Volume 2: Residence in the Capital Chapter 165: Repairing the Plank Road in the Open, Crossing Chencang in Secret
The first question seemed like a casual chat between mother and son, but the second question, even though it was only four words, revealed an undisguised questioning and ridicule, so much so that except for Chu Kuan who lowered his head with his hands down, the other palace servants and eunuchs instantly showed expressions of horror. In contrast, the Queen Mother only frowned slightly.
"Whether it's interesting or not, you'll know that only after you've done it. When you were their age, you were already ruling the country and ruling the world, but they only know how to confront each other and don't know the details of the matter at all."
"You are joking, mother. When I first took power, I made quite a few jokes. To be honest, if you hadn't calmly helped me to stop the ministers' troubles every time, I might have been the emperor if I had been so reckless ...."
"Emperor!" The Queen Mother's face suddenly changed. She scolded him harshly, and when she saw that the Emperor finally looked a little serious, she looked around and saw that the female official Yuquan immediately gestured to the left and right. The eunuchs and palace servants hurriedly filed out, Yuquan followed behind, and Chu Kuan also bowed and saluted, and retreated without saying a word. It was not until the curtain of the East Warm Pavilion fell that she patted the armrest and stood up.
"What do you want to say?"
"It is normal for young people to make mistakes when they are young and ignorant, but is it necessary for the Queen Mother to use a young official to provoke your two grandsons? Moreover, I heard that when Zhang Shou and Yingying came to Qingning Palace, the eunuch who framed him was almost beaten to death without asking any questions. Who do you plan to protect?"
The Queen Mother's face became more and more irritated and annoyed: "Don't forget, Wang Datou has already found out that Zheng Huai'en is the mastermind!"
"That idiot, he has no morals or talents, yet he still dreams of marrying Yingying. Not to mention that his father is the heir and king, even if he himself is the heir and king, he should get out of here as soon as possible!" The emperor raised his eyebrows impatiently, and then said lightly, "It's the queen, right?"
The Queen Mother was silent until the Emperor said the next sentence: "The imperial attendant who went to Rongshui Village to shoot arrows to scare people was also assigned by the Queen. I just don't understand, is it necessary for her, the master of the six palaces, to do such a thing? Even if she doesn't like Yingying, is it necessary to do such a thing to hate the whole family?"
The Queen Mother could keenly hear that the words "hate the house and the people in it" were a distinct Zhu Ying style, and she couldn't help but frowned: "Yingying knows?"
"I didn't ask whether she knew or not, but if you don't want others to know, then don't do it. I suppressed the assassin's matter, and Mingyue even took the blame. Wang Datou also tried him in a way that was easy, and Zheng Huai'en himself admitted it. It seems that the queen has nothing to do with it, but only God knows, the earth knows, you know, and I know!"
The emperor was so angry that he laughed. "She already has two sons. Can't she be smarter? And you, mother, those two boys have finally calmed down. Why are you still teasing them?"
Knowing that the emperor did not look furious, but was in fact extremely angry, the empress dowager was silent for a moment, and finally sighed and said, "You have not yet appointed a crown prince. I know that you do not want to appoint a younger one, but you think that the two older ones are not ideal. However, you know that appointing a younger one may cause unrest in the world, so you have been hesitating."
Seeing the emperor narrow his eyes slightly and then turn his head to avoid her gaze, the queen mother stepped forward and faced the emperor directly without dodging or avoiding: "Do you think it was you who forced Prince Lu to death, your only brother. From that time on, you became estranged from me, and it has never been the same since then... But why do you think I returned to power so readily?"
"You are the emperor, but he is just a prince. He competes with you in everything, but you don't even bother to compete with him. You only have eyes for Emperor Taizu, and at most Emperor Taizong, Emperor Yingzong and your father. Do you think I would value him more than you? The bloody examples of this dynasty are there. How could I favor my youngest son, not to mention a youngest son who is seeking his own death!"
The emperor listened silently to the empress dowager's words, which seemed to be from the heart, his face did not move at all, as if all expressions were frozen.
"If one of the eldest and second princes was like you, I wouldn't have to work so hard! What's the point of being able to fight among yourselves? Let them know that there is a boy younger than them outside the palace who has gained your trust and respect, and is Yingying's fiancé. They should know how to make progress, right? The second prince went to see Zhang Kang to find out about the military equipment of our dynasty."
The Queen Mother paused, then stepped back a few steps and slowly sat down on a chair beside her: "As for the Queen... She had deliberately promoted her reputation for virtue. In addition, her grandfather was the imperial tutor chosen by Emperor Yingzong for the princes. After your father took over, he still had some respect for Emperor Yingzong. This marriage was naturally appropriate for you when you were still the ruler of a young country."
In response to this explanation, the emperor shrugged somewhat mockingly: "To be honest, I would rather you, mother, have a suitable niece or nephew by then."
Even though she knew her son was just venting his anger, the queen mother still laughed and cried: "I have an older sister, an older brother and a younger brother, but only my sister raised a good son like Zhu Jing. As for the rest of my nieces, I feel upset even if I look at them for a second. How can you ask me to marry her to you as queen?"
"It's Yingying. Although she looks good as a junior, she is not suitable to be the queen or the princess in the future. With her temper, once something happens, she can turn the palace or the palace upside down. Just look at the eldest prince and the second prince and you will know. Yingying is so beautiful, but although they both like her appearance, neither of them likes her."
"They are not worthy of her!" The emperor sneered indifferently, and finally said lightly, "I have been patient for many years, and for the sake of my two sons, I don't want to make a big fuss like deposing the queen. So, as for the queen, I hope that mother will give me some warnings. In addition, I don't want the news that Mingyue killed the assassin to spread everywhere."
"She thought that she could get away with it by framing someone?"
At this point, the emperor simply turned around and looked directly at the empress dowager, his tone without leaving any room for negotiation: "I know that the queen mother doesn't like Concubine Yu, nor does she like Yingying's mother, but Concubine Yu has no son and has never dreamed of becoming the queen. Yingying's mother is even more stubborn and disdains conspiracy and intrigue. Since the queen mother likes Yingying so much, why can't she let go of the past?"
"In the final analysis, it was me and Zhu Jing who were wrong about what happened back then."
Seeing the emperor walk away after saying this, the empress dowager held the armrest tightly with her right hand, and swallowed the question that was on the tip of her tongue for a long time. At that moment, the empress's wailing and complaining in front of her seemed to reappear in front of her.
"Even if Concubine Yu and Madam Zhao did sacrifice themselves to let the emperor and his family go first, isn't that what they should do? If it weren't for their advice, how could the emperor and Duke Zhao have been in such a desperate situation that their lives were in danger? Afterwards, three children were born at the same time. Who knows if it was two girls that were hard to tell apart, or if it was impossible to tell which was which of the three children?"
"Mother, I can tolerate Concubine Yu being favored by the emperor alone, but I cannot tolerate her collusion with Madam Zhao to cause such a big incident! If rumors of a hidden pearl in the sea of people spread in the future, how can the emperor save face, how can you save face, and how can I, the queen, save face?"
The Queen Mother sighed in frustration. She said that she had investigated the matter thoroughly. She also disguised herself and carefully questioned the midwife, Zhang Shou's current adoptive mother Wu, and even interrogated Concubine Yu and Jiu Niang. In the end, she concluded that the two girls must have been mixed together, but it was still a thorn in her heart.
Therefore, she never liked Princess Yongping very much, but because of the emperor's preference for her, he always treated her better than other princesses. On the contrary, Zhu Ying, who was innocent and fearless since childhood, made her see the shadow of her elder sister who was also very opinionated since childhood, and she almost thought without hesitation that she must have Zhu family blood.
As for Zhang Shou, who was raised among the common people but turned out to be so handsome, she instinctively felt a little nervous from the first moment she saw him. Even though she knew that he was not only handsome but also talented, she could not develop any close feelings for him just because Zhu Ying had already identified him as her future husband.
After sitting there for half an hour, Yuquan came in quietly with a slight cough, knelt before the empress dowager, and then said softly, "The emperor has ordered the cabinet to draft an edict for Zhang Shou's merit in capturing the rebels, and appointed him as a sixth-rank lecturer in the Hanlin Academy and a left assistant in the Zhanshi Palace."
The Queen Mother couldn't believe her ears and stood up: "Those university scholars actually listened to him? Even if some of them were willing to write an imperial edict against their will, wouldn't the Six Departments' Secretaries reject it?"
Yuquan immediately smiled bitterly and said, "Only Wu Ge Lao was in the cabinet at that time, and he wrote the imperial edict himself."
The Queen Mother was so angry that her eyebrows raised: "Last time when Zhang Shou was promoted to the Imperial College, it was him. This time, he was appointed as the Imperial Academy Lecturer and the Left Chancellor of the Imperial Household. He only knows how to follow the will of the Emperor and draft edicts. Is this the only thing this Grand Secretary can do?"
"Now that the Crown Prince has not been decided, the title of Chancellor is given to civil servants in the court as a rank-defining title. How can he just give it to a newly promoted Imperial College Doctor? What's more, there is also the Imperial Academy Lecturer... Does he know that all the scholars in the world will be furious because of this?"
Unlike the Empress Dowager who was shocked and angry, the Emperor was in a good mood after taking a trip to Qingning Palace to vent his emotions. At the same time, he pretended to build a plank road while secretly marching through Chencang to get the edict finalized.
Six departments sealed and rejected? Haha, if there are such strong people among the officials, he doesn't mind sending a few of them to be county magistrates, just to supplement the local official team that lacks talent. You know, if it weren't for Zhang Shou, it might not be possible to catch all the rebels in one fell swoop, and the people are actually locked up in the Shuntian Prefecture Prison, as if they were real. For this reason, he even delayed the autumn execution.
Since the Queen Mother wants Zhang Shou to stimulate the eldest and second princes, then he should promote them a few more times!
Who makes Zhang Shou a lucky guy? He is capable and blessed with good fortune.
What happened to the Hanlin Academy? A new lecturer in the Hanlin Academy, who had previously been a doctor of the Imperial College, could not even manage the Banshan Hall properly. How could someone who could not even educate people properly become a lecturer? Even Zhang Shou, who had made great contributions, could be one!
