Starting from a thatched cottage, the farmer embarked on the road to wealth through imperial examina

Chapter 410 Let Me Consider

The emperor had no doubt at all about the confidence in Mr. Cai's words. He once asked someone to secretly check some of the manuscripts of Liang Jingcheng and Ye Changyan in the Imperial Academy.

Liang Jingcheng's poems are beautifully written, often giving things an anthropomorphic perspective, and the writing is often parallel, echoing each other, with a brisk rhythm, and often double entendres to achieve a humorous and implicit expression effect. Liang Jingcheng's poems are also often found in various allusions, which shows that he has read a wide range of books. The most valuable thing is that Liang Jingcheng's poems, in their beautiful words, often contain metaphors, and are more concerned about the suffering of the people and the livelihood of the people. This is also closely related to the horizons he has broadened in the past few years of studying with Mr. Cai.

When the emperor read the several manuscripts of Liang Jingcheng that were copied by the Hundred Cavalry Division, he could not help but admire them. Liang Jingcheng's vision and insights were several levels higher than those of several princes who had lived in the capital for a long time. What was rare was that Liang Jingcheng had a heart full of compassion for the world.

Just as Cai Zhengqing said just now, Jingcheng is indeed very similar to Ruining in his youth when it comes to studying, and it can even be said that he is better than his teacher.

Although Ye Changyan's poems are also meaningful, compared with Liang Jingcheng's, they are far inferior in terms of intention and artistic conception, and the emotional expression is far less rich and delicate than Liang Jingcheng's.

This may be closely related to his family background and growing environment. Growing up in a remote lower county in Yuzhou, he can make every sentence he says meaningful, which is not too bad compared with ordinary students in the Imperial College.

However, some of Ye Changyan's views on the policy paper were so impressive that even the emperor could not help but applaud after reading the manuscript copied by the Hundred Cavalry Division. The emperor remembered the following two paragraphs in Ye Changyan's policy paper.

People despise misers, believing that they have no sympathy and are not kind people. If such a person becomes an official, he will turn a blind eye to the suffering of the people, causing the people to live in poverty and arouse public anger. However, students believe that the court needs a group of such misers, and these people can be arranged to manage the national treasury. They will firmly control every penny in the treasury in their own hands, which can at least save a lot of silver for the national treasury.

People also say that those who talk big are all flashy fools. If such people become officials, they will only be able to talk big but do nothing. However, students believe that the court also needs a group of people who are good at talking big. These people can be arranged to go to the Honglu Temple and let them wander around the border, go deep into Mobei, Qiang and Hu and other places, and use their eloquent tongues to disrupt the public opinion and vision of foreign countries.

What the emperor valued was not only Ye Changyan's novel ideas in policy essays, but also his brilliant ideas that kept coming out of his mind. If his Ministry of Revenue could have such a person who could constantly come up with brilliant ways to make money, the emperor would not have to constantly hear the Minister of Revenue and other senior officials arguing with each other.

The mysterious relationship between Ye Changyan, Gongshu Wuji and Yujing Palace was also a decisive factor in the emperor's reluctance to touch Ye Changyan easily.

Old Cai saw the excitement in the emperor's expression, and thought of the smiles of Ye Changyan and Liang Jingcheng, so he hardened his heart and continued talking.

"Your Majesty, perhaps it is a pity that I cannot have my own children due to an accident, but I have a group of disciples and grandchildren around me. I feel that this is another kind of family happiness. During the two years when I was away from Beijing, my wife's grave was visited by several of my fellow apprentices in Beijing, including their wives and children, during the Qingming Festival and the winter holidays. Although each disciple has a son and a daughter, they have not fallen into the tragic situation of no one visiting the grave."

The emperor was touched by Mr. Cai's words, but he listened to what Mr. Cai continued to say.

"When Ye Changyan became my disciple, he said that he would serve me till the end of my life. With the assets that Ye Changyan has now, it is not difficult for him to buy a courtyard in Beijing. Even after his parents and siblings came to Beijing, they never proposed to move out. Jing Cheng also told me that he would take care of me until the end of my life. Although I am not worried about no one to take care of me until the end of my life, I know that these two children are people who keep their promises."

The emperor heard the hidden meaning in Mr. Cai's words, but he just shook his head slightly.

"These two children have such knowledge, so they will have great reputations in the future. If Mr. Xiang accepts a few disciples with high moral character, they will have no worries about having no one to serve them until the end of their lives. But how can I explain this to the Queen Mother, Ruining, and my brother and sister-in-law?"

The emperor's attitude was clear in his words. He was unwilling to separate the two children. Old Cai breathed a sigh of relief and a faint smile slowly appeared on his face.

"Your Majesty, I think that letting go of King Cheng is another way to make up for his regrets. Princess Cheng probably doesn't want her tragedy to happen again. She probably hopes that the child she saved with her life can live happily according to her wishes."

Mr. Cai's words reminded the emperor of Ruining's last words before his death. Just as Mr. Cai said, this might be another way to fulfill Ruining's wish.

"The Queen Mother's love for Jing Cheng should be no less than your Majesty's. Perhaps the Queen Mother still feels that she owes a lot to this child. Your Majesty should communicate well with the Queen Mother, and I believe that the Queen Mother will understand."

Cai Zhengqing was right. The empress dowager did feel guilty about the child. If one were to say who in the world cared most about the child, it would undoubtedly be the empress dowager. The senior palace maid who served the empress dowager often heard the empress dowager calling Jing Cheng's name in her dreams.

Seeing that the emperor's expression had eased, Mr. Cai did not forget to add more firewood.

"Your Majesty, if Your Majesty and the Queen Mother plan to let Jingcheng recognize his ancestral ancestors in the future, then adopting a child from the royal family will not be too difficult. Similarly, if these two children like children, Ye Changyan can also adopt a child from his younger brother, Ye Jiawulang. In this way, these two people will also have successors."

Thinking of Ruining's tragedy, it must be said that Mr. Cai's suggestion did move the emperor, and the emperor then calmed down.

"Let me think about this carefully first. Don't let the two of you leak the news, and don't let those two children see any clues."

Mr. Cai and Lu Tingfeng both bowed in agreement.

Then the emperor changed the subject, sighed, and spoke.

"Jingping is a kid who is much older than his brothers, so he can't really get along with them. But by chance, he became close friends with Jingcheng and Ye Changyan, two kids of the same age, at the Northern Suburbs Racecourse."