Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 113 Calculation (please subscribe)

The re-selection of concubines for the Eastern Palace, hosted by the Ministry of Rites, was coming to an end at the turn of the afternoon.

Candidates were eliminated one after another.

When the people waiting at the door saw their daughters coming out of the yard, some were disappointed and lonely, while others were extremely happy... After all, most families did not want their children to be selected as the Crown Princess. For many people, this was not a glorious thing...

Of course, it’s not that these families don’t want to curry favor with the rich and powerful, but the gap between the aristocratic families and the common people in this era was very deep, not to mention the huge gap between the royal family and the common people.

Most people in the market have deep concerns about marrying into the royal family. This is also the manifestation of the Confucian culture of moderation and conservatism in reality...

As long as life is bearable, it is best not to try to change anything easily. There is no need to reform the country or make any technological innovations. Try your best to avoid adding instability to your life. The only thing you want is to protect your own piece of land and live a stable life.

Unfortunately, every impact brought by the times is not subject to human will. Under the general trend of the times, human persistence is too insignificant and ridiculous.

By sunset, the street in front of the Ministry of Rites was basically empty.

Even Zhang Yanling and Zhang Yu went home in a carriage.

The results of the re-selection were quickly summarized and organized by officials from the Ministry of Rites. The eunuch Chen Gui from the Imperial Household Department took the detailed list and went to Qingning Palace to pay a visit to Empress Dowager Zhou.

Before it was completely dark, the results of the re-election of the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace had already fallen into the hands of Empress Dowager Zhou.

"…Grandfather, this re-selection left more than 40 people. They will be sent to the palace tomorrow. They must first pass the palace steward's inspection of their appearance and body shape. They may not be sent to you until the day after tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, which is the third or fourth day of the New Year."

Chen Gui explained the situation.

Queen Mother Zhou looked at the list for a long time, frowning: "Why are there only more than 40 people? If it was the number of people who were selected for the current emperor in the past, it would have been the number of people for the final selection... Why are there only so few people this time after just entering the palace? How many people came to apply for the selection today?"

Chen Gui said: "I heard that there are only a little over a hundred people who entered the re-selection stage today."

Queen Mother Zhou asked angrily, "How many people should be selected?"

"Maybe... there are only about 200 people, or less than 300 anyway." Chen Gui said, "But most of them don't meet the selection criteria for the Crown Princess of the Eastern Palace, so more than half of them were eliminated at the beginning... Those who came to the Ministry of Rites for selection today have already gone through layers of screening."

"Humph."

Empress Dowager Zhou snorted coldly, "When the last emperor was alive, he was furious because there were only one or two thousand women of the right age to be crown princesses in the northern regions. He even ordered local governments to send all those who met the requirements to the capital. This time, the preliminary selection only had two or three hundred people. Does this mean they have completely disregarded the dignity of the royal family?"

Chen Gui could only lower his head.

This question was too sharp and it was beyond the ability of Chen Gui to answer.

Queen Mother Zhou grumbled, "That is to say, there are only about a hundred people whose appearance can be seen, and in the end, more than forty people are selected to come to the palace, and two or three people each choose one... How good can their level be? What about the rest of the people?"

Chen Gui said: "They have all been returned to their native places."

"Why not send them to the palace together? Since they have participated in the selection, they should be sent to the palace. Perhaps in the future they will have a chance to win the favor of Mu Tianyan or be favored by the prince?"

Queen Mother Zhou was the kind of woman who liked to haggle over every little thing.

She didn't want to miss out on so many "resources" for nothing.

Chen Gui said helplessly: "Grandfather, you also said that there are too few candidates this time, and among those with good family backgrounds, there will inevitably be some ugly ones.

"If this had happened more than 20 years ago when His Majesty was selecting concubines, the ones who were left behind would have been quite pretty and could even have become queens."

Queen Mother Zhou sighed, "Alas, I have to choose one out of two or three people. The rest are probably not good enough. It's such a headache!"

Chen Gui consoled him, "I heard that among them, there are girls with good family backgrounds and outstanding looks. I think the old ancestor will not be disappointed."

"you go?"

Queen Mother Zhou asked with a sneer.

"I did not go there in person."

Chen Gui stated the facts.

"So you're talking as if you saw it with your own eyes?"

Queen Mother Zhou rolled her eyes at Chen Gui in annoyance, then picked up the list and looked at it carefully, and said thoughtfully, "I vaguely remember what Li Zisheng said... Which girl was his favorite?"

Chen Gui replied cautiously, "My Lady Queen, I have never been too concerned about such matters." Queen Mother Zhou said with a dark face, "I asked you to find out the situation... Don't think of watching the fire from the other side of the river. Just answer the questions truthfully."

Chen Gui then reluctantly stepped forward and pointed at a person on the list: "It's this girl."

"Xingji, Zhang... her age is quite good, but why are there no more detailed information? What does she look like? Is there not even a general description? And why is her family background so vague?"

Queen Mother Zhou began her comments and then asked a series of questions.

Chen Gui said: "The people who came to apply for the election today have mixed origins and backgrounds, but most of them are from wealthy families. The lack of records may be because... there is no time to check carefully."

Queen Mother Zhou rolled her eyes again after hearing this: "I've heard of people forcing people to do something, but I've never heard of people forcing their sons to marry concubines... Humph, there's quite a commotion in Anxi Palace today, did something happen?"

Chen Gui hurriedly said, "It's Miss Wan. Her condition... suddenly got worse today."

"Oh? Are the people from the Imperial Hospital also helpless?"

When Empress Dowager Zhou heard this, she felt relieved and couldn't help but ask a few more questions.

Chen Gui said: "The people in the Imperial Hospital really can't come up with an effective rescue plan. They have done everything they can, but there is no improvement.

"Earlier, His Majesty summoned Li Yintai, the man with unpredictable powers from the Ministry of Public Administration, to inquire about the use of medicine."

"Hey, you're pretty well-informed. Who told you this?"

Queen Mother Zhou was a little curious.

"I am not asking around out of idleness, but to have something to say when reporting to you, the ancestor. This is a letter leaked by the eunuch beside Eunuch Tan Chang, who also said that Eunuch Tan selected famous doctors from the people to treat Wan Guiren, and he has not returned since leaving the palace today."

Chen Gui poured out everything he had learned.

Queen Mother Zhou said, "If you are sick, let the imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital treat you. That is the right way. Why are you looking for someone outside? Do you want to let the common people laugh at the royal family's affairs?"

It seemed like she was scolding, but at the end, the corners of Empress Dowager Zhou's mouth and eyes curled up, as if she was saying... I like this result.

"Do you know what Li Zisheng said in front of the emperor?" Empress Dowager Zhou asked again.

"This slave doesn't know."

Chen Gui became more cautious. "But I heard that Lord Li seemed indifferent to this matter and did not lend a hand. Lord Li did not even intervene in the matter of selecting a good doctor among the people."

"I didn't expect that Li Zisheng is a man who values ​​his promises. He must have known my attitude, so he didn't deliberately go against my wishes... It's not easy for him to maintain such a humble attitude in front of the emperor. Although he was born a Taoist priest, he is still very principled."

Queen Mother Zhou inexplicably felt a little more admiration for Li Zisheng.

At this point, Queen Mother Zhou suddenly revealed a lazy attitude: "The Emperor has agreed to the selection of concubines. I will be in charge of the selection. Except for the Crown Prince choosing one of the three to be his principal wife, the completion of the rest of the process will depend on my mood."

Chen Gui said: "What the ancestor meant is..."

Queen Mother Zhou said, "It's the coldest time of the year, and it's just the beginning of the new year. It's so cold outside, and I'm feeling a little unwell. Let's wait until I'm better before discussing the selection of a concubine. It can be after the tenth day of the first lunar month."

"My lady, I'm afraid this is...inappropriate."

Chen Gui said hesitantly, "Your Majesty... is really pressing."

"Isn't he just in a hurry to get married to bring good luck? Who doesn't know why he is doing this? Humph, for the sake of an old woman, he even disregards his son's future happiness?"

Queen Mother Zhou said angrily, "If he doesn't believe that I am sick, let him come to Qingning Palace himself."

"But Your Majesty just today..."

"Where do all these gossips come from? Just pass on whatever you are told to pass on, don't act on your own. If the emperor is not satisfied, let him choose someone else to help choose a daughter-in-law... unless he doesn't have eyes for me as his mother!"

Chen Gui finally understood what was going on.

This old lady would do anything to make Concubine Wan die sooner.

First, she pretended to care about her grandson very much and took the power of selecting the Crown Princess into her own hands. Then she chose to pretend to be sick...to delay the matter of selecting the princess, and then to make the emperor's wish of holding a wedding for Concubine Wan to bring good luck come to nothing...Chen Gui really wanted to say, old ancestor, you are still ruthless. Looking at the entire Ming Dynasty, only you can control this "infatuated emperor" today.

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(End of this chapter)