"Speaking of luck, he is not as lucky as your cheap niece's husband. He was just a poor boy, but he passed the imperial examination and became the top scholar. He married the richest daughter of your Li family, and became an official of the fifth rank before he was twenty..." Duke of Wei Xu Pengju raised his glass and toasted to Linhuai Marquis Li Tingzhu, continuing the previous topic.
"Good luck? I used to think so, but not now..." Linhuai Marquis Li Tingzhu clinked his glasses with Wei Duke Xu Pengju, drank the wine in the glasses, shook his head slightly, and spoke slowly.
"Oh, why?" Duke of Wei Xu Pengju asked curiously.
"Let's talk about studying first. To be the top scholar, you must have good luck, but can you be the top scholar if you have good luck?! In addition to being smart, Zihou is also very hardworking, which is rare in my life. He studied hard from midnight to dawn, and even after he became the top scholar, he continued to study hard. As for the pleasures of life, he is unheard of. If the two brats in my family were as hardworking as Zihou, I would wake up with a smile in my sleep. I won't say much about marrying a wife. As an elder, I can't say anything about the life of a junior in the backyard. As for being an official, Zihou has reached the fifth rank now, which is not due to good luck. I can give two examples to explain it in one word. First, Zihou inspected the Taicang silver treasury in the capital naked, which was not something that ordinary people could do; second, he was reinstated in Jingnan with his solid military achievements. More than 3,000 Japanese pirates attacked Jingnan County. Zihou fought against more than 3,000 Japanese pirates with less than 100 yamen runners and soldiers. Not only did he successfully defend Jingnan County, he also captured 824 heads of Japanese pirates. 824, Brother Dapeng, as the garrison commander of Yingtian and the commander of the Central Army, how many heads of Japanese pirates have you captured in all these years? ! "
Linhuai Marquis Li Tingzhu put down his wine glass and praised Zhu Ping'an highly, emphasizing that Zhu Ping'an's success was by no means the result of luck.
In fact, Linhuai Hou really looked down on Zhu Ping'an at first, but later he gradually changed his opinion until now.
"Ahem, haven't the Japanese pirates come to Yingtian before? I have no chance. We are descendants of generals, and we have the blood of our ancestors in our bones. We are no less capable than others in leading troops to fight. If the Japanese pirates dare to invade Yingtian, we will kill one if there is one, a pair if there are two, and a thousand if there is one, and we will build a Jingguan around them..."
Duke of Wei Xu Pengju coughed, feeling a little embarrassed. After pouring himself a drink, he spoke again with great enthusiasm.
"That's true..." Linhuai Marquis Li Tingzhu nodded and did not deny the Duke of Wei's bold words.
"Which sub-district will he be in charge of when he comes to the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office?" Duke of Wei Xu Pengju asked again, "Should we make some arrangements and let him stay in Yingtian? Recently, the Japanese pirates have been like crazy, invading the borders repeatedly, and local counties have been harassed repeatedly. It is very risky to go to the local sub-district. Yingtian City has a large moat and a large number of troops stationed there. The Japanese pirates dare not come here to seek death. He will be safe if he stays in Yingtian, and he can take care of it during special times."
"It's too late. As soon as he arrived, he took over the responsibility of military preparation for the Jiangsu and Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office." Linhuai Hou sighed.
"Military preparation?! This is a position that usually takes the blame but doesn't produce any results... And he took it as soon as he arrived. Brother Jundai, let me say, whether it's taking on the task of military preparation this time, or getting involved in Yang Jisheng's impeachment of Lord Yan in the capital last time, you, as my nephew's husband, are a little too hasty in doing things." The Duke of Wei curled the corners of his mouth and commented.
"Who says he isn't? Zihou is capable, but he is a little too hasty in doing things. However, it is normal for young people to be full of energy. For example, the day before yesterday, Zihou came to visit me and talked about the Japanese pirates. After learning about the current situation of the navy, Zihou suggested that I write a memorial to the emperor, requesting the construction of 200 additional warships and the restoration of the old quota on the grounds that the Japanese pirates had been causing trouble for years and that there were not enough warships, so as to expel the Japanese pirates and give full play to the role of the navy." As Linhuai Hou said this, he informed Duke Wei of the suggestion made by Zhu Ping'an when he visited him the day before yesterday.
"Hmm?! Request to build more warships and restore the old quota so as to give full play to the role of the navy..." Upon hearing this, Duke Wei's eyes lit up, as if he had been enlightened and his Ren and Du meridians were opened.
"Yes, they even took into account the hydrological conditions and mentioned that we should change the ships to sand ships so that the navy can fight..."
Linhuai Hou continued.
Upon hearing this, Duke Wei's eyes brightened even more, just like two bonfires in the dark night.
"Zihou's suggestion is good, but it's too hasty. The emperor approved the proposal of his predecessor, Shi Caojiang, to reduce the number of warships by half a year ago. Now I am submitting a memorial to advise adding more warships and restoring the old quota. Isn't this going against the emperor's will? Although Zihou also said that the situation is different now and the Japanese invasion was controllable a year ago, but now it is out of control and is becoming increasingly rampant... But it's still a bit too hasty."
Linhuai Hou tapped the table lightly and concluded.
"Well, it is indeed a bit too hasty." Duke Wei nodded slightly.
"Okay, let's not talk about Zihou for now, let's talk about the recent appointments and dismissals of officials..." Linhuai Hou poured a glass of wine for Duke Wei and turned the topic to the recent appointments and dismissals of officials.
However, the Duke of Wei was a little absent-minded afterwards. Linhuai Hou knew that the Duke of Wei's harem was in chaos recently. The Duke of Wei's legitimate wife, Zhang, died early and left no offspring. According to the system of primogeniture, if there is no legitimate eldest son or legitimate son, then the eldest son of a concubine should inherit the title. However, the Duke of Wei did not intend to make the eldest son of a concubine inherit the title, but intended to make the son of his favorite concubine, Zheng, inherit the title. In order to achieve his goal, the Duke of Wei even intended to make his favorite concubine, Zheng, the wife of the Duke of Wei. For this reason, the Duke of Wei's harem was in a mess. Linhuai Hou thought that the Duke of Wei was thinking about the harem, and did not think about it.
After having a few drinks, the Duke of Wei hurried back to his house. Looking at his hurried back, the Marquis of Linhuai was more certain that the Duke of Wei was worried about the affairs in the harem.
However, what Linhuai Hou did not know was that when Duke Wei hurried back to the mansion, he did not go to the back house to put out the fire, but went to the study first, put out writing materials such as pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and began to draft a memorial.
"Xu Pengju, the garrison commander of Yingtian and the commander of the Central Military Command, reports..."
If Linhuai Marquis Li Tingzhu were here, he would be shocked to find that the memorial written by Duke Wei almost copied the suggestions Zhu Ping'an gave him, from the reasons to the suggestions, almost word for word.
"Brother Jundai, I'm sorry. Since you don't adopt Zhu Zihou's suggestion, I will shamelessly use it. You also know that my eldest son is useless, but my youngest son is decent. I want my youngest son to inherit the title, and I need this achievement. If the emperor approves my memorial, then it will be easier for me to get things done... Actually, rather than saying that Zhu Zihou is too hasty, it's better to say that you, brother Jundai, are too cautious..."
After Duke Wei finished writing the memorial, he started talking to himself while checking whether there were any typos or omissions in the memorial.