Ming Dynasty: I risked my life to teach the prince, the emperor begged me not to die

Chapter 76 There Should Be One or Two Men Standing

Snowflakes were flying like catkins, and Tang Yin came to Xu Jing's villa in Shuntian Prefecture in a daze.

Looking at Tang Yin, who was covered in snow, Xu Jing quickly invited him in, then ordered the servants to bring a brazier over, personally took off Tang Yin's coat, and asked the servants to dry it.

He brought Tang Yin some hot water and a hot towel. After Tang Yin had finally wiped himself clean, Xu Jing asked, "Brother Tang, what's wrong with you?"

"What stimulated you?"

Tang Yin sighed, took a sip of the tea, and told Xu Jing everything that happened in the restaurant and what Chen Ce said to him.

Xu Jing was stunned for a long time before he said, "Mr. Chen's suggestion does make sense."

Tang Yin said: "But am I just that confident? Is being confident a bad thing?"

Xu Jing was a little envious of Tang Yin. He had tried his best but still couldn't become Chen Ce's disciple, but you are so lucky that you don't know how lucky you are.

However, Xu Jing took Chen Ce's reminder to Tang Yin deeply into his mind.

"Things are accomplished by secrecy, and ruined by disclosure. Success is achieved by thinking, and planning is achieved by deep thought."

"Don't try to contact any officials. You can't guarantee whether they will be your examiner in the future."

Xu Jing thought for a moment and asked Tang Yin, "Brother Tang, do you know him?"

Tang Yin asked suspiciously: "Who?"

Xu Jing said: "Mr. Chen."

Tang Yin found that he didn't seem to know Chen Ce very well. He only knew that his teacher was very good at painting and had great talent, but he seemed to know very little else.

He shook his head in shame.

Xu Jing said: "He is sick."

what?
Tang Yin stared at Xu Jing blankly.

Xu Jing continued: "It's a very serious illness. I'm not sure how long I can live."

These were all found out by Xu Fei through his connections in Shuntian Prefecture.

"So he has always been reluctant to meddle in other people's affairs and doesn't like trouble, but he is willing to remind you of these things. I think he did a really good job."

"I really envy you for being able to have him as your master." Xu Jing murmured in a low voice.

……

After Wang Yue returned to the capital, he lived in seclusion and rarely went out unless the emperor summoned him.

He didn't have many friends in the capital and was a lone minister.

At dusk, Wang Yue wrote two letters and ordered the servants in his house to send them out at night. One was sent to the Minister of Personnel Tu Yu, and the other was sent to the Right Censor-in-Chief Qi Zhong.

He had recommended three people at the end of Chenghua, Tu Yu and Qi Zhong. Both of them were county magistrates at the time. If they had not been recommended by Wang Yue, they would at most be officials in the local provincial government.

Another person is Yang Shousui, but he is now serving as the Minister of Dali Temple in Nanjing.

Emperor Hongzhi would not summon Wang Yue so soon, so he wanted to take this opportunity to test the attitudes of Tu Yu and Qi Zhong.

Although the Ministry of Personnel cannot report his military achievements, it is enough for him to go to the Ministry of War and argue for him.

The Censorate can also help verify whether the military achievements of the Battle of Helan Mountain were suppressed by the Ministry of War.

They clearly killed so many Tatars, so why did the Ministry of War only report that forty-two were killed?
……

Late at night.

A sedan chair came to the Tu Mansion, and Qi Zhong brought Xue Hua to Tu Xun's study.

Tu Yu saw him and asked him to sit down. He said solemnly, "Daqi, I was just looking for you." Qi Zhong paused and asked Tu Yu, "Chao Zong, did the teacher write to you too?"

Tu Yu nodded, put Wang Yue's letter on the desk, and said, "The teacher wants to see you and me, should we go or not?"

Qi Zhong looked deep in his eyes, and he paused for a long time while holding the tea before saying, "You can't go."

Tu Yu was stunned for a moment and said, "But he is our teacher. If we don't go this time, what will happen to our reputation?"

In the eyes of cabinet minister Liu Jian, Tu Yu was considered useless and he did not fully understand many things. He thought it was okay to meet Wang Yue. After all, they were master and disciple, and it was reasonable for him to meet him.

It’s just that some things should be delayed as long as possible, and you don’t necessarily have to do things for the other person when you meet.

Qi Zhong held down his hands, signaling Tu Yu to listen to him first.

"This is a rare opportunity. It is precisely because I want to protect my reputation that I can take this opportunity to completely sever ties with the teacher."

"We have been burdened with the teacher's relationship for too long, and our colleagues have been very wary of us. It is almost difficult for us to take a single step in the capital."

Tu Yu's eyes lit up, as if he understood something. Yes, if we don't go to see the teacher this time, with the teacher's stubborn and strong character, he will definitely cut off ties with us.

In this way, they can easily achieve their goal, get closer to the Ming Dynasty civil service group, and will no longer be labeled as Wang Yue's students.

As for the relationship between master and disciple, Tu Yu does not think it is important at all, his own future is more important.

Tu Yu was silent for a moment, then said, "But this little excitement will at most make the teacher disappointed in us, but it won't necessarily lead to a falling out, right?"

Qi Zhong nodded and said, "That's what I wanted to say, so we're just testing the waters with these two letters."

"Send it to the Minister of War, Ma Wensheng."

Tu Yu smiled bitterly and said, "In this case, you and I become villains."

Qi Zhong smiled and said, "How can you be a villain? When you made friends with the eunuchs, didn't you consider your own reputation?"

"Now he is making friends with the eunuch who holds the seal of the inner palace. Is this the uprightness that scholars like us should have?"

"No one will think that we are mean people. On the contrary, this just proves that we are upright and have noble character, doesn't it?"

The matter was settled, and the two of them smiled knowingly.

Qi Zhong took a sip of tea and said to Tu Yu meaningfully, "I'm afraid that the teacher's return this time will be dangerous!"

"Why does he want to see us this time? "

Tu Yu said: "In order to seek justice for the Northwest generals, we should give them back their military merits."

"If not, he won't be able to gain a foothold in the northwest, and the soldiers there won't obey him."

"And this is exactly what they want. They are hunting down the teacher and asking him to hand over the military power in the northwest. The teacher understands it, but he didn't do it."

"So... they want the teacher to die. Only when the teacher dies can the military power in the northwest return to their hands."

"Teacher is not the same kind of person as them. He has already stepped half a foot into the ranks of warriors. The more outstanding he is in the northwest, the more it proves that the Ming Dynasty needs military generals. The importance of civil officials has been weakened, which is not a good thing for the whole world. As long as there is any sign of this, they will cut it off."

Qi Zhong sighed hypocritically and said, "Why bother? He is old and should be enjoying his retirement. The current emperor is no longer the Chenghua Emperor who supported him."

"Why does he have to continue to lead at such an old age? Isn't it better for him to rest at home with his grandchildren?"

"Every generation has its own talents. Doesn't it mean that he is the only one who can rule the northwest of the Ming Dynasty? I really don't understand why this is necessary."

They will never understand Wang Yue's pure heart to serve the country. They have never been to the border, so they don't know the sufferings there. They will never know the hardships of the soldiers guarding the border, and they will never know the difficulties of the common people living there.

However, in this country, there must be one or two men standing up to hold up the sky!

(End of this chapter)