Zhu Qiyu nodded, Gao Ping had made great contributions to himself, and he really needed a big reward.
Now Ruan An, Ruan Rang, and Chen Mian have gone home to take care of themselves. If Xing'an and Cao Jixiang are killed next month, the inner court will be much quieter.
Thinking of this, Zhu Qiyu told Su Xi: "Get the warehouse ready. Our family will make a fortune next month."
Su Xi asked curiously: "What else should I prepare? Just install it. Our warehouse is very big."
Zhu Qiyu shook his head very firmly: "No, no, no, I'm very sure that our warehouse is definitely not big enough.
I can't spend so many days in vain. If you want to play, play it big, so big that you can't imagine. "
When Su Xi heard this, her eyes lit up. She quickly moved over and sat on Zhu Qiyu's lap with Qianxue, waiting expectantly for her husband to tell how the windfall came to his home.
When Lin Xiangyu saw this, she teased: "You two are little money lovers. When you heard that gold, silver and jewelry were put into the warehouse, your eyes were all shining with gold."
Su Xi counterattacked: "Huh, don't you just want to say that we two are full of copper odor? You and Ningxiang, the two young ladies, don't have to worry about anything now, and they are more like uncles than our husbands.
If you are not a householder, you don’t know that firewood, rice, oil and salt are expensive. Do you know how much our family spends per day? "
Lin Xiangyu shook her head with a smile: "I don't know, I don't want to know, I only know how to sleep with you."
Su Xi shook Zhu Qiyu's arm and made a complaint on the spot: "Husband, please open your eyes and take a look. She is completely shameless and has started to play tricks."
"Stop shaking, my eyes are already open, why are you asking me to open them to see? Don't sue me either. She just lay down on the bed and couldn't move. Give me a blow." There's nothing I can do about her.
Let’s talk about money quickly. I want to carry out a thorough cleansing of the inner court. All the eunuchs and maids together will be left with at most two thousand for him. The lower-level palace people will be dispersed and settled, and the rest of the people will have their homes raided. "
Several concubines were stunned after hearing this. Su Xi asked curiously: "There are almost 10,000 eunuchs and maids in Beijing now, and there are at most 2,000 left. Doesn't it mean that 8,000 people have to be laid off?
There must be about 8,000 eunuchs and maids in Nanjing, and men must also be eliminated? "
Zhu Qiyu nodded: "They don't serve us, so what are we going to do with them? We'll lay off all the ones we can. Then Guanglu Temple still has more than 4,000 cooks who cook for the palace, so we can lay off most of them."
However, the warehouses in Xiyuan can be greatly expanded.
The three major weaving bureaus in the south no longer need to supply the royal family. The silk cloth they weave can be used for trade with the West.
Then the money earned is used to build the Ming Dynasty Navy. With the unrivaled navy, go out and grab the silver mines.
Within ten to twenty years, a virtuous cycle will be formed. "
Several beloved concubines nodded and praised for a long time.
After everyone complimented each other, they continued to read the memorial. Su Xi then brought up a heavy topic: "Husband, according to various sources, the second prince's illness seems to have only lasted for a day or two."
"Still not saved in the end?"
Su Xi shook her head: "The person is too young, and the imperial doctor said there is nothing he can do to save his life."
"Why!"
Zhu Qiyu also shook his head and sighed. The royal struggle took pity on the innocent children.
Early the next morning, the Sanfa Division, which received the emperor's approval, summoned Sun Zhong, the Marquis of Huichang.
Sun Zhong has lost weight these days as he eats poorly, sleeps poorly, and worries too much.
When they came to the lobby of the Criminal Department, Wang Wen, Wei Ji, Xue Xuan, Kou Shen, Xiao Weizhen and others were very polite.
Sun Zhong was summoned just to understand some of the attitudes and trends of all parties when the Queen was abolished.
The Third Law Division only conducted a routine investigation and did not have much hope for Sun Zhong.
However, what everyone did not expect was that Sun Zhong started talking in the hall non-stop: the causes and consequences of the abolition, what role San Yang played in it, what role Jin Ying and other eunuchs played, how Empress Dowager Sun made decisions and how to win over the courtiers of.
In addition to concealing Xuanzong's actions for the sake of the venerable, the rest of what needs to be said has been said.
Jin Ying and other eunuchs involved, who were kneeling in the hall, felt that they had no way to refute, so they lowered their heads and remained silent.
This actually made things difficult for the chief officials of the Three Laws Division.
The ministers and ministers of the Ministry of punishment, the censors on the left and right of the imperial court, and the ministers of Dali temple look at each other, you look at me, I look at you.
Empress Dowager Sun's father, the previous head of state, personally came to the Ministry of Punishment to expose Empress Dowager Sun's conspiracy to abolish the empress. Is this an act of righteousness to destroy the family?
The chief officials of the Third Law Department couldn't accept it for a while. No one expected that Sun Zhong would talk about this in court.
If everyone accepts Sun Zhong's testimony, it will definitely cause an uproar both inside and outside the court, and even the entire Ming Dynasty will fall into violent turmoil.
But it won't work if you refuse to accept Sun Zhong's testimony. The three-law division will conduct a joint trial, which is the most authoritative trial site in the Ming Dynasty.
Sun Zhong has already said that the testimony has been recorded, and no one dares to tear up the testimony. Just tell everyone that nothing happened just now.
Besides, even if someone dares to tear up the testimony, Sun Zhong can still go to the emperor and tell him again. Only by silencing Sun Zhong can this matter be settled.
No one dares to make a decision.
Wang Wen looked at Wei Ji for advice.
Wei Ji shook his head and said that he had just arrived at the Ministry of Justice and was not familiar with all aspects, so it was not convenient for him to express his opinions.
Wang Wen looked at Kou Shen again, and Kou Shen saw that no one else dared to take responsibility, so he whispered back: "Let's stop the trial today. The matter is very important, so there is no need to pledge the testimony.
We will seal the testimony in a secret letter and deliver it to the emperor, and let His Majesty judge it. "
Wang Wen nodded, that was all he could do. I asked Xue Xuan and Xiao Weizhen again, and they both had no objections.
So Wang Wen explained to Sun Zhong: "Marquis of Huichang, let's go here today. Let's continue tomorrow."
Sun Zhong nodded: "Okay, I'll pledge today's testimony first."
Afraid of what might happen, Wang Wen and others forced themselves to persuade Sun Zhong to leave.
After sending Sun Zhong away, Wang Wen and others immediately sealed the testimony and sent it to the western suburbs.
The emperor lived in the western suburbs, and the processing speed of government affairs was one day slower than normal, which gave the Queen Mother Sun time to respond.
Kou Shen made an excuse to ask his servant to go home to get something, and passed the news to Zou Qian, the Minister of Rites.
Zou Qian hurried to Nangong to see Emperor Gongrang on the pretext of asking about the second prince's condition.
After completing this big circle, it was already past noon when Zhu Qizhen understood the whole story and sent Zou Qian away.
Zhu Qizhen leaned back in his chair and was silent in thought.
Chen Xiang asked cautiously: "Your Majesty, do you want me to report to the Queen Mother?"
Zhu Qizhen hesitated for a long time, then reluctantly nodded.
Chen Xiang received the instruction, turned around and walked out.
After Chen Xiang walked out for more than ten steps, Zhu Qizhen suddenly stopped Chen Xiang and said, "Wait a minute, don't go now."
Chen Xiang was surprised, but he didn't dare to ask, so he turned around and stood still.
Zhu Qizhen thought for a while and then ordered: "You don't have to worry about this matter. Zou Qian is just here to inquire about the second prince's condition. You are not allowed to mention anything else.
You go make arrangements, I want to turn over the cards. "
"Ah? Your Majesty, all the fourteen noble concubines have been demoted to ordinary palace maids. If we turn the tables again, the officials will still make trouble, and it's hard to talk to the Queen."
Zhu Qizhen said with a smile: "I just wanted to impeach the official, and I wanted to make the queen make a fuss. When the time comes, everyone in the government and the public will know that I am busy with women, but I have not participated in these messy things."
"But the Queen Mother and the Emperor share weal and woe, and their lips are broken and their teeth are cold."
"Hmph, what a shame, let the Queen Mother suffer first. My chance only exists in the mutiny, and there is no chance of a comeback through boring political fights like the Queen Mother.
Now it just so happens that the Queen Mother is in the light and I am in the dark. The Queen Mother was beaten back by her younger brother at the front. When my younger brother got carried away, I launched a fatal blow and completely turned the tide.
Chen Xiang, go and contact some Taoist priests secretly and offer some prescriptions to your brother. "
"Prescription?"
Chen Xiang was puzzled.
"It's the kind that my father has eaten, as well as Taoist Fang Zhongshu and erotic pictures. I also collected some and presented them. My father used to be addicted to these crappy things, but now it's rare that my younger brother also likes them. This is called like father, like father." His son, we might as well do what he likes."
"High, the emperor is still smart."
Chen Xiang flattered him again, and arranged for a woman to serve as his royal lord's bedmate, and then happily left the palace to run errands.
But he said that when Zou Qian left Nangong, he happened to meet Xing'an, so he told Xing'an about the situation of the three-law division trial again.
After hearing this, Xing'an was shocked. He originally wanted to meet his prince to discuss countermeasures, but he didn't expect that his prince was summoning his concubines instead.
Xing'an had no choice but to rush to Yinghua Hall and report to the Empress Dowager Sun personally.
(End of chapter)
