King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

However, Zhou must have been extremely wary of such rumors, and his biological son, Emperor Xianzong Zhu Jianshen, and his grandson Zhu Youtang did not have a good relationship with Zhou.

Zhu Tan then thought of something that would most likely satisfy Zhou.

With this gift, he could meet Tang Bohu with a legitimate reason.

Tang Bohu's paintings are priceless treasures in later generations and are also very famous in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Tan asked Tang Bohu to paint a picture of the Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars and give it to Empress Dowager Zhou. With the addition of the emperor's brother-in-law, Zhou would surely be very happy.

Zhu Tan's idea was to kill two birds with one stone. Tang Bohu would be implicated in cheating in the exam and his life would be over.

However, it is also a good choice to get to know your brother-in-law Zhu Youtang.

By that time, he would have enough reasons, enough reasons!
It would be best if Tang Bohu could stay out of it, which is why he blocked the door.

He asked someone to keep an eye on Tang Bohu's house.

Zhu Tan thought that although Tang Bohu was not a handsome man, he should be recognizable at first glance, just like Stephen Chow.

However, when the servant told him that this man was Tang Bohu, he almost didn't react.

Tang Bohu is already in his thirties, a middle-aged man in his thirties, and not handsome at all.

Tang Bohu, a man from Jiangnan, was short and thin. Could he be one of the four legendary talents?
Would Qiuxiang like this kind of person?
He suddenly realized that these three words were not called for nothing!

Tang Yin was not good-looking, but "Qiuxiang" was a famous brothel girl in Jiangnan. She was much older, even older than Tang Bohu.

The story of Tang Bohu and Autumn Fragrance is all made up by later generations. How could Tang Bohu fall in love with an old lady?
Although the four talented men in golden costumes did not match his imagination, he was sure that this person was Tang Bohu, so Zhu Tan had to cheer up and speak.

"Sir, are you Tang Jieyuan from Sujing City?"

Tang Bohu went to a brothel last night and was cheated.

This was his personality, so he got up late and didn't go to a restaurant until noon.

When he saw Tang Jieyuan, Pei Ziyun raised his head and saw a young man in his twenties, accompanied by another young man.

As the saying goes, a poor man dressed in rags can say nothing is right, but Zhu Tan and Zhu Houzhao were dressed in gorgeous clothes and looked wealthy.

Tang Bohu quickly stood up, bowed to the two of them, and said, "My name is Tang Yun, is there anything I can do to help you?"

"It is Tang Jieyuan indeed. My name is Chutian and this is my nephew Zhu Shou. I have heard that Tang Jieyuan is a famous scholar in Jiangnan, and he is very good at calligraphy and painting, so I came to ask Tang Jieyuan for a pair of paintings."

As Zhu Tan spoke, he winked at Jia Zhang.

Jia Zhang took out a stack of Ming Dynasty banknotes, placed them on Tang Bohu's desk, and said:
Although the currency of the Ming Dynasty was constantly falling, there was no problem in the market.

Tang Bohu took a quick glance and found that there were at least twenty or thirty bills in it, all with a face value of one hundred taels, which meant several thousand taels. Even with a discount, he could still make thousands of taels.

Although Tang Bohu was very confident in his painting skills, he couldn't help but get excited when he saw the price of one thousand two taels of silver.

Old Tang is really going bankrupt.

Tang Bohu went to Beijing to take part in the imperial examination, all thanks to the support of Suzhou County Magistrate Cao Feng and others. However, he was lavish in spending money on eating, drinking, whoring and gambling, and had already spent all his money.

If I hadn't met a fellow villager along the way, I probably wouldn't have been able to even make it to the capital.

However, although Tang Bohu was very close to Xu Jing, it was always other people's money that was used, which made him very uncomfortable.

Just like last night, Xu Jing gave him some money and asked him to sleep with that beautiful woman. He also has his dignity!

Tang Bohu's face darkened, and he quickly apologized with a smile, "No, no, I don't dare to say that I'm that good, I just know a little bit about calligraphy and painting, I wonder which one you two would like?"

The two had a pleasant chat, and Zhu Tan sat down with Zhu Houzhao in a familiar manner.

"When an elder in my family celebrates his birthday, I asked Tang Jieyuan to paint me a painting of the Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars. It should be large and have the Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars, and also this. Do you think it's okay?"

Tang Bohu stared at the banknotes and nodded repeatedly: "Okay, okay, I promise, I can get the money out for you in two days at most."

Tang Bohu was afraid that there was something important to do, so he decided to work overnight.

Seeing that Tang Bohu was so greedy for money, Zhu Tan really thought that Tang Bohu was a man with seven wives and eight concubines!

It is said that Tang Bohu was not lucky, as his family, wife and children all died some time ago.

However, Zhu Tan would still be very happy if he could find an authentic work of Tang Bohu.

He felt that Tang Bohu was more to his taste, at least much better than Wang Shouren, because Wang Shouren was an upright man.

Taking advantage of the good atmosphere, Zhu Tan started chatting with Tang Bohu.

Of course, he was still very interested in these four university scholars, such as Zhu Zhishan, and the one who had his leg broken.

However, Tang Bohu knew the other three people, and they were worthy of being called the Four Talents of Jiangnan.

Tang Bohu ate the meal voraciously, then took a stack of money and started buying materials needed for painting, because he had used up all the calligraphy and paintings he had.

Zhu Tan couldn't help but sigh when he saw Tang Bohu in such a miserable state. Then a young man about the same age as Tang Bohu came over and greeted him.

Zhu Tan looked back and was surprised to see that this guy really looked like Tang Bohu, a handsome and elegant man.

This man is not only young, but also quite handsome. Judging from the tone of his voice when talking to Tang Bohu, he should be Xu Jing, the top scorer who cheated in this exam.

Xu Jingnian passed the imperial examination at a young age, his family was extremely wealthy, and he was very impeccable in his conduct.

However, Tang Bohu told him that his uncle wanted him to draw a picture for him, which made him very embarrassed.

"Brother Bohu, today Liang Chu was appointed as the governor of Annan. Lord Liang thinks highly of Brother Bohu, so we should come and see him off!
Tang Bohu hesitated for a moment. He still admired Liang Chu very much. It was most likely Liang Chu's credit that allowed him to be successful in the capital.

Originally they thought that the chief examiner of this examination was Liang Chu, but Liang Chu was actually sent to Annan, which was not a good thing.

"Brother Zhang, I have something else to do. I want to postpone the painting for a day. Is that okay?"

Making money is important, but sending Liang Chu away is the most important thing.

If Zhu Tan disagrees, then he must speed up.

Zhu Tan smiled and said, "I met Tang Jieyuan today. I have a feeling that we appreciate each other. Why don't we go together? This way we can get closer to Tang Jieyuan." Tang Bohu was very happy after hearing Zhu Tan's explanation.

Unexpectedly, Zhu Tan is such a humble person.

As a loyal fan of Tang Bohu, Xu Jingze felt a little alert. Could it be that this guy wanted to snatch Tang Yin away from him?
Neither of them is gay, and Tang Bohu and Xu Jing are both straight men. However, Xu Jing admires Tang Bohu very much and doesn't want his idol to be mixed up with bandits.

But when Xu Jing heard that Liu Jin, Jia Zhang and others were servants of Zhu Tan and Zhu Houzhao, he felt a little more respect for them.

With his status, he had met many important figures, and he knew at a glance that these servants were definitely not ordinary people.

He knew that the uncle and nephew must be famous figures in the capital, so he immediately gave up the idea of ​​objecting so as not to upset this important figure.

He is the person who admires Tang Bohu. He has now been promoted to the Right Prime Minister of the Ministry of Revenue and has also served as a lecturer to Zhu Youtang.

Over the years, he had also participated in the compilation of the Ming Dynasty Code and was quite famous, otherwise there would not be rumors that he would take part in this examination.

However, things are unpredictable. The Kingdom of Annan had a new emperor. As the ruler, the Ming Dynasty naturally had to send an envoy and eventually chose Liang Chu.

Although Xu Jing is a social expert, he also knows what to do.

Tang Bohu was a generous person. When Zhu Tan mentioned the title bestowed upon Annan by Liang Chu, he found it very novel.

Annan is the ancient name of Vietnam. It first appeared in the Annan Protectorate during the Tang Dynasty, when it already belonged to the Central Plains.

During the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Di made Annan his own fiefdom, established a Xuanzhengshi there, and added more than 200 counties to the Ming Dynasty.

It’s a pity that Zhu Zhanji destroyed all of this.

Zhu Zhanji abolished the Jiaozhi Provincial Administration, which saved a lot of military expenses, but it ruined the reputation of the Ming Dynasty in the West and even threatened the Ming Dynasty's position as overlord.

Moreover, Annan's constant harassment on the border, even the tribal wars and barbarian wars, were all related to this, and perhaps even Zhu Zhanji did not expect it.

Tang Bohu is like a taxi driver. He is very unhappy that the Ming Dynasty has abandoned his territory.

At this point, he continued: "The southwest is now in turmoil and unrest continues. It was a huge mistake for Emperor Xuande to abandon Annan.

Xu Jing's heart moved, Brother Bohu, please don't talk nonsense.

Judging from the demeanor of his uncle and nephew, they are also well-known figures in the capital. I am really afraid that he will say something wrong!
Zhu Tan learned a lot from Annan, and thinking of Annan's betrayal and challenge in the future, he couldn't help but agree and said: "Brother Bohu is right. Expanding the territory is the responsibility of a country. It is inappropriate for Emperor Xuande to give up the large territory conquered by his ancestors."

Tang Bohu was very satisfied that Zhu Tan agreed with his opinion.

This guy is really a typical keyboard warrior. He threatened that when he has time in the future, he will let Annan return to the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Tan and Tang Bohu didn't know that the person who could really help him succeed was the Jiajing Emperor Zhu Houzhao.

During the Jiajing period, Jiajing took advantage of the chaos in Annan and sent troops to destroy the Kingdom of Annan. He demoted Annan to the position of Grand Metropolitan, and Annan also recovered as the territory of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Tan and Tang Bohu were in high spirits of conversation. They walked to the place where they usually saw off ministers, which was already crowded with people.

Liang Chu was, after all, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and held tremendous power. This trip to Annan would cover thousands of kilometers, and he might not be able to return for more than half a year, so naturally many people came to see him off.

Zhu Tan also saw the differences between different classes in the Ming Dynasty.

Noble generals like Duke Ying of Ying, Zhang Mao, rarely dealt with civil officials.

The small group of relatives often fight among themselves, and no one can get along with them.

The civil officials were the most important social circle of the Ming Dynasty, but there was not a single high-ranking official or general.

As the saying goes, everyone has their own aspirations and there is no need to force them, but Zhu Tan's appearance was like a tiger suddenly appearing in front of him.

Those who came to see Liang Chu off were of lower status than Liang Chu, otherwise it would have been considered a social event.

What made Zhu Tan's eyes light up was his new father-in-law, Ye Chen, who had just been promoted to the position of Shangshu of the Shangbao Division.

Ye Shen also saw Chu Mu, was stunned for a moment, and had to lower his head to greet him.

Last night, his wife Wang told him that his daughter Luzhu was living well in the Jianchang Marquis Mansion. Without a principal wife, he, as a concubine, was no different from the eldest daughter.

For the sake of his daughter, he has to try his best to have a good relationship with Zhu Tan, and his opinion of Zhu Tan has also changed a lot.

"Master Ye, why are you here? Who are they?"

Zhu Tan didn't want to reveal his true identity to Tang Bohu too early, so as not to upset him.

So he said in a low voice.

Ye Qian didn’t know what Zhu Tan was going to do, but he didn’t want to ruin Zhu Tan’s plan, so he nodded as a greeting.

"Today, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Liang Chu, is here to see him off, so we are here to see Mr. Liang off. These people are all old acquaintances of Mr. Liang and his subordinates."

Zhu Tan nodded and introduced Ye Shen to Tang Bohu and Xu Jing.

Ye Shen was only a seventh-rank official before, but he was very good at scolding people. Tang Bohu and Xu Jing had both heard of him.

During this period, the most famous people were Ye Shi and the imperial envoy Zhang Jin. They wrote letters to Li Guang and the two imperial uncles. Now that they have finally met them, they naturally want to make friends with them and treat them with courtesy.

Zhu Tan really didn't have much culture, but the inheritance left to him by the original owner did not involve literature, so he couldn't say anything.

At this time, the person who saw Liang Chu off was a powerful man, the Minister of Rites Cheng Minzheng.

Tang Bohu and Xu Jing have hosted many banquets for dignitaries in the capital over the years, and Cheng Minzheng is one of them.

Moreover, Cheng Minzheng also received praise from Liang Chu, a judge of the provincial examination, who also had a high opinion of Tang Bohu.

Tang Bohu was famous for his calligraphy, but his calligraphy was not the best. When he saw Cheng Minzheng, he asked Xu Jing if he wanted to give Cheng Minzheng something and asked him to write a confession paper for his master Liang Chu.

Xu Jing never objected to Tang Bohu. Even his visits to brothels were paid for by him, not to mention this mission.

However, Xu Jing never expected that Tang Bohu would spend a huge amount of money, more than one thousand taels of gold, to prepare a generous gift for Cheng Minzheng.

Tang Bohu not only gave it to Cheng Minzheng, but also to his teacher Liang Chu.

He was very grateful to this venerable teacher, and now that he had enough wealth, he naturally wanted to repay the teacher. (End of this chapter)