The whole yard was planted with plants, and even the living room had several wooden racks with colorful potted plants on them. Guo Shao sat down and smelled the colorful and mixed fragrance of flowers and plants, the scent of tranquility.
But he really didn't have the leisure time this time, as physical discomfort would affect his mood.
At this time, a young woman came up holding a glass cup. Guo Shao almost didn't recognize her. This young woman was Xiao Chuo. Xiao Chuo's hair had grown to her shoulders after being shaved, and it was too short to comb, so she braided some small braids, which made her look more lively and pretty. She wore a silk Hanfu with an open collar, and her chest was gradually swelling.
"Your Majesty, please have a cup of tea," Xiao Chuo said cautiously, in a flattering manner.
Guo Shao said nothing, took off his hat and put it on the table, revealing a bald head, sitting there unsteadily, looking at Xiao Chuo with a complicated expression. Xiao Chuo secretly glanced at his head, her face flushed, as if she wanted to laugh but didn't dare to.
The main culprit is this woman's father, Guo Shao, who becomes furious when he thinks of Xiao Siwen. He used to respect this enemy for his knowledge, but this fellow's methods are too despicable. So much blood has been shed during the storm, but this mastermind is still enjoying wealth and glory without any problems.
Guo Shao said casually: Xiao Siwen seems to have completely forgotten that his daughter is still in my hands.
After hearing this, Xiao Chuo showed fear on her face and lowered her head.
Lu Lan also came over and bowed slightly to Guo Shao. Guo Shao pointed to the rattan chair opposite and said, "Mrs. Lu, please sit down."
Lu Lan glanced at Guo Shao's bald head and said softly: "At that time, the imperial doctors were against shaving your Majesty's hair. Your Majesty will not blame me, right?"
The ancients attached great importance to hair, but Guo Shao had no such concept at all. He just said casually that life is important and hair can still grow.
Lu Lan smiled and said: I knew that Your Majesty is not a person who sticks to worldly matters.
Guo Shao stretched out his hand and played with the crystal glass cup. Although the person who brought it was a Khitan woman, he still trusted Lu Lan. Looking at the thin green leaves and white flowers floating in the water, the leaves looked like lips and had a strange shape, so he asked, what kind of flower is this
Lu Lan answered softly: Rosemary.
Oh. Guo Shao nodded and did not continue talking. It was obvious that he was not interested. He moved his body and said seriously, Madam Lu saved me, and I came here today to thank you. Whatever you want, I will do my best as long as I can do it.
When Lu Lan heard this, there was a hint of loss on her face. She pursed her lips and made a subtle movement. There seemed to be fine pearl powder in her rouge, and it was shining delicately in the sunlight leaking through the flowers and plants. Inadvertently, Guo Shao felt that the lip-shaped grass leaves in the crystal glass cup seemed to have some similarities.
She smiled again, turned to look at Xiao Chuo and said, "My mother asked Yanyan to serve tea, hoping to ask Your Majesty to forgive her. As long as her life is not harmed, Your Majesty will...
Although Guo Shao was angry about what Xiao Siwen had done, he had no intention of taking it out on Xiao Chuo. If he took revenge on a young girl, it would seem a bit incompetent and the key point was that it would be useless.
I promise you. Guo Shao said without hesitation.
He also thought that sometimes women are more tolerant than men. Xiao Siwen took Bai away, causing her family to be destroyed, but Bai still wanted to protect Xiao Siwen's daughter; perhaps when they were in the Liao Dynasty, Bai had some feelings for this child.
After hearing this, Lu Lan said embarrassedly: Your Majesty treats me well and really responds to my every request.
Guo Shao pretended to be calm and said: It's just a small matter.
The eunuch Wang Zhong was waiting for Guo Shao outside the door bored. Not far away, Li Yueji was still standing there and had not left.
Wang Zhong looked at her for a few times, and finally walked over to answer Li Yueji: "My Lady Concubine, why are you not going back? What are you doing here?"
Li Yueji used to look down on these eunuchs who were neither male nor female, but after staying in the Daxu Palace for so long, she seemed to have lost her former arrogance and immediately said: I want to talk to the emperor.
Wang Zhong frowned and said: What is there to talk about? If the emperor wants to see you, you don’t need to bother here.
When Li Yueji heard this, her face turned red with humiliation. I don’t mean to pester the emperor, but I am the virtuous concubine of the Daxu royal family.
Wang Zhong sneered and looked Li Yueji up and down, as if he remembered the way this ungrateful woman treated him as a slave and didn't even look at him. He looked around and whispered: I wonder how long you can keep the title of virtuous concubine.
After hearing this, Li Yueji frowned and said nothing.
Wang Zhong whispered again: Madam Lu has helped His Majesty so many things, and recently she has made great contributions to saving the emperor. If it were a man, he would have been made a marquis and a prime minister, and one of the three highest officials; but unfortunately Madam Lu is a girl, so she can only be awarded the title of imperial concubine. Now that the Daxu Palace has both the queen and four wives, where is there any room for her unless one is replaced
After he said that, he looked at Li Yueji thoughtfully with a somewhat teasing look.
Li Yueji's face turned pale when she heard this, and she felt hairy when Wang Zhong looked at her. In fact, she didn't care much about the title of the harem of Daxu. After all, she was born rich and was a Dangxiang. But if she was not even an imperial concubine, could she still help her father who was arrested for rebellion
Li Yueji looked down on Wang Zhong in her heart, but she had to think that what the eunuch said made sense. If she was to make room for Lady Lu, she, the daughter of a fallen criminal, would be the most suitable candidate.
She glanced at the gate of the yard and felt very upset.
Zhou Xian was also feeling upset and angry at this moment.
Zhou Xian looked at the box of jewelry in front of him and said coldly: Madam Zhou, I can't help you
The standing woman is Zhou Duan's wife, Wang. Zhou Duan is from the Zhou family. Because of Zhou Xian's relationship, he went to Guo Shao very early and served as the chief historian in Xuzhou.
Wang said with tears in her eyes: "My husband really didn't participate in the affair with the Zhao family. However, those officials have been offering tributes to me for many years. If I don't accept them, I will offend them. My husband has no choice but to repay Zuo Fuzheng's kindness during the holidays. My husband didn't know that those officials in Xuzhou were so bold to commit such a big crime. Otherwise, he would not dare to accept them anyway."
Zhou Xian said coldly: "Then why don't you find Zuo You? I am just a woman, how can I manage the affairs of the officialdom?"
Wang choked up and said: "Zuo Fuzheng is in trouble now, and I hope Madam can help to intercede for him if she has a chance." The case was not handled by Zuo Fuzheng, but by Huang Fuzheng Huang Binglian and the Privy Council.
Zhou Xian got even angrier after hearing this. He immediately took off the things on his head and wrists and put them in the box, pushing it forward: "Take them all back!"
Madam, please, please. Wang fell to her knees. Your husband is still your family. If he is disgraced, it will be bad for your reputation and status.
Zhou Xian said: "Take the things away first. Now the entry and exit of the palace is strictly checked. What you brought in and what you took out, the eunuchs know it clearly. How dare I take it?"
There seemed to be some room for this sentence, and Wang stopped crying. She thanked the emperor profusely and pleaded for mercy with all the nice words she could muster.
Wang agreed to take back the jewelry she brought in today, but she refused to accept the jewelry she had given her before. Zhou Xian got angry and blurted out that those things were from unknown sources and that he felt dirty wearing them, which immediately made Wang feel ashamed.
After finally getting rid of Wang, Zhou Xian was still upset. Zhou Xian looked down on her cousin Chen Jiali, thinking that Chen Jiali was hypocritical and pretending to be noble, but in fact she was just a whore who put up a memorial arch. Could she become the kind of person she looked down upon? She had a lot of wild thoughts, thinking that Guo Shao would know about this sooner or later, and she was afraid that Guo Shao would look down on her.
When Guo Shao returned to the Wansui Palace from Lu Lan's residence, he saw the eunuch Yang Shiliang standing at the door with his head bowed. He turned around and waved to Yang Shiliang, who followed him in and whispered a few words in Guo Shao's ear.
After hearing this, Guo Shao sat in a chair and thought for a long time, then said: Ehuang was of noble character, not someone who coveted material things, but her cousin Chen Jiali was rich enough to rival a country, and every time she came to the palace, she wore very rare jewelry, and she never wore the same one twice.
Your Majesty is wise, Yang Shiliang said.
Send an order to the inner treasury to select a few fine jewels and give them to Ehuang on my behalf. Guo Shao handled the matter straightforwardly.
"I obey your order." Yang Shiliang bowed and said calmly after a moment, "This matter has little to do with Madam Zhou, but Xuzhou Changshi Zhou Duan
Guo Shaodao: Aren’t Wang Pu and Huang Binglian in charge
Yes, yes. Yang Shiliang came out immediately.
Guo Shao stroked his head with a bun on, feeling that this matter was a bit complicated. If Zhou Duan was caught, Zuo You might be implicated. Because Zhou Duan and Zuo You had a close relationship a long time ago, Guo Shao could easily figure out that if Zhou Duan accepted the bribe, he would definitely share it with Zuo You, who was at the center of power.
This is very common in the officialdom, and it is not a big deal at ordinary times. But once something big happens, it will be exposed.
Guo Shao was unable to confirm what exactly happened, but based on his years of understanding of Zuo You, he felt that Zuo You was unlucky this time because Luo Yanhuan found him and made him embezzle, but it was very likely that Zuo You did not want to take the initiative to get involved with Luo Yanhuan; he also accepted money from Zhou Duan, and Zuo You, who had been in Tokyo, probably had no idea where the money came from.
There was a jade Han emperor's brush on the table, Guo Shao took it from the brush holder, dipped it back and forth in the inkstone, and scribbled on the paper, some names, some hooks and circles.
Guo Shao did not want to interfere in the case, but now it seems that Zhou Duan might be in trouble. Zuo You will not be punished all the time. After all, if he wants to mobilize the cabinet to assist in the administration, Guo Shao's approval is required.
These twists and turns inside seemed to never be cleared up, and they could never be dealt with. Guo Shao looked at the large picture on the wall, and focused his gaze on the wider area, the blank space at the edge of the picture, and the farther place. He didn't think he should be completely tied down by the thorns under his feet.
It always feels less impressive to attack one's own people. What Guo Shao is most concerned about is Xiao Siwen. ..