Pingyang Fu of the Red Chamber

Chapter 353 Emperor Wu prepares a favor
In the Hall of Mental Cultivation,

Facing Emperor Wu's rage, Dai Quan knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, uttering words of comfort.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. Your Majesty, please calm down. There is a letter from Jiangnan. Mr. Lin was poisoned by the Wang family, a salt merchant in Yangzhou. Now that Mr. Lin is gone, the Marquis is so angry that he goes on a killing spree in Yangzhou and kills the entire Wang family in Yangzhou. , the whole city is full of people searching for him, and now more than half a month has passed."

"What, Lin Aiqing has been gone for so long, and there is no news from the Imperial City Department. What happened to such a serious illness?"

Emperor Wu was so distressed that he could not speak. Lin Ruhai was his confidant who was sent to the south of the Yangtze River to take charge of the salt administration. From his own internal funds, Lin Ruhai donated millions of taels every year. Now is the time to use money. , Lin Ruhai died, who did it?I'm afraid it's unclear whether the salt merchant is the King of the East or several vassal kings.

"Okay, a salt merchant actually has the guts to murder an official of the imperial court. It's lawless. Get up, draw up a decree, and give an order to Gui Yifu, the commander of the Jinling Imperial City Division. The three Wang Jiayi tribes should be arrested without trial, just kill them!"

Dai Quan stood up tremblingly. Seeing that Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong's anger had subsided, he comforted him,

"Your Majesty, the entire Wang family has been killed by Marquis Luo Yun. Now they have returned to Jinling. According to the report from the Imperial City Division, people from the East Palace have appeared in Jinling. Also, Your Majesty, the court is now safe, and the Wang family is dead. , if the three members of the Wang family are executed by decree, I am afraid it will cause turmoil in the court and Jiangnan, and the gains outweigh the losses."

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong heard the words and said nothing. He slowly opened the seal of the red folding book. When he opened the folding book, he saw Lin Ruhai's familiar long and thin font and slowly started to read it.

I respectfully present to my emperor that my old minister Lin Ruhai can no longer serve the emperor. Now the poison has penetrated into the bone marrow, and there is no cure for it. He has been unconscious for several days and may soon be in a coma. So before leaving, he wrote the last chapter. Your Majesty, Jiangnan Salt Policy has come to an end. On the right track, the salt merchant bullies and old ministers will be eradicated after their death. The previous dynasty continued to suppress illegal salt sales, and salt sales were privately sold for profit. This caused the price of salt to rise and people all over the world complained. Therefore, we must not sell salt sales privately in the future. , otherwise the disaster will be endless, and the successors should be wary of the aristocratic families, otherwise there will never be peace in Jiangnan.

Secondly, in the darkness of Jiangnan, various forces are becoming more and more rampant. The civil servants and nobles are in groups, and it is difficult for outsiders to get in, especially the civil servants. Jiangnan is linked by the three major academies. The civil servants collude with each other to deceive the superiors and control the place. The nobles are closer. Nian is also attached to it, and as time goes by, chaos may arise.

Finally, the old minister asked the emperor to take care of his young daughter Lin Daiyu. The minister and his wife had already agreed that the little girl would marry Zhang Jinyu, the Marquis of Luoyun, as his equal wife. The marriage was postponed because the little girl was frail and sick, and she was fostered under the knee of the old lady of the Jia family in Rongguo Mansion. He also hoped that the emperor would respect the old minister for serving him for many years. If you take more care of me, I will definitely repay your kindness to the emperor in the next life.

Lin Ruhai, a minister, wrote his final poem in front of his bed, in the early spring of March, the eighth year of Yuanfeng.

Emperor Wu Zhou Shihong's eyes were already red when he saw this, his hands trembled slightly, and he wailed in his mouth,
"My Lin Aiqing! It hurts me so much. Those traitorous ministers and traitors deserve to die."

Dai Quan opened his mouth, but no more sound came out.

"Over in the south of the Yangtze River, let Gui Yifu, no, let Zhao Si arrest people secretly, ransack their homes and kill those who have connections with the Wang family. This is to warn the civil servants not to touch those above the fifth rank, and those below. Clean up a batch."

"Yes, Your Majesty, don't worry, I know how to do it."

When Dai Quan saw that the emperor had finished venting his anger and calmed down, he felt relieved that the emperor was indeed wise and could not openly issue imperial decrees and cause trouble.

Zhou Shihong tore open the letter again and read Zhao Si's secret letter. It was nothing more than the fact that Marquis Luo Yun went to Jiangnan. Everything was recorded in detail. Seeing that Marquis Luo Yun restrained himself several times and did not kill innocent people indiscriminately, it was salt. Shang Ye only killed the chief culprit, and he still agreed in his heart. Marquis Luo Yun really cared about the overall situation, but that girl, thinking of Lin Ruhai's only daughter Lin Daiyu, asked;
"Dai Quan, do you know the beloved daughter of Lin Qing's family?"

Dai Quan didn't expect His Majesty to ask this. After thinking about it, he found that Lin Ruhai's beloved daughter seemed to be named Lin Daiyu, so he replied;

"Back to Your Majesty, Mr. Lin has a son and a daughter in Yangzhou, but the youngest son died in infancy, leaving an orphan girl Lin Daiyu. I heard that she was weak and sick since she was a child, and it was difficult to support her. Now she will be much better with the Marquis, but it depends on what Mr. Lin wants. , and let the little girl go to Rongguo Mansion for foster care. This old lady is good, graceful and generous, but other people and the Marquis are a little, a little bit."

Emperor Wu looked at Dai Quan hemming and hawing and was speechless. He didn't know that Luo Yunhou and the Jia family were having troubles. They kept talking about it and it was confusing. The housekeeping was better. That Jia She was doing nonsense. According to the secret report from the Imperial City Division , but not as honest as it appears.

"Okay, I don't know anything about it. I know what your honor is like now. It's okay to go and learn more from the old lady. But the beating is still needed. It is the court and I who have let down the Lin Qing family. They have not inherited the incense." There is no one else. The ancestors of the Lin family, the five generations of marquises, are now extinct. I can't bear to ask, but I can't help but ask, and give Lin Aiqing a favor. Since she is the equal wife of Marquis Luo Yun, I will give her a second-grade imperial concubine, and she can have a son. The incense of the Qi Lin family, the title of Prince En, and the hope that he will serve the court and me like his grandfather, you will personally promulgate the decree and explain it to Jia Mansion."

Dai Quan was extremely shocked when he heard that the title was actually granted. Except for Marquis Luo Yun, no one else really had that much respect, so they immediately knelt down in the hall and kowtowed;

"This old slave has received the order to thank the Marquis and Mrs. Qilin. Your Majesty, don't worry. The old slave at Rongguo Mansion will personally arrange it. If something really happens, I will come to ask for an explanation!"

"Get up. I'm tired today. I'm going to rest in the Yangxin Hall. You can help me. If Mr. Zhou goes there, I won't go to the harem."

Seeing that the matter was over, Zhou Shihong suddenly felt tired and had no intention of going to the harem anymore. He put the secret letter on the oil lamp and burned it, and then placed the red fold in the upper left corner of the desk. This was already This is the third book. Emperor Wu picks it up and reads it several times every day.

Dai Quan stood up, came over to support Emperor Wu, and gave him some relief.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I remember this. It's getting late. Does Your Majesty need to pass on the meal now?" "Well, pass on the meal. I'm a little hungry. Also, ask the imperial kitchen to bring a pot of Jinling Jinghu sake. I want to have a drink."

Emperor Wu was still feeling depressed and couldn't let go. He actually wanted to drink some wine.

Dai Quan responded;

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Chunli Palace,
Concubine Wu prepared a banquet in the palace and arranged for the female officials to go to the imperial dining room to keep an eye on it. As soon as the emperor came, the meal would be passed around and the food and wine would be brought over without any delay.

Thinking of Zhou Guiren, Concubine Wu was filled with jealousy. With this little family background, how could she be conferred the title of concubine? Just why so many people were canonized this time.

Although I don't know who else is there, my father wants me not to cause trouble. It is best to give birth to a prince for the emperor. The mother is making plans because of the high value of the son. As for the outside contact with the vassal king, I just leave a way out in case of emergencies. We need it. The current situation is unclear and we cannot take sides prematurely. If we can have our own children, why bother borrowing the help of others.

think of this,
Concubine Wu's expression was also gloomy. Over the years, she had received so many favors, but she never became pregnant. Even after calling the imperial doctor to diagnose her pulse and treat her, there was no change. Could it be that there was something wrong with the emperor, but the queen still gave birth to three princes? Unwilling to be reconciled, Concubine Wu also tried her best.

"Empress, empress, Shuang'er is back,"

Hearing Shuang'er's voice outside the palace, Concubine Wu's face lit up with joy. She looked at Shuang'er walking in and asked;

"Come here quickly, what does the emperor say?"

Song Shuang walked over and saw the happy look on her face, so she had no choice but to interrupt;
"Mother, let's eat by ourselves. Your Majesty, no one will be there tonight,"

Concubine Wu's expression changed and she looked at Song Shuang. The maid behind her was a little uneasy.

"Why, is it Mr. Zhou who is guarding you there to prevent you from entering, or is there something wrong that prevents you from entering?"

Song Shuang turned around and dismissed the nuns and palace maids behind him. After they left, he said in a low voice;

"Going back to the Queen, Lord Zhou was guarding in front of the Yangxin Hall as expected, but the servant went and said some outrageous words. However, Lord Zhou didn't stop him. He greeted her with a smile and no anger at all, so the servant entered the Yangxin Hall. In the Heart Palace, the gatekeeper didn’t let you in. After a while, the Prime Minister hurried into the Heart Cultivation Palace, so I had to bring people back.”

After hearing what Shuang'er said, Concubine Wu squinted her eyes and glanced at the female historian next to her again. Could it be that Guiren Zhou also knew that she was going to be named a concubine, so she could bear it. Of course, every time Dai Quan comes, there are no good things, but it is also bad. If you follow Zhou Guiren's plan, it won't be considered a loss.

"I know, I guess Zhou Guiren also made some moves later. I didn't expect that she, Biyun Palace, didn't take advantage tonight. It's a tie. However, Liang Zi has settled today's matter and told everyone in the palace to be careful in everything in the future. "

"Yes, Your Majesty, but Your Majesty, you still need to inquire about the harem as soon as possible. Who will be canonized? The master has sent someone to deliver the message. I think it is those people who need it. What should I do, Your Majesty?"

Shuang'er had a depressed look on his face. Now the harem is getting alarmed. The empress is not specifically looking for information. Concubine Wu is even more angry. Not to mention the usual help, it is all her own contribution. Why is her father so unwise? ,

"I know, if you can do it, do it. If you can't, don't do it. Now they are begging us. We haven't reached the last step yet. They are all thinking about themselves. By the way, when you came, did you know what happened at the Yangxin Hall? What's the matter?"

Concubine Wu dragged her voice deliberately. Song Shuang knew that the concubine wanted to ask what happened in the study. However, the Yangxin Hall was so big and there were so many stalls inside that it was hard to hear. However, after the internal minister entered, the eunuch guarding the door finished greeting him. , I also paid special attention to my father-in-law's eyes.

"Go back to the empress, Shuang'er didn't go in, so we don't know what happened inside. But before I left, I glanced at the gatekeeper's eyes. Apart from looking at me, the rest of the time, especially when I first met the internal minister, his eyes were filled with emotion. I’ve looked south a lot, so it should be about the south.”

"As for things in the south, that's Jiangnan. Only Jiangnan and the border can make the court and the emperor so anxious. Jiangnan, isn't Marquis Luo Yun in Jiangnan?"

Concubine Wu suddenly thought of Luo Yunhou, who had caused a lot of trouble in the capital before. She saw such a handsome man for the first time on Juxian Tower. At that time, she was a little moved, but she saw it too late.

(End of this chapter)