In fact, the reason why the two elders could go out together so shamelessly was mostly thanks to their colleagues in the county government.
The county government office is only the size of a palm. The story that Mr. Zhao told last year about his widowed cousin from Jinfeng Garden, which lives on the street, has long become a topic of conversation among people in the government office after dinner.
Many people then understood why the vigorous master suddenly became slack, lacking energy in meetings, weak legs and feet when walking up the embankment, and snoring loudly in the sedan chair. This change happened after his charming cousin from Beijing came to Kunming.
At that time, some people thought that the master was good in everything except that he did not pay enough attention to the impact. Although a widower and a widow were willing, it was still immoral. How could he educate the people?
For example, the old scholar-like County Magistrate He once complained bitterly after getting drunk: "The master didn't remarry, but got involved with a widow. Is this widow worth touching? Is he going to die, huh?"
But later he paid a double heavy price for his words. Once, Mr. Zhao heard it, and his wife almost became a widow. Another time, his wife heard it, and he almost became a widower again...
It was also thanks to the hype of County Magistrate He and others that when the eldest princess arrived as scheduled this year, the subordinates who were tortured to death by Master Zhao's hygiene campaign felt like they had seen a savior.
As the saying goes, it is better to die than to die. Everyone sincerely hopes that the master can do more double sports with his cousin, and not always drag them to do sanitation sports. Although everyone has understood the master's painstaking efforts, the toilet is still smelly...
Moreover, the timing is particularly suitable this year. The old man, the eldest master's brother, and even Mr. Zhao are all not in Kunshan!
So everyone discussed it and urged the master to hold a banquet to celebrate, and asked the ladies to visit Jinfeng Garden and invite Mrs. Xiao to watch opera and have a tea party together. They were just short of having the two of them get married directly...
Oh, by the way, in order not to arouse suspicion, the princess forged a complete identity for herself. Speaking of which, this habit of using a second identity is really unlike the daughter of Emperor Jiajing, but rather like the offspring of Emperor Zhengde.
She gave her surname Xiao to this "cousin of Zhao Lang". As for why she was named Xiao, it was not because she liked Xiao Zhan, but because "Xiao" sat on "Zhao's" lap. The eldest princess liked this posture the most...
~~
Seeing that her affair with Zhao Lang had become an open secret, the princess happily threw the whole thing to the winds, no longer trying to hide it, and spent the entire day obsessed with Mr. Zhao. If it weren't for Concubine Liu threatening to commit suicide, she would have moved directly into the county government office...
Poor Mr. Zhao, he finally put on some weight in the autumn, but in the end his clothes became looser and looser, but he never regretted it, and he became haggard because of her...
So as soon as he saw Zhao Hao, he hugged his son and burst into tears, his crying was so tear-jerking.
"Woo woo, you still remember to come back, you want daddy to die...oh no, you want daddy to die!"
"Let him go first, there are so many people watching us." Zhao Hao felt embarrassed when he saw Wu Cheng'en and people from the county.
"Ignore them, let daddy hold me for a while..." Zhao Shouzheng refused to let go, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw. "You are so cruel, you left your father at home for a year. Do you know how hard it is for me? Woohoo, I can't stand it anymore..."
"Hmm?" A light snort suddenly sounded behind him. Master Zhao was startled and quickly said, "Luckily your godmother is here. It's not so boring now..."
"Hehe..." Ning An's eyes softened.
Although Master Zhao said that he didn't want everyone to welcome him, how could the people in Kunshan County take it seriously? There were also some old people from nearby Suzhou City and Taicang who "happened" to come to Kunshan on business, and as a result, dozens of people accompanied Master Zhao to welcome Zhao Hao.
Fortunately, they were all sensible and knew that Zhao Hao was really tired, so they never mentioned official business. After a welcoming banquet at the county government office, they all said goodbye and went back. If there was anything, they could talk about it in Suzhou in a few days. They couldn't afford to tire Mr. Zhao out.
~~
Zhao Hao finally got a chance to catch his breath. He asked Secretary Ma to close the door and refuse visitors. He ate and slept in the county government office and lived like a pig for a few days.
After lunch that day, seeing that the sun was shining brightly outside, he asked Xiwa to move the soft chair to the patio so that he could lazily bask in the sun.
"How is it, son, have you rested?" Master Zhao heard the noise, put aside the card game he was about to lose, and walked out of the signing room. He asked Xiwa to move a chair and sit down next to Zhao Hao.
"It's okay. Actually I'm not tired. I just want to be lazy and have fun for a few days." Zhao Hao had his hair simply tied behind his head and wore a loose robe. With his thin face, he really had a bit of the elegant style of the Wei and Jin dynasties.
"This kid only knows how to say comforting things." Zhao Shouzheng sighed, "You've been drifting on the sea for several months. It would be strange if you weren't tired. Look how thin you are..."
As he spoke, he reached out to touch his son's face. Zhao Hao quickly dodged and said, "Isn't it up to you? Dad didn't go anywhere, but he lost a lot of weight."
"I just... missed you so much that I lost my appetite." Zhao Shouzheng quickly explained, "It's not that I'm overworked."
"..." Zhao Hao twitched his lips and quickly changed the subject, "By the way, has Grandpa arrived in Guangdong?"
"It should be the date, but I haven't received the letter yet." Zhao Shouzheng mentioned this, and said helplessly: "He is already so old, and he still travels so far. It really makes me worry to death."
"Don't worry, father. Grandpa is traveling with Lin Zhongcheng, so the journey will be easy." Zhao Hao comforted him.
"That's true. Alas, Lin Zhongcheng has really been reborn from the ashes. I hope he can be safe and sound in Guangdong." Zhao Shouzheng sighed lightly.
Lin Run completed his six-month rehabilitation in July. Originally, the court... or Li Chunfang meant to let him serve as a minister in one of the six ministries in Nanjing, so that he could continue to rest and enjoy his old age.
However, the imperial decree appointing him as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel in Nanjing had already come down, and Gao Gong was suddenly reinstated.
Gao Huzi has made a strong comeback this time, and it is the time to use people. How can he let his former capable subordinates idle away? That would also chill the hearts of those who worked hard for him.
Gao Gong immediately used his power as the Minister of Personnel to recommend him for the post of Governor of Guangdong.
This is definitely not an easy job. In recent years, the coastal areas of Fujian and Guangdong have been in chaos, and they often attack the shore, slaughtering civilians and looting counties. There are also She people in the territory who often cause chaos, causing several governors and generals to be disgraced and dismissed from office.
In addition, Lin Run had always had an excellent reputation as an official, so he was appointed as the Governor of Guangdong without any obstacles.
This is the biggest difference between following Gao Gong and following Yan Song or Xu Jie. Following Yan, one gets a high-ranking position, and most of them are lucrative positions; following Xu, one also gets a high-ranking position, but most of them are important positions.
Although following Gao Gong, one can become a high-ranking official, but the positions he gets are the most important and important ones. You can achieve great things and go down in history, but you must also be prepared to lose a layer of skin. For example, Lin Run has already lost a layer of skin, and the next one will have to lose a second layer.
What? Why don't you tell me what you can get from hanging out with Li Chunfang? You can only get loneliness...
~~
Before Lin Run arrived in Nanjing, he decided to go to Beijing to meet the emperor.
But since Gao Gong's comeback, Emperor Longqing has completely given up the responsibility. Before, he would occasionally ask about state affairs, but now with Master Gao, he finally doesn't have to reluctantly take care of the increasingly messy mess and can concentrate on doing what he loves.
It really is like "The dream of Zhuang Zhou is broken, and two wings drive the east wind. Three hundred famous gardens, one is empty after picking. Who said that the romantic species scares away the bees seeking fragrance." Ah...
Therefore, Longqing only took time out of his busy schedule to meet Lin Run, asked about his health recovery, and then sent him to the cabinet to find Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng.
Gao Zhanger gave Lin Run instructions in person, telling him that the court would focus on solving the northern border problems, so there must not be any more major chaos in the southeast to avoid affecting the overall situation. Therefore, he had to work closely with Yin Zhengmao, the new governor of Guangxi, to shoulder the heavy responsibility of suppressing the two Guangxi regions.
The implication is that if you encounter problems, don't count on the court, you can only solve them yourself, and you have to help the poor Guangxi to suppress bandits...
No wonder there are so few people who hang out with Gao Gong. Only someone like Lin Run, who has died once, could gladly accept this crappy job.
Gao Gong then invited Lin Run to his home for a meal, and first of all, he made big promises, telling him that as long as he pacified the north, he would be free to solve the problems in Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian and Guangdong. Then it would be time for him to make achievements...
The second, and most important purpose, is to ask him about his opinions on Zhao Hao and Jiangnan Group.
If this had happened before the fire, Lin Run would have told Gao Gong that Zhao Hao and the Jiangnan Group were extremely dangerous. In just a few short years, their control over the entire Jiangnan region had already reached a very disturbing level. If they continued to let this go, they would surely become out of control.
In fact, now, Jiangnan Group's tail is already very big...
Of course, it is true that the Jiangnan Group has been doing good things, but there is a saying that goes, "Zhou Gong feared rumors, and Wang Mang was humble before he usurped the throne." Who dares to say what they will be like in the future? Although it is unlikely that they will have the intention to usurp the throne, through various means, they can make Jiangnan a de facto independent kingdom, which will seriously shake the foundation of the Ming Dynasty.
But after that "Doomsday Revelation", Lin Run's thoughts completely changed. He now thought that since the Ming Dynasty was about to be finished, it would be better to let Zhao Hao and Jiangnan Group do whatever they wanted to see if they could find a glimmer of hope and change the tragic ending of China's sinking.
So Lin Run told Gao Gong that there was no essential difference between the Jiangnan Group and the original nine major families. They were both just a combination of the powerful families in Jiangnan.
"But Zhao Hao does have some idealism. In my opinion, the science he created is actually in the vein of Mr. Hengqu's Qixue, and has quite a few similarities with Prime Minister En's practical studies..." Lin Run spoke for Zhao Hao carefully.