Good luck with koi carp

The time for up and down dynasties is different.


The zodiac is about to begin, which is six o'clock in the morning.


It starts at the end of the Great Chaoyin time, which is five o'clock in the morning.


The so-called small dynasty is established by the important ministers of the court to discuss political affairs with His Majesty. Only ministers of the third rank and above are eligible to participate. The big dynasty is a banquet for all ministers, and only officials of the fifth rank and above in Beijing can participate.


The former may consider that most of the officials who can reach the third rank and above are very old, except for a few individuals, so in order to take care of the elderly, it is set later so that the elderly can have a good sleep before coming to court. .


Although this so-called lateness is not too late.


The latter did not regard the fate of the courtiers at all. They would start going to court at five o'clock. Generally, officials had to arrive a quarter of an hour in advance, that is, at 45:[-] minutes. After all, they had to find their own place to line up when they arrived at the scene. If they were late, Yes, if you still wander around the place before His Majesty arrives, you will definitely be punished.


Therefore, ordinary officials basically have to get up at four o'clock to go to court. Those whose homes are far away and have to budget for commuting time have to get up earlier to prepare in advance, and some have to get up at three o'clock.


In addition, the general official duty time is [-] o'clock in the morning.


Anyway, no matter whether you go to court or not, getting up early every day is a must.


From this, we can see how good the location of Chi Li's new house is. It directly saves Chi Li a lot of commuting time, allowing her to sleep an extra half hour every morning.


But you can only start enjoying this kind of good life after moving.


The house was bought and thanks to the Empress, it was bought at an extremely low bargain price. But now that it is empty, it is impossible to move in directly, so the Chi family has to get some furniture before moving in. To live in a house, you always need at least the most basic bed, right?

In addition, the large bath that Chili requested had to be specially made by a craftsman, which also took a lot of time.


Fortunately, their family saved a lot of money on buying a house. Now the remaining money is more than enough to buy furniture and other things. Moreover, the Chi family also brought a lot of things from home, so this part of the money can also be used to buy furniture and other things. Save it.


Since the small courtyard where the Chi family currently lives is still too small, Chi Xiucai and Xu discussed the idea of ​​clearing out part of the new home and moving the family in first, and then modifying it in any way they could. It is also convenient for my daughter to go to and from work. Secondly, the family can live in a more spacious place, and the servants do not need to be so crowded.


"Father and mother, it's up to you to make the decision."


Chili usually doesn't care about these trivial matters at home if her parents are around. After all, if she wants to interfere, her parents will respond with "What do you know about a kid?" or "You go and help me. Just let your parents come." She was sent away on the grounds of "just let my parents come."


There was even one time when Mrs. Xu gave her daughter a bowl of ice cream, as if coddling a child, and then coaxed her back into the house to play.


Chili was really coaxed away by the delicious food: "..."


It's not that she is weak-willed, it's mainly that the fruit ice cream is really delicious.


Summer in Kyoto is not as hot as in the south, but it is still hot and it is a suitable season for eating ice cream.


There was already a method of making ice from saltpeter back in the dynasty, and there was also a large amount of ice cubes stored in the cellar, so there was no shortage of ice in the summer. There was even a stall selling ice food and ice drinks here, and the items were not expensive, costing only a penny. Money can buy a cup of iced sour plum soup, and pedestrians passing by can't help but buy a cup to relieve the heat.


The Chi family doesn't have to spend money to use ice. After Chi Li was promoted to a fifth-rank official, she learned that the imperial court's welfare subsidy for officials above fifth-rank included an item of ice respect. According to the rank, each official could get ice every month. A certain amount of ice received from the Ministry of Accounts can also be converted into silver, depending on personal choice.


Since Suchao could make his own ice, it meant that even if it was summer here, the price of ice would not be that expensive. Therefore, the ice converted into silver was actually not much, so Chili didn't bother to put in the effort and just asked for the ice.


When you get home, you can put it in a basin to cool down or make it into iced snacks.


It's not difficult to store ice cubes. Almost every household in Kyoto has a cellar, which has excellent thermal insulation effect. You can just store it directly in it.


The Chi family has a small population, so the ice is completely enough.


Before attending the court meeting, Chili had some filters for it, thinking that it was such a serious occasion. But after actually attending it, she realized that the court meeting was indeed very serious, but this could not stop officials from various parties from doing so. Self-interest, or some other reasons, and they quarreled and insulted each other.


And those who can stand in this court, including the military attachés, are basically educated people. When educated people quarrel, they can completely avoid speaking dirty words. It is both elegant and hurtful. Chi Li is amazed by it, and feels deep in his heart. Just say that I have learned, I have learned.


Chi Li was of low rank and could only stand at the end of the queue. She lowered her head slightly and pretended to go to court seriously while listening to the first and second rank ministers in front of her yelling at each other. Occasionally they went too far. The empress They would come out in time to stop and add some fuel to the increasingly violent situation. Then those people seemed to have calmed down on the surface, but in fact the fire in their eyes was burning even more intensely.


If she hadn't known that this was a balancing act of the empress, Chi Li would have doubted whether she was just watching the fun and not taking it too seriously, and had to be so angry that she could watch the ministers fight in court.


I don’t know how long the quarrel lasted, but the court suddenly began to mention that the summer flood season was approaching, and whether it was time to send imperial envoys to supervise the maintenance of river dams in various places to prevent the flow of water from increasing during the flood season, causing the dams to burst and cause floods.


This is a major event that has to be done every year, and it has almost become a routine work of the country, so everyone is noisy, but the arrangements are orderly.


But later they started to quarrel over who should be sent to where as the imperial envoy.


There are many places across the country where river embankment projects have been built, so there are also many places where imperial envoys need to be dispatched, so more than one person is needed. However, these places are good and bad. Everyone wants to go to a wealthy place. As for the reason, you know the reason. Everyone knows it, but no one wants to go to those places that are barren or have dangerous environments. Who knows whether they can come back safely from this trip?

In the past, it was not uncommon for imperial ministers to have accidents on the way or to be killed locally.


Even if everyone is willing to take risks, the risks must be less than the rewards, or equal to them. Otherwise, who is willing to do thankless things?


Therefore, this time of year is also the time when the fight between the Queen's Party and the Prime Minister's Party is the most intense. They want to grab the best places, want to send the opponent's people to poor places, and even maliciously think that the other party's people will go there. It would be better if there is no return.


Originally, this matter had little to do with Chi Li.


The imperial minister is a position that can only be held by a fifth-rank official. As a fifth-rank official, she couldn't think of it even if she wanted to do it. However, somehow, because of Prime Minister Xing's sudden words: "Master Chi in the cabinet is quite talented." If she has such talent, why not send her to Southeast Min Mansion to serve as the Imperial Envoy."


As soon as these words came out, the whole place fell into silence, and then countless eyes glanced back.


The only person named Chi in the whole cabinet is Chi Li. Everyone knows who Prime Minister Xing is talking about.


There were those busybodies who were thinking silently in their hearts: "Come on, come on, the prime minister finally took issue with this little thorn that the empress placed in the cabinet."


Some people are also worried: "The people in Southeast Min Mansion are not only barbaric, but also have a harsh environment. Master Chi is still a woman, and her body is no stronger than that of a man. I'm afraid... it will be a disaster..."


"Chi Aiqing, what do you think?"


The empress showed no change in this regard. She only raised her voice to the rear and asked Chi Li for her opinion.


"My lord, I am willing to help your majesty solve all your problems."


Chili took a step forward, walked out of the team, saluted, and accepted the hard work.


It was not an illusion. After hearing that Chi Li was actually willing to take on the most painful job in the past, almost all the ministers breathed a sigh of relief. Even the atmosphere between the fiercely noisy factions eased a lot.


Chi Li almost thought that her move was entirely a sacrifice for the sake of harmony in the court.


In fact, she did make a huge sacrifice.


So in order to prevent their own people from suffering, the people from the Empress Party began to stand up and speak for Chi Li. They couldn't refuse this hard job, but since their people took on the hardest and most tiring work, they should give them the benefits. Is everyone here to join in the fun?

Then, through everyone's efforts, Chi Li not only got a team of 300 military guards, but also received a sum of 1 taels of repair money. Of course, if something happens to the river embankment there and causes a flood, then this money will be lost. This is the first disaster relief money.


"Then I will appoint Chili as a fifth-grade Imperial Envoy and send him to Southeast Min Mansion to inspect the river embankment repair matters. If this matter is done well, I will reward you heavily when you come back."


In the end, the empress made the final decision and settled the matter.


Chi Li bowed his head again: "My lord, I obey your order."


After returning home, Chi Li told her parents about this, but Chi Xiucai and Xu didn't care that their daughter would be promoted in a few days, but were worried that it would be too dangerous for her to go to Southeast Min Mansion.


The couple even said in unison that they would accompany their daughter, but Chi Li stopped her: "My daughter is going on an errand, and she will come back after the errand is done. Why are you two elders going there? You should stay here in Kyoto to decorate our new home." , or find out if there is anyone selling their land near Kyoto, and then buy a few acres of fertile land to grow food at home. Look, there are so many things waiting for you and me to do at home, where can I get away easily?"


"Then your father will go with you, and your mother will stay in the capital."


Although he knew that his daughter definitely disagreed, Chi Xiucai couldn't help but struggle.


Sure enough, Chili didn't even hesitate for a second and refused bluntly: "No, dad, if you are too busy, my daughter can find a place for you to set up a new private school for you."


So go and work on your own business, don't mess around with her.


"No need, dad has already decided to use this small courtyard to set up a private school. There happens to be half a year left on the lease, so we don't want to waste it." Chi Xiucai had already planned this, so he didn't bother his daughter.


The private school he runs is mainly for educating young children. The space required does not need to be too big. Basically, it can only have one or two classrooms. This small courtyard meets the requirements once you enter it. Moreover, the location is good and there are many people living nearby. People are relatively wealthy and can afford to send their children to school.


It happens that there is still half a year's rent left here. It would be too wasteful to move out like this. Let's use it as a private school for Chi Xiucai first. When the lease is up, whether we continue to rent it, buy it outright, or another There is still time to make arrangements slowly when looking for a place.
Seeing that her father's attention was diverted following her words, Chi Li knew that they had given up on following her to Southeast Min Mansion, and she couldn't help but feel relieved.


She didn't know much about how bad that place was, but just as her parents were worried about her, Ikeli didn't want her family to follow her to take risks in dangerous places, and the journey there from Kyoto alone was quite bumpy. , my parents are already a certain age, so it’s better not to worry about it.


The court made arrangements very quickly.


The day after the imperial meeting ended, Chi Li and other imperial ministers were ready to leave.


Before leaving, Chili was summoned into the palace overnight by the empress.


Standing at the bottom of the imperial study, Chi Li waited quietly for the empress to tell her the purpose of calling her here this time.


"What are your intentions in this mission to Southeast Minfu?"


"Reporting to Your Majesty, I will definitely do my best." Chili hadn't been there yet, so he couldn't tell me anything, so he could only answer like this.


"Well, take these with you. When you get there, I have only one request, do your best." The empress sighed for some reason, then looked sideways and motioned to the eunuch in charge to hand something to Chi Li.


Chili didn't know what it was at first, but after she got it, she realized that it was actually a box full of large-value banknotes.


Facing the surprised looks of her superiors and subordinates, the empress calmly pointed out: "There are a total of 10 taels here. The river dam in Southeast Minfu was built by the late emperor, King Xin."


Just click here and everyone can understand.


As soon as she heard the name of King Xin, Chi Li's confused expression suddenly turned into reality. She safely accepted the wooden box filled with money, and then bowed and left at the empress's signal.


Why did they react like this after it was said that the river dam was built by King Xin?


In fact, anyone who knows something about the affairs of the court knows that King Xin is from a lower background, and his biological mother is just a dancing girl from a foreign country, so his initial capital to compete for the throne is naturally lower than that of his other brothers.


In order to increase his own power, he relied on Prime Minister Xing's party very early, and Prime Minister Xing reciprocated, winning him many good jobs in front of the late emperor that could line his own pockets.


Through these errands, King Xin almost became the richest among the brothers. Everyone with a discerning eye knew what he had done.


Therefore, it was natural that various problems arose in the subsequent matters that King Xin was in charge of. It was also because his embezzlement of these funds was exposed one after another, which caused King Xin to gradually become unable to stand in the court. Only later would he take the risk at the instigation of Prime Minister Xing and join forces with the other two princes to rebel.


Naturally, it didn't work out. In the end, Prince Xin's blood almost stained the entrance to the market for days and nights and couldn't be washed away. Although the price had been paid, the consequences it left behind had still not been completely dealt with.


The dam project in Southeast Minfu is one of them.


This is also the reason why no minister in the DPRK dares to get involved there. Everyone knows that it is a shoddy project that cuts corners and materials. It will collapse one day in the future. Even if it does not collapse this year, it will collapse next year, the year after tomorrow, and one day. Will stay.


No matter who is unlucky enough to encounter it, even if it has nothing to do with anyone, it will definitely be a devastating blow to his or her future political career, and may even implicate the people behind it, which is why everyone is so afraid of avoiding it.


Chili didn't know whether she was unlucky or lucky.


She was pushed into such a hard job by Prime Minister Xing, who had always had a grudge against her. On the surface, she was promoted, but in fact, it was unclear whether she could save this official position and even her life.


But there are always two sides to everything. If Chili is lucky and nothing happens to her when she goes to Southeast Minfu this year to serve as the Imperial Envoy, she will naturally be able to come back in good health and receive a commendation from His Majesty.


I'm just afraid that Prime Minister Xing won't let her come back safely.


The empress also knew the risks involved, so she made two preparations for Chili before she set off. She asked Chili to take the 10 taels of silver with her to the Southeast Min Mansion. If nothing happened to the river embankment, then use This money will be used to make good repairs to the shabby project to solve future troubles. If unfortunately there is an accident on the river embankment, this money will be real disaster relief money. As long as Chili's post-disaster handling work is done properly, the empress will have a Remove the punishment for the excuse of making up for one's faults and preserve Chili's future.


So as long as Chi Li does this errand honestly, she won't be too negatively affected no matter what happens when she comes back.


This was also a reassurance given to her by the empress.


After taking this reassurance, Chili also lost her sorrow, and she was determined to do this job beautifully.


Not for my own future, but for the people over there who have been implicated and suffered due to the political games played by the upper class.


In order to guard against Prime Minister Xing, the three hundred troops sent by the imperial court to protect Chili were ordered by the empress, General Mo Yu, to protect the country.


The friendship between Chi Li and Mo Yu is only known to each other, so with Mo Yu personally checking it for her, there will be no problem with those who are sent.


Seeing that there was actually a hundred-man cavalry in the team, half of which were female soldiers, Chi Li was immediately grateful for Mo Yu's hard work. It was a pity that she could not see the other party at the moment, otherwise she would have to thank him in person.


The trip was a long one and came with unseen dangers, so Chili set off alone without taking any servants from the Chi family.


Fortunately, she is not a pretty girl who doesn't have her fingers in the water. Her ability to take care of herself even surprised the soldiers accompanying her. Even when she needed to sleep in the wild on the road, Chi Li had more experience in dealing with it than her average soldier. Much more.


Facing Captain Lin Yanqian who was leading the army, Chi Li smiled nonchalantly and said: "When I went out to study, I also slept in the wilderness for the purpose of traveling around the mountains and rivers. At that time, I was accompanied by someone who knew a lot about the wilderness. People who are trying to survive learn a lot from each other.”


Lin Yanxiang didn't know Master Chi very well, but she knew that some literati really liked to travel around. Sometimes they would go too far, and they would not be able to return in time and had to sleep in the wild, so Chi Li gave There is no doubt about the reason.


But she doesn't know that even if people like to travel around, they usually make adequate preparations and don't completely sleep in the wilderness. How can they learn so much knowledge about survival in the wilderness like Chili said?


However, their team was fully prepared when they traveled. As a highly protected entity in the team, there were not many places where Chili was really needed, so even if someone went to find out afterward, they would not be able to find out the meaning behind her words. The loophole comes.


"Master Chi, I have freshly squeezed fruit juice here, do you want it?"


While the team was resting for a meal, Tan Xin'er, one of the leading escorts from the Shunhu Escort Agency who was responsible for escorting the official silver this time, took the initiative to come over and handed Chili a bamboo cup filled with juice.


"Yes, thank you."


Chili didn't use someone else's cup, but took her own drinking cup and shared some juice out, and politely thanked her.


Seeing Chi Li's response and her kind attitude, Tan Xin'er suddenly became bold. Under Lin Yanxiang's scrutinizing gaze, she sat on Chi Li's side and looked at her face with her chin in her hands. After looking at her, she suddenly said something : "Have we met before?"


"Well, it's been three years, it's hard for you to still remember me."


Chi Li did not deny this. She had a good memory and recognized Tan Xin'er almost as soon as she saw her.


It turns out that she was the female escort hired by Chili to escort her back from Kyoto. Compared to the large number of male escorts, the small number of female escorts made it even more impressive.


"It turns out it's really you. I said how could I admit my mistake? I didn't expect that only three years later, Mr. Chi, you have already become the Imperial Envoy. It's so amazing!" Tan Xin'er looked at Chi Li in amazement and kept repeating what she was looking at. Like an idol.


Chi Li chuckled. He had a good impression of this lively girl, so he didn't mind the other party's bluster: "I'm not that powerful, I just have to work harder than others."


These words are completely modest and no one will believe them.


Perhaps because of their previous friendship, Tan Xin'er felt that Chi Li was someone she could talk to. She couldn't help but said to her with longing, "Master Chi, please don't belittle yourself. You are a role model among us women. Many people admire you very much. I believe even Captain Lin Qianren thinks so, right?"


Unexpectedly, she was still involved in these words. Lin Yanxiang nodded subconsciously and affirmed: "Yes."


Then when she realized what she had done, her face, which had been tanned by years of training as a soldier, turned slightly red, obviously shy.


Chi Li also didn't expect that Tan Xin'er's words would actually trick her out of a hidden fan girl, or more than one. Looking around, many female soldiers' eyes fell on her vaguely, with a faint ardor. For the first time, she For once, I felt that I could one day become a role model for others. This feeling was quite fresh and a little stressful.


But fortunately, Chili could still bear the pressure.


"You may not know that it was just because I was inspired by your deeds that I mustered up the courage to participate in the martial arts examination despite my parents' objections. Now I am a martial arts scholar. I just wait for the Wuxiang Examination to start next year, and maybe I can become a martial arts scholar. It’s time to lift people up!” Tan Xin’er couldn’t wait to share her achievement with her idol.


The original decree issued by the empress not only allowed women to participate in the liberal arts examinations, but also allowed women with martial arts skills to participate in the martial arts examinations.

Except for the different content, the martial arts examination is the same as the civil examination in form. It starts with the county examination, goes through the government examination, the college examination, the provincial examination and the general examination, and finally ends with the palace examination.


Since the decree was issued, more women have participated in the martial arts examination than in the liberal arts examination. In addition to the fact that most of the women who compete in martial arts are Jianghu people, they are not affected by secular rules and regulations, and have the courage to sign up to participate in the examination. There are also This is because there were female soldiers in the Su Dynasty itself.


However, there is no female martial arts champion yet, so Chi Li is still the only female champion in the current dynasty.


Because of this, he has become the idol of thousands of women. (End of chapter)