Forbidden City, Renshou Palace. Empress Dowager Zhang met with her stepson Zhu Si, and she still maintained a condescending attitude during the meeting.
"A son meets his mother." Although Zhu Si was very reluctant, he still bowed respectfully in front of Empress Dowager Zhang. Just as Zhu Hao had said to him before, a good man never suffers immediate losses.
Since his strength was obviously inferior to that of Empress Dowager Zhang, and he might be deposed by Empress Dowager Zhang and her courtiers at any time, she could only surrender first and deal with her slowly later.
Empress Dowager Zhang said: "Emperor, why did you take action against your two uncles? No matter what they say, they are still your closest relatives. Their blood is thicker than water. They supported you on the throne and made great contributions... How can you
Can we hold them accountable?
Zhu Sidao said: "Mother, I did not punish them, it was all because of my fault in employing people... I just asked them to stay at home and think about their mistakes."
The laws of the Ming Dynasty should not be biased because they are the uncles of the country." Empress Dowager Zhang was a little angry: "But I heard that you not only issued a ban on them, but also sealed the coal mines under their names. Is this right?
Preparing for you to start mining?
If you do this, will it be suspected of abusing the public service for private purposes?" Zhu Si leaned over and said: "I do want to open a mine, but I will not invade the mines of the two uncles, but because the captured arsonist is the uncle who is being helped.
Under the instigation of the Green Forest Man who was in charge of the coal mines, careful investigation revealed that a large number of missing people were imprisoned in the coal mines of the two uncles, and that they were involved in crimes such as abducting women and children. A large number of unknown corpses were also found in some mines.
"Isn't it okay for me to ask Jin Yiwei to investigate a woman who is committing a crime like this? As for unsealing the coal mine, it will happen naturally after the matter is found out.
"Really?" Although Queen Mother Zhang does not think that human trafficking is a serious crime, it is unjustifiable to not investigate the dead people. This way Zhu Si has a reason, and there seems to be no problem in sealing the coal mine. She is not a good mother.
It happened on the spot.
Zhu Si continued: "I don't intend to delve into this matter. I have already allocated money from the inner government to make some repairs to the Qingning Palace that caught fire... To show my respect for my mother, the Renshou Palace will also be repaired by then."
.
"Repair? That's not necessary. It's good for me to live here! You...you must remember the support of your two uncles."
Alas! Even if your brother never takes action against his own family no matter how mischievous he is, you can't be ungrateful.
"Empress Dowager Zhang finally spoke to Zhu Si in an almost advisory way. Zhu Si thought to himself, you all know that my cheap brother is messing around, why don't you take good care of him?
Your biological son and your two younger brothers are naturally closer than water, and the relationship between me and them is only uncle and nephew in name only, so why should I treat them well?
The punishment for being a daughter is the same as committing a crime! Zhu Si handed over his hand and said, "I remember this!" Then Zhu Si resigned. Seeing Zhu Si leave, the Queen Mother Zhang sighed and said to the little eunuch standing by: "Go, Xiao Jing, the eunuch of etiquette."
Call.
"The little eunuch said: "The Queen Mother, and Eunuch Xiao, the Supervisor of Ceremonies, left the palace for leisure yesterday and are not in the palace now.
"What?" Empress Dowager Zhang frowned. Xiao Jing was actually sent out of the palace to live in peace. Does that mean that the emperor already knew the secret behind the arson case?
Empress Dowager Zhang immediately asked: "Then who is the eunuch who is now the admiral of Dongchang?" The young eunuch replied: "I don't know.
"Because Xiao Jing had just been kicked out of the palace, the personnel department had not kept up with him for a while, and even if Zhu Si had been selected, he would not have made it known to the public immediately.
Empress Dowager Zhang raised her hand and slapped the armrest of the phoenix chair: "This emperor is becoming more and more unruly. Xiao Jing is also an old man in the palace, how can he be dismissed so easily?
I really don't take the Ai family seriously!" The little eunuch didn't dare to speak. But in fact, Xiao Jing was originally re-enabled by Zhu Si to appease the old people in the palace, playing the role of a tool man.
But now Xiao Jing is clearly inseparable from the emperor, and the position of admiral of the eunuchs of Dongchang is high and powerful. The emperor definitely cannot keep Xiao Jing by his side forever. Taking this opportunity, regardless of whether the arson incident is related to Xiao Jing, he will always be driven away.
Go away and find a confidant.
Zhu Si was in a bad mood after meeting Queen Mother Zhang, but when he came out of the palace and saw Zhu Hao, his spirits improved.
"I finally defeated that old pious woman! Huh, she wanted to plead for her two brothers, but I pushed her back. Let's see how her two brothers will bully others in the future!
"Zhu Si looked relieved. Zhu Hao could see that Zhu Si looked proud on the surface, but in fact, he was full of sadness and anger in his heart, and even a little fear. He was just holding on in front of others.
In the palace, he would set fire to it if he was told it would be set on fire, and most of the twenty-four yamen including Shangshan Supervisor were under the control of Empress Dowager Zhang. What if the Empress Dowager became dissatisfied and poisoned him?
What if a palace guard tried to murder him? As the emperor, Zhu Si was alone in the palace, and there were big bosses like Yang Tinghe in the court who kept putting pressure on him. It was said that he was walking on thin ice.
No matter what, the biggest fear is being poisoned.
This mentality... is actually a good thing for Zhu Hao. The more Zhu Si is worried about being murdered, the more trust he will have in the people around him, especially people like Zhu Hao who have saved Zhu Si many times and are regarded as lucky stars.
, and someone who can be entrusted with great things.
Zhu Hao said: "For the time being, we still need to establish a good relationship with the Queen Mother Zhang. As for the previous canonization of the Queen Mother, we may have to suspend it for a while.
Zhu Si was a little angry: "Now that I have caught the person who set the fire and learned about their conspiracy, do I still want to give up on the canonization of my mother?"
Then I...don't let them get what they want?" Obviously Zhu Si was unwilling to give up. But because of fear, or because he couldn't save face, he wanted to give up, but he felt that he had foreseen everything and had given away the enemy's conspiracy.
Expose it, why should we act according to the wishes of the enemy?
Zhu Hao said: "This is an expedient measure. It is not appropriate to fight to the death at this time. If we do not take this step back, the enemy's next move may be even more difficult to predict.
And the best time for Your Majesty to carry out the act of canonization is after the most staunch opponent of His Majesty in the DPRK leaves..." Zhu Si asked: "You mean...Old Man Yang...
.To become an official?
"Yes." Zhu Hao nodded. What Zhu Hao wanted Zhu Si to be on guard against was not just Queen Mother Zhang. Queen Mother Zhang lived in a deep palace and had few disputes with Zhu Hao.
The person who would have a head-on conflict with Zhu Hao, or even have a conflict of interest, must be Yang Tinghe and the civil service group he represented, so Zhu Hao wanted to involve the civil service officials in this matter.
Zhu Hao said: "It is precisely because of the civil servants' insistence on the succession of the Great Ceremony that some people with evil intentions actually dared to set fire to the inner garden of the palace, and their purpose was just to use this fire to make His Majesty feel that everything was wrong.
God's will forces Your Majesty to take a step back.
"Since they dare to use this move, it shows that they have disobedient intentions. At this time, we should first establish ourselves in an invincible position so that Your Majesty can win the support of the neutral forces in the DPRK and China, and let the world know that Your Majesty is not
A narrow-minded emperor, but a wise king and holy lord who cares about the world and has a well-founded approach to advance and retreat!
"Zhu Hao put a lot of high hats on Zhu Si. Zhang Zuo on the side was stunned for a while. He originally thought that Zhu Hao's attempt to persuade the new emperor to stop would definitely not succeed.
But after listening to Zhu Hao's long speech, he immediately made a judgment that Zhu Si would listen to it. After all, Zhu Hao gave the new emperor a step down. At this time, it is really not appropriate to point the finger at the opponent, causing his side to lose the initiative.
Zhu Si was a little depressed: "Originally I was not prepared to agree, but since Zhu Hao said you can win people's hearts, then I will listen to you.
Sooner or later, I will make my mother the real empress dowager of the Ming Dynasty, and no one can stop me!" Zhu Hao smiled and said, "This is certain.
"The first lunar month has not yet reached the Shangyuan Festival, and Tang Yin is about to embark on a mining trip to Xishan. Tang Yin doesn't want to go at all.
Before leaving, Zhu Hao also advised him to be more optimistic: "Sir, if you go there, you will be back in less than half a month at most. After all, you are in charge, so you don't need to go into battle personally. I have asked Jiang Rong to be responsible for the mining. I believe he can help you."
A helping hand!
"Zhu Hao used Jiang Rong this time. Although Jiang Rong is Jiang Lun's son and will inherit the title in the future, it does not affect his ability to work for the court. Only those who can do things can occupy a place in the power of Prince Xing's palace in the future.
Won the respect of others and successfully assume power in the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
Tang Yin didn't say anything, took a carriage, and left under the escort of the Jinyi Guards. Zhu Hao was about to go back, but found Lou Suzhen's carriage parked aside. It was obvious that Lou Suzhen also came to see him off, but he was too embarrassed to come forward.
"Why are you here, madam?" Zhu Hao walked over and asked with a smile. Lou Suzhen was dressed in men's clothing, with intentionally thickened eyebrows and a beard under her chin. Apparently she was afraid of showing her true face and being recognized, so she tried her best to disguise herself.
.
Lou Suzhen forced a smile. There were some things she couldn't explain clearly. She probably also felt that the relationship with Tang Yin was inseparable. If Tang Yin went to Xishan and did not return for many years, then the relationship between the two would be difficult to define.
Zhu Hao took Lou Suzhen to a nearby restaurant. It was not yet noon and there were not many customers. The two sat down at the back of the second floor. The weather was very cold in the first month of the year. Lou Suzhen was wearing some thin clothes. Her face was pale and she seemed to be in trouble.
Not quite adapted to the extreme cold weather in the north.
"Madam, is she sick?" Zhu Hao asked. Lou Suzhen forced a smile, but couldn't help coughing twice: "It's too cold in the north. As soon as winter comes, I get wind and cold. It hasn't improved in several years.
"When Lou Suzhen was in Nanchang, she was not a delicate canary, and her body was not weak. However, she experienced the life and death of her family, the bumpy journey northward, and the acclimatization, and her physical condition plummeted.
It is now her third winter in Beijing, but she is still not used to the severe cold. She will catch a cold if she is not careful in winter.
Zhu Hao sighed: "I don't adapt to living in the north, but life has to go on. In fact, I have been trying to figure out what the relationship between the husband and his wife is... But it is really difficult to figure out. I don't know when the wife will be able to truly
Will you become my mistress?
"When Lou Suzhen heard this, no matter how good her mood was, her cheeks could not help but glowing, and her expression became awkward.
"Young master, please don't talk or laugh." Lou Suzhen lowered her head and said. Zhu Hao said: "Maybe Mr. Tang has been lonely for half his life. After getting old, he became less courageous and did not dare to reveal his feelings. In fact, I hope that you can stay together and grow old together.
In addition, Madam... Wife-in-law... is the Miss Sun family. She has nothing to do at home recently. I plan to send her to your place so that you can teach her some things and help you with things.
"Madam..." Lou Suzhen originally wanted to say, you, the wife of a high-ranking official in the imperial court, would actually show up to the public?
But when the words came to her lips, Lou Suzhen suddenly realized that Zhu Hao had an easy-going temperament and was open-minded about everything without any trace of the pedantry of a scholar. It was not unusual for him to have this idea.
Lou Suzhen smiled and nodded, taking it as agreement.