Do You Know?: Rule the World

"You are so nice..." The words turned into a long sigh when they came to his lips.

"If this old minister and Lord Han had not come here today, I really don't know how long the emperor would have kept this secret!"

At this moment, Zhao Zhen had none of the calm and majestic demeanor he usually had in the court. Instead, he looked like a young man who had been caught doing something wrong by his elders.

He rolled his throat twice, coughed twice, and then said, "I didn't mean to hide this from you two nobles. After all, this matter is of great importance, so I have to be cautious."

"No wonder on the day of the palace examination, this old minister felt that his appearance was very similar to that of the emperor when he was young."

"I thought it was a coincidence, but I didn't expect it to be the official's biological son."

Han Zhang sighed repeatedly and raised his hand to gently wipe the corners of his eyes.

After a moment, he couldn't wait to speak again: "Your Majesty, why not transfer the prince to the Ministry of Rites? I am willing to personally assist him in familiarizing himself with the affairs of the court!"

When Xue Pu heard this, he shouted, "Master Han!"

"The Ministry of Personnel is the head of the Six Ministries. How much real power do you have in the Ministry of Rites? The prince should be transferred to the Ministry of Personnel!"

"Master Han, as a junior, please don't argue with me!"

"I, this old minister, will teach you everything I've learned throughout my life without reservation!"

Han Zhang glared at him, puffing out his beard. "You may be a few years older than me, but you're not as energetic as I am. This job should be given to me!"

Xue Pu sneered, "I'm a top scholar, and you're only a young scholar!"

"You!" Han Zhang's old face turned red.

Zhao Zhen looked at the two old ministers arguing fiercely in the hall and raised his hand, saying, "I have already promoted Han'er to Imperial Academy Lecturer. We will discuss his transfer to the six ministries later."

"We are all veteran officials. If this state of ours gets out, won't people laugh out loud?"

Upon hearing this, Han Zhang and Xue Pu looked up at each other at the same time.

But the moment their eyes met, they snorted coldly at the same time, turned their heads away, and didn't even want to look at each other again.

Zhang Maoze smiled and tried to smooth things over, saying, "You two old ministers, please stop being angry."

"The most important thing right now is to find a way to suppress the influence of the two princes in the court and support His Highness."

Han Chenmu pondered for a moment and said in a deep voice: "Most of the court officials currently support Princes Yong and Yan. In my opinion, Prince Yong's power is nothing to be feared. Prince Yan..."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but Prince Yan and his son are shrewd and capable, and are especially good at winning over people. Many of the royal family members have secretly pledged their allegiance to them."

"I am afraid he will become desperate and do something that will harm the emperor and the prince."

Xue Pu nodded in agreement.

Zhao Zhen frowned and said, "I have been thinking about this matter day and night. Let them fight for now. When both are injured, Han'er can take advantage of the situation and leave."

After saying that, he looked out the window, wondering in his heart when he could meet Zhao Han and his son again.

-

There is no strictly fixed frequency of summons for the position of Hanlin Attendant, usually once every ten days.

However, Zhao Zhen was diligent in learning and valued literature, especially the lectures on classics and history. He often summoned the emperor to court on short notice and even discussed the "Spring and Autumn Annals" with the imperial tutor until late at night.

Therefore, since Zhao Han was promoted to the position of Imperial Tutor, he was freed from the heavy work of editing documents in the Hanlin Academy.

However, he did not have any free time and had to go to the palace to meet Zhao Zhen almost every few days.

Of course, Zhao Zhen used the excuse of discussing history between the emperor and his ministers to comfort the pain of separation from his family.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, another month has passed.

As the wedding date draws closer, both families are busy.

Jiying Lane, Sheng Mansion.

As the first daughter of the Sheng family to get married, both her dowry and etiquette were given special attention.

Wang Ruofu even took out nearly 40% of her dowry and added it to Hualan's dowry.

The rest were, first, preparations for Changbai's wedding, second, Rulan's wedding, and third, as the eldest lady, she had to buy some things for the sake of face when her concubines' sons and daughters got married.

Sheng Wei had even sent people from Youyang to deliver more than ten boxes of silks, satins, gold and silver jewelry as gifts for Hualan's dowry.

At night, the scent of sandalwood wafts through Shou'an Hall.

The moonlight outside the window was obscured by thin clouds, revealing only a hazy glow.

Minglan has now been taken to the side room by Mother Cui to sleep.

The old lady looked at Hualan with loving eyes. In the candlelight, the girl's beautiful face became even more gentle.

She took Hualan's hand and said softly, "You have a very gentle character, yet you are also tenacious and calculated. I couldn't be more relieved."

"But the more dowry you have, the better. Your personal money is the foundation of your future."

As they were talking, Fang Mama and several maids came into the house carrying five or six heavy sandalwood boxes and opened the lids of the boxes carefully.

Inside, there were neatly arranged head ornaments, pearls and agates, land deeds, house deeds and various shop deeds, all of which were the old lady's dowry.

Hua Lan glanced lightly at these valuable items.

Her eyebrows couldn't help but furrowed, and she said softly, "Grandma, your granddaughter understands everything you have in mind."

"It's just that Daddy, Mom, Grandmother, Great Uncle, and Uncle have all prepared a lot for me, which is more than enough."

"Grandma, you are old now. You should keep more money with you."

"Besides, Xiaoliu is still with you."

The old lady smiled slightly, her eyes becoming more loving, and she said softly, "Don't worry, my dear child, I'll keep Minglan's share."

"No matter how foolish your father is, he wouldn't dare to shortchange Shou'an Hall on food, clothing, or other expenses. You don't have to worry too much about me."

The old lady continued, "After a woman gets married, she will live her life based on how her husband treats her. If he is a heartless man, she can just take the money and take care of herself."

"If the son-in-law has a conscience and cares about others, then think of him wholeheartedly and don't be stingy with anything."

Hua Lan nodded repeatedly, her beautiful eyes exceptionally clear and bright.

"When managing household affairs, one must know how to use both kindness and authority. Treat servants with rewards when they deserve them and with punishments when they deserve them."

"If you encounter any difficulties, send someone to tell grandma, and don't try to handle it on your own." The old lady continued to advise, her voice soft but every word serious.

"I think Han Ge'er is a good person and will definitely achieve great things in the future."

"If you take good care of the household affairs and he has no worries, he will definitely not treat you unfairly."

Hua Lan smiled, a hint of playfulness flickering in her eyes. "Grandmother, are you so sure he'll achieve great things in the future?"

"Will Grandmother be disappointed if he can only become an ordinary minor official?"

The old lady couldn't help laughing when she heard this. She reached out and tapped Hua Lan's forehead: "You little girl!"

"Then Grandmother wants to ask you, will you be disappointed?"

Hua Lan immediately shook her head. "As long as he treats me well, I'll be happy even if I become a farmer."

The old lady took her into her arms with a smile on her face and said in a serious tone: "Silly girl, my old eyes have never been wrong in judging people. You will have a good life in the future."

Please vote for me, please read it~

Chapter 59 Meeting Empress Cao

In the imperial palace, Wenhua Hall, the air is filled with the fresh scent of ambergris.

As per the custom, Zhao Han came here to lecture Zhao Zhen on classics and history. He was seen wearing a dark green official robe, holding a scripture, and standing beside the imperial desk.

Zhao Zhen was wearing a light yellow casual suit today, and the jade crown in his hair was shining with a warm luster. Compared with the past, his face showed a bit more kindness and relief.

After the lecture was over, Zhao Zhen did not let Zhao Han leave.

She looked at him thoughtfully, and suddenly remembered a memorial she had reviewed last night.

After thinking for a moment, I decided to test him with this.

So, Zhao Zhen pretended to be idle and said, "In the passage from the Book of Documents: Wu Yi, which we were discussing today, I thought of a line about the difficulty of harvesting. I thought of a ready-made example."

"Droughts have been raging in Zhejiang and Zhejiang for days, and locust plagues are even more severe, with Xiuzhou being the worst hit. Yesterday, I submitted a memorial requesting the imperial court to send an additional 60,000 dan of grain."

"If this matter were left to you to decide, how would you handle it?"

Zhao Han's heart suddenly tightened when he heard this.

He knew that the government was testing his abilities. If he gave an inappropriate answer and displeased the government, many people would be demoted and exiled to serve as officials in a cold and harsh place.

So, he calmed his mind, pondered for a moment, and then said solemnly: "Sixty thousand dan of grain may seem like a small amount, but behind it are the lives of millions of people."

"The autumn harvest is approaching. Although the harvest won't be as good as in previous years, it will at least allow the people to survive this winter."

Zhao Zhen raised his eyebrows, his eyes slightly fixed, and there was a hint of surprise in his tone.

"According to your opinion, shouldn't I issue an order to allocate grain?"

Zhao Han's voice was calm and firm. He cupped his hands and said, "Going back to the government, it's true that we shouldn't allocate grain directly."

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall suddenly became quiet.

Zhang Maoze, who was standing by, was shocked and couldn't help but secretly glance at the official's expression.

This official who ruled the country with benevolence hated to see the common people suffer the most.

His Highness actually refused to allocate food relief... Why would he just walk into the trap for no reason...

"I'll give you another chance. Think of your answer." Zhao Zhen took a deep breath and stared at Zhao Han.

Zhao Han bowed deeply and said, "I think not only should we not allocate grain, but we should also raise the price of grain as soon as possible."

Zhao Zhen's brows furrowed even deeper.

"I hope the emperor will listen to my detailed explanation."

"With severe drought and locust plagues hitting Liangzhe, grain prices are bound to rise sharply."

"Local government officials can purchase grain at prices higher than the market price as soon as possible. Grain merchants are driven by profit and will go to great lengths to transfer grain from Huguang, Jianghuai and other areas to Liangzhe."

"You can also order each prefecture and county to set up special grain purchasing points, issue passes to grain transporters, and exempt them from commercial taxes along the way."

"Once grain continues to flow into Liangzhe, grain prices will naturally fall. Even if some grain merchants intend to hoard goods at a high price, that's fine."

"By then, the government can open its warehouses and release grain to stabilize prices, and new grain will continue to arrive. If grain merchants who have hoarded grain don't sell it at a low price, the grain will just rot in the warehouse."