36 Chapter 36
◎Two chapters in one◎
After the meal, Li Cheng went back with Concubine Wu. They soon arrived at the palace, and Li Cheng hurried forward to support Concubine Wu. Concubine Wu and Huiyin had long been at odds with each other. If they could still maintain the illusion of a loving mother-in-law and a filial daughter-in-law, since Concubine Wu asked her to kneel, she almost never came except for the morning and evening visits.
So when they came back, Concubine Wu deliberately did not let anyone notify Huiyin to come over, just to let Li Cheng see how unfilial Huiyin was.
But she was wrong, because after Li Cheng came back, he didn't care about it at all, and just said: "She didn't come, she must be taking care of the child, grandma, I will take you back to your room first, and then go to see them."
Concubine Wu had a lot to say, but she just said, "Okay."
She thought it would be best if she didn't go, so as to avoid getting involved.
As it turned out, she was wrong. When Li Cheng reached the main courtyard in two steps at a time, he hurried in. He didn't know why he had been thinking about her day and night since he hadn't seen her for more than a month. When he got here and was about to enter, he felt homesick.
Huiyin had just gotten up from the couch. She was tired from reading and just dozed off for a while. When she got up again and saw someone at the door, she thought she was seeing things.
"My Lord..." She was extremely happy.
Li Cheng was instantly pleased with her joy, but unexpectedly Huiyin frowned again and turned to walk towards the inner room. Li Cheng quickly chased after her, and the servants scattered like birds and beasts.
He sensed that she was angry, and said quickly, "I came all the way back because I was thinking of you."
"Are you thinking about me? I'm afraid you are here to call me to task. I've heard that the Concubine asked you to come back and beat and scold me, but let me tell you, if you really lay a finger on me, I will definitely go back to Jizhou." Huiyin sat on the edge of the bed with a determined look on her face.
Li Cheng laughed and said, "What nonsense! I came back just to see you. I will come back to Jianye to stay again. The King of Wei told me that it would be good for me to go to Xuzhou from here in the future."
When Huiyin heard this, she felt bad. She just wanted Li Cheng to come back and help her punish Concubine Wu, but she didn't let him lose his military power.
So, she asked nervously: "Is the King of Wei letting others drink the ready-made tea? You worked so hard to rectify Xuzhou, but you just gave it to others?"
Li Cheng put his hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her down: "No, it's still under my control. It's not too far from Jianye to Xuzhou by boat, don't worry. It's still the same as before. I'll come back to Jianye when I'm free."
Only then did Huiyin feel relieved, but she thought that everything she said and did was under the King of Wei's eyes, which was not a good thing. But if she said it, it would be a sedition, so she just said happily: "Let's go and see our son."
"It doesn't matter if he sees me anytime. What's important is you. Did he bully you when I'm not around?" Li Cheng asked.
Huiyin hesitated for a moment and shook her head again: "No, no one bullied me. Oh, there is only one thing, that is, Madam Xie wanted to ask me for a handwritten letter to Jizhou, but I was afraid of taking responsibility, so I didn't give it to her."
"So that's what happened. If she hadn't got the letter from King Wei, I wouldn't have sent anyone to escort her there. There's no other way. She and King Wei are related by marriage, and Xie Jiuyi and I also have a very good relationship." Li Cheng said with a smile.
Huiyin breathed a sigh of relief: "But I don't have a very good relationship with them, and I don't have many friends here."
In fact, Huiyin doesn’t care about friends at all. She doesn’t have any special tricks to deal with men, but she knows one trick that works, which is that he may like you a little and be interested in you, so he will consider you no matter what.
"Am I not your friend? Besides, friends are hard to come by. You are so young and with your status, ordinary people cannot be your friend. When I was not in Jianye, you were very polite and seldom went out. I have been in Jianye these days, and I support you if you want to hold a flower banquet or tea party." Li Cheng felt very distressed.
Huiyin shook her head: "My grandmother is the manager of this family, so it's not easy for me to handle these things."
Li Cheng held her hand and said in disbelief, "Grandma is still the housekeeper? She is so old now, she always needs you to share her worries."
Huiyin remained silent, and Li Cheng also understood that this matter was the problem of Concubine Wu. As she got older, her power became more and more important, and the corrupt officials below were just following the example of her superiors. And why Concubine Wu kept the power of the housekeeper tightly was not entirely for money, but for power, in order to always be high and mighty.
Li Cheng disagreed with this point. The Huaiyin Palace should be controlled by the Huaiyin Princess. The money spent by these so-called old concubines was not allocated by the court. The court now had no money to manage these concubines. They were almost all supported by their children and grandchildren.
Why is the income from Xuzhou so little? Jianye accounts for more than half of it. There is no way my grandmother has to be supported, and I can't be stingy. In fact, with the strength of their palace, Li Cheng's father, Prince Wu, was the emperor's younger brother, with rich fiefdoms, and his mother was the daughter of Cui from Boling, with rich dowries. All of these were inherited by Li Cheng, and he himself was still a prince.
Just like Huiyin said, if this money can be saved, it will be possible to recruit soldiers and buy horses in the future.
Although he is the nephew of King Wei, to some extent, King Wu is the second oldest and King Wei is the youngest son of the late emperor. If the emperor fails and the crown prince cannot control the overall situation in the future, he is also the son of the dragon and the grandson of the phoenix, so he may not be without a chance.
It was fine before he didn’t have a son, but now that he has a wife and a son, of course his thoughts are different.
After hearing what Li Cheng said, Huiyin understood what was going on. She knew that her husband was a man of his word, so she began to untie his clothes: "You came here in such a hurry, don't you miss me at all?"
…
But when she heard that Concubine Wu had someone waiting for news from Huiyin, Nanny Fan would not go. She knew very well that if something like this happened, it would definitely not be a good thing. She had charged into battle before, but ended up being blamed. Concubine Wu could only scold her, but it was useless. She didn't even give her any extra bonus.
This time, the person sent to inquire about the news was Madam Liu. Madam Liu stood at the door and watched for a long time. Although she could not hear what was said inside, the servants brought in water three times in a row, so there was no need to inquire about anything.
There are some servants who are quite aware of current affairs, like Nanny Fan, who know that although they are the concubines of Concubine Wu, Zheng is a legitimate princess after all and will take charge of the family sooner or later, so it is better to make a good relationship with her. There are some servants like Madam Liu who are eager to create discord between Concubine Wu and Huiyin and then take advantage of it.
So, when she went back to tell Concubine Wu, she described it in a very vivid way: "I saw the little prince go in angrily, but I don't know what happened, and then someone outside brought water in."
Concubine Wu slammed the table and said, "Lust really blinds one's mind."
Madam Fan lowered her eyes and was unwilling to say more, but she saw Madam Liu said, "My Lady Consort, Steward Qiao has brought back almost all of the young prince's luggage. I'm afraid the young prince will have to stay for a long time, so you must not take it lightly."
"I understand." Concubine Wu sat down. For a moment, she was actually at a loss. She thought, could it be that her grandson didn't receive the letter she wrote? Then she would tell him in person later.
Madam Liu laughed again and said, "Actually the Concubine has no solution, but I have another solution."
Concubine Wu looked at her and said, "Oh, tell me about it."
However, Madam Liu whispered something in Concubine Wu's ear. Madam Fan didn't hear what she said, but it was a good thing that she didn't hear it. Since she didn't hear it, she didn't have to worry about it.
It is also said that Huiyin and Li Cheng had been fooling around for half a day. When they got up, Li Cheng was in high spirits, but Huiyin's face was red. It must be said that Li Cheng was quite amazing. He was amazing in every way.
"The Concubine Dowager will have dinner later, and I have to go and serve her. If you hadn't told me in advance today, I would have had to welcome you." Huiyin buttoned her clothes.
Li Cheng smiled and helped her up: "Let's go together. Don't worry, I'll be here with you in the future. You'll still be the one making the decisions at home."
Huiyin shook her head: "No, don't offend your grandmother for me. It would be bad if people accuse you of being unfilial."
"No, she will still have to rely on me in the future. Even now, Concubine Wei and the people here treat her with courtesy, and it is also because of me." Li Cheng is very clear-headed. Although he is filial, he is definitely not blindly filial.
But Huiyin said to Li Cheng: "These family matters are trivial. I have something serious to tell you. Didn't you give a generous gift to Concubine Yin last time? But I have been to their house. In fact, the King of Wei's favorite is Concubine Xu. Now Concubine Yin's eldest son has not yet been granted the title of Crown Prince."
Li Cheng paused as he helped her up: "But the eldest son is still the eldest son."
Huiyin smiled and said, "If I were to say that people's hearts would be divided when the crown prince is not decided, my husband, I know you have always been loyal to the King of Wei. But the world is in chaos. It is not only heroes who make the times, but also times that make heroes. Lu Wei is arrogant and has nothing in his eyes. The He family is the same. My father is brave but not wise. The only one who is truly capable is not Wei Duo. Why don't you take advantage of the situation, my husband?"
"What nonsense! Don't mention this matter again." Li Cheng's face changed.
Huiyin thought that as long as he was a man, especially one who commanded a military force, such a man with great strategy and tactics as Li Cheng, she would definitely be tempted. Now she just didn't want to admit her desire. So, she didn't force herself, but just smiled and said, "Okay, okay, I won't tell you."
After they went out, they went to see Jing'er first. Li Cheng saw that his son was soft, and his heart softened. He held his chubby hand. Jing'er was awake now. He was a laughing child. After Li Cheng held his hand, he giggled.
Hearing the children laughing made the adults feel much better.
此時去見吳太妃，當着徽音的面，吳太妃不會直接數落，徽音也認真站起來服侍。曾經做過太後的人，卻要服侍這個糊塗人，她心中一百個不願意，但也沒有辦法，除非自己真的掌權了，否則一切都是白說。
一夜相安無事，到了次日一早，吳太妃沒想到李澄先過來了。
昨日她見李澄和鄭氏雖然交流不多，但二人眉來眼去，其中的溫存她是看的很清楚，本來她還想暗自留下李澄說一下鄭氏不好的地方，只是李澄說他要留在建業，這些事情倒是讓她分了心神。
“給祖母請安。”李澄笑道。
吳太妃慈愛的看着他：“你風塵仆仆的，也要愛惜身子才是，何必這麽早過來。”
李澄道：“原本孫兒媳婦是要過來的，但是孫兒有事情和您說。昨日我和您說了，我打算以後住在建業，所以打算在府中宴請魏王叔等人，也算是回報她們這麽多年照料祖母。”
“這是應該的。”吳太妃笑道。
李澄又道：“王妃她年紀雖輕，可是在徐州替我操持內務倒是一把好手，昨日我見家中還是您在管家，把她說了一頓。祖母您年紀大了，她年輕不懂事，怎麽能讓您老這偌大年紀還為我操持？”
吳太妃一僵，指着李澄道：“你，你這是逼我交出管家權啊？”
其實李澄雖說爹娘過世之後和吳太妃相處，但他多半在外頭辦事，從未真正和吳太妃打交道。原本以為自己說話已經是夠委婉了，就像他和妻子說話有時候還沒這般委婉呢？哪裏知曉吳太妃的舉動簡直讓人傻眼。
“祖母，您說什麽？是您要管家嗎？倒是孫兒的不是。”李澄覺得人心裏即便這麽想的，也不能說出來啊。
就像真正被選為皇帝的人，還要三辭三讓呢。
但他還是跪下，做了個樣子。
吳太妃也覺得自己過激了，親自扶李澄起來：“我自然不是要這個管家權，但是你媳婦太年輕了，她很難服衆啊。你不知道，她若是只對我不敬倒好了，畢竟咱們胳膊肘朝裏拐，就是出了什麽事情我也不會往外面說。可她聽說為了救個商戶女，和霍家鬧的難看，在魏太妃那裏，也是不恭敬，說話夾槍帶棒的，總之有她在，大家都不愉快，我不這麽撐着怎麽成呢？”
李澄卻想着自己的妻子，雖然她常常說話謙卑，可身上的氣度絕非一般人能夠比拟的。的确，她甚至讓自己去稱霸，絕對非一般的女子，他表面上呵斥了她，其實內心驚濤駭浪。
是，她絕對不是一般的女子，可徽音絕對是非常講道理的，怎麽可能把她說成刺兒頭呢？真是夏蟲不可語冰。
所以李澄換了一種方式：“徽音她到底是淮陰王妃，正如您所說她認識的人不多，所以可能交際有問題。我就想在家讓您辦花宴和茶宴，如此廣接賓客，這不就好了。”
吳太妃沒想到她這位孫兒居然對那鄭氏這般的體貼，每一句話表面上仿佛是替她說話，其實全部是在為鄭氏開脫，什麽都為鄭氏好。她欲開口把劉娘子說的主意說出來，但是想着此事辦瓷實了再說出來，就掩口不提。
只是道：“你這才回來，就又要辦這宴，又要辦那宴的？祖母也不懂，就都交給錢管事去辦吧。”
李澄铩羽而歸，回來只好和徽音說，徽音倒是安慰道：“這不是人之常情嗎？你猜人為何都要爬到頂端，也就是不想受人轄制了。若是上頭的人通情達理，心胸開闊還好，若是能力平庸，還指手畫腳，誰還願意屈居人下？”
“你膽子真大，居然敢說這種話，不管怎麽說，祖母咱們總要尊敬着。”李澄說這話沒底氣。
徽音站起來：“好，我什麽都不說了。”
以前二人頂多說說情話，那是因為她們夫妻當時在徐州只有她們倆，所以沒有任何矛盾，現在有他的長輩，還有外面的大事，這些都是夫妻磨合的關鍵。
見徽音這般，李澄想起他們在徐州的時候，那時他看到禮單全部改了一遍，徽音都沒生氣，現在她脾氣似乎大了一些，但說的其實也挺有道理的。
“別呀，你都不和我說真話，那還有誰說呢？”李澄笑道。
徽音知曉他現在也不過二十出頭，人還年輕，也不敢相信自己會做一統天下這樣的美夢，而且李澄的執行力很強，從側面也表明他其實是個很務實的人。因為他都會把自己能夠做的事情做了，不能夠做的事情從來不會好高骛遠。
故而，徽音道：“你不要替我拿什麽管家權了，祖母她不願意讓我管，我不管就是了。我說真的，咱們夫妻能相聚，我就很高興了。”
“不行，我說了幫你拿回來就一定幫你拿的。我就是因為喜歡你，所以想把一切好的東西奉上，若是我嘴裏說喜歡你，卻總要你受委屈，那我就不是真的喜歡你。”李澄不同意徽音這個說話。
喜歡一個人還要人家受委屈，那不可能。
他倏地站了起來，又沖了出去，南媽媽從外進來，還不明所以：“王妃，小王爺他這是……”
“且随他去吧。”徽音心想吳太妃此人稀裏糊塗，好壞不分，親疏不分，李澄此人是個杠精，若是吳太妃條理分明，能聽懂他的言下之意倒好，若是聽不懂，李澄恐怕就要較真了。
果然，不一會兒秋豐跑過來道：“王妃，小王爺讓錢管事報賬，他還喊來四大賬房，似乎是要查賬了。”
徽音叩了叩桌子：“果然，開始了。”她都不敢随便惹李澄，吳太妃自以為用長輩打壓別人，那真是打錯了算盤。
……
另外一邊吳太妃早課還未做完，就聽見幾個下人來通風報信，她站起來道：“怎麽回事？他這是不信我嗎？”
下人只是磕頭，讓吳太妃忍不住打發範嬷嬷去傳話，範嬷嬷真的在內心罵娘，好事不找我，壞事全有我。
但她是下人，還能怎麽辦呢？只好去傳話。
李澄倒是笑着道：“祖母這是說哪裏話，我是淮陰王，淮陰王府的賬我當然會看。讓祖母不必憂心，我是來看看本府情況，自古男主外女主內，我怎麽能不看看呢？”
範嬷嬷只好回去，把李澄說的話傳給吳太妃聽。
吳太妃再想呵斥，卻發現自己也是無可奈何，她想痛罵李澄，可她罵李澄什麽呢？李澄可是她的靠山，李澄若真的不成，連淮陰這塊封地都沒了，那她豈不是寄人籬下？再者，這個王府也的确是李澄的。
李澄的确不是吃幹飯的，他從小就和吳王學怎麽打理吳王府，後來投奔魏王，魏王起初交給他的第一件事情不是讓他帶兵，而是讓他管魏王府。
這些賬本他一邊看，一邊感嘆，這淮陰王府的錢管事是有多自信啊，難道就知道自己不會查賬嗎？随意亂寫亂畫。
他忍不住看着錢管事：“我祖母從不辦任何宴會，走禮走的也少，怎麽我撥過來的銀錢直接虧空了那麽多？剩下來的銀錢你給我好好算算。”
錢管事也算是大管事了，他先是看了李澄一眼，只好老實摘清自己：“小王爺，我們可沒貪污，有些結餘的銀錢都交到了太妃娘娘那裏。太妃娘娘今年在四大名寺，捐贈就捐了兩萬兩銀子。”
“等等，捐到哪四座寺廟，何時捐的？我現在就讓人騎馬去查，你們務必老實告訴我，否則，我的板子可是不會饒人的。”
“是，在大坨寺、普濟寺、廣宏寺和龍空寺。”錢管事雖然有時候也不太清白，說真的小錢她是真的貪了點，可是大錢，怎麽可能是他貪的。
李澄先着人去查，他又讓錢管事和幾位賬房帶着他去查本府庫房，出乎意料，今年賞賜庫裏幾乎只剩三分之一。
“說，這些東西哪裏去了，你們可別哄我，否則，別怪我不客氣。”
錢管事只好跪下說了實話，他從中貪了五千兩，王府庫房被他倒賣了一半，其餘的那四位賬房一起貪了五千兩。
還有一位承認自己做假賬，之前捐給普濟寺的五千兩，有一千兩是他貪了。
“好好好，你們真是個個都是蛀蟲啊。這就三萬兩了，還有我的祿米呢？我父王當年分封江南時，一共分了湖淤地一千三百五十二頃、莊田一萬頃，父王過世之後，分得四百頃給魏王王叔，其餘全部由本王繼承，到現下祿米只剩陳米，新米居然這般少了？你們到底是怎麽替我管這個家的。”
李澄說到這裏，直接抽出劍來，想宰了這幾個人的心都有。
錢管事吓的尿了褲子，直接癱瘓在地，若是平時，李澄絕對會堵嘴，把他拉下去打板子了，但是吳太妃掌家數年，他就不管了，還直接逼問：“怎麽了？給我說實話。”
"Yes, it was the Concubine Dowager who asked us to sell it. She kept the aged rice for the people in the mansion, and kept the new rice and the polished rice from the imperial estate with the Concubine Dowager. She sold all the rest. The Concubine Dowager said she was afraid of insects, and it was not good to keep them all the time." After Manager Qian finished speaking, he lowered his head and said nothing.
Li Cheng sneered: "The Concubine is old, and you put all this on her. Well, you should say this to the Concubine's face. Come on, invite the Concubine over."
Concubine Wu herself has no shame, so why should he save face for her?
This word soon reached Concubine Wu, who was immediately horrified: "How can I confront a servant? People say that if an arm is broken, one should bend inward, but he should beat Manager Qian to death on the spot..."
Nanny Fan also asked anxiously, "Tiffany, what should we do?"
"Just say that I'm not feeling well and can't come over. In the past, all the family matters were entrusted to Manager Qian, and he doesn't know anything else." After Concubine Wu finished speaking, she staggered and was about to fall.
Nanny Fan told the people sent by Li Cheng what Concubine Wu had said. Even the servant's eyes flashed with contempt after hearing this.
Within two days, a new group of people came to the Huaiyin Palace. Li Cheng forced the money manager and several accountants to return all the money they had embezzled over the years. Even Concubine Wu pretended that the money was for Li Cheng. Li Cheng gave all the money to Huiyin, and Huiyin took charge of the household again.
Huiyin looked at the money filling the room and signaled Li Cheng to calm down: "I understand. I believe it now. Where the money is, there is love. Where the power is, there is love too. Sit down and take a rest."