"Your Majesty, please try it first to see if it suits your taste. I specially asked the kitchen to prepare it this way."
Ye Jun rolled up his sleeves and picked up a piece of white radish from the old duck soup for him.
Ning Chen didn't move his chopsticks, but reached out and touched her hair, "Why do you wash your hair at night? Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"
"I just suddenly remembered, why did the emperor come to my place so late?" Ye Jun said casually.
Ning Chen paused and said, "I suddenly remembered it."
Ye Jun was stunned for a moment after hearing this. The two of them looked at each other, and somehow, they both suddenly laughed.
After laughing, Ye Jun raised her hand and touched the dark circles under the man's eyes with her fingertips.
"Your Majesty has been too tired these days. Please have dinner and rest."
"Well, give me a bowl of soup." Ning Chen nodded.
He didn't like to drink soup, but he felt very cold after the long journey at night, so drinking a bowl of it would warm his body.
Ye Jun obediently served him a bowl, and then sat quietly beside him, occasionally picking up a piece of meat with chopsticks, and coaxing Ning Chen to eat most of the meal.
Then he pushed the person to the bathroom to wash up.
Yuan Jiuhou was outside, and heaved a sigh of relief when he saw the plates being taken away.
If you endure this, you won’t be able to sleep well, but you still have to eat well.
When Ning Chen came out after washing up, he saw a small head sticking out from under the quilt on the bed.
Hearing the footsteps, Ye Jun stretched his arm out from the quilt. The white and tender part looked like a lotus root.
"Your Majesty, please come and rest. I am very sleepy."
"Go to sleep if you're sleepy. Why are you waiting for me to do anything?" Ning Chen's lips curled up unconsciously.
Walk over, lift the quilt and lie down.
But just as he lay down, the woman next to him rolled inside and pulled him to lie down inside.
Just when he was confused, he heard the little woman mumbling, "I have warmed the quilt, Your Majesty, please go to sleep."
Ning Chen narrowed his eyes slightly, reached out and touched it, and found that the mattress under him was indeed warm. Suddenly, he felt his heart soften.
He stretched out his long arms and pulled the person into his arms.
The girl's freshly washed hair has a faint fragrance, lingering at the tip of the nose, making people intoxicated.
He was not sleepy at all. He took a nap in the afternoon and woke up at night. He wanted to talk to Ye Jun.
"Due to the snowstorm in Lanzhou, I asked your cousin to go there as well. He has been doing well in training during this period. I intend to send him out for a few years to gain more experience and return to Beijing after he has made some achievements."
It's rare to find a newcomer with a clean background and real skills. Ning Chen is very satisfied with Chu Yunhuai.
Now he is planning to train him into his own team.
"The emperor is here and he wants to talk about state affairs with me, but I don't understand them." Ye Jun snorted with narrowed eyes.
Ning Chen felt itchy, so he pinched her waist, "It's ok for others to say they don't understand, but you're still pretending to me."
When the topic was brought up, Ning Chen remembered that the woman's previous two suggestions were good, so he suddenly asked, "What do you think about this snowstorm and the rumors? Just tell me, I won't blame you."
"Your Majesty, do you really want to hear it?" The girl half opened her eyes and hooked her fingers around the man's collar.
Ning Chen nodded in agreement, motioning for her to continue.
Ye Jun glanced at him and spoke lazily, "The governor of Lanzhou concealed the truth and did not allow the people to leave the city to make a living. It is not a pity if he died a thousand times. As for the rumors among the people, it is probably because the people have suffered one after another and have become resentful. If you want to stop the rumors, you must cure the root cause. It is impossible to stop the people from talking. But the emperor can make the people admire the emperor from the bottom of their hearts, which can also consolidate the emperor's foundation."
"Then what does it mean to cure the root cause?" Ning Chen asked.
"Your Majesty can tour the north to appease and punish the Zasak, why not tour the south?"
The girl spoke lightly, very nonchalantly.
Ning Chen frowned, "Let me think about it, and go to sleep first."
After saying this, the hand that was holding the person tightened a little bit.
Ye Jun was already very sleepy and fell asleep in a short while.
Listening to the shallow breathing of the woman in his arms, Ning Chen was still in deep thought.
Nanqi had no precedent of southern tours, probably because the south was close to the sea and was all plains, and had always been peaceful and easy to govern, unlike the north, which bordered the ambitious Liao Kingdom.
Emperors of the Southern Qi Dynasty always toured the north after ascending the throne and never the south.
Firstly, the emperor's travel was extremely expensive, and secondly, the south had always been stable and not worth inspecting, so he usually just sent a trusted minister to make the trip.
But with public sentiment in turmoil right now, it is indeed a good choice for him to go on a southern tour in person.
However, this matter still needs to be discussed with the ministers. Most of those old ministers will not agree. It will take some thought to really decide it.
In the end, Ning Chen didn't know how he fell asleep, he just dreamed that he was going on a southern tour.
The next morning he got up early and returned to Jiuchen Palace, where he summoned several ministers.
It was not until noon that they were released.
No one knows what was discussed, but soon after that, news came out that the emperor intended to tour the south.
Yuxiu Pavilion.
Ye Jun asked the maids to bring a small stove for decocting medicine, and was gathering a few people to roast sweet potatoes together.
Suddenly I missed this taste.
"The emperor should bring concubines with him on his southern tour. I wonder how many of them can go this time." Nan Zhi chatted.
"I guess he won't bring anyone this time. After all, he has to go out because of the snow disaster. It would look awkward to bring concubines with him." Ye Jun shook his head.
Huiyue took over the conversation, "I don't know how long the emperor will be gone. Yi Xiurong is already seven months pregnant and will give birth soon. If the emperor is not around, I'm afraid she will be worried. The queen is only three months pregnant and doesn't look well. I always feel that something bad will happen if the emperor is not in the palace."
There is still the Queen Mother in charge, but unfortunately she has done so many stupid things that no one can believe her and she is automatically ignored.
Ye Jun calmly used chopsticks to peel a sweet potato, not seeming to care much.
"Now that the emperor is gone, we just need to guard our palace well and prevent others from taking advantage of it. It won't be a big deal."
It has nothing to do with her whether someone gives birth or not.
Nan Zhi and Hui Yue nodded, thinking that three times the limit would be a sure thing. If anything went wrong at Yuxiu Pavilion again, the two of them who were in charge would be too ashamed to face anyone.
Finally, the southern tour was decided.
In order to take advantage of the auspicious sign of the dragon raising its head on February 2, he decided to set out on that day, and indeed he did not bring his concubines with him.
Accompanying Ning Chen were Prince Ping Ning Hao, Grand Consort He Xinyan, Duke Yingguo's legitimate son Chen Xianwen and illegitimate son Chen Xianyi, as well as some other ministers.
The ministers, led by Duke Yingguo from the Empress Dowager's mother's family, Duke Liguo from the Empress' mother's family, and Prince Kang Ningrui, remained in Kyoto.
In the next few days, Ning Chen ordered people to take the princes and princesses to Jiuchen Palace for a look, and also went to see the queen, Concubine Wende and Yi Xiurong separately.
The day before leaving, I had lunch at Ye Yun's place, and then returned to Jiuchen Palace.
The south is a big place, and I probably won’t be back until May after this trip.
By then, Yi Xiurong will definitely have given birth.
Ning Chen also specially left an order that no matter whether Yi Xiurong gave birth to a prince or a princess, as long as the mother and child were safe, she would be promoted to Xiuyuan.
She had been in the palace for only two years before she took this position. For a time, Yi Xiurong was the most popular person.