"...The young minister of Honglu Temple is in charge of the concierge affairs of the four barbarians. Even if he is not the first or second class, he should at least be from the same background as the Jinshi. How can he be relaxed to the point of recruiting talents?"
"Why not?"
"Not to mention Honglu Temple, even in the noblest places in the Ministry of Rites, there are precedents for ministers with a good background. Now the court is in short supply of talents. If they are outstanding in talent and virtue, why can't they be used?"
"The so-called outstanding talents and virtues mean that you can't even be ranked among the top three and Jinshi?"
In the Palace of Qianqing, Zhu Qiyu seemed to be a little absent-minded as he watched the people below him fall into a familiar debate again.
In recent times, the capital has calmed down again, but only Zhu Qiyu knew that a storm was secretly brewing in both the palace and the court.
Various forces want to seize their own interests in this turmoil, including Zhu Qiyu himself.
However, everything is still missing an opportunity!
He raised his head and looked at the gloomy sky through the palace door that he had specially ordered to open. Grains of snowflakes were falling from the sky, like snow-white salt.
In this kind of weather, birds and animals should hibernate in their holes and wait for the cold to pass. However, today is extremely different.
Although there was heavy snow outside, there were still waves of flying birds flying against the wind and snow, circling in the air, and occasionally emitting shrill chirps.
The gloomy sky seems to have put a big stone on people's hearts, making them breathless.
The ministers in the palace finally stopped arguing. At this time, they discovered that the emperor remained silent and seemed to be a little distracted. Seeing this situation, many ministers subconsciously felt that they and others had said something wrong. talk.
As a result, the palace slowly became quiet. Then, some ministers stepped forward cautiously, wanting to ask questions. However, before they could speak, something unexpected happened!
At first, the tea cup on the emperor's desk made an inexplicable slight collision sound. Before anyone could react, they felt the ground trembling under their feet.
In just a short moment, a huge rumbling sound came from the northwest, stretching all the way to the southeast. At the same time, a sudden feeling of dizziness came!
"It's the earth dragon turning over!"
On the throne, the emperor was the first to react. Although the ground was shaking, the emperor remained calm and shouted sharply almost as soon as the sound appeared.
The ministers and servants in the palace immediately reacted and began to gradually gather around the emperor, shouting non-stop.
"Escort! Escort!"
For a moment, the palace was in a state of hustle and bustle. Fortunately, the shaking feeling of the earth did not last long, and it stopped within only a few dozen breaths.
"Huai'en, immediately go to the cabinet to deliver a decree, ordering the imperial army to blockade the palace city. Another person is sent to deliver the decree to the three major battalions, and orders Fan Guang to immediately mobilize five thousand troops to seal all the gates of the capital to prevent young people from taking advantage of the earth dragon. Doing bad things when you turn around."
Unlike the hustle and bustle of the ministers, Zhu Qiyu immediately issued the order as soon as the earth became quiet.
"Order Shuntian Prefecture Yin to send officials to immediately start investigating the affected people, and first allocate supplies from the treasury. The Ministry of War will lead the five-city military and horse divisions to coordinate, and there must be no mistakes!"
It seemed that seeing the emperor's calm appearance made the ministers present quickly calm down and return to their original positions.
Then, Zhu Qiyu stood up, glanced around and said.
"My lords, the matter is urgent. All other matters have been put on hold for the time being. Disaster relief is the top priority. All regulations will be handled for the time being in the second year of Jingtai when the earth dragon turns over. I hope that all your lords can work with me to get through this time smoothly." Disaster!"
"I obey the order..."
Although the elders were still frightened, seeing that the emperor was so confident, they all felt relieved. They bowed their hands in response, and then each stepped down and left the palace.
At this time, when people are panicking, they have no time to panic. They must immediately return to each Yamen to take charge to prevent any unexpected situations from happening again.
Suddenly, because of this sudden change, all the yamen in the imperial court became busy.
What makes everyone feel at ease is that this disaster is far less serious than the one in the second year of Jingtai...
"Your Majesty, this earthquake started fifty miles northwest of the capital and extended to about thirty miles southeast of the capital, involving a total of eleven counties near the capital."
"However, fortunately, despite the loud noise, there were actually not many casualties. According to the situation reported by Shuntian Prefecture, a total of 386 houses collapsed in various places during this earthquake, and 172 people were injured. , the Ministry of Household Affairs has arranged for special personnel to work with Shuntian Prefecture to jointly take charge of disaster relief matters."
"Compared with the people who were directly affected by the disaster, after the earthquake, there were many scoundrels in the capital who took the opportunity to do evil things. In the past few days, Shuntian Prefecture has investigated the theft, fire prevention, and housebreaking and robbery. There are more than ten cases.”
"In accordance with His Majesty's decree, Shuntian Mansion has joined forces with the Five Cities Military and Horse Division to begin a strict investigation of all parts of the capital..."
In the Qianqing Palace, after nearly half a month of intense work, the preliminary statistics of the disaster were finally completed. As soon as the memorial was received, Zhang Min from the cabinet pulled Yu Shiyue and two people into the palace to report in detail.
After a while, Zhu Qiyu nodded and said after reading the memorial.
"Shuntian Prefecture responded appropriately this time. However, although the earthquake did not cause any major casualties, we cannot take it lightly. After earthquakes, disasters often occur. Water sources everywhere must be carefully checked to prevent someone from putting in the wrong water. Clean things.”
"In addition, after the earthquake, the people must be panicked. When Shuntian Mansion is doing things, it must also pay attention to appeasing the people's sentiments. If there are no problems, shops, restaurants, and other shops in the capital will reopen as soon as possible and do their best. , restore the original order in the capital as soon as possible."
These issues have actually been emphasized many times, but every time he summoned ministers, Zhu Qiyu still had to take the trouble to reiterate them, hoping that the disaster could be settled quickly.
After the report was over, logically, the two people in the cabinet should also step down, but for some reason, Yu Shiyue stood aside and hesitated to leave.
At the same time, Zhang Min stayed where he was, with no intention of leaving.
Seeing this situation, Zhu Qiyu was slightly confused and asked.
"Gentlemen, do you have anything else to report?"
So, Yu Shiyue looked at Zhang Min helplessly, hesitated again and again, and finally spoke.
"Your Majesty is wise, I do have one more thing that I would like to report to Your Majesty."
Seeing Yu Shiyue hesitating, Zhu Qiyu seemed to have thought of something, but his face remained calm as he said.
"Say it."
Yu Shiyue cupped his hands and then spoke.
"Your Majesty, in recent days, His Highness the Crown Prince has often wandered away from the sky during the banquet. I felt that something was wrong, so I privately asked the internal officials serving His Highness the Crown Prince and learned that during the earthquake a few days ago, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was frightened in the palace, and although it was said to be nothing serious, I feel that the matter involves the Crown Prince, and this matter is of great importance, so I wanted to report it to Your Majesty, so as to comfort His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
"Well, I know about this. I will tell the prince later."
Hearing this, Zhu Qiyu didn't look surprised, he nodded and said.
However, Yu Shiyue was not happy after getting the answer he wanted. On the contrary, his brows were still frowning, as if he was thinking about something.
Seeing this situation, Zhu Qiyu continued to ask.
"Anything else?"
"Um……"
Yu Shiyue hesitated again and again before finally making up his mind and said.
"Your Majesty, I forgive you. As a foreign minister, I should not be involved in the affairs of the harem. However, recently, in addition to being in a daze at the sutra banquet, His Royal Highness always leaves in a hurry after the lectures. I heard that His Highness After each feast, I went to the harem, but not to visit the Holy Mother or the Supreme Emperor, but to Princess Gu'an to visit a palace maid..."
"I don't know whether this matter is true or not, but it involves His Highness the Crown Prince after all. Therefore, I dare not hide it, and I would like to ask Your Majesty for your clear understanding."
After the words fell, the atmosphere in the palace suddenly became a little quiet, and Zhu Qiyu's brows also wrinkled slightly.
Of course he understands why Yu Shiyue is so cautious. At a small scale, this matter is because the prince is not diligent enough and is lazy in class. At a larger scale, it is because he is addicted to the harem and does not want to make progress. Once the news is fermented, for the prince's In terms of reputation, it will be a big blow, so one must be cautious.
"Sir, you just said, did you hear about this? Where did you hear it?"
His face turned slightly serious, and Zhu Qiyu asked.
So, Yu Shiyue sighed and replied.
"Your Majesty, I don't know where the news came from. It was probably discussed privately by the people serving in the East Palace. However, in the past few days, it has been spreading outside. Because of this, I am a little worried."
Hearing this, Zhu Qiyu thought for a moment, then he nodded slightly and said.
"I know, I will handle this matter, over at the East Palace..."
Before these words were finished, a servant suddenly came in from outside and whispered a few words to Wynn. Then Wynn was slightly stunned, then stepped forward and cupped his hands.
"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is outside asking for an audience!"
Pushing forward half an hour, it was almost the same time that Zhu Qiyu summoned Yu Shiyue and others. In the Cining Palace, Queen Mother Sun was leaning on the couch. Next to her, stood a female official with her head bowed. She was the one who had been serving Zhu Jianshen. Wan Zhen'er, the eldest palace maid.
At the same time, two eunuchs were kneeling in the middle of Nuan Pavilion. The older one was Qin Chang, and the one who looked smarter was Liang Fang. They were also eunuchs beside Zhu Jianshen.
Empress Dowager Sun held a string of jade beads in her hand and fiddled with them slowly. Her eyes fell indifferently on the two people kneeling below and said.
"Tell me, what happened to the palace maid named Liu Yu'er? The gossip has spread to the Cining Palace of the Ai family!"
The tone of the words was not serious, but it made people feel a chill down their backs for no reason.
Ah this...
Liang Fang shrank back and looked at Qin Chang next to him. The latter frowned, but did not look frightened. Instead, he spoke calmly.
"Going back to the Holy Mother, the maid serving Princess Gu'an is said to be an orphan girl who was rescued by the Emperor when he took His Highness the Crown Prince out to observe the people's sentiments. Due to a disaster at home, he had to sell himself to bury his mother. By chance, His Highness the Crown Prince met her. His Highness was merciful, so he brought her back to the palace to settle her.”
"Later, this palace maid was sent by the Queen to serve Princess Gu'an. His Highness the Crown Prince would often visit her, but other than that, there was nothing else."
"Nothing else?"
Queen Mother Sun stopped holding the prayer beads in her hand. She straightened up, looked at the two people below with stern eyes, and scolded softly.
"But how come the Ai family heard that these days, the prince visits the palace maid as soon as he attends the scripture banquet. Moreover, many masters from the East Palace complained at the banquet, saying that the prince's attitude towards studying has not been as good as before."
As she spoke, Queen Mother Sun moved her gaze to Liang Fang and said.
"Liang Fang, you are the eunuch in charge of the East Palace. Every application in the East Palace must pass through your hands. Please tell the Ai family that in the past few days alone, the prince has taken precious medicinal materials from the inner treasury four times. These things , where have they all gone?”
Hearing these words, the sweat on Liang Fang's forehead suddenly started to trickle down. He raised his head slightly and stared at the silent Wan Zhen'er who was standing next to Queen Mother Sun. He felt a trace of hatred deep in his heart. Hiding deeply, he gritted his teeth and spoke.
"Going back to the Holy Mother, these medicinal materials were indeed sent to Princess Gu'an. However, the Holy Mother clearly knows that there is a reason for this matter, and it is definitely not what is rumored to the outside world."
After saying this, Queen Mother Sun's face became even more ugly. She couldn't help but patted the armrest beside her and said.
"The Ai family knows that nothing can come out of nowhere. Tell me what's going on!"
Therefore, Liang Fang had no choice but to speak honestly.
"Going back to Our Lady, this matter starts from the day of the earthquake. At that time, the earth dragon turned over, and His Royal Highness happened to have finished writing an assignment and was taking a rest."
"Because the main hall is not far from the East Palace, Princess Gu'an often comes to play with His Highness the Crown Prince. I happened to meet Princess Gu'an that day."
"Her Royal Highness the Princess got a jade ornament at that time, and gave it to His Royal Highness as a gift. His Royal Highness was so happy that he personally placed the ornament on the Bogu shelf in the West Side Hall. Unexpectedly, the earth dragon happened to turn over at this time, and the Bogu shelf So he fell down, and the porcelain bottle on top fell down, almost hitting His Highness the Crown Prince."
"At that time, it was the maid named Liu Yu'er who was beside the princess who stood behind His Highness the Crown Prince and protected His Highness. However, she was hit hard on the forehead by a porcelain vase, which caused a lot of blood. His Highness the Crown Prince expressed gratitude to her for standing up for herself. To protect her, I ordered my slave to get some medicinal materials, and after the prayer feast, I went to visit her several times. It is definitely not what the outside world said, and please ask the Holy Mother for clarity!"
"What? Brother Shen is injured?"
It has to be said that Queen Mother Sun will selectively hear the content. After listening to Liang Fang's words, she stood up suddenly, and the beads in her hand were cut off and fell to the ground. However, Queen Mother Sun did not care. Concerned, he pointed at Qin Chang and Liang Fang below and said angrily.
"You are so brave. You dare to hide such a big thing. I really don't want to live anymore..."
"Somebody come!"
(End of chapter)
