Yang Haiyan was preparing dinner in the big kitchen, and Qin Fang was not idle either. He went to the military camp manor and picked up Qin's father and mother to go to the general's mansion. As for Qin's uncle and his wife, he did not pick them up, after all, Du Ke was not an ordinary person.
Father Qin and Mother Qin have been grateful to Mr. Du for a long time. They have heard their son and daughter-in-law talk about all the good things about Mr. Du. Not long ago, their son and daughter-in-law told them that Mr. Du would come back when he passed away. So when their son came to pick them up today and told them that Mr. Du had passed away, they were very excited, but also nervous.
When they arrived at the general's residence, Qin Fang sent them to the yard. Seeing that it was almost time for dinner, he went to look for Du Ke.
Du Ke did not rest in the afternoon. He took notes and wrote memorials. The time was almost up. Du Ke was afraid that he would not be able to get up after resting, so he sat in the room for a while, and Qin Fang came.
Qin Fang bowed as soon as he entered the room: "Greetings, Master."
Du Ke said, "Sit down."
Qin Fang sat down a little awkwardly. He was not nervous before because Shen Lixian was here. But now it was just him and the master, and they were alone together. He was nervous for no reason. After sitting down, he even didn't know where to put his hands.
You can tell what kind of person Du Ke is by looking at his expression. He said, "Don't be nervous. We have the emperor as the master and disciple. It's fate. I went to Yongzhou military camp in March and brought you to the court. Maybe that was the beginning of fate. But I didn't expect that you would be obsessed with me and even dare to write to me." Thinking of this, Du Ke couldn't help but laugh. It was the first time he saw such a bold person. When he was in the capital, not to mention a poor boy with no connections or support, even a boy from a well-established family didn't dare to look for him privately.
However, it was Qin Fang's courage that brought them closer.
Thinking of this, Qin Fang couldn't help but smile: "When I first met Master in the Yongzhou military camp, I was actually very nervous and my legs were shaking. Later, because of the bandit suppression, I had just entered the officialdom and didn't know who to tell about this matter, but thinking of Master, I boldly wrote to Master."
Du Ke said, "How do you know that the master will take care of this matter? Or, how do you know that the master and the county magistrate are not the same people?"
Qin Fang didn't know either. He said frankly, "I chose to write to the teacher because I didn't know what to do. I chose the teacher because when the teacher and I were alone in the Yongzhou military camp, he was willing to consider my opinions. So I think the teacher is a good official."
"A good official?" Du Ke laughed. "I have been an official for ten years, and this is the first time someone says I am a good official. Do you know how people in the capital say about me?"
Qin Fang didn't dare to say it.
Du Ke was not talking either. He said to himself, "They say that the husband is a fox and is very good at changing his mind according to the situation. Do you know why they say that about the husband?"
Qin Fang said: "The students don't know."
Du Ke talked about the Du family: "In fact, before this incident, my husband had never thought about taking in a disciple. Not only my husband, but also my father had never taken in a disciple. My Du family is a royalist party, and we have never thought about taking sides when it comes to the throne. However, my husband participated in the fight for the throne and joined the current emperor's camp. For this, my father was very angry.
Qin Fang, what I want to say is that as a person, you should have a clear position on the surface, but behind the scenes, as long as you have the ability, you can do things that go against your position. "For example, in the matter of the succession, no one thought that Du Ke would take a side, and everyone always thought that the Du family would not take a side.
Qin Fang was a little confused after hearing this.
Du Ke said: "You have just entered the officialdom and are far away from the capital. You can take your time to deal with things. It's okay. Although I don't know why the emperor made such an arrangement, no matter what the reason is, since you have become my disciple, I should still tell you if there is something."
Qin Fang stood up: "Please give me some advice, Master."
Du Ke: "First: The emperor likes ministers who have served the emperor, but the prince may not like them. You must remember this. Second: No matter how much the emperor likes ministers who have served the emperor, his favorite is the royalist party, that is, the neutral party. My husband followed the emperor to participate in the fight for the throne, but he also made it clear that he would not participate in the competition for the throne. As for you, although my husband is your master, he will not interfere with your choice. But you must understand that everyone needs to be responsible for their own choices, and whether it is good or bad, it is all their own responsibility."
Qin Fang said: "Yes, students will remember it."
Du Ke shook his head and said, "You are still young, it is too early to join the party. It is not a bad idea to slowly understand this principle." At present, the princes have not grown up yet, and it will take at least ten years. And what will Qin Fang do in these ten years? According to his current luck, Du Ke is also looking forward to it. "By the way, you said before that your grandparents are in the mansion. Although your husband is the Minister of War, since he has come to the general's mansion, he is also a junior in front of your grandparents, so he should pay a visit." If they don't have a master-disciple relationship, there is no need to pay a visit.
But the relationship between master and apprentice is like that between father and son, or between relatives, and Grandma Qin also has an imperial decree, so she should meet her.
Qin Fang said, "Grandpa, grandma, dad and mom are already here, but they have only met villagers in their lives. The highest official they have ever met was the village chief, and after they got here, it was Magistrate Yang and Mrs. Yang. I'm afraid they are still worried about how to talk to you."
Du Ke smiled and said, "I am a simple person."
Then, Qin Fang took Du Ke to Liuxinyuan.
As Qin Fang said, Grandpa Qin, Grandma Qin, Father Qin and Mother Qin all sat together, the four of them looked at each other, originally discussing how to talk and what to say after meeting Master Du. But after discussing for a while, they still couldn't come up with a conclusion, so now, they just looked at each other, staring blankly. At first, they wanted to discuss with Yang Haiyan, but they knew that Yang Haiyan was in the kitchen, preparing to entertain Master Du, so they didn't want to disturb her.
Suddenly, Qin Fang's voice was heard outside: "Grandpa, grandma, dad, mom, the master is here to see you." He spoke loudly so that the family members in the yard could hear him, so that they wouldn't be scared when they suddenly saw the master and wouldn't know how to react.
Qin Fang was not aimless. Sure enough, after hearing this, the Qin family members in the neighborhood were in a state of panic. Fortunately, after Qin Fang and Du Ke entered the yard, they had stabilized, at least on the surface, they had calmed down.
Seeing Qin Fang and a serious-looking middle-aged man walk in, they were mentally prepared, but they couldn't help but be intimidated. Even though Lord Du didn't show off his authority, his face, which rarely smiled, was still intimidating.
Seeing this, the Qin family immediately bowed: "Greetings, sir." In the past, they would have kneeled down on both feet like the common people kneeling before the county magistrate. But they had been here for a while, and Nanny Lian had taught them etiquette one by one. Moreover, Qin Fang's appearance just now had given them time to prepare themselves mentally, so they would not be so confused when they saw Du Ke.
Du Ke stepped forward, helped Grandma Qin up, and said in a gentle voice, "No need to be polite, we are all family." Then he stepped back and said, "Du greets the madam and the grandfather." He performed the junior's salute.
Grandpa Qin and Grandma Qin didn't dare to accept his courtesy. They remembered what Nanny Lian had taught them, and quickly avoided him. Although they were panicked and out of place, the simplicity of the people still left a good impression on Du Ke. In addition, Du Ke had a good impression of the Qin family who could teach Qin Fang such a character before he met them.
Qin Fang said: "Master, please take a seat. Grandpa, grandma, father, and mother, Master is one of our family members, so you don't have to be so polite."
This time, Du Ke did not refuse, because he knew that if he let them sit down, they might not be used to it.
After Du Ke sat down, he said, "I've heard Qin Fang mention the elders in my family. Today, I see that you are all kind people."
Father Qin was a taciturn person, smiling but not saying anything. Mother Qin was usually very assertive, but she was also timid in big occasions. Grandma Qin also smiled and waited for Grandpa Qin to speak. In such occasions, the Qin family members waited for Grandpa Qin, the head of the family, with the same ambition.
Grandpa Qin also smiled and said, "You are too kind. Ah Fang is where he is today thanks to your kindness. Without your promotion, he would not be where he is today." Grandpa Qin had been drafting this in his mind for half a month. Since the day he knew Du Ke was going to be promoted, he had been drafting it every day, for fear that he would not be able to speak well and embarrass his grandson.
Du Ke is a fox. You can tell from the look of his face that the head of the Qin family is Grandpa Qin. Moreover, hearing him speak clearly and think clearly, you can tell that this man is a sincere and sober person.
Du Ke smiled and shook his head: "I didn't promote him much. It was mainly because Qin Fang was willing to learn. As the saying goes, a child's character can be seen at the age of three. His current behavior is the result of your good training when he was young." Du Ke was a man who could coax people into selling themselves out if he was willing to say nice things.
Just a few words made Grandpa Qin's eyes and mouth smile. Grandpa Qin and even the Qin family felt that this Mr. Du was a really good person, approachable and easy to get along with.
Grandpa Qin said: "Actually, Afang was very naughty when he was a child. He ran around up and down the mountain every day..." He began to talk about his grandson's childhood without realizing it.
Du Ke listened, he also had a son and a daughter, but... his heart was in the court, and he had never been involved in his son and daughter's affairs. Now when he heard Grandpa Qin mention it, he suddenly realized that he had no memory of his son and daughter's childhood. The only memory he had was testing his son's knowledge and urging him to study.