At the same time, in the palace of Funing Hall, Zhao Zhen looked much better than when he retired from the court, and was having breakfast with Empress Cao.
Zhao Zhen only drank half a bowl of fragrant rice porridge before losing his appetite. He turned around and leaned on the soft couch, closed his eyes and took a nap.
Empress Cao frowned as she looked at the almost untouched royal meal on the table. She immediately ordered the servant in charge of the food supervisor to be called over and scolded her with a pout.
Zhao Zhen couldn't sleep on the couch. When he heard the movement, he opened his eyes to check the situation.
Seeing Queen Cao's angry look, Zhao Zhen couldn't help but become a little curious, and immediately pricked up his ears to listen.
After listening carefully, I realized that it was because she had eaten too little just now. Empress Cao felt that the chamberlain in charge of the royal kitchen had not done her job well and served the food perfunctorily, so she was so angry.
After understanding the cause and effect of the incident, Zhao Zhen felt even more confused.
I have been frail and sick in recent years and have lost my appetite. I have already told the people below me to serve only plain food when preparing the royal meals.
It stands to reason that the Queen has known these things for a long time. Why is she so angry at the people below for no reason today?
"It seemed that someone had touched the Queen's bad side. The Queen was filled with anger and was worried and had no way to vent her anger. However, this chamberlain was caught in the crosshairs of the gun."
When Zhao Zhen thought of this, he couldn't help but shook his head secretly, pushed himself up and sat up, waved to the servant who was kneeling on the ground, and asked him and the others to leave first.
After a while, there was no one else in the palace, only the Tian family couple sitting opposite each other.
Just now, Empress Cao scolded the chamberlain. Zhao Zhen wanted to say a few words to her, but looking forward to marrying him at the age of sixteen and now being the wife of a white-headed woman, Zhao Zhen suddenly lost his thoughts of blaming her and said apologetically: " Over the years, I have been in poor health and have become really distant from you. You have been with me for decades, but I have not left you an heir..."
When Empress Cao heard the word "heir," she felt a stab of pain in her heart, her expression suddenly darkened, and she said with tears, "It's my concubine who failed to live up to her expectations. Your Majesty has shown great kindness by not abolishing my concubine."
"Manpower is sometimes poor. God doesn't want to give me a son, so what does it have to do with you? After all, it's destiny that cannot be violated!"
Zhao Zhen shook his head and sighed, feeling infinitely sad in his heart. Then he squeezed out a smile and said to Queen Cao: "After all, the prince is a filial man. I am gone, so you don't have to worry about the future."
When Zhao Zhen mentioned the prince, Queen Cao's face suddenly darkened, and she said coldly: "The prince seems to be respectful and humble, but in fact he has a deep mind. I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to count on him in the future!"
Zhao Zhen did not expect that Queen Cao would evaluate Zhao Zongquan like this, and couldn't help but look at Queen Cao in confusion.
Empress Cao then sobbed and told the reason why she was so angry today and even angry at the palace people.
"When the court was discussing matters, Zhao Zongquan still relied on his concubine to take the lead in everything, even trivial matters. However, secretly, he had a very good idea. He secretly did such a big thing and was praised by the civil and military officials of the court. Only Some of my concubines were kept in the dark!
Liang Hong, the minister of Guanglu Temple, was also a villain who could act according to the circumstances. Zhao Zongquan hooked up with him, so he hurriedly followed Zhao Zongquan, obeyed Zhao Zongquan's words, extended favors to others on his behalf, and completely ignored his majesty and his concubines. inside!
Now that His Majesty is still here, Zhao Zongquan is just the prince, so he is so unscrupulous. I really can't even think about how he will act when he becomes emperor in the future. "
Empress Cao was half complaining, half complaining. She told Zhao Zhen exactly what she had heard from her confidants after she retired from the court, that Zhao Zongquan used banquets to win people's hearts.
After Zhao Zhen heard what Empress Cao said, he couldn't help but be slightly stunned. He also just knew about this.
During the Rebellion of King Yan, Zhao Anli, the old chamberlain who was originally in charge of the Gouhuang City Division, died in battle. Zhao Zhen thought that time was running out, so he handed over all matters of the Imperial City Division to Zhao Zongquan. Therefore, Zhao Zhen now has both eyes and ears. Not very well-informed, but I had to learn about this from Queen Cao.
"I didn't expect that the prince would have such means." Zhao Zhen sighed with emotion, with a rather complicated look on his face.
With only one meal and some money, Zhao Zongquan, who was supervising the governance of the country for the first time, left an excellent impression on the hearts of the civil and military officials of the court. He also showed his skill through this matter, which can be said to be a favor without any expense.
Zhao Zongquan's only mistake was probably that he did not consider the mood of Zhao Zhen and his wife. This is not difficult to understand. After all, Zhao Zongquan suddenly occupied a high position and had great power, so it was inevitable that he would be eager for quick success and quick gain.
Zhao Zhen is very tolerant. He has experienced the life and death of King Yan's Rebellion, and his state of mind is very different from before. He does not care about these things as much as Empress Cao.
As an emperor and a courtier, seeing that the time of his official family is running out, the prince should prepare for his succession as soon as possible, and all the officials should plan for their future in advance. This is human nature.
Didn't he also leave the vacancy of the Longtuge Grand Scholar position to Zhao Zongquan and let him use it to cultivate his cronies?
After death, he knew that everything was in vain. After becoming the crown prince, Zhao Zhen, who knew that he had only a few days to live, had no worries in this world. The only one who couldn't worry about it was Empress Cao.
Empress Cao came from a family of military generals and had always been domineering and unforgiving. It was precisely because of this that Zhao Zhen was separated from her for decades. It was not until his later years that the two accepted each other again.
Now it seems that Zhao Zongquan is not a submissive person. Zhao Zongquan is ambitious and capable. After he officially takes the throne, it will be difficult to get along with Empress Cao who listens behind the curtain.
After all, Zhao Zongquan is the emperor, but Empress Cao is a womanizer. If there is a fight, Empress Cao will only suffer.
Only then did Zhao Zhen realize that his previous decision to let Empress Cao listen to politics behind the curtain was really ill-advised.
Empress Cao should be allowed to stay in the harem safely as a mascot and not interfere with Zhao Zongquan. In this way, Zhao Zongquan can enshrine Empress Cao at a high level and Empress Cao can enjoy her old age in the palace.
Zhao Zhen turned to look at Empress Cao next to her and saw that she still had an angry look on her face. He sighed secretly in his heart. He immediately wanted to discuss the matter with Empress Cao and asked her to withdraw from the throne and return to power as soon as possible after Zhao Zongquan ascended the throne. , don't conflict with Zhao Zongquan because of this.
However, when Zhao Zhen opened his mouth, he found that he could not make any sound at all, and could not even move a finger.
Zhao Zhen tried his best to keep his eyes wide open, but the scenery in front of him became more and more blurry, and then he felt the world was spinning for a while, and then he fell unconscious.
Empress Cao was still minding her own business and was sulking over what Zhao Zongquan had done, but suddenly she realized that Zhao Zhen beside her had no movement, and her heart skipped a beat.
Turning his head, he saw that Zhao Zhen, who was fine just now, had a face as golden as paper, with snot and saliva dripping uncontrollably. The next moment, Zhao Zhen rolled his eyes and lay straight on the soft couch.
Seeing this scene, Queen Cao's vision suddenly went dark, and she almost fainted. She finally calmed down, regained consciousness, struggled to throw herself in front of Zhao Zhen's bed, and cried: "Your Majesty..., Your Majesty! Quickly announce the imperial physician !”
…
Under the corridor of Chongzheng Hall, where the banquet was given after the court, Wei Chen and Gu Tingye filled their bellies with Sheng Changbai and the others, and were about to return to the Yamen to sit down at work when they suddenly heard the leisurely ringing of bells and drums, and the sound waves spread throughout the imperial city.
The imperial city, which was originally noisy due to the banquet, suddenly fell silent. All the maids, chamberlains, guards, and courtiers inside and outside the imperial city turned around and looked in the direction of Funing Palace.
The bells and drums finished ringing, paused for a moment, and then started ringing again. First came Han Zhang and Wen Yanchang, the great scholars of Longtuge, and then Jiuqing from the Six Departments...
All the civil and military officials in the corridor fell to their knees, and the sound of howling resounded throughout the imperial city.
At this moment, Wei Chen, who was standing still, suddenly woke up and finally understood what happened.
"Your Majesty..., Bintian!"
