Chapter 796: Rixing Returns to Beijing
The morning star hangs high in the sky.
In the gray night, a rock rose up from the ground slowly and then fell down silently nearby.
Sun Shaozong came out of the secret passage, checked to see that there was no one around, then put the stone back in its place and walked leisurely into the study.
There is still some time before dawn, but it is definitely too late to take a nap.
So after a simple wash, Sun Shaozong sat down in front of the desk - although he had been "polishing" all night, he didn't write any serious words.
I might as well take advantage of this short period of time to draft an introduction, so that when I arrive at the Dali Temple, I can continue writing along this line of thought.
Since it was just a brief outline and did not require flowery writing, Sun Shaozong naturally found it much easier to write. He had originally intended to just write an introduction, but he found that he wrote more and more smoothly, and by the time he finally finished, there were already more than 2,000 words on the paper.
By this time it was already daybreak.
Sun Shaozong shook his sore wrist, took out his pocket watch and glanced at it, and found that it was already past the hour of Mao, and was even approaching the hour of Chenzhong [eight o'clock in the morning].
Yes~
I'm late again today.
But it doesn't matter. At Sun Shaozong's level, as long as he is not late or leave early every day, no one will make a fuss about it.
Since it was already too late, Sun Shaozong simply reviewed the outline twice more, marked out the omissions one by one, and then made corrections next to it.
However, this made the article, which was not very neat to begin with, suddenly look messy.
It seems that I have to copy it again before I can give it to Yu Qian for review.
However, if you continue to procrastinate, it will not be lateness but absenteeism.
That's all~
After breakfast, go to the yamen and copy it.
Maybe along the way, you can come up with a few areas that need improvement.
After blowing the newly added ink dry and carefully rolling it into a ball in his hand, Sun Shaozong left the study and rushed to the front yard to eat.
Who knew that when they arrived at the front hall, before they had time to tell their attendants to set out the eight-course and two-soup meal, Zhao Zhongji rushed in like a flash, shouting, "Second Master, look who's back!"
Sun Shaozong looked in the direction of the voice and saw two people following closely behind him. They were Liu Quan, the former doorman of the Sun Mansion, and Cheng Rixing, the first legal advisor.
He hurriedly stood up from his chair and walked quickly to greet him - Liu Quan was fine, but Cheng Rixing was not a slave. He had been in the south of the Yangtze River for more than two years and had made great contributions, so he deserved Sun Shaozong's serious attention.
"Meet Dong Weng."
When Cheng Rixing saw Sun Shaozong coming over, he was about to bow to greet him, but Sun Shaozong lifted him up and said with a laugh, "Why should we be so polite? Come on, come on, sit inside - have you had breakfast yet? If not, eat with me."
As he said that, he turned to Liu Quan and said, "Come in too."
"I dare not overstep my bounds."
Liu Quan laughed and pointed at Zhao Zhongji who was standing beside him: "If you want to love me, let me go to Butler Zhao's place to have a few drinks. I can moisten my throat first, and then I can report to you in detail about the work in the south."
Since he said so, Sun Shaozong naturally would not force it. He invited Cheng Rixing into the living room alone and sat down as host and guest.
Servants were preparing tea and pouring water. Sun Shaozong half-turned his body, looked at Cheng Rixing on his left and said with a smile: "Didn't you say that you would not be able to return to Beijing until the beginning of next month when we met in Nanjing last time? How come you are here now?"
"First, the students were eager to go home, and second, the housekeeper Lai Wang from Rongguo Mansion had already prepared a passenger ship, so Liu Quan and I followed him back."
"In fact, we arrived at the East Gate Pier at midnight yesterday, but the city gate was closed at that time, so we were not able to enter the city until the morning."
Cheng Rixing's appearance is not much different from two years ago, except that he looks a little tired.
In the past two years, he has been the main person supporting the timber business in the south. He has to travel between Zhoushan and Jinling from time to time. It is no exaggeration to say that he is busy all the time.
But seeing how he was talking, it seemed that he was only physically tired; his spirits were very high.
After a few more pleasantries, Cheng Rixing pulled out a booklet from his sleeve and handed it to Sun Shaozong with both hands: "This is a summary of all the accounts. Please take a look. Last time, I was in a hurry and didn't sort it out clearly. This time, I finally have it all done from beginning to end."
These four words "complete beginning and complete end" obviously have a hidden meaning.
But he had worked so hard for more than two years, just hoping that Sun Shaozong would recommend his family to be officials.
If we don't remind Sun Shaozong indirectly to fulfill his promise at this time, it would seem that we have something to hide.
Sun Shaozong smiled and gently placed the account summary on the coffee table, but did not open it to check. Instead, he smiled and said, "Don't look at these in a hurry. I have some other ideas about Mr. Cheng's future."
When Cheng Rixing heard this, his heart skipped a beat, and he thought to himself, could it be that Dong Weng wanted to go back on his word and gain some benefits?
But looking at Sun Shaozong's expression, it doesn't seem to be the case.
So he asked cautiously, "I wonder how Dong Weng arranged it?"
Sun Shaozong waved his hand: "It can't be called an arrangement, I just have an intention. How to choose depends on your own opinion."
At this point, he couldn't help but sigh and said, " When I was in the Criminal Law Department, although there were a few good-for-nothings, I was still able to do my job overall. But here in the Dali Temple..."
He stopped talking halfway and shook his head helplessly.
Cheng Rixing was a smart man, and he had been in Jiangnan for more than two years. He immediately understood what Sun Shaozong meant, and said happily: "Dong Weng... No, Lord Shaoqing, do you want me to work in the Dali Temple?!"
"That's right."
Sun Shaozong nodded, raised his hand to stop Cheng Rixing from agreeing, and reminded him, "This has both advantages and disadvantages. Although is not worthy of its reputation, it is still the chief judge of the country's laws and regulations. If I want to arrange for you to enter the Dali Temple, you will inevitably be lacking in rank."
Is there something missing in terms of quality?
Cheng Rixing was slightly stunned, frowned and thought for a moment, then asked cautiously: "I wonder what rank I can get after joining the Dali Temple?"
"Eighth rank, at most from seventh rank, but the chances are not very high."
Cheng Rixing frowned even more tightly. If he was sure that it was from the seventh rank, he might not even hesitate.
But between an eighth-rank clerk and a seventh-rank county magistrate, one must weigh the pros and cons carefully.
The advantage of the former is that you can follow your boss closely, so there is no need to say much about the future and treatment.
The latter has real advantages. The county magistrate is also known as Baili Hou. As long as he does not attach himself to the Guozhou government, he is a local emperor.
These two options each have their advantages and disadvantages. It is no wonder that Cheng Rixing finds it difficult to make up his mind for a while.
Seeing that he couldn't make up his mind, Sun Shaozong laughed and said, "Don't worry, don't worry, you can make up your mind after careful consideration. Someone, bring the wine and food, I want to have a few drinks with Mr. Cheng!"
