28 Chapter 28 The Storm Is Coming

The fourth prince was not happy at all when he received this gift. He knew that Yan Ji was given to Jing Shao by the eldest prince, but now Jing Shao gave it to him intact. He could not push away this hot potato. Because the elder brother can give the younger brother beauty, but the younger brother cannot give the elder brother a concubine, and below him, there is no adult brother.

Jing Shao had actually copied the book a long time ago, but he was lazy for a long time and didn't want to go to court.

Mu Hanzhang urged him to go back as soon as possible: "The court changes rapidly. Now that the fourth prince has returned to the court, it is better to be careful."

So, Ge Ruoyi was left to Gui Jiudao to learn hidden weapons, and Ren Feng was asked to secretly clean up the wasteland in the eastern suburbs. Jing Shao reluctantly packed his luggage and returned to the palace with his own princess.

On the third day after the fourth prince returned to the court, King Cheng Jing Shao also completed ten copies of the "Military Book". Emperor Hongzheng read it in court and asked questions in it. He answered them all fluently. The emperor was very pleased and rewarded King Cheng with ten pieces of tribute satin and a bucket of pearls.

The court officials all said that although the king could not inherit the throne, the emperor's favor did not wane. Only Jing Shao knew that his father rewarded him for his stance on the Three Feudatories, which was just a flattery.

Tribute satin is a good thing. Jing Shao planned to make a few new clothes for Jun Qing and himself. As for this bucket of pearls, it was useless. Now there was only one female family member left in the palace, Song Lingxin, and he was still annoyed when he saw her, so he asked Mu Hanzhang to take this bucket of fine pearls back to Beiwei Marquis's Mansion and distribute it to the aunts and uncles.

Mu Hanzhang knew that he wanted to save face for himself, so he naturally would not refuse his kindness. He asked Duofu to go to the warehouse to pick out a few gifts and took Yunzhu back to Beiwei Marquis's Mansion.

A bucket of pearls, each handful for aunts and uncles, each handful for sisters, and each twenty for several concubines. The remaining half was given to honor the grandmother, and the other half went to Beiwei Marquis's husband.

"Oh~ These are tribute pearls, each one is round and full, only mother has seen a few of them." The talkative third aunt held the pearls in her hand and chattered non-stop.

The other aunts and sisters were also smiling, calling her the princess affectionately.

Aunt Qiu had recovered, and she was finally relieved when she stood behind the Beiwei Marquis and looked at her son who was dressed in gorgeous clothes and full of style.

The Beiwei Marquis had a cold face from beginning to end. He started to scold Mu Hanzhang without saying a few words: "He is a man, and he can't leave any offspring. A wife must be virtuous! Now the prince has no offspring, but he has sent away all the concubines. It's too shameful to tell others. Those who know are young and ignorant, and those who don't know think they can't teach their sons. "

The third husband, who was originally talking to the fourth husband about the pearl beauty soup with great joy, stopped talking immediately after hearing this. When the slightly sharp voice stopped, the whole hall fell silent. Although Beiwei Houfu is the legitimate mother, Mu Hanzhang is now the prince's wife, and her rank is higher than Beiwei Houfu. Everyone was a little embarrassed and didn't know what to do.

Mu Hanzhang slowly put down the cup and looked at Mrs. Du with some amusement. She said this simply because Jing Shao gave the fourth prince a princess and was afraid that her daughter would be wronged if she married her. She really treated the fourth prince as her son-in-law!

"Mother, you worry too much. My son has been studying the Four Books and the Five Classics since he was a child, and the one who taught him was the clan school teacher. Even if my son can't do the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, the husbands in the capital will not laugh at you." Mu Hanzhang slowly stroked the rim of the cup and said meaningfully, "The affairs of the Cheng Palace have always been decided by the prince, and it is useless for the mother to lose her temper with her son. "

The husband of Beiwei Marquis slammed the cup in his hand on the table, stared at him for a long time, and suddenly slowed down his tone and said: "Isn't it said that since you are married, you should think about your husband's family. The prince is young, so you should advise him more. Since you can no longer inherit the throne, you should leave yourself more ways. If you have the qualities to marry the fourth prince, the prince and the fourth prince will be brothers-in-law. If there is anything in the future, there will be a way out.

Mu Hanzhang found it ridiculous to hear this. Does Mrs. Du think of herself as a three-year-old child? Are brothers-in-law closer than brothers? In the royal family, even brothers kill each other, so the relationship of a brother-in-law is worthless. He couldn't help but sneer: "How can a married brother decide on his sister's marriage? Besides, the queen mother has the final say on this matter. Even if the prince is willing, it won't help."

"..." Beiwei Houfu was so angry that he couldn't speak, but Mu Hanzhang's words made sense. His daughter's marriage had not been decided yet. If he said too much, it would affect her reputation. He stared blankly for a long time and had to give up.

Mu Hanzhang was a man. Although he was from his mother's family, he couldn't sit in the inner house for a long time. He estimated that Beiwei Hou should be back from the court, so he stood up and said goodbye to see his father.

At the same time, a big event happened in the court that day.

The Southwest King reported that the tribute sent to the capital by the Southwest fiefdom was robbed, and the border areas were in distress. He requested to reduce the tribute this year.

"What do you think of this matter?" Emperor Hongzheng asked in a deep voice, holding the memorial with a light yellow cover from the Southwest King.

"The southwest is close to Yunnan and Tibet, and there is chaos there now. The tribute was robbed, which is helpless. In my opinion, this tribute can be reduced." The Minister of Revenue said carefully.

"Dare to rob tribute, these thieves are really rampant. In my opinion, we should send troops to encircle and suppress them and take back the tribute." The Minister of War said angrily.

"The renovation of the Summer Resort this year urgently needs marble from the southwest. If the tribute is reduced, we must ask the southwest to send more marble." The Minister of Works said in embarrassment. He thought that the marble would be delivered in June, so he didn't buy other stones. Now even if it is delivered again, it is estimated that it will not arrive in Beijing until July. No matter how hard the work is rushed, it will delay the emperor's summer vacation.

The ministers argued endlessly, but Emperor Hongzheng frowned deeper and deeper, and glanced at the three princes: "What do you three think?"

The fourth prince had just returned to the court and was eager to show himself. Seeing that his father was unhappy, he stepped forward and said, "I heard that the southwest suffered a spring drought and the people were suffering. Now the tribute was robbed, which is worse than ever. Although reducing the tribute is helpless, it can show the emperor's benevolence to the people in the southwest."

Emperor Hongzheng's eyes were deep, and he could not tell whether he was happy or angry. He did not express anything about the fourth prince speaking first instead of his two brothers. He turned to look at the second prince who lowered his eyes and said, "Jingchen, what do you think?"

Jingchen stepped forward, bowed and said, "The court pays tribute not for money, but to deter the three vassals and show the power of heaven. The tribute was suddenly robbed on the way, which is the fault of the southwest, not the court. Therefore, I think that the tribute should not be reduced!" His voice was steady and powerful, neither hurried nor slow, and he paused for every word, which was loud and clear, and the noisy court suddenly fell silent.

The fierceness in Emperor Hongzheng's eyes gradually eased, revealing a look of relief, but he didn't say anything, and continued to look at Jing Shao who was impatient on the side: "Jing Shao, what do you want to say?"

"Hmph, the tribute from the southwest to Beijing does not pass through Yunnan and Tibet! And half of the tribute is marble weighing thousands of pounds. Which bandit would be so stupid as to rob these tributes?" Jing Shao stood there, without any greeting, and spoke without hesitation, looking angry.

Emperor Hongzheng was not annoyed when he heard such straightforward and rude words, but raised his lips: "Do you understand?"

The final result was that Emperor Hongzheng sent someone to investigate the robbery of tribute, but the election was not mentioned in the court. The King of the Southwest was asked to send the marble first, and the matter of reducing the tribute was temporarily suppressed.

After leaving the court, Emperor Hongzheng called the second prince Jingchen to the imperial study alone.

Jing Shao patted the frustrated Fourth Prince on the shoulder, turned around and grabbed Beiwei Hou who was about to go home.

"What advice does the prince have?" Mu Jin politely walked out side by side with Jing Shao.

"Father-in-law is too generous. Today, Jun Qing is back to the Marquis' Mansion. You can go and pick him up on the way." Jing Shao chuckled.

"Han Zhang went to the Marquis' Mansion?" Mu Jin couldn't help but smile a little after hearing this, "That's great, the prince can have lunch before going back."

"Then you're welcome. It's just right to have a drink with the Marquis. I've been thinking about the Northwest Liquor last time." Jing Shao laughed, let Beiwei Hou go first, and he got on the horse himself.

Mu Jin looked at Jing Shao, who was respectful and friendly, and then glanced at the Fourth Prince who was walking with his head down not far away. He couldn't help but frowned slightly and turned to get on the carriage.

Beiwei Hou's health has been poor for a few years. He has been bedridden for many years and basically doesn't see guests.

Mu Hanzhang went to pay respect to his grandmother and presented the precious medicinal materials he brought. The white-haired old man held his hand and talked for a while.

"Grandma is old and can't manage things. When you marry into the royal family, you must be cautious in what you say and do, and you must also love your husband. You are already married, so you will rise and fall together, and you must not harbor resentment. It is not easy to become a royal family. When the Queen returned, what was his situation, and what kind of life is he living now? People are all made of flesh and blood. If you treat him well, he will not treat you harshly." The old man has lived in a royal family for a lifetime, and he can see things more clearly.

"Grandson understands, grandma, don't worry, the prince treats grandson very well." Mu Hanzhang held the old man's hands with both hands, and a burst of warmth surged in his heart. Since he was a child, his grandmother loved him. Although he was not as good as the legitimate grandson, she had never been too biased. If she made things difficult for him, the old family also tried their best to protect him, so that he suffered less grievances.

The old man was old, and he was a little exhausted after talking for a while. Mu Hanzhang helped his grandmother to sleep and then left. As soon as he walked to the front yard, he met a group of cousins ​​who were returning from school.

"Hey, isn't this the princess? What's the matter? Did you come back to your mother's house to complain about the injustice you suffered in the palace?" When Mu Yangwen saw Mu Hanzhang, he habitually wanted to make a few sarcastic remarks to him. The younger brothers behind him couldn't help laughing when they heard this.