In Dashamao Hutong, in the study room at the back of Zhang’s mansion.

After hearing what Zhang Juzheng said, Qi Jiguang's expression darkened and his straight back became slightly hunched.

"This time it was Bu Gu's negligence. He only focused on the Kedao in Beijing and did not expect that the Fujian Provincial Governor would suddenly attack." Zhang Juzheng also sighed and comforted him in a deep voice:

"But don't worry. Bu Gu has already made it clear to the Censorate and the heads of the six departments that you are responsible for protecting the northern border and training elite troops. In the future, as long as it does not involve major issues of principle, they will make a break for you so as not to hurt your willingness to take on responsibilities."

"In addition, Bu Gu also asked Boyu to write a letter to Wang Yanzhou, asking him to contact a group of literary celebrities to write poems and essays to help you and the Qi Family Army boost your reputation!"

Boyu is the pen name of Wang Daokun, and Wang and Wang are both of the same age as Zhang Juzheng. Wang is also close to Qi Jiguang, so he will do his best to promote General Qi.

"How could I have deserved such kindness from you, sir? Even if I were to sacrifice my life, I would never be able to repay you!" Upon hearing this, Qi Jiguang stood up excitedly, knelt on the ground and kowtowed, choking with tears as he made his speech:

"It's just that Jin Ke, Zhu Jue, and Wang Rulong were recruited by me from the miners in Yiwu. Over the years, they have followed me in battles all over the country, always leading the charge in every battle, and have made countless military achievements. I know them well, so I dare to defend them!"

"Zhu Jue is brave and good at fighting, and he regards money as dirt. In the Battle of Huajie, he kicked all the gold and silver treasures thrown by the enemy into the river for fear that the soldiers would be distracted; Jin Ke made great contributions in every battle and received countless rewards, but he used all the rewards to provide pensions for the soldiers who died in the battle, and he never had money to repair his own house in his hometown; Wang Rulong is even more brave and valiant. There is no other fierce general like him in the country. When he leads the troops to fight, the soldiers are like tigers descending from the mountains!"

"These three people had originally lived in Fujian and Zhejiang. It was my blind optimism that I proposed to transfer the troops from the south to the north. I wanted to transfer my old troops to Jizhen for training demonstration, so I urged the three people to set off to the north... I didn't expect that it would harm them." When Qi Jiguang said this, he couldn't help but burst into tears. He sobbed and said:

"Mr. Zhang, you can't destroy three generals who have made great contributions to the court just because of this matter. This is not only unfair to the three of them, but also a great loss to the Ming Dynasty!"

"Hey, Yuan Jing, get up and talk." Zhang Juzheng stood up and helped the weeping Iron General up, and sighed:

"The censors are so powerful that even Hu Ruzhen and Gao Xianggong can't stand up to them. Bu Gu will naturally give them some ground. How about this? You tell the three of them to go home and rest for a few years. When the time is right, I will definitely let them return to their posts!"

"Thank you for your protection, sir. It was Yuan Jing who got too far." Qi Jiguang heard that Zhang Juzheng had given in and knew that he was powerless to save the situation, so he calmed down, wiped his tears and said:

"My lord, I will repay your kindness by redouble my military training. I will take my leave now and will not disturb you any more..."

"Oh, no hurry." Zhang Juzheng waved his hand and said, "Have dinner before leaving, and Bu Gu wants you to meet someone else."

As he said this, he said to his butler You Qi: "Please ask Mr. Zhao to come in."

~~

In the gatehouse in the front yard, Zhao Hao was quietly waiting for Zhang Juzheng to summon him.

Suddenly, several young men walked quickly into the yard.

"Ah, it's Brother Zhao!"

It turned out to be Zhang Juzheng's eldest son Zhang Jingxiu, as well as his younger brothers Sixiu and Maoxiu and his beautiful sister Xiaojing.

They had traveled together during the Lantern Festival, so they had developed a certain level of friendship.

"My father told me that Brother Zhao would be visiting today," Zhang Xiaojing bowed to Zhao Haofu generously, then smiled softly. "Mao Xiu was yelling that he wanted to greet you at the door early in the morning!"

Sixiu and Maoxiu looked at their sister when they heard this, but their good upbringing made them silent.

Zhao Hao also stood up and greeted the four people with a smile, then waved his hand, and Zhao Shizhen quickly handed over a few exquisite small boxes.

"You can't come empty-handed on your first visit, so I'll give you these scientific gadgets to play with." Zhao Hao gave everyone a box, even Jian Xiu and Yun Xiu who didn't show up.

"Thank you very much. I heard that your science exhibition is very interesting. I wonder when it will reopen?"

Zhang Jingxiu thanked him and accepted the gift, then asked excitedly, "I've always wanted to take my brothers... to have a look."

"We've been busy these past few days, and we probably won't be able to open until next month." Zhao Hao smiled and said, "But, we're going to experiment with something fun in a couple of days, if you're interested you can go take a look."

"Okay, okay." Sixiu and Maoxiu clapped their hands happily, but the latter said depressedly: "I'm afraid the homework is too tight and I don't have time to go out..."

"Yeah, I have to go back to class later."

Zhang Juzheng had extremely high expectations for his sons. He hired famous teachers to teach them strictly and gave them very little time to rest.

"Do we have to go to class on Qingming Festival?" Zhao Hao asked with a smile.

"We can take a rest that day!" The three Zhang brothers were immediately excited. "Where is it? We must go and see!"

"Yuyuantan. Oh, and call Master Xu, Master Chen and the others." Zhao Hao specifically mentioned, "No one can be left out."

"No one can be left behind!" the three brothers responded in unison.

At this time, the doorman came in and said, "The master wants to see Mr. Zhao."

The four brothers and sisters chatted and laughed with Zhao Hao and went to the study room in the back house.

Everyone who saw this was secretly surprised, thinking that this Young Master Zhao might be the son of some noble family. He wondered why the master invited such a junior to his house.

The four of them sent Zhao Hao to the door of the study before they stopped.

As soon as he came in, the three brothers couldn't wait to open the gift box and began to admire it on the stone table in the yard.

Zhao Hao thoughtfully included an instruction manual in each box.

After comparing the instructions, they realized that those exquisite little gadgets were a bamboo dragonfly that could change its direction of rotation by telekinesis; a handmade bird that would nod and drink water continuously; a four-leaf boomerang; a rotating magnetic gyroscope...all of them were scientific toys that were still popular around the world four hundred years later.

As long as Zhao Hao could describe the general principles, Zhang Jian and Zhao Shizhen could make it almost exactly the same for him, and each piece would be polished, painted and decorated, making it like a work of art.

Originally, Zhao Hao only planned to put it in the science exhibition hall as a teaching aid, but when he saw how beautiful it was, he decided to give it as a gift when he visited someone else. It was rare, economical, and could promote science. It was really beautiful.

Soon, the four siblings were deeply attracted by these wonderful toys that they had never played with before, and they had a lot of fun playing around the stone table...

Looking at the funny little bird with a long neck, which seemed to be pecking at the water in the cup non-stop, Zhang Xiaojing's beautiful little face showed a puzzled expression.

"Is this magical science?" She was so curious about the principle behind it.

"By the way, sister, what toy did Brother Zhao give you?" Mao Xiu reached out to take the box in Zhang Xiaojing's hand.

"Let's play yours first." Zhang Xiaojing said from behind, laughing, "It would be boring to finish them all at once."

ps. First update, please give me monthly votes and recommendation votes~~