Outside, Chief Secretary Xie and Prefect Qi walked towards the plum tree in the corner of the wall. Prefect Qi told him in detail about the events that had happened in Changzhou recently: "The news of His Highness's return from Xinliang has already spread. It is estimated that in a few days, the prefects of other prefectures will come to pay their respects."
Since the governor and the prefect of Qingzhou are both the emperor's men, there's no reason for them not to pay their respects to the prince when they arrive in the northern desert.
The two prefects of Dingzhou and Qizhou should also come to Changzhou to meet the young prince.
Last year, due to the uncertain situation, the young prince rarely appeared in public, and naturally did not allow the prefects of other prefectures to come and pay their respects during the New Year.
But this year is different, and Your Highness should gradually appear in public.
Thinking of these things, Prefect Qi sighed with emotion: "I still remember last year, when Your Highness first came here, Mobei was still dominated by Li Ji Trading Company. Whether it was me, the prefect, or Governor Zhu, we had to avoid their sharp edge."
People say that businessmen have low social status, but they have money. Money can make the devil turn the millstone, let alone people.
Local officials often want to find a prince to rely on, but getting a prince's protection and promotion is not so simple; the most important thing is to show filial piety.
Unlike the New Year's gifts that Prefect Qi and others gave to Gu Yuzhi, these officials' tributes were all in real gold and silver. This money was used not only to plunder the people, but also to collude with local merchants.
With the backing of the King of Chu and the fact that money paves the way for everything, Li Ji Trading Company's status in the northern desert was something that even the prefects couldn't match.
Prefect Qi was in high spirits when he thought about how all the frustrations he had felt over the years had been resolved in the year or so that the young prince had come to visit. He invited Chief Secretary Xie to go out for drinks.
Just as they had guessed, three days later, Governor He Jiarui and several other prefects arrived in Changzhou and stayed at the Wen Family Inn, where they sent their visiting cards to Gu Yuzhi.
Gu Yuzhi carefully examined the visiting card, his eyebrows furrowing as he puffed out his cheeks and said, "Thank you, Chief Secretary. The handwriting of these prefects is not as good as yours."
After practicing calligraphy these past few days, he has finally regained some of his former skill. His writing no longer looks like a dog's scratch, but it's not much better than before.
He had originally planned to reply to his elder brother and the others within the next two days, but upon seeing the words on the visiting card, his idea quickly vanished.
If he writes a letter now, his elder brother will definitely laugh at him!
Gu Yuzhi hummed twice, placed the visiting card on the small square table beside him, and rested his chin on his hand, saying, "I wonder when Guard Qi will return! It would be great if he could bring Prefect Ke with him tomorrow, so I could meet them all in one day!"
He's very busy, especially now that he wants to improve his handwriting, he's decided to put more effort into practicing calligraphy and doesn't want to waste time waiting for people to come and pay their respects.
Xie Changshi was overjoyed, and a smile appeared on his face. He involuntarily straightened his back.
If he had known that the prefect's calligraphy would earn him praise from the young prince, he should have urged them to come sooner.
He cleared his throat and said in a deep voice, "Guard Qi has been gone for three days. At his speed, he should have only recently arrived in Quanzhou. If Quanzhou is not under lockdown, it will take them at least five days to return. If Quanzhou is under lockdown..."
Gu Yuzhi said dejectedly, "Then we might have to wait another ten days or half a month."
He placed his hands on the table, rested his chin on his arms, puffed out his cheeks, and said in a deep voice, "But the possibility of the entire state not being locked down is too small."
During this period, he specifically sent people to guard the official road, and indeed no merchants went to Quanzhou.
His face scrunched up like a steamed bun: "What on earth is Quanzhou doing?!"
Xie Changshi didn't know what Quanzhou was doing, but when he thought about how the city hadn't been open for months and what the people and the northern army were eating, his heart sank.
Gu Yuzhi tapped his toes on the ground intermittently, and soon got bored: "I'm going back to practice my calligraphy. Xie Changshi, please reply to my post. Let's agree to meet in the private room at the Wen Family Inn tomorrow."
Seeing that Chief Secretary Xie looked somewhat disapproving, he quickly counted on his fingers: "I've been back in Changzhou for several days, and I haven't even left the prefecture yet! Now that everyone from Li's Trading Company is gone, I'm perfectly safe in Changzhou Prefecture."
"Besides, we're going to my own inn, not somewhere else. Don't worry, Chief Secretary Xie!"
He stood on tiptoe and patted Xie Changshi's upper arm, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he seemed to have grown taller again.
It seems he couldn't get a shot of this place before.
Because of this small matter, Gu Yuzhi's low spirits quickly lifted again, and he said cheerfully, "Tomorrow, let Xu Mama go to the inn first, so that Xu Mama can see her family and tell them what I like to eat, and let them prepare it."
He shook his head and chuckled, praising himself: "This is called killing two birds with one stone."
Chief Secretary Xie smiled indulgently, "Your Highness is right."
Gu Yuzhi happily returned to his room to practice calligraphy. After Mingli ground the ink, he stepped aside and said, "Your Highness, don't you usually practice calligraphy in the evenings?"
He nodded his little head: "That's right. But starting today, I will increase my calligraphy practice time by 25 minutes every day."
He set a goal for himself in ten days.
We can't delay any longer, or Mother will worry.
Upon hearing this, Mingli said anxiously, "Your Highness, but Imperial Physician Qin said that you should not overuse your eyes every day."
When Gu Yuzhi's eyesight was mentioned, Mingli lowered his head, feeling an indescribable regret in his heart.
As His Highness's study companion, he was supposed to accompany His Highness to Xinliang, but unfortunately, he fell ill that time with severe diarrhea and couldn't get out of bed for several days, let alone travel far.
Knowing that the young prince was ambushed, he originally wanted to go too, but Liu Dianyi and the others hadn't even thought of him...
Mingli felt a little wronged, but he dared not say anything. He could only strictly follow the instructions of Imperial Physician Qin and resolutely prevent His Highness from using his eyes too much.
Gu Yuzhi waved his hand and said, "Just don't tell Judge Qin! Besides, I know my limits. I'll just practice for a couple more quarters of an hour; it's not a long time."
Teacher Shu said that whether he is practicing calligraphy or studying, he takes a break every half hour, looks into the distance, and preferably looks at greenery, as this is good for his eyes.
Although he didn't understand why, Teacher Shu was always right!
As long as he doesn't overuse his eyes, his eyes won't get damaged.
Thinking of this, Gu Yuzhi turned to look at Mingli, deliberately wrinkled his nose, and threatened fiercely, "You are not allowed to complain to Judge Qin, otherwise, if you get sick and take black medicine again next time, I will not give you the candied fruit made by Granny Xu!"
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