While the debate in Daye Hall entered the high "chao", Queen Xiao and several sisters, several princesses, and a group of ladies and ladies talked in low voices, and bursts of laughter occasionally occurred.
Princess Qinghe, the youngest birthday star, knelt down next to her aunt and uncle, her little hands folded and placed gently between her legs.
The little princess was born pink and jade, as if the Creator had concentrated all the beauty and loveliness in the world on her. Her white and tender little face was rosy, and her pair of big black eyes were pure and clear; When she was there, even a murderous demon would not be able to swing a bloody butcher knife.
At this moment, she was blinking her big, pitiful, black-and-white eyes, looking at this and that with despair.
She was almost bored to death with these women. Even a little kid like her thought their words and smiles were so fake. Don’t they themselves know?
Her two big bony eyes suddenly showed a little fear, and her body trembled slightly. She saw Mrs. Zhao again.
This old woman named Mrs. Dugu is very old, and the thick powder and makeup cannot fill up the wrinkles on her face, and her bare gums are exposed when she smiles; but her clothes and makeup are more like a little girl than her; When she spoke, she was even more arrogant, causing goosebumps all over her body.
But the most uncomfortable thing was when the aunt asked her to recognize the person, the strong and pungent aroma from Mrs. Dugu's body made her almost vomit.
However, the aunt, grandma, and sister all praised her beauty.
I really don’t understand these women!
"Hong'er, what's wrong?" Mother and daughter were sitting very close. Queen Xiao saw the young master's body trembling and asked with concern.
The little princess turned her head and said in fear: "Auntie, I'm afraid!"
"What are you afraid of? What's so good..." Empress Xiao followed her gaze, and her eyes lowered in horror.
This Mrs. Dugu is Dugu Xin's step-sibling, Mrs. Guo, who is already eighty-six years old this year. Several of her own sons have died, but she has managed to survive until now. Not only has she survived, but she is also stronger than her fifth son, Dugu Shun.
When people get older, their temperaments change drastically, and Mrs. Dugu is no exception. When she was young, she treated Luo's son Dugu Luo, Queen Dugu, and mother Cui in every possible way. Now she is a very chic and elegant little old lady. , what is unbearable is that she is so old, wearing heavy makeup and clothes that reveal half of her withered breasts.
Take now for example, not to mention wearing fancy clothes, and apply thick white powder on your face, shave all your eyebrows and eyelashes, and then draw two straight and thick red lines on the eyebrows, and dot them under the eyes. There are many "black moles", not only that, she also painted her lips purple and black.
Her ghostly appearance makes people think of ghosts.
It looks like a ghost, that's how it should be.
No wonder the little princess is still scared after watching it for so long.
However, Empress Xiao knew that the heavy incense on her body was not to pursue fragrance, but to cover up the unpleasant smell unique to the old man.
In fact, in the early years, Dugu Shun, Dugu Tuo, and Dugu Zheng all felt embarrassed for her, so they took the risk of being unfilial and reformed their mother, but she just refused to listen.
The Dugu brothers have heads as big as buckets and feel that the only one who can transform her is Queen Dugu. Unexpectedly, she did not give Queen Dugu any face, and actually rolled on the ground and cried loudly!
Queen Dugu was completely defeated, and finally persuaded the Dugu brothers to accept their fate!
"Auntie, is she beautiful?" The little princess blinked her big eyes and asked quietly.
"Haha!" Empress Xiao faced those clear eyes full of curiosity, smiled awkwardly, and replied speciously: "You will know when you grow up."
"Really?" The little princess was puzzled. Mrs. Dugu is so ugly, but the aunt and grandma are the real beauty. Why does the aunt always avoid talking about her?
Queen Xiao was afraid that she would ask something weird, so she looked at the main hall door and ignored this curious little baby.
Ever since she learned that Yang Ji had been impeached by countless ministers, more than half of her mind was outside the palace, worrying about what was going on in Daye Palace.
She was not worried about Yang Ji, but worried about the emperor losing his temper.
Today is not only the Shuo Dynasty when no government affairs are discussed, but it is also the birthday of the emperor's beloved child. However, on this great day, those ministers impeached his most trusted brother. If his bad temper breaks out, who can resist it? ?
Those ministers really picked a "good day" to commit suicide!
Empress Xiao couldn't help but look up at Dugu Min, Xiao Ying, and Pei Shuying. They were talking and laughing with the two fat boys who were screaming, without any sense of nervousness. This discovery made Queen Xiao dumbfounded. This whole family was so big-hearted that they all gathered together.
"See the queen!" At this time, a chamberlain entered the hall and bowed.
Queen Xiao asked: "How is the situation?"
The ladies and ladies, who were silently paying attention to the situation but laughing awkwardly, immediately stopped talking and looked at the chamberlain who walked in.
Dugu Min calmly put down the tea cup in his hand, and his daughter-in-law, who was also calm, also took a look.
"Dozens of ministers headed by Cui Xiangguo impeached King Wei in the name of going militancy. King Wei followed his trend and impeached all the living and dead generals, including the saint and the founding King Zhao of Wei. Those officials were furious, saying that King Wei had no purpose. Your father, you must be punished for his crime." said the chamberlain.
These words were like a thunderbolt from the blue, causing all the ladies and noble ladies to change their expressions, and the whispering among each other gradually became noisy.
"Cui Xiangguo and Cui Libu want to kill King Wei?" a lady frowned.
"Mrs. Zhao, it is a serious crime to 'have no king and father, and he shall be punished for his crime', and Cui Xiangguo is leading the impeachment; I am afraid that King Wei will not be able to benefit this time." The companion said with gloating.
Princess Qi looked at the Crown Princess above her and asked, "Sister, will something happen to Uncle Wang?"
Princess Qi was very grateful to Yang Ji as her uncle. Ever since Yang Jian came back from the north with him, he seemed to be a new person; he no longer went out to mess around with flowers and do evil things. After returning, he took care of the palace of Prince Qi, which was full of exotic flowers and plants. The garden was bulldozed and replaced by a paddy field and a dry field.
Then he suddenly wanted to help rice and wheat get married. He believed that the child born from rice and wheat would have the advantage of the rice father (mother) with high yield and not afraid of water, and the wheat mother (father) with drought and cold tolerance. The advantage is that if this child is born, it can be planted anywhere and in any season. In this way, the people of the Sui Dynasty no longer have to worry about "eating".
Although Princess Qi thought he was whimsical, her husband finally entered the right path, and she happily supported her. When the couple saw that the plants next to the hot springs also grew well in autumn, they asked the craftsmen to make many large plates and put various kinds of them on them. After all kinds of grain seeds were spread on the plate, they were taken to the big house above the hot spring to raise seedlings. Now they have sprouted. But the problem of rice and wheat giving birth to children has always troubled them, and even the experienced "farmers" of Sinong Temple can't answer it.
Nowadays, Yang Xian sits by the hot spring all day long, either reading various agricultural books or just in a daze. His change was due to Yang Ji, and Princess Qi was very grateful. At this moment, she heard that Yang Ji was impeached, but he impeached the saint, which made her a little worried about Yang Ji who saved their family.
The Crown Princess frowned and said, "No one in our court will be convicted for their words. Cui Xiangguo impeached Uncle Wang, perhaps because he offended someone."
Princess Qi nodded silently.
Empress Xiao suppressed the surprise in her heart and ordered the female officer: "Go on and listen."
Some married women looked at Dugu Min's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law with amusement. But more eyes fell on Xiao Ying next to Dugu Min.
"Old madam, is that the princess? She does look a bit colorful." An old woman with gray hair and gorgeous clothes sitting next to Cui Zhongfang's wife asked "curiously".
Mrs. Cui smiled and said with a somewhat profound look in her eyes: "It is Princess Wei, she is the daughter of the Xiao family."
As the wife of the Prime Minister, Mrs. Cui knows a lot about the family situations of Yang Ji and others through the mouths of others in her family.
Mrs. Cui’s grandson-in-law comes from the Wang family in Taiyuan. She is not bad looking, but she is not much different from Xiao Ying and Pei Shuying. She then said with ulterior motives: "Grandma, the women of the southern gentry have always been praised for their beauty and beauty, but in this case There doesn’t seem to be a long-lasting way to live in the back house, right?”
Mrs. Cui glanced at her grandson's daughter-in-law and said: "The princess of Wei Wang is said to be the concubine of the Xiao family. If she is not beautiful, how can she be qualified to be the princess of Wei Wang."
Mrs. Wang smiled and said: "The young boy of King Wei admires Ai and is fascinated by women. I think it is possible."
Jealousy is the nature of many powerful women. The older ones and the younger ones are better off. Those who are already married and of similar age are jealous of Xiao Ying's good fortune and good looks. It was better before, but now when they heard that Yang Ji had caused a big disaster, there were more and more ladies and ladies secretly pointing and whispering to Xiao Ying, and the calmness of their mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was also said to be... Hypocritical.
In fact, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were really not worried. During the long waiting process, they had reached a consensus: they agreed that nothing could happen to Yang Ji because he did not have any political stain that could be criticized.
Are you saying he is corrupt? Haha... Dugu Min's son, Yang Hao and Yang Ming's father, do they need to be corrupt? Do you need to be greedy for that little money?
"The Rebirth of Financial Giants"
Are you saying he is lustful? That's the most ridiculous thing in the world. Not to mention that there are so many beauties at home, even if he really wants to find a little bitch outside to give his teeth to a priest, he only needs to tell his family and they will automatically come to him. There is no need. Robbery. What's more, he is not lewd. Looking at his restraint when it comes to women, even if he really wants to eat, I'm afraid he will eat it in the nest instead of looking for it outside.
Are you saying he is greedy for power? Then it doesn't exist anymore. The seemingly intimidating pile of official positions were not obtained by being cunning and harming the people of the country, but were obtained by the late emperor and the emperor shamelessly. If he doesn't want it, what can he do? Who is to blame?
You said he formed a clique? Of course it's not right either. He is a solitary traveler in the capital; in Liangzhou, he has nothing to do with everything. If the emperor does not urge him to take office, he can stay in the capital for the rest of his life, and then lock himself in the mansion. If you let him go out, he will Don't do it.
Of course, the most important thing is that Yang Ji played an indispensable role in the Sui Dynasty and the emperor. To put it bluntly, it is the emperor who needs Yang Ji very much now, not Yang Ji who needs the emperor. In this case, how could the emperor kill Yang Ji just because he casually "had no father"?
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law eliminated all these tricks one by one, and naturally they were more calm than everyone else.
And because of the two little girls, they have become very peaceful and happy recently, and their mood is different from before. They think that a family without trouble and trouble is a beautiful thing in the world. It is not very important whether Yang Ji is an official or not. In the future, their mentality may change again, but at least for now, this is what they think.
Their calm state of mind and the calmness they showed fell into the eyes of all the caring people in the palace, but the taste changed again.
Soon, several more chamberlains reported: "Queen, King Wei also impeached Cui Xiangguo, asked the saint to remove him from office, and had a dispute with a group of officials, but they were all defeated by King Wei."
As soon as these words came out, the expressions of the women who were closely related to Cui Zhongfang changed drastically. They know that if they are "asked down" during a dispute, it means that the situation will become very unfavorable, and the result will often come soon.
The ladies and ladies in the hall were also knowledgeable. Upon hearing this, they all stopped whispering, making the whole hall seem very quiet.
Empress Xiao looked at Mrs. Cui, whose smile was frozen on her face, and then turned to the chamberlain and asked: "Is it time for the court meeting to end? How did the saint handle this matter?"
"I report to the queen, the court meeting has been dispersed." The leader of the chamberlain met the scorching eyes, sweatdropped, and he bowed and said: "The saint appointed Cui Xiangguo as the governor of Dingzhou, and appointed Xue Wei, minister of Dali Temple. As the governor of Chongzhou, he appointed Cui Junsu, the minister of Chaoye, as a doctor of Taixue, appointed his secretary, Du Zhengxuan, as the magistrate of Mozhou County, Mozhou, demoted Liu Kui, a doctor in the driving department, to the people, and appointed..."
"This..." After hearing this, some unsophisticated ladies and noble ladies in the palace were a little confused for a moment, and suddenly became confused.
Is this a ban or a demotion?
What does the saint mean by this?
The knowledgeable people knew that the dispute had been settled, and they all looked sympathetically at the seat where the Cui family was sitting. They saw Mrs. Cui's old face full of fear, and her old body was constantly trembling.
Dugu Min hugged her grandson and glanced at the pale Mrs. Cui, with a sneer on her lips, as if to say, 'Your family is finished!'
Mrs. Cui had finally seen a worldly person, and she tried her best to calm herself down. She stood up tremblingly, with an ugly smile on her face, and saluted Queen Xiao: "Queen, I am not feeling well. Please forgive me for not being able to attend the banquet, as well as the wife of Cui Mansion. Please leave."
Rather than being criticized here, it would be better to leave this place and be out of sight and out of mind. As the old lady resigned, more than a dozen ladies and noble ladies of the Cui family also stood up and saluted with ugly faces.
"Crown Princess, Nanyang, please send off to the old lady on my behalf." Empress Xiao looked at the gray-haired old lady Cui, and sighed secretly: After this separation, I am afraid that we will never see each other again, so we should get together and part ways. Bar.
Not long after Cui's daughter Juan left, it was almost noon. Empress Xiao ordered the Shang Food Bureau to prepare a feast in the side hall for the guests!
After some commotion among the ladies and ladies in the palace, they slowly calmed down and did not dare to continue discussing the outcome that had already happened.
In life, being too smart may not be a good thing.
.
.
.
.
At the same time, Yang Guang also hosted a banquet for more than ten important ministers in the side hall of Tongming Shoudian.
Tongming Hall is located to the west of Xuanzheng Hall, where the Chang Dynasty is held, and to the southwest of Renshou Hall, Yang Guang's "outer study". It is the place where he meets and receives individual courtiers.
Like other palaces, Tongming Palace is not an isolated palace, but a palace and garden complex named after Tongming Palace. It covers a vast area and has many palaces, and is divided into two parts, the front and the back. The front part is composed of a main hall and two side halls, while the back part is an imperial garden full of pavilions, rockeries and lotus ponds, and winding corridors.
Among the officials who participated in the emperor's little banquet, in addition to the unshakable Yang Ji, there were also Yang Xiong, Yang Da, Yang Hong, Gao Jiong, Su Wei, Xiao Cong, Pei Ju, Changsun Chi, Niu Hong, Yu Wenkai, and Yu Wenbi. , Xiao Jue, Zhang Heng, Li Ziquan, Zhou Fashang and others.
What is more intriguing is that the most popular candidate to succeed Yang Su as prime minister, the internal historian Yang Yue, is not among them. However, Zhang Heng, the imperial censor, participated in this highest-level banquet in the Sui Dynasty for the first time.
Zhang Heng was born in the Zhang family in Huaizhou. He first served in the Northern Zhou Dynasty and moved to the position of official. After Yang Jian deposed the Zhou Dynasty and established the Sui Dynasty, he was an important staff member of Yang Guang during the period when Yangzhou was merged with the state. Yang Guang was named the crown prince and became the crown prince You Shuzi. He also served as the minister of Huangmen and tried his best to help Yang Guang secure his position as prince. Yang Guang ascended the throne as emperor, rewarded his close ministers for their merits, and named Zhang Heng, a talented, learned and upright doctor, as Yushi Dafu and Yinqing Guanglu Dafu, in charge of supervising the affairs of the court.
The Zhang family, headed by Zhang Heng, is considered a member of the Central Plains gentry. This time Yang Guang asked him to stay and participate in the banquet, indicating that the phase representing the Central Plains gentry would most likely fall into the hands of Zhang Heng, not Yang Su's brother Yang Yue.
Compared with Zhang Heng, Li Ziquan attracts more attention.
Since the death of Wei Chong, Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Yang Wensi, the left minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, has been a popular candidate to become minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. However, Yang Guang now turned a deaf ear to him and summoned Li Ziquan, the right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. In addition, Li Ziquan is a core figure of the Li family in Zhao County and the most important member of the Shandong gentry. As soon as Cui Zhongfang was sent back to his hometown today, he was called by the emperor to attend the banquet.
The two phases are superimposed together, and Li Ziquan is very likely to become the biggest winner of the Yang family's troubles and Cui Zhongfang's secret curtain call.
Zhang Heng and Li Ziquan are brilliant, but they also reflect the emperor's dissatisfaction and alienated attitude towards the Yang family's recent performance, but who can blame them? Wasn't it caused by the Yang family's own suicide?
Thinking about the Yang family's series of underhanded tactics, many important ministers couldn't help but feel sorry for Yang Su, whose body was still cold!
In addition, the highest-ranking Zhou Fashang also attracted attention. More than two months ago, Yang Guang dismissed him from the post of governor of Shuzhou and general manager of Shuzhou, and was ordered to serve in the court. However, he has not yet received a new appointment, which made many officials think that his career was over. However, now, he was also called to participate in this banquet.
Obviously, the emperor made the decision to reuse Zhou Fashang.
If he satisfies the emperor, he may not be unable to obtain the phase representing Jiangnan.
