Haidian, Old Summer Palace.

Outside the window, the summer cicadas chirped, sparing the fourth elder brother pure, and his originally gloomy face became more and more gloomy. Su Peisheng, the eunuch in charge of the palace who was waiting at the door, was accustomed to looking at his face, took a few steps back, and called the two little servants in a low voice, and took a sticky rod to stick the cicada.

Because the master is in the study, everyone is light-footed.

One less time, the courtyard returned to seclusion.

The fourth elder brother's expression was slightly soothed, looking at the official documents on the desk and the private newspaper of the mansion.

After the saint drove out of Beijing, he has been living in the Old Summer Palace, and once he entered Beijing, he sat in the household department, and the rest of the time he took care of official business in the study of the Old Summer Palace.

When he saw the news that the seventeenth elder brother had "called himself sick and recuperated", the fourth elder brother hesitated, not knowing what he was thinking.

At this time, I heard someone at the door whisper: "The chief manager of labor told me that Jin had something to ask to see the master." ”

Although Su Peisheng is a eunuch, he is the head of the palace, and he has been waiting by the side of the fourth elder brother for many years, even Fujin gives him some dignity, not to mention other people in the palace.

Without waiting for Su to come in and say goodbye, the fourth elder brother raised his head and said, "Come in." ”

It was Dai Jin who came, and the fourth elder brother put down the private newspaper in his hand, raised his head and said, "What's the matter?" ”

Dai Jin entered the house, took a few steps forward, and said in a low voice: "Master, the fourteenth master made his henchmen from Qinghai to the capital. ”

"Hmm." The fourth elder brother responded, his face was already a little solemn, and he listened to Dai Jin continue to say: "In addition to sending letters and things to the elder brother, the person who came also made a special trip to the Wu family in Shichahai. As he spoke, he took out two pages from his sleeve and handed them to the fourth elder brother with both hands.

Here are two lists, one marked with Brother's Office, and the other marked with Shicha Overseas Residence.

On one side, there is the Ming media who is marrying Fu Jin and the side Fu Jin and Shu Fu Jin referred to by the palace, as well as the emperor's grandson Brother and Gege; On one side is the Han girl who was convicted and fell into the music register, and it is clear which is more important at a glance.

Then, judging from this list, the objects sent back by the fourteenth elder brother who traveled thousands of miles were far more in the Wu family than in the elder brother's office.

Seeing this, the fourth elder brother showed a little sneer on his face.

Even if the seemingly "virtuous" Fourteen Fujin "doesn't care", if the mother concubine knows, she will not tolerate this Wu family. After all, among the items sent to the elder brother, there is also filial piety to the mother.

As the youngest son favored by the mother, the fourteenth elder brother never missed any opportunity to please the mother.

Is this the "Great General King" appointed by the imperial father? is so emotional, he is not a person who has achieved great things at all.

The fourth elder brother put down the two gift slips and asked casually, "How is the Wu family?" ”

"It's still the same as the fourteenth master before leaving Beijing, usually closing the door, eating fasting and reciting Buddha, and praying for the fourteenth master." Dai Jin leaned over and said.

The fourth elder brother was silent for a while, and said, "Make a person, send this gift list to the Fourteenth Fujin." ”

Is "mother-son love"? The fourth elder brother's eyes were a little deep, and he only felt panicked in his heart.

The fourteenth elder brother's outer house has been placed for several years, during which Concubine De "unintentionally" knew and reprimanded the fourteenth elder brother. I don't know what the fourteenth elder brother said, so it's over.

The fourteenth elder brother has several wives and concubines, and he is not a reckless man who does not know what is going on, but he treats this Wu family very differently.

If such a person on the tip of his heart has a "slip", then the fourteenth elder brother will still rely on the one in the palace wholeheartedly, and there will be no dislike between mother and son?

Suddenly, the fourth elder brother wanted to know what the result would be...... * Shichahai, the fourteenth elder brother's outer house.

Although she fell into the dust in her early years, the Wu family did not have the habit of wind and dust, and since the fourteenth elder brother left Beijing, she closed the door tightly and never left the house again.

Half a year ago, she prayed in front of the Buddha every day, asking the Buddha to bless the 14th elder brother to open the banner victoriously and return safely.

Every month, the fourteenth elder brother would have two or three letters to tell him about his recent situation. Looking at these letters, the Wu clan seemed to be marching with the army, witnessing the might of the fourteenth elder brother and the scenery of the plateau thousands of miles away.

In the first two days, the fourteenth elder brother sent people back to Beijing, in addition to letters, there are also various northwest tuyi. Eating and wearing, all kinds of people, the Wu family didn't say anything in front of them, and cried seriously in private, only feeling lovesick.

She carried the Tibetan silver roasted blue hairpin given by the fourteenth elder brother on her head, and held a bowl of ghee grass in her hand, imagining the fourteenth elder brother in the tent of the general's camp thousands of miles away.

She is Han Chinese, grew up in the south, and is not as impatient as the northerners. But now, it seems that the initial boredom is gone, as long as I think that the fourteenth elder brother drank this butter tea in the northwest, the unbearable fishy smell of the past seems to be gone.

She didn't know that this butter tea brought not only the favor of the fourteenth elder brother, but also the royal wind sword and frost sword...... * Changping, Cao family Zhuangzi.

Looking at the red-faced Seventeenth Elder Brother in front of him, Cao Hao picked the corners of his mouth and said, "Seventeenth Master, are you in the 'recuperation', do you want to converge and converge?" ”

The seventeenth elder brother didn't have the hesitation of half a month ago, he looked a lot more free, and said with a smile: "When you go to Furuo's side, it's also 'recuperation'." It conditioned the lord's appetite and also mediated Fujin's mood. ”

Since the excerpt of "Sick Recuperation" on the Seventeenth Elder Brother was approved, he and the Seventeenth Fujin have become frequent visitors to the Cao family Zhuangzi.

The land occupied by the Zhuangzi about him was still given by Cao Hao in his early years, between the Zhuangzi of the Cao family and the Zhuangzi of the sixteenth elder brother, four miles away from here, and it was only two quarters of an hour by car.

The seventeen Fu Jin generations are one generation higher than Chu Yu, but they are of the same age, and they have always had a good relationship, and now they all live in Changping, and their contacts are more and more intimate than in the past.

In fact, for the frequent visits of the seventeenth elder brother, Cao Hao also welcomed it in his heart.

The seventeenth elder brother who let go of his worries returned to the surname of open-mindedness, and he was a very interesting person. He has no consciousness of the dragon son and dragon grandson at all, and he hates the struggle for power and profit, and he is impatient to mention it.

Such a seventeenth elder brother has restored the vitality of the young man, and he is actually expressing his position to the outside world. He really doesn't have a sense of power, and this is not a way to protect himself.

The seventeenth elder brother is a regular customer, Cao Hao accompanied him to drink half a cup of tea, played a game of chess, and then got up and said: "Let's go, take the seventeenth master to my one-acre and three-point land to see." ”

"What again?" The seventeenth elder brother got up and said with some curiosity: "You are also from everyone, and you have never suffered or been tired, why have you been obsessed with this recently?" ”

"I always have to find something to do, Seventeenth Elder Brother has never done it, so I don't know. If you've been a farmer for a few years, you'll know the fun. Cao Hao said with a smile.

The so-called "one acre and three points of land" is actually about ten acres in size, just northwest of Zhuangzi.

Half of it has a vegetable patch, planted with all kinds of seasonal vegetables; Half of it is farmland, and there are several common crops such as wheat, millet, sorghum, soybeans, and buds.

Today, the two acres of newly sorted out land are to be planted with potatoes.

The potato seeds bought from the city have been cut into pieces by the tenants of the waiting land, according to the potato sprouts.

Cao Hao has a lot of theoretical knowledge here, and he doesn't have a hobby of doing it himself. I took the seventeenth elder brother to the farm, just to see how the potatoes were planted, how the other crops were growing, and so on.

In fact, in addition to the land in front of him, he also made people open two acres of land in the sunny and shady places in the back mountain, and planted buds and potatoes.

After all, he has never been a farmer, and his understanding of agriculture is very general.

He only knew that a few hundred years later, this bud grain, that is, corn, would be used as a national reserve for decades. In the arid regions of the north, corn is the main crop.

As for the potatoes, it is because they know that they do not pick the ground, and they are also highly productive.

It was the middle of May, and the vegetable crops in the field were growing differently. Some have just sprouted, and some such as rape, leeks, radishes and other things can already be eaten.

The seventeenth elder brother grew up in the deep palace since he was a child, but he went out of Beijing with Hu when he was a teenager, and he was not an ignorant person who didn't know the crops.

Looking at the well-planned pastoral vegetable field in front of him, in addition to his initial curiosity, the seventeenth elder brother couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

has known Cao Hao for many years, and he knows that Cao Hao is not a diligent person, and if it weren't for the urging of the emperor over the years, he would not have come step by step.

The seventeenth elder brother would not simply think that Cao Hao was really here to pass the time.

At this time, the effort is getting more and more sufficient.

Cao Hao saw that the seventeenth elder brother was sweating on his head, so he didn't pull him to stay here, and the two went back to Zhuangzi for lunch.

The little cabbage and small radish on this lunch were all newly pinched from the vegetable field, and the two of them ate several bowls of rice with vegetarian fried sauce and meat fried sauce.

After the meal, the seventeenth elder brother asked the question in his heart and said, "Fu Ruo, to be honest, how did you think of waiting for the crops?" ”

Cao Hao was silent for a long time and said, "Didn't I go to Cihenan Mansion in the summer before last?" In addition to Luoyang, I also went to the lower county seat. Just in time for the great drought in Henan two years ago, the city is buying and selling children, and the countryside is fleeing with their families. It was like locusts crossing the border, and all the wild plants and leaves on the road were eaten. ”

The seventeenth elder brother frowned when he heard this, and said, "How can this be, isn't there relief from the imperial court?" ”

Cao Hao glanced at the seventeenth elder brother and said: "I don't know the local warehouse in Henan Prefecture, I only remember that in the early years in Shandong, most of the local granaries only had accounts and no grain. Catching up with the season when the imperial court needs to adjust grain, it is just a random adjustment to make up for it. ”

The seventeenth elder brother was annoyed when he heard this, and said: "Silverfish, in the end, it is still the ...... that the emperor and Ama connived at" but the second half of the sentence was indescribable, and he only patted the chair vigorously to express his dissatisfaction.

For the rule of officials [***], Cao Hao didn't want to say anything more.

First, it is useless to know a lot, Kangxi has been in power for a long time, he loves face, and he cares about history, so he has made up his mind to be a "benevolent monarch"; The second is to know that in a few years, when the fourth elder brother comes to power, he will drastically rectify the rule of officials. The more ruthless the corruption now, the worse the end will be, but it is just self-inflicted.

"There are nine droughts in the northwest in ten years, and the southwest is a hilly land, and this bud valley is the same as the potato, although it is rough, but it is not as good as other crops, and the yield per mu is also high. Last summer, the government in the hills and other places of Henan Province came forward to promote the planting of buds and potatoes, and according to the information reported by the local household department, it was quite effective. If these buds and potatoes can be spread in the northwest and southwest, in the future in the year of famine, a few people will be starved to death. Cao Hao said.

The seventeenth elder brother listened and said, "Why is it in the northwest and southwest, didn't Huang Ama send people back to the northeast to Tuntian?" Why not promote it in the Northeast? ”

Cao Hao replied: "In the past few years, the emperor has been making people plant new rice seeds in Changchun Garden and Tianjin Wei, and he has also made several places in the Central Plains and Jiangnan supervise and supervise the trial planting. If the expectation is good, the emperor should want to grow rice in the tuntian in the northeast, and save the granary of the capital thanks to the supply of Huguang. ”

The rice of Jingguanlu and the rations of the officials and people of the Eight Banners are all rice. These rice are all transported from Huguang to Jiangnan, and from Jiangnan to Beijing.

If rice is widely cultivated in the northeast, then the capital's dependence on Cao Yun will be a little weaker. Cao Yun [***] is also one of the problems that the imperial court has had for decades. It's just that the rice in the north is too dependent on water transportation, so it can't be moved all these years.

"The Northeast is bitterly cold, can you grow rice?" Seventeenth elder brother was a little puzzled.

Cao Hao said with a smile: "The Seventeenth Master doesn't know, outside the Rehe, there were already rice fields a few years ago, but the area is not wide. ”

The seventeenth elder brother looked at Cao Hao for a long time and said, "Now, I finally understand Huang Amma's intention to transfer Fu Ruo to the household department. If Fu Ruo is the palm print of the household, the designation is no worse than those Jingtang. ”

"Seventeenth Master Miaozan, I'm just doing my best. Although he is not in his position, but with the emperor's grace in front of him, he still enjoys several heavy benefits of the court, and it is not good to be dull. Cao Hao said.

In fact, it was just Cao Hao finding a way back for himself.

Thinking of a small way to collect some money for a while is always a small way. succeeded, but it was just to add some pocket money to the emperor, which was not a great credit to the table; failed, and in the eyes of the emperor, he became a useless person, and the rise and fall of the family lost his reliance.

And in his position, in power, in order to support the portal, there is no way out.

He had to find another way to add a few more chips to himself. As for benefiting the country and the people, and the suffering of the people, he also thought about it in his heart, but he always felt that it was too far away. To say that he is completely selfless, just for the well-being of the people, he really doesn't have such a thick skin.

Listening to Cao Hao's words, the seventeenth elder brother showed a little shame and said: "Fu Ruo seems to be casual, but over the years, he has been for the country and the people. Speaking of which, I'm a waste snack. Vainly a minister is a son, but he seeks self-preservation, and he has no heart to worry about his father. ”

The seventeenth elder brother was only cheerful for half a month, Cao Hao didn't want him to get entangled anymore, and said: "The seventeenth master is a little restless, the seventeenth master is still young, now watch more and listen more, talk less and do less; In the future, there will always be those who can work harder. ”

Seeing that Cao Hao was so serious, the confusion in the eyes of the seventeenth elder brother slowly dissipated, and he muttered, "Will you endure it for a few more years?" It's okay, I've endured it all these years, and it's not bad for a moment......"

*Inside the Dongzhi Gate, Li House.

There are still a few days, it is the period of Li Nai's marriage, the invitation has already been sent out, and the wedding shed has been set up today.

Li Nai sat in the study, holding his father's reply in his hand. Seeing that his father mentioned in the letter that he had sent a letter to the Li family, asking the Cao family to assist Li Nai in investigating Li Ding's matter, Li Nai couldn't help frowning.

Although he also thought about asking Cao Hao for help earlier, but after all, this is a family matter of the Li family, and now even his aunt has told him, and let the Cao family's subordinates get involved, wouldn't it be "family ugliness publicized"?

Li Nai didn't agree with his father's intentions in his heart, but he had always been used to filial piety, and he couldn't disobey him. He just put down the letter, feeling a little upset, it seems that after taking care of his daughter's marriage, he will have to go to Changping.

He was annoying, and a housekeeper came to report, saying, "Master, Uncle Sun is here......"

(To be continued)