Chapter 1950 Will
After sending the empress dowager back to the palace, Manbao gave her two sets of acupuncture. Xiao Yuanzheng also watched and changed the medicine. After the empress dowager ate, drank the medicine and went to sleep, the two of them left.
Xiao Yuanzheng let out a long sigh and said, "Fortunately, there was no danger."
Manbao: "...It's just a short distance from the palace to Xuandu Temple, and we haven't even left the city yet."
They were either carried or taken in a horse-drawn carriage all the way, what could have happened?
Xiao Yuanzheng glanced at her and said, "What do you know? The Queen Mother hasn't moved for a long time. If she gets frightened or falls down accidentally, not only will our hats be taken off, but even our heads will be taken off."
Before Manbao could say anything, a eunuch waiting outside came running up and whispered, "Master Zhou, His Majesty summons you."
Xiao Yuanzheng shut up and stopped discussing the matter. He nodded to Zhou Man and said, "Go ahead."
Manbao and the eunuch went to see the emperor.
The emperor had gone out for a while and had to get back to work. He was busy reviewing memorials. When he heard Zhou Man's greeting, he looked up at her and said, "Are you here? Please sit down."
Manbao found a seat on the right and sat down, but she felt a little nervous. It was her first time entering the emperor's study, and she was given a seat without even saying a word.
The emperor put down his pen, took the bill from the side and handed it to Gu Zhong, who then took it and showed it to Zhou Man.
Zhou Man was confused holding the bill, and suddenly a strong sense of crisis arose in her heart. Would the emperor ask her to pay the money?
Just when he was worried, the emperor asked, "What three wishes did the Queen Mother make?"
Manbao breathed a sigh of relief and stated the empress dowager's three wishes without hesitation.
The emperor was also stunned for a moment, but he soon understood. After thinking about it, he said to Gu Zhong: "Let the chief steward of the inner treasury pay the money."
It is impossible to use money from the national treasury. A few days ago, there was a debate in the court about Buddhism and Taoism.
Gu Zhong hesitated for a moment, but still took the bill and Manbao took the opportunity to leave.
The emperor said quietly, "Zhou Man, since you don't approve of spending large sums of money on Buddhism and Taoism, why didn't you stop the empress dowager today?"
Man Bao was stunned for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I do not agree, but if the Queen Mother uses her own private money, then who am I to advise her? Besides, the Queen Mother is not in good health, so it is best to go along with her at this time."
Manbao paused. She also felt that the money for a hundred years of incense was a bit expensive. The main reason was that after a hundred years, who knows how many masters of Xuandu Temple there would be. It was completely unnecessary.
She had the same idea as the emperor before, "Your Majesty can pay for one or two years first. After two years, if you still want to continue the Queen Mother's wish, then you can pay again."
The emperor said righteously: "This is the Queen Mother's last wish. How dare you fool her?"
Manbao said, "Isn't this because I'm afraid you'll spend money?"
"But the Queen Mother's wishes are all good."
"Yes, whose wish could be evil?" Man Bao said speechlessly, "But the fate of the country depends on the character and ability of the ruler, and the loyalty of the rulers. The other two wishes are even more important. Wishes are beautiful, but whether they come true or not depends not on the gods, but on the person involved. So I don't think it's necessary to waste that money."
The emperor remained silent.
A few years ago, no, even last year, he still had the idea of donating money to buy the queen's life, but now, not only Wei Zhi and others told him that gods and Buddhas cannot be trusted, even Zhou Man, a believer in Taoism, said that one should have faith but not be obsessed. And what she believed in was not gods and Buddhas, but the classics left by the sages.
When the emperor looked back on his life, he had to believe what Zhou Man said, that gods and Buddhas are just psychological comforts given by humans.
The emperor rubbed his forehead and waved his hand, saying, "Go down."
He decided to do his filial duty. Although the incense money was quite a lot, he could afford it, so he decided to just make the empress dowager happy.
Manbao retreated and took a few steps when he saw the steward of the inner treasury coming hurriedly. Seeing Zhou Man, he just nodded slightly. Zhou Man saluted and stepped aside, waiting for Manbao to pass by before continuing his walk.
However, she couldn't help but look back at the hurried steward, lowered her head to suppress her laughter, and always felt that the emperor could not come up with the money.
The emperor truly couldn't come up with the money. The chief steward of the inner treasury bowed his head and reported, "...this year's funds for the Imperial Medical Bureau have already been allocated. Adding the expenses for the Fifth Prince's wedding, there is only 768,600 yuan left in the inner treasury..."
The vein on the emperor's forehead bulged slightly. "Just tell me you have 768 taels. You don't need to tell me in copper coins."
The chief steward of the inner treasury lowered his head and said, "But those are not silver, but copper coins..."
In other words, the emperor didn't even have any money.
He looked very sad.
"However," the head steward of the inner treasury raised his head and said, "the summer wheat is being harvested now. It will be dried and put into storage soon. If we sell a batch of it then we will make money."
The emperor then remembered that the summer and autumn harvests were approaching, and the income from the imperial farm should be considerable, and his mood improved a little.
The emperor and the chief steward of the inner treasury looked at the bill together.
The emperor sighed and said, "Go and pay last year's incense money first. We'll talk about it next year."
In fact, what Zhou Man said is not wrong. Whether the country is stable or not depends on the ruler and officials, gods and Buddhas... that can only be a psychological comfort to oneself.
The Empress Dowager naturally didn't know about these things. Her health was getting worse. The Emperor turned around and told her that the three eternal lamps were lit and the Taoist temple had begun to perform a ritual for her. She nodded happily and said, "Okay, okay, I have one more thing to do."
The emperor held her hand and asked, "Mother, please speak."
The Queen Mother said, "I know Yunfeng is disobedient and not sensible enough, and she always makes the Emperor and the Empress angry."
The emperor smiled generously and said, "She is still a child. The queen will not bother with her. Mingda and Changyu are also very friendly sisters."
"Of course I know. Mingda is a very sensible child."
The emperor nodded in agreement.
"So I thought, the sisters should take good care of each other in the future. You found a good marriage for Changyu, and she will stay in the capital and can see her sisters from time to time. But Yunfeng is marrying far away in Lu. I am very worried."
The emperor listened carefully to her next words.
"So I thought, since Jun Ma is also studying in Beijing, why not leave Yun Feng in the capital as well, so that they can take care of each other in the future."
The emperor smiled and said, "Mother, isn't Yunfeng staying in the capital now?"
The Queen Mother understood what he meant and nodded with a smile: "Your Majesty, please take better care of her in the future."
The emperor agreed.
The Queen Mother then asked, "Is Xiaowu going to be a vassal?"
The emperor smiled and nodded, "Yes, the day will be in three days."
"No wonder the palace has been so busy lately," the Queen Mother said softly, "I've been having trouble sleeping and eating much lately. I'll wait a little longer. I see Mingda has grown up, and she's gained some weight on her face in the past six months. She's actually quite healthy."
The emperor held the empress dowager's hand without saying a word.
The Queen Mother continued, "While I'm still conscious, find her a prince consort. Otherwise, after a year or two, all the good men will be taken away."
The emperor suddenly felt a little sad. He held the empress dowager's hand and said, "I hope your majesty will live a long life. Your son is thinking of letting you hold Xiaowu's great-grandson."
See you at 10pm
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
