Chapter 7 Imperial Palace Renovation
After Chen Baocai's death, the Imperial Household Department sent a new steward to the imperial kitchen.
The new steward knew the Imperial Kitchen was under the Emperor's watchful eye, so he was trembling with fear, even to the eunuchs and palace maids under his command, afraid to make even the slightest mistake. As for accepting the tribute? Isn't that courting death?
Only some people connected to Chen Baocai lived in fear for several days, but were finally relieved when they saw that His Majesty had no intention of punishing them further. Some of them had previously relied on Chen Baocai's influence to bully others, but now that he was dead, they were like wilted cabbages, unable to rise. Even in the imperial kitchen, they kept their heads down, fearing that their previous actions would be exposed and lead to their deaths.
The imperial kitchen quickly returned to its former busy state, and two days later, no one in the palace mentioned Chen Baocai anymore.
It’s a pity that Chen Baocai thought he was so glorious and prestigious during his lifetime, but after his death, he was just like the little eunuch he had thrown into the泔水袋, and disappeared without a trace.
After counting, the two million taels were put into Yan Xuanyu's private treasury. He had other ideas in mind and would need money everywhere in the future.
It's funny to say that Chen Baocai spent most of his life embezzling money from the palace, but he didn't even have time to enjoy it before it finally returned to Yan Xuanyu.
[Complete the daily task of the tyrant emperor - beating a palace maid to death, reward points 9.]
Yan Xuanyu was not surprised at all when he heard the system prompt. The system's judgment method was indeed correct as he expected.
The system heard his inexplicable laughter and asked its own questions -
【Why is the host laughing? 】
Yan Xuanyu replied in his heart, "It's okay, I just thought of something interesting."
【???】
It seems that even though the "system" seems to come from a higher dimension and more technologically advanced place compared to the world he lives in, its essence is actually no different from AI. Just like the Tyrant Card Drawing System he is currently bound to, the system's judgment method is simply that Yan Xuanyu completed the text content given by the system. After the system determines that Yan Xuanyu has this behavior, it will give corresponding reward points.
However, the system did not distinguish why he was beaten to death, nor what kind of person he was beating to death. It seemed to be inhumane and inflexible.
But it is precisely because of this that Yan Xuanyu was given the opportunity, right?
——————
It was already afternoon when Xiu Yu and Xiu Bi returned from the laundry.
Although their arms were sore and their hands were uncomfortable from soaking in the water for too long, they felt that life in the palace was not so difficult when they thought about having hot meals soon and the things they had just brought back in the house. They even felt a sense of anticipation that they had not yet realized.
"Sister Xiubi, I'll put some of my hand oil on you when we get back. The chilblains on your hands haven't healed yet. After all, it's not summer yet, and the spring water is still cold." Xiuyu said.
Xiu Bi disagreed, saying, "We've been through this for so many years, why are we using hand oil this year? I can't bear to use it. It's so precious!"
"Didn't the Imperial Household Department give it to us so that we can use it?" Xiu Yu said.
The two returned to their residence while chatting and laughing, but found that there were many people crowded around their residence, and the outside of the house was a mess. The ground... was full of their things!
"What's going on?"
The two were startled and ran over without saying a word.
"What are you doing!?"
The voices of the two people were very obvious among the whispering crowd around them. After they ran closer, they found that two of the people busy outside the house were wearing the clothes of palace craftsmen.
One of the craftsmen heard what the two said and explained with a smile: "Ladies, this is what the Imperial Household Department ordered us to do to repair this place."
Only then did Xiu Yu and Xiu Bi realize that the people around them all had expressions of curiosity on their faces, and they were staring closely at the busy craftsmen, as if they were afraid of missing anything.
Logically speaking, the status of the craftsmen in the palace was much higher than that of the palace maids who did the menial work. Not to mention smiling at them, they even had less time to interact with them!
Xiuyu took a look at the things on the ground that were divided into six parts. It didn't look like they were thrown out randomly.
The craftsman added, "Don't worry, young lady. We've put it in good condition. There's oil paper on the floor!"
This area of low palace rooms is inhabited by the lowest-ranking palace maids and eunuchs in the palace. This group of marginalized figures in the palace do the dirtiest and most tiring work, receive the lowest monthly wages, and lead the hardest lives in the palace, their lives as fleeting as duckweed.
The original numbness in their eyes has changed because of the recent changes. Just like now, some palace servants who have returned from work are looking at these craftsmen curiously to see what they are going to do.
Xiuhong, another palace maid who shared the same room with Xiuyu and Xiubi, spotted them from the other side of the crowd and hurried over. "You're finally back! I came back early today and saw them carrying some strange-looking couches inside, along with two new chests that were as tall as a person!"
The crowd outside gradually dispersed, and the craftsmen said that every residence would be renovated in this way, and it would probably be completed in the next two days.
More than an hour later, the other three people in Xiu Yu's room came back. They were also surprised when they first saw her. Xiu Bi explained that these people came to repair the house under the order of the Imperial Household Department.
They watched as the craftsmen came out of the house, repaired the worm-eaten areas and the leaky roof, and finally gave the outside a slight repaint.
The originally gray and shabby house became brand new.
Xiuning went to get the meals for six people, and the others packed up the things left outside and went back as soon as the craftsmen and a few eunuchs left.
The five people were stunned when they entered the room.
The couch in front of me was so strange, it was actually two-tiered. There was a ladder on the side of the lower tier, which looked like it was used for climbing. The upper tier was surrounded by a high wall, which seemed safe enough.
Xiuhong said, "Yes, that's what I saw outside."
The original small paper-covered window is gone, and it has been replaced by a large one after being opened up all around. Next to the window is a cabinet, which is supported by two pillars underneath and can be opened from the top. There are three small cabinets on each of the two large cabinets.
The craftsmen also brought in a new table made of ordinary wood.
At this moment, Xiuning came back with a lunch box, and everyone could smell the fragrance from a distance.
Several people sat at the new table and ate the meal, then quickly went to clean up after finishing their meal.
The shabby house that originally had six beds crowded together has undergone tremendous changes due to today's renovation.
Xiuyu counted the monthly allowance in her purse and found that not a single cent was missing.
Not long after she entered the palace, she was transferred to Chengtian Palace. She didn't feel anything about it now, but it was the first time that Xiu Bi was treated like this. She couldn't tell how she felt.
They took out the mattress and made the bed. Palace maids like them didn't care about the details and slept anywhere. Xiu Bi was afraid of heights, so Xiu Yu picked up the mattress and climbed up.
...
Within two days, the dirtiest and messiest place in the palace was transformed.
Not only that, other parts of the palace were also under renovation. Even the originally dark areas of the wooden bridge in the imperial garden were painted with new paint, and young eunuchs often wiped here and repaired there.
For a moment, the entire palace looked brand new.
"Baotui, what are they doing?"
The weather has turned warmer and the sun is shining brightly today. Concubine Zhang Shu learned that the emperor had gone to the previous court and was not in Chengtian Palace, so she came out and walked around the Imperial Garden.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived at the Imperial Garden, they saw several young eunuchs busy in front of them, blocking their way.
"How dare you! How many of you have the guts to block the way of Concubine Shu?" Bao Cui shouted with full force.
The young eunuchs panicked immediately, hurriedly putting down their things and kneeling down to kowtow. "Greetings, Madam Shufei. Reporting to Madam Shufei, we are here to repair the Imperial Gardens on the orders of the Emperor."
Bao Cui raised her eyebrows and was about to speak when she heard Concubine Zhang Shu say, "Everyone, get up. Since this is the emperor's order, you can go."
"Your Majesty..." Bao Cui supported Concubine Zhang Shu as they walked back, "How could you let a few eunuchs block your way?"
Concubine Zhang Shu lowered her eyes and said, "It's okay. I'm just tired. Let's go back to the palace."
Bao Cui bit her lip and said, "Your Majesty, you are the first among the three concubines in the palace. You must not let others look down on you."
"The first of the three concubines?" Concubine Zhang smiled.
Baocui was assigned to Concubine Zhang's palace after she entered the palace, so of course she didn't know.
Concubine Zhang Shu was originally from a merchant family in Jiangnan and had the lowest status among the three.
She was a concubine in the family, and her mother was just a concubine. Her father forced her to give her to the Fourth Prince by using Concubine Zhang's mother as his mother.
When Concubine Zhang Shu entered the palace, there were already three concubines in the Fourth Prince's palace, and she became the fourth. She still remembered that one of the concubines was a commoner woman with a stunning appearance, and she was also the first woman favored by the Fourth Prince.
But who would have thought that the woman died suddenly the next day. I heard that her body was covered with whip marks and bruises, and her back was festering.
The three of them witnessed the woman who had been appointed as the Fourth Prince's concubine being dragged out. The former concubine, now the Prince's Consort, had originally been tempted to seek favor, but upon seeing that scene, she fainted from shock.
The Fourth Prince blocked the news, and the incident became a secret, unknown to outsiders.
Concubine Zhang Shu had nightmares for several days in a row.
This incident became a common secret among the three of them. Now that they have entered the palace, they only hope that they can escape unscathed and that the emperor will forget their existence.
Also because Concubine Zhang Shu had the lowest status, she was pushed by the other two to be the leader of the three concubines.
They are not stupid.
Seeing that Concubine Zhang Shu lowered her eyes as if thinking about something, Baocui also kept silent obediently.
The group of young eunuchs in the Imperial Garden saw Concubine Shu's procession leaving the Imperial Garden and gradually moving away.
As Xiao Chenzi brushed the stone bridge, he murmured quietly: "The Empress Shufei is so nice, no wonder she is the first of the three concubines..."
These young eunuchs were here on orders, but if they offended the Lord, who would protect them? Even if the Concubine ordered them to be dragged down and chopped off, there would still be some explanation.
"Just do your job well." An old eunuch hit Xiao Chenzi on the head. "You think you can tell the noble masters that you can't handle this?"
Xiao Chenzi's face turned pale. He looked around and apologized repeatedly.
...
The original owner was a pleasure-seeker who didn't care about court affairs at all. Yan Xuanyu couldn't find the information he wanted from his memory, so he asked Li Zhongxian to compile a list of officials.
He still remembered that when he completed the task of serving meals, he gave a banquet to an official, and that official was Lin Fu.
Yan Xuanyu slapped his head and realized that he had been overthinking it. At that time, when he read the memorial, he thought of an anecdote about a certain emperor, and for a moment he took it for granted. Now, thinking about it, is there a possibility that the other person did not want to say more to him, the emperor, and that was why he was so perfunctory in the memorial?
Lin Fu is Han Yuan's disciple, so he must have talent.
It is said that Lin Fu was wasted his talent as the Minister of Rites. In modern terms, it was a "mismatch of professions". The previous emperor did not want too many of Han Yuan's disciples to have too much say in the court, so he suppressed Lin Fu.
But Yan Xuanyu is a bit rebellious. The more you hate me, the more I want to use you.
Yan Xuanyu had forgotten to release Han Yuan, who was under house arrest by the original owner, these few days, so he took this opportunity to lift them both up together.
Yan Xuanyu wanted to form a cabinet next, and he had an idea of who should take charge of it.
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