Resourceful beauty

Chapter 243
"Relying on the sky and the earth is worse than relying on yourself..."

Scratching Fang Ruxuan's nose, seeing that she had withdrawn her thoughts of not knowing where she was going, Chu Yuan smiled and said, "How long has it been since Concubine Fang entered the palace? I don't know where I got the physical evidence she said, whether it is true or not." It’s hard to say, what are you bothering about?”

"Anyway, we will definitely find out about mother's matter. It's just a matter of time."

Chu Yuan said seriously.

Nodding her head, Fang Ruxuan took away the soft pillow behind her and lay down in the silk quilt. On the one hand, she patted Chu Yuan as if she was coaxing a child to sleep, "Go to sleep, you still get up early tomorrow."

These days, Chu Yuan is very busy.

There is a severe drought in the south, and several states stated in the memorials that the drought has become so severe that the people have moved their families, and this trend is still expanding step by step, and it seems to be out of control.

The rain is scarce, and the water storage in the rivers and lakes is about [-]% less than in previous years. If the drought is not suppressed, the migration of the people will only be the beginning.

That's why, for more than half a month, Chu Yuan has been working from dawn to dusk, dealing with the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Industry, to see if the court can allocate a part of the disaster relief funds first, and resettle those people who are going to be relocated first. step.

"Go to sleep..."

Thinking of the drought in the south, Chu Yuan suddenly became a little worried. He didn't want Fang Ruxuan to worry, so Chu Yuan patted Fang Ruxuan's hand comfortingly, picked up the folding fan beside the pillow, and shook it gently.

Fang Ruxuan was still thinking about how much money she could spend in her shop in Shangyang City for disaster relief, and fell asleep in a daze.

Early the next morning, when Fang Ruxuan went to Fengming Palace to pay her respects, she saw that the faces of all the concubines were a little dignified.

After Queen Zhou appeared, she was not as gentle as before, with a worried expression on her face.

After mentioning a few words about the drought in the south, Queen Zhou said in a deep voice: "Although the harem is not allowed to interfere in politics, and the court is not stable, how can we rest easy? Now, you are rich and well-clothed every day, but there are many displaced people in the south My family moved, I heard that in places with severe drought, seven or eight people died of hunger and thirst on the roadside, although I didn't see it with my own eyes, but as long as I think about it, I feel that it is shocking. "

Everyone in the room knew what these words were for. Immediately, all of them, headed by Concubine Han Shu, expressed their willingness to reduce the expenditure in the palace and reinforce the drought-stricken areas.

Queen Zhou nodded with satisfaction, "In that case, let's start from this month. The queen mother is old and an elder, and the princess of the East Palace is pregnant again, so except for these two places, the monthly schedule of other palaces is halved, and clothing and jewelry And every meal is also halved, and all the saved expenses are donated to dry areas."

"The empress is virtuous..."

Everyone stood up and bowed down.

After getting up and taking her seat again, Fang Ruxuan said, "The queen is very sympathetic to Ruxuan, and Ruxuan is very grateful. However, the drought is severe, and the East Palace is still the same as other palaces. Let's cut the ratio in half and do my best."

"The Crown Princess has always been a sensible..."

Opened her mouth to praise, Queen Zhou did not refuse, nodded and said: "Since this is the case, it is also a wish of the crown prince and crown princess, so let's follow what the crown princess said."

But when they came out of Fengming Palace, the concubines and concubines who left in groups, all complained in a low voice.

According to the serving rules, a meal in Fengming Palace consists of [-] dishes with eight meat and eight vegetables, plus one serving of soup. For other concubines, every time they are lowered, there will be a reduction.

After halving the portion, Fengming Palace has four meat and four vegetables and one soup, which is more than enough for Queen Zhou alone, so it can be reduced gradually, until Chang Zai is there, there are only four dishes and one soup, and if you reduce it again, There are only two dishes and one soup, how can you get enough to eat?
Therefore, the high-ranking concubines have nothing to do, at most, they are slightly dissatisfied with the lack of clothes and jewelry this season, while the low-ranking concubines have to worry about having a full stomach.

Queen Zhou's move, undoubtedly, is to make a reputation for herself through the people in the harem, and spread it back, whether it is in the court or among the people, they will all appreciate the Queen Zhou who proposed this matter, and those who really participated in it The concubines and concubines in various palaces are thankless.

In the East Palace, Fang Ruxuan used the small kitchen because Fang Ruxuan was pregnant. All the rice and vegetables were delivered according to the order from the imperial dining room. Even if it is halved, it will not affect Chu Yuan and Fang Ruxuan.

However, even if the entire harem takes action, it is still a drop in the bucket.

Looking at the red sun above her head, Fang Ruxuan wiped off her sweat with a handkerchief and said, "I hope that there will be a few rains soon, so that the drought in the south will be eased."

When they returned to the East Palace, they saw that Chu Yuan had already returned. In the inner hall, Ding Xiang and the others had already received Chu Yuan's orders and were packing for him.

"Where are you going?"

Chu Yuan didn't mention it last night, so Fang Ruxuan knew that this must be the result of the discussion in the court today.

Chu Yuan shook his head helplessly and said: "King Xuan will take the money and food raised by the household department to Suzhou tomorrow, and my father ordered me to go to Mingzhao Temple to worship heaven."

Mingzhao Temple is located three hundred miles outside Shangyang City, on top of Mingzhao Peak, the highest peak within a radius of five hundred miles. It is also the royal temple of King Yao’s Palace. Whenever there are important sacrificial activities in the palace, they will go to Mingzhao Temple .

Obviously, in Chu Yuan's view, the current severe drought in the south cannot be solved by offering sacrifices to the sky. If possible, he would rather stay in Shangyang City or go to the drought-stricken area to do some practical things, rather than such a meaningless act of worshiping the gods .

But the king's order cannot be disobeyed, which is why Chu Yuan feels so helpless.

"When do you leave? How long will it take?"

Fang Ruxuan asked softly.

"Leave in the afternoon. The days selected by Qin Tianjian are the nineteenth day of the seventh month. Therefore, according to my father's intention, I will arrive at Mingzhao Temple tomorrow evening, and the ritual of offering sacrifices to heaven will begin early in the morning the next day. As for when we can come back, it depends on whether the sacrifice to heaven is going well."

As he said that, Chu Yuan held Fang Ruxuan in his arms, and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I have to leave you alone in the palace again."

"Stupid..."

Smelling the faint scent of green grass on his body, Fang Ruxuan smiled and said: "A good man has ambitions everywhere. Although it is absurd to worship the heavens, it is decided by the father and the courtiers after discussion. You should go. Is it possible that you want to go every day?" Is it worthy of me to be by my side every night?"

"I will take care of myself. When you come back, the Mid-Autumn Festival may be over soon. At that time, the three of us will reunite and enjoy the moon."

Fang Ruxuan's smile successfully calmed Chu Yuan's uneasy mood.

After lunch, Chu Yuan insisted on taking a nap with Fang Ruxuan, watching Fang Ruxuan close her eyes, her breathing gradually calmed down, Chu Yuan put down the fan in her hand, and walked out of the inner hall lightly.

But as soon as Chu Yuan left, Fang Ruxuan woke up.

There was a lot of turmoil in the court, but in the inner palace, since the last time Queen Zhou said that the quotas for each palace were halved, life everywhere has returned to the previous calm, as if the drought in the south has nothing to do with this deep palace. .

And the Ministry of Internal Affairs gradually became busy.

The triennial draft is about to begin.

The drought is severe, the sky is angry and people complain. King Yao originally planned to cancel this draft, but Queen Mother Lou and Queen Zhou dissuaded them. The two have their own reasons. One said that the ancestral system cannot be violated, and the other said that everything is for the royal blood to balance the previous dynasty. The relationship between the harem, just like this, the two people who were not at odds with each other, because of the draft, reached a temporary unity with a tacit understanding.

Concubine Han Shu has the power to assist the Sixth Palace, so Queen Zhou and Concubine Han Shu discussed about the draft, and the date of the draft was finally set on August [-] after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

When it comes to the primary election, re-election, and palace selection, after the end of the application process, at the end of August, newcomers will be added to the palace.

As for the East Palace, it became a hot topic among concubines and palace people in private.

After all, whether it's Queen Mother Lou or Queen Zhou, King Yao who doesn't care about the affairs of the harem, if they want to use the draft to add a few people to the East Palace, it's a breeze. To worry about this, Fang Ruxuan felt that this was something a fool would do.

Therefore, Fang Ruxuan doesn't care what others say, she just raises the baby with peace of mind, hoping day by day that the drought will ease and that Chu Yuan will come back sooner. As for the others, in Fang Ruxuan's words, let fate .

Fang Ruxuan didn't care, but it didn't mean that others didn't care.

In the afternoon of this day, Fang Shanggong came to send a message, saying that Queen Zhou had summoned him.

When they arrived at Fengming Palace, Queen Zhou was already waiting in the main hall. Her gaze passed over Fang Ruxuan's towering belly, and she asked about the approximate date of delivery. Queen Zhou said straight to the point: "The draft is about to start. Yes, it is inevitable to add people to the East Palace. Therefore, I ordered you to come today to say hello to you, to see if you have a favorite candidate. When the time comes, you can say hello to the East Palace and keep it for the East Palace. "

Before coming here, Fang Ruxuan already knew what the purpose of this trip to Queen Zhou was, but she was trying to persuade Fang Ruxuan to be more virtuous, so that Chu Yuan could enjoy the rain and dew in the East Palace. From the Zhou family.

Although Queen Zhou unequivocally supported King Yong's seizure of the throne, how could a woman like her put all her eggs in one basket?

Whether it is the crown prince or King Yong, no matter who ascends to the throne in the end, she will be a justifiable queen mother. The only difference is how much power the Zhou clan has after that, that's all.

Therefore, Queen Zhou's words can be regarded as a disguised show of favor with Fang Ruxuan. After all, it is much better to choose a few gentle and good-tempered women to enter the East Palace than those aggressive and troublesome ones.

Seeing that Fang Ruxuan was silent, thinking that she was unwilling, Queen Zhou smiled and said: "I know that you are pregnant now, and telling you these things will definitely make you unhappy. But, even if it doesn't happen this time, there will be times For once, it is impossible for the Eastern Palace to be just you and those two concubines forever, and it is also your duty as the Crown Princess to make the Eastern Palace flourish."

What Fang Ruxuan thought was not at all.

Seeing what Queen Zhou said, Fang Ruxuan raised her eyes and said with a smile: "Your Majesty is in charge of everything, and Ruxuan has no choice but to follow. Even if His Highness knows it, she will be grateful for her kindness when she thinks about it."

Fang Ruxuan's words surprised Queen Zhou a little.

(End of this chapter)