King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 733: Important Matters

Entering the main hall, the palace maids and eunuchs on both sides saluted, and a female official guided Zhu Jinghong forward.

Soon he entered the Queen's bedroom, and the Crown Prince and Prince Rui and his wife were all staring at him.

Looking at the younger brother in front of them, the two elder brothers had mixed feelings. The common point was that they all felt jealous, mixed with some fear, even though Zhu Jinghong was very easy-going at this time.

Further inside, the emperor also looked towards the door and he also felt the change in Zhu Jinghong.

He originally thought that he was full of energy, but now he looked restrained, which made him feel relieved.

At this time, Zhu Yunsheng whispered, "Mom, Thirteenth Brother is here!"

Zhu Jinghong also took two steps at a time and rushed directly to the queen's bed.

"Mom... my son is back!"

Zhu Jinghong really treated Yang Qingyin as his mother, not to mention that she was his mother.

In this royal family, there are not many opportunities to feel warmth and care, and Yang Qingyin is the one who gives the most.

Looking at the extremely thin and almost exhausted queen in front of him, Zhu Jinghong felt extremely uncomfortable, and it was an uncomfortable feeling that he could not suppress.

It has been seven years since he traveled through time, and he has hardly shed tears, but now his tears are rolling down.

"Thirteen, you...are back!"

Seeing the queen raising her hand, Zhu Jinghong quickly held it, then stood up and moved closer to the queen, trying his best to let her see him.

"Mom, my son is back!"

"You... why did you come back so soon? Did you... take risks again?"

Zhu Jinghong quickly replied: "My son did not take any risks. The snow melted in the beginning of spring in Junggar, and my son set out in the first month of the lunar calendar!"

After nodding slightly, the queen looked at the darker and thinner Zhu Jinghong and said with pity: "You suffered in Junggar..."

Zhu Jinghong forced a smile and replied, "Just come back and recuperate. From now on, I will serve my mother and never run away again!"

The two of them chatted like this, and it was obvious that the Queen was indeed very happy, so much so that she seemed to be in better spirits, and she talked for more than ten minutes without stopping.

But seeing that his wife looked tired, Zhu Xianming took the initiative to stop chatting and let the queen rest for a while.

Zhu Jinghong was about to leave when the queen said, "Your Majesty, don't forget something!"

"What's the matter?" Zhu Xianming asked as he approached.

"Thirteen was thinking about Miss Shi, so I promised him that day that I would give it to him as long as he returned to Beijing. Now that he is back... I can't break my promise!"

Zhu Jinghong never expected that his old mother was actually planning this.

To be honest, it was indeed inappropriate for Zhu Jinghong to take in a woman as soon as he returned to Beijing when the queen was critically ill.

So at this moment, Zhu Jinghong wanted to decline politely. After all, Xiangyun couldn't run away there, so it would be okay for him to wait.

Before he could think of what to say, Yang Qingyin asked, "Your Majesty, what do you think?"

"Okay...Okay!" Zhu Xianming agreed immediately.

This was the Queen's wish. She wanted something for her son, so how could he not agree?

In other words, even if Zhu Jinghong disagreed, this matter could not be changed.

"That's good... That's good!"

So the matter was settled. Zhu Jinghong originally wanted to say something, but in the end he thanked the queen for her grace.

After a while, Baochai also entered Kunning Palace, and everyone stayed beside the Queen.

As if sensing something, Zhu Xianming did not leave, but stayed with the queen with his children.

It was afternoon when the queen woke up leisurely. Served by Zhu Yunsheng, she drank half a bowl of minced meat and talked with everyone for a while.

This scene made everyone feel much more at ease, and then everyone left the palace and returned home under the Queen's order.

Zhu Jinghong and his wife were left alone. The queen asked them more questions before letting them leave.

Inside Kunning Palace, the emperor was the only one still guarding, and the old couple seemed to have endless things to say.

After walking out of Kunning Gate, Zhu Jinghong didn't say much, and Baochai didn't take the initiative to talk, so the two of them just walked quietly like this.

The sun has set, the sky has darkened, and it is almost time to lock the palace gates.

At this moment, the Dragon Guards were changing shifts. Teams of soldiers were marching in an orderly manner along the palace road. When they met Zhu Jinghong, the leading officers saluted him one after another.

When Zhu Jinghong walked through Donghua Gate, he found Lu Yuxin and Zhang Lin waiting for him. Judging from their appearance, they seemed to have just finished their shift.

"You go out first!" Zhu Jinghong said to Baochai.

After Baochai left as she said, Zhu Jinghong looked at Lu Yuxin and the other person, and then they took the initiative to come forward.

"Greetings, Master Thirteen!"

After the two of them exchanged greetings, they wanted to get close to Zhu Jinghong, but the latter spoke first.

"When I enter the palace today, all of you from the Dragon Guards and the Guards of the Guards need to pay your respects to me... Remember this, and pass the word down. Never let this happen again!"

The two wanted to say that this was a way for everyone to show respect, but when they saw Zhu Jinghong's serious face, they dared not smile anymore.

"Sir, you understand!"

Zhu Jinghong continued, "Everything is excessive or insufficient. If you really want to do good for me, you should be more low-key in the future and don't bring disaster to me!"

This was something one would only say to one's confidants, so Lu Yuxin and the other two naturally understood it, and they nodded solemnly in agreement.

"Be careful in your work from now on, there is no need to say anything else!"

"Yes!"

After a brief chat, Zhu Jinghong walked out of Donghua Gate, where the royal carriage was already waiting outside.

After getting on the carriage, Zhu Jinghong and his wife headed all the way to the palace.

When they returned to the mansion, night had already fallen. No one in the house dared to go to sleep and everyone went out to welcome him.

His eldest son Zhu Muzhen, who is now over three years old, was a little timid when he saw Zhu Jinghong approaching, but this was normal.

After entering the mansion, Baochai chatted with everyone in the Yin'an Hall for a while. As it was too late and Zhu Jinghong was very tired, Baochai ordered everyone to go back to their rooms.

Soon a maid came to help him bathe and change clothes, and then Zhu Jinghong lay down on the bed, and Baochai followed soon after.

It was not until she lay on her husband's chest that Baochai felt for sure that the pillar of her family had returned.

After a year's tense nerves, Baochai finally relaxed at this moment and could completely relax.

"You are finally back!"

"Thanks a lot!"

"It's okay to suffer, but I just feel uneasy and unsettled!"

Without too many embellishments, the couple took off all disguises and expressed their emotions in the simplest language.

Zhu Jinghong hugged her tightly and said, "I won't go out again!"

Looking up slightly, Baochai replied: "If that's true, I can rest assured!"

"Okay, let's go to sleep first... I've been traveling so hard these days, and I haven't had a good night's sleep in a long time!"

Baochai said nothing more. The night passed quickly and Zhu Jinghong slept soundly.

When he woke up in the morning, Baochai had already finished washing and was sitting on the couch opposite the bed, reading a memorial.

After he stood up, a maid came into the room to help him wash and change clothes. It took Zhu Jinghong more than ten minutes to finish cleaning.

"What are you looking at?" Zhu Jinghong asked.

Baochai replied, "Ni Er sent the report this morning!" Zhu Jinghong was stunned for a moment and said in surprise, "He sent it just in time!"

"He delivers it every two weeks. I know all the relevant information. If you don't understand, you can ask me!"

After taking a quick glance at the report, Zhu Jinghong asked, "Have they increased their numbers again?"

"Yes, there are a few more. Now there are more than 270 people!"

More than two hundred and seventy people may sound like a lot, but within the imperial city, the Left and Right Guards, the Left and Right Dragon Guards, and the twenty-four offices of the inner court together have almost twenty-five thousand people.

Two hundred and seventy compared to twenty-five thousand is not too much.

"There are eighty-two eunuchs, twenty of whom are from the inner court and sixty-two from the outer court!"

"All forty palace maids are in the outer court!"

"There are 154 people in the Left and Right Guard Divisions, mainly deployed in the southern thousand-household units, including 36 in the Dong'an Gate thousand-household unit!"

Baochai naturally paid special attention to such important matters, and now listed them out like a treasure
The Dong'anmen Qianhu Suo that she mentioned at the end was the government office where Xu Guangfu worked, and it was responsible for the area from Dong'anmen to Donghuamen.

Sitting on a chair nearby, Zhu Jinghong said slowly: "They didn't do anything in the past year, but the further we go... the more likely they are to do something!"

Baochai nodded and continued, "From Dong'an Gate to Donghua Gate, we often take this road to enter the palace. If something unexpected happens on the road, then..."

This is by no means alarmist, but something that may happen at any time.

He was not afraid of a head-on attack at all, but he was worried about these people shooting arrows from behind.

Shooting an arrow from behind is a general term, and the means include but are not limited to strong bows, muskets, gunpowder bags, and even artillery bombardment.

Thinking of this, Zhu Jinghong even had the idea that he might as well take the initiative and kill the fourth and sixth brothers.

But this is just a thought. Not to mention that it is incredibly difficult to accomplish this task, even if he succeeds, he cannot escape the responsibility.

So how would he face the emperor in the end? Would he kill the old man as well?

In history, some people have succeeded in this, but they also bore a lot of infamy and almost failed.

Zhu Xianming was not a weak monarch like Li Yuan, nor did he have the palace where he founded the country like Li Shimin. The probability of him accomplishing this task was indeed not very high.

Zhu Jinghong was thinking, and Baochai was staring at him, totally unaware of how bold the man in front of him was.

After a while, Zhu Jinghong said, "There is no reason to guard against thieves for a thousand days!"

Baochai nodded and replied, "That's not true, but I think... I'm afraid we can't prevent it for long!"

"What do you mean?"

"We can wait, what are they waiting for?"

"The strongest supporter of the Eastern Palace is the Queen Mother. Now that the Queen Mother is critically ill... Aren't they anxious?"

"If the Queen Mother...is approaching the deadline, I'm afraid they will have to take action. If they wait any longer, they will have no chance!"

This analysis makes sense. It is indeed true for the Eastern Palace. Every day they wait, their chances of winning decrease.

As for Zhu Jinghong, on the one hand he hopes that Donggong and Laoliu will be destroyed, but on the other hand he wants to maintain the status quo.

The reason why he wanted to maintain it was because he needed these two to act as a buffer between him and the emperor, otherwise it would be difficult for father and son to get along.

It's really hard to grasp the balance between gains and losses.

"We just mentioned the Yiwei Division. Have the Dragon Guards deployed any personnel?"

The Dragon Guards are very special. Two-thirds of them are children of nobles, and the rest are children of military officers above the sixth rank, as well as newly-minted military scholars.

It is no exaggeration to say that these people are the pride of the army and future rising stars. There is no need for them to get involved in these trivial matters. After all, the risks are too high.

In fact, there are many supporters of Zhu Jinghong among the Dragon Guards, so he shouldn't worry about this.

But we have to be prepared for the worst. Who knows if the prince has bribed someone? Just a few of them could be enough to kill them with one strike.

"Ni Er has not reported it yet!" Baochai replied.

Just because it has not been reported does not mean it does not exist, so this matter must be paid special attention to. Zhu Jinghong plans to let Lu Yuxin and the other two pay attention to it.

Zhu Jinghong said, "There is one more. Ni Er reported that there were more than 270 people, but are these the whole number?"

The room fell into silence, the presence of crisis making people feel uneasy.

After a few breaths, Baochai stood up and said, "Actually, there's no need to worry. As a last resort... we can force the East Palace to take action!"

"How to force?"

Walking behind Zhu Jinghong, Baochai pinched his shoulders and said, "There are so many messes going on in the Rongguo Mansion and Jia family. Just picking out two of them would be enough to embarrass the East Palace!"

"How can they stay calm if they are forced like this? If we wait any longer, they will have no chance!"

Turning back, Zhu Jinghong asked with a smile: "Does this count as us taking the initiative?"

Baochai followed with a smile and said, "After six or seven years of passive response, it's not too much for us to take the initiative once!"

"That's true!" Zhu Jinghong agreed.

As the two were talking, Ying'er came outside to report that the meal was ready.

Zhu Jinghong was about to get up, but Baochai reached out and held him down again.

"There's one more thing you need to know!"

"What's the matter?"

Baochai said slowly, "More than a month ago, something happened in the capital, which was related to the death of Ning Huanxiang!"

After the matter was settled, she sent a secret letter to inform Zhu Jinghong, but the latter was in a hurry and did not receive it.

Only the two of them knew how to decipher the secret letter, so they were not afraid of losing the letter.

Of course, the letter was delivered by a palace guard, so there was no possibility of it being lost.

"Oh? Does it have anything to do with our house?" Zhu Jinghong asked with a frown.

Baochai looked calm: "Listen to what I have to say and you will know!"

Next, she told Zhu Jinghong everything that had happened before, including Deng An's questions.

"So... do you think Sun Shaozu really did such a thing?" Zhu Jinghong looked serious.

"I don't know, but it's probably... related to this matter. You have to be careful with this person!" Baochai didn't say anything too sure.

Ning Huanxiang was attacked and killed that year, and Zhu Jinghong still remembers some of the details.

For example, Sun Shaozu happened to be in the Duolun tribe at that time and was one of the first people to discover Ning Huanxiang's body. He also showed special concern for the follow-up matters of that year.

Zhu Jinghong didn't think anything of it at the time, but after this incident, when he thought about it again, he realized that something was wrong.

If Sun Shaozu really did such a bad thing, Zhu Jinghong would not dare to use him. After all, this man has no bottom line and is too bold.

Such people are not easy to control, and it is hard to say whether they are loyal...

As to whether Sun Shaozu really did these things, Zhu Jinghong's judgment is similar to Baochai's. In fact, he has already determined that Sun Shaozu did it.

But at the moment, Sun Shaozu is useful, so Zhu Jinghong will not touch him for the time being.

But even if we want to touch Sun Shaozu, at most we can just put him in idle position, and it is impossible to make his crimes public.

After all, many things cannot be judged as right or wrong. Outsiders may think that although Sun Shaozu deserves to die, he must not be killed by the Prince Xiang's Mansion, after all, he is loyal to the Prince Xiang's Mansion.

Sun Shaozu is such a person. Could it be that other people around him are also such scums, but they just haven't been discovered... Thinking too much, Zhu Jinghong was also very sad.

Now that he hasn’t even become emperor, he already doesn’t trust his subordinates. What will happen when he becomes emperor?
But Zhu Jinghong thought again, is he a good person?

(End of this chapter)