Originally, Hu Shanwei entered the palace as a female official, just wanting to find a place to settle down with her talent and escape the pressure of her vicious stepmother and forced marriage from the secular world.
In this era, if a woman over the age of 20 still hasn't married and had children, people would point fingers at her and say she's sick. She hid in her home copying books, not caring about spring, summer, autumn or winter, but her father couldn't stand the pointing and gossip of others, and always wanted to marry her off so that she could live the life that an ordinary woman should have.
However, all her beautiful dreams of marriage were related to her fiancé, the young centurion who would whistle and smile at her when he rode past Tibet on horseback.
He would give her a pot of calamus to moisten her eyes while she was copying books.
On the night of the Lantern Festival, he would wear moon-white clothes and go up the Nanjing city wall with her to walk around to cure all diseases, touch the door nails of the city gate, and use his tall body to protect her from being jostled by the crowd.
He would ask her to go for outings in the countryside and even taught her how to ride a horse.
Her heart was moved, but she was too shy to say love, and she never said it out loud when they parted. While she was longing for the victorious return of the Northern Expedition, her body was like floating clouds, her heart like willow catkins, her breath like a gossamer, and her soul like a wisp of green smoke drifting in the wind. She copied words repeatedly, and only then did she realize that this was lovesickness.
If you have never felt lovesickness in your life, then you will feel it and suffer from it.
However, the Ming Dynasty's second Northern Expedition failed, the Northern Expedition Army returned with a disastrous defeat, and the tall boy turned into a jar of ashes.
Shanwei, who had once been treated seriously and tenderly by her fiancé, could not compromise like others and accept another marriage.
She is still the gentle, kind, quick-witted Shanwei, but no matter how many advantages and talents she has, as a 20-year-old girl who repeatedly refuses to get married, she is a monster, an alien, and a disgrace to her family in the eyes of the world!
For example, her stepmother, Chen, was stupid, ignorant, mean and resentful. However, because Chen was married and pregnant, and was a "normal" woman, they could bully her unscrupulously and call her an "old maid who couldn't get married at the age of 19."
Being a female official means being free from secular standards. In the Ming Dynasty harem, knowledgeable people will be respected, and it doesn't matter whether they are married or not.
Since Hu Shanwei refused the marriage proposal, she no longer felt this respect. The world ridiculed, mocked and humiliated her in various ways.
At this time, Hu Shanwei did not have much ambition. The position of a female official in charge of the national seal that Meixiang mentioned seemed out of reach. She just thought it was great to be respected again. She wanted to pass the examination of the Palace Administration Department and survive in the harem on her own ability.
Hu Shanwei put the official uniforms and new clothes piled on the bunk bed into the closet, and Meixiang helped. If she wanted to survive in the palace, she had to understand the place where she was about to work.
Hu Shanwei asked: "Since the emperor has set up an iron tablet, and those who interfere in government affairs and disobey his orders will be executed, why did he let the old eunuch go and allow him to retire and return home?"
Meixiang bowed in the direction of Kunning Palace, "Because the Empress was kind, and considering the old eunuch's years of service, she advised the Emperor to show leniency despite his wrath, saying that if a palace servant made a mistake, the Palace Administration would punish him according to the law, just like the people and officials were bound by the law and were sentenced to the corresponding punishment for their mistakes. If the law was replaced by personal likes and dislikes, wouldn't it be a mess? At that time, the Palace Administration did not have a clear order to execute those who interfered in the harem, so the old eunuch saved his life. The Emperor ordered people to erect two iron tablets on the east and west streets of the harem, and no one dared to commit the same crime in the future."
As Meixiang explained, she observed Hu Shanwei's reaction to the "Empress". How could a female official who had just entered the palace and had not yet officially taken office receive shoes from the Empress? What was her connection with the royal family
Unfortunately, Hu Shanwei didn't react at all. Meixiang thought, this girl is too cunning. She obviously has a relationship with the queen, but she doesn't even reveal a word!
Meixiang didn't dare to ask directly, fearing that Hu Shanwei would become suspicious. In the harem, the queen was the most important person. If she clung to the thigh of this new female official and heated up the cold stove, she would have a chance to rise to the top in the future and look forward to the day when she could make a name for herself.
Hu Shanwei did not notice Meixiang's temptation. She was thinking that the rule of law was respected in the harem, and if there was any mistake, one had to go to the Palace Justice Department to confess the crime and accept punishment. Even the emperor rarely did whatever he wanted. It can be seen that palace rules like "Several Ways of Death in the Ming Palace" are not just warnings, but also protection.
It is better to die with a clear mind than to die in confusion.
At night, the entire row of houses in Langfang was brightly lit, and the new female officials were reading by lamplight, trying to memorize the palace rules.
The treasure makeup cloud hair is full of nibbles.
The sound of reading in the corridor did not stop until three o'clock in the morning, and Hu Shanwei was reciting palace rules in his dreams.
In Nanjing's Xicheng District, where many famous families gather, at the Xiping Marquis Mansion west of Taicang Garden, the eldest son Mu Chun knelt in the ancestral hall and recited the family rules.
To be precise, it was the book boy beside him who recited for him. Anyway, the voices of teenagers in their voice change period are all similar, hoarse and green, like a duck playing in the water.
Muchun put five cushions together, used the family rules and genealogy as pillows, and curled up like a cat to sleep.
Mu Ying, Marquis of Xiping, dined with Emperor Hongwu and Empress Ma in the palace. He had some official social engagements in the afternoon and did not return home until late at night.
Mrs. Geng, the wife of Marquis Xiping, had been waiting outside the second gate for her husband's return. She was delighted to see Mu Ying return home. She personally helped her husband change out of his bright red court robes and heavy five-beam crown, and said, "The hot water is ready. Let's wash the floor for the Marquis."
"No need." Mu Ying waved his hand, put on his half-worn clothes, and picked up the whip hanging on the wall. "I'm going to the ancestral hall to see Mu Chun."
Geng winked at the maid beside her, who understood and left the main room, saying to the little girl, "Hurry up and go to the ancestral hall to tell the young master that the marquis will be there soon."
The little girl ran as fast as she could, took a shortcut, went to the ancestral hall first, and woke up Mu Chun who was sleeping on the futon, "Master! The Marquis is here!"
The little servant boy hurriedly gave his seat to the young master. Mu Chun changed his posture, knelt down, and read aloud the family rules.
Mu Ying heard the sound of reciting at the door, but his furrowed brows did not relax. He whipped him as soon as he entered the door. Mu Chun reacted as quickly as a monkey, rolling on the ground three times and dodged his father's first whip.
Seeing this, the little servant boy turned pale with fear. He did not dare to stop them and said to the little girl who informed him, "Go and call the Marquis's wife. The Marquis is whipping the young master. Someone is going to die."
Mu Ying failed to hit him with his whip, so he whipped him again. Mu Chun flew and hid behind the incense burner.
Mu Ying was a hero all his life, and he hated to see his son hiding his head and showing his tail, so he chased after him and swung the whip for the third time.
Seeing the whip chasing him as if it had eyes, he picked up a golden object that looked like a tile on the altar and raised it above his head to block it.
Bang!
The whip mixed with iron wire left a white mark on the "golden tiles"!
The father and son were stunned.
Mu Chun: If my father is serious, he will whip me in the face, tearing my skin and flesh, and my appearance will be disfigured. How can I meet the emperor in the future? How can I find a wife
Mu Ying: This is our family's golden book and iron scroll! Prodigal son!
The Golden Book and Iron Scroll, commonly known as the Death-Free Gold Medal, is made of bronze, and the carved words are filled with gold powder, so it looks magnificent. Each of the founding heroes holds one, and the beginning is engraved with "founding the country and assisting in the development of the country", which describes Mu Yingli's contribution and why the emperor conferred him the title of Marquis of Xiping, which is hereditary.
It was engraved with the fact that except for treason, Mu Ying could be exempted from the death penalty for three other crimes, and Mu Ying's son could be exempted twice, so it was also called the Death Free Gold Medal.
The Golden Book and Iron Scroll are the only proof of the legitimacy of the title, similar to the seal of an official. Once lost or damaged, it is considered a crime of deceiving the emperor and is punishable by death.
Mu Ying threw away the whip, snatched the golden book and iron scroll, and kicked the prodigal son away. Fortunately, the book was not damaged, but the gold powder filled in the handwriting was shaken out, so he asked the craftsman to reapply the gold powder.
Mu Ying carefully placed the golden book and iron scroll back on the altar in the ancestral hall. He was about to pick up the whip to teach the prodigal son a lesson, but he found that Mu Chun had already got there first and picked it up in his hand, defensively.
Mu Ying sneered, "What's wrong? You dare to hit me?"
Mu Chun retreated to the entrance of the ancestral hall, where he could attack or defend. "A gentleman should talk, not fight. If you have something to say, talk it over nicely. Don't start fighting right away. I'm your son, not your enemy."
Mu Ying said, "I am your father, not a gentleman. You almost destroyed the Golden Book and Iron Scroll just now, why don't you kneel down and apologize!"
Mu Chun smelled the alcohol on his father, "You are drunk, I am not stupid enough to let you beat me."
Mu Ying scolded, "How dare you run? You unfilial thing, you don't even listen to what I say."
Mu Chun smiled and said, "Confucius said that when facing a beating from parents, one should accept it if it is a small one, but run away if it is a big one, so as not to put parents in an unjust position. I ran away because of your reputation as a father who cherishes his children."
Mu Ying laughed angrily, "The Imperial College chief has been complaining to the emperor every few days, saying that you skipped school. I think you learned well. In less than a year, you can use Confucius' words to criticize me. You are getting bolder and bolder. You even dared to make friends with the female official in private and gave her the shoes of Empress Ma. It is a capital crime for an external official to have a private relationship with an internal official!"
So it was because of this.
Mu Chun found it funny. "I grew up in the palace, how could I not understand the danger of making friends with eunuchs in private? I was clearly aboveboard. The origin and destination of the Queen's personal belongings were all clear, and the female officials recorded them in the account book. I told the Queen that the female official was pitiful and had no shoes to wear and had to enter the palace barefoot. The Queen rewarded her with a pair of boots and asked me to give them to her. The clothing bureau recorded it all. It was the Queen who gave it to me, not me."
Mu Ying was relieved. "In short, you have grown up. You can no longer go in and out of the harem as you please and play with the ladies-in-waiting like before. Starting tomorrow, you don't have to go to the Imperial College to embarrass yourself. Tonight, I had a few drinks with the commander of the Jinyiwei, Mao Xiang, and he asked you to report to the Jinyiwei tomorrow and let him make arrangements."
Mu Chun was very disappointed. "Dad, the Jinyiwei in the palace is just to guard the gate, or to serve as the honor guard when the emperor travels. It's enough to have a good face and a good family background. What can they do? I don't want to do this. I want to go to the border and defend my country."
"You know nothing. If you go to war now, you will die." Mu Ying had a headache and was too lazy to talk nonsense with his son. "Imperial Academy, Jinyiwei, you choose one."
Mu Chun thought about it and chose the lesser of two evils. "Okay, I'll go to Jinyiwei to find Mao Xiang tomorrow."
"It's Commander Mao." Mu Ying said, "Don't be disrespectful. Just do whatever Commander Mao asks you to do."
Mu Chun agreed, but was afraid that his father would beat him again, so he ran away.
As soon as Mu Chun left, Xiping Hou's wife Geng arrived and cried loudly from a distance: "Stop beating him! If you want to kill him, kill me first! As a mother, this is all my fault. If a son is not taught well, it is the mother's fault. I did not discipline him well, and this is a big mistake..."
Geng walked into the ancestral hall crying, her face covered with tears and snot, only to find that her stepson was not there and only her husband was burning incense to the ancestors.
Geng was a little embarrassed and didn't know whether to stop crying or continue crying.
At this time, a fragrant breeze blew over, and a group of beauties also rushed to the ancestral hall. However, as concubines, they were not qualified to enter the ancestral hall. They stood outside one by one, calling out delicately, "My Lord, you are back."
They were the concubines of Marquis Xiping’s mansion.
Mu Ying has no other hobbies except beautiful women.
His first wife, Feng, was Mu Chun's mother. She was of noble birth and the eldest daughter of Feng Guoyong, Duke of Ying. She was proud and would not allow her husband to take concubines. According to historical records, Feng even "severely aborted" a maid who had become pregnant after she offered herself to him.
Mu Ying was to be divorced for killing his offspring and committing the seven grounds for divorce. However, Feng's father, Feng Guoying, died young in battle at the age of 36. Emperor Hongwu and Empress Ma took pity on Feng, an orphan, and refused to allow her to be divorced.
What's more, Feng's uncle, who was also her father's younger brother, was Duke of Song Feng Sheng. Feng Sheng was still alive and well. The Duke of Song's Mansion was Feng's second maternal home and a strong backer.
There are two dukes in the Feng family. Mu Ying dare not touch the Feng family and can only endure it.
The couple became alienated and became resentful of each other. After giving birth to Mu Chun, Feng was depressed all day long and died of illness before she was even out of the confinement period.
Mu Yingcai was in his early twenties and a talented young man. He soon married Geng, the eldest daughter of Geng Bingwen, Marquis of Changxing.
Geng learned the lesson from her predecessor Feng and no longer obstructed her husband from taking a concubine. She became a virtuous wife and mother who cared about her husband's affairs and even recommended beauties to her husband.
Mu Ying burned incense for his ancestors and came out of the ancestral hall. He saw Concubine Li with a slender waist and a pitiful figure, and Concubine Zhang with eyes full of spring and a charming look. Who should he choose tonight
A man with money, power and strength never has to make choices. Taking advantage of the wine, Mu Ying took the hands of Concubine Li and Concubine Zhang and went to the tent together.
Mrs. Geng, the wife of Marquis of Xiping, could not sleep alone.