen made a routine memorial and said that he should inform the cabinet. The implication is that the Ministry of Household Affairs should not worry about this year's summer tax.

After reading this memorial, Jia Lian sighed, "Will you do this for me in the last shift?"

Take out this memorial separately and attach a note with the word "Urgent" written on it.

After finishing, Jia Lian waved to the little eunuch next to him. He had become familiar with him these days, and Jia Lian often bribed the little eunuch who was running errands with broken silver and snacks. The memorial was immediately sent to the king, and as expected, Qiu Shian appeared half an hour later.

"Jia Sheren, your Majesty has summoned you." Qiu Shian announced seriously. Well, the position of "Guanzheng Sheren" is exclusive to Jia Lian. He is the only one in the Zhou Dynasty, and there is no semicolon. I don’t know if there will be more in the future, but there is only one now.

After leaving the office, Jia Lian came to the door of the study and waited for a few seconds before being admitted.

There was only one chamberlain, Qiu Shi'an, waiting in the study. After Emperor Chenghui waited for Jia Lian to see him, he did not mention the memorial, but first asked: "One month is up. Where do you want to go next time to observe the government?"

Emperor Chenghui's casualness began after the cabinet meeting that day. It seems that Jia Lian's uncle-guo label cannot be removed. Let's put it this way, Jia Lian and Emperor Chenghui have been observing and influencing each other.

In his spare time, Emperor Chenghui always liked to call Jia Lian over for a chat. During the chat, Emperor Chenghui could always hear some seemingly ordinary views from Jia Lian that actually pointed to the essence of the problem.

Emperor Chenghui admired this boy's ability to always see the essence of the problem!

It's true to say that there are special characteristics. Most people live their entire lives and are still confused when they get old.

A country's many problems are all economic problems on the surface. On a deeper level, they are the distribution of social resources. The ultimate essence lies in the system and ideology.

There are many truths that I just memorized for exams when I was studying. After decades of ups and downs in society, I can only understand them when I look back.

Therefore, Emperor Chenghui would be surprised and admire Jia Lian.

"Back to Your Majesty, if possible, I would like to go to the Ministry of Industry to observe the government first!"

Emperor Chenghui did not hide the surprise on his face and blurted out: "Why did you choose to go to the Ministry of Industry first?"

There is a chain of discrimination between the six ministries, with the Ministry of Rites at the top and the Ministry of Work at the bottom. In the 100 years since the Zhou Dynasty, the only case where a minister from the Ministry of Industry was promoted to the cabinet occurred in the Taizu period. The reason is that during his time at the Ministry of Industry, this minister first solved the mass manufacturing of muskets and then organized the construction of the Yellow River.

Since then, no Minister of Industry has become a cabinet minister. The reason is actually very simple. There are only so many top-level resources, one carrot and one pit.

The Ministry of Works has always been a work force in all dynasties. For those who work hard, it is very difficult to get ahead in the court.

This type of people probably have a hard life in the company. When a boss wants to promote an employee, what matters is not whether you can do the job, but whether you can please the boss.

[Dong Yuhui, what about you! 】

Emperor Chenghui didn't think that Jia Lian was pretending. He really wanted to go to the Ministry of Industry to observe the government first. It didn't matter even if he left an impression on others.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the Ministry of Industry is the department that can create wealth for the imperial court. If you want to make a difference, the Ministry of Industry cannot go around it."

Jia Lian's answer was very simple and clear, and Emperor Chenghui really understood it.

"Isn't it said that the world's wealth is fixed?" Emperor Chenghui asked in surprise. After all, his cognition was disordered.

"Your Majesty, the process of silkworms spinning silk and weaving it into silk is creating wealth. I don't know whether wealth has a certain number in heaven. As far as the world's knowledge is concerned, there is still a lot of wealth that has not been discovered. How to discover it? ? Chen believes that it is necessary to rely on more talents to pay attention to craftsmen, research and discover new wealth. For example, when digging coal, there will be a lot of water underground. How to drain the water? This dynasty mainly requires manual labor and some Equipment, I heard that the English invented the steam engine for pumping water, which saved labor, improved efficiency, and reduced the risks of coal mining. The English also invented the flying shuttle, which increased the weaving efficiency a hundred times. I also heard that the English Someone over there is using a steam engine to make an iron horse, which can run non-stop by just burning coal."

Jia Lian stopped when he said this, and Emperor Chenghui was silent for a while before saying: "I know what you are thinking!"

Emperor Chenghui didn't expect to pull out such a long list, so after looking at Jia Lian, he got back to business.

"What do you think of Prime Minister Sun's memorial?"

"Wei ministers don't understand Mr. Sun's character and dare not speak nonsense."

"If you were Prime Minister Sun, how would you advance the affairs of the two rivers?"

Jia Lian looked back subconsciously. Emperor Chenghui pretended to smile and scolded: "Shu Zi, there are no outsiders within fifty steps."

"The matter between the two rivers lies with the gentry. To solve the matter between the two rivers, we should first rectify the officials. We do not seek to isolate the officials and the gentry from each other, but we seek to catch a few typical examples to scare the monkeys. The gentry in the world may seem powerful, but when it comes to individuals, there is no A person who is not afraid of death. As long as the court is strong enough, there is no tax that cannot be collected. Speaking of tax collection, I suggest that the gentry in the world understand the truth that they can rebel and must pay taxes. "

Emperor Chenghui…. Perhaps, such words can only be heard from Jia Lian.

The imperial court selected scholars through the imperial examination, and the imperial examination created the gentry class. The gentry class in turn eroded the foundation of the imperial court.

Some literati clamored for restoration and the rule of three generations.

There are still people who want to restore rural virtuousness in modern society. Why the hell don’t you restore the system of family clans and the Nine-Rank Zhongzheng system?

The essence of the imperial examination is to distribute the resources and rights that were originally in the hands of the clans to the [shi] who were produced by the imperial examination. The advantage of this is to avoid the emergence of grassroots threats to the imperial power, and the ultimate goal is to stabilize the imperial power.

Everything has advantages and disadvantages. Eight-legged stereotypes restrict ideas and lead to stagnant productivity. This is not the scope of consideration for the imperial power. What the emperor wants is a good and stable political power, and let’s put the rest aside for now. Those in power will not take the initiative to make changes without the threat of external forces. Because unchanged means that the interests remain unchanged, and if there is a change, there will be a risk of loss of interests.

Looking at the problem from Jia Lian's perspective, it was too difficult to change the Zhou Dynasty. He could only bypass the existing vested interests and find another way, and then induce the existing vested interests to participate in sharing the benefits and promote the development of the events he wanted to promote.

As for the system, Jia Lian feels that it is not that important. As long as productivity is developed, there will be relevant stakeholders to promote the development of production relations. Just like the legitimacy of the emperor, there were great scholars who came out to argue for the imperial power.

The consequences are unknown.

After leaving the study room, Jia Lian's history of "Guanzheng Sheren" came to an end.

The next day was a holiday, so Jia Lian rarely rested at home. The preparations for the wedding were still going on, and Jia Lian couldn't help at all. Jia Min wanted to be a qualified listener, but Jia Min thought it was a hindrance and kicked him out directly.

After leaving Rongxi Hall, Jia Lian remembered that the Spring Festival was coming. He hadn't seen the Spring Festival in a while, so he went there.

When I got there, I discovered that there were guests here in Yingchun. Daiyu was playing chess with Yingchun, and sitting next to her was a little girl about the same age as Daiyu. Judging by her dress, she knew she was Tanchun. There are only a few ladies in Rongxi Hall, and Xichun is still breastfeeding.

While he was eager to peek, a voice came from outside, and the maid Si Qi was yelling at someone: "Sister Xueyan said that my cousin didn't see Mr. Bao, and she also said that it would be better for Mr. Bao to concentrate on studying instead of idleness all day. !”

Jia Lian looked back at the door of the courtyard. Baoyu was about to rush in angrily, but Si Qi opened his arms to stop him.

Baoyu was shaking with anger and turned around and shouted: "Are you all deaf and blind? Why don't you pull her away!"

After hearing this, the two servants stepped forward and pulled Si Qi away. They even apologized: "Miss Si Qi, I'm sorry."

Baoyu ran in excitedly and stopped as soon as he entered the courtyard gate. His eyes were widened and his mouth was slightly open, but he did not dare to make a sound.

Jia Lian stood in the yard with a smile on his face and looked calmly at Baoyu who was standing at the door. I will not speak and look at you quietly.

"Oh, I didn't memorize the Three-Character Sutra today!" Jia Baoyu turned around and ran away. Si Qi, who was standing aside, just sneered. He didn't resist just now. It wasn't because he didn't dare to resist, but because he knew that Mr. Lian was in the yard, so he was waiting for Jia Baoyu to hit him. Go up.

"Stop!" Jia Lian said slowly. Baoyu stopped, but did not dare to look back or run.

If you don't look carefully, no one will notice that Jia Baoyu's hands are shaking slightly.

"If I break into the boudoir without permission, the next time I do it, I will inform my second uncle and ask him to seek legal advice."

"I know, I know!" Jia Baoyu replied tremblingly, and Jia Lian said calmly: "Go away!"

There is no point in arguing with a little brat, and there is no point in educating him.

When Jia Lian turned around, several sisters were standing on the steps looking at him with smiles, and they all bowed to say blessings.

Holding hands in return, Jia Lian stepped forward and touched the heads of Yingchun and Daiyu. When he felt Tanchun's envious eyes, he simply reached out and rubbed them gently a few times. Not to mention, the little girls’ foreheads feel so good.

"How come you guys got together?" Jia Lian asked casually.

It was Daiyu who answered: "Isn't it true that Brother Lian doesn't want to stay here reading all day without moving?"

Yingchun said: "It was my cousin Daiyu and sister Tanchun who I found because I was bored playing chess alone."

"It's good. It's natural for sisters to have more contact with each other. I've neglected the fact that some of my sisters stay at home and are bored. When the weather gets cool, I'll take you out to play in the city." Jia Lian's promise came as soon as he opened his mouth. Can he fulfill it? do not care.

Tanchun was still a little shy, but Yingchun and Daiyu didn't look out at all, holding Jia Lian's hands from left to right and entering.

After spending a long time with his sisters and having lunch together, Jia Lian was called out by Jia Rong, who had hurriedly found him.

"Second uncle, my father is finally gone." Jia Rong sang like a serf.

"Well, earlier you said you would leave in a few days, why did you delay it until now?" Jia Lian really didn't ask casually, but was really concerned.

(End of this chapter)