Chapter 014 Chapter 14

Nan'an Palace.

Mei Xuezheng took the secret passage as usual.

After the morning court session ended today, he accompanied His Majesty back to Wenzhao Pavilion to handle government affairs.

Unexpectedly, someone suddenly came from the Queen Mother's side, bringing with her an imperial decree.

Everyone in the court knew that although His Majesty had been on the throne for many years, all important matters still had to go through the hands of Empress Dowager Zhaoyu. Even the imperial seal was still kept by her.

Said to be in power.

In fact, we are still controlled by others.

This decree was sent here only to let Your Majesty know about this matter, and then to issue it through Your Majesty's hand so that the court officials will have nothing to say.

…

When the bells rang in the house.

Xie Qingya was reading a letter sent from the south.

Changfeng is accompanying me today.

Knowing who was behind the wall, he hurried over to open the door.

Mei Xuezheng was wearing a cloak and holding a lantern, and he didn't even have time to take off the veil on his head.

It can be seen that he came here in a hurry.

"Master Mei."

Mei Xuezheng was too late to greet Changfeng.

He hummed, handed the lantern in his hand to Changfeng, and walked quickly towards Xie Qingya with an unpleasant look on his face.

"You've been coming here quite frequently lately. What's the matter?"

Xie Qingya was still reading a letter when he heard footsteps coming. He spoke without even looking up.

Mei Xuezheng said as he walked: "It's important!"

Xie Qingya did not comment.

The things they are in contact with now are of course mostly important matters.

Mei Xuezheng is now a close minister of the emperor. In order to avoid suspicion from others, he naturally cannot get too close to him. Even though there is this secret passage, the two of them generally do not meet unless there is something important.

Even if we meet on the road, we will just pretend not to know each other.

Mei Xuezheng was this year's top scholar and the leader among all the students. He had even criticized Xie Qingya's current behavior in the past and was very dissatisfied with him.

No one knew that they had such a close relationship in private.

No one knew that they had a brotherly relationship.

They are not brothers.

Mei Xuezheng's mother was saved by his mother in those days.

At that time, Liu Yi and Prince Nan'an were traveling in the south of the Yangtze River. By chance, they saved Mei Xuezheng's mother. His mother originally wanted to serve Liu Yi as a slave, but was instead recognized as a sister by Liu Yi.

Not many people know about this.

Now, in the Nan'an Palace, only Xie Qingya and Aunt Deng, an old servant of Liu Yi, knew about this matter. Even the brother and sister Ping'an and Changning only heard from their mother that they had a brother and aunt in Jiangnan, but they didn't know their surnames and names.

"Sit down and talk."

Xie Qingya asked people to sit down.

The letter sent from the south said that Quan Fangtong's wealth was becoming increasingly uncountable, and the amount they had found so far was already as high as hundreds of thousands.

He also said that although he was the director of the Jiangning Textile Factory, he was arbitrary and the two textile manufacturers, Su and Hang, were very dissatisfied with him.

He was asked whether he wanted to ask the two textile manufacturers, Su and Hang, to jointly impeach him.

Mei Xuezheng walked up to Xie Qingya, sat down, and said, "The one from Shoukang Palace wants to promote you to be the governor of Shuntian Prefecture."

Xie Qingya originally wanted to ask Changfeng to write a reply.

Hearing this, he raised his head.

Mei Xuezheng saw his expression and knew that he was also surprised. He said in a deep voice: "When Your Majesty and I first saw the decree, we were also like you."

"Why do you think that person appointed you as prefect for no reason?"

This is something Mei Xuezheng could not understand.

They all knew that both Cao Da and the man from Shoukang Palace were very jealous of Qingya.

Everyone is afraid that he is just pretending.

Otherwise, there wouldn't have been such an arranged marriage.

He was afraid that there was something hidden behind this, a conspiracy that he didn't know or couldn't figure out, so as soon as his shift was over today, he hurried over to tell Qingya about it first so that he could think of a solution in advance.

After Xie Qingya heard what he said, he frowned and said nothing.

After a while, he said, "Yesterday I had a little argument with Xiao Baozhu in Xianyifang."

"Xiao Baozhu?"

Mei Xuezheng frowned when he heard the name: "What is she saying to you?"

He sounded impatient.

Xie Qingya was unwilling to talk much about Xiao Baozhu, and he never took her seriously.

"Some trivial matters are over."

"But——"

He suddenly changed the subject, and for some reason his voice slowed down: "Xu Duanyi was also here yesterday."

"Princess Jiashun?"

Mei Xuezheng was surprised.

He vaguely figured out some key points, looked at Xie Qingya and asked doubtfully: "Do you think this was the work of the eldest princess?"

Xie Qingya groaned, "I don't know if it was her work, but it has something to do with her."

"After all, the one Shoukang Palace values ​​the most right now is her." When Xie Qingya said this, his eyes involuntarily turned to the two hand warmers placed side by side on the table.

Mei Xuezheng didn't notice his actions.

Changfeng came over and served tea.

He continued to frown and think.

"If that's the case, this is a good thing. You were forced to stay in the palace because of their suspicion. Although the Shuntian prefect is a civil servant, he is still a third-rank official and is in charge of the affairs of the entire prefecture."

"It will be much more convenient for us to do things in the future."

"You don't have to act like a lazy dandy every day."

Now that he understood the reason, Mei Xuezheng finally let go of the uneasiness that had been bothering him all along.

"But it really scared me to death."

He sat back in the chair, relaxed. Where was the beautiful scenery that was praised outside?

He leaned back in his chair, picked up the teacup and started drinking.

He added, "Now it seems that your marriage with the princess is not without merit."

Xie Qingya ignored these words.

Mei Xuezheng just said it casually. Soon, he started to read the letter on the table. When he saw the content of the letter, his face turned ugly and he angrily scolded: "Quan Fangtong is too bold!"

"He thinks he has Cao Da to back him up, so he has nothing to fear." Xie Qingya sneered, "He is still asking people about the next year's salt inspection officer."

Mei Xuezheng looked up, stunned: "He wouldn't..."

Xie Qingya nodded.

Mei Xuezheng laughed angrily: "He is dreaming. Cao Da spent so much effort to get him to be a doctor in Jiangning Textile Factory, and now he is greedy for the position of inspector of salt and defense."

"But he's just wishful thinking. Cao Da is not that stupid."

"Cao Da must know how much Quan Fangtong is worth. He can't let him jump so high. If something really happens, Cao Da can't escape."

Xie Qingya looked at him and said, "So I'm relying on you."

"I?"

Mei Xuezheng blinked, confused.

Xie Qingya said slowly, "After the beginning of next spring, all officials from various prefectures will return to the capital to report on their work. At that time, you only need to tell Quan Fangtong that the emperor prefers him to be the inspector of the salt and defense department, but he just needs someone to recommend him."

"But……"

Mei Xuezheng opened his mouth.

When the words came to his lips, he suddenly realized what Xie Qingya meant: "Do you want him to fight with Cao Da?"

Xie Qingya did not comment.

Mei Xuezheng understood what he meant and burst out laughing.

"Xie Qingya, you are such a wicked person. Cao Da is afraid that his brother will do something stupid, but you are afraid that he won't do it badly enough."

He is two years older than Xie Qingya.

When Xie Qingya came to live in Jiangnan with his aunt when he was a child, he knew that Xie Qingya was mean.

But they both have similar tastes.

He smiled and said, "Leave it to me."

It's almost time for dinner.

Normally, Xie Qingya seldom ate with his brothers and sisters. He would have food delivered to him individually every day. Today, since Mei Xuezheng was here, Changfeng naturally asked someone to prepare more.

At mealtime.

Mei Xuezheng thought of something and said with a smile, "If Cao Da knew that you were appointed as the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, he would be even more angry."

"If he can break up with the one from Shoukang Palace, it will be very beneficial to us."

Xie Qingya did not say anything about this.

But deep down, he also hoped that these two people would really fall apart.

He had no deep hatred with the man in Shoukang Palace.

As long as she doesn't help Cao Da in the future and returns the government to His Majesty, then he and Xu Duanyi...

The thought that suddenly came to his mind made Xie Qingya extremely frightened.

How could he...

"What's wrong?"

When Mei Xuezheng raised his head, he saw Xie Qingya's dazed face.

"Nothing."

Xie Qingya closed his eyes again, but Mei Xuezheng didn't notice anything.

Mei Xuezheng looked at him for a while and didn't think too much about it.

The two continued to drink and eat.

After finishing the meal, Mei Xuezheng did not stay any longer. Before leaving, he suddenly noticed two hand warmers on the table.

"Why are you using the hand warmer all of a sudden?"

As he was about to get it, Xie Qingya slapped it away with a pen: "Go back to your place."

Mei Xuezheng sighed: "Who gave it to you? It's such a treasure, but you won't let me touch it."

He glanced at the Sichuan brocade satin wrapped around the hand warmer and the patterns on it, and it was obvious that it was made by his daughter.

Just as he was about to guess, he heard Xie Qingya say indifferently, "Changning."

When Mei Xuezheng heard that it was Xie Changning who did it, he didn't dare to continue joking.

He knew that Xie Qingya didn't seem to be very warm towards his family, but what he treasured most now was actually this pair of dragon and phoenix siblings.

It’s a pity that due to his special status now, it is not easy for him to meet the Changning brothers and sisters.

Mei Xuezheng looked serious and stopped talking: "Let's go."

Xie Qingya hummed.

Only after hearing Mei Xuezheng walk away did he look up at the pair of stoves again.

He didn't know why he brought them back.

After hearing that Changfeng had closed down his office and returned, Xie Qingya lowered his head again. While writing a letter, he ordered: "Take these two hand warmers ..."

I wanted to throw it away.

So that no one will see it again in the future.

Especially Xu Duanyi.

But when the words came to his lips, he still said: "...Put it away."

Chang Feng didn't know what he was thinking. Hearing this, he just nodded and did as he was told.

…

Ouchi.

Just as Mei Xuezheng thought.

After Cao Da learned of Empress Dowager Zhaoyu's intention, he was indeed very angry.

This was done without his knowledge.

Cao Da thought he was all-powerful, but he never expected that this time the secret was kept secret.

Everything in the house was smashed.

He was not angry about the content of the decree. A position as the prefect of Shuntian was not enough for him to take seriously. He was angry that he found out about it so late.

I was angry because my authority was challenged and threatened.

He naturally knew that by doing this, Empress Dowager Zhaoyu was actually warning him in disguise.

Just like the time he went there to "warn" her.

"Don't be angry, old ancestor. The decree hasn't been issued yet. If you don't like it, why not let the people below think of a solution?" The eunuch beside him hurriedly handed over some fresh tea and tried to persuade him not to be angry.

When Cao Da heard this, he became even more angry.

He glared at me and said angrily, "You brainless idiot! If I stop you at this juncture, do you think that Shoukang Palace is a vegetarian?"

That woman's heart and means are better than his, but not worse.

The late emperor was killed by her.

That’s it.

After Cao Da vented his anger, he wasn't that angry anymore.

If he only had a bad temper, he wouldn't be in his current position.

He knew very well that he and the woman from Shoukang Palace were grasshoppers on the same rope, and it was not yet time for them to completely fall out, not even to this extent.

If we really make a scene, it won't be good for anyone.

"That's it."

"This matter won't cause us any trouble anyway." Cao Da curled his lips.

Then he said, "What's more, if we put the boy from the Xie family in the open, whether he is a human or a ghost, we can see it more clearly."

"Go back and ask someone to go to Shuntian Prefecture and keep an eye on it."

The eunuch bowed hurriedly and responded.

*

The days passed quickly.

After New Year's Eve, it is the seventh year of Tianhe.

Xu Duanyi and Xie Qingya's wedding date was set for March 23, just after the spring equinox.

During this period.

Xie Qingya was officially appointed as the governor of Shuntian Prefecture.

This move caused a lot of discussion among the people, but since the emperor had spoken the truth and it was the decision made by Empress Dowager Zhaoyu herself, no one dared to say anything.

Xu Duanyi also went out of the palace several times and attended several banquets.

However, during these times when she left the palace, she never ran into Xie Qingya once.

soon.

The spring equinox has passed.

The wedding of Xu Duanyi and Xie Qingya has officially arrived.