At this juncture, is there anyone in the new emperor's camp who is more die-hard than the new emperor's concubines?
Ying Zheng took advantage of the opportunity of the clan's female family members to visit the palace and quietly mentioned the matter to Princess Zhou. He said that he wanted to check the palace accounts and asked Princess Zhou to select a few capable people in the palace to help.
The new emperor came from the Zhou Palace, and the relationship with the Zhou Palace was one of prosperity and loss. Since Princess Zhou knew that the Empress Dowager was not holding the water well, how could she not help her son?
Ask him to have a few capable people around him, and have the Shang Palace Bureau and the Palace Province in his hands early, so that he can sleep more peacefully at night.
The people who entered the palace had been selected by the Prince of Zhou a long time ago. They were all children of the Prince's family. They all knew the details and felt honored to be able to serve in the palace. At this time, the Prince of Zhou and his wife listened to their son's words, and the next day they sent him to the palace. The candidate was sent to the palace.
Ying Zheng kept two nuns with him, and the rest were assigned to the Shanggong Bureau. Several middle-aged men were given low-level official status according to the system and sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Whether it is the Shang Palace Bureau or the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they are all institutions that exist to serve the emperor. It is reasonable for the emperor to add a few people to them.
…
There was no queen in the palace at that time. After the new concubines entered the palace, they went to greet the empress dowager every day to show their filial piety. However, the empress dowager was quiet by nature and could not bear to be disturbed, so she asked them to order it every five days. Once in a while, that's it.
In this way, the concubines felt at ease.
During this free time, it is inevitable that many thoughts will arise.
Those who want to seek a future may want to see if they can bribe the palace servants around the emperor. If they meet by chance, they may be favored and give birth to a prince before the emperor is crowned queen.
Those with a Buddhist background do not like fighting and are afraid of causing trouble for their family. They just want to live their lives in peace. Except for going with their colleagues to greet the Empress Dowager every five days, they close the palace door and live in peace. day.
It's just that everyone who can enter the palace has been pinched by the ear before leaving home and told to think carefully before acting. Don't do anything crazy in a hot head.
Especially if Feng Zhaoyi is the leader in everything, don't be stupid and rush forward. You can't steal someone's strong relationship.
So everyone stared at Cuiwei Palace.
When they heard that Feng Zhaoyi had sent soup to Tai Chi Palace, but only stayed there for half an hour, and was not summoned by the emperor since then, they all stopped thinking and put away their lofty sentiments for the time being.
In terms of status, Feng Zhaoyi is the most noble.
In terms of appearance, it is also top-notch.
If Feng Zhaoyi couldn't do something, don't think too highly of yourself.
Take a shower and go to sleep.
After that, the Queen Mother fell ill, and the concubines became more and more respectful in their greetings. Not only did they not want to call Feng Zhaoyi the prettiest, but they also wanted to meet the Emperor by chance - Your Majesty, the most filial person, would visit the Queen Mother every day.
They had met by chance a few times, but the emperor's eyes swept over them without stopping for a moment, as if he was seeing a group of gray-faced chamberlains instead of a group of gorgeous beauties in their prime.
After a period of time, the Empress Dowager's health gradually improved, and Feng Zhaoyi was promoted to Concubine Shu. All the concubines could only mutter a few words in their stomachs: "I am from a good family background, and I am the Empress Dowager's niece. I can't envy her." and then endured it. Sour went to Cuiwei Palace to express his congratulations.
With these foreshadowings, the concubines and concubines greeted the Empress Dowager through the curtains in the Xingqing Palace. When they went out, they met the Emperor. They just knelt down to greet him as usual, but there was no disturbance in their hearts.
Unexpectedly, the young emperor glanced at them extraordinarily softly, as if they had suddenly transformed from a group of disgraced servants into a group of docile and cute lambs.
Then some chamberlains went to keep the people and signaled them to wait for a while before going to the inner hall to visit the Empress Dowager.
Just like throwing a catfish into a stagnant water, the water suddenly came to life.
Tao Meiren stroked her hair, which had only a pearl hairpin in it, and began to worry about why she only wanted to wear it when she went out, but she didn't wear the goose-yellow skirt.
This morning I wanted to come to pay my respects to the Queen Mother who was lying in bed. I didn’t want to be too bright, and my clothes were too plain and simple!
Ding Jieyu quickly took out the lipstick from her sleeve, dipped a little with her fingertips, and applied it lightly on her lips.
When she turned around again, she saw that Mei Xue was about to speak but stopped.
She hesitated for a while, then handed over the small box of lipstick.
Xue Meiren was flattered: "Sister Ding, thank you very much!"
Then someone else looked over.
A sheep is being driven, and a group of sheep is being herded. Ding Jieyu was simply generous for once.
The lipstick was passed on one after another, and the beauties looked more and more delicate, and when their eyes met back and forth, they also became more familiar.
They stood in the courtyard, waiting for their upcoming fate.
Chapter 15
The Empress Dowager was so annoyed with Ying Zheng that she couldn't bear to talk to him. After saying a few words, she pretended to be tired and leaned down on the bed with her eyes closed to rest.
Ying Zheng was not angry when he saw this. He spoke pleasantly to the attendants around the Empress Dowager, asking how the Empress Dowager had eaten today, what the imperial doctor said after diagnosing her pulse, and waited for the palace officials to bring freshly prepared medicine as usual. , seeing that the Queen Mother was using it, she got up and left.
The Empress Dowager just closed her eyes, and her mind was full of out of sight and out of mind. After a while, a confidant came over quietly and reported: "When His Majesty entered the palace earlier, the concubines were finishing their greetings. Your Majesty asked them to stay. Now, When His Majesty went out, he took them away with him."
The Queen Mother frowned slightly, opened her eyes and asked, "Where have you been?"
The confidant said: "Looking at the direction we are going, it seems to be the West Pavilion."
The Empress Dowager's expression moved slightly.
Emperor Jingzong of this dynasty had been weak and sick since he was a child, and he couldn't bear the troubles of government affairs.
At that time, Empress Wang of Mingci was Zhaorong. She was intelligent, enlightened, and decisive in temperament. She was quite favored. And because her family background was not obvious and she had no worries about relatives, she was granted permission by Jingzong to participate in the government affairs.
Because Wang Zhaorong was in the harem, it was inconvenient to walk in the former dynasty, and courtiers and scholars were also not allowed to enter the inner palace without permission. Therefore, Jingzong ordered the West Pavilion to be built next to the library between the three provincial government offices and the inner palace, which was expedient.
After that, Wang Zhaorong gave birth to a prince and was canonized as a queen. His authority increased day by day, and Xige became the center of power second only to Taiji Palace. This is how the Xige Bachelor, who was once famous for a while, got his name.
After Jingzong, Empress Mingcui's son Mu Zong succeeded to the throne. At that time, Empress Mingcui was in her prime. Mu Zong was controlled by his mother for more than ten years before he could rule personally. He was inevitably depressed. Therefore, after the death of Empress Mingcui, he ordered the abolition of the West Pavilion. Bachelor, the West Pavilion, which was once almost on par with Tai Chi Palace, gradually disappeared into the dust of history.
Several generations passed like this. When Mingzong was still alive, he read the history books of the dynasty and was impressed by the achievements of Queen Mingcu. He specially repaired the increasingly abandoned West Pavilion and used it as a place for princes and princesses to study. It has been followed as a routine since then.
When the late emperor was alive, he only had three melons and two dates. The West Pavilion, as a royal kindergarten, was almost in a state of neglect. When Zhang Shuyuan was pregnant, the late emperor also had people renovate the West Pavilion with great interest. However, the prince Zhang Shuyuan gave birth to was very young. He was about to die young, so naturally no one dared to mention it.
Now the new emperor is taking a group of concubines to the West Pavilion...
The Empress Dowager's brows furrowed even deeper, but she couldn't figure out what he was planning for a while. After thinking for a long time, she could only wave her hands and said, "Let someone keep an eye on him first. If anything is discovered, we will report back."
…
For the concubines of the harem, the West Pavilion is undoubtedly a very delicate place.
This is not the inner palace.
It can even be said that it is not the realm of the harem.
Next to it is the Library Pavilion, and a few hundred meters further east are the official offices of the three provinces.
This is also the first stop for Queen Mingqi's meteoric rise.
Starting from Zhaorong, she was named a Virtuous Concubine for her service in the government. After giving birth to a prince, she was named a Queen. After the death of Emperor Jingzong, the Queen Mother served as regent for nearly 20 years, which can be called a legend.
When Queen Mingcu was there, the West Pavilion was not just the name of a palace, but the center of power and the place where the world looked up to.
A new generation replaces an old one. What was Queen Mingci thinking when she was still Zhaorong when she came here for the first time?
For a moment, even Feng Lanruo was in a trance.
Ying Zheng had no time to take into account the delicate and sensitive hearts of the concubines, so he entered a classroom on the first floor, sat down on the first student's chair on the podium, and then motioned to the concubines behind him to go to the students' seats.
The eight concubines looked at each other in disbelief, but they didn't know what the emperor wanted. In the end, they bowed and thanked each other, obeyed their position, and sat down in a staggered manner from front to back.
Ying Zheng waved his hand, and a chamberlain came next to him and brought pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and said softly: "Your Majesty has asked a question. All you ladies need to do is answer it truthfully on the paper."
The eight people couldn't help but feel like "I'm taking the imperial examination in the harem".
Fortunately, the people here are all from official families and are literate, and there are many talented and well-educated people among them. Seeing the emperor take the exam like this, I am not afraid.
Ying Zheng asked: "What books have you read at home?"
The concubines paused for a moment, and then wrote in unison.
Ying Zheng gave them enough time to answer, and even stood up and walked back and forth in the examination room.
University, The Analects of Confucius, Doctrine of the Mean, Mencius...
Most of the four books are written on it, and some have even read the entire Five Classics.
Xue Meiren has been dizzy since she was in elementary school. Fortunately, because she is a girl, her family does not impose strict pressure on her. She only knows a few thousand commonly used words and lets it go.
At this time, she was holding the pen. After writing the "Three Character Classic", she hesitated and wrote the "Analects of Confucius". She was sweating on her forehead and felt as if there was a wolf chasing her behind her.
It's not that Xue Meiren has only read these two books, such as "Mencius" and "The Doctrine of the Mean" and other Confucian classics. The female teacher also taught her when she was studying. It's up there. If the emperor asks questions and can't answer them...
Instead of making the emperor feel that he is being clever and deceiving, it is better to just write these two books honestly. Although it seems a bit stupid, in the end it is better than being honest.
As for the notebooks I secretly read behind Aye’s back, I don’t dare to write more in them no matter how much I remember!
It's just that people are most afraid of comparison. Xue Meiren stopped writing early, only to find that everyone else in the examination room was writing furiously. Whoever tries it knows how it feels.
Seeing that Wu Jieyu, who was sitting in front of her, was still sitting upright and writing, she didn't hold back. She quietly turned to the side and looked at Wu Jieyu's answer.
The Four Books and Five Classics, Sixteen Histories of Three Dynasties, Travel Notes on the Gorges and Mountains, Mengqing's Notes - Help!
How come she has read so many books! ! !
Then I secretly looked at Beauty Liao next to me - God, she wrote so much too!
Isn't it just me who hasn't read much? !
Everyone around her was well-prepared, and all of them were the number one scholar in a female school, even more talented than Dao Yun. Xue Meiren looked at the answer sheet with only the Three Character Classic and The Analects of Confucius written on it, but she felt sad and desolate, and her mind was empty. , the vision turns black.
The most terrifying thing is that the emperor left his seat at this moment and walked down the stage!
Help!
Don't come over here! ! !
The emperor walked very slowly, just as Xue Meiren's heart beat very fast. She clearly noticed that the emperor stayed beside Wu Jieyu, the number one female middle school scholar, for a while, and then came to her.
More, more despair, okay!
Ying Zheng looked all the way from Feng Lanruo, who was at the head, and was really surprised when he saw that this person only wrote two introductory books on the answer sheet.
He took an extra look at the respondent.
Xue Meiren's face is as pale as earth, and her heart is as gray as death.
Ying Zheng looked at them one by one and was generally satisfied with the cultural quality of the concubines. Then he asked a second question: "Where have you been and what have you seen? Whether it's visiting relatives or playing, as long as You can write down the places you have visited and the things you find interesting.”
This time there is much more room for development.
Among the eight concubines, only two were born in noble families. Feng Lanruo was born in the Chengen Palace, and Ding Jieyu was born in the Yongding Palace. These two were originally from Chang'an, and the rest were the daughters of officials, with their ancestral home being in the south and north of the country. Different places.
