Chapter 893 892 [The Emperor’s Methods]

"Hey, have you heard? Your Majesty is going to marry Princess Pingyang to the Marquis of Zhongshan."

"Is there such a thing? There are recent rumors that Zhongshan Hou has made great achievements. Doesn't it mean that the imperial court is going to dismiss him from his military post?"

"Yes, this time Zhongshan Marquis has achieved such great military exploits in the southern border. He has not been rewarded yet. I think this is a rumor."

"So you are still superficial. Your Majesty has not announced the reward for a long time. Isn't it just to protect the Marquis of Zhongshan? If after the Marquis of Zhongshan returns to Beijing, Your Majesty will promote him to a higher position, that will be a recipe for disaster. After all, the Marquis of Zhongshan has only been promoted this year.

At the age of eighteen, if he doesn’t control himself now, who can suppress his momentum in the future?”

"It makes sense. According to what you said, Marquis Zhongshan will not be in any danger?"

"It's hard to say. It still depends on whether the marriage can take place."

…

"Your Majesty wants to grant a marriage to the Marquis of Zhongshan? But in the first half of the year, didn't the Marquis of Zhongshan get engaged to the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Guangping?"

"Hey, what kind of trouble is this? Have you never heard of the saying that one regular wife and two equal wives? It is common for a man to have three wives and four concubines. Your Majesty's grant of marriage will not affect the previous engagement of the Marquis of Zhongshan."

"The Marquis of Zhongshan has a stubborn temperament and may not accept His Majesty's grace. It is said that Princess Pingyang has a bad temper."

"Who can say this clearly? If it were me, I would definitely agree."

"Have you ever met Princess Pingyang? She really looks like a fairy?"

"So what if she is mediocre in appearance? You really can't see the current situation of the Marquis of Zhongshan? If you marry this princess, even if you keep her as an ancestor at home, you can preserve the prosperity and wealth of two generations!"

…

"His Majesty is indeed very special to Pei Yue. He can even think of such a method."

"It's hard to find a minister like Pei Yue. If he was not eighteen but thirty-eight this year, my father would have asked Wang Pingzhang to beg for his remains and return to his hometown. But in my opinion, Pei Yue may not accept this arrangement.

This person has an extremely stubborn character and has always valued love and justice. If he really wants to marry the arrogant and unruly Pingyang, how can he appease the group of warblers around him?"

"Then your Highness means that we should take advantage of the opportunity to take action?"

"No, this matter has nothing to do with us. My two royal brothers will definitely fight to the death."

…

Before Pei Yue returned to the capital, the public opinion in the capital seemed to have concluded that he would not end well. However, after he returned, as the details of the night banquet in the palace came out, everyone was surprised, and then Qinyuan

The birth of that flattering scene outside.

In the next few days, another rumor appeared in the capital and spread at an extremely terrifying speed.

Your Majesty may marry Princess Pingyang, the daughter of Concubine Wu, to Pei Yue, Marquis of Zhongshan!

No one knows the source of the news, it seems like it came out of nowhere, but it quickly won the trust of millions of officials and people in the capital. The reason is also very simple. If His Majesty really intends to cross the river and demolish the bridge to treat the meritorious officials, all it takes is a decree that Pei Yue will have to leave his job for retirement. Is it possible?

He dares to resist and disobey the decree?

Once this speculation spread, it was immediately recognized by most people.

Some people even work backwards from the results to argue that Emperor Kaiping deliberately ignored Pei Yue after his great victory in the south in order to preserve the young powerful man. In fact, considering Pei Yue's reputation among the people in recent years, many people had secretly done so before.

In spite of his injustice, if Emperor Kaiping really suppressed Pei Yue out of suspicion, not to mention whether it would cause chaos in the court, at least most of the people would side with Pei Yue.

More and more people joined the discussion, and the final results were similar.

His Majesty must have considered Pei Yue, so he asked Han Gongduan, who participated in the affairs of the East Palace, to take over the peace talks in the south, and then let Pei Yue fall into the cold shoulder, and finally gave him Princess Pingyang in marriage, so that he could truly protect Pei Yue's safety.

In just a few days, even if there were no clear words from the palace, a strange consensus had been formed between the government and the public.

It seems that as long as Pei Yue marries Princess Pingyang, the Liang Dynasty will return to the previous stable state of harmony between monarch and ministers.

In the turbulent public mood, no one cared about Pei Yue's own thoughts.

…

Zhongshan Marquis Mansion, main hall.

"Your Majesty has decreed that the Marquis of Zhongshan must attend tomorrow's Shuo Wang Dynasty."

Everyone in the Ministry of Internal Affairs knew that Liu Bao was standing in the hall, his eyes straight and his tone reserved.

Pei Yue narrowed his eyes slightly and said calmly: "I obey your order."

Generally speaking, the commanders of the various battalions of the Beijing Army do not need to attend the Shuowang Dynasty Meeting and the Chang Dynasty Dynasty. As for the Zhengdan Dynasty, it is another matter. Liu Bao suddenly came with the decree of Emperor Kaiping, indicating that Pei Yue must enter the court tomorrow. At this moment,

In the context of rampant rumors, it seems particularly meaningful.

After delivering the order, a respectful and somewhat flattering smile appeared on Liu Bao's face, and he said carefully: "Marquis Pei has won a great victory and defeated the Southern Zhou Dynasty's conspiracy in one fell swoop. Not only is Your Majesty happy, but even us slaves feel embarrassed.

There is light above."

Pei Yue smiled and said, "I know that's too polite."

Before he finished speaking, the butler Deng Shi, who was standing next to him, stepped forward, holding a ticket from the Taiping Bank in his hand.

Liu Bao glanced at it with the corner of his eye, and his heart was shocked. It was five hundred taels of snowflake silver. The banker paid the bill on sight.

A disabled person like him didn't want much, but when he met a powerful master like Emperor Kaiping, he didn't dare to take power carelessly, so he only had greed for wealth.

Liu Bao was not a short-sighted person. He had been walking around the emperor and empress all year round, and now he had accumulated a lot of wealth. But at this moment, he was still shocked by Pei Yue's aura. After all, it was extremely rare to see such a powerful person in the capital.

. He knew that it would be easy to criticize others for their shortcomings, but if he did not accept the ticket, he was worried that he would offend Pei Yue.

Furthermore, he was indeed a little tempted, so he pretended to politely refuse: "Marquis Pei, please don't do this, I dare not accept it."

Pei Yue smiled, took the ticket and put it directly into Liu Bao's hand, and said kindly: "It's freezing cold today. This is just money for warm-up drinks. Is it possible that Liu Bao doesn't want to be a friend with me?"

friend?"

Liu Bao's old face burst into laughter, and he shook his head repeatedly and said: "Marquis Pei rewards me with such a favor, I can't ask for it, so why don't I accept it?"

"It should be so." Pei Yue spoke in a gentle tone, and then asked with concern: "How is your Majesty's mood lately?"

Liu Bao secretly sighed that Wu Xun acted straightforwardly. If he were a civil servant, he would never be so straightforward. He had just received five hundred taels of silver, so naturally he would not be as pretentious and low-pitched as he was in front of others.

He replied: "Your Majesty had a few drinks with the Queen during lunch today, and he was in a high mood."

Pei Yue glanced at him calmly, feeling a little surprised. It was just a casual question at first, but Liu Bao's answer made him gain a lot.

Thinking of the information Qi Min had collected about this imperial celebrity, Pei Yue Zhuangruo asked unintentionally: "I heard that Liu Duzhi's ancestral home is in Lingzhou?"

Liu Bao nodded and said, "My ancestors are from Guangping Prefecture in Lingzhou."

Pei Yue smiled and said: "Guangping Mansion? No wonder I feel friendly when I look at Du Zhi. I didn't expect that there is such a connection."

Guangping Prefecture is located in the north of Lingzhou, very close to Xingyang City, which is the prefecture's capital. It is one of the three prefectures in the northwest. The origin mentioned by Pei Yue means that some of the soldiers of the Zangfeng Guard were born in Guangping Prefecture, and his training place was near

Qing County is within the territory of Guangping Prefecture.

Liu Bao sent a flattery at the right time: "The elders in the old slave's hometown often talk about Pei Hou's kindness. Almost every household has a memorial tablet of Pei Hou's longevity. If Pei Hou had not turned the tide, I am afraid that the entire Guangping Prefecture would have fallen into ruin.

The ravages of the Western Wu cavalry."

"It's just a duty to fulfill." Pei Yue said it, and then asked slightly curiously: "Liu Douzhi didn't let all his relatives move to Kyoto?"

Liu Bao replied cautiously: "This house in Lao Nu's family is making a living in Kyoto, but our sect is still in Lingzhou. To be honest with Marquis Pei, people like Lao Nu still hope to return to their roots in the future."

Pei Yue nodded to show understanding, raised his hand and patted the other party's shoulder, and said with a smile: "I once told Your Majesty that the focus of the Xiangyun will be transferred to Lingzhou. Everyone knows that if you are interested, you can edit a book and send it to Guangping Mansion.

Ask your clansmen to prepare some money so that they can take a share in the Xiangyun number."

Liu Baoleng was on the spot and immediately became excited involuntarily.

As a close confidant of Emperor Kaiping, he certainly knew the talent of the young powerful man in front of him in the business world. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he could turn stone into gold. Making money was extremely simple. He was also in the Xingqing Palace that night.

I knew that Pei Yue was not lying, and judging from his words, it seemed that he was going to give him shares at a very low price.

But he dared to accept five hundred taels of votes, but he did not dare to nod easily on this matter.

Looking at the hesitant look on the eunuch's face, Pei Yue said calmly: "We all know that we are overthinking it. When the Xiangyun went to Lingzhou to do business, they had to sell some of their shares at a profit. Otherwise, how could the local squire agree?

Everyone knows that since I don’t want to, I naturally won’t force you.”

Hearing that he had changed his name, Liu Bao quickly apologized and said with a smile: "Marquis Pei is so kind that I dare not refuse."

Pei Yue nodded and said, "Dou Zhi is someone whom Your Majesty values. I just want to have a good relationship. I hope you can say some kind words for me in the future."

He spoke so frankly that Liu Bao gradually felt relieved, and there were many ways to cover up the money that came to his door, so the Liu family did not have to intervene personally.

After sending this important eunuch away, Pei Yue suppressed his smile and turned around to walk into the warm spring-like flower hall behind the main hall.

All three women were present in the hall, but the atmosphere was a bit depressing, not as relaxed and harmonious as in the past, and there was not a single maid.

Pei Yue walked to Ye Qi and sat down next to him, and asked with a smile: "What's going on?"

Ye Qi smiled but did not answer, Lin Shuyue lowered her head slightly, and only Taohua looked at Pei Yue steadily, with a bitter look on her face, her mouth was pursed, and there were tears in her eyes.

Pei Yue laughed and said, "Who bullied you?"

Taohua sniffed and asked timidly: "Master, do you really want to marry that princess?"

Almost everyone in the capital knew the rumors, so how could the Hou Mansion be isolated from the outside world.

Pei Yue looked at them one by one, and then said helplessly: "It's hard to disobey the emperor's order..."

"ah!"
Chapter completed!