fifth form

Chapter 2493 Mother and Son
"She made contributions to three generations, but she lived too long and was involved in many things that she shouldn't have been involved in. She mistakenly killed Zhidu, alienated the late emperor and Zhou Yafu, and insisted on paving the way for King Liang, which caused the division of talents between Chang'an and Suiyang, and also caused the neutral Huainan Kingdom to grow and become a hidden danger..."

The new emperor lay on his side on the bed, and the empress dowager narrated many things in great earnestness.

The Empress Dowager was the stabilizer of the Han Dynasty, but she sought stability throughout her life.

Just like Cheng Buzhi who was good at defense, the Empress Dowager only wanted to keep everything stable.

This pursuit of stability was correct at a specific historical stage, but as the times moved forward, what was once correct became a mistake and even an obstacle, which also led to Emperor Jing's depression during his nearly twenty years in power.

"The late emperor repeatedly wanted to appoint virtuous and upright people who could speak out and make suggestions, so as to clean up the malpractices in the court. Even if only half of the people were replaced, Chang'an would not have come to this!"

"With three generations of this noble family occupying the imperial court, how can there be room for others?"

"The whole court is full of mediocre people. Xu Chang is old, Zhuang Qingzhai is barely passable, but he is also the tallest among the short people. The three highest officials in the court are not even complete, and the nine ministers are even more disgusting. The military district is even more corrupt!"

"The talented people are at the bottom and cannot get promoted. All of them are returned to the princes and countries. This Chang'an City..."

The Empress Dowager had injuries on her face, but she was clearly better than Empress Dou.

From criticizing the Empress Dowager to discussing the shortcomings of the imperial court, all of this was aimed at the Anle Palace faction, and was also the strategy she was about to promote.

These words make sense.

Not to mention the high-ranking officials in the court of Prince Liang, even the people in the Huainan Palace were not mediocre and their strength was almost comparable to that of the high-ranking officials in the imperial court.

"What the Queen Mother said is true!"

Lying on the bed, the new emperor nodded repeatedly.

Judging from what the Empress Dowager expressed, she was always considering the interests of the Han Dynasty.

But as Emperor Jing said, the most terrifying thing about the Han Dynasty is that many people seem to be devoted to the Han Dynasty, but there is no way to tell whether it is true or false.

When disloyal people need it, all it takes is a simple miscommand of a war, which may result in the loss of the most elite legion of the Han Dynasty.

All you need to do is seek means of retaliation in the court to kill your opponent legally and legitimately.

All these situations happened again and again, even making the emperor suspicious, leading to wrong judgments and even doubting everyone around him.

If not for this, the Empress Dowager would not have been on Emperor Jing's list.

"Liu Piao contemptuously called me the descendant of the King of Yan and attempted to restore the Western Chu. But the Western Chu was a thing of the past a hundred years ago. My son is already the Emperor of the Han Dynasty. Why should I restore the Western Chu? This is simply nonsense!"

Seeing the new emperor's respectful attitude, the anger and impatience in the empress dowager's eyes gradually subsided. She also mentioned the cause of the fight in the Anle Palace, and was not even shy about mentioning the cause of the fight involving herself.

"Is it the Western Chu that fought for supremacy with Grandfather Gaozu?" asked the new emperor.

"Yes, the body of King Xiang Yu of Western Chu has been cut into pieces for a hundred years, and there are still people who suspect that he will restore Western Chu." The Queen Mother said, "Isn't this ridiculous!"

"indeed!"

The new emperor nodded in agreement, indicating that he would never believe such nonsense.

"Don't mention Liu Piao. I suspect that my mother may have had such speculations about me in previous years, and she may even have whispered them in the ears of the late emperor and your majesty," said the empress dowager.

"No, what son would make such a presumptuous assumption about his own mother!"

After the new emperor nodded, he shook his head repeatedly. When he shook his head too many times, he began to hold his head down and lay down.

"Your Majesty, please do not be angry," the Empress Dowager said, "I don't know whether Liu Piao is just a nagging person or the late emperor left a will to Your Majesty. Please believe me. I only have you as my son. What mother would not care about her own child?"

"Whatever my mother says, I will do!"

When the new emperor saw the empress dowager removing the last piece of fig leaf, his heart beat wildly and he even lowered his head.

"That's good. Let's talk about it after the burial is over!"

The Empress Dowager nodded, and felt the pulse of the new emperor on his wrist. She left the room and repeatedly asked the imperial physician for advice before she hurried away.

"Han Yan, Dongfang Shuo!"

When the footsteps faded away, the new emperor raised his head and gasped heavily. The empress dowager's last words revealed her own veil and also the veil of the new emperor.

Whenever he thought of his own behavior over the past few years, and his inner wariness of the Empress Dowager, the new emperor felt as if he had been dancing like a clown for almost six years.

Zhang Xuezhou was far inferior to Xu Chang, Zhuang Qingzhai and others in the court. He behaved like a rookie recruit, and the new emperor felt that his performance was not much different.

If it weren't for the fake Scarlet Sky Sword and his cultivation at the level of supernatural powers, the new emperor would have almost lost the confidence to establish himself.

He called out twice, and saw Han Yan and Zhang Xuezhou outside the room stepping in.

"Two things," the new emperor raised two fingers and whispered, "One involves my mother, and the other involves Empress Dowager Dou. I don't want to show up, but I want to know about my mother and Empress Dowager Dou..."

The new emperor did not narrate the whole story, but only made some gestures, which made Han Yan and Zhang Xuezhou look at each other.

"You are the most intelligent people around me, you should know what to do," said the new emperor.

The new emperor's eyes were slightly red as he stared at Han Yan and Zhang Xuezhou.

For the new emperor, one side is his mother and the other side is his most important relative-in-law. He needs a real answer.

This answer will not change the court structure, nor will it bring him any benefits, but it can calm him down and even have a significant impact on his character.

"I promise you that you can enter and leave the palace freely. I also promise you that you can enter and leave the Royal Library freely three times, and you can also go to the armory to choose three items you need!"

The new emperor felt his body and grabbed a key carved with a dragon and a phoenix in his hand.

He pushed with his right hand, and the key broke into two pieces, and then he handed it out.

"I choose Empress Dou!"

Zhang Xuezhou spoke first, and then took the key with the dragon side.

Han Yan hesitated for two seconds, then reached out and took the key with the phoenix mask.

"This harem is not something Han Yan can get involved in." Han Yan's face twitched and he said, "Yan has been thinking about it for a long time and I don't know how to start!"

"I don't forbid you to go anywhere, even to Eternal Lane!"

Yongxiang is the long alley in the imperial palace. The palace maids who were not assigned to various palaces lived in this alley. The cold palace where the concubines who had lost their power were imprisoned was also in this alley.

This is the most strictly guarded place in the harem. The new emperor can release the power of Eternal Lane, which means that Han Yan can move freely in the harem.

As for what name Han Yan uses to stay in the harem and how he can find out everything about the Empress Dowager, that is what Han Yan needs to think about.

"Dongfang Shuo, are you in trouble?"

Seeing Han Yan nodded in agreement, no longer with the previous embarrassed expression, the new emperor turned to look at Zhang Xuezhou.

"My residence is far from the imperial city. I would like to borrow your majesty's gold to see if I can buy a place nearby so that I can visit Empress Dowager Dou!"

Zhang Xuezhou spoke politely.

It can’t be said that his relationship with Empress Dou is very good, but there is always a connection.

It is not difficult to find out something from Empress Dou, and it is also easy to warn the other party through Lord Zhenyuan.

These things were not difficult for Zhang Xuezhou, and he readily asked for the task first to avoid being preempted by Han Yan.

The key authority granted by the new emperor was quite good. Although some of it overlapped with the official promotion of "Jieshi Zhong", this promise meant that the official promotion of "Jieshi Zhong" would not be lost no matter how much he spent.

Entering and exiting the Royal Library three times to read a collection of books may not sound like a big deal, but this is similar to the privilege of a first-class guest official in the Wenying Pavilion, and many senior officials need to work in politics for several years to obtain it.

Selecting three items needed from the armory is equivalent to giving away treasures for free. This is usually a reward only given to crowned officials, or to generals who win battles outside. For example, the materials for the Eight-Step Immortality Pill that Li Shaojun needs can be obtained from the armory.

Zhang Xuezhou was very satisfied with this simple and easy task, and was also satisfied with the corresponding remuneration.

Since the new emperor still wanted to ask, Zhang Xuezhou reluctantly took care of his recent chores.