Zhurou

Chapter 243 Pulse Case

Zhao Hong naturally had no idea what the officials in the court were talking about, and he had no time to care about it.

He had been weak since childhood, and had been ill for a long time due to the hardships he had experienced in the past two years. He knew very well how uncomfortable it would be to have a high fever, so he was naturally very anxious. Although Liu Nei Quan had urged him many times, and Yang Ting and others had pointed out that the war had already been decided, and as the emperor, according to tradition, he should meet with the new officials, he still put it aside for the time being.

Being urged so many times, Zhao Hong said with a stern face: "Is it just a matter of one or two days? I saw that it was fine before there were no officials in the north. Why is it that it is not working now that the Di people have retreated?"

He then said, "If you are really that anxious, you can just go ahead and meet him first. Why do you have to come to see him?"

This statement was of course far-fetched, and he knew in his heart that he was just angry for the moment.

The officials below gave their own advice. Some said that it was a case of changing the circumstances, while others said that it was precisely because of this that officials should be sent out early to urge the people to return to their hometowns to farm, so as to prevent the fields from being abandoned and farming work from being neglected.

Zhao Hong was furious when he heard this and could not help but ask, "How else do you want to urge them? There are so many refugees from the north helping to cultivate the ownerless wasteland in the capital and the surrounding areas. Didn't the court just issue a notice asking them to claim the wasteland themselves? It only said that those who claimed the wasteland could get either the harvest or money. Many people chose the first option. Now that the Di people have retreated and it is not time to harvest, are they going to drive them back? Who will pay for the harvest and money?"

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. It was no longer the time when he had just ascended the throne. He had read so many memorials, flipped through countless boxes of family files, and had been with Zhao Mingzhi in governing the country for a long time. He now had some idea of ​​what was going on.

In the past, whether it was an official transferred from other places to the capital or an official in the capital being sent abroad, it was not uncommon for them to spend months or even years waiting for the emperor to send them off or for him to have an audience with them. In the past, everything was easy to deal with, but nowadays, people keep urging them to do their job. I don't know if they want to make fun of themselves or if they have other plans.

But Zhao Hong was gentle in nature after all, and he couldn't save face. No matter what he thought in his heart, asking a question in return was the limit.

Fortunately, no matter how young he was, he was the emperor after all. Once he got angry, no one dared to say anything, and the situation remained quiet for two days.

However, although the meeting with officials could be postponed for a while, the imperial lecture was unavoidable.

It was Zhang Yi's turn that day. After finishing his lecture, he was not in a hurry to leave. Instead, he said to Zhao Hong, "I heard that Your Majesty has delayed meeting with the rotating officials?"

Zhao Hongke had just summoned two imperial doctors to the palace. He only wanted to ask about Zhao Mingzhi's condition, so why would he want to delay here? However, since Zhang Yi asked him, he couldn't ignore him. He frowned and said, "I've read the archives of the past, and even the retired emperor didn't seem to be that anxious when he met his subjects, did he?"

Zhang Yi knew how the two siblings felt, and was just about to take advantage of this opportunity to act, so he said to Zhao Hong: "Others may be able to postpone it for a while, but there is only one person - no matter what, Your Majesty, please spare at least half a day to meet with him, at least today or tomorrow."

Zhao Hong was already very impatient, but he tried his best to suppress it. He looked at Zhang Yi and asked, "Who is Zhang Qing talking about?"

It is already afternoon, so there is no room for half a day. As for the next day, there is a grand court meeting, which cannot be avoided. Secondly, it is Yang Ting's imperial lecture, and he cannot fail to give face to the old minister. If he squeezes out half a day's work, he doesn't know when it will end.

Zhang Yi replied: "Your Majesty, it is the governor Pei Yong."

He just said this, and seeing Zhao Hong's surprised look, he sneered in his heart, but his face was very serious, and he said: "Pei Yong just won a great victory in the north, and now he is back. Although Your Majesty has welcomed him in the suburbs and hosted a banquet, after all, there are many people and many things to say. It is reasonable to summon him as soon as possible. This man is arrogant and unruly, and he is used to being the boss in the northwest. If we wait too long, he will feel resentful, which will not be good."

"I also heard that the princess was ill, and I know that your majesty is concerned about his compatriots. This is a matter of course, and I am a pure filial and friendly person. However, Pei Yong's assignment and official position have not been determined, and he has no job in the capital for the time being. If he uses this as an excuse to cause trouble and asks to return to Jingzhao Prefecture, it will be a big trouble. Your majesty should persuade him well and praise him more this time so that he will not cause trouble."

Zhao Hong has never been an unreasonable person. How could he not know that not to mention that Pei Yong had made such a great contribution this time, even if he had no contribution, the emperor should summon him as soon as possible when a local governor returned to the capital as a routine measure to show his respect.

What we did at this time, in the eyes of others, could be considered as extremely neglectful.

Zhang Yi observed his expression and added, "I heard that in the past two days, some people have been asking questions at the Liuneiquan Office, and many people have been asking about the rewards and dispatches from the court this time. It is possible that Pei Jiedu has some interest in this. It is not a good idea to ask him to come and ask questions himself, right?"

Although Zhao Hong was very reluctant, he had to agree.

Even after getting his nod, Zhang Yi was unwilling to give up and kept asking.

Zhao Hong was already annoyed. With his cunning and knowledge, he had no idea the other person's purpose was to use power to pressure him. Just being pressured like this made him extremely impatient. Although he knew that meeting Pei Yong was extremely important and he had a good impression of him, he still felt a little impatient.

He really had no free time the next day, and was annoyed by Zhang Yi's preaching, so he immediately asked someone to write an oral order, and summoned the eunuch to take him to find Pei Yong and ask him to come to see him immediately.

Zhang Yi was conscientiously trying to please Pei Yong here, but the latter was not idle.

As soon as Pei Yong returned to the capital, it goes without saying that his troops were redeployed and personnel adjusted. The tens of thousands of troops were originally put together, and they were well-behaved under the high pressure during the previous march. But now that they have returned to the capital after making merit, some want to rejoin the team, some want to set up camp, and some want to be reassigned. The generals and subordinates each have their own requests, and many disputes are inevitable.

Although he delegated power to his subordinates, he still had many things to deal with personally. After two busy days, it finally came to an end. Unexpectedly, he waited for a long time again, but still no response came from the people he had previously arranged.

He could have endured it when he was busy, but now that he had nothing to do, he didn't want to wait any longer and immediately got up to go out. After taking only a few steps, he saw a man running towards him in the distance, sweeping up the dust. When he got closer, he found it was Wei Chengyan.

When the emperor went to the suburbs to welcome him that day, Wei Chengyan was naturally among the heroes. His reward had been decided long ago, and he was being sent to the capital. In fact, there were many procedures to go through, but because he had other plans, he was unwilling to accept the request, so he kept dragging his feet and refusing to go.

Pei Yong had just returned to the capital, and although he had been busy and had not found an opportunity to talk to him alone, he had already asked people to arrange a few things for him to follow up. Wei Chengyan came and went, hurriedly, and at this moment he had not yet figured out anything.

But he was still worried, and had someone keep an eye on his second brother. When he heard that he was free, he hurried over. When he saw Pei Yong, he asked before he even got close to him, "Second brother, Xiao Zhao came to the capital with you earlier, but why hasn't she come out since then? Do you know where she lives?"

He added: "I asked around, but I haven't seen any wood fragrance..."

Pei Yong was about to answer when his personal guards came in and said, "Jiedu, a messenger angel has come to the camp and said that the emperor has summoned him. Please come to the palace to see him as soon as possible."

As soon as he finished speaking, a soldier led several eunuchs in from outside the gate. They walked in a hurry. The one in the lead held a yellow silk cloth in his hand, but it was not a formal imperial edict with four or six parallel sentences, but just an oral order. As expected, it was a recitation of the announcement that the emperor summoned Pei Yong to the palace to meet him immediately.

After this man finished his announcement, someone on the side offered him a gift of thanks, but he just waved his hands repeatedly and just stood aside and asked Pei Yong a few words of greeting. Although he didn't say anything else, his intention to urge him was very obvious.

The angel was right beside them, so Wei Chengyan didn't dare to ask any more questions. He had to stop talking and watch his second brother enter the palace with the eunuchs.

After everyone had gone far away, a few generals who had just received the letter came in a hurry. They didn't even see Wei Chengyan's back, but when they saw Wei Chengyan standing there, they were unwilling to let him go and immediately surrounded him.

They were all acquaintances, so there was no need to be so particular. One of them immediately asked, "I heard that an angel came from the palace to summon the governor. Li Lao San, do you know what it is?"

Wei Chengyan was also very dissatisfied. Hearing this, he said unhappily, "How should I know! He has been in Beijing for so many days and he was silent before. Suddenly..."

Having said this, he shut up.

"I sent someone to inquire at the Liuneiquan, and they said they hadn't received any letter from the Secretariat yet, and no one knew what the Jiedushi would be ordered to do..." The man who spoke didn't look very happy, "It's been so long, so there should be some news."

Someone else said, "I did hear some rumors, but I don't know whether they are true or not - it is rumored that the palace intends to keep the governor in Beijing and join the Privy Council..."

As soon as this person said this, everyone fell silent.

Those who are qualified to gather here are naturally trustworthy acquaintances.

To those who were not in the know, staying in Beijing and joining the two governments was a promotion, but they were all from the northwest, so how could they not know how the Privy Council viewed them and what the attitude of the court was? They also knew that the beginning and end of the wars in the past were, in the final analysis, nothing more than "promotion in name but demotion in reality."

"If you enter the Privy Council, you must be stripped of your military power, right?" someone asked.

This question was too wishful. Everyone around was already holding their breath. Without Wei Chengyan saying anything, someone sneered and said, "How can the governor-general manage the soldiers of Jingzhao Prefecture when he is in the capital? Can the governor-general manage the imperial guards?"

Someone else said, "What nonsense are you talking about? What does it have to do with soldiers from somewhere? The Privy Council is separate from the three yamen, one is responsible for mobilizing troops, and the other is responsible for soldiers. If you really enter the Privy Council, you will have no one to use, and your colleagues around you will have conflicts with you. You will be manipulated by others!"

"If you ask me, it's better to go back!"

"The war has been fought by the present ruler, and the bandits have been driven out. For the next three to five years, there will be only minor incidents in the north. It is not the case that all the birds have been shot down, and all the bows have been broken for burning!"

Seeing that everyone was talking more and more nonsense, Wei Chengyan, who had been thinking about asking about the origins of his second brother "Xiao Zhao", was no longer in the mood. He was only annoyed. He glared and said, "This is the governor's own business. If he wants to stay in Beijing, he can stay in Beijing. If he wants to return to Jingzhao Prefecture, he can go to Jingzhao Prefecture. If he doesn't ask, you and I shouldn't say anything. Otherwise, if the news gets out, we don't know what people will say. Don't cause trouble for him!"

He actually repeated to others what Pei Yong had taught him before, bluntly and unceremoniously, causing everyone to look at each other in bewilderment. They had originally intended to show their loyalty, so now they dared not say anything more.

Regardless of what Wei Chengyan said, he had actually made up his mind long ago. He knew that his brain was not very useful, so he decided to follow his second brother. However, he couldn't help but worry about him. After thinking about it, he didn't give orders to others. He just found a horse from the stable, took only one follower, and went to the palace.

When he arrived at the place, he did not ask around or talk too much. He found a teahouse nearby, outside Xuande Gate and on Panlou Street, ordered a table of snacks, and mentally put all his energy into thinking that the tea tasted like wine, and sat down while waiting for his turn to eat the snacks.

Not to mention how anxious Wei Chengyan was outside the Xuande Gate, inside the Xuande Gate, Pei Yong passed through several palace gates and, led by several eunuchs, walked quickly for two incense sticks before finally entering the Chongzheng Hall and paying homage to the emperor.

Zhao Hong sat behind the desk. On his left hand was the draft of rewards sent by the Privy Council again, and on his right hand was the pulse diagnosis and prescription given to Zhao Mingzhi by two medical officers.

Half of his heart was thinking about how to reward this governor, and the other half was still studying the pulse case and comparing the differences in the prescriptions. When he saw Pei Yong saluting, he was surprised a moment too late and hurriedly said, "Mr. Pei, please stop the salute!"

As he was talking, he thought about how he would have no chance to return to the capital if it hadn't been for the governor's help in Caizhou. And if it hadn't been for him, he wouldn't have the chance to be in a daze here today. He felt ashamed for being distracted, especially when he thought about the reception two days ago, which was all thanks to his help. He felt embarrassed and stood up quickly, saying to the eunuch beside him: "Hurry up and show Pei Qing a seat!"

But when the chair was brought over, Pei Yong refused to accept it.

Seeing the person opposite him like this, Zhao Hong felt even more guilty.

He and Pei Yong did not have much affection between them as a king and his subject. It had been several months since they met and parted in Caizhou.

Since Zhao Hong became the emperor, his words didn't carry much weight, and he was often looked down upon or even ignored by others. However, he got little respect from the arrogant and domineering Jiedushi in the rumor. Thinking about the previous matter again and again, he apologized, "In fact, I should have invited Pei Qing to the palace to see me the day before yesterday, but I had an urgent matter and delayed it until now."

Speaking of the word "urgent matter", Zhao Hong couldn't help but look at the pulse case on his right hand side. After a pause, he said, "If it weren't for Pei Qing's efforts, the capital would be in danger, and the north would also be in danger. The Privy Council is making a reward, but I don't know what Pei Qing thinks?"

The emperor had given Pei Yong a way out, so Pei Yong should have taken advantage of it. However, he did not say anything clichéd, but said, "Since your majesty has asked, I will not give you a perfunctory answer. If the Secretariat has a conclusion, I will follow its decision."

There was no reluctance in his words, and because of this, Zhao Hong's heart became even more entangled, and he actually calmed down for a moment.

Pei Yong said, "Your Majesty seems to be very worried, and I have heard rumors in the city that the palace is visiting a famous doctor - but I don't know what it is about?"

Zhao Hong was stunned and hesitated for a moment, then felt that there was nothing to hide, so he told Zhao Mingzhi about his illness.

He had only said a few words to get back to business, but he didn't expect the man on the other side to frown after hearing what he said and asked, "Your Majesty, do you have any previous pulse cases?"