Chapter 345 Turmoil (Part 1)
Just because Eleventh Lady didn't say anything didn't mean that Madam Li would give up.
She looked at Shiyi Niang and said pointedly, "The Marquis is on good terms with Fan Weigang, the former general of Xuantong. Back then, the former general of Xuantong was impeached for corruption.
The Emperor sent Lord Fan to take over as the General of Xuantong and to investigate the matter together with the people of Dali Shen. At that time, the first year had just been changed, and the former General of Xuantong was a relative of the Empress Dowager, so he was inevitably hesitant. Lord Fan recommended Lord Liu, who was then a member of the Ministry of Justice, to preside over the case. As a result, Lord Liu was promoted to Dali Shen Zhengqing. "As she said this, she smiled and glanced at Shiyi Niang, "So our old man often said that luck is the first thing to do when being an official. If he can be transferred to Fujian as the General this time, and take Ji'er there to experience it, it will be a rare opportunity for our Ji'er. Maybe it will start from this to be granted the title of general and become a marquis."
After going around in circles, it turns out that the last sentence is the key point.
But what is Mrs. Li’s intention in saying this?
Let Xu Lingyi help to clear the way? Xu Lingyi, a marquis who is idle at home and suspected by the emperor, has the ability to do this? This involves the transfer of frontier officials! Does this mean that Li Ji can rise to prominence as long as he has the opportunity? But whether a person succeeds or not is 70% personal struggle and 30% chance!
Eleventh Lady was thinking about it in her mind and continued to socialize with Madam Li: "If it works, it would be a great thing!"
"Madam thinks so too!" Madam Li showed a bit of joy when she heard this. "Speaking of the generals of the Great Zhou Dynasty, in terms of ability, character, and seniority, none of them can compare with my old man. Others don't know that my old man was originally a general under the Marquis, and the Marquis knows it best." As she spoke, her expression darkened slightly. "It's just that in recent years, the Great Zhou Dynasty has not paid much attention to the ability, character, and seniority of officials promoted. What's more important is to have connections in the court. Our old man has everything except connections in the court!" When will being an official not be concerned with having connections in the court!
Eleventh Lady nodded: "This connection is also very important."
Madam Li nodded, looked around, and whispered, "Our master asked for help from Elder Liang Ge."
Eleventh Lady was slightly surprised.
Madam Li hid her hands behind her back and laughed quietly.
"It's just that there's no certainty about this matter yet, so some things are hard to say." Her voice was a little higher. "I just think that if this can be accomplished, our Ji'er will have more confidence when he is looking for a marriage."
That was for sure. But Madam Li was interested in Zhen Jie'er, and as Zhen Jie'er's mother, some of the things Shiyi Niang said could not help but give people the wrong impression. She just smiled slightly.
When Mrs. Li saw that Shiyi Niang did not respond, a strange light flashed in her eyes, and she wondered in her heart: Could it be that the Xu family had no intention of Ji'er at all? If not, why has Ji'er been in a good mood since he came back from the Xu family? Ji'er is a very stable child. Although he didn't say anything when he came back, how could he be like this if he was not sure? Speaking of which, although Yongping Hou has two sons, the eldest son has been studying hard at home since he was a child, and now he has gone to Jinxi Academy to study, which clearly means that he is going to take the path of imperial examinations. The second son was named the prince, and he was weak and sickly. Even if he went to the army for training, it was just a formality. Xu Lingyi made his fortune in the army and returned victorious in both battles. I don't know how many generals have made a fortune following him, and how many generals have been promoted by virtue of these two military exploits... To be frank, those low-ranking generals may not know who the emperor is, but when it comes to Yongping Hou, they can all laugh and tell two anecdotes. If I can become the son-in-law of Yongping Hou... Even if Shiyi Niang gave birth to a son, it would be more than ten years later. If Ji'er can't gain a firm foothold in the army, then he is a useless person. It's better to give up the desire to compete and live a good life.
I remember when I first mentioned the proposal to my husband, he was timid.
"Although she is a concubine's daughter, the Marquis only has this one daughter. I wonder how many people would want to do this..."
She was anxious and worried at the time: "How do you know if you don't try? Maybe everyone thinks the same as you do, and there are not many people who are compatible with you, so you can't find a suitable one. Otherwise, why do the people always get stunned when the Ministry of Rites chooses a consort for the princess?"
Unexpectedly, the Shao family showed up midway...
Thinking of this, Mrs. Li gritted her teeth.
"So whether this thing will be accomplished or not depends entirely on Madam's word!"
She whispered, with a hint of pleading in her tone.
Eleventh Lady was stunned.
Madam Li said, "If the ministers are arguing about lifting the ban on sea trade, officials in the south will naturally oppose it, and officials in the north will naturally agree with it. It will be very difficult to talk to Minister Chen. Although Minister Liang is a conciliatory person, it also depends on the emperor's will. But with someone of his own in Fujian, no matter how the situation changes, he can always be one step faster than others. It is also because of this reason that Minister Liang agreed to negotiate for our old man. But Minister Chen is the chief assistant after all. According to what Minister Liang meant, if the marquis could say a word to help, no, the marquis would not say even a word, as long as the intention was conveyed, this matter would be settled." As he spoke, he laughed. "Mr. Chen is now surrounded by enemies, but the Marquis has been standing by and has never said a word to him. How to settle this account? I think Mr. Chen will have to think carefully about it no matter what!"
Eleventh Lady understood everything.
The Li family immediately went to find Liang Gelao, who was afraid of taking responsibility and hoped that Xu Lingyi could express his opinion!
Why was it Xu Lingyi and not someone else?
She looked at Mrs. Li and narrowed her eyes slightly.
Even General Li knew that going to Fujian to quell the rebellion was an opportunity, and Liang Ge Lao and his ilk understood it even more clearly. With such a good opportunity, who wouldn't want to use their own people? General Li was able to ask Liang Ge Lao for help, and most likely he was using Xu Lingyi's name. Maybe he even told Liang Ge Lao privately that the two families were discussing marriage.
But who is Liang Ge Lao? He must have experienced a lot of things like this. But words are not enough, he needs to produce evidence. Since he said it is related to Xu Lingyi, then let Xu Lingyi come out and say hello. In this way, we can test the truth. If he has his own plans, he will also make some calculations. Increase the weight of General Li in Liang Ge Lao's mind.
The Li family is really good at scheming!
According to Shiyi Niang's experience, although such people don't need to be closely associated with, they can't be offended either.
"I don't quite understand what Madam Li said." Eleventh Lady put herself in a relatively low position, so as not to let Madam Li bring trouble to her again. She said apologetically, "Besides, the Marquis doesn't like the women in the family to get involved in these matters..."
Mrs. Li certainly knew. Which man would want his women to get involved in these things? There was nothing they could do about it!
"Madam," she said sincerely, "I don't understand these things either. I just worry about Ji'er's future. These things are what the old man told me when we discussed the children's affairs." She looked at Shiyi Niang with burning eyes, hinting to her, "Madam is also a mother, so naturally you have to plan for the future of your children. If the Marquis knew about this, he would only be happy, how could he blame you?"
Are you using Sister Zhen’s marriage as an excuse?
Eleventh Lady sneered in her heart, but she said calmly with a smile: "Then I will tell the Marquis what the lady said!"
Madam Li felt that Shiyi Niang's answer was inappropriate. She also thought of how Xu Lingyi behaved when he met the scoundrels in Shandong. She hesitated for a moment and whispered, "I am doing this for Madam's own good. As the saying goes, a son-in-law is half a son. Madam, if you have a capable son-in-law, you will have someone to inform about any problems in the future. It will be more convenient than asking the steward of the outer courtyard to do everything."
This Madam Li really has the talent of Su Qin and Zhang Yi!
Eleventh Lady nodded hurriedly, saw Madam Li out, and immediately sent Amber: "Go and see where the Marquis is?" Then she turned around and went back to the Madam as if nothing had happened.
"What was sent that you dare not accept?" The old lady took advantage of the fact that the children were playing tumble rope on the kang and the Fifth Lady was watching from the side and saw an opportunity to avoid everyone and asked Eleventh Lady in a low voice.
"It's a red-gold tiger." Shiyi Niang gestured, "Amber said it's solid."
The lady smiled, obviously satisfied with Eleventh Lady's response.
Eleventh Lady sat down on the kang and watched the children play with Fifth Lady. Wei Zi brought in some mulberry tea.
The children got off the kang to drink tea, while the Fifth Lady and Eleventh Lady remained sitting on the kang, with the little maid serving them tea.
The Fifth Lady was holding a blue and white porcelain bell-shaped cup and suddenly said with a smile, "Should Zhen Jie'er be getting married?"
Eleventh Lady's heart was filled with alarm bells.
The Fifth Lady wanted to get married, and if I refused, I would probably make her unhappy. But the two of them would only look up and down at each other.
"That's what I'm talking about!" Eleventh Lady said with a smile, "There are quite a few families, and the Marquis is sending people to inquire about them one by one!"
The Fifth Lady smiled and said, "My aunt's nephew is about the same age as Zhenjie. Let me ask him." Then she told her about the man's situation.
Since they came to propose marriage, they would naturally say good things. Eleventh Lady did not know the specific situation, but she understood one thing. The nephew of the Fifth Lady's aunt was from the military and had the rank of Qianhu.
"I'll go back and discuss it with Lord Hou."
Madam Wu nodded, stood up and went to Madam Tai's place, and asked Brother Zhe: "Did Mr. Zhao give you another day off?"
"No." Brother Zhe said hurriedly, "The teacher asked me to copy twelve characters, and I finished them ahead of time, and they were good. That's why the teacher gave me a day off. It's not because of my birthday. The teacher said that I can't give myself a day off just to find an excuse."
The Fifth Lady chuckled when she heard this: "He takes holidays for every major and minor festival, and he still says that he is not making excuses!"
"I'm not making excuses!" The Fifth Lady was his elder, so Zhege didn't dare to refute her. His face flushed red as he hesitantly said, "The master said that there is tension and relaxation."
"It seems that our Brother Zhe likes Mr. Zhao very much!" Madam Wu continued to tease Brother Zhe.
Eleventh Lady's thoughts were far away, wondering why Amber hadn't replied yet...