Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 752 What kind of good people could Zhang possibly bring out?
"I volunteer!"

The Left Vanguard General of Jiangnan Road took off his token and slammed it in front of the eldest son of Prince Teng. The brother-in-law was stunned by this move. He looked up at the dozen or so generals standing in front of him and was somewhat dazed.

"This is?"

"I volunteer to fight the Japanese invaders! I am from Jiangnan and I am well-versed in naval warfare."

"I also volunteer!"

"And I!"

The generals were arguing with flushed faces, while the eldest brother-in-law sat there scratching his head, asking, "Generals, what's going on here?"

"Jiangnan Province hasn't fought a war for many years. We haven't been able to earn any military merits or achieve any victories. The brothers under my command have been complaining for quite some time now. Now that Marshal Xia wants to fight the Japanese, why can't we old brothers go up?"

Upon hearing this, the brother-in-law finally understood the whole story. To be honest, it wasn't their fault. Jiangnan Circuit had been peaceful for many years, and these garrison generals were extremely eager for military merit. Those who came out at the same time as them were now either powerful and prestigious in the Western Regions or famous in Liaodong. At the very least, they were doing well in the Wuzhou and Liuzhou areas of Lingnan. However, those of them stationed in Jiangnan Circuit had an absurdly slow promotion speed. They could only get some military merit by fighting floods and rescuing people every year, and it would be the year of the monkey before they could be promoted.

It was one thing for them not to be able to get up there, but the soldiers below didn't think that way. The young soldiers were extremely eager to make a name for themselves, especially when they saw that many of the men who came out of the same camp had become captains or even lieutenants. That must have been incredibly irritating to them.

Therefore, these battalion generals are determined to come out and fight this time, no matter what, to fight the Japanese invaders and achieve great deeds!
"Please be patient, everyone. I will write to the central government now and let them take a look."

"Alright, Your Highness, we'll be waiting for your good news."

The brother-in-law nodded: "Let's wait a few days."

My brother-in-law has always been honest and reliable, and he has a knack for steady and methodical work. However, he lacks the courage and adaptability to make things more ambitious. So, he wrote directly to the three provinces, asking the imperial court to resolve this issue.

The current national policy is basically based on the three provinces, because Ma Zhou was transferred before and is now the chief of the new Hongwen Academy and the first president of National Jinling University. His position has been taken over by Cen Wenben, and suddenly the head of the three provinces has become Lao Zhang.

"Prime Minister Zhang, this matter is up to you to decide."

The Minister of War pushed the letter back to Old Zhang, then sighed softly, "Although the Ministry of War is called the Ministry of War, it has no jurisdiction over the people of Jiangnan Circuit. I still want to keep this old body and enjoy my grandchildren."

"Hey...you old codger." Old Zhang tapped the table: "You're just indulging in your grandchildren, what you really are doing is avoiding responsibility."

"Prime Minister Zhang, let's put ourselves in each other's shoes. Do you think this is something I can handle? What kind of mentality do the soldiers in that region have? There are about 70 or 80,000 people here. If I decide who goes and who doesn't, wouldn't the unselected ones tear my flesh and blood apart? I can't do this. I'll have to trouble Prime Minister Zhang."

"Alright then." Old Zhang sighed. "Cen Jingren hasn't returned yet?"

"Prime Minister Cen has gone to Li Tang to discuss that... talent introduction matter, and he won't be back for a few days."

"Alright." Old Zhang stood up. "I'll go myself."

"Thank you for your trouble, Prime Minister Zhang."

Today, Cen Wenben is still doing his old job in commerce, economy, and people's livelihood, while Xu Jingzong is in charge of daily government affairs, disaster relief, imperial examinations, celebrations, and other matters, and Lao Zhang is mainly in charge of military affairs, education, and finances.

As for the prince who was in charge of the country, he now spends his days playing with crickets in his residence and does nothing. He doesn't even go to the morning court. It is said that he was terrified by the seven-day massacre. Some say that all the powerful families that supported him lost their support during that purge.

Therefore, the central government no longer has an actual emperor and is entirely reliant on officials at all levels to operate. The main reason is that the central government's functions are more concentrated than ever before, and power is almost infinitely concentrated in the central government.

Old Zhang has also improved his situation. From a down-on-his-luck scholar in Luoyang, he has now become a true prime minister of the country. To put it bluntly, he is absolutely powerful and influential.

But he knew perfectly well that no matter how much he wanted to act recklessly, he couldn't, because if he did, someone would come back, arrest him, and lock him up in a remote rural courtyard to be raised like a pig.

After getting off work and returning home, Wu Ning was already quite pregnant. She was sitting in the yard, holding her back and enjoying the cool air. Her elderly mother was sitting next to her. When she saw Lao Zhang return, she called out, "Where are you going? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"I'm going on a business trip." Old Zhang went into the house, packed some clothes, and came out. "I'm going to Hongdu Prefecture."

The mother-in-law spoke up at this moment: "Son, you are now the prime minister of a country. You should at least have a few servants at home."

Old Zhang paused for a moment, then took out some small denomination bills from his pocket: "Let's ask two old women to come over tomorrow."

The moment these words were spoken, the mother-in-law became dissatisfied: "You are a prime minister, yet you can only hire two old maids? Look at your mansion, where is the appearance of an official's household?"

"What are official families like?" Old Zhang turned around, his brows furrowed. "Tell me what official families are like, so I can have a better idea."

The mother-in-law, having worked alongside her husband in the officialdom for many years, felt a pang of unease upon hearing his words and fell silent. She knew that whoever's name he mentioned would be in deep trouble.

"This is all the salary I have. If you think it's not enough, there are a few paintings at home that you can ask someone to sell tomorrow. You can get some money from them." After saying that, he glanced at Wu Ning, hesitated, and then left the house. As soon as he left, his mother-in-law started nagging his daughter.

But Wu Ning was laughing heartily at that moment.

"You're still laughing! Have you had a single good day with him? Even in this state, you're still living such a poor life."

"Did you serve as a first-rank imperial consort under my father?"

The mother-in-law was speechless for a moment, while Wu Ning painstakingly pulled out the longevity belt of a first-rank imperial consort: "I am a first-rank imperial consort personally appointed by the imperial court. Mother, how much do you think this is worth?"

Now the mother-in-law was speechless, because there had only been two First-Rank Imperial Consorts since the founding of the Great Wei Dynasty: one was the mother of Marshal Guo Da, and the other was Wu Ning.

Theoretically speaking, in formal occasions, she, as the mother, should bow to her daughter. Even when meeting the emperor, she does not have to kneel if she has the title of Imperial Noblewoman. Furthermore, if Wu Ning gives birth to a daughter, when the new emperor ascends the throne, this child will most likely become either a princess or an empress.

Even a Noble Consort wouldn't do; a Noble Consort isn't worthy of the rank of First-Rank Imperial Noblewoman.

“So what if he’s poor? He just has no one to serve him.” Wu Ning said, swinging his feet as he leaned back. “If we’re talking about being poor, there are people even poorer than him. He still has a house, but there’s someone who doesn’t even own a house.”

"Who?"

"Xia Daosheng, Mother? Haven't you heard of him?"

"Him? He doesn't even own a house?"

"No, he either lived in the princess's residence or in the government office, but neither of those was his home. When he was at his poorest, he had to eat on credit."

"What do you think they're after? Your father was such an honest man, he must have had tens of thousands of taels of silver for retirement over his lifetime."

Wu Ning laughed and said, "I don't know what they're after, but now when I go out, even the most noble and famous daughters have to call me 'sister.' Mother, I remember that my uncle's wife was a concubine's daughter from a branch of the Cui family in Qinghe. Did she ever call you 'sister'?"

"Hahaha..." Wu Ning laughed at this moment: "Even the eldest daughter of the main branch of the Cui family in Qinghe has to bow to me first and then respectfully call me 'elder sister'. Mother, aren't you envious?"

"You little rascal, you've always known how to annoy me since you were a kid!"

Old Zhang was also extremely anxious at this moment. He knew that Xia Lin's brother-in-law's mild-mannered nature would not be able to control the group of fierce generals under his command. They were all first and second generation fighters in Xia Lin's camp, each one brave and fierce.

Given their current excitement, a mutiny is unlikely, but they are capable of stripping themselves of their ranks and orders, and leading their troops directly to Ningbo Prefecture.

That would be a huge problem.

So Lao Zhang is now rushing to Hongdu Prefecture day and night, not daring to delay for even a moment.

When he arrived in Hongdu Prefecture, it was the morning of the third day after he received the news. He simply washed up and went to see Xia Lin's brother-in-law. After a brief chat, he said, "Please, Your Highness, summon all the generals here."

Soon, all the fearless and frustrated generals came over. They didn't actually show much respect to Old Zhang because these guys were fierce and didn't like anyone except Xia Lin, which was the main reason why Xia Lin didn't use them.

But when Old Zhang saw these people, he didn't panic. He just smiled slightly and said, "Generals, I've heard that you all have the intention to serve your country?"

"That's for sure. We've made up our minds to follow the commander-in-chief eastward to quell the Japanese pirates."

Old Zhang smiled, resting his chin on his hand. He didn't rush to refute them, because at this point, no matter what he said, these people wouldn't listen. So he patiently listened to them rambling on about their feelings.

After everyone present had finished speaking, he finally asked, "Have all the generals finished speaking?"

"I've said all, Prime Minister Zhang, please don't try to persuade me anymore."

"I won't try to persuade you." Old Zhang simply adjusted his posture slightly: "I just want to ask you all a question, and that is, do you know why life didn't call out to you in the first place?"

This question left these people stunned. They looked at each other, unsure how to answer.

"You can't quite put your finger on it, can you? Yes, you are indeed Daosheng's trusted confidants, otherwise he wouldn't have placed you here to guard his most important homeland. But why doesn't he give you the opportunity to make a name for yourselves? Have you ever thought about that?"

"I...I would like to ask Prime Minister Zhang for his guidance."

(End of this chapter)