Rise From the Humble

Yan Song and Zhao Wenhua were the only two people left in the office room of Yan Song, the chief assistant of the Wuyi Palace Cabinet. Zhao Wenhua took out a small jade altar from his arms. The jade altar was very delicate and carved into the shape of an Antarctic immortal. He had long hair and a childlike face, and a kind face. A crooked cane that reaches above your head. The mouth of the altar is the longevity peach held by the Antarctic Immortal, and the mouth is sealed with red silk cloth.

The Antarctic Immortal is an old longevity star in ancient myths and legends. He is the eldest disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun. He is responsible for longevity and is a symbol of longevity, so he is highly respected by people.

"Father, this is the Baihua wine newly brewed in my hometown in Cicheng this year. This is the first brew. My nephew traveled all night to deliver it. I heard that the Baihua wine at my adoptive father's house has run out, so I came here to honor my adoptive father." Zhao Wenhua put his hands respectfully This small jar of Baihua wine is dedicated to Yan Song.

Yan Song, who was sitting in the first place, could not help but light up when he heard this. He took the Baihua wine from Zhao Wenhua, looked at it with admiration for a moment, and then gently opened a gap in the silk seal.

The seal was slightly opened, bubbles appeared in the Baihua wine in the jade altar, and the mellow aroma of the wine came to the face, refreshing.

The fragrance enters the heart, like drinking fairy dew, making people intoxicated.

"Good wine. Wenhua, you are interested."

Yan Song sealed the silk cloth and presented it again, praised it, and looked at Zhao Wenhua a little closer.

When Zhao Wenhua saw this, his face showed a look of saltiness and pride, as if it was a great honor for him to get Yan Song's approval.

For a while.

Zhao Wenhua couldn't help but think of the scene in the autumn of more than 20 years ago when he, who was a new scholar in the eighth year of Jiajing and was appointed director of the Ministry of Punishment, first presented a batch of newly brewed Baihua wine to Yan Song, who was then the Imperial College.

That day changed his destiny.

Zhao Wenhua came from a declining family in Cixi County, Ningbo Prefecture, south of Congma Bridge. His family was in a poor state and was not very wealthy.

Cixi has a long history and is famous as the "City of Confucianism", "The Cradle of Jinshi" and "The Hometown of Kindness and Filial Piety", with its flourishing literary style and outstanding people. From the Tang and Song Dynasties to the Ming Dynasty, Cixi County has successively produced 5 champions, 1 second place, 3 third place winners, 519 Jinshi, and more than 2,400 candidates, and is known as the "Hometown of Jinshi".

However, because Zhao Wenhua's family was in decline, his path to education was not very smooth, and no one in his family was an official in the government.

There are people in the court who are good at serving as officials, but there are no people in the court who are petty officials.

Therefore, after he won the Jinshi and was appointed as the head of the Ministry of Punishment, he was ostracized and unpopular in the Ministry of Punishment.

He was well aware of the fact that there were people in the court who were interested in becoming officials. When he returned to his hometown, he spared no expense in family assets and favors. He obtained a bottle of newly brewed Baihua wine from his hometown and brought it into the capital.

Baihua wine is the most famous specialty of Cicheng, and its production process is complex and lengthy. When the grass grows again in the spring breeze and the grass tips sprout tender buds, pick the peony stamens and place them in a sunny and ventilated place to dry and store them; when the summer sun shines on the lotus pond, pick the petals and young leaves of the lotus and place them in a shaded and ventilated place to dry. Dry in the shade and store; in late autumn, when dandelions are flying, pick the starry silver osmanthus and let it dry in the wind; in winter, when the snow sets, pick the stamens of wintersweet, dry them in the sun when the weather is clear, and store them. In addition, dozens of other stamens are collected throughout the seasons. Collect nearly a hundred kinds of stamens and petals from the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, put them in a celadon pot, sprinkle with centuries-old wine yeast, and mix them with rootless water on rainy days, frost on the day of frost, snowflakes in winter, and all year round. The dew of bamboo leaves is sealed and fermented, and it is prepared with a secret recipe.

It can only be brewed once a year and the output is very small.

Therefore, even in Cicheng, this kind of Baihua wine is in short supply and is valuable.

Zhao Wenhua's family was in decline. Fortunately, he passed the Jinshi examination and had some savings. Just this batch of newly brewed Baihua Liquor cost Zhao Wenhua nearly half of his family's money, and he got it through a favor.

Hard work always pays off. Zhao Wenhua, who returned to the capital, took the opportunity to present the Baihua wine he brought from his hometown to Yan Song, who was then the Imperial College's sacrificial wine minister. He described the wonders of Baihua wine, which was appreciated by Yan Song, and then he He worshiped Yan Song as his adoptive father.

From this day on, Zhao Wenhua's life should change.

With the support of his adoptive father Yan Song, Zhao Wenhua's official career was prosperous, and he was soon appointed as the General Secretary. Although the position of General Secretary was not high-grade, it was very important. All memorials presented to Emperor Jiajing from all over the Ming Dynasty would go through him. Hands can be said to be the place where great things happen.

Zhao Wenhua was not low in ability and knew how to be a good person. He made full use of this position to promptly inform Yan Song of the trends of the various factions in the DPRK and China, so that Yan Song could respond calmly and make correct decisions, and Zhao Wenhua was able to gradually enter the center of power.

Of course, now that he is the right minister of the Ministry of Industry, the general envoy, and the core of the Strict Party, it will be easier for him to get the Baihua wine from his hometown in Cicheng. However, because Baihua wine is not easy to brew and the output is not large, the Baihua wine in Zhao Wenhua's hands is also limited.

In addition to the jade altar of Baihua Wine dedicated to Yan Song today, Zhao Wenhua also has a jar of Baihua Wine in his arms. However, the jade altar is more exquisitely carved than the Antarctic Immortal Weng Altar in Yan Song's hand. It is a dragon-shaped four-eared basket. Ringing the jade altar, the body of the altar is also engraved with a famous Qingci couplet: "Luo Shui Xuangui first presents auspiciousness, the yin number is nine, the yang number is nine, the number is nine, nine and eighty-one, the number is connected to the Tao, and the Tao is in harmony with the original Tianzun. Yicheng felt that the red and phoenixes of Qishan were both auspicious, with six male calls, six female calls, and sixty-six thirty-six sounds, which could be heard in the sky. He was born as Emperor Jiajing and would live forever." Moreover, the Baihua wine in the jade altar was more fragrant. , nourishing, Zhao Wenhua has been carrying it close to his body

As for why they were not dedicated to Yan Song together, you can only ask Zhao Wenhua himself.

"Wenhua, what do you think of Zhu Ping'an?" Yan Song put the Baihua wine in his hand in the drawer, closed his eyes for a moment, then slowly opened his eyes and glanced at Zhao Wenhua, and asked slowly.

"Zhu Ping'an is a smart man." Zhao Wenhua thought about it for a moment and replied.

"Oh, where's the cleverness?" Yan Song asked.

"When he just came to visit his adoptive father, his words and actions showed his awe. He was trying to please his adoptive father." Zhao Wenhua said while pouring tea for Yan Song.

"Yeah." Yan Song narrowed his eyes slightly, and then shook his head slightly.

"But it is a pity that Zhu Ping'an respected and pleased his adoptive father, but he did not take a stand. In the original impeachment case of Zhao Daying, he was also a little ignorant." Zhao Wenhua added after seeing this.

"Young man, you are somewhat normal." Yan Song stroked his beard and nodded slowly, "There is no rush."

Zhao Wenhua also nodded, "What the adoptive father said is true. As long as he is smart, there is no need to worry about him not knowing current affairs."

"What you said just now about catching your son-in-law, but it surprised me." Yan Song took a sip of tea, put down the cup and looked at Zhao Wenhua and said slowly.

"Father, what do you think of the seven stories about Japanese plagues in the Southeast that I dedicated last time?" Zhao Wenhua did not directly answer Yan Song's question, but asked him what he thought of the draft of the memorial that I dedicated to Yan Song last time.

"You have offered seven things. The first is to offer sacrifices to the God of the Sea. Please send officials to offer sacrifices to Jiangyin and Changshu. The second is to have officials cover their bodies and do light corvee. The second is to recruit more naval troops. The second is to raise people's fields in Su, Song, Chang, and towns, and to pass by a husband. For those who have a hundred acres, pay more attention to their taxation, and levy official land tax in advance for three years; secondly, recruit rich people to lose their financial resources, and it is better to talk about merit; secondly, send important ministers to supervise the division; thirdly, recruit Tongfan's old party and Haiyan disciples, and it is easy to show loyalty In the name of the police, we are ordered to investigate the situation of thieves. These seven things are quite insightful and are rare good discussions in recent years. I will polish them with you and you can present them to the Holy One. However, what does this have to do with what I just asked? ?" Yan Song highly praised the seven things Zhao Wenhua presented, but was slightly unhappy with Zhao Wenhua's non-answer to the question.

"Thank you so much, foster father. I don't know something about my foster father. Three of the seven things I proposed were the "Strategies for Controlling Japanese Countermeasures" that Zhu Ping'an answered during the rural examination." Zhao Wenhua explained.

"oh"

Hearing this, Yan Song unexpectedly opened his eyes, which were closed to meditate.