It's night, the sky is showing strange phenomena, and the stars are changing dramatically.
Everyone inside and outside the capital looked up and watched.
…
Li Chengen stood in the pavilion in the backyard, his neck stiffened, and the purple stars reflected in his pupils faded and appeared.
"Mother, this celestial phenomenon..."
The eldest princess of Ning'an was wearing a fox fur, sitting on a stone bench, raising her head and staring intently, and did not respond to her son.
Li Cheng'en coughed lightly when he saw his mother didn't move.
The eldest princess of Ning'an didn't look back: "Are you afraid that Tianxing's warning will bring trouble to His Majesty, or are you worried that the unstable situation will affect our family's business?"
There were only mother and son in the pavilion.
Li Chengen didn't try to hide it, and simply replied: "It's the same thing."
"In the past two years, we have relied on His Majesty's New Deal and started the shipping business, and we have finally become more prosperous."
"Once His Majesty is frustrated, let alone the overseas vassal business that he promised, I am afraid that the benefits in hand may not be preserved."
As he said this, Li Chengen couldn't help but complain: "It would be nice if we could do more things like shipping and mutual trade. We have to waste our land blindly."
The eldest princess of Ning'an listened quietly.
At the age of forty-one this year, she no longer has any charm, but she has developed a graceful demeanor.
She changed her sitting position and glanced at her son: "Has your Majesty summoned you?"
Li Chengen was startled and didn't know why: "No."
The eldest princess of Ning'an shook her head gently: "Since the emperor is not in a hurry, why are you in a hurry?"
Li Chengen was helpless, this was not a good thing to say.
If he hadn't been married for four years and still hadn't made any move, he would definitely have pushed back now.
Just as he was thinking about it, he saw his mother suddenly take off half of the jade ring tied around her waist and hand it to her.
Li Chengen subconsciously took it in his hand.
The eldest princess of Ning'an had a solemn expression: "Your Majesty gave this to me and my consort, and I passed it on to you today."
Li Chengen cast a puzzled look at his mother.
The eldest princess of Ning'an was thinking about people at this moment. She couldn't help but think of her husband-in-law who had died two years ago. Her tone was also a little sad: "When Feng Bao's house was confiscated, my husband-in-law and I received some benefits from Sun Yizheng and withheld a few things."
"Afterwards, His Majesty sent this half jade ring to his residence."
This is of course not a true gift, but a naked warning.
Even though seven years have passed, she still feels scared when she recalls it now.
Li Chengen was only fourteen at that time, but he had never heard this matter mentioned in his family.
Or maybe it was a psychological effect. He suddenly heard it at this moment and felt that the thing in his hand was extremely cold.
The eldest princess of Ning'an continued: "After that, the prince-in-law immediately entered the palace to plead guilty."
"His Majesty is very eager. Not only does he have no intention of pursuing the matter, he also invites the consort to have a meal with him."
"During the banquet, they frequently ordered people to add food to the prince's consort, but when there was resistance, he advised, "How can it last longer if you have trouble and eat less?"
"It wasn't until the consort was fully replenished that he was released by the emperor."
Li Chengen stood aside silently.
Because he suddenly understood why in his memory, his father was lying on the doorstep vomiting after returning home one day.
The eldest princess of Ning'an stood up slowly and sighed: "I don't understand the court situation, but I have seen the emperor's ruthlessness."
"Now that he lives in Xiyuan, it's not your turn or mine to worry about him."
…
"Ah? Don't I have to worry about you?"
Zhu Heng was looking up at the comet, but after hearing this, he couldn't help but turn around and stared at Yu Shenxing in confusion.
Yu Shenxing nodded heavily.
He had been Zhu Heng's staff for nearly ten years before becoming a Jinshi, so he knew how to explain it.
Yu Shenxing thought for a moment: "Although the teacher was a young Jinshi, his official career from county magistrate to county magistrate step by step, even if he has gained fame since then, it is the real name of 'using one's ability to cure drama'."
"After that, even though I offended many people, I relied on my achievements in governing Shandong and sorting out the Yellow River to enter the central government."
"A teacher's merit does not lie in party affiliation or favor, but in actual performance."
"It can be said that as long as the teacher does not get involved in matters other than his or her job, no matter what the outcome, career or reputation will not be affected at all."
After Yu Shenxing said that, he raised his head and glanced at the celestial phenomena in the night sky.
My teacher has a bad personality.
When he was the county magistrate in the twelfth year of Jiajing's reign, he offended Wang Hong, then Minister of Civil Affairs, because he was unwilling to free up the county office to hold a wedding for the young master of the Wang family.
In the 29th year of Jiajing's reign, when he was the deputy envoy of the Fujian Prosecution Department, he also punished Li Jiayanei who led a crowd to beat up the scholar, which offended Li Mo, the then Minister of Civil Affairs.
When Xia Yan was in power, he refused Xia Yan's recommendation; when Yan Song came to power, he turned his back on Yan Song; even now that Zhang is in charge of the country, there is much dissatisfaction between them.
If Zhu Heng hadn't had some skills, he could have made Emperor Sejong "glad and delighted" when he saw the palace he built. Gao Gong, who was dissatisfied, would have had to admit after his hometown was flooded that "the courtiers can control the floods, but nothing can be done".
"He who balances the right", I'm afraid his official career has ended long ago.
Therefore, even though Yu Shenxing respected this stubborn Dong Weng and teacher very much, he had to admit that it would be better for such a lame official to interfere less with the court situation.
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Zhu Heng's face suddenly collapsed: "How can this be something other than my job? I am in the high position of Jiuqing. Isn't it my job to share your Majesty's worries?"
When he saw the student and wanted to talk more, Zhu Heng waved his hand directly: "Don't say it, Xiao Laozai is a good gentleman. I can't lose my conscience. You can find another way for me and think of something else."
Yu Shenxing secretly felt a familiar feeling.
This was the case during the Jiajing period. They and their staff made suggestions and came up with three methods: upper, middle and lower. In the end, Dong Weng refused to listen and directly rejected it from the root out of temper.
However, Yu Shenxing was not unhappy at being rejected. Instead, he breathed a sigh of relief and said seriously: "That's the case..."
"Zhang Juzheng must abide by the system, and the new law must not be destroyed!"
He looked at Zhu Heng and said seriously: "Shen Shixing does not have enough prestige. Now among the court officials, only the teacher and Hubu Guoguang can be your majesty's true guardians!"
…
"Teachers protect teachers and teachers protect teachers. Nowadays, teachers are getting old and sick. Shouldn't it be that teachers should come forward to support them?"
Xu Fuyuan closed the window to block out the starry phenomenon.
Chen Younian picked up the teapot from the table, poured himself a cup, and said casually: "Can you guarantee that Your Majesty will have a son?"
The two of them were working overtime at the government office, and happened to see the stars, so they took the opportunity to chat about the court affairs.
Xu Fuyuan smiled: "The inherent nature of all dharmas is empty."
"Your Majesty is only seventeen years old, why are you so anxious? When Sejong ascended the throne and changed the system, wouldn't he have an heir twelve years after his wedding?"
Chen Younian shook his head: "That's why Shizong will not change it after that."
Xu Fuyuan glanced at his classmate complainingly: "It's better to talk so as not to have Song Confucians on the other side of the wall."
What happened with Song Ru at the beginning left a deep impression on him.
Chen Younian took a sip of tea and continued talking without paying much attention: "Now that the astronomical signs indicate that there will be another setback tomorrow morning, I don't know what we should do?"
Now that even Jinshi are involved in it, they, the officials and doctors, probably have no room to stay out of the matter.
Xu Fuyuan shrugged: "It's just a matter of seizing love. It's rare to meet an emperor like him. I'll follow him to the end anyway."
Chen Younian frowned when he heard this and said displeasedly: "Your Majesty is a holy king, but you and I must also be direct ministers. Keeping the rules is a great virtue of human ethics. How can we tolerate this?"
Xu Fuyuan couldn't help but sneer: "What are the three cardinal principles and five constant principles? How come I don't see the woodcutter and the old farmer observing the system for three years?"
Chen Younian was blocked for a moment, and his face gradually turned red.
Xu Fuyuan worked under Shen Shixing of the Ministry of Civil Affairs for several years, and he was well versed in the art of making paste.
Seeing that his classmate looked unhappy, he immediately expressed comfort: "But then again..."
"Yuan Gong, one of the Seven Sages, learned from His Majesty's teachings two years ago, and the new Neo-Confucianism he gained is very reasonable - things should be divided into two."
"It doesn't matter whether he dislikes Zhang Juzheng or believes that the Three Cardinal Principles and Five Constant Rules cannot be messed up, but the new law will always benefit the country at the top and the people at the bottom. They cannot be confused with each other, let alone harm both."
"Last month, Yang'en Temple got instructions from someone who secretly lobbied the two empress dowagers to depose Du Tian. However, the Jinyi Guards cut down the mountain and destroyed the temple."
"This month, there was a parade in the Imperial College, requesting punishment for the state leader Li Wei who had occupied the land and kept slaves. The emperor slapped Empress Dowager Li in the face and approved the request."
"People are being used as knives everywhere. You and I should use our best skills to make sure we don't fall into other people's schemes."
This was fair. Chen Younian finally calmed down after hearing this.
He nodded in approval and said, "This is the truth!"
"I will never lose the important part."
Xu Fuyuan nodded happily.
Although this classmate has a lot of bad habits, at least he makes sense. Compared to Shen Shenxiao, Ai Mu and his like are much better off.
He turned sideways and pushed the window open a gap. After confirming that the comet had left, he pushed the window open for some air.
"Huh? This place is locked, why is there still anyone going to the palace?"
Xu Fuyuan was a little surprised. Walking along the thousand-step royal road outside the official office, there was nowhere to go but the palace.
When Chen Younian heard the voice of his classmates, he also stood by the window. His eyes were clearer and he stretched his neck to look at it for a while.
Then he saw the strangeness and said, "It seems that the imperial eunuch is Zhu Zaiyu. It is strange that the broom star violated Ziwei tonight and entered the palace without delivering the memorial."
Although no one is allowed in after the door is locked, it is still possible to pass a note under the door.
Xu Fuyuan said, "Qin Tian Jian, that's not strange."
Then, he clicked his tongue again: "It's strange to say that when His Majesty first came to the throne, he personally invited Prince Zheng to come to the court to express his close friendship, but he was indifferent."
“I don’t know what happened last year, but I suddenly came to Beijing on my own.”
When Chen Younian heard this, he narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at the direction in which the figure disappeared, and murmured: "It's best not to have any unnecessary thoughts."
Xu Fuyuan shook his head: "He is not qualified yet."
The two talked for a while.
Xu Fuyuan stretched out: "That fellow Shen Shixing has left all the affairs of the civil service to us humble subordinate officials. He doesn't know where to live. He really doesn't deserve to be a son of a man. Let's go. We will talk about the rest tomorrow."
After that, he packed up his things.
The two of them turned off the lights and left the office, not paying attention to when the Qintian Supervisor turned back.
…
The palace gates are usually locked at You time and opened at Yin time.
However, since the emperor moved to Xiyuan, in addition to the strict prohibition of movement in Xiyuan, the control of the front hall of the Forbidden City is often no longer as strict as before. Sometimes ministers work overtime and are locked up late.
Even if the emperor is ill, such as catching cold or fever, his ministers will specially stay in the cabinet.
Access is through the side of each gate.
This is the small door through which Zhu Zaiyu followed the Wei Dynasty into the palace at this moment.
However, the two of them did not go to Xiyuan, but went straight to the cabinet.
Zhu Zaiyu had a dull temper, and Wei Chao was cautious, so the two rarely communicated with each other along the way.
In this way, all the way to the cabinet.
The two of them walked outside the check-in room, where the lights were still on, and stood one after another.
Wei Chao approached the door and whispered softly: "Your Majesty, the servant has brought the prisoner."
Zhu Zaiyu lowered his head and said nothing.
After a while.
A clear voice came from inside the house: "Come in."
When the Wei Dynasty heard this, he opened the door and invited him.
Zhu Zaiyu didn't have any more words to say and walked straight in.
In the early winter of October, there was a charcoal fire burning in the house and the windows were open, making it warm but not stuffy.
There is a pile of files and documents on the desk, which is a little messy.
Shen Shixing of the Cabinet is holding a pen at his desk drafting the votes.
Seeing Zhu Zaiyu come in, he raised his head and nodded, then bent down at his desk again, looking very busy.
Zhu Zaiyu didn't know what this group assistant, or the de facto independent prime minister was now.
But he didn't care either.
Zhu Zaiyu turned his head and moved his eyes from Shen Shixing to the side.
A tall and tall figure stood in front of the window with his hands behind his back.
Wearing a sea green Taoist robe, a rhinoceros girdle around the waist, black shoes, and a jade hairpin in her hair.
The night wind blew by, blowing the long hair around her waist and fluttering along with the hem of her robe.
Jinghong glanced at the side of his face. As the saying goes, he was leaning against the wind in front of the window, and the moonlight illuminated the fair-faced young man.
Zhu Zaiyu withdrew his gaze, lowered his head and saluted: "Your Majesty."
The figure finally stopped looking up at the sky and spying on the stars.
He turned around slowly.
A seventeen-year-old face was revealed, handsome, clean, and bright.
Zhu Yijun squatted down to help the saluting clan members, grabbed his hands, and smiled: "Uncle Emperor is here, I feel at ease."
Zhu Zaiyu's hair stood up. Even after more than a year, he still couldn't stand his nephew's strange habits.
He tried to break free from the emperor's big hand, but found that it wouldn't move at all.
I had no choice but to get straight to the point: "Your Majesty, the comet will suddenly appear tonight, and the Qin Tian Jian has already drawn up the divination signs."
As he spoke, he repeatedly gestured to reach out and take the paperwork from his arms.
When Zhu Yijun heard this, he didn't care at all: "Xiao Dao'er, this is not what I came to talk to the emperor about."
He glanced at Shen Shixing, who was still busy, and couldn't get to the point.
Zhu Yijun had no choice but to ignore the emperor's uncle's somewhat red and warm expression, and held hands and chatted: "I heard that some courtiers have come to trouble the emperor's uncle recently?"
It seems that the emperor is to blame.
Early childbearing is a professional virtue of the emperor, and if he lacks it, it will inevitably lead to workplace disputes.
This trouble isn't just for his brother.
Even the emperor's uncle, who came to Beijing to do scientific research, had to be punched when he passed by.
When Zhu Zaiyu heard the emperor's words, he didn't know what he was recalling, and his face suddenly turned a little angry: "That's exactly what happened! The courtiers are simply judging the heart of a gentleman with a villain's heart!"
"Especially these two months!"
"The officials from the Ministry of Rites, regardless of their official status, came to shout at me and scolded me! They said that I had chosen to go to Beijing last year, and I was suspected of spying on artifacts. They advised me to return as soon as possible."
If he hadn't seen that mathematics was in full swing in the capital, he wouldn't have come even if he begged him to come!
Who knew it could be speculated like this!
The more Zhu Zaiyu talked about it, the more annoyed he became: "Ni Guangjian, the general envoy of general affairs, is a complete villain. He asked someone to deliver a greeting card to his door. After I opened it, I found that it was an insult, saying that I was involved in the disputes in the court and that I was careful to die.
remove."
"This is simply unreasonable!"
"Oh! Wan Gong from the Ministry of Works is also like a bandit. Yesterday he actually ordered his son to sneak into my house to beat me. Fortunately, someone discovered him."
Zhu Yijun felt embarrassed when he heard the emperor's uncle recounting his treasures in embarrassment.
He wanted to scold his imperial uncle for his hatred of the enemy, but then he thought about it, all those who could do such a thing were loyal ministers, and he couldn't even curse him at the moment.
Zhu Yijun thought for a long time, and finally hesitantly said: "It was my negligence that caused the emperor's uncle to be accidentally injured by the courtiers."
Zhu Zaiyu gave the emperor a strange look.
Seeing this, Zhu Yijun coughed lightly and said comfortingly: "It will be fine in a while. Uncle Emperor, please take care of me."
What else could Zhu Zaiyu say?
He had no choice but to accept the offer and call the emperor a great virtue.
Zhu Yijun didn't want to continue to entangle, so he started talking about business in a serious manner: "How is the progress of the revision of the calendar, uncle?"
The official position of the Qintian Supervisor is hereditary. It was originally established by the ancestors. After two hundred years, it has long been solidified.
It is extremely difficult for him to hand over the post of supervisor to Zhu Zaiyu.
If you want to convince those diehards to revise the calendar, you need professionalism.
Zhu Zaiyu heard this and replied confidently: "Wait for another two years, and I will be able to complete the "Lüli Rongtong" and "Shengshou Wannian Calendar".
Zhu Yijun was a little surprised now: "So fast?"
Zhu Zaiyu pondered for a while and explained: "The Western translations and the achievements of scholars Liu are very helpful to me."
Zhu Yijun suddenly realized.
I was also quite happy in my heart.
He was about to say something more when he saw from the corner of his eye that Shen Shixing had put down his pen and was shaking his arms.
Zhu Yijun immediately stopped the topic and dragged Zhu Zaiyu directly to Shen Shixing's desk.
Shen Shixing stood up quickly and respectfully presented a document at hand.
Zhu Yijun glanced at this hard-working old scalper and patted Xiao Shen on the shoulder with satisfaction.
He took the document from his hand and turned to look at Zhu Zaiyu: "This is the list of 130 people who have passed the Qin Tianjian examination. The Ministry of Personnel, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and the Cabinet have all approved it.
I need to trouble my uncle to go through the process."
The matter of selecting officials is still in the stage of improvement since the establishment of the subject and examination, and the process is often well-organized.
Of course, there is no way around the headquarters Yamen.
When Zhu Zaiyu heard this, he realized that the emperor had called him into the palace in the middle of the night. It was such a trivial matter, and he felt confused.
He is not familiar with government affairs and is not in the mood to take a closer look.
Under the emperor's concerned gaze, Zhu Zaiyu picked up the pen directly from Shen Shixing's desk, rolled up his sleeves, signed his name, and made another circle.
Zhu Yijun and Shen Shixing looked at each other and smiled at the same time.
The old scalper Xiao Shen took the document back and said, "I'd like to thank you for correcting it."
Zhu Zaiyu was baffled.
But obviously neither the emperor nor his ministers had any intention of explaining.
Zhu Yijun smiled and said: "Let's do this for today, I will be busy tomorrow."
Shen Shixing gave a bitter smile, rubbed his sore wrist, and saluted, "I will take my leave now."
Zhu Zaiyu bowed vaguely, followed Shen Shixing, and was taken out together.
After the two left, a while passed.
Wei Chao walked in and stood beside the emperor.
Zhu Yijun stood up and stretched: "Wei Daban, today the star is warning me, I will blame myself."
"My eldest companion will tell the Ministry of Rites tomorrow morning that I will go to the southern suburbs to pray before going to court, so that the officials of the fifth rank and above can prepare early."
The Wei Dynasty was a little surprised. Didn't the emperor always sneer at this kind of telepathy between heaven and man?
Why did you take it seriously this time?
Without any time to think about it, Wei Chao bowed and said, "I have taken note of this."
Naturally, Zhu Yijun would not explain anything to the ministers. He only asked casually: "Have the two palaces arranged to sleep with you tonight?"
Wei Chao blurted out: "In response to Your Majesty's words, tonight is the Imperial Concubine Li Niangniang."
Zhu Yijun was a little helpless: "They say it's easy to catch cold if two people sleep together. Why doesn't the queen believe it?"
Wei Chao apologized and said with a smile: "Your Majesty is capable of both literary and martial arts, and is very healthy. How can he catch cold easily? Even the slaves don't believe it when they say that there are two palaces."
Zhu Yijun shook his head: "Let's go."
Having said that, he was about to leave the cabinet when he suddenly remembered something.
He also personally removed the lantern covers on both sides and blew out the candles in one breath.
He patted Wei Chao, who was a head shorter than him, and said seriously: "The weather has been dry and dry recently, and fires are easy to happen everywhere. Let the inner court be careful."
Chapter completed!