Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 284: Freshly-minted Wang Er Shao
Alas! The falling flowers have feelings, but the flowing water is ruthless. I, Xue Bingxin, am the ruthless flowing water.

I'm sorry, Roommate Yang, but I want to be the eldest wife. I'd rather be the head of a chicken than the tail of an ox. You are not included in my future.

Xue Bingxin left Yang Yuan's signing room with a deep sense of guilt.

Before she even reached her room, the receptionist Wen Tian came to greet her hurriedly: "Deputy Imperial Order, Madam Zhe of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has summoned you."

coming!

Xue Bingxin knew that Madam Zhe would be very angry when she heard that she had left the palace.

She and Leng Yuchan were Madam Zhe's favorites. She had originally planned to choose one of them to take over her position after they had gained some experience.

I can't go like this. I have to find Yuye first. Yuye is Madam Zhe's adopted daughter. With her around, I will be scolded less.

Xue Bingxin thought about it and hurried to the "Fish Room".

When Xue Bingxin arrived at Fei Yuye's signing room, she saw Leng Yuchan massaging Fei Yuye's shoulders and smiling apologetically: "Good Yuye, please help me and accompany me to the palace."

Fei Yuye was sitting on a chair with a sulky face, and suddenly saw Xue Bingxin. She was immediately furious and slammed the table and said, "Xue, you still have the nerve to come here, you are so awesome!

It’s okay for Yuchan, she was fascinated by that boy Yang Yuan from the very beginning, but what about you?
You keep saying that that Yang is a lecherous and heartless good-for-nothing, but you can't just watch Yuchan jump into the fire pit!

Oh, you don't want her to dance, so you dance by yourself, right? You've turned into a roast suckling pig now, right?"

Xue Bingxin said aggrievedly: "I didn't."

"You still dare to quibble. You didn't have it? If you didn't have it, why did you also leave the palace?"

"I... I don't know either. I was so confused that I even lost my citizenship, hehe."

Xue Bingxin originally wanted to say that she pretended to please Yang Yuan in order to let Yuchan see Yang Yuan's true character. However, Yang Yuan took it seriously and helped her to get rid of her citizenship.

However, she was feeling guilty towards Yang Yuan, so saying this was a bit too cruel.

Besides, how can Leng Yuchan deal with it when you speak so bluntly? She can only pretend to be confused.

Fei Yuye was overjoyed when she heard this and said, "That means you won't follow him like Yuchan did?"

Leng Yuchan said hurriedly: "They won't leave right away."

"I'm not asking you, shut up!"

"Of course!" Xue Bingxin quickly agreed, and added: "However, I don't want to stay in the palace for long, even if I can take over Madam Zhe's position."

"Sooner or later, I will find a good man to marry. Hehe, I like children, I want to have children, I don't want to be alone in the palace for the rest of my life."

"Give birth to life, and let you give birth to a clutch of babies!"

When Fei Yuye heard that at least one of her two good sisters could stay with her, her mood immediately improved. She scolded her with a smile and felt much calmer.

"Well, now that things have come to this, what else can I say? Then I will accompany you two to the palace. Alas, my poor godmother must be pissed off to death by you two useless guys..."

……

After Yang Yuan dealt with some official letters that required his signature and confirmation, Zheng Yuandong sent someone to convey them.

Yang Yuan hurried to the Bafu Hall and saw the Imperial Envoy Mu En sitting in the hall drinking tea and chatting with Zheng Yuandong.

The rank of the Imperial City Envoy is actually not very high, so logically speaking, he is not qualified to be on equal footing with the Du Chengzhi.

However, the Imperial City Envoy was a low-ranking but powerful position, in charge of a government office with nearly 10,000 men and women.

Moreover, he was once the emperor's groom, adjutant and personal bodyguard, so Zheng Yuandong did not dare to look down on him.

As soon as Yang Yuan arrived, Zheng Yuandong said with a smile, "Sit down. Mu Tiju will hand over the case file to you. I also need to explain some details of the case to you."

Thanks to Mu En, Yang Yuan got a seat in front of Zheng Yuandong for the first time, and he sat below Mu En.

Mu En smiled and said, "The Imperial City Department has been very busy lately, and the emperor has asked us to transfer all military crossbow cases to the Speed ​​​​Machine Department.

In addition to handing over the files, I also want to tell you some of the tedious details I found before."

The imperial envoy Mu En then introduced him to Yang Yuan.

After discovering the military crossbow, of course we have to investigate its origin.

At that time, the focus of the investigation was mainly on the Military Equipment Bureau, which was manufacturing the Mahuang Crossbow.

What Mu En introduced to Yang Yuan was the investigation results in this regard.

Since many tedious details could not be written in the file, I gave him a verbal explanation.

After listening to Mu En's introduction, Yang Yuan gained a more comprehensive understanding of the military equipment manufacturing of the Song Dynasty.

The manufacture of weapons and equipment of the Song Dynasty was mainly the responsibility of the Military Equipment Supervisor in Lin'an.

The Military Equipment Bureau had north and south workshops under it, and local states also had craftsman workshops, which were mainly responsible for manufacturing some conventional weapons on their own, as well as assisting the north and south workshops in making some standard parts.

The superior leadership department of the Ordnance Inspectorate has changed several times, and now it has become a state of overlapping institutions.

On the surface, the Military Equipment Inspectorate is now under the management of the Ministry of Industry.

However, there was also an Imperial Arsenal with basically overlapping functions, which also had leadership responsibilities for the Arsenal.

The officials of the Military Equipment Bureau were basically civil servants.

Civil officials focus on government affairs but neglect technical skills. Even though in the history of military equipment development, there have been civil officials such as Zeng Gongliang and Shen Kuo who have contributed to the development of military technology, they are ultimately rare.

Therefore, the efficiency of military equipment research and development was actually not high. The continuous improvements and innovations of weapons such as the Shenbi Bow, Kedi Bow, and Mahuang Crossbow were all discovered by military generals during their use.

It was precisely because these inventors held high positions in the military that they were able to promote the progress of the Ordnance Inspectorate in turn.

If the developer is just an ordinary craftsman under the Ordnance Administration, sometimes some innovative developments will be ignored.

Mu En began to induce skillfully when introducing how they investigated the workshops in the north and south to find out the reasons for the loss of military equipment.

Why did Mu En choose to have people discover the "Ma Huang Crossbow" in Shanyin?

Of course, there are reasons for this.

Because there was a garrison in Shanyin, although there is no clear evidence that its general was loyal to Qin Hui, this person's promotion was indeed achieved through Qin Hui.

Now that the government was determined to cut off Qin Hui's influence, it fabricated the "Military Crossbow Theft Case" and attributed the incident to Shanyin, thus giving it the opportunity to demote the generals of the local garrison to other places.

Otherwise, the officials would feel uneasy if there was an army so close whose loyalty could not be confirmed.

The unexpected discovery of Zhang Yunyi, the commander of the Dinggong Army, was a pleasant surprise for the emperor.

This army is indeed in the dark.

The Dinggong Army has been keeping a low profile all this time. If Qin Hui had not wanted to cover up for his brother-in-law and secretly transferred them to the local area to quell the rebellion, and if Cao Yong had not taken the initiative to expose them, they would not have been exposed.

Yang Yuan listened carefully to Mu En's introduction and finally expressed his own thoughts.

He needed to spread the word in the capital, claiming to the outside world that the "Ma Huang Crossbow Theft Case" had been concluded.

In this way, the person who actually stole the Ma Huang Crossbow could relax and let down his guard.

He had to go on a secret visit, under the pretext of going to his friend Shen Garden, to contact the local spies of "Yu Zi Fang" and conduct a secret investigation.

Mu En didn't care about this.

He knew better than anyone where the crossbow came from. He didn't care whether Yang Yuan went to investigate openly or secretly, the trap had been dug, as long as he could achieve the result the government wanted in the end.

Zheng Yuandong was very supportive of Yang Yuan's plan. Since Privy Councilor Qin Hui had already given a deadline of New Year's Day, taking an unconventional approach might be more effective.

However, the person in charge of the "Ma Huang Crossbow Case" was Prince Pu'an Zhao Yuan. If one wanted to release the false information publicly, Zhao Yuan's approval was required.

So, Yang Yuan decided to go to see Prince Pu'an with Mu En.

Yang Yuan immediately stood up and was about to leave with Mu En, when Zheng Yuandong suddenly called Yang Yuan.

Yang Yuan cupped his hands and said, "I accept your order. Anything else you want to say?"

Zheng Yuandong looked at him and asked curiously, "Yang Chengzhi has finished the 'Fajie Test'. How do you think you did?"

Yang Yuan was stunned. It turned out that even an official of his rank had such a strong curiosity.

Yang Yuan said: "I think it's OK."

Zheng Yuandong asked, "Are you sure you can pass the exam?"

Yang Yuan thought to himself that Shishi's high level of talent and learning was recognized by many famous scholars and powerful people in Tokyo.

Since her youth, she has been the one who talks and laughs with all the great scholars, and has no unlearned friends.

As a result, her vision and perspective are far beyond the reach of those who spend all day burying themselves in piles of old papers studying poetry and books.

Among the scholars taking the imperial examinations seen in the examination hall, who can have her knowledge, insight and realm?
Not to mention passing the imperial examination, it probably wouldn't be difficult for Shishi to get the title of Jieyuan, right?
As the saying goes, one must be able to shock others with his words. Thinking of this, Yang Yuan said confidently, "I will definitely pass the exam. It is not impossible for me to get the top prize!"

Zheng Yuandong looked surprised, nodded, and said with a smile: "Okay! If Yang Chengzhi can pass the exam, he will be the first person in my Jisu Department who has switched from martial arts to literature, and I will also be proud of it. You go."

Yang Yuan bowed and left with Mu En.

Zheng Yuandong shook his head and sighed, "Ignorance is really fearless. If you hand in a test paper and know where you did not answer well, then you answered well.

I feel so good about myself, I can't see any faults, oh! It seems I won't pass the exam..."

……

Mu En and Yang Yuan rushed to Prince Pu'an's mansion together and met Zhao Yuan.

Zhao Yuan listened to Yang Yuan's explanation, thought for a while, nodded slowly and said: "Okay, once people lose their guard, they will easily reveal their flaws.

I will spread rumors to confuse the enemy, and you can go incognito and investigate secretly. This way, we will have a better chance of finding the real culprit."

Zhao Yuan said, "It's just that the emperor is very concerned about the theft of the military crossbow. I have to go to the palace first to explain the matter to the emperor to avoid misunderstandings.

Go ahead and do as you say. I will announce the case closed tomorrow."

Yang Yuan was overjoyed. Generally speaking, the candidates for the crown prince position would be extremely cautious and would rather do nothing than do something wrong.

However, the two candidates for the crown prince of the Song Dynasty are really different.

The Goose King is the type who does what he wants. No matter who he loves, don’t expect me to do what you like.

The Prince of Pu'an was a man of courage and responsibility, and he confirmed his arrangements without consulting the emperor.

Yang Yuan said goodbye and left. Zhao Yuan smiled and nodded, saying, "This Yang Yuan is a man of strategy, not just an ordinary warrior."

Mu En smiled and said, "After all, he has been lurking in the North Country for ten years, and he relies on his brain. By the way, I heard that Yang Yuan participated in this year's "Fajie Test" when I was in the machine speed room. It seems that he wants to switch from martial arts to literature and obtain a good reputation."

"Oh?" Zhao Yuan became interested as soon as he heard it.

He knew that his second brother had no intention of competing with him, so the position of crown prince would definitely be his in the future.

Therefore, he has been consciously cultivating his own team in case one day he inherits the throne and has few trusted people to use, he will inevitably be controlled by his subordinates.

But he really didn't think highly of Yang Yuan.

It’s not that he underestimated Yang Yuan, but Yang Yuan had a shallow foundation. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t go high or far. This was an objective fact.

Therefore, although Zhao Yuan looked at Yang Yuan differently because of his brother Zhao Yu, he only had the intention of taking care of him, not cultivating him.

At this time, I heard that Yang Yuan actually wanted to switch from military to literary and take imperial examinations. If he really passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi, his room for advancement would be opened up and there would be unlimited possibilities in the future.

Zhao Yuan immediately became interested: "Did he take the imperial examination? It would be great if he could pass it."

Mu En was a pure military man. He was the one who held the stirrup of Zhao Gou's horse. He learned cultural knowledge later.

He didn't understand the twists and turns in the examination hall. Yang Yuan said that it was not impossible for him to become the top scorer.

Zheng Yuandong's reaction after hearing this was very pessimistic, but Mu En said, "Since you said so, it seems that you can really pass the exam."

So Mu En replied: "Yang Chengzhi is full of confidence. He once said that it would not be difficult to pass the exam and become the top scorer!"

Zhao Yuan was immediately moved and said in surprise, "Yang Chengzhi is actually full of talent? I misjudged him. If he can really get the title of Jieyuan in the imperial examination, then he will definitely be a Jinshi. Great! Great!"

Zhao Yuan immediately turned around and told the secretary, "One month later, when the results of the exam are posted, go check for me and see if Yang Yuan can get the first place!"

……

When Yang Yuan was bored in the examination room, he had already thought about how to go to Shanyin in disguise to investigate.

He decided to disguise himself as a wealthy businessman and appear in Shanyin under the pretext of attending Lu You's invitation to a meeting at Shen Garden.

In this way, his appearance will not attract attention, and he can appear to be in the dark while looking for a "scapegoat".

As for the identity of this wealthy businessman's son, he had already thought about it and decided to borrow the identity of Young Master Wang's family.

Isn't Mr. Wang's father the richest man in Longshancang? So he went to Shanyin as the second son of the Wang family. All he had to do was persuade Lu You to help him conceal his true identity.

Dan Niang and Qing Tang will go their own way, and ask Uncle Gou to accompany and protect them, and to use their various skills to support me.

As for Emmanuelle Belle, just stay by my side and act like a concubine.

It is reasonable for a merchant family who is engaged in wholesale of goods at the dock and frequently deals with Chinese and foreign merchants to take a foreign woman as a concubine, right?
The "Chanzifang" side was short of staff to begin with, and he was on a secret visit, so he didn't bring many people with him.

The receptionist Wen Tian seemed smart, so he took him to Shanyin to serve.

As for the other personnel, they must stay in Lin'an and ensure the normal operation of the "Chan Zi Fang".

Otherwise, if something went wrong with the "Chanzifang" while he was in Shanyin, causing trouble for him, that would be troublesome.

When he found something, he directly mobilized the spies of "Yu Zi Fang" in Shanyin and asked them to cooperate in the operation.

He had figured out all these in the examination room. It would not be difficult to mobilize these people and it could be done tomorrow.

So, after leaving Prince Pu'an's Mansion, Yang Yuan went to Renmeifang.

Before leaving, he always said hello to Shishi.

Moreover, he had to take Emmanuelle Belle away from Shishi and send her to Wang's house one day in advance, and leave from Wang's house tomorrow.

Yang Yuan knew that Shishi had taken those foreign women and Hu girls to Shishan a few days ago.

However, he was not worried that he would come to Renmeifang empty-handed.

He has already finished the exam, so there is no reason for Shishi not to return to the city. This is the tacit understanding between him and Shishi.

(End of this chapter)