Chapter 252 Mr. Xiuzhuan
As soon as Li Duchang came up, he held Chen Tuiguan's hand and talked nonstop, but Chen Tuiguan looked a little embarrassed and he brushed Li Duchang's hand away calmly.
"Sir Li, oh no, Master Li." Chen Tuiguan seemed to deliberately emphasize the last few words, "This is the Jingzhao government office, not some street in the market. The procedures and rules must be followed. It is really inappropriate for you to call me brother like this."
As Chen Tuiguan said this, he called for someone to bring Li Duchang to record his statement, looking as if he was trying to avoid it.
Li Duchang used to work in the Honglu Temple. They had had a few drinks together and it was true that they called each other "Brother Chen" and "Brother Li". But now Li Duchang has resigned from the Honglu Temple, so he should give up his brother's position.
Alas. Chen Tuiguan sighed in his heart. He couldn't blame himself for being snobbish. It was mainly because people outside were saying that Li Duchang had offended the Sixth Prince, and the Sixth Prince gave him face and let him resign. In this situation, if he continued to be on good terms with him, how could he survive in the officialdom of the capital in the future?
Li Duchang looked at Chen Tuiguan's cold face, opened his mouth, but in the end he could only sigh heavily and accept his fate.
It's all my fault for being obsessed with flattering others. Now I didn't get promoted, but instead ruined my career. Who can I blame?
He didn't blame Chen Tuiguan for his attitude of turning his back on him. If he were in his position, he would also draw a clear line.
As an official, everyone can understand it.
"Sir Li, you just said...something happened in your house?" Zhu Lan, who had been standing aside for a long time, suddenly asked.
Li Duchang turned around and recognized Zhu Lan at a glance. He immediately became excited, "Oh, Zhu Xiuzhuan!"
He walked up to Zhu Lan and started to pour out his grievances, "You may not know since you just arrived in the capital, but those damn dental shops..."
"Are you still going to record your confession? If you want to chat, go outside the government office. Has the dignified Jingzhao Prefecture become a place for you to gossip?"
After saying this, Chen Tuiguan looked at Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan and said impatiently, "Alright, you guys injured someone, just pay the money and let it go. Can't you see that I'm very busy with a lot of things here? No matter how big the matter is, you have to come to the Jingzhao government office to cause trouble..."
Li Duchang had been in the officialdom for many years. Apart from his ability as an official, he was also very good at observing people's expressions. Hearing the difference in the other party's tone, he glanced between Chen Tuiguan and Zhu Lan, and immediately understood something.
Li Duchang took a few steps forward and stood closer to Zhu Lan. He shook his head and said, "Forget it, Zhu Xiuzhuan. This Jingzhao Prefecture prosecutor is inexperienced. It would be better to meet Lord Wu one day and talk to him directly. This would save us a lot of trouble."
Zhu Lan had just arrived in the capital and was not familiar with the names of the officials in the capital. For a moment, he did not react to who the "Mr. Wu" the other party was talking about was.
"Lord Wu? Which Lord Wu?" asked Chen Tuiguan, with a hint of uneasiness in his words.
"Who is the other Lord Wu? It is naturally Lord Wu Chengqi, the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture." Li Duchang said.
Tui Guan Chen's cheek twitched slightly, but he quickly calmed down and looked at Zhu Lan from head to toe again with a bit of contempt.
How ridiculous! How could a girl of ten years old talk to the prefect?
If he really knew Lord Wu, would he have to run to the Jingzhao government office and beat the drum like an ordinary citizen to report the case?
Chen Tuiguan sat back in his chair, poured himself a cup of tea calmly, and said with a hint of sarcasm:
"Last year, our Lord Wu was praised by the emperor, and several bookstores competed to write a biography for him. Lord Wu loves the people like his own children, and he is not arrogant, so he condescended to answer some of their questions. Haha, I didn't expect that this could be used as an article, and one by one they dared to claim to know our Lord, the prefect.
I heard him call you 'Zhu Xiuzhuan' just now. How dare a mere editor like you to bully others? I really don't know how your master disciplines you. Tell me, are you from Hongwen Bookstore or Dongliang Bookstore?"
Before Zhu Lan could say anything, Li Duchang sneered and said, "I wonder who is the editor of the Hanlin Academy relying on for his authority?"
"Oh, Hanlin..." Chen Tuiguan sneered, took a sip of tea, and then suddenly reacted.
"Puff!" A mouthful of tea sprayed onto the table.
“Han...Hanlin Academy!?” Tuiguan Chen stood up and almost overturned the chair behind him. He looked at Zhu Lan as if he had seen a ghost.
"You, you, you, you are the editor of the Imperial Academy... Sir?"
Zhu Lan smiled slightly, put his hands together and said, "My name is Zhu Lan, and I am the new editor of the Hanlin Academy."
Li Duchang pointed at Zhu Qingyan again and raised his eyebrows to Chen Tuiguan, saying, "And this one is the editor of the Hanlin Academy!"
Zhu Qingyan snorted coldly.
"Your humble servant, your humble servant did not know whether you two gentlemen..." Chen Tuiguan was sweating profusely and quickly saluted the two. As an official in the capital, how could he not have heard that there were two extraordinary women in the palace examination today, one of whom was the top scorer and the other the third place winner! ?
Zhu Qingyan said coldly: "Master Chen, you can't say that. In terms of rank, the two of us are only sixth-rank, and you are also sixth-rank. We can't afford Master Chen's courtesy."
"No, no, I can afford it, I can afford it..." Tuiguan Chen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Although they were both sixth-rank officials, he was a sixth-rank official close to the emperor. How could I compare with him? I had been an official for decades, and I had only met the emperor once.
But what does it mean to be a compiler in the Hanlin Academy? They are close ministers to the emperor! They are qualified to participate in court meetings!
Although he does not have much real power, one word from him in front of the emperor is better than ten years of maneuvering on his own!
If this woman is really the editor of the Hanlin Academy, then even if Lord Wu, the prefect, is standing here, he would have to be polite to her.
Zhu Lan said: "Master Chen, can we talk about the case now?"
"Yes, yes, of course! Please take a seat, my lords..." Tui Guan Chen wiped the sweat from his forehead and personally poured tea for Zhu Lan and Zhu Qingyan.
Li Duchang naturally followed suit and sat down.
Chen Tuiguan stood aside, rubbing his hands nervously, "This... Sir, could you please tell me the case in detail again? Your humble servant... Your humble servant's brain is not very good, and I can't remember it clearly just now..."
Zhu Lan glanced at Li Duchang who was sitting opposite him and said, "Master Li, please speak first."
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