Dugong

Chapter 17: Competing for Filial Piety
Queen, concubine, prince...

Li Ping'an had been in the palace for half a year and this was the first time he had come into close contact with "palace fighting", which he had only heard of in the legendary stories told by storytellers before.

Now that I am truly involved, I can’t help but feel surprised and scared.

What makes me happy is that my family is involved in the palace fight. Even if we are just the most marginal pawn, we are still considered a figure.

What I am afraid of is the struggle in the harem, which is extremely dangerous, and the corpse of Xiao Chengzi outside the door is proof of it.

Eunuch Sun was just a little suspicious of Xiao Chengzi. He was too lazy to even check for evidence, let alone care about the friendship between him and his godson. He just broke his neck.

"Xiao Junzi, keep an eye on the Vegetable Inspection Office. New merchants have been arriving to supply the goods lately. Don't alert them. Remember the prices and quantities."

Xiao Junzi bowed and said, "I understand."

"Xiao Luzi, write down clearly what was eaten at Zhaoyang Palace, including how many bites were taken from each bowl of rice, and how many chopsticks were used to pick up each dish. Copy a copy for us every day."

Xiao Luzi promised repeatedly: "Don't worry, godfather, I will do my best."

Eunuch Sun gave instructions to his sons one by one. All the orders were directed to Zhaoyang Palace. It could be said that whenever Concubine Yuan opened her mouth to eat, it would be recorded clearly.

Li Ping'an speculated that Shangshenjian was just one of the surveillance systems.

The Imperial Household Supervisor arranged furniture, calligraphy and paintings, and antiques; the Palace Supervisor swept the palace, patrolled, and stood guard; or the Imperial Wardrobe Supervisor, the Imperial Household Supervisor, and so on, all the eunuchs who had contact with the Zhaoyang Palace would keep a close eye on Concubine Yuan.

Eunuch Sun ordered, "Xiao Anzi, you will probably be going to Zhaoyang Palace to deliver meals frequently in the future. You must quickly manage the delivery room and make sure that no one like Xiao Chengzi, who is disloyal, appears."

Most of the eunuchs in the imperial kitchen were not qualified to have access to the Zhaoyang Palace, only those in the imperial kitchen had the opportunity.

"My child understands."

Li Ping'an bowed and accepted the order, and after a little thought he came up with a plan.

Those who do not flatter enough must be dissatisfied. Such unstable factors should be dealt with first, and then the vacancies will be filled according to the amount of silver they give.

Then, he gave priority to the eunuchs of low status and promoted the fire starter to the position of food server. Such kindness would surely make the eunuchs loyal to our family.

After giving his instructions, Eunuch Sun waved goodbye to his godsons.

out the door.

Li Ping'an let the winter night breeze blow, and his excited mood instantly calmed down. He turned around and looked at the main room where the lights were still on.

"I originally thought I'd hang out in the imperial kitchen, eating white flour buns every day, but how did I suddenly get involved in the palace fighting?"

Back to the residence.

Since it was already past midnight, Xiao Fangzi and Xiao Yuanzi were already fast asleep.

As soon as Li Ping'an entered the room, Xiao Zhenzi actually turned over from the bed and brought him water for washing feet.

"Thank you for your hard work, Eunuch An. Good job, Bubbles."

"You guys..."

No matter how cautious Li Pingan was, it was hard not to feel a liking for Xiao Zhenzi when he saw him serving him like this: "How's your training been these days?"

Xiao Zhenzi said with a bitter face: "My qualifications are low, I am afraid I can only go to the Direct Palace to do odd jobs."

"Don't be discouraged."

Li Pingan imitated his godfather's promise: "When the time comes, I will tell my godfather and send him to the imperial kitchen to help serve the food with my family."

Xiao Zhenzi said gratefully, "Eunuch An's kindness is heavier than a mountain. We..."

Li Pingan interrupted: "Don't talk about repaying a favor. We have heard too much about it. Let's see what you do in the future."

Xiao Zhenzi nodded heavily and was determined to serve Eunuch An as his godfather.

The next day.

It's still dark.

Li Ping'an was used to getting up early to greet his parents, but when he opened his eyes, he saw neatly arranged basins and face towels.

Little Zhenzi gets up earlier so as not to delay his "godfather" from washing up.

"Hiss, this guy is actually more filial than ours..." Li Ping'an really wanted to invite Xiao Zhenzi into the imperial kitchen last night, but now he completely gave up the idea, lest there would be a guy who is more filial than us appearing in the imperial kitchen.

Eunuch Sun already has six adopted sons, and one more would mean less favor.

This is how cunning the eunuch's mind is!
He walked all the way to the imperial kitchen in the dark, and as usual, he chatted with the young marquis and made friends with him. When he entered, he saw Xiao Junzi standing outside the door.

Li Ping'an's face was gloomy: "Why did Eunuch Jun come so early?"

"I learned it from Eunuch An."

Xiao Junzi said sarcastically, "Originally, we all paid our respects together, and the difference between left and right was just the front and back. Eunuch An broke the rules first."

Li Pingan retorted, "What a bullshit rule! My family is truly filial to our godfather, but you are not a filial son."

"Humph!"

Xiao Junzi snorted coldly, turned his back and ignored him.

Li Ping'an glanced back at the young marquis standing guard outside, then looked up at the young Liangzi on duty at the door. These two must have leaked the news.

One person's greeting alone turned into a dispute between two people, and the "filial piety" was immediately discounted.

"I was planning to slowly prepare this, but since you dared to ruin our family's fortune, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Li Ping'an already had a vague idea of ​​how to deal with the two people. Yesterday, he learned about the dispute in the harem, and he could take the opportunity to eliminate the roots.

With hatred surging in his heart and a smile on his face, he took the initiative to step forward and greet Xiao Liangzi.

"Godfather asked me to take care of the kitchen. Can Eunuch Liang come over? He must be the first to serve the main course so that he can show his face in front of His Majesty."

Xiao Liangzi smiled and refused: "Thank you for your kindness, Eunuch An. I am your watchdog and will not go anywhere without your order."

Xiao Chengzi died yesterday. Eunuch Sun will definitely adopt a new adopted son and send him to the Tribute Department for surveillance. Xiao Liangzi thinks he has a great chance.

Li Pingan praised: "Eunuch Liang is really loyal to his godfather."

"Eunuch An is not bad either."

Xiao Liangzi was thinking in his mind that once he became his godfather's subordinate, he would definitely ask Li Ping'an to return the money, not a single cent less.

When Eunuch Sun came to serve breakfast, Li Ping'an and Xiao Junzi greeted him together.

Sure enough, with the addition of a filial godson, Eunuch Sun was no longer as caring and close as before, and just sent him away after a few casual chats.

Mao Shi.

The eunuchs from the imperial kitchen came to take up their duties one after another.

Li Pingan and others waited for the people from the kitchen to arrive, closed the door, and coughed lightly to attract everyone's attention.

"Godfather said yesterday that our Imperial Kitchen doesn't have many opportunities to see His Majesty, and almost all of our work is done here. If this goes on for a long time, people doing other things will develop resentment, which will be detrimental to the Imperial Kitchen's unity..."

Everyone's faces tensed, waiting for the next part.

Li Pingan continued, "Let's suggest to our godfather that we rotate the serving of meals and then switch them again after a while so that everyone can have the opportunity to see the emperor."

A eunuch said subconsciously: "Eunuch An, this is not appropriate!"

Li Pingan asked, "What's wrong?"

The man said, "The issue of serving food is of great importance. Frequent changes in personnel might allow someone with ulterior motives to sneak in and endanger Your Majesty's safety."

Li Pingan said coldly, "You mean to say that someone in our Imperial Kitchen is trying to harm His Majesty? Then we must report this to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and have a thorough investigation!"

The other eunuchs glared at him. This was a major case concerning the safety of His Majesty. Regardless of whether it was true or not, the imperial kitchen would be thoroughly investigated and not a single trace would be left unturned.

By then, the "murderer" has not been found, but many corrupt officials have been exposed!

The man turned pale with fear and waved his hands repeatedly: "That's not what I meant."

"It's okay if it's not."

Li Ping'an glanced at everyone, and they all bent down and lowered their heads, no one dared to look at him.

(End of this chapter)