Professional Ethics of a Concubine

Great Zhao.

The emperor has been in a very good mood recently because he has been receiving many surprises and everything has gone well.

He was also very comfortable with the flattery of envoys from a number of small countries, which gave him a wonderful feeling that Great Zhao had become the Celestial Empire.

He, the supreme ruler of the world, owns all the wealth and beauties and controls them (it’s all an illusion).

Let me first talk about the thing that surprised the emperor. That is, the Sixth Prince has made a qualitative progress in the research of gunpowder and can already produce gunpowder powerful enough to dig holes in mountains.

However, gunpowder is not very stable and is dangerous to use. The hole is, well, not very big.

But this is still a surprise, because it means that everything Ye Qingzhi said has the possibility of coming true.

Just based on this point, the emperor was so excited that his face flushed, he walked with a light heart, and he liked everyone he saw.

Even if you just disagree with something, you will be rewarded. If anyone says something nice, you will be rewarded.

In the process of researching gunpowder, the Sixth Prince and others also developed many new types of fireworks, which were just right for the dinner after the crown prince's enthronement ceremony.

Setting off a wave of fireworks to open the eyes of foreign envoys, and imagining their shocked expressions and astonished eyes, the emperor felt very happy.

In addition, a lot of money had been invested in improving weapons before, and now there has been significant progress. The cost of arrows has been reduced, and the penetration, accuracy, and flight distance have all been improved.

Two days before the ceremony of enthroning the crown prince, they planned to arrange various activities for the envoys from various countries to let them directly feel the power of the Great Zhao.

Except for the powerful weapon such as gunpowder, which needs to be concealed, other military weapons such as improved bows and arrows, improved chariots, ladders, siege vehicles, etc. can be displayed.

They also want to use this to show the strength of their soldiers in order to achieve a deterrent effect.

Another surprise is that this summer and autumn have been good, with no major droughts or floods across the country, and the grain harvests are good in various places.

As the collection of taxes and grain from various places was completed, part of the grain from various places was transported to the capital through the canal, part of it went into the national treasury, and part of it went into official warehouses around the capital.

Of course, most of the collected grain was sent to military garrisons at the border to supply the troops.

The national treasury had collected so many gift boxes that they filled several rooms. Because they were still being collected, although a lot of grain was given out, the gift boxes still took up a lot of space. Therefore, in order to store the collected grain, many more official warehouses were built in the suburbs of Beijing.

Of course, this is also because the grain collected this year, despite the reduction in taxes, is nearly one-third more than last year!

Why are there so many more?!

First, he struck a blow to the power of Qingzhou and the former prince, destroyed the large Chen clan, and also destroyed many small clans. He distributed the land to the local people, thus increasing taxation from the source.

Second, the phenomenon of corruption in local officialdom has been greatly improved.

During this year, the emperor executed many officials from the capital to the local areas, which had a deterrent effect and made corrupt officials dare not easily reach out for tax revenue, so tax revenue naturally increased.

The treasury has enough grain and money, it would be strange if the emperor is not happy!

In addition to these national affairs, there are also some small things in life that make the emperor very happy.

First of all, at the suggestion of Tutor Ye, the imperial kitchen developed a number of pastries made with sugar, eggs, milk and flour as raw materials. They were sweet and soft, and much more delicious than the previous desserts.

It was also the first time for the emperor to eat such sweet pastries, and he was in a very happy mood.

However, Master Ye advised him not to eat too much because she said it was too sweet and eating too much would be bad for his health.

The emperor could only restrain himself, as he still paid great attention to health preservation.

This kind of pastry is also very popular in the manor, especially among the noble ladies and children. Envoys from small countries also like it very much, and one can even say they are obsessed with it.

Even though the price is three times more expensive than ordinary pastries, people still flock to it and the demand cannot keep up with the supply.

With these pastries, it was easy to control a lot of people and lure them to the manor. Once they were there, there were many ways to make them spend money.

Secondly, the pure water and essential oils that Xiaoliu purified using the distillation technique are very good for massage. After each massage, his body feels a lot more relaxed, and his sleep also improves a lot.

This method was naturally proposed by Master Ye.

The emperor had to admit that when it came to enjoying life, Master Ye's ability was on par with her ability to judge people.

In addition to these big and small surprises, when we talk about everything going well, we have to talk about Prince Su disbanding the backyard.

There is no need to say much about those concubines of lowly status, just give them some money and send them off. For those who want to get married or want help from the palace, the housekeeper of Prince Su's palace can also help arrange suitable candidates.

However, more careful arrangements need to be made for concubines and concubines.

The emperor originally thought that this incident would cause a huge reaction from Concubine Tang and Concubine Yu, and that they might even feel humiliated and seek death, but this did not happen.

After Concubine Rou and Concubine Xian talked to them and their families respectively, they were all very willing to leave the palace and remarry.

After all, the conditions offered by Prince Su were very generous, and they would be fools if they didn't marry again.

There is nothing to complain about. They have already complained. They are grateful for the chance to make a new choice, the emperor's marriage, the chance to marry in style, the chance to be the principal wife, and the chance to raise children.

Therefore, the matter of the two concubines was resolved smoothly.

However, subsequent matters such as leaving the palace, choosing a husband, being granted marriage and remarrying, etc., all have to be done after the prince's enthronement ceremony, which is only a matter of ten days.

They can totally wait.

Therefore, the news that Prince Su dismissed the women in the harem did not spread outside, and for the time being only the royal family knew the news.

As for the three concubines, their families' homes were all in the border areas, and they preferred the prosperity and comfort of the capital. They did not want to go back to the border areas, nor did they want to marry again. They just wanted to accompany their daughters and watch them get married.

Therefore, Prince Su allowed them to continue staying in the palace and did not force them to leave.

They are not stupid. They know that when the prince grows old, their daughters' reputation in their mother's family will still depend on the prince born to the princess.

Therefore, they would not do anything stupid to harm the princess and the prince.

Moreover, after these three concubines had contact with Mu Nianqiu several times and listened to her lectures on Buddhist scriptures several times, they also began to become interested in Buddhism and worshiping Buddha.

All of a sudden, Mu Nianqiu had three more partners to worship Buddha with.

During the day, when Prince Su went to the military camp, Mu Nianqiu and the others would worship Buddha together, and then take the five children in the mansion for a walk in the yard.

Life has become more interesting.

Although the three daughters were born out of wedlock, they were still his daughters. They could establish good relationships with the young prince and the young princesses. Prince Su was happy to see it happen and acquiesced.

-

The matter in Prince Su's backyard was resolved successfully and satisfactorily, which relieved the emperor a lot of thought and even made him reflect a little.

As long as the people around them are tolerant and give women room to choose, they don't seem to care so much about their own chastity and are not so averse to remarrying.

Being faithful to a man and maintaining chastity seem to be the only requirements men have for women.

The emperor couldn't help but think of the empress again. Hmm... back then she must have been forced into the palace. So after becoming the empress, did she also have a lover?

If you put yourself in her shoes, it is normal for an empress to have a lover. It would be abnormal if she didn't. After all, some princesses would keep lover's even when their husbands were still around.

However, the emperor still felt depressed when he thought about this problem.

Therefore, the emperor's wonderful mood was slightly flawed.

However, the emperor's depression was soon cured by the flattery of envoys from small countries.

For several days in a row, the emperor received envoys from these small countries, and his mood became more and more cheerful.

Because small countries like the Dongyi Kingdom and other countries in the Western Regions came to pay tribute.

They came with meager gifts, and when they met the emperor, their attitude was humble and flattering. They praised the emperor to the skies in poor Zhao official language, hoping to gain more good things to bring back.

It's a bit like a poor relative who comes to ask for money.

Of course, even poor relatives are divided into different levels.

A country like Dongyi may not have a large land area, but it is still rich in various resources.

Because of the sea between them and the fact that Great Zhao was founded only a short time ago, there was not much contact between the two countries. Although there were Japanese pirates from the Dongyi Kingdom in the sea area who disturbed the people and robbed food, it was also normal friction.

If you want to send troops to attack the Dongyi Kingdom just for this matter, you will just be bored.

For the Great Zhao, the territory there is small and the resources are scarce. Would it be necessary to conquer the land with great effort and let the people give up their land and leave their homes to become fishermen?

Even if we take it, it will be difficult to defend it because the effort and income are too disproportionate.

Therefore, Xie Jin also put the Dongyi Kingdom and the countries on the other side of the sea into a plan that would take fifteen or even twenty years, or even longer, and was not in a hurry to take them over.

To get back to the point, when the number of envoys from various countries increased significantly and they all lived in the guild hall, they would see each other every day. Each country had different etiquette and customs, and even had its own unique taboos, so friction was bound to arise.

Quarreling and making sarcastic remarks were the lightest punishment. There were even cases where the two countries came to blows, which caused serious injuries or even death of the guards.

This kind of fight involving foreign officials also requires coordination and handling by multiple departments in Da Zhao, and also requires a royal family member who can calm the situation.

When the situation first started to get serious, it was reported to the emperor, who dealt with it.

The emperor was upset after hearing this, but thought the matter was not a big deal, so he handed it over to the crown prince and let the capable prince handle it.

After Xie Jin took over, he set up a special temporary public relations team.

The royal family responsible for maintaining order was headed by Prince Duan, assisted by three other newly appointed royal descendants of the Great Zhao.

There is also the third prince Yuchi Yongning who is the sixth prince, who is plotting to interfere and confuse the public.

The trial of the case, examination of the injuries and rendering of the verdict were the responsibility of a group of officials from the Dali Temple led by Gu Zheng.

After all, Gu Zheng is capable, excellent at solving cases, and has a reputation for being impartial and just.

If he were the chief judge, foreign envoys would feel that he was fair and strict. Even if they were still dissatisfied in their hearts, they would have to admit it for the sake of face.

Who made Gu Zheng kill his brother-in-law, the only son of three generations, and force his own wife to death? This kind of ruthless person will be admired by anyone who asks about him!

If there was friction among the delegations, if something happened, or even if someone died, Gu Zheng would conduct the investigations accordingly.

Once you come to Da Zhao, you must follow the laws of Da Zhao. After the verdict, Da Zhao has the final say on how to detain you.

This is also because Da Zhao has already shown the posture of a powerful country. For ordinary small countries, weak countries have no diplomacy, and they must obey arrangements.

As for a powerful country like Dayan, the Seventh Prince, the representative of the Dayan royal family, had completely boarded Xie Jin's pirate ship and became completely pro-Zhao.

Whenever a conflict arose between Great Yan and others, the Seventh Prince would completely respect the laws of Great Zhao, obey Great Zhao's decisions, and take the initiative to restrain his subordinates.

As for the State of Chu, haha, why bother to be polite to them? Sooner or later, there will be another war, and they will destroy you. It is useless for the Chu envoys to protest, just use force.

After the two incidents, the envoys of Chu State became obedient one by one, and even worried that they might die in Zhao State. They felt so sad and painful that they could not express it in words.

As for the Kingdom of Gulan, needless to say, it is now a close family with the Great Zhao.

The Third Prince almost regarded himself as a member of the Great Zhao, calling the Crown Prince "cousin" and Prince Duan "brother" in a very affectionate manner.

However, after four or five days, Gu Zheng could still hold on, but Prince Duan, who was in charge of maintaining order and acting as peacemaker, could no longer bear it.

You can ask him to pretend to be cultured, and he can do it too if you ask him to explain antiques, calligraphy and paintings, historical books and classics to various diplomatic envoys.

But what should he do if he meets people who don’t understand what people say?

When a scholar meets a soldier, he can't explain his reason clearly.

Especially the royal families of small countries, they are really arrogant and conceited. Sometimes when they meet each other, because of a trivial matter, they turn into fighting cocks and have to peck each other.

For the first time since taking over the royal estate, Prince Duan had the urge to hide away and have a good rest for a few days, and his work enthusiasm dropped to freezing point.

-

Inside the royal estate.

Prince Duan had just settled a minor dispute and sat down to drink some tea and catch his breath when he heard the eunuch hurriedly report.

"My Lord, this is bad, something happened again!"

"…What happened again?"

Prince Duan did not put down the teacup in his hand, nor did he open his eyelids. He had a droopy face and asked weakly but with great disgust.

"Your Highness, the Third Prince started fighting with the people of the Wusun Kingdom in the Western Regions, and then the people of the Dongyi Kingdom also came forward to help the Third Prince fight the people of the Wusun Kingdom. The situation got out of control!"

"Ahhh, this is outrageous! I am so pissed off! I am really too polite to them! They all want to die so badly, I will grant their wish!"

Prince Duan was so angry that he slammed the table, threw up his sleeves, and walked out angrily, while asking the eunuch who delivered the message,

"How did it all start?"

"It all started when Prince Fujiwara of the Dongyi Kingdom and the little Kunmi (similar to a prince) of the Wusun Kingdom both fell in love with a singing girl and insisted that she drink with them, so they started arguing.

The third prince stepped forward to persuade him, but the little Kunmi of the Wusun Kingdom might have an old grudge against the third prince. He got drunk after drinking a few ounces of liquor and not only did he not listen, he also punched the third prince in the face.

The Third Prince was furious and fought back, calling on the people of Dongyi to fight with him, saying that the law does not punish the masses..."

“……”Prince Duan.

Yuchi Yongning, you troublemaker!

Prince Duan ran to the scene and saw the people fighting inside, the tables and chairs toppled over, and the porcelain shards all over the floor. His blood immediately boiled over, and he shouted at the people who were still fighting,

"Stop it, my king! If anyone continues to hit me, I will send him to the Dali Temple and lock him up!"

It was useless, so everyone continued to fight.

“Whoever makes a move again will be banned from entering the Royal Manor and will no longer be able to enjoy everything in the manor. This is absolutely not my decision. I will report this to the Crown Prince and my father…”

The next moment, the leader, the Third Prince and others, all stopped and scolded their men not to fight anymore.

Prince Duan,...

Damn it! I finally found the weakness of these people.

Prince Duan, who always prided himself on being a refined man, couldn't help but curse.