Chapter 131 Coax
In Shoukang Palace, the emperor was practicing boxing leisurely in the small garden.
At his age, living a few more days is good. So the old man is determined not to listen to what is happening outside.
As for the Ningxia military crisis...
There is no point for him to worry if there is no money in the treasury.
You can't take back the silver that was distributed to Jiangnan and move it to Ningxia, right?
So, this is an unsolvable problem.
Moreover, the old man believed in the ability of Jiang Yu, the general of Ningxia. When the Tatars came, the soldiers and civilians in Ningxia might have a hard time, but they would definitely be able to survive.
After all, the Tatars' goal was to grab some disaster relief supplies.
Once they get what they want, they will naturally retreat.
He has become accustomed to it over the years.
Although when he was young, he had thought about conquering Tatar and incorporating such a large grassland into Dazhao to make it a horse-breeding land, but year after year, his ambitions slowly faded away.
There is nothing to be ashamed of, as emperors of all dynasties have been like this.
Even the Qin Emperor and Emperor Wu of Han, weren't they just like that in the end?
"The Emperor!"
Dai Quan, who was standing nearby, could not help but hear the news sent by the eunuch. He shouted anxiously, "The Emperor, the Emperor has obtained 220,000 taels of silver and wants to bring it back to Ningxia for Lord Jiang."
The Emperor: “…”
He paused in his boxing movements, but quickly resumed his previous rhythm.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor has handed over the three prefectures of Qingyang, Pingliang, and Fengxiang to Lord Jiang, and he also said that he is looking forward to his achievements."
“…”
The retired emperor already had a rough guess in his mind and was not surprised at all, so he did not pause for the moment in his boxing.
"Your Majesty, the officials from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue have not objected. Your Majesty still cares about the Hetao that was lost that year."
The emperor finally couldn't punch any further.
Hetao was once an important horse-breeding area in Dazhao.
But it was lost in his hands.
But can he be blamed for that? The prince blamed him, and everyone blamed him.
But that year he was in bad luck, and he was sick from the beginning of the year, and then there was war...
The emperor stopped and looked at Dai Quan coldly.
"The Emperor..."
Dai Quan's heart skipped a beat. Just as he was about to act even more pitiful, the emperor spoke again, "Take him away and slap him in the face!"
Huh? The young eunuchs were very surprised, but they didn't dare to show any emotion. Two of them quickly came up and grabbed Dai Quan and tried to drag him down.
"Your Majesty, I beat myself up. I was wrong."
Dai Quan broke free from the boys' hands and slapped his mouth hard, "I told you not to talk too much, talk too much, talk too much..."
"Pull it down!"
The emperor was angry. At this moment, he didn't even want to hear his voice, let alone him as a person.
As he strode back, a voice came over, "Get ready!"
After Dai Quan finished slapping someone, he looked towards the front of the palace and saw that the emperor had already sat on the dragon chariot and was heading forward to hold court.
Ouch~ Dai Quan’s legs went weak and he almost sat down on the spot.
"Yes, help us go back and have a rest."
His entire body leaned on the young eunuch. "You are a good person. Grandpa Dai will teach you a lesson today. When faced with a disaster that you cannot avoid, you must choose the one with the lightest punishment."
"You mean the Emperor Emeritus and the Emperor..."
"Shh~"
Dai Quan stopped him immediately, "In this palace, those who talk too much won't live long."
Those without mouths can only do the hardest and most tiring work.
"Some things just need to be understood in your heart. Watch more, listen more, and talk less is the long-term solution."
As to the origin of the silver, the officials from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue did not raise any objection to the Emperor. If he did not report these matters to the retired Emperor, and the latter found out about it from other sources, he, as the chief steward, would be in great trouble.
So he had no choice but to choose the lesser of two evils.
I just hope that this time, I can get through it peacefully like usual.
Otherwise, there would be not only rivers of blood, but also a huge storm.
In fact, after the emperor quickly made a decision about Ningxia, he came to Shoukang Palace with an angry face.
Seeing his father's dragon chariot from afar, he hurriedly trotted over to greet him, "Father~~~"
His voice was full of twists and turns, as if full of grievances, "You are here."
The Emperor: “…”
He looked at his son and asked, "What's wrong? Look at what you look like?"
"Son...son is going to be scolded."
The emperor tugged at the sleeve of the retired emperor, as if afraid that if he let go, his father would run away. "Ningxia was hit by a disaster. Didn't Lord Jiang say that the Tatars might invade? My son was worried about money. Now that I finally got some, I immediately moved it here to give it to Lord Jiang. You don't know how wide Zhang Fu's eyes widened when he saw the row of silver boxes."
In fact, the old man glared at him at that time.
The emperor felt that he was not lying. "If Ningxia couldn't do without Lord Jiang, and Old Man Zhang was afraid of delaying Lord Jiang's departure from Beijing, he would definitely jump up and spit in my face."
"……nonsense!"
Although he was reprimanding, there was already a hint of smile in the eyes of the retired emperor.
"real."
The emperor looked aggrieved. "Don't you know that old man Zhang? He didn't give any money to him, as if my father and I had committed a big mistake."
“…”
The emperor felt the same way, patted his son's hand in a comforting manner, and signaled the dragon chariot to be lowered. "How many years have I been humiliated by him? How far have you come?"
With that, he got off the dragon chariot with the help of his son, "But, your silver..."
"This money, my son really didn't expect it."
The emperor supported the old emperor and walked along with him as if taking a walk. "You will never guess who sent this to us." He emphasized "us", after all, Dazhao was still an old man. "My son only now knows how wise and brave you are."
The Emperor: “…”
He was a little confused. Did this money have anything to do with him?
"who?"
"Hey, Jia Zhen from Ningguo Mansion."
Jia Zhen?
"Where did he get so much money?"
The emperor was also very surprised.
Who would be willing to let go of someone they already have in their hands? Jia Family... If it weren't for Shen's wish to accumulate blessings for her unborn child, she wouldn't have forced the two families to pay back the silver and donate money.
But the Jia family's money has been returned. Shen Shi would never empty her family's coffers to send money to the palace, right?
"So, father, you are wise and powerful!"
The emperor was very happy. "Didn't he come to you last time to complain about the Ministry of Justice's failure to track down the murderer?"
He slowly traced the Jia family back to Xie Zhenghu, and requested the Wucheng Military Division and Shuntian Prefecture to join forces to catch the murderer. As a result, he told the story of Xie Zhenghu escaping through the tunnel into the God of Wealth Casino.
Then Lu Kun, the owner of the Caishen Casino, came to Ningguo Mansion to apologize, increasing the amount from 100,000 taels to 220,000 taels. Jia Zhen took the silver and felt it was too much, so he went to find his mother, Madam Shen. Madam Shen also felt it was too much and it was too hot to handle. The emperor said, "Didn't you tell Jia Zhen last time that if there was anything, just go to your son? Your son was worried about the silver to death, and he came to your son with the silver. Tell me, can your son not take it?"
"You, you..."
The emperor couldn't help but laugh, "How can you bully others like this?"
Two hundred and twenty thousand taels of silver.
The emperor also liked it very much.
"Isn't this impossible?"
The emperor pulled the sleeve of the retired emperor, "I know that you are also worried about Ningxia's affairs. He just happened to come here, so I will take the opportunity to help." At this point, he seemed embarrassed, "Father~" he said pitifully, "Look, please help your son with this matter, otherwise..."
"Okay!"
The emperor gave his son a sidelong glance and said, "As for the Jia family, let Dai Quan go there and give them some gifts."
“Hey~”
The emperor was delighted. "Father, you don't know that Jia Zhen was worried about the gift Lu Kun sent. He was still worried about it, so he asked for a courtyard from Lu Kun's housekeeper."
"That's what he deserves."
I was almost killed by that assassin.
But did Lu Kun really not know about the reason why he gave out so many gifts at once?
Or did he just use money to silence Jia Zhen? The treasury was out of money, but the emperor was not without worries. He said, "Although Jia Zhen is a little silly, he is an honest man." He was assured of such an heir to the Ningguo Mansion. "I can take care of him in the future, and I will take care of him. I can't always bully him."
"My son doesn't dare. Isn't he coming to you right away to copy it?"
The emperor was very relieved about Jia Zhen. "Father, with you standing behind me, I am determined to do anything. You told me before that Ningxia would be safe with Jiang Yu. Today, I met him for the first time. Because there was no silver, I felt that his eyes were almost empty after all the arguments in the court. So after getting the silver, I sent someone to Shoukang Palace to tell you the good news and summoned him immediately."
Have you reported the good news?
The emperor thought about it and decided that he was worried about money today, so he practiced boxing for a longer time.
When boxing is going on normally, no one dares to interrupt.
Thinking of this, the Emperor patted his son's hand in a soothing manner, "You did the right thing. While I am still here, you should test the waters with the Tatars and let those bastards know that I, Dazhao, am not someone to be trifled with. Even if you can't accomplish anything in the end, you will have a good idea of what to do if there is a war like this in the future."
"Father, you are still in good health."
The emperor seemed to be afraid that his father would say something discouraging. "My son only hopes that when he is seventy years old, he can still learn from Lao Laizi, dress in colorful clothes to entertain his parents and make you laugh."
A young eunuch in the distance saw the retired emperor laughing out loud at the emperor's trick and ran away.
After a while, Concubine Zhen had someone reward him with two taels of silver, and then she said to the Princess of Jin who came to the palace to pay her respects, "Don't worry about Lu Kun's affairs. Who can call a good person the God of Wealth in the West? This is too arrogant. I won't let you get involved."
The national treasury has no money, but a businessman dares to call himself the God of Wealth. If it doesn't happen to the Jia family, there will be other things.
"Okay, let's leave it at that for now!"
Concubine Zhen also had a headache, "Since you are under house arrest, just stay there and don't think about things you shouldn't think about."
The emperor is still far from being senile.
He knew everything about his sons' affairs.
The emperor never gave anyone an excuse for what he did, and it seemed that the emperor emeritus was becoming more and more satisfied.
Concubine Zhen was also helpless, but what was missed was missed, and it was too late to say anything now.
At least on the surface, the son had to show a submissive attitude, "Even if Lu Kun is gone, there are still Zhang Kun and Li Kun. There will always be someone."
The emperor would certainly like to have more silver in the national treasury.
Since Lu Kun has already shown his face before the Emperor and the Retired Emperor, it is impossible for him to run away again.
"It's the Jia family..."
Concubine Zhen was very dissatisfied with the Jia family.
Clearly a few months ago, he was a very good chess piece in her hand, but in the blink of an eye, he was not only out of her control, but also causing trouble for her.
"There are quite a lot of people at Rongguo Mansion. When there are so many people, there are many concerns."
Ningguo Mansion is not easy to manage, as it has been passed down from generation to generation and the whole family is united in purpose. But Rongguo Mansion is different!
"Go back and tell Xuan Er that no matter what he does, he should not be impatient. Take it slow. Things will be smooth sailing if you take it slow, and people will be at peace if they take it slow!"
In the last two sentences, Concubine Zhen looked at Princess Jin and spoke very seriously.
Princess Jin understood and went home to find Prince Jin.
At this time, the King of Jin was already very angry.
He didn't know how that idiot Lu Kun had the nerve to come to him for help.
Two hundred and twenty thousand taels of silver were just given to Jia Zhen. With Jia Zhen's courage, would he dare not ask his mother? And Shen Shi obviously voted for the emperor.
The King of Jin couldn't think about it, as he would get so angry that he would gasp for breath.
"Is this what mother said?"
"yes!"
Princess Jin said meekly, "In Rongguo Mansion, Jia She is a nobody, and his second wife, Madam Xing, is not worthy of being on the stage." She was too lazy to praise them, "But the second house can be helped, and old lady Jia loves her second son more."
The internal strife within the Jia family is none of their business.
"……good!"
The King of Jin nodded slowly. "Wu Rubao," he called out to someone outside, "Go and tell Lu Kun that if he doesn't want Jia Zhen to keep biting him, it would be best if he becomes a relative of the Jia family."
Didn't the emperor have his eyes on Lu Kun's money? But if he wanted to turn the Lu family's money into his own, he had to first let Jia Zhen, the so-called victim, hold on to Lu Kun.
"You know everything about the Jia family. Find a place where no one is around and tell him in detail!"
"……yes!"
Wu Rubao hesitated for a moment and then retreated obediently.
In the hearts of the prince and princess, the Jia family may still be the original Jia family, but in fact, a lot of information about the Jia family today is really hard to find out.
The maids in the Ning and Rong mansions were purged several times, and those who remained were either honest or shrewd.
When he went to meet Lu Kun with a sigh, Lu Kun had already been at Wang's house for quite a while and was having a very pleasant chat with Wang Zisheng.
If the King of Jin doesn't help him find a solution, he can only save himself.
Since he couldn't think of a solution at Ningguo Mansion, he turned to Rongguo Mansion for help.
After all, the Ning and Rong mansions are one.
By marrying his legitimate daughter to Wang Ren, the only son of the Wang family, as a concubine, he might not only avoid this disaster, but also establish a relationship with Jia Lian, the new doctor of the Armory Department. Once this relationship is established, the Lu family can take over some of the work of the Ministry of War! "I will take care of this for you."
Wang Zisheng took the responsibility and said, "I will definitely give you good news tomorrow!"
What is Jia Zhen? His nephew's husband is now a doctor in the Armory.
With Jia Lian around, would those people in the Beijing camp dare not give face to their eldest brother?
When his elder brother's leg recovered and he returned to the Beijing camp, everything was under control.
Wang Zisheng is now in a state of elation, thinking that he has survived a great disaster and will surely have good fortune in the future. "Speaking of which, my nephew Jia Zhen is a bit of a jerk, but he is still very good to us elders."
They were originally drinking and eating friends.
Even Jia Zhen could not make his own decisions. In the past, Brother Jing checked his accounts, and now he was strictly controlled by Shen.
"Your money..."
Wang Zisheng didn't know what to say to this man, "Just stuff it in secretly, why do you have to say it out loud?"
Ah? Lu Kun recalled the servants and maids in the room at that time, and seemed to have a sudden realization, "Is Madam Shen of Ningguo Mansion so harsh?"
"well!"
Wang Zisheng sighed, "You don't know how hateful Shen is. She even wants to extend her hand to Rongguo Mansion and meddle in the affairs of my sister and others."
In fact, Rongguo Mansion is now under her control.
"The young and old masters of the Jia family are all angry but dare not speak out!"
The Jia family now hates Shen a lot.
"If you are worried, we will go to Rongguo Mansion early tomorrow morning. I will invite Jia Zhen to come over then."
"in this way……"
Lu Kun bowed deeply, "Thank you very much."
"Oh, we're almost in-laws now, you're being too polite."
Wang Zisheng hurriedly grabbed him and personally escorted him out.
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