The Empress Arrives: Rebirth of Concubine Hua

Chapter 438 Abusing power for personal gain
"The Empress Dowager of Yonghe Palace has arrived~!"

A young eunuch's loud "yes" was heard outside, and Yinzhen slowly raised his head from the pile of memorials.

He put down the red-ink writing brush in his hand, stretched himself, and then stood up slowly.

Empress Dowager De, who had been ill for several days and was said to be unable to get out of bed, was now agile and had already entered the Palace of Tranquil Longevity.

"My son has met my mother. May you be blessed."

Yinzhen bowed and greeted Empress Dowager De, but his nonchalant look actually aroused Empress Dowager De's anger even more.

Empress Dowager De snorted and looked at Yinzhen who was kneeling on one knee to salute.

"Emperor, please get up quickly. I just came to see you.

I heard that the emperor has been busy in the court recently.
I specially asked someone to stew some ginseng soup for the emperor to drink later to nourish his body."

Yinzhen stood up slowly and looked behind Empress Dowager De. Sure enough, he saw Zhuxi holding a tray with a stew pot on it.

Yinzhen let Empress Dowager De sit down, and Zhuxi walked forward with his head lowered and placed the tray on the table in front of Yinzhen.

Yinzhen ignored her and just smiled faintly and said to Empress Dowager De.

"Mother, I understand your kindness. But as you have heard,

I have been worried about the affairs of the court these past two days. The imperial physician said,
Do not take supplements at will, otherwise the internal heat will rise, which is not good.

The ginseng soup that my mother asked someone to cook must have been made with the best old mountain ginseng.
The tonic effect has greatly increased, and I just remembered the imperial physician's advice, so that's all."

Su Peisheng waved his hand, and immediately a palace servant brought tea.

Yinzhen said.

"Mother, please try this tea that was delivered to us at full speed. This tea is called Thousand Island Jade Leaf.
It is a specialty tea produced in Lin'an.

Hidden in the beautiful water, the lake is crystal clear like a mirror, and the island is covered with green trees.
In a place like this, there are only ten kilograms of this kind of tea produced in a year."

Empress Dowager De took a quick sip of the tea. Because she was preoccupied with something, she did not notice the special features of the tea.

"What does the emperor want to say? I just feel that this tea has a sweet aftertaste, but it is not outstanding."

Yinzhen still had a faint smile on his face. He glanced at Empress Dowager De indifferently, and seeing the anxiety on her face, he spoke.

"Mother, is there something on your mind today? I'm afraid it's not just for coming to see me.

I want to say that even if my mother can't taste the good tea,

The imperial use is only ten kilograms per year. But according to the information I have received,
This tea is produced in Lin'an and is supplied to the imperial court every year, with an annual production guarantee of around 20 kilograms.

But what I got was only ten kilograms. What do you think, mother? "

Empress Dowager De said naturally.

"What else can I do? It must be that the servants under me were not dedicated and secretly embezzled the money.

But then again, tea leaves are a minor matter. This incident shows that people’s hearts are divided.”

The smile on Yinzhen's face became even wider.

"As expected of you, mother, you hit the nail on the head. You dare to embezzle even the imperial tea.
This is something that the servants would not dare to do.

Every year, the supplies that the imperial merchants provide to the court pass through whose hands?"

Yinzhen was clearly smiling, but in the eyes of Empress Dowager De, this smile seemed a little frightening.

How could Empress Dowager De not know that all supplies from the imperial merchants had to go through the hands of Longkodo's eldest son Tongjia Yuexing'a.

Even the good things that were secretly sent into the palace for Empress Dowager De were delivered through Yue Xing'a.

Empress Dowager De thought of this and tried to remain calm.

"What does the emperor mean? I have lived in the harem for a long time and have never been involved in the affairs of the court. How can I know the supply of the imperial merchants and the pros and cons involved?"

Yinzhen stared at Empress Dowager De's forcedly calm face for a long time, and suddenly laughed.

"My mother didn't know, I thought she knew.

But it doesn’t matter. Since you don’t know, I will just explain it to you in detail.

A few days ago, someone in the court reported that Long Keduo's son abused his power for personal gain.
They opened casinos in Beijing, occupied fertile land, forced women into prostitution, and committed other evil deeds.

There are also memorials pointing out that Uncle Longkodo is forming a clique for personal gain. Mother, do you know this?

This faction for personal gain is a crime of treason. Although it was finally found that there was no conclusive evidence,
But being in a melon field and a plum field will eventually attract suspicion. I am having a headache.

How to deal with Long Keduo's son? My mother happened to come.

Why don't you give me some advice, what should I do?"

At some point, only Empress Dowager De and Yinzhen were left in the huge Yangxin Palace. Su Peisheng, Zhu Xi and other palace servants had already quietly left.

You could hear a pin drop in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. The expression on Yinzhen's face grew colder, and he could clearly hear the sound of Empress Dowager De swallowing nervously.

He was waiting for Empress Dowager De to speak.

After a long time, Queen Mother De put on a stiff smile and spoke slowly.

"How can I give advice on government affairs? Although you, the Emperor, are my own son,
But the harem has always been forbidden to interfere in political affairs. I have kept this in mind since the late emperor was alive.

The matter of Longkodo, to put it in a broader sense, is the affairs of the previous dynasty and I have no right to comment on it.

But the emperor called Longkodo his uncle, and Longkodo spared no effort to support the emperor at the beginning of his accession to the throne.

This is a family matter, to put it mildly.
It would be better if the emperor punished Longkodo's son slightly, a small punishment but a big warning, which would also serve as a warning to Longkodo."

After hearing what Empress Dowager De said, Yinzhen felt even more depressed.

If he still fails to hear the partiality in these words, then I'm afraid he won't be able to rule the country for long.

"My mother is closer to Longkodo than when Concubine Tongjia was around.

I call him uncle only for the sake of the late Concubine Tong Jia.
However, I have always wanted to posthumously confer the title of Concubine Tong Jia, but my mother has always stopped me.

So this uncle is just my way of speaking.

Now that something like this has happened, if I continue to call him uncle,

I'm afraid there will be a lot of criticism from the previous dynasty, what do you think, mother?"

Empress Dowager De felt a pang in her heart. If Yinzhen drew a clear line between himself and Longkodo at this time, her future actions would be constrained.

Empress Dowager De thought it over again and again, and said with a forced smile.

"The emperor is the Son of Heaven, the one who controls the entire Qing Dynasty, so why not?

I initially tried to stop the posthumous title of Tong Jia because I was only remembering the grudges in the harem during the reign of the late emperor.

Now, time has passed, and the dead have turned into a pile of yellow earth.
After all, I am the only one who is still alive and is enjoying real wealth and glory.

The emperor can confer titles on anyone he wants, but at my age, I no longer care about these empty titles."

Yinzhen looked at the smile that appeared on Empress Dowager De's face and said.

“In this case, I will issue an edict tomorrow to posthumously confer the title of Empress Xiaoyiren on the late Emperor’s Consort Tong Jia.

But at this critical moment, Uncle Longkodo still has to bear with it.

Tong Jia Yuzhu's crimes are unforgivable, and I must give an explanation to my subjects.

On a chosen day, I will have to trouble you to comfort Uncle Longkodo. Is this okay, mother? "