Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 254: It is better to provoke the general than to send him away
What about the next one? How could I be chosen so easily?
While Yan Fang was still confused, Lu Sanlang had already started to calmly announce the next candidate. Like Yan Fang, he was born in an accountant family. His boss was framed and lost his property. He was kicked out because he could not please the new boss and was hated by some shopkeepers. When he tried to take the civil service examination, he was squeezed out by people with backgrounds. Of course, that was before Wang Jie became the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.
In addition to these resumes, Lu Sanlang also emphasized the person's outstanding ability and good character. There is no doubt that his second choice was once again approved by Zhang Shou. Then, he asked Qi Liang to introduce the remaining two people on the first list.
The two candidates Qi Liang mentioned were the so-called newcomers in his previous proposal of bringing the old with the new—in fact, they were not that new. Compared with his and Deng Xiaodai’s age, these two were in their early twenties, and were born as scholars. Mathematics was just their hobby. As for their talents, it was natural that they could be admitted to Jiuzhang Hall and persist in the fast teaching progress of Jiuzhang Hall.
Then, Lu Sanlang and Qi Liang took turns introducing the second, third, and fourth batches. Taking advantage of the time they had spent watching the show at Ge's house, he and Qi Liang came up with a list of sixteen people.
Zhang Shou had expected this result. Lu Sanlang was a very smart man, and although Qi Liang was born in the countryside and had less experience, he was also a serious, careful and cautious person, which complemented each other perfectly. Just by looking at the list they discussed, he knew that under Wang Jie's command, these people would definitely be able to make the best use of their talents.
He immediately nodded with a smile and said, "This list is well chosen. It seems that I don't need to say anything more. Speaking of which, Lu Sanlang, Xiao Qi and Xiao Deng are all there. As the head of Jiuzhang Hall, don't you want to go and help Wang Dayin?"
I don't want to serve that black-faced Wang Datou! Following such a difficult boss, I will definitely be drilled to death all day long, but it will often be thankless. Maybe I will have to rack my brains to think about how to deal with those local tyrants... I won't do it!
Lu Sanlang thought so in his heart, but he showed a very sincere smile on his face: "Teacher, as the head of the temple, of course I am willing to take everyone with me, but I am the son of the Shangshu after all, and I should not compete with others for this opportunity. For them, this is a turning point in life. Besides, you also need help, don't you? If Xiao Qi and I go, what will happen to Jiuzhang Hall?"
Pretentious! Hypocritical! Shameless! Zhang Chen cursed the pretentious Lu Sanlang in his heart. However, when he saw that many of the Jiuzhangtang students around and behind Lu Sanlang were moved, he could not help but be stunned.
Can you win people's hearts with just a few simple words? These guys are too gullible!
Compared with Zhang Chen, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu looked at each other, and the two brothers felt at the same time that even though they had paid much attention to Lu Sanlang in the past, this attention was far from enough! Apart from anything else, Zhang Chen and the two of them combined, their influence in Banshan Hall was definitely not as high as Lu Sanlang! This was certainly because the noble children in Banshan Hall were not easy to deceive, but were they as attentive to others as Lu Sanlang?
Zhang Shou certainly would not be easily moved by Lu Sanlang. He laughed when he heard it and said, "Your modesty in giving up the opportunity is very valuable, but you should know that this is not only an opportunity, but also an experience. Even if Wang Dayin goes to Xuanda this time, maybe not everyone in Jiuzhangtang can take turns to go there for practice and study, but I also plan to find some other opportunities for you to practice. So..."
Zhang Shou dragged out the words, then said with a smile: "Xiao Deng is directly under Wang Dayin, he does not belong to Jiuzhangtang. As the head of the four groups of people from Jiuzhangtang, you, Lu Sanlang, must lead the team at least once, otherwise people will laugh at you for only knowing how to talk about war on paper. Needless to say, you will lead the third group, it's settled."
I don't want to! Lu Sanlang wailed in his heart. Even if he didn't wade into the muddy water from the beginning, he really didn't want to leave the comfortable nest of the capital! He could make money, study mathematics, and enjoy the joy of being surprised by those who once looked down on him. Isn't that much better than following Wang Datou to charge into battle?
However, under Zhang Shou's glare, the little fat boy still bowed his head in grievance. But when Zhang Shou turned his head to look at Zhang Chen and others, Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu were fine, but Zhang Chen looked at him with a gloating look. He was so angry that his teeth itched, and he couldn't help thinking, how to trick Zhang Chen next!
Want to see me make fun of you? It's not that cheap!
Zhang Shou saw Zhang Chen instinctively sitting up straight under his gaze, and Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu did the same. He couldn't help but think of the first time the trio came to Cuiyun Room. Although it was only half a year ago, it seemed like a long time ago. He coughed lightly and then asked, "Zhang Wu, Zhang Lu, do you have any plans for going to Xingtai?"
Why did the young master ask this? Although it was indeed surprising that the emperor asked them to go to Xingtai, didn't he discuss with them how to roll out the promotion plan before? Lu Sanlang was also present at the time! Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu had this idea almost at the same time, but when they saw Lu Sanlang winking at them, they immediately woke up.
At that moment, Zhang Wu smiled and said, "It happened suddenly, and we were not prepared... Besides, the eldest prince went to Cangzhou, and we went to Xingtai. It sounded like a challenge to him, so we didn't feel confident. The emperor said that anyone can ask for help, but we don't know who is more capable, and we are not sure if they will listen to us."
Seeing that Zhang Wu pretended to know nothing, Zhang Shou smiled and looked at the other people in Banshan Hall and said, "Who among you is willing to help Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu?"
As soon as he said this, the nobles who had surrounded Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu after Lü Chan announced the appointment, hoping to be helped, immediately became agitated. After a moment, someone stepped forward and said, "Young sir, my mother is from Xingtai, I think I can help!"
Zhang Shou recognized that this was Hu Kai, a not very prominent student in Banshan Hall. As for his grandfather, he was quite famous. He was the deputy of Chen Shang, the Minister of Revenue, who was a student of Ge Yong. Zhang Shou immediately asked with interest, "Oh, so you want to use your fellow villagers to help Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. Tell me, what is your specific idea?"
When Hu Kai heard the specific idea, he was stunned. He only thought of the advantage that his mother was from Xingtai, so how could he talk about any idea?
At this moment, he couldn't help but feel that Zhang Shou's smiling eyes were a little sharp. After a while, he said stumblingly: "I think that when Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu arrive in Xingtai, they should first subdue the local officials, and then build good relations with the local gentry..."
Although he racked his brains, he could only come up with a top-down promotion plan. Seeing Zhang Shou finally motioned him to sit down without making a decision, he couldn't help but feel a little frustrated. With his failure as an example, there were fewer people who tried to volunteer. Even if someone volunteered, they were defeated by Zhang Shou's slow questions.
However, in the end, Zhang Shou still smiled and pointed to Hu Kai and another person who spoke reasonably, Zou Mingyu, the nephew of the Minister of Imperial Household, and told them to go and help Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu. But when they were ecstatic, he poured a bucket of cold water on them.
"The so-called plan you just proposed was probably thought up on the spur of the moment and has no practical application. Earlier at the Ge Mansion, Teacher Ge was very pleased that his disciples were able to contribute to the country at such a young age. He promised to recommend a few useful people and asked his disciples to take care of them, so that those of you who are going out to do things for the first time won't end up blindly doing it."
As soon as these words came out, Hu Kai and Zou Mingyu's last bit of dissatisfaction was immediately thrown to Java . If they offended their teacher, they might only have difficulty in Banshan Hall, but if the ancestor Ge Yong thought that their two disciples were useless, they would really have difficulty in the entire officialdom in the future! Therefore, the two of them agreed without saying a word, and then sat down with a serious look.
Zhang Shou had just painted a big rosy picture for the other students in Jiuzhang Hall. Now, facing the more students in Banshan Hall who were hoping to impress their family and friends, he naturally encouraged them and promised that there would be other opportunities in the future.
In the past, some people would inevitably think that he was just a hollow dumpling.
However, when they were brought to the former Prince Lu's villa in the middle of the night, a mansion that countless dignitaries secretly coveted but dared not to because of the emperor, and saw that this place without any servants was warm as spring with the heating, a fire burning on the stove, and water in the teapots and water tanks, it was as if the owner was still there, most of the students suddenly had a deeper respect for Zhang Shou.
Therefore, as the night gradually deepened and Zhang Shou finished speaking, people began to ask to leave one after another. This time, Zhang Shou took the initiative to ask people to take the students of Jiuzhang Hall with them. So one person took two or three, and in a moment, the Wuti Hall, which had been bustling just now, gradually became empty.
Lu Sanlang finally waited until most of the people had left. Seeing Zhang Chen still sitting there without saying anything, he smiled and said, "Zhang Chen, I didn't expect you to be so honest today. Why don't you say anything? You, the head monk of Banshan Hall, don't set an example!"
"If you don't speak, no one will think you're dumb!" Zhang Chen slapped the armrest and stood up angrily, but said to Zhang Shou with a cold face, "Young sir, I'm not as thoughtful as Lu San and Qi Liang, and I don't know much about the previous spinning machine incident, so I can't come up with any good ideas. You can discuss this matter with Zhang Wu, Zhang Lu and others, I'm leaving now!"
Seeing Zhang Chen bowed and turned to walk out, Zhang Shou calmly knocked on the armrest and then shouted, "If you leave like this, do you believe that Lu Sanlang will spread the word tomorrow that you, the head of Banshan Hall, are not as good as him, the head of Jiuzhang Hall?"
Zhang Chen stopped immediately, but still said sternly without turning his head: "If he wants to talk nonsense, let him do it!"
Lu Sanlang was about to continue to complain, but Zhang Shou glanced at him sideways, so he closed his mouth reluctantly. In the early years, it was all because Zhang Chen relied on his status as the only son of Duke Qin to bully him. Now he finally managed to turn the situation around with his wisdom, why should he let Zhang Chen do it?
After stopping Lu Sanlang from escalating the situation, Zhang Shou said calmly, "Before, I asked Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu to open a weaving and dyeing workshop and tinker with the spinning machine business, and asked Lu Sanlang to take charge of the matter. Not only you, but Zhu Er also did not get involved."
Seeing that Zhang Shou finally noticed him, Zhu Er said sadly, "Finally you remembered me... After all, we will be a family in the future, can you not be so partial to one over the other?"
"This is not about favoritism. I was just thinking of killing a fool, but I didn't expect to attract the daring Second Prince, and then the greedy First Prince. A new spinning machine has trapped two princes who were ranked first, so now I think it was right not to let you, Zhang Chen, and Zhu Er get involved in this mess."
Zhang Chen turned around with a dark complexion: "Why, do you think I'm timid?"
"No, I just thought you and Zhu Er were not short of money at first." Zhang Shou said with a smile. Seeing Zhu Er's mouth opened wide, he almost cried about how short of money he was, while Zhang Chen was full of disbelief. So he said calmly, "Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu will only have the family property that is divided equally among their sons in the future. They may have to live on their wives' dowries, so they will naturally be short of money."
"As for Lu Sanlang, his father doesn't like him, and his mother can't give him all the family property. Moreover, he is engaged and waiting to get married, so of course he needs money. However, he is the richest man among you, and he is also known as a prodigal who turned into a genius. I need him to contribute money and also his efforts, so of course I have to involve him."
Hearing Zhang Shou's blunt words, Zhang Chen's expression softened a little, but he still said stiffly: "So what you mean is that if I can't contribute money and effort, I'm useless?"
"At least before the textile machine blueprint is presented to the emperor, you are of no use."
Seeing Zhang Chen's face suddenly turn pale, Zhang Shou laughed and said, "Can you open a weaving and dyeing workshop under the pretext of pleasing the princess and the county lady's wife? Or can you put on a smile and hire a group of spinners to work at a high price? Or can you brazenly deceive the eldest prince by saying that he made the new spinning machine like Lu Sanlang did, and entice people to buy it at a high price?"
"Zhang Chen, you are a proud but righteous person in your heart. You can't do what they can do. So, I don't know whether the emperor recommended Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu to go to Xingtai to promote textile machinery. But in my opinion, this matter is more suitable for you to do. Because only those who dare to expose the cover of Linhai Camp can deal with those powerful families!"
Zhang Chen's gloomy face gradually brightened up, but he still couldn't help but say, "But now the emperor has already appointed Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu... Even if I, Zhang Chen, am a loser, I won't compete with them for the job!"
Seeing that Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu were not angry because of his words that belittled them, Zhang Shou nodded to them and then said with a smile: "There is a saying that goes, openly repair the plank road, secretly cross the Chencang Pass. Don't you think that they are suitable for repairing the plank road and you are suitable for crossing the Chencang Pass? Or do you really want to make every effort to master the eight-part essay and pass the imperial examination in the future?"
