lady, please calm down

Chapter 326
June [-]th, Chen Mansion in Sajin Lane.

The Chen brothers, Ximen Gong, Xu Bang, Jiang Huaixiong, Liu Siliang and other Huaibei civil and military officials stood in front of the mansion. When the auspicious moment arrived, firecrackers were set off on both sides of the gate, and a plaque covered with red cloth on the lintel was officially unveiled. Prince Chu's Mansion.

Everyone present was smiling, this meant that the Huaibei Clan had officially taken over the center.

In the commotion, Xu Bang took the lead and squeezed next to the imperial envoy Du Zhaoqing. He raised his hand and pointed to the door of the palace, made a gesture of invitation, and said: "My fifth brother is in Tokyo now. There is no male protagonist in the palace, so the preparations are a little hasty. Please come in and have a few glasses of wine."

Boss Cai is not here, and Xu Laoer thinks he is the biggest!

He said that Chen Chu was not here, but Xu Bang acted like the master of the family. It can be understood that the fifth brother is not here, and the second brother is taking care of the situation for him.

It can also be understood that he has a close relationship with his fifth brother, which is a family friendship.

Du Zhaoqing, the Minister of Rites, saw a low-ranking official in green robe approaching him. Just when he was confused, he heard him call Chen Chu 'Fifth Brother'. He understood that this man was a core member of the Huaibei Clan, and immediately changed his smile to a kind one. He also raised his hand and said: "Come in together, come in together"

To this day, Du Zhaoqing feels that his recent experience is magical.

When the King of Chu came to Beijing, Du Zhaoqing was a sixth-grade doctor in the Ministry of Industry and had no troubles in his heart.

The changes in the court and the turmoil in the palace have nothing to do with a small official like him. He can neither block the way of others nor is he worthy of being won over.

Unexpectedly, a few days ago, he was promoted to the third rank of Minister of Etiquette.

While Du Zhaoqing was pleasantly surprised, he thought about it and realized that his only connection with the Huaibei Clan was that he was the same age as Chen Jingan, and when the King of Chu redeemed the craftsman's house, he passed a message to him.

This may be the only reason why he was suddenly promoted.

This visit to Caizhou to read out the imperial edict was Du Zhaoqing's first errand after his promotion. He knew that most of the officials in Caizhou were descendants of the King of Chu. At this time, he heard the green-robed official calling him "Fifth Brother" affectionately. Don't dare to be rude.

But Chen Jingyan, who was pushed aside by Xu Bang, was not so happy.

Among the Five Golden Flowers, there has been no discussion on whether to respect the official position or the elder among the brothers.

Moreover, when they first became sworn friends in Tongshan a few years ago, they would never reveal the fact that they were sworn brothers in front of outsiders, as if they found it embarrassing.

But in the past two years, a few people have talked about 'my fifth brother' more and more frequently.

Especially for Xu Bang, I learned a few days ago that Chen Chu was awarded the title of Queen of Chu. On that day, I added a rich and colorful stroke to the family tree: On the second day of November in the seventh year of Fuchang, the 26th generation of the Xu family, Sun Bang, and the King of Chu in Tongshan Jinlan is sworn brother!
When Du Zhaoqing came, in addition to the decree of canonizing the princess and concubine, he also brought the decree involving the transfer of many Huaibei officials.

Chen Jingyan was promoted from Tongzhi to magistrate, Ximen Gong was promoted to Caizhou inspection and control, training armor and soldiers, patrolling the prefecture and town, Xu Bang took over as Tongzhi.

Gou Sheng was appointed as the chief of the Bing Cao among the six Cao Cao, and Ximen Xi was appointed as the chief of the Punishment Cao.

Cai Kun, a white-bodied man, took over as the salt and iron bureau officer who originally belonged to Ximen Gong.

In addition to Caizhou, Cai Yun, the eldest son of Cai, was transferred from the magistrate of Shangying County to Tangzhou, and Tang Jing'an, the magistrate of Lu'an County, was transferred to Tongpan of Suzhou, etc.
In short, Xu Zhiyuan, Chen Yingjun, Zhang Bao, Xu Zhisheng, Ximen Chong, Cai Si and others among the second generation of the Huaibei clique were all transferred and either took charge of a county or became low-level officials in government offices.

The so-called one person attains the Tao, and the chicken and the dog ascend to heaven.

If the Huaibei Clan could only control a few high-ranking government offices in the past, but had a shallow foundation, then the current Huaibei Clan has used the disciples of various families as tentacles to extend its power deep into the grassroots of every prefecture and county.

Moreover, the ambition to gradually expand its power externally is clear and undisguised.

For example, Cai Yun and Tang Jing'an, who worked in Tangzhou and Suzhou government offices, were the representatives of the Huaibei clique's interests in each government office.

With the powerful Huaibei Army backing them up, even the local big players must be wary of this group of unreasonable warriors and dare not easily use dirty methods against these airborne officials.

Progress makes people happy.

Disciples and children make progress together, making people happier.

Ximen Gong and Xu Bang never thought in their entire lives that one day, under their leadership, their family would transform from a family of subordinate officials in a county into a famous official family in Huaibei.

Chen Jingyan, who has great ambitions, is not so happy. In four or five years, he has been promoted from an eighth-grade county magistrate to a fifth-grade magistrate.
However, people are most afraid of comparison!

You see, old man Cai has achieved the rank of third-grade official minister!

Even though he knew that he was sitting in Tokyo to strategize and made great contributions to the Huaibei Clan, Chen Jingyan secretly cursed a few words in his heart because he had a good daughter!
It is difficult to admit that one's abilities are not as good as Cai Yuan's, but one can console himself by using the excuse that one's own daughter is not as smart as someone else's daughter.

The back house of the royal palace.

It was also full of joy.

Because Mao'er had just become pregnant, she was in danger of having an unstable pregnancy. After receiving the order, she briefly exchanged greetings with the female relatives who came to celebrate, and then returned to the Hanchundang bedroom to rest.

Not only was Mao'er wary of the child in her belly, but the entire Zhao family was also looking forward to Mao'er giving birth to a young heir to the palace.

The outside world does not know much about the ecology of the palace's back house. In the view of the Zhao family, among the palace's female relatives, Cai Hua is too active. She is in charge of the iron smelting plant and other factories, and she has some influence in the military and political circles of Caizhou internally.

The Zhao family couldn't help but worry that Cai Hua would covet Mao'er's position as the wife. If Mao'er gave birth to their eldest son, the princess would be safe.

Cat always laughs it off.

The way she gets along with Cai Hua is hard for others to understand
While standing in front of the window, deep in thought, I heard a creak behind me, and when I looked back, it was Cai Hua who walked in.

Mao'er pursed her lips and smiled, then said softly: "What's wrong?"

Without saying a word, Cai Hua picked up the herbal tea on the table and drank it all in one gulp. Then she rubbed her face and said, "My face froze even when I smiled at others. Come here and hide for a while."

There were many guests today, so the task of welcoming Maoer and sending them off naturally fell to Caihua and Yunong.

Mao'er couldn't help but laugh, "Is this still the domineering and perverse Miss Cai Sanniang? Will she be able to be patient and smile with others one day?"

Hearing this, Cai Hua rolled her eyes at Mao'er, took two steps forward and stood side by side with Mao'er in front of the window. Then she smiled complacently and said, "Sister, I am the Princess of Chu now, and I must look like a noble lady."

"The concubine of King Chu!" Mao'er curled her lips and corrected her.

"Hee hee~"

The two of them bickered every day, and looked out the window into the distance together. Only Yu Nong was left to support the female guests. She was a little busy, looking around on tiptoe, as if looking for Cai Hua, who was doing social errands with her.

"Hee hee~"

"Ha ha."

The two of them were hiding in a place and lazing around, watching helplessly as Yunong suffered alone. This little pride in having done bad things without being discovered made Mao'er and Caihua laugh out loud at the same time.

Yunong: So, will my sister’s love disappear?
Seeing that there was no help available, Yu Nong had to take the lead alone. Although he looked a little tired, he was generous, decent, busy and not messy.

When Mao'er saw this, she sighed and said, "Yunong has learned a lot now, and she is no longer the stupid girl she was back then."

Cai Hua habitually wanted to make a point, but suddenly thought of something, and sighed: "Yes. At that time, I could not have imagined that person who timidly grabbed a man's clothes, hid behind him, and blackened his face. My little lady will become a princess one day.”

Mao'er's thoughts were instantly brought back to many years ago. The first time he followed an official into the city, he went to a pawn shop called 'Cai Ji' and met a sinister woman who wanted to defraud the official of his money.

That year, Mao'er called her a 'profiteer'.

She called the cat a "black bear spirit" and said she wanted to pull out one of the cat's fangs.

This was the first time they met in the spring of the seventh year in Fuchang.

It's not very pleasant, it can even be said that we hate each other.

Who knew that things were so unpredictable that the two of them became sisters and became a family.The cat caressed its belly unconsciously and murmured: "Yes, who would have thought. It's like a dream."

Cai Hua also seemed to have fallen into some kind of emotion. She only felt that there was a sea of ​​changes in the world, but also felt that it had lasted for thousands of years.

After a long period of silence, Cai Hua suddenly smiled and broke the atmosphere with one sentence, "Mao'er, did you know that former prime minister Li Bangyan's house was ransacked, and he had more than 200 maids in his house, including Japanese, Korean, and Persian women? Beautiful women, and even a Kunlun slave!”

The worried look on Mao'er's face flashed away, and then she asked: "What is a Kunlun slave?"

"It is said that he comes from the far west. He is all black, has curly hair, and has thick lips and a broad nose."

"Hiss~" Mao'er grinned in surprise. Cai Hua's description had nothing to do with beautiful women, so he subconsciously said: "The officials will definitely look down on her."

"That's hard to say." Cai Hua looked at the cat with a smile and said alarmingly: "Maybe he is tired of eating exquisite dishes and wants to try simple meals."

"." Mao'er couldn't help but feel slightly frustrated, and said: "If the official likes it, I can't help the small number of people in my family. If my parents-in-law are still alive, I would also like to see the official spread his wings."

These words were both helpless and self-persuasive.

Cai Hua raised her eyebrows and said in a warlike tone, "Just get used to him! If you continue to get used to him, our back house might be like Li Bangyan and find more than 200 sisters for you. You're bald even if you just remember the name! Besides, you can't even find that barbarian girl! You've soiled our family's bloodline by yourself!"

Mao'er thought about it, if there were more than 200 sisters in the family, the scene would be really scary, "What would Sister Cai say?"

"It's best to go and keep an eye on it alone and stay with the prince!"

"But right now, I can't travel by boat. Yunong's little Yuanbao is still young and can't be separated from my mother. You also have multiple responsibilities that you can't get away from."

"You can let Bai Lu go first. Just say that we are worried about him being out alone, and let Bai Lu take care of him. After I finish the things at hand, I will go over and take a look in person."

"Okay." Mao'er struggled for a while and finally agreed.

Although they sent people to 'monitor' the officials who did not comply with the three obediences and four virtues, Maoer did it for the purity of the blood of the Han family of the King of Chu!It was excusable. Maoer defended himself.

"that."

"What's wrong?"

"Is what Sister Cai just said true? Does the official really accept more than 200 maids?"

"The maid is real, but with my father here, he is too embarrassed to do anything, hehehe."

"Well, I think Sister Cai may be looking down on the official. He is not that impatient."

"That's what I say, but Chulang is young, powerful, and has no female relatives around him for a long time. Someone must be interested in him."

When Cai Hua said this, Mao'er became even more worried. The peace in the back house was hard-won. Any time an unconscious woman came in, she might ruin this rare warmth.

Therefore, Mao'er does not object to officials taking concubines, but she must find out the details of the other party and check it herself.

That night, three of the five golden flowers treated Du Zhaoqing well as a host.

During the banquet, the three golden flowers were enthusiastic, but Du Zhaoqing was even more enthusiastic than them. He kept holding the hand of Chen Jingan, who was the same year, and kept implicitly expressing his gratitude to the latter for his support, and clearly expressed that he would work hard to express his gratitude to the King of Chu and Huaibei in the future. It means to bring colleagues closer together.

At the time of Hai, the guests and hosts were having a great time. Chen Jingyan and others presented gold and silver to Du Zhaoqing as usual, but Du Zhaoqing refused to accept it. He even said in a disgusting way that the King of Chu came from Huaibei. It was great for me to come here to gain some royal aura and get to know the wise men of Huaibei. Such an opportunity.

Seeing this, Xu Bang shouted 'my fifth brother' louder and louder.

After returning to the official residence, Chen Jingan, who will go to Tokyo with Du Zhaoqing tomorrow, came to say goodbye to his brother, and the two brothers had a long talk.

Chen Jingyan was very satisfied with Chen Chu's recruitment of Chen Jing'an to Beijing.

Apparently, Emperor Daxing will be buried in a few days, and military representatives from various places and envoys from Jin, Zhou, Xia and other countries will come to express their condolences and pay their respects.

The situation will inevitably be complicated by then, and Chen Chu needs Chen Jingan, a think tank, to accompany him and provide detailed strategies.

But privately, Chen Jingyan was a little afraid of his eldest brother Cai Yuan.

Cai Yuan took the lead this time and was promoted to minister, becoming the highest-ranking official in the Huaibei department besides Chen Chu, and the central capital official.

Among the Cai family's children, Cai Yun, Cai Kun and even his nephew Cai Si have all been promoted. Cai Kun was promoted to the Feiqu Salt and Iron Bureau Secretary in an unusual way.

At this time, the Cai family has Cai Yuan at the center, and there are descendants all over the officialdom in Huaibei. Cai Hua is in charge of the back house. To put it bluntly, the climate of the Cai family has become established.

In the Huaibei family, the functions of Cai family and Chen family as staff officers and herdsmen are highly overlapping.

Among the five golden flowers, due to family background issues, the upper limits of the Ximen and Xu families are not high, so Chen Jingyan is not worried.

But the Cai family, which had invested in their daughter early on, has gradually overshadowed the Chen family.

If Lao Wuchang is in the capital and only Cai Yuan is around, over time, Chen Jingyan is worried that his faction will gradually be marginalized.

That's why he valued Chen Jing'an's coming to Beijing so much.

People have selfish motives. Even if the Huaibei Clan is united enough, people from each family who hold the banner will consider this a healthy competition for the family.

The two brothers talked until late at night, thinking about some of the talents in the clan and what they would face after entering the capital.

Speaking of envoys from various countries, Chen Jing'an, who was somewhat mentally prepared, smiled bitterly and said: "With Yuan Zhang's temper, he definitely doesn't want to see the envoys of Jin. I will spend a lot of energy on my visit to Beijing this time with them."

Chen Jingyan was also a little worried and frowned: "I'm not worried about others, but our Huaibei Army officers are used to being domineering. They don't recognize Daqi in their hearts. I'm afraid they also hate the Jin people. There won't be any conflicts. Not long after Yuan Zhang arrived in Beijing. , Da Qi is internally unstable, and now is not a good time to be at odds with the Jin Kingdom."

"I know this, let's take it one step at a time." Chen Jingan sighed helplessly.

He could persuade Chen Chu to temporarily make peace with Jin Guoxu, but with nearly [-] soldiers, he couldn't handle it.

At the end of the conversation, Chen Jingan suddenly mentioned that he wanted Ayu to come to Beijing with him. The reason was that Ayu had been involved in controlling and guiding public opinion in Caizhou.

Now that the Huaibei Clan has just taken over Tokyo, it is the time when they need to make a big publicity, so let Ayu come to Beijing and continue to take charge of this matter.

At first, Chen Jingyan was not very happy. After all, Ayu was a woman, so she could just spend her free time in Caizhou doing whatever work she could.

How can we treat this matter as a serious matter?

But Chen Jing'an's words made Chen Jingyan change his mind.

"Brother, the Wu family incident has delayed Ayu, but Ayu is 19 years old this year. You should trust her own choices in some matters."

The words were cryptic, but Chen Jingyan understood it immediately. In the early years, Ayu ran away from home in Tongshan and lived in Chen Chu's house in Caizhou. Later, his wife Tan also gave a vague hint.

But at that time, Chen Jingyan couldn't let go of his dignity and did not allow the Chen family's daughters to become concubines.

But, this time and that time!
His daughter couldn't be a concubine for a left-behind governor, but that didn't mean she couldn't be a concubine for a prime minister or a prince!
"Okay. Well, Ayu is quite young. If I meet a suitable talent in Tokyo, Shouqian can make the arrangements for her on my behalf."

Chen Jingyan stroked his beard and sighed, looking serious, as if he didn't understand what his brother meant.

This is pretending to be confused because you understand!

Even though they are brothers, Chen Jing'an couldn't help but secretly complain about his brother. You have been envious of Cai Yuan all day long and your eyes are green with envy. Now that you have the opportunity, you still care about face so much. You have to lose the emotional benefits. I agree with Ayu. Do you want me to bear the reputation of being Yuan Zhang's concubine?
pedantic!

Can the prince's concubine be called a concubine?That's called a side concubine!
(End of this chapter)