Chapter 034: Traitorous Minister 34
Ever since he met Brother Ling that day, he would always find some reasons to come to their house, whether there was something or not. He even said that he would invite them to stay at the inn where he was, but was finally rejected by Xiao Yan and Xiao Chen.
One reason is that I don't want to owe anyone a favor. The other is that when I stay in an inn, I always have to deal with social etiquette, and it's hard to refuse to attend meetings. I also have to be on guard against whether others will do something secretly, which is very troublesome.
Although the environment and facilities here are not very good, it is quite quiet, and the neighbors are all locals, so it is not that complicated.
That day, Brother Ling came over with two jugs of fruit wine.
"This is the plum wine that Yangzhou City produces in abundance. It was brewed last year and is just ready to drink this year. It's very beneficial."
The plum wine is yellowish-orange in color, exuding the unique fruity aroma of plums. It is similar to the fruit wine Xiao Chen drank during the New Year. The alcohol content is not high, and the taste is long. It is more like sugar water than wine.
It should be a fruit wine specially made for young people. For example, the plum wine on the market has a higher alcohol content. It mainly depends on personal taste.
Seeing the plum wine, Xiao Chen's face was filled with resistance. It reminded him of the stupid things he did during Chinese New Year because he drank too much. He didn't want to recall it at all!
At Brother Ling's invitation, he took two sips and didn't drink any more. But Xiao Yan drank one cup after another, and the whole pot was empty. There was no color on his face, and his eyes were clear and he was still conscious. He was not drunk at all!
Even though Brother Ling often drinks, his face is now slightly flushed, and he is probably half drunk.
"Brother Yan has a great alcohol tolerance! He can rival my father!"
It was only at this time that Xiao Chen realized that Xiao Yan could drink so much, but he was a little worried and stopped Xiao Yan from pouring more wine.
"Although plum wine has many benefits, it's still alcohol after all, and alcohol is very harmful to the body. You're not in good health, so you shouldn't drink too much."
Brother Ling also nodded, "That's right. It's my fault for not thinking of this."
After being stopped, Xiao Yan did not continue drinking. The three of them sat on small stools under the shade of the eaves and chatted.
"Brother Yan's test paper is brilliant! Being exiled to the local area can indeed prevent the formation of cliques and personal interests. Or am I too ignorant to have thought of this?"
Xiao Yan waved his hand modestly, "No, no, thank you for your high regard, Brother Ling. I wonder how Brother Ling would respond?"
It is not uncommon for scholars taking the imperial examinations to talk about the provincial examinations besides eating and drinking.
"I wrote that the whole world belongs to the king, and the court needs talented people. The Dou Kingdom has been invading for several years, and the border town is still struggling to train its navy! In this case, I will step down and let talented people take over..."
Brother Ling used the imperial power and ability as an excuse to attack the Empress Dowager's faction, which just happened to be consistent with the Emperor's long-standing dissatisfaction with the Yun family.
Although the Ministry of Rites had publicly stayed out of the matter, the Emperor's meddling had already made him appear to be corrupted. With the Emperor's involvement, his essay was naturally accepted, but he had only considered how to deal with the Yun family and the Emperor's psychology, not how to solve the problem.
It was equivalent to him only answering half of the test questions and leaving the remaining half unanswered.
It’s not that he didn’t think of it, but he was blinded by the current situation between the emperor and the Yun family, and just thought that the emperor was taking the opportunity to attack the Yun family.
After hearing this, Xiao Yan and Xiao Chen had a slightly different opinion of Brother Ling.
Previously, they had mixed feelings about Brother Ling, feeling that his performance was very inconsistent. He was undoubtedly intelligent, but his performance depended on his luck.
From the article alone, one can conclude that this person is a man of great insight, not as simple as he appears. He has a very clear perspective on things, but it's just not perfect yet. Given time, he will surely become a powerful official!
but……
Xiao Chen thought about it carefully. It seemed that he had never heard of Brother Ling's existence in his previous life. Was it because he was too low-key, or was he exiled from Beijing and therefore had not heard of him?
Shouldn't such a secretive person be so unknown?
Although he had some doubts in his heart, Xiao Chen did not show it on his face.
"The capital has been quite unstable recently, with people's hearts agitated and movements frequent."
"I heard that many children of aristocratic families travel north and south, traveling to various places. I wonder what Brother Yan and Brother Chen think of this?"
Xiao Yan chuckled and said, "I know this very well, why are you asking so much, Brother Ling?"
Even though he was exposed, Brother Ling didn't feel embarrassed at all. "It's just that I thought about a friend's invitation to a banquet, and this invitation is a bit hot, so I wanted to ask you two for help."
Xiao Yan changed to a more comfortable position and continued to bask in the sun. Xiao Chen was straightforward, "What does this have to do with us?"
"Go, go, go, go quickly, it's getting late, leave quickly."
He is a person with double standards. He can be witty but can't stand other people beating around the bush when they speak.
When I first met this Brother Ling, he didn't seem to be a very smart person. But now, after being together for a long time, he doesn't hide it anymore, and his fox tail is exposed!
As expected, the children of aristocratic families are as cunning as a sieve! Each and every one of them is very deep-minded!
Therefore, he was most impatient to make friends with the children of aristocratic families. After all, before speaking to them, he had to carefully consider whether there were any hidden meanings in the words, whether there were any hidden traps, whether there were other intentions, or whether a single word from the other party could have a hundred or eighty meanings.
It’s so tiring to communicate with them!
It was just past noon and the sky was still bright. How could it be possible that it was "late" as he said?
Brother Ling sat on the small bench, unmoved, extremely shameless, like a scoundrel.
"I won't leave. I want to talk with you all night long!"
Xiao Chen: “…”
Hearing the conversation, Xiao Chen felt uncomfortable all over. He couldn't stand it anymore and pulled Brother Ling's arm to drive him away.
It is known that Xiao Yan is taller than Xiao Chen, and Brother Ling is taller than Xiao Yan, so it can be concluded that Xiao Chen is shorter than Brother Ling.
Brother Ling didn't know whether it was a family inheritance or a gene mutation, but he was much taller than an ordinary person. Xiao Chen naturally couldn't pull Brother Ling, but he was just pretending to warn Brother Ling not to use this trick on them. He didn't really want to drive him away.
However, this thought echoed in my mind's "talk to each other", and I immediately started to really drive him away. I was disgusted by his words.
But he pulled for a long time and it didn't move. He turned his head and saw that the guy had been pulling at the door frame with his hands. No wonder he pulled for a long time but it didn't move like a mountain!
He was thinking that even though he was shorter than Brother Ling, he couldn't possibly be unable to pull someone, right? Surely he shouldn't have doubted himself, but this guy was shameless!
Xiao Chen looked left and right, saw the broom, and immediately grabbed it and waved it in his hand.
As soon as Brother Ling saw this scene, he quickly hid behind Xiao Yan, looking like a pitiful little thing caught in the wind and rain. If you ignore his tall and burly figure, especially Xiao Yan's stature was already slender and thin, giving him the appearance of a sickly beauty. The contrast between the two was even more obvious.
Xiao Chen wanted to beat him up, but he was afraid to hit his weak brother, so he could only yell at Brother Ling timidly. The two of them acted like elementary school kids, saying, "Come out, hit me if you dare..."
Xiao Yan stood between the two men and remained unmoved. He only stopped after they had made enough noise.
"As the ancients said: 'When two people work together, the border is at peace,' so they are in the same boat."
Xiao Yan smiled faintly and replied, "The friendship between gentlemen is as pure as water."
Brother Ling was slightly stunned, as if he had not expected that Xiao Yan would also speak out against others. After all, it was always him and Xiao Chen who were bickering with each other, while Xiao Yan was gentle and polite, and sometimes even lazy, like a cat lazily basking in the sun, who would actually stretch out his claws to scratch people. He was a little surprised at the time.
Then he thought again, yes, how could someone who could see at a glance the relationship between imperial power and various clans, who had no family background at all, who knew that this would offend the Yun family and the Queen Mother's party, yet dared to seize this opportunity, and who was finally favored by His Majesty, be as harmless as he appeared?
It's like a treasure among thorns. To get the treasure, you need to step over the thorns. Even if someone sees the treasure, they can only sigh in despair, while he can win the favor of the treasure owner without any harm. How can he be a simple person?
Brother Ling's mind was full of thoughts and his expression was quite complicated. He didn't know whether he was feeling relieved or comforting himself. He sighed softly and said, "Fortunately, we are all in the same boat."
Xiao Yan: “???”
What's going on again?
Although Xiao Yan was puzzled, he did not ask too many questions, because Brother Ling's brain convolutions were extraordinary and far beyond the reach of ordinary people.
He asked, "Who invited you?"
At this time, Xiao Chen also put down the broom in his hand and sat aside to listen.
Brother Ling also sat down, looking serious, as if he was not the one who had acted like a scoundrel before, and replied: "The third son of the Qiuhe Lin family."
The Qiuhe Lin family is a prominent family, and is also the Empress Dowager's mother's family and a relative of the Yun family.
The current situation is that the emperor supports the prince on the surface, but he is only doing so because of the overall situation. From his occasional scolding of the prince, anyone with eyes can see it.
The Queen must support the Crown Prince, after all, he is her own biological son. Although the Queen Mother did not support any prince openly, judging from her frequent rewards to the Eighth Princess, she must be supporting the Eighth Prince.
Although the Eighth Prince is a playboy, no one can guarantee whether he is a playboy in disguise. But no matter whether he is a playboy or not, as long as he is a prince and the children he gives birth to have royal blood, it doesn’t matter whether he is a playboy or not.
The Eighth Princess was from the Qiuhe Lin family. I'm afraid this move was intended to build momentum for the Eighth Prince, and even to win over the Murong family and talented people!
You have to know that these candidates, especially those from the Murong family, are very likely to become members of the court in the future.
Although the Queen Mother is the head of a noble family, she is only from a northern noble family. There has always been a strong sense of justice between the north and the south, and there are many conflicts between the noble families and the literati. If the Eighth Prince can hold the power in the south in his hands, he will be closer to that position.
It seems the Eighth Prince's faction has far-reaching ambitions. Their intentions are clearly known to everyone, and they haven't tried to hide them at all.
It is indeed as tricky as Brother Ling said. After all, the Ling family is directly under the emperor's party. What will His Majesty think if they attend the Lin family's banquet?
Xiao Yan frowned and said righteously, "The provincial examination is approaching. I should study hard to live up to Your Majesty's high expectations! I should live up to the teachings of my ancestors, your father and mother, and even the teachers! How can I indulge in romantic pursuits?"
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