Chapter 284: Discussing Marriage
The Ministry of Works office was not magnificent; in fact, there was a bit too much junk.
Piles here, piles there, and piles over there.
It was all building material.
They couldn’t bear to throw it away.
So it looked a bit messy.
Of course, the main entrance was very dignified.
The face of the Imperial Court could not be lost.
Minister Dong’s office was large.
He warmly pulled General Meng over to chat in detail.
After all, he had attained the rank of Minister, and he considered his judgment to be decent.
Although he had just misjudged someone recently, that was an accident.
Vice Minister Liu was his subordinate, and they had been colleagues for many years.
He had watched Liu Tong grow up; he wasn’t very smart, but he didn’t have any major flaws either. Who could have imagined he would change upon growing up?
Besides that, Minister Dong felt his judgment of people was accurate.
Otherwise, this position of Minister would not have fallen to him.
Meng Qingshe was definitely a good person.
Upright and generous, foolish yet wise.
But Old General Meng was not necessarily so.
If Meng Qingshe was a flashy black-striped snake—quick in movement, agile in reaction, good at escaping, gentle in nature, looking scary but actually not biting, only biting when excessively frightened or forced—then Old General Meng was a “Ba,” also known as a five-step snake, seven-step snake, hundred-step snake, or sharp-nosed viper.
There was no need to explain after seeing the names.
He would bite people, was very fierce, and could bite someone to death.
Old General Meng was not a benevolent snake.
To be able to satisfy Meng Qingshe meant the other party was at least an honest person.
To be able to satisfy Old General Meng meant the other party was a smart person.
Someone who was both honest and smart—if that wasn’t his future in-law, then who was?
Minister Dong made inquiries very earnestly.
“My in-law’s son? Yes, he has one. Jiang Feng is honest and loyal, with impressive martial arts skills. He practices martial arts with my son every morning, rain or shine, never skipping a day, very hardworking. From what my son says, Jiang Feng has extraordinary knowledge. If it weren’t for… he would definitely have passed the imperial examinations. Just look at my in-law and you’ll know; what a smart person he is.”
Minister Dong pulled Old Meng over, sat down, and poured him tea.
“Let’s discuss this in detail.”
He then pulled a bag of dried meat from his drawer and handed a piece to Old Meng.
Old Meng was an honest person and certainly wouldn’t lie.
It was just that he was too straightforward and didn’t know how to beat around the bush, so one had to carefully analyze the specific situation from his words.
He didn’t even do his official work.
Minister Dong spent the whole morning chatting properly with Meng Qingshe.
He even chatted Meng Qingshe into a daze.
Why could this Old Dong chat so much?
He was just like the aunties and uncles in the park helping their children find partners.
Chatting about everything, letting his imagination run wild.
After finishing the chat, thinking it was noon, he originally wanted to treat Old Meng to a meal.
Old Meng was adamant about going home to eat.
The food at home was delicious.
He showed off again.
Minister Dong didn’t waste his money and let him go.
He carefully analyzed the content of what Old Meng had said, casting aside the messy parts and keeping the main points.
The Jiang Family’s conditions should be decent. Meng Qingshe’s daughter-in-law’s dowry was very generous, but it wasn’t shown on the surface; the Jiang Family was very low-key. (They have money, so she won’t be poor after marrying over; they are low-key, so it’s not easy to be killed, and they won’t easily get into trouble.)
The mistress of the Jiang Family had a very good personality, because his daughter-in-law was a bit of a “silly, sweet” type—carefree and open. If she didn’t truly love her children, she wouldn’t have been able to raise such a personality. (The mother-in-law has a good personality and is easy to get along with.)
Jiang Feng was skilled in both literature and martial arts, but he had an injury on his forehead. His appearance should be very good; Meng Qingshe had mentioned it several times that he was handsome. (An injury isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If he were perfect, he would have long since become someone else’s husband. Having a slight flaw might be the reason he was still available.)
Jiang Feng had a good personality, loved and protected his sister, was extremely patient with people, very lively, and loved to smile, though he was a bit simple and naive. (Looking at Vice Minister Jiang, saying he is naive is debatable, but for a person like Vice Minister Jiang who is full of schemes, his children don’t need too many schemes.)
Jiang Feng had no bad habits; he spent all his time studying, and the family upbringing was very strict. The Jiang Family had no concubines and no messy people. (This is very good; the family atmosphere is upright, and his daughter won’t be wronged in the future.)
They chatted for a very long time.
Minister Dong was now extremely anxious.
His daughter’s wedding dress was already embroidered.
The groom had to come.
He was also a decisive person and prepared to go contact Vice Minister Jiang again.
After all, this Old Meng person’s intelligence fluctuated, and it was hard to gauge.
After eating, Minister Dong snuck over to the main government office.
An Attendant of the Yellow Gate generally had to enter the palace, or wait outside if not entering.
When Minister Dong arrived, Vice Minister Jiang really hadn’t entered the palace.
Under the indication of Prime Minister Lu, Vice Minister Jiang had been ostracized.
He was alone in his office.
There was no work for him to do.
He didn’t mind.
Being ostracized wasn’t something to fear.
With that little salary, they still wanted him to work his life away? Wasn’t it better to rest?
Vice Minister Jiang was very open-minded.
These past few days, he had seen the results sent over from time to time by his old in-law.
He had also hired an outside accountant (bookkeeper) to help count them.
Of course, outsiders couldn’t easily come in.
Jiang Changtian chose a colleague who had waited with him to be selected for office back in the day.
That colleague was destitute and couldn’t even afford to rent a house. When he went to visit Jiang Changtian, Jiang Changtian had sponsored him a sum of money.
However, he generally didn’t easily do good deeds. The money given out had to have equivalent benefits; giving it for free wouldn’t do.
If you give it for free once, will you give it for free the second time? If you give it the second time, will you give it the third time?
If you don’t give it one time, you are no longer a good person.
Therefore, Jiang Changtian invited that colleague to help keep the accounts, and incidentally, paid him wages. (When paying the money, he deducted the money he had given away; the main theme was that even if they weren’t brothers, accounts had to be settled clearly.)
The colleague was also very grateful.
This job was decent; it was working for the Emperor. Clearly, Brother Jiang could have done it himself—Brother Jiang had been leisurely sunning his back all morning—but to solve his urgent need, he had insisted on letting him do it. Not only did he pay him, but he also gave him a chance to show his face.
This was working for the Emperor and Prime Minister Lu; if done well, and if he happened to receive praise, there would always be opportunities.
Therefore, the colleague, Chen Jiuju, was very grateful and calculated everything very earnestly and diligently, not even stopping to rest during lunch.
He hastily dealt with a few bites and continued calculating.
There was too much money. It was endless.
It was divided into three parts.
Every single transaction had to be recorded, and the accounts had to be clear.
So when Minister Dong arrived, Vice Minister Jiang was earnestly reading a book.
The afternoon sunlight had already slanted, passing through the window into the room.
Vice Minister Jiang was wearing a dark blue official robe, his long hair draped over his shoulders, and he was leaning back in his chair flipping through a book. He wasn’t sitting very upright, looking a bit lazy.
There was tea and snacks on the desk.
The tea set didn’t seem to be from the government office; it should have been something he brought himself.
It was a large tea cup with a perforated tea strainer, designed very specially.
He also had a hot water bag in his arms, and there was a foot warmer under the table.
Other rooms were icy cold and uncomfortable, but stepping into Vice Minister Jiang’s room felt comfortable.
Seeing the visitor, Vice Minister Jiang stood up and greeted him politely.
They stood face to face.
Old Dong couldn’t help but secretly praise in his heart, “How handsome!”
This in-law was truly a man of talent and appearance!
Even if the son didn’t take after his father, with this appearance, even if it were halved, it would still be good-looking enough.
Minister Dong still understood his own daughter somewhat.
His own daughter liked pretty things.
That boy from the Liu family was just okay-looking, and had a pile of other flaws, yet his daughter had endured it.
But compared to the in-law in front of him, it couldn’t compare; he wasn’t even fit to carry his shoes.
Minister Dong had an enthusiastic face, a loud voice, and smiled almost obsequiously.
Jiang Changtian was a bit confused.
He remembered this person; he was from the Imperial Court. He had glanced at him, and combined with the detailed information given to him by Brother Yehang, he had memorized it all.
The person in front of him was Minister Dong of the Ministry of Works, who was said to be upright and unyielding, capable of getting things done, and a useful talent.
Vice Minister Jiang greeted him enthusiastically.
“I don’t know what instructions Minister Dong has for gracing me with your presence.”
A leader of this level surely wouldn’t have come to ask for answers.
Jiang Changtian still had quite a bit of self-awareness; everyone was just giving face to Prime Minister Lu, and it had nothing to do with him.
Minister Dong sat down happily to chat.
Putting aside everything else, just seeing Vice Minister Jiang’s appearance made one feel happy.
It was a feast for the eyes.
Legend had it that Meng Qingshe’s daughter-in-law was as beautiful as Daji; it seems that rumors don’t arise without cause.
With a father having this appearance, how could the daughter not be good-looking?
Meng Qingshe had really taken a huge advantage; his two grandsons must also be good-looking.
Minister Dong did not beat around the bush.
He sat down in front of Vice Minister Jiang and said, “I heard from Master Meng that your eldest son is not yet married. I wonder if he has a person he fancies? If not, this old man is willing to act as a matchmaker and bridge the connection.”
Jiang Changtian understood in a second. Unlike chatting with Meng Qingshe all morning until his mouth was dry, and Meng Qingshe still hadn’t understood why Old Dong was so enthusiastic today.
“He has not. My son does not have a sweetheart. If Minister Dong can help connect them, that would naturally be excellent. I wonder which young lady it is? I will have my wife pay a visit tomorrow.”
Minister Dong was even more satisfied after seeing Vice Minister Jiang. Not only was his appearance good, but every detail on Vice Minister Jiang’s body and head showed that he lived very well—his hair was clean and neat, his clothing cuffs were brand new, his collar was crisp, the room was well-furnished, the food and drink were comfortable, his shoes were clean, and there was a hot water bag for warming his hands. All these details showed that his household was very good and his wife was virtuous.
Just for this point, his own daughter would definitely be able to live well after marrying over.
Minister Dong slapped the table and said without blushing, “I have a good daughter at home.”
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