The Red Mansion is so charming

Chapter 253 Who Appeases Xiaozong's Anger
This white jade bed was a great gift from the governor of Southwest Province when Xiaozong ascended the throne. Firstly, it was to curry favor with the new emperor for peace. Second, the governor of Southwest Province also wanted to take this opportunity to show his face in the court.After all, the southwest is located in a remote place, and there was no way for him not to be taken seriously by the Supreme Emperor in those years.

Xiaozong received such a valuable gift, and he was really happy. He not only praised the governor of Southwest Road, but also took the governor's youngest sister into the harem.However, Xiaozong is not a person whose beauty is detrimental to the country. Although he favors the governor of Southwest Road, he is very indifferent to this new concubine, and now he is just a dispensable person in the harem.

It stands to reason that Xiaozong should like this white jade bed very much. Whoever wanted to sleep for two days, Xiaozong's body was sore and cold.

The reason for the imperial physician's picketing is that Xiaozong's system is not suitable for this bed. Although the things are expensive, it is a pity that Xiaozong has no blessing to enjoy them.The white jade bed became tasteless, Xiaozong was reluctant to reward others, but he couldn't use it himself, so he was put in the warehouse.

The empress is a woman with a cold body, so it is most suitable to sleep on this bed. She also asked twice, but Xiaozong changed the subject and refuted it.Everyone thought that this bed would definitely be reserved for the next new emperor. Who would have thought that not long after fifth prince Li Hong entered the palace, Emperor Xiaozong asked Dai Quan to move the white jade bed into the East Palace and gave it to Li Hong as a reward.

Everyone secretly hated it, and Zhengde also knew that he had committed public anger, so he put away the bed and didn't use it at all.Now hearing him suddenly say that he would send the Xing family a congratulatory gift, the princes felt slightly uncomfortable.

After all, they are brothers.

The third prince said sourly: "Fifth brother is so generous. If the emperor knows that you value the Song family so much, he will be very happy. However, the third brother will give you a pertinent sentence. Between the prince and the foreign ministers, after all It’s better to have fewer interests.”

Seeing that Zhengde was so young, the second prince couldn't bear it, so he stood up to smooth things over and said with a smile: "The third brother just needs to preach a few words, and the fifth brother is so young, he will be trained slowly in the future."

After saying that, Dai Quan bowed out from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, saw several princes were there, and said with a smile: "Your Highness, Long Live is here to invite you."

The second prince was stunned, and his eyes involuntarily fell on the first prince who was kneeling on the ground: "Then big brother."

Dai Quan winked quickly, and said softly: "Your Highnesses, let's enter the room first. Lord Long Live ordered the eldest prince to think about his mistakes here, and he will be summoned later."

Seeing the eldest prince clenched his fists tightly, the three of them didn't dare to say any more, followed Dai Quan and entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Inside the main hall, Minister of the Ministry of War and several generals of the Yuanmen Zhonglang waited there tremblingly, Xiaozong's face was full of anger, and memorials were scattered all over the ground.All the maids and eunuchs were missing, except Dai Quan who served here.

"My sons and ministers, pay respects to the emperor." The three of them knelt down, and Xiaozong coldly asked his sons to stand up, "Zhuozhou came to report today. They did not succeed in repelling the Japanese, but suffered heavy losses. They were afraid that the court would pursue their crimes, so they did not dare to report it, so they concealed it to this day. If the prefect of Zhuozhou was not killed by the Japanese in the government office, I am afraid that the term will still expire!"

The three of them immediately went through the news of Zhuozhou in their hearts, and they all thought of the First Prince by coincidence.

That Zhuozhou is the fiefdom of the eldest prince, because it is near the sea, so there are not a few gifts every year.Among the several princes, only the eldest prince became an adult and had his own fief, so the three of them remembered it very deeply.

The eldest prince is very happy, and spends money like water. Although he lives in the east, his palace is obviously more luxurious than others.The second prince had doubts for a long time, but he kept silent.Now listening to Xiaozong's words, he said: "I remember, Zhuozhou is the territory of the Great Emperor, maybe the Great Emperor knows a thing or two?"

When several Yuanmen Zhonglang generals heard this, they secretly looked at Xiaozong's expression, only the Minister of the Ministry of War remained motionless.

Xiaozong really snorted coldly: "He didn't know? He knew it clearly. Thousands of people in Zhuozhou were slaughtered by the Japanese, and countless strong men were taken away. The prefect of Zhuozhou not only didn't want to report to the court, but even embezzled The salary of the guards made the soldiers of the guards excited and lazy to prepare for the war. You said that Zhuozhou can be defended, isn't this the biggest joke in the world?"

The more Xiaozong talked, the more angry he became, and the more angry his face became, Dai Quan hurriedly said: "Long live, calm down. The imperial physician said that the emperor should not be angry. If the dragon's body is damaged, what can we do?"

Dai Quan held the gaiwan on the imperial table and handed it to Xiaozong with both hands: "This is Longjing before the rain. Lord Long Live takes a sip to relieve fatigue."

When Xiaozong waved his hand, Dai Quan had no choice but to back down quietly.The three princes were silent, and the Minister of the Ministry of War did not say a word.Xiaozong looked at the crowd coldly: "You three, except for the fifth child who is still young, the other two have also reached the age of doing things. I am worried about the country. As princes and grandchildren, you can't stay out of things. Do you have a good plan to offer?"

The second prince and the third prince were silent for a long time. Seeing that they were silent, Xiaozong sighed: "The boss advocates using the method of making peace to make the Japanese retreat. Hmph, this is really a good suggestion to increase our country's prestige. The Japanese are even called barbarians. No. It is also worthy of being married to my heavenly court! Only the boss can come up with such a bad idea."

The second prince tentatively said: "Father, my son remembers that the camp of the southeast navy is not far from Zhuozhou. Could it be that the southeast navy has no news about such a big event in Zhuozhou?"

The Minister of the Ministry of War frowned, knowing that he could no longer keep silent at this time, otherwise the emperor would no longer be pursuing the crimes of the prefect of Zhuozhou, but the problem of the Ministry of War.

He hurriedly said: "The second prince doesn't know that although the guards in Zhuozhou belong to the Ministry of War, due to the emperor's orders these years, the food and salaries of the guards have always been provided by the local governments themselves. After all, this guard does not belong to the army, it is only for local defense A small military force. Besides, the southeast navy had such a big mess, so they didn't have the energy to take care of it. Fortunately, after the prefect of Zhuozhou left, the southeast navy immediately dispatched manpower to support them, and killed the Japanese soldiers who had no time to retreat. On the beach. The tricky thing now is who should the imperial court send to Zhuozhou to serve as the magistrate. This person must not only have the ability to govern the jurisdiction, but also have the determination to kill decisively. First, to quickly restore Zhuozhou's commerce. Two Come, we must also cooperate with the southeast navy to destroy the Japanese and restore our prestige in the Celestial Dynasty."

The magistrate of Zhuozhou is an official position from the third rank. Many people aspire to be promoted from the fourth rank to the third rank all their lives, but they fall from the position of the third rank and stop.

The second prince knows that his father must have committed a difficult situation. There are not a few people in the court who have this ability. However, Zhuozhou is still the fiefdom of the eldest prince. The latter has taken root in Zhuozhou for many years. It is difficult for any outsider to break into the interior. more difficult.Maybe he would offend the eldest prince because of this, and end up dying in a foreign land.

Xiaozong looked at the three of them: "Do you have a suitable candidate in your heart?" In fact, the second prince was the only one Xiaozong was looking forward to most.

Before Li Hong entered the palace, Xiaozong liked this son the most.Not only because his biological mother is one of Xiaozong's beloved women, but also because the second prince is talented and intelligent, and respects and treats his brothers well.If this son becomes the crown prince, Xiaozong will definitely feel at ease.

However, his biological mother happened to be the niece of the disobedient official, which made Xiaozong have to think carefully.

Before the second prince could speak, the third prince suddenly said, "Father, there is someone to choose from. I don't know if I should talk about it or not."

Xiaozong and Minister of the Ministry of War looked at Li He together.

The third prince was pleased with himself, but he didn't dare to show it, he just bowed his head and said: "I don't know, my father, but I still remember that the father of Concubine Su used to be the magistrate of Zhuozhou, and later he resigned from this position because he retired from his old age and returned to his hometown. .”

Xiaozong thought about it carefully, then nodded to signal the third prince to continue talking.

"Although Concubine Su's father is old, I think that Mr. Su has been an official in Zhuozhou for many years, and his connections cannot be cut off easily. Moreover, I know that Mrs. Su's eldest son grew up in Zhuozhou since he was a child. The layout is well known. If this person can work for the father, I believe that he must be able to get twice the result with half the effort."

Xiaozong nodded again and again, and turned to ask the Minister of the Ministry of War.

The Secretary of the Ministry of War hurriedly said: "I remember this Lord Su, but I have never heard of people from the Su family who are still officials."

Xiaozong had an unnatural expression on his face. Ever since Concubine Su lived in a secluded palace and lived a life like a cold palace, the Su family began to fade out of court. Even Xiaozong couldn't remember where this former favorite concubine's natal family was. .

Seeing Xiaozong's silence, the third prince probed, "Report to Father, although Uncle Su's family has never held any official position, but he was a Jinshi of Wuying for three years."

The second prince immediately smiled and said: "It's a pity. If the uncle of the Su family had experience and experience, he was suddenly promoted to be the magistrate of the third rank. , all of a sudden, he got a third-rank student, I'm afraid it will make the scholars in the world feel dissatisfied."

The second prince looked at Zhengde, and said again: "My minister thinks that Mr. Xing from the Ministry of Punishment is very suitable. He has also served as the magistrate of Suzhou County, and he has a good official reputation in the Ministry of Punishment. If he entrusts him with important tasks, I believe Mr. Xing competent."

Zhengde couldn't hide his panic, and hurriedly said: "Father, Emperor Mingjian, although Master Xing is very convenient in administration, he has also won a good reputation in the local area because of his benevolence. Wu County is completely opposite to Zhuozhou. It must be wrong to rashly call Master Xing to take up the post."

Xiaozong laughed angrily, these three sons really made him unable to speak.Some desperately want to hold the errand in their arms, while others desperately want to push it out.

Don't think Xiaozong doesn't know that the third child has been very close to Yannian Palace in the past two years.He just didn't want to point it out because of his affection back then, and he also wanted to see how Concubine Su's indifferent temper could make a comeback.

Xiaozong waved his hand: "Let me think about it again. The Ministry of War will notify the Ministry of Officials to submit a few suitable candidates in a short period of time. This matter cannot be delayed."

Everyone had no choice but to kneel down, and was about to leave the Hall of Mental Cultivation in a scattered manner, when they suddenly heard Xiaozong talking to Dai Quan from behind: "Concubine Xuansu will attend her bed at night."

The corner of Li He's mouth raised in the rear of the hall, and he looked at the second prince and Zhengde proudly.

(End of this chapter)