Chapter 199 Goodbye Qi Yuebin

The Queen secretly reminded Nian Xiyao of this matter, and Nian Xiyao was not idle either.

He did not directly request a hunting expedition, nor did he let his followers mention the relevant matters. Instead, he reported to the emperor one by one the news of people along the border who were eyeing the enemy covetously and were ready to take action.

He Ersong thought about it and spread the idea of ​​hunting among the Eight Banners disciples.

Longkodo also heard the news and discussed border affairs with the emperor in private. The emperor believed that there were not many useful generals in the court and that deploying troops on the border would cause loss of manpower and property.

He looked at his superior's intention and said, "If the other party does nothing, I can send a large army to suppress them. It will seem that the Qing Dynasty is in danger and afraid of the other party."

"What good ideas does Uncle Longkodo have?"

"I was thinking, instead of sending troops with great fanfare, it would be better to lead the Eight Banners men north..."

"Uncle, do you mean the autumn hunt?"

"In recent years, the capital has been peaceful, and the children of the Eight Banners have gradually developed a tendency to be lazy and idle. I thought it would be better to learn from Mulan, inherit the legacy of our ancestors, and also give the children of the Eight Banners an opportunity to exercise and not let them become lazy."

The emperor fiddled with his Buddhist beads and said slowly, "That's a good idea."

"Of course." Longkodo changed his mind and said, "The autumn hunt is just a way to shock the enemy. If we want the two countries to be stable, we still have to rely on strength."

The emperor pretended not to understand his hidden meaning and continued to listen attentively. Longkodo continued, "Your Majesty just said that there are no useful generals in the court. In fact, there may be useful people among the princes."

"Among the princes..." the emperor said deliberately, "Old Thirteen has not been in good health in the past two years. I don't want him to be overworked."

"Prince Dun has been very obedient in the past few years..."

Prince Dun?

How could the emperor possibly use him when he was a member of the remnant faction of the Old Eight and had committed treason in his previous life?

In this life, Nian Gengyao was able to keep himself in good order thanks to Shilan's earnest advice, but Longkodo became restless.

In the past, he advocated leniency in dealing with the eighth and ninth brothers. It is said that after the Queen Mother passed away, he often had private dealings with the tenth brother.

"I will take your words into consideration." The emperor showed no emotion. "Uncle has worked hard these days. You should rest well."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I thank you for your concern. I will take my leave first."

Longkodo said no more and stood up to leave. When he turned around, the smile on the emperor's face disappeared and his eyes were shrouded in shadows.

"Su Peisheng."

"The servant is here."

"Call Nian..." The emperor thought for a moment and gave up summoning Nian Xiyao. "Call Zhang Tingyu and officials from the Censorate to see the emperor."

The emperor did not directly tell everyone what Longkodo was thinking, but asked: "I heard that recently some officials in the capital have been renovating their mansions and occupying the people's land, and have allowed their subordinates to abuse their power. Is this true?"

The people in the palace looked at each other in bewilderment. Zhang Tingyu said bluntly, "The large-scale renovation of the palace in the capital needs to be reported to the Ministry of Works. The emperor only needs to summon Nian Xiyao to ask him and he will know."

The problem is that this matter was just reported by Longkodo, and he was referring to the Nian Mansion.

E Min glanced around and said, "I passed by Nian Mansion a few days ago for some business. The houses to the northwest were being renovated..."

Is it really an invasion of residential houses?

The emperor listened with a frown.

"At that time, I was curious and asked the people around me. They said that Minister Nian found that the northwest wall of his house was broken. He was afraid that it could not withstand the summer rainstorm and might collapse and cause casualties, so he ordered people to repair it. During the repair process, he saw that the houses nearby were in danger, so he reinforced them as well."

“That’s probably why the misunderstanding happened.”

so it is.

"As for allowing his subordinates to abuse their power..." Emin paused, his expression becoming more serious, "Niu Lun was a slave of Longkodo's family. He relied on his power to demand bribes, but I don't know if Lord Longkodo knew about it?"

It's actually the thief crying "stop thief"?

"For ordinary officials, it is easy to seek merit but difficult to achieve it; it is easy to achieve it but difficult to keep it; it is easy to keep it but difficult to achieve it completely. If one relies on merit to commit mistakes, benefactors will inevitably turn into enemies. This has always been the nature of human beings."

The people in the Censorate received the emperor's will and immediately submitted a memorial to the emperor to impeach Longkodo and his subordinates.

The emperor hated greed the most in his life. He ordered the Ministry of Justice to investigate and punish Niu Lun, but he gave Longkodo a break.

In front of the court officials, it was believed that Longkodo was deceived by the treacherous people and was unaware of the situation.

He was also given an important task, which was to go north to negotiate with the Rakshasa Kingdom.

That day, Nian Shilan was happily preparing for lunch when word came from outside that "The Emperor has arrived—"

【Why did you come at this time? 】

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. May your Majesty be blessed with good health and happiness."

The emperor held out his hand, and Nian Shilan took it and stood up, "Your Majesty, why didn't you tell the people around you in advance that you were coming? I wasn't prepared."

"I finished the things at hand, and suddenly thought of you, so I came here."

Songzhi immediately ordered people to prepare bowls and chopsticks, and knelt in front of the emperor with water in her hands. The emperor washed his hands and wiped them while saying, "It's just a meal for husband and wife, home-cooked food is best, no need to prepare it specially."

[When things are out of the ordinary, there must be something fishy going on. What is the emperor up to? ]

[At this time in my previous life, the grass on my grave was already two feet high. I had no son and the Nian family was ruined... Could it be that there was some gossip about establishing a crown prince, and the emperor was suspicious again and wanted to punish my brother again? ]

[In the last life, my brother died before Longkodo. Is it possible that this life can be postponed for two years and still cannot change the ending? Should I deal with Longkodo first and then deal with my brother? ]

[But my brother has been very obedient in his life. ]

The grass on the grave is two feet high... The emperor laughed in his heart.

In the past, he was most worried that Shilan would be arrogant and domineering, and would join forces with her brother to force the emperor to abdicate after giving birth to a son. However, he did not expect that after giving birth to a son, not only did she have no improper thoughts about the position of crown prince or queen mother, but all she wanted was for Hongzhao to grow up safely and healthily.

Every time he wrote to Nian Gengyao, he would earnestly urge him to be content.

Since she passed the death date of her previous life and saved her brother, the emperor listened to Shilan's inner thoughts. Although she no longer had any practical value, she became more and more lovable.

It was more comfortable to be here with her than anywhere else.

Of course, old love must be there, and new love is also indispensable.

The Emperor likes Nian Shilan now, and it does not prevent the Empress from preparing for next year's selection.

"I remember that you are good at riding and hunting. Hong Zhao and Xi Chao have also made significant progress in horse riding. I am thinking of going north for the autumn hunt this year. You and the two children will go with us then."

【Autumn Hunt?】

【It seems like this has never happened in my previous life. 】

Without her past life as a reference, she was not as brave as she was in her previous life.

The emperor remembered that she had just mentioned a postponement, so he said, "I have already given this matter to the Tenth Master to prepare."

[The Tenth Prince? Prince Dun?]

[This fool is going to rebel.] Nian Shilan lowered her head to eat, and couldn't help but raise her eyelids to glance at the emperor, [Aren't you afraid that someone will do something in the hunting ground and take your life?]

【I don’t want to go! 】

The emperor deliberately said: "Although the tenth brother usually speaks without measure, he is straightforward and has been well behaved in recent years. I trust him."

[Has the emperor become senile in the past two years? Doesn't that fat guy, Prince Dun, have any sense of propriety at all? ]

[In your previous life, you coaxed him and indulged him, fearing that he would rebel, so you made his youngest son a Beizi and your daughter a princess, raising them under the wing of the Queen Mother. But you didn't expect that he would be ungrateful and become even more arrogant.]

[His children were blessed. When he returned from patrolling the camp, he was late for court and was dressed in military uniform. He was impeached by the imperial censor for disrespect. He did not repent. After leaving the court, he beat the imperial censor who impeached him unconscious in the street.]

It is a fact that Prince Dun's sons and daughters were given titles of Beizi and Princess. It is also a fact that he beat Yu Shi in the street.

It's just that this fact was changed in the order of time by Nian Shilan.

[Now that the Queen Mother is gone, the Emperor has not conferred titles on his children. I don’t know if it is because of this that Prince Dun feels jealous and has become obedient.]

[Or maybe the death of the Fourteenth Master frightened him, so he has been keeping a low profile for the past two years.]

Nian Shilan sighed in her heart, "The emperor hates the harem interfering in government affairs. I cannot say anything about these things, but this fat man has evil ambitions, which is a hidden danger."

[Alas~]

[I just hope that the emperor lives a long life, so that when he rises up, I can take him down in one fell swoop! ]

Uprising?

Xi Chao never uses wrong words, so can't her, a girl, just read a few books properly?

It was all thanks to my wisdom in the past that I did not raise the two children with her, otherwise they would have been uneducated and unable to take on such a big responsibility.

The emperor is lying on his bed, how can he allow others to snore?

If the emperor had known long ago that Prince Dun had evil ambitions, he would not have waited for Prince Dun to commit rebellion and lived in fear every day.

In his previous life, he conferred titles on the children of the tenth brother, probably to encourage his arrogance and make him forget his own reasons and make mistakes.

There is no empress dowager in this life, but there are Hong Zhao and Xi Chao.

The next day, the emperor promoted Zhang Tingyu to the title of Grand Tutor and ordered him to teach the Sixth Prince.

A few days later, a study partner was selected for the Sixth Prince from among the clan members with great fanfare. Since Hongxuan was of similar age and temperament to the Sixth Prince, he was given the title of Beizi and entered the palace as a study partner.

The emperor made it clear that he was afraid that his beloved daughter would feel that her father was partial to one of them, so seeing that she got along very well with Princess Qingcheng, he made an exception and conferred the title of Princess Heshuo on Princess Qingcheng, allowing her to enter the palace to accompany Xi Chao.

It is a great honor.

Not long after the imperial edict to reward his sons and daughters was issued to Prince Dun's palace, censors came to criticize Prince Dun.

This time, it was not Yu Shi Zhang Lin who impeached him, but Guaerjia Emin.

Prince Dun had always looked down upon censors who criticized Confucius and Mencius. When he heard that E Min had said nonsense and bad things about himself in front of the emperor, he blocked his way on the way back to the palace and beat him up, knocking him unconscious.

This incident shocked the court and the public, and civil officials wrote to the emperor one after another demanding severe punishment for Prince Dun.

Lady Qi knelt outside the Yangxin Palace crying every day to seek justice for her father.

Her voice was damaged, and it sounded even more unpleasant than An Lingrong's in her previous life, like a crow hit by autumn frost, and every sound was hoarse.

The sound was like the grinding of shoe soles on metal through coarse sand, and every word made my scalp tighten.

Every time the emperor listened to Noble Lady Qi talking, he felt as if a string was being pulled in his head and his ears were tortured.

Despite this, the emperor still forced himself to suppress the public anger.

Prince Dun was not a very smart person to begin with, and his arrogance became more and more arrogant.

The moon is carved and the clouds are opened.

"…Our Qing dynasty conquered the world on horseback, and the Manchus, both men and women, are good at riding and shooting. The emperor wants all the princes and princesses to go with him during the Mulan Autumn Hunt in July."

Nian Shilan continued, "In this case, the biological mother of the prince and princess must go with them?"

"That's right." The Queen nodded. "Although the weather in the capital is still hot, it's cold in the morning and evening in the enclosure. Go back and prepare more clothes to avoid catching a cold."

Concubine Cao Xingui stood up immediately, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Xipin and Wanpin were very favored, so they also went together."

There is no way Prince Dun will come back alive from this trip to Mulan Paddock.

The Queen needs these two people to complete the subsequent tasks.

"The rest of you will stay in the palace. The hunting grounds are far away, and you will not be able to return for at least two to three months. The harem cannot be left unattended. In my absence, the Royal Consort and the Imperial Consort will take care of the harem, and the Imperial Consort Hui will assist you."

Since knowing that he was going to the hunting ground, Xi Chao spent almost every day in the introduction building, riding a horse and shooting arrows.

The Queen still had many things to explain to Concubine Jing and the others, so Nian Shilan went straight to the audience building when she came out.

【Why is she here? 】

Not far away in the pavilion, Xi Chao was drinking tea from a cup, while Concubine Duan wiped the sweat off her face with loving eyes.

Nian Shilan immediately remembered her sick body and rushed over before Wen Yi fell, "You bastard! You really want to snatch my princess away!"

"The Imperial Concubine has arrived—"

Before the announcement was made, Concubine Duan turned around and said, "I have seen the Imperial Concubine."

[Stop pretending in front of me! ]

Nian Shilan glared at Concubine Duan fiercely. She didn't want to appear vicious in front of her daughter, so she just held the person in her arms, turned her back to Concubine Duan, and asked softly:

"When did Xi Chao come? How long have you been practicing? Why are you sweating so much?"

[Aren't you going to die? Why do you look more and more energetic? ]

Concubine Duan was not angry when she heard this. She kept smiling. She sat beside them and listened quietly to what the mother and daughter said. She waited until Nian Shilan was about to take Xi Chao away before she spoke.

"Princess, you just shot a target with great skill. Why don't you show it to your mother?"

Xi Chao immediately perked up, staring at his mother with wide eyes, "Mother! Do you want to see it?"

Nian Shilan knew that Concubine Duan had something to say. She remembered the Queen's instructions to stay away from this person, but she really couldn't bear to disappoint her daughter, so she nodded.

Ye Lanyi immediately took Xi Chao to the field.

Nian Shilan said coldly: "Just say whatever you want to say. I don't have that much time to accompany you."

The Queen's personality is somewhat similar to that of the Emperor. She didn't want the Queen to think too much. It would be bad for Hong Zhaoxi Chao if the two of them were disloyal, so she was unwilling to meet Qi Yuebin in private again.

At this moment, he dismissed the servants and stood alone with her in the pavilion. He looked around consciously in the residual light and felt a little guilty.

Concubine Duan recalled that time in Danbo Ningjing. Although the conversation between the two was not very pleasant, they had generally forgotten their grudges. Logically, given her personality, she would not be hostile to him again after that day.

This attitude today... maybe the Queen said something to her later?

Concubine Duan knew very well that beating around the bush when talking to Shilan would only backfire, so she gave Shilan a reassurance first.

"Don't worry, that's your child. I won't take her away."

[Humph, you still don’t know how to snatch it? You want to snatch it, but I am not Cao Qinmo from my previous life. I will not let you and that bitch Zhen Huan scheme against me! ]

Concubine Duan said calmly, "If there was no bowl of medicine, you wouldn't doubt me if I said I would protect your daughter with my life, right?"

Nian Shilan couldn't help but glance at Concubine Duan.

"The Queen now only has the title of Queen, but no favors, her family is not strong, and her child is not her own, so she has never felt safe. That's why she didn't leave you and your child behind."

"She is concerned about her own interests. She is afraid that I will become friends with you, and the two of us will join forces to sideline her. That is her concern."

"But Shilan, you have to understand that even though the Qi family is not as powerful as the Nian family, it is not a bad thing if they can secretly support Hongzhao."

"The road to power has always been difficult and dangerous. There is really no need for you to push me away."

Nian Shilan didn't say anything, and her heart was silent for a while.

Concubine Duan took out a small purse from her sleeve and placed it on the stone table. "It's dangerous to go to the hunting grounds. I'm not feeling well and can't go with you. Please take good care of yourself."

With that she left.