On this day, King Lu, who had just woken up, was sitting drowsily in his carriage and came to the palace.
"Your Highness, please alight from the sedan chair."
But as soon as King Lu arrived at the palace gate, the commander-in-chief was stopped by the guards in royal robes. He cupped his hands and said, "According to the rules, you are not allowed to enter the palace in a chariot without grace."
King Lu's face darkened after hearing this, and then he still got off the sedan, but when he passed by the commander-in-chief, he suddenly kicked the commander-in-chief.
The commander-in-chief of this Jinyiwei is a veteran of hundreds of battles who was promoted from the border town to the Jinyiwei, named Wei Bin.
Now under the influence of Zhang Jingxiu's rectification of the imperial guards, and because he has a military medal, he has to be promoted to the commander-in-chief of the inner duty room and be responsible for the inner court guards in shifts.
And precisely because he was a veteran of hundreds of battles, Wei Bin withstood King Lu's kick. He only pursed his lips and swayed slightly, without saying much.
"What's the difference between the Zhu family's gatekeeper and the dog?"
King Lu took a few steps back, but still sneered, and then went to Queen Mother Li's palace with his hands behind his back.
For a moment, the maid next to Queen Mother Li saw King Lu coming and hurriedly opened the curtain and went in to report, but King Lu stopped her: "Don't worry, Man Nao, I have something to ask you, how about asking your mother to ask for it?"
"Your Highness, please don't mess around, these are all the Emperor's people!"
At this time, the female official next to Queen Mother Li came over and reminded King Lu.
King Lu then smiled sarcastically: "Madam, you misunderstood! I was just joking with her. If I really wanted her, I would have asked the emperor directly for her."
Then, King Lu came in first with a disappointed look on his face and bowed his hands in the outer room, saying: "My child, please give my regards to the queen!"
When Queen Mother Li saw King Lu coming, she immediately beamed and said, "My son is here!"
Immediately, Queen Mother Li let King Lu go in and sit on the same couch with her. She held him in her arms, rubbed King Lu's crown and asked, "How did you sleep last night?"
"Thanks to my mother, I sleep well every night after reading the Buddhist scriptures given by my mother."
King Lu replied.
Empress Dowager Li smiled: "That's good. The only thing I'm worried about now is you! After you leave the palace and live in another place, I'll be relieved if you can sleep peacefully. In the future, maybe it won't be difficult for you to become a vassal." "
When King Lu heard this, his expression became gloomy: "My child would like to spend more time with his mother and brother."
"How can it be done? The country has a system and the vassal king must become a vassal when he reaches his age. If you don't go now, you are already making an exception."
"Don't say such stupid things again."
Queen Mother Li pushed King Lu up and said this.
King Lu said "Hmm" and stood up and said, "Does the Queen know that Buddhist temples all over the world are experiencing difficulties now?"
"What's the problem?"
"Does someone really want your royal brother to destroy the Buddha?"
Queen Mother Li asked hurriedly.
"Not really!"
"It's because of the clearing of farmland in the past that the land of many Buddhist temples has been reduced a lot. Now many monks in the world are unable to survive. Many monks have to return to secular life. Many longevity lamps that pray for my great Ming Dynasty do not have enough lamp oil to light. !”
King Lu replied.
Empress Dowager Li frowned slightly after hearing this: "Don't I donate the rent of my own farmland to Buddhist temples all over the world every year? Why don't they have enough?"
"Nowadays, the world is in great power, so there are more masters and Buddhist temples praying for the Ming Dynasty. Naturally, your farmland, Queen Mother, is not enough."
"The main reason is that there are fewer monks. Many Buddhist temples that pray for blessings for the country are about to run out of lamp oil and ritual services. If there is such a sudden large-scale interruption, I'm afraid the Bodhisattva will blame it!"
When King Lu said this, he said to Queen Mother Li: "So, what they mean is, can the royal family exempt all temples and fields from taxes and corvee, so that they can prosper Buddhism and Taoism, and keep the Ming Dynasty peaceful and peaceful forever?"
"Li'er, kneel down!"
Queen Mother Li suddenly frowned and gave an order.
King Lu couldn't help but be startled.
Queen Mother Li became more serious for a moment: "Why, don't you even listen to your mother?"
King Lu hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed to the ground: "My son doesn't dare!"
Empress Dowager Li then looked at King Lu and pointed at him: "You, you, don't you know that your brother just allowed the Ming Dynasty to win two great victories in Mobei, plus the previous great achievements in pacifying Burma and conquering Japan, martial arts He is so illustrious, he benefits the noble ministers, and is kind to the common people. He is respected in the world and everyone calls him a saint! You actually want to ask me, your mother, to interfere with him. Do you really think that I can keep it forever? What's more, Your aunt has always been dissatisfied with you, especially because you often compete with your royal brother in luxury, and even want to get married like him! If she knew that it was your idea to allow Buddhist temples around the world to be exempted from taxes and corvee, do you think you could Are you alive?"
"My child realizes his mistake!"
"The child has put the mother in trouble!"
King Lu hurriedly pursed his lips and said something.
Seeing this, Queen Mother Li couldn't help feeling a little distressed and said: "Get up."
"yes!"
King Lu then stood up.
Empress Dowager Li still called him to sit next to her and said:
"The Queen Mother also wants you to live a better life as the vassal in the future, and take advantage of the wedding to get more benefits, but that is when you can copy Zhang Juzheng, and use the money obtained from Zhang Juzheng's family to open a shop and do business as the vassal. capital!”
"But now, Zhang Juzheng's house has not been raided, and your imperial brother has turned the imperial store into some kind of joint-stock system. The royal family only pays dividends, but the management is in the hands of the court. If a reward is given to you, the courtiers will naturally not do it. It affects the national funds and damages the foundation of the country!"
"So, now I can only aggrieve you! I will get less benefits. I will give you all the land that your imperial grandfather and father gave me after a hundred years. This is the only thing I can give you. The rest, Just don’t think about it!”
"Your mother, I am only a member of the harem after all. There are many things that I cannot say much about. What's more, your imperial brother is already old!"
"Yes, my child has remembered it."
King Lu couldn't hide his disappointment and replied.
Empress Dowager Li added: "Don't blame your imperial brother. He is an emperor who wants to do something great, and what he has done is bigger than I imagined!"
"It's really hard for me, a woman, to interfere anymore. Over the years, I have also seen that he is not my son alone. He is the monarch of the world and your monarch!"
"So, you have to understand that everything in the world belongs to him. What he gives to you is yours. If he doesn't give it to you, you can't ask for it, let alone take it without telling you!"
"But I'm not filial enough to my mother!"
"He guards against my mother as much as I guard against a thief."
Because King Lu was very disappointed, he couldn't help but express his inner feelings.
Queen Mother Li hurriedly glanced around and scolded in a low voice:
"Don't say this again!"
"That's how the emperor is! The closer he is to someone, the more he has to guard against him. Sometimes even keeping a closer eye on him is a kind of protection, to avoid fratricide in the future!"
"You have been spoiled so much by me since you were a child that you really don't know the dignity and inferiority of you!"
"Remember, if you want to be loved by everyone in the world because you are the emperor's younger brother, you must first love him. Without the supreme imperial power, you are nothing!"
(End of chapter)
