Picturesque Rivers and Mountains in the Red Chamber

Chapter 505

postscript
Sister Liuqiao
On the afternoon of the seventh day of the eighth month of the first year of Wu Zheng, Daming Palace, Imperial Study Room.

"Li Aiqing, how are you preparing for the Enke Provincial Examination? There won't be any trouble, right?" Zhou Yang put down the book in his hand, nodded and asked Li Mian, the person in charge of culture and education, "I heard that the market There is a lot of 'boycott' news on the Internet. It's not long before the official start of the exam. Will it affect candidates' registration?"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, how can a few barking dogs affect the affairs of the imperial court?" Li Mian bowed and answered without hesitation. He is Li Hong's second brother and the person with the highest position in the entire Li family. In terms of civil servants, Loyalty definitely ranks at the top. “The registration of candidates for this year’s Enke Provincial Examination has not only not been affected, but has also increased by nearly [-]%.”

"What about the additional arithmetic and history tests that I requested?" Zhou Yang then asked.

"In May, the Ministry of Culture and Education urgently compiled and issued teaching materials. Although there were many complaints on the market, it did not affect the actual registration." Li Mian replied with a smile, "Speaking of which, the imperial court has added additional materials for two consecutive years. Kai Enke, most of the scholars are grateful for the emperor's favor."

"That's good." Zhou Yang nodded, then looked at the elders and ministers of the Government Affairs Council and said, "As the saying goes, 'Family scandals should not be made public', this afternoon, I will only keep you in the government affairs department and send them away. The people in the Privy Council just want to save face for you. I will say it bluntly today. I am not satisfied with the so-called 'boycott of Enke' news that has been circulated this time. I am very dissatisfied!
The Great Zhou Dynasty did not have any rules for talking about sinners. This is true, but it does not mean that people will fart everywhere without a bottom line. Li Aiqing, if my news is correct, this time the so-called "boycott Enke" rumor, the most What you like is the Imperial Academy and the Imperial College, right?Why, after receiving the emperor's favor without thinking of repaying it, but still causing trouble for me, is this the 'rule' for you scholars? "

"I know I'm wrong!" All the civil servants bowed and saluted together, dripping with cold sweat.

"Hmph!" Zhou Yang stood up and walked in front of all the civil servants. He directly helped up Lin Ruhai who was standing at the top, but ignored the others and continued to say as he walked, "I feel that my position is not right and I don't want to serve you, right?" Just help him - Li Aiqing, when I leave soon, I will ask someone to give you a list of names. Should I support such ungrateful and ignorant trash with a waste of salary and salary? Let them go home and continue to be poor! "

"Your Majesty, this -" Li Mian's face changed drastically, "It's just the scholarly ambition of some young people. Why should Your Majesty be acquainted with them, just reprimand or even give them a warning with a court rod?"

"Then what? Give them a reputation as 'outspoken and dare to rebuke', and make them 'famous scholars', right?" Zhou Yang smiled coldly and said disdainfully, "Isn't it just the reputation of 'tyrant'? I don't care, is it possible? Is there anyone who has the guts to say that 'historical writing is like a knife'? Then I wouldn't mind being Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty for once, so that he can improve his memory!"

What was Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's attitude towards historians?Let’s find out about Tai Shigong who was tortured by castration!
"Your Majesty, calm down!" Lin Ruhai hurriedly said, "When there are changes in the past dynasties, some rumors and opposition are inevitable. I believe that after a hundred years, the world will surely let the world understand your Majesty's painstaking efforts; that is, to add engineering in the Enke General Examination next year. This approach must be understandable after many candidates have seen the power of firearms and machinery."

"I hope so." The father-in-law had to give him face, so Zhou Yang nodded and signaled to the civil servants that they no longer have to hunch over - he had decreed to abolish the daily kneeling ceremony, except for some large-scale royal activities, any People no longer need to kneel down to any court official. Anyone who dares to accept a courtesy will be treated as "tyrannizing and bullying the emperor." "Besides this, do you know all the news from Jinling?"

As soon as these words came out, the entire imperial study room fell silent for an instant.

In mid-April, the second son of Prince Leshan visited the south of the Yangtze River and never returned. In early May, Prince Leshan visited the palace in person and requested that the whole family go to Jinling to pay homage to the three generations of ancestors. After receiving permission, he quickly left the capital and has now left the capital. It was seriously "overdue", but neither the palace nor the clan's mansion had received any news of apology or application for "renewal of leave".

However, since late June, a series of "evidences" have been spread in Jiangnan that a certain person has "improper position", "harbors evil intentions", "loves flowers and loves beauty", "has a cold temperament", "emphasizes martial arts", and "disdains scholars". In mid-July, rumors such as "the direct lineage of Taizu" and "the direct lineage of Taizu" began to spread everywhere.

What’s interesting is that there are such strong rumors of not being afraid of death in Jinling and even Jiangnan and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, but there is no news from the more than a dozen nearby Jinyi Army guard stations. Zhou Yang’s news all comes from reports from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Princess Yongchang. There are also reports of illegal salt sales, and there is news from Daye that the sales of iron products are somewhat "directional".

"I don't know what His Majesty means." Seeing that none of the civil servants dared to speak, Lin Ruhai asked with a wry smile.

"Li Aiqing, how is the situation in Jiangnan with regard to the registration for the Enke Provincial Examination this time?" Zhou Yang did not answer Lin Ruhai's inquiry and turned to Li Mian and asked.

"This-" Li Mian's expression froze.

"Come on, it's impossible for me to deal with you because of this matter." Zhou Yang said lightly.

".Less than [-]% of previous years." After hesitating for a moment, Li Mian said helplessly.

"And they are all children from humble families or poor families. There are basically no children from major families, right?" Zhou Yang smiled coldly and directly pointed out the core, "This is to prepare to serve the new king and fight for the position - not bad, Jinling It was originally the founding capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, but now it has once again become the 'Place of First Righteousness', which is reasonable and reasonable."

"Your Majesty, these rebellious people are in vain for their grace and deserve death. They are just the candidates from Jiangnan who are taking the exam this time," Li Mian said quickly.

"Don't worry, although I like to eradicate the weeds, I have never been in the habit of blindly implicating myself." Zhou Yang said nonchalantly, "I might as well tell you that there is peace in Jiangnan and the dishonesty of Prince Leshan's family. I have been aware of it from the beginning. You know, the reason why they were able to leave Beijing so easily this time was because I specially arranged for their release."

All the civil servants in the imperial study room froze.

"What does your Majesty mean-" Lin Ruhai asked seriously.

"Since the beginning of this month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has gradually withdrawn all backbone forces from the Jiangnan area, leaving only locally recruited helpers." Zhou Yang said lightly, "The supply of salt products has also gradually decreased, and will stop at the end of the month. Also stopped was the entire Jiangnan South goods acquisition and export, including silk, rice and other traditional strengths.

The Navy of Jinmen Town successively dispatched about thirty river warships along the Yangtze River to Jiujiang Prefecture for "station training", and all the warships dispatched were elite firearms. All warships were [-] to [-] pounds equipped with ten-pound naval guns. There are hundreds of new equipment, and a regiment and battalion of Marines are stationed with the army, but the news of their mobilization is all secret.

In addition, the main force of the Ryukyu Navy has arrived off the coast of Songjiang and is stationed on a small island less than a hundred miles away. It includes four [-]-year-old warships and eight [-]-year-old warships, and is accompanied by [-] marines. Set off, these battleships are equipped with more than two hundred heavy naval guns weighing more than thirty kilograms. Yes, they are prepared for Jinling City.

Six of the [-] regiments of the Beijing Camp, or nearly [-] elite firearms soldiers, have entered combat readiness since the beginning of this month. The Ministry of Internal Affairs' maritime fleet has also prepared sufficient transportation capacity and is anchored in Jinmen Port and Weihai respectively. Weihe traveled to Dagang and promised to transport the six regiments to Jiangnan in three batches at intervals of one day.

The Privy Council's news about this transfer only reached the level of the minister, and even all the soldiers and horses that had been transferred, except for the officers with more than a thousand households in the regiment battalion, were all locked up and stayed in the barracks. Executions are reviewed again; all units prepare three months of supplies and five base ammunition, do you understand what I mean? "

This time, all the civil servants were in cold sweat.

"Your Majesty, I have the right to know about such a large-scale military mobilization." Yan Yu, the elder in charge of the Ministry of Finance, gritted his teeth and went out. "At least for such a huge consumption of food and wages, I must personally examine and understand it. The Ministry of Finance this year Although the harvest has soared, it is still difficult to cope with such a huge expenditure."

"No need, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has made arrangements. I'm not worried about not being able to get my money back. Jiangnan is well known to the world, and most of the aristocratic families are involved in this matter. It's no problem to make ten or eight times. You can make money like this. I will no longer divide accounts for transactions." Zhou Yang glanced at Yan Yu lightly, "My troop transfer this time did violate the rules. Logically, such a huge transfer should be informed to officials above the Vice Minister of the Government Affairs Council, but there is a reason for it. An apology here.

However, now that Yan Aiqing has spoken, I have to explain. You said that the Ministry of Finance is unable to support it?This is the truth, at least theoretically, in the six granaries for combat preparations in Tongzhou, Tangshan, Linqing and other Gyeonggi areas that should be prepared at any time, the actual grain storage is less than [-]% of the account. Yan Aiqing had better check it out. Let Jin Yijun cooperate with Liang (Bo) Aiqing (in charge of law enforcement and review) to help investigate. "Wei Chen knows his mistake!" "Yan Yu almost knelt down in fright.

"Okay, the things I just explained are not in the category of secrecy, please spread the word." Zhou Yang glanced at the civil servants lightly, and they all bowed to the ground in fright, and no one dared to speak, " It’s almost time to finish the meal, so I won’t keep you here, go back and have a good rest - is there anything else?”

"Your Majesty, please retire!" What else could the civil servants say?
"Lord Lin, please stay here for a moment." Zhou Yang waved his hand to signal them to get out, and then said another sentence before leaving. Then he waved his hand and motioned for Lin Ruhai to follow, and the two of them walked through the Jiaotai Palace at the back and walked towards Fengzao Palace.

Here, all the civil servants left the imperial study and Daming Palace with worries. No one spoke until the door. They were obviously digesting the news they had just received. Most of them were actually dishonest. Although they were not completely betrayed, they Hedging bets was originally the "ancestral skill" of this group of people, but now it seems that they need to think about it carefully.

"Mr. Li Ge, please stay!" While they were thinking, a female voice suddenly interrupted their thinking. A female palace guard stopped Li Mian, "This is the list that His Majesty has given to Mr. Li Ge. Please Lord, put it away!"

"Sorry for bothering you, girl!" Li Mian sighed helplessly and took the materials; the female guard didn't say anything, nodded and turned around to leave.

Since moving to the palace, Zhou Yang officially ordered the complete abolition of eunuchs. The palace defense is responsible for the outer imperial guards, the middle-level imperial guards and the female guards of the inner palace. Most of the last ones are actually symbolic, and only a few are considered Real defense personnel, this made everyone in the court look strange, but they rarely said much.

"Mr. Li Ge, this is too much." Liang Bo, the elder in charge of law enforcement review, looked at the thick stack of materials, and said with a wry smile, "If I remember correctly, the total number of people in the Imperial Academy is less than a hundred, right? If this list is really implemented, even if not all are cleared, I'm afraid there won't be many left."

"If the Holy Will is like this, what can we do?" Li Mian and Liang Bo smiled bitterly after a brief thought, "It's just that such a big deal will probably require the help of Mr. Liang Ge. We probably need to discuss it carefully."

"That's what Mr. Li Ge said." Liang Bo nodded helplessly.

All the civil servants looked at me and I looked at you, but now no one dared to speak.

Fengzao Palace.

"Master Lin, today is the full moon of my third princess. It just so happens that Sister Lin has just confirmed the good news and asked me to invite you to the palace to talk about it. Now that the palace is full of family members, I won't let you talk anymore." At the door, Zhou Yang smiled and said to Lin Ruhai, "There is a female guard at Xukun Palace to take you there. I assure you that my original promise is still valid."

What promise?Naturally, the eldest son with Sister Lin is named Lin.

"Old Minister" Lin Ruhai was so excited that he couldn't speak. He knelt down on the spot and said, "Thank you for your kindness!"

"Don't say goodbye!" Zhou Yang quickly grabbed him and asked his father-in-law to kowtow to him. Aren't you afraid of thunder? "Hurry up and see Sister Lin. This girl is already thoughtful. What if she thinks too much?" It's uncomfortable, and I have to wait on him, which is also uncomfortable.

One more thing, does Mr. Lin know about Lan Xiaozi in Rongguo Mansion?His name is listed in the Imperial College. Now that he is allowed to participate in the provincial examination directly, he will be arranged in Daxing County. If you have time, you might as well help teach him. If you can get a place in Enke this year, you will not let me down. teach. "

"This -" Lin Ruhai was a little confused, but he was not stupid. How could a person like Jia Lan, who had never even participated in the scholar examination, pass the examination in one go? This was letting him deliberately open a back door to leak the question, "Isn't it some"

"No?" Zhou Yang asked with a smile.

"Your Majesty, don't worry. I'm resigning!" Lin Ruhai nodded quickly and followed a female guard away.

After Zhou Yang watched him go, he smiled and entered the gate of Fengzao Palace. He heard laughter coming from the main hall, just vaguely mixed with a little "yeah" baby talk. He quickly walked a few steps in, and then I saw a "climbing mat" spread out in the middle of the main hall, and a very small and cute child was lying on it, trying to turn over while surrounded by girls "watching".

"I've met Your Majesty!" The other girls glanced at each other and said nothing. Today's "protagonist" Wang Xifeng, who loves to show off, came up with a smile and gave a blessing gift. It was not so much a greeting as a request for reward, "Today It’s the third girl’s full moon ceremony, did your Majesty bring any gifts?”

"You!" Zhou Yang wordlessly took her in his arms and walked to the climbing mat. He let go of Wang Xifeng and squatted down, carefully picking up the little cute person who was a little aggrieved after failing to turn over. "Before talking about gifts, Concubine Jin is Isn’t it time to tell me that you insisted on naming yourself, but what’s the result now?”

"The third girl is born on July [-]th. Isn't it just a coincidence that this is the 'Qiaojie Festival'?" Wang Xifeng said triumphantly under the contemptuous eyes of all the girls, "Why don't you call it 'Sister Qiao'? Is there a large size? I specifically asked that serious person, and there happened to be a good homonym for it, so our baby is called 'Zhou Qiao'!"

"I remember saying that no matter whether you are a son or a daughter, your name should always be on your mind!" Zhou Yang glared at a certain young widow angrily. Without asking, she dug a hole for the illiterate guy in front of her, but the most important thing was The question is not this, "Sister Qiao? Your name is really..."

"Isn't it bad?" Wang Xifeng said blankly.

"." Zhou Yang didn't speak for a long time. He wanted to object but couldn't find a reason. You can't say this name is unlucky, right?When he mentioned it, he thought of the "cruel uncle" Wang Ren. Although he felt that there should be no trouble in this life, he still secretly decided to let Dongfang Bing take some time to arrange for him. He was not afraid of ten thousand, just afraid of the worst. !
"Your Majesty, where is the gift?" Seeing that he didn't speak for a long time, a certain hottie asked dissatisfiedly.

"Indispensable!" Zhou Yang quickly took out a shiny sterling silver longevity lock and hung it around his baby daughter's neck. Children should not give too expensive things, "Since you have already named her, then I will allow her to break it." For example, Zhou Qiao is Zhou Qiao, there is no need to look for Shu Xin."

"Isn't the word "vertical to the heart"?" Wang Xifeng looked at Li Wan blankly and found that she was smiling happily. He rushed over angrily and "struggled" with her, "You are a prude and you are just trying to trick me. Even Sister Qiao has tricked you, let’s see if I don’t beat you to death for being so cruel!”

"Come on, my dear baby, don't be like your unreliable mother." Zhou Yang shook his head speechlessly, hugged his daughter and greeted the other girls who were laughing together, and everyone went to the banquet to eat together—what, someone fight?Anyway, someone knew the situation of these two people's "fighting" very well, and at worst, they would be allowed to fight during the day and then at night.

"Your Majesty, where is Sister Lin—" Queen Guo Xuan said worriedly.

"Ask someone to send a table over. I asked Master Lin to come over today." Zhou Yang said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)