Di Ming

Chapter 344 "So it's my father-in-law!"

“Zhang Jing wants to make a deal with me.” Zhu Yin put down the letter. “He doesn’t want to lay a hand on me because of my uncle Tian Yi, but he hopes I’ll be sensible and not oppose him.”

"He's about to do something big, and he's trying to warn me not to get in his way."

Ning Caiwei nodded and said, "That must be it. He's in a lot of power now, and he has no one to ask you for help, so why would he want to see you? Naturally, he wants you to behave yourself and not make things difficult for him."

"He claims to be a man of his word and a believer in Guan Yu. Since he wrote a blood oath to his uncle, he won't easily go back on his word. Little Tiger, as long as it's not too difficult, you can agree to his request. We don't have the strength to fight him right now, so we can only back down."

Zhu Yin sat down and sighed softly, saying, "He wants to be like Liu Jin and Wei Zhongxian, abusing imperial power without regard for rules. How can we possibly fight against him now? Of course, we can only submit."

"Alas, I thought that after becoming the Right Vice Minister of War and being enfeoffed as the Marquis of Jiangning, although I was not yet one of the Nine Ministers, I would still be an important official in the court. Who knew that when the storm came, I could only hide and protect myself, and keep a low profile. When will I be able to truly hold my head high, wield great power, and decide my own destiny?"

“If things go wrong, I’ll lose my official rank and my family’s wealth. But I can’t just retire now. We need to reclaim the throne and make enough contributions to the country, otherwise the people won’t be convinced. But I can’t just give up this position.”

He was somewhat disillusioned with becoming an official. He came from a background as a secret agent, not an official, and he despised the ways of officialdom.

Ning Caiwei comforted him, saying, "You've climbed to this position in just four or five years, which is already unprecedented. Master Shen is a cabinet minister, your uncle was once the chief eunuch, and your godfather is the Left Vice Minister. Aren't they all working diligently and cautiously? Besides, you're just a vice minister, not even the executive vice minister."

“We’ve already laid out our plans. Let’s wait a few more years. When Zongqin has complete control of the Imperial Horse Administration, when Huya controls more than half of the key positions in the Twenty-Four Administrations, when Emperor Baijin’s health collapses, and when your reputation and achievements are sufficient, our opportunity will arrive.”

Ning Caiwei said, her sharp eyes flashing with frost, "At that time, let's see who will rule the world!"

Zhu Yin took out a piece of paper from his sleeve. "This is the list that Xu Wei and I have prepared. Take a look."

When Ning Caiwei opened it, she found the names of eighteen officials, including censors, secretaries, assistant secretaries, and senior secretaries from the six ministries.

These people were the core members of Zhu Yin's faction, the most closely related to Zhu Yin, and his die-hard followers who followed his lead without question.

Wang Shixing was one of them.

They not only shared the same political views as Zhu Yin and had a close personal relationship with him, but they also received many benefits from Zhu Yin in recent years.

Because of their existence, the Zhu Party was able to become the largest secret political party in the government.

Of course, the imperial court was unaware that these people were key members of the Zhu faction, or even that the Zhu faction existed.

Ning Caiwei immediately understood, "You want to find a way to transfer them out of Beijing and to take up positions in local governments?"

Zhu Yin patted Ning Caiwei's hand. "President Ning is indeed clever. That's right, this year is a turbulent time, and the political situation in the court is going to be very turbulent. We might as well take advantage of the Ministry of Personnel's appointments at the beginning of the year to promote and demote officials and arrange for them to take up positions in local areas."

"We will try our best to secure official positions such as prefect, military commissioner, deputy provincial inspector, councilor, and circuit inspector for them, and we will provide the funds for their operation ourselves."

"Once the storm has passed and many officials have fallen from power, we can then arrange for them to be transferred back to the capital to fill higher-ranking positions. This will kill two birds with one stone."

Ning Caiwei nodded and said, "It's a good idea. I'm willing to spend a lot of money, so I'll take out 100,000 taels to operate. However, sending eighteen officials from the capital out to other places at the same time will cause too much of a stir and make it easy for people to spot the flaws."

"Don't worry." Zhu Yin was very confident, looking like he had everything under control. "There are Zhu faction members in the Ministry of Personnel, Zhu faction members in the Censorate, and Shen Shi in the Cabinet. I just need to secretly give a heads-up and distribute the money to these eighteen people, letting them operate independently. Wouldn't that be enough? No one will know that I have any connection with them, or that there is another Zhu faction."

"Anyway, at the beginning of each year, a batch of officials from the capital are transferred to other places, and another batch of local officials are transferred to the capital. It's normal for officials to be transferred in and out. Who would have thought that I was the mastermind behind it all?"

"Before the storm in the central government arrives, we should transfer them to local areas for protection, preserve the spark of revolution, and save it for a future counterattack."

Zhu Yin's faction certainly consisted of more than just these people. However, Zhu Yin's abilities were limited, and he could only protect these core members for the time being.

Ning Caiwei said, "You can arrange this yourself. Spend the money as you like; your wife has plenty. By the way, Wild Boar Skin and the others are about to return to Jianzhou. What are you going to say?"

Zhu Yin thought for a moment, "Wild Boar Skin suffered heavy losses in Japan this time. Hu Erhan was killed in battle, and Fei Yanggu lost an arm. But they didn't get any silver, a huge loss! But the court and the money-worshipping emperor will not reward them."

“We’ll take 10,000 taels of gold from our own treasury and give it to Wild Boar Skin. We can’t let him down; we still need him.”

Ning Caiwei removed the hairpin from her hair, took off her shoes, climbed onto the bed, lay down, and said quite generously:
"Ten thousand taels of gold is a lot, but it's not enough to move the wild boar skin. He can earn that much in a year selling ginseng and mink fur in the Northeast."

“Let’s give him another thousand bolts of Ningxia velvet, a thousand bolts of Suzhou brocade, and a thousand catties of milk candy. We’ll also give his newborn son, Huang Taiji, a gold-inlaid jade necklace.”

“It’s Red Tai Chi, not Yellow Tai Chi,” Zhu Yin laughed. “You really know how to give gifts. Let’s do it that way. Anyway, President Ning has money, and I don’t mind having too much.”

Ning Caiwei suddenly remembered something, "You entrusted Wei Zhongxian with the task of retaliating against the Confucius Mansion in Qufu. Won't he make a mistake?"

"No," Zhu Yin shook his head. "He's an expert at this kind of thing, and I've already told him. In recent years, his whole family has benefited greatly from my kindness, and his daughter even recognizes me as her godfather. He's reliable."

Ning Caiwei, wearing only a loose cotton undershirt, yawned with her long hair cascading down her back and her starry eyes dreamy, and said, "I'm sleepy, let's chat in bed, let's change the channel."

Once Ning Caiwei lay down on the bed, the conversation shifted away from major issues and turned to everyday and private topics—essentially changing the subject. This seemed to be her habit.

"Okay, let's change the channel." Zhu Yin said as he took off his coat and got into bed. By the time he crawled into the bright red brocade quilt, it was already warm from Ning Caiwei's body heat.

Soft jade is beside me, and the air is filled with fragrance.

The two lay side by side in bed, only to realize that one of them was missing. The young couple looked at each other, both feeling a little uncomfortable.

Ning Qingchen went to medical school and won't be back for the next couple of days.

But without Ning Qingchen, there was one less light bulb, and the two of them got along much more easily (and more unrestrainedly).

"Little tiger." Ning Caiwei grabbed Zhu Yin's foot with her own, her eyes sparkling in the lamplight, a mischievous smile on her face. "We're going to the Feng family's full moon celebration tomorrow morning, and I'll see Zhuang Shu again. Are you looking forward to it?"

"Nonsense." Zhu Yin pinched her delicate, straight nose. "What am I expecting? I'm doing this for Feng Menglong!"

Ning Caiwei pulled her hand away from his, but twisted the little tiger's foot even harder with her toes. "For Feng Menglong, you gave his daughter thirteen names, and every single one of them is so beautiful? You really care about that."

Zhu Yin then remembered that in order to name Feng Menglong's daughter, he had racked his brains and written down thirteen names on a piece of paper, but he could not decide which one to choose.

He threw the paper into the trash can, but the woman still found it.

Zhu Yin touched his nose. "I'm a very meticulous person. Think about it, who is Feng Menglong? He's a great literary figure with incredibly high aesthetic standards. Since the couple asked me to name them, if I were to be careless, wouldn't I be making a fool of myself and becoming a laughingstock?"

"Sigh, what should I choose? There are thirteen names, which one should I pick?"

Ning Caiwei scratched the boy's face with the end of her hair, "Although I know you're changing the subject, I'll still tell you responsibly that the best-sounding name is: Feng Yaoli."

“You chose thirteen names, and they are all good. But the one that impressed me the most is Feng Yaoli, which also has a good meaning.”

Zhu Yin squinted as the girl's hair tickled him, and murmured, "Then let's call him Yao Li."

"Damn it." Ning Caiwei poked Zhu Yin's nose with the end of her hair. "It's like we're naming our own child. What a waste of our feelings. Such a good name, and it's all going to that little hussy Zhuang Shu."

Zhu Yin suddenly cried out, "Ouch! Are your feet crab claws? You've pinched off my toes!"

"You think you're so arrogant just because you didn't bind your feet?"

"Giggle!" Ning Caiwei let go of her foot, her laughter ringing out like bells. "Little tiger, huh? So fragile! I need you to come up with two names first, one for a boy and one for a girl. If you satisfy me, I'll let you go."

Zhu Yin felt the girl's body temperature and smelled her fragrance, and could no longer resist pulling her into a tight embrace.

"Ouch...!" Ning Caiwei suddenly resisted, her face burning hot. "What are you doing... You're poking me... You're so annoying!" Zhu Yin: "......"

It was only then that he realized that his high level of competence had led to his arrogance.

The passion is hard to cool.

Zhu Yin climbed out of bed, picked up a cup of cold tea, and gulped it down. Only then did he suppress his arrogant attitude and lower his noble head.

"Hehe..." A woman's snicker came from inside the blanket, like a fox that had stolen a bite of its master's candied fruit in the night.

"Cough cough..." The boy coughed twice, then said as if nothing was wrong, "What are you laughing at? What's so funny? That's strange."

The laughter from the onlookers intensified. She was clearly trying desperately to suppress her laughter, but the constantly trembling blanket betrayed her.

After laughing for a while, she poked her head out from under the covers and said with a smile, "Come on up, it's cold down there. Don't get cold."

Zhu Yin snorted coldly and crawled back under the covers.

The girl said with a grin, "Turn around, I'll hug you."

Zhu Yin had no choice but to turn around, and a pair of soft, warm arms reached out from behind to hug his waist, her face pressed against his back.

Hmm, that seems to make things much more serious all of a sudden.

On the wall, the woman in Qiu Shizhou's "Ladies and Bamboo" painting is looking back, gazing dreamily at the two sixteen-year-old girls under the brocade quilt, covering her mouth and giggling softly.

“She’s watching us.” Ning Caiwei pointed to the painting “Ladies and Bamboo”. “Let’s just pretend she’s Qingchen, keeping an eye on us.”

Zhu Yin felt the soft, warm fragrance behind him and couldn't help but feel a little distracted. Only then did he realize that Qing Chen was right.

At this age, the body develops rapidly, and people are full of vigor and energy, often finding it difficult to control their physical impulses.

Who could remain as calm as a block of wood when there's a fragrant, delicate young woman lying next to them, their own wife?

You try it.

With the maid on the wall watching over them, the two of them indeed became serious again.

"Little Tiger." Ning Caiwei's voice rang in my ears like a dream, "I'm leaving after the Lantern Festival. We really don't get to see each other much. When will we be able to stay together as a family?"

"Leaving again? Where to?" Zhu Yin turned around and looked into the woman's eyes, only to see the light flickering in her clear eyes.

"Go to Guanzhong." The girl's sigh was like a breeze across a lake. "The company's business in Shaanxi requires negotiations with the Prince of Qin's mansion. Only I can handle it personally."

"I also need to visit my aunt and uncle."

Zhu Yin frowned upon hearing this; he knew. The businesses in Shaanxi had definitely infringed upon the interests of the Prince of Qin's residence and the Qin merchants; Ning Caiwei was in trouble.

However, Ning Caiwei never talked to me about her business troubles; she handled them all on her own.

It was precisely because of Caiwei's success in business that he possessed the financial resources to navigate the officialdom so smoothly. With the support of strong financial power, he was able to devise strategies and plans.

"Don't worry." Ning Caiwei stroked Zhu Yin's face. "I can handle everything. You just focus on your official duties. If you really can go to North Korea, remember, staying alive is the most important thing."

Zhu Yin held her hand and felt that it was a little cold.

"The Prince of Qin's mansion... is not a benevolent place. Caiwei, you must remember my words: don't try to tough things out. You still have me. We can never earn enough money; we're already quite wealthy."

"Hmm. I know. Little tiger, give me a piece of advice, something I'd love to hear."

"What do you want to hear? Let me think... Hmm, may all the powerful and wealthy in the world eventually become husband and wife?"

"Damn it, are you trying to provoke me? What kind of talk is that? Think again..."

"Okay, don't sleep yet, let me think about it... Hmm, a wise man doesn't fall in love, but I won't be a wise man for you. Are you going to sleep?"

“…Spring has arrived…Shangsi Festival…” Her voice trailed off as she fell asleep.

Zhu Yin's eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and he soon drifted off to sleep.

……

The next day, early in the morning, was the ninth day of the first lunar month. According to custom, the Lantern Festival holiday began, lasting a total of ten days.

Zhu Yin didn't have to go to the Ministry of War for his duty. Instead, he took Ning Caiwei with him to the Feng family's full moon celebration.

Living in Beijing was no easy feat. After arriving in Beijing, Feng Menglong was initially very poor, only able to rent a small apartment in the outer city. However, after seeking refuge with Zhu Yin, his life suddenly became much more comfortable.

Zhu Yin even bought him a beautiful little courtyard in Da Shi Yong Fang and gave it to the young couple.

Feng Menglong was merely a scholar with no connections in the capital. However, having Zhu Yin as his patron was far more valuable than any number of connections.

Early that morning, many students from impoverished families who were acquainted with Feng Menglong gathered at the Feng family home to attend the full-moon celebration of Feng's daughter.

There were quite a few people, and it was very lively. However, almost all the guests were from poor families, so much so that there were hardly any sedan chairs or even horses in front of the Feng family's house.

A beautiful young woman, about eighteen years old, was holding an infant in her arms, leaning against the door and gazing into the distance.

It was Zhuang Shu.

She stretched out her long, slender, snow-white neck, her eyes, as clear as autumn water, gazing at the alley entrance, but she still couldn't see Zhu Yin's carriage.

"My lady." Feng Menglong stepped forward, tall and elegant. "Brother Zhihu will definitely come. Please be patient, my lady."

"Husband." Zhuang Shu's expression was somewhat forlorn, and her dimples were no longer visible. "Zhihu has already been ennobled for his merits. Will he still come?"

"Don't worry, my wife," Feng Menglong said confidently. "He will definitely come. I won't misjudge him."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a bell rang out from the alley entrance.

"They're here!" Feng Menglong and Zhuang Shu were delighted. Just as they took a few steps, a carriage drove into the alley.

Just as the young couple was about to step forward to greet him, the carriage curtain was lifted, revealing a familiar and refined face.

"Father!" Zhuang Shu blurted out, "Why is Father here?"

"So it's my father-in-law!" Feng Menglong was also very surprised.

It turned out that the visitor was not Zhu Yin, but his father-in-law.

Zhuang Tingjian!
P.S.: I'm not feeling well today, so this is all I can write. Please vote for me! Thank you! Guess why Magistrate Zhuang is here.

(End of this chapter)