lady, please calm down

May 16, at dusk.

On the way, they were surprised to learn that the Jin Emperor had passed away. The subordinates of the Tiance Mansion in the rear army immediately accelerated their advance and finally arrived at the Yingchun Gate of Nanjing today.

Outside the city, Chen Chu was already waiting. After a brief greeting, everyone entered the city.

Chen Jingyan and Zhang Shuye could not help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw that the city was in order.

Officials at all levels in Nanjing were busy attending to the funeral of Emperor Daxing and could not take care of these people for the time being. Chen Chu, who had come three days early, simply entertained these nominal part-time ministers at the Ganquanfang house.

Ganquanfang, a house with four entrances, originally belonged to Han Chang, the prime minister of Nanjing Province. When he learned that the King of Chu had his family accompanying him, he enthusiastically lent it to Chen Chu.

It's a coincidence that this house is located in the southwest corner of Ganquanfang, just across the street from the Gongchen Gate that passes through the imperial harem.

"Guests are welcome to host. Now that the Emperor of Jin Kingdom is in great mourning and the whole country is sad, it is not appropriate to drink. Please be patient."

Although the Tiance Mansion was an official, and except for Zhang Hao who stayed in Nanjing, no one was a minister of the Jin Dynasty, but the emperor had just died, and Chen Chu led everyone to drink and have fun in the house, which was not appropriate after all.

You still have to do things to save face.

Hearing that there was no wine to drink, the military advisor Zhe Yanwen, Feng Shuangyuan and other warriors couldn't help but lose interest, and they ate much faster than usual.

In the middle of Xu Shizhong, Chen Chu ordered someone to take them to the front house to rest.

Upon seeing this, O Daochong and Luo Ruji, who were given the title of Sima, stood up to say goodbye at the same time and went to the post house to rest.

The two of them left the house and glanced back together. Chen Jingyan and Zhang Shuye obviously had something to say to King Chu, so they continued to stay here and looked indifferent.

After all, Chen and Zhang were the King of Chu's own people.

Ao Daochong and Luo Ruji said they were responsible for communicating with the Xixia Army and the Zhou Army, but in fact they were just observers forced by the King of Chu to observe how Huaibei destroyed Wan Yanliang.

I also think of the fact that the King of Chu arrived in Nanjing three days ago, and the Emperor of Jin drove to Hexi in the early morning of the next day, and I always feel that there is a hint of conspiracy.

Luo Ruji couldn't help but whisper: "Lord O, there is something fishy about the Nanjing incident. What do you think, Lord O?"

Aodao Chong, who had already been tormented by Chen Chu and Fan Gongzhi, had no energy at all. He cupped his hands and said tiredly: "I just arrived today and I don't know anything about the affairs in Nanjing City."

In the house, when the rest of the crowd dispersed, only Chen Chu, Chen Jingyan and Zhang Shuye remained.

"Uncle, Mr. Zhang, the conditions of the post house are limited, so you two should also stay in this house. It will also be convenient for me and others to discuss matters."

The treatment of our own people is different.

Zhang Shuye raised his hand in thanks, and Chen Jingyan lost all his restraints in front of Chen Chu. He immediately said: "Yuanzhang, there are no outsiders here. Tell me the truth. Did you do Wanyan Dan?"

However, Chen Chu said ambiguously: "Uncle, the Jin Emperor has died. Does it matter why he died?"

Chen Jingyan had known Chen Chu for ten years and knew his temper very well. Just by hearing these words, he judged that Wanyan Dan's death was definitely not natural. He couldn't help but said anxiously: "You are too impatient! You will enter Nanjing on the 13th. I couldn't wait to start on the early morning of the 4th. Were you afraid that others wouldn't guess it was you?"

Unexpectedly, Chen Chu took a sip of tea and said, "You can guess it if you can."

"Now that the war is imminent, why can Yuan Zhang be so restless!"

Chen Jingyan was a little angry. His investment in Chen Chu was not small. His early connections and later his daughter
Now that he has the opportunity to dominate the world, Chen Jingyan cannot allow any mistakes to occur.

But Chen Chu said: "It is precisely because the war is coming that this is necessary. Who doubts me is not important, what is important is who dares to jump out and accuse me."

This was a bit confusing, but with the minds of Chen Jingyan and Zhang Shuye, they immediately figured out what Chen Chu meant. Anyway, there is no proof of this matter. Except for the die-hard Jin Emperor, who would take the initiative to stand up and question the many doubts about the death of Jin Emperor? ?

If someone took the initiative to stand up, Chen Chu would just take the opportunity to eliminate them, so that the unrest could be completely eliminated before the war started.

"Uncle, just treat this as an obedience test."

Chen Chu used relatively unfamiliar terms to explain his motives.

After Chen Jingyan took a few breaths to accept Chen Chu's idea, he then said: "Yuan Zhang, what are you going to do next?"

"What do you mean, uncle?"

"The Lord of the Golden Kingdom"

Chen Jingyan once wanted to let Chen Chu simply replace him, but his son-in-law, a Han man with a different surname, became the financial backer. This was completely unconcealed and could easily lead to chaos among the various ethnic groups under the rule of the two capitals of the Jin Kingdom.

Furthermore, the crown excuse of going out to slay the rebellious ministers is useless.

Lao Chen didn't say those words, but at the same time he was faintly excited. Being a minister has two great achievements. One is that a wise minister assists the Ming Dynasty in opening up territories.

Second, discuss the rise and fall of the monarch!

Even if he, Chen Jingyan, is not a golden minister, having the opportunity to discuss privately on establishing a new king is still exciting~
But Chen Chu's answer was far beyond his expectation.

"The Kingdom of Jin has a heir, so why do you want to do other things? It's Wanyan'an."

At the end of last year, Wanyan'an's conflict with the prince's children in Caizhou was still fresh in his mind. Chen Jingyan thought that Chen Chu would not like this son and would take the opportunity to get rid of him.
Anyway, Wanyan Dan was not the only son that Wanyan Dan brought to Nanjing.

Chen Jingyan would not talk about the discord between his children. He only frowned and said: "This son has the attitude of an eagle watching a wolf. If you make him the new king, he may not be used by Yuan Zhang in the long run."

"He is a child who is less than ten years old. How can he stir up any trouble? As for the future, let's wait until he has a future." Chen Chu didn't care.

At the beginning, Zhang Shuye also participated in the royal family banquet and saw Wanyan An's performance with his own eyes. He agreed with Chen Chu's point of view and couldn't help but said: "This little prince looks heroic at first, but in fact he is reckless and doesn't know how to advance or retreat. He can't tolerate it." At this time, he is always sharp. In the eyes of the following officials, this child is not a concern. "

After saying that, Zhang Shuye frowned and said: "Your Majesty, on the contrary, your princess of Zhou Kingdom and Queen of Jin Kingdom must be an extremely tough person to survive in the den of tigers and wolves. Your Majesty, you need to be careful that she is the queen of Jin Kingdom." The prince gives advice"

"Don't worry about this matter." Chen Chu explained vaguely.

But Mr. Zhang was very dissatisfied with Chen Chu's answer and looked directly at the latter, wanting to hear why Chen Chu was so sure that the queen would not help the prince.

After all, if she wanted to secure her position as queen of a country, she had to rely on Wanyan An.

In order to reassure Mr. Zhang, who was in his seventies and traveled thousands of miles with him, Chen Chu could only tell the truth: "That Wanyan Dan was killed by the Queen herself."

"!"

Zhang Shuye opened his eyes suddenly, and then said to himself: "It shouldn't be! Although Jin Di is seriously ill, he is also her biggest supporter. Why did she destroy her support?"

It seems that Mr. Zhang, who usually doesn't like to inquire about gossip, has no idea that the Queen has a new backer. This new backer is much more reliable than the Jin Emperor in the sunset. He is also younger, stronger and more skilled than the Jin Emperor.
Chen Jingyan seemed to have heard something, and looked at Chen Chu with a rather unhappy look.

The atmosphere was awkward, but the relatives guarding the door knocked lightly on the door and said: "Your Majesty, Madam is here."

Ayu was the only family member who came to Nanjing.

The little goldfish came at the perfect time and rescued Chen Chu.

When Chen Jingyan heard that his daughter had arrived, he immediately withdrew his scrutinizing gaze. For Lao Chen, this kind of thing was not a big deal at all. As a man, as long as he achieves great things, a few romantic affairs are nothing.

Shaoqing and Ayu walked in personally carrying the food box. They bowed to the three of them in order of age, and then said softly: "Master Zhang, Daddy, it's late at night, I'll let you stew the white fungus soup."

Chen Jingyan looked at his sensible daughter and couldn't help but feel comforted.

On the other hand, Zhang Shuye was still thinking hard about why Chai Yuanyi took Wanyan Quan's life with his own hands and forgot to return the gift.

"Master Zhang, let's have a taste of the soup that my daughter has stewed with her own hands."

It wasn't until Chen Jingyan opened his mouth with a smile that Zhang Shuye suddenly woke up from a dream, slapped the armrest of the chair, as if he had figured out something, and sighed loudly: "I know! I know! The Queen has a family feud. The country hates her, and she is willing to bear the humiliation for many years. What a strange woman! Who knows that this woman is a descendant of the royal family?

He suddenly howled so loudly that Chen Chu and Chen Jingyan were so frightened that they both stopped drinking soup.

Even Ayu looked over with confusion. She naturally knew about Chai Yuanyi, but Cai Hua never told her about the incident between Chai Yuanyi and her uncle.

But at this moment, the guard outside the door came to report again: "There is a chamberlain outside the house who claims to be Xu Dehai's subordinate, asking to see him."

In recent days, the palace has been quite busy due to the Jin Emperor's official visit.

Chen Chu thought something had happened, so he hurriedly asked someone to bring the waiter in.

The person who came was a young man from the Huang family. He was about seventeen or eighteen years old. It was probably his first time out of the palace to do business. When he saw a crowd of people in the room, he still said truthfully: "Your Majesty, the Queen has a message for you."

Aren't you from Xu Dehai?

Why did it become a message from the Queen again?
Chen Chu noticed something was wrong in an instant and subconsciously glanced at Ayu, but Ayu was very perceptive and asked before Chen Chu could stop her: "What message did the Queen bring?"

The little yellow door was also stupid and said directly: "The Queen said that the palace is not locked yet, when will the prince come tonight?"

"." "."

"cough cough"

Zhang Shuye, who had just praised the imperial Miao descendants for their hatred of family and country and their willingness to bear the humiliation, coughed violently and looked at Brother Chu in astonishment.

"Ahem, cough, cough, go back and tell the queen that I will not go over to discuss national affairs tonight."

Chen Chu looked at his father-in-law and Ayu uncomfortably, and continued to quibble and explain: "It's all for national affairs. We work day and night. Hey, it's late at night. Let's go back to our rooms to rest."

Old Chen's male god style 'haha'.

"Your Majesty, you need to take care of your body. If you overwork and damage your body, I will be guilty of a great crime."

A-Yu is still a human being, and her words of cooperation are very face-saving, but a little meaningful.

On the other hand, the little Huangmen who got into trouble still stood there and stared at the King of Chu. Everyone said that the prince was very generous. Everyone who came with the message in the past two days was rewarded, and tonight it was finally his turn.

Why doesn't the King of Chu reward me?
"If you don't leave, why don't you wait for me to leave some food?"

In the end, the King of Chu rewarded him with this sentence.

According to the etiquette system, after the death of an emperor, the body remains in mourning for at least twenty days and as many as three months, waiting for officials from various places and envoys from various countries to come to pay their respects.

But Chen Chu did not have the time to wait that long. Under his instruction, Zhang Hao, Han Chang, Gao Cunfu and other Jin officials discussed with the queen and decided to suspend the funeral for seven days.

On May 18, the day before the funeral, Chen Chu led all the ministers of Tiance Mansion to come to pay homage.

"The Privy Envoy of Qi and the King of Chu; the Privy Envoy of Zhou and the King of Jin came to express their condolences."

As the eunuch outside the hall chanted loudly, the whole Da'an Hall, all covered in silk, suddenly froze. Even the monks who were shaking their heads and reciting "Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's Original Vow Sutra" seemed to pause for a moment.

Zhang Hao, Han Chang and other important ministers had hurriedly stood up to greet him, while more people could not help but turn their heads and look outside the hall, wanting to catch a glimpse of this powerful minister of the time.

Chen Chu is a foreign minister, so naturally he does not need to wear filial piety, but to suit the occasion, he still wears a plain colored blouse and a white jade crown on his head.

Surrounded by Zhang, Han and others, as soon as Chen Chufu entered the palace, there was a burst of low whispers. Everyone could not connect this fresh and handsome husband with the most powerful minister in the world who was responsible for the two countries. Get up!
Zhang Hao, Han Chang and others were all over fifty years old. Against their background, the tall and tall King of Chu stood out from the crowd.

In the back hall of Da'an Hall, a group of officials and ladies wearing filial piety were staying here with the Queen. When they heard the sound of the call coming from the front hall, a few curious women could not help but look forward secretly through the heavy curtains.

After a startling glance, I can't help but secretly take another look at the queen.
No wonder there are some rumors in the palace, it seems that they are not groundless!

The Jin Emperor is doing well, but the atmosphere here is not sad.

After all, the husbands of each of their families have basically reached a certain tacit understanding with the King of Chu. As long as it does not affect the family's wealth, it doesn't matter if they kowtow to another person and shout "Long Live".

Except for Wanyan An, who was kneeling beside the coffin in the front hall. Although Emperor Jin had been seriously ill for two years, as long as he was around, Wanyan An always had a trace of thoughts about his father's sudden death, and he was trapped in this internal and external situation. During this period, Wanyanan was naturally in a state of panic.

So much so that after Chen Chu finished expressing his condolences, he personally came forward to express condolences to the prince. Wanyan'an, whose eyes were red and swollen, was still sluggish.

"Your Highness is overly sad and distracted. He is disrespectful to the King of Chu."

Gao Cunfu quickly smoothed things over and said that Chen Chu would not care about it. He came here today just to see if there were many doubtful points that questioned the death of Jin Emperor in person.

But after entering the palace, those who had some friendship with him were even more enthusiastic than before. Some of them who were not familiar with him were always watching Chen Chu. When Chen Chu's eyes came over, they couldn't wait to hand over their hands and apologize.

In this way, he expressed his sincere intention to the King of Chu.

There were also some Jurchen nobles who had followed from the Huanglong Mansion and had no acquaintance with the King of Chu. For a moment, they couldn't let go and took the initiative to get closer. However, they knelt on both sides of the coffin with their heads lowered, not daring to look at Chen Chu. If they meet, they may be killed.

Seeing everyone like this, Han Shizhong, who was always following Chen Chu, couldn't help but feel disappointed. Before coming, Mr. Chen Jingyan and Mr. Chen specially told him to follow the prince closely in case someone in the palace suddenly rebelled against the prince.

Even Chen Jingyan himself looked surprised when he was talking to Zhang Shuye in a low voice.

He did not expect that the Kingdom of Jin, which was famous for its toughness and tyranny back then, would face the biggest suspect and come to the door in person when the emperor died suddenly and suddenly without any explanation, but not even a single person would dare to stand up and question him.

The entire country has fallen into decay at an astounding speed.

The back hall seemed to be aware of what was going on in the front, so Bai Lu walked out from the back. With a few words, Wanyanan, who was so stunned, followed her to the east palace to rest temporarily.

Immediately afterwards, I heard someone from the palace preaching from behind: "The Queen invites the King of Chu to come to the back hall for a meeting."

The Kingdom of Jin was not long civilized, and the defense between men and women was far inferior to that of Qi Zhou.

Furthermore, the foreign ministers expressed their condolences, and it was reasonable for the queen, who was the widow, to summon him.

Chen Chu answered the order and entered, only to see Chai Yuanyi in plain clothes sitting upright in the middle, with a white silk flower in her hairpin, which gave her a certain charm.

Below, a group of ladies saluted Chen Chu, either pretending to be unintentional or openly looking at this young powerful official who had been famous recently.

After Chai Yuanyi was given a seat, he pretended to wipe the non-existent tears from the corners of his eyes, and said sadly: "Although the King of Chu is a foreign minister, he upholds the righteousness of the world and leads the coalition army to come thousands of miles to help me, Dajin, to annihilate the rebellious ministers. Unexpectedly, , the late emperor passed away at this time."

There was another burst of sobbing.

As if they were performing magic tricks, the ladies below immediately withdrew their attention from Chen Chu and quickly took out their handkerchiefs to wipe their tears.

For a moment, there was a cry in the back hall.

"The Queen Mother please put state affairs first and express my condolences!"

Chen Chu advised.

But after all, Wanyan An had not yet ascended the throne, so Chen Chu, the queen mother, called her a bit too early.

But the words "State affairs are of paramount importance" still made Chai Yuanyi's soft sobbing gradually stop. As soon as she stopped, the lady below who was "crying with you" suddenly stopped.

Afterwards, Chai Yuanyi sighed, "Well, now that the country is suffering from internal and external troubles, I, the prince, the orphans and the widowed mother are at a loss what to do. From now on, we will need more care from the King of Chu."

Chai Yuanyi's face was full of sorrow, but there was a hint of resentment in her tone.

Is it because Chen Chu didn't come to the palace for three or four days in a row?

Chai Yuanyi is one year older than Chen Chu, and is about to reach the so-called 'wolf-like' age. After years of repression, once her passion is released, it is quite difficult to control herself.

"Don't worry, Queen Mother, foreign ministers should do their best!"

Chen Chu replied respectfully, as if he didn't hear the strangeness in her words.

Chai Yuanyi gave up at the first try and talked about state affairs in front of many noble ladies, "Okay! In that case, I would like to ask the King of Chu to appoint me as the Grand Marshal of the Army of the Jin Dynasty to attack and destroy the rebellious minister Wan Yanliang." , send the remains of the late emperor to the ancestral land of Huanglong Mansion!”

'Buzz~'

Even if most women do not participate in military affairs, they also know the importance of this matter. From the perspective of their respective husbands, they are not annoyed that the Queen Empress appointed Chen Chu to control the Jin Kingdom's troops, but they are surprised that Chai Yuanyi can't wait to speak out. .

After all, given the current situation, Chen Chu only had to think that the Generalissimo of the Army was in his pocket.

On the Jin side, whoever brings it up first is the one who sold Chen Chu a favor.

Zhang Hao, Han Chang, Gao Cunfu and others all had this idea, but they were busy with the mourning of Emperor Jin for the time being, and thought that after the matter was settled, they would show their goodwill to Chen Chu as 'Generalissimo'.

Unexpectedly, Chai Yuanyi was more eager than them. He actually proposed it before the Jin Emperor was laid to rest, and arranged such a crown as an excuse to "attack the rebellious ministers and send the late emperor to his ancestral land."

If the suppression of Wanyan Liang failed, wouldn't the late emperor be buried?
"I am a foreign minister after all. Isn't this inappropriate? I wonder what the other adults mean?"

Chen Chu pretended to decline, but actually he wanted to take the opportunity to see who was opposed and who was in favor in the Kingdom of Jin.

Chai Yuanyi said, "Alright, I will call all the ministers to discuss this matter. Besides, I have another request."

"My dearest lady, it doesn't matter if you say it."

"Hey," Chai Yuanyi sighed, "The prince suddenly lost his father, and I was very frightened. I and my delegation from Huaibei watched all the children of the King of Chu, their brothers, friends and brothers respectful, knowledgeable and courteous. I thought that the King of Chu would definitely make great achievements together with his godson. I am here in Huaibei. The palace wants to invite the King of Chu to be the crown prince’s father, and to walk in the palace and teach on his behalf. Please don’t refuse, King of Chu!”

Even in this serious occasion, the ladies below all looked astonished.

Some people focused their attention on the matter of 'Shang Fu', and thought to themselves: The late emperor has not yet been buried, and we, the queen, can't wait to find another father for the prince. This is to completely sell the big gold to the king of Chu!

But some people's attention is still on the matter of "walking in the palace". If the King of Chu really becomes the crown prince, he can come in and out of the palace at any time in the name of teaching.

No matter how you look at this matter, it seems that the Queen is hiding her secrets from others so that she can have a tryst with the King of Chu. (End of chapter)