Joy of Life: I'm really not a saint

A young eunuch bowed his head and replied, "Your Majesty, Her Royal Highness the Princess has indeed returned to Kyoto."

"Send a message and ask her not to stay outside the palace anymore. She should come back to the palace and spend more time with her mother."

Emperor Qing was deeply troubled. A few days later, in the houseboat owned by the Second Prince, the Princess smiled and breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the news. Then she moved back to the palace as if she had no more grudges.

After that, she was very active. Not only did she visit the Queen, she also paid her respects to the Queen Mother every day, constantly making her presence felt!

As Emperor Qing did this, something was beginning to gather in the palace.

A young eunuch became the bridge between the ministers and Emperor Qing.

This person is Hong Zhu!

Rumor has it that he has been working for the emperor and is well liked by his majesty. He was taken in by Hong Sixiang, who taught him some martial arts, and finally let him take his surname Hong.

Hong Zhu was guarding outside the Crown Prince's Mansion in the Eastern Palace at the moment. He was sent by His Majesty to the Eastern Palace to serve as the chief eunuch.

Seeing the Queen coming out of the East Palace, Hong Zhu hurriedly knelt on the ground, calling out from time to time: "Long live the Queen!"

"Why are you being so polite, Eunuch Hong? Your Majesty has been so worried about state affairs that he hasn't left the Imperial Study for many days!" The Queen handed over the insulated food box in her hand and said, "I have stewed some tonic here. Please give it to Your Majesty, Eunuch Hong!"

"After all, the dragon's body is more important!"

Hong Zhu's eyelids rolled and he immediately agreed.

Chapter 272 Infernal Affairs in the Palace.

Hong Zhu's original surname was Chen. He was the youngest son of a wealthy family named Chen in Yingshang County, Yingzhou Prefecture. Although his family was not as wealthy as a country, it was also quite wealthy in the area.

Why did he enter the palace to become a eunuch?

He had spent ten carefree years. According to the established plan and his father's love, he would inherit part of the family business and then marry and have children, until his family would have a wealthy branch or a prodigal son who would squander his wealth.

But then things went against our wishes.

Just being the magistrate of Yingshang County was enough to destroy his family!

The reason was simply because he had his eyes on his family's wealth, even though he had already shown filial respect in many ways before, but human greed is not so easily satisfied.

The Chen family had no power but was still wealthy. They had a lot of luck to get to where they are today, but it was just that the crisis came to an end in his generation.

The county magistrate, Mr. Wu, not only found an excuse to confiscate all of the Chen family's properties, he also secretly colluded with bandits to wipe out the entire Chen family, in order to prevent the news from leaking out. From this point of view, Mr. Wu is a more competent villain than Fan Xian and Li Ang.

People are not as good as the sky.

If nothing unexpected happens, this is going to be an accident.

Hong Zhu and his brother were playing hide-and-seek outside. They only remembered to go home in the evening. Fearing that they would be punished, they deliberately delayed for a while. Fortunately, they escaped.

He no longer has to worry about punishment from his parents.

From this day on, he understood the importance of power!

This kind of deep hatred is something that no one can forget. Even though he and his brother were still young at the time and could not bear such a heavy burden, this was the only motivation they had to live.

After that, the two of them hid their identities. For the safety of himself and his brother, Hong Zhu was ruthless and decided to go all out and castrate himself and enter the imperial court.

Once a person has motivation, he will learn all the skills needed to achieve this goal in order to take revenge, and the ability to read people's expressions is the most important thing in the palace! It is more important than any talent or martial arts.

After spending three years in a low-key manner, he successfully got close to the eunuch chief, Hong Sixiang. Not only was he taught martial arts and raised like an adopted son, he was also given the surname Hong. From then on, he became a person in the palace that no one dared to provoke except the nobles.

After several years of operation, although he had won the praise of the nobles in the harem and the attention of His Majesty, he did not dare to abuse his power, let alone reveal his true identity.

The power of eunuchs is already very limited, and their status outside the palace is questionable. Unless there is a trustworthy court official who knows their ins and outs and cooperates with them, this advantage cannot be expanded indefinitely - according to the laws of the Qing Kingdom, eunuchs and the harem are not allowed to interfere in government affairs.

This is the apparent reason, but more importantly, Hong Zhu has not found a truly smart person.

Looking around, all I see are dead ghosts with short-lived looks!

His brother now lives in Jiaozhou, and lives in peace and stability.

There is still a long way to go, and Hong Zhu still has a lot of time to wait for the opportunity to come.

All this happened until Fan Xian appeared before him. It was not him who took the initiative to contact Fan Xian, although he had observed Fan Xian for a long time.

Fan Xian used the power of the Supervisory Council and after screening, he set his sights on him. Not only did he thoroughly investigate his identity, he also sent people to poison the entire family of Mr. Wu, the magistrate of Yingshang County, and then took advantage of the night to kill the gang of bandits, causing a river of blood to flow, and he got things done in advance.

Now, Hong Zhu had no choice but to cooperate.

His blood feud was avenged, his brother was well arranged, and he completely became Fan Xian's man.

As smart as he is, he knows what it means to use both kindness and force. He tacitly did not mention that he wanted to see his brother, because he knew that there was a hostage involved.

There was no need to do anything unnecessary like writing letters. With the ability of the Supervisory Council, it was easy to imitate a note.

The conclusion of one thing also brings about the arrival of a new goal.

In the past year, he has passed a lot of information about the harem to Fan Xian through the backdoor he left behind. Behind the scenes, Hong Zhu is also carrying out all the tasks assigned by Fan Xian, even though Fan Xian and Hong Zhu had a public quarrel in front of everyone, giving everyone the illusion that Fan Xian wanted to kill Hong Zhu and Hong Zhu also wanted to trap Fan Xian.

In fact, if you really think about it, between him and Fan Xian, it is hard to tell who was the first to notice the abnormality between the prince and the eldest princess.

Fan Xian learned about it from the letter sent by Haitang Duoduo sent by Li An, while Hong Zhu really relied on his sense of smell to figure it out. He was hesitating whether to tell Fan Xian about this matter. After all, Fan Xian had not returned to Kyoto yet, so even if he told him, it would be useless and would increase the risk of being exposed.

But as another letter came in front of him, his expression changed and he decided to give this information to Fan Xian.

"You should go to the Imperial Study again and take a look at what is bothering His Majesty recently, so that I can comfort him accordingly." The Queen looked worried about her husband, and she sighed and said, "Pay attention to your response. If you can find out, then do so. If you can't, it's okay. Don't put your life at risk."

By this time, Hong Zhu had been in the Eastern Palace for more than two months.

Upon hearing this, Hong Zhu's face was filled with gratitude and he went towards the imperial study.

Along the way, whether it was the eunuchs and maids in the palace or the officials who had just come out of the court, they were all very polite to the eunuch chief who had become popular recently, and there were even people who flattered him madly.

No matter who praised him, Hong Zhu would humbly bow his head in return and dare not accept it.

In the imperial study, he first reported to Emperor Qing about the various situations in the Eastern Palace over the past two months, and then he told him exactly what the Queen had said.

Without waiting for Emperor Qing's response, he stood aside, like a statue, and said nothing more.

After Emperor Qing finished his official duties for the day, he returned to the East Palace with the answer and whispered something in the Queen's ear.

"You mean to say that Your Majesty is worried about the empty treasury?" The Queen frowned, and the noble air she had deliberately created had long since disappeared. "What's the point of Your Majesty worrying about these alone? Don't all the ministers in the court know how to share your worries? It will take a long time to repair the river embankment, and the people are waiting for food with their mouths open. If I had money, it would be great. It would also save Your Majesty from worrying!"

"Don't bother me, Madam. I heard that Master Fan has been in Jiangnan for a long time. I believe he will be able to sort out the inner treasury soon. Won't the silver flow into Kyoto like water?" Hong Zhu laughed and said, "Besides, isn't Master Fan Jianfan still in charge of the inner treasury?"

“This is what’s worrying!”

The Queen's expression changed for a moment, then returned to normal. She asked calmly, "I heard that you and Fan Xian don't get along well?"

"Rumors are just nonsense spread by people who can't stand seeing my success!"

"Whether it's a rumor or not, Fan Xian is now in power, so you shouldn't be too tough."

After pretending to be concerned, the Queen turned the topic to Emperor Qing again.

"I am not in a position to ask about state affairs, but when Your Majesty is not dealing with state affairs, where do you go to hang out and relax? How do you feel?"

Hong Zhu was filled with anxiety and fear, knowing clearly what was taboo in the palace. However, seeing that the queen was getting impatient, he could only grit his teeth and said in a low voice, "Xiaolou."

Chapter 273 Several Spies.

"It's the little building again!"

The expression on the queen's face now is no longer unhappy, it can be said to be ferocious!

Her eyebrows were raised, her face was twitching, and she asked through gritted teeth: "Tell me in detail! When do you go? How often do you go? "

Hong Zhu's heart skipped a beat. He looked around and quickly knelt down, saying with a bitter face, "Your Majesty, this is really difficult for me. I just went to the Imperial Study today. For more than two months before this, I stayed in the East Palace to deal with various miscellaneous matters!"

Seeing that the Queen was still looking at him without saying a word, he could only explain again: "Tonight, when I was about to return, Your Majesty did go in the direction of the small building."

The queen had an idea in her mind.

Hong Zhu had only been there for one day when he ran into Emperor Qing going to the small building. So counting this way, he must have been there countless times in the past!

That bitch, even after so many years of death, her ghost is still lingering around!

"Okay, I don't mean to blame you, you get up first!" The queen felt a little weak, half leaning on the recliner, waving her hand and saying, "You go and do your own thing."

As Hong Zhu retreated, the queen could still be heard mumbling, "Xiao Lou. Xiao Lou."

After Hong Zhu left the Central Garden and was about to go back to his residence to rest, a young man in bright yellow flashed out from the dark corner. Who else except the prince could wear such a color in the East Palace?

"Your Majesty?"

Hong Zhu was startled and was just about to strike out with all his strength!

"Hong Zhu, I have been waiting for you for a long time!" The prince smiled slightly, not minding Hong Zhu's gaffe at all.

After nearly a year of recuperation, the prince's body was obviously fuller than before, and even his face had some color, no longer the abnormal white color before.

Apparently, Fei Jie's medicine from the Third Office of the Censorate was very effective, and the prince had never stopped taking it.

In addition, during these days, the Queen often went in and out of the East Palace and kept a strict watch on him, not allowing him to be as dissolute in matters between men and women as before.

"Your Highness, thank you for waiting for a long time. What do you want me to do?"

Hong Zhu asked carefully. Considering the prince's limited patience, he could wait for him for such a long time. It must be something serious.

The prince was also helpless. Although he understood that Hong Zhu was His Majesty's man and was sent to monitor him, the East Palace was now out of available manpower. No one in the center was as smart as Hong Zhu, and those who were smarter were unreliable. He had no choice but to come looking for Hong Zhu.

At least, when it comes to dealing with Fan Xian, the two of them can cooperate!

Besides, after I ascend the throne, I can also reward Hong Zhu more!

"Come here with your ears!"

Hong Zhu leaned sideways and listened quietly. Slowly, his face turned pale, his body trembled slightly, and his lips were shaking!

“Your Highness!” Hong Zhu was sweating profusely and almost crying. He said with a bitter face, “This is going to kill me!”

"If I really want your life, can you refuse to give it to me?"

Li Chengqian sneered at first, then realized that he still needed to use the person in front of him, so he softened his tone and said, "If you are careful about this matter, there won't be any trouble. Not only can you save your life, but you can also beat Fan Xian!"

"Don't you hate Fan Xian? I heard that you mentioned that matter in private and in front of others."

Seeing Hong Zhu's face gradually darken, the prince knew that the time was almost right, so he smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't treat you unfairly after this is done!"

As the crown prince of a country, Li Chengqian had made such a heavy promise, but Hong Zhu knew it very well. The prince's people in the previous Ministry of Revenue case did not have a good ending. They could not even remember and recognize the people!

It can be considered as giving a push to "one's own people" personally!

Hong Zhu gritted his teeth and said, "Slave, give it a try!"

"That's right!" Li Chengqian laughed and said, "It's getting late now, I won't disturb you to rest, but you have to pay attention to your work!"

"Slave understands!"

Nodding, Li Chengqian strode towards the direction where Hong Zhu came from.

When he could no longer see Li Chengqian's back, Hong Zhu moved his body, which had been standing there for a long time. With a sneer on his lips, he turned around and silently returned to his own yard.

By the way, how many spies have I been?

Hong Zhu asked himself

······

"Mother, I have given instructions. We can start now!" The prince had listened to the conversation between the queen and Hong Zhu in the other corner. When Hong Zhu was about to leave, he hurried to Hong Zhu's residence, and the above scene happened.

"Can the Ministry of Revenue still do something?" The Queen didn't know whether she was asking the Prince or herself. She closed her eyes for a long time, thinking and calculating, and then said: "Can this Hong Zhu really be trusted? My son, I am always worried..."

"Mother, you don't have to worry. If it works out, we can save ourselves a lot of trouble. Even if it doesn't, the only one who will be unlucky is Hong Zhu!"

Li Chengqian smiled and answered the Queen's previous question: "Is Hong Zhu trustworthy? In my son's opinion, he should be trustworthy!"

The queen nodded, agreeing with the prince's words.

"I also think so."

After saying this, the Queen began to analyze the situation on her own: "Before, he was working for His Majesty, so one can imagine his future. Now that he has been transferred to the East Palace, although he has been promoted twice, his authority is not as great as before!"

"Isn't it obvious?"

Li Chengqian chuckled, "Hong Zhu has been keeping a low profile in the palace for many years. Once he gained power, he got carried away and even asked for a bribe from Fan Xian! Although Fan Xian is indeed not short of money, he still needs the other party to be willing to give! So Fan Xian reported Hong Zhu's bribery to my father, and he was demoted to the East Palace by my father."

This incident caused a big stir at the time, and everyone in the palace knew about it.

Just when everyone thought that Hong Zhu was doomed, surprisingly, His Majesty simply transferred him to the East Palace. His Majesty's intention to protect him was obvious.

"It seems that His Majesty really values ​​Hong Zhu. If the person who reported it was not Fan Xian, others would not even be punished if they reported it!" The Queen sighed.

Which eunuch in this palace doesn't ask for bribes?