Chen Qingxuan was only 24 years old. Just a year ago, he was just a poor scholar in Ningguta, but now he was a first-rank official. He became a key official of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Zhong Mingwei's trust and reliance on him were self-evident. Chen Qingxuan naturally knew how Zhong Mingwei had overcome all objections and let him sit in the position of Minister of Rites, so he was really grateful to Zhong Mingwei from the bottom of his heart.
"You don't need to thank me. If you were just a fool, I would not promote you," Zhong Mingwei said with a smile, patting Chen Qingxuan's arm. Pointing to the chair behind him, "Sit down and talk to me."
"Yes." Chen Qingxuan sat down. He watched Zhong Mingwei close the memorial in his hand and put it aside, then took out another one and continued to review it. He pursed his lips. In the end, he couldn't help it. He asked in a low voice. "Your Majesty, if... if I was not familiar with Your Majesty before. And I didn't worship under Mr. Ding, then Your Majesty would still... would you still use me so much?"
This is what Chen Qingxuan had always wanted to ask Zhong Mingwei. As a minister, he was grateful to Zhong Mingwei for promoting him, but as a scholar, he had his own persistence and pride, so he was afraid that Zhong Mingwei promoted him because of affection rather than recognition, so he hesitated for most of the day and finally asked.
Zhong Mingwei heard him say this, looked up and glanced at Chen Qingxuan, then lowered his head to continue reviewing the memorials. Just when Chen Qingxuan was feeling uneasy, he heard Zhong Mingwei slowly say, "Qingxuan, what do you think of Fang Kaiwen?"
"Fang Kaiwen?" Chen Qingxuan was startled, not knowing why Zhong Mingwei mentioned Fang Kaiwen out of nowhere. He immediately said, "Fang Kaiwen is from a famous family, and he is upright and loyal. He is the descendant of loyalty."
"Is that all?" Zhong Mingwei asked, throwing the manuscript aside and putting down the brush in his hand. He then leaned back in his chair and looked at Chen Qingxuan, "So in your eyes, Fang Kaiwen is a perfect man?"
"Of course not," Chen Qingxuan said in surprise. He didn't know why Zhong Mingwei asked these questions, but he still said, "Fang Kaiwen was deeply influenced by his father. He has excellent character, but he is a little pedantic and conservative in dealing with people. Although he has talent, he is trapped by his temperament, so he lacks ability."
"So I promoted him to be the fourth-rank Imperial College Priest," Zhong Mingwei said slowly, while reaching out to take the teacup and holding it in his hand, he said in a deep voice, "Although he is the descendant of loyalty, he lacks ability. I will not use him just to win people's hearts, but choose a position that suits his ability and temperament for him to work steadily." At this point, Zhong Mingwei cast his eyes on Chen Qingxuan, "Qingxuan, in the same way, I also think that you are worthy of the position of Minister of Rites, so I will use you. I have never been stingy with the people around me, but I am not so generous as to arrange the position of a first-rank official at will."
"Yes, I understand," Chen Qingxuan bowed hurriedly and said, "I am overthinking, please forgive me, Your Majesty."
"You worry too much, which means you are arrogant. You are afraid that I will abuse my power for personal gain. Qingxuan, I just like your arrogance," Zhong Mingwei patted Chen Qingxuan's shoulder with a smile, and asked him to sit down, and said, "But Qingxuan, I still have to abuse my power for personal gain."
"What?" Chen Qingxuan was stunned and didn't understand what Zhong Mingwei said.
"Tomorrow morning, you can go back to Ningguta with Wen Min," Zhong Mingwei said. Seeing Chen Qingxuan opening his mouth to speak, Zhong Mingwei shook his head to signal him to be silent, and then continued in a deep voice, "This year is the only time. I will not allow you to go back to Ningguta in the future. Grandma Chen has always hoped that you can go back to Ningguta. This year is the first year that Grandma Chen has left. Qingxuan, go back." At this point, Zhong Mingwei patted Chen Qingxuan on the shoulder and said, "Qingxuan, pay homage to Grandma Chen on behalf of me and the girl."
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