I never expected that the 38-year-old Hu Shanwei would be so stunningly beautiful.
Mu Chun hurriedly said, "Don't believe his one-sided words. The more handsome a man is, the more likely he is to lie. He is no longer the Ji Gang of the past. The Ji Gang of today is very bad."
Ji Gang chuckled, "I have never been a good person, but I have never done anything to let you down, nor have I ever hurt you."
Mu Chun counted on his fingers and started to list: "Why haven't you harmed her? Those little things are not counted, let's just count the big ones. When Shan Wei first entered the palace, who sprinkled peach blossom powder in the osmanthus cake to drive her out of the palace?"
Ji Gangjun blushed, "Master Mao gave the order, how can I not obey? I am in the Jinyiwei, I have no choice."
"Okay, I'll assume you were still young and ignorant at that time, but—" Mu Chun stretched out his second finger, "When you went to Yanzhou to investigate the truth about King Luhuang's death, who immediately reported the truth to Emperor Gaozu, causing Shanwei to be threatened by Emperor Gaozu that if she leaked the secret, her whole family would be killed? At that time, Lord Ji had already been promoted to a thousand households, so Lord Mao didn't instruct you in this matter, right?"
The once unreasonable devil of the capital city has begun to convince people with his brain and mouth instead of relying on fists or cheating.
Ji Gang was suddenly speechless.
Mu Chun was very satisfied with his gentlemanly behavior of talking instead of taking action, and said to Hu Shanwei: "Did you hear that? Never believe the sweet words of a pretty man. You should look at what he does, not what he says."
After much deliberation, Hu Shanwei decided to trust her husband.
Ji Gang was anxious. "If you don't believe me, you can ask Mu Chun to check Minister Bao to see if I lied to you. I feel bad that Lady Fan died so tragically. We have been colleagues for so many years and have some feelings for each other. Before Lord Mao was tortured to death, it was Lady Fan who got the anesthetic from the doctor and asked Jiang Quan to send him to the death row. That's why Lord Mao didn't die so painfully. I, Ji Gang, have grievances to complain and revenge to avenge. Shanwei, you and I are absolutely on the same boat when it comes to Lady Fan's death."
Hu Shanwei thought for a moment, and said to Mu Chun: "Gong Fan has been very kind to me. Moreover, I was eager to leave the palace to marry you and retire. It was Gong Fan who took over, so I was able to escape unscathed. If it weren't for her, I would have been the one who died in the shipwreck. You go and investigate Lord Bao. If what Ji Gang said is true—the king is violent and stupid, narrow-minded, hypocritical and vicious, and even spared no female officials who only wanted to protect themselves; the queen mother is cruel and cruel, and she will do anything for power, including overthrowing her own son's throne; the ministers flatter the emperor without caring about right and wrong, and the innocent souls in the river, such a country..."
Hu Shanwei paused, his eyes turned cold, and he said, "It's okay to talk a little."
Hu Shanwei hurried back just as the harem was about to be locked. Before he had time to eat dinner, a young eunuch came to invite him, saying that the Empress Dowager of the Cining Palace wanted to ask Hu Shanggong to come over to play chess to relieve her boredom.
Prince Heng has been going to the Cining Palace almost every day recently to fulfill his filial duties. It is estimated that the mother and son have almost reached an agreement and are trying to force Hu Shanwei to give a definite answer.
According to the Queen Mother's usual character, Hu Shanwei would either be used by her or destroyed by her. Those who obey her will prosper, and those who disobey her will perish. The Queen Mother only needs to reveal to Emperor Jianwen that Hu Shanwei knows the news of Fan Shanggong's death to put Shanwei to death.
Hu Shanwei said, "Go back and tell the Queen Mother that I will go over after I change my clothes."
Do you want it? I'll give it to you. I'm just afraid you can't finish it, so you have to take it away.
Cining Palace.
Empress Dowager Lu and Hu Shanwei sat opposite each other, with a chessboard between them.
Empress Dowager Lu asked, "Have you thought it through, Concubine Hu?"
Hu Shanwei asked in return: "Do I have any choice?"
Empress Dowager Lu placed a black piece on the table, "You can choose to die."
Hu Shanwei placed a white piece and asked, "What does the Queen Mother want me to do?"
Empress Dowager Lu handed her a list. "There are only eight masters in the harem now, and there are too many redundant palace maids. The new era name 'Jianwen' will be used next year. I heard that the emperor will announce a general amnesty at the first court meeting on the first day of the new year next year, and will release a large number of old palace maids or palace maids and female officials who want to leave the palace to find marriage. One is to reduce the expenses of the harem, and the other is to show the grace of the new emperor's succession to the throne. At that time, some new people will be selected to enter the palace. You must make sure that the people on the list can come in."
Hu Shanwei glanced at the list and asked, "Is that it?"
Empress Dowager Lu smiled and said, "You are the only one who needs to do this for now."
Hu Shanwei smiled lightly, without even looking at it, and pushed the list over. "The Queen Mother and Prince Heng obviously don't regard me as their own. When you and your son succeed in the rebellion, you will kick me out and I will have no place to complain. Since you want me to join, I must know how and when you will start the rebellion. Every time the Queen Mother and Prince Heng discuss important matters, I must be present, otherwise there is no discussion."
Empress Dowager Lu laughed, "This is the Shangguan Wan'er I like, not the submissive one. Okay, I promise you."
When the two men played chess, Hu Shanwei discovered that Empress Dowager Lu was very good at chess and calculated every move. So he used all his life's knowledge to fight on the black and white chessboard and barely won a game.
It was late at night, and after removing the chessboard and eating supper, Empress Dowager Lu drank lotus seed soup and said, "During today's game, I realized that Concubine Hu is very competitive."
In the first game, Hu Shanwei did not give her any face and played steadily step by step. The black pieces were like a gradually shrinking snake, strangling the white pieces on the chessboard.
Hu Shanwei cannot lose. Empress Dowager Lu took a fancy to her because she is useful, not because she wants to lose the game to please others or amuse them.
Hu Shanwei drank red bean Yuanxiao and said calmly: "People who are indifferent to fame and gain can't become a Shang Gong."
Hu Shanwei left with the list. Rows of copper lamps on East Chang Street lit up. It was a cold September night, but some autumn insects still flew to the lamp posts to catch fire and were scalded to death on the iron mesh. Layers of dead insects almost blocked the mesh.
The street lamps on the two long streets east and west of the harem were kept on until dawn. At night, the eunuchs on duty were responsible for lighting the extinguished street lamps, adding lamp oil, and shoveling the insect corpses off the iron nets one by one.
The shovel scraped against the iron mesh, making a sharp scraping sound that made people feel upset. Hu Shanwei stopped in front of the iron monument on East Chang Street.
On it is written the Emperor Gaozu himself: "Eunuchs are not allowed to interfere in government affairs. Anyone who does will be beheaded."
Simple, rough and direct, a typical writing style of the Hongwu Dynasty.
Hu Shanwei instantly went back to fifteen years ago, that spring with cherry blossoms in full bloom, when the forty-four female officials had passed the examination to enter the palace. The first thing they learned was to recite the palace rules by Fan Gongzheng, who was still in the Palace Administration Department at that time.
The first palace rule they learned was Emperor Gaozu's "Eunuchs are not allowed to interfere in government affairs. Anyone who does will be beheaded."
In order to strengthen their memory, Fan Gongzheng dragged them all to the iron monument on the long street and had each of them read aloud, so that the past events could come to mind vividly.
At that time, Fan Gongzheng said: "This is the inscription written by the emperor himself, warning the eunuchs and ladies in the harem not to interfere in politics. Those who interfere in politics will be beheaded. In addition to West Chang Street, there is also a similar iron tablet on the opposite West Chang Street. These two streets are the only way to walk through the harem, so your first lesson is to remember this inscription and integrate these eleven words into your blood. Don't forget it."
"In the harem, there are at least a hundred things that can cost a person their life, interfering in government affairs is the first of them. No matter who you are, no matter what position you will be promoted to in the future, no matter how respectable you are, once you interfere in government affairs, even if you are a fifth-rank palace lady, you will be executed immediately."
"Now, read it here a hundred times..."
The scene at that time shocked Hu Shanwei, a newcomer to the palace, and he still remembers it vividly. It was more than just an eleven-character inscription. Even every word that Fan Shanggong said was deeply engraved in Hu Shanwei's blood.
What he said came true.
In the end, the words "If you interfere in government affairs, even if you are a fifth-rank palace lady, you will be immediately executed" came true to Fan Shanggong herself. But Fan Shanggong did not interfere in government affairs, she was just carrying out the Emperor Gaozu's oral order... but she did not carry it out completely.
In fact, if that pot of poisoned wine had really entered the stomach of Crown Princess Lu, Concubine Fan might still be alive.
Hu Shanwei held the list given by Empress Dowager Lu in her sleeves. At that time, she was talking in her sleep about the palace rule that eunuchs were not allowed to interfere in government affairs. But fifteen years later, she realized that as an eunuch, how could she really not interfere in government affairs
The capital is the heart of the Ming Dynasty, and the harem is the core of the heart. It is the top of the Ming Dynasty's world of fame and fortune. Working in the harem, dealing with the emperor, empress, prince and other core figures of power in the Ming Dynasty every day, how could it be possible not to have an impact on politics
Rules are dead, but people are alive. There are palace coups and fights for the throne. As a female official and the chief steward of the harem, how could she be just a background character
It’s just because of her special status that her name cannot be recorded in history books.
Anyway, there are dangers whether you interfere in politics or not, so just interfere in politics.
Lady Fan was smart all her life, cautious and prudent, always changing her attitude according to the situation, and always preparing a shield to make it easier for her to be used as cannon fodder. She was too clever and scheming, but in the end, didn't she die in despair in the sinking ship, watching the river water flood over her body
Why must female officials be controlled by others, serve as cannon fodder or sacrifice
We are also human beings with feelings and our own standpoints. We are tools to manage the harem, but we are more than just tools.
Female officials can also use their special identities to maneuver among various forces with ease and make plans. When politics is bound to undergo major changes, they can play their role and achieve their demands and interests.
Female officials cannot always passively accept and fulfill the emperor's orders, and then be cruelly strangled in the wheel of history by the torrent of regime change.
Hu Shanwei decided to change this situation.
Looking at the cold iron monument, Hu Shanwei gradually found the path he wanted to take. A long-lost power awakened in him, just like when he first entered the palace, full of fighting spirit and strength.
Hu Shanwei touched the list in his sleeve, and a series of strategies to take advantage of the opponent's force formed in his mind.
After that, there were consecutive days of autumn wind and rain. The sun was like a newly married bride, shyly staying indoors. Occasionally, it would show up, but it would cover its face with a handkerchief made of clouds. The room was so damp that water could be squeezed out of the bedding. Before going to bed, the palace maids would use a fumigation cage to dry the quilts.
Suddenly one day, a strong north wind blew and blew away the dark clouds that had covered the sky for a long time. In the faint morning light, a palace servant was sweeping the street with a broom, but he suddenly froze as if he saw something terrible.
After dawn, Empress Ma, who received the news, rushed to West Chang Street. Hu Shanwei had already arrived. She ordered the palace servants to block the entire West Chang Street and take a detour from other places.
The roadbed of West Chang Street was softened by rain and collapsed. Overnight, six potholes of varying sizes appeared. Some were waist-deep, while others seemed bottomless, like a well filled with muddy water.
The ground subsidence caused by the harem being soaked by rainwater is a historical problem.
The seemingly twisted shape of Nanjing City is meant to correspond to the connected lines of the Big Dipper and the Southern Dipper in the sky. The Big Dipper and the Southern Dipper together have a total of thirteen stars, which correspond exactly to the thirteen city gates of Nanjing City.
The Daming Palace is located on Ziwei Hengshang, which symbolizes the emperor star, to achieve the perfect Feng Shui effect of harmony between man and nature. This place used to be Yanque Lake. At the beginning, Emperor Gaozu spent more manpower and material resources to fill the lake and create land for this precious land than to build the palace on the ground.
Emperor Gaozu was a great leader and the founder of a new country. He believed that man could conquer nature and filling up a lake was not a problem. But nature also has its own temper. I have a good lake that has been a lake for thousands of years. Suddenly, they filled me up and built houses on top of me, crushing me to death. Do you really think I am easy to bully
As a result, the foundation of the harem was sinking every year, with the middle part being low and the sides being high. Whenever it rained, rainwater would flow back into the harem, and you could almost see the sea from the harem.
The accident happened this time on West Chang Street. The young and strong eunuchs were skillfully backfilling the holes with gravel, wooden stakes and other materials. However, the deepest hole was not only not backfilled, but a wooden frame was built on top of it with a rope hanging on it, and someone was salvaging something from inside.
That’s right, it’s the iron stele with the eleven characters written by Emperor Gaozu himself: “Eunuchs are not allowed to interfere in government affairs, and anyone who does so will be beheaded.”
After all, it was the late emperor's thing, so Hu Shanwei did not dare to act on his own and invited Empress Ma to come over.
"Did you fish it out?" asked Queen Ma.
Hu Shanwei shook his head. "This pit is too deep, and there is still water inside. So far, the divers who went down to dive have not found any trace of the iron tablet. It may have sunk into the lake mud. Next, I plan to order people to drain the water from the pit first, and then dig under the mud."
Queen Ma personally picked up a stone and threw it into the deep hole. With a thud, it was like a clay cow falling into the sea. "It's so deep?"
Hu Shanwei said, "I just tried it, and even the longest bamboo pole couldn't reach the bottom. This pit is deeper than a well."
Empress Ma looked at the bumpy West Long Street and said, "This street is the main road that runs through the six western palaces. It is patrolled by the imperial guards day and night. If it is always blocked like this, it will be inconvenient. Pumping water to find the stone tablet will take too much time, and it may not be found. Let's recast an iron tablet to replace it, fill the potholes first, and repair the road."
"Your Majesty is wise. I will order it right away." Hu Shanwei agreed and pointed to Changchun Palace in the distance. "The ground in Changchun Palace has also sunken. The house has not collapsed, but it has become a dangerous building. I have already ordered the palace guards to move out to avoid future deaths."
All the concubines of the previous dynasty, except Concubine Zhang, were buried alive with the emperor. Currently, only the Yikun Palace and the Yanxi Palace among the six palaces in the east and west are occupied by two concubines of Emperor Jianwen who were not favored by the emperor. The rest are all vacant, with only a few old palace servants left to guard the houses. The houses are so deserted that they are almost haunted during the day.
Empress Ma nodded. "Human life is at stake. Concubine Hu did the right thing."
Hu Shanwei said: "The ground in the palace is sinking more and more frequently. It's not so bad now in the cool autumn weather, but it will be even worse in the winter when it rains and snows, and in the spring when it rains. It's not a solution to keep patching it up like this. We need to think of a long-term solution to solve the problem of ground sinking."
Empress Ma was at a loss. "The palace has only been in existence for 31 years and it has fallen into such disrepair. Even Emperor Gaozu could not have expected this. I heard that Emperor Gaozu even thought about moving the capital and rebuilding a palace in a good location. But the emperor has just ascended the throne and he cannot bear to waste money and manpower, so he can only make do with what he has for now. Fortunately, the harem is small in population, so it is enough to keep only a few intact palaces."
During the Hongwu Dynasty, the harem was huge, with several or even more than a dozen concubines living together in one palace. It was different during the Jianwen Dynasty, when the size of the concubines was estimated to be smaller than that of the landlord's small courtyard.
Hu Shanwei said, "In this case, the number of servants in the harem should be reduced. Once people have nothing to do, they will create trouble out of nothing."
Empress Ma nodded and said, "I have the same idea. Please ask Consort Hu to start the process of dismissing the palace ladies."
When Emperor Jianwen heard the news in the previous dynasty, he was concerned about the iron stele erected by Emperor Gaozu, and hurriedly summoned Hu Shanwei to meet him.
Hu Shanwei described the situation of West Chang Street in detail, "… The Queen Mother cherishes the people's strength, and West Chang Street is so important, so she ordered to fill the hole and recast the iron monument. I have asked the craftsmen to repair it day and night. In three days, West Chang Street will be open to traffic."
Emperor Jianwen was worried. "The foundation is fragile. Patching it up is not a long-term solution. It is also a loss of dignity for the royal family to rip up Peter to repair Paul every day. It seems that the Ming Dynasty should either move the capital or re-survey the Feng Shui treasure land and build a new palace."
As the court argued over whether to move the capital or relocate, rumors were rife: the ground in the harem frequently collapsed, and even the iron tablet erected by Emperor Gaozu himself sank to the bottom of the lake. This was Emperor Gaozu's wrath because he was dissatisfied with Emperor Jianwen forcing his uncle to death and demoting his five uncles to commoners. Emperor Jianwen was disobedient and unfilial.
The author has something to say: Shanwei has gradually awakened and is going to do big things~ Good night everyone.