Dai Yi and Gao Feng didn't know what gifts Empress Dowager Zhang wanted to give to Chen Xi, but these two old eunuchs knew very well that in the palace there was no more way to deal with the rise of powerful officials in the court like Chen Xi, and they could only use some unconventional means.

Aren’t the people in the court praising the innocent officials?

Then let Chen Xi be a stolen official and make his reputation bad first.

Not only the eunuch gave gifts to Chen Xi, Zhu Houzhao also asked the envoys of foreign countries to give gifts to Chen Xi, and even the noble Empress Dowager Zhang himself had to gather the post. This has to be said to be a great irony.

Gao Feng and Dai Yi had seen Empress Dowager Zhang leave the hall, and their faces were full of embarrassment. Gao Feng was silent. Dai Yi took the lead and asked, "Eunuch Gao, do you think that if Your Majesty asks everyone to buy the money to buy the eunuch in charge of the seal, there is no room for improvement?"

Gao Feng looked at Dai Yi for a few glances and asked in confusion: "Otherwise, what will happen? The Empress Dowager cannot interfere with Your Majesty's actions. Can we still obstruct? That Lord Shen is deeply trusted by Your Majesty, but you didn't see the result of the advice? What's more, it's a deacon like us who has no say in the palace?"

Dai Yidao: "Then what is the value of this eunuch who is in charge of seals in the Sili Supervisor?"

Gao Feng shook his head and said, "Where did our family know? Now I'm afraid only Master Shen understands what His Majesty's expectations are... This time Zhang Yong and Li Xing are competing in secret, do you, Eunuch Dai, want to participate in it?"

"Of course... I think so too."

Dai Yixin seemed unwilling to accept it, and said with his head down and shook his head.

Among all the eunuchs in the palace, Dai Yi was not the oldest, but he was the most prestigious one cultivated from the inner study room. Even Xiao Jing, the eunuch who was the prestigious eunuch in the Sili Supervisor, was his junior.

Seeing that those backwards who were not as qualified as their own, who could be the chief eunuchs, and before he died, he was still just a eunuch with his pen and did not sit at the peak and looked back on the past, Dai Yi was naturally unwilling to accept it.

Gao Feng said: "It is better to advise Eunuch Dai not to have this idea... I miss you, too, have not left the court for a long time, we are all people who are in the evening, so it is better to leave some money to support us. If you don't even have money to support us, who is willing to support us? Let those young eunuchs go and do whatever they want..."

"It's better not to get involved with us old guys. This is not something that can be determined by ability and reputation. Whoever gives too much money at once and has to spend too much time to accumulate wealth in the future. Why bother? Moreover, the Sili Supervisor's seal is a job that is destined to offend people, and it's thankless."

Dai Yi hesitated and said, "Liu Jin and Zhang Yuan seemed to be doing well at the beginning, but they didn't see them paying much for themselves?"

Gao Feng couldn't help but feel silent when he heard this. Thinking of Liu Jin and Zhang Yuan's glory when they were the Sili Supervisor, every eunuch would envy him from the bottom of his heart, but at the same time they knew that they did not have such qualifications. After all, the price to pay for this opportunity to rise to power is too high.

Gao Feng said: "People compare themselves to others... it's so annoying. It's because Eunuch Liu and Eunuch Zhang have made touchstones for us one after another that we know that even if we sit in the inner minister, it's very dangerous... If Eunuch Dai wants to take out his old job, it would be fine if he can get this job. If his wealth is not as good as others, he will not only fail to get it, but also end up in vain. He will have no hope in this life."

"well!"

Dai Yi couldn't help but sigh, as if he was at a loss for the matter of the competition for the ceremonial supervisor.

Gao Feng said again: "Anyway, you still have to get the support of Lord Shen first. Without his approval, no one can get into this position... The current situation is different from before. In the past, anyone who became the boss, the chief etiquette wanted to suppress Lord Shen first, but after Eunuch Liu and Eunuch Zhang had an accident, no one in the palace understood that if you want to be content with this position, you must please Lord Shen first."

...

...

Not only did Gao Feng understand what he said, Dai Yi also knew the secret, and even any eunuch in the court understood this principle.

Except for Li Rong and Li Xing who tried to meet Chen Xi that day, everyone else also tried to contact Chen Xi. Without Chen Xi's approval, no one dared to take out a big number of things to fight... If almost everyone had been waiting for the morning of the coming morning, and personally came to the Shen family to test Chen Xi's mouth.

In the past, the decision-making power of the eunuch in charge of the Sili Superintendent was on the emperor, but this time it seemed that he was more inclined to be independent of the Minister of War Chen Xi, who was independent of the imperial palace system. After Dai Yi returned, he counted all his belongings and wondered whether he would participate in it.

Dai Yi thought to himself: "Or take out a few hundred taels of silver and act like this, just treat these hundreds of taels of silver as a filial piety to His Majesty. If you add the batch you gave to Lord Shen before, the number will exceed one thousand... Alas, it's like losing money in vain..."

Dai Yi repeatedly weighed the gains and losses in his heart, whether it was necessary to throw all his belongings into it.

"At least a few adopted sons, and their family also bought more than ten shops and hundreds of acres of land. Even if they can't get this position in the end, they will never starve to death. It's better than losing more than a thousand taels of silver in vain!"

Although Gao Feng was very resistant to Dai Yi's idea of ​​competing for the Sili Supervisor's seal before, Gao Feng was actually calculating how much money he had after he returned so that he could be sure to participate in the competition.

Because Gao Feng was unable to leave the palace that day, he had to wait for the morning before leaving the palace. At this moment, he was also thinking about this repeatedly: "My family is richer than Eunuch Dai, and his reputation in the palace is not inferior to others. Moreover, he is still in the Sili Supervisor. It would be a pity to give up like this. No, I would like to ask Lord Shen first tomorrow. As long as Lord Shen nods his support, our family will accept it even if he sells it out!"

At this time, Dai Yi and Gao Feng both placed their hopes on Shen Xi, and the amount of gifts also determined their determination. It seemed that even those who were interested, the gifts they gave were only three digits, while Gao Feng gave them one thousand taels, and he was even more ambitious in competing for the seal of the ceremonial supervisor.

At this time, in Zhang Yong's house, the old eunuch who had been serving as the military supervisor of Chenxi for many years was also busy counting the amount of money on hand. After Xiao Guozi expressed that he would not ask him for bribes, Zhang Yong focused all his energy on how to win over Chenxi.

"...Master, you have finally accumulated this little family business over the years. Do you have to give it to Lord Shen? There are more than 20,000 taels of silver here, which is what you have accumulated after working hard over the years." The housekeeper said with a bitter face, obviously feeling distressed for Zhang Yong.

Zhang Yong said annoyedly: "Why, I'm afraid that our family will spend all their money and you will lose everything by then?"

When the housekeeper heard this, he quickly stepped aside and did not dare to criticize him anymore. Zhang Yong looked at the large box of silver in the warehouse and shook his head and said, "This is our last chance. If we can't buy this crucial position, we will retire and return to our hometown to farm... Everything is not yet determined, so we have to fight..."

The housekeeper stood there and did not dare to speak. Suddenly a servant came into the room and said, "Master, I sent someone here, saying that I would go to Shen Mansion early in the morning. I said that the father-in-laws in the palace were trapped in the palace and could not arrive at the Shen family in advance due to the palace ban. I might as well visit him earlier and sit down and talk to Lord Shen."

Zhang Yong frowned: "I didn't even find out the details of each family. I just went to see you like this. It was obvious that I was going to cause trouble... But it would be good to let those people know that our family was the first to come first, and there was also a big fuss to support my father-in-law, and see who could compete!"

...

...

It was already the second half of the night, and the front yard of the Shen family was still very lively.

The gift-giving people have left, but the matter of counting the gifts is not over yet. At the same time, the eunuchs who give gifts basically have letters. If you want to ask Chen Xi for the meaning of asking Chen Xi to see if he wants to help, Chen Xi needs to check them one by one.

Zhu Qi and Zhu Hong and his son were responsible for counting the gifts, and finally Zhu Hong summarized the numbers in front of Chen Xi: "Master, there are 9,358 taels of silver in total. The most was given by the Master Li Xing and Eunuch Li, two thousand taels, and the old man Gao Fenggao and Eunuch Li Rong and Eunuch Li respectively gave 1,000 taels. In addition, the others basically cost between 500 taels and 800 taels of silver. Eunuch Zhang Yong and Eunuch Zhang gave 666 taels of silver in order to get a good start. This is a detailed gift list."

Chen Xi took the gift list and looked carefully. He was very surprised by the numbers above and shook his head and sighed: "The deacons in this palace are all so fat!"

Zhu Hong said: "Master, where are these silvers stored?"

"Let's put it in the yard."

Chenxidao, "Don't rush to move elsewhere. I'll send it away tomorrow. It's said that it was the silver I gave me, but it's just an registration fee. The silver will always be sent to the leopard room and handed over to His Majesty."

When Zhu Qi, who was standing at the door, heard this, he asked in confusion: "Master, didn't Your Majesty ask you all to give you gifts?"

Chen Xi smiled and replied: "Dad Zhu, just listen to some things. Even if Your Majesty says this, as a minister, he really dares to embezzle and accept bribes? And it has caused a lot of controversy. Will everyone in the world know about it?"

Zhu Qi nodded as if he had understood it.

Perhaps in the opinion of the Shangdou Xiaomin, no official did not accept gifts. Since the gifts sent to the mansion were even approved by the emperor, it would be useless to accept them.

But in the eyes of wise people, the most important thing is the reputation... If the emperor wants you to accept gifts, you will accept it? Do you still have the etiquette, righteousness, integrity and shame of a civil servant? Since you are so greedy, you must have bad character, so it is best to have less relationships!

Once a reputation is broken, nothing will be wrong. Thousands of taels of silver are worthless in front of Qingming.

Just at this moment, a servant came in at the door and reported: "Master, someone came to give gifts outside, saying that they were from the palace, so you can go out to greet them in person."

Zhu Hong was a little impatient and said casually: "There are too many people coming to give gifts today. The master has never gone out to greet him. He asked the person to leave the gift at the door and ask a few brothers to carry the things in... Master, if it is not unexpected, he should have twisted his father-in-law to give gifts..."

The only missing person in the list of gift gifts and the candidates for the Sili Supervisor's printing was Xiao Guozi. Xiao Guozi came to the Shen family to deliver the order at the beginning, but he did not give the gifts after leaving. However, Zhang Yong was very aware of it, but he didn't give much. He probably felt that if he wanted to get the support of Chen Xi, it would no longer be possible to solve the problem.

Chen Xi raised his hand and said, "Go out and take a look."

Zhu Qi and Zhu Hong and his son looked at each other, and saw Chen Xi stepping towards the door, and quickly asked someone to use a lantern, then called the guard guard in the mansion and went out to open the way first.

When Chen Xi slowly walked to the front of the gate, he saw a bunch of people huddled there.

A middle-aged eunuch who was in his thirties and looked very rich came over and saluted: "Mr. Shen, right? This is a gift from the Empress Dowager to you, thank you quickly."

Unlike the people who usually come to give gifts, this time it was the eunuch who came to give gifts. The eunuchs who came to the imperial edict were arrogant because the ignorant of those who were unaware of the fear. Most eunuchs in the palace rarely walked out of the palace gate and did not know the situation outside. At most, they had only heard of the name of Chen Xi. With the support of the empress dowager, they were aggressive and did not know how powerful Chen Xi is now.

Chen Xi did not compete with the person who came and bowed and said, "Thank you, my father-in-law, for coming to give the gift, don't know what to call him?"

"The surname is Sun." The middle-aged eunuch said.

Chen Xi smiled and nodded: "Eunuch Sun is polite, go in and have some tea before leaving?"

The eunuch named Sun said, "No need, the Empress Dowager is still waiting for our family to go back and report that our family's errands are completed, so I will say goodbye. Come and bring the gifts..."

While speaking, the eunuch named Sun said to Chen Xi again: "Mr. Shen, the Empress Dowager is also polite to you. Should you know what to do?"

Chen Xi narrowed his eyes and said, "Please give me advice."

The eunuch named Sun was slightly dissatisfied: "We should submit a memorial to thank you. Is it necessary for our family to remind you?"

When Empress Dowager Zhang came to give gifts, she asked someone to thank him, as if she had given her a great gift. Chen Xi thought to herself: "No matter how stupid a person is, he can guess that Empress Dowager Zhang is not drinking... Could it be that she has lived in the deep palace for a long time and is unwilling to be lonely and has begun to interfere in the government affairs?"

Chen Xidao: "Thank you, Eunuch Sun, for reminding me... Since Eunuch Sun doesn't want to go in to drink tea, I'll give it away not far."

The eunuch named Sun wanted to get some rewards back, but when he saw Chen Xi's attitude was not good, he waved his hand: "No need to send it, our family has legs and feet, so can we still need someone to send it when walking? I left."

A group of people put down the box and then dispersed. Zhu Hong came over and said slightly indignantly: "This palace man is not a small slut."

Zhu Qi taught a lesson: "Can you talk randomly in front of the master?"

Although Zhu Qi seemed to have no ability, he still had to take the responsibility of teaching in front of his son. Zhu Hong took a few steps back when he heard this. At this time, Chen Xi had already withdrawn his gaze from a distance and waved his hand: "Please carry the things in." After that, he entered the yard first.

Soon Zhu Hong arranged for people to carry the boxes to the front yard. There were a lot of these things. After opening them, he realized that it was not all gold, silver, jewelry, etc., many of them were old goods in the palace warehouse, mixed with some silver and copper coins, and there were a lot of them. They looked very large but the actual value was that.

It is much more complicated to sort out Zhu Qi and Zhu Hong this time. It took almost an hour to make a figure together with the account room at home. Zhu Hong said: "Master, it's about four or five hundred taels of silver. Many things are not worth valuing. Many of them are old items. They are in trouble. They are sent to the warehouse. What is this saying?"

Zhu Qi looked at his son again, as if he was very dissatisfied with his attitude, but Zhu Hong held his head up and had no intention of retreating at all.

Chen Xidao: "The things sent from the palace are no matter how much they are. The leopard room is expensive now, and the palace is saving food. It would be good if you can deliver them... It's all the kindness of the Empress Dowager."

That being said, but Chen Xi didn't really take it seriously. He just wanted the servants at home to maintain awe of the royal family. No matter how much he did, how much credit he achieved, or what position he gained in the court, he was always a minister of the Ming Dynasty. Now he is not afraid of his mentality problems, but fears that his family members will have any thoughts, especially dissatisfaction with the royal family. This negative emotion can easily cause mental imbalance and cause trouble for the family.

Chen Xi waved his hand again: "They are sent to the warehouse. You don't have to carry them to the front yard tomorrow. I don't need to pay attention to the rest here. Let's go and rest first. I guess people will come to the mansion before dawn. You will be out for social events at that time... Dad Zhu, go home and rest first."

Zhu Qi sighed, "It's not too early. Even if the home is only two streets away from here, it's too late to have a good rest, so I just stayed in the mansion to deal with it for a night... Yikuan didn't listen to the master's orders and put things in place?"

Zhu Hong is usually very majestic in the army, but he can't raise his momentum in front of his father, so he quickly acts as he told him.

...

...

The mansion is very lively, but it is limited to the front yard. The back yard is separated by several yards from here, so it is impossible to disturb it at all, and the women in the mansion don’t care about this.

But in the east wing of the backyard, someone was very concerned about what happened in the front yard. He sneaked out several times to check the situation. He stared at him for a long time and found that the person was beginning to disperse, so he returned to the east wing and sat down.

"It's really rare. There are so many people coming to the evening. Could it be that the elder brother wants to be a Duke and the court officials come to congratulate him? In this way, this will be the Duke's Mansion in the future, and I will be the Duke's sister? Hey!"

This person is Chen Yier, the sister of Chen Xi. She is just doing nothing in the Shen family. The little guy is energetic and will come out to see the scenery after a little movement at night. Moreover, she is very brave. Generally, her daughter's family dare not go out to check the situation. However, she is not bound by feudal ethics. No matter how big the door is not out of the second door, it will definitely not apply to Miss Shen.

After a long time, when Chen Yi'er went out to see him, she found that the person had left and even Chen Xi had returned to the inner courtyard. Chen Yi'er felt bored and then turned back, and suddenly thought of her younger brother sleeping in the next room.
To be continued...