King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 784 Goodbye Miaoyu
At night, Qingyang Palace.

After the banquet in the palace, Zhu Jingchun and Princess Xu finally dragged their tired bodies back to the mansion.

The Queen was crowned today. After all the ceremonies were over, the Emperor and the Queen held a family banquet in Chonghua Palace, which was a very tiring thing for all the clan members.

After returning to the mansion, the couple washed up and Zhu Jingchun planned to have some fun. He had just accepted a woman from the Western Regions into his mansion.

"wait!"

These words were not very polite, and they were said by Princess Xu, who directly stopped Zhu Jingchun.

However, Zhu Jingchun did not look annoyed, but turned back politely.

Xu had a close relationship with the Queen, and Zhu Jingchun could rely on her. Besides, they had always had a good relationship, so Zhu Jingchun ignored this "disrespect".

"What's the matter?"

"Something happened outside Kunning Gate today!"

Sitting back in his chair, Zhu Jingchun asked, "Outside Kunning Gate? What's going on? Does it have anything to do with us?"

So Xu told Zhu Jingchun the whole story about the dispute between Yang Jingting and Chen Zhi.

In fact, there are many people like Xu who have sharp eyes, but everyone just pretends not to see it.

"They have their own grudges, what does it have to do with us? Let them be!"

Seeing that her husband didn't care, Xu said coldly: "I want to talk about my third sister!"

"What happened to the third sister?"

Xu replied, "She has been speaking for the Sixth Elder's family. This is not a good thing. Your Majesty and she are brothers. If the two brothers reconcile in the future, it will not be a good thing for us!"

"This..." Zhu Jingchun was no longer calm.

"Don't forget, they are his biological brothers and you are his illegitimate brother!"

"If the Sixth Family embarrasses us, our lives will be difficult!"

"But we... have helped His Majesty a lot after all. He won't..."

"Didn't I tell you that they are brothers from the same mother? Who can predict what will happen in the future? We must be prepared for any disaster!"

"How to prevent it?" Zhu Jingchun asked.

Xu said viciously: "Of course, we'll crush him to death!"

"Press him to death?"

"He has now been demoted to a prince, and he can be demoted further. It would be best to revoke his title and send him to the high walls of Fengyang!"

“How to keep him from being demoted?”

Xu replied, "Isn't this simple? He has committed any one of the most heinous crimes that we can punish him for!"

"You mean... we should inform His Majesty?"

Hearing this, Xu looked at Zhu Jingchun as if he was a fool.

"We all know it. Do you think His Majesty doesn't know?"

Zhu Jingchun was just thinking about it when he heard Xu continue, "Your Majesty ascended the throne, probably because he was worried about the world's criticism that the royal family was not harmonious and brothers were fighting, so he didn't deal with it!"

"We have to find a way to expose these things so that His Majesty will have to punish him!"

"This..." Zhu Jingchun was in trouble again.

If the news leaks out, it will be investigated strictly, so the difficulty lies in exposing the matter without being involved in scandals.

"Then what do you think we should do?" Zhu Jingchun asked.

At this time, Xu said unhappily: "How should I know? You have to figure out a way. You have to make sure it is foolproof before you can take action!"

After pondering for a while, Zhu Jingchun said, "It's not that easy. I think we should just forget it. Lao Liu is now under house arrest. I don't think he can make any more trouble!"

"Don't think too much. Even if he is truly obedient and is given freedom in the future, His Majesty will still be on guard against him!"

After saying that, Zhu Jingchun got up and left. He couldn't wait to have some fun.

As a prince, Zhu Jingchun could take this matter lightly, but there were many people with lower titles and ranks than him, many of whom had grudges against Zhu Jingyuan, and it would not be so easy for these people to let go.

In the blink of an eye, another half a month passed, and the concubines in the harem were successively canonized, and everyone was quite satisfied.

In the inner court and the imperial garden, Tanchun and Yingchun were walking side by side, each of them feeling different.

Being officially canonized, even though it was only a noble of lower rank, made Yingchun very satisfied.

But Tanchun was different. She just felt very unwilling. After all, above the noble ladies there were concubines, imperial concubines and noble concubines.

Since she had finally stepped into the palace, she naturally wanted to build a career. How could she be willing to be a small noble?

Therefore, Tanchun’s next goal was to make Zhu Jinghong pregnant with a child, so that she could be promoted to a higher position because of the child.

Although the road to success is tortuous, as long as there is even a glimmer of hope, it is worth striving for Tanchun, and she firmly believes that she can succeed.

"Look here, such exquisite painting, it's really rare to see it!"

Hearing Yingchun's voice beside her, Tanchun responded perfunctorily, but her eyes were looking towards the south palace wall.

Although her view was blocked by the palace wall, the direction of her sight was Kunning Palace, which was Tanchun's ultimate desire.

There was laughter and joy in the Yiku Palace at this moment. Zhu Jinghong sat at the top of the courtyard, watching the dancers in the yard dancing gracefully.

Zhang Xiaoyue and Li Huizhen live here, together with their respective maids, there are nearly fifty people in total, but the courtyard still seems relatively spacious.

Even the side hall on the west side was empty, waiting for the arrival of her masters.

The twelve palaces in the east and west can accommodate at least thirty-six people, even if each concubine has a palace. Now Zhu Jinghong's harem including the queen has only fourteen people, so the occupancy rate of the inner palace is indeed not high.

Just wait until next spring, when the new emperor will hold his first draft, and he can add as many people as he wants.

Each of the women in Zhu Jinghong's harem has her own merits and can bring different emotional values ​​to him. With Zhang Xiaoyue and Li Huizhen, he experiences extreme luxury and enjoyment.

At this time, his two concubines and art directors were squatting and kneeling on both sides of his chair, without any regard for their status.

But this just shows that the two of them are very smart. After all, who is a noble person and who is not? Only those who can make the emperor happy are the noble people in the palace.

It’s true that these carefully rehearsed dances, accompanied by live music, are truly a high-level enjoyment.

While Zhu Jinghong was listening, an eunuch entered the Yiku Gate, came to Yu Hai who was guarding nearby and whispered something, then handed him a report.

Yu Hai did not dare to delay, and carefully came behind Zhu Jinghong, and then reported: "Your Majesty, Chen Yuntai from the Northern Pacification Office reported that a large number of White Lotus rebels were busted!"

Zhu Jinghong stared ahead, stroking the smooth back of Li Huizhen's hand, and said slowly: "Give him credit for this achievement!"

Now Chen Yuntai is still the captain of the Northern City. If he is promoted one level higher, he will be able to be the deputy commander, so he has been working very hard recently.

Originally, the main task of the Beicheng Qianhu Suo was to monitor various government offices and nobles, but he also squeezed out manpower to investigate the White Lotus Sect.

Zhu Jinghong would naturally promote such a loyal and hardworking person. Not promoting him now is just to temper his temper and let him gain more experience.

Now that the report was completed, Yu Hai should have left, but he still stood there and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, Chen Yuntai has captured someone!"

Zhu Jinghong looked dissatisfied, turned around and looked at Yu Hai, and said coldly: "If you have something to say, just say it!"

"The Northern City Thousand Households Office also captured Master Miaoyu!"

"Who?" Zhu Jinghong was surprised.

"Master Miaoyu, it's the Master Miaoyu that Your Majesty has met before!" Fortunately, Yu Hai thought quickly and swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth. It was indeed a difficult thing to describe.

"Miao Yu!" Zhu Jinghong pondered.

At this time, Zhang Xiaoyue and Li Huizhen, who heard the name, had no intention of interrupting, even though they both knew who this person was.

Yu Hai continued, "Chen Yuntai dare not make any arbitrary decisions, so he came here to ask for your approval!"

Looking at the report in Yu Hai's hand, Zhu Jinghong reached out to take it, and then opened it to see the details.

According to the report, the White Lotus Sect's hideout was uncovered and a total of 38 rebels were arrested, including high-ranking rebels such as the incense master and the divine envoy.

After reading the report, Zhu Jinghong returned the things to Yu Hai without saying a word.

Then, Yu Hai tactfully withdrew. The eunuch who came to deliver the message not far away was still waiting for Zhu Jinghong's instructions.

After moving aside, Yu Hai ordered, "Tell Chen Yuntai to keep a close eye on him!"

As the chief eunuch beside Zhu Jinghong, the most important ability is to guess the emperor's intentions, and Yu Hai is already familiar with this aspect, after all, he has been by Zhu Jinghong's side for a long time.

What’s interesting is that he said how to implement this “watch it carefully” specifically is something that Chen Yuntai has to figure out on his own.

A few minutes later, Chen Yuntai, who was outside the Qianqing Gate, received Yu Hai's reply, and he began to worry.

As for the Northern City Thousand Households Unit, although the Northern Pacification Office has a special Zhaoyu, each Thousand Households Unit still has its own detention center. At this moment, Miaoyu lives in a single room.

Everyone who was captured with her was now enduring torture, and their wailing sounds kept echoing in her ears.

Logically, she would be worried about the punishment of her fellow believers, but at this moment Miaoyu felt nothing, simply because these heretics were more hateful than the imperial court.

As Miaoyu's plan to help the Eastern Palace ascend to the throne failed, this saint quickly lost power in the White Lotus Sect. People in her faction were either suppressed and exiled, or even died outright.

Later, the old forces in the church fought back. They only wanted to deceive the people for their own benefit and used the concept of saving the suffering as a tool.

The people who were captured with her were responsible for escorting her back to the Grand Church to hold a ceremony, dethrone her position as a saint, and then deal with her.

But she had only been in the capital for five days when she was caught by the Embroidered Uniform Guards. Until now, she still hasn't figured out what went wrong.

But in fact, it is normal that we couldn't think of it. After all, the Northern Pacification Office has many information channels, so it is possible to detect these people.

One couldn’t see outside the cell, so Miaoyu didn’t know how long she had been in there. It could have been two hours or maybe half a day.

There was a small table in the corner of her cell, on which were three side dishes, a bowl of rice, and a pot of tea.

Miaoyu could roughly guess why he was taken care of by the Jinyiwei, living in a single room, not being tortured, and having good meals.

But how could she know that this was arranged before Chen Yuntai asked for permission, and now this guy has returned from the palace.

After thinking for a long time, Chen Yuntai finally figured it out, which was to treat Miaoyu with a higher standard. Even if this misinterpreted the emperor's will, he could ensure that his "original intention" was good.

So, the dignified Captain Chen rarely entered the cell and appeared in front of Miaoyu.

"Master Miaoyu, are you used to living here?"

Hearing Chen Yuntai say this, the two centurions following behind him all widened their eyes, but they still suppressed their surprise.

After a cold snort, Miaoyu replied: "If you want to kill Chen, just kill him, don't say such nonsense!"

"Master, you are too kind. I asked you to come here because I need to check some things. Unexpectedly, the people below did not know the limits and neglected you!"

"I have ordered people to prepare a room for you to live in and practice. Please move in!"

Miaoyu replied: "Don't give me that crap. I am a prisoner now and I will accept the defeat... I don't need his pity!"

Among so many people present, only Chen Yuntai knew who the "he" Miaoyu was talking about was, and no one else could guess the answer even if they racked their brains.

"Master, why are you doing this? This place is simple and dirty, while the outside is clean and bright..."

"I am a prisoner and I should stay here. If you want to cause trouble or if you are attracted by my beauty and want to force me, then come on!"

It has to be said that Miaoyu understood the interests at stake. Her words "You are attracted by my beauty" made Chen Yuntai break out in a cold sweat.

After all, he is not afraid of other slanders, but once he is involved in this kind of suspicion, his career may be ruined.

This is indeed a dangerous woman, I have to stay away from her... Chen Yuntai said secretly.

Then he laughed dryly twice, then cupped his hands and said, "How dare I? Since the mage doesn't want to leave, I won't force him to do anything!"

After saying this, Chen Yuntai left the cell, ordered his men to serve him well, and then left without looking back.

In the blink of an eye, several more days passed. Although Miaoyu had good food and accommodation in prison, she felt more and more uneasy.

That afternoon, several eunuchs appeared outside her cell, and the one leading them looked to be of a high rank.

Just by looking at his attire, Miaoyu knew that he was from the Eastern Depot.

"Master, please move!" The leading eunuch opened the door with a smile.

"Where to go?"

"The Master will know once he goes there!"

"I'm not going!"

The eunuch smiled and said, "It's not up to you!"

He just waved his hand and several women came over from the side. They were all older palace maids.

After these people entered the cell, they lifted Miaoyu up on both sides and then took her out of the cell. There was a sedan chair waiting outside.

Very few people could escape from the Jinyiwei Yamen alive, and it was even rarer to escape in a sedan chair. Miaoyu had set a precedent.

At this moment, the sun had already set. Looking at the vast sky and clouds, Miaoyu, who had only been imprisoned for three days, deeply felt how beautiful the sky was and the clouds were light.

Soon, she was carried out of the Beicheng Qianhu Suo, and it was almost dark when she arrived at Donghua Gate.

The sedan chair was personally escorted by the eunuch in charge of the East Factory and all the formalities were completed. After being personally inspected by Captain Lu Yuxin, it was carried into the Donghua Gate.

After entering Donghua Gate, the sedan chair headed straight north. That was where the prince lived, but there was no prince living there at the moment, so the area was quiet.

Miaoyu was carried to the outside of Chengming Courtyard, which was where Zhu Jinghong lived before he was granted a title.

"Master, please wait inside. Tea, fruits and pastries are all ready!"

"Zhu Shisan wants to see me? Where is he?"

Seeing Miaoyu's arrogant words, the eunuch in charge of the team's expression changed drastically, but then he regained his indifference.

He just calmly replied, "Master, just wait!"

Afterwards, the eunuch in charge stopped talking and quietly waited outside the door with several eunuchs.

Several old palace maids carried Miaoyu into the main hall and searched her again in the inner room to ensure that there would be no accidents when she met the emperor later.

After completing the body search, these people left the room, leaving Miaoyu alone.

At this moment, Miaoyu was still wearing her thin monk's robe. It was almost the beginning of winter and she felt a little cold. It was better for her to stay in the room than outside.

This wait lasted for a long time, and the quiet night made her feel unbearable.

Why should I wait for him obediently? I should try to kill this bastard, Zhu Shisan!
After realizing this, Miaoyu instantly became energetic and began to look for something handy, sometimes weighing the chair, sometimes moving the ornaments, and sometimes pulling the gauze curtain.

When she thought of five ways to kill Zhu Jinghong, the silence between heaven and earth was broken because she heard the sound of worship outside.

Miaoyu quietly came to the door and looked outside, and saw a man slowly walking in under the lights of the palace gate in the distance.

(End of this chapter)