Chapter 122                                                                                                                             

Zhou Mengchen received Zhang Juzheng's warning.

Recently, I was staying in the military weapon supervisor and carefully inquired about the news. While focusing on the steam engine, I have started to build a prototype. Although this machine is probably not very useful, it can only prove the feasibility of the steam engine. If you want to make the steam engine useful, there are still a little modification and improvement.

But is it approaching the end of the year? After the last incident at Yuxi Palace, the court suddenly became harmonious.

If not, the candidate for the Minister of War would be difficult to give birth and could not be decided for a long time.

Zhou Mengchen may all doubt whether Zhang Juzheng was right.

This seems to be the calm before the storm.

Zhou Mengchen can understand it. After all, it is not his own business for any Cabinet Grand Secretary to step down. There are a large number of people behind everyone. They all need some time to brew.

But this underwater thing was not something Zhou Mengchen could know.

On the 23rd day of the New Year, Yan Mansion.

It snows in Beijing every winter. But heavy snow cannot stop people's enthusiasm.

At least that's what it is in Yan's mansion.

In the courtyards, there were lights and decorations, maids and servants came and went, and the music was sang non-stop.

However, this is all the fun outside.

When I really got to the inner room, it was no longer lively.

A big round table, Yan Song, Yan Song's wife and even Yan Shifan, Yan Shifan's two sons, sat together in the family.

Yan Song smiled, his rosy face and the white beard below him looked like he was a Santa Claus. He picked up a chopstick for the old woman beside him and said, "This is amazing. This is a fresh vegetable sent from the south. Everything is good in Beijing. It's just that it's hard to see a little green in winter. Madam tastes it."

No matter how Yan Song is, one thing worthy of recognition is that he stayed with Mrs. Ouyang all his life. He has been old until he grows old and has been in love all his life. Even now he is over 60 years old and has already shown his love in front of his children.

Mrs. Ouyang tasted the chopsticks and said, "Actually, it's just that. I still like pickles."

Yan Song put the chopsticks on the table, looked at the delicious food on the table, and said, "I said, why is there something wrong today? I lack this kind of dish, pickles and pickles. People come to bring the pickles I bought from the street the previous time."

A servant immediately went out. After a moment, someone brought up a small jar with his hands together, and there was a mud seal on the top.

Yan Song flipped the chopsticks, pounded them twice, opened the small jar, picked up a chopstick from it, and handed it to Mrs. Ouyang. Mrs. Ouyang ate it, but refused, and frowned slightly. Yan Song leaned forward and asked carefully, "What? It's not to fit his appetite?" After swallowing, Mrs. Ouyang said, "It's this taste, it tastes very positive."

Yan Song said, "That's good, that's good." Yan Song turned his head and said to the servant behind him, "In the future, all the pickles at home should be used. This one is-------" Yan Song looked at the seal and said, "Liu Biju."

The servant immediately said, "Yes."

Yan Shifan had already been restless and said, "Dad, when is it now? What else are you talking about pickles and pickles? What's so delicious?"

After hearing this, Mrs. Ouyang couldn't help but say, "Qing'er, why did you talk to your father?"

Yan Shifan's life is Qing'er, and the legendary prototype of Ximen Qing is him.

Yan Shifan could only bow his head and not speak.

Yan Song said, "Okay, okay. Don't say it anymore. Young people, they have a good appetite and eat everything they like. Unlike us old people, they only taste the same when they eat delicacies in their mouths. Perhaps only these things with heavy tastes can feel chewy."

"Shifan, you must be heavy and calm when doing big things. The world is big and the food is the biggest. Have a good meal for this New Year's Eve dinner. Let's talk about other things."

Yan Shifan was not convinced, and Yan Shifan was one of Yan Song's most trusted people. He fought with Xia Yan openly and secretly. Yan Shifan participated directly and made a lot of contributions. So he could understand the current situation even more. Don't look at it now. It's so lively that you can use an imperial edict to end all this at any time. Yan Shifan is now unwilling to eat and can't sleep at night, but Yan Song seems to be fine. How could he be convinced? He said: "Dad------"

Yan Song's tone slightly worsened, and he said, "I'll talk about other things after dinner."

Yan Song was a little disappointed with Yan Shifan.

Yan Song felt that Yan Shifan’s biggest problem was that he couldn’t hold back.

Now Yan Song has done everything he should do. All kinds of layouts have been completed. He pushed the situation to the point where the emperor had to choose one. Moreover, he made so many preparations before, so that the emperor had prejudice against Xia Yan. Many things must be done just right.

No matter how many, it will be a supplement.

After all, it was tampering with Jiajing's nose.

Of course, the less you take, the better. After all, Jiajing has never been easy to fool.

Now that we have come to this situation, Yan Song estimated that among the guests outside, there must be people from the East Factory and the Jinyiwei, and not just one. Now the best way to do nothing is to do nothing. The more you do, the more you will be, the more you will be, the more you will be mistaken. Yan Song did not fail to explain this truth to Yan Shifan.

But Yan Shifan just couldn't sit still. He was calm when facing major events, not everyone had it.

After hearing Yan Song say this, Yan Shifan was full of resentment and dared not say much. He could only say, "Yes."

Mrs. Ouyang said, "If you have serious business, you don't have to eat here anymore. Go and talk."

Yan Song seemed to laugh as soon as his eyes fell on Mrs. Ouyang's face, and said, "It's okay. Children are always fussy. But they don't know, they are used to it, but they will lose their own mistakes."

Suddenly a servant walked in and whispered in Yan Song's ear: "Gei Master, the news just now is that when the palace gate is coming down today, Your Majesty suddenly asked Mr. Xia to drink, and Mr. Xia is in Xiyuan."

When Yan Song heard this, his eyebrows and eyes suddenly started to laugh. Then he said, "Son, pour me wine, let's have a few drinks today."

If Yan Song had no wrong judgment, Xia Yan would face a big test. Whether he could pass the test depends on how Xia Yan performed today. It is very likely that if he saw Xia Yan again in the future, he would not be a Grand Secretary of the Ming Dynasty Cabinet.

Yan Shifan muttered, "There is no one around you." He just had to come to Yan Song and pour wine for Yan Song with a pot of wine.

Now in the West Garden, Jiajing is also drinking in Xia Yan.

The surroundings are steaming, and although it is winter, it seems to be summer.

Jiajing raised his glass and said, "Xia Qing, I remember what you and my king and minister think, it was eight years old in Jiajing, but now I have been young for twenty years."

Xia Yan stood up and replied, "That's right, in the eighth year of Jiajing, I was just a minister of the Ministry of Personnel. I got the eyes of Your Majesty and I had the ability to be today."

What Xia Yan had to do was to reorganize the etiquette system proposed by Jiajing in the eighth year of Jiajing. It was also considered the second stage of Jiajing's promotion in the great etiquette. The first stage was to worship the imperial examination, and the second stage was to change the etiquette system. The first thing just implemented was to separate the sun and moon altars into the sun altars and the moon altars.

When all the ministers opposed it, Xia Yan supported Jiajing as the Minister of Personnel.

Jiajing was very happy and naturally wanted to promote Xia Yan. Within a year, Xia Yan was a minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and with lightning all the way, he became the Minister of Rites and one of the important officials of the court. The deep experience and the high favors of Zhou Mengchen were incomparable to the treatment of Zhou Mengchen.

Jiajing said, "Xia Qing's words are so important. If Xia Qing does not have talent, I dare not believe that you are more important than you. Now Xia Qing has today, how can it be just my support?"

Xia Yan said, "Your Majesty, I am ashamed of saying this."

Xia Yan said that he was ashamed and dared not take it, but there was a bit of arrogance in his other tone.

Jiajing smiled softly and said, "I'm old, old. I always want to find some old people and talk about old things. But when I see the civil and military officials in the court, there are not many old ministers back then, and only Xia Qing is the only one."
Chapter completed!