"You still can't stop being a duke. I really owe the Zhu Family. When I took a concubine, the Emperor was getting married. I was the angel. I guarded the bridal chamber when he entered. I didn't see Yu 'er and Cher until the second day after they married. Today is Wen Xin's wedding day. I have to choose a husband for the princess. Sigh, Wen Xin has suffered too much for me. I have to go back early today. I can't let another immortal marry me and enter the bridal chamber, can I? "
Yang Ling held his chin in his hand and rested his elbow on the table. He wore a harmless and kind expression. He watched every young man who came up to the stage report their identity and family background and perform on the spot. He didn't nod or shake his head.
Marquis Of Shouning and Eunuch Bi didn't know if the duke was satisfied with his silent but beaming face. They could only act on behalf of the chief selector and decide the candidates themselves. After all, this was the first batch of interviews. There was still a long time before the election. Yang Ling stopped shaking his head. The selection criteria were relaxed. In a short while, more than ten people who passed the preliminary selection were led to the back hall.
Gao Wenxin was very understanding. She knew that she could get Young-niang to marry her as a co-wife mostly because she cured Yang Ling's chronic illness. Yu 'er and Cher wouldn't be unhappy about this. However, even though they were like sisters to them, it was impossible for them to not feel uncomfortable about this kind of thing.
If Yang Ling made a big fuss, his family, friends, and all the officials in the imperial court would come to congratulate him. Especially since he was now a duke, the Emperor would reward him with gifts when he married a co-wife. Yutang Chun and Yutang Chun would be jealous even if they didn't say it. Therefore, Gao Wenxin repeatedly told Yang Ling that she was already married to him. There was no reason for her to marry again. It would be a simple wedding ceremony.
Yang Ling already had two wives and two concubines married into his family, but he had yet to hold a truly grand wedding, including this time when Gao Wenxin married into his family as a secondary wife. Unless he took another wife into his family, he could forget about it. Yang Ling knew that it was impossible for him to take another wife. Since he was not going to hold a wedding, and Wen Xin had these considerations, he did not inform his subordinates or advisors. He only sent a message to Han Wei, Yang Yun Long, Yang Shen, and a few other close friends, inviting them over for a drink.
In another hour, they should be on their way to the Yang Mansion. After discussing with them later, it would be better to disperse first. No matter how these little kids chose, they were all the same. They were either young and naive, or if there was a mature youth, they would be full of schemes and would not be likable.
Yang Ling yawned out of boredom when he thought of this. Before he could close his mouth, the young man standing in front of the stage immediately bowed and asked blankly, "Sir, what do you want to ask?"
"I want to ask …" With this kind of eyesight, how could he apply to be the emperor's son-in-law? Yang Ling waved his hand. He only said one sentence, and the great ambition and beautiful blueprint of this great youth had all gone up in smoke. "Go down!"
Yang Ling ignored that person's grief-stricken face. He said to Marquis Of Shouning and Eunuch Bi in a low voice, "Marquis Zhang, Eunuch Bi, I think it's getting late. Let's stop after another twenty to thirty people. Let's continue the selection tomorrow. What do you think?"
The two hurriedly cupped their hands and said, "As you wish, High Duke."
Yang Ling noticed that a bodyguard on the left side of the stage had secretly gestured to him. He nodded and said, "Very well. Thank you for your trouble. I'll go relieve myself."
He found an excuse to slip off the stage. That person saw that Yang Ling had left the stage and turned to leave first. There were many rooms of various sizes in the Zhuwang Guesthouse. The two of them walked one after the other to a secluded room. The inseparable Liu Bangchao stood at the door and Yang Ling flashed into the room.
This person was called Xia Xiaowen. He had been Yang Ling's bodyguard since the days of the Shenji Battalion. After so many days of training and nurturing, he had long become an independent person. He was in charge of many matters under Yang Ling.
He said in a low voice, "Gongye, Liu Jin has asked for an imperial edict. As expected, the Inner Yard is once again under the jurisdiction of the Department of Rites. Right now, Liu Jin is sitting on a 16-person sedan chair. He is leading his men to the Western Hills. It looks like he is going to catch them off guard and immediately take over all the affairs of the Inner Yard."
Yang Ling smiled slightly and said, "Let him do everything. Big Boss … Oh, what did Superintendent Wu say? "
Xia Xiaowen also smiled and said, "Superintendent Daren said that everything is ready and will be submitted. He is eagerly waiting for Liu Gonggong to come and take over this terrible mess. As the new Superintendent, he has been following Gongye for a long time and has suffered a lot. It's a good opportunity for him to take a break and go home to take care of his grandson."
Yang Ling laughed out loud. After thinking for a moment, he said, "By now, Cheng daren must have received the news that I am safe and sound. Immediately send another order, tell her not to enter the capital. Yu daren is currently in Yangzhou. Have Yu Yong go see her and settle the handover matters. After that, immediately return to Jinling to hold the fort. Jiangnan is the focus of our future development, nothing must go wrong."
Xia Xiaowen hurriedly said, "Yes, the handover of the troops in the six northern provinces started yesterday. Since yesterday, Old Master Han has cut off all contact with the Inner Yard. The news from the north and your orders will be carried out through the communication channel we have established in the military post station."
Yang Ling only nodded his head slightly.
The power controlled by the Inner Yard had now been divided into two. The seven southern provinces were handed over to Cheng Qiyun, and the six northern provinces were handed over to Han Lin. These two major parts included political power, economic organization, and secret military operations. There were specific people in charge of each aspect.
Yang Ling placed the focus of the six northern provinces in Liaodong. He did not seek to make money in this area. In fact, in the beginning, in order to quickly open up the situation, a large portion of the money earned by the Inner Yard in Jiangnan was invested here. He spared no expense to have his eyes and ears spread all over Liaodong and beyond the Great Wall, firmly rooted in this land. This was because he knew that China's internal threats usually came from the north.
He knew that as far as the Great Ming was concerned, the future threat was the Jurchen. But ever since he came to this era, a small change had taken place in the world. Because of his efforts, the development of Tartar, Wala, Wuyangha and Jurchen, three tribes had deviated from the original history. Now the future was uncertain.
No one knew whether the future overlord of the grasslands would still be the Jianzhou Jurchen, or whether it would be a small tribe with a small population among the Tartar, Wala, and other tribes that, by chance, with a few sets of armor and 30 to 50 people, would finally become the ruler of the world. Without a clear opponent, then on one hand, he could only strengthen himself, and on the other hand, weaken possible enemies, and eliminate the danger without a trace.
To strengthen himself, rapid reform was not feasible. Moreover, he was not confident that he could come up with a variety of practical and specific national policies that were suitable for this era.
If he was impatient and acted as the vanguard of reform, he would either be torn apart by the counterattack, or the policy would be too idealistic and become a great leap forward that would bring disaster to the country and the people. Boiling a frog in warm water would not cause too much social unrest. This kind of reform would have a deep social foundation and would not lead to a series of irreconcilable conflicts after a rapid march, which would lead to more severe social problems. But in this case, it would also take a lot more time, so he had to be careful of the nomadic tribes outside the Great Wall. The threat of China had always come from the north since ancient times. The attention that Yang Ling had poured into this place was no less than the attention he paid to the opening of the sea in Jiangnan.
When Yang Ling used troops, it was always' rations' that came first before the troops and horses moved. In a major military campaign, he would never rely on a sudden inspiration to drive an army of hundreds of thousands, or the entire country's financial resources to fight a war that he was not prepared for.
His' rations' included a lot of preparation work in all aspects such as intelligence, propaganda, and so on. If a real decisive battle would only take a month, these preliminary preparations might take a year or even a few years. Only then would he be able to grasp the first opportunity and secure victory.
Seeing that Yang Ling had no other instructions, Xia Xiaowen cupped his hands and retreated to pass on the orders. Yang Ling stopped and let out a long sigh. Very good, Liu Jin has already made his move. All of my strength has to temporarily enter a dormant period and let this Eunuch Liu perform well without fear. If I don't let him jump out and make a big move, I can't let him be deserted by his people and kill him with one blow.
If I do this, I can predict that it will cause a disaster for the people and the bureaucrats. But this kind of temporary sacrifice is necessary. If I really fight with him for decades, that kind of soft exhaustion will be even more fatal. Protracted pain … is not as good as short pain!
In the ancient city of Chicken Crowing Post, the broken limbs that flew in response to the cannon that he personally lit appeared in front of him. Yang Ling shook his head and shook away the distracting thoughts in his mind. He walked out and said to the big stick waiting at the door, "Go, ask those who passed the preliminary in the back hall to write down their resumes and give it to Eunuch Bi. Then go back and wait for the notice. We'll go back to the mansion in a while."
* * *
In the courtyard at the back of the 'Zhu Wang Mansion', the promising young men who passed the preliminary were all smiling and greeting each other. From time to time, they would laugh heartily and put their arms around each other's shoulders. They looked like biological brothers.
But there were dozens of biological brothers in this courtyard, and there was only one princess Ming Destiny was about to marry. If it were not for the dozens of pairs of eyes staring at these prospective son-in-law who seemed to be talking and laughing as if they were brothers, the hands that were placed on the necks of their 'biological brothers' would have seized the opportunity to strangle them to death, and there would be one less for them.
Oh, another one came in. The son-in-law candidates carefully sized him up, and their eyes immediately shone with vigilance. This boy is more handsome than me. Damn, if you have the ability to become the top scorer, then go and fight with us to be the son-in-law. You're too shameless.
At this moment, three more people came in. The one in the back was a man in his thirties who was dressed in official robes. He did not look like a candidate. The two in front, one tall and one short, were both young, but they were … very handsome!
Their makeup was like jade and their features were like a painting. It was rare to find such a handsome young man in the entire capital. They … they are also son-in-law candidates? Then do I still have a chance? Damn, if you have the ability to become the top scorer, then go and fight with us to be the son-in-law. You're too shameless.
The two princesses in men's clothing immediately became the public enemies. Everyone was jealous and hated them, and the gentleness and magnanimity they pretended to be were all gone. They were all fifteen or sixteen years old, and did not have deep thoughts. Immediately, some of them could not hold back and started to cause trouble.
"Oh my, how can there be such a man with such a strong smell of rouge? He must have been raised as a girl since he was young. How dare such a person come to choose the son-in-law? Will the princess take a fancy to such a wretched ladyboy? What do you all say? "
"Haha, don't say that. Maybe the two of you were going to choose a husband in a brothel, but you accidentally went to the wrong place." These two young men were too much of a threat to everyone. All the competitors temporarily stood on the same side and began to unite against the enemy.
Yongchun was in high spirits, wanting to see which boy could be so lucky as to become her brother-in-law. Suddenly hearing such sarcastic words, she was stunned at first, and then from the hostile eyes of the crowd, she guessed that they were mocking her and her sister.
Princess Yongchun pointed her index finger at the tip of her nose, and said in disbelief, "You … you mean me? Ladyboy? … I'm a ladyboy? "
"Hehe … haha …" The mocking laughter immediately angered Yongchun. She widened her almond-shaped eyes and scolded, "How dare you! How dare you talk to me … to me like this! Do you want to slap yourself?"
"Hahaha, are you fourteen already? Little brother, you came to choose the son-in-law with such a childish voice. You haven't even grown your hair yet, have you?" Mai Ziwei, the second son of the owner of Mai's Clothing Workshop, winked and said.
It was just a disdainful remark, but this second young master Mai had caused a big trouble.
The one in front of them was a princess, a graceful and graceful Yongchun, the budding little princess. Little Yongchun's body had just developed, and she had just grown a few stalks of fragrant grass. She didn't know why her hair had grown there. She secretly went to ask her sister the day before yesterday, and now she was extremely sensitive to the words "haven't even grown my hair yet".
Yongchun's face turned as red as chicken blood, and her almond-shaped eyes widened. She screamed, "You … you filthy dog! You're asking for a beating! "
Although she was a little girl, she usually bowed and played ball in the palace. She was very lively. Among the three siblings, her personality was the most similar to Zhu Houzhao's. From time to time, she would follow the palace guards to practice a few flowery but impractical moves. The palace guards all liked this little princess very much and wanted to teach her everything they knew. But she only did it for fun, how could she be willing to practice hard?
It was rare for this little princess to have a sweet mouth, and she kept calling people 'Master Zhang' and 'Master Li', so the palace guards racked their brains to think of some sneaky moves to teach her, which could be considered as the most primitive self-defense skills for women.
She rushed forward, and her slender palms thrust forward, and two sharp fingers went straight for second young master Mai's eyeballs. Mai Ziwei was so scared that he raised his hands to stop her. Princess Yongchun clenched her left fist, and took the opportunity to attack that person's chest and abdomen with 'Fierce Tiger Steals Heart'. She didn't use much strength, but she hit right between the diaphragm of the chest and abdomen, the place where the meridians of the sun gathered. Mai Ziwei was hit so hard that he curled up on the ground like a shrimp, his limbs twitching, and he could only gasp for air.
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