first minister

Chapter 85 The Shocking Change in Zhaoyang Palace (for Subscription)
In the early morning of the next day, the imperial city and the harem.

In Zhaoyang Palace, there are seven or eight court ladies standing in wait.

A woman is doing makeup in front of the mirror, depicting her makeup.

Seen from the back, it has a snowy neck and willow waist, the curve of which converges on the side of the waist to reveal a graceful grip, and then suddenly expands into a roundness that is just about to move.

This is already enough to make people's heartbeat. In front of the back, in the bronze mirror, there is a face that can be called beautiful.

Compared with the ultimate elegance and dignity of Concubine De, this face gives people the feeling of charm, the kind of coquettishness that one can't help but grow big like a bucket at a glance.

Needless to say, this is Concubine De's biggest opponent in the harem, concubine Shu Lu Muzhen who is also a first-rank concubine.

"My lady, please see me, the British lord."

A court lady stood at the door, announcing crisply.

Concubine Shu, who was bored and doing her makeup in the mirror, showed a bit of surprise in her eyes, "Father is here? Please!"

The atmosphere of the Great Xia is not conservative, and concubines and close relatives, even if they are of ordinary background, have never been forbidden to enter the palace to visit, let alone the status of a British public, it can be said that they can come whenever they want, and there is a little restriction on time, so they can't stay for a long time.

Soon, British Duke Lu Rusong walked in with big strides.

"I pay homage to my empress!"

"Daddy, no courtesy!" Concubine Shu happily supported her father to sit down, "Father hasn't come for a while, it's rare to come this time, so I have to have lunch before leaving."

The British Duke said with a cold face, "No need, I have business with you this time."

The favorite concubine of the harem is not good at reading words and expressions. Concubine Shu knew the seriousness of the matter when she saw her father's face, so she waved her hand and let the rest of the palace ladies go down, leaving only one confidant lady by her side.

"Father, what happened?"

"I ask you, what did you do in Surabaya?"

After the British Duke finished asking, he looked at Concubine Shu, and sure enough, he saw the panic flashing subconsciously in his daughter's eyes.

"Didn't do anything? Sishui Prefecture is so far away, what can I do?"

"Bastard!" British Duke slapped the table, "I already know, but you still want to hide it? Do you think His Majesty won't know?"

Concubine Shu's body trembled, "Father, don't get angry, I really didn't do anything, I just ordered my subordinates to push the boat along the way, and it's just to trick Concubine De once."

She hastily said: "As long as it succeeds this time, that bastard Concubine De will be unable to compete with me for the post after making such a big mistake, and Shao'er will have a much greater chance of succeeding the Great Treasure."

Confirming the news, the British public closed his eyes, took a long breath, then opened his eyes, and said helplessly: "You want to fight in the harem, you have plenty of means, why do you want to act like this!"

He growled bitterly, "That's a rebellion! You're a member of the Nine Clans! How dare you get involved! Your mother and I have really spoiled you, you're so daring, lawless, and reckless!"

"Daddy! Don't worry, nothing will happen." Concubine Shu said anxiously: "I have an arrangement. Song Renxia will not be able to stay in the Wudang Army. Even if he is exposed, just let him be an abandoned son. I will take good care of his family. And I have never left any letters to contact him. Brother, he just opened a city, and the other party is pretending to be an official army. In the future, it is the responsibility of negligence, and there is no rebellion. On the contrary!"

"You also know that we are nobles!" The British Duke scolded angrily: "Who told you that if you don't take action directly, it's not considered a rebellion? You never thought that Concubine De and the others could survive, quell the rebellion, and let your actions be exposed?"

Concubine Shu shook her head quickly, "Impossible! With such a thorough plan, how could Concubine De escape!"

Looking at his stupid daughter, the British Duke began to think for the first time whether it was the right decision to send her into the palace.

"Last night, the news came from Sishui Prefecture. Jianning prefect Zheng Yuanwang and his son rebelled and were suppressed by Jiang Yuhu. Before the battle, Zheng Yuanwang and his son confessed that they had an appointment with Saburo to earn the state capital. Sanlang was also captured by Wudang Army and detained in the prison in Sishui Prefecture City."

"What?" Concubine Shu really panicked now, and grabbed her father's hand, "Father, what should we do now? We won't die, right?"

"Now, the first is to hope that Saburo will not be too stupid to commit a real rebellion. As long as there is no one, and he has not pleaded guilty and enters Beijing, we will have a way to exonerate him. As for the second."

The British Duke looked at his beautiful stupid daughter and sighed, "Tell me, who is secretly contacting you about this matter, and let you be this knife. With your brain, you can't think of such a plan."

Concubine Shu subconsciously turned her head to look at her personal female officer.

The British gentleman turned his head to look, and then his face changed, and he immediately reached out to grab it, but he was no match for the female officer who was ready when the British prince arrived.

Dressed in palace attire, with a decisive attitude, he bumped his head against the pillar of the main hall.

"what!!!"

Concubine Shu yelled in shock, and the maid outside the room hurriedly opened the door and came in.

I saw that the British prince was holding a piece of clothing, while the maid who was close to Concubine Shu was limp beside the pillar with her head bleeding.

Looking at this scene, a group of court ladies immediately made up a scene in their minds about the rich and powerful committing evil and would rather die than obey, and looked at the British prince in surprise.

"How courageous! How dare you deceive Master, even if you commit suicide, I will dig out the people behind you!"

The British Duke was worthy of being an old fox. He reacted instantly from the horror, gritted his teeth, and revealed the truth of the matter incidentally.

"Bring her body down! Sweep it up!"

After a group of court ladies finished their busy work, the father and daughter sat in the quiet room again, still feeling a little cold all over their bodies.

It was already obvious that there was another hand behind this.

They occupy such a high position, and it has been a long time since they have the feeling of being calculated and fiddled with like dolls.

"At the beginning, she went out to help me with something. By the way, she asked her to visit relatives. After she came back, she suggested to me, and then said that one of her cousins ​​is in Sishui Prefecture. He knows that the Zheng family has objections, so he can push the boat along."

Concubine Shu timidly explained, "At that time, it had just been decided that that bitch De Concubine would return to Sishui Prefecture, and I was a little apprehensive. I didn't want her to succeed, so I changed my mind and stepped into the opponent's trap step by step."

The British Duke pursed his lips, frowned, and thought for a while, "The most urgent thing is to get us out first, and I will go to see His Majesty right now."

He looked at his daughter, "You have to be ready."

"Daddy!" Concubine Shu was frightened for a moment, she knelt on the ground, holding the hem of her father's clothes, the pear blossoms were raining, she was so pitiful.

"Don't worry, we are Xungui's leading figures after all."

The British Duke caressed his daughter's head, with some uncertainty, "Your Majesty, it should be nostalgic."

"Chen Lu Rusong, pay homage to Your Majesty!"

In the imperial study room, Lu Rusong respectfully greeted Emperor Chongning.

As a veteran of the two dynasties, he has been to this study countless times, and this may be the first time for him to be so tormented and apprehensive.

"Be flat."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Then, Lu Rusong's heart skipped a beat, unexpectedly he didn't give him a seat.

Could it be that His Majesty already knew?
He lowered his knees that were about to stand up again, then knelt down on the ground, and said in a trembling voice: "I am incapable of teaching my sons and daughters, causing them to make serious mistakes. I am here to sue them first. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

"Where did Lu Qing say this?"

Emperor Chongning's voice could not hear any joy or anger, which made Lu Rusong feel more and more uneasy.

"My daughter, Lu Muzhen, lived deep in the palace. She was supposed to practice virtue quietly, accept the emperor's grace, and raise the prince. However, she was jealous and bewitched by others. When she learned that there was a rebellious party in Sishui Prefecture, she didn't want to report to His Majesty immediately. Instead, she secretly contacted her brother Lu Fengyuan to add fuel to the flames and put the concubine in danger. Her selfish desires were above the court. Such actions horrified the old minister, so I came here to report to His Majesty." Punishment, the whole family of this old man will also be slaughtered to bear the responsibility of failing the emperor's kindness."

After finishing speaking, Lu Rusong, who planned to advance by retreating, didn't wait for Emperor Chongning's response, but he didn't dare to look up, so he kowtowed and said: "Everything I said is true. The heart of the old minister is as clear as the sun and the moon. If you have owed the emperor's kindness, ten thousand deaths cannot atone for your sin!"

dong dong dong.

His forehead hit the thick blue brick, making a muffled sound.

When the British prince who was not young was about to faint, he finally heard the voice of Emperor Chongning, which sounded like the sound of heaven at the moment.

"Head up."

The British man held his head up, and just now because of his deliberate effort, he knocked out blood, which made his appearance even more miserable.

"Does Lu Qing know that this is treason?"

"The old minister knows, please forgive me! The old minister has been loyal to the country since the ancestor Guangming. When the ancestor passed away, there were more than [-] scars all over his body. He was called loyal and brave. My whole family admired his character and taught him every day. Unexpectedly, such a scum was born. The whole family is ashamed of His Majesty and ancestors!"

"Concubine Shu Lu Muzhen and her younger brother Shi Lu Fengyuan, governor of Surabaya, colluded with rebels, intending to rebel, assassinated the imperial concubine, deprived concubine Shu of her title, and put her in the cold palace. The prince was raised by the queen mother; Lu Fengyuan bestowed death, and was demoted to a commoner from the British line. He was expelled from the capital and guarded the mausoleum of the Taizu."

Lu Rusong trembled all over his body, and looked at Emperor Chongning in disbelief. After a while, he lay down on the ground as if in mourning, "My lord, thank you for not killing me."

"This was originally my original decision." Emperor Chongning suddenly said again: "However, the night before last, the Jiang family Yuhu executed Lu Fengyuan on the spot in Sishui Prefecture City, and also killed the captain who was loyal to Concubine Shu. I helped you a lot."

He slowly said: "Concubine Shu has spent half a year thinking behind closed doors, during which time she is not allowed to leave Zhaoyang Palace. Lu Fengyuan was expelled from the Lu family tree. Lu Qing stepped down from the position of General Zhonglang and picked up half of the family property and put it into the national treasury. Let's forget about it. British lord, you are the leader of the nobles, you have to share the worries of the country!"

On the one hand, Lu Rusong was overjoyed as if he had received an amnesty, but he couldn't help feeling distressed, and said bitterly: "I thank Your Majesty for your kindness. I will do my best to be loyal to Your Majesty and the country!"

"Don't thank me alone."

Lu Rusong closed his eyes dejectedly, "I know, I went to the bamboo forest to express my thanks after leaving the palace."

"Prepare a thank you gift for me too. Go down."

"Thank you, Your Majesty! Long live, long live, long live, Your Majesty!"

After Lu Rusong left, Emperor Chongning said indifferently: "Go and find out who the court lady who died in Zhaoyang Palace had contacted in the past six months, and report in detail."

In the darkness, there was a respectful shrill answer.

(End of this chapter)