The post station outside the capital.

Wang Jinyi is going through the process of entering Beijing.

Different from civil servants, common people, and businessmen.

Military generals, especially those leading soldiers, had to obtain approval before entering the capital. Entering the capital without permission was a violation of the law. In serious cases, demotion would be the lightest punishment, but the person would definitely be killed.

This post station is an important checkpoint for entering Beijing.

The land alone covers dozens of acres.

The number of postmen has exceeded 50,000.

There is no way. The capital is too prosperous now, and the post stations close to the capital are usually the end and starting point of the post stations across the country.

All the documents sent out from the Ming Dynasty must pass through here, and documents submitted from all over the country must also pass through here.

The same is true for the officials coming in and out.

This is also the headquarters of the Post Station Administration.

In the past six years, we have been continuously expanding and recruiting people.

Even now, there are still many craftsmen building houses in the outskirts.

According to the latest laws of the Ming Dynasty, common people can pay a certain amount of money to live in the areas divided by the post stations, which include accommodation, food, supplies, trading, etc.

From a certain perspective, it is actually similar to the service areas on later highways.

The post stations, which had been a constant drain on the Ming treasury, turned losses into profits in just three years after such reforms.

Not only were the salaries of the postmen self-sufficient, the revenues of some post stations in big cities were even higher than those of many smaller and medium-sized counties.

In the Ming Dynasty, in addition to the capital's official gazette, there was also an official gazette.

The contents of the official gazette mainly include the appointment and dismissal, political achievements, influence, and personal deeds of officials from various places within the Ming Dynasty.

After the reform of the post stations, the official newspaper announced rewards for those post stations that generated their own revenue. Not only did the postmen receive a large amount of rewards, but the post station chiefs were also promoted in rank.

The official gazette also describes in detail the process of how to create revenue, divide official and civilian areas, and set up trade markets.

Therefore, the post stations in the Ming Dynasty, especially those on commercial routes, began to reform.

Not all post stations can make money. For example, post stations in remote areas still need subsidies from the court to maintain their operations.

But in the end, the court was already making money.

All income from the post station must be included in the imperial tax collection, rather than being kept by individuals.

At present, all post stations are government-run and privately-owned.

For example, this Beijing Post Station is not much different from a city.

Merchants, common people, and officials come and go.

Everything you need for food, clothing, housing and transportation is available here.

The overall planning is like a Jiangnan garden. Many people who come here think they have arrived directly in Nanjing city.

In fact, we didn’t even reach the outer city.

"There are too many people here." Amira's eyes were full of little stars.

His eyes darted around, looking here and there.

She originally thought that the city of U-Tsang was already very prosperous, but when she arrived at the Beijing Post Station this time, she realized how narrow her vision was.

If she hadn't been passing through the post station, she would have felt like she was already in Nanjing.

"Sister, I heard that the capital has the most talented people. This is just a checkpoint. Once we get to the capital, we will see the most prosperous place in the world. I really want to see it soon." Yibaiti said longingly.

Queen Aida next to them touched the two women's heads with a smile on her face.

She was also shocked by the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, or rather, everyone in the world who came here would be shocked by the prosperity.

At this moment, Aida didn't want to leave.

She saw a lot of rouge, powder, silks and satins, as well as all kinds of accessories.

But she didn't buy it.

Because they didn't have much money with them, the total amount was less than thirty strings of cash after conversion.

If you want to spend money here, you can only exchange it for Baochao.

However, when Aida looked at the things she liked, she found that they were only a few dozen strings of coins each and she could not afford them at all.

This time I came to the capital with Wang Jinyi, so accommodation and meals were all free.

Otherwise, the little money they have might not even be enough for the travel expenses.

The mother and her two daughters were wandering around the market, accompanied by several soldiers as guards.

Even though their faces couldn't be seen clearly because of the veils, the good figures of the mother and daughters still attracted a lot of attention.

Many wealthy businessmen had some vague ideas in their minds.

But when he saw the soldiers next to him, he could only sigh in his heart.

However, businessmen don’t dare to do so, but intellectuals are much bolder.

In the attic in the distance, a gaze never left.

"Brother Wenjie, this is the first time I've seen you so obsessed. If not, we would have thought that you were not interested in women."

After saying this, several people nearby burst into laughter.

Zhang Wenjie replied without blinking his eyes, "Food and sex are human nature. I am just an ordinary man, so how can I not be attracted to women? How can those mediocre women before be compared with this stunning beauty?"

"If I'm not mistaken, the three women should be a mother and daughter, and the two daughters should be twins."

Zhang Wenjie's words immediately attracted the interest of people around him.

"Twins, this is rare. Brother Wenjie must be lying to us. They are both wearing veils." Someone said in disbelief.

Zhang Wenjie smiled and said, "That's easy. I'll go down right now and have them lift their veils so you can have a good look at them and see if what I said is correct."

After saying that, Zhang Wenjie was about to stand up.

Someone nearby immediately stopped him.

"Brother Wenjie, don't be complacent. There are soldiers following behind us. Look at their attire. They are definitely not postmen. We should find out more about them first."

Zhang Wenjie said nonchalantly: "Why? I'm not doing anything indecent. I'm just making friends."

"Most of those who come here are going to the capital. Who knows, they may need something from me."

Several of them are second-generation officials.

The elders in my family are basically important officials of the imperial court, otherwise we wouldn’t be able to play together.

However, the emperor has strict laws under his feet, so even so, they dare not be too reckless and bring disaster to their families.

After Zhang Wenjie finished speaking, he went straight downstairs.

Several people who were traveling with him also stood up and followed.

They also wanted to see the face beneath the veil.

Zhang Wenjie was bold and walked directly in front of the mother and daughter, bowed and said, "I am Zhang Wenjie. From a distance, I see that the three of you are stunningly beautiful. I wonder if you would do me the honor of sharing a drink with us."

Amira and Ibadi could not understand Chinese.

Amyra asked, "Mother, what did he say when he stopped us?"

Aida replied: "Nothing, just a pervert."

The conversation between mother and daughter was not hidden, Zhang Jiewen was stunned. He didn't expect that the other party didn't understand Chinese.

She just walked past him without any intention of paying any attention to him.

His companions burst into laughter, which made Zhang Wenjie feel very embarrassed.

He immediately ordered his servants: "Go to the post station and find some translators for me."

A companion reminded him: "The words just now should be in Turkic, probably from the Western Regions."

The servant hurried to find a translator who knew Turkic.

There are a large number of translators in the post station, and translators from almost all countries can be found, and most foreign merchants basically understand Chinese.

Zhang Wenjie wanted to follow, but was stopped by the soldiers.

When a scholar meets a soldier, Zhang Wenjie will naturally not suffer a loss.

The soldier also knew that the man he was facing must be someone of some importance and he didn't want to offend him, so he ignored him when he saw the other party stop.

Zhang Wenjie was unwilling to give up, so after the translator arrived, he sent someone to inquire and found out that the other party was having dinner in the restaurant.

So he chased after him again.

But this time, Wang Jinyi came.

Wang Jinyi was talking to the mother and her two daughters about going to Beijing when he heard a soldier report that someone wanted to see him.

"The person who tried to strike up a conversation at the market earlier." the soldier reported.

Wang Jinyi sneered: "It's really a knife hanging over your head. Let him get out of here."

Zhang Wenjie, who was waiting outside the private room, was unexpectedly driven away by the soldiers.

Unable to hold back any longer, he said, "My father is a doctor in the Ministry of Rites, how dare you treat me so rudely."

In the private room, Wang Jinyi heard the voice and said with a smile: "This is a coincidence."

Then he asked the soldiers to let Zhang Wenjie in.

Zhang Wenjie thought that it was his father's reputation that worked. He had just lost face and was going to get it back here.

"May I ask what your name is?" Zhang Wenjie's heart tightened when he saw Wang Jinyi's official uniform.

I didn't expect there was still a thousand households here.

This is the same grade as my father.

However, Zhang Wenjie was not in a bad position. Beijing officials were naturally one rank higher than local officials, and the other party didn't know whether the title was real or not.

"My name is Wang Jinyi, the commander of the U-Tsang Regional Command. I just heard from you that your father is a doctor in the Ministry of Rites?" Wang Jinyi asked with a smile, as if he was not at all embarrassed about being driven away just now.

Zhang Wenjie's momentum weakened by another point.

He turned out to be a border troop and a commander at that.

Calculated this way, he is almost the same as his father.

Today, the imperial court places great emphasis on military power.

The commander of the border troops is three times more important than the civil officials in the capital.

This is a failure.

"My father is indeed a doctor in the Ministry of Rites." At this time, Zhang Wenjie just wanted to leave.

No matter how beautiful a beauty is, you have to be able to get her.

Wang Jinyi smiled and did not target Zhang Wenjie.

He was just worrying about how to build connections when this son of a doctor who happened to be in charge of the Ministry of Rites suddenly showed up.

As the commander-in-chief of the U-Tsang Regional Command, he had no way of contacting the Crown Prince directly under non-military circumstances.

Especially something like presenting a princess as a gift.

This is equivalent to bypassing procedures and rules.

It is not a good thing for a general to do this.

Wang Jinyi gestured to Aida, and then introduced her to Zhang Wenjie: "This is the Queen of the Western Regions Huhu Kingdom, and the two next to her are the princesses of the Huhu Kingdom."

"This time, the Huhu Kingdom presented two princesses to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Fortunately, His Royal Highness summoned them to participate in the commendation ceremony, so I came here to escort them."

"Your father was originally responsible for presenting the princess to you. This is just a coincidence."

As Zhang Wenjie listened, cold sweat broke out all over his body.

What is he doing? Planning on becoming the Crown Prince's future concubine?

There are many small countries now, and many countries want to present their princesses to the crown prince.

In this regard, there are rumors that the crown prince is lustful, but Zhang Wenjie knows clearly that he has heard from his father that the crown prince has no interest in the Princess of All Nations.

Once, when a list of names was submitted, the Crown Prince rejected it without even looking at it.

"This matter..." Zhang Wenjie hesitated and wanted to refuse.

But under Wang Jinyi's slightly amusing gaze, he forced himself to swallow it back.

He suddenly realized that he had fallen into a trap.

The key is that he forced himself into this set.

If he refuses, then Wang Jinyi in front of him can directly report him.

He submitted a memorial to accuse himself of molesting the princess who was presented to the crown prince by the Western Regions.

If this were the case, not only himself, but even his father would be implicated.

It is the Crown Prince's business if he doesn't want to be, but to do so is a grave crime of disobedience.

"Don't worry, Commander Wang. I'll take care of this matter. I will report it to my father after we return to the capital."

Zhang Wenjie now has no way out.

Wang Jinyi smiled and said, "Then I'll have to trouble Master Zhang. Master Zhang, would you like to have dinner with us?"

Zhang Wenjie quickly said, "No, no, I've already eaten."

"It's still early today, I'll go straight into the city later."

Zhang Wenjie naturally would not stay. He saw clearly that Wang Jinyi was holding a teacup when he said this.

He still understands the meaning of serving tea to see guests off.

After Zhang Wenjie left, Wang Jinyi smiled and said to Queen Aida: "It was easy to get, the matter is settled."

Aida stood up and bowed slightly: "Thank you, sir."

Wang Jinyi waved his hand: "No need to thank me, this guy brought it here himself."

"After we enter the city, I will take you to Tianjie Temple. Then you can directly introduce Doctor Zhang's name. The Ministry of Rites will make proper arrangements."

"By the way, once you enter the Celestial Realm Temple, the queen and princess won't have to wear veils to cover their faces. There, the more beautiful you are, the more people will be afraid of you."

Wang Jinyi had never been to Tianjie Temple, but he knew that envoys from all nations gathered there, and many things could easily be passed on to His Majesty's grandson.

Planning on seizing a princess from another country in Tianjie Temple is no different from seeking death.

It may even bring harm to one's own country.

The mother, her two daughters, thanked them repeatedly. They had thought that they would still have to go through many twists and turns in their lives, but now everything was much simpler.

I can’t say it will definitely succeed, but at least I’m no longer as helpless as before.

As for Zhang Wenjie, he didn't care about his previous companions after he went out.

He went directly to the post station, rented a carriage, and headed straight home.

evening.

Doctor Zhang Jian frowned at his son's hasty return and scolded him, "You are so old, yet you are still so impetuous."

Zhang Wenjie fell to his knees and kowtowed, saying, "Father, I've caused trouble."

Before Zhang Jian had the chance to scold his son, he suddenly became panicked when he saw his son like this.

He didn't bother to scold anymore and hurriedly said, "Tell me in detail what happened."

Zhang Wenjie did not dare to delay and quickly told what had happened during the day.

After hearing what I said, Zhang Jian scolded me repeatedly, "You are so stupid! I asked you to interact with other ladies from wealthy families, but you always sneered at them. Now you have offended the Crown Prince. Are you going to bring disaster to my Zhang family?"

"How could I have given birth to such a wicked child like you? What a sin."

Zhang Jian was furious. He looked around but didn't see anything suitable. He grabbed the teacup and smashed it hard on Zhang Wenjie.

Of course, he was still careful and didn't hit him on the head. After all, this was his eldest son.

Such a scene seemed a bit exaggerated to Zhang Jian.

In fact, it is not.

Zhang Jian was not worried that the queen or princess would go and complain. Judging from what happened later and what Wang Jinyi said, he wanted to ask him for help in the introduction.

Handing over the list seemed to be the doctor Zhang Jian's job.

However, what Zhang Jian was worried about was that someone would use this matter to attack him.

This is equivalent to giving one's political enemies an extra handle.

From Zhu Ying's perspective, he was just a doctor, a minor official of the fifth rank, who was not even qualified to talk to him.

But from the perspective of the Ming Dynasty, it was different. The fifth rank meant he was an important official in the court.

There is no harmony among the bureaucrats.

Although it is forbidden to report rumors now, if there is evidence, everyone would be eager to get rid of it.

Being at the fifth rank is already quite prestigious.

Zhang Jian knew clearly that as long as this news spread, someone would definitely use it to impeach him.

If it involves His Royal Highness the Crown Prince or if he flirts with the Crown Prince's Concubine, his attempt is over.

The Crown Prince naturally wouldn't care about it, and at this level, he wouldn't personally get involved.

But most of the people below want to serve the Crown Prince.

By then, even colleagues and friends would not dare to come to help.

The emperor's heart is hard to predict. Who knows whether the crown prince cares or not?

Just do it in the way that you care about, and you won’t go wrong.

"Now, go and guard the Zhengyang Gate immediately. When the princess from the Western Regions comes, immediately arrange for her to go to the Tianjie Temple."

"Remember, this matter must not be leaked. Wang Jinyi is from the border army, so he won't come to impeach me. He is helping the Queen of the Western Regions, so I think he has something to ask for."

"As long as the news doesn't spread, there won't be any problems."

"Remember, you must personally guard the Western Region Princesses' place and do not let anyone know their identities."

Zhang Jian said calmly.

He considered every aspect in detail.

Zhang Wenjie hesitated and said, "Besides those friends, no one else knows my identity."

"They definitely won't tell us. The Post Office didn't report it either, so they probably don't know about it either."

Bang!

Zhang Jian slapped Zhang Wenjie directly on the face.

Zhang Wenjie was stunned.

Zhang Jian angrily cursed: "You idiot, you want to mess with your father, the fathers of those so-called friends of yours, do you think they are someone else?"

"Maybe they will tell this as a joke when they go back, but once the identity of the princess of the Western Regions gets out, these people will have something to hold against me."

"The only solution now is to hide the news about the princess from the Western Regions first, and then quickly report to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"As long as they enter the palace before this, it will be difficult for this matter to spread."

"Even if there are some rumors, it's not a big deal."

Only then did Zhang Wenjie come to his senses.

Indeed, the ones who really have interests at stake are the families of one's good friends.

They enjoyed the meal most if their father fell down.

Zhang Jian said, "Tell me in detail, are those two princesses from the Western Regions really stunningly beautiful?"

Zhang Jian knew his son's temper. He looked down on vulgar women and usually didn't even go to brothels.

The reason they acted this way this time must be because the two princesses from the Western Regions were extremely beautiful.

Zhang Wenjie shrank his head and replied: "They were wearing veils, so I couldn't see their true faces."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jian raised his hand to hit him, but then pulled it back.

He could only helplessly say: "Wang Jinyi's army commander is personally escorting him, so I think it will definitely be good. At this point, there is no other choice."

"What are you still standing there for? Go pick them up."

Zhang Wenjie was so frightened that he trembled and stumbled out of the door, but he tripped over the threshold just as he entered the lobby.

He didn't care and just got up and continued running.

Zhang Jian was not idle either, and immediately called the servants in the mansion.

"Prepare the car and go to Tianjie Temple immediately."

He had to go there in person and take charge, so he might as well sleep in the yamen tonight to prevent any possible accidents.

If you are not careful, you will step into the abyss.