Chapter 167: Bad news will come sooner or later
In the past, Song Jin was very averse to buying slaves. He was obsessed with the idea that he was a modern person and believed that slaves were too humiliating to one's dignity, so he refused to buy them. He thought that as long as he treated the servants well and made them loyal, it would be fine.
But over time she discovered that slaves and contracts could save her from a lot of well-intentioned negotiations. She didn't have to use these to make people obey willingly, which could save her a lot of trouble.
If you think carefully about many concepts in modern society, they are all based on her ideas.
On the surface they are subordinates, but in reality they are trained slaves. They have no life of their own and everything revolves around work. Over time they lose their self-awareness and have nothing to do but obey.
This is no different from being a slave.
It turned out that she had been a slave for two lifetimes.
This time Song Jin saved himself some trouble and simply bought a few teenage boys who were enough to do some hard labor and were also easy to discipline.
After arranging things in the shop outside, Song Jin began to relax. It was a pity that Ji Shubai was not in the government office, otherwise she would have turned back.
Forced by her husband's absence, she had to find something to do on her own.
Reading, writing books, and gathering in the kitchen with everyone to study food and drink.
She was thinking that when the weather got warmer, she could make millet jelly for Ji Shubai.
After all, she had agreed with the Chai family that after the ice cellar opened this summer, she could get an ice card to buy ice every day, so that she could make iced drinks without any hesitation.
That morning, she was in the kitchen thinking of a recipe and trying to make a new dessert with a few people, when suddenly the doorman came to report that Madam Chai and Madam Lu were coming to visit her.
Song Jin had not returned to the government office for a few days. Suddenly, she heard that there were guests outside. She was very happy and asked the kitchen to prepare some snacks to entertain the guests, while she went to the hall first.
Talking about the relationship between the ladies, Song Jin was the most familiar and closest to these two. He was very surprised to see them coming together. After greeting each other, he asked them to sit down and talk.
"How have you been lately, ma'am?"
Mrs. Lu's words made Song Jin laugh: "Sister, why are you talking like that? I haven't seen you for a few days, and you seem to be so distant."
"I am used to being idle, and I feel comfortable staying at home."
"That's fine. It's fine at home."
Mrs. Lu looked unhappy today. Song Jin was wondering about it when Caitang brought her tea and interrupted her thoughts.
"Are there any guests coming to your house today?" This time it was Mrs. Chai who spoke again.
Song Jin smiled and said, "You two are my honored guests."
"It's good that no one comes. It's quiet."
Song Jin couldn't laugh at this moment. This was not what the lively Mrs. Chai would say. Looking at the two people's faces, they both looked strange, and he couldn't help but become suspicious.
"What's going on? Why do you two seem so strange? What happened?"
Madam Lu smiled awkwardly and said, "No, what could possibly happen?"
I don’t know if Song Jin has seen a lot of this kind of slacking and perfunctory behavior in his previous life, but now he can tell it clearly. This is a problem.
But what's the problem?
"How is Lord Lu doing lately?"
"It's fine, it's fine. My old Lu is fine."
Repeatedly emphasizing that good is bad, Song Jin has always judged this way.
"What has Lord Lu been busy with recently?"
"Um... it's just the things that happen in the government office, what else could it be?"
It was the same whether he answered or not. Song Jin paused while drinking tea and suddenly smiled.
"I've been back for a few days now. I miss my sister a lot. I think the mahjong set at home is just sitting there, so why don't I bring it to the government office tomorrow and we can continue playing cards together?"
Mrs. Lu was a straightforward person, and her expression immediately changed when she heard Song Jin say this.
"Why are you back to the government office for no reason? Wouldn't it be more relaxing at home? How about this, let's have some fun today?"
Song Jin looked at Madam Chai again, and seeing that she was equally uncomfortable, he knew that she was hiding something from him. He was afraid that he could not ask her now, so he simply stood up and said loudly:
"Sisters, just speak frankly. If you keep beating around the bush like this, I will eventually go out and ask."
"What are you hiding from me?"
When Mrs. Lu saw this, she immediately surrendered: "I'll tell you, don't ask me to come, don't ask me to come, I can't act like this."
"So just tell me straight, sister. Otherwise I won't let you go."
Mrs. Lu looked at Mrs. Chai with embarrassment: "You can say it, then go ahead and say it."
Song Jin looked at Madam Chai again, only to see that she looked embarrassed: "I told you not to rush."
"I am worried because you are so secretive."
"That... Lord Ji was detained in Nanjing."
"Take it down?" Song Jin was a little unresponsive for a moment: "Why? How do you take it down?"
"How did you know that?"
As Ji Shubai's wife, Song Jin seemed to be the last one to know.
Everyone was hiding the truth from her. She even suspected that Ji Shubai wanted her to go home in order to prevent her from knowing it too early.
Both of them had very unhappy expressions. They looked at each other, but refused to say anything.
Song Jin suddenly became anxious: "Since the two sisters are unwilling to speak, I will go to the prefect to ask for clarification. Shu Bai is his subordinate, so he has to take care of this matter."
When the two saw that Song Jin was about to make a big fuss, they immediately came over to stop him.
"Don't panic, don't panic. Magistrate Lin has already sent people. This matter is very difficult to handle."
"What is it?"
Ji Shubai's mouth was as if it was covered in 502, and he hardly said a word about the bad things going on in the government office.
Since he refused to tell her, she knew nothing about it. Even when the incident happened today, she was still at home studying how to make snacks without any clue.
"If you want to blame someone for this, blame it on my old Lu."
Last year, the people of Wu County went to the government office to file a lawsuit because they lost their land. Originally, the lawsuit was handed to Lu Junnian, but the case was beyond his ability to handle, so he discussed a solution with Ji Shubai.
Ji Shubai was a person who could not tolerate any grain of sand in his eyes. He sent one letter after another to the Beijing Normal University, which finally annoyed some people, so much so that Nanjing summoned Ji Shubai this year to resolve the matter together.
It would be better to say that it was about solving Ji Shubai rather than solving the problem. He just left and never came back. Even the news came from Wu County and the people there.
There is no news of the other people who went with him.
Prefect Lin knew about this and was looking for a solution. He was preparing to write a letter to the Prime Minister.
The two men comforted her, saying that Ji Shubai was promoted by the Prime Minister, who also had a good relationship with the Imperial Household Department. The people in Nanjing were most likely disciples of the Imperial Household Department, which was why they dared to act so rampantly. As long as the Prime Minister was willing to take action, Ji Shubai would be safe.
Song Jin sat there for a long while, listening to the two of them persuading her. All they said was that with the Prime Minister's guarantee, she would be able to return safely.
Prime Minister...
"What year is it?"
"This year is the Year of the Monkey."
"How long has our emperor been on the throne?"
"It's been ten years. This year is the tenth year of the Wanli reign. Are you confused?"
The two ladies saw that Song Jin had a dull expression and asked very simple questions, thinking she was stupid, and they couldn't help but become worried.
"Don't worry, Old Lu and the people in the government office are all thinking of a solution. Even Mr. Chai has sent a letter to my brother in the capital. Master Ji will be fine. You..."
Before Mrs. Lu finished her words, she saw a tear fall from Song Jin's eyes.
On July 9, the tenth year of Wanli, Prime Minister Zhang Juzheng died of illness, and a campaign against him began. Pan Sheng was impeached at this time because he was recommended by Zhang Juzheng during his lifetime, and was dismissed from office and returned home on his way to becoming an official.
In contrast, Hai Rui, who had been suppressed by Zhang Juzheng for more than ten years, was remembered again, re-employed two years later, and eventually died in office.
There are less than four months left until July. If the Prime Minister tries his best to protect him...
It's over, Song Jin thought, as long as he was still considered to be a member of Zhang Juzheng's party, his future would be almost ruined.
No wonder, no wonder I don’t know his name. I’m afraid that even if I escape this disaster, I can’t escape the next one.
"I want to see the prefect."
Song Jin wanted to meet Prefect Lin, not for any other reason, but to cut off Ji Shubai's last hope.
He cannot be saved, so it would be best...it would be best if the Prime Minister punished him personally, and she would accept being dismissed from office.
The atmosphere in the government office was tense.
Originally, each government office had its own responsibilities. Ji Shubai was from both Suzhou Prefecture and the prefectural government office. However, once he went to Jiangning Prefecture, he never came back. As the prefect, he would naturally not leave it alone.
But the problem with Jiangning Prefecture lies in its relationship with the Beijing Division, which is much closer than Suzhou Prefecture.
Instead of working hard in Nanjing, it is better to work hard in Beijing.
Song Jin also wanted to make some efforts in Beijing, for example, let Zhang Juzheng scold Ji Shubai and then dismiss him from his post.
Prefect Lin was just busy when he heard a clerk come to report that Madam Ji wanted to see him. He didn't have much free time, but then he thought that as a woman, she might be in a panic and need someone to comfort her, so he wanted to ask Madam Ji to meet her on his behalf.
The clerk went out to pass on the message, but after a while he came back with a frown on his face, saying that Madam Ji asked him to pass on the message that this matter could only be discussed with the prefect.
Prefect Lin sighed heavily.
When Ji Shubai got into this trouble, he had advised him to stop in light of past experience, but he refused to listen.
Ji Shubai didn't listen, and the woman at home didn't listen either. It's no wonder that these two stubborn people fell in love with each other when they got together.
"Tell her to wait for me in the hall."
Song Jin sat in the living room without even looking at the tea that was brought to him. He knew in his heart that what he was about to say went against the public's concept, but he couldn't care less at the moment.
Although Prefect Lin was dissatisfied in his heart, he still maintained a relatively kind expression when he saw Song Jin, and comforted Song Jin as soon as they met.
"Mrs. Ji, don't worry too much. I have already written a letter to Beijing. The Prime Minister has always appreciated Ji Yun. I believe that as long as the Prime Minister gives a word, Nanjing will definitely release him. It is only a matter of time at most."
After hearing this, Song Jin became more certain that it was the method that Mrs. Lu had just mentioned. She did not say anything more, but stood up and knelt down with a plop.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? Why did you kneel down for no reason?" He was about to help the man up: "Didn't I say that I will take care of this matter to the end?"
However, Song Jin could not get up.
"I came here today to ask you a favor. I want to ask you to save my husband."
"I know everyone thinks my husband is appreciated by the Prime Minister, but my husband is just a humble official. How can I bother the Prime Minister for such a small matter?"
"My husband didn't do his job well and angered the people in Nanjing. Now he has been captured. If we let the Prime Minister use his power to suppress it now, it will definitely succeed. But what about in the future? Does it mean that whenever something goes wrong, we have to ask the Prime Minister to intervene?"
Prefect Lin was stunned for a moment.
"I've heard before that Dayu controlled floods and said that it's better to drain than to block. Now Nanjing is angry. I heard before that my master wrote several letters to Beijing. Beijing cannot be unaware of this. If the Prime Minister didn't care about offending the Imperial Household Department, he would have ordered the return of the land long ago. Why did he let my master suffer so much?"
"I know my master is stubborn and unwilling to listen to advice. In the officialdom, such a character will sooner or later fall. Instead of waiting for the Prime Minister to come to the rescue every time, why not let him suffer enough this time and make Nanjing calm down? Isn't it better for him?"
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