Chapter 164: Setting a Trap for the Queen Mother
"What I meant is that after the general returned to the capital, there were so many people who wanted to see him and ask for official positions. Unfortunately, the general had no time to see them. These people were as anxious as headless flies and didn't know what to do. If the queen..."
"presumptuous!"
Nian Shilan slammed her hands on the table.
Since her rebirth, she has rarely lost her temper like this.
"Your Majesty, please calm down." Songzhi knelt down in fear. "If I have said or done anything wrong, Your Majesty, just punish me. Don't be angry. Take care of yourself."
"How dare you discuss state affairs and interfere in the court's employment. Are you afraid that my brother and I will not die? How dare you come up with such a bad idea!"
"Your Majesty, please calm down. I was just thinking that the Emperor held the imperial examination to select talents, and these people recommended themselves for their future. If there are really good ones, and the generals recommend them to the Emperor, it will also be a credit to you, Your Majesty."
Song Zhi said timidly, "Besides, whether that person is useful or not, the general will make his own judgment. If he is not a talent, then just don't use him. It won't cause any trouble."
"What a fool! How can you be so ignorant!"
Nian Shilan is no longer the same person she used to be. She would not be confused about such a big thing. She called Zhou Ninghai in and explained the seriousness of the matter to him.
"If you want to bring down the Nian family and kill me, just take advantage of others!"
Song Zhi and Zhou Ninghai knelt down on their knees and said they dared not.
Nian Shilan did not soften her tone and continued to speak sternly:
"I don't care what you are thinking, but from today on, put away your little thoughts! If you feel that I have wronged you here and want to seek better opportunities, I will not hinder your good future!"
This means to drive people away.
"Your Majesty, your words are too serious. I am so embarrassed. My feelings towards you and the Nian family are clear to all. Even if you gave me ten times the courage, I would never betray you."
Zhou Ninghai was terrified and knelt forward, begging:
"Your Highness, the harem is dangerous. If I leave, who will protect you? Please think twice and leave me behind."
"I was just confused for a moment and short-sighted. Please forgive me, Your Majesty." Songzhi was also scared and cried, "I am not going anywhere. I just want to accompany you. Please grant me your wish."
"I will think twice before I act and never speak nonsense again."
The two of them knelt at Nian Shilan's feet and cried, "My queen, please calm down..."
"The Emperor has arrived—"
Su Peisheng's voice came from the door, and Nian Shilan whispered, "Why don't you get out and wash your face before serving me?"
"Thank you, Madam. Thank you, Madam."
The two men kowtowed repeatedly and stood up to walk out. Zhou Ninghai even stumbled. The emperor came in at that moment, and the two men knelt before him to pay their respects.
"You've been serving the Imperial Concubine for so long, why are you still so irritable?"
The two men confessed their crimes in unison, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. Your Majesty, please forgive me."
The emperor glanced at the two of them, but did not pursue the matter and went straight inside.
Nian Shilan greeted, "Your Highness."
"What's wrong? Are you angry because the people around you don't do their best?"
The emperor helped her up with both hands.
"How can they do that?"
[I am not your Concubine Su. You can go out and have sex with someone else when you have free time. I am the poor Songzhi. I am loyal to you, but I have no choice but to be stolen by you, okay? ]
emperor:"……"
Nian Shilan decided to get rid of Zhao Zhiyuan, the hidden danger, and said deliberately: "It's not yet..."
[Will Lao Deng become suspicious if I tell you this? ]
The emperor became even more curious.
[Damn Zhao Zhiyuan, it wasn’t enough that you harmed my family in your last life, you’re doing it again in this life. 】
Zhao Zhiyuan?
Directly patrol Zhao Zhiyuan?
The emperor remembered that Nian Gengyao had previously reported this man, saying that he was mediocre and dissolute and was not capable of taking on important responsibilities.
Didn't you follow Nian Gengyao's idea and dismiss this man from office?
How can you still cause trouble?
[He was dismissed from office, and he was unwilling to accept it. He looked for his brother but could not see him, so he sent someone to pass a message to the harem, hoping that I would speak for him.]
[Pooh! Big corrupt official! ]
【Old Deng is really bold enough to keep this dog official alive. Is he really not afraid that his Qing Dynasty will be destroyed in vain?】
[It's a pity that I'm not the emperor, otherwise I would have asked the stick-sticking department to chop off his dog head tonight, and see how he can continue to extort money from the people! ]
"Isn't it the children who are causing trouble?"
The emperor was very satisfied with Nian Shilan's realization. He took Nian Shilan's hand and said, "Let me have a look."
"I haven't seen you for a few days. You look bigger. How are you? Are you doing well these days? Do you still enjoy your food?"
Nian Shilan pulled her hand away, turned her face to the side, and deliberately asked, "Your Majesty, are you concerned about me? Or are you concerned about the child in my belly?"
"You are the most stingy person in the entire harem. You are even jealous of the child in your belly."
The emperor helped her sit down. "You used to love pretty colors, why are you wearing so plain clothes now?"
"The emperor has ordered to reduce the expenses of the harem. As the head of all the concubines, I should set an example."
"That's not right." The emperor sat down. "You have to behave like a royal concubine. The New Year is coming. Let the embroidery house make you two new sets of clothes."
"My brother returned to the capital with a great victory. The emperor rewarded him. As his concubine, I naturally have to reward the women of the Nian family on his behalf, but I don't have extra money to buy clothes and jewelry."
"Okay! My beloved concubine has saved the royal family's reputation for me. Can't I give her two sets of clothes and jewelry?"
Nian Shilan recalled some things that happened during the New Year in her previous life. Babar looked at the emperor and asked, "Really?"
"I am the Son of Heaven, how can I deceive you?"
Nian Shilan immediately stood up to thank him and asked Songzhi to go find Huang Guiquan.
"It's just two sets of clothes and jewelry. Are you so excited? You're moving so fast. Aren't you afraid of hurting yourself?"
The emperor pulled her up.
Nian Shilan's belly looked bigger than usual for the same month, but no one in the harem mentioned it, and there was not a single rumor. The emperor could not hear any rumors, so he naturally did not think too much about it and just thought she was greedy.
But the Queen Mother had a sharp eye and could naturally see the difference at a glance.
New Year’s Eve family dinner.
This year's New Year's Eve family dinner was very lively. Concubine Duan came out again, Prince Guo also returned from Jiangnan, and the Empress Dowager was also in attendance.
Prince Guo talked about his trip to the south of the Yangtze River, the Broken Bridge in mist and rain, the beautiful Taihu Lake, the best mountain in the south of the Yangtze River, and the special charm of "the mist is thick, the rain is bleak, the flowers on the bank are falling, and the partridges are crying" in autumn.
Speaking of boating on the West Lake, his eyes intentionally looked at Huanbi behind Zhen Huan, with a hint of regret in his tone.
"Have you gone to Putuo?" asked the Queen Mother.
Prince Guo smiled and replied, "Wuyue is a Buddhist country in the southeast, with many precious temples. I know that the Queen Mother is devoted to Buddhism, so I visited all the famous Buddhist temples and mountains on her behalf, including Mount Putuo, the temple of Guanyin in the South China Sea, Mount Jiuhua, the temple of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and Mount Lang, the temple of Dashizhi Bodhisattva."
The Queen Mother nodded with satisfaction, "It is hard to believe that you are so filial."
After saying a few more words, the Queen Mother looked at Nian Shilan. She had always known that Nian Shilan liked luxury and wore expensive clothes made of gold and jade.
Everything is higher than the monthly rate.
As a concubine in the deep palace, she naturally could not earn this extra money, it must have been given by someone outside.
And there would be no one else outside, it would naturally be her good brother.
The empress dowager took a quick look and found that Nian Shilan lived up to her expectations: her clothes were of luxurious material and her hair accessories were dazzling.
"Your Highness's dress is very nice. Although I have poor eyesight, I still find it very dazzling."