Chapter 1105: Each has his own plan!

December 23rd,

At noon, there was a flurry of snow in Yijing. At the same time, the south gate of Yijing was temporarily closed. Hundreds or thousands of people who were waiting to enter the city, although they didn't know what happened, could only change the gate to enter the city, or choose to wait...

About an incense stick of time passed before dozens of government officials in court robes walked to the South City Gate, seemingly waiting for something.

This scene made the people waiting outside the South City Gate even more curious about what had happened that could make these high and mighty officials wait outside the city gate on a snowy day like ordinary people like them?

While everyone was whispering and discussing, a convoy escorted by hundreds of guards slowly arrived in the distance. When the convoy arrived in front of the city gate, under the gaze of everyone, a middle-aged man in casual clothes and with an elegant expression stepped down from the carriage.

Seeing this person appear, the dozens of officials who came to greet him immediately surrounded him and bowed in unison, saying:

"We are here to see His Excellency the Governor!"

The person who was called "Sir Governor" by everyone was Sun Jing'an, who received Ye Mingsheng's order to be transferred from the Governor of Qi and Lu to the Governor of Youyan!
Sun Jingan bowed to everyone and said:

"My colleagues are so polite!"

“I, Sun, have been transferred to Youyan by the grace of the Marshal. From now on, I will work side by side with all of you. I hope you will take care of me and give me your advice. I would like to thank you all here…”

After saying this, Sun Jing'an also bowed to everyone. Seeing Sun Jing'an's humble attitude, Youyan Deputy Surveillance Commissioner Zhang Qinghe and Youyan Deputy Governor Zheng Jie looked at each other secretly, and then they immediately pretended nothing happened.

Seeing that Sun Jing'an had finished speaking, Zheng Jie, as the deputy governor, also smiled and said:

"Sir Sun, you are so polite. Now that you have arrived in Youyan, our colleagues in the Youyan Provincial Government have a backbone. From now on, we will definitely unite closely around you!"

"Good! Good!"

The two sides exchanged greetings for a while, and then Sun Jingan's convoy slowly entered the city of Yijing amid the envious and anxious gazes of the people nearby.

These common people didn't care what kind of high-ranking official Sun Jing'an was. They just wanted to get into the city as soon as possible to do their business. Fortunately, as Sun Jing'an entered the city, the South Gate of Yijing, which had been temporarily closed, was reopened, and the people waiting outside the city immediately rushed towards the city gate.

After entering the city, Sun Jingan first sent someone to the Attendant's Office to make an appointment to report to Ye Mingsheng the day after tomorrow, and then came to the yamen of the Youyan Provincial Government, and had a more specific understanding of the governors and councilors in the provincial government.

Time quickly came to evening. Zheng Jie had originally booked a banquet at Zhengxinlou, one of the famous restaurants in Yijing, to welcome Sun Jingan.

However, Sun Jingan used the excuse that he was too tired on the journey, so no matter how Zheng Jie invited him, Sun Jingan did not go to the banquet.
Seeing this, Zheng Jie had to cancel the welcoming banquet. Although the banquet was cancelled, Zheng Jie was not idle. After getting off work from the Governor's Office at 1:00 a.m., he did not return to his home, but changed into casual clothes and came to Chunhua Tower.

After arriving at Chunhua Tower, Zheng Jie went straight to the private room on the second floor, only to see someone waiting for him in the room.

Seeing Zheng Jie coming, Youyan Deputy Censor Zhang Qinghe said with a smile:

"Brother Zheng, you are late! You will have to drink a glass of wine as punishment later!"

"Brother Zhang, that's fine! That's fine!"

After finishing his words, Zhang Qinghe asked the waiter to serve the dishes. A moment later, a table of eight dishes, five meat dishes and three vegetable dishes, plus a pot of aged thyme, were served on the table.

This Chunhualou is indeed a famous restaurant in Yijing, and the waiters are all very considerate!
Seeing that Zheng Jie and Zhang Qinghe seemed to have something to talk about, after the food and wine were served, he left the room without the two adults' instructions, and closed the door, providing the two adults with an extremely private environment.

At this time, Zheng Jie was no longer polite. He picked up the wine jug and first poured a glass of wine for Zhang Qinghe, and then poured himself a full glass of wine. Then, without Zhang Qinghe urging him to drink, he simply tilted his head back and drank the wine in the glass!

Seeing this, Zhang Qinghe also clapped his hands and praised:
"Brother Zheng is truly a man of great courage! I admire him!"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Jie poured himself another glass of wine, then looked at Zhang Qinghe and said sincerely:

"Brother Zhang, I have a question that I have to ask. Did Lord Zhuang from your Censorate really go to Yuyang for something today..."

Facing Zheng Jie's question, Zhang Qinghe said calmly:

"We found an underground money house that was lending money at high interest rates in Yuyang. It was also suspected of 13 crimes including possession of firearms, intentional injury, and murder. The circumstances are very serious. There are hundreds of people involved in the case, and the amount involved is also very huge!"

"So after receiving the report, the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Zhuang Shanhe also attached great importance to it and decided to go to Yuyang in person to supervise the handling of this case!"

Hearing this, Zheng Jie said helplessly:
"Brother Zhang, please don't use such official language with me. Does Lord Zhuang know something and that's why he deliberately hid away?"

Zhang Qinghe smiled faintly when he heard this, then raised his glass and clinked it with Zheng Jie and said:

"Brother Zheng, I don't know much about the specific situation, but I can only say that although the Yuyang case is very large and serious, it may not require Lord Zhuang to supervise it so urgently!" As soon as these words came out, Zheng Jie's eyes narrowed, and then he swallowed the wine in the glass directly into his stomach!

As the new governor of Youyan, Sun Jing'an's itinerary has attracted a lot of attention. Therefore, this morning the news that Sun Jing'an is about to arrive in Yijing has been sent to the offices of the Governor's Office and the Censor's Office.

The officials from the Provincial Government and the Provincial Surveillance Department began to prepare to welcome Sun Jing'an. It was also at that time that Zheng Jie arranged a welcoming banquet for Sun Jing'an at Zhengxin Building.

Everything was going on in an orderly manner, but no one expected that at about three quarters past nine, Yuyang sent a message to Youyan Censorate, saying that they had solved a major case there!
Zhuang Shanhe, who had just taken office as the Censor of Youyan half a month ago, immediately went to Yuyang and asked his deputy Zhang Qinghe to welcome Sun Jing'an at the South Gate on behalf of the Censor of Youyan.

Although Zhuang Shanhe's reasons were very legitimate and sufficient, as the second-in-command of Youyan, he did not come to greet Sun Jing'an, the governor, when he just arrived. This still made Zheng Jie, the deputy governor, feel that something was wrong!

Zheng Jie had some knowledge of Zhuang Shanhe's background. Zhuang Shanhe used to work in the Liaoyang Censorate. Later, after the establishment of the Justice Bureau, he was transferred to work in the Justice Bureau. He made many contributions while working in the Justice Bureau. There were even rumors that he would become the deputy director of the Justice Bureau.

While the Marshal was preparing to move the imperial court to Beijing, Zhuang Shanhe was also considered a strong contender for the two assistant ministers of the Ministry of Justice. Unfortunately, he lost to Cui Zibo and Gongsun Hao in the end!
However, when Murong Hui was transferred to Anqing to serve as the Censor, Zhuang Shanhe's luck turned and he was suddenly airlifted by the Marshal to become the Censor of Youyan. This appointment was beyond the expectations of many people.
Many people are therefore curious about why Zhuang Shanhe was able to emerge unexpectedly and was suddenly appointed by the Marshal as the Censor of Youyan. Some people said that Zhuang Shanhe followed the "old lady" route and had a very good relationship with the Ye clan when he was in office in Liaoyang. Therefore, some Ye clan members spoke well of Zhuang Shanhe in front of the old lady!

Some people also say that Zhuang Shanhe followed the Cui family's path. When Zhuang Shanhe was working in the Liaoyang Censorate, he had a good personal relationship with Zhu Xiaowen, the current Dali Temple Minister. Zhu Xiaowen was Cui Shao's favorite student, so Zhu Xiaowen introduced Zhuang Shanhe to Cui Shao.

There are some other statements like this, but Zheng Jie believes that most of these statements are nonsense, many of which are just speculations and have no substantial evidence!
Zheng Jie himself believed that the key figure who made Zhuang Shanhe surprise everyone and become the Censor of Youyan was neither the old lady Ye Cui nor the Minister of Revenue Cui Shao, but the Minister of Justice Li Jian!

Among all the ministers in the Yijing court, the Minister of Justice Li Jian can be said to be the most low-key person. He almost never participates in the open and secret struggles in the court or even before the Fengwu Army. He just sits and watches the moon rise and set, and the tides ebb and flow!

Because of this low profile, Li Jian's presence in the Yijing court is also very low. However, Zheng Jie believes that although Li Jian is low-key, he is always favored by the Marshal to do business and has always been firmly in the position of Minister of Justice. It is naturally not an easy task for him to firmly sit on the Diaoyutai...
When Zhuang Shanhe was in the Judicial Bureau, he had always been close to Li Jian, so this time Li Jian returned the favor by recommending Zhuang Shanhe to the Marshal!

If that is the case, why did Zhuang Shanhe deliberately avoid meeting Sun Jingan? Did he get some information from Li Jian?
Thinking of this, Zheng Jie's expression became even more solemn. He had heard that when Sun Jing'an was the governor of Qi and Lu, several of his men made a lot of money!
One of them, a man named Zhao Jin, ruined many merchants and did many evil things for the sake of money!

If this is the case, Sun Jing'an won't be able to stay in Youyan for long!

Thinking of this, Zheng Jie's eyes couldn't help but flicker. He was originally the prefect of Changshan. Many people were implicated in the Youyan Provincial Government because of the Liu Zhengyue case. Zheng Jie had been marginalized because Liu Zhengyue disliked him before. So this time, he turned a disaster into a blessing. Not only was he not implicated by Liu Zhengyue, he even became the deputy governor!

Zheng Jie, who became the deputy governor, originally wanted to get closer to Sun Jing'an, and strive to make progress in the next few years, so that the burden on his shoulders would become heavier!
But now it seems that Sun Jingan is unreliable. This guy may not be able to protect himself...
After thinking about it carefully, Zheng Jie asked Zhang Qinghe in a deep voice:

"Brother Zhang, you are well-informed. Who do you think will take over after Sun Jingan falls?"

Zhang Qinghe snorted and said lightly:

"Brother Zheng, you have just been promoted to the position of deputy governor. Are you in such a hurry to become a full-time official? Excuse me, if you want to become a full-time official, you may need to settle down for a few years!"

Zheng Jie shook his head and said:

"Brother Zhang, I understand even if you don't say it. I had originally planned to retire as the prefect of Changshan. I am very lucky to be the deputy governor this time!"

"The position of Youyan's governor is so important, and I have no one above me. Neither Minister Cui nor Minister Gu may know that there is such a person as Zheng Jie!"

Upon hearing what Zheng Jie said, Zhang Qinghe also smiled and joked:
"Brother Zheng, you are very self-aware!"

Zheng Jie smiled bitterly twice, then poured Zhang Qinghe another glass of wine and said sincerely:
"Although I know I can't be the governor of Youyan, but to be honest, becoming the deputy governor this time has given me some new hope in my political life!"

“I can’t be the governor of Youyan, but if I work hard as the deputy governor and make some achievements, I think I will still have a chance to be transferred to another post…”

After hearing what Zheng Jie said, Zhang Qinghe also keenly realized his thoughts and said:
"So, Brother Zheng, you want to establish a good relationship with the governor?"

Zheng Jie nodded and said helplessly:
"It's useless to call a governor deputy! If I want to achieve something, I need his support!"

Zhang Qinghe nodded when he heard this, which was considered as his approval of Zheng Jie's idea. After thinking for a while, he said:

"The possibility of Ye Hao and Jin Zaicheng is very small. Although they are very powerful, if the commander really wants one of them to be the governor, then he will directly transfer them this time and will not let Sun Jingan insert this stick!"

Zhang Qinghe hesitated for a moment, but in Zheng Jie's hopeful eyes, he couldn't help but said:

"Brother Zheng, I haven't received any news, but I am optimistic about the current Liaoyang Governor Zhao Wanxian. Zhao Wanxian has succeeded Gu Zhongshi in Liaoyang in recent years and has done a great job, making Liaoyang's economy flourish. The Marshal seems to appreciate his talents very much!"

"Moreover, Zhao Wanxian was previously a councilor of Youyan's Provincial Government, and he is very familiar with Youyan's situation. He has also been the Provincial Government Envoy in Liaoyang for a while, and his ability to preside over a province's government affairs has been proven. It seems that it is almost time to give him some courage!"

Hearing the name Zhao Wanxian, Zheng Jiexian was somewhat surprised and said hesitantly:

“Zhao Wanxian seems to be only 37 years old this year! The Marshal will let him take on the burden of Youyan…”

(End of this chapter)