Volume 5: Fellow Traveler Chapter 823 Northwest Development Fund
"Master, Miss Zhu is here!"
When hearing the news, Duke of Chu Zhang Rui, who had been staying indoors for the past few days, pretending to cultivate his character but actually trying to avoid the limelight, felt overwhelmed and blamed the emperor in his heart. If the emperor had not instructed her to impeach all the lecturers in the East Palace, would he have offended people as soon as he returned to the capital?
If it weren't for the fact that the late Emperor Ruizong had shown him kindness and trust, and if it weren't for the fact that the Emperor had relied heavily on him at the beginning of his reign, and had trusted him to the end despite all objections during this northern expedition, he would not have done anything that would be considered as taking advantage of his seniority!
Therefore, after taking a deep breath, the Duke of Chu, who was as famous as Duke Zhu Jing of Zhao among the nobles, but actually much older, and could actually be Zhu Ying's grandfather, immediately ordered the confidant who came to report the news like a swift foot, "Tell them to do their best to delay, I will go out the back door!"
A dignified duke actually wanted to sneak out through the back door, but the trusted steward laughed secretly and even nodded to urge him. If it was another family's daughter, the master would certainly not be afraid, but the young lady outside had pulled the emperor's beard when she was a child, crawled all over the empress dowager, and was more favored than the princess in the palace when she grew up, but the most important thing was... the master was in the wrong!
Mr. Zhang didn't do anything to offend our family, but the master insisted on writing a letter to scold him. It's not enough for the eldest lady to come to our house to argue once, so it's normal for her to come again!
After instructing the servants to delay time, Duke of Chu Zhang Rui was not vague at all, and he was still strong despite his old age. He was still very skilled, and he didn't even bring a single follower with him. He went straight to the back door after leaving the study - in fact, it was not the back door that the servants went in and out, but a side door in the house that was usually locked from the inside and no one went through.
However, when he opened the big iron lock and just reached out to open the door, he suddenly noticed something and hesitated. But in the end, he still opened the two doors with a stern face, and then he saw a familiar little fat man standing a few steps away from the door with a smile on his face.
Although he was not very familiar with the junior Lu Sanlang, among the young officials and nobles in the capital, there was only one person who was as plump and well-proportioned as the little fat boy, and who was not afraid to deal with people. Therefore, Zhang Rui could not help but shout angrily: "Little Fatty Lu, you are already a married man, but you still listen to Yingying like you did in the past?"
"Who told me that she is my junior master's wife?" Fatty Lu did not feel embarrassed at all and asked back with a smile. Seeing Zhang Rui's face suddenly turned long, he coughed and said, "Of course, you are so powerful, Duke Chu, and I know I can't stop you, so my junior master's wife gave me a helper."
After hearing the last sentence, Zhang Rui looked up not far away as if he had realized something, and saw a young man who had hardly revealed any aura quietly coming out from the shadow under the wall. At first glance, he looked inconspicuous and could be found in a crowd. However, as he walked towards them leisurely, he looked like a sword being unsheathed, gradually revealing his edge.
On normal days, Zhang Rui, who is old but still likes to fight with others, might be excited to see the prey and try his hand at fighting with the other person, but seeing this scene at a time like today, how could he not know that the other person was waiting for the prey? This kid must be the famous Ah Liu beside Zhang Shou, who was even called by the emperor to teach the soldiers of the Ruiqi Battalion!
When he just sensed the presence of Fatty Lu outside, he could of course lock the door and turn around and leave, but people were waiting here in advance, which meant they knew what he was thinking. God knows if he would bump into Zhu Ying after just a few steps when he turned around?
He and the girl's father had a grudge and never had any contact with each other, so Zhao Guogong Zhu Jing had never come to this house. However, ever since this girl once slipped into his wife's carriage in front of the palace gate when she was a child, and then called her "Auntie" a few times, his middle-aged wife was very happy. Seeing that she was beautifully made up and dressed in gorgeous clothes, she thought she was the daughter of a family friend and brought her home...
Zhu Ying often came and went, and was probably more familiar with his family than he was! That girl really would tear off the roof tiles if she wasn't punished for a day, all because she was spoiled by Zhu Jing... and the emperor!
Therefore, Zhang Rui thought for a while and simply stood there, folding his hands and said unhappily: "Yingying, are you planning to play a trick on me with a wolf in front and a tiger behind?"
Ah Liu only followed out because of Zhang Shou's order, and because of Zhu Ying's order, he came to be a bodyguard for Fatty Lu. After all, with Fatty Lu's ability, if he really ran into Zhang Rui, he would not have enough fighting power, and even if he waited for the rabbit, he would not be able to wait for it, but would be crushed to death by the rabbit. So since Zhang Rui did not take action at this moment, he stepped forward and stood behind Fatty Lu, just like a bodyguard.
Facing Zhang Rui's questioning, Fatty Lu was not afraid at all. Instead, he took two steps forward with a big smile on his face: "Duke Chu guessed wrong this time. In fact, the reason why my mistress came to see you today is not to accuse you, but to discuss something great with you."
"Forget it, that girl has no good intentions with me?" Zhang Rui sneered, but he was suspicious. Zhu Ying said she was just pretending when she came to visit last time. Logically, she shouldn't make trouble again today. He seemed to be a little paranoid... But when he thought about it again, his face darkened again.
Look at how his second brother, Zhang Qiong, the Marquis of Xiangyang, now believes in Zhang Shou. Could it be that he thinks he is the brainless Zhang Qiong and is trying to fool him?
He squinted his eyes with full vigilance, and looked at the little fat man, and then said word by word: "Since you have been ordered to block me here, you must know about it? Then just say it directly. I don't like to beat around the bush. Anyway, for Yingying's sake, I will agree to almost anything, but if I can't agree to it, then I can't do anything."
Seeing Zhang Rui being so straightforward, Fatty Lu was not annoyed, but rather delighted: "It is said that you, Duke Chu, are a straightforward person, so I will speak frankly. I am here to beg for alms today, and I hope you can contribute to the Daming Northwest Development Fund!"
At this moment, even though Duke of Chu Zhang Rui had lived for most of his life and had seen a lot, he was still stunned. He probably understood the meaning of the four words "Northwest Development", but what was a fund? And it could be prefixed with the word "Da Ming"? Was this a newly established government? But if that was the case, how could he not have heard of it?
Zhang Rui quickly regained his composure. Not wanting to show that he didn't understand, he said casually, "Speak more carefully."
Of course, Lu Sanlang knew that Zhang Rui was just pretending to understand, but he would not expose him, so he said vividly: "This is what happened. My young master and his wife know that after the Northern Expedition, the Xuanfu and Datong areas have been peaceful. However, the bandits either fled north or west, and Shaanxi and Gansu further west have never been so peaceful..."
The fat boy very patiently and carefully explained the current situation in the northwest to Duke Zhang Rui of Chu, as if he was not aware that he was showing off his skills in front of Guan Gong. Zhang Rui listened with a fierce look on his face, but he was actually completely confused.
Could it really be that this was just... asking for money? But could it be that simple for Zhu Ying to personally come and send people to block him?
The little fat man briefly mentioned Hetao and emphasized Hexi. He paused for a moment and then said sincerely, "I heard that many of your old subordinates, Duke Chu, are still in Hexi, Ganzhou and Suzhou, guarding the border. Although there are many oases there, it is not as prosperous as the capital. From food to clothing, many things have to rely on supplies from the southeast..."
Zhang Rui was getting even more confused by the fat guy's rambling. He guessed that Zhu Ying would soon catch up with him, so he interrupted him impatiently, "Please explain it simply. How much does it cost?"
The fat man's foreplay was indeed to delay time. At this time, Zhang Rui obviously didn't buy it, so he changed his approach very wisely and said with a smile: "A hundred gold and a hundred silver are just a matter of plucking a hair for you."
Zhang Rui originally intended to spend money to avoid disaster, so after hearing the amount, he didn't take it too seriously and agreed immediately: "Okay, when you go to the account to withdraw the money later, just say it was my order and ask them to pay you the money directly!"
"Duke Chu, please don't be impatient." Little Fatty Lu pretended not to notice Zhang Rui's sudden anger and said with a smile, "These hundreds of gold and silver are certainly not a problem for you, but no matter how generous you are, I still have to finish what I want to say. Although the Northwest Development Fund of the Ming Dynasty has received strong support from the Empress Dowager, the Imperial Concubine, the Noble Concubine, and the Virtuous Concubine..."
"Wait... wait a minute!" This time, Zhang Rui was really surprised. He stared at the little fat man with wide eyes and asked word by word, "Whose strong support did you say you got? You mean, the Queen Mother and others actually put out real money to support your... this Northwest Development Fund?"
In fact, the Empress Dowager and the others only took out the money, and they had no idea what Zhang Shou and Zhu Ying were going to do with it...
Fatty Lu complained in his heart, but this time he didn't try to avoid the issue and admitted it.
"The four boxes of gold and silver sent from the palace are now in Zhang Garden. This money is the cosmetics money of the ladies. They just think that it is useless to leave it like this, so it is better to use it to do something practical."
"The young master said that the ladies have already donated a lot to the public school and the girls' school. We can't always use the money of the ladies in the palace to fill the bottomless pit. Good steel should be used on the blade. This time, the ladies' kindness should be put to a longer-term place, where you can see the return."
"But buying houses and land, buying shops and doing business, this can be done by palace eunuchs and wealthy businessmen, and if they are accused by some imperial censors of competing with the people for profits, it would be really unfair to the good intentions of the ladies."
"You know, we've never seen the ladies in the palace use money to build Buddhist temples or Taoist temples, but in recent years, whenever there has been drought, flood, rain or snow near , it has always been the Queen Mother who has taken the lead in tightening her belt and taking out her cosmetics money to donate. But even so, there are actually other places that have not been exempted from taxes and grain because of disasters, and they use the fact that the ladies in the capital have provided disaster relief as an excuse!"
"For example, the public school has also been criticized by other academies and private schools. No wonder the sage said that it is not the lack of wealth that is worrying, but the inequality of wealth. So this time, the young master and the young mistress decided not to use the names of the Empress Dowager and others separately, but to work together in the name of the foundation. The so-called foundation is money raised and used for specific purposes."
The little fat man spoke very emotionally, even he himself was moved, and even wiped his eyes. Although Zhang Rui would not be led into a trap so easily, he had to admit that the little fat man's words were quite logical.
If you want to convince others, you must first convince yourself. After the fat man wiped his eyes, he said in one go: "The money that the four ladies have given out is only two or three thousand strings of cash. It seems like a lot, but in fact, it is far from enough to do anything practical. Therefore, the young master asked me to discuss it, and finally decided to use the money given out by the ladies as the benchmark."
"He took out this money, and I took out this cent too, and then I'll go find people to beg for alms based on this. Duke Chu is the first one, and then the little mistress will probably go to the Duke Zhao, the Duke Qin, the Earl of Xiangyang, the Earl of Weinan, and so on..."
Lu Sanlang mentioned the names of nobles one after another, but deliberately skipped the words "Northwest Development". Sure enough, this time, Duke of Chu Zhang Rui couldn't help it and interrupted him directly.
"Just tell me, what does Zhang Shou plan to raise so much money for? What did he mean by Hexi just now?"
"Didn't we just say that? The Ming Northwest Development Fund! Of course, it is invested in the northwest to benefit the local military and civilians." Lu Sanlang started talking nonsense, and then changed the subject, "Of course, before that, the money will be injected into Tiangong Workshop for turnover. After all, if there is no trustworthy person in Hexi, the young master would not dare to invest rashly."
"Tiangongfang is in great demand right now, from table clocks to glassware. Money can be doubled with one circulation. If the young master knew that you ladies don't like money, he would just take it for granted and count it as capital, and give you ladies dividends in the future. That would save trouble."
This time, Zhang Rui finally understood. The four most honorable each gave Zhang Shou a small amount of spare money, which was neither too much nor too little. They probably asked Zhang Shou to invest it in any place. They probably didn't care much about whether there was a return or not. Even if there was a loss, it would at most damage Zhang Shou's image in their minds. If he made a profit, it would be even better.
Of course, the reason for this is, firstly, Zhang Shou has a reputation as a self-made man, and secondly, of course... these four people all have very close relationships with Zhang Shou. This is also a joint effort to show their trust in Zhang Shou, and it is also an alliance between them.
After all, Concubine Yu had just given birth to a son, and rumors were rife outside. This was also the concern of the most noble women in the palace.
However, this should have been something that Zhang Shou could have made a fortune on quietly, but he actually planned to do it openly, bring in more people, and then make it a bigger scene! How could Zhang Shou be so bold!
Thinking this in his heart, Duke of Chu Zhang Rui glared at Fatty Lu, the lackey, with a bad look, and then said coldly: "Okay, don't talk about this at the door, come with me into the house!"
