Chapter 91: The ruler and the minister play against each other
"The humble minister Liu Chengfeng has met the emperor. Long live the emperor. Long live the emperor."
Liu Chengfeng didn't know what the etiquette was for meeting the saint, so he had to rely on his own impressions to say long live the ceremony.
The small hall is a bit remote and the lighting is not good, but the lights are bright and the candles are flickering. When Liu Chengfeng stepped in, he was a little dazzled by the light.
The furnishings here are not royal at all, not grand, but rather simple. Directly in front of the wall hangs a framed running script with the four characters Ning Xin Zhiyuan. Below it is a bamboo couch with a curtain.
The wind from the small window blew in slightly, and the curtains raised on both sides gently trembled in the air.
But there was no one on the couch, but against the east wall, in front of the flower-and-bird screen, behind a plan, Emperor Zhu Youtang of Hongzhi in Taoist uniform was playing with a chrysanthemum inkstone in his hand, looking at Liu Chengfeng intently.
.
Zhu Youtang's spirit seemed to be in great shape. Compared with the last time he met Liu Chengfeng, he was in heaven and on earth. At that time, Zhu Youtang's face was pale and sickly, but now, although he is still pale,
Although he is still alive, he is full of energy, especially those captivating eyes, which seem to have a keen insight into people's hearts.
Liu Chengfeng looked at Zhu Youtang curiously, thinking to himself that the emperor had indeed used his own medicine, and his body was obviously much better than before.
Originally, Liu Chengfeng thought that the emperor would probably not use the prescriptions he sent to him. After all, in the eyes of the emperor, he was only a pro-soldier. As the emperor, how could he use all the prescriptions?
In fact, Zhu Youtang was just perfunctory with the pro-soldier, and did not take the prescription seriously. It was only later that Wang Ao strongly recommended it. For Wang Ao's sake, Zhu Youtang gave it in order to prevent Wang Ao from feeling cold.
I had no choice but to give it a try.
The prescription prescribed by Liu Chengfeng was very unusual. The first step was to starve for thirty-six hours. He was only allowed to drink honey water, scented tea and other drinks, but not food.
At that time, the imperial doctor of the Imperial Hospital saw this prescription, and his eyes almost fell off. He urged Zhu Youtang not to follow this prescription. Zhu Youtang was also hesitant at the time, and even felt dissatisfied with Liu Chengfeng and Meng Lang's prescription.
.If hundreds of households hadn't sent this prescription, how could it have attracted Wang Ao's strong recommendation? Zhu Youtang was riding a tiger and it was hard to get off. If he used this prescription, there would be strong opposition from the Taiyuan Hospital. But without the prescription, Wang Ao had already taken it.
Wouldn't it be chilling for the ministers to have the whole family act as guarantee?
Zhu Youtang loved reading, especially the sentence: "If the king treats his ministers like his hands and feet, then his ministers will regard him as his heart; if the king regards his ministers as dogs and horses, then his ministers will regard him as his fellow countrymen; if the king regards his ministers as earth and mustard, then his ministers will regard him as such."
Kou Qiu's memory is still fresh in his mind. In fact, Zhu Youtang did the same thing. He stayed away from the eunuchs and got close to the courtiers. When the eunuchs broke the law, he punished them severely, but he loved and protected his courtiers. Because of this, Hongzhi
Only then did virtuous ministers emerge one after another, including Liu Jian, Li Dongyang, Wang Ao, Xie Qian, and even Wang Shu, the Minister of Civil Affairs. These were all capable ministers with unparalleled loyalty.
After a brief hesitation, Zhu Youtang chose to take the medicine. He took the medicine not because he believed that the medicine could regulate his body, but to express his trust in Wang Ao.
After being hungry for three days, he couldn't eat much water and rice, so he had to drink honey water and tea to satisfy his hunger. Zhu Youtang felt top-heavy. In fact, his appetite had never been very good, and he didn't usually eat much water or rice, but
After not eating rice for three days, Zhu Youtang realized that people have an appetite for anything when they are hungry.
Three days later, he ate gruel made from red dates, longan, peanuts and other ingredients. In the past, Zhu Youtang would not have touched such porridge. He usually didn't have much appetite for seafood and bear paws. Why?
Do you rarely eat porridge? But after being hungry for three days, you find that this porridge is more delicious than anything else. After eating a few bowls, you actually feel refreshed.
After that, he ate the porridge according to the prescription for half a month. Slowly, Zhu Youtang felt that his energy was much better than before, especially his complexion, which had a completely new look. However, after half a month of continuous porridge,
, which also made him a little bored. Fortunately, the prescription has been updated with new content, allowing Zhu Youtang to start eating chicken soup and meat, but ginseng, Ganoderma lucidum and other drugs are not allowed.
At this time, Zhu Youtang believed 90% of Liu Chengfeng's prescription. He followed the prescription and ate whatever it said. Now his body is obviously getting better and better, and his energy is much better than before.
The imperial doctors who came to check Zhu Youtang's pulse were also stunned and asked Zhu Youtang what elixir he had taken. Zhu Youtang just shook his head and said nothing.
Zhu Youtang was an emperor who understood human nature and sophistication. Although Liu Chengfeng donated this prescription, he knew that it was probably the Liu family's secret recipe. It was because of Liu Chengfeng's loyalty and because he was not feeling well that he was able to donate it. If he had
Taking all these prescriptions to the imperial doctors is equivalent to throwing away all the Liu family's prescriptions. They treat me with all their heart, so how can I regard people as bandits?
When he saw Liu Chengfeng today, Zhu Youtang's attitude was much kinder. This little Jinyiwei Baihu actually surprised him three times in a row. The first time was to suppress the Imperial Academy. Zhu Youtang saw from Liu Chengfeng's body
After seeing a resolute and responsible pro-jun, and then teaching the prince to read, Zhu Youtang saw a wise scholar who had retired from the country. Now, Zhu Youtang hardly knows whether he should call Liu Chengfeng Mr., Captain, or Captain.
It's doctor.
"This person... is a bit interesting..." Zhu Youtang thought with a long-lost smile on his face, with a little bit of humility.
"Come here, please sit down!" Zhu Youtang continued to play with the chrysanthemum inkstone in his hand, with an irresistible majesty in his tone.
Immediately, a waiter brought a seat for Liu Chengfeng. Liu Chengfeng was also bold and sat down boldly. In his opinion, when someone asked him to sit down, his sincere refusal was too false. He would not do such a thing.
It's not that he never thought about doing it, he just wanted to think about it. It really made him look slavish. Before he could say "Long Live Master, I don't dare to sit down", his face felt a little red. He was not thick-skinned enough.
.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Liu Chengfeng was not sitting with his body hunched over. His body language was a bit rude in this era, but he was very polite verbally.
Zhu Youtang didn't mean to blame him, but he felt that this guy had a unique temperament. Maybe it was Liu Chengfeng's talent that attracted Zhu Youtang's attention, or maybe it was because of Liu Chengfeng's prescription that attracted Zhu Youtang's attention.
She developed a good impression of him. Although the two met briefly in the past, Zhu Youtang did not have a deep memory of such a small person, so naturally he would not look at him carefully. However, after looking carefully today, he discovered more interesting things.
thing.
"Isn't this person afraid?" Zhu Youtang was thinking in his mind: "Or does he not know etiquette at all? No, he is a scholar, how can he not understand the principle of humility? Is it because he is fearless? Only when he has no desire can he be able to do so.
Fearless, could it be that he has no desire in his heart, but feels magnanimous and can behave as usual?"
Liu Chengfeng sat opposite Zhu Youtang. Who knew what Zhu Youtang was thinking? He just felt that the emperor kept looking at him, which made him a little embarrassed. This scene looked like a flower girl being targeted by the imperial army.
Liu Chengfeng felt like he had goosebumps.
"Ahem..." Liu Chengfeng decided to cough and remind the emperor to be more respectful.
But when he coughed, Zhu Youtang couldn't figure it out. Others would try their best to hold back their coughs in front of him, but this guy obviously had a dry cough on purpose.
This...person...
Zhu Youtang felt a little unreasonable, but he also felt that this guy was a bit like the Seven Sages in the Bamboo Grove.
The Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove...
Zhu Youtang couldn't help but laugh. He actually thought of Ji Kang and his like in the Wei and Jin Dynasties from a young man. This was quite interesting.
With Zhu Youtang's smile, he finally came back to his senses. On the other hand, the atmosphere in the palace suddenly became relaxed.
"Are you Liu Chengfeng?"
This question was not just the first time that Liu Chengfeng heard someone ask this question. He answered very familiarly and said seriously: "Your Majesty, this is Liu Chengfeng. Your Majesty's complexion is much better than before, which is gratifying.
Congratulations."
When Liu Chengfeng mentioned his complexion, Zhu Youtang couldn't help but smile. His body was frail, and he had been dealing with government affairs for many years, and he actually went to the extent of forgetting to sleep and eat. His body was already in terrible condition. If Zhu Youtang was not afraid of death, then
It’s false. As long as you are a human being, you want to live a long life. The Hunjun hopes to live forever because he hopes to enjoy eternal glory. Zhu Youtang hopes to be blessed because time is not waiting for me. He wants more time so that he can push this huge dynasty to a greater stage.
The peak of height. Now that he is in good health, Zhu Youtang is naturally in a happy mood. He smiled and said: "This is Liu Aiqing's contribution."