Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 117

Chapter 117 Discover The Inside Story
As the first-class courtyard in the official relay station of Beitong Prefecture, its specifications were quite high. Normally, only high officials of the Imperial Court or local officials would be entertained to live in it. Those with lower status would not dare to live in it at all.

However, Lu Zhen did not think about this. Since the other party had arranged things so diligently, he did not hesitate to bring people in. The courtyard was five to six meters deep, and the moment he entered, he knew that it was not simple.

Seeing Lu Zhen rush in without any hesitation, the attendant leading the way felt even more reverence for him. He only said that he, the county magistrate, really had some strong backing in the court, so he was especially considerate. He helped the soldiers drive the vehicles into the houses of the various courtyards, not to mention some luggage and parcels.

The courtyard of the Heavenly Trademark was usually inhabited by people, but the people in the relay station cleaned it from time to time, so it was quite convenient for everyone to check in at this moment. After casually placing them, Lu Zhen dismissed the clerk and then started walking around.

This departure opened his eyes again. It turned out that not only did the courtyard occupy a large space, the interior and exterior of the house were luxuriously decorated, but there was actually a small garden at the back. It was midsummer, and the vegetation in the garden was flourishing. It was really intoxicating under the hundred flowers.

At this time, Chu Yunrong and the other two women also discovered the beautiful scenery here. They also came over with stunning expressions and sniffed at the fragrant aura. They repeatedly praised: “The capital is the capital. The relay station here is comparable to the mansion and courtyard in Suzhou.”

“Yes, but this is obviously not a place for a rank seven county magistrate like me to live.” Lu Zhen smiled and said, but the two women were stunned. Immediately after, Chu Yunrong tasted the meaning behind it and knitted her eyebrows, “With your words, today’s matter is indeed a bit strange. Their attitude changed a little too quickly just now … What exactly are they thinking?”

“It’s not to harm me, and no one would harm me in such a way.” Lu Zhen smiled disapprovingly.

Actually, the sudden change of the shopkeepers just now was all under his notice, but it was just that they didn’t break it in front of him. But in his heart, he had already left a trace of doubt: “Actually, the matter of transferring me to the capital is strange, so in my opinion, the two may be related.”

“Ah? Are there still so many things to pay attention to?” Chu Yunrong asked in surprise. The water in this official arena was really too deep. With such a dispatch, and even staying at the relay station, many explanations could be seen.

‘”Exactly. But don’t worry, just like I said, they definitely didn’t do this to harm me, so we can stay here for the night and experience the luxury of those noble officials. Since you’ve invited us to live in such a courtyard, the food tonight should be quite good.” Lu Zhen chuckled.

“Your heart is really relaxed. How can such a foolish person be at ease?” Chu Yunrong was a little worried and rolled her eyes at him angrily.

Lu Zhen’s heart unconsciously trembled when she looked at him with such a hateful gaze, but he said, “What else can we do now that we’re here? We have to face it with fear anyway, and we have to face it with ease. Why don’t we choose a way to make ourselves more comfortable?”

Chu Yunrong really lost the other party’s heartless appearance, so she could only sigh. However, the beautiful scenery in front of her still made her feel happy for a while, so she also learned from Lu Zhen to put aside her worries and enjoy the scene in front of her.

Actually, Lu Zhen’s thoughts weren’t as relaxed as he had said. At this moment, he had already vaguely guessed some inside information. Just from the reaction of the people in the relay station, he could already guess who was behind it.

On the surface, Daming’s relay station was under the control of the Ministry of Military Affairs and the Ministry of Rites. It was only an institution that had little to do with the Imperial Court. But in reality, this was definitely not the case. Because of this characteristic, not long after the founding of the country, the relay station was no longer purely for the officials of the past. Instead, it took on another and more important mission-to monitor the place and transmit all kinds of important information.

This responsibility had always belonged to the Royal Guards. That’s right. The current relay station has long since become the eyes and ears of the Royal Guards. Even the shopkeeper, relay cheng, or clerk among them might be from the Royal Guards. As for Beitong Prefecture, it was close to the capital’s great relay station, so the people inside were more likely to have been replaced by the spies of the Royal Guards.

In other words, the reason why the people in the relay station treated him so politely today was because of the instructions from the brocade guards. He had actually entered the eyes of the Royal Guards, a secret service organization. This made Lu Zhen’s heart tense, and at the same time, he had more ideas.

Influenced by the various literary works of the later generations, the Brocade Guards could be considered the most mysterious organization among the various yamens of the Great Ming Dynasty, and it was also the one that attracted the most attention at the same time.

When mentioning the Royal Guards, the first thing people thought of was that they were lawless and randomly captured officials. After that, they threw people into the imperial edict prison. It was countless torture greetings that tortured the other party until he was dead. Only then did they make him confess the crimes he wanted.

Or perhaps someone wearing a red and yellow flying fish uniform suddenly barged into a certain place and started killing … No matter what, there was no escape from a villain, and at the same time, there was infinite power.

However, this was definitely not the case. At least in the current orthodox years, whether it was the Royal Guards or Dongchang, which was even more notorious than it, they were very peaceful. At most, they could only probe into the privacy of some officials, but they didn’t dare to randomly interrogate others, so they didn’t have a sense of existence.

But even so, Lu Zhen still didn’t dare to take it lightly. Because he knew very well who was standing behind the current Royal Guards.

Ever since the late Yongle Imperial Guards Commander-in-Chief’s Chronicle was murdered for malicious plots, the power of the organization the Son of Heaven’s closest aides was suppressed by the subsequent rise of Dongchang, becoming its subordinate existence. Even after so many years, the status of both sides was much weaker than before, and this relationship had not changed at all.

In other words, the Royal Guards were currently under the control of the Eastern Factory. And the weaker Dongchang was controlled by the people of the Supervisor of Rites. Right now, the eunuch in charge of the ceremony was Wang Zhen, who had a great name in the history books!

Through the reaction of the people in the relay station, Lu Zhen had already deduced a conclusion that shocked him-it turned out that the person who was interested in him and transferred him to the capital was actually the first Quan Yan Wang Zhen of the Great Ming Dynasty!

For a moment, he even wanted to run back to Shanxi. He really didn’t want to be associated with a fellow like Wang Zhen who was destined to be remembered for countless years, and at the same time harmed the country and the people, causing them to die a terrible death. However, this thought was just a thought. He knew very well that it was not a problem for Wang Zhen to pinch him.

“Looks like this trip to the capital is really not a good thing. If I had known this, I would have said that I wouldn’t have been sick.” Shaking his head, Lu Zhen began to think about Wang Zhen’s purpose of transferring him to the capital.

Although this Quan Yan had yet to make a promise, his status was already extremely high, and there were also a large number of officials under him who had thrown themselves into the court for the sake of power. What was there that he, a rank seven county magistrate, could help, but no one else could?

No matter what, Lu Zhen couldn’t think of a clue to this question. Fortunately, he knew that soon, the other party’s people would find him, and the answer would naturally be revealed at that time. It wasn’t too late for him to come up with a way to deal with it.

“You … what’s wrong?” A voice sounded by his ear, finally bringing Lu Zhen back to his senses. He turned around and saw that it was Chu Yunrong who was looking at him with some concern.

Seeing that he had reacted, Chu Yunrong said with concern, “I’ve already spoken to you for a few words. Why are you standing there with your brows knitted motionlessly?”

“Nothing much. I was just thinking of some possible troubles.” Lu Zhen smiled and didn’t tell the truth. No matter how smart a woman was, it was impossible for Chu Yunrong to help him with such matters in the Imperial Court. In fact, none of the people around him could help him in this matter. He was the only one who could solve the problem.

Seeing Lu Zhen say this, Chu Yunrong’s face revealed a trace of resentment. But very quickly, it was taken back by her. The relationship between the two of them had always been somewhat dissociated. This made it difficult for her to really ask, so she could only sigh.

Hearing this sigh, Lu Zhen felt a little guilty, “Don’t worry, I can handle all these things.”

“I…” Chu Yunrong really wanted to tell him. She just wanted to know what he was worried about so that she could help him share some of the burden. However, he couldn’t say anything, so he could only reply in a low voice and didn’t say anything else.

The original joy was completely disappeared after being stirred up like this. Even the scenery of the flower was not so pleasant. In the end, Chu Yunrong said, “It’s getting dark. Let’s go back.”

“Alright.” Lu Zhen nodded gently, accompanied her, turned around and walked back.

At this time, the relay station had already brought over some good seats. Sure enough, as Lu Zhen had guessed before, they were all top-grade dishes, even wine. They were all aged for ten years, causing the eyes of the soldiers to shine brightly.

“You’re welcome. Everyone has worked hard these past few days. Enjoy it.” Lu Zhen smiled and waved his hand when he saw that everyone was looking at him, looking like they were drooling, but didn’t dare to move their chopsticks.

With these words, everyone finally let go of their embrace and attacked the delicate dishes like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey, regardless of their ugly appearance. In the blink of an eye, the jars of fine wine had been cleanly divided up by them.

Lu Zhen couldn’t help but laugh when he saw this. It was still easy to get along with them, so he didn’t have to worry too much about it. Unfortunately, they would soon be separated from these people.

Just as everyone was eating happily, a sudden quarrel sounded from outside. Then, an arrogant voice sounded, “This Young Master wants to see who actually dares to live in the Heaven-ranked courtyard, but does not allow me to live in it!” “This Young Master wants to see who actually dares to live in the Heaven-ranked courtyard!” By the time he finished speaking, a youth in brocade robes had already rushed in aggressively …