It was already Xu hour, the night was dark and the rain was heavy in Daxing City. The impromptu court meeting held in Chengqing Hall had concluded several major issues, so the solemn and oppressive atmosphere in the hall was swept away, replaced by light clouds, gentle breeze, and a vast sky.
In the process of secret fights and games between the monarchs and ministers in the palace, everyone is afraid that they will be plotted by others without knowing it, and they are in a state of concentration at all times. At this time, they had just come out of a tense state, and the atmosphere was extremely relaxed, as if the tension and imminence of the previous moment had nothing to do with them.
Naturally, Yang Guang would not let the civil and military ministers go home hungry in the rain. As he gave the order, the palace ladies on duty lined up to deliver dinner.
Empress Xiao was well prepared for this, and she thought it through very carefully. Not only did she have enough delicacies and wine, but she also had a good mix of meat and vegetables, and all the colors, flavors, and aromas. The royal chef across the way carefully cooked the palace delicacies. Even Su Wei, who had always had a sullen face, said a few dirty words that men could appreciate, and everyone laughed again.
After the meal, the emperors and ministers of the Sui Dynasty went to the Chengpang Hall to discuss "drought and flood relief", "the route of Yongji Canal - transporting materials along the coastline", "private checkpoints in Tongji Canal", "corruption in Huanghuai officialdom", "all states and regions". Issues such as "Conducting Imperial Examinations" and "Diversion of the Southern Navy to the North - Establishment of the Northern Navy" were further discussed.
These major issues have been agreed upon through previous open and covert debates; the content discussed after the meal was mainly about making up for the implementation plan of the major issues and striving to achieve perfection. As for the ministers representing the large and small factions, before the problem has arisen, they have no rights or positions to compete for, which also makes the overall atmosphere completely different from before the meal. Everyone seemed very active and brave enough to express their opinions and opinions.
Lower-level officials are all people with flexible minds and have been in power for many years. Everyone has rich experience as an official and general. Although the main purpose of their speech is to take the opportunity to express themselves in front of the emperor and superior officials, hoping to win the emperor's favor. They are appreciated by the chief officials, but they are definitely not low-end braggarts or flatterers. The opinions and opinions they express are every word and every sentence is logical, and the problems and solutions they propose are even more penetrating and to the point.
When dozens of smart people worked together and discussed together, they not only discovered many problems and errors that were previously unknown, but also solved them one by one. Everyone kept talking until late at night. "Yang Bapi" Yang Guang saw that the generals' talents were temporarily squeezed and dried up. Many issues took a long time to think about before they could say a word. Only then did he end the "night talk by candlelight" with satisfaction but some unfinished thoughts. Meeting" and ordered the palace guards to send all the princes and ministers back to their respective mansions.
Yang Ji left the palace and went to Pingkangfang under the escort of the imperial guards and palace guards. Although it was already past the curfew time, and the square gates and the Qu gates had all closed their doors, the palace guards and Yang Ji himself both had special badges that allowed them to pass through without any obstruction for twelve hours, which were called Kaifangmen and Qumen respectively. , and went straight to the nearby west gate of the palace.
Yang was strong and energetic, but after all the hard work in Chengqing Palace, he was exhausted. Today, he had a fight with his opponent in the morning court, then returned home to meet and interview Wei Yuanzhao. Shortly after lunch, he asked Yang Guang to go to the palace.
He had been there for nearly half a day. In the Chengqing Hall, he first engaged in intrigues and intrigues with representatives of large and small factions, and then became the target of Yang Guang's key squeeze and attack. He felt that today's hard work and mental exhaustion were so deep that they were far away from him. Far more than facing Bujia Khan's army directly and storming Dangjin City.
But recalling Yang Guang, who was energetic, energetic and full of ideas, Yang Ji felt sincere admiration. That guy was so busy and tired every day, fighting against major factions every day, yet he enjoyed it, indulged in it, and was so busy. There are even so many beautiful women in the palace that there is no time to visit and taste them.
If you think carefully about Yang Guang's behavior of occupying the manhole and not taking a shit, it is actually a waste of money and extravagance. Just because Yang Guang has caused a lot of waste of beautiful women, Yang Ji feels that he deserves to be called extravagant and wasteful. , The extravagant and lustful king.
Of course, Yang Ji himself seems to have wasted a lot of beautiful women! It is true that the aristocratic family calls him the female god king, but like Yang Guang, he himself does not have the consciousness and awareness to waste resources.
While Yang Ji was thinking wildly,
He walked to the master bedroom at the back, and when he got outside the master bedroom, he put away his inexplicable thoughts and quickened his pace without sleeping, because he saw from a distance that the orange light under the master bedroom window was still on softly. Unconsciously, my heart was filled with tenderness.
For Yang Ji, who returns home at night, the light is a warm home and a peaceful harbor. The lights that shine in my heart will never go out.
Entering the outer room of the master bedroom, Yang Ji saw three wives and a concubine talking and embroidering under the lamp at a glance. The four women were all stunningly beautiful in the world, but they had different styles and temperaments. If a flower is used as a metaphor for a person, then Xiao Ying's graceful and luxurious white peony seems to have a pure and scholarly atmosphere coming out of her bones, giving people a crystal clear, ethereal and elegant feeling; Pei Shuying is like a delicate and innocent flower, bright and bright. The rose is adorable in its appearance of being both happy and angry; Liu Rumei is like a plum blossom blooming proudly in the snow, full of vitality, pure and beautiful, giving people a feeling of being brave and vigorous despite the wind and snow; as for the last entry, Zhang Chuchen is like a fiery red rose. The magnificent branches are like flames burning with beauty and youth. They are so energetic and vital. Although she has thorns, people who are close to her can feel it. Her passion, her unyielding loyalty,
Looking at the four girls under the lamp, Yang Ji's heartstrings relaxed, and a smile couldn't help but bloom on his lips. However, his exhausted look surprised the four women who were silently waiting for her husband's return. They quickly ordered someone to bring hot water from the bathroom and personally helped Yang Ji bathe and change clothes.
After washing up, Yang Ji put on a pair of loose home clothes. His fatigue seemed to be gone, but the fatigue from his bones was still visible to the attentive Xiao Ying.
She turned her head slightly and looked at Yang Ji who was sitting on the couch. She saw that the profile of his face illuminated by the light was no longer as bright as before. The soft lines were full of tiredness. She asked with distress and concern: "Mr. Lang, today Why are you back so late? Look how tired you are."
Yang Ji said helplessly: "I want to come back early. I don't even want to go to the palace, but the emperor summoned the civil and military ministers to discuss many important matters. After discussing the major matters, they continued to discuss endlessly. What can I do?"
Pei Shuying poured a cup of hot ginseng tea for Yang Ji and asked, "Mr. Lang has offended a lot of people today, right?" As she spoke, a smile appeared on her lips.
Xiao Ying, Liu Rumei, and Zhang Chuchen were all speechless when they heard this. However, they carefully thought about Yang Ji's actions in the court and his self-definition, and found that offending others seemed to be the norm for Yang Ji as an official. If he If someone goes home from a court meeting without offending someone, they might be surprised.
"I'm just discussing the matter. I don't seem to have offended anyone today. Even if I offended some people in some places, I am not the protagonist today..." Yang Ji said this and silently summarized today's experience in his heart, laughing. He turned to Xiao Ying and said, "The main reason is because your brother Xiao Jue blocked me."
The formation of the Northern Navy was based on 70% of the strength of the Southern Navy. Although Yang Ji didn't know much about the Navy, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Navy, Zhou Fashang, was an upright person; but Yang Ji never The letters of Yang Zhiji and Liu Fang know that corruption in the Southern Navy is very serious. Once the responsible and upright Zhou Fashang takes over 70% of the Southern Navy's strength in the north, he will definitely launch a vigorous rectification.
Although the rectification is beneficial to the country and the army, this move will sacrifice a large number of corrupt generals installed by the Guanlong nobles in the navy; when the time comes, the Guanlong nobles who have benefited will definitely settle this account and fight for it. , Xiao Jue, who competed to win over Zhang Jin, rather than Zhou Fashang, who was specifically responsible for fighting corruption.
"What did Sixth Brother do to make Mr. Nai Lang so happy? Can you tell us about it and make us happy too?" Xiao Ying saw Yang Ji beaming with joy, and her heart was filled with Pei Shuying, Liu Rumei, and Zhang Chuchen. They were also full of curiosity, and since Yang Ji did not prohibit them from "knowing and asking about politics," they took advantage of the situation and asked.
Yang Ji explained the cause and effect of the incident, and then said with some gloating: "The sixth son of the Xiao family performed very dazzlingly and behaved very manly today. If Zhou Fashang is in place and works hard to fight against corruption in the Navy, then he will The families of the captured generals will all settle the score on Xiao Laoliu."
Xiao Ying, like Yang Ji, is a junior, but she is not yet married.
When she was young, she had been studying and playing with her nephews and nieces; among her peers, only Xiao Yu was willing to take their younger children to study, so she had no regard for those brothers and sisters who were old enough to be her father or her mother. Not much affection, not much closeness. The fifth eldest child of the Xiao family, Xiao Xun, was adopted by Xiao Cong, Xiao Jing, Xiao Jue and others to her biological mother, Mrs. Xiao, and became her biological brother, so she gradually became close to Xiao Xun's family.
As for other people's status in Xiao Ying's heart, she is still the same as before. She doesn't care much about how the other person is doing, especially the Xiao family's sudden move away from the political arena after taking countless benefits from Yang Ji. , making her extremely uncomfortable and dissatisfied. After listening to Yang Ji's explanation, Xiao Ying met her husband's warm gaze and said in a comment-like manner: "Since ancient times, in officialdom, what you gain must be paid, and where there is a cause, there must be a result. Since the Sixth Brother allowed the southern gentry to conquer the north, The master has gained great benefits, and he will naturally inherit the consequences."
"Due to the incident involving the Northern Navy, the southern gentry and the Guanlong nobles are probably going to have a big fight. Until the fight comes to nothing, the Central Plains, Guanzhong, Shandong, Hedong and other factions will definitely choose to sit back and watch. Tigers fight. However, the Guanlong nobles between the two are at the top of the world, with power over the world and the government. Even if the major political factions join forces to compete, they may not be able to defeat them. The Xiao family, as the representative of the southern gentry, is not strong enough. , how can we face the counterattack of the Guanlong nobles alone?"
After pondering for a moment, Xiao Ying looked at Yang Ji with sparkling eyes, smiled sweetly and said: "Mr. Lang, in my opinion, once the southern gentry is weak, the faction will definitely support Guan Guan either openly or covertly out of practical interests. Long camp. At that time, the southern nobles probably thought of Lang Jun again and wanted to work closely with him again."
Xiao Ying is Bingxue smart, with the courage of the master of the house and the wisdom of a lady and a princess. Although her lack of knowledge and experience means that her ability, courage, and vision are far inferior to those of her well-informed mother-in-law, she still understands propriety, advances and retreats, and is aware of current affairs. Although her husband "granted" the sisters knowledge and political power, no matter how anxious she was and how tense the situation was, she never said any stupid words such as "you should be like this, you must only do this, and you can do that", let alone He is not too impatient to boss around and boss around his husband and sisters, so he is deeply loved by the whole family.
This time, she was like this too. After she finished speaking her opinion, she stopped talking. As for whether her husband would choose between the Guanlong aristocracy and the southern gentry in the future, he and his staff would have their own opinions and choices, and there was no need for her, a woman in the back house, to make irresponsible remarks.
After listening to Xiao Ying's words, Yang Ji also fell into deep thought. As Xiao Ying said: The Xiao family is the head of the southern noble clan, and he is the spokesman for the interests of the royal family and the royal family. Therefore, when Xiao Cong, Xiao Jue and other official people interact with him, most of them treat him as the Xiao family and the royal family. The leaders of the Southern Faction were self-interested and put friendship first when communicating. However, in order to continue the friendship between the two families and prevent them from drifting apart and becoming hostile, they specially adopted Xiao Xun to Yang Ji's mother-in-law. , let him be responsible for maintaining personal friendship with the palace; with this arrangement, the direct line will focus on practical benefits, and Xiao Xun will be responsible for friendship.
Yang Ji should make targeted contacts with the Xiao family brothers according to the arrangements of the Xiao family. In the future, when facing Xiao Cong, Xiao Jue, Xiao Jing, Xiao Yu and others, or when they are playing games in the court, everything will matter. Putting yourself and the interests of the King Wei family first, don't be polite to them, don't talk to them about affection; but when facing Xiao Xun, he reversed it. I found the wrong person.
Looking back now, when he first came to visit and recognized Xiao Xun as his brother-in-law, Xiao Cong and Xiao Jue seemed to have solemnly reminded him, but he didn't take it to heart or take it seriously, so he treated it as Yang Guang's After returning to Liangzhou, he was delayed by the attack on Tuyuhun and other messy things, so he forgot the reminder from the Xiao brothers. The reason why he is not used to the sudden indifference of the Xiao family and the Pei family is that he has misplaced Yang Ji and found the wrong person.
Yang Ji thought of this and secretly smiled bitterly: A few days ago, he proudly boasted of accurate positioning, but now he knows what it means to be a true master of self-positioning.
, what does it mean to be slapped in the face by reality, what does it mean to be a thousand miles away from the slightest difference. Xiao Ying's last words, especially the sentence "I guess she thought of Lang Jun's kindness and wanted to work closely with Lang Jun", made him think deeply, and also made him find an opportunity to deepen cooperation with the southern nobles:
In Yang Ji's view, the southern gentry will definitely not be able to defeat the Guanlong nobles, while the other factions are more or less related to the major lords of the Guanlong and Southern factions. The battle between the southern factions and the Guanlong factions is in full swing, and the outcome Before it was hard to tell, out of consideration for their own interests, they must have sat on the mountain and watched the fight between tigers, as Xiao Ying said, instead of entering the scene immediately. Once the southern nobles are unable to defeat the Guanlong nobles and other factions are laughingly reaping the benefits, 90% of the time Xiao Jue will come to seek cooperation with the Wei Wang faction and the royal family. If they cooperate again, the two and three factions will have a common enemy, and their relationship will become closer because of the powerful enemy of the Guanlong nobles.
But when and how much effort the King Wei and the "Royal Family" headed by Yang Ji will take action depends on how much strength the southern nobles give up, and everything depends on the situation and the trend. If the situation at that time was serious and the two could not defeat the Guanlong nobles together, then they could just let go.
Thinking of this, Yang Ji suddenly became enlightened and his mind became clear. It was getting very late at this time. After the five members had a brief exchange, Pei Shuying, Liu Rumei, and Zhang Chuchen went back to their rooms to sleep, leaving Yang Ji with the doctor.
Before going to bed, Yang Ji suddenly thought that there was still something big to arrange--that is, to kill Yuan Min and Li Shimin. But it was too late to give orders at this time, because he and Xiao Ying had something big to do soon.
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[I wish my brothers and sisters all the best and good health to my family in the new year! 】
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