I served as an admonisher in the Song Dynasty

Chapter 530: Keeping a mistress? I, Cao Yi, am just acting to get rid of the evil

October 21st, early morning.

Zhao Zhen, Su Liang, Zeng Gongliang and his party embarked on their journey back to Beijing.

At this time, Zhao Zhen had a rosy face and looked energetic. He rode his horse and whipped it, galloping all the way.

He couldn't wait to return to Bianjing City to prepare for the war against Liao in the spring after the New Year.

There is bound to be a war between Song and Liao, and it is better to fight early than late.

The Liao people now have a strong army with all the wealth of the country. They want to use their military power to plunder the Song Dynasty and make it a powerful country. Naturally, the sooner the Song Dynasty takes action, the better.

Next.

The Song Dynasty had three to four months to prepare, which was plenty of time.

……

October 29th, near dusk.

Su Liang and his party returned to Bianjing City. Tired from the journey, everyone went back to their homes to rest.

Early the next morning.

The ministers of the two ministries and three departments, as well as the chief censor Su Liang, received the eunuch's oral order and immediately went to the Chuigong Hall to discuss the matter.

In the main hall.

Wen Yanbo, Fu Bi, Zhang Fangping, Wu Yu, Wang Yaochen, Ouyang Xiu, Liang Shi, Zeng Gongliang and Su Liang sat in two rows.

Once the emperor grants a seat, it means the meeting will definitely not last less than an hour.

Wen Yanbo and others looked at Su Liang and Zeng Gongliang.

As soon as the emperor returned from his northern tour, he called for a long meeting, obviously with important matters to discuss.

Su Liang and Zeng Gongliang turned their heads away and deliberately said nothing. It would be more appropriate for the matter to be announced by the government in person.

Lean slightly.

Zhao Zhen strode over.

The ministers clearly felt that Zhao Zhen was in high spirits and full of energy.

Zhao Zhen said straight to the point: "During my incognito tour of the north this time, in addition to investigating the combat effectiveness of the Hebei Imperial Army, I also discovered some problems that the court neglected, such as food, military armor and military pay, and the marriage problems of veterans... I have decided to take 300,000 strings of money from the royal treasury to improve the food in the Hebei Imperial Army barracks..."

After Zhao Zhen finished talking about these trivial matters, he talked about how the new Liao king, Yelu Hongji, collected merchant wealth to increase the military strength.

At last.

Zhao Zhen said: "In order to prevent the Liao Kingdom from rising and considering the current situation of our dynasty, I have decided to go to war with the Liao Kingdom at the beginning of next year, first to take over Yanyun and then to destroy the Khitan."

The gentlemen were stunned at first, and then they all bowed.

"I am willing to help you with all my strength!"

Since the destruction of the Xia Dynasty, all the ministers have dreamed of recovering the homeland of the Han and Tang Dynasties and then destroying the Liao Dynasty!
Now that the government has proposed it personally, they naturally agree very much.

"Okay. This matter cannot be publicized for the time being. Just keep it in your minds. Next, we can make preparations!" Zhao Zhen straightened his back.

Next, Zhao Zhen began to make arrangements.

The Secretariat was responsible for stabilizing the people's livelihood in various prefectures and cities, and for the transfer of officials from Hebei, Jingdong, and the northeastern coastal areas to avoid civil unrest during wartime.

The Privy Council was responsible for the casting and allocation of armor, weapons, firearms, large-scale siege weapons, as well as the addition and replacement of soldiers, horses, and generals.

The Three Departments were responsible for collecting the national commercial taxes and two taxes, raising food and fodder, and purchasing and circulating various materials.

……

After Zhao Zhen arranged everything, he couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.

At this time.

Wen Yanbo said, "Your Majesty, a few days ago, Prime Minister Di Shu sent a letter saying that the Western Xia had just been destroyed and the people were unstable. He begged to stay in the northwest this year to maintain stability and postpone his return to the court."

Zhao Zhen nodded.

"Yes. My plan is to have the main force of the Western Army still guard the northwest, and withdraw 50,000 northwest soldiers as backup. The main force will be the Hebei Imperial Army and the Central Imperial Army. However, the Dragon Feather Army must return to the court before the end of the year!"

"Yes." Wen Yanbo bowed.

Zhao Zhen looked at Su Liang again.

"Su Qing, right now, Liao and Dongying are one. If we attack Yanyun, there will be a battle at sea. You should quickly ask Cao Hu to return to the court and tell him what to do. As for the deployment of military ships at sea, Deputy Envoy Zeng and Deputy Envoy Liang, you can discuss it with Su Qing. Su Qing has already made the arrangements."

"I obey your command." Su Liang, Zeng Gongliang and Liang Shi bowed at the same time.

……

The meeting ended around noon.

After the ministers walked out of the Chuigong Hall, they were all in high spirits and felt full of energy.

After Su Liang returned to the Censorate, he quickly wrote a letter to Cao Hu to summon him back to the court.

Su Liang has been making plans on the sea in the name of business for a long time. In the past two years, Haizhou and Chuzhou have added hundreds of warships, which, combined with artillery, will definitely play a huge role in naval battles.

……

On the fifth day of November, the city of Bianjing was as prosperous as yesterday.

And this moment.

The heads of various government offices in the city felt enormous pressure, with tasks on their hands one after another.

They clearly felt that in recent days, the officials of the two governments and three ministries had become more strict and meticulous in handling official business.

The censors also frequently conducted open and secret investigations in various government offices.

Anyone who fails to perform his duties conscientiously or makes mistakes in handling official business will be impeached immediately.

This sense of oppression is even worse than when the Hundred-Day Performance Evaluation System was implemented.

But when the officials saw that the emperor and the ministers were so diligent, they couldn't help but become serious and led the officials below them.

……

On the ninth day of November, the weather was cold and heavy snow fell.

Su Liang returned home early after leaving office.

As soon as I entered Su's house, I heard a woman crying in the front hall.

Su Liang hurried forward, muttering in his heart, "It must be another colleague's wife who came to me to complain about her grievances!"

The story of Su Liang and Tang Wanmei, who were "monogamous and never separated until old age", was widely circulated among the people.

When many officials and their spouses have conflicts, they would come to Su Liang for mediation.

once.

Ouyang Xiu's wife, Sima Guang's wife, and Wang Anshi's wife all visited Su's house.

Even Fu Bi's wife came to Su Liang to persuade him to take care of his health because Fu Bi was too busy with official business and was not resting due to poor health.

Su Liang was accustomed to this, and Tang Wanmei was also adept at handling such matters.

As Su Liang entered the front hall, he recognized this man.

It's not someone else.

It was Cui, the legal wife of Cao Yi, Cao Guojiu.

At this time, Cui was crying like a pear blossom in the rain, and was very sad.

When Tang Wanmei saw Su Liang come in, she immediately gave Su Liang a helpless expression.

When Cui saw Su Liang, she turned around and cried, "Su Zhongcheng, you...you have to make the decision for me. Jing Xiu...Jing Xiu...he is really going too far!"

"Mrs. Cui, what happened? Please sit down and let's talk in detail." Su Liang sat down immediately.

Cui wiped the tears from her face, then was helped aside by Tang Wanmei and sat down.

Tang Wanmei was the first to speak: "My husband, this time the uncle really went too far. He already has a wife and concubines at home, but he still keeps a mistress."

"Keeping a mistress?"

Su Liang was stunned and said, "No...no way!" The so-called keeping a mistress.

It means supporting a woman who is not a married couple and having her live with him as a married couple outside.

Based on Su Liang's understanding of Cao Yi.

Although the latter likes singing and dancing, and especially loves music, if he really wants to have a relationship with a good girl, he can just take her as a concubine. There is no need to find a mistress to ruin the reputation of the Cao family.

Cao Yi already had two concubines, and Cui would not stop him from taking another one.

Moreover, this is a matter of expanding the Cao family.

The head of the Cao family and Queen Cao both supported Cao Yi in taking more concubines and having children. If Cui was unwilling, it would be blamed on jealousy.

Unless the mistress is a woman of unclean appearance or is married.

Cui sobbed and said, "Central Minister Su, you don't know that he has been coming home late every day recently, and his clothes are full of the smell of women's rouge. I sent people to investigate secretly and found out that he often went to Xile Tower in the west of the city and hooked up with Zhang Qiqi, a famous singer there. He...he even bought a house for him, which is in an alley not far west of Xile Tower."

The so-called purine singing.

It is a popular singing style with tortuous and soft tones that was popular in the brothels and theaters and was quite popular among the public.

"I... I asked someone about this Zhang Qiqi. She is a vixen. She flirts with any rich man she sees. She is very dirty!"

"If he wants to take two, five, or ten concubines, I will agree to it, and I can even help him find one. But he has a mistress, and a prostitute who sings for money like this. If the head of the family or the queen knew about it, they would break his legs!"

Cui burst into tears again.

Su Liang paused and asked, "Mrs. Cui, have you ever talked about this with Brother Jingxiu in person?"

"No... No, I don't dare. He's very proud. I'm afraid he'll be angry and leave home."

Cui said again: "Su Zhongcheng, you...you just need to persuade him, don't tell the emperor, the queen or my family's master!"

"Jing Xiu has been very tired from doing business in recent years. If he is scolded again, it will be my fault. After all, he is my husband."

Su Liang nodded.

"Don't worry, Madam Cui, this is a private matter and I will never disclose it to anyone. Leave it to me. Within three days, I will let Jing Xiu give you an explanation."

"Thank you for your hard work!" Cui stood up.

Then, Tang Wanmei and Su Liang sent Madam Cui out.

After the two returned to the front hall, Su Liang said, "According to my understanding of Jing Xiu, although he likes to visit brothels, he loves music more than women. Moreover, he has seen all kinds of women. How could he be bewitched by a seductive woman and even ruin his reputation by keeping a mistress!"

At this time.

Tang Wanmei said, "My husband, let me check the truth of this matter! Several women from Jingming Society are relatively familiar with Xile Tower. After finding out the truth, you can question Uncle Cao."

Su Liang was stunned, then smiled and said, "Why, are you afraid that I will also be fascinated by that woman?"

Tang Wanmei rolled her eyes at Su Liang.

"If my husband investigates, he will certainly mobilize the government. If the investigation proves true, the matter will easily reach the ears of the emperor and the queen, and it will easily ruin our agreement with Madam Cui."

"What Mei'er said makes a lot of sense. I'll listen to you." If Su Liang checked, he found that the people he could use were basically from the Imperial City Bureau and Kaifeng Prefecture. If he used them, the government would most likely know about it.

At this time, Su Liang gently grabbed Tang Wanmei's waist.

Tang Wanmei not only did not retreat, but Dan'er suddenly approached Su Liang's face, then hooked her chin and said, "Husband, Mei'er has always supported you to take a concubine, and my father also supports it. The Su family has only one son and one daughter, which is too thin, and Mei'er is too old to have children again. Do you want to reconsider it?"

"This is what Queen Cao meant. Although she meant well, I don't accept it." Su Liang said seriously.

Because Su Liang was an orphan, Empress Cao felt that her one son and one daughter were too weak to strengthen the Su family, so she talked with Tang Wanmei many times, hoping that she would continue to have children.

Zhao Zhen also had this idea and even looked for a candidate for Su Liang. Some old ministers were eager to give their granddaughters to Su Liang as concubines.

In their eyes, Su Liang was different from Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, who both had monogamous wives.

Su Liang is a man of character and is very popular among women. A man like him should have one wife and multiple concubines.

But Su Liangwan rejected all of them.

Su Liang looked at Tang Wanmei and said, "Mei'er, don't talk about this in the future. Having you by my side is enough for my life. What's wrong with having a son and a daughter? If you want to have children in the future, let our son do it. Now that I have you, there is no one else in my heart."

Tang Wanmei nodded obediently.

……

The next day, noon.

Tang Wanmei investigated Cao Yi's affair thoroughly.

It is true that Cao Yi had an affair with the famous singer Zhang Qiqi.

Cao Yi not only bought him a courtyard, but also generously gave him thousands of strings of cash.

Su Liang was furious and immediately ordered someone to call Cao Yi.

The two will meet in the teahouse opposite the Sang family's house.

……

On the second floor of the teahouse, in a private room.

Su Liang sat there with a gloomy face drinking tea.

Cao Yi walked in quickly, rubbing his hands and holding a cup of hot tea.

"Jingming, I've been very busy lately. Why are you looking for me so hastily? "

"Busy? I guess I'm busy listening to music!"

"If you really like Zhang Qiqi, even if she is a prostitute, you can buy her, remove her from the entertainment industry, and let her live in your mansion as a concubine. This is better than buying a house outside and letting her be a concubine!"

Cao Yi was stunned.

"Jingming, how do you know about this? Did the Imperial City Department tell you, or did the Kaifeng Prefecture tell you? You must not get involved!"

"What do you mean?" Su Liang was a little confused.

"I'm not keeping a mistress. That Zhang Qiqi is a spy from Japan. They have a secret organization. They came to Bianjing with the sulfur we transported. Their target should be our Military Equipment Supervision Firearms Battalion."

"At the moment, they have bribed several officials of the Firearms Battalion and are trying to steal our firearms secret recipe. I made friends with them because I wanted to take advantage of their tricks and identify those officials that she bribed or seduced."

"After all, the Military Equipment Supervision Firearms Battalion once belonged to the Hundred Schools Academy. I know something about it, so I thought that I could use the information I leaked to expose the traitors in the Firearms Battalion. The Firearms Battalion must not allow a scum to sneak into it!"

"Because they are very defensive against the Imperial City Department and Kaifeng Prefecture, I am afraid of alerting the enemy, so I pretend to bow down to her. When I find out something, I will tell you. What I do is all for the right reasons!"

"So that's how it is." Su Liang naturally believed what Cao Yi said.

This matter is very serious.

If the firearms battalion's firearms casting skills were stolen, Japan's expertise in smelting and abundant sulfur reserves would pose a huge threat to the Song Dynasty.

Su Liang took a long breath.

"The Imperial City Department and Kaifeng Prefecture did not report this matter. Even if they saw you enjoying yourself, they would probably turn a blind eye. After all, you are not an official and you have donated all your wealth. If you want to enjoy yourself, the officials and soldiers below will not report it."

"This matter was reported to my house by your wife, Madam Cui. She was worried that you would be infected with the disease and that you would be punished by the emperor and the queen, so she came to me. You should explain this matter to your wife and don't let her worry about you."

"Yeah, I understand." Cao Yi nodded.

Then, both of them stood up.

Su Liang bowed solemnly towards Cao Yi, and then said: "Brother Jingxiu, thank you for your hard work. You lost your virginity for the Song Dynasty. How great! How great!"

"What are you talking about?"

Cao Yi smiled, rolled his eyes at Su Liang, and then pushed him.

"I have not lost my virginity. I don't even look down on such a seductive and shameless woman."

"Zhang Qiqi thought the secret to winning me over was to talk about music theory and pretend to be like Bo Ya and Zi Qi, so she kept pretending to be elegant and reserved. We just kept acting and talking to each other, and it was exhausting!"

"Hahaha...I thought too much. I thought too much. I'm so ashamed. So ashamed."

Su Liang bowed again, and then said: "Once you find anything, you will inform me immediately and we will catch them all in one fell swoop."

"Also, after Madam Cui came to my house to complain, I felt that there seemed to be some discord between you and your wife. You should pay more attention to his emotions. He lives entirely on you!"

"I understand. I've been too busy in recent years and have indeed neglected her. It's my fault." Cao Yi nodded.

(End of this chapter)