I studied in modern times

Chapter 769 The Emperor’s Favor is Great
Yongningfang, the residence of Princess Shoukang.

Princess Shoukang had a serious and anxious look on her face, and she kept chanting Buddhist mantras.

“Amitabha… Amitabha…”

“May the Buddha bless you…”

Of course the princess was very anxious.

Last night, she suddenly heard the bad news that the crows in the Censorate had already filed a memorial to severely impeach her husband.

Legend has it that some people even listed several major crimes of Zhang Dunli and requested that he be severely punished by law!

"Princess..." The voice of Princess Shoukang's wet nurse Wang came from outside the door.

The princess immediately stood up and went out to greet Wang. When she saw Wang, she asked anxiously, "How is it?"

Wang shook her head and sighed, "The gatekeeper at the Prince of Xingyang's mansion said that the prince was ill yesterday and had invited the imperial physician to come to the mansion to diagnose his pulse. Now the whole family is serving the prince at his bedside..."

"Ah!" Princess Shoukang was suddenly confused.

Cao Yi, Prince of Xingyang, was the head of the emperor's maternal relatives and the emperor's respected great-uncle.

Princess Shoukang believed that if he was willing to come to the palace to plead for mercy, the matter could be resolved.

Unexpectedly, he fell ill at this moment!

"What did my brother-in-law say?" Princess Shoukang asked anxiously.

"The prince consort is not at home..." Wang said, "It is said that he left the city early yesterday morning and went to inspect the kiln outside the city!"

"This..." Princess Shoukang was immediately disappointed.

It was clearly the day before yesterday that my brother-in-law took Bingyuan over.

So, she was left with only one last straw.

"Where are the three uncles?" she asked.

Today, the foreign relatives are headed by Cao Yi, while the royal family members are headed by Zhao Zongsheng, Prince of Gaomi, Jiedushi of Anhua Army, and Grand Clan Director, Zhao Zongjing, Surveillance Commissioner of Xiangzhou and Co-director of Grand Clan Director, and Zhao Zonghui, the successor to Prince Pu.

Although these princes only manage the royal family, they all have great status in the two palaces and the emperor.

If they were willing to come forward, this disaster could probably be resolved.

"The successor of Pu Wang met me at Guangqin's house..." Wang said, "It's just that the successor of Pu Wang said that this is a political matter, and the royal family is not allowed to interfere in politics. This is the law of our ancestors!"

"Alas..." Princess Shoukang lowered her head. She was prepared for this.

Since the Zhao Shiju case, these elders of the royal family have become more low-key.

They completely stayed away from the court, and even when it came to matters related to the royal family, they kept their mouths shut and never expressed their opinions.

I am wholeheartedly devoted to this, just to find a good future for my descendants.

Therefore, it was a great honor for the successor King Pu to meet Wang.

"What should I do?" Princess Shoukang was suddenly very anxious.

She couldn't help but look at her husband, who was now sitting on a chair with his head hung, looking decadent.

Looking at her husband's appearance, Princess Shoukang was helpless.

That's what her husband is like.

When he had nothing to do, he would be very high-profile outside. She had advised her husband countless times, wanting him to stay at home with her, eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures, and not go out to make friends with scholars and ministers.

If you like singing and watching singing and dancing, you can go to the tile house and hire someone to perform.

She's not a jealous person.

But her husband wouldn't listen and insisted on going out to mingle with those monks and scholars, enjoying discussing state affairs all day long.

It was only in the eighth year of Yuanfeng, after Wang Shen's death, that things became a little quieter.

Afterwards, it went out and germinated again.

Now when something happens, he is like this. Not only can he not come up with any ideas, but he just pushes everything onto her and asks her, a woman, to deal with it.

But what can she do?
Can we still get a divorce?

Princess Bokkang, the beloved daughter of King Injo, tried desperately to divorce her husband, Li Wei, and finally succeeded.

But within a few years, she was forced to reconcile with her husband under pressure from both the government and the public.

He spent the last years of his life in torture in the princess's residence, and his mental state was almost insane.

She was only 33 years old when she died. Her body was covered with scars, and her clothes were crawling with lice. There was an extremely horrific wound on the princess' face, which was obviously caused by a burn.

The late emperor came in person and witnessed the princess's death. He was extremely angry and sad.

So he issued an imperial decree to severely punish the son-in-law Li Wei, demoting him to the position of Chenzhou Tuanlianshi and placing him in charge of Chenzhou.

But within a few years, under pressure from the court and the public, he had to reinstate Li Wei and even promoted him - restoring his status as the son-in-law of the emperor and appointing him as the governor of the Zhangxin Army.

This is because his brother Li Zhang died.

The Li family won the sympathy of the court and the public, and many ministers spoke well of Li Wei.

Today, this prince consort who was once suspected of forcing the princess to death is still living happily and carefree in the capital.

However, after Wang Shen's death, he became extremely low-key, usually staying at home and never going out of the house.

At the same time, she also handed over all household affairs to the princess's adopted son, Li Sihui, who was adopted from Li Zhang. Even the New Year's Day court meeting was attended by Li Sihui on the pretext of illness.

If Princess Fukang was so miserable back then, it was because her father, the emperor who loved her the most, passed away and all her brothers died young.

So she had no one to rely on and was alone.

but……

The marriage of Princess Shoukang's own sister, Princess Baoan, was almost exactly the same as that of Princess Fukang.

It was even more tragic - a princess was even humiliated by her husband Wang Shen.

During his sister's illness, Wang Shen not only did not actively seek medical treatment, but instead brought maids and concubines and even prostitutes to commit adultery in front of the princess's bedside.

When her sister was seriously ill, Princess Shoukang went to visit her.

At that time, my sister was so skinny that she could hardly speak.

She is only thirty years old!

What a great age!
He died just like that, and it was a very painful death!

but……

Apart from the late emperor and her sister, almost no one felt sad for her tragic fate.

Afterwards, Wang Shen was punished just like Li Wei.

But the ending was the same - two years later, he was reinstated again after being persuaded by court officials.

reason?

Li Wei and Wang Shen were both literati recognized by scholars.

Because they are good at drawing!
Also because I’m good at writing poetry!
Moreover, they have many world-famous scholar-official friends!

In the end, it was the newly enthroned emperor's nephew who sought justice for his aunt. He almost forced the Wang family to make Wang Shen "suddenly fall ill and die in one day." In order to appease the emperor's anger, the Wang family did not even dare to bury Wang Shen in the ancestral tomb, and could only hastily bury him in a temple.

It was precisely because of Wang Shen's death that Li Wei had to behave himself.

He was also afraid of "getting an acute illness".

Compared with Princess Fukang and her sister Princess Baoan, Princess Shoukang was very content.

Her husband-in-law, although he has various shortcomings.

But he never treated her harshly, abused her, or beat her.

He never humiliated her, nor did he deprive her of food or new clothes.

In this family, other members of the Zhang family also respect her as the new bride, and their words carry weight.

Especially now that her nephew has ascended the throne, her status has been rising rapidly.

She can even handle all the major and minor affairs of the household just like an ordinary wife.

Thinking of this, Princess Shoukang could only sigh and say, "The only solution now is for me to go to the palace in person to see the Empress Dowager and the Emperor..."

"As a family, we should always have some affection..."

When Zhang Dunli heard his wife's words, he looked up in surprise and said, "The princess should have entered the palace long ago!"

"I am the emperor's uncle, and the princess is the emperor's aunt!"

“Why ask others for help?”

Princess Shoukang listened and shook her head.

What kind of person was her mother, the Empress Dowager of the time?

As a daughter, she knows it best.

The Empress Dowager cares most about face!
She will make anyone who doesn't give her face uncomfortable!

If she knew about this, she would probably scold her severely.

Then, she will sacrifice her daughter and son-in-law for the sake of her face and reputation in the literati circle. She will definitely punish them severely!

The son-in-law of the emperor would inevitably be demoted, or even stripped of his official position or suspended from office.

That's why Princess Shoukang said that she wanted to go to the palace to ask the empress dowager and the emperor for help.

But there was not a single word about his biological mother.

Because the Empress Dowager has always been like this!
This was proven before and after the death of her sister Princess Baoan.

She values ​​her face far more than the relationship between mother and daughter.

In the eighth year of Yuanfeng, it was the emperor who insisted on giving justice to the aunt he had never met.

Believe it or not, Wang Shen will eventually be reinstated and even promoted to a higher position!

It is still the same nowadays.

However, Princess Shoukang knew that she didn't need to tell her husband these words.

Telling it might even make things worse, because the prince consort was too flamboyant and didn't keep his mouth shut, so the news could easily get out. Once that happened, the Qingshou Palace would be furious, and her family would be completely finished.

but……

Go and ask the Queen Mother and the Emperor...

This is not easy to ask for!

As the sister-in-law, her relationship with the Empress Dowager and the Empress's sister-in-law was not as close as outsiders saw. They could only be considered ordinary friends.

The official nephew respected her very much and would ask about her well-being every time he met her in the palace.

But, precisely because of this, Princess Shoukang became more cautious.

Every time I went before the emperor, I was very nervous.

Because she knew that things like royal favor and family affection would become less each time they were used.

If she hadn't been helpless this time, she would never have entered the palace.

Her original plan was to save this royal favor for the future, so that she could ask her son to marry Princess Shang.

Now, if I use it, the possibility of success when I ask Princess Shang for help again in the future will be reduced by at least half, or even to zero!

But there is no way!

The Prince Consort is her husband!

If you marry a chicken, follow the chicken, if you marry a dog, follow the dog!

She couldn't just watch her husband being punished by the court and even sent to the Imperial College because of the impeachment of the Crow by the Censorate - Princess Shoukang knew that her nephew Guanjia would be able to send her own uncle to the Imperial College to receive "re-education" from the saint.

……

Zhao Xu studied the map of Bianjing in the inner chamber for two full hours, until the clepsydra in the inner chamber struck the small drum representing noon.

He finally came to his senses, stopped thinking, and had lunch with Meng Qingqing's service.

Then he came to the quiet room in the east pavilion of Funing Palace and ordered someone to open the back door of the quiet room. He fell asleep while listening to the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers in the imperial garden and feeling the summer breeze.

He was sleeping soundly when he heard a low voice calling him: "Everyone... everyone..."

Zhao Xu woke up from his dream, opened his eyes, and saw Feng Jing's figure, about three steps in front of him.

"What's the matter?" Zhao Xu asked.

"The Empress Dowager asks you to go to Baoci Palace..."

"uh-huh?"

"The Grand Princess of Ji State has arrived at Baoci Palace..." Feng Jing said in a low voice.

"Oh!" Zhao Xu laughed. This was within his expectations.

Princess Shoukang will definitely enter the palace, and she must enter the palace!
If she didn't go to the palace to plead for mercy, how could Zhao Xu prove to the world that he was an emperor who valued family affection?

On the contrary...

"Didn't the princess go to the Qingshou Palace?" Zhao Xu asked.

Feng Jing shook his head.

Zhao Xu smiled. He thought to himself, "Grandmother, Grandmother...even your own daughter won't get close to you!"

"If something goes wrong, I'd rather ask my sister-in-law for help than my mother!"

But, this is the Empress Dowager.

A person who values ​​power and fame far more than family affection.

It can be said that many of the sufferings Zhao Xu had experienced in his previous life were caused by this.

Therefore, he was not surprised. He stood up and asked Feng Jing, "Has the prince consort entered the palace?"

Feng Jing shook his head: "No!"

"Yes!" Zhao Xu nodded and ordered, "Notify County Lord Yanchang to prepare a bath and change clothes for me!"

Every time he went to see the two palaces, Zhao Xu had to take a bath and change clothes.

This is the basic requirement!

……

With Meng Qingqing's help, she took a bath and put on new clothes.

Zhao Xu came to Baoci Palace under the protection of Yan Yuan.

When he arrived, Princess Shoukang was talking to Empress Dowager Xiang.

Hearing the voice of the ceremonial officer, she hurriedly stood up to greet him: "Official..."

"Hello, aunt!" Zhao Xu smiled and nodded to her, then came to the Queen Mother Xiang to pay her respects, and then naturally sat down beside the Queen Mother Xiang and asked, "Mother, is there anything that aunt wants to do in the palace?"

Princess Shoukang bowed and said, "I came to the palace today to apologize to the queen and the emperor on behalf of my husband's wife..."

"Please forgive me, Madam Queen and Emperor!"

"Crime?" Zhao Xu smiled: "Aunt...what crime did the prince consort commit? How come I don't know?"

Princess Shoukang said quickly: "I heard that the censors of the Imperial Censorate impeached the Prince Consort for something..."

"Although I am the wife of the prince consort, the laws of the country are solemn and I dare not be partial to my own interests. Therefore, I come to the palace to beg the queen and the emperor to punish me!"

"The prince consort is also at home awaiting punishment!"

This is a very good attitude!

To be honest, if it was something else, Zhao Xu might have just ignored it and treated it as if it never happened because of Princess Shoukang's attitude.

But, Zhang Dunli, the mistake he made was not a small one!
First of all - the Queen Mother spread slander and the external relatives interfered in government affairs!
This is the first taboo of stepping on imperial power!
If that were all, Zhao Xu, considering that it was his first offense and for Princess Shoukang's sake, would raise the board high and then gently put it down as a light punishment.

But the problem is...

He also crossed a series of red lines, including making friends with religious sorcerers, obstructing national policies, and confronting imperial power head-on.

It would be fine if Zhang Dunli had a father named Guo Ziyi.

But he has nothing!

Before Princess Shang, he could only be considered a commoner - at most he had some fame.

Then why does he do that?
If the imperial power could be ridden on by such a person, there would be no response.

Then who would still respect the imperial power?

How will he, as the emperor, manage the affairs of the pawnshops in the future?
In this world, good people are often bullied and good horses are often ridden.

If the emperor is too gentle and modest.

Then, the literati, officials, relatives of the emperor and nobles will all take advantage of you!
It is even more impossible to promote what he wants to do.

Therefore, Zhao Xu just smiled and said, "What nonsense are you talking about, aunt?"

"The censor impeached the prince consort?"

"Why didn't I know about this?"

He turned around and asked Feng Jing: "Feng Jing, do you know that the Tongjiansi has ever sent the censors an impeachment letter against the prince consort?"

Although, this morning, there were still memorials impeaching the son-in-law entering the palace.

But Feng Jing lied with his eyes open: "I didn't know about this..."

Princess Shoukang was stunned. She swallowed and her eyes were slightly red: "Your Majesty..."

"Your kindness is as heavy as a mountain..."

"On behalf of the Prince Consort, I would like to thank you for your grace!"

As she was about to kneel down and kowtow, Zhao Xu quickly had someone stop her and helped the princess up. Looking at Empress Dowager Xiang, Zhao Xu smiled and said, "We are all family, there is no need to be so polite..."

"Mother said so, right?"

"Sixth brother is right!" Queen Mother Xiang kept smiling: "We are all family, Princess, there is no need to be so polite!"

(End of this chapter)