When the news came out that Zhilan was pregnant with twins, the Shangshu Mansion suddenly became agitated. The maids, maids, and entourage in the mansion were only rewarded during the New Year and holidays, but on this day, everyone received rewards.
Soon, the news spread to Shangshu Mansion.
After the officials in the court learned that Zhilan was pregnant, they all came to congratulate her. Prince Gong and Prince Yi also came to celebrate in person. For a time, the Shangshu Mansion was overcrowded, especially the fact that Zhilan was pregnant with twins, which surprised many people and wanted to see them. True appearance, but Zhilan did not come out to receive him in person. Most of the time, Li Zhen came forward, or Guiliang and Dafujin greeted him.
In the backyard, Li Zhen looked at the mountains of gifts and felt a headache.
There are so many things, there is no place to put them, and there is no way to use them all.
Li Zhen looked at Zhilan who was standing next to him, thought for a moment, and said, "Zhilan, there are too many gifts for us, and we can't use them all. Some of them are useless, what do you think we should do with them."
Zhilan rolled her eyes and said with a smile: "Whatever we don't need, give it to the servants."
Li Zhen clapped his hands in praise and agreed with Zhi Lan's view.
Li Zhen called Dong'er and asked Dong'er to handle this matter.
Because Li Zhen had already met the emperor and had nothing to do now, he and Zhi Lan were relaxing in the courtyard. He supported Zhi Lan, fearing that Zhi Lan would fall or be frightened. Huang Qiang hurried in and said with a anxious expression: "Emperor I sent someone to deliver the order and am waiting in the hall. Master Guiliang asked me to inform the commander and his wife to receive the order immediately."
Li Zhen frowned, disgusted with welcoming the imperial edict. If Zhi Lan wanted to greet the imperial edict, she would definitely have to salute. This is not good for her health. Li Zhen took Zhi Lan's hand and said, "Don't go out, I'll go alone." Just take the order."
Zhilan shook her head and said: "The emperor gives you a reward. This is a great honor. How can you not go? The birth of a child in the future is also a glorious thing."
Li Zhen looked at the serious expression on Zhilan's face and knew that it was useless to persuade her.
He held Zhilan's hand and walked toward the hall together.
In the hall, the eunuch delivering the edict had been waiting for a long time. When he saw Li Zhen and Zhi Lan coming out, he immediately saluted. Then, the eunuch read out the emperor's edict. Most of the content in the edict was about Zhi Lan, so that Zhi Lan could rest assured to raise her baby. A lot of rewards were given, almost piled up into a hill.
After Li Zhen received the order, the eunuch said: "Admiral Li, the emperor has some words for the miscellaneous family to convey."
"Please tell me, father-in-law."
Li Zhen was puzzled as to why he didn't write it down in the imperial edict when something happened.
The eunuch said calmly: "The emperor said that Zhilan has just been pregnant, especially with twins. They may be twins, twins, or two sons. They are extremely precious and cannot be lost. In order to be considerate of Zhilan, the emperor "Girl, please give me an oral instruction to let Miss Zhilan stay in Shangshu Mansion to recuperate until she gives birth to a child."
When Li Zhen heard this, there was a bang in his head.
Keeping Zhi Lan in Beijing is to keep him hostage.
Li Zhen's face kept changing, and he was filled with anger. He glanced at Gui Liang, who was standing beside him with a calm expression. Seeing that Gui Liang was motionless, he knew that he would not be able to refute. Li Zhen took a deep breath and said seriously: "Please report, father-in-law. Your Majesty, I must let Zhilan stay in Shangshu Mansion to raise the baby. With her father-in-law and mother-in-law taking care of her, Zhilan can give birth to the baby with peace of mind."
Seeing this, the eunuch nodded slightly.
At this time, Guiliang took out a stack of banknotes from his sleeves, handed it to the eunuch with a smile, and said with a smile: "Thank you for your hard work, father-in-law. This time I have a grandson. My father-in-law took these small coins to drink and was very happy." He said this. I was already familiar with the matter of reception, so I generously gave one thousand taels of silver to the eunuch who delivered the order.
The eunuch who passed the order was so happy that he went back in a hurry.
Li Zhen stood in the hall, looking at the eunuch's leaving figure, but felt very uncomfortable in his heart.
hostage.
His woman turned out to be a hostage.
At this moment, Li Zhen felt endless helplessness. After all, he was now a person restricted by all aspects, a person controlled by Xianfeng, and unable to become independent.
Guiliang said: "Good girl, my son-in-law and I have something to say. You can go back to the backyard."
After Zhilan left, Guiliang took Li Zhen back to the study.
The two sat down and Guiliang looked at Li Zhen and said, "I know you are not satisfied with the emperor's actions, but you have to be clear that all the feudal officials in the past dynasties have left their families in the capital. This is a sign of loyalty. It's a means, and it's also the emperor's assurance that you can show off your talents. Zhilan will be fine with me taking care of her."
Li Zhenqiang smiled and said: "Don't worry, father-in-law, I understand."
Guiliang continued: "Just understand. In fact, no matter whether Zhilan is pregnant or not this time, she will definitely stay in Beijing after she gets married to you. Zhilan will be much happier if she has a child by her side."
After listening to this, Li Zhen felt even more unhappy.
If you think about it carefully, the purpose of Xianfeng's marriage was to lock him in a cage and restrain his ambition. After Li Zhen and Zhilan got married, Xianfeng issued an edict asking Li Zhen to take Zhilan back to Beijing. Finally, Zhilan stayed as a hostage. All this was clearly planned in advance and not a temporary consideration at all.
Li Zhen's face gradually calmed down, and he secretly made up his mind that one day he would break this cage.
Li Zhen and Guiliang talked some more, then turned and left, leaving the study. Li Zhen hid his worries in his heart and returned to the backyard with a relaxed smile.
…
Forbidden City, Yangxin Hall.
Xianfeng closed his eyes and meditated in the palace. Han Laiyu walked up to Xianfeng lightly, bent down and whispered: "Your Majesty, the eunuch who delivered the order is back."
"Xuan."
Xianfeng suddenly became energetic and started working directly. Han Laiyu conveyed the order, and the eunuch immediately walked in and knelt down and said: "I have seen the emperor. Long live the emperor. Long live the emperor."
Xianfeng asked: "How did Li Zhen react when he got the news that Zhi Lan was left in Beijing?"
The eunuch reported honestly: "Reporting to the emperor, when Admiral Li received the emperor's words, he froze on the spot, with an angry look in his eyes, and was very unhappy."
When Han Laiyu heard this, his heart skipped a beat.
He glanced at Xianfeng secretly and relaxed a little when he saw that Xianfeng was not angry.
Xianfeng asked: "What's next?"
The eunuch continued: "Admiral Li hesitated for a moment, and finally followed the emperor's instructions, and said that he could rest assured that Zhilan would stay in Shangshu Mansion and be taken care of by Master Guiliang."
"Hahaha……"
Xianfeng laughed loudly and said: "If Li Zhen agrees to Zhi Lan staying without hesitation, I'm afraid I will doubt Li Zhen's ambition. A soldier who has climbed up from the army and has a straightforward personality. When he learns that his woman is staying, I will definitely be angry. If my woman is left as a hostage in Beijing and is indifferent, I am either a very loyal person or a very traitorous person."
"Now it seems that Li Zhen is a man of temperament."
"As long as Zhilan gives birth to twins in Beijing, Li Zhen will be more loyal and work harder. This will also help Li Zhen avoid unnecessary ambitions, which will be good for Li Zhen and prevent him from going astray. "
Xianfeng looked proud, with a smile on his face.
Han Laiyu said: "If Li Zhen knew the emperor's painstaking efforts, he would definitely be moved."
Xianfeng said: "I don't ask for Li Zhen's gratitude, as long as the monarch and his ministers complement each other."
Han Laiyu stood nearby, knowing in his heart that Xianfeng regarded Li Zhen as a loyal minister, but Xianfeng needed a condition to ensure that Li Zhen would always be loyal, so he kept Zhilan.
ps: The third update, call it a day. It’s my dad’s birthday today. He drank some wine and his head is dizzy, so I can only update it for the third time.