Aunt Chen is back from the world of cultivation

Even if it was just a guess, it was enough to make Emperor Yong'an unhappy.

A minister whose prestige is higher than that of the king, does that mean he wants to rebel?

"This matter needs to be investigated and discussed later."

He said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi was not disappointed at all, but smiled and said:

"Your Majesty is wise! Zheng Yuannai is a rare general in our dynasty after all. We still have to rely on him to defend against the Japanese along the coast. This matter should indeed be treated with caution."

She was not afraid at all that Emperor Yong'an would investigate.

If you watch those movies and TV shows, you will know that those generals who can win battles repeatedly are almost all very kind to their soldiers and have high prestige in the army.

Zheng Yuannai has achieved remarkable results at a young age and is full of energy and enthusiasm. How could he think about these trivial details?

There will be almost no suspense about the results of the investigation.

In this case, she would naturally stop there and not say more, lest Emperor Yong'an think that she was too concerned about state affairs.

Moreover, the more one emphasizes Zheng Yuannai's importance, the more Emperor Yong'an will care.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Emperor Yongan's face turned even worse.

He didn't stay in her palace for long and left on the grounds of being busy with government affairs.

As soon as Emperor Yong'an returned to his palace, he immediately called the Embroidered Uniform Guard and ordered them to go to Songhu in person to investigate the matter.

After much deliberation, he called back the newly appointed Minister of Rites and asked him to stop publicizing the miracle.

Originally this was a good thing, but if it was inconsistent with the statement made by Songhu, and those with ulterior motives seized on this, I am afraid it would become a laughing stock.

This was something Emperor Yong'an absolutely could not tolerate.

He even put his own fame on hold. The next day, the Hanlin Academy sent him an imperial edict that had been prepared to promote Zheng Yuannai and commend the Songhu Army. Naturally, he chose to keep it and not issue it.

Two days later, the news from the Jinyiwei in Songhu was delivered to Emperor Yong'an.

This was not the news sent by the Jinyiwei he sent out two days ago, but a secret report sent by the local Jinyiwei members in Songhu.

Although the Jinyiwei in various places were in disarray and had not achieved any results for many years.

However, this matter, which is known to all local people, will still be reported to Emperor Yong'an.

However, its timeliness is much slower than the court's urgent military intelligence reports.

After reading the secret report, Emperor Yong'an slammed the table in anger.

"What a great guy Zheng Yuannai, he really seeks fame and reputation!"

The secret report clearly stated that during the Songhu Anti-Japanese War, when military secrets were leaked by spies at the critical moment, gods appeared to help, which saved the Songhu defenders from danger.

The reason why the gods came was because they were moved by the virtue of General Zheng Yuannai.

Today, the common people and military households in Songhu City and its surrounding areas are all discussing how Zheng Yuannai loves his soldiers like his own sons and how this has moved the gods, but no one mentions his grace as an emperor.

This only shows that Zheng Yuannai himself did not mention the emperor's grace to the people and soldiers.

In this person's heart, he was not at all grateful for the emperor's recognition and favor, and just took everything for granted.

He is simply arrogant to the extreme!

"Bastard!"

The more Emperor Yong'an thought about it, the angrier he became, and he simply threw the manuscript on the imperial desk onto the ground.

He felt even more aggrieved when he saw the imperial edict that was waiting for him to affix his imperial seal before issuing it.

Now, he disliked Zheng Yuannai in every way and wished to dismiss him from office and put him in jail.

So that he would know that it was he, the emperor, who promoted him and made him the glorious one he has today, but could also send him to hell in an instant.

His future depends on his thoughts.

However, since he has this power, he cannot ignore his reputation.

The king's word is as good as gold. He has already said in the court that he would make use of Zheng Yuannai and reward the Songhu army generously, so he cannot go back on his word.

This imperial edict has to be issued sooner or later.

It can be imagined that when this imperial edict is sent to Songhu, it will only make Zheng Yuannai, this disrespectful bastard, even more proud and further boost his local reputation.

More importantly, the divine manifestation was clearly a great opportunity to wash away the stigma brought by the natural disaster, but he missed it in vain!

Emperor Yong'an was very upset.

In the end, he decided to delay issuing the imperial edict for some time.

In this way, he could make the ministers in the court understand his attitude and avoid giving people any chance to criticize him on the righteous side.

*

"Your Majesty, the imperial edict to reward General Zheng has not yet been delivered to the cabinet today."

The trusted eunuch Liu secretly reported to Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi.

In the past few days, she has been asking people to secretly monitor the progress of this imperial edict.

Seeing that Emperor Yong'an had not yet sent the imperial edict to the cabinet, she knew that he had taken her words to heart.

In this case, Zheng Yuannai's promotion will most likely fail.

After all, with Emperor Yong'an's absolute authority in the court, if he delayed issuing the imperial edict, the ministers would not be so tactless as to urge him to do so.

In the end, it ended up in nothing.

Thinking of this, Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi was filled with joy and ordered:

"Go and invite the wife of the Marquis of Jingnan."

My sister is already in the second trimester of her pregnancy, but she is still suffering from severe morning sickness.

I couldn't eat, which made me feel bad.

Fortunately, she is already in the second trimester and is not as fragile as she was in the early stages and cannot be moved. Let her come into the palace to relax, listen to this good news, and divert her attention. Maybe she will feel better.

The next day, Lady Zhang, the wife of the Marquis of Jingnan, came into the palace with a sign in her hand.

As soon as Zhang arrived, Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi drove all the servants out of the palace to make it easier for the two sisters to talk.

"Sister, have you felt better these past two days?"

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi held Zhang's hand and asked with concern.

Zhang looked haggard and had lost a lot of weight, but she tried to cheer herself up and replied:

"Much better, don't worry, ma'am."

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi couldn't help but sigh when she saw this:

"Sister, why did you lie to me? You don't look well anymore."

"Isn't there anything you like about the food that the chefs I sent to you cook? How about I ask someone to find you another chef?"

Zhang knew she couldn't hide it from her, so she had to tell the truth:

"Forget it, there's no need to make such a fuss. I heard that some people suffer from morning sickness for a long time, but there's nothing we can do about it, we just have to bear it."

Although Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi had a miracle drug in her hands, she was helpless against such a minor matter as morning sickness.

All she could do was try to find something her sister liked to eat, so she asked:

"Sister, think about it carefully, don't you have anything special you want to eat? As long as you say you want to eat it, I can get it for you even if it's from all over the world!"

Zhang couldn't persuade her, so she said:

"If you say I want to eat, I actually miss the cooking skills of that bitch Chen. Among so many cooks, her dishes are the most to my taste."

The dishes cooked by the Chen family are always refreshing, not greasy, and very delicious in their original flavor. The plating is also very delicate and pleasing to the eye.

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi's eyes suddenly lit up, and she said angrily:

"Sister, why didn't you tell me earlier! I will send someone to the Cihang Temple right now and ask them to send someone to serve you!"

"But didn't we agree before that we wouldn't provoke the Cihang Temple for the time being?"

Zhang had suffered heavy losses repeatedly in matters concerning Cihang Temple, and was now somewhat afraid of the temple.

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi shook her head and said confidently:

"Now that I have the eldest prince by my side, things are different than before."

"Besides, we are not trying to provoke Cihang Temple. We can just talk to the temple master and borrow Chen to serve you for a few months with a large sum of money, and then return her intact. Would they offend me, the imperial concubine, for an ordinary disciple?"

(There will be another chapter at around 2 or 3 o'clock, which will be added directly after this chapter. Please remember to come back and read it tomorrow morning.)

Zhang was still somewhat worried, fearing that her sister would come into direct conflict with the Cihang Temple because of her affairs, and suffer at the hands of the temple's master with extraordinary means.

Seeing that she was worried, Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi took the opportunity to tell her about Zheng Yuannai:

"Don't worry, sister. We have His Majesty as our protective umbrella. No matter how powerful the abbot of Cihang Temple is, can he do anything in front of His Majesty?"

"Zheng Yuannai, the believer of Cihang Temple, has made great achievements and has become very famous, but so what? I just said a few words in front of His Majesty, and his chance of promotion has gone to waste."

Zhang was shocked:

"Sister, this... this won't make Cihang Temple hate you, right?"

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi said confidently:

"Don't worry. Apart from Your Majesty, who would know that Zheng Yuannai's promotion was blocked because of what I said?"

Zhang asked for some more details, and immediately smiled broadly, saying proudly:

"It seems that my sister has now reached a higher level in both her understanding of His Majesty's thoughts and her position in His Majesty's heart."

Otherwise, it would be impossible for His Majesty to change his mind with just a few words, and not have the slightest aversion to her, a concubine in the harem, discussing state affairs.

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi chuckled and said coquettishly:

"So, now you should be able to rest assured and let me hire a cook for you, right?"

Zhang smiled and nodded.

Given her sister's current status and position, any smart person would know:

If they dare to be ungrateful again this time, they will offend the Imperial Concubine and will only bring disaster to Cihang Temple.

Thinking of this, Zhang had another idea.

"Military power is extremely important. If your brother-in-law were not disabled, he might be able to lead the troops again. This would also provide you and the eldest prince with more protection."

"If Cihang Temple is sensible, can they ask their abbot to cure your brother-in-law's leg?"

Pei Xiao's leg has shown no signs of improvement despite consulting many famous doctors in the capital over the past few months.

After much thought, I felt that only the abbot of Cihang Temple could really cure him.

After hearing this, Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi raised her eyebrows and said:

"Does my sister want to go back to the days when my brother-in-law held all the power?"

Zhang was a little hesitant:

"The Bo family now relies on you, my sister. My life in the mansion is indeed comfortable. But I can't just think about myself."

"Now, you have fallen out with the legitimate branch because of me. No one in my family can stand up. If your brother-in-law stays idle at home, your power in the court will be too weak."

"With wars raging everywhere, this is a good time for military commanders to gain power. Wouldn't it be a pity if we miss it?"

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi disagreed and said with a smile:

"Sister, you are so concerned that you are confused! You yourself advised me not to hurt His Majesty's compassion for me before, how come you have completely forgotten it now?"

"In this harem, not competing is the biggest competition. Your Majesty is still in his prime, and the eldest prince and I do not need to have any power in the court."

Zhang couldn't help but be startled.

She had indeed warned her sister before that the most important thing was to win the heart of the emperor, but now she has been blinded by power.

Imperial Noble Consort Shuyi spoke eloquently, with a look of confidence that she had won:

"His Majesty once said that once a woman fights for power and gain, she becomes hateful. He likes a simple woman like me who is indifferent and has only my husband and children in my heart. So, the weaker we are in the court, the more His Majesty will protect us wholeheartedly."

"Sister, tell me, is there anyone better to rely on than His Majesty in this world?"

Zhang immediately gave up her previous idea completely.

Indeed, just like Your Majesty and Marquis Jingnan, the more capable a man is, the more he likes simple and weak women.

If her uncle had not had his leg injured by the Cihang Temple's scheme, and she had a younger sister to rely on, she would have ended up in a very miserable way now.

She should not influence her sister with her bad ideas.

"It was my fault for thinking too much. Fortunately, you have the right idea, sister."

*

Another three or five days passed.

"Great! This is really a timely relief for me!"

Emperor Yong'an put down the secret report in his hand, and his face showed joy, changing from his usual gloomy expression.

What he was reading was a secret report from Liang Bao, the eunuch in charge of the Southern Capital Ceremonial Bureau and the Southern Capital's internal garrison commander.

In his secret report, Liang Bao revealed that Tan Song, the commander-in-chief of Nanzhili, had close contacts with the Japanese spies during the Battle of Shanghai. Not only did Tan Song continue to accept bribes from the Japanese spies, up to thousands of taels each time, he also took the daughter of one of the Japanese spies as a concubine.

The fact of collusion with the Japanese was known to everyone in Nandu and Songhu. The four captains who colluded with the Japanese even threatened Zheng Yuannai openly. If they were persuaded, the commander-in-chief would definitely not let Zheng Yuannai off.

This incident had an extremely bad impact on the local area.

In addition, during his tenure, Tan Song colluded with the thousand-household soldiers of the various prefectures to embezzle military pay, enslaved military households, and oppressed the people, causing the local military households to be in dire straits and the local people to complain.

In this regard, although he is still collecting evidence, he also saw many clues during his time at Nandu.

In Tan Song's mansion, even the concubine was accompanied by more than ten servants when she went out, and a piece of jewelry could cost dozens of taels, which was extremely extravagant.

In addition, the captains of each garrison would personally go to the Tan Mansion to present gifts during festivals.

As far as he knew, some of the thousand households gave Tan Song holiday gifts amounting to more than a thousand taels.

At first, Emperor Yong'an was a little surprised:

Liang Bao, this dog slave, actually dared to report Tan Song's evil deeds. He is indeed loyal and courageous.

You know, Tan Song not only had a distinguished family background, but he also made great contributions when he was fighting with the Queen Mother.

Emperor Yong'an turned a blind eye to letting Tan Song guard a place and gain some benefits.

Regarding the matter of collusion with the Japanese, Tan Song also took the initiative to submit a memorial to apologize, saying that he had failed to supervise the matter. Fortunately, Zheng Yuannai acted decisively and dealt with the spy, so no disaster was caused.

Emperor Yong'an was pleased with Tan Song's honesty and originally planned to just fine him some of his salary.

But now, after seeing Liang Bao's secret report, he realized how bad the impact of Tan Song's actions was in the local area of ​​Southern Zhili.

It is in stark contrast to Zheng Yuannai.

This is totally embarrassing for him!

Thinking of this, Emperor Yong'an suddenly had an idea.

Since Tan Song's actions have become notorious in the local area, his order to punish Tan Song will surely make the local people applaud and praise him for his wisdom and bravery!

Isn’t this a good way to surpass Zheng Yuannai in reputation?

Moreover, Zheng Yuannai was appointed by him personally, and everything he did after taking office could be considered as instructed by him!

Plus Liang Bao who he sent...

Things could have turned out this way. He had long known that Tan Song had colluded with the thousand households of Songhu Prefecture in Nanzhili to exploit the military households and civilians. He planned to get rid of this harm to the people, so he placed Zheng Yuannai and Liang Bao in the position, one openly and one secretly.

Zheng Yuannai openly rescued the Songhu military households, while Liang Bao secretly investigated Tan Song's crimes.

Now that the evidence is solid, his ruthless and impartial handling of corrupt officials is truly a story that can be made into a drama!

In this way, it is completely reasonable to say that the gods helped him because of a wise king like him.

If this matter were publicized throughout the country, the people would only praise him for loving the people like his own children and working hard, and the stigma of natural disasters would naturally be refuted!

This design is absolutely perfect!

The only one who is going to be unlucky is the commander-in-chief Tan Song.

But it was also true that he was corrupt and accepted bribes, so he was not wronged. Moreover, he was able to solve a big problem for the monarch, so his death was worthy.

Immediately, Emperor Yong'an made a decisive decision:

The imperial edict to severely punish Tan Song and the imperial edict to commend Zheng Yuannai were issued together!