Chapter 121 Angering the Queen Mother
Xia Zeqi saw the Queen Mother's hand touching the screen, and he didn't think much about it.
He thought the Queen Mother couldn't let it go!
Although he was a little reluctant at the moment, he felt it was worth it.
He found it by chance in a cloth shop when he was out for fun, but no one could afford it because of the high price.
So he never sold it.
The place was remote and there were few rich people, so it was a bargain for him.
He spent several thousand taels to buy the screen.
He loved the picture of mountains and rivers on it the most. If he didn't want to please the Queen Mother, he would not be willing to take it out.
After all, this is a treasure that is hard to come by.
But right now, the most important thing to solve is the problem of the royal merchant.
Du Heng was lucky to have escaped, and the family was already on guard against him, so it was really hard for him to take action.
Now he could only start with the Empress Dowager.
His father was filial and obedient, and as long as the Empress Dowager spoke up, it was entirely possible for the Imperial Merchant to be transferred to the Jiang family.
Xia Zeqi felt that this move was completely right.
He looked at the love in the Empress Dowager's eyes and made a suggestion.
"If the Empress Dowager likes this embroidery, then let the Jiang family embroider some fabrics every year and send them to the palace." The Queen Mother
withdrew her hand and sat back.
She spoke in pretended doubt.
"Jiang family? Which Jiang family?"
Xia Zeqi said hurriedly: "Grandmother, it's the Jiang family of Jiangnan Weaving." The Queen Mother
nodded slightly: "I remember that the silk and satin manufacturer selected by the court was the Du family in Jiangnan. This Jiang family is also from Jiangnan."
"It seems that Jiangnan is really a good place. These embroiderers are all clever and skillful."
Xia Zeqi nodded: "Yes, this Jiang family is not worse than the Du family. Although the Du family is the most powerful cloth shop in the north of Jiangnan, the Jiang family is the most powerful cloth shop in the south. The two cloth shops are evenly matched." The Queen
Mother glanced at Xia Zeqi and smiled and said: "This Jiang family is not bad, but the snow brocade of the Du family is also very rare, and they are very thoughtful. It would not be appropriate for me to ask the Jiang family to pay tribute to embroidery every year."
Xia Zeqi's face changed.
This was completely different from what he thought.
He expected that the Empress Dowager would like the embroidery, and then he proposed that the Jiang family pay tribute to his father with embroidery every year.
After all, they were all cloth shops, and the Jiang family was more in line with the Empress Dowager's heart, so they could just change to another imperial merchant.
But the Empress Dowager refused.
Xia Zeqi could hardly hold back the smile on his face, and he reluctantly said, "As long as the Empress Dowager likes it, as a minister, I should do my best." The Queen Mother
rejected Xia Zeqi's proposal and made excuses, saying that she was tired.
Seeing that there was no room for negotiation on this matter, Xia Zeqi could only get up and leave.
After leaving, he realized that something was wrong.
In the past, when the Empress Dowager saw him, she was always more intimate and would ask him about what happened recently, but today, her attitude towards him was too cold.
Xia Zeqi frowned.
For some reason, he couldn't help but think of Qiao Niannian.
Although Qiao Niannian didn't say a word from beginning to end, he just had a hunch that this matter was not simple.
Xia Zeqi called the eunuch, told him to keep an eye on the Queen Mother, and left.
On the way, he happened to meet Xia Chaoyan.
Xia Chaoyan and Xia Zeqi have a very bad relationship. Xia
Zeqi and Xia Rongyu have a bad relationship, Xia Chaoyan and Xia Muyan are not on good terms, but there is more sympathy between the two of them.
Probably because they don't have a good mother, so since they were born, they have to be inferior to Xia Rongyu and Xia Muyan, and they feel very uncomfortable.
Xia Chaoyan greeted Xia Zeqi with a smile.
"Third brother, did you just come out from the Empress Dowager?"
Xia Zeqi nodded: "I sent something to the Empress Dowager."
Then, he thought of Qiao Niannian, and continued: "How much do you know about the daughter of Marquis Mingyuan?"
Xia Chaoyan was stunned, as if she didn't expect Xia Zeqi to mention this matter. She couldn't help but ask one more question: "Are you talking about the legitimate daughter, or the concubine's daughter who embarrassed herself at the banquet?"
Xia Zeqi couldn't help but think of Qiao Yueying, and a hint of disgust flashed in his eyes.
"Of course it's the legitimate daughter."
Why would he mention a concubine's daughter who only embarrassed herself?
Xia Zeqi only values people who are useful to him. He doesn't care about a fool like Qiao Yueying who can't even play a song.
Xia Chaoyan laughed when she heard this: "The daughter of Marquis Mingyuan is very interesting. After all, she can appease Xiao Shi's irritable personality. Naturally, she is extraordinary."
"Before, in the East Palace, the Crown Prince came back from outside with a girl in his arms. Many people saw this on the road."
"It is said that the girl not only lives in the East Palace, but also becomes good friends with the Tenth Princess. This person is Qiao Niannian. The Third Emperor should have known about this."
"But there is one thing that the Third Emperor definitely doesn't know, that is, this girl has something to do with the fate of the Crown Prince."
"As for what the relationship is, the East Palace is full of the Crown Prince's people, and the news is hidden very secretly. I didn't find out."
Xia Zeqi really didn't know about this.
The Tenth Princess knew that Xia Rongyu had brought Qiao Niannian back, and it was he who told Xia Muyan.
At that time, he wanted to take advantage of the impulsive temper of the Tenth Princess to offend Qiao Niannian and cause a quarrel between the Eastern Palace and the Marquis of Mingyuan.
In the end, not only did the two not turn against each other, but they became good friends.
Xia Zeqi was angry for several days about this matter.
But now that it was over, it was over.
Now, Xia Chaoyan actually said that Qiao Niannian was related to the fate of the prince, which made him take it very seriously.
Since ancient times, the Xia Dynasty has always appointed the heir to the throne instead of the eldest son. Even though the crown prince was born not long ago, the imperial teacher discovered that someone was stealing the crown prince's fate. The crown prince might not live past the age of fifteen, but he was still
the crown prince. And he was better than Xia Rongyu in every way, but he could only be a prince.
Xia Chaoyan saw Xia Zeqi's unwillingness and chuckled.
"Third brother, the imperial teacher couldn't do anything about the crown prince's fate, so how could a little girl do anything!"
Xia Chaoyan chuckled, her tone full of disdain.
Xia Zeqi's eyes flashed, and she looked at Xia Chaoyan: "Then according to your guess, how should this matter be understood?"
Xia Chaoyan smiled slowly and said: "Imperial sister thinks that this is just a means for the Crown Prince to win over the Mingyuan Marquis' Mansion."
"This Qiao Niannian is not only the only legitimate daughter of the Mingyuan Marquis' Mansion, but also the legitimate granddaughter of the General's Mansion. The old general treats this grandson as a treasure." "
If the prince marries Qiao Niannian, he will not only get the support of the Marquis' Mansion, but also the support of the General's Mansion." "
It's so easy to gain two major forces. The Crown Prince is really good at scheming!"
Xia Zeqi narrowed her eyes, thinking about the possibility of this matter.
In the capital, it was rumored that Marquis Mingyuan favored concubines more, but at the banquet yesterday, he clearly didn't care about concubines at all. He really loved Qiao Niannian, the legitimate daughter.
As for the general's mansion, they really loved Qiao Niannian.
Every year, Qiao Niannian would go back to stay for a while.
In the past, he never thought about it because Qiao Niannian was only ten years old.
He naturally looked down on a ten-year-old girl.
But if the prince had this idea, he would have to think about it.