The rise of the poor

Chapter 2064 Congratulations to Zihou, Congratulations to Zihou

"Report, quickly report to the master that the Imperial Commissioner for Patrolling the Sea, Zhao Wenhua, has arrived at the Governor's office." An officer hurried to the Zhejiang Army camp and delivered an urgent message at the door.

After receiving the news, Zhu Ping'an had to hurriedly leave the Zhejiang Army camp and rush to the governor's office to meet Zhao Wenhua.

It is better to offend a gentleman than a villain, not to mention that Zhao Wenhua, this villain, will influence the political situation in Jiangnan for some time to come. If I offend him, it will be difficult for me to display my talents in Jiangnan, and my ambitions will be difficult to achieve.

So, when Zhu Ping'an heard that Zhao Wenhua had arrived at the governor's office, he rode back immediately.

When he arrived at the governor's office, Zhu Ping'an dismounted, threw the horse to the officer, and hurried to the hall.

The door of the hall was not closed, and from a distance one could see Zhao Wenhua and Hu Zongxian sitting there drinking tea and chatting about current affairs.

"I greet Master Zhao. Master Zhao has brought Lord Hu to give us guidance. I was inspecting the Zhejiang Army camp and was unable to greet him from afar. Please forgive me." Zhu Ping'an walked quickly over and bowed to Zhao Wenhua at the door with his disciple in his hand.

Zhao Wenhua had corrected him many times, and in fact he could barely be considered a master, so Zhu Pingan did not wait for Zhao Wenhua to correct him, and directly called him Master Zhao. It was just a title, and if it could paralyze Zhao Wenhua, it would be great.

"Hurry up, hurry up. Zihou came all the way from the camp. He was in a hurry. Look how out of breath you are. Sit down quickly and have some tea."

Zhao Wenhua stood up from his seat, took two steps forward, stretched out his hand to help Zhu Pingan up, and took the initiative, speaking with great concern.

"Thank you Master Zhao."

Zhu Pingan thanked him, and then he and Hu Zongxian exchanged greetings, "Mr. Hu." / "Mr. Zhu."

"Sit down and have some tea to moisten your throat." Zhao Wenhua personally poured a cup of tea and invited Zhu Ping'an to have some.

"Thank you, Master Zhao." Zhu Ping'an took the tea, thanked Zhao Wenhua, sat down, and without any formalities, took a few sips to moisten his throat.

"Merlin and I came here mainly to congratulate Zihou. One or two letters of congratulations are not enough to express our congratulations, so we came together to congratulate you in person." Zhao Wenhua said with a smile.

"Haha, yes, congratulations to Mr. Zhu, it's a double happiness, it's really enviable." Hu Zongxian also stood up and thanked Zhu Ping'an with a smile.

"Double happiness?" Zhu Ping'an was slightly stunned. The double happiness you are referring to is that double happiness.

"Haha, first of all, congratulations to Zihou on the birth of his son. Not only does he have a son to bring honor to the family, but he also has a lovely daughter to care about his well-being. It's really cause for celebration." Zhao Wenhua laughed and thanked Zhu Ping'an.

While expressing his thanks, Zhao Wenhua waved toward the door, and immediately a servant came in holding a gift box.

Zhao Wenhua took the gift box, opened it, and inside it lay two small gold locks that were finely crafted and shining with golden light.

A small golden lock is engraved with the words "Long Life and Wealth" and is in the shape of a carp leaping over the Dragon Gate. It is vivid and exquisite.

A small golden lock is engraved with the words "Happiness and Longevity", and its shape resembles a crabapple, with gold around it and emerald inside. The emerald is carved to look like algae, and the jade is carved to look like a beauty holding a basin for makeup.

They look quite heavy, especially with such fine workmanship, these two longevity locks must be worth a fortune.

"These two longevity locks are given to my nephew and niece to ward off disasters and evil spirits, and bring them longevity and wealth."

Zhao Wenhua handed the gift box to Zhu Ping'an and congratulated him with a smile.

"Thank you, Master Zhao. This is too expensive." Zhu Ping'an thanked Zhao Wenhua and declined politely.

"Well, you still call me Master Zhao, how can I not celebrate for my nephew and niece, or do you, Zihou, no longer recognize me as Master Zhao?"

Zhao Wenhua pretended to be angry.

"Haha, Lord Zhu, I dare not refuse a gift from an elder; it would be disrespectful to decline, but I feel guilty accepting it." Hu Zongxian chimed in with a smile.

"Well, I'd be honored to refuse. I would like to thank Master Zhao on behalf of my children." Zhu Ping'an accepted Zhao Wenhua's gift and thanked him.

"Master Zhu, this is a painting of pine and crane and golden tortoise by Tang Bohu, a great scholar of our dynasty. I give it to my nephew and niece. I wish them good health, longevity, and a bright future."

Hu Zongxian took out two scrolls from his sleeves and gave them to Zhu Ping'an, congratulating Zhu Ping'an on his pair of little children.

"Thank you, Mr. Hu. I won't be polite." Zhu Ping'an accepted the two paintings given by Hu Zongxian with a smile.

This is Tang Bohu's work, Tang Bohu's authentic work, passed down from generation to generation, a true heirloom.

Zhu Pingan remembers very clearly that in 1989, Tang Bohu's work "Mountain Quiet Day" was auctioned at the famous auction house Christie's. At that time, the auction house estimated the price to be 1.5 million US dollars. According to the exchange rate at that time, it was nearly 5 million RMB when converted into RMB.

Well, yes, the exchange rate of RMB against the US dollar was still quite high at that time.

In 1990, Tang Bohu's "Moon Spring Picture" was auctioned at an auction house for US$5600 million. Later, "Ancient Trees, Bamboo and Stones", "Bamboo in the Rain" and "Ge Changgeng Picture" were sold at the auction house for US$1000 million, US$2800 million and US$6500 million respectively, all in US dollars.

In modern times, Tang Bohu's authentic works are all affordable.

These two paintings, "Pine and Crane" and "Golden Turtle", have been passed down from generation to generation. Even if some of their descendants are incompetent, these two paintings alone are enough for them to make a comeback and revive twice.

Well, we should also take more advantage of the people of our dynasty, such as Xu Wei, Hu Zongxian, Xu Jie, Zhang Juzheng, Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayou, etc., and pass down more of their works. They can all be heirlooms, increasing the family heritage. Just for this, as an ancestor, I have done immeasurable merits.

"Oh, I really envy Lord Zhu for having both a son and a daughter. Unlike me, I have three boys at home who are naughty and rebellious all day long. I am really worried about him. I really envy Zihou for having both a son and a daughter. Not only does he have a son, but he also has a caring little cotton-padded jacket," Hu Zongxian said enviously looking at Zhu Ping'an.

"Haha, Lord Hu is a strong and energetic man. If he works harder, it won't be a problem for him to have several daughters. Why do you envy me?" Zhu Ping'an joked with a smile.

"Haha, Zihou, don't tell me. To be honest, after the first bastard was born, I really followed this idea and made persistent efforts. Who would have thought that the second child would be another bastard? Then I thought that it couldn't be the third time, so I tried again. Well, another bastard came. You don't know Zihou. The three bastards are simply three devils. If they are not beaten for three days, they will break the roof and tiles. If they don't cause you a big trouble for ten days or half a month, you can burn incense and thank God and ancestors. I dare not work hard anymore. If I have another kid, I will definitely lose several years of my life."

Hu Zongxian replied with a wry smile, and frowned involuntarily when he mentioned his three sons.