flstandardbreds Chapter 156 Assistant to the 6th Palace
Chapter 156 Assistant to the 6th Palace
"Ah?" An Lingrong was surprised. "How old is he?"
Shen Meizhuang said with some regret, "Twenty-five. He was Nian Gengyao's firstborn son. He passed the imperial examination at the age of twelve. People at the time said he had the elegance of his maternal grandfather, Nalan Rongruo. At the age of twenty-four, he was promoted to the position of Supervisory Censor of Zhejiang Province. Last year, he wrote to the Emperor, requesting that the men of Shanxi and Shaanxi be exempted from the status of slaves. The Emperor was very impressed with him, but it's a pity that he didn't live long enough."
Nian Gengyao had three adult sons. Nian Fu and Nian Xing were both brought up by him, but his eldest son Nian Xi chose to be a civil servant. Nian Gengyao had high hopes for him, so Yongzheng adopted him to Longkodo on the grounds of "father and son conflict". Now that he is dead, he will certainly not let Longkodo off.
Yongzheng originally had good intentions and wanted to ease the relationship between his two right-hand men, but now he has backfired. He is also very troubled and stays in the Yangxin Palace every day to read the memorials in which they impeach each other.
The two of them, one is Yongzheng's uncle, the other is Yongzheng's brother-in-law, so let them fight! Whoever defeats the other will benefit Yongzheng.
"There's another thing that happened recently." Shen Meizhuang continued, "Prince Dun returned from visiting the troops and was late for court in his military uniform. Censor Zhang Lin impeached Prince Dun for disrespect in court, but the emperor didn't say anything. After court, Prince Dun blocked Zhang Lin at the door of Zhang's house and knocked him unconscious. The censors in the court united and demanded that the emperor severely punish Prince Dun to restore the court's laws and regulations. However, Prince Dun refused to admit his mistakes and hasn't attended court for several days. The civil and military officials in the court wanted to bypass the censors when they saw them, but Prince Dun, relying on his noble status and military achievements, didn't take them seriously!"
An Lingrong lowered her voice and grumbled, "Oh? Is he missing his eighth and ninth brothers?"
Shen Meizhuang was stunned for a moment by her jumping thoughts, then smiled and said, "It's possible! The emperor is angry, and Huan'er has been accompanying him in the Yangxin Palace for several days!"
The two talked for a while and gradually fell asleep.
On the second day, all the palace members gathered in Jingren Palace to pay their respects.
The Queen sat upright on the Phoenix Throne and waited until the concubines had finished their formalities before saying, "You all came in good order today. Even Noble Wen is here!"
An Lingrong stood up, bowed again, and said, "I have recovered and have come to pay my respects to the Empress!"
"Good, good!" The Queen smiled like an aunt, "I'm relieved to see that you're in good spirits!"
But she secretly cursed in her heart, "What a fool Xia is! She can't do anything right and made her happy for nothing."
Then he continued, "The weather has been very hot recently, so you must take good care of yourselves. Concubine Hui, how are the arrangements at the palace going?"
Shen Meizhuang stood up and replied, "Reporting to the Empress, the mung bean soup and herbal tea have begun to be distributed. Recently, many palace servants have suffered from heatstroke. I have instructed the Ministry of Internal Affairs to postpone the more strenuous work until after sunset. I have also discussed with Imperial Physician Zhang and have decided to have some young doctors from the Imperial Hospital see them. This will give them an opportunity to practice and better serve their masters in the future."
The Queen smiled and nodded, "Concubine Hui has thought it through."
"Thank you for your compliments, Your Majesty," Shen Meizhuang continued, "I have something else to report to Your Majesty."
"you say!"
Shen Meizhuang turned to look at Fang Chunyi, "Chun Chang is here!"
Fang Chunyi, who was named, stood up quickly and said, "I'm here!"
Shen Meizhuang's voice was unhurried, gentle and peaceful. "The other day, the head steward of the Imperial Household Department reported that your maid went to the Imperial Household Department to request spices. The Imperial Household Department had no stock and asked her to wait two days so they could go out of the palace to purchase more. Unexpectedly, your maid flew into a rage, slapped a senior official from the Ministry of Grain and Storage, and even pushed down a palace maid. Are you aware of this?"
Fang Chunyi shook her head in fear: "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I didn't know."
Of course she knew it, but she thought it was a trivial matter. She didn't expect that Concubine Hui would reveal it in front of all the concubines.
"Although you don't know, you can't escape the crime of not governing your subordinates properly. I will punish you by grounding you for a month and then treating the injuries of the chief official and the palace maid. Do you accept the punishment?"
The matter was not a big deal, but Shen Meizhuang took advantage of it to establish her authority. Secondly, by confining Fang Chunyi to her house, she could give Zhen Huan some peace and quiet to take good care of her pregnancy.
Fang Chunyi turned his gaze to Zhen Huan for help.
Zhen Huan seemed oblivious, lowering her head to stroke a double-sided crabapple embroidered on the handkerchief. "Mm," she said, "the flower is rich in color, graceful in form, and the petals are richly layered. Rong'er's embroidery is truly excellent!"
Seeing that no one spoke up for her, Fang Chunyi's smile was replaced by aggrieved one, and she said tearfully, "Your concubine... Your concubine accepts the punishment!"
"As for that nanny, since she is yours, you can train her!"
"Yes!"
After neatly handling Fang Chunyi, Shen Meizhuang looked at the Queen and asked, "Is Your Majesty satisfied with how I handled this matter?"
The queen rolled her eyes in her heart. You've already dealt with everything and only now are you asking me if I'm satisfied!
"Concubine Hui handles matters fairly, and I am very relieved."
Seeing Shen Meizhuang handling palace affairs in an orderly manner, Concubine Hua, who was sitting in the first seat, felt angry as if her job had been taken away. "The Queen said Concubine Hui was fair, but that's not necessarily true, is it?"
The Queen turned her gaze towards Nian Shilan and asked with interest, "Oh? What does Concubine Hua mean?"
Nian Shilan said coldly, "I heard that Concubine Hui has been sending gifts to Suiyuxuan and Yanxi Palace quite a lot these past few days. Even Xianfu Palace has benefited from it!"
The three people who were named all looked at Nian Shilan.
A sentence popped up in An Lingrong's mind uncontrollably: Will I suffocate you to death if I don't speak?
Shen Meizhuang replied calmly, "I looked through the accounts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and discovered that many of the masters' allotments were insufficient, so I ordered that their allotments be replenished!"
Nian Shilan sneered, "Do you think I'm a fool? Not to mention Concubine Jing and Concubine Wan, the layout of the Yanxi Palace is clearly not what a mere noble should have! Concubine Hui, please don't abuse your power for personal gain!"
Cao Qinmo + Xin Baji + An Lingrong + Noble Lady Fucha: What's wrong with Noble Lady Fucha? Is Noble Lady Fucha not worthy?
An Lingrong was about to stand up when she heard Shen Meizhuang say, "Your Majesty, you're worrying too much! I'm now a concubine, and the Emperor has decreed that I enjoy the treatment of a noble concubine. Even though the Sixth Prince is young, he also receives a salary. I simply sent the extra items from my own palace to the Yanxi Palace. If your Majesty doesn't believe me, you can fetch the Imperial Household Department's account books and check."
After Shen Meizhuang finished speaking, she pretended to suddenly realize something: "I forgot, now that Your Majesty has lost the power to assist in the management of the six palaces, you have no right to look at the account books!"
He returned to his seat, picked up the teacup, blew on it, and took a sip.
An Lingrong suppressed her laughter. Oh my god, when did my sister become so sarcastic?
Nian Shilan's face drooped instantly.
The queen on the throne smiled widely. She was quite satisfied with the current situation and said, "Alright, alright. I trust Concubine Hui. By the way, I have something happy to tell you!"
All the concubines in the room looked at the queen.