After breakfast in the early morning, Zhao Hong was about to leave.
As for him and Zhou Xiuniang, a pregnant woman he had just met, what could he say, it was just that they were just following each other.
As for sleeping at night, it's even more embarrassing. He was at a loss to say anything, and he had to be cautious for fear of showing his flaws.
"Uncle, madam and eldest brother are looking for you."
The burly and wretched Zhou Da came up and took Zhao Hong out with an apologetic smile on his face.
Entering the backyard, Zhou Da led more than a dozen servants to guard the place, watching eagerly and being heavily guarded.
Zhao Hong was secretly shocked. He only has five or six bodyguards, but the Zhou family is as big as the Duke's Palace, and it is really extraordinary for a wealthy family.
"Your Highness, sit down!"
Zhao Hong entered the back hall. Zhou Gao stood up and asked Zhao Hong to take a seat.
"Mother-in-law, we are all family, just call me by my first name."
Zhao Hong looked friendly and sat down with Mr. Zhou Gao respectively.
On a chair in the hall, a stern and fair-skinned young man was looking at Zhao Hong with sharp eyes, but he did not stand up.
"I've met my mother-in-law, I've met my eldest brother!"
Zhao Hong knew it well and stepped forward to see him.
This aloof man must be his brother-in-law, Zhou Xiuniang's eldest brother Zhou Ping.
This man is calm and taciturn, completely different from his impulsive and naive brother Zhou An.
My uncle and brother-in-law treat him like this. It seems that this Zhao Hong, whose EQ and IQ are both worrying, really deserves it.
"Your Highness, didn't you say you would never visit my Zhou family again? Why are you here again now?"
Zhou Ping looked at Zhao Hong and smiled coldly.
To be honest, he would rather distance himself from this idiot to avoid getting into trouble.
But in the final analysis, this idiot is his brother-in-law and the father of his future nephew.
"Ping'er, don't be like this, we are all one family!"
Mrs. Zhou Gao quickly stood up and asked Zhao Hong to sit down.
After all, this man is also his son-in-law and the father of his grandson (daughter).
"Brother, we are a family. We have broken bones and even tendons. How can we not meet each other? To be honest, I still miss my eldest brother very much after not seeing each other for a few days."
Zhao Hong smiled, neither humble nor arrogant.
Xu Liang said that this uncle had some abilities and might be his helper in the future.
He now lacks manpower around him and urgently needs his own people to make suggestions.
"Okay, okay! You're smiling but you're not smiling. You still have a conscience."
Zhou Ping smiled coldly, looked at Zhao Hong casually, and then looked away.
"Your Highness, do you plan to continue like this, just waiting to die and living in a state of confusion?"
Eating and waiting to die, in a state of confusion?
Zhou Ping's words made Zhao Hong only smile.
It turned out that I was just ignorant, and there were many understanding people around me. My uncle could see clearly.
Looking back, the Zhao Hong in history couldn't even listen to his own teacher's sincere words, let alone a "relative" from a family of concubines.
"The officials can think of another way. The queen can also do something. As for Shi Miyuan, I'm afraid the grievances are too deep and cannot be reconciled. If I take the initiative to show weakness, I'm afraid it will scare the snake and miss the big deal."
Zhao Hong thought about it and said it.
Zhao Kuo did not make him the prince now, not because Zhao Kuo did this intentionally, but because of the rules of the Song Dynasty. Generally, an imperial edict or edict will be issued to specify the successor before the emperor dies.
In doing so, the Song Dynasty Chaotang said that it was worried that the father and son would fight for power and hurt the relationship between father and son.
Let’s not talk about whether this bullshit rule violates filial piety. In the Song Dynasty, the power of the prince was greatly weakened, and his power was still under that of the prime minister. This is an indisputable fact.
The prince has no power, so it is no wonder that Shi Mingyuan's "civet cat for prince" in history was successful.
Empress Yang Guizhi was greedy for power when she was young. Now that she is in her sixties, she may take care of the emperor's wishes to some extent, and there may be some room for redemption.
As for Shi Miyuan, it has been carefully planned for more than two years, and Zhao Guicheng has been pushed to the front desk. As the emperor's nephew, I am afraid that he will not change his tune just because of Zhao Hong's conciliatory words.
That's what it's all about.
"You are a prince established by the official family, and you are not evil. He should not be replaced easily. Besides, in your Zhao clan, Prince Xiu, Prince Pu, is too old, and the others are too young, except for Zhao Guicheng, the heir of Prince Yi. , not many can replace you."
As expected, Zhou Ping had some insight and knew the affairs of the Zhao and Song royal family better than Zhao Hong himself.
"Shi Miyuan has great power in the government and the public. Even if you can ascend the throne in the future, I am afraid that you will be weak and you will be in trouble again. It will not be easy for you in the future!"
Zhou Ping's second sentence clearly didn't realize that Shi Miyuan wanted to "change the civet cat for the prince." In other words, he didn't believe that Shi Miyuan dared to do this.
"Shi Miyuan and Empress Yang, one has all the power and the other is the master of the harem. Your Highness, you are just picking on the toughest people!"
Mother-in-law Zhou Gao also frowned and spoke immediately.
Zhao Hong smiled bitterly and shook his head helplessly.
Can he say that this was the fault of the idiot in his predecessor?
Zhao Hong remained silent. Zhou Gao rolled his eyes and said immediately:
"Your Highness, it is better to resolve enemies than to make them end. If you don't let the officials come forward, give Shi Miyuan something to show weakness and ask for peace. You sit down and have a good talk. Compromise and give jewelry, gold and silver, maybe this matter can be settled. .”
Let it go?
Zhao Hong shook his head and had to smile again.
Shi Miyuan has been planning for such a long time, and Zhao Guicheng is already one step away from the Ninth Five Supreme Being. How could they give up so easily.
In other words, will Shi Miyuan and the others leave their own destiny in each other's hands?
"Mother-in-law, brother, have you ever heard of "a civet cat exchanges for a prince"?"
Thinking of what happened in history, Zhao Hong hesitated for a moment, looked at his mother-in-law and uncle, lowered his voice, and decided to tell the whole story.
If you can't believe these two people, then there is no one else in the world who can be trusted.
"What's "a civet cat for a prince"? What are you talking about?"
Zhou Ping glanced at the prodigal angrily, confused.
What time has it been? Are you still telling bullshit animal stories?
Zhao Hong shook his head secretly, feeling embarrassed.
The exchange of a civet cat for a prince has never happened in history. This is also a drama of later generations. How could it be made public in the Song Dynasty?
However, it can also be seen from this that Zhou mother and son would not have thought that Shi Miyuan would be so bold and dare to change the prince.
Zhou Ping was so well-informed that Zhou and his son didn't expect it, let alone others.
"Mother-in-law, eldest brother, this is what happened..."
Zhao Hong lowered his voice and told the story of the historical "civet cat for prince" change.
Both Zhou mother and son were shocked. After a moment, Zhou Ping nodded and spoke in a low voice.
"I just asked, how could Zhao Guicheng, the heir of King Yi, climb up so fast? It turns out that the traitor Shi Miyuan is really adding fuel to the fire."
He looked at Zhao Hong, his eyes softening a lot.
"Your Highness, I underestimated you. It turns out you are not a fool after all!"
"Shi Miyuan's power is overwhelming. If he acts like this, your Highness will be in serious trouble."
Mrs. Zhou Gao looked at her son with an ugly face.
"Dalang, this matter is no small matter. We must find a way to help His Highness."
"Mom, there is nothing to worry about. Since they want to do harm to His Highness, just kill Zhao Guicheng!"
Zhou Ping's eyes were ferocious and he said it coldly.
Zhao Hong was surprised. This brother-in-law is definitely a ruthless person.
Zhou Gao was also surprised, and then shook his head.
"If we take action now, the finger of blame will be pointed at His Highness, making His Highness's situation even more unfavorable. Don't forget that there is an extremely shrewd Queen Yang in the palace. If anything goes wrong, His Highness and our Zhou family may be in doom. "
Mr. Zhou Gao whispered in a low voice, and his words touched his heart.
"Besides, if Zhao Guicheng is killed now, Shi Miyuan still has time to find another one. Anyway, it's just a false edict. It doesn't matter which clan member is appointed. Zhao Guicheng's younger brother is also a candidate. This matter must be considered in the long term and must not be impulsive."
Zhao Hong and Zhou Ping looked at each other and nodded.
"Even if Shi Miyuan wants to "change the civet cat for the crown prince," he still needs the internal support of Queen Yang. Therefore, the first step is to stabilize Queen Yang and close the relationship with Queen Yang so that she at least does not hate His Highness."
Zhou Gao said slowly, causing Zhou Ping and Zhao Hong to nod.
This is probably the first step that must be taken to please Queen Yang.
"Mom, what about the second step?"
"The second step is that since Shi Miyuan wants to "change the civet cat for the crown prince," then we should spread the word about his recommendation of Zhao Guicheng and let everyone in the world know about Shi Miyuan's ambition."
Mrs. Zhou Gao looked at her son with bright eyes.
"Dalang, do you know how to do it?"
"Don't worry, mom, naturally it's a tabloid, it's all-pervasive, it's hard for the government to find any clues!"
Zhou Ping nodded, with a hint of excitement in his expression.
"Tabloids!"
Zhao Hong was stunned.
Wasn't he the one who was smeared by the other party in tabloids?
The imperial court had a court newspaper, and the people had tabloids. Compared with court newspapers, people prefer and believe tabloids.
Moreover, this tabloid has been repeatedly banned by the court, and those who publish it come out on their own. Not only were tabloids not banned, they had many readers and had great influence.
Discussing the reasons, land annexation, exorbitant taxes and excessive levies, and numerous servants made the people miserable. The Chao Bao and Di Bao were not allowed to report side affairs, and even soldiers were not allowed to talk about the war in their letters home. Under the suppression of the ban, tabloids naturally came into being, and readers "all took the tabloids first, and the Chao Bao as the norm."
My mother-in-law actually knows how to use the navy to manipulate public opinion and create public opinion. She does things flawlessly and has a unique vision. She is really like a woman.
This suddenly reminded him of Xu Liang. It seems that smart people do things ruthlessly and know how to take advantage of situations.
Zhao Hong, this idiot, didn't use such good resources and deserved to be replaced.
"Feng Shu, the prefect of the palace, Yuhou, I met him by chance. He is addicted to gambling and is heavily in debt. Your Highness might as well give it a try."
Zhou Ping thought for a moment and spoke softly.
Guanpu is gambling. Guanpu was popular in the Song Dynasty, but according to the laws of the Song Dynasty, gambling was illegal. "Song Xingtong" stipulates: Those who play with property can each have a hundred sticks, and those who have stolen a lot of stolen property can each divide it according to their own needs. This is considered robbery. As long as you catch the gambler, hit him with a hundred killing sticks. If the gambling capital is huge, the person will be punished severely for the crime of theft.
However, there is kindness outside the law. Every year on New Year's Day (Spring Festival), Cold Food, Winter Solstice and other festivals, the Song Dynasty court will impose a three-day ban on gambling. As for the New Year's Eve festival, although it is not a legal gambling day, the gambling trend spreads from New Year's Day, so no one cares about it.
Zhou Ping's words made Zhao Hong feel excited.
"Brother, how is the relationship between Feng Shu and Xia Zhen?"
Xia Zhen is the commander of the palace front department, commonly known as the "palace commander", and controls the imperial army. This person was a loyal ally of Shi Miyuan. In the first year of the Jubilee, he executed the imperial edict to kill Han Tuozhou, an important minister of the imperial court. It was these two people and Empress Yang who were responsible for the execution.
"Xia Zhen values Feng Shu very much, otherwise he wouldn't have promoted him to the position of Lord Yuhou when he was in his 30s. Feng Shu is greedy, ruthless, and ambitious. Don't you, the prince, know these things?"
After Zhou Ping finished speaking, he glanced at Zhao Hong dissatisfied.
He plays the piano and plays with women all day long, and does nothing serious at all.
“It’s good to be greedy, but it’s better to be ambitious!”
Zhao Hong thought for a moment and had a plan in mind.
"Brother, please pay attention to Feng Shu in private and don't alert others. It may be of great use when the time comes."
Yuhou, the chief minister in front of the palace, is only under the commanding envoy and the deputy envoy. He has many squad leaders of the imperial army, which will definitely be of great use.
"We can only beat the drum, you have to do the big things yourself! Remember, the first step is to become the crown prince. As long as you become the crown prince of the Song Dynasty, no matter what Shi Miyuan wants, it will be even more difficult!"
Zhou Ping was serious and reminded his brother-in-law.
"Mother-in-law, eldest brother, with your help, I feel much more at ease."
Zhao Hong nodded and said sincerely.
This trip to Zhou Mansion was a fruitful one.
"Your Highness, Xiu Niang is pregnant, aren't you going to take her back?"
Mrs. Zhou Gao looked at Zhao Hong with a trace of dissatisfaction in her eyes.
Isn't this guy just visiting relatives and just being single again, going back to live happily?
"Xiu Niang can't go back yet."
Zhao Hong looked calm and slowly explained the reason for being "undercover".
These two people are already close comrades in the same trench, there is no need to hide it from them anymore.
After Zhao Hong finished speaking, he stood up and bowed respectfully.
"Mother-in-law, eldest brother, please keep this matter a secret, so as not to alert the enemy and make Shi Miyuan suspicious. Thank you very much for your kindness, Zhao Hong will definitely repay you in the future!"
"Your Highness, you and I are all one family. We are both prosperous and devastated. Don't say such unreasonable words."
Mrs. Zhou Gao then stood up and returned the gesture.
"Your Highness, while there is no one in your house these days, we have prepared some things for Zhou Da to send to you. You need to take care of many places, so don't be reluctant to spend money!"
The mother-in-law's words made Zhao Hong feel embarrassed.
It’s so embarrassing to even eat and drink.
"Your Highness, you have to spend money to do things. If you don't have enough money, just ask. You go and say goodbye to Xiu Niang first, and go out through the back door when you leave."
Zhou Ping warned Zhao Hong seriously.
At this moment, he really regarded Zhao Hong as one of his own.
After seeing Zhou Xiuniang, when they came to the backyard, Zhou Ping and Zhao Hong were already arm in arm, like close friends for many years.
"Zhao Hong, to be honest, I'm not helping you, I'm also helping myself."
"Brother, as long as I succeed, I will never let you down!"
"Zhao Hong, it's settled! Whether I, Zhou Ping, can stand out in my life and honor my ancestors all depends on you!"
"Brother, as long as you are rich and noble, don't forget each other! I won't let you down! Cherish it!"
"Your Highness, take care of it!"
Zhao Hong and Zhou Ping reluctantly said goodbye.
"Is this Zhao Hong pretending to be a pig and eating the tiger?"
Zhou Gaoshi looked at Zhao Hong's leaving figure and spoke quietly.
"Now that the situation has come to an end, the only option is to push him to the top! Finally something has been done!"
Zhou Ping's face turned red and his whole body seemed to be full of fighting spirit.
