Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4904: The Pearl of Wisdom is in Hand
The Yin family of Guzang and the An family of Liangzhou are real old friends. They have known each other for a hundred years and have joined forces to control the Silk Road to gain profits. In politics, they have also shared what they have and made common progress and retreat. Who would have thought that the An family would be stabbed in the back by the Yin family when they were in the most dangerous time?

Moreover, the stab hit the vital part of the back, causing the huge wealth accumulated by the An family for generations to be swallowed up, without even a trace left...

Compared with Cheng Yaojin, who regarded An's deeds as a great achievement, Yin Hongyong's actions were even more hateful and despicable.

An Zhongjing flew into a rage and shouted, "Yin Hongyong is a treacherous villain, I will definitely kill him!"

The whole family moved to Guanzhong, and the family's real estate could not be taken with them. Moreover, the family who had been convicted would not even have the opportunity to sell it at a low price, and it would definitely be divided up by various forces. Now even the family's money had been embezzled, how would they survive in Guanzhong?
As long as he thought about the impoverished life, no longer having the luxury of food and clothing, and no longer having the military power to command the people, An Zhongjing felt disheartened, and his hatred for Yin Hongyong grew like a raging fire...

"At this time, the most important thing is to save the lives of the whole family. The rest of the matter can be considered after we are out of danger. Don't make trouble and lose the big picture for the small!"

An Yuanshou comforted his son with red eyes.

Didn't he hate Yin Hongyong to the core and wish he could eat his flesh and drink his blood? However, now he was in dire straits and had no time to take care of himself, so how could he bother Yin Hongyong?
Those money and silk are only temporarily deposited with Yin's family, and one day they will be reclaimed with interest.

Zhai Liuniang asked: "What should we do now?"

"Wait for Cheng Yaojin's reply."

“Will there be any more twists and turns?”

"No, Cheng Yaojin would not dare to not give Pei Xingjian face, let alone ruin Pei Xingjian's plan."

An Yuanshou hated Cheng Yaojin deeply: "This is not the Zhenguan Dynasty anymore. The meritorious service of the Zhenguan Dynasty is worthless! Pei Xingjian, as the Grand Protector of Anxi, is stationed in Ganzhou to implement the 'Tubo Strategy'. Behind this is the planning of the Ministry of War, which is Fang Jun's will. Now if Cheng Yaojin wants to return to Chang'an, he needs not only meritorious service, but also cannot allow anyone to hinder his plans. If Fang Jun insists on not allowing him to return to Chang'an, even Your Majesty can do nothing about it."

A new emperor appoints his own ministers. The era that belonged to these Zhenguan nobles has passed, and now the world belongs to the "Renhe" heroes.

The changes in the world are so rapid that it is hard to keep up. The "laws established by our ancestors" from decades ago have collapsed completely. The study of things, mathematics, firearms, navigation, and even the structure of the court and the establishment of the army... one by one, are driving the world's momentum forward in a mighty and unstoppable manner.

The younger generation is rising rapidly, and the old meritorious officials will eventually come to an end.

……

Just as An Yuanshou thought, even though Cheng Yaojin was unruly and self-righteous, he was still wary of his junior Fang Jun.

"In the blink of an eye, the ignorant, dull and stupid kid has grown up to this point. Even I have to look at his expression. It's really depressing!"

In Guzang City, Cheng Yaojin expressed such emotion while drinking.

Pei Xingjian's words sounded nice and he gave him a lot of face. He kept saying it was a "suggestion", but in fact it was no different from an order. Could Cheng Yaojin refuse? Did he dare to refuse? If he said "no" now, Fang Jun would slander him in front of the emperor, so that no matter how meritorious he was, he would not be able to return to Chang'an...

Today, Fang Jun is no longer simply "the top five in the army", but has formed his own faction surrounded by a series of civil and military officials selected by His Majesty. He not only enjoys the trust of His Majesty, but can also influence the situation in the court.

He is like a true faction leader, influencing the direction of the empire.

Niu Jinda, who had just arrived at Guzang City, felt cold all over. He drank some wine to warm himself up. His thoughts were much simpler: "We are all soldiers of the empire, why should we kill each other? Since An Yuanshou has decided to surrender and move his entire family to Guanzhong, our goal has been achieved. There is no need to kill everyone."

Cheng Chuliang, who was standing by, poured wine for the two of them, secretly drank a sip when they were not paying attention, and then advised: "Uncle, what you said makes sense. Fang Er is the one who cares about the soldiers the most. He always says, 'Unite all forces that can be united, and face the outside world with one sword'. He hates civil war the most. He is lenient to the inside and cruel to the outside. If we attack Fanhe City now, no matter what excuse we make, he will definitely be disgusted. If we don't agree with Pei Xingjian's suggestion and cause the 'Tubo strategy' to suffer losses or even fail, he may disregard the friendship between the two families and do his best to stop father from leaving Chang'an."

In fact, "Tangists" like Fang Jun are not uncommon nowadays, most of whom are young officials and military generals. These people believe that "Tang does not have an inch of extra land" and "Tang people are the most noble and noble race in the world". They advocate "using the world's resources to support the people of Tang" and "everyone should speak Chinese and write Chinese characters". They advocate "using force to promote the spread of culture" so that "Chinese civilization will shine on the world"...

Cheng Chuliang deeply agreed with this.

Since we are born in the best era, we should use our own strength to expand the territory of Chinese civilization and lead the masses. If we are confined to the power and wealth of a family, what is the difference between us and the mole crickets in the soil or the cicadas chirping on the treetops?

Cheng Yaojin glared at his son and said unhappily, "You can think of something, do you think I can't think of it? From the beginning to the end, I never thought of killing all the Zuo Xiaowei!"

Niu Jinda also smiled and explained to Cheng Chuliang: "Pei Xingjian is in Ganzhou, less than a hundred miles away from Fanhe City. How could he watch the life-and-death fight here and threaten his 'Tibetan strategy'? So even if An Yuanshou did not go to ask for help, Pei Xingjian's intervention was inevitable."

As for Yin Hongyong offering the An family's hundreds of years of accumulated wealth with both hands, it was an unexpected surprise...

Cheng Chuliang was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but admire his old father deeply. He was indeed cunning and sly.

Thinking of the huge amount of money from the An family, Niu Jinda was a little worried: "General, it's not a good idea to swallow all of this money, right? After all, we are using the banner of searching for contraband to attack An Yuanshou, and this money must be exposed. If we swallow it, I'm afraid that there will be a lot of discussion in the court and the public, which will hinder the general's return to Chang'an."

Everyone is jealous. If the imperial censors knew that Cheng Yaojin had swallowed up the wealth of the An family for a hundred years, how could they remain indifferent? Why can you, a "criminal minister" who was sent to Hexi by His Majesty, make such a fortune?
No one is perfect, and no gold is pure. Once you are targeted by these censors, they will always find some faults in you, and then attack and impeach you.

Unless you collect dirt on the censors like Fang Jun did back then, if you dare to impeach me, I will impeach you in return...

At this critical moment of returning to Chang'an, we cannot allow any unnecessary complications.

Cheng Yaojin gritted his teeth and said, "Then transport them all to Chang'an and hand them over to your majesty's treasury!"

Although His Majesty is very rich now, who can complain about having too much money? With such a huge fortune presented to His Majesty, I think His Majesty will also have some understanding of his past mistakes, and it will pave the way for him to return to Chang'an...

Niu Jinda said happily: "That's right, the commander-in-chief is indeed extraordinary and unmatched!"

"Humph! Stop being so sarcastic!"

Cheng Yaojin glared at Niu Jinda, then drank the wine in the glass in one gulp to suppress the pain in his heart.

The An family's money included so many antiques, calligraphy and paintings, gold, silver, jade, pearls and agates. If they were sold slowly in the East and West markets under normal circumstances, their value would probably be no less than two million strings of cash... It hurt like a piece of flesh was being cut.

Niu Jinda didn't care: "The Marshal is now in charge of a region, which is the highest position a minister can hold. You should calm down and take good care of your family business instead of coveting the illusory 'king of a different surname'. Money and other material things are enough to spend, why bother to be greedy and take everything? You must know that power and money will backfire if not properly managed."

When the water is full, it will overflow; when the moon is full, it will wane. Everything should be just right; don't seek perfection.

Cheng Yaojin snorted: "Do you need to teach me this kind of thing? I know what I'm doing."

Niu Jinda was speechless. What do you think?
I have long been bewildered by the "king of a different surname" and cannot see the way forward...

"Just do as Pei Xingjian said. I'll give him this face."

"Here!"

Niu Jinda agreed, finished the rice in his bowl in a few mouthfuls, picked up the wine pot and filled the bowl, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp, wiped his beard, stood up and saluted: "I will return to Fanhe City now."

Fanhe City is more than a hundred miles away from Guzang. It is extremely difficult to travel in the freezing cold, windy and snowy weather. But when they arrived in Guzang, they only sat down to eat a bite of food before immediately setting off to return to Fanhe City. This shows how difficult it was.

But there is no way. Returning to Chang'an is not only Cheng Yaojin's obsession, but also the common wish of Zuo Wuwei. Things must be implemented as soon as possible to avoid any more trouble.

Cheng Yaojin stood up and patted his old brother's shoulder heavily, feeling a little sorry: "You must be careful when traveling at night. After all, you are old and not as good as before. Take a rest when you are tired, and don't be stubborn."

It's hard to see the road clearly when driving fast on a snowy night, and if you fall off your horse it's no joke.

Niu Jinda laughed, with a relaxed and happy smile on his wrinkled face like an old farmer: "Don't worry, Marshal, I am just waiting for this to happen. I will go back to Chang'an to enjoy my grandchildren and live out my days in peace. I have fought for the Tang Dynasty for half my life, made contributions and shed blood. Now it is time to give way to those impatient young people. If we are open and take the initiative to give way, they may be grateful for our friendship and be respectful when they meet. But if those guys can't wait to push us down, then I will have no place to save my face."

After saying this, he patted his breastplate, indicating that his old bones were still able to gallop on the snowy night and whip his horse, then turned and walked out.

Cheng Yaojin stared in a daze as Niu Jinda's back disappeared in the heavy snow outside the door. He turned around and sat down at the table. He took the wine poured by his son, took a sip, and sighed.

Although the day of putting the weapons into storage and the horses released into the mountains will come sooner or later, when that day is really imminent, my heart is filled with loss and irritability.