They slept in the same bed, and when Chen Jingzong was about to get up in the morning, Huayang woke up even though he was careful enough.
She subconsciously put her arms around his waist and moved closer to him.
Chen Jingzong's body stiffened.
He always got up early, which would probably wake her up once or twice in ten days. In the summer, she would never stick to him, but in the winter, she would be reluctant to leave his warm "hot water bottle".
Chen Jingzong turned around, hugged her in his arms, brushed away the messy hair by her ears, and kissed the side of her neck.
Huayang regained consciousness from his sleepiness. There was a faint sound of wind coming from outside the window. She touched his shoulder and tilted her head and said, "I'll make you another cloak this year."
The last one I received has been used for two years and is considered old in Huayang’s eyes.
Chen Jingzong: "No, an old man can wear a cloak for more than ten years. I only wear it when I'm on the road in the morning and evening. It's pitch black and no one can see it. As long as it can still block the wind, it doesn't matter whether it's new or old. I won't need to change it for the rest of my life."
What he was showing off was how good she was to him, not the splendor of the cloak.
Huayang: "You disliked me last night for not caring about you, and now I want to be nice to you, but you are making excuses."
Chen Jingzong: "You have been very kind to me. You gave me a magical horse, which saved me half an hour on my way back and forth."
He used to get up at 15:15 in the morning, but now he can sleep for an extra 25 minutes.
Huayang wanted to say something else, but Chen Jingzong knew it was time to leave. He wrapped her tightly in the quilt, kissed her hard on the forehead, and then got out of bed.
After his figure disappeared, Huayang couldn't fall asleep for the time being. He lay alone in the quilt that still retained his body temperature, thinking about the conversation with his father-in-law last night.
With my father-in-law's attitude, he probably won't recommend Zhang Pan to join the cabinet this time, right
In mid-October, Chen Tingjian recommended three cabinet ministers to Emperor Yuanyou and Empress Dowager Qi at once. They were the current Left Vice Minister of Personnel Shen Shi, the current Minister of Rites Lu Ziqian, and the current Right Censor-in-Chief of Nanjing He Qingxian.
The first two were officials in the capital. Empress Dowager Qi and Emperor Yuanyou were very familiar with them and had commended them many times. Only He Qingxian, although famous throughout the world, rarely served as an official in the capital and was basically sent to other places.
Emperor Yuanyou had long heard of He Qingxian's great name, and he also liked this upright official praised by the people. However, some ministers had recommended He Qingxian to come to Beijing, but they were rejected by Chen Tingjian and others. Even Empress Dowager Qi was in favor of letting He Qingxian stay outside, so Emperor Yuanyou said nothing.
This time Chen Tingjian actually directly recommended He Qingxian to join the cabinet. Emperor Yuanyou was very surprised and asked, "Sir, you said before that He Qingxian was too upright and strong-willed. Every time he went to a place, he caused many officials to resign. Promoting He Qingxian might hinder the implementation of reforms. Why do you want to use him now?"
Empress Dowager Qi also looked at Chen Tingjian.
Chen Tingjian looked at the mother and son separately, his slightly pale and elegant face showed a trace of shame, his eyes were very sincere, and he explained: "I didn't use He Qingxian before because I was afraid that local officials would be afraid of his integrity and suspect that the new policy was to completely eliminate all officials with damaged morals, causing them to worry about their future and have no intention of serving. Now that the performance evaluation system has begun to show results, there are still some officials who protect the gentry and bully the people. The people mistakenly think that the new policy is a new means for the court to exploit them, and they complain. I promoted He Qingxian to deter these stubborn corrupt officials and at the same time let the people of the world believe that the new policy is a move that benefits the country and the people. The people will feel at ease, and when the court surveys the land next year, more misunderstandings can be avoided."
Empress Dowager Qi nodded approvingly: "Your Excellency has given it careful consideration."
Emperor Yuanyou continued to ask: "But I heard that He Qingxian has always been at odds with you, sir. Aren't you afraid that he will go against you in every way after entering the capital, causing trouble for the implementation of the new policy?"
Chen Tingjian smiled and stroked his long beard. "He and I are both the top two in the imperial examination. We both aspire to serve our country, but we have different personalities. Especially when we were young, I didn't like his aggressive and demanding attitude, and he didn't like my tactful and tactful attitude. Now we are both over 50 years old. The implementation of the new policy to enrich the country and strengthen the military is the most important thing. I believe he will not act recklessly. On the contrary, if he comes, he may be able to make up for my negligence."
Emperor Yuanyou looked at the calm and tolerant Chen Ge Lao opposite him and felt a little strange for a moment.
In his memory, Lord Chen always kept his word. In recent years, he had become more strict, but when it came to reform, he was overbearing and arbitrary, and would not allow any of his subjects to oppose him.
Today, in order to improve the reform, to deter corrupt officials and appease the people, Chen Tingjian is willing to promote to Beijing a sworn enemy who once criticized him for favoritism and corruption.
Chen Tingjian seemed to be unaware of the young emperor's inquiry and asked respectfully, "I wonder if the emperor and the queen agree that these three people will join the cabinet?"
Empress Dowager Qi looked at her son and asked, "What does the emperor think?"
Emperor Yuanyou nodded: "Yes, I believe in your vision, sir."
Chen Tingjian then withdrew.
Empress Dowager Qi dismissed her attendants and asked her son, "You seem surprised by the candidate recommended by the elder."
Emperor Yuanyou: "All three of them are available, but I feel like the elder has changed."
Empress Dowager Qi sighed softly: "Yes, he would never have used He Qingxian before. Perhaps, as people get older, many of their ideas will change."
Emperor Yuanyou somehow thought of his father.
My father also passed away in his early fifties, and Chen Tingjian's hair has turned a lot whiter this year...
Emperor Yuanyou suddenly didn't want to think about it anymore.
As the red sun sets in the evening, night quickly falls.
Emperor Yuanyou came to Wenyuan Pavilion quietly with Cao Li and two young eunuchs.
Except for He Qingxian who has not yet arrived in Beijing, the newly promoted Lords Shen and Lu have already moved here and are working with Lords Chen Tingjian and Lu.
Emperor Yuanyou poked a hole in the window paper and leaned in to look inside.
Chen Tingjian was the Prime Minister. His desk was placed in the middle. Then there were two desks on the left and right, one was empty, and the other three ministers were sitting on the three desks.
There was a pile of memorials and documents on Chen Tingjian's desk. He buried himself in them, occasionally asking the three cabinet ministers some questions.
It can be seen that the three cabinet ministers are in awe of him. As long as Chen Tingjian makes any move, the three cabinet ministers will definitely look over.
It was already past the end of his shift, and Chen Tingjian showed no intention of leaving. Lord Lu quietly winked at Lord Lu, who was much more experienced, and Lord Lu quietly extended a finger.
Lord Lu slumped in his chair in frustration.
Lord Lu was used to it, and Lord Shen was probably young and not afraid of hardship, so he just smiled and continued to write.
There is also a library hall next to Wenyuan Pavilion. Emperor Yuanyou signaled the guards and eunuchs outside not to leak his information, and he took Cao Li and others to the library hall.
After watching for more than half an hour, Cao Li came over and whispered, "Your Majesty, Elder Shen has also left. Only Elder Chen is still there."
Emperor Yuanyou touched his stomach and asked, "Did he eat anything?"
Cao Li shook his head.
Emperor Yuanyou frowned. He was an old man in his fifties and he couldn't stand being hungry for so long. Why was Chen Tingjian still trying to be so stubborn
Emperor Yuanyou stood up.
Cao Li hurriedly took the cloak hanging on the hanger and tied it on him again.
This time, Emperor Yuanyou did not look inside through the hole in the window. He went straight to the door. Cao Li lifted the curtain, and he lowered his head and stepped in, then went to the warm room to the west.
Chen Tingjian heard footsteps. He looked up and saw the curtain in front of the warm room door being lifted, revealing the increasingly tall figure of Emperor Yuanyou.
Chen Tingjian hurriedly left his seat, walked around the table and bowed.
Emperor Yuanyou: "Sir, please don't be polite. It's already this late. Why haven't you returned home yet?"
Chen Tingjian smiled and said, "Just about to leave, just about to leave."
It would be strange if Emperor Yuanyou believed it. He walked to the table and picked up the memorial that Chen Tingjian had just read. It was a memorial from a local official in Shandong who apologized for not completing the tax collection task there this year. According to the performance evaluation law, it was useless for this person to apologize. He would either be demoted or dismissed. Chen Tingjian did not mean to show leniency, but Chen Tingjian wrote a letter to this person separately, stating the reasons why he had to strictly enforce the punishment. After all, officials all over the world were watching. No matter what reasons the Shandong official had, Chen Tingjian could not set this precedent.
After reading it, Emperor Yuanyou said to Chen Tingjian, "He was at fault first, so he should be punished. Why did you waste so much time and effort talking to him?"
Chen Tingjian: "I hope that after reading the letter, he will be able to relieve some of his resentment. I don't know what his family situation is like, whether he has an old mother and children to support. If he does something stupid in a fit of anger, how will his family survive? I was also a scholar from a poor family and rose through the examinations step by step. I know how difficult it is to be an official. However, the new policy cannot be delayed. I can only use those officials who can meet the court's requirements and keep up with the pace of the new policy. I don't have the energy to re-examine others."
Emperor Yuanyou recalled the endless memorials impeaching Chen Tingjian.
Sometimes he would wonder if Chen Tingjian was too harsh, but when he saw that Chen Tingjian even wrote a letter to appease a small local official who was about to be demoted, Emperor Yuanyou finally understood that it was not that Chen Tingjian was cold-blooded and deliberately harsh, but that the situation forced him to do so.
"There are only two sentences left in this letter. I will finish writing it on your behalf."
Emperor Yuanyou sat on Chen Tingjian's chair, picked up the still warm pen, dipped it in ink, and wrote his own clear and elegant words after Chen Tingjian's solemn handwriting.
In the signature, Emperor Yuanyou wrote the names of both the teacher and the student.
"Sir, you have worked tirelessly for me and the court. If he has any resentment, I will share the burden with you."
Putting down the pen, Emperor Yuanyou smiled at Chen Tingjian.
Chen Tingjian lowered his head deeply, and two tears fell silently.
Cao Li saw this and joked, "Are you touched already? You know, the emperor came early and waited for you to get off duty, and he didn't even have dinner yet."
Chen Tingjian quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeve and said self-reproachfully, "I will leave now. Your Majesty, please go back and have dinner."
Emperor Yuanyou: "I am not hungry yet. It is windy outside. I will escort you out of the palace."
Chen Tingjian refused again and again, so Emperor Yuanyou took the lead and walked out towards the palace gate.
Chen Tingjian had to follow quickly.
He fell behind by two steps. Emperor Yuanyou tilted his head and noticed that Chen Tingjian's long beard was blown back by the cold wind and stuck tightly to his chest.
Emperor Yuanyou suddenly remembered that when he was three or four years old and still dared to be naughty, he once pulled the long beard that was praised by all the court officials.
Chen Tingjian was also gentler at that time. He just smiled and said lightly, "Your Highness should not do this."
In a blink of an eye, he had grown taller than the old man's beard.
"My carriage is outside, Your Majesty, please return soon."
Seeing that the palace gate was just ahead, Chen Tingjian quickly stepped in front of Emperor Yuanyou and pleaded again.
Emperor Yuanyou nodded, but suddenly untied the belt of the cloak under his neck and draped the fox fur cloak behind Chen Tingjian.
Chen Tingjian said anxiously, "I have it. You gave it to me last year. I was in such a hurry to come out just now that I forgot it in the cabinet."
Emperor Yuanyou: "Then I will borrow it for the time being, sir. Please return it to me when you enter the palace tomorrow morning."
Chen Tingjian wanted to say something else, but Emperor Yuanyou waved his hand, turned around and ran towards the palace.
A cold wind howled from the north, blowing through the long palace corridor. The young emperor ran against the wind, yet he ran very happily.
(End of this chapter)