Luo Longwen ran a full ten li in one go before daring to stop and gasp for breath. He panted like a bellows. Looking back and seeing no Zhejiang troops pursuing him, he finally let out a sigh of relief. Leaning against a crooked-necked tree, he cursed viciously, “That damned Zhu Pingan, he is bullying me too much! To threaten me like that is utterly lawless, bullying me too much!”
The attendant officials behind Luo Longwen also gasped for breath. They looked at Luo Longwen with eyes full of resentment.
We nearly got beaten because of you. In their view, Zhu Pingan had already been quite restrained. Zhu Pingan was a high-ranking minister, a viceroy of a province. Luo Longwen was merely a minor mid-level secretary. Luo Longwen’s attitude towards Zhu Pingan could not be called respectful in the slightest. On the contrary, it was somewhat rude, imperious, and aggressive.
If you got beaten, it would be entirely your own fault.
However, Zhu Pingan was too much as well. One should consider the master when beating a dog. Luo Longwen might not hold a high rank, but he was a key member of the Yan Party, a great favourite in front of Yan Shifan. The gatekeeper of the prime minister was a third-rank official, let alone someone like Luo Longwen, a great red man of the Yan Party. To give no face at all! Where did that leave Elder Yan Ge and Young Elder Yan?!
You are a governor of Zhejiang. Is one thousand taels of silver a lot to you? This was not for Luo Longwen. It was for Elder Yan Ge and Young Elder Yan.
With one thousand taels of silver, you could improve relations with Elder Yan Ge and Young Elder Yan. Was that a lot?!
Zhu Pingan was still too young. Youth meant hot-bloodedness.
“Damn it. If you will not drink the toast, you will drink the forfeit!” Luo Longwen spat heavily and cursed through gritted teeth.
“How to make him drink the forfeit?” an attendant official asked.
“Come on. Let us go find Lord Zhao Wenhu. We will jointly submit a memorial and impeach him once more! This time, I want that Zhu Pingan to follow in Zhang Jing’s footsteps!” Luo Longwen said viciously, his resentment piercing the heavens. “You are so stubborn, are you? Then I will shove your head into a furnace. I want to see just how stubborn your head is!”
The attendant officials naturally had no objections. They followed Luo Longwen precisely to board the great ship of the Yan Party. No matter what Luo Longwen said or did, they would flatter him. That was how one’s position determined one’s thinking.
Thus, the group marched grandly towards Jiaxing city and soon arrived at Zhao Wenhu’s residence.
“Lord Zhao, you must stand up for me.” As soon as Luo Longwen saw Zhao Wenhu, he said with a face full of grievance, just like a wronged little daughter-in-law returning to her maternal home for help.
“Han Zhang, what has happened to you? You represent the Ministry of Works and the East Tower. Ever since you came south, wherever you went, have you not been welcomed with doors opened in haste and treated with utmost courtesy? Who would dare to give you trouble?!”
Zhao Wenhu looked at Luo Longwen in confusion, puzzled in his heart.
Zhao Wenhu knew this all too well. On his own journey south, wherever he went, the reception was of the highest standard. Fine silks and delicacies, rare foods from land and sea, were needless to mention. The gold, silver, jewels, antiques, and paintings presented to him were as if they cost nothing. He had taken so much silver that his hands grew soft and his eyes dazzled.
Luo Longwen’s rank was lower than his, and his status in the Yan Party was not as high, but Luo Longwen had a good relationship with Yan Shifan. Moreover, Luo Longwen represented the Yan Party. The local reception for Luo Longwen might be a touch lower than his own, but it would surely be high standard as well. Silver would definitely flow until his hands were soft. So why did Luo Longwen look so aggrieved? Who dared not to give him face?!
“It is all that damned Zhu Pingan!” Luo Longwen cursed with a face full of阴鸷. “Today I went to the Zhejiang army camp outside the city to find Zhu Pingan. Not only was I stopped outside the camp and given the cold shoulder, but Zhu Pingan also ordered my guards beaten with a hundred strokes of the military rod! In the end, Zhu Pingan even threatened me, saying he recommended I find a good doctor for treating rod injuries! Zhu Pingan is utterly detestable, arrogant to the extreme, too rampant! Lord Zhao, you must stand up for me.”
Upon hearing it was Zhu Pingan, Zhao Wenhu could not help but frown. The puzzle in his heart cleared at once. If it was Zhu Pingan, then it was not strange at all, not strange in the slightest.
In this Jiangnan territory, those who knew Luo Longwen represented the Ministry of Works and the Yan Party yet still dared to treat him this way could be counted on one hand.
Zhang Jing was definitely one. Back then, Zhang Jing had not given him any courtesy, arrogant to the utmost. But Zhang Jing had already fallen.
Of the rest, counting them up, the only one with enough weight was Zhu Pingan.
So, hearing Luo Longwen mention Zhu Pingan was not strange at all.
“Zhu Pingan runs a strict camp. When I went to his camp, I also needed the gate guards to report in. Only with his permission could I enter. Back then, when Zhang Jing went to the Zhejiang army camp, it was the same, reporting and getting permission before entering.”
Zhao Wenhu said slowly.
No, big brother, what side are you on? It feels like you are speaking up for Zhu Pingan. Luo Longwen looked at Zhao Wenhu in some surprise.
“Then he cannot beat my guards either. This is not just slapping my face. This is slapping the face of the East Tower, slapping the face of the Ge Lao, slapping the face of all of us.” Luo Longwen said with utter hatred.
“Why did he beat your guards?” Zhao Wenhu asked.
“Lord Zhao, why does it feel like you are shielding him?! Oh, I remember now. Zhu Pingan is still your disciple. Back in the capital, you spoke up for Zhu Pingan. You are shielding him, are you not?!”
Luo Longwen reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
“I will not shield him.” Zhao Wenhu stepped closer to Luo Longwen, exuding the pressure of a superior, and said word by word, “But that does not prevent me from understanding the true course of events.”
“Yes, yes, it is I who misunderstood Lord Zhao.” Luo Longwen was awed by Zhao Wenhu’s威压 and obediently recounted the whole affair. “The big-headed soldier at the Zhejiang army gate would not let me enter. My guards, indignant, charged the gate. Zhu Pingan ordered my guards seized and beaten with the military rod…”
“Although you were in the wrong first, Zhu Pingan showing such disregard for the Ge Lao and the East Tower’s face is indeed excessive.” Zhao Wenhu said slowly.
“Exactly. Zhu Pingan is too much. This is slapping the face of everyone in our Yan Party. It is intolerable! Lord Zhao, let us jointly submit a memorial to impeach him! I believe that once the memorial goes up, the Ge Lao and the East Tower will surely respond, just like with Zhang Jing. This time, we can properly deal with him harshly! If it goes smoothly, who knows, he might even catch up to Zhang Jing on the execution ground and go west together.”
“No!” Zhao Wenhu shook his head.
“What?!” Luo Longwen jumped up like his tail had been stepped on again.
“At least not now!” Zhao Wenhu said.
“Why?!” Luo Longwen could not suppress his dissatisfaction. You say you are not shielding Zhu Pingan. What are you doing now? I say we impeach Zhu Pingan together, and you say no. If this is not shielding, what is it?
Luo Longwen looked at Zhao Wenhu in confusion and dissatisfaction, waiting for his explanation.
“Matters must be weighed by importance and urgency. The current key is to secure the position of Governor of Jiangnan. This is our best chance to insert ourselves into military authority. It is our most pressing affair right now. Zhu Pingan has stated he will support my appointment as governor. At this time, it is not suitable to stir up trouble with Zhu Pingan again.”
Zhao Wenhu said softly.
“Can Zhu Pingan’s words be trusted?” Luo Longwen curled his lip.
“Observe his words and watch his deeds.” Zhao Wenhu said as he patted Luo Longwen’s shoulder. “Once I sit in the governor’s seat, disposing of Zhu Pingan will be a simple matter. It makes no difference to wait a few days.”
