Chapter 94 You Come and I Go
Three days later, the Shaoqing of Dali Temple returned exhausted.
"Your Majesty, I have found the lost tiger talisman. It turned out that Sun Ji had stolen it and hid it in the secret compartment of his own study! In addition, I found dozens of secret letters in the secret cabinet. They were collusion between Sun Ji and Di Rong. He wanted to exchange half of this winter's food for Di Rong to repeatedly invade our northern border, so that General Yu Heng would be exhausted when dealing with the loss of the tiger talisman, and then spread rumors to frame General Yu Heng!"
Zheng Shaopu explained each point very clearly. Emperor Sheng Yuan looked at the evidence with trembling fingers and was furious, "What a cowardly Sun Ji! Where is he?"
Zheng Shaopu said: "In order to prevent unrest in the northern border, I have secretly detained the person and imprisoned him in the prefectural government office, waiting for your majesty's decision!"
"No need to escort him to the capital. Just execute him by slow slicing in the northern border. Also, announce his crimes and execute all nine generations of his clan!" Emperor Sheng Yuan said angrily.
"Yes!" Zheng Shaopu responded, "Your Majesty, the Northern Territory is now leaderless. Should we ask General Yuheng to return to the Northern Territory to take charge of the situation?"
Emperor Sheng Yuan frowned and looked deeply at Zheng Shaopu.
After a moment, the oppressive gaze moved away.
"There is no rush for this matter." Emperor Sheng Yuan said in a deep voice.
Eunuch Li served tea at the right time and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, please don't get angry and get sick. I still have three deputy generals in the northern border!"
Emperor Sheng Yuan was thoughtful, "Who recommended Sun Ji before?"
"It seems to be the Minister of War, Lord Li." Eunuch Li naturally did not dare to say that it was Your Majesty who made the decision, and replied vaguely.
Emperor Sheng Yuan looked puzzled, "His eyesight is getting worse now. Show me the information of the other three people."
Eunuch Li said: "Yes!"
Eunuch Li searched for a while, pulled out a few documents and memorials, and handed them to Emperor Sheng Yuan.
This was prepared by Jiang Yuyan in advance, mostly from Jiang Mingan's previous memorials requesting merits for the deputy general and some of his life. Zhang Junyu was born in the countryside and had nothing to do with any faction, and Jiang Yuyan had screened the description angles and details of some of his achievements in advance.
Jiang Yuyan is confident that Emperor Sheng Yuan will choose Zhang Junyu.
As expected, Emperor Sheng Yuan stroked one of the memorials and said, "Zhang Junyu fought brilliantly in this battle! He has the demeanor of a great general, and this is the man to win!"
Eunuch Li nodded in agreement, secretly marveling in his heart, this saintly lady really had a plan that was perfect! He helped her at first because he was angry that the imperial concubine and the others had harmed his apprentice, but now it seems that he made the right move...
Jiang Yuyan immediately ordered someone to send a message to Jiang Mingan. Jiang Mingan felt relieved and couldn't help but admire her. This woman did it without any effort! An unprecedented emotion fermented and expanded in his heart...
…………
The imperial concubine and Zuo Cheng's big plan failed, and Zeng Lan'er was so angry that she flew into a rage in Yiyue Palace.
The fourth prince was calm in his gratitude and comforted his mother, saying, "Don't worry, mother. It's just that we've lost a helper. The queen may not be able to get a good result."
Concubine Jia was worried, "My son, you must do your best to make your father like you more!"
"Yes, mother, rest assured." Xie Yi said confidently, "Two days ago, father praised me for my good knowledge and asked me to preside over this year's autumn examination."
"Really?" Concubine Jia was delighted. "That's a good time to make friends with the elite. My son must interact with them more, especially those talented people who are expected to pass the palace examination. In the future, they will be the rising stars in the court. You can help them in the end of the winter. They will be loyal to you!"
"Son knows! Don't worry, mother!"
I am grateful. My eldest brother is brave but not wise. My fifth and sixth brothers are still young. I only have my second brother... He is in Huzhou to control floods. If he never comes back...
A gleam of light flashed in Xie Yi's eyes, and he leaned over to whisper something in Concubine Jia's ear. Concubine Jia's eyes widened immediately, then she calmed down and nodded heavily.
In the dead of night, no one noticed, a figure quietly slipped out of the palace gate in Yiyue Palace...
The next day, Empress Hua summoned Jiang Yuyan. "My informant said that His Majesty ordered Xie Yi to preside over this year's Autumn Examination, and Zeng Lan'er asked him to win over those poor students to pave the way for his future in the court."
Jiang Yuyan sneered, "I didn't expect Concubine Jia to have some brains. I underestimated her. But if she can do it, so can we..."
After saying this, he whispered to Queen Hua.
Empress Hua was shocked. "How much silver would that cost?"
Jiang Yuyan said: "The Queen sent silver to the provincial capitals of each state, and ordered the poor students who met the requirements to come and claim five taels of silver as travel expenses.
We do this first to express our gratitude, so even if he spends more money, it will be in vain. It can also let those poor children remember the kindness of the queen forever."
"I'm afraid my private treasury can't support so much silver..." Queen Hua said worriedly.
"Your Majesty, can you ask His Majesty for help?" Jiang Yuyan blinked, "You are doing good deeds to show the grace of the Heavenly Family. His Majesty's private treasury is full. You just need to act coquettishly, and His Majesty will definitely support you!"
Empress Hua blushed at what she said and looked at her and said, "I am still acting like a spoiled child. What a shame!"
Jiang Yuyan laughed loudly, "Madam, this is a sharp weapon for women, it is always effective!"
Empress Hua was also a little curious after hearing this, "So what do you think of His Majesty?"
Jiang Yuyan was stunned, and naturally couldn't tell the truth, "Your Majesty is a man of great stature, but the palace is really not suitable for me..."
"Then...what kind of grudge do you have with the imperial concubine and the third princess?" Empress Hua was now more and more satisfied with Jiang Yuyan, and the two of them were able to talk more openly.
Jiang Yuyan's mind wandered off, and she made up a story: "There was a servant in the Third Princess's mansion, who was my junior brother who grew up with me. She tricked him into entering the mansion and didn't treat him well, causing my junior brother to die of depression. Naturally, I couldn't let her go."
Queen Hua nodded, "So that's it!"
There was indeed such a man who died unjustly in the Third Princess's Mansion, but he was an orphan with no father, no mother and no background, so there was no way to find out. Jiang Yuyan was not afraid of being exposed if she used him.
"What news is there from the Second Prince?" Jiang Yuyan asked.
"My son built a dam, diverted the river, and resettled the victims. The prefect of Huzhou even wrote a memorial praising my son!" Empress Hua couldn't help but be proud of her son. "The Saint's flood control plan also made an indelible contribution!"
"Your Majesty, you are overpraising me." Jiang Yuyan said, "Your Majesty should have someone communicate with the officials in Huzhou. Just seek truth from facts. Too much is as bad as too little. There is no need to praise me too much."
Empress Hua was puzzled, "Why? Those officials praise the Fourth Prince for his intelligence and quickness all day long. It's rare that my son has done something decent, why can't he say anything?"
"Your Majesty, the Fourth Prince is highly praised by the whole court, and if he makes a mistake in the future, it will be a fatal blow. You might as well create an image of the Second Prince in your Majesty's mind that he works quietly. Perhaps one day your Majesty will compare him and see the good of the Second Prince."
Empress Hua now trusts Jiang Yuyan very much. "What you said makes sense. Let's do as you say!"
Three days later, the Empress personally issued an imperial decree to all prefectures and cities, asking them to use their private coffers to support students from all over the country who were going to Beijing. Anyone who met the requirements could receive silver as travel expenses. All the poor students were moved to tears and praised the Empress for her kindness.
At the same time, the Fourth Prince booked many inns in the capital. He had already obtained the list of the top three candidates in the provincial examination, and was just waiting for these poor disciples to arrive so that he could show them some small favors and establish good relationships with them.
As a result, at the end of July, the Fourth Prince was stunned when he saw the candidates who were taking the exam one after another! He saw that those poor students were dressed neatly and did not look down and out at all. At his banquet, they even talked about the Queen's kindness. Xie Yi was so angry that he turned his face away and left the table.
After inquiring, I found out that the Queen Mother had already distributed travel expenses to various places for the students to go to the capital. No wonder these students were so ungrateful!
Xie Yi's wish to win over these future court officials was dashed, and he became even more angry. It seemed that those actions had to be taken in advance!
"My dear second brother, please don't hate me!"
There was a sinister smile on Xie Yi's lips, which made people shudder.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
