kingnovel Chapter 1257 "Detour"
Chapter 1257 "Detour"
Before discussing the specifics of the newspaper with Yu Shizhang, Shen Zheng went back to her study to get paper and pen.
Shen Xingjian grinds the ink, and she picks up her brush, dips it in the ink, and writes a letter.
The first letter was written to the emperor.
Yu Shizhang watched quietly as Shen Zheng wrote a sentence, which he then read aloud: "Your subject Shen Zheng respectfully reports to Your Majesty: A strange poison has recently appeared in Liuyang and Yuanzhou prefectures, named 'Ling San,' also known as 'Ning Shen Qi Wan'..."
As soon as the first words were written, Yu Shizhang coughed lightly: "You...aren't you going to greet His Majesty first?"
How could these veteran officials dare to write to the emperor like she did, getting straight to the point and stating the crux of the matter from the very beginning...
What do they usually write at the beginning of their letters?
"Your subject Yu Shizhang humbly requests Your Majesty's well-being."
"Your subject Yu Shizhang humbly wishes Your Majesty good health, prosperity for the nation, peace throughout the land, and tribute from all directions."
—"Your subject, Yu Shizhang..."
In short, they would first flatter the emperor to make him happy, and only after laying the groundwork would they dare to continue reporting the things that made the emperor less happy in the letter.
In Yu Shizhang's words, their behavior was called "roundabout".
But Shen Zheng in front of me doesn't understand "roundabout" at all.
Shen Zheng continued writing without stopping, saying without looking up, "This is how I always begin every letter I write to His Majesty."
Yu Shizhang was taken aback: "During your last trip to the capital, His Majesty didn't mention this matter to you?"
"Talking about me?" Shen Zheng dipped her brush in ink, her tone bewildered. "Talking about what?"
Those four seemingly casual words sent a burning pain through Yu Shizhang's cheeks.
good good!
Having served as an official for many years, this was the first time he had realized so clearly that His Majesty was such a person who favored one side over the other!
Forget it!
That’s all!
His Majesty's favoritism is nothing new.
At least... to him, Shen Zheng wasn't really "the one," was she?
They're all family, why is he being so jealous?
After comforting himself several times, Yu Shizhang stopped looking at the beginning of the sentence and continued reading the sentence he had just written on the paper: "'Ling San' has just appeared and has not yet been incorporated into the law. However, its harm is more severe than arsenic and more ferocious than the plague. If this substance is allowed to run rampant, it may shake the foundation of the country and bring disaster to the world. Therefore, I dare not remain silent, and I dare not speak lightly or slowly."
“…” Looking at the sentence on the paper, “shaking the foundation of the nation and bringing disaster to the world,” Yu Shizhang felt a bead of cold sweat fall from his forehead.
Shen Zheng's words were undeniably bold.
The foundation of the nation is the basis of the dynasty, and also the sore spot of the monarch.
Throughout history, the phrase that rulers least want to hear is "shaking the foundation of the nation." For some petty-minded monarchs, these four words are even more tantamount to questioning imperial power.
"You..." Yu Shizhang hesitated for a moment, then finally asked, "Do you really want it written so bluntly?"
Shen Zheng understood Yu Shizhang's meaning, but still nodded with a firm expression: "Not deceiving the emperor is the duty of a subject."
Yu Shizhang was taken aback upon hearing this.
Although he already knew Shen Zheng was a sincere person, at this moment, her frankness and sense of responsibility still shook him to his core.
Compared to her, he felt like an abacus manipulated by the officialdom. Every time he struck a bead, every time he did the math, he weighed the pros and cons and weighed the gains and losses, but... he lacked that sincere loyalty.
But as Shen Zheng said, isn't it a rule and a duty that a subject should uphold to not deceive the emperor?
After that, Yu Shizhang remained silent.
He questioned his own conscience while silently watching Shen Zheng put pen to paper.
Shen Zheng wrote this letter on five whole pages.
In the letter, she not only described what she had seen and heard and her speculations, but also deduced the harm caused by the spread of "spiritual poison".
Finally, she wrote: "Every word I have said is true, and there is not a single falsehood. Therefore, I humbly request Your Majesty to issue an edict to list 'Ling San' as a prohibited item, to strictly prevent its further spread, and to send officials from the Ministry of Justice to thoroughly investigate the source, arrest and severely punish those involved, so as to serve as a warning to others."
After writing the last word, Shen Zheng put down her pen, blew on the ink to dry it, and handed the letter to Yu Shizhang.
Yu Shizhang silently took the letter and read it with Shen Xingjian.
After the two finished reading, Shen Zheng asked, "How is it? Is there anything else that needs to be added?"
Both of them shook their heads in unison, and Yu Shizhang, having abandoned his previous hesitation, kept agreeing: "It should be written this way, it should be written this way!"
Passed unanimously.
Shen Zheng smiled and picked up her pen again.
The recipients of this letter were Xin Shunyun and Chen Zhikuan.
By the time the two letters were finished, it was nearly noon.
After sending three letters out by fast horse, Yu Shizhang ordered food to be served, while Shen Zheng got up and went to her room.
The room was well-lit, and although Xu Yunyan was still fast asleep, her complexion was much better than before.
Seeing this, Shen Zheng felt relieved and gently called Li Shiyuan to have a meal in the courtyard.
During the meal, Yu Shizhang started talking: "That foot-operated rice threshing machine is really useful. The villagers all raved about it after using it. It's just that eight machines are not enough. In the struggle to get one more for the village, Zhou and Wu, the village heads, almost got into a fight..."
Shen Zheng added a bowl of rice and picked up some vegetables, then smiled and said, "It will be enough next year. At that time, each village will be equipped with about ten of them, and a professional rice threshing team will be formed to help the villagers thresh rice along the ridges of the fields."
Upon hearing this, Yu Shizhang immediately thought it was feasible and couldn't help but laugh: "Then they'll be overjoyed next year."
Just imagining that scene is delightful.
Shen Xingjian picked up the soup bowl, lost in thought: "I think... Elder Qiao and the others should open a real workshop."
Shen Zheng and Yu Shizhang looked over together, and he said, "The apprentices that Elder Qiao took in last year have now begun to grasp the basics. Letting Elder Qiao lead them to open a workshop will be beneficial in the long run, both publicly and privately."
Shen Zheng paused for a moment, then subconsciously started counting on her fingers the areas that Old Qiao was involved in.
tool.
furniture.
instrument.
He even knows a little about metallurgy.
It's a real shame that such a capable old man doesn't open a proper workshop.
Shen Zheng nodded and looked at Shen Xingjian.
When their eyes met, Shen Xingjian was taken aback: "...What do you mean?"
"Can't you see that?" Yu Shizhang took a sip of soup and helped Shen Xingjian interpret Shen Zheng's expression: "Whoever advocates it, implements it. Once things here are almost done, go back and discuss it with Old Qiao. We have high hopes for you."
"..." Shen Xingjian looked at Shen Zheng with utmost seriousness: "Is that what you mean?"
Shen Zheng smiled shyly and nodded: "The capable should do more work, thank you for your hard work."
"...It's no trouble at all." Shen Xingjian accepted the task in an instant: "I'm not busy lately anyway."
Upon hearing this, Yu Shizhang secretly winked at Shen Zheng, who then picked up her soup bowl to hide her smile.
After a few moments of silence at the dinner table, Yu Shizhang spoke again to Shen Zheng about this year's autumn harvest in Tongan County: "It's a pity you didn't get to see it with your own eyes; those hills of rice piled up were truly beautiful..."