floods
Wen Chuyan then picked up the teacup and took a sip, as if jokingly saying, "If the tea set was a gift from him, I would be embarrassed to drink it."
Fu Huaiying was silent. After he finished drinking, she spoke, "He was the one who gave me the tea."
Wen Chuyan put a mouthful of tea in his mouth, but he couldn't swallow it or spit it out.
Seeing that he seemed to be choking, Fu Huaiying couldn't help but laugh, "It's okay, brother, drink it with confidence, this is good tea."
Wen Chuyan put down his teacup. He didn't understand what he was drinking. "You just wanted to say that the Fourth Prince..."
Fu Huaiying nodded. "The Fourth Prince is young, but he looks very steady. He has lived a hard life in the south. He is not an extravagant person after experiencing hardships. Unlike other princes, he has beautiful eyes. I like them."
Wen Chuyan coughed twice, her face flushed. She had just said that the Fourth Prince's eyes looked like his, and now she said she liked those eyes...
"Brother, do you want to stand with me?"
Wen Chuyan looked at her and said helplessly, "You know I can't refuse you, but this is not something to be taken lightly. Have you really thought it through? The other two princes are more than ten years older than him and have been in the court for many years. The situation in the court and His Majesty's thoughts are actually half-determined."
Fu Huaiying shook her head. "My brother knows the situation in the court better than I do, but the emperor's thoughts are beyond your comprehension. You are young, so it is easier to control..."
Wen Chuyan suddenly understood the meaning of her previous words. What she wanted was never a submissive husband or a gentle husband. All she wanted was someone who would listen to her and let her knife do what she wanted.
Fu Huaiying understood his intention from his complicated eyes, "Brother, have you agreed?"
Wen Chuyan nodded. He had no choice. If he wanted Huaiying to love him and marry her, he could only stand with her. If he didn't agree, he would no longer have a place by her side.
After drinking tea, Fu Huaiying began to see the guests off. She leaned against the door and looked at Wen Chuyan's back. She had intended to win over Wen Chuyan from the beginning. After ignoring him for so long, she finally made him take sides.
When Fu Huaiying entered the palace on the second day, there was a little tail following her. Her job as Chen Huanli's teacher had been made clear to the emperor, and Chen Huanli followed her happily. Even the most stable children have a fledgling complex. To him, apart from his parents, Liushuang and Fu Huaiying were his closest people.
But she was very busy. She would be going to the temporary palace in two days. All matters inside and outside the palace had to be handled by her. She was so busy that she didn't even have time to drink water.
During the reign of Emperor Taizu, the emperor suffered from the monopoly of power by his foreign relatives. Most of the emperors who followed suit followed the method of killing the mother and keeping the son, but it was considered inhumane, so it was abandoned and all matters inside and outside the palace were taken over by eunuchs.
However, the previous emperor died because of eunuchs. The late emperor learned from the lesson and opened Qiliyuan, which was specially designed for female officials. The affairs inside and outside the palace were separated. The eunuchs were in charge of miscellaneous affairs in the palace, and Qiliyuan was in charge of state affairs. However, important matters in the palace also had to be handled by the seal holder. When the seal holder resigned, all matters fell on Fu Huaiying.
Chen Huanli followed her, handing her booklets, pouring her water, and grinding ink for her from time to time. He was like a little spinning top, and he never stopped working as long as the teacher did.
The female official beside him was surprised. She was busy with her work, but her eyes were fixed on the pen.
Fu Huaiying waved her hand, "Fourth Prince, stop turning around. It makes me dizzy. Please sit down for a while."
"Okay." Chen Huanli nodded and sat beside her obediently.
Fu Huaiying picked out the memorials in her hand. There were still two left on the table. Looking at the signatures on them, she squinted her eyes and couldn't remember who this Jiang Huai was.
It was rainy season in the south, and the floods of the previous period had not yet been resolved, and now there were reports of them again. She thought for a long time before she remembered that Jiang Huai was the one His Majesty had previously sent to the south to control the floods. It seemed he was from the Empress's family.
The memorial was full of nonsense. It only said that several streets were flooded and people were sent to relocate the people. There was no mention of any flood control plan.
Fu Huaiying placed the memorial on top, intending to personally deliver it to Chongyang Palace. She pulled Chen Huanli's hand, motioning him to go along.
As expected, when she handed the memorial over, Emperor Huanyu only flipped through two pages before frowning and slamming the table. "Useless! I've sent one person after another, and none of them are useful. And now they're spouting this bullshit."
Chen Huanli was a child with lively eyes. He immediately stepped forward and stood on tiptoe to massage his shoulders. "Father, anger is harmful to your health. Don't be angry."
Emperor Huanyu turned to look at him, his expression slightly better, "You are sensible."
He sighed, "My treasury pays them salaries, is it just to support a bunch of useless people? It's been so long, and the flood in the south has not been resolved. It's the rainy season in the south now. What if..."
Chen Huanli looked up at him and said, "Father... When I was in the south, there were frequent floods during the rainy season. The officials who came here could never find the cause, but they refused to listen to advice."
Emperor Huanyu looked down at him and asked, "Do you have any solution?"
"I don't know about other places, but I've been to ours and it's because the Qingsha River is silted up. Once it rains, it floods. So the only way to solve the problem is to clean up the silt in the river."
In fact, if we just conduct a thorough on-site investigation, we can find out the truth. Why don’t those officials know this?
Fu Huaiying knew that it was because people did not take it seriously that they were asked to evacuate quickly whenever a flood occurred. However, there was only one major flood in the south each year, so after evacuating, people would move back after the rainy season and there would be no casualties.
However, too much stagnant water can easily lead to epidemics, and the confluence of sewage and water can be very dirty. If the water is blocked for a long time, problems are more likely to occur.
Emperor Huanyu laughed heartily and patted his head, his eyes becoming more loving. "You have helped father solve a big problem. Tell me, what do you want?"
Fu Huaiying looked up at the emperor and saw that the anger between his brows had dissipated a little, covered by kindness. She felt that Jiang Huai had come at a good time. After the flood was controlled, the first person the emperor would operate on would be him.
The most feared thing after a disaster is epidemic, so we have to send more people to the south. The levee has not been repaired for many years, so it is probably a big project and it will require people. But the weather has been hot these days, and it is raining and humid in the south, which is probably as bad as a steamer. In addition, epidemic is no joke, so I am afraid no one will be willing to go.
Chen Huanli was thinking and looked quite conflicted. Emperor Huanyu was not in a hurry either, he just sat and waited for him.
"Then the emperor needs to send more people to the south. If this problem is not resolved, how many people will die?"
Emperor Huanyu was a little stunned, but then a dull pain and love surged in his heart. Yu'er was the same. She only cared about saving people. She entered the palace only because he pretended to be sick at that time, so she was trapped in the palace and became his concubine.
"Okay, I promise you, I will send more people to resolve the situation in the south."
Fu Huaiying lowered her eyes. This meant that they had to investigate. There were floods in the south every year. If what they found out was really as Huanli said, then it meant that the officials sent every year were not doing their job well.
After all, things from previous years were old history, and it would be inappropriate to bring them up again to question them. But Jiang Huai was different. He went there this year and was in charge. If he did not conduct a thorough investigation, he would be dismissed from his post at best, and exiled at worst.
The Queen's mother's family was not prominent, so she had finally arranged for her younger brother to work in the Ministry of Works, thinking that he could follow behind his predecessors. Although he could not get ahead, at least he had something to do. However, the Minister of Works fell ill, so he was sent to deal with the matter in the south.
In previous years, it was fine as long as the water was not drained away and no one cared. But this year is different. The water cannot be drained away and has flooded people's homes. If the problem is not solved properly, he will lose his official hat.
Jiang Huai is the Queen's younger brother and the Prince's uncle. It is impossible for His Majesty not to vent his anger on him. When the people who went to the south come back in a while, the Prince will be anxious.
The crown prince is most afraid of not being able to sit still.
Chen Huanli listened to Fu Huaiying's words, flattered the emperor, and followed her back.
He walked beside Fu Huaiying and asked softly: "Teacher...who is this Jiang Huai?"
"He is the Empress's younger brother and the Crown Prince's uncle."
Chen Huanli nodded thoughtfully and didn't ask any more questions. There were many people in the palace and it was not easy to say too much. He just needed to understand what the teacher meant.
On the day they set out for the palace, it started raining halfway. Ji Yuan led his men to explore and discovered a large temple that could accommodate hundreds of people.
The eunuchs and guards stood guard outside, while the rest of the concubines and daughters of officials sat inside waiting for the rain to stop.
When Fu Huaiying came in, she found that a corner of her clothes was wet and her shoulders were also wet. It was sticky and made her irritated.
Besides them, there was an old monk in the temple, sitting in front of the Buddha with his eyes closed and motionless. If he hadn't been muttering something, Fu Huaiying would have thought he was dead.
As Fu Huaiying approached, the old monk suddenly stood up and came close to her. She frowned and took two steps back.
The old monk stared at her intently, saying, "No... No... Your fate is wrong... It's been changed... It's been changed..."
Seeing that something was wrong with him, Lin Yan'an immediately stepped forward, raised his hand, and linked arms with the old monk's shoulders. "Hey, old man, are you a fortune teller? Can you tell me something too? Can you tell me where my destiny lies?"
The old monk's eyes regained some clarity. He turned to look at the man who had hooked his shoulder, "You're wrong too... You're all wrong..."
Lin Yan'an didn't like what he heard. He raised his hand and knocked on the old monk's head twice. "Bald donkey, speak nicely. I like to hear compliments. Say a few auspicious words and I'll donate some money for incense."
The old monk didn't bother with him and just kept saying that it was wrong.
Lin Yan'an's patience was exhausted and he was too lazy to say anything more. He pushed the old monk back to where he was and asked him to continue chanting.
Emperor Huanyu sat at the top, looking at Lin Yanan and Fu Huaiying.
Chen Huanli immediately stepped forward to block his view, holding the bracelet and wanted to play cat's tuck with him.
Emperor Huanyu was annoyed by the quarrels between his two sons. Finally, a considerate one came. Naturally, he agreed to everything he said and raised his hand to play with him slowly.
The prince stood beside the tribute table, staring at the harmonious father and son with an inexplicable expression.
Prince Huan leaned back in his chair, squinted his eyes at the prince's sullen face, and curled his lips. The prince was still so impatient. A child without a mother's family and power, he would at most be an idle prince in the future.
By evening, the rain had gradually stopped. The guards outside and the servants of each household immediately set off. After everything was prepared, they came to call people.
"Your Majesty, the rain has stopped."
Emperor Huan Wang held Chen Huanli's hand and walked forward. Fu Huaiying followed behind them, but she noticed a gaze again. When she turned around, the monk had closed his eyes and continued to recite his scriptures.
When the temple was empty, the old monk stood up and stared at the Buddha statue for a long time before he sighed and took out a stick of incense from his tattered bag and lit it.
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