Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 725 Listen to the sound

When Luo Xiang returned to the Imperial Stables area, Ning Jin put down the telescope in his hand, leaned over and asked in a low voice: "Is it going to start now? The scene is... too... sloppy. Are our people going to be killed? Also, what did Eunuch Huai say?"

Luo Xiang said: "Huai En is obviously waiting to see the fun. He will do anything to discredit the Zhang family father and son."

"..."

Ning Jin was speechless when he heard this.

I thought to myself, even if you see through it, don't say it out loud.

Now that you have exposed the abscess, everyone knows that this is all Huai En's conspiracy. Aren't all the contradictions exposed?
Originally it was just a conflict between Huai En and the Zhang family father and son, but did they have to involve the Imperial Horse Administration? Shouldn't we just sit back and watch the fire?
"Is it true that the young prince hasn't come yet?"

Luo Xiang looked at the center of the venue and asked again.

"He didn't come."

Ning Jin replied in a low voice, "Our people have finally found out where the young uncle is... He is still in the city now..."

"Are you going to treat his father?"

Luo Xiang asked in surprise.

"No, it is said that he found a place to drink tea leisurely... The Jinyiwei urged him to leave the city, and he said that it was too late to leave the city now, so it would be better to stay in the city and listen to the noise... By the way, this place is several miles away from the capital, what noise can he hear?"

Ning Jin looked helpless.

A group of old and cunning eunuchs were actually fooled by a child?
It’s too outrageous!

……

……

Just as the artillery demonstration outside the city was about to begin, Zhang Yanling still had no intention of leaving the city.

When Pang Qing came to find him, he brought him a lot of new information.

Although Li Zisheng is not in the capital, the resources Pang Qing can mobilize are still considerable, enough to deal with many variables.

"Second Young Master, everyone in the government and the public is paying attention to the military parade outside the city today. Why didn't you go there in person?"

Even Pang Qing was surprised.

No matter how confident Zhang Yanling was, he should have been there to watch, right? How could he leave everything to others and insist on staying in the city to drink tea when he could have gone himself?

Zhang Yanling laughed and said, "If a child like me who holds no official position is allowed to go outside the city to command a military exercise, no matter how smoothly it goes, I will be criticized by the world, right?"

"This……"

Pang Qing thought about it carefully and nodded, "That makes sense. Although you are very capable, at your age, you are easily attacked by those rigid and unreasonable people in the court.

"Prejudice is a huge mountain. Some people never value ability, and always use family background and qualifications to make things happen. Alas! The Taoist priest was also deeply affected by it. Fortunately, the late emperor never cared about those things."

"Yes, the current situation is similar to what you said." Zhang Yanling shrugged and said, "In this case, I might as well stay here and wait for news."

Pang Qing asked: "Aren't you worried about...what might happen?"

"What could happen?"

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "It's just firing two cannons in front of people. Perhaps in the eyes of the ministers, this military parade is to show how neat the military appearance of the Ming soldiers is. It requires thousands or even tens of thousands of people to march in front of the high platform in an orderly manner, creating an image of the Ming soldiers being iron-blooded and invincible. But in fact... I told your majesty early in the morning that today we will just fire two cannons to intimidate the Tatars."

“That cannon…”

Pang Qing was still confused after hearing this.

Are you sure you can make the Tatars think that our Ming Dynasty is so powerful just by firing two cannons?
We also want the ministers in the court to feel that this military exercise is meaningful?
What you said doesn't sound like a bomb, it's just bullshit flying in the sky...

Zhang Yanling smiled and asked, "Why, Mr. Pang wants to go and take a look in person?"

"I'm not qualified."

Pang Qing shook his head and said, "Just listen to other people's stories afterwards and feel the atmosphere at that time. By the way, the military exercise is about to begin, right?"

"Yes."

Zhang Yanling looked at the sky outside the window and nodded, "It's almost there, probably in a quarter of an hour or two." As he spoke, he took something out of his arms and looked at it in his hand.

Pang Qing looked over curiously and asked, "I wonder what this is...?"

Zhang Yanling said: "Oh, an escapement... Unfortunately, the manufacturing process is too crude and the precision is not enough. But now the larger ones are made, the precision is quite good..."

"Escapement? What is it used for?"

Pang Qing looked puzzled.

"A clock, to be exact."

Zhang Yanling introduced, "Something that can completely record the twelve hours of a day... The error of the one I have is slightly larger. I also have a larger clock in my work area. Because it doesn't need to be made delicate and small, the error of that thing in a day is probably... less than an incense stick of time."

"what!?"

When Pang Qing heard this, he suddenly felt that his three views were overturned.

Aren’t we saying that your father and my grandfather have been impeached and targeted by court officials, and we should fight back?
And the military parade outside the city that was nominally led by you...these are all things worth discussing.

But then you told me that you invented this thing called a clock that can record the twelve hours of a day?

"Need some sun?"

Pang Qing looked outside and asked curiously, "It seems that there is no sunlight here. How can we tell time?"

Obviously Pang Qing couldn't understand the overly complicated mechanical principles.

Zhang Yanling said, "This is not a sundial. It does not need sunlight to determine the time. It has many sophisticated mechanical structures. If you are interested, Mr. Pang, I will build a workshop to manufacture this thing and give you one when I make the first batch of finished products."

"I don't deserve it."

Pang Qing was shocked.

Good guy.

This thing can accurately tell the time without the need for sunlight. If it can really be manufactured, how valuable would it be?
You give me something that even princes and nobles can't get. I'm really afraid that I won't be able to enjoy it.

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "We are old friends, so why not give you one?"

"Then I would like to express my gratitude first."

Pang Qing thought about it and felt that he was a little shameless, but he was very interested in the thing in Zhang Yanling's hand and wanted to find out what it was.

"Mr. Pang, didn't you say you had the latest news about Minister Li? Why didn't you tell me?"

Zhang Yanling suddenly asked.

Pang Qing then remembered that he had something else to do today, and hurriedly said, "My Taoist priest set out from Pianguan ten days ago, traveling day and night, and he will probably reach Juyongguan in the next two days... On the way, he sent a fast horse to deliver a letter back to the capital, asking me to ask him when he can return to the capital to report on his work."

Zhang Yanling asked, "Minister Li wants to return to Beijing?"

"Yes."

Pang Qing did not act pretentiously and said directly, "Whether it is the governor of Shanxi or the governor of the three inner passes, it is not as good as being an idle official in Beijing.

"Now your father is ill and cannot come out to preside over affairs. The communication between many officials in the capital cannot be entirely dependent on me... If Minister Li can come back and assist you in your work, it would be good."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Look at what you said. I am just a naughty boy. How can I be qualified to dispatch Minister Li to do things?"

Pang Qing said quickly, "Second Young Master, please don't be so modest. Both I and Minister Li know that you are the real think tank around Zhang Guozhang. As long as you are here, those villains in the court will have nowhere to hide, and their conspiracies will not succeed."

Zhang Yanling thought, why do your words sound so awkward?

A scoundrel in the court?

According to the definition of orthodox civil servants, they are people from our faction, such as Li Zisheng and me, because I am not very old.

"But... there's nothing we can do about this for now."

Zhang Yanling said with embarrassment.

"Speaking of which, who can see His Majesty anytime like you, the Second Young Master?" Pang Qing said with a smile, "As long as you tell His Majesty that the capital needs someone like Li Shangshu to come back and do practical things, His Majesty will call him back to the capital. When the Taoist comes back, won't he be able to obey your orders?" Zhang Yanling hesitated and said, "The question is... what kind of job can Li Shangshu take on when he comes back?"

Pang Qing said: "I don't mind any job, I just don't want to stay in the northwest anymore. Daoye is actually... quite hypocritical. He said he can't stand the hardship and it's better to stay in the capital. Or let him repair the river, so he will feel more hopeful. Or, you can ask Your Majesty to arrange a war for him and let him continue to lead troops to fight in the northwest... He can't sit still..."

"Haha, Mr. Pang, you dare to say anything."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said.

How could a guest of honor "slander" his own employer like this?

If Li Zisheng knew that Pang Qing was plotting against him behind his back, he would definitely not be happy with it.

Pang Qing said helplessly: "It is better to be honest. My Taoist master did some wrong things, but he is loyal to the court and has never done anything that would offend both humans and gods. He also wants to serve the court well after returning."

"Ok."

Zhang Yanling nodded and said, "I will mention this to His Majesty if I have the chance. By the way, the things I mentioned before..."

"Everything has been arranged. Even the monks who have a say in Wanhe Temple have been connected."

Pang Qing said, "You can relax about this. Even if the Taoist priest is gone, the network of connections in the capital is still there. If the civil officials want to make a big fuss about these monks and Taoist priests, they are taking it for granted. Even the Imperial Observatory is firmly on the side of Your Majesty."

"That's good."

Zhang Yanling nodded and said, "Speaking of which, I will be going to the palace later."

"What? You want to enter the palace?"

Pang Qing asked in confusion.

"Yes, we will go to the palace and wait for His Majesty to return. We have agreed on this in the morning." Zhang Yanling said, "Mr. Pang, if you have any problems in the future, just go to me and say hello. My people will contact you. In addition, my eldest brother has been helping me with things recently. He is very hardworking. You might as well use him more."

"Your elder brother..."

Pang Qing thought, is your elder brother the same kind of person as us?
They are not in the same dimension at all, okay?
Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "My elder brother is also ambitious. Anyway, Mr. Pang gave him a chance to show his abilities. He also wants to experience the complex interpersonal relationships in the capital. Only if you personally lead him can he truly appreciate it..."

"Okay, okay."

Although Pang Qing was very puzzled, he still agreed.

……

……

Send Pang Qing away.

Zhang Yanling also wants to leave.

At this time, Zhang Heling ran out from the next room. Because he was wearing the Jinyiwei official uniform, he scared away all the waiters in the teahouse.

"Second brother, I told you that you are very reliable. Sure enough, you mentioned me to Pang."

Zhang Heling seemed very excited and said, "I told you that there are so many twists and turns in the capital, and I can't make it by my own efforts. And the group of people under me only know how to exploit those poor people who do small business in the capital. I asked them to take me to see the big scene, but they all refused."

Zhang Yanling said, "It's not that they don't want to take you, it's that they themselves have never seen a real big scene. Do you think that all the Jinyiwei are people who can do big things?"

"Then why didn't you let me accompany my brother-in-law to the military parade today?"

Zhang Heling seemed very angry, "What a great opportunity to show off!"

Zhang Yanling said unhappily, "Have you practiced riding a horse? If I ask you to perform a galloping show, you won't fall off the horse, right?"

"This one……"

Zhang Heling looked a little ashamed, and lowered his head and said, "It's ok to ride slowly, but who dares to ride fast? What if I fall down and get injured?"

Zhang Yanling said, "Today, the main thing outside the city is to fire cannons. Once the cannons are fired, there is a risk that the cannon barrels will explode at any time. At that time, no one around the cannons will be spared... Do you really want to fire the cannons?"

"Well... forget it."

Zhang Heling hurriedly declined.

Glancing at his brother who was not in tune, Zhang Yanling scolded him, "This is not allowed, and that is not allowed. You still want to show your face? You also know that everyone in the court is watching our family. Dad is hiding because of his illness. Even I have to avoid such occasions. Brother, you are the only one who likes to rush forward?"

Zhang Heling smiled and said, "So the three of us are so important? I understand now! I have to learn from you and dad and try to keep a low profile.

"Yeah. Yes, my official position is not low, I am a captain of the Jinyiwei. Now I am in great glory wherever I go. Why should I fight for that illusory honor? It's not necessary, really not necessary!"

……

……

outside the city.

The Jinyiwei's equestrian performance, which was like a patrol, ended, and the Jingjun also lined up in an orderly manner.

After comforting the ministers present, Huai En took the initiative to walk to the emperor's throne.

Zhu Youtang asked, "Hasn't it started yet?"

"Already pushing the cannon."

Huai En pointed to the high platform opposite and said, "Your Majesty, look, that's the little Tatar prince Batu Mongke. He came to the capital this time, saying that he was paying homage and paying tribute, but as far as we know, the tribute they brought is almost nothing, and they have no sincerity at all. If we let them go back and open a border market for them, I'm afraid many tribes will follow suit."

Zhu Youtang asked: "Do we also need to set up separate border markets?"

Huai En thought, isn’t this where you encounter a blind spot in your knowledge?
Huai En said: "At present, they are paying tribute to the court from Piantou Pass. If they are not sincere, we will open Piantou Pass to them as a place for border market transactions. However, the number and scale of transactions must be strictly limited. It can only be opened once a year, and the commodities traded must be reviewed by the court. Those not on the list cannot be traded, and the amount must be equal..."

Zhu Youtang questioned: "If this is the case, can it still be called a border market? Wouldn't it be like the court is exchanging some things with them?"

Huai En said: "You can say that."

"Oh."

Zhu Youtang nodded and said, "We'll talk about it later. Let's watch the artillery demonstration first."

Huai En seemed very worried: "The Tatars are ambitious and have no respect for the imperial court. Their purpose of coming to the capital to pay tribute is not simple. Moreover, some of their troops are staying outside the city. If they knew that Your Majesty was here... maybe..."

Zhu Youtang asked, "The military exercise has already begun, Huai Daiban, do you mean... to stop it?"

"That is not my intention."

Huai En said, "It's just two cannons firing separately, it won't take much time."

"Only two doors?"

Zhu Youtang asked.

Huai En was stunned.

I thought, you don’t know yet?
I was also wondering, if we want to show the military might of the Ming Dynasty in front of the Tatars, shouldn't we mainly demonstrate that the Ming Dynasty has a large number of people and a strong military?

They dared to demonstrate the military with only two cannons, and even called the emperor, all the civil and military officials in the court, and the little Tatar prince together. Are they trying to fool children?
It is true that young people are unreliable, and the things they produce are so childish.

Huai En said: "Yes."

"Two is enough. Quality is more important than quantity."

Zhu Youtang picked up the telescope again, first looked inside the venue, then pointed at the Tatars across the street, "Didn't you give them telescopes as well?"

"Your Majesty, this is...inappropriate, isn't it? How can our treasure fall into the hands of thieves?"

Huai En quickly reminded.

Zhu Youtang nodded, and when he looked across, he found that Batu Mongke was also looking at him from afar.

The members of the Tatar delegation were whispering to each other in groups of three or four.

It seems that they don't understand what the Ming Dynasty court is trying to do.

It was called a military parade, but there wasn't much of a scene. It seemed as if everyone was just watching the group of inexplicable people in the middle.

Furthermore, many of the Ming Dynasty’s emperors and ministers held things in front of their eyes that they didn’t know what they were used for. What were they looking at?

(End of this chapter)