Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 468 No Son

Huai En expressed the emperor's attitude!

Now that the silver has been brought in and is ready to be used in the construction of the late emperor's mausoleum, you still have the mind to care whether it came from legitimate sources?

It seems like you are not the ones who are short of money. You don't know how hard it is to be an emperor, right?

Among so many ministers present, Huai En's words carried the most weight. If he said that the matter should not be mentioned for the time being, then no one dared to mention it.

After all, not everyone has the courage to challenge the imperial power. If everyone present was tough, Zhu Jianshen would not have been forced to stop attending court for so many years.

The next topic has nothing to do with Zhang Luan.

However, with the support of Zhang Luan's donation at the beginning, it seems that there is nothing major worth discussing. It is nothing more than reports on the situation in various places.

The court meeting ended quickly.

Zhang Luan walked out of the Fengtian Hall and just looked up at the gloomy sky when Qin Ji personally held an umbrella for him.

Among the court officials who attended the meeting, some did not bring an umbrella that day, so someone had already prepared rain gear such as straw raincoats and oil-paper umbrellas so that they would not get wet on their way back. This shows how thoughtful the emperor was.

"Mr. Zhang, His Majesty invites you."

Tan Ji said with a smile.

Originally, Xu Qiong and others planned to come over and get close to Zhang Luan, and ask him about the origin of the silver he presented.

But when they saw Qin Ji coming on behalf of the emperor to invite Zhang Luan to the appointment, they knew they had to put their own affairs aside for the time being.

Although Zhang Luan was extremely unhappy, he still dragged his tired body to the Qianqing Palace to see the emperor.

"So tired."

Zhang Luan said bluntly on the way, "I counted the money last night and didn't sleep all night. I originally planned to go back and have a good sleep, but in the end I had to toss and turn..."

Qin Ji smiled and comforted: "Mr. Zhang, you have worked hard... Your Majesty has seen your hard work and kept it in mind. You will be rewarded in the future.

"You don't know, what you said in the court just now was really refreshing."

"Relieve anger?"

Zhang Luan frowned.

I thought to myself, are you sure you’re not being bullied?
When the late emperor was in power, if the people around him did something out of line, the civil officials below would dare to talk nonsense, which would be simply courting death.

This group of ministers are clearly bullying me, Zhang Luan, because I have no qualifications and background. They don't even give the emperor face?

If Huai En hadn't stepped forward today to calm the situation, who knows how big a mess it would have caused!

Qin Ji said: "Mr. Zhang may not know... Ever since His Majesty arranged for you to enter the Ministry of Revenue as a minister, many people in the court have been discussing privately, saying that you are not qualified for this job, and they have also slandered and defamed you everywhere. The words they said are simply unbearable to hear..."

"It has only been a few days since His Majesty issued the appointment. It shouldn't be like this, right?"

Zhang Luan frowned.

How long have I been the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue?

As a result, there are criticisms everywhere. Am I so unpopular?

I have always thought that I am popular, is it all an illusion?

Qin Ji sighed, "You may not know that in the eyes of some people, all the old people left over from the previous emperor's time are redundant, outdated, or even foolish, and should be cleared out of the court as soon as possible and abdicated... Especially those officials who were promoted without going through the imperial examination system, now all of them are controversial."

"This one……"

Zhang Luan felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Of course, Mr. Zhang, you have participated in the imperial examination, so it cannot be counted."

Qin Ji felt that his words might have hurt Zhang Luan's self-esteem, so he quickly tried to make amends.

Zhang Luan said ashamedly, "It may be true that I don't have much ability. Who made me just a student? Alas, I am not even a juren, let alone a jinshi... I am an official in the court, and a third-rank official at that. It is normal for me to be criticized... Eunuch Tan, you don't have to comfort me."

Qin Ji was stunned for a moment, then said: "Ability has nothing to do with knowledge. Otherwise, why did Li Zisheng, who was born as a Taoist priest, take charge of the government in the previous dynasty, while Wan An and others who were born as Jinshi could only stand aside? Moreover, His Majesty wants absolute loyalty to him. No matter how knowledgeable you are, if you are not loyal to His Majesty, do not share the worries of the emperor, and only know how to sing the opposite tune in the court meeting, what is the use?

"Oh, we are almost there. His Majesty said that he wants to keep you in the palace for lunch today."

"No, no, I have to go home and catch up on my sleep. I'm worried that if I keep going, I won't be able to wake up..."

Zhang Luan thought, I still have a key here that I haven't used. I was exhausted last night. If I work overtime in the palace today, I won't get enough sleep and go out to have fun at night, I will definitely become an immortal.

"Haha, if you have any ideas, just go and tell His Majesty. His Majesty is reasonable and will definitely not embarrass you... Besides, you will be eating with the Queen, so it won't take too long and shouldn't affect your nap."

Tan Ji smiled.

"My daughter is not the queen yet..."

Zhang Luan quickly advised, "Don't call me that."

Qin Ji smiled and said, "It was ordered by the Grand Empress Dowager herself... Yesterday, the Empress went to pay respects to the ancestor, and the maid passed on the news that the Crown Princess had arrived. This immediately angered the ancestor, and after the execution, she warned that anyone who mentioned the Crown Princess again would be punished, and from now on everyone in the palace would be called the Empress. Look, the Imperial Household Department has been drafting an imperial edict these past two days."

"what!?"

When Zhang Luan heard this, he felt anxious for no reason.

Qin Ji asked: "Sir, you are finally going to be the father-in-law of the emperor. Congratulations."

Zhang Luan thought to himself, what is there to congratulate about?
If the queen is to be crowned today or tomorrow, then I will have to wait for the imperial edict at home. Doesn't that mean I will have to wait a few days before I can get the key to open the door I have longed for?

So what am I trying to achieve by running around like this?
Why is it so difficult to be an idle person after entering the court?

No wonder Li Zisheng told me to treat all these things as just passing thoughts and said he wasn’t interested. Maybe he was so busy with all sorts of things that he got confused?

I don’t have time to think about these things!

No...I have to find a way to be lazy.

……

……

In the end, Zhang Luan did not stay in the palace for lunch. After meeting the emperor in the Qianqing Palace, he said goodbye and left the palace, going home to take a deep sleep.

Zhu Youtang understood very well.

After all, my father-in-law is old. He had not had much rest for nearly half a month while treating my father's illness. Last night, he sorted the silver and sent it to the palace overnight. He dared not slack off for a moment.

What else could one expect from such an old Taishan who always cared about himself? Of course, he wanted to satisfy his wish and let him go home to sleep. But he was afraid that his wife would feel bad, so in order to comfort her, the emperor went to have lunch with his wife at noon and told Zhang Yu what was going on.

After all, I had promised my wife that I would bring my father-in-law over.

As an emperor and a husband, Zhu Youtang always kept his word.

After Zhang Luan returned home, he immediately went to bed and fell asleep, sleeping from morning until sunset.

When he got up, dressed hurriedly and went out, several women were preparing to give him a "program". After all, Zhang Luan was like an emperor in this courtyard. Although he did not have three palaces, six courtyards and seventy-two concubines, he was also very absurd and liked to do all kinds of fancy things.

"Get out of the way. I don't have time today... You guys should take a rest first."

Zhang Luan fully demonstrated what it means to get tired of the old and love the new.

As he was tying his belt and coming out of the inner courtyard, he bumped into his youngest son who was sitting on a soft chair beside the flower bed in the front yard. There was a coffee table in front of him. The Huangshan Yunwu Tea in the teacup on the table was emitting a rich aroma. He looked very leisurely.

"You kid, you're not going to cause trouble for your father again, are you? I'm sorry I can't keep you company today!"

Zhang Luan yawned and shook his head, "I was exhausted the whole night yesterday. I have to hurry out of the city today. If I leave too late, the city gate will be closed."

As he said this, he was about to walk out quickly.

Zhang Yanling looked over with a mischievous look on his face, "Dad, you were confused after sleeping, right? Isn't the house that Li Zisheng gave you inside Chongwenmen? Why do you want to leave the city?"

"Ah...yes, yes!"

Zhang Luan then remembered that he didn't have to leave the city before dark. He could just get enough sleep before going to his destination.

Instant misfire!
But he immediately realized a problem and looked up at his son: "Huh? How did you know that the house was inside Chongwenmen? Did you figure it out?"

"I don't have that ability."

Zhang Yanling said, "Earlier, Butler Pang brought you a gift. He knew you were very tired, so he left the gift with me."

"Hey, why did you give me the gift directly?"

Zhang Luan frowned.

Zhang Yanling said, "Why do you have to make such a clear distinction between father and son?"

"No, no, don't get me wrong. When have I ever been stingy? When our family was so poor that we could barely afford to eat, I would always remember to bring you two good things... Maybe your sister is like me..."

Zhang Luan suddenly laughed when he got to this point. "I have good news. Your sister is going to be the queen soon. The palace has changed its tune."

As he spoke, Zhang Luan took the gift in his hands and his expression became dazed for a moment.

"what is this?"

Zhang Luan asked curiously.

"It's a body contract."

Zhang Yanling said, "I have seen them, there are more than a dozen of them, saying that they are servants who will be arranged to be by your side, to serve you and take care of your daily life.

"As for the women that Li Zisheng found through special channels... I ask you to send them to Nanjing Jiaofangsi within a month. At most, you can keep four or five of them. Some of them may not be able to stay, so they must be sent away early."

Zhang Luan asked directly: "Who needs to be sent away?"

Zhang Luan frowned and said, "Dad, do you want me to speak frankly?"

"Cough cough!"

Zhang Luan coughed twice and said, "Then... just tell me, so as not to cause trouble for your father. Anyway, you know everything about my father's little things."

Zhang Yanling said unhappily, "Although I don't know who exactly is in that house at Chongwenmen, I roughly know that it is related to the case of Peng Hua and his students and old friends, because even if Ni Yue is convicted now, the only outcome is to redeem his sentence and resign and return home."

"Yes, it's Peng Hua, so what?" Zhang Luan said.

"Then I have to talk."

Zhang Yanling glared at his cheap father and said, "Peng Hua's case has attracted everyone's attention. Strictly speaking, his wife and children have not been exiled, but Li Zisheng has secretly accelerated the process."

Zhang Luan suddenly realized: "No wonder, Li Zisheng told me to just treat it as a fleeting relationship and not to linger on it."

Zhang Yanling said: "Hey, you really told me everything."

"What happens next? Keep talking." Zhang Luan said.

Zhang Yanling said helplessly: "No matter how famous Peng Hua is, he is a minister of the previous dynasty. You, on the other hand, teamed up with Li Zisheng to convict and exile all of his family members. If this matter were known by the people in the court, it would greatly damage your reputation. However, I know I can't stop you, but after all... I have to persuade you not to keep anyone around."

Zhang Luan said with emotion: "I understand. The biggest grudge between Peng Hua and me comes from his son Peng Mianfu. Now Peng Mianfu has gotten what he deserves. I shouldn't make things too difficult for his family."

Zhang Yanling asked: "So you want to help him?"

"That won't work."

Zhang Luan curled his lips and said, "Think about it, sending them to Nanjing Jiaofangsi is helping them? But I will remember your words! Go and do your thing, I have something important to do, we can talk tomorrow if there is anything else."

Zhang Yanling rolled his eyes upon hearing this and was too lazy to argue with his lustful old father.

This house was also used by him to get away from the noise. At least he didn't have to go back to be nagged by his mother all day. Also, he had his own room here, where he could write and paint in peace. In the evening, someone would bring him food, tea and water. He felt more carefree than at home...

……

……

When Zhang Luan went out, he brought a few more bodyguards with him to ensure his personal safety.

These guards were recruited by Zhang Heling from outside.

After riding the carriage for a while, Zhang Luan suddenly remembered something and said, "Let's stop at a medicine shop on the side of the road."

Chang Shun, who was driving the carriage in front, turned around and asked, "Master, are you sick?"

"You can't take medicine if you're not sick?"

Zhang Luan said, "You are too nosy! I need to take care of my body, isn't that okay?"

Speaking of this, Zhang Luan couldn't help but feel a little happy.

I thought, it would be nice to have a son like “Little Zhuge”.

He even thought of prescribing medicine for me to keep fit. It's true... I can't live without a son!
(End of this chapter)