Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 424: The Mouse Moving the Warehouse
After Zhang Luan came out of the palace, he went straight back to the outer residence and saw Zhang Yanling who was checking the accounts in the front hall.

"Son, the Queen Mother said that you can come to the palace to see your sister at any time in the future. It is convenient for the Crown Prince to go and invite her back for you."

Zhang Luan smiled and said, "If you have anything to say, you can tell your sister in person... Hey, you miss her after not seeing her for a few months, right?"

Zhang Yanling said, "Dad, from the tone of your voice, you sound like you are relieved."

Zhang Luan said with a relaxed look: "Who said it wasn't? You always ask your father to be your mouthpiece, but where does your father have so much time and energy?
"I am an old man. I can't even stay at home for a few days. I have to... cough cough. I am not complaining. I just think that if you have anything to say, it would be better for you to go directly to your sister, so that I won't be able to convey it in a way that doesn't make your important event a mess."

"Hey."

Zhang Yanling smiled and said, "Dad, you have a lot of reasons."

"Nothing, nothing."

Zhang Luan sat down with a smile, and suddenly his face became a little stiff. He said, "I also went to see the Queen Mother today... Hey, guess what? She actually intends to give the Crown Prince a few concubines before he ascends the throne, saying that she wants to give birth to more heirs for the Ming Dynasty and ensure that the Zhu family's rule will be more stable in the future."

Zhang Yanling asked in surprise: "Then what did you say?"

"What else can I say? Do you think I, as a father, have the right to hinder this matter? This is the royal family's own family affairs. After all, even though your sister is the crown princess, there are some things that she really can't decide on."

Zhang Luan felt helpless.

Zhang Yanling frowned and asked, "So you... didn't take it too seriously and thought it was normal?"

"if not?"

Zhang Luan sighed again after he finished speaking, "Alas..."

Zhang Yanling's face was serious, and he asked, "But aren't you afraid of the next Wan Guifei? You know that my brother-in-law is a soft-hearted person. Now he only listens to my sister and even relies on you, the future father-in-law, and never makes friends with us Zhang family.

"But have you ever thought that if there is a woman with more insight and ambition, who draws all the attention and energy of the prince, and he only listens to her, what will happen to our Zhang family then?"

"No...it can't be right?"

Zhang Luan’s eyes widened, looking as if he had seen a ghost.

Maybe he was thinking, this guy hasn't even gotten married yet, how come he seems to know everything and is so good at it?
Zhang Yanling sighed and said, "Dad, you can't cheat your daughter!"

"Look at what you said, it's as if your father wants to trick your sister... Do you think your sister would have any choice if this happened to her?"

Zhang Luan said dejectedly, "To put it bluntly, we are marrying above our station, so how can we be qualified to make decisions on behalf of the royal family?"

Zhang Yanling asked, "The problem is that the crown prince of our Ming Dynasty has never had to be from the lineage of the queen. If the new concubine gives birth to the eldest son, the mother of the crown prince will be someone else... Do you think your sister will still have a position in the palace in the future?"

"what?"

Zhang Luan stood there in a daze for a moment.

"Even if my sister gives birth to a son, he will have to move to the back row." Zhang Yanling sighed, "Speaking of which, our Ming Dynasty is really weird. The princes of these generations are not the legitimate children of the queen. Do you think that even if the queen gives birth to a son, but he is not the eldest son, he is qualified to inherit the throne?"

"This……"

After hearing this, Zhang Luan finally realized that this was definitely a tricky problem.

Zhang Yanling shook his head and said, "Okay, it looks like I have to do it myself... I'll help my sister with this matter, so you don't have to worry about it, Dad."

"Yes, yes, yes. If you have something to say, go and tell me. Don't bother me all the time."

Zhang Luan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You don't know, the Queen Mother's attitude is always abnormal every time she sees me, I don't dare to see her... If I tell you, you won't understand... Tsk tsk, it's too scary..."

Zhang Yanling looked a little mischievous and asked, "How do you know I don't understand if you don't tell me?"

"Pah, such a shameful thing, I would never tell it even if you kill me."

Zhang Luan was quite courageous this time and said this while patting his chest.

But it was his reaction that made Zhang Yanling keenly aware that Queen Mother Zhou's attitude towards others was very different from that of ordinary people. Perhaps she was too intimate, which made Zhang Luan feel that the relationship between the two of them exceeded the normal social distance, which made Zhang Luan have a strong sense of crisis.

……

……

Zhang Yanling then went into the palace to find Zhang Yu, led by Tan Ji.

This was the first time he entered the palace in his life, and everything he saw was new. From time to time, he compared what he saw with the Forbidden City he had visited in later generations, and found that many places were different, but the buildings were basically the same, and some even looked very familiar.

Who would have thought that I would come here one day? If there was no one around and I was walking alone, I might have thought I had traveled back hundreds of years and was visiting the Forbidden City.

Zhang Yanling's mind was full of thoughts, and Qin Ji urged him, "Second Master, walk faster. If you walk too leisurely after entering the palace, you will be criticized."

"I'm sorry, Eunuch Tan, I'm new here and I was so absorbed in the details... Sorry, sorry..."

Zhang Yanling smiled apologetically and said, "As long as Eunuch Tan walks faster, I will catch up."

As Qin Ji walked away, he turned back and said, "I just received news that Eunuch Huai En will probably arrive in Beijing in the next few days. After returning to the palace, he may directly serve as the eunuch in charge of the Silijian."

Zhang Yanling nodded and asked, "Then what will be the arrangement for your position, Eunuch Tan?"

"what!?"

Qin Ji was very surprised and quickly waved his hands, "I am definitely not seeking credit for myself, nor am I asking for an official position, so let's not talk about this topic, okay?"

"Eunuch Qin has served the Crown Prince in the Eastern Palace for many years and has made great contributions. Moreover, you are knowledgeable and you should not be neglected like this." Zhang Yanling seemed to be sighing about something, but he didn't say it clearly, leaving ample room for Qin Ji's imagination.

This time, Qin Ji walked in front with his head down, not daring to say anything more.

But he still had some expectations in his heart.

After following the prince for so many years, we finally achieved total victory, but Huai En, who was about to return from the air, reaped the rich fruits. Who would be happy if this happened?

But Qin Ji was not the kind of person who would try to climb up the ladder. Even if he felt unwilling at times, he still knew how to endure and was not surprised by praise or criticism. Then Zhang Yanling followed Qin Ji to the outside of the Duanjing Hall.

"Second Master, please."

Qin Ji pointed to the front and said, "This is it."

Zhang Yanling looked around and confirmed that this was the palace complex behind the Wenhua Palace that he had visited in his previous life. He had never known what this place was used for before. This place was adjacent to the Neijinshui River in the north, and the Ciqing Palace was beyond it. He immediately asked hesitantly, "As a man outside the palace, I'm afraid it's not appropriate for me to go in directly?"

Qin Ji said, "You are joking. How can you say that you will be the emperor's uncle soon? It is only natural for you to come and see the young master. Besides, this has been approved by the crown prince and the queen mother. Who dares to talk nonsense?"

"Oh."

Zhang Yanling thought that since the crown prince had not yet ascended the throne, many titles had not yet been bestowed, and Empress Dowager Zhou was still only the empress dowager and had not been promoted to grand empress dowager.

So the current queen is still Queen Wang, and her sister Zhang Yu is only the Crown Princess.

……

……

Inside the Duanjing Hall.

Zhang Yu had people prepare a lot of snacks early in the morning, and even made some arrangements. He also took out a lot of good things and put them in wooden boxes, ready for his brother to take away when he left the palace.

Apart from anything else, Zhang Yu was never stingy when it came to treating her mother's family. It seemed that in her impression, seeking benefits for her mother's family from the imperial palace was a matter of course and something that was engraved in her bones.

Whether there is a time traveler like Zhang Yanling or not, her thoughts are the same, that is, she must not let her mother's family suffer any loss. This is also the root cause of her tragic ending in her previous life.

"Second brother, come here quickly."

When Zhang Yu saw Zhang Yanling appear at the door, he immediately waved.

Zhang Yanling walked over quickly and saluted, saying, "Greetings to the Crown Princess."

"Pooh!"

Zhang Yu said, "Don't be like dad, who always speaks sourly... If you are as dishonest as dad, I won't let you come here anymore! Come here quickly, I asked someone to prepare some things for you and mom, take a look, do you like them?"

Zhang Yanling walked over.

At this time, Zhang Yu dismissed several palace maids.

Zhang Yanling sat down on the chair without any hesitation, looking at the gifts and jokingly said, "Sister, just give them to me, and also give them to mother... I am here to get benefits, not to be a porter.

"Sister, can you be a little more partial to me and let me be touched?"

Zhang Yu rolled his eyes at him and said, "Okay, okay, okay, since you are so precious, I will give you a separate copy. Is that okay? However, some of the boxes contain women's jewelry. I'm sure you don't like them, right? Remember to bring them back to mother."

Zhang Yanling said, "Who said I don't like it? I'll have some use for it when I get married... Besides, even if it's useless, I can sell it for money to supplement my family income, right? Tsk tsk, this is a good thing from the palace. How can the craftsmanship be average? It's worth a lot if I sell it."

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "You kid, coming to my place is like a mouse moving house. Do you really think I have mountains of gold and silver for you? I am living an ordinary life here too."

"It's okay. My sister will be promoted soon. I'm just waiting to enjoy the good life with her." Zhang Yanling said, "I think the maids in your East Palace are pretty good. How about..."

"Don't think too much."

Zhang Yu used her elder sister's aura and threatened with her hands on her hips, "You are getting more and more outrageous. I'm telling you, don't think about these nonsense at your age. I'm just the Crown Princess. I have nothing. Don't think too much."

"OK OK."

Zhang Yanling raised his hands in surrender and said, "I am not here to ask for anything from you, I will even give you something... If you need anything in the future, just ask me directly. If you don't have anything else... I should be able to give you a few thousand or tens of thousands of taels of silver."

"Are you kidding me?"

Zhang Yu sat down opposite Zhang Yanling and asked seriously, "Where did you get so much money?"

"Business, mirrors, soaps, telescopes, whatever business I want to do now, but... I don't know my brother-in-law very well, so I don't know if he will come forward to help me if someone impeaches me in the future. What if someone says that I compete with the people for profits, or even bully the market..."

Zhang Yanling needed his sister's attitude, so he stopped talking halfway.

Zhang Yu glared at him and said angrily, "You make your money, and I don't see who dares to gossip about you. But... Yanling, don't go too far. I really can't do anything now. Your brother-in-law is the same. He... doesn't seem to fight for anything. I think he will listen to me, but he... will also listen to others!"

Zhang Yanling lowered his voice and said, "So sister has to use some tricks."

"What means?"

Zhang Yu's bright eyes flashed with light instantly.

Tell me this, I won't feel sleepy anymore. I called you here just for this. Do you want me to be a parasite and move things into the house every day?
Even if you want to be a mouse that moves granaries, you have to show some real skills, otherwise it will all be gifts, not rewards for your labor.

Zhang Yanling leaned over and whispered in her ear, "The Queen Mother intends to find a concubine for the Crown Prince, and she wants to get everything done before the Crown Prince officially ascends the throne."

"what?"

Zhang Yu was a little surprised, but it seemed that she had expected this day to come. She asked distressedly, "Then what should I do?"

"It's very simple. Just tell your brother-in-law that now is the time of father's death and everything should be kept simple, otherwise it will attract criticism... We can talk about these things later." Zhang Yanling said.

"Don't mention it later... it's better not to mention it for the rest of your life."

Zhang Yu said angrily.

Originally, she was very friendly to Queen Mother Zhou and felt that she was a kind old lady who deserved her respect.

But now, in her mind, Queen Mother Zhou has become synonymous with bad people. She is her strongest opponent when she takes charge of the inner palace in the future and she needs to be on guard against at all times.

(End of this chapter)