"Wang Sinong, congratulations, congratulations, congratulations to Wang Sinong for finally getting rid of this bad feeling!"
Doctor Guan Qie bowed to Wang Wenshan repeatedly.
Wang Wenshan just smiled and said nothing.
Guan Qie was surprised and asked, "What? You haven't gotten over your anger yet?"
Wang Wenshan said, "It's not that I am petty. If Mr. Fan or Mr. Ouyang lectured me, I would remember it in my heart, but I would also listen respectfully. Why? They are elders and highly respected. I am a junior and should respect them. Similarly, Zhang San is arrogant and doesn't take me seriously at all. He even spoke rudely to me. How can this little lesson relieve my hatred?"
"That's true." Guan Qie nodded and said, "That kid really doesn't know how high the heavens are and how deep the earth is. I wonder how Wang Sinong plans to teach him a lesson next?"
Wang Wenshan said, “I haven’t thought about it yet, but I must make him kowtow to me and admit his fault, otherwise, this matter will not be resolved.”
... ...
Today, Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, the two experts in internal circulation, only left office half an hour later than others. They really have no intention of working!
"Alas... After this incident, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to redeem myself from that day!"
Sima Guang looked up to the sky and sighed.
He did not have much objection to restricting litigation, but he had always longed to reverse Ayun's case in court and make Ayun receive the punishment he deserved.
But if this happened, he felt that he could no longer compete with Zhang Fei in a fair fight.
Wang Anshi chuckled and said, "Finally you have found an excuse."
Sima Guang glared at him and said, "The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. I have nothing to say. You can laugh if you want."
"Actually, I have no right to laugh at you. I feel ashamed too!"
Wang Anshi sighed heavily, "The whole court, civil and military officials, united to deal with a man who was secretly writing spies. This is truly a great anecdote in our dynasty. It will be ridiculed by future generations!"
Sima Guang suddenly glanced at him and said, "Jiefu, although that is true, it may not be a bad thing for you."
Wang Anshi looked at his old friend and asked, "What are you going to say next?"
Sima Guang said: "Don't be angry yet. I share the same view as you. This is indeed dishonorable and embarrassing for us. But why don't you think about it, if they treat a person who spies on you like this, how will they treat you if you are not careful in the future?"
Wang Anshi knew what he meant and immediately retorted: "During the Qingli period, Fan Gong and his men also thought like you and were cautious in everything, but the result was nothing. Now the problem remains the same, even more serious than then. How can we repeat the same mistake? If you don't make progress, you can only give in, and it's better not to give in. In my opinion, there is no room for maneuver in this matter. If I were Zhang San, I would never give up and would fight them to the end."
The New Policies of the Qingli Period were very short-lived, and the reason for this was that there was no one who dared to take responsibility. Song Renzong was forced to carry out reforms, and Fan Zhongyan and others had not made up their minds. When legislating, they gave in everywhere and made continuous cuts, which ultimately led to the failure of the new laws.
At that time, Wang Anshi watched how the new law went to destruction, and he would not make the same mistake.
Sima Guang was also one of the witnesses. Of course, he knew that what Wang Anshi said was right, but he thought that doing the opposite was not feasible, so he had to choose another way. Fan Zhongyan, Fu Bi, Ouyang Xiu and others were all outstanding politicians, and none of them was worse than him, Wang Jiefu. They didn't dare to do so, which made sense. He glanced at Wang Anshi and said, "Zhang San is not as stupid as you. He will retreat when he knows it's difficult."
Wang Anshi said, "That may not be the case. If he knew how to retreat when faced with difficulties, then why did he come to Bianjing in the first place?"
This is not about Zhang San, this is about himself!
Sima Guang snorted, "Then let's wait and see."
Wang Anshi glanced at Sima Guang and suddenly said, "I really like your inkstone."
Sima Guang was stunned for a moment, then pointed at Wang Anshi and said, "So you've been eyeing my inkstone for a long time. I was wondering why you kept glancing at me recently... The handwritten letter that Mr. Bao gave to the two of us has always been occupied by you."
Wang Anshi snorted, "I've said this many times. But the title is written as Wang Jiefu, so of course it belongs to me."
"That's just because my name is longer, but my name is more in the letter than yours, so why should it belong to you?"
"Stop talking nonsense, it's a deal."
"I'm not afraid of you."
... ...
At the same time, on the east wall, stood a young man and an old man.
It was Song Shenzong and Xu Zun.
"I summoned you here today because I have a favor to ask of you." Song Shenzong suddenly turned around and said to Xu Zunyan behind him.
Xu Zun hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, please give your orders."
Song Shenzong said directly: "I admire Zhang San's talent very much. Now he is a scribe and I am afraid he can't do his job. So I hope you can recommend him to serve as an official in the court. Then I will give you another favor."
Of course he knew what was going on, but he didn't care. Anyway, he didn't want Zhang Fei to be his spy forever.
You should know that the status of the earwriters nowadays is actually very humble, just like the brokers, they belong to the lowest class.
Xu Zun hesitated and did not answer.
Song Shenzong added: "I know you never like to recommend people, but this time I owe you a favor."
Xu Zun hurriedly said: "Your Majesty has misunderstood, this is not what I meant."
Song Shenzong asked: "I wonder why you hesitated?"
Xu Zun replied: "To be honest with you, Your Majesty, I admire Zhang San very much and hope that he can serve the country in the future, but I don't want to see him enter the court at this time."
"Why?"
"Now that he has just encountered difficulties, Your Majesty has helped him. This will make him accustomed to hiding under Your Majesty's wings. But in the future, when he enters the court as an official, he will definitely encounter more and more difficult problems. He may choose to avoid them instead of facing them, which is not conducive to his growth."
"Um."
Song Shenzong nodded slightly, and then said: "But how can he, a commoner, face these problems?"
Xu Zun said: "I have talked to him and he is very confident, so Your Majesty should give him a chance. If it fails, you can make other plans."
Song Shenzong thought for a moment, nodded and said, "Okay! I'll follow your advice and wait and see."
... ... .
... ... .
As the saying goes, a tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind.
But in reality, this situation rarely occurs. The crisis is usually nipped in the bud rather than waiting until the tree stands out in the forest.
Especially when it comes to power.
Any struggle for power is a zero-sum game. If you have one more point, I will have one less point.
Therefore, Wang Wenshan and others lit the fire, and the rest of the people rushed forward.
It was like a mountain crushing an egg, strangling Zhang Fei to death.
This was not organized in advance, and Wang Wenshan does not have that much power.
This is a kind of political consensus.
Of course, they also made some modifications and did not include Zhang Fei's name in the decree.
The policy given by the court is aimed at the lawsuit, not at a particular person.
So it stands to reason that for the relevant people, such as the tea drinker and the earwriter, it can be said that when the city gate is on fire, the fish in the pond are affected.
but it is not the truth.
That night, the eight major tea and food celebrities in Bian Jing gathered at Jufeng Tower. They came at an invitation, and the person who invited them was Chen Yu, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice.
"Thank you so much for your support. I would like to offer a toast to you all."
Chen Yu raised his glass and said.
"How dare you! How dare you!"
The eight tea connoisseurs all stood up and raised their glasses in response.
After drinking a cup of wine, the leader Li Zhongguo said, "To be honest, Mr. Yuanwailang, we have been unhappy with that guy for a long time, but we have been tolerating him because of Xu Shisi."
"What Li Xingshou said is true. That kid is ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth and has broken the rules of our industry. As a result, many officials have been dissatisfied with us in recent days. We are also wronged!"
Most of these tea and snack people are clerks who came out of the government. They are one with the government. It is precisely because of the government's endorsement that they are able to monopolize this industry. If they did not have this relationship, it would be a disaster for them.
However, Zhang Fei's complaints did make them very worried. Firstly, this might interrupt their monopoly. Secondly, they also realized that the officials had become wary of them.
This is very bad.
This time they were very willing to help Chen Yu deal with Zhang Fei. Those petitions were submitted by their spies who were secretly arranged to do the work.
Without their support, this matter would not have developed so quickly.
Chen Yu smiled and said, "Please rest assured, everyone. This order from the court will not affect your livelihood. From now on, everyone will continue to work as usual."
"Thank you for your care, Mr. Yuanwailang. We would like to offer you a toast."
"Where! Where!"
... ...
Zhang Fei was originally in high spirits after winning the lawsuit against Li Si, and was ready to make a big move. However, he never expected that such a splash of cold water would pour down on him from head to toe.
It’s cool!
The key point is that he was really unprepared for this. He did not expect that the other party would do this. It really gave him a great sense of oppression. He just felt that he could not move. He did not go out for the past two days, just like a person about to be executed, waiting for his fate.
Now the gate has fallen.
Although the relationship is still going on, the Xu Mansion seems to be shrouded in a haze.
Zhang Fei half-lay on the low railing of the corridor, and suddenly glanced at Xu Zhiqian who was leaning against the beam, and couldn't help but sighed: "Alas... Maybe this is a blessing in disguise!"
Xu Zhiqian glanced at him calmly, "Where is the blessing?"
To her, this was terrible.
Zhang Fei glanced at her and smiled, "Now I can't do anything, so we won't have any disputes about this anymore. We can finally talk calmly. Isn't this a good thing?"
Xu Zhiqian immediately said, "Don't make insinuations here. I'm not gloating over other people's misfortunes. I just don't want you to collude with those rich and unkind gentry. It's not my wish for you to suffer this disaster."
"See, you misunderstood me again."
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "I think this incident has united us who were originally divided. This is definitely a good thing."
Xu Zhiqian asked: "Have you thought of a solution?"
"Not yet, but this is the basis of our cooperation." Zhang Fei then asked Xu Zhiqian, "Do you have any solution?"
Now that the results are out, we have to find a way to deal with it.
Xu Zhiqian pondered for a moment and said, "From this incident, it seems that they are determined not to tolerate you. You, a mere spy, cannot defeat them. The only way is to find a way to become an official in the court. In this way, you will be able to compete with them."
After all, she came from a family of eunuchs, so she saw things more clearly than Zhang Fei. She also knew that this was all because Zhang Fei was not an official but an outsider. Of course, they shared the same hatred and faced the outside world together. If Zhang Fei was an official, the situation would be completely different.
"If you can't beat them, just join them. Becoming a legal Durant, um... that's not a bad idea."
Zhang Fei nodded, and suddenly looked up at Xu Zhiqian, and asked curiously, "But why does it seem so easy to be an official when you say it?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "It may be difficult for others, but for you..."
"Me what?" Zhang Fei asked anxiously.
Xu Zhiqian's eyes flickered, and she said, "But you have to work hard, and you have to accumulate reputation and do more righteous things, then you may be able to serve as an official in the court."
"Is it true? I don't believe it." Zhang Fei expressed his doubt.
Xu Zhiqian nodded and said, "Really? Why would I lie to you?"
This woman is drugging me again, I don't believe you. Zhang Fei frowned and said, "Not to mention that it's not easy to do, I just can't swallow this anger. I must find a way to get back at this place. Otherwise, even if I really become an official, I can only be bullied by them."
He was right. Finding a new way was also a form of surrender. Xu Zhiqian frowned slightly, and after thinking seriously, she suddenly asked, "Do you know Li Guozhong?"
Zhang Fei said: "It sounds familiar."
Xu Zhiqian said: "This person is the leader of your group."
Zhang Fei said, "I remember now. He is the leader of the eight tea lovers."
Xu Zhiqian nodded.
Zhang Fei asked: "Why did you mention him suddenly?"
Xu Zhiqian said, "He was once a secret writer. His original name was Xu Guozhong. Later, after marrying into the Li family, he changed his name to Li Guozhong. When his father-in-law passed away, he inherited the bookstore and, through his own efforts, became the head of the bookstore."
Zhang Fei asked: "What does this have to do with me?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "Do you still remember what I told you before, that the official documents of the bookstores are different from those of the people who have the pens. The official documents in your hand are given to you personally, but the official documents of the bookstores are given to the bookstores, not to the people. And the current situation is that the right to sue is given to the bookstores, so if you can get one of the bookstores, can't you regain the right to sue?"
Zhang Fei sat up suddenly and asked anxiously, "Among the eight tea-drinking families, which girl is still unmarried? Are they pretty? I can do it."
Xu Zhiqian glared at him: "You are really hopeless."
Zhang Fei said depressedly: "Isn't this your idea?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "Who asked you to marry into the family? I asked you to find a way to buy a bookstore."
Zhang Fei asked in surprise: "Can I buy it?"
"I really don't know whether to say you are smart or stupid!" Xu Zhiqian said unhappily, "Regarding the official documents of this bookstore, the court has not given clear regulations. Since it can be inherited, then if you buy the bookstore, you will naturally inherit the official documents."
"Yes!" Zhang Fei said thoughtfully: "They are cutting off the source of our trouble, so we can sneak through Chencang and be reborn through a shell."
At this point, he paused for a moment and asked, "But is this bookstore easy to buy? You know how much money I have."
Xu Zhiqian shook her head and said, "That's definitely not enough, and money is only secondary. The key is whether they are willing to sell it to you. If you can convince one of the bookstores, my father and I can lend you some money."
Zhang Fei sighed and said, "If you...!"
Xu Zhiqian asked: "Me what?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "Nothing."
He wanted to say, if you don't cause trouble, then maybe I won't be short of money, but in fact, if Xu Zhiqian doesn't cause trouble, those rich people will not cooperate with her now.
This is such a waste of quarrel and expression.
Suddenly, someone shouted from behind: "Third brother!"
Zhang Fei looked back and saw Li Si standing on the stone path behind the potted plants.
Zhang Fei stood up and said to Xu Zhiqian: "We will discuss this matter later. I have something to do, so I'll leave you now!"
As he said that, he walked out of the corridor, came to Li Si, and asked, "What's the matter?"
Li Si said: "It's about the Ma family."
"Ma family? Which Ma family?" Zhang Fei asked in surprise.
Li Si was also stunned for a moment, and suddenly slapped his head: "Oh! I forgot to tell you about this, Third Brother. Didn't you ask me to stand at the street corner to receive those rich people last time?"
Zhang Fei suddenly glanced at Xu Zhiqian on the corridor and coughed, "Let's talk inside."
... ...
Back in the house, Li Si said, "Two days ago, when I went to buy pens and ink for Qingmei, I met that little brother Ma. He said his father wanted to meet you. I remembered telling you, Third Brother, but when I came back that day, you went to find Madam Xu without saying a word, and I... I forgot about it."
Zhang Fei's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said, "There is still a fish that has slipped through the net!"
"What fish slipped through the net?" Li Si asked.
Zhang Fei seemed not to hear, and suddenly frowned, and continued to talk to himself: "But in the current situation, I guess the Ma family won't come to find me."
Li Si hurriedly said, "No, that little brother Ma just came again."
Zhang Fei sighed, "Does that mean his father won't come?"
Li Si shook his head and said, "That's not the case, it's just that his father wants to meet you somewhere else."
Zhang Fei was stunned for a moment and asked, "What place do we want to change to?"
"The day after tomorrow night, at Ma's Tavern near Caiqiao."