Chapter 155 Erzhu Rong's Goodwill (5k)
Su Chuo's courtyard was right next to the Henan government office. After Su Ze pushed the door open and entered, he heard voices of conversation in the courtyard. Su Chuo was talking to two young men. When he saw Su Ze, he quickly stood up and said, "Senior Brother!"
The two of them both became disciples of Li Daoyuan and had a very close relationship. When Su Ze was serving in the Yulin Army, he would often go in and out of Su Cho's courtyard.
The two young men behind Su Cho stood up, and Su Cho quickly introduced them to both parties:
"Brother, Brother Yang Shi, is the one I just mentioned, the Yu Lin Captain Su who returned with the General Bei Zheng. He and I are both disciples of Master Li!"
"Brother Su, this is my elder brother Liang, and this is my brother Yang Kan, who was born in the Yang family of Taiyang. He just came back from the expedition to Jizhou with the great governor of Yuan Dynasty, and has been promoted to Shangshulang for his meritorious service."
It turned out to be Su Liang. Su Ze looked at this man who looked similar to Su Cho. He was much more calm than the somewhat immature Su Cho, and his every move was full of the demeanor of today's popular celebrities.
People at that time called them the Two Su's, but in fact they were referring to Su Liang who had already entered officialdom. Su Liang was now highly valued by Xiao Baoyin, the Duke of Danyang, and was already the chief clerk in Xiao Baoyin's mansion. Xiao Baoyin would consult him on all matters, big or small.
The other young man was tall, and although he wore a Confucian robe, it could not hide his sturdy upper body. If he put on armor, he would look more like a military general.
The Yang family of Taishan is also a noble family that has been passed down from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the present day. They have produced important officials in the late Han Dynasty, Wei and Jin Dynasties. The most famous among them was a woman, Queen Yang Xianrong, the wife of Emperor Hui of Jin, Sima Zhong.
It is said that Yang Xianrong was extremely beautiful. After the fall of the Western Jin Dynasty, Yang Xianrong was abducted by Emperor Liu Yao of Han Zhao, and was made queen by Liu Yao. She died of old age in this chaotic world.
Although Yang Kan is a man, he is also very handsome. Together with the two Su men, the three of them are so handsome that Su Ze couldn't help but want to make friends with them.
Su Ze looked at the two of them, and the two of them also looked at Su Ze.
Su Liang often heard his younger brother talk about Su Ze. As a close confidant of Xiao Baoyin, Duke of Danyang, Su Liang knew more about Su Ze's meritorious service in the northern expedition than Su Chao.
Li Chong wrote a letter to boast of his achievements, but his achievements were suppressed by the Minister of Capital Affairs Yuan Shen. However, he acknowledged Su Ze's achievements in Pingcheng. In addition, with the strong recommendation of Jiangyang King Yuan Yi, Su Ze was able to break through the shackles of the Zhongzheng system and be promoted to a general with a miscellaneous title based on his achievements.
This is already a remarkable achievement for a child from a poor family.
This also made Su Ze a popular figure in King Jiangyang's camp, and Duke Danyang Xiao Baoyin also wanted to win him over.
This is also because the benefactor that Su Ze followed was Li Chong.
What's even more subtle is that although Su Ze made contributions under Li Chong, Li Chong did not help Su Ze when he entered the official career. In other words, Li Chong was only a benefactor rather than a sponsor. Su Ze only had a superior-subordinate relationship with Li Chong himself, and had no relationship with the Li family.
This also means that the only person Su Ze needs to be loyal to is Li Chong.
Li Chong is already seventy years old now. The merits he has achieved this time are enough to support him in his old age. Su Ze does not have to be loyal to Li Chong's family, so Su Ze is now someone who can be won over.
The knowledgeable people in the court had already seen the signs of chaos, and they tried to win over military generals who were capable of fighting, which objectively led to the improvement of their status.
This time when meeting Yang Kan, Su Liang also wanted to win him over.
Although the Yang family entered officialdom as Confucian scholars in the late Han Dynasty, by the time of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Yang family had become a family of military generals.
Yang Kan's father was General Pingbei Yang Zhi, who brought Yang Kan with him when he was a teenager. It can be said that Yang Kan grew up in a military camp and had amazing archery skills.
In addition, the Yang family also has the family heirloom "Sun Wu's Art of War". Yang Kan has been practicing martial arts since he was a child, and he has extraordinary wisdom and strategy. He is a man of both civil and military talents.
Yang Kan's father once served as the governor of Liangzhou and had connections with all the tribes in Guanzhong. The Su family and the Yang family were also old friends.
So this time, after Yang Kan returned to Luoyang after following Yuan Yao's expedition to Jizhou, Su Liang asked him to meet at his brother's house, hoping that he could join the army of the Duke of Danyang.
Yang Kan returned to Luoyang and served as Shangshu Lang, an official position in the Shangshutai. He was an assistant official who assisted the thirty-six Caos under the Shangshutai in handling the affairs of the Cao.
This position was extremely prominent in the Eastern Han Dynasty, but in the Northern Wei Dynasty it had been suppressed by various officials of the Menxia Province, and the Shangshu Province had become the executive body of the administration. If the Shangshu did not have officials from the Menxia Province, he would not have the power to participate in confidential matters.
Yang Kan served as Shangshu Lang in the Jinbu Cao among the Thirty-Six Caos. This department had a relatively low status and was positioned at the back among the Thirty-Six Caos.
The Jinbu Cao was also under the jurisdiction of the Duzhi Cao, and was under the jurisdiction of the Duzhi Shangshu of the Duzhi Cao. It was the department in charge of reviewing the national treasury money and silk payment accounts, coin minting, and related measures and weights and decrees.
In short, this position belongs to a department with relatively heavy responsibilities, relatively low position, more work, and not much benefits.
As for why it is said that there is not enough profit, since Emperor Xiaowen minted the Taihe Wuzhu coins, the Ministry of Finance has not minted coins for twenty years. How can there be any profit from just managing the account books?
This went against the mainstream of the court, which pursued noble official positions and was unwilling to take charge of mundane affairs, and was a typical corrupt position.
Yang Kan was naturally dissatisfied. He concluded that he had no one in the court, so he was somewhat tempted by the olive branch extended by Su Liang.
Compared with Su Liang, Yang Kan is not very interested in Su Ze.
He still had the habits of the aristocratic children of that era and looked down on military men of lower social status.
Su Ze was not angry. He thought that among the children of aristocratic families these days, the brothers Su Liang and Su Chao were the outliers. It was probably because his status was not high enough that he could not win the hearts of these people.
However, Yang Kan was also a fierce man in history. In the historical timeline before the time travel, Yang Kan followed Danyang Duke Xiao Baoyin into Guanzhong to quell the rebellion. He was an excellent archer and could draw a six-stone bow. When the Guanzhong rebellion leader Mozhe Tiansheng was at the peak of his power, he shot and killed Mozhe Tiansheng with one arrow, causing the rebel army to be defeated.
Yang Kan is both civil and military. Such a sniper-like talent could play a huge role in the Southern and Northern Dynasties when most military generals liked to lead the charge.
But there will be plenty of time in the future. After Danyang Duke Xiao Baoyin falls, Su Ze will have plenty of time to take over his old subordinates.
Although Yang Kan was somewhat arrogant, Su Liang was a smooth-talking person, and with him mediating between them, the four of them were able to get along very well.
Su Ze ordered people to bring gifts from the car and gave them to the three people at the table. Yang Kan also got a blue strong bow that Su Ze got from the system, and Su Liang got a volume of selected works prepared by Princess Chenliu. After receiving the gifts, Yang Kan became much more enthusiastic towards Su Ze.
After the relationship became closer, Yang Kan became more casual. He said:
"I went to the Ministry of Finance yesterday to report, and only then did I know how bad the imperial court's finances have become. This time, Governor Yuan and General Li returned victorious, and the money and silk they gave as rewards are almost enough to empty the treasury of the Ministry of Finance."
Su Liang was also well-informed. He asked, "I heard that the court wants to re-coin?"
Yang Kan shook his head and said, "It's difficult. Emperor Xiaowen was able to mint coins because a new copper mine was discovered at that time. But now the copper mine has been mined. Now the court is short of copper. How can we mint coins?"
The Ministry of Finance is in charge of the archival materials of the products of mountains and lakes. Although Yang Kan did not like the position of Minister of Finance, he did do his homework and learned about the favorable conditions when Emperor Xiaowen minted coins.
At that time, Tongshan had just been discovered, and the relocation of the capital to Luoyang brought about a huge demand, so the Taihe Wuzhu coins were minted. Because the political situation was clear at that time, people from all levels worked together to promote the Taihe Wuzhu coins miraculously.
However, even so, the scope of Taihe Wuzhu was far from wide, including the capital area of Luoyang, the Hedong area where the commodity economy was relatively prosperous, and the Guanlong states along the Silk Road. In the Youzhou area ruled by the Northern Wei Dynasty, fur was still used as currency, and the southern states with developed trade with the Southern Dynasty also used Han Wuzhu coins.
This is the stark difference between ancient coins and modern currencies. Although coins were minted in all dynasties, the lack of currency systems was a common problem in all dynasties due to the underdeveloped commodity economy.
This situation was not completely resolved until the Ming Dynasty. In the middle of the Ming Dynasty, provinces such as Jiangxi were still using shells as currency. It was not until the opening of the sea in the Longqing period that a large amount of silver flowed into the Central Plains. This solved the problem of money shortage in an unexpected way, and silver became the main currency.
The currencies in circulation today are silk, copper coins, luxury goods of relatively stable value, and gold and silver.
What gave the Northern Wei high-level officials a headache was the need to reward meritorious soldiers. The money needed for rewards from two consecutive wars exceeded the funds stored in the treasury. Yang Kan felt that he, as a Shangshulang, had taken on a hot potato.
Su Chao said in surprise: "A few days ago, I heard from Master Li that the Queen Mother summoned all the ministers, opened the treasury, and asked them to take silk home. She also said that they could take as much as they could. How come there was no silk, money or grain to reward the meritorious soldiers?" "Master Li said that some ministers took away more than a dozen pieces of silk, and the Grand Chamberlain Liu Teng even undressed and tied all the silk around his waist, taking away more than 20 pieces of silk, which made the Queen Mother laugh, and she rewarded him with twice as much silk."
Su Chao glanced at Su Ze and said, "General Li and Prince Zhangwu were the greediest. They carried too much silk and fell to the ground. One of them injured his waist and the other injured his foot. The Queen Mother laughed and was angry at the same time. She ordered the guards to drive the two out of the warehouse and not give them a single piece of silk."
"Only Cui Guang, the Imperial Academy's chief priest, and Li Shi, took only two rolls of silk. The Queen Mother was very surprised and asked why they took so little. Cui Guang replied, 'I have two hands, so I can only take two rolls. Any more would be too much.'"
Yang Kan sighed and said, "This is Cui Gong advising the Queen Mother! People only have two hands, so don't be too greedy, but the ministers in the court don't know this truth."
"The Great Treasury is the inner treasury where envoys from various countries pay tribute to the royal family. How to deal with it is a matter for the royal family. I'm afraid that Mr. Cui's advice is useless."
"Now the treasury is full, but the treasury is empty."
Su Ze was also speechless. On the one hand, she could not afford to reward the meritorious soldiers, and on the other hand, she was extremely extravagant and rewarded ministers at will. Empress Dowager Hu really deserved the posthumous title of "Ling".
After Yang Kan finished saying this, he was too lazy to say anything more and just bowed and said goodbye. Su Ze watched the sun pass noon, so he also said goodbye to the Su brothers and continued to visit other friends.
After Su Ze left, Su Liang said to his brother:
"I heard from Lord Danyang that General Li intends to appoint Su Ze as the General Protector of the Qiang. Although this position is a miscellaneous general, because he guards the border, the court will grant him a high title and a government. If Su Ze can open a government, you can apply to be his subordinate."
"Ah? Didn't my brother tell me to carefully choose a career? Last time when General Yuan went north to Jizhou to open a government office, you didn't want me to go."
"Don't you want to be Su Ze's subordinate?"
"Of course not. I admire Senior Brother Su's knowledge and character. I am also willing to go to Qiangdi."
"It would be best if Su Ze is willing to go to Hezhou. If you follow him to Hezhou, you can also avoid the disputes in Luoyang recently. Our Su family is small and cannot withstand the turmoil."
"Brother, are you saying that there will be a big change in the capital?"
Su Liang looked at Qiu Yang and said, "The storm is coming."
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Next, Su Ze went to the residence of his sworn brother Erzhu Rong.
Erzhu Rong was deeply loved by Yuan Yi. His mansion was in a good location and occupied a large area. Silk was hung in front of the mansion to show off his wealth. He did not have the idea of hiding his shortcomings like the Han ministers. However, his behavior seemed very normal in the Northern Wei Dynasty.
This is indeed a crazy era. Thinking about what Su Cho just said about the big treasury, does Li Chong really need those silks?
From the contact during the expedition, it seems that although Li Chong likes ostentation and extravagance, a few pieces of silk are not worth such an outrage, let alone a sprained waist.
The reason why he behaved in such an ugly way was probably because it was an act of self-defilement. He had to reassure the Empress Dowager Hu and other rulers before they would give him the military power and command the troops.
After seeing Erzhu Rong's mansion, Su Ze roughly understood the mentality of these military officials away from home.
If you were not greedy for money or lustful, and had no weaknesses, the court would be worried. You would want to be a saint, and I dare not even think about what you would do in the future!
In the eyes of high-ranking officials like Empress Dowager Hu, greed for money and lust are tolerable, and they can reward you with money, silk, and women to control you.
Every time Erzhu Rong came to Luoyang, he would drive a large number of horses and livestock to show off his wealth, which was also a way to reassure the court.
Su Ze secretly calculated that as his status improved in the future, he would have to develop some "bad habits" so that the court would be at ease.
Thinking of this, the servant who informed Erzhu Rong had already informed the news. Then the red door of Erzhu Rong's mansion slowly opened, and Erzhu Rong, dressed in the clothes of an official, strode out. He walked directly to Su Ze and took Su Ze's hand and walked into the mansion.
"My brother has returned victoriously, so he should come to congratulate me!"
Erzhu Rong enthusiastically pulled Su Ze across the red gate and took his hand directly to the back house, saying as he walked:
"I heard about your great victory in Pingcheng. I wish I could kill the enemy right there with you!"
Then Erzhu Rong sighed and said, "It's a pity that my brother Murong met with such a disaster. If it weren't for my brother's care, I'm afraid my clan would have been wiped out."
What Erzhu Rong was talking about was naturally about Murong Shaozong. It seemed that although he was in Luoyang, he had always firmly controlled the situation in Xiurong.
"Everyone says that you, my brother, are taking credit for defeating the King of Gaoche on the grassland, but I don't believe it. Tell me about your battle experience!"
Su Ze was suddenly moved. Since he traveled through time, he had not found many people who treated him as sincerely as Erzhu Rong. His father-in-law Li Tong was one, Princess Chenliu was one, and even Princess Shouyang was only a mutually beneficial cooperation and physical relationship with him, so she could only be considered half a person at most.
After Erzhu Rong came to Luoyang, he gave him horses and took care of him, showing his true love for his sworn brother.
Erzhu Rong is indeed such an arrogant person. He will not take anyone he looks down upon seriously no matter how you try to curry favor with him.
Anyone who can catch his eye will be treated as a guest of honor, such as his sworn brother Yuan Tianmu.
Su Ze told Erzhu Rong in detail the process of how he defeated the Gaoche army. After listening to him, Erzhu Rong directly asked someone to bring a sand table, outlined the formation on the sand table with a pen, and then began to ask about various details.
Su Ze answered one by one, and Erzhu Rong's sand table simulation was completed, which was exactly consistent with the final battle results.
This time Su Ze was also shocked. Is this the level of a military genius?
Erzhu Rong stared at the sand table and re-rehearsed the formation according to the time. This time he put himself on the Gaoche side, quickly erased the formation, and rehearsed it several times.
At last, Erzhu Rong put down his writing brush and said to Su Ze: "My brother's use of troops can be said to be perfect. Even if I were to command the Gaoche army, there would be no good way to break the deadlock. The best result would be to lead the remnants to escape."
Su Ze believed that Erzhu Rong was not bragging. After listening to Erzhu Rong pointing out the loopholes in his operations, Su Ze felt sweat on his back. Just from the battle formation simulation, Erzhu Rong saw the problems in Su Ze's army, such as the lack of training for the cavalry in his formation and the reckless advance of a team of armored cavalry. If the King of Gaoche had not been so frightened and miscommanded the battle, he might have really been able to escape.
This time Su Ze was really convinced. With the help of the system, he could probably only fight Erzhu Rong on equal terms in a real battle. However, Erzhu Rong had his own elite troops, and he would definitely not be able to defeat him with the Tunqiying.
Erzhu Rong then said angrily: "How ridiculous that the officials in the court are ignorant of military affairs! They don't even believe in my brother's contribution!"
Although Erzhu Rong also wanted to comfort himself, everyone knew that it was because Su Ze's family background was not good enough that his military merits were withheld even though he had made great contributions to the court. However, Su Ze still felt warmed when he heard someone speaking up for him.
Then Su Ze presented Erzhu Rong with a gift, which was a horse bridle used by Changsun Song, a famous general of the founding of the Northern Wei Dynasty, prepared for him by Princess Chenliu. Erzhu Rong was very happy and asked his men to send five top-quality horses to Su Ze on the spot.
"Brother, this gift is too precious!"
Erzhu Rong said nonchalantly: "Just consider it as a gift from me to congratulate you for your victory in your first battle!"
Then Erzhu Rong asked his servants to call out his wife, Princess Beixiang, and set up a banquet in the hall to show their friendship. After the banquet, Erzhu Rong said to Su Ze:
"Brother, I was at the Prince of Jiangyang's mansion yesterday and saw General Chang Sunzhi returning to Luoyang."
Chang Sunzhi?
This was an important official in charge of the southern defense line of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Since the Battle of Fushan Weir, when Li Chong and Xiao Baoyin returned to Luoyang, King Yuan Yi of Jiangyang recommended Changsun Zhi to be the Governor of Yangzhou, Acting General Zhennan, and Commander-in-Chief of the Military Affairs of Huainan.
But what does this have to do with me?
The debt is 18000, and 8000 has been paid back.
Today is the last day of double bonus, please give me a monthly ticket!
(End of this chapter)