Half a month after the victory in Zhenjiang, news finally came from the imperial court.Shengbao finally got his wish, and the imperial court really made an order to attack Nanjing City after the Spring Festival, but this drudgery fell on Qiao Zhiqing's head.He gave all the credit to the Qingzi army in the performance, and only said that he recovered Yangzhou with the full assistance of the Qingzi army, for which the Qingzi army also lost tens of thousands of soldiers.The Empress Dowager of the Two Palaces had a good impression of Qiao Zhiqing after seeing Shengbao's recital, especially the Empress Dowager Cixi of the West Palace, who mentioned Qiao Zhiqing's name at several court meetings, and vigorously praised it, calling on all the ministers to learn from Qiao Zhiqing his spirit of loyalty and patriotism.After some calculations, Cixi drafted the decree, Ci'an added a seal, canonized Qiao Zhiqing as the general soldier of Jiangsu, and gave the second grade to wear a flower feather, and led all military affairs in Jiangsu Province.After Qiao Zhiqing received the holy decree, all the generals of the Qing Army and the famous giants of Jiangsu came to congratulate them in an endless stream, and after a busy day, they quieted down at night.After Yan Yuting was free, she handed over a secret protection of the fire fox in the palace to Qiao Zhiqing.On the court's treatment of Qiao Zhiqing's problem this time, there are obviously four forces surging up and down.One is the Qing school headed by Qi Junzao, because Qiao Zhiqing is a fellow villager in Shanxi, and on the issue of rewarding Qiao Zhiqing, Qi Junzao has indeed made great efforts to fight for reason in the court.One is the Huaixiang faction headed by Zeng Guofan, because he is worried that Qiao Zhiqing's power is too great, and he is afraid that the momentum in the future will overwhelm him.Therefore, Qiao Zhiqing was slandered and slandered in the court, for fear that the Queen Mother of the Two Palaces would reuse Qiao Zhiqing.One is the royal faction headed by Prince Gong Yi, because Shengbao received Qiao Zhiqing's favor this time, and praised Qiao Zhiqing as a loyal and brave figure like Guan Yunchang in the secret concert with Yi, so Yi also stood on Qiao Zhiqing's side this time.The most important force in the court is the Empress Dowager of the Two Palaces, and the Empress Dowager Cixi tried her best to show favor to Qiao Zhiqing in order to seize a greater right to speak, and wanted to take him for her own use.Ci'an's performance this time was extremely ambiguous, she knew the little Jiujiu in Cixi's heart, but it was not good to say anything for the sake of the overall situation, after all, even if Qiao Zhiqing was ambitious, it would be a matter for the future, and the most important thing at present was to solve the problem of the long-haired thief.So in the end, she maintained a neutral attitude, neither opposed nor agreed, and everything was handled according to Cixi."
Brother Qiao, your future father-in-law doesn't seem to be very friendly to you" Yan Yuting sat down on the couch, looked at Qiao Zhiqing with a ghostly smile, and took a sip of the tea bowl."
All his thoughts are now focused on Nanjing City, probably because he is afraid that we will rob him of his business."
Qiao Zhiqing chuckled jokingly."
Why did you say that he didn't agree to marry his daughter to you in the first place, why didn't he take a fancy to such a talented young man as Brother Qiao" Yan Yuting teased Qiao Zhiqing quirkily."
Zeng Guofan was already in the position of governor of Liangjiang at that time, and of course he disdained to deal with people like us who were full of copper stench."
Qiao Zhiqing recalled the past, and was secretly a little lost, it was the first time that his dignity was trampled on so strongly."
I know, the old man of the Zeng family must be afraid of losing face on you, he was so strongly opposed to you marrying his children at the beginning, and now that you are in a good mix, his face naturally can't be hung up, so he is secretly competing with you."
Yan Yuting suddenly analyzed it.Qiao Zhiqing didn't speak, he shook his head with a wry smile, in fact, in this world, I am afraid that only he knows Zeng Guofan's psychology best.If he had the same mind as Yan Yuting, he would not be called a saint in later generations.Zeng Guofan received Confucian thought from an early age, and often demanded himself as a sage.The idea of loyalty and patriotism has been imprinted in his heart like a brand, so everything he does to Qiao Zhiqing is arbitrary, not selfish.None of Qiao Zhiqing's new policies in Suzhou did not break through the restrictions of etiquette and religion.Zeng Guofan has naturally heard of it, and anyone with a discerning eye can see the ambition hidden in Qiao Zhiqing's heart, if it is not restricted, I am afraid that it will be another Hong Xiuquan of the Qing Dynasty.Zeng Guofan's real competition with Qiao Zhiqing is here, and only Qiao Zhiqing can see these clearly, and everyone else is afraid that they all have the same idea as Yan Yuting, which has to be said to be the sadness of this era.At a time when everyone is squeezing their heads to chase fame and fortune, Zeng Guofan's selflessness is destined to be just a solo song of high and low."
Oh, yes, Big Brother Joe.Sister Pan asked me to ask you, are you free tomorrow" Yan Yuting saw that Qiao Zhiqing was silent for a long time, and suddenly remembered Pan Qiaoyu's entrustment."
It depends on the situation, is there anything wrong" Qiao Zhiqing came to his senses, put down the official document in his hand, walked to the window and stretched, and sat down next to Yan Yuting on the couch.Yan Yuting obediently took off her shoes, snuggled up in his arms and lay down, and replied sweetly, "The match factory in her house will start production tomorrow, and I want you to go over and cheer." ”"This is a good thing for the match factory, this Pan Yongquan is really very discerning, when did he get this thing out" Qiao Zhiqing was happy, he had always had the desire to open a match factory, because the fire tools used in the Qing Dynasty at this time were still backward fire sickles and fire folds, which were quite inconvenient to operate.Later, due to the turbulence of the situation, he put this matter on hold, but he didn't expect that Pan Yongquan helped him realize this wish.After the situation in Jiangsu gradually stabilized, all walks of life have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain, among which Pan Kee & Co. has developed the most rapidly.The Pan Kee Spinning Factory, the Pan Kee Garment Factory, and the cigarette factory, which was a joint venture with Qiao Zhiqing, have all begun to operate, and after the cigarette factory was opened, the first Pan Kee match factory in the Qing Dynasty was launched.Pan Yongquan's original intention was to provide convenience for smokers, who knew that the first phase of the production of matches into the market was greatly welcomed, become a necessary product for every family's life, compared with the traditional fire tools, matches are more convenient and fast, without any skills can be ignited.The factories owned by the Pan family have accommodated tens of thousands of workers, and they have become the richest man in Jiangnan."
Then you agree to go," Yan Yuting's eyes widened and she looked up at Qiao Zhiqing."
Well, our Miss Yan pleaded, how dare I refuse?"
Qiao Zhiqing chuckled, leaned down and kissed Yan Yuting lightly on the mouth."
I hate it, and make me happy, I think you are reluctant to refuse your sister Pan."
Yan Yuting pursed her lips and didn't appreciate it.Qiao Zhiqing chuckled noncommittally, helped Yan Yuting's body up, and suddenly explained seriously, "Sheng Xuanhuai just sent news from Jinkui City, and the tobacco business there has recently shown signs of rising again.Sheng Xuanhuai has already found someone smoking from several inns, you go and notify Firefox to investigate this matter now, and see who dares to make trouble on my Qiao Zhiqing's territory. ”Under the word-of-mouth publicity praised by tourists, Jinkuicheng's entertainment industry became famous for a while, and the momentum overshadowed the eight alleys of the capital.From the royal family and nobles, down to the peddlers and pawns, no one wants to go to that paradise on earth to have a glimpse.This was followed by a booming service industry such as inns, restaurants, tea shops, and song and dance workshops.After the casinos and brothels personally supervised by Qiao Zhiqing have become large-scale, they have gradually opened up the entry of private capital into these two industries, after all, this thing has a tradition of thousands of years, and it is absolutely impossible to eradicate it.But Qiao Zhiqing has only one hard rule for entering this industry, that is, the woman in the brothel must be from Fanbang, whether it is Dongying, Goryeo, Vietnam or Lao Maozi's woman, but if it is found that there are women from the Qing Dynasty doing skin and meat business in it, they will be closed and fined, and they will be imprisoned at worst.The three hundred and sixty businesses are free to operate in Jinkui City, and they only need to pay a certain reasonable tax, only the big smoke is a forbidden area.Qiao Zhiqing was unrelenting in this regard, once he found out that someone was selling big cigarettes, no matter how much it was, it would be the crime of beheading if he was caught, and hundreds of people in Jinkui City had already lost their heads for this matter.However, recently someone moved this profiteering cake, Qiao Zhiqing was very angry, and the consequences were quite serious.After Yan Yuting went out sullenly, Qiao Zhiqing was busy until midnight before he fell asleep tiredly.As soon as it was dawn, there was a sweet shout, which made Qiao Zhiqing quarrel outside the door."
Brother Qiao, you are so good, I know you will not let me down."
Pan Qiaoyu slipped into the study from outside the door with a smile, and gave a big hug to Qiao Zhiqing, who was still confused, and then kissed Qiao Zhiqing on the face."
Don't make a fuss, there are children."
Qiao Zhiqing laughed embarrassedly, and hurriedly withdrew and changed his clothes under the service of Ling'er and Hui'er.These two little girls serve outside the door every day when it is still dark, and after Pan Qiaoyu entered the door, they also followed into the house.The two little girls saw men and women in close contact for the first time, their little faces were full of blush, and they covered their mouths and secretly smiled.Pan Qiaoyu coughed a few times, motioned for Ling'er and Hui'er to step back, and personally waited for Qiao Zhi to clean and rinse."
Your uncle sent you here, not just for the commencement ceremony of the match factory," Qiao Zhiqing asked Pan Yuting while washing his face."
Brother Qiao is really smart, he can't hide anything from you.I came to ask for your meaning, and my uncle's main meaning this time is to recommend a few business friends to Brother Qiao.They have done a lot of business in Nanyang, and they have just returned to China, and after hearing about Brother Qiao's deeds, they are very admired, and they also want to come to Suzhou to see what good business can be done. ”Pan Qiaoyu said and handed the towel to Qiao Zhiqing, picked up the wooden basin and slowly walked to the door to pour the dirty water outside, obviously struggling.Qiao Zhiqing looked at her clumsy appearance and laughed secretly, this eldest lady is afraid that she has never done such rough work at home
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