After such a bloody battle, Qiu Yizi's vitality was greatly damaged, and he no longer had the energy to take care of anything for a while. He handed over the tasks of cleaning the battlefield, sweeping away the remaining enemies, and reorganizing the troops to Dai Luanxiang and Zhao Chengxiao. He returned to the capital Luoyang with a few confidants and the puppet emperor Zheng Qi under strict guard.
Before returning to Beijing, Qiu Yizi specifically instructed that the Bohai cavalry that were going south to assist in the battle should return to Tongguan immediately and rest in the old camp under Tongguan, with the supply of food and fodder limited to three days.
To Qiu Yi's surprise, after returning to Luoyang, the miscellaneous things he encountered were ten times more than those outside.
Since Zheng Xin was dead—no matter how he died, he was dead anyway—no one inside or outside the Han Dynasty dared to challenge the authority of the current emperor, Zheng Chao. For a while, the civil and military officials from all over the Han Dynasty, just to greet, say hello, express their determination, and make themselves known, piled up flowery words and sent them to the central government and the emperor regardless of whether they were well-founded or reasonable. Other kinds of memorials and documents were sent in like snowflakes.
But now the emperor is just a puppet, and the one who really holds power is Qiu Yizi, who holds the title of regent.
Qiu Yizhi originally planned to retire to the mountains after his success, but he was unexpectedly even busier than before. The disputes and wars in the past few years had already exhausted his energy, and he was even less interested in these complicated affairs. So he simply left the capital, fenced off a large piece of land next to Longmen Mountain outside the city, settled down on the mountain, and left all government affairs to Lin Shuhan.
Lin Shuhan's talent was first-rate, and even the old emperor Zheng Rong regarded him as the best candidate for the next prime minister; however, he was a very detached person, and like Qiu Yizhi, he did not want to waste his time on paperwork. Therefore, when he saw Qiu Yizhi living on Longmen Mountain, he also moved there with his beautiful wife Wu Ruofei.
Although the two of them intended to escape, the major events in the world would not let them go - the six ministries and nine officials could still handle ordinary minor matters on their own, but when it came to major matters involving the overall situation, they still had to ask Qiu Yizi and Lin Shuhan for instructions.
In just a month, the originally quiet and peaceful Longmen Mountain became bustling again, as if a small imperial court had been opened outside the capital. In addition to Qiu Yizi, Lin Shuhan, and their family and servants, there were also countless guards, clerks, messengers and other people living on the mountain.
None of these people knew that Qiu Yizi held the power of the world, and they were always thinking about currying favor with this powerful official. In addition, no matter how strict the defenses on the mountain were, they were not as strict as those in the imperial palace. Therefore, even if Qiu Yizi wanted to do something serious, he was often disturbed by these people and could not concentrate.
Fortunately, Longmen Mountain is a scenic spot with many pavilions and thatched cottages. Qiu Yizi ordered people to clean up these places. He would meet people here today and do business there tomorrow. This not only allowed him to avoid quietness, but also allowed him to change the scenery and his mood frequently.
One day, Qiu Yizi was talking and drinking tea with Lin Shuhan in a pavilion next to a mountain spring, when she saw Wang Laowu walking up from the mountain path with a box in his hand.
Qiu Yizhi knew that the box in Wang Laowu's hand must contain memorials sent from the capital, so she felt very annoyed. Before Wang Laowu came closer, she said loudly: "You are so good, Wang Laowu. The tea in Mr. Lin's and my bowls is not even warm yet, and you sent such a large pile of things up. It's a waste of such good weather and such beautiful scenery here."
Wang Laowu smiled and said, "These are several adults in the capital. They said that these are extremely urgent matters and they insisted that the adults check and give instructions immediately. I couldn't persuade them, so I brought it to the mountain..." As he said that, Wang Laowu gently placed the box on the stone platform in front of Qiu Yizi, bowed and stepped back half a step.
Qiu Yizhi pushed the box aside and did not open it immediately. Instead, he said, "Wang Laowu, don't I know what kind of person you are? Did you accept bribes from those officials to submit the memorial?"
Wang Laowu was stunned when he heard this, and his face turned red. He said, "Your Excellency is really observant... The officials in the capital city insisted on giving me money, saying that it was for me to rest my feet and drink tea after climbing the mountain. If I refused it forcefully, everyone would be embarrassed... I dare not deceive your Excellency. I have spent some of the money they gave me. If your Excellency thinks it is inappropriate, I will just pay it back..."
Wang Laowu was originally a farmer, and had worked as a broker in the county government for a few days. Now Qiu Yizi had assigned him the important task of delivering documents to and from the capital. He was suddenly in a central position, so it was impossible for him to refuse the offer.
So Qiu Yizhi said, "Taking some money from officials is not a big deal. You are doing hard work, you can't be my clerk for the rest of your life, right? Save this money and buy a few acres of land, it will be a way out for the future."
These few words really stood in Wang Laowu's position and considered him, which touched Wang Laowu very much. The man who was originally a chatterbox became speechless: "Thank you for your advice... Just based on these few words of yours... I will serve you in my next life..."
Unexpectedly, Qiu Yizi changed the subject and asked, "Then let me ask you, what do you think of what you said about Yang Ying'er?"
Yang Ying'er is a woman Qiu Yizhi met in Shanyin County. Through her, he moved to Yin Chengliang, the old governor who had great influence in Jiangnan. After that, a lot of twists and turns occurred. Although Yang Ying'er's husband died, she was very beautiful. Wang Laowu had a good impression of her before and hinted several times in front of Qiu Yizhi that he wanted to marry her.
However, when Qiu Yizhi asked Wang Laowu about it in person today, he was hesitant and said, "Ying'er is good... but there are many people who miss her. I think 'Iron Head Dragon' and 'Yangtze Alligator' are also interesting... My Lord, please promise Ying'er to them..."
"Bullshit!" Qiu Yizi scolded, "I think you have forgotten your roots now that you have achieved a little success? Do you think Ying'er is a widow and not worthy of a popular figure like you? I tell you, I promised Ying'er, you have to marry her even if you don't want to!"
Wang Laowu's thoughts were revealed by Qiu Yi's words. His rough face immediately turned red with shame. He lowered his head and muttered something.
But Qiu Yizi said, "Not only do you have to marry her, but you also have to obey her in everything. Ying'er has a very good relationship with Mr. Lin's Miss Ruofei and Miss Wen. If I hear that she has any grievances in front of you, I will teach you a lesson!"
Wang Laowu's future, honor and disgrace, and his life and property were all firmly in the hands of Qiu Yizi. Therefore, since Qiu Yizi had made the statement, even if Wang Laowu was a thousand times dissatisfied or ten thousand times unhappy, he dared not say a single "no" and could only say "yes" through gritted teeth.
Seeing Wang Laowu's unlucky look, Qiu Yizi suddenly laughed and said to Lin Shuhan, "Mr. Lin, people are just like this. Once they become a little more successful, they start to look down on others. But Wang Laowu is quite cautious in his work. Can you see if you can give him an official position?"
Lin Shuhan also smiled and said, "Your Excellency has considered it carefully. Although Wang Laowu is only responsible for delivering messages, he still has some military merits. I think it is quite appropriate to give him a fourth-rank lieutenant general."
Lin Shuhan's proposal was indeed not excessive, Qiu Yizhi immediately nodded and said, "Okay, I'll do as Mr. Lin says. I'll write a document to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of War and ask them to do it."
As he said this, he casually pulled out a piece of paper, wrote a few words briefly, signed his name, and did not use a seal. He gently blew the ink dry, and then said to Wang Laowu who was stunned beside him: "What are you doing stupidly? Why don't you thank Mr. Lin for the promotion?"
Wang Laowu finally realized what was happening. He stopped bowing and knelt down to kowtow to Lin Shuhan, saying, "Lord Qiu has been kind to me, and Mr. Lin has been kind to me as well. After I have served Lord Qiu in this life and the next, I will serve Mr. Lin like a slave in the next life..."
Lin Shuhan was a great scholar, so Wang Laowu's crude flattery certainly did not enter his ears. He unfolded his folding fan and fanned himself a few times, then said, "Okay, you can leave first. I have something to discuss with your Lord Qiu."
After hearing this, Wang Laowu expressed his gratitude countless times before leaving the pavilion.
Qiu Yizi watched Wang Laowu leave, then pulled the box in front of him again, took out a bunch of keys from his arms, picked them out, took out one of them, unlocked the box, and flipped the lid up, only to see a huge box filled with memorials and documents.
When Qiu Yizi saw this, he angrily slammed the lid shut and cursed, "Why are there so many memorials today? It's really annoying!"
After hearing this, Lin Shuhan also smiled bitterly: "It's fine that you're busy with paperwork, but you're unwilling to let me go and want me to suffer with you. Alas! You've always said that you want to retire from society after you succeed. I wonder when it will happen?"
Qiu Yizi bowed his head and sighed, "It is only now that I have come to this point that I truly understand the truth of life's lack of freedom. There are so many things to deal with, and the people I use inside and outside the court are not trustworthy. Military generals are still good, I can still promote some of my personal soldiers to serve as generals and governors in various places. Civil officials are a bit more difficult - I asked Mr. Lin to see what talents are available in the court. I wonder if you can help me find them?"
Lin Shuhan shook his head helplessly: "I have seen some of these officials in the court. They are too old and corrupt, and are not worthy of being used. Only after the emperor's coronation ceremony, the court will hold a new imperial examination to select a few useful talents. But it takes ten years to grow a tree and a hundred years to cultivate a person. How can talents be so easy to find?" He sighed and said, "I think you should stop entangled in this, just retire now, whoever wants to clean up this mess can do it!"
Qiu Yizhi knew that Lin Shuhan's last sentence was just an angry remark, so he didn't take it to heart. Instead, he sighed and said, "That being said, the foundation of the Han Dynasty today was built by my adoptive father, the late emperor. He still has the ambition to implement new policies and create a prosperous era. If I retreat in the face of difficulties, how can I face my adoptive father and master a hundred years later?"
After saying this, Qiu Yizi sighed again, opened the closed box full of memorials again, and began to read them quickly.
When Qiu Yizhi and Lin Shuhan finished reviewing and approving the memorial, the red sun had already sunk below the horizon. Due to the busy official duties in the past few days, Wu Ruofei specially prepared snacks for Qiu Yizhi and Lin Shuhan. Qiu Yizhi ate a few bites of the ready-made snacks in the pavilion, said goodbye to Lin Shuhan, and walked slowly towards her residence along the increasingly dark mountain road.