unclear

Chapter 21 A Big Net

"This old slave heard it with his own ears. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince said that he got it from a dream two years ago. During the wedding, he accidentally saw that Long live the Lord liked this thing, so he wanted to use the skills he got in the dream to make a self-ringing bell for His Majesty, the Empress, and the Empress Dowager. "

Is this a joke? If Chen Ju wouldn't have said a word in the past, it would be best to have less involvement in royal family matters.But things are different today. The prince does know how to ring bells and knows the Western language.We can't hide this matter from the emperor and empress, let's take the opportunity to talk about it together.

"...What you got from your dream?" Queen Wang was almost dumbfounded. Why is this plot similar to the one in the play? Could it be that there is help from gods?

"It's true!" To be able to hold the position of first and second in command of the Supervisor of Ceremonies must be a close confidant. Emperor Wanli didn't believe it at first, but he had to pay attention to what Chen Ju said so surely.

"The old slave has seen with his own eyes that the prince not only knows how to practice the self-ringing bell, but also knows the Western language. Long live the Lord, forgive me, but the self-ringing bell sent by the monk in the west of the Shouhuang Palace stopped walking for some reason. The old slave happened to meet the prince in the inner prison. , took it upon himself to lead him to the Shouhuang Palace for a try. As His Highness said, the self-ringing bell has been repaired as new."

Everything he said was true, but Chen Ju couldn't just tell what happened yesterday afternoon casually.Kneel down and confess first, then state the facts. Be sure to say it was a chance encounter, lest the emperor suspect that you and the prince were colluding.

"Queen, there is nothing wrong with this matter. The prince is old, let him be. I still have some memorials that I have not reviewed yet. I will go to bed later." After hearing the cause and effect, Emperor Wanli lowered his eyelids to read the memorial again. Regarding the prince's creation of the self-ringing bell, I have no intention of interfering, let alone asking, and my attitude remains the same as before.

"Wanhua! Tomorrow we will send some craftsmen from the Internal Affairs Bureau to the East Palace. If you have any needs, they will be met as long as they are not too outrageous. You must keep an eye on it personally, I want to know all the details!"

But as soon as Queen Wang left, Emperor Wanli suddenly stood up and walked around the Nuan Pavilion with his hands behind his back. After a few laps, he thought of a strategy and called Chen Ju to his side to whisper.

Since the most trusted eunuch leader said he had seen it with his own eyes, Emperor Wanli could only temporarily believe that this thing that sounded a bit unreasonable was true.But believe it or not, we have to continue to observe whether there are other problems behind it.

The method was very simple and direct. He did not stop the prince from making the chiming bell, but cooperated with it to a certain extent, and then hid in the dark and observed carefully.In this way, no matter what the prince or others want to do, they will relax their vigilance and be exposed as soon as possible.

The emperor and empress were not aware of Hong Tao's concerns, and it didn't matter.If he didn't want outsiders to know too early, Liu Xuanshi's act of stealing the drawings yesterday would have been enough to get him beaten and put under house arrest.

You know it. As a prince, if you try your best to create something new for your father, the queen mother, and the queen mother, you still have to use your own salary. No matter how you say it, it can't be considered a bad thing.

What?Does dreaming count as evil?If someone dared to use this reason to attack the Prince of the East Palace, the old lady in Renshou Palace would have to come out and yell at him without having to defend himself.

Since Emperor Wanli came into power and the harem was presided over by the stable Queen Wang, Queen Mother Li did not interfere much in other matters and focused on reciting sutras and worshiping Buddha. She often said that she saw the late emperor in her dreams and chatted with them.

What we should be concerned about now is not how to hide from others, but how to arrange these craftsmen from the inner government prison.At dawn, someone called the palace gate. Two internal officials, the Supervisor and Superintendent, led more than ten people and carried seven or eight large boxes outside the palace gate to ask for an audience.

Hong Tao went out and asked in person and found out that he was not in the wrong place, nor were they here to repair the palace, but were craftsmen and utensils specially sent by the internal officials under the orders of Chen Ju.

This made Hong Tao a little confused and dumbfounded.Originally, I just wanted to pay for the craftsmen from the Internal Affairs Bureau and the Banking Bureau to make some parts for me. It would be custom-made at most. I never mentioned that I wanted to set up a small workshop of my own.Although the East Palace does not belong to the harem, it is still within the palace city of the Forbidden City. It is basically impossible for craftsmen to come in and work for a long time. They can only come and go from work every day, and they must be led by internal officials, and then go through the Imperial Forest Army, Jin Yiwei, etc. It’s too troublesome to check at all levels.

But this troublesome matter was solved easily by Chen Ju. He asked the ten craftsmen sent by the Imperial Guard to be special. They could not only live in the Forbidden City but also work in the harem.The reason is simple, they are all eunuchs!

Craftsmen who became eunuchs, or craftsmen who became eunuchs and then learned their craftsmanship. Wang An said that there were both, and there were many who were skilled in craftsmanship.After all, the inner palace also needs craftsmen. For large-scale renovations, manpower can be recruited from outside. On weekdays, these eunuch craftsmen are responsible for repairs and repairs.

However, since he is a eunuch, his salary is definitely higher than that of ordinary craftsmen, his status is fixed, and he is under the command of the Supervisor of Ceremonies.In other words, without Chen Ju's consent, it is impossible for eunuch craftsmen to go to the East Palace to do private work and bring their own tools.

This big eunuch leader is not simple. He has planned out the tricks to spread the net in advance and played it perfectly.Ever since he brought Wang An to his side seven years ago, even though the chance of the emperor's eldest son being crowned prince was not very high at that time, he still made a leisurely move.It can be seen that his clear mind and careful thinking should not be underestimated!

Now that he has become the legitimate prince, his calm little flattery immediately came to him again, which made him feel like he was in Cao's camp and his heart was in Han.If he successfully succeeds to the throne in the future, he will be considered to have formed a good relationship in advance and will not be completely liquidated.If anything happens midway, he can still draw a clear line and have nothing to do with it.

"Eunuch Chen, is your master?" It seems that he must pay more attention to this factory supervisor, and at the same time, he must also think about Wang An's attributes.

"Reporting to Lord Qian Sui, when this slave entered the palace, he first became a disciple of Master Feng, and later changed his name to Master Chen..." Wang An answered straightforwardly, without making too much cover-up, and there was no emotion on his face.

"Has Eunuch Chen always been so generous?"

"This... this slave shouldn't have such a big reputation. I guess it's all thanks to Lord Qiantose!" Wang An finally couldn't stand it anymore. These words were so heartbreaking that he almost asked directly if he was sent by Chen Ju to monitor him, and he quickly knelt down. Explain below.

"Clean the east side hall of the front yard, and work on the main hall where the wing room lives. I have the drawings on my desk. I will show them to them. If I don't understand anything, I will talk about it when I come back from the banquet."

In fact, Hong Tao himself knew that it was unnecessary to ask. Most of the eunuchs and maids in the palace, regardless of their seniority and position, were organized, and the specific form of this was the master-disciple relationship.

When the young eunuchs first entered the palace, the chief eunuchs of various yamen in the inner government would select those with good looks and smart minds to be their apprentices, named La Mingxia.The so-called name is like a godson.From then on, a relatively strong non-blood relationship was formed between the master and the apprentice, with both being prosperous and deprived.

Hong Tao just sighed at the intricate interpersonal relationships in the palace. It was almost a network, and there was no omission left.When Wang An entered the palace, he first worshiped Feng Bao as his teacher. As soon as he turned ten, he immediately entered the inner school to study. Obviously, he was well paid and had a bright future.

Within a few years, Feng Bao lost power, and Wang An turned to Chen Ju, but was not reused and was sent to the cold palace as an errand.But just as Leng Gong felt a little warm, the big net immediately came up.As Wang An himself, he must also thank his godfather Chen Ju for his support back then, and he cannot complain even a word.

(End of this chapter)