Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 100 Reliable (First Order)

The fasting and prayer ceremony ended with a secret conversation in the palace, after which Li Zisheng said goodbye and left.

At this time, in Qingning Palace, Chen Gui arranged nine braziers in the shape of a cross, fearing that Empress Dowager Zhou would catch a cold.

Queen Mother Zhou's forehead was sweating and her face was red. She scolded, "There are so many charcoal fires. Do you want to burn me to death?"

"Ancestor, what are you..."

Chen Gui was speechless.

You were the one who was complaining about the cold just now, and now you feel hot again?
Queen Mother Zhou rolled her eyes at him and said, "I was just looking for an excuse to talk, why did you take it so seriously? Although this charcoal doesn't produce much smoke and dust, it still makes people feel uncomfortable if they smell it too much...

"Just leave one pot for warming the fire, and move the rest out."

"Yes."

Chen Gui was about to move it himself, but saw several eunuchs coming over to start moving.

Queen Mother Zhou laughed and said, "That Li Zisheng really thought I didn't know that he was the one who secretly arranged the communication with the East Palace. If I hadn't tested him, he wouldn't have wanted to admit it."

"Grandfather, you mean..."

Chen Gui was a little surprised.

Are you setting a trap for others again?

Queen Mother Zhou said, "Zhang's daughter was born in Xingji. Her father is a student of the Imperial Academy and is now in the capital. This is the leaf card in Li Zisheng's hand. He wants to use this girl to establish a good relationship with the East Palace."

Chen Gui said: "Then... Ancestor, now that we know the truth, we should not let him succeed, right?"

"Successful, why does this sound so harsh?"

Queen Mother Zhou smiled and shook her head. "He has helped the Crown Prince after all. If he hadn't decisively intervened to resolve the crisis, the Emperor might have really taken action. Changing the Crown Prince has always caused chaos in the court since ancient times when the eldest son has done nothing wrong."

"Yes, yes." Chen Gui knew very well that Queen Mother Zhou had always liked the Crown Prince and disagreed with her son on the issue of changing the crown prince.

The old lady was smart and didn't bring it up on her own initiative, but her concern for the prince was always evident.

"The Crown Prince is still too young after all, and he doesn't have many opportunities to show his abilities. Living deep in the East Palace, it's not realistic to expect someone to clear the obstacles for him."

Queen Mother Zhou narrowed her eyes slightly.

Chen Gui thought about it and thought that this "obstacle" was probably referring to Concubine Wan?
Then he understood why Empress Dowager Zhou supported the prince so much, because what Concubine Wan disliked was what she advocated.

For the old lady, it makes no essential difference who will inherit the throne in the future, and there is no question of who is closer to her, the eldest grandson or the second grandson.

But once it involves the dispute between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, then things are different. I have been holding back my anger for half my life, and now I am letting you stir up trouble over my grandson's affairs?
who do you think You Are?

You are nothing but a royal concubine, which is called a concubine in the folk culture. Even after you die, you are not worthy of being buried with my son!
Chen Gui said: "Then... ignore it?"

Queen Mother Zhou shook her head and said, "In the next two days, take my imperial edict to the emperor and let him know that I will be in charge of the selection of a concubine for the crown prince this time."

"The Empress Dowager..."

"Humph, my eldest grandson has no mother and no one loves him. The queen is now living in seclusion and it is difficult for her to make decisions for him. Apart from me, a grandmother, who will really care about him?

"If I don't pay attention to the selection of concubines, who will?"

Queen Mother Zhou seemed to have thought of something as she spoke, and sighed, "As for whether the daughter of Zhang is good or not, I will see her first. If she is really as outstanding as Li Zisheng praised, it is not a bad idea to let her come to my grandson to participate in the final selection. The final decision still lies with the prince himself."

Chen Gui originally wanted to remind him that as long as you think it is appropriate and give the prince a little advice, how could the prince not listen to you?
But thinking that as a grandmother, she still wanted to leave some mercy to her grandson and not make all the final decisions, she did not dare to say anything again.

……

……

Eastern Palace, Duanjing Hall.

Qin Ji brought some new clothes to Zhu Youtang and placed them on the table, and then sent someone to help him try them on.

Zhu Youtang twisted his body and said unhappily, "My wife knows that I don't care about these material things... I should be frugal in food and clothing, and not spend too much... Isn't it enough to just wear clothes?"

Qin Ji wondered, does the prince want to be frugal on his own initiative?

Even though he was the crown prince, he didn't even have a few nice clothes, and no one cared about his daily life in the East Palace. Unconsciously, the crown prince learned to comfort himself and felt that this frugal life was normal.

Tan Ji said, "Prince, this is His Majesty's order, you cannot disobey. You will be choosing a concubine soon, and you will have to go out and meet people occasionally. You don't have to be so frugal as before."

"Oh."

When Zhu Youtang heard this, his eyes suddenly became eager, "Did you get a reply?"

Qin Ji naturally knew what Zhu Youtang was referring to, and shook his head: "Prince, you are about to choose a concubine, you should forget about that woman." "We have never met, and probably... we will never meet again in the future."

Zhu Youtang was very unwilling and asked in frustration: "Then... my dear, do you know who she is?"

Tan Ji continued to shake his head.

"You must know who sent the letter, right? I live in the East Palace. Normally, it would be difficult for anyone to send a letter here. And they sent several letters in succession. I think it was intentional, right?"

Zhu Youtang asked further.

Tan Ji still shook his head: "It is indeed impossible to know."

As a result, Zhu Youtang became more depressed.

The pen pal with whom I had just established a relationship cut off contact just because I was getting married. It was as if the red string between the two hearts was cut in between and they flew away separately.

That kind of heart-wrenching feeling cannot be explained to outsiders!
……

……

The Zhang family is preparing for Zhang Yu to marry into the Eastern Palace.

This is what Zhang Luan said.

But for most people in the Zhang family, it was just a matter of letting Zhang Yu participate in the selection of the Crown Princess, and they were not so confident that she would be selected.

However, the person who was most pessimistic about this matter was Zhang Yu... As a person involved in the incident, she was afraid that if she failed to be elected, she would be abandoned by Zhang Luan and locked up in her boudoir, unable to see anyone.

It's like a top-notch girl who wants to participate in a beauty pageant, but is afraid that her value will plummet if she fails, and she can't afford the serious consequences of not being chosen.

If you succeed, you will be successful and famous; if you fail, you will be in complete defeat!
For the first time, the little girl felt the harshness of society and the dangers of her family.

"You can change into these clothes when the time comes."

Jin still had some confidence in her daughter's selection as the Crown Princess. Of course, this confidence came more from her husband's encouragement. "There is not enough time to prepare. I can't make better clothes in a short time...Daughter, can you see if there is anything wrong? Tell me directly and I will modify it.

"You know our family's situation. We can't afford any better clothes. But even so, it's still pretty decent."

Zhang Yu suddenly had three new sets of better clothes.

Under normal circumstances, she would think this is a good thing. What girl doesn't like bright and beautiful new clothes?

But if this came at the cost of choosing herself as the Crown Princess in exchange for three sets of clothes, she would feel that these clothes were not attractive.

"what happened?"

Jin noticed her daughter's change of mood and asked in confusion, "A few days ago, when we mentioned the selection of the Crown Princess, you seemed quite happy. Why do you look so gloomy when the time comes...Are you unhappy? Or do you have someone you like outside?"

After all, Jin is a woman, and an experienced person, so she has some understanding of the changes in her daughter's mentality.

Zhang Yu said with a bitter face: "Mom, Dad said that if I can't be selected, I won't be allowed to get married."

"Hey, your father was just talking casually, how can you take it seriously? Try on your clothes quickly and see if there is anything else you need to prepare... Your father said that if you have any questions, you can ask Yanling, and he will try his best to help you plan... Your father is not at home these two days, running around for your affairs."

Jin thought back to her husband's words and wasn't sure whether they were just words spoken out of anger or were serious, but she could only comfort him in front of the child.

Now Zhang Yu was even more worried.

"Mom, why should I listen to Yanling when I go to choose the Crown Princess? He is just a little kid, what does he know?" Zhang Yu pouted and asked unhappily.

Jin said, "I don't know what the father and son are up to, but Yanling has indeed improved a lot recently. He can give good advice on many things at home, and even your father trusts him...

"I think it's right for you to just listen to him!"

"Oh."

Zhang Yu was not very happy, but he also felt that what his mother said made some sense.

At this time, the only person who still firmly supported her was her younger brother Zhang Yanling.

Who else can we count on?

That unreliable father who talks nonsense and makes irresponsible remarks?
Or is she the mother who seems aggressive but is actually weak and timid?
Or that older brother who only knows how to cause trouble and has no sense of proportion?

Actually, the most normal person in the family is his second brother Zhang Yanling, whom he always thinks is still a child!

It's on the shelves now, please give me a first order! Also, please help me with the monthly tickets, please!

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(End of this chapter)