In late May, the master returned to the court and immediately went to the palace to pay respects and hand in the military seal. At this point, the mission of the commander-in-chief of Jinzhou to suppress the bandits was completely completed. The old emperor was very happy to see the master. He praised him again and again in front of all the ministers, but he was unwilling to give him any practical benefits. He did not promote him, but only gave him gold, silver, jewelry, land, farms, and servants and women. Considering the master's merits, this reward was not worthy at all. With an obvious intention of suppression, it was almost like killing the donkey after it had done its work. Many court officials looked strange, as if they were surprised that the master had been treated like this. The two prime ministers looked at the old emperor's treatment with their eyes and noses, and they had already known the old emperor's treatment. They also knew clearly that the reward given to the master was really poor. However, this was decided by the old emperor himself, and they could not say anything. They could only sigh for the master, who was unlucky to meet a foolish emperor. Let alone promotion of title, promotion of official position is OK. No way! The old emperor refused to give title or official position, only a little gold and silver. Who would be willing to fight hard and make achievements in the future if he was so stingy? Doing so would not only chill the hearts of the master, but also the hearts of the generals in the world.
But the old emperor had different ideas. He was stingy in rewarding the master, but generous in rewarding the generals in the army, playing the game of luring and dividing. The generals below were too close to the nobles, and he was not satisfied. He was suppressing the master to remind the generals in the world that if they wanted to get promoted and make money, they should not get too close to the nobles. As a general in the court, as long as they kept their duties and did their job well, the court would never be stingy with official positions and money. However, if they got too close to the nobles, don't blame the court for suppressing them. The master also knew the meaning of it, and it was inevitable that he was discouraged. The old emperor has become more and more wary of the nobles in recent years, and no longer pays as much attention to them as in the early years. He can only sigh helplessly. With the general situation like this, he can only follow the old emperor's wishes and retreat to the second line. When the old emperor uses him, he will do his job honestly. When the old emperor doesn't use him, he can only stay at home and be a playboy. Are the nobles convinced? Definitely not convinced! It's just that there is no need to compete with the old emperor for a short time. The nobles are looking for a century-old family. If the old emperor doesn't like them, then they will quietly wait for the new emperor to ascend the throne. The new emperor will definitely need the support of the nobles, and then the nobles will be able to shake up again. In short, everyone has the same idea, not caring about temporary neglect, but only seeking long-term wealth. After receiving the reward, the eldest master resigned from the palace and went home to drink. The Marquis's Mansion held a banquet for three consecutive days to celebrate. The first two days entertained guests from all sides, and the last day was a family gathering. Chen Guanlou was fortunate to be invited and went to the Marquis's Mansion for the banquet with a gift. Master Du was also invited. Master Du had taught in the Marquis's house for many years, so he was arranged to attend the family dinner, which was an expression of closeness. Master Du was very satisfied. When he saw Chen Guanlou, he greeted him warmly. The two were not only friends regardless of age, but also business partners. Since Chen Guanlou took Master Du to trade in antiques, calligraphy and paintings, Master Du became rich, and his whole mental outlook changed. He used to be an old scholar who was frustrated, but now he is Mr. Du who is full of ambition and has a second spring in his life. "Do you want to see the master? When the master is free in a few days, I can pass on the message for him."
"Why should I see the master? The master won the battle, but he was not promoted or given a higher rank. I think the master is dissatisfied. If I go to him at this time, I will be asking for trouble." When Master Du heard this, he felt that it made sense, and then sighed: "I didn't expect the court to be so stingy." Chen Guanlou sneered, and whispered behind his back: "It's not the court that is stingy, it's clearly the old emperor who is stingy." "Hush, don't say this casually." Master Du looked nervous. Chen Guanlou laughed again in a blink of an eye, "However, the master really made a fortune when he went out. On the day he came back, I saw with my own eyes that the carts carrying goods stretched for miles. It is said that he brought back several beautiful concubines, one of whom was pregnant. The master is really amazing." Going out to fight, making money and having children, nothing was delayed. The gifts were so soft, and the women were so soft. What's more amazing is that the eldest master openly accepted the gifts and brought them back to the mansion openly, without fear of impeachment by the censors or the court. He made a big show of saying that this marquis is a corrupt official, and it is impossible for this marquis to fight with the soldiers in the wind and rain. If you don't like it, sue me! If you win, you are awesome. No court official would use this handle to sue the eldest master at this time. Even the censors who are like firecrackers know that it is meaningless and powerless to impeach the eldest master for such a small matter. It is better to impeach the eldest master for letting the soldiers harm Li Xiang's hometown, which is more severe. However, the eldest master won the battle after all, and also arrested the third person of the traitor. The merits and demerits offset each other, so everyone just held their noses and endured it. When the eldest master commits a crime next time, it will not be too late to settle the accounts in the autumn, and settle the new and old accounts together. By the way, the old emperor used the excuse of "merits and demerits offset each other" to refuse to promote the master. What could the master do? He could only bow and say, "Your Majesty is wise! I am unworthy of this!" In this way, the matter was exposed and everyone was happy. The Marquis's mansion held a banquet for this purpose, to show the old emperor that the old minister had no dissatisfaction and was very happy, so the banquet was held for three days and the money was spent like water. All the money embezzled in Jinzhou was contributed to the GDP of the capital! In short, everyone is happy. Even if you are not happy, you have to pretend to be happy. At this time, the person who has the most reason to be upset is the first wife. The first master brought back so many women in one breath, one of whom was pregnant, which made her so angry that her silver teeth were broken. A grandfather can't control the two taels of meat below. The first wife has recorded all the powerful people in Jinzhou in a small notebook. If there is a chance, she will report them one by one. The second wife was jealous and laughed. Seeing the first wife's rise, she was so anxious that her heart ached. Seeing the first wife's unhappy look, at least she gave her some comfort. The old lady was much more rational. If the first wife was rising, then the second wife had to retreat and not steal the first wife's edge. One word: endure! She has endured for decades, so why not endure for a few more years. Rarely, she was kind to the family of the first house, and discussed everything with them. She also reminded the housekeeper, the second young lady, that all matters, big or small, must be approved by the first young lady before they can be handled. From now on, all matters in the mansion, big or small, will be subject to the will of the first house. The second young lady wanted to fight for it, but the old lady shut her up with a look. "If the second house is not convinced, if you have the ability, you can also share the worries of His Majesty and the court. If you don't have that ability, just shut up and do your job well. This mansion originally belonged to the first house." The old lady made a public statement, intending to please the first master. The first master didn't buy her tricks at all.