My father is Jiajing

Chapter 285: Fierce Minister
Speaking of Li Chunfang and Zhao Zhenji, they might be considered young people in the eyes of Emperor Jiajing, but they were not young in Zhu Zaigui's eyes.

Especially Zhao Zhenji, who was older. He was born in the third year of Zhengde, and now he was forty-five years old, five years older than Gao Gong, and not far from the age of fifty.

But unfortunately, his official career was a bit bumpy. At the age of 45, he was only a fifth-rank Zuo Yude.

But even so, we should not underestimate the noble civil servants like Zhao Zhenji who came from the Hanlin Academy, because the promotion speed of this kind of civil servants is simply beyond common sense. It may not be a surprise that one day he will be promoted directly to the Nine Ministers.

Therefore, even though he was only a 45-year-old fifth-rank official, no one would underestimate Zhao Zhenji's official rank. They would only regard him as a noble Hanlin who could soar to a high position at any time.

Because he had stayed in the capital for too long, and he was a Jinshi in the 14th year of Jiajing, and was appointed as a Hanlin. He had both qualifications and connections. No matter how you look at it, he was a potential stock that should not be underestimated.

After Emperor Jiajing issued the decree to re-establish the Hongwenguan, Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang immediately went to Prince Yu's mansion to pay a visit to Prince Yu.

Although Hongwenguan is not a high-ranking institution, this does not hinder their excitement.

Because anyone with a discerning eye could see that His Majesty the Emperor re-established the Hongwenguan and let Prince Yu lead it, which was obviously to help Prince Yu build up his reputation and cultivate a team.

And the two of them were selected to work in the Hongwenguan, so wouldn't they be the future direct descendants of Prince Yu?
Once Prince Yu's title and position are confirmed, or he succeeds to the throne, then wouldn't all those who followed Prince Yu in the early days be able to rise to the top and become candidates for the government?
So Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang came to Prince Yu's mansion amid the envy of many Hanlin nobles.

Zhu Zaigui knew that Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang would come to visit him today, so he did not arrange anything else and just waited for them in the palace.

Meng Chong waited on Zhu Zaigui, who had just finished practicing Xiantian Gong, handed him a towel to wipe his sweat, and said, "Your Highness, Mr. Zhao and Mr. Li have arrived."

Meng Chong's way of addressing Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang is also very interesting.

Zhao Zhenji was called Mr. Zhao not because he was old, but because in the 23rd year of Jiajing's reign, Zhao Zhenji was selected by Emperor Jiajing to be an instructor in the Silijian, specializing in educating some smart eunuchs in the inner palace. It happened that Meng Chong was also in that eunuch training class, so Meng Chong had such a respectful title for Zhao Zhenji.

As for calling Li Chunfang Li Zhuangyuan, that is even simpler, because Li Chunfang was indeed the top scholar in the 26th year of Jiajing, so calling him the top scholar is also a compliment.

After all, Li Chunfang is still gaining experience in the Hanlin Academy and has not yet held any important position. If he had held any important position, he might have been called Li Jia.

For example, people who are similar to Hai Rui nowadays would call him by his courtesy name or pseudonym, while those who are not familiar with him would call him by his official titles such as Hai Zhushi or Hai Shenshi.

As for the official title "Sir", which is well-known in later generations, it was not popular in the Ming Dynasty.

Because the title "adult" also means "father", anyone who has some dignity will not flatter others and call them "adult".

However, as the feudal order continued to strengthen and the official hierarchy became increasingly strict, in the middle and late Qing Dynasty, some people, in order to seek opportunities, began to shamelessly call high-ranking officials "sir" in order to get a chance for promotion.

Therefore, under the influence of such bad habits, over time, the solemn term "Sir", which was originally used to address parents, gradually became a popular term for officials to greet each other, which seemed extremely flattering and shameless.

Zhu Zaiqi wiped his sweat with a towel and laughed, "Why are they here so early? I just finished my morning exercise and haven't had time to eat breakfast yet, and they're here?"

Meng Chong said, "Yes. After Mr. Zhao and Li Zhuangyuan received the emperor's order to dispatch them, they came to the palace to pay their respects. This shows how respectful these two people are to the prince." Zhu Zaigui wiped his sweat and smiled, "Since they came so early, they must not have had breakfast. Go and arrange two servants to bring them breakfast. After I finish my bath, take them to the study and wait for me."

Meng Chong responded with a "yes", and then went to entertain Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang, who were visiting Prince Yu's Mansion for the first time, according to Zhu Zaigui's instructions.

The two people waiting in the front yard of Prince Yu's Mansion never expected that they would receive breakfast rewarded by Prince Yu before they even saw him.

Although they had eaten on the way here, they were still very moved by the meal given by Prince Yu and ate another meal.

At the same time, the two of them couldn't help but wonder in their hearts, is the food in Prince Yu's Mansion so light and simple?

Of course, they would not ask such a question so easily, so after excitedly eating the meal given by Prince Yu, the two were taken to the study by Meng Chong.

About a quarter of an hour later, after having breakfast, bathing and changing clothes, Zhu Zaigui went to the study wearing a warm casual suit.

When Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang saw Zhu Zaigui appear, although they had never seen Zhu Zaigui up close before, they recognized at a glance that the young man in front of them was the third son of the current emperor and the eldest living son, Prince Yu.

"Your Highness, I, Zhao Zhenji (Li Chunfang), pay my respects to His Majesty."

Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang bowed solemnly to Zhu Zaigui.

Zhu Zaigui looked at Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang with a serious look, and looked at them curiously for a few seconds, then said, "No need to be polite, both of you, please stand up quickly."

Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang said again: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Zhu Zaiqi looked at the two and said, "Please sit down. There is no need to be polite here."

Then Zhu Zaigui asked Meng Chong to go and look at the tea.

At this time, Zhu Zaigui also looked at Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang carefully.

Although these two people's achievements and fame in history are not as great as Gao Gong and Zhang Juzheng, they are still important historical figures that cannot be ignored. In some important historical events, these two people also play the most important roles.

Moreover, in the original history, both of them entered the cabinet during the Jiajing and Longqing periods when the court was full of powerful ministers, especially Li Chunfang, who even became the chief minister of the cabinet.

From this, it can be seen that the abilities of these two people are beyond doubt. Otherwise, how could they have stood out from so many talented people and become famous for a while.

After Zhu Zaigui finished looking at Zhao Zhenji and Li Chunfang, he asked, "Do you know the intention of your majesty in re-establishing the Hongwenguan this time?"

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(End of this chapter)