For five consecutive days, Gu Wu Dun stayed at the Chaotian Inn on the north bank of the river. Officials who came to visit him from across the river were endless. First, there were officials from the Procuratorate, followed by those from Dongyang and those who had passed the imperial examination in the same year or in previous years, as well as those who had connections with Gu Wu Dun's father-in-law, former Minister of Works Tang Haixin. As a result, Gu Wu Dun, a fourth-rank official and Vice Procurator, stole the show and became the subject of discussion among the people on the streets and alleys of Jiangning City, in teahouses and taverns. Everyone said that this fourth-rank Vice Procurator's assumption of office was even more glorious than that of the previous Procurator three years ago.

  On the day of Winter Solstice, the weather was gloomy and overcast. A cold wind howled through the city gate tunnel. Lin Xie and Lin Jingzhong were drinking tea in a teahouse north of Tianhan Bridge when several tea guests surrounded the tea table to discuss and speculate about Gu Wu's appointment as an official.

  "This Censor Vice Commissioner, really married a good wife, he was demoted and sent to the border for nearly ten years, others were afraid that he would prepare for his burial in a foreign land. However, his father-in-law, former Minister of Works Tao Haixin, was one of the leaders of the Chu Party in the past, and has always given him the opportunity to rise again.

  In recent years, the Chu Party was suppressed by the Xi Qin Party and had no power to fight back. In the court, the Chu Party members either retired due to illness like Tao Haixin or were dismissed and sent to remote areas, and some even lost their lives in prison. Naturally, no one paid attention to a small role who was demoted.

  Last year, the government army suffered a great defeat at Chen Tang Yi in Ji Bei, and less than half of the 200,000 soldiers escaped back to Guan Nei. Tens of thousands of people from Guan were taken away by the Dong Hu people, and the Xi Qin people could no longer gain the trust of the emperor.

  The emperor intends to reuse the Chu people again, but Tao Haixin is already old and has no hope of re-emergence. Zhang Xie, the personal disciple of Tao Haixin, entered the central government and was appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister, reviving the momentum of the Chu Party's resurgence.

  Zhang Xie naturally also remembered the kindness of his teacher and would not let the Chu Party members fall into decline. This Censor Vice Commissioner was first pardoned for his past crimes and returned to the capital to serve as a reviewer in the Hanlin Academy. In less than two months, he entered the Ducha Yuan and served as a deputy censor-in-chief. Now that he has been sent to a local position, he is a fourth-rank official, really a new noble of the Chu Party.

  Looking at the behavior of this Censor Vice Commissioner in recent days, officials have been coming and going continuously on the imperial boat. It's likely that Zhang Xie will become the Prime Minister in just a few months, and by then, this Censor Vice Commissioner will no longer be a Censor Vice Commissioner but a Censor-in-Chief."

  It is said that in the two capitals, it's a good time to discuss state affairs and point out the mountains and rivers. Listening to the high-sounding discussions in the tea houses, Lin Xie thought this was not an empty statement. Lin Jingzhong lowered his voice and asked Lin Xie: "Xiucai, do you think that Gu Wu Chen being ambushed by assassins in Shiliang County is the doing of the Xi Qin Party?"

  "......" Lin Yao shook his head and smiled, saying, "Who knows? We shouldn't talk nonsense about this kind of thing."

  Not being in the midst of the temple, who knows the depth or shallowness of that pool? Moreover, the infighting among factions in the court is not something that can be fathomed by ordinary reasoning. The forces within the imperial court are complex and intertwined, Tang Haoxin and Zhang Xie were both from Huguang, they were the only officials from Huguang who were looked up to by all, they formed a clique and became known as the Chu Party. Gu Wuchen was not from Huguang but he was the son-in-law of Tang Haoxin, the leader of the Chu Party, naturally he was also considered a member of the Chu Party and a key figure.

  Apart from the Chu Party, there were also other bureaucratic forces such as the Western Qin Party and the Zhe Party that formed a force in the court and the countryside.

  As Zhang Xie was about to take office, Chen Xinbo, a long-time resident of the Western Qin, and his colleagues from the Western Qin were about to be expelled from the capital. After the decline of the Western Qin, the largest outcome for them was to come to Jiangning to serve as a guardian official. As a new nobleman in the Chu Party's solid force, Gu Wudun came to Jiangning at this time to take up the post of Vice Censor-in-Chief, and it is possible that he will further take up the post of Censor-in-Chief, giving people the illusion that the Chu Party wants to eliminate them completely.

  If it were just a struggle for power between the Chu Party and the Western Qin Party, it would be easy to shift the blame for the assassination attempt in Shiliang County to the Western Qin Party. However, there are many people who hope that both parties will suffer losses in their struggle, unless they can pry open the assassin's mouth, how can they determine who was behind the assassination? Moreover, the assassin's words may not be trustworthy either.

  Lin Xie thought that Gu Wu Chen didn't take the assassination to heart, it was also a helpless move. What he feared most was that once the truth came out, it would stir up even greater waves in the imperial court and the officialdom. At present, the Great Yue Dynasty was beset with crises, internal troubles and external threats were frequent, and could no longer withstand the great turmoil of party struggles within the court. Besides, these things were still far from Lin Xie.

  "Ah..." At this moment, Zhao Hu saw Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao coming up the stairs, and quietly reminded Lin Xuan to look over.

  "Master Yang, Brother Tianqiao, what brings you here?" Lin Xie stood up to greet Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao, not expecting that Gu Wudeng was still at the Chaotian Inn, letting them go into the city first to take care of some business.

  "Master Lin, I didn't know you were also here having tea." Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao walked over to Lin Xie with Zhao Hu getting up to give them his seat, squeezing onto a stool next to Lin Jingzhong.

  At this time, Gu Wu Chen was in high spirits, and Yang Pu, who had gained his trust, would naturally become a prominent figure in Jiangning City. His impression of Lin Xuan couldn't be considered particularly good, but the second generation of the Lin family had done favors for the Gu family, and besides, Gu Wu Chen himself appreciated Lin Xuan quite a bit. Yang Pu knew how to gauge the situation better than Young Master Gu Siyuan and Eldest Young Master Gu Siming, and was also very polite in his speech to Lin Xuan. He walked over, sat down, and said: "We entered the city two days ago, but we can't just have the adults move into an empty mansion, so we need to make some arrangements beforehand. I've been busy with these things for the past two days, and this afternoon I was thinking of taking Tianqiao to a teahouse to take a break. I didn't expect to run into you all... Later, I was also planning to go to the Dongyang Guild Hall to ask about your news."

  Lin Xie knew that Yang Pu was mostly here to replace Gu Wu Chen to inquire about the rumors in Jiangning City, he didn't expose him and asked: "What brings Master Yang to the Dongyang Guild Hall to find me?"

  "There's nothing else, I just want to ask where you live, and then tell us where we'll be living in Jiangning City later... We'll have to come and go between the two places often." Yang Pu said, and immediately told them the address of the Gu residence in Jiangning City, which was near Tianhan Bridge, and also about two streets away from the Yongxing Alley where Jiyunju was located.

  Yang Pu didn't expect Lin Xian to have the ability to buy a house in Yongxingfang, where the nobles gathered, as soon as he entered the city. Compared to the ordinary residential areas in the western part of the city, where a small courtyard cost only 30 or 40 taels of silver, even the most ordinary house in Yongxingfang cost 200 or 300 taels of silver. Fortunately, after Gu Wu Chen's family arrived in Jiangning, their residence was provided by the Procuratorate, otherwise, a house equivalent to the rank of a fourth-grade procurator would have required one or two thousand taels of silver, which would have been quite embarrassing.

  "Mr. Gu's place of residence in Jiangning is also my concern, so I'll trouble Mr. Yang to take us there first," said Lin Fu. "Additionally, tonight some fellow townspeople from Dongyang will gather at the Dongyang Guild Hall. If Mr. Yang and Tianqiao are free, please come with me, and we can discuss together how to welcome Mr. Gu's family to Jiangning..."

  Today was the day Lin Mengde was hosting a welcome banquet for Lin Fu at the Dongyang Guild Hall, and Lin Fu had also invited Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao to attend, with the intention of mediating between them. As Gu Wu would eventually establish himself in Jiangning, he would naturally need to rely on the connections and influence of his fellow Dongyang natives, and Yang Pu was aware of this logic as well. He nodded in agreement and said, "After drinking this cup of tea, I'll take you to visit the Gu residence first, it's just nearby..."

  In fact, when Gu Wu Chen went to Jiangning to take office, he naturally became the leader of the Dongyang Party in Jiangning. There was no need for Lin Xiangju to act as a liaison. Later, all Dongyang-born officials, merchants and travelers would visit Gu's residence, seeking his support and protection.

  After leaving the tea house, Lin Xie let Zhao Hu go to Dongyang Guild Hall first to speak a word. He pulled Lin Jingzhong and followed Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao to Gu's mansion to recognize the road.

  The Gu residence is located on Dongshengmen Street, with deep houses and courtyards to the left and right. The Yongchang Hou Mansion and the Mu Guo Gong Mansion are also nearby. As a mansion provided for officials of the fourth rank, it must be much more luxurious than the Jiyunju, and even Yang Pu's family can live in a separate courtyard. Except for the miscellaneous courtyards, the main courtyard has six layers, and there is also a private garden about half an acre in size. The entire alley is occupied by the Gu residence and three other households.

  Lin Xian looked at the two maidservants, who were both good-looking and slender, with a hint of elegance in their movements. They were not very old, but there was a subtle charm in their eyebrows and eyes. He thought to himself that it's said that being an official is great, and this is just one example. Gu Wu Chen hadn't even entered the city yet, but he was already receiving meticulous care. Otherwise, how could these be enjoyed by a mere deputy censor-in-chief with a salary of only 300 dan? Of course, there was also the intention of the people of Jiangning trying to curry favor with the new noble Chu Party in this.

  They sat in the Gu's residence for a while, watching as day turned into evening. Lin Xie and Lin Jingzhong accompanied Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao to the Dongyang Guild Hall. The weather was overcast, and the Dongyang Guild Hall was also located outside the city, in a private garden. It would only take a moment to ride a horse there. After entering the city, Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao had carriages provided by the Surveillance Commissioner's Office to sit in. He looked at Lin Jingzhong riding his horse in the cold wind, shivering with his head bowed, while Lin Xie wore even thinner clothes but was spirited and seemed lost in thought.

  Upon arriving at the Dongyang Guild Hall, Lin Mengde was standing in front of the street with several others, and could see that the courtyard was crowded with people. Lin Xie dismounted his horse, walked over to grasp Lin Mengde's hand, and said loudly: "Uncle Mengde, you really are something, saying it was a private banquet to welcome me back, but instead making such a big fuss, isn't this killing your nephew?"

  Yang Pu was slightly surprised to hear Lin Xie say this. He had been living in a foreign land with Gu Wu for a long time and didn't know the depth of the water in Shanglinli, nor did he expect that Lin Xie would have such great influence, and that the welcome banquet held for him could gather so many Dongyang natives.

  Lin Mengde also had a hard time speaking out, he was worried that Lin Fu would let the Seventh Lady replace him with someone else, so he wouldn't wholeheartedly help Lin Fu get to know the Dongyang Xiang Party. The so-called "Dust Washing Banquet" only invited some people who were struggling in Jiangning, but Lin Fu sent Zhao Hu over in the afternoon to invite Gu Wu's trusted aide Yang Pu and his cousin Gu Tianqiao to come together, even spreading the news without going through him.

  Everyone in Jiangning's Dongyang Township who wants to fawn over someone at this time is none other than Gu Wudun. However, the majestic Procuratorate Vice Envoy of the fourth rank is not someone anyone can get close to easily, so they can only start by working on the people around Gu Wudun first. Gu Wudun had been delayed at Chao Tian Inn for five days, and Dongyang Township Party had already inquired about who among those around him was light or heavy. Tonight, with this opportunity to meet Yang Pu, naturally wouldn't be the first to come forward.

  Yang Pu and Gu Tianqiao did not know the twists and turns, and really thought that these people were all coming to give Lin Xuan a warm welcome; could Lin Mengde still explain the twists and turns to them?

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