Chapter 242 She is willing to fight hard
Depose the six palaces?
Meng Yan was slightly startled, her mind feeling dazed.
Lu Haozhi's voice was very low, but it was like a bolt of thunder in a clear sky, striking her heart directly.
She had thought about what kind of life she would have lived if she had not entered the palace and had not been trapped in the quagmire of red walls and yellow tiles.
Perhaps if she hadn't married a man as talented as Lu Haozhi, she wouldn't have ascended to the throne, becoming the mother of the nation. Or perhaps she would have married an ordinary official, living out her life in a dull, uninspired way. While there were arguments and quarrels in the harem, they were usually just trivial matters, never the thrilling intrigues of a harem.
But she would never meet Lu Haozhi again.
During countless sleepless nights with no one by her side, she had secretly wondered in her heart, if Lu Haozhi was not the emperor of the Great Zhou, but just a rich young man, and she was not the legitimate daughter of a marquis, but just an ordinary lady from a scholarly family, what kind of fate would the two of them have?
Inside the rolling roof door, under the grape vines, the couple are together, with their children around their knees, without the worries of sharing favors or the troubles of quarrels. What a peaceful scene it must be.
It’s a pity that this is fate.
Even if she could break free from the fate that the book had written for her, she would never be able to rewrite her own life experience.
"Yan'er, are you okay?"
A deep voice sounded in her ears, and a large, warm hand grasped hers, the soft warmth almost reaching her heart.
It was Lu Haozhi's hand.
Meng Yan came back to her senses, lowered her head and said nothing, and after a moment she pulled her hand out.
Lu Haozhi was not annoyed. He curved his thin lips slightly, put his arm around her waist, and looked at her beautiful face quietly.
After a long while, Meng Yan finally spoke softly, "Haozhi, stop teasing Yan'er. This is such a serious matter, it's not something you can joke about."
Depose the six palaces?
She didn't even dare to think about such a thing.
Not to mention that the three palaces and six courtyards have been a necessary requirement for the royal family to continue its lineage and balance the situation since the beginning of the world. Even an emperor like the previous emperor who had great power and achieved hegemony was quite tolerant of the harem, let alone a monarch like Lu Haozhi who lived in peace?
Lu Haozhi probably just said this to cheer her up.
"You don't believe it?"
Lu Haozhi smiled. Yan'er's reaction was within his expectations. If she accepted the news calmly, he would be the one who would be surprised.
"It's no wonder you don't believe it. This is truly unbelievable."
As he spoke, he took out a wax-sealed bamboo tube from his sleeve and handed it to Meng Yan.
Meng Yan was a little confused and took it, but saw that the bamboo tube was only coated with a layer of bright paint, probably for anti-corrosion. There were no patterns carved on the tube body, and the mouth of the bamboo tube was sealed with a thick layer of wax, on which a dragon pattern was printed.
Born into a military family, she naturally recognized this bamboo tube, used by the military to convey confidential correspondence. The copper seal, imprinted with a wax pattern, was often held only by the supreme commander. If the wax pattern was damaged, the secret message within the tube had been compromised. She had seen several discarded bamboo tubes, with wax patterns ranging from plum blossoms to soaring eagles, from childhood to adulthood, at her father's and brother's side. She had never seen a wax seal with a dragon pattern. Naturally, the only person in the world who could use a dragon pattern was the ruler before her.
Meng Yan suddenly felt the bamboo tube in her hand as heavy as a thousand pounds. She fiddled with it for a few seconds and then handed it back to Lu Haozhi. "How can the emperor give such an important item to a concubine?"
Lu Haozhi refused to take it and just smiled, "Just open it."
Meng Yan hesitated for a moment, then took out a pair of wax scissors from the embroidery basket, gently removed the wax seal, unscrewed the lid of the bamboo tube, and a rolled-up letter fell out.
She held the letter and looked at Lu Haozhi, but saw him smiling and nodding. She couldn't help but bite her lower lip and opened the secret letter.
Anything sealed in this bamboo tube with dragon-patterned wax must be important military secrets, but Lu Haozhi actually showed it to her like this...
Meng Yan unfolded the letter and read it, her heartbeat gradually quickening.
What was written in the letter was actually evidence of various crimes such as the redeployment of troops in the capital area, the seizure of land and people by the old-school powerful in the court, the selling of official positions, corruption and abuse of power, and even collusion with foreign countries.
Although it is only a few words, it is shocking enough.
Her face turned slightly pale. She closed the letter and suddenly looked up at Lu Haozhi, "Your Majesty...?"
Lu Haozhi smiled faintly, "Yan'er, do you think that what I said just now was just to cheer you up?" As he spoke, he suddenly raised his hand and pinched the queen's delicate cheek, "I don't deny that I did mean that."
Meng Yan threw the letter at Lu Haozhi and said angrily, "The emperor jokes about matters of family and country. He really deserves a beating! Besides, I am a woman in the harem after all. How can the emperor casually tell me such an important matter..."
Lu Haozhi put the letter back into the bamboo tube and put away his smile. "Yan'er, you're right. Husband and wife should treat each other with sincerity. I've long considered that since the founding of this dynasty, all policies that benefit the people's livelihood and national affairs have been difficult to implement. I think it's all because of the obstruction of these so-called veteran officials in the court. If this force is not eradicated, how can I achieve my ambition of stabilizing the country and ensuring the people's safety? I've had this idea since my father was alive, but the world was not at peace and the borders were unstable, so I couldn't achieve my goal until my death. This important matter will be handled by me."
Meng Yan was also born into a marquis's family as a legitimate daughter, and was raised like a boy by her father. How could she not know the interests involved?
The former dynasty and the harem have always been one. The old factions sent women from their families into the palace as concubines. Regardless of whether they were favored or not, as long as they gave birth to an heir to the throne, the family bloodline would be forever entangled with the royal family, and they would no longer be distinguishable from each other.
If a young emperor like Lu Haozhi wants to achieve his imperial career and implement new policies, it will be difficult for him to do so without clearing out these old-fashioned forces.
She had previously envisioned opening a girls' school among the people, not only to teach aristocratic girls, but also to provide instruction for the daughters of ordinary people, and to have the court fund a clinic to benefit the world. However, these people obstructed her plans, making constant noises in the court all day long, resulting in only the clinic being half-completed and no sign of the girls' school.
Starting from the harem is indeed the best choice.
However, the fact that they were able to jointly write a petition to force the emperor to grant the so-called Enxiu title shows how difficult it was.
Moreover, those were all veteran ministers, many of whom were founding heroes. Their power was so entrenched in the court that even the previous emperor hadn't been able to eradicate them. How could Lu Haozhi possibly do the same...
"The Liang family is just the beginning. For the eternal foundation of our Great Zhou, we must completely wipe out these outdated old-fashioned forces!"
The sonorous and powerful voice brought Meng Yan's thoughts back from her wandering state.
She couldn't help but look up and met his eyes. There was a strange light flashing in those sharp eyes, as bright and dazzling as the stars in the sky.
Lu Haozhi held her soft and slender hands and said word by word, "Yan'er, I only want you in this life. To stand shoulder to shoulder with me and overlook this vast mountain and river."
Perhaps it was because these hands were too strong, or perhaps it was because these eyes were too dazzling. For a moment, Meng Yan felt that as long as she stood with him, nothing would be impossible.
She was willing to fight hard for the vision he spoke of.
"Haozhi, let Yan'er help you too."
She nestled her soft body against his strong, broad chest.
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