Dugong

Chapter 24 Loyal

Li Ping'an respectfully saw his father-in-law off, then turned around and weighed the silver in his hand, which was no more than five taels.

"You dare to be greedy for your Majesty's reward? You've made me lose half an acre of land for nothing!"

As for shoes and hats, there is not even a trace of them. They may have been distributed one by one on the books, but who knows where they were actually sold.

Li Pingan waved his hand and called over a young eunuch: "Xiao Luzi, go to the stove and see how much silver Xiao Luzi has given out."

Xiao Luzi was born in the countryside and was assigned to work in the imperial kitchen not long ago. Li Pingan immediately transferred her to the imperial kitchen to replace Xiao Huizi.

They are mostly lackeys and lackeys. Ordinary eunuchs don’t even have a chance to become them!

Xiaoluzi ran around the stove and quickly returned to report: "Eunuch An, that guy got a large silver ingot, at least ten or twenty taels, and two brand new shoes and hats!"

Li Ping'an raised his eyebrows. The eunuch who distributed the rewards was indeed from Zhaoyang Palace.

"They are so short-sighted that they only see small things. Once they get the upper hand, they become greedy. They think a mere shoe or hat deserves to be treated differently!"

As he spoke, his eyes swept over everyone, including the seemingly well-behaved and obedient Xiaoluzi, trying to guess which one would be moved and head towards Zhaoyang Palace.

Xiao Luzi is about to die, and who knows how many eunuchs will be buried with him.

At this time.

Xiao Huizi walked in and said, "Eunuch An, Master Sun wants you to come over."

Li Ping'an didn't dare to delay and hurried out to the main office, asking Xiao Huizi on the way.

"How's Godfather feeling?"

"You look good."

Xiao Huizi said, "Master Sun just returned from the Internal Affairs Office. He must have received some instruction from the old ancestor, but I don't know the details."

"Thank you."

Li Ping'an took out a silver ingot, about two taels in weight, and stuffed it into Xiao Huizi's hand.

Since they have informed you of the news, you have to give them something in return. If you use them for free by relying on past favors, it won't be long before they break off their relationship.

Come to the main office.

When Li Ping'an entered the room, he bent his legs, took three or two quick steps, and then knelt down in front of Eunuch Sun.

"My son greets his godfather."

Eunuch Sun nodded slightly, waved his hand to signal his son to stand up, and said, "Everyone is here. Let me tell you something. From now on, please stay away from Zhaoyang Palace. Don't cause any conflict."

Xiao Junzi asked, "Godfather, what if the people from Zhaoyang Palace bully us?"

Eunuch Sun said, "Then let's get along. I've been bullied enough in the palace, so this little bit won't make a difference."

Xiao Luzi asked doubtfully, "Could it be that the noble lady of Zhaoyang Palace gave birth to a dragon son?"

"Hehehe... If that's the case, then everything will be fine. All we have to do is sit back and wait for the Queen's reward."

Eunuch Sun laughed strangely a few times, then changed the subject: "His Majesty is about to confer the title of King of Zhenbei upon Marquis Weiyuan. This is such a great favor, and we servants must naturally endure and yield."

Several adopted sons turned pale when they heard this. With Prince Zhenbei in charge of the army and Concubine Yuan enjoying favor at home, the situation seemed to be not good for the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince.

If Zhaoyang Palace wins in the future, these people will be forced to clean toilets and empty night incense at best, or dragged out and beaten to death at worst.

Li Ping'an was terrified, but he looked carefully at his godfather's eyes. He could not hide his joy in the cold and sinister look. Combined with what Xiao Huizi said, he felt a little relieved.

"What? Are you scared?"

Eunuch Sun said coldly, "If you are afraid, just go to Zhaoyang Palace. They are powerful now, and we dare not make things difficult for them."

Li Pingan was the first to express his loyalty, saying, "Godfather, I am loyal to you, to my godfather, and to our ancestors. I would rather pour night incense or guard the imperial tomb than surrender to that vixen."

Eunuch Sun scolded: "She is a noble in the palace. What nonsense are you talking about? Shut up!" Bang!
Li Pingan slapped his face lightly, muttering to himself: "This servant deserves a beating, this servant deserves a beating..."

"Giggle."

Eunuch Sun clapped his hands and laughed out loud, his wrinkles blooming like chrysanthemums: "You are really smart, no wonder Eunuch Xu mentioned you. It will be Godfather's birthday soon, come with us to celebrate!"

Li Pingan kowtowed: "Thank you, godfather, for your promotion."

Xiao Junzi and the others have come to their senses. It is obvious that their godfather is not worried about Zhaoyang Palace. Instead, he is in a very good mood and is busy expressing his loyalty.

However, loyalty is the strongest and the most fragile.

Any crack that appears will take years to repair.

Eunuch Sun was too lazy to pay attention to Xiao Junzi and the others. He waved his hand and asked them to leave. In his eyes, ordinary people were just tools whose necks could be broken at any time. Only Xiao Anzi was worth mentioning.

"Xiao Anzi, what do you think of His Majesty conferring the title of King of Zhenbei?"

Li Ping'an's mind raced. He couldn't just tell Xiao Huizi that since she was in a good mood, he should just flatter her. He had to come up with some useful insights.

The country boy's understanding of emperors and generals basically came from storytellers who traveled from village to village. He recalled the story of the tyrant emperor of the previous dynasty who beheaded the national marshal, and immediately answered.

"Godfather, the Prince of Zhenbei is still young, but he has already reached the end of his official career. His Majesty has already given him the highest title. As the saying goes, those who have made great contributions to their master rarely have a good ending..."

Eunuch Sun nodded slightly. "Although that's a little biased, it does make some sense."

Li Pingan bowed and said, "Please give me some advice, godfather."

"When Taizu founded the country, he conferred titles on eight kings of different surnames. Over the past hundred years, the highest title has been Marquis Jingzhong, which means that the King of Zhenbei is the only king of different surnames at present.

It may look impressive, but it is actually like being roasted on a stove, and you never know how many attacks it will suffer.”

Eunuch Sun paused and continued, "Furthermore, the Zhang family has already crowned a king of a different surname, so the son of Concubine Yuan must not succeed to the throne. Otherwise, chaos will arise from the monopolization of power by foreign relatives!"

Li Ping'an suddenly realized and thought carefully for a moment, and gained many new insights into the inner court, the outer court and major events of the country.

"Godfather, if Concubine Yuan insists on fighting, will Prince Zhenbei also push his nephew to the throne?"

Eunuch Sun sneered and said, "We believe that the King of Zhenbei will not do anything stupid. If that is the case, His Majesty will help the Third Prince clear all obstacles."

Since Emperor Wude could confer the title of King of Zhenbei, he could naturally wipe out the entire Zhang family.

The Zhao royal family has ruled the world until now, with four generations of capable rulers. They have also made great achievements in sweeping the north and destroying other states. The people of the world sincerely recognize them, and the powerful ministers and nobles are unable to rebel.

As for some local rebellions or refugee uprisings, they are just minor problems!

Li Ping'an silently took note of "Third Prince". From what his godfather said, he knew that the Queen wanted to push her second son to inherit the throne of Crown Prince.

There had long been rumors about the third prince in the palace. It was said that he had a bad temper and cruel methods. Before he left the palace to set up his own residence, he had beaten to death and maimed more than a dozen palace maids.

If he ascends the throne and becomes emperor in the future, it goes without saying that he will be a tyrant.

Li Ping'an didn't care about it. As long as he could get promoted and make money, and bring his parents to the capital to enjoy a good life, he would be a good emperor no matter if he was a tyrant or a fool.

"Even if the Third Prince doesn't make it, His Majesty still has the Fifth Prince. We can still benefit from following the Emperor!"

Li Ping'an left the main office happily. Since he was forced to get involved in the palace fight, today he finally got some definite good news.

We will wait for His Majesty's death step by step. After the new emperor ascends the throne, he will clean out the eunuchs who have defected to Zhaoyang Palace. Maybe an official vacancy can be filled by then.

At noon.

Li Ping'an went to the kitchen to eat and met the smug Xiao Luzi head-on. He slightly stepped aside.

Xiao Luzi walked over with his head held high and said something at the end.

"Little Anzi is sensible!"

A cold light flashed in Li Ping'an's eyes. His master was in power, but before he could show off, the dogs under his command started barking!
(End of this chapter)