hotmtlnovel Chapter 552: Digging a pit and building a circle
Chapter 552: Digging a pit and building a circle
Chapter 552: Digging a pit and building a circle
There are indeed vast lands overseas, but the Western barbarians took the lead, leaving the Celestial Empire with very few options.
These are the places that are directly governed by the imperial court as agreed upon by the central government, such as Japan, Malacca, etc. They have relied on the advantages of being a suzerain state since ancient times to have some advantages in today's world of great contention.
"There is a place called Cape of Good Hope at the southernmost tip of Africa. You should all know this place. Whoever can capture this place will be recommended by me to be made a duke!"
As long as I can help the imperial court capture the Cape of Good Hope, being conferred the title of Duke is nothing.
Let these merchants fight the Western barbarians to the death first, and when the imperial court has time, we can impose a fictitious seal on the country and actually control it, send a large army to station there, and appoint a prime minister.
As for whether these businessmen are willing to hand over the territories they have conquered with great difficulty, I am afraid that no businessman can resist the huge temptation of crossing classes, even if it means losing a huge amount of manpower and material resources.
You should know that when the country was founded, the Xue family supported Emperor Taizu by emptying their family property, and only then was they awarded the title of Ziwei Sheren and became the largest imperial merchant family in the dynasty.
Duke of the Kingdom, who can refuse?
Sure enough, after Jia Cong threw out the huge temptation of being conferred the title of Duke, the breathing of the Beijing business owners present became heavier.
Although they all came from prominent families, they were only side branches, acting as white gloves for the main family.
The title of nobility is probably their biggest dream in this life.
Several people looked at each other, and their eyes were shining.
"My Lord, is this true?"
As soon as Cao Desheng opened his mouth, the others immediately followed.
"My Lord, you are not lying to me about this, are you?"
"That's great! My family's fleet has been to this place before. It's far from home, but the land there is fertile and full of gold!"
Some people only saw the gold and silver at the Cape of Good Hope and the title of Duke promised by Jia Cong, but Cao Desheng, the old fox, guessed the trap in Jia Cong's words.
However, he was still very politically wise. He did not raise any questions on the spot, but looked at Jia Cong meaningfully, lowered his eyebrows and nodded.
When Jia Cong had eaten and drunk his fill and was ready to leave, Cao Desheng asked in a low voice as he sent Jia Cong to the carriage.
"My Lord, I am willing to give up my family and career to help the court take the Cape of Good Hope. The Duke doesn't dare to accept it, so a Viscount or Baron will do!"
……
The envoys of the Western countries were almost driven crazy by the Celestial Empire. Wen Lian and Xu Jin joined forces to set up a large trap under the snow-capped mountains and directly surrounded the coalition forces of the Western countries.
There were thousands of nobles who were captured alive.
They did not dare to let the Celestial Empire throw these nobles into the river to feed the fish. These days, they were anxious to raise money everywhere, while on the other hand, they were wary of each other and negotiated with the people from the Ministry of Rites.
Jia Cong soon received news from the Ministry of Rites. After the news that England and the Celestial Empire had signed the "Treaty of Xiaying Capital", the envoys of the Kingdom of Portugal were both angry and helpless, and finally agreed to the Celestial Empire's request.
Of course, the first option of signing a contract with China always has advantages.
Not only did the Kingdom of Portugal have to use 22 million taels of silver to redeem the captured soldiers, it also had to cede some of Portugal's colonies in India, such as the cities of Cochin and Goa and the surrounding land within a radius of 300 miles.
The Crown Prince who was the Regent immediately went to Prince Ji's Mansion in person. Soon after he had a secret talk with the old prince, a large number of people from Prince Ji's Mansion left the capital.
Daxia’s first overseas fiefdom will probably be made public soon.
Jia Cong is waiting now. The Netherlands should be defeated by England soon.
By that time, the Netherlands' colonies in Borneo would be taken over by the court, and the issue of colonizing Australia would be put on the agenda.
The capital city has gradually become cooler in August, and the festive atmosphere in the capital is more prosperous than in previous years.
Although Jia Lian, Jia Rong and Jia Qiang were not at home, the Ning and Rong mansions still started preparations early.
The Jia family has held several happy events in succession this year. Not long ago, Jia Lian brought good news again. It is simply a series of happy events.
The old lady thinks that during the Mid-Autumn Festival, they should perform opera for three days to have a great time.
Therefore, Jia Cong personally went to Prince Zhongshun's mansion and borrowed the opera troupe from the Thirteenth Prince.
After obtaining Yuanchun's consent, the stage was set up in a garden which would only be opened when Yuanchun came home to visit her parents. At that time, relatives and friends who came to visit could also take the opportunity to visit this royal garden.
On the morning of the eighth day of the eighth month, Jia Cong and Daiyu came to pay their respects to the old lady as usual.
As soon as I entered the room, I heard Baoyu talking to the old lady, and it seemed like they were having a poetry gathering.
Jia Cong asked, "Brother Bao, are you going to attend the poetry meeting?"
"I'm not going to participate. I want to hold a poetry reading in the garden..."
Oh? It's a rare thing!
But it’s not surprising, after all, Baoyu’s poetic talent is well-known in the capital.
On weekdays, those literati and officials often invited Baoyu to participate in poetry and literary gatherings.
That is to say, some time ago, a rumor spread that he was "coveting" his niece's wife, forcing Baoyu not to go out for social events.
"You have to come too. I've already told everyone that your new work will be featured at the poetry reading. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to invite so many people to come."
Baoyu winked at Jia Cong. It would be more accurate to say that this poetry gathering was initiated by him rather than by him using Jia Cong's name.
To be honest, he was reluctant to deal with such matters, but he suddenly discovered something terrible.
Public opinion seems to have always been controlled by the officials.
If you want to influence public opinion, you need a group of mouthpieces that always stand on the same side as the Jia family.
Taking advantage of Jia Cong's success in the previous mathematics competition, Baoyu plans to select enough talents from the official circle and bring them into his core social circle, or preferably into his camp to work in the newspaper.
Since those aristocratic families can support scholars, why can't the Jia family?
Baoyu told the old lady, Jia Cong and Daiyu his plan in detail, and they were all dumbfounded.
"My dear grandson, you have finally grown up!"
The old lady almost cried with excitement. God knows how many years she had been waiting for Baoyu to grow up.
Judging from Baoyu's previous performance, it can't be said to be bad. If he were left to support the second wife's family alone, the old lady would be afraid that the second wife would be eaten up by others without leaving even a bone.
Fortunately, with the blessing of his ancestors, Baoyu finally came to his senses!
Not to mention the old lady wiping her tears in excitement, Daiyu was just staring blankly with her eyes wide open.
But Jia Cong understood that Baoyu was suppressing his natural aversion to such social engagements and began to plan for the family.
So he gave Baoyu a thumbs up: "Second Brother Bao has a good plan. If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have thought of it. Our family really needs someone in Shilin. We can't just passively defend all the time."
It is easy to throw dirty water, but it is extremely difficult to dispel rumors.
Even with the help of the saint's death, there are still people who enjoy spreading rumors about Baoyu and Qin Keqing.
Even though the Dragon Guards had almost filled the Imperial Prison and the huge number of people dying in Caishikou could not stop this evil wind.
Baoyu calmed down the old lady who was crying with joy and excitement, and then explained to Jia Cong with a wry smile: "I have also seen in recent days that even though we have Uncle Jing, you, my father and me, there are still many people in the officialdom who regard us as outliers..."
The Ning and Rong Jia families are the top military families in the country, and there is a natural opposition between the civil and military.
Even though the Jia family first had Jia Jing, who ranked second in the imperial examination, and later had Jia Zheng, who considered himself a scholar, and Jia Cong, who ranked first in the top six, and then had Baoyu, who ranked second in the imperial examination, they were still discriminated against by the officials.
Jia Cong didn't care much about the difference between civil and military officials, and neither did Baoyu.
But there is one thing they all have to admit, history books are written by literati, not to mention the current public opinion.
If the Jia family wants to be able to attack and defend, they must have a certain degree of power in public opinion.
The older generation of literati and scholars can forget about it, as their inherent ideas will not allow the Jia family to enter their circle.
Since he couldn't enter these circles, Baoyu thought it would be better to create a new circle of his own.
It just so happened that the imperial court was about to formulate new imperial examination regulations, which significantly increased the proportion of mathematics.
The Jia family has Jia Cong, a master of mathematics. Which of the scholars who are going to take the imperial examinations would not want to learn from Jia Cong?
"Nominally it's a poetry gathering, and Cong-ge can talk about mathematics at the gathering..."
As long as Baoyu is away from the rouge pile, his IQ is definitely one of the best among the young men in the capital.
"Why don't I ask Sister Bao to come over as well? Since we're going to do it, let's do it in a big way!"
Daiyu also put forward her own idea. The Jia family and the He family are now a natural alliance, so it would be better to bring the He family in as well.
With He Yaomin, the leader of the clean stream, the Jia family can achieve twice the result with half the effort and it will be much easier to build a new circle.
Baoyu clapped his hands and said with a smile, "That's great. Two great mathematics masters are giving lectures. I'm afraid there won't be enough seats in the garden!"
……
Since we are going to hold a poetry reading, we must post the message.
Baoyu went to ask Master She in person, borrowed the title of Duke Rong from his uncle, and began to invite his friends.
Soon, the news of this year's grandest Mid-Autumn Festival event spread throughout Beijing.
The Ningrong Jia family will hold a poetry meeting in the Grand View Garden, which is only opened when the imperial concubine comes to visit her parents!
All the invited young scholars were proud of the gold-embossed invitations they received. If the Jia family's invitations were not all issued under real names, it would not be difficult to sell a invitation for one thousand eight hundred taels.
The news quickly spread throughout the capital, especially the news that Yongfeng Marquis Jia Cong and Mr. Heng Wu would talk about mathematics at a poetry gathering, which directly pushed the poetry gathering held on August 14 to the top of public opinion.
……
"Why don't you send me a post?"
what?
Jia Cong stopped petting the cat in confusion and looked up at the retired emperor who was fishing nearby.
The emperor looked very depressed, slumped in a rocking chair, sipping wine without even lifting his eyelids.
"Why? You didn't call me when there was something going on. Are you afraid that I'll bankrupt your family?"
When people get old, they often become like children.
The old man has been annoyed by his eldest son recently, so he wants to go outside for a walk to relax.
It’s not easy to go to other people’s houses, so Rongguo Mansion is the most suitable one.
When she heard that the Jia family was going to put on a three-day opera during the Mid-Autumn Festival, she had already prepared to secretly leave her eldest son behind.
Unexpectedly, there is even more excitement. The Jia family is going to hold a poetry gathering in the garden...
Snapped!
The old man became angrier and angrier as he thought about it. He raised his hand and patted Jia Cong on the head: "You have no filial piety at all. You don't even know how to send me a letter. I have spoiled you for so many years!"
Jia Cong squatted on the ground, holding his head, and said with a sad face: "I just thought that you would be busy meeting with the emperor's relatives and ministers during the Mid-Autumn Festival and would not have time."
Your Majesty, please wake up! The old man is going to run away and leave you alone!
Unfortunately, the emperor could not see Jia Cong's pleading look, and even if he saw it, he would not dare to speak to him.
Several bombs were dropped in succession, and the court was about to burst into chaos.
If he wants to live a carefree life, he has to seek the old man's protection.
God knows how many ministers who were ready to die for his advice to him were blocked through the gate of Longshou Palace during these days.
"Don't even think about the fourth brother. He doesn't even dare to leave the gate of the Dragon Head Palace!"
Being forced into this state by my subjects is truly a disgrace to me!
The old man dislikes this point of his fourth son the most: his womanly kindness.
With the knife in hand, I can chop off dozens or hundreds of those who don't obey me. I don't believe anyone would dare to object!
But he could understand the fourth brother's idea. If bloodshed could be avoided, it would be better not to shed blood. Today's Great Xia cannot withstand too much turmoil. Before the new generation of talents grows up, the country still has to rely on the ministers in the court to manage the Liu family.
"Of course it is a blessing for the Jia family that you want to go. Why do you need a letter? The whole Daxia belongs to you, the saint. There is no place you can't go."
Jia Cong hurriedly smiled and said, "But there will be too many people coming and it will be a mess. Do you want us to make arrangements in advance?"
But the old man waved his hands and said irritably: "What arrangements? I am a retired old man now. Ask your father to pick me up when the time comes. Don't alarm others."
What a retired old man! Every household has a portrait of the old saint hung in the shrine for worship. Now that Tianyan appears in the garden, who knows how much trouble he will cause.
Forget it, the old man is just bored now, so it would be nice to let him go home and have some fun.
"Dad, is it really okay for you to leave your son alone at home?"
The emperor finally spoke with resentment and sighed helplessly.
He really didn't dare to go out. As soon as he left the gate of Longshou Palace, he would be immediately blocked by those stubborn ministers.
It would be fine if those people had ulterior motives, but most of those who blocked his door and asked him to revoke his order and cancel the imperial decree to reform the imperial examination system were just a little bit conservative and their original intentions were good.
As the emperor, he couldn't just kill all these people, right?
What can I do? I'll just hide.
Let the prince step in front and do the job first, citing his father's orders as an excuse.
The old man retorted without any hesitation: "You want to go too? Sure, as long as you can get out of the gate of Dragon Head Palace, you can go!"
Jia Cong thought of the people who were sitting quietly in front of the gate of Longshou Palace when he arrived, and he shuddered suddenly.
Ugh……
The emperor finally let out a long sigh of resentment and continued to lie down and play.
"Hong'er is so pitiful. Not only does he have to worry about state affairs every day, but he also has to clean up this mess for you..."
Speaking of which, the old man has more resentment than the emperor himself.
Not only does the good grandson have to clean up the mess for the emperor, but doesn't his father have to do the same?
"Old stuff, old stuff..."
The emperor shouted several times, and the busy Dai Quan hurried over.
All I heard was the old man saying, "Is the imperial kitchen ready? Hurry up and deliver food to those people at the door. Don't let them starve to death, that would be so embarrassing!"
Monthly ticket recommendation ticket
I’ll stop here tonight and continue tomorrow. Good night!
(End of this chapter)