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"Your Majesty, I have a headache due to the wind. Please forgive me. I want to take shelter from the wind in the sandpiper and wait for Your Majesty." Huang Zhenlin stood up and bowed his head in a polite manner.
"Since Ziying feels unwell, let's go back to the car and rest first."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
As soon as Huang Zhenlin ran away, Xu Yongshun became anxious. He couldn't find a reason for a while, so he said shamelessly: "Your Majesty, I... I'm in a hurry. I'll be punished by death..."
After Xu Yongshun finished speaking, Qin Mu said: "Xiao Shunzi, are you really in a hurry?"
Xu Yongshun immediately tightened his trousers, pinched his crotch, and looked like he couldn't bear it. He blushed and said: "Your Majesty, I... Oh, how dare you talk nonsense about this? I have lost my manners in front of you. Ten thousand deaths..."
"Go, go, go!" Seeing him like this, black lines appeared on Qin Mu's face.
Xu Yongshun received the order and went out in a hurry.
"Brother..." Xu Ruoshi was so angry that she stamped her feet, her face was as bright as red clouds, she raised her sleeves to cover her face, not daring to show anyone.
Qin Mu took a sip of the warm wine and asked calmly, "Your name is Xu Ruoshi?"
"How does your majesty know the name of the civilian girl?" Xu Ruoshi asked in shock, which made her less embarrassed. After a moment of hesitation, she committed herself and said: "The civilian girl Xu Ruoshi, I would like to pay my respects to your majesty. My brother... ..I hope your majesty will forgive my brother’s crime.”
"I heard Hanyan mention you. You are the most enlightened person in the embroidery workshop. Hanyan showed me your embroidery paintings. They are indeed good. Since you are here today, please have a drink with me and sit down."
"Folk girls don't dare."
Xu Ruoshi lowered her head, and the river breeze blew, and her slim figure was as light as a fly, as graceful as a fairy. This beautiful picture was just like her name. Like a poem or a painting.
Gu Hanyan is also the daughter of Jiangnan's boudoir, but their demeanor is slightly different.
From Gu Hanyan's misty eyes, what Qin Mu saw was the apricot blossom, spring rain, and the blurred charm of smoke and water.
Xu Ruoshi gives people the impression of a pear tree surrounded by colorful clouds, bright and clear.
"Have a drink to warm yourself up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Xu Ruoshi couldn't refuse anymore and drank a drink while standing. The ten fingers holding the jade cup were full of beauty as if carved from bright jade.
"If you don't like going to the embroidery workshop, don't force yourself. Don't pay attention to your brother, just don't go."
Xu Ruoshi was smart as ice and snow, and she heard that Qin Mu's words seemed to have a different meaning, and her heart that had just calmed down started to beat wildly again, "Your Majesty, a common girl... likes to paint and embroider, and she doesn't force herself. Brother, he didn’t force me.”
Qin Mu stood up and looked at the clear and misty river sky with his hands behind his hands. I couldn't help but laugh at myself. As an emperor, perhaps I was destined to be unable to interact with each other in a poetic and artistic way like ordinary men and women.
Emperors like Empress Chen and Empress Li were obsessed with flowers and moonlight all day long. He is the king of subjugation. Most emperors may be destined to only have sex and no love.
Xu Ruoshi stood behind him, looking at him from a high place. Jiangfeng Liexun and his majestic figure give people the feeling that the mountain is high and the peak is human.
Qin Mu turned around. She quickly looked away, but Qin Mu's eyes stayed on her face and said: "Your poem is very good, it points out the blue sky of the river. If you want to be a heron that spreads its wings and flies between the river and the sky, just spread your wings." "Okay, it's windy here, let's go back to the city."
After Qin Mu finished speaking, he walked away first. Xu Ruoshi's heart was ups and downs as she thought about his words, "Your Majesty..." She called softly. Qin Mu stopped, but she swallowed the words that were on her lips. .
"Let's go, be careful of getting cold."
On the way back in the car, Xu Ruoshi quietly looked at Qin Mu more often, but Qin Mu started chatting with Huang Zhenlin.
"Huang Qing, I heard that you traveled to Nanyang two years ago?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"You presided over the construction of the palace and completed it very well. You have contributed to the court. However, this time, Huang Qing was not promoted to an official position. Huang Qing may have blamed me for unfair rewards and punishments."
Huang Zhenlin quickly raised his hands and said, "I don't dare. Compared with the generals who opened up new territories, my contribution is not worth mentioning."
Huang Zhenlin was very open-minded in front of Qin Mu. He was not as cautious and cautious as ordinary ministers. This was what Qin Mu admired most about him.
When he first entered Nanjing, as a commoner, he dared to stand up and speak out, which is enough to show his extraordinary courage.
"I intend to abolish the Honglu Temple and set up another Ministry of Foreign Affairs, parallel to the six ministries. The diplomatic powers that were originally scattered among the Honglu Temple, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of War will be unified into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Huang Qing must have heard about this, right?"
"Return to your majesty, I heard about it."
"What does Huang Qing think of this?"
Huang Zhenlin knew that Qin Mu would not ask such a question for no reason. He had been wondering why Qin Mu asked him to come to Yanziji to review the Royal Navy. After hearing these words, he vaguely guessed Qin Mu's intention.
"I believe that your Majesty's move is to establish a strategic position. I recall that during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Su, Qin, and Zhang Yi subdued the enemy's troops without fighting. Yan Zi sent Chu to Chu, and with only a few words, the whole country of Chu was humiliated and surrendered. All these things , too many to mention;
From these examples, it is not difficult to see the importance of diplomacy. Your Majesty wants to consolidate the diplomatic powers and establish the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I venture to speculate that your Majesty's intention is for the court to use diplomacy as the guide when dealing with foreign countries, in order to defeat the enemy without fighting and reduce Qin's waste in military affairs. . "
Qin Mu smiled slightly and said, "It seems that I did not misjudge the person."
"Your Majesty is making ridiculous compliments. I am young and ill-informed, and I am afraid that I may misunderstand the holy will. I would never dare to accept His Majesty's praise so highly."
"Huang Qing, what I am interested in is your youth and enterprising spirit." Qin Mu clarified his thoughts and said, "I have high hopes for this department, and I will not use people who talk nonsense.
You are young and may not think as carefully as those veterans, but what I want is a brand new and dynamic Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and I don’t want to be turned into a pool of stagnant water by those rigid ideas.
It doesn't matter if you start to make some mistakes. I and the powerful Qin are supporting you and can tolerate you making some mistakes. If it doesn't work, I will send troops to fight him a few times; I have never thought that with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I will just be a gentle gentleman, and the way of king and dominion will complement each other and be the best.
Huang Qing, you have dabbled in astronomy, geography, Confucianism, Law, and Taoism. You have also traveled to Southeast Asia. You dare to go out. You are different from those rotten scholars by the Qinhuai River. I dare to hand over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to you, now it depends on whether you have the courage to take it. "
Before Huang Zhenlin came, he never expected that Qin Mu intended for him to take over the establishment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This matter was of great importance and extraordinary. He couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive for a moment.
Xu Yongshun, who was sitting opposite, was filled with envy, but he knew that he couldn't do such a thing.
"Brother Huang, you have your majesty's trust. If it were me, even if I was a mess, I would still repay your majesty's trust."
"Brother Xu Xian misunderstood. It's a very important matter. I'm just afraid of betraying your majesty's trust." Huang Zhenlin hugged Qin Mu and said, "Your majesty trusts me, and I am deeply grateful. It's just..."
Qin Mu asked calmly: "Don't you dare to take on this important task?"
"Chen..." Under Qin Mu's gaze, Huang Zhenlin finally uttered one word, "Dare!"
"Hahaha... ... .."
The cold outside the car is getting heavier and heavier, and a snowstorm is about to come again. The guards are escorting the car with clanking hooves, dogs are barking in the countryside, egrets are flying around, and a group of urchins are gathering under the mulberry tree to bake sweet potato kiln.
The so-called kiln for burning sweet potatoes is to build a small kiln with stones and mud blocks, use firewood to burn the sweet potatoes, then put the sweet potatoes into the kiln, knock down the small kiln, and cover the sweet potatoes under the hot stones and mud blocks.
At this time, an interesting scene appeared. A group of children were holding sticks, running around and waving them, shouting "Potato Beating Ghost", shaking their pigtails in the sky, and the countryside was full of joyful laughter. It is said that this will ensure that the sweet potatoes will be cooked. After beating the "potato ghost", the children will gather under the mulberry tree again, waiting to eat the deliciously roasted sweet potatoes.
Qin Mu found this scene interesting, with a heartfelt smile on his face. He could hardly help but stop the car and ask for a roasted sweet potato from the group of children.
When Xu Ruoshi saw the longing look on his face, she couldn't help but feel a little strange. From the changes in his expression, it was not difficult to guess what he was thinking in his heart. It was really hard to imagine that such thoughts would appear in an emperor.
Qin Mu turned around and saw her looking at him secretly, so he asked jokingly: "Have you ever eaten roasted sweet potatoes?"
"Your Majesty... I haven't eaten."
"It smells very good, hahaha..."
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.(To be continued...)
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