After Yang Wan died, Deng Ying went to Silijian alone.
Breakfast was being had in the back of the main hall. Zheng Yuejia and Hu Xiang sat on either side of He Yixian, while two other young eunuchs stood on the left and right behind He Yixian, serving him carefully.
The meals in the Silijian were different from those in other places. They were prepared in a separate stove at the back. There were fixed amounts of rice and meat, and usually a few respectable people were given the food first. The remaining food would be shared among the people below. After Deng Ying was promoted to Bingbi and concurrently in charge of Dongchang, he was also included in the Silijian kitchen. However, he had been in the Dongjichang government office for some time, so the well-mannered eunuch in the kitchen gave the meals to Li Yu.
Today was the first time that Deng Ying had a meal in the Imperial Household Department.
He Yixian watched him come in and didn't say anything. He drank the bowl of porridge slowly and put it down. The eunuch beside him hurriedly picked up the porridge and went downstairs to add more.
He Yixian glanced at Deng Ying and asked casually, "Did you do it?"
The eunuch on the stove quickly responded, "It's done."
He Yixian took the bowl of porridge that had been refilled, "Then give me the bowl and chopsticks."
The eunuch handed over the bowl and chopsticks, and Deng Ying nodded to take them. Seeing that he had no place to sit, Zheng Yuejia put down his chopsticks and stood up.
"Grandfather, I'll go and wait for the draft."
"Sit down."
He Yixian picked up a piece of pickled cucumber and said, "It's only a short time now, and you're already panicking."
"yes… "
Zheng Yuejia had no choice but to sit down again.
Hu Xiang said coldly, "Zheng Yuejia, you are going to change your course when you see the wind."
He Yixian suddenly knocked the table with chopsticks, "Hu Xiang, haven't you suffered enough from your recklessness?"
Hu Xiang stood up quickly, "Yes, ancestor."
He Yixian said impatiently:
"Please sit down. I have been having a restless meal since he came in."
After he finished speaking, he held the bowl and looked at Deng Ying, "I should have asked you to kneel outside to eat, but it's snowing and windy today, and I'm afraid you're not feeling well and can't stand the wind. So just stand here and eat. After you finish, come with me to the Yangxin Palace to take up duty."
Deng Ying bowed her head, "Thank you, ancestor."
"Don't use such a harsh tone, I can't stand it. You are a person who cannot be taught now, but the rules of the Imperial Household Department have always been unacceptable to me, so you can't stand in front of His Majesty. You have broken the rules of the entire Imperial Household Department, and it's too late to make up for it now."
Deng Ying didn't say anything else. She stood in front of the snow curtain and slowly drank the porridge in the bowl.
He Yixian put down his chopsticks, followed by Zheng Yuejia and Hu Xiang. The eunuchs cleared the remaining food from the table and distributed it to the servants. Soon, they brewed hot tea again.
He Yixian asked casually, "We should not rush to deliver the bills to the Yangxin Palace today. We need to discuss with His Majesty the two memorials that were left in the palace yesterday. Which two should be taken care of?"
Zheng Yuejia said, "Yesterday, your majesty kept the memorials from Huang Ran, the imperial attendant, and Zhao Ande, the minister of the Ministry of Revenue, all of which requested the establishment of a crown prince. Including the six from three days ago and the twelve from five days ago, your majesty has kept a total of two. You must agree to return them today."
He Yixian took a sip of tea, looked up and said to Deng Ying: "What do you think?"
Deng Ying responded: "It is indeed too early to discuss the establishment of a crown prince at this time. These two opinions can be refuted."
He Yixian said: "It is easy to refute it now, but I am afraid that after Concubine Jieyu gives birth, this unhealthy trend will be impossible to suppress."
As he finished speaking, the snow curtain was lifted by the wind, and a dazzling morning light shone through. He Yixian raised her sleeves to shield her eyes, "What time is it?"
The eunuch outside said at the door: "Grandpa, it's morning, the senior officials in the cabinet have all come in to take up their duties."
"Okay. Where is your Majesty now?"
"Your Majesty has gone to the Queen Mother to inquire about her health."
He Yixian nodded and stood up, "Let's go sit in the main hall."
**
The Silijian had only one main hall, with four tables inside, serving pens, ink, paper and inkstone.
The purpose of establishing the Silijian in the previous dynasty was just to let the eunuchs help the emperor sort out the bills submitted by the cabinet and wait for the emperor's approval, and they were absolutely not allowed to participate in government affairs. Therefore, the emperor even set up an iron plate to prohibit eunuchs from participating in politics.
But during the Zhenning period, the affairs of the court became increasingly complicated. When Emperor Zhenning was the crown prince, he was overwhelmed by the strict rules of the Wenhua Palace. After he ascended the throne, he did not have much interest in government affairs. Throughout the year, he only took care of financial affairs in his hands, and indulged himself and his clan in extravagance.
Deng Yi took advantage of this opportunity to collude with the Imperial Household Department and tacitly allowed the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department to exercise the power of imperial approval on behalf of the emperor.
Emperor Zhenning found that people like He Yixian were sincerely watching him, and he could still keep a clear eye and ears by focusing on the big ones and letting go of the small ones. As a result, the iron plate of the emperor was slowly covered with dust.
At this time, the cabinet's draft had not yet been submitted. While the cabinet was still idle, He Yixian signaled several eunuchs to sit down. Seeing that Deng Ying was still standing, he asked, "Does this mean that you are willing to be taught by me?"
"yes."
He Yixian nodded, "Okay, then stand there. Anyway, you'll be at the factory office most of the time, so feel free to do as you please here."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Hu Xiangxian and asked, "I heard that the Yanxi Palace wants a lot of things."
Hu Xiang replied, "It can't be said that they asked for a lot of things, but that His Majesty gave them a lot of rewards. You know, Concubine Jiang's family is not of good origin, and their family in Zhejiang only has a piece of land the size of a palm. His Majesty has praised their family and has promised that if Concubine Jiang gave birth to a prince, the Jiang family would be made a marquis. This generous reward is not easy to move now."
He Yixian said, "Why rush? Concubine Jiang gave birth at the beginning of the year. When spring comes, we can report it to the Ministry of Revenue."
Hu Xiang shook his head. "Yang Lun from the Ministry of Revenue is determined to implement the new policy in the south. How can he listen to this?"
He Yixian said: "He won't listen to you, but he may listen to Deng Bingbi's words."
After he finished speaking, he did not allow Deng Ying to respond, but turned around and continued, "Although the court is petitioning to establish the eldest son of the emperor as the crown prince, we cannot favor one over the other. The Yanxi Palace is now precious, and whatever she wants and lacks, the Second and Fourth Bureaus cannot be spared."
"Those people in the Second, Third and Fourth Bureaus all understand that after seeing His Majesty punish Concubine Ning, they all went to the Yanxi Palace."
"Punish Concubine Ning?"
He Yixian pinched the base of his thumb and asked, "When did this happen?"
Hu Xiang said, "Oh, you were recuperating outside two days ago, and your son forgot to tell you that two days ago, His Majesty punished Empress Ning in the Yangxin Palace. Now, somehow, the news has spread to all the palaces."
He Yixian nodded and said, "Then what is there to argue about in the court?"
Hu Xiang was also annoyed, "Who said it wasn't?"
Deng Ying listened to the conversation quietly, looked up and saw Zheng Yuejia pinching the teacup with white knuckles, and then he coughed lightly.
Although Zheng Yuejia came to his senses, he almost dropped the teacup.
As the few people chatted, time passed quickly. After noon, the cabinet's draft was submitted.
He Yixian flipped through the first few books and raised his hand to let Deng Ying come over. "You can review them."
Deng Ying took it carefully, stood on a table by the window, and opened the memorial.
The one on the top was written by Emperor Huang Ran, and its content was still a request to establish a crown prince.
This man was the top scholar in the imperial examination in the second year of Zhenning. He was very careful with every word and had brilliant literary talent.
Deng Ying rolled up his sleeves, took a brush and dipped it in cinnabar, feeling melancholy.
When he was young, he thought that he would eventually become a person who wrote petitions to the emperor and gave advice to the emperor, his brilliant articles would be spread all over the world, and he would have friends all over the capital. But now, he has become a person who reads memorials. Although he still has a pen in his hand, every word he writes is a crime under the iron plate.
As he was writing, he suddenly recalled the question Concubine Ning had asked him, "If a person knew his own fate, how would he live?"
Does he know what his fate will be
In fact, he knew it, but he didn't want to tell Yang Wan because he was afraid that she couldn't bear it. He himself was still internalizing the despair.
**
At the hour of You, Deng Ying came out of the Silijian and went to a factory office. When he returned to the moat room, it was already dark. Li Yu brought the food to his room, put it on the table, and wiped his hands with his clothes, "I'll heat it up again, eat it while it's hot."
Deng Ying took off his official uniform and put on a blue-gray robe. He lit a lamp, opened the bedside cabinet with the key, and took out the medicine he had taken from the Imperial Pharmacy.
Li Yu looked at his actions and asked in confusion: "What are you doing? You don't even want to eat."
Deng Ying looked at the food on the table and said to Li Yu, "You can eat it."
Li Yu swallowed his saliva and said, "Really?"
Deng Ying stood up straight, "Well, Wanwan said you are growing taller."
Li Yu raised his brows.
"Wanwan? Who is that?"
Deng Ying was startled and coughed quickly, "Oh, Maid Yang."
Li Yu said: "My sister never allowed Chen Zhangyin to call her little brother, you are really bold."
Deng Ying nodded unconsciously, "Yes, I shouldn't call her that. Don't tell her."
Li Yu said: "If you ask me, you should be careful. Yang Wan is even more powerful than my sister. She is really tough."
After he finished speaking, he took a bite of the meat dish and continued, "Today I passed by the gate of Yanxi Palace and saw that it was very gratifying. Chen Gongzheng from the Palace Administration Office brought a lot of people to give those servants who had their eyes on the window a good beating. After that, they asked them to go and apologize to Empress Ning. Later, I heard from my sister that Yang Wan brought those bad-mouthed people to the Empress. Coincidentally, His Majesty was also having lunch with the Empress today. He hadn't rested yet, but after hearing what Yang Wan said, he didn't protect Concubine Jiang, and immediately asked the Palace Administration Office to arrest them."
Deng Ying asked, "What did she say?"
Li Yu stuffed his mouth with food and said vaguely, "You can ask her yourself, but it may take a few days. My sister said that although the emperor blamed the Yanxi Palace, Jiang Shangyi was also angry with Yang Wan. Who knows where she is being held now."
Deng Ying didn't ask any further questions.
Li Yu put down his chopsticks and said, "By the way, what are you doing with the medicine?"
"Oh, this is caused by soaking your feet in boiling water."
He said, pulling his robes together and going out the door. "I'll go cook first. You can help me close the door later."
Li Yu stood up and said, "You have to do all these things yourself, such as boiling water and carrying basins. The Imperial Household Department gave you a few eunuchs to serve you, but you don't want them. So why don't you let me serve you? If I follow you, maybe I can get rich somewhere."
Deng Ying paused and didn't respond to him.
By the time he had finished cooking the medicine, Li Yu had already cleared the tables, chairs, and dishes.
The charcoal in the house was burning, but it was still a little cold.
Deng Ying moved the charcoal basin to his side, took off his shoes and socks, sat on the edge of the couch, and rolled up his trouser legs.
Although the injury was fundamental and could not be completely healed, ever since I listened to Yang Wan's advice and used warm soaking in medicine, it really didn't hurt as much as before.
He stood up and picked up a book on the bed. He read less than two pages when he heard Li Yu say from outside, "Hey, why are you limping?"
Then Yang Wan deliberately lowered her voice: "Shh... Can you please not be so loud?"
"You... what are you doing sneaking around like that?"
"I brought him food and stole some medicine. I waited until he went out before I went to get the food. He... hasn't gotten sick yet, right?"