Start with the humble bridegroom

Chapter 375

The fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the first year of Longde is the Lantern Festival.

This night in Chang'an, the lights are brilliant, pedestrians are weaving, there are dancers from the Western Regions circling and dancing on the streets, and there are hundreds of operas climbing and breathing fire juggling on the side of the road.Scholars and beautiful women walked with lanterns, and when they met occasionally, they would subconsciously look at each other secretly.

In the Taiji Hall, the lights are bright, and the drums and music are magnificent. Sometimes Huangzhong Dalu is played, and sometimes Jiangnan silk and bamboo are played.

Emperor Longde, who had just ascended the Great Treasure, was entertaining his clan and important ministers in the Taiji Hall.

On the left hand side of the emperor are the three assistant ministers left by the late emperor.

The first assistant, Sun Gezheng, was serious, the second assistant, Li Danian, smiled slightly, and only the Ji assistant, Gu Zhe, had a slightly sad look on his face.

Before the late emperor left, he ordered that the national mourning should only last 120 days, but now he is purely filial, and actually kept it for a full [-] days.

Everything else is good today. He is diligent in administration and knows how to use people well. At the same time, he can listen to the advice of veterans.It's just that there is one thing that makes Gu Zhe, who was born as a member of the royal family, a little worried.

After the self-defense system went to Bai, His Majesty seemed to be more focused on entertainment.

When he is the crown prince today, apart from the crown princess, the East Palace has only Liang Ai and Liang Di.However, from October to the first month, the number of talented people, beauties, and young ladies in the palace increased to more than ten people.

Now it is the newcomers Xiang Baolin and Wen Yunu who are performing dances and songs in the palace.

"Peaches, plums, plums, and pear blossoms smile, how can they be more lively than my branches, ~~~, Shaoyao Yanna, Li Huaqiao.

How can I be more beautiful than me Yurun Hongzi~~~. "

The high-spirited and gorgeous song is extraordinarily festive and melodious.

Xiang Baolin's singing is soft, soft and melodious, and the tone is extremely beautiful, and Wen Yunu's dancing posture is also like a magical dance, like flying into the sky, charming the mind.

Gu Chiu thought to himself: These two are still good, they are originally from the old man in the East Palace, and they are basically the queen's natal family, so they are considered safe in the palace.

He shifted his gaze to the lower head of the empress again, there were several young women sitting there, among them, the most handsome and powerful ones were Li Zhaoyi and Xin Cairen who were the most favored nowadays.

Gu Chiu turned his head to look at Li Danian, and sighed secretly.

He really disapproved of his old friend's practice of sending his granddaughter into the palace.

Youdao is the son of the emperor and the courtiers. Although Li Danian has contributed a lot to the current enthronement, but now he is seeking the position of chief assistant and at the same time intervening in the palace. It is really not a good arrangement.

After singing and dancing, there was thunderous applause in the hall.

The crown prince took the lead in raising his glass to congratulate: "I have heard that the singing and dancing of the two came from Zhang Xinzhi, which is really different from ordinary people. My father's favorite is Zhang Xinzhi's poems and poems. Only this person's literary talent makes me feel great. It is crowned in the Seven Kingdoms. This song is one of the songs in "Journey to the West: The Legend of Shi'e", and it is the best of luck in the world. If Elder Tang's heart is weaker, he might just stay in that mountain."

When the emperor saw that the prince mentioned Zhang Xinzhi, he also smiled slightly.

It is impossible to say that he does not appreciate Zhang Xinzhi, especially because his talent in property is greater than his literary talent, but it is a pity that he is too deeply involved with the old Bajia, so he has to put him in the sky.

The prince secretly glanced at the emperor, saw the emperor smiled, and knew that he had scratched his father's itch.The crown prince knows that Emperor Longde has always believed in Buddhism, and his favorite book of "Journey to the West: The Legend of Shi'er", the royal team in the palace is now full of jokes from Journey to the West, and the emperor has to order it every few days .

Xiang Baolin (Luozhu) and Wen Yunv (Xiufan) joined hands in disrespect and retreated.

The people in the hall only heard the eunuch next to the emperor cough lightly, and knew that it was the emperor who wanted to speak, so they all sat up straight.

Emperor Longde's eyes swept around the clan, and paused slightly on Yang Shangjian, the heir of the Prince of Hedong County, and an unknown sneer flashed in the emperor's eyes.Then the emperor set his sights on the most elegant of the clan's children.

It was Yang Shangyang, the eldest son of Zhaoyang County Prince who came to Beijing to meet his grandmother again on his own initiative.

I have to say that the father and son of Prince Zhaoyang County are indeed very good. Emperor Longde has let them go south, but King Zhaoyang County still found an excuse to send his son to the capital.

"Younger."

When Yang Shangyang heard the emperor calling him, he hurriedly got up respectfully, left the table and came to the hall and knelt down.

"Chen is here!"

"Hey~," the emperor smiled, "This is a Lantern Festival banquet, why is it so special? Just call him Uncle Emperor."

Yang Shangyang didn't dare to answer, just bowed down without saying a word.

"Get up, get up!"

The more the emperor spoke in a curt tone, the more cautious Yang Shangyang became.

The reason why his father asked him to return to Chang'an on his own initiative was because he listened to Mei Helin's advice: they and the emperor have always been monarchs and ministers, and they must not regard themselves as royal relatives.Just be careful and you can never go wrong!
"Yang'er should be eighteen this year, right?"

"Return to Your Majesty, I am indeed eighteen."

This time the emperor did not correct him for calling himself a "subject", and Emperor Longde's expression became a little more amiable.

"Have you set a date for your marriage with Gu's?"

Yang Shangyang replied: "Your Majesty, the two families have agreed to discuss this matter when the Gu family turns seventeen next year."

"Oh~!" The emperor sighed whether it was on purpose or not, "It won't be until next year? All the juniors in the family have grown up, and I'm thinking about your wedding."

After speaking, he called Zongzheng Siqing again.

"You remember this matter, you must take care of it carefully, and don't let outsiders laugh at our Tian family's bearing."

Minister Zongzhengsi hurriedly smiled and said yes.

The emperor was acting here, which made everyone in the hall look a bit subtle, and they all turned their eyes to the prince of Hedong County in unison.

Because in the three generations of emperors, apart from Yang Shangyang who was not married, there was no one else who was not married.This person's ranking in the royal family is still ahead of Yang Shangyang, and he is Yang Shangjian, the son of the Prince of Hedong County.

But the emperor seems to have forgotten that there is such a number one emperor nephew as him.

Yang Shangjian's face turned extremely pale for a moment, and he hadn't looked up since he took the seat.Just because the emperor's second son Ji Wang Yang Shangchuan happened to be sitting opposite him, and behind Yang Shangchuan, there was a woman he was very familiar with sitting there.

Xiao Chaner!
Ji Wang Xinna's side concubine.

Xiao Chan'er, who was already engaged to the Prince's Mansion of Hedong County, unexpectedly fell into a ball with King Ji in front of a large audience.In the end, the Xiao Mansion "had to" cancel the engagement with regret, and quickly sent Xiao Chan'er to Prince Ji's Mansion.

This incident happened just a few days ago, and everyone knew that it was actually the emperor who was punishing the Prince of Hedong County.

According to gossip rumors, on the fourth day of the first lunar month, Eunuch Fu went out to Beijing to guard the tomb of the first emperor, and the eunuchs around the emperor officially took over the Luan Yiwei.

The investigation document about the assassination of the emperor and the crown prince's family was stopped by the first emperor back then. After the present day saw the investigation documents, the emperor almost sent troops to chase after the Prince of Hedong County who had just left Beijing. It was the chief assistant who stopped the present day.

It was also the emperor's intention to arrange for Yang Shangchuan to sit opposite Yang Shangjian with his side concubine.

"Young people are just at the time when they are full of vigor and blood. There are so many beautiful women in Beijing and China. If you want to, just talk to Uncle Huang. I will make the decision with you."

Yang Shangyang was taken aback when he heard this, and was about to subconsciously refuse.

One of the ministers stood up and saluted Emperor Longde solemnly, interrupting their conversation.

As soon as the emperor saw this person, his head was a little buzzing, wondering why he forgot that this person was still present.

It was the great Confucian Zhou Zhiyi who stood up and prepared to speak out.

"Although the feast is good, I ask your majesty to drink less. Although the prince of Zhaoyang County is your majesty's nephew, he is also a court official. I have never heard that the old lady has not yet started, but my uncle persuades her to take a concubine." reason!"

Zhou Zhiyi blushed slightly at what the emperor said, and for a moment didn't know how to step down.

Fortunately, Gu Chiu, the glass man, was there, so he immediately laughed and stood up to play.

"Your Majesty loves and protects the emperor's nephew very much. I think it's better to reward Gu Shi one or two instead to show His Majesty's kindness."

Emperor Longde nodded hastily: "Gu Qing's words are very kind!" Then he stepped down the steps given by Gu Zhe.

Yang Shangyang thanked the third sister, and then withdrew.

He heard the emperor above sigh again.

"Seeing that my family's children have grown up one after another, I feel that I made Zhu Qing laugh at me for a moment."

After finishing speaking, the emperor glanced at his confidant, Hou Chaoqing, the former secretary of the East Palace.

Hou Chaoqing had just been promoted to be the minister of the Ministry of Rites, and when he saw the emperor's wink, he immediately understood.

"The sage (Mencius) has said that there are three types of unfilial piety, and the worst is to have no heirs. Your Majesty is just secretly following the sage's wishes and caring about the heirs of the palace. What is wrong?"

Just as Hou Chaoqing finished speaking, a person not far away spoke loudly.

"Master Hou's words are wrong!"

Everyone looked at that person, and when they saw the person who spoke, they were surprised and puzzled.

Because this person is another confidant of His Majesty, the former Donggong Xima Wang Jie, and the newly appointed Minister of Dali Temple.

"The meaning of the sage is that there are three types of unfilial piety. The one who is the greatest should be the one who has not fulfilled the responsibility of the son of man, not just the matter of the heirs. I dare to ask your majesty to think of the son of man and do filial piety!"

The emperor pretended to be puzzled: "I dare not be negligent in enshrining the late emperor. Why did I not fulfill my filial piety?"

At this point in the play, the three assistant ministers had already understood what the emperor wanted to do, and their faces changed.

Sure enough, Hou Chaoqing and Wang Jie knelt down together.

"However, the late emperor has no heirs. Your Majesty, please posthumously bestow upon your majesty's birth mother, Cao Shi, the Empress Dowager. She will be buried in the imperial mausoleum, so that the entire tomb of the late emperor will be used!"

As soon as the words were finished, more than a dozen of the emperor's close courtiers left the table and bowed down one after another.

"The minister waits for the second opinion!"

Emperor Longde nodded: "Since that's the case, come and proclaim the imperial edict!"

A eunuch walked out from the emperor and took out a roll of yellow cloth from his sleeve.

"Your Majesty! Dare I ask if this imperial edict can be passed by the Zhongshu or the sect?"

Zhou Zhiyi suddenly stood up, shouted loudly, and silenced the audience.

At this moment, the chief assistant Sun Ge was taking the lead to leave the table, and the three cabinet ministers all came to the center of the hall and knelt down.

Before Shoufu spoke, Gu Zhe spoke again, hoping to ease the situation.

"Boldly, please make the former Emperor Cao Taifei the Empress Dowager!"

It's a pity that no one from the top, bottom, left, and right sides agreed with Gu Zuo's expedient plan.

Second Assistant Li Danian's face was full of expressions. Disappointment, frustration and unwillingness were mixed together. He couldn't imagine that the emperor didn't reveal any news to him about such a big matter.

Fortunately, he still claims to be the leader of the royal party.

The chief assistant, Sun Ge, was waiting for Gu Chiu to finish speaking, and then he said sternly: "The late emperor is not far away, and the holy will is clear to the world. Your Majesty's filial piety is recorded in the history, so you should be cautious." Everyone in the world knows about Shen Tuxiu. If you insist on giving him a wife he doesn’t like, be careful that people will laugh at you father and son later. It’s best to discuss it with us ministers before making a decision.)
"Your Majesty's edict involves the late emperor and the genealogy. It has not been written in Zhongshu, but it is only discussed by the court. It is really absurd. The minister is the first and assistant, and the edict is wrong. The minister cannot absolve himself of the blame. Please refer to it!"

After listening to the words of the first assistant who gritted his teeth bluntly, Emperor Longde's face turned green immediately.He subconsciously looked at Li Danian who was kneeling beside Sun Gezheng.

But Li Danian said a word tremblingly.

"Chen~~, begging for bones~!"

The bleakness and determination in the voice shocked all the clan and ministers in the hall for a moment.

Yang Shangyang really wanted to reduce his sense of existence at this time, but still glanced at him meaningfully from time to time.

On the way of Concubine Cao becoming Empress Dowager, to put it bluntly, it was the posthumous edict left by the old emperor.That is, Yang Shangyang's family.

The banquet broke up badly.

Yang Shangyang didn't dare to stay for a long time, so he turned around and ran to Lanxiu Palace, instead of returning directly to his mansion in Beijing.

It was also fortunate that he didn't go back immediately. The distraught King Ji brought several clan children to guard him at the gate of the Prince's Mansion in Zhaoyang County in the capital for a long time, but he left angrily without seeing him.

The old lady Shentu was very happy to see her grandson coming, and made people busy, until she arranged for Yang Shangyang to sleep, and then returned to her bedroom.

At this moment, only Nanny Mingliu next to her was left in the hall. The two had been master and servant for decades, and they had always talked about everything.

"This Zhou Zhiyi is really harmful!" The old lady blamed Zhou Zhiyi as soon as she opened her mouth.

Ming Liu smiled.

"It turns out that Madam blamed him too. I just heard that I wanted to blame him for meddling in his own business. So what if Mr. Xiao Lang has more concubines? It's great to find a place to raise them, and it's okay to come in later."

The old lady gave her a sip.

"I blame Zhou Zhiyi for being nosy, because it is clear that the emperor wants to use the matter of taking concubines before marriage to tarnish the reputation of Zhaoyang County's palace. If it is dirty, let it be dirty, and let the emperor feel at ease. But this is it. Zhou Zhiyi has many things to do."

"This matter, in the final analysis, is due to the last imperial decree left by that old man. Chao'er has been given the status of a son for no reason. How can it not be feared?"

Ming Liu gave the old lady a push: "If you want me to say, it's better to accept the order at the time. Anyway, the two of you have been entangled for a lifetime, and I guess you don't want to give up the position next to him to someone else."

"Do you know?" The old lady was a little angry, "That old thing's will is malicious! Before he died, he even tested me once?! Do you mean to be angry?"

"Impossible?" Ming Liu hesitated, "When did he tempt you with this kind of thing? Why didn't you ask him to miss him when he was dying?"

"Hey, that was in the past," the old lady sighed. "At that time, Chao'er and his son were surrounded by important people, no one wanted money or money, and Chao'er couldn't get that position. In addition, the place in Zhaoyang, although it is It is easy to defend and difficult to attack, but it is also lonely in the south of the Yangtze River, and it is where Chaoer and his son can defend."

"But now, there is one more Zhang Xinzhi behind Huzi! He has quietly earned a huge family fortune for the Zhaoyang Palace. He also nearly disintegrated the Wu Kingdom in the south of the Yangtze River, and Wuling (referring to Su Ming, the owner of Wuling County) Yan) occupied Xinhe again, and faced Zhaoyang offensively and defensively. So now Zhaoyang can advance and retreat freely. For the situation in the south, even the current emperor has to half-coax Chaoer. Where should Zhang Xinzhi's talent be placed? He is an immeasurable treasure in every dynasty, but because of his relationship with Huzi and for the stability of the prince's lineage, the old man exiled him to the northwest."

Ming Liu suddenly asked in a low voice: "Then why didn't the late emperor kill Zhang Xinzhi directly?"

The old lady smiled and said, "I'm old, so I don't know when to leave. If Zhang Xinzhi also died, if the emperor wanted to harm Chao'er, or if Chao'er's subordinates made Chao'er and his son think about things they shouldn't think about, what else? Who can stop it?"

[Only one chapter today, sorry]

(End of this chapter)