Chapter 950
Finally got what I wanted
Chapter 950 Finally got what I wanted
The golden rooster breaks dawn, the sky becomes bright,
The hustle and bustle of the capital is still the same as yesterday.
Inside Honglu Temple,
Several princes of vassal states were sitting in the main hall, all with sad faces. There was a table full of delicious dishes, but they had not eaten much. Only their personal servants were around them. He looked around at the others. Except for Prince Zheng, everyone else seemed to be the same as himself. It seemed that he was not the only one in this state.
Zhou Yewen, the prince of Song, rolled his eyes and came up with an idea. He picked up a bun and put it into his mouth. The fragrance lingered in his mouth, and he finally enjoyed the taste.
"Brother Zhengbai, I see you eat well and sleep well. I wonder if you have found a solution. It is said that Mr. Fan of the Zheng Wangfu is well versed in ancient and modern times. As the birthday of the retired emperor is approaching, do you have any hope for the things entrusted by the palace?"
This question was asked abruptly, and it was just like bringing the instructions from the palace to the table. Although they all knew the other party's purpose, they were probably really anxious and disregarded their face when they spoke like this.
The princes and sons of the surrounding vassal states all looked unhappy. They were all in the same boat, so why should they bite each other here? This was the main hall of the Honglu Temple, with many spies inside and outside. Besides, what should be done had been done almost, and the rest could only wait for news from the palace. Whether it would succeed or not was not up to them alone.
"Haha, Brother Yewen is anxious. Everything depends on human effort. All the human effort has passed. What remains is God's will. I have heard of Mr. Xu Zigong of the Song Palace for a long time. With this person here, do you still need to worry about these things, Brother Shi?"
Prince Zhou Zhengbai of Zheng is now half full. The food is delicious, and the white porridge is fragrant. He likes it very much. But now these things may not be without influence. Last night, a letter came from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, saying that the deputy general manager of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Eunuch Wang, sent someone to say that there was a letter in the palace, but it would cost 200,000 taels of silver to deliver the message.
These words aroused Mr. Fan Wenhai's suspicion. Whether it would succeed or not, he would give a definite answer. How could there be such a blatant threat? Two hundred thousand taels of silver was not a small amount. Although the palace had enough, he didn't know if this hole was a bottomless pit. Another thing was that the purpose of each palace was the same. They would come if they wanted to. How could they only send a message to Zheng Wangfu? When he asked Mr. Fan, he also said "give".
Well, since the Prince of Song also has this question, he must have received those rumors. I don’t know whether the person has given them to him or not. I need to test it out.
"Brother Shi, please stop quibbling over words. Yunfu, Lianghao, and I, and even Brother Shi, I'm sure the Ministry of Internal Affairs has already sent a message to you all. I don't know if any of you who have been emptied can afford two hundred thousand taels of silver."
His face was gloomy. This was a good plan. It was close to the birthday banquet. Even if those damned servants delayed for a few days, the palace would not say anything. Maybe it was the emperor's intention. But if the father came late and missed the event, there would be trouble.
Since I was the one who brought up the topic, I should talk about it properly. My eyes fell on Zhou Zhengbai, and I saw that the prince of Zheng smiled slightly. He confessed before I asked him. Since this is the case, each person and his family have 200,000 taels of silver, and the princes' palaces together must have this much. If they hand over a million taels of silver, it is still a business with no capital to make money.
"Haha, oh my, brother Yewen is still quick to speak. You have said all these things. How can our Prince's Mansion be an exception? I guess the palace has already made a conclusion, but I don't know who came up with this final meaning."
Zhou Zhengbai laughed. Since they were all the same, he thought someone must have given advice behind the scenes. As for who it was, he asked even though he knew the answer.
As soon as this word comes out,
Several people's faces changed instantly, especially Chen Wang's son Zhou Yunfu. This time he came to the capital, only his Han Wang Mansion was short of money. Unfortunately, he didn't do anything and the silver notes he brought with him had already been spent. If he paid another 200,000 taels of silver, he would not have much left. He was afraid that there would be more to come.
"I've really run into a mean person. Ever since our Prince's Mansion entered the capital, it's like a hot commodity. Everyone wants to get their hands on it. Now, some people even dare to take a bite. Prince Chen's Mansion is located in the northwest, and the resources are not abundant. It can't compare to the silver that you brothers brought. Although I can afford the 200,000, I'm really unwilling to pay. I wonder what you brothers think?"
Throwing out a brick to attract jade, the usually silent Prince Chen had to speak up. As for the Prince Wu, Zhou Lianghao, he was busy eating. In fact, he didn't want to give it to his father. With his father's temper, it didn't matter whether he came to the capital or not. After all, they were at the bottom of the list. No matter what, good things would not happen to the Wu Palace. However, someone had become the first to speak up, so it was better to go along with it.
"Well, Brother Yunfu, you are putting me on the spot by saying this. Although the south is better, it is not guaranteed to yield. Marquis Luo Yun has already taken a lot. If the Ministry of Internal Affairs takes more money, and if someone else pops up, I don't want to come to the capital this time."
The words were spoken sincerely, and he was so angry that he threw the bowl and chopsticks. Of course, the food in the bowl had been eaten up, and there was not much left. But it was this look that touched everyone's heart, especially Chen Wang's son Zhou Yunfu, who was full of gratitude. Even Song Wang's son Zhou Yewen nodded frequently.
"Okay, well said. If those things hadn't happened before, I would have given it to you. But you keep asking for it again and again. I'm not happy about it. The Honglu Temple and many other court officials didn't take our money. In the end, we were fooled by a eunuch. It's really ridiculous."
Furious, Han Wang's Prince Zhou Xingshan had already started drinking in the morning, his face flushed, and it was unknown whether he had drunk too much or was angry. Although he spoke generously, it was only out of loyalty. Could it be that he really didn't want to give the silver?
Zhou Zhengbai smiled, shook his head, put down his bowl and chopsticks, and said;
"My dear brothers, that being said, the matter is clear. It is nothing more than someone is thinking about or plotting against our Prince's Mansion. All matters have been settled, and only this last step is left. It depends on whether it is worth it. The palace has passed on the message that the 60th birthday of the Supreme Emperor will be held in the Palace of Heavenly Purity. By then, all the nobles and officials of the capital will be there. If the king does not arrive in time, or in the future, someone says that we are not his sons, we cannot bear the consequences. You must know that we are not the only sons in the Prince's Mansion."
The words were spoken lightly, but the content was of great weight. The imperial court has its disputes, the royal palace has its calculations, and with so many heirs from his father and son, which prince dares to take it lightly? Take the matter of dining in the Honglu Temple now, it seems light, but how many people are qualified to come in?
The atmosphere in the palace suddenly became solemn. Yes, who can guarantee that the prince's position will be secure?
"So what Brother Shi meant was to agree with the eunuch in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and hand over the silver with both hands, and we will just be the birds hiding behind their heads."
Zhou Xingshan stared with discontent. He knew that what Zhou Zhengbai said made a lot of sense, but he was ashamed that a prince of a royal family could be harassed by a eunuch.
"Ahem! That's not the case. The silver must be given, but it can't be given readily. Now that the result has been achieved, as the saying goes, one hand hands over the money, the other hand hands over the goods. The imperial decree should also be brought over, otherwise the silver will not be given. How do you think?"
This is also the most reliable method Zhou Zhengbai can think of. Since he wants money, he is not afraid of breaking up. He must know the order from the palace. If it succeeds, he will come. If not, he will write back to the palace. He can't delay any longer.
Several people were stunned. This was considered a showdown. They looked at each other and nodded.
"Okay, let's do it,"
"Damn it, I don't want to be bullied by those eunuchs any more."
"When will we talk?"
Several people were mumbling something, and they didn't know if it was a coincidence, but while they were talking, the steward outside the palace came to report;
"Report, my lords, the eunuch Ming from the Ministry of Internal Affairs has arrived,"
The noisy conversation stopped abruptly.
Everyone was extremely surprised to see someone coming so early. The one who reacted the fastest was the prince of Zheng, Zhou Zhengbai. He quickly extended his hand and made a gesture of invitation.
"Please."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The steward bowed, clasped his fists and walked out. Outside the palace, Wang Gonggong's godson Xiao Mingzi had already changed into a brand new official uniform, with a purple sash of a fourth-rank steward of the Ministry of Internal Affairs tied around his waist, a pair of spotless cloud-bottomed boots on his feet, a Buddhist whisk in his hand, a happy smile on his face, and a group of eunuchs following behind him. How many people in the capital can compare with this majesty?
Thinking about what my godfather told me today, today is just a formality. I wonder if the princes have prepared the money.
Just thinking,
The steward in the palace hurried out and bowed deeply.
"Your humble servant greets Eunuch Yun. Several princes are dining in the palace. Please go in to discuss." "Okay, I'll go in right away. Get up."
"Thank you, father-in-law."
The steward looked sincere, bowed and smiled, leading the way. This made Xiao Mingzi feel happy, as he finally made it through.
He waved the Buddhist whisk in his hand, and the eunuchs behind him entered one after another, following him inside.
Just entered the temple,
I saw several princes sitting at the table, each eating. Eunuch Ming smiled slightly, bowed and saluted.
"Little Mingzi from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, I am honored to meet all the princes. I pay my respects to all the princes."
The shrill words made the princes feel uncomfortable.
"Eunuch Ming has worked hard, and he has come here in person. Someone, please take a seat."
Zhou Zhengbai also nodded and smiled, and asked someone to bring a chair to show respect.
Eunuch Ming glanced at the princes and saw nothing unusual, so he simply sat down calmly.
"Thank you, Prince Zheng, for the invitation. I have no other intention in coming here today. My godfather said that several princes are filial and would like to voluntarily donate some money to repair Changle Palace. When I heard this, I was deeply moved. So, I came here early in the morning to pay my respects to all the princes."
The words were so convincing that if they hadn't known the inside story, they would have believed it to be true. Zhou Yewen and Zhou Yunfu were so angry that their faces turned red. How could a eunuch who was talking nonsense not arouse hatred? But they dared not deny the fact that he was showing respect to the emperor.
"What you said makes sense, Eunuch Ming. We are naturally filial, but there is one thing I don't understand, so please enlighten me, Eunuch Ming."
The prince of Zheng still smiled and said something indifferent. Xiao Mingzi raised his head and looked at the princes. He seemed to know what they were asking, nodded, and replied;
"You are joking, my lord. If you have anything to ask, please feel free to ask. I will tell you everything I know."
"Okay, since Eunuch Ming has said it, we can't hide it. Since we came to Beijing, we have written a petition, hoping that our father would return to the capital to show filial piety and attend the birthday banquet of the retired emperor. Now that the birthday banquet is approaching, and Eunuch is a member of the inner court, he must know what is going on in the palace."
With a half-smile, the question was bold, and the listeners were also bold. How could they know the decisions of the cabinet in the palace? Eunuch Ming raised his head and looked at the princes in front of him. They were elegant and their eyes were very bright. They were the style of the princes of the royal palace, with good means and courage.
"You are joking, my lord. How could I know what is going on in the palace? I came here today just to get something. Since you have something to ask, I have to answer. I do have something for you, but..."
Before he finished speaking, Eunuch Ming pulled out a bright yellow package from his arms and quietly placed it on the table in front of him. He stared at the reactions of the princes, but saw that their faces suddenly changed. He smiled to himself, thinking that his godfather was really good at it. He was right when he said that the princes would not give up until they saw the rabbit.
Zhou Zhengbai was also extremely surprised. He did not expect that in the end, he would get it without any effort. The bright yellow brocade should be the imperial edict. However, such an arrangement was obviously approved by the palace. The emperor paused. It was said that the palace was short of money, or the court was short of money. It cost a lot to suppress the rebellion in the south of Beijing. Marquis Luo Yun was in charge of almost all the troops. The consumption of this day was incalculable. He thought a lot in an instant, and looked at Eunuch Ming in front of him. He did not dislike him just now.
"You are still the most open-minded, eunuch. In this case, we cannot fall behind. I will present you with these two hundred thousand taels of silver. Please accept them!"
He waved his hand, and the confidant who served him came forward, took the banknote, and then walked to Eunuch Yun and presented it with both hands. If there was one, there would be two. Seeing one person presenting it, the others couldn't fall behind. Although they were not happy, they couldn't let the duck in their hands fly away. Therefore, they acted in the same way.
Eunuch Ming didn't care at all. He stood up and collected the banknotes. He put the stack in his arms and felt it. He found that the amount was just right. So he didn't stay any longer and said goodbye and left.
"My lords, please be happy. Now that the matter is settled, how dare I linger? I will take my leave now. Before I leave, I have one more thing to say. My lords are all outstanding people. There are things you can do and things you cannot do. You must distinguish them clearly in the future. Only in this way can we last long. Come on, return to the palace."
A sing-along,
Xiao Mingzi waved the Buddhist whisk in his hand, and many eunuchs and eunuchs followed him out again. After knowing that there was no one in the hall, the prince of Han, Zhou Xingshan, slammed the table angrily and cursed;
"What the hell, you dare to teach us a lesson,"
"Yes, a eunuch, a dog-like thing,"
The Song prince Zhou Yewen was so angry that his face turned red. Even the taciturn Chen prince looked at the palace door with a cold look. How could he explain to his father how two hundred thousand taels of silver were gone without even a sound?
"Everyone, the silver has been given. The rest depends on the imperial edict. If it doesn't go as planned, we will be in a dilemma. But I don't think so."
It has come to this point, and it is useless to do anything. He stood up, walked over, took the package, opened it and saw that there was indeed an imperial edict inside. He would be lying if he didn't say he was excited. His hands trembled slightly, and when he opened the imperial edict, his face suddenly showed joy.
"Haha, everyone, it's done. His Majesty has issued an edict that all the princes can come to the capital to pay their respects to the Emperor on his 60th birthday."
"Hey, finally something big has happened,"
Coincidentally, the Wu prince Zhou Lianghao, who had never paid attention to it, also sighed.
"That's not right, Brother Zhengbai. You just said that all the princes can come to the capital to show their filial piety. Doesn't that mean that the Western Prince Gongze and the Southern Prince Langyun should also come?"
Although Zhou Xingshan drank, he was not drunk. The relationship between the vassal kings in Guannei and the four kings and eight dukes had always been bad. He thought that Luo Yunhou had gone south to quell the rebellion, and the King of Beijing and the King of Dongping had already left the capital. It was unknown when the war would end, and they might not be back in a short time.
Thus,
After my father came to the capital, he may have lost some restraint, but judging from the emperor's intentions in the palace, the two border kings are likely to come to the capital. Not only are these two people stubborn, but neither of them is easy to deal with. Is the emperor trying to drive away the wolf and swallow the tiger?
What he could think of, the other people were not fools either, so they could naturally think of it, especially the Western King Gongze, who the court was extremely wary of. But now it seems that the emperor did not think so. The four kings and eight dukes were indeed deeply rooted and difficult to shake. Those civil officials and ministers were only good at talking.
"Yes, brother Shi, the imperial edict states that everyone can come to Beijing to celebrate the Emperor's 60th birthday. That means those military governors in the interior can also come."
Zhou Yunfu didn't know the situation inside. If this happened, he was afraid that there would be countless people coming to the capital, and with so many people and eyes, many things would be difficult to handle.
"Hmph, what are you thinking? For the Jiedushi to enter the capital, there must be an imperial decree from the cabinet or His Majesty. It is even more impossible for those civil officials to leave their posts without reason. Once they are discovered, the Dawu Law will arrest them on the spot and conduct a thorough investigation. They all want to enter the capital. If it is so easy to enter, wouldn't our money be wasted?"
Zhou Zhengbai snorted coldly. The imperial edict seemed to say so, but there were only a few people who could really come to the capital, unless he was already working in the capital and had the advantage of location. The governors of the interior and the border guards would have given up on that idea.
"Brother Shi is still very clear-sighted. I admire him."
Zhou Zhengbai's words were well-reasoned, which made several people admire him. Only Zhou Xingshan, the prince of Han, was dissatisfied. It sounded good. If there were people who really came back, it must have been arranged by the cabinet or the Ministry of War. They could just issue a transfer order to return to Beijing to report on their duties. I think many people would do so on that day. In this case, the gifts for the birthday banquet would need to be rare treasures. I don't know what he prepared. Those things in the Honglu Temple are hidden too deep.
I pondered in my heart,
As soon as the imperial edict was issued, several people's minds were no longer here. They found excuses and left one after another. Only the fast horse messengers in and out of the city went out in all directions, and no one knew where they went. There were also many pigeons flying over the capital, and they disappeared in the blink of an eye.
(End of this chapter)