After Cao Zhengchun left, Zhu Houjin and Beauty Mo continued to tour the imperial garden.
In the warm spring, not only were the flowers in the imperial garden competing with each other, but the birds had also flown back from the south.
The spring mountains were red and green, the warm sun shone, and the gentle east wind blew.
Beneath a large banyan tree, Beauty Mo said softly,"
The pavilion is high and the curtain is closed, leaning against the railing to look into the distance.
The willows hung down, and the swing swayed gently.
The imperial garden was silent.
The orioles chirped and the swallows flew.
Under the Golden Water Bridge, the water was flowing red.
"Beloved consort, did you come up with this yourself?”Zhu Houjin asked.
"ChenQie did not do well and let Your Majesty see it as a joke.”After Beauty Mo said this, she lowered her head and blushed.
Zhu Hou understood the meaning of this poem at first glance.
How was Beauty Mo chanting a spring poem?
It was clear that he had ulterior motives. If one listened carefully, it was clear that this poem was about a young girl longing for love.
"Very wonderful, beloved consort. It is said that you are proficient in chess, zither, painting, and calligraphy in your family. Today, in this one's opinion, it is the truth.”
In the blink of an eye, it was already noon, and the sun shone down. Zhu Houzhen held Beauty Mo's hand and went to eat.
Under the envious and secret gazes of the palace maids, Li Moruo's face was flushed red as the Emperor held her hand. Her heart was as happy as a flower.
She thought to herself, How good would it be if this continued forever like today?”
Very soon, the two of them arrived at Yangxin Palace Hall. The imperial kitchen had already prepared 81 dishes, which was a combination of nine to one.
Nine, Supreme!
Nine-Nine was the Supreme of the Supreme.
When the emperor ate, he also paid great attention to court etiquette.
However, Zhu Houzhen had simplified the imperial cuisine and placed so many dishes on the table.
Some dishes looked very beautiful, but he didn't like them at all.
Now, the number of dishes for each meal had been reduced to more than 60. Even so, they were full after eating less than a bite of each dish.
Just as they were eating, Imperial Consort Li arrived. After Li Moruo paid his respects to his aunt, he stood beside Imperial Consort Li.
"Your Majesty, is the food delicious?" Imperial Consort Li looked at Zhu Houjin and asked eagerly.
It looked like Imperial Consort Li was the master of the harem, but the words Imperial Consort and Empress Dowager were worlds apart…
If the little Emperor didn't say anything, Imperial Consort Li wouldn't be able to get the title of Empress Dowager even if she died of old age.
"Yes." Zhu Houjin replied.
"Then this widow will prepare a few more delicacies for the emperor. It's Hunan cuisine. This widow knows that the emperor likes spicy food…"
At this time, chilies had long since arrived in the Ming Empire from overseas. They had been planted in large areas in the south and southwest for decades, and they had formed a spicy cuisine.
Just as Zhu Houjin was about to decline, two young girls walked in from outside the hall. They were about twelve or thirteen years old, and they were born beautiful without makeup!
So these were the two dishes that Imperial Consort Li wanted to add for him…Zhu Houxin laughed in his heart.
Although these two girls were not fully grown, it was foreseeable that they would be devastatingly beautiful in a few years.
These two young ladies were chosen from thousands of beauties from the Subordinate Countries and the various provinces of the Empire.
Whether it was the skin, appearance, or figure, they were all top-grade!
"Zhen has just conferred titles to a few beauties, and Imperial Consort wants to fill Zhen's harem. Isn't this too hasty?”Zhu Houjin said to Imperial Consort Li.
" Your Majesty, we're just giving them titles. Your Majesty is too busy, so a few more girls will accompany you to chat and relax. The more concubines you have, the thicker the foundation of the country…"
In Imperial Consort Li's heart, she was prepared to choose 500 concubines for Zhu Houjin. In a few years, there would be many Dragon Sons.
The more dragon sons there were, the more it would show that the royal family had a successor, and the world would be more stable.
Her position as Imperial Consort Li would be as stable as Mount Tai, and even the title of Empress Dowager would be at her fingertips…
No matter which concubine was favored, she, Imperial Consort Li, had personally chosen them. Even if she sat on the throne of the Empress, she would not go against her.
The current Zhu Houxin still didn't know about Imperial Consort Li's plan of having five hundred concubines. If he knew, he would have a headache…
Although many beauties had been selected for Zhu Houzhi, and some beauties, Zhaoyi, and Chang Zai had also been conferred titles, there were not many who could climb up to the Dragon Pagoda.
After lunch, Zhu Houzhao ordered the eunuchs to deliver the memorials to the throne to the Dragon's table.
As the emperor of the empire, although he had the help of the cabinet to handle daily affairs, he was still very busy.
It was hard not to be diligent in government if one wanted to be an outstanding ruler!
Beauty Mo had brewed a pot of Da Hong Pao brewed by Lu Yuquan for the Emperor. This tea was refreshing and was especially suitable for reading memorials in the afternoon.
————
The second is the mansion of Xu Jie.
Xu Jie looked at the eunuch Huang Jin and said with a smile,
"Eunuch Huang, thank you for everything! In fact, this pavilion is not greedy for a high position. I really want to share the emperor's worries and do something for the people of the world. If the chief assistant's health improves, this pavilion will naturally give up.”
"Grand Secretary Xu, you don't have to be humble. Chief Assistant Yang is seriously ill, and you should be the chief assistant of the cabinet of the Imperium according to the order. His Majesty is a hero of a generation, and he admires Grand Secretary Xu's thoughtful and smooth handling of affairs.”
As Huang Jin spoke, he stuffed the silver notes in his hand back to Xu Jie and said in a low voice,"
"Grand Elder Xu, how dare you give this to me at a time like this? You'd better take care of yourself!"
Hearing this, Xu Jie's heart tightened. He thought to himself, is this Huang Jin really honest or is he pretending to be noble?
However, it was indeed the cusp of the storm now. The Emperor hated the custom of giving gifts between officials.
If they were caught, they would definitely be severely punished. No one would be an exception…
After walking for a while, Xu Jie continued,"
"Good, good, good. I was muddle-headed for a moment. However, the amount of banknotes is not high. It is my salary…I still need your help with the matter of the chief assistant.”
"Don't worry, Grand Elder Xu. Our daily job is to coordinate with the cabinet and receive all the memorials. If we don't cooperate well, the Emperor will be furious, and we will all suffer.”
Finished talking, Huang Jin declined Xu Jie's invitation and left the Xu Manor. Xu Jie personally sent him off.
After returning to the palace, Huang Jin immediately recorded his every word and action in Xu Jie's residence and what Xu Jie said in detail on the memorial.
These few times Huang Jin went to Xu Jie's residence was Zhu Houjin's instruction to investigate Xu Jie. He also wanted to investigate the competition for the position of chief minister in the court, as well as the movements of the Zhe Party, Jin Party, and other consortiums.
Huang Jin was a person close to the Emperor, so Xu Jie naturally wanted to curry favor with him. If he sat in the position of Chief Assistant, then he would have to interact with Huang Jin's ceremonial supervisor every day.
If they didn't deal with each other and tried to sabotage each other, the position of chief assistant would probably fall very quickly.
Zhu Houyi had seen through this point, which was why he had sent Huang Jin to successfully infiltrate Xu Jie's residence and obtain first-hand information on the movements of the villagers…
After Huang Jin finished writing the memorial, he sealed it with wax and handed it to the young eunuch to pass to the Emperor.
——————
Inside Yangxin Hall.
Zhu Houjin spent the entire afternoon reading through the memorials. After he finished reading, he knew the recent situation in the empire like the back of his hand.
Qi Jiguang led the Ming Navy to patrol the sea, protecting the Ming Empire's sea territory.
Li Chengliang was training his troops, preparing to lead 300,000 troops to the Western Regions and reclaim his homeland.
The Western Regions was different from the Tartars. Although the Tartars were vast, most of their land was grasslands.
In the Western Regions, there were deserts, snow mountains, Gobi deserts, plains, and basins.
There were thirty-six countries in the Western Regions, and they had sufficient military strength and wealth. The Tartars couldn't compare to them.
Why would they need 300,000 soldiers to deal with Gao Chang?
This was because what Zhu Houjiu wanted was not just the Gaochang Country, but the entire Western Region!
After dealing with the memorials, Zhu Houzhen stretched his body and turned to look at Beauty Mo, who had been silently accompanying him. Beauty Mo had already finished tidying up the dragon bed.
After dinner, Beauty Mo saw Zhu Houjing looking at her and said with a smile,""Your Majesty, can I continue to sleep with you tonight?”
"Sure, spring is sleepy and autumn is tired. Zhen is indeed a little sleepy. Stay and sleep with Zhen.”
After getting on the dragon bed, Zhu Houjin gently embraced Beauty Mo in his arms…
——
The next morning.
When Zhu Houjiu opened his eyes, Beauty Mo was still sleeping soundly. Zhu Houjiu did not disturb him.
A few palace maids quietly walked over and helped Zhu Houjin change into the dragon robe. After she was done, Beauty Mo woke up.
"Beloved consort, continue to sleep. Zhen is going to court.”
Zhu Houzhen walked out of Yangxin Palace Hall and went up the flight corridor to Xuanzheng Palace Hall. Huang Jin's secret letter had already arrived.
Opening it, it recorded the conversation between Huang Jin and Xu Jie.
There were also the latest movements of the various village parties, large financial groups, and the censors 'groups in the court.
From Huang Jin's secret analysis and Zhu Houjin's heavy blow, everyone in the censor group was in danger. The censors and censors had become frightened birds…
And the power of the township party swelled in the court. The township party had the support of Chu Shang and Zheshang, and their leader was Xu Jie.
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