Chapter 187
Lin Shuge and Xie Chen looked at each other, and everything was said without words. He followed the eunuch into the hall. Emperor Yongyuan was writing with a brush and did not even raise his head when he heard the noise.
Lin Shuge bowed and saluted: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you."
Emperor Yongyuan put down the brush in his hand, walked over from the table, and came to Lin Shuge. He stared at him from head to toe for a long time before saying, "Do you know why I summoned you here?"
Lin Shuge felt like a thorn in his back when he was stared at. He continued, "I don't know."
Emperor Yongyuan suddenly laughed a few times, and stood with his hands behind his back, "My dear minister, you are extremely intelligent, how could you not know?"
Lin Shuge was silent for a moment and said, "I dare not speculate on your Majesty's intentions without authorization. I hope Your Majesty will clarify it."
Seeing that he was playing dumb and not letting anything slip, Emperor Yongyuan said, "Forget it. Since you don't want to talk, I won't force you. I summoned you here today to talk to you about the matter of Lord Wei, oh no...it's the matter of Lord Xie."
Although Xie Chen had already told Lin Shuge that Emperor Yongyuan knew his life experience, he still felt worried when he heard it from other people, especially the Emperor of Dayan.
Since Emperor Yongyuan asked directly, he didn't beat around the bush. He calmed down and asked, "What does your majesty want me to do?"
Emperor Yongyuan laughed and said, "That depends on how much you can do for me, my dear minister."
Lin Shuge smiled and said, "The matter of the Xie family is related to the stability of the country. If this matter can be resolved, Your Majesty will naturally be able to clean up the government and the country, and with unprecedented achievements, you can firmly sit on this vast country."
"Bold." Emperor Yongyuan's face suddenly changed and he said sternly.
A gust of wind blew in from the window, rustling the pages of the book on the table. The servant came forward quietly, closed the window, and hid in the dark again. Lin Shuge had been in the hall for such a long time and did not notice that there was anyone else in the hall besides him and Emperor Yongyuan.
He immediately lifted his robe and knelt down, "I was talking nonsense."
"Who gave you the guts to compare the affairs of one family with the country and the people?"
Lin Shuge leaned forward and said, "The matter of the Xie family is ultimately due to the factional struggles in the court. The Ding family eliminated dissidents and eliminated all those who could not be used by them, so they were able to dominate the court. This is because the ministers are strong and the emperor is weak. If Your Majesty can find out the case of the Xie family's rebellion and use it to wipe out the Ding family, then you will surely hold power and rule the world. Your Majesty, have you ever heard the saying, how can you allow others to snore beside your bed?"
Emperor Yongyuan did not speak for a long time. Lin Shuge's back was covered in cold sweat. He was betting on Emperor Yongyuan's determination today. From what the little emperor had done since he took power, it could be seen that he certainly did not like to be controlled by others. If the Xie family wanted to redress their grievances, they could only rely on Emperor Yongyuan.
"Do you know that more than half of the people in the court are followers of the Ding family?" There was no emotion in Emperor Yongyuan's voice.
"That means the remaining half are not members of the Ding family." Lin Shuge said.
Emperor Yongyuan said with a smile: "You are quite interesting, Ah Yun. This is the calm and measured Lin Huaiting you mentioned."
A man walked out from behind the screen. It was Ruan Qingyun.
"Your Majesty, please don't scare him." Ruan Qingyun laughed heartily.
Lin Shuge glanced at the screen and thought to himself: Ruan Qingyun is indeed the emperor's confidant. No wonder Zhongxuan directly let Ruan Qingyun tell Emperor Yongyuan about his life experience.
Seeing Lin Shuge's stunned expression, Ruan Qingyun said, "Huai Ting, His Majesty is just joking with you. It was His Majesty's idea to transfer you to the capital. You have made great achievements at the border, and you should have been sent to Yandu a long time ago. With your talents, why should you stay in a small city on the border?"
Lin Shuge smiled appropriately. He didn't dare to really think that Emperor Yongyuan was joking with him. "I am a humble official with limited knowledge and I believe that I can only benefit the people of one area. I am not worthy of such an evaluation from you, my Lord."
"If you can't bear the responsibility, few people can. Today, your few words have left the Ding family speechless. This is your ability. But the Ding family didn't make any move today. I must take revenge on them tomorrow." Emperor Yongyuan said.
Lin Shuge smiled helplessly: "Then we will stop the enemy with soldiers and cover the water with earth."
Emperor Yongyuan smiled and patted Lin Shuge on the shoulder. "I feel relieved with your words. However, since you have just arrived and have just offended the Ding family, you should stay out of the spotlight for the next few days. Since you have experience in making muskets in the northwest, you should go to guide the southern army in training during this period of time. Thank you, my dear, for being here too."
"Your Majesty, I do have some knowledge of gunpowder, but when it comes to practical techniques, I would like to ask Your Majesty to allow one person to come to the capital." Lin Shuge said.
"Oh, who is it?"
"This man's name is Xiangli Gu. He comes from the Mohist school and is a descendant of Qin Mo. To be honest with Your Majesty, the tools and technology used in the industries I have developed in the northwest were all made possible by this man. The manufacture of gunpowder is due to this man and other local scholars." Lin Shuge said.
"In this case, I will order him to come to Yandu to assist you. As for the alchemist you mentioned, the emperor of the previous dynasty believed in alchemists and practiced the art of cultivating immortals and seeking medicine, which was a waste of money and labor. I don't want to do this." Emperor Yongyuan said, "But since you said he has made contributions, I will give him money and gold."
"Your Majesty is wise." Seeing that Emperor Yongyuan disliked alchemists, Lin Shuge could only respond.
The three of them talked for a while, and Emperor Yongyuan asked Lin Shuge about what he had done in the northwest. It was already dark during the question and answer period, and Emperor Yongyuan waved his hand, "It's getting late, Lord Lin, go back and rest early."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will take my leave." Lin Shuge said hurriedly as if he was a student who had been detained and finally released, and then left the hall.
The emperor and his ministers in the palace could not help but laugh. Emperor Yongyuan said with a smile, "It is rare to see such a pure heart."
Ruan Qingyun also said: "When I met him in Ganzhou that day, I found that although he was young, he acted calmly and steadily, and everything he did was for the people. Today, he faced the Ding family with dignity and neither servility nor arrogance, and he did not lose the upper hand. Given time, if he can successfully eliminate the Ding family, he will surely become someone Your Majesty can use."
Is there anyone available? Emperor Yongyuan fell into deep thought until the heavy door of the palace was pushed open and the eunuch came in to report: "Your Majesty, the lady has arrived with the little prince."
"Please come in." Emperor Yongyuan said as he stepped forward to greet him. A woman in palace dress with bright eyes and white teeth smiled and said, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
"My beloved concubine, why are you here so late? It's dark and windy at night, be careful not to catch a cold." Emperor Yongyuan said, taking the little prince from her arms and teasing him for a few times, "I haven't seen you for a few days, and this little thing has grown a lot."
Madam Ruan said angrily, "Your Majesty, you still know how many days we haven't seen each other. I thought Your Majesty had long forgotten about me and Jin'er."
Emperor Yongyuan said skillfully, "How could I forget my beloved concubine? I have been very busy with government affairs these days. By the way, has the Queen given you any trouble these days?"
Madam Ruan's eyes flashed with cunning, "Her Majesty the Queen is of noble status, I will just avoid her and naturally dare not disobey her orders."
Emperor Yongyuan's deep eyes flashed with a hint of coldness, and he hugged Madam Ruan into his arms, "I am sorry for wronging you, my beloved concubine."
Here, Lin Shuge followed the eunuch out of the palace gate. The eunuch handed a lantern to Lin Shuge and said, "It's getting late, Doctor Lin, be careful on the road."
Lin Shuge nodded at him, "Thank you."
He walked back along the street holding a lantern. Yandu Street was wide and broad. It was almost curfew time and there was no one on the street.
He didn't quite know the road, so he could only walk forward with the lantern. Suddenly, a dark shadow rushed towards him. Lin Shuge was startled and subconsciously turned around to dodge. He raised the lantern in his hand and saw Xie Chen's face printed under the dim light.
"Zhongxuan." Lin Shuge said angrily, touching his pounding heart.
Xie Chen took the lantern from him, and his face was very close to Lin Shuge, "Did you scare your brother? I saw light over here, and thought it must be your brother coming out, so I followed the light and walked over here."
Lin Shuge didn't believe his explanation. With his excellent eyesight and hearing, how could he not recognize it?
"Why didn't you go back? Have you been waiting for me?" Lin Shuge touched Xie Chen's shoulder and felt a chill to his touch.
Xie Chen said: "No, I went back because I was afraid that A Yuan and A Xuan would be worried. I also thought that my brother was not familiar with Yan, so I naturally came to pick him up and bring him home."
Yes, the twins would think something happened after not seeing the two of them for a long time, and would be frightened. Seeing that he handled it properly, Lin Shuge did not bother with his childish behavior just now.
"Your Majesty, why did you keep me here? Why did you come out so late?" Taking advantage of the night, Xie Chen walked closely beside Lin Shuge, holding a lantern in his right hand and intertwining his fingers with Lin Shuge's with his left hand.
"It's just a test. It's nothing." The two were on the street, and Lin Shuge didn't want to talk much. Xie Chen also knew what he meant, so he kept silent about it.
"By the way, brother, I asked someone to move all the gifts from the post station to our home today." Xie Chen said.
"Well, okay, wait, where is the home?" Lin Shuge asked in surprise. He had just arrived in Yandu and had not found the time to look for a house. For the past few days, his family had been living in the inn and had not moved out yet. He originally wanted to wait until tomorrow to go out and take a look at the yard.
Xie Chen was a little mysterious, "Brother, do you still remember the guard I told you about? I used to have some properties that he has been entrusted to manage. There is a property over at Changwu Street. Although it is not big, it is enough for living."
After listening to this, Lin Shuge stood still, looking at him with his arms folded, "Tell me, is there anything else you are hiding from me?" Xie Chen had indeed revealed before that he had someone in Yandu, but he didn't expect that he actually had a house and property in Yandu.
"No, there is no way I can hide anything from my brother anymore. Besides, I have already given the token to my brother. All my wealth is in my brother's hands." Xie Chen said obediently.
Token? Lin Shuge recalled a lot in his mind. Xie Chen had given him so many things that he couldn't remember which one it was for a while. "Is it the jade pendant you said you carved, or the jade hairpin you gave him later, or something else?"
"Think about it yourself, brother." Xie Chen was calm.
Lin Shuge glanced at him and said, "Why is this road so far?"
"Brother, are you tired? Let me carry you." Xie Chen squatted down slightly and said.
Lin Shuge was not going to be polite with him this time. He went straight up to him, lay on his back, and said in a domineering tone, "Let's go."
Xie Chen carried him on his back, his steps were very steady, and he laughed quietly. Lin Shuge asked, "What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing." Xie Chen replied.
The night wind was a bit chilly. Lin Shuge squinted his eyes and hid behind Xie Chen. At this time, a sound of orderly footsteps was heard.
A team came over here, and the leader shouted, "Who are you?"
Several long halberds were placed across Xie Chen's neck. Xie Chen tried to move, but was held down by Lin Shuge. "I am the newly appointed Taizhong Doctor. I left the palace late today, and I did not stay in the palace late at night."
"Doctor Lin?" A light shone faintly on Lin Shuge's face. "Captain Wei, what are you doing..." Deng Ji said.
Lin Shuge followed his shocked gaze and looked at his own movements at this moment. He had his hands around Xie Chen's neck, his movements intimate and natural. He was frightened by the weapon just now and didn't even react. He quickly got off Xie Chen's back and said, "Hello, Lord Deng. I just accidentally sprained my ankle, so..."
Xie Chen also bowed and said, "Greetings, Lord Deng."
There was awkwardness in the air. Deng Ji didn't say anything, and the soldiers around him didn't dare to speak either.
After a while, Deng Ji said doubtfully, "Why don't you call a carriage? Forget it, come here, bring a horse to the captain."
"Thank you, Lord Deng." Lin Shuge said quickly.
Lin Shuge got on the horse with a red face. Fortunately, it was dark and no one could see him. Xie Chen was sitting behind him. He pulled the reins and the horse galloped away at a very fast speed.
"It's all your fault. Lord Deng won't think too much, will he?" Lin Shuge said in shame and anger. It looked suspicious that two grown men were acting intimately on the street in the middle of the night instead of going home.
"Well, blame me. Think about it if you want." Xie Chen said indifferently.
"He is your immediate superior, you... forget it, let others say whatever they want." Lin Shuge also said, "Go back quickly, A Yuan and A Xuan are still waiting for us."
"Okay." Xie Chen said with a smile.
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