The people in Cining Palace dispersed, but Empress Pei did not forget to call Gu Jiu to Weiyang Palace to reprimand him.
"Your Majesty allowed Yu Ge'er to come to the palace for enlightenment, which shows that he values him highly. When you return, explain everything to Liu Zhao and make preparations for Yu Ge'er as soon as possible."
Gu Jiu dared to ask, "Does Queen Mother know why Father suddenly decided to send his grandson to the palace for enlightenment?"
Empress Pei's face was stern. "You are not allowed to presume to guess the emperor's mind. Just obey and do what His Majesty tells you to do."
Gu Jiu frowned, completely disagreeing with what Queen Pei said.
"Doesn't the Queen Mother have any doubts in her mind?"
"presumptuous!"
Gu Jiu wasn't afraid of Empress Pei. She continued, "I have many questions in my heart, but none have been answered. Your Majesty made this sudden decision. Could it be that someone whispered something in your ears?"
Empress Pei lowered her head and thought deeply, "Perhaps someone really did spread rumors."
It seems that Queen Pei already has the answer.
"who?"
"Of course it's that old immortal from the Sun family."
The head of the Sun family?
How is this matter related to the Sun family?
Empress Pei laughed sarcastically, "The Sun family has also been tempted by worldly desires."
After hearing this, Gu Jiu understood.
The Sun family's most proud honor was writing the imperial edicts of succession for emperors of all dynasties, but it was snatched away by Minister Li in this generation.
In the past, because the Sun family had the honor of writing the imperial edicts of succession, successive emperors had always been very tolerant of the Sun family. Despite all kinds of storms and the decline of so many aristocratic families, the Sun family has always stood firm.
Now that the Sun family has lost its greatest glory, what should they do?
You can only look for glory elsewhere.
How about being a Taifu or Taishi?
He taught all the princes and grandchildren, regardless of whether they were legitimate or illegitimate.
No matter which prince or grandson ascends the throne in the future, he will have a master-disciple relationship with the Sun family.
This honor is enough to allow the Sun family to continue to stand firm and enjoy wealth for another hundred years.
Once you understand what the Sun family wants, it is not difficult to understand why they wrote to Emperor Wende, asking to open a primary school in the palace to teach the princes, grandchildren, and members of the royal family.
With the knowledge of the Sun family, they are capable of shouldering this heavy responsibility.
Gu Jiu smiled knowingly, "The Sun family's Patriarch is a first-rate scholar, so it's not bad for him to be a teacher."
There are also benefits to ignoring what the Sun family wants.
Empress Pei said, "You don't have to worry about Yu'er's safety while he's studying in the palace. I'll be watching him, and His Majesty will also send people to watch over him. Unless someone is extremely bold, no one would dare to get involved in the school."
"My daughter-in-law is not worried about the child's safety. She is worried that the child is too young and will be bullied by others in school."
Gu Jiu did not hide his distrust of other children at all.
Children have no sense of good and evil. When children do evil, they are sometimes more frightening and dark than adults.
Gu Jiu was worried that Yu Ge'er was young and would be bullied in school, which would affect his character development.
Empress Pei said, "So, you need to prepare two study companions for Yu Ge'er. If you are worried about others, you can choose a study companion from the Gu family. If there is no suitable one in the Gu family, you can consider choosing a study companion from the Pei family."
Empress Pei looked like she was really thinking about Yu Ge'er. Regardless of whether she had any selfish motives or not, the solution was indeed a good one. Gu Jiucheng was in love with her.
"I will carefully consider the choice of study companion. Thank you, mother."
…
Xianrenju has become the first choice for the rich and famous in Beijing.
There is a saying in private that Xianrenju was enlightened by Madam Jingzhao, and this place has a good fortune that is not found anywhere else.
Gu Jiu herself denied it, saying that she didn't even know that she had some ability in Feng Shui.
It is now impossible to determine where this saying came from.
But many people in the capital believe this is true.
At the beginning, most of the people who went to Xianrenju to spend money were business owners who were wealthy and had no shortage of money.
Later, scholars and even officials appeared in Xianrenju.
In particular, there was an idle Jinshi who had been waiting for a real vacancy for a long time. After he went to Xianrenju, the Ministry of Personnel assigned him a real vacancy a month later.
When the news came out, everyone was shocked. It also confirmed the saying that Xianrenju had extraordinary luck.
Ordinary people can get a bit of luck when they go there.
Not to mention those who already have good luck, going to Xianrenju will definitely add icing on the cake.
On this day, the steward of the Li Mansion personally drove a carriage to take his master, Lord Li, to the gate of Xianrenju.
Minister Li got out of the carriage. He was a handsome man in uniform. A servant came up and said, "Master Li, please come in. The courtyard you ordered is ready."
Minister Li walked into the gate of Xianrenju, fanning himself.
A place for drinking tea, chatting and talking, after Gu Jiu's guidance, the level of it has obviously increased.
Look at the carriage parked at the door. There are so many people here just for tea.
Could it be that Gu Jiu really has the ability to turn stones into gold?
Minister Li walked into Xianrenju with a hint of curiosity.
He is curious, and others are even more curious about him.
"Even Minister Li came to Xianrenju to drink tea. This place is truly blessed with good fortune."
Guests were whispering in the semi-private guest rooms separated by green plants.
Minister Li couldn't see them clearly, but they could be seen clearly through the gaps between the green plants.
"Could it be that Minister Li is having trouble at court and needs to go here to get rid of his bad luck?"
"That's hard to say."
"The old man from the Sun family received a reward from His Majesty for the New Year's inscription. But Minister Li received no reward."
"Has Minister Li lost his talent and lost his literary talent? He didn't even receive a reward for his New Year's inscription."
"What exactly happened? Please explain it clearly. What did Minister Li write in his New Year's inscription? Tell me quickly."
Minister Li did not hear the whispers of others, and even if he did, he would not care.
I came here today to meet someone.
Minister Li had a rough idea of why that man's family chose Xianrenju as the meeting place.
Follow the guy, through the front yard, the courtyard, and to the backyard.
The backyard is quiet and few people come here usually.
Today, Minister Li is the only guest in the backyard.
Sitting quietly in the tea room, he picked up a book on the table and began to read. He had only read a few pages when the door opened from the outside and the person he was waiting for arrived.
"Your Highness is late!"
Liu Zhao smiled indifferently, "Master Li is here too early."
The two of them sat on the ground facing each other.
There is floor heating in the house, so it’s not cold at all, it even feels warm.
The water in the small red clay stove is boiling.
Brewing tea, scraping tea foam, pouring tea, making tea...
The whole set of tea art is smooth and elegant.
Minister Li laughed heartily when he saw this. "I may be the first person to have the honor of drinking tea brewed by His Highness himself."
Liu Zhao's eyes were calm, but his words were like arsenic.
"Lord Li, aren't you afraid that I'll poison the tea?"
The smile froze on his face. After a few seconds, the muscles on Li Shizhong's face trembled slightly, and he looked at Liu Zhao in surprise, "Your Highness, did you call me here just to poison the tea?"
Liu Zhao laughed, "Master Li, please have some tea."
He pushed his hand forward and the teacup fell in front of Minister Li.
The tea fragrance is long-lasting.
Minister Li stared at the teacup in front of him, feeling a little tired.
"Can I still drink this tea?"
Liu Zhao said with a hint of meaning, "It all depends on whether Lord Li trusts me."
Minister Li pinched his jaw and said, "I really don't trust Your Highness."
Liu Zhao silently picked up his cup of tea and drank it in one gulp.
Seeing that Liu Zhao refused to say another word, Minister Li considered it for a moment, then imitated him, picked up the teacup, blew on it gently, and then drank it all in one gulp.
“Good tea!”
Liu Zhao looked at him with a half-smile, "Lord Li, aren't you afraid that I will poison you?"
"You and I are partners, and there is no conflict of interest. Your Highness has no reason to poison me."
Liu Zhao, however, struck the killer with one blow. "Who said I have no reason to kill you? Isn't just because I dislike you a reason?"
Minister Li was speechless and looked stunned.
He pointed at Liu Zhao and said, "You dislike me, and I dislike you too. Don't forget how much I've helped you."
"I've also given you a lot of benefits. The investments outside the South City Gate, the cement road from the capital to Luozhou, and the dividends before the New Year, Lord Li must have received a lot of money."
Minister Li bared his teeth. "Let's put things in perspective. The matter you delayed me with has been resolved. If nothing unexpected happens, after the first month of the year, all the emperor's grandchildren and some of the royal family's children will enter the palace to study."
Liu Zhao nodded with satisfaction, "Does the Sun family suspect you?"
Minister Li sneered and said, "Even if the Sun family is skeptical, they are reluctant to give up this opportunity that has been delivered to their doorstep. The Sun family wants to become the Grand Tutor, so I will grant them their wish."
Liu Zhao asked, "Didn't you ask for benefits from the Sun family?"
Minister Li laughed. "We've requested three quotas. Two for the Censorate and one for the Dali Temple. We'll start working on this matter after the first month of the year."
Liu Zhao nodded and directly requested: "The position of Dali Temple is left to His Highness. His Highness wants to place someone."
Minister Li raised his eyebrows, "To whom?"
Liu Zhao smiled indifferently, "You will know after the first month of the year."
Minister Li was somewhat unwilling to accept it, but since Liu Zhao had spoken, he had no choice but to give up the position of Dali Temple.
He gritted his teeth and said, "As far as I know, Your Highness's child is only three years old. Aren't you worried about sending such a young child to study in the palace?"
Liu Zhao said seriously: "Only those who endure the most hardships can become the best."
This is not entirely true.
Minister Li asked again, "Your Highness, why do you insist on sending your child to the palace to study? You can open a separate school in the palace. I believe many great scholars would be happy to come and teach the emperor's grandson."
Liu Zhao shook his head slightly and said as he poured tea, "Lord Li, you know that after the death of Crown Prince Renxuan, the late emperor considered making Prince Zhao the crown prince for a while."
"That's impossible!"
Minister Li's face changed. "The late emperor would never have appointed Prince Zhao as the crown prince."
"It certainly seems impossible now. But a few years ago, Lord Li, can you be sure that the late emperor really didn't consider making Prince Zhao the crown prince?"
Liu Zhao was like a poisonous snake, and he had already set his sights on Minister Li.
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