Zhang Zhou is not as open-minded as Zhu Youtang.
If the purpose is not to annoy me, then he will completely classify me as a scholar because of my status as an alchemist, making it impossible for me to survive in the literary world of the Ming Dynasty.
Not just to annoy, but to annoy severely.
If you want to be established in the literary world, you must first challenge the highest authority. If your opponents are all Jieyuan and Caizi in the future, no matter how awesome they are, it will be just that.
"Bingkuan, the Empress Dowager summoned you several times to show how much she values you. When she met with you, she didn't mention anything else?"
Zhu Youtang asked seriously.
Zhang Zhou asked: "Is it about His Majesty taking concubines?"
Zhu Youtang was startled, and then realized that he would never be so direct if he was someone else, but if it was Zhang Zhou...if Zhang Zhou wasn't direct, he wouldn't be able to adapt.
"Yes." Zhu Youtang nodded even though he was very reluctant.
Zhang Zhou said: "The Empress Dowager didn't say it explicitly, but I can tell that she must have this intention."
Zhu Youtang sighed and said: "In the past few years, every time I went to pay her respects, more or less intentionally or unintentionally, I would mention the issue of the meager number of heirs. I also mentioned the late emperor's dream before. After thinking about it, she is There are some things that are not convenient for you to say directly, and you know that I don’t want to hear them, so you use these methods.”
Zhang Zhou smiled.
You all know, why do you ask me to interpret your dream?
"Bingkuan, do you think I should adopt a concubine?" Zhu Youtang suddenly asked a question that Zhang Zhou didn't want to face head-on.
It was as if the emperor suddenly brought something up to discuss with him that could determine the future direction of the Ming Dynasty. However, he was just an official at the moment and did not make any substantial contributions to the Ming Dynasty. At most, he could help the emperor with fortune telling and relieve his mood. Just to cure an illness.
Zhang Zhou said: "I shouldn't mention it."
Zhu Youtang said: "But it doesn't matter."
Zhang Zhou said: "Your Majesty has a deep love for the Queen and his wife. No matter how ignorant I am, I still know whether to interfere in other people's family affairs. This should be decided by Your Majesty yourself."
"This answer is too rigid and formal." Zhu Youtang said, "Just tell me your true thoughts."
Zhang Zhou was thinking, you, the emperor, cannot possibly want me to say that you should have more concubines, right?
Even if you are henpecked, no one can force you as long as you don't want to. Why are you the only one who has been monogamous among kings since ancient times? There are rumors that you have several unnamed ladies around you...but those are just rumors.
At least you didn't take a concubine and still left a reputation as a wise king.
Zhang Zhou said: "Your Majesty, I guess you don't want to have a concubine."
"Oh?" Zhu Youtang said, "You know?"
Zhang Zhou nodded: "Your Majesty has little contact with others. If a woman appears by your Majesty's side rashly and gets along with him as a couple, your majesty will definitely reject it. I will not mention whether your majesty should have a concubine, but it depends on your majesty. Is it more important to focus on the relationship between husband and wife, or to increase the number of dragon heirs? If it is just to increase the number of dragon heirs, Your Majesty can definitely... follow the queen instead of just accepting concubines."
"rational."
With no outsiders present, Zhu Youtang made it clear, "Even if you give me a few more concubines, that's it."
Zhang Zhouyi understood it immediately.
Shouldn't it be okay? You are still the same as before. There is no essential difference between giving you ten and one.
What men fear most is not that they have no power or wealth, but that they have everything, everything has been arranged for you... but they can't do it themselves!
Zhang Zhou asked: "How is your Majesty's health lately?"
"It's pretty good." Zhu Youtang said with a smile, "Much better than before. I know this is consolidating the foundation, but I am also anxious..."
If anxiety is useful, your son will probably be able to fill the Qianqing Palace now.
Zhang Zhou said: "Your Majesty should focus on improving your physical fitness. I also have a wife and a concubine in my family. Think about it, more or less, that's it."
"Yes." Zhu Youtang seemed to have found an intimate, and talked about relatively private matters with Zhang Zhou, "I also think it is good to have the queen here. I will miss her all the time. I know where to go after nightfall." There is no need to hesitate."
Not only is there "phobia of intimacy", but there is also "difficulty in choosing".
Zhang Zhou wondered, how much of a psychological problem is this?
I'm afraid it will take several years for a professional psychiatrist to treat you. As a half-hearted emotional counselor, I can only chat with you at most.
"Actually, it's not like I haven't done it before, but... forget it, I won't mention this to you."
Zhu Youtang seemed to have been led into a psychological trap by Zhang Zhou before. He was about to reveal his heart, but stopped abruptly.
Zhang Zhou understood instantly.
In the first few years after Zhu Youtang ascended the throne, his physical condition was relatively good. In addition, the emperor had no heirs at that time, so Empress Zhang's influence in the Sixth Palace was not as great as it is now. At that time, under the pressure of Empress Dowager Zhou, how could she Why not find a woman for Zhu Youtang?
The case of Zheng Wang’s demonic remarks in history also has some truth.
Otherwise, why was it that when Zheng Wang and others were later tried, the emperor was required to examine them, but the initial punishment was not painful?
But these are just guesses. There are no accurate answers in the history books, and Zhang Zhou cannot ask in detail. He can only rely on himself to determine the scale. No matter how much Zhu Youtang trusts him, it seems that he still wants to hide some unspeakable secrets in his heart. Get up.
Emotional counselors can't get rid of their patients.
There may be some secret hidden in the Clothing Bureau.
"Bingkuan, is it OK for Wang Weining to send his granddaughter to your house?" Zhu Youtang asked with a smile.
Zhang Zhou said: "I don't have much idea. Recently, I asked her to teach Quanzi boxing and kicking. She usually eats and sleeps in the wing."
"Yes." Zhu Youtang nodded, "If Wang Weining returns victorious from the northwest battle, I will help you facilitate this. I will take you to diagnose the queen's condition later. You should also make some preparations. What do you need to bring? Xiao Jing said!"
…
…
Psychological consultation completed.
Next it’s time for couples counseling.
Zhu Youtang walked in front, followed by Zhang Zhou and Xiao Jing, and then followed by others, arriving at Kunning Palace together.
The emperor had sent someone to greet them in advance. Queen Zhang was sitting in the curtain, separated by light gauze, and silk cloth was also prepared.
When a man consulted the queen, he was not allowed to touch the queen's body directly when taking the pulse. As for the hanging silk pulse diagnosis... it was a bit ridiculous. No one would respect it these days.
"The Queen." Zhang Zhou looked very polite.
Zhu Youtang went in first to greet his wife, and then said to Zhang Zhou: "Bingkuan, the seat is over there, let's get started."
So Zhang Zhou walked over.
Seeing Queen Zhang stretching out her arm, the little palace maid on the side quickly took the silk cloth and covered it on Queen Zhang's Hao wrist.
Zhang Zhou didn't reach out.
"Bingkuan, don't worry, just think of yourself as an imperial physician." Zhu Youtang said.
Zhang Zhou said: "Your Majesty, I am not an imperial physician, and I am not very proficient in diagnosing diseases."
"you……"
Zhu Youtang was a little speechless.
It's a pity that I still boasted about you in front of the queen, but you came to make this happen.
However, after Zhang Zhou said these words, Queen Zhang's arm suddenly trembled unconsciously, as if she had some fear.
The deterrence of Taoist priests.
Zhang Zhou understood that anyone who knew someone who could reveal the secrets of heaven would have such concerns when he came to diagnose a patient. The queen was also a human being, and she would also be afraid of those magical things.
Zhang Zhou said: "Diagnosis also requires looking, hearing and asking questions. I only need to ask a few questions. There is no need to ask them in person. You just need to write them down and let the people around the queen answer them."
Zhu Youtang didn't know what Zhang Zhou was going to do.
But he still nodded in approval, and then someone brought Zhang Zhou a pen and paper.
Zhang Zhou casually wrote down a few questions, which involved a lot of personal living habits. It was indeed difficult to talk about them face to face, but he had to mention them.
Among them are questions such as "How long does Tiangui come?", "Whether you get up at night", "Whether your hands and feet are cold", etc.
In traditional Chinese medicine, a woman cannot get pregnant. There is a saying called "uterine cold", which is probably similar to the reason why an embryo cannot implant in the bed. Obviously, people from the Tai Hospital have put a lot of effort into treating this disease, but Zhang Zhou would not treat it from this perspective. Get started.
Since the emperor came to him to solve the problem of the couple's inability to continue having children, he should be more direct and find out who was at the root of the problem first.
…
…
The questions on paper can be answered by someone close to the queen.
When the results were fed back to Zhang Zhou, Zhang Zhou was already in the side hall of Kunning Palace.
Zhu Youtang followed and asked, "How is it?"
Zhang Zhou knew that if he wanted to make trouble for Queen Zhang, he could just say that the problem was with Queen Zhang.
But he would not choose to do this, because from the current point of view, there seems to be no big problem with Empress Zhang, and rashly trying to alienate the relationship between the emperor and his wife was taking advantage of the wishes of Empress Dowager Zhou or the civil servants of the DPRK, but she had gained from him. It is detrimental to the emperor to trust him with more important things.
He just needs to tell the truth.
Zhang Zhou said: "The queen has no serious condition except for a slight lack of daily care."
Zhu Youtang sighed: "I've said it before, it's all me..."
It's rare for a man to be so self-aware.
"Bingkuan, you don't need to blame yourself. In fact, I have been much better recently. This cannot be blamed on Li Guang, nor can I blame those pills. Most of them are still the same as before..."
Zhu Youtang felt a bit like the past was too painful to look back on.
Zhang Zhou knew that Zhu Youtang felt that childhood events were the biggest reason that affected his body.
Both physical and psychological.
Zhang Zhou said: "For now, I don't have any advice for the queen. Everything is fine. We just need to maintain the current situation."
"Then can you... add a few more herbs to me?" Zhu Youtang seemed a little anxious.
Although he also listened to Zhang Zhou and wanted to maintain health, it was difficult to maintain health for a long time. Although Zhu Youtang was not impatient, he saw that after more than two months of hard work there was no real progress, of course he had to be anxious and wanted to All at once.
"Your Majesty, are you using eggs, meat, and milk tea recently?" Zhang Zhou asked.
"Yes." Zhu Youtang nodded, "My body has recovered a lot."
Eating more protein is of course effective, especially for men, who have to rely on protein to support themselves. A dozen eggs a day is not much!
It would be good for Zhu Youtang to eat two eggs a day.
Zhang Zhou said: "Then I will prescribe some more medicine for your majesty. I hope it will be helpful to your majesty's health."
This is the initial stage of conditioning, and then it’s time to add a little more “strong ingredients”.
For this kind of conditioning, you also need to add weight gradually.
…
…
Zhang Zhou came out of the palace and went straight back to his workshop.
Recently, the workshop has also been trying to prepare medicines, and recently Zhang Zhou is planning to do some metal smelting or something. He doesn't have the strength or energy to start mining at the moment, and he has to wait until he passes the Jinshi examination.
But now it is possible to build a steel-making furnace or something, but it cannot be done within the city and needs to be moved outside the city.
Fortunately, his laboratories and factories outside the city have also begun to flourish, and this depends on the support of Xiao Jing and Wang Yue.
"Brother Zhang, I will bring you someone. She said she wants to see you. Also, I have to leave! She said she will leave for Datong in the next two days."
Zhu Feng came to say goodbye to Zhang Zhou.
Wang Yue is about to leave for the northwest, and Zhu Feng is also going to accompany the army.
Zhang Zhou said: "Go to the northwest and work hard and be loyal to the country."
Just as he was talking, he saw a figure walking out not far behind Zhu Feng, it was Lin Yi dressed in men's clothing.
Zhang Zhou saw the car driving outside before entering the door and knew it was her.
Zhu Feng said: "You guys talk, I'm out!"
After saying that, he left the space in the yard to Zhang Zhou and Lin Yi. When Zhang Zhou saw them, he thought of one word——
Crazy men hate women.
…
…
"Miss Lin, if you are here to persuade me to make peace, there is no need. Some of the grievances between me and your father have nothing to do with you." Zhang Zhou said.
Lin Yi said: "You met my father for the first time last time, so why should you have any grudge?"
Zhang Zhou wanted to say, you have to ask your father. It is your father who treats me as an enemy. He thinks that scholars should concentrate on their studies and not engage in crooked ways. It is he who thinks that since I am an alchemist, I am not qualified to enter the Imperial Academy.
Now you actually ask me where the grudge comes from?
Although the emperor didn't say it clearly, even the emperor felt that if I couldn't pass your father's test this time, or if I gave in, the civil servants would pick on me in every possible way like Lin Han, and I wouldn't be able to hang out in the civil service circle.
This is why the emperor said he would help me win this bet.
You, Miss Lin, are just a girl from a boudoir and don’t understand the ways of officialdom.
Am I challenging your father? They are challenging potential political opponents in the DPRK!
Zhang Zhou smiled and said, "Miss Lin's words are inappropriate. Your father wants to hinder my way to study. He doesn't even allow me to enter Beiyong. Can you talk to him and ask him to be merciful and not target me?"
Lin Yi said: "Although I don't know why my father wants to make things difficult for you, I think it must be for your own good. Since he entered the Imperial College, he has trained so many talents and treated them equally. It's just that you... don't obey discipline."
Zhang Zhou finally saw the blind faith the Lin family had in Lin Han.
He said: "When I entered the Imperial College for the first time, I hadn't met anyone yet, so he asked me to go back and study for another three years. I wonder if it was because I refused to obey the discipline?"
"you……"
Lin Yi was a little speechless.
Think about it too.
Why did his father always have to be so stubborn and persistent towards Zhang Zhou? This goes against my father’s educational philosophy of teaching without distinction.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "Miss Lin, I recently wanted to write a poetry collection, but there are few good poems. Do you have one?"
Lin Yi's eyes were filled with confusion.
"Ms. Lin, you wrote the poem on the table, right? It's really good, why don't I just choose it." Zhang Zhou picked up a piece of paper on the table.
Lin Yi looked over with wide eyes and said quickly: "I...I haven't written any poems..."
But I saw that the handwriting on it was beautiful, just like her handwriting.
Zhang Zhou said: "Such a good word, graceful and graceful, it would be a shame not to use it."
(End of chapter)
