Although Ge Yong had agreed with the emperor to see him as soon as he returned to Beijing before he left Cangzhou, and also brought his last disciple Zhang Shou with him, others did not know about this. So, after entering the city, the teacher and student went straight to the palace, and brought Zhu Ying, who was originally there to pick someone up. After entering the palace, they did not come out for a long time, which naturally aroused the concern of all parties.
As a result, many people racked their brains to try to find out the news, and soon they got an answer from the palace gate guards who did not block the news, which made their eyes drop to the ground - the emperor actually summoned him to Wansui Mountain!
Not to mention other people, even Zhu Jing, who had instructed his wife Jiu Niang to invite Wu to the mansion and specifically asked Zhu Ying to invite Ge Yong when she went to pick him up, was also very surprised. At this moment, he learned that his mother was entertaining Wu in Qing'an Hall, and after dinner Jiu Niang took the future relative to her own courtyard to chat, so he hurried to Qing'an Hall, pretending to cultivate himself in the study room.
Before he could even open his mouth, the lady said calmly as if she had foreseen the future: "Yingying's future husband can meet the emperor at Wansui Mountain. He is smart, capable and talented. What's the big deal? As for the future consorts and the groomsmen who don't have this treatment, it's even simpler. After all, they are Ah Shou's students and their abilities are not good enough."
Zhu Jing was full of words but was choked back by the words of the lady. He could only smile bitterly and said, "But this is really too ostentatious. He is not the Grand Tutor Ge..."
"What's wrong with being ostentatious? When will Yingying not be ostentatious? Ah Shou is the one who is going to marry Yingying. It would be weird if he was so low-key that he seemed to be non-existent! As for your worry that Old Man Jiang will step down, those guys who originally attacked Old Man Jiang with you will turn against you and make things difficult for our Zhu family just like Old Man Jiang... There's no point in worrying about this."
The lady smiled and peeled a grape nonchalantly, then said calmly: "Whether the peeled grapes are sweet or bitter, you can only know it by tasting them. Before you and Dalang went to the battle, everyone thought that the emperor was wary of the Zhu family, which was a combination of relatives and nobles, and that the Zhu family was a ripe grape that could be eaten at will. But after the skin was peeled, Old Man Jiang was the first to taste the bitterness."
"Do you think that other people have nothing to do after eating and have to come and mess with our Zhu family?"
Zhu Jing naturally believed in his mother's judgment. In fact, when the empress dowager was in power, the elder sister, the Taifu, had always been the empress dowager's think tank. However, what he was worried about at this time was not exactly the same as what the Taifu said.
Therefore, he gestured to dismiss the people. Seeing that Madam Li, a confidant, also quietly retreated to guard the door, he went forward and sat down next to the lady on the soft couch. Then he whispered, "Mother, I'm not worried that those guys who overthrew Lord Jiang will target me. I'm worried that the emperor is not satisfied with driving away one prime minister, and is planning to take action in other places. You should know the emperor's temper..."
As if he didn't know what adjective to use, he pondered for a long time before sighing, "Since the big incident of Prince Ye's rebellion the year he took power, the emperor has seemed to go with the flow in recent years, and does whatever the ministers say. He only occasionally acts willfully in some small matters, but the person he admires the most is Taizu, followed by the late Emperor Ruizong and the previous Emperor Yingzong."