"It seems that the Sima Mansion trees have big roots and deep roots. The emperor cannot uproot them all at once, he can only try to take care of them slowly."
"Although the power of the Ministry of War is only a small part, it is enough to make people covet it. If it is only delegated to ordinary officials, I am afraid that in the end, the Ministry of War will still have Hu Jue covering the sky with one hand."
Xiao Mingxuan nodded.
"Don't worry, the emperor has a better candidate."
"Who is it? I am very curious, who dares to take over this hot potato and face Hu Jue directly."
"General Shen Yutang who protects the country."
"Chen Yutang?"
Luo Jiuli seemed to have heard this name somewhere.
"Well, the grandfather of the fourth prince, Prince Ping, and the father of Concubine Shu of Yijing Palace."
"Prince Ping?"
Luo Jiuli remembered the baby-faced, muscular and powerful little prince he saw last time in front of the palace gate.
Your Majesty wants to disturb this lake!
The most important thing about imperial power is balance. Only when all the forces below are balanced can the emperor sit firmly on the throne.
Gao, this trick is really high. After all, they are all the emperor's father-in-law, and each has a prince he wants to support behind his back.
A balance of power is better than a dominant family.
Outside the wing, Nanzhu knocked on the door.
"Master, someone is coming to the house."
"Let him in."
"yes."
Not long after, a servant walked in.
"This servant has met the prince and the second young lady."
Xiao Mingxuan said nothing, while Luo Jiuli flipped through the ledger in his hand.
"Did mother ask you to come?"
The servants are respectful and courteous.
"In reply to the second lady, Madam asked the second lady to return home immediately."
"Right away? What does mother want from me?"
The servant said.
"I don't know much about this, but the lady seems to be talking about the full moon banquet?"
"Full Moon Banquet?"
Luo Jiuli was startled, looked at Xiao Mingxuan and put down the account book in his hand.
"The Xie family's full moon banquet? Ouch! How could I forget this?"
"Has the prince received the invitation from the Xie family?"
Xiao Mingxuan nodded indifferently and asked.
"are you going?"
"I've been invited to the full moon banquet, why won't the prince go?"
At the door, Qin Yin took over the conversation.
"Second Miss, Your Majesty rarely attends banquets in the capital."
Of course, in addition to the banquet hosted by the Queen Mother, there was also the Emperor's birthday banquet.
Luo Jiuli glanced at Xiao Mingxuan, who was drinking flower and fruit tea seriously, and looked at Qin Yin doubtfully.
"Then the courtier handed over the invitation, but the prince didn't go?"
Qin Yin shook his head.
"The prince is not going, but generous gifts will be sent."
Luo Jiuli: As expected of the Ninth Prince, he has status, power and status, but he doesn’t even bother to make friends with others against his will.
Outside the door, Zhang Wen and Chun Rong were coming back to report after counting the pots. When they heard that the madam sent someone to find the young lady, they came in hurriedly and said:
"Why don't you, Miss, go back home quickly? There are subordinates here with Chun Rong to finish the work. If there is anything we don't understand, we can go back home and report it to Miss."
Chun Rong also nodded.
"The madam asked the young lady to go back. There must be something important. Zhang Wen and I are here in the store, so the young lady can rest assured."
Luo Jiuli nodded and stood up, looking at Zhang Wen and Chun Rong.
"Then thank you for the hard work."
"Miss's instructions, don't dare to express your sorrow."
Zhang Wen smiled innocently.
Luo Jiuli didn't say anything more, and turned to look at Xiao Mingxuan, who was standing beside him.
"Is the prince going back to his home or -"
"I will send it to you."
Xiao Mingxuan put down the tea cup and stood up.
The two of them went downstairs one after another.
Two carriages were waiting at the door. As soon as they saw the two masters leaving the shop, they rushed over.
Xiao Mingxuan personally helped Luo Jiuli get into the car. Before Luo Jiuli could sit firmly in the car, a fast horse galloped over.
"Your Majesty, Xue Ningshan and Su Tong have returned to Beijing. The Emperor summoned Your Majesty urgently."
When Xiao Mingxuan heard this, he stepped back from the steps he had just taken on the carriage. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, his face became darker and darker, and he didn't know what he was thinking in his heart.
Luo Jiuli opened the curtain and looked at him.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor has summoned you urgently. There must be something important. I can just go back to the palace by myself. Your Majesty, please go into the palace quickly."
Xiao Mingxuan glanced at her.
"Nan Xing, Nan Zhu, protect your master."
"Your Majesty, don't worry."
Nan Zhu and Nan Xing clasped their fists and saluted.
Luo Jiuli also smiled and waved to him, asking him to quickly enter the palace.
Xiao Mingxuan turned around and got into his carriage.
Two carriages, one east and one west, drove in opposite directions.
Back at the house, Luo Jiuli saw Nanny Xu and a maid helping her mother to walk around the yard to eat.
"Mother."
Luo Jiuli greeted him.
"Jiu'er, you're back."
After several days of recuperation, the Duke's wife's body has not recovered as before, but her face is rosier than the day she was injured.
"My mother sent someone to find me, but it's about the Xie family's full moon banquet?"
The Duke's wife nodded.
"Tomorrow's full moon banquet, I'm injured, so I can't attend. Your father and two brothers are outside the capital. Although your sister is the eldest lady of the Duke's palace, she is married to someone else.
Madam, even if you come to visit, you must attend the banquet as someone else's."
"Mom, after much thought, is it possible for you to go to the full moon party by yourself tomorrow?"
As the Duke's wife spoke, her eyes showed some worry.
"Naturally."
Luo Jiuli stepped forward and held his mother's arm, and they walked into the house.
"Don't worry, mother, I'll take Nan Xing and Nan Zhu with me."
The Duke's wife hummed.
"Mother He Li has already asked the housekeeper to prepare it. The Xie Mansion is the mother's home of Concubine Xie Liang, and the Censor Xie is a third-rank imperial censor. I am afraid that the most prestigious dignitaries from all over the capital will come to visit tomorrow."
"If my guess is correct, the princes in the palace, the princes outside the palace, and the princess will also come to congratulate you."
"After you go, I will send you a congratulatory gift. If you don't like the occasion, just find an excuse to leave. I don't think Xie Yushi will--"
"Mother."
Luo Jiuli interrupted his mother's words, somewhat dumbfounded.
"Is mother afraid that I will cause trouble? Or is she afraid that I will meet Prince Zhao and those people from Sima Mansion at the banquet?"
The Duke's wife was stunned and patted her arm.
"You girl."
Luo Jiuli smiled.
"Mother, just rest assured, no matter who it is, I can handle it."
The Duke's wife opened her mouth, as if she wanted to give some instructions.
"Forget it! You are an adult now. You know what you should do and what you shouldn't do. Mother can't disturb other people's banquets with just one word."
Luo Jiuli:
"My good mother, I went to congratulate you, not to fight."
It sounds like she is a militant.
The mother and daughter talked and laughed, which added a bit of warmth to the peaceful afternoon.
In ancient full moon banquets, most of the gifts and guests were received at the Shen time and the banquet was held at the Xu time. This process took nearly four hours, that is, two hours.
Therefore, the next day, Luo Jiuli took a nap in the house before slowly dressing up and getting up to go out.