The people from the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Households resigned, and the emperor sat alone in the imperial study, his eyes a little bitter.

The Queen Mother's condition improved in the past few days, and the Emperor finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In the past, after he went to court, he would first go to the Queen Mother to serve her. It had become a habit.

Since he didn't have to serve these days, he took the opportunity to take a nap.

I sleep a little too much these days, and my eyes often feel dry, but I don't sleep enough.

He gently rubbed the Jingming point and it felt better.

There was another unfinished imperial edict on the table, which was for Gu Jinzhi to be made a concubine. Now that it was no longer needed, the emperor folded it up gently and put it aside.

Without Gu Jinzhi, how should he use to elevate the Gu family and make the Gu family become a powerful and prominent family on par with the Tan family and the Yuanping Marquis Mansion?

Gu Jinzhi succeeded the Queen Mother, and the emperor deliberately wanted to win over the Gu family, so he promoted her to be a first-class concubine. Otherwise, the Gu family would have no merit, and Gu Jinzhi would not have given birth to a prince, and would not have great virtues in the harem.

You can only seal a noble person.

Now, what should we do?

The emperor had a headache.

Although the border areas have been quiet and peaceful in recent years, all officials in the court are clean and honest, and there are no traitors running rampant or wolves and tigers filling the streets.

However, with the new emperor practicing Zuo, it is inevitable that the old ministers in the court will bully the young emperor. In the more than four years since he ascended the throne, the situation in the court has gradually revealed its shortcomings.

The leaders are Yuan Pinghou and the Tan family.

Marquis Yuanping was the only son of Princess **. He had a long history of military exploits and served as minister of the Ministry of War. Now he had disciples all over the government and the public, and there was a tendency to join the party and oppose dissidents. Although he did it covertly and did not dare to be overtly arrogant, he could not escape the emperor's eyes and ears.

.The emperor looked at it but was frightened.

Marquis Yuanping and Princess ** mother and son have contributed to the establishment of the emperor. These veterans cannot be dealt with, otherwise the emperor will have a bad reputation of repaying kindness with enmity. Everyone in the court will be in danger, and the situation may be unstable.

The emperor just watched helplessly as Jiang Liang, Marquis of Yuanping, became more and more powerful day by day...

In addition, the late empress's natal family, Zhang and Hou Tan, also worried the emperor. Mr. Tan was once the first assistant. Although he is no longer in his position, his disciples have his eyes and ears all over the government and the public. The current Xia first assistant is also Mr. Tan's proud disciple.

Xia Shoufu vaguely revealed several times that he wanted the emperor to make Tan Housheng's five-year-old eldest prince the crown prince.

The emperor thought that the Queen Mother was unwell and wanted to serve in Kunning Palace, so he interrupted Xia Shoufu's proposal.

Several ministers also requested that Concubine Tan Guifei, the late empress's sister, be made empress.

As a result, the Tan family's reputation became even greater.

The Tan family and Marquis Yuan Ping dominate the court with both civil and military power. Let them go. One day, the emperor's power will be in vain.

The emperor's foundation was not stable and there were not many loyal ministers, so he did not dare to rush to break the situation between the DPRK and the Central Government, so he had to infiltrate and disintegrate it from the inside.

He wanted to promote a new prominent family and break the existing shackles.

Gu Yantao, the great scholar of Dongge University, was someone whom the emperor valued.

I still remember that when the emperor was still the prince, he was hunting in the Western Mountains. An antelope was chased and forced to the edge of the cliff. It was hit by seven or eight arrows, then it lost its footing and fell, but it hung on an ancient pine halfway up the mountain.

The late emperor said forget it, don't want it anymore. It's too dangerous to take.

Then everyone left.

The emperor stood there and looked at it for a long time.

Gu Yantao came over and asked, "Prince, do you want that antelope?"

The emperor nodded.

Of course he wanted it, but the hillside was too steep. If he was not careful, he would fall and be shattered into pieces. The antelope was obviously dead and was hanging there motionless. It was not impossible to get it.

The emperor hesitated.

However, Gu Yantao lifted up his clothes, pulled the small trees and short grass on the hillside, and took risks to help the prince get back the antelope.

He finally came back safely.

The late emperor and the emperor were very happy and praised Gu Yantao in person for his bravery. Although he was a civil servant, he was also a courageous military commander.

After returning, the late emperor asked the emperor what he thought of Gu Yantao.

The emperor said: "He wants to curry favor with me, which shows that he has a strong desire for power. His articles are well written and his introduction is unique, but Tan Shoufu does not like him, saying that he does not have the style of a gentleman and is too villainous, so he always suppresses him..."

The late emperor nodded approvingly.

Then the late emperor said to the emperor: "You must remember what my father said today: If the situation is chaotic, you can promote Gu Yantao. If he can stir up more chaos, you can win by mixing it up. When you really control the court

If the situation is compromised, this person cannot be reused again. This person is powerful and will not hesitate to take his own life, so how can he care about the lives of others? When the time comes, his methods of expelling dissidents will only make people frightened."

The late emperor believed that Gu Yantao could become a traitor as long as he had the chance.

Be careful with this kind of person.

Gu Yantao is like a falcon, which is indeed very helpful when hunting, but you must be careful of being scratched by him.

The emperor has been watching with cold eyes for four years since he ascended the throne.

He wanted to take action two years ago. Then, less than half a year later, his mother became seriously ill, and he suddenly lost energy.

How hard he and his mother worked back then to gain the appreciation of his father. The emperor could never forget what his mother had done for him.

He continued to hide his capabilities and bide his time.

Now that the queen mother has recovered from her illness, various abuses in the court have become more and more serious, and it is time to take action.

Gu Yantao's falcon has also been raised to be strong and it's time to release it.

However, the emperor lacked an opportunity.

The appearance of Gu Jinzhi gave the emperor this opportunity.

What the emperor wanted to deal with was not only those powerful officials who relied on their elders but also his two brothers who had a huge bodyguard.

The Queen Mother's illness delayed many things and made many people take it lightly, thinking that the emperor had not paid attention to their disobedience.

In fact, the emperor saw everything.

The King of Nanchang has 60,000 elite soldiers, and the King of Luyang also has 60,000. If they join forces and march north to the capital, the emperor will be caught off guard.

Of these two brothers, one was raised by his mother and has shown his loyalty many times; the other is stupid.

Does this make the emperor feel at ease?

It is like a sharp knife, always placed on the emperor's back vest.

Once he loses control, the knife will stab him.

What can they do if they are brothers? The emperor does not believe them. The King of Luyang is stupid. If the King of Nanchang wants to commit trouble and incites the King of Luyang, the King of Luyang has no judgment at all. He is stupid and will definitely borrow troops.

In fact, the emperor was most afraid of the King of Nanchang.

The King of Luyang... was, after all, his younger brother from the same mother. The emperor had a deep affection for the Queen Mother, and he also had a certain preference for the King of Luyang from the bottom of his heart.

He was able to use the marriage between Gu Jinzhi and the King of Luyang to "imprison" the King of Luyang and the King of Nanchang in the capital, and then sent people to deal with the guards of the Nanchang Prince's Palace and the Luyang Prince's Palace. He achieved the goal of defeating the enemy without fighting. The emperor also felt that

happy.

There was a smile on his lips.

Finally something has been settled.

Next, he only needs to praise Gu Yantao, let it go, and wait until the time is right to collect it.

But how to promote Gu Yantao without alerting the Tan family and Marquis Yuanping to suspicion, and at the same time achieve outstanding results?

The emperor was also troubled.

It's a pity that there is only one Gu Jinzhi, which is not enough for him to use two places.

——*——*——

The Queen Mother was very happy that Gu Jinzhi could become the concubine of King Luyang.

She knew that although Emperor Chrysostom had promised this marriage, it was left to the Ministry of Rites.

The procedure is cumbersome and may take a year and a half.

King Luyang could also live in Beijing for another year and a half, and the Queen Mother was so happy that she had tears in her eyes.

Zhong Jun married Gu Jinzhi and was able to spend a few more days with the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother's heart for this little son slowly relaxed.

She called Aunt Cheng and asked her to go to the warehouse of Kunning Palace and find out twenty-eight boxes of gifts, which she would send to Gu Jinzhi when she returns home tomorrow.

"The Ai family is marrying a daughter-in-law again!" The Queen Mother said with a smile, "Go and get the Ai family's jewelry box, which was what the Ai family brought with them when they entered the palace..."

When the Queen Mother entered the palace, her mother gave her a pair of Hotan mutton-fat jade bracelets.

One, the Empress Dowager gave to the emperor's first empress; the other, she kept, was going to be given to Zhongjun's princess.

She thought she would have to wait three to five years. Who knew she could give it away now?

The Queen Mother was very happy.

Aunt Cheng was also happy and hurriedly went out to find it and invited Gu Jinzhi to come.

The Queen Mother was very cautious and brought it for her personally: "When the Ai family came to the palace, they only took this pair of jade bracelets. Although they were not the most exquisite things, they were the best things for the Ai family. One was given to the late Queen, and this pair

One is yours, wear it well. You will be the daughter-in-law of the Ai family, and the Ai family will love it the most..."

Gu Jinzhi said thank you.

She did not dislike Zhongjun's demeanor at all, which moved the Queen Mother even more.

There is actually nothing wrong with Zhongjun, he just...at the age of thirteen, he still looks like a six or seven-year-old child. He behaves childishly, but he is also kind and knows good and evil. He is not stupid or stupid!

There is finally someone in this world who understands Zhongjun.

The Queen Mother took Gu Jinzhi and chatted for a long time. Thinking that she would go home again tomorrow, she asked her to go to bed first, and then continued to let Aunt Cheng and the palace people pack the gifts.

"Tomorrow, the Ai family will give you special permission to leave the palace and send Jinzhi back." The Queen Mother said to Aunt Cheng, "Go and have a look at her home. I vaguely remember that Gu Guogong said that their home is still in Sanyuanpo Hutong. That place

The house is very tight. If you don't live well, come back and tell the Ai family. The daughter-in-law of the Ai family must not feel wronged."

Aunt Cheng said yes.

On the third day of February, the spring snow has not yet melted, but it has become snowy again.

The rows of streets are all white, the entire capital is pure, and the horizons are wider.

The eunuch in charge of Kunning Palace sent the young eunuch out of the palace early in the morning to inform the Gu family that their seventh lady was coming back today and asked Qingdao to welcome her.

Everyone in the Gu family was in an uproar again.

They didn't know what Gu Jinzhi was going into the palace for, and they didn't even know what was going on now.

Uncle Gu Yantao ordered his servants to clear the road.

The snow stopped at noon, and just after midnight, a servant came to report to Gu Yantao, saying that Miss Seven was back. Eunuch Chang and Aunt Cheng, the eunuchs in charge of the Queen Mother's Kunning Palace, personally sent them back, followed by more than 20 people carrying things.

The Sanyuanpo Hutong was blocked up by piles of silks, jewelry and playthings.

Gu Yantao often walked in the palace, so he naturally knew what kind of weight Eunuch Chang was.

He jumped up all of a sudden, without even bothering to change his clothes or put on wooden clogs. He stepped on the snow and walked as fast as flying to the gate.

——*——*——*——

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Chapter completed!