Chapter 74 Developed

Seeing that Hu Weiyong did not make any comment, Lu Zhongheng and Fei Ju became uneasy and worried.

Hu Weiyong finished his tea and said, "This Deng Qianqiu is really surprising. He has made great military achievements this time. His Majesty has a very good impression of him. He was sent to the Grand Hall this time with the intention of cultivating him. Such a person... may have a promising future. Seven thousand taels of silver is not a small amount, but he is worth the price..."

After a pause, Hu Weiyong continued, "The silver issue... is easy to explain. When the Pu family was confiscated, there was indeed a sum of silver that had not yet been recorded... Since Deng Qianqiu is in some difficulties now, how can we, as fellow villagers, sit idly by and do nothing? Brothers, it is better to help him in times of trouble than to add icing on the cake. Deng Qianqiu is still young now, and he has not yet spread his wings. When he really wants to soar into the sky in the future, seven thousand taels may not be worth his while."

"Mr. Hu loves making friends. You can send these seven thousand taels to him later."

Lawrence Lu and Fei Ju's faces began to turn red, as if they were drunk.

Lawrence Lu was fine, but Fei Ju was beginning to feel a little tongue-tied, and he seemed to have become a cotton candy, floating around.

“Is that so…” Lawrence Lu suppressed his inner excitement, held his chin, and said with a reluctant look: “Mr. Hu, I still think we look up to him too much. Isn’t he just a hereditary thousand households? Hum… Forget it, forget it. Since Mrs. Hu has made up her mind, I can only do it reluctantly.”

Hu Weiyong smiled and said, "Thank you."

Lu Zhongheng and Fei Ju said goodbye and left, and Hu Weiyong saw them off to the middle gate as usual.

Before leaving, he patted Lawrence Lu on the shoulder and said, “Two brothers, come often in the future. As for Deng Qianqiu’s affairs, I will entrust them to you.”

Lu Zhongheng smiled and said, "Mr. Hu is very courageous. We brothers have nothing to say. If you have any more news, we will come to bother you again."

Hu Weiyong returned to his study, which was very large and had a large collection of books. It was said that he had people copy many of the books in the main hall and kept them here, so the scale of this place was no less than a small library.

At this time, there were quite a few scholars in this spacious study, some were reading, some were writing at the desks. These people were all frustrated scholars who came here for refuge.

There are also many people who have heard about the large collection of books here and are willing to come here to live.

You have to know that in ancient times, collecting books was an extremely luxurious thing. Even those wealthy families that had some book collections would not allow outsiders to enter and exit freely, and only allowed children of the family to read them.

It is hard to find someone like Hu Weiyong, who owns a huge collection of books and is willing to let readers read them.

He was walking between rows of bookshelves, and happened to meet a reader.

Hu Weiyong bowed to him and said, "Please, Mr. Liu, bring me the Song edition of "Questions on Neo-Confucianism"."

After hearing this, Mr. Liu said, "Mr. Hu is too polite."

This man seemed neither humble nor arrogant. He found the book from the sea of ​​books and went to the dark room in the study.

The lights were already on and the tea had been poured. Hu Weiyong was sitting upright, apparently waiting for him.

Mr. Liu came in leisurely and put his book aside. At this moment, Hu Weiyong took a pen, found a notepad, and hurriedly wrote something down. He said to Mr. Liu, "Tomorrow, Mr. Liu, go over there and get 7,000 taels of silver..."

Mr. Liu frowned: "Who wants it this time?"

Hu Weiyong said: "Who else could it be? It must be Deng Qianqiu."

Mr. Liu frowned even deeper, and couldn't help asking, "Mr. Hu, are you sure it was Deng Qianqiu who asked for it? Every time it was Marquis Ji'an and Marquis Pingyuan who asked for it. I think there might be something fishy here. Could it be... there is something fishy here?"

Hu Weiyong smiled and said, "Mr. Liu, please be patient. In fact, I know there must be something fishy going on here. Let's not talk about Marquis Ji'an. Let's talk about Marquis Pingyuan Fei Ju. He has been more and more addicted to wine and women in recent years. Everyone knows it. Mr. Liu, if the water is too clear, there will be no fish. If a person is too careful, there will be no followers. If you want these two marquises to be loyal to you, sometimes you have to turn a blind eye. In the future... if something really happens, they have taken so many benefits from me, how can they get away with it?"

Mr. Liu pondered, but nodded subconsciously.

Hu Weiyong put down his pen, leaned back slightly, and said calmly: "According to my estimation, Deng Qianqiu should have proposed three to four thousand taels of silver, or maybe five thousand taels. As for Fei Ju and Lu Zhongheng, they must have falsely reported some numbers and gained some benefits from it, but it doesn't matter, this is also in my plan."

Mr. Liu nodded and said, "I think there are too many things about Deng Qianqiu that are hard to understand. Should we ask you to find out more about him?"

Hu Weiyong narrowed his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, stroked the documents, shook his head and said: "The most strange thing about this person is that His Majesty pays special attention to him. His Majesty has been more and more suspicious in the past two years. If I pry too closely into the people he pays attention to, I will inevitably notice something."

After a pause, he continued, "In fact, it doesn't matter what kind of relationship he has with your majesty. Your majesty is too concerned about money and food, and is reluctant to give benefits to others. And a young man like Deng Qianqiu is full of vigor and is just greedy for wealth and beauty. As long as you are willing to invest, there is no need to worry that he will not return to you."

Mr. Liu's eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "Mr. Hu, this is a great idea."

…………

In fact, everyone in the Yiluansi had already started discussing this.

His Majesty personally appointed a centurion from the Yiluansi to serve in the main hall, which is a great honor. However... this person happened to be Deng Qianqiu, who had the worst popularity in the Yiluansi.

For a while, there were many different opinions.

Deng Qianqiu now had to cheer up, because he knew that the main hall would never be as leisurely and comfortable as it was in Xianliang Temple.

Not only the crown prince and other princes were there, but also many civil officials and even the emperor would go there every now and then.

If there is any mistake, it will be disastrous.

I just don't know if the two iron certificates are useful. Can the two of them together save me from death once?

Deng Qianqiu felt both uneasy and expectant.

It was true that he was timid and fearful, but he couldn't help but feel excited to be able to enter the most core and essential place in the world and take a look at the talents of many famous figures in the early Ming Dynasty.

The human heart is struggling. From being cautious at first, it gradually seems as if one is not dead yet, and it seems that the early Ming Dynasty is not so terrible. Therefore, the courage gradually grows.

only……

You should be more cautious in the future, especially avoid getting involved with Hu Weiyong, as for the rest... just take it one step at a time.

Early in the morning of that day, Deng Qianqiu got up early and hurried into the palace. The main hall was located in the palace, but the guards were strict. Deng Qianqiu had a quick look around but was very cautious. He met many guards and eunuchs, and he didn't know where to report.

Then someone shouted: "Deng Qianqiu?"

Deng Qianqiu was stunned.

But I saw a young man with an unfamiliar face, but he was wearing a python robe, he looked to be about twenty years old, his complexion was well-maintained, his expression was relaxed and composed, and there seemed to be a permanent smile on his lips.

The person following behind him was also wearing a python robe, but his aura was extremely fierce. He just quickly swept his eyes over Deng Qianqiu, and then showed a look of disdain.

Deng Qianqiu asked tentatively: "May I ask?"

The leader looked very gentle and said with a smile: "People call me the prince."

"what……"

Deng Qianqiu could sense the reserve shown by the man named Zhu Biao in front of him. Although he was surprised, he still did not forget to greet him and said, "Your humbleness..."

Zhu Biao waved his hand and said, "No need to be polite. My mother mentioned you. When I heard that my father summoned you to the main hall, I thought it was time to meet you."

Deng Qianqiu was surprised and asked, "I would like to ask, how did Your Highness know that I am Deng Qianqiu?"

Zhu Biao laughed again and said, "I know everyone in this hall, except you. I naturally thought it was you."

Deng Qianqiu was speechless for a moment. He muttered to himself, this is a wise leader. There are hundreds of guards and eunuchs in the main hall, and he is familiar with them all. It can be seen that he is a very compassionate person.

There is a future in following such people!
Zhu Biao smiled and said, "You are new here, so you must be nervous. No problem, just follow me. If you have any questions, you can ask me."

He spoke in a casual manner, and seemed to think Deng Qianqiu was young, so he did not forget to instruct him: "You don't need to wear armor when you come here in the future. Your father's order is to let you study as an advisor. It's better to be casual. The masters here are all very powerful. It will be very beneficial for you to listen to them more."

Deng Qianqiu scratched his head. He suddenly thought of a possibility. If the prince had not died, then... would the Ming Dynasty be different? Or, Zhu Yuanzhang...

Thinking of this, Deng Qianqiu subconsciously asked: "Your Highness, does His Majesty usually come here?"

Zhu Biao said in a friendly manner: "Father often comes here to supervise our studies. On the other hand, he also needs to discuss state affairs with the ministers here. In order to govern the country, we must inevitably seek experience from the classics and historical books, so-called learning from history. Why, do you want to see Father?"

He always spoke slowly, and every time he spoke he would stop and look at Deng Qianqiu, showing some respect to him.

This made Deng Qianqiu feel very comfortable. Deng Qianqiu relaxed and began to speak without restraint, saying: "I... I dare not... I am afraid of meeting the emperor. I am afraid in my heart."

Zhu Biao looked at the timid look on his face and comforted him, "You don't have to be afraid. Father sometimes has a bad temper, but as long as you don't break the law, he will hide even if he gets angry. As his son, I will take the small beatings and walk away if I get the big beatings. After a night, his anger subsided and nothing happened."

(End of this chapter)