Chapter 784

After dumping Chen Guanxu in logistics, Chen Guanlou didn't ask about his affairs again.

He wasn't Mu Qingshan, who needed hand-holding guidance. Such a smart person, who can bend and stretch, should be able to mix like a fish in water in any environment and get along well with the people around him.

After Mu Qingshan had the door god to guard him, his spirit recovered rapidly.

He not only painted the door god and pasted it on the front door of his house, but he also drew the door god on talisman paper, folded it up, and carried it with him as an amulet, saying it could ward off disasters. All demons and monsters are scum in front of the door god.

Chen Guanlou felt deeply that it was hard to describe in words.

"You have gone from one extreme to another. Little Mu, can we be neutral and peaceful, and a little more moderate?"

Mu Qingshan gripped the amulet tightly. "Master, you are attached to appearances! You are not him, and he is not you! He is the door god; are you the door god?"

This is a brain that studies philosophy!

Chen Guanlou felt for a moment that his brain wasn't enough. "Although he is not me, he was drawn based on my face; the core is me!"

"Not so! Master, you are just a vulgar person, while the door god is a god who protects humanity. May I ask, are you a god?"

"I am indeed a vulgar person, but you have deified me!"

"Master, you are wrong again! It is not that I have deified you. It is that I have found a spiritual sustenance, and for the time being, I couldn't think of any other appearance, so I used your appearance as a substitute. After all, it is a god; it cannot be too ugly. In short, I just borrowed your face; the core is the sublimation of my inner heart, which has nothing to do with you!"

"You used my face, so it has something to do with me. Unless you are not allowed to use my face!"

"Master, you are wrong again! The face is yours, and it is also not yours. The face is a gift from Heaven; I am using a gift from Heaven, so what does it have to do with you?"

"You, you, you..."

Very rarely, Chen Guanlou actually had times when he was at a loss for words.

"You are quibbling, you are going in circles, you are talking nonsense, and it is completely illogical." He showed his true colors, stopped reasoning, and turned on attack mode.

"Master, you are anxious! That only proves that you have nothing to do with the door god. If you were a true door god, how could you be furious because of a few words? If you are a fake door god, go hide wherever it's cool, and don't come out to be an eyesore."

"Mu Qingshan, are you rebelling?"

"Is My Lord a local magistrate? To kill an official and rebel, one must at least kill a magistrate to count as rebelling. A mere Prison Warden doesn't have that qualification."

Chen Guanlou:...

So angry he could spit blood!

Mu Qingshan, who had achieved sublimation, could be called a master of verbal combat, completely changing his previous weak image.

He looked at the other person, the more he looked, the more he disliked him, and said bitterly, "Get out, get out, get out! Don't be an eyesore in front of me! Go back to your office and do your job well."

"Yes!" Mu Qingshan bowed and retreated, strictly observing the hierarchy, leaving nothing to be criticized.

Chen Guanlou could only find Medical Official Mu to complain. "What's wrong with your nephew Qingshan? He's acting all mystical. He wouldn't have joined some cult, would he? Let me tell you, the Brocade Uniform Guard is extremely sensitive to various cults; you must keep an eye on him, don't let him get caught."

"My Lord has misunderstood; he hasn't joined any cult, he only believes in the Confucian way. As for why he is acting mystical, sigh, this kind of thing has happened before. Don't worry, he will be normal after a while."

"Really? Don't lie to me."

"How could I hide anything from My Lord. You'll see, it won't be long before he settles down."

"I hope so!"

He really couldn't stand being used as a door god and then being used as an amulet. There was an indescribable sense of shame, making him so awkward that his toes curled into the ground, wishing he could dig out a hall, two bathrooms, and three rooms.

Before Mu Qingshan returned to normal, he decided to reduce the number of meetings between the two, or even avoid them completely. For official business, he would have people pass messages.

During this period, a major event occurred in the imperial court.

The battlefield in the south had been in a stalemate for years. Although they had blocked the attack of the rebel Prince Chujiang, it was only a block; they faced each other across the lake, and neither side could do anything to the other. They consumed a large amount of wealth and grain every year, but the war made no progress, turning a great battle to pacify the rebels into a war of attrition that lasted for years.

No matter how rich the imperial court is, it can't afford to consume like this!

Therefore, under the calculation and operation of Xie Gechen, in May, the commander-in-chief of the southern battlefield was replaced! The Minister of War took command, personally went south to supervise the battle, determined to drive Prince Chujiang back, at least back to his original fiefdom. He didn't seek to decide the outcome in one battle, but only sought to take back the wealthy land occupied by Prince Chujiang and collect taxes!

Use the wealth and taxes of the wealthy land to support the war in the south. In this way, a large sum of money could be saved for the imperial court.

This plan received the full support of Emperor Jian Shi, who pushed aside all objections and pushed Xie Gechen's plan forward.

Looking at it this way, although Xie Gechen did not have the title of Prime Minister, he already had the reality of one.

It is estimated that in two years, when Lord Hai steps down, or when Yu Zhaoan steps down, Xie Gechen will take the position. Even before taking the position, he could already suppress Yu Zhaoan until he couldn't breathe. After he really takes the position, can Yu Zhaoan still have any achievements in the Secretariat?

Chen Guanlou had dealt with both of them.

Yu Zhaoan is a very obvious traditional scholar, as cunning as a ghost.

But Xie Gechen has many cards to play in his hand, and he is smart and good at calculation. He is both steady and capable! When these two meet, tsk, I dare not imagine how wonderful and thrilling the infighting in the court must be.

Chen Guanlou only regretted that he couldn't watch the battle from a close distance.

With nothing to do, he invited Chen Guanxu to his office to drink tea and chat, asking if he was adapting to the new job and if his colleagues were easy to get along with.

Chen Guanxu naturally reported the good news but not the bad, praising how good the job in the Heavenly Prison was and that his colleagues had never made things difficult for him. By the way, he flattered Chen Guanlou, saying that under his management, everything in the Heavenly Prison was in good order, comparable to the military camp.

Chen Guanlou waved his hand and chuckled, "We don't dare compare to the military camp, as long as we are a little better than the one next door. The court has the Minister of War take command and go south to supervise the battle; what do you think of this? You are a professional, make a bold prediction: can the Minister of War do it?"

"It's like this, I heard that the imperial court is increasing taxes again?"

"There is a tax increase. But this time it is not aimed at the capital region, so many people don't know. Your news is quite well-informed."

"Sufficient money and grain, plus the Minister of War personally taking command, no matter what, it will produce the expected good results," Chen Guanxu said.

Chen Guanlou raised his eyebrows slightly. "Is the Minister of War very capable in battle?"

"Whether he is very capable in battle is not important. What is important is that his prestige is sufficient, he can mobilize the generals under his command like an arm, plus sufficient money and grain; in this battle, even a fool can produce a pretty good result."

"Could it be that the old General Gao who took command before was not capable?" Chen Guanlou asked curiously.

Chen Guanxu pondered for a while before saying: "He is old, nostalgic, his hands are not ruthless enough, and his heart is not black enough. The Minister is different; although he is also taking command, there are no less than twenty generals of various routes who died under the Minister's account. Kindness does not command troops, and righteousness does not command wealth; this is a true saying!"

"Do you think the imperial court will definitely win?"

"It will definitely win if there are no accidents! As far as I know, this battle is led by Minister Xie, and he will not allow this battle to fail! Even if the Minister of War is sacrificed to Heaven, it cannot fail!"