Early the next morning, Minglan asked someone to bring out a red sandalwood incense table from the warehouse. She scrubbed and dried it carefully and put it in the hall to dry. The texture was fine and smooth, the wood was shiny, and there was a faint dark purple sheen.
, the ones served are good old stuff.
"It's sincere enough to accept the order with something like this." Minglan stroked the wood and admired secretly.
Gu Tingye was wearing a scarlet unicorn embroidered robe, sitting at the head of the main room, with affectionate eyebrows and a smile on his lips, and said with profound meaning: "My wife is sincere, how can I not know it as a husband?"
Minglan's face turned red. Last night, this guy took credit for this matter and asked Minglan to express his gratitude to him with practical actions. As a legal worker who knows clearly about rewards and punishments, Minglan used all his strength to reward him severely.
...Rubbing her sore lower back, Minglan felt depressed. Finally, this guy remembered that he was going to the palace the next day, so he had some sense of restraint.
At about the first quarter of the hour, a eunuch palace guard came to announce the decree with an umbrella and a gong. Gu Tingye calmly took Minglan out, opened the Chaohui Hall, set up an incense table and knelt down to receive the decree. The eunuch who announced the decree was named Xia, and he was about 20 years old.
He looked like he would be next year, with a square face and straight eyebrows, a kind smile, and he seemed to know Gu Tingye. He didn't say much and started to announce the decree directly.
The imperial edict is similar to the news broadcast, and the format has remained unchanged for a long time. It first expresses the emperor's grace, then praises Minglan for her "calm and graceful appearance, Shushen and discipline, obedience and respect", and finally announces the imperial edict as a second-grade lady, over.
Minglan took the royal decree document on the rhino horn scroll with Jinluan lion pattern in both hands, and another tray with pearl crowns and harems, and respectfully kowtowed to thank Tianen. After getting up, Gu Tingye asked Minglan to change quickly, and he himself invited Xia
The eunuch came into the hall to have tea. The eunuch politely declined and entered the room.
"It turns out it's you." As soon as he entered the room, Gu Tingye changed his solemn expression, sat down with Eunuch Xia, and said with a smile: "I heard you were going to Shangshan Supervisor to buy radishes and cabbage a few years ago, why are you running errands now?
coming?"
Eunuch Xia actually smiled happily and sighed: "Oh...it's not my turn to get the fat guy, I'd better run some errands first; the second master is living a prosperous life these days."
Gu Tingye glared at him and said with a mocking smile: "It's not easy for foreign ministers to make friends with eunuchs, so I won't keep you here. Now the palace is heavily guarded, so you have to be more careful." As he said this, he took something out of his sleeve.
Something was thrust into Eunuch Xia's hand, "I know you like this, so I have already prepared it for you. I wanted to give it to you when I entered the palace today."
Eunuch Xia lost his playful smile and said seriously: "Second Master is a real person, and I know what I'm doing."
After the two exchanged a few words, Gu Tingye saw him off in person. When he turned around and returned to the house, he saw that Minglan had already dressed. She was wearing a dark green woven gold Yunxia Feng Wenxia bandana on her formal coat, with a gold phoenix pattern hanging from the lower end.
He put on a jade leather belt around his waist, tied a strong and secure bun on his head, and put on his temples with pearls and green flowers, a pair of phoenixes holding a pearl luan and phoenix crown, and his head was full of dazzling flowers.
Gu Tingye did not ride a horse that day, and sat together with Minglan in a spacious sedan with three horses. There was a berth inside with a small coffee table. The couple sat upright across the coffee table - in order not to mess up their appearance.
Gu Tingye steadily put the black silk gauze on her head and spread her horns: "After entering the palace, you must first go to Cining Palace to kowtow to the Queen Mother."
"...Which one do you want to meet?" Minglan held the heavy beaded crown on her head, her eyes twinkling mischievously.
The corner of Gu Tingye's mouth showed a slight curve: "You two meet together."
Minglan held the beaded crown and looked up at the top of the carriage in a daze. The noise of the market could be heard from outside the carriage wall, and many shops seemed to be shouting to open. "...Why are there two empress dowagers?" She didn't know.
I asked without realizing it.
"I thought you didn't know how to ask?" Gu Tingye stretched out his arm to pull Minglan's head back and help her straighten her beaded crown. She saw that she was lightly applying makeup and her makeup was dignified and elegant, covering up half of her pretty face.
, although she was still beautiful, she looked very gentle and courteous. This was the second time he saw her put on makeup and makeup, the first time was when she took off her wedding veil - he understood what Minglan meant.
Minglan saw him looking at her in a daze, and patted his hand gently: "That's what you said."
Gu Tingye smiled: "Speaking of it, Empress Dowager Shengde was also unlucky. It is said that the night before the fourth prince's rebellion, the late emperor had drafted a decree to appoint the third prince as the crown prince and the empress Dowager De as the queen. Only one day separated everything.
All failed. The late emperor felt that he could not bear to treat her, so he made her the imperial concubine. Before his death, he told the emperor to take more care of the Concubine De's family. After the death of the late emperor, someone in the court submitted a memorial to make Concubine De the queen mother. The two palaces
If they stand side by side, the emperor will be sure."
Minglan was dumbfounded for a while, and then said, "Your Majesty is so filial."
Gu Tingye stared at Minglan, half-smiling but not smiling: "That's not what you said on your face."
Minglan squinted her eyes, put on a sophisticated posture, slowly shook her head and said: "The hat and head should match better."
Gu Tingye twisted Minglan's little hand, his eyes suddenly brightened, and his mouth smiled - since ancient times, the so-called queen mother is either the emperor's aunt or biological mother, but this empress dowager can rely on neither.
"However," Gu Tingye added, "Empress Dowager Shengde has held the Phoenix Seal for many years, and her foundation is unparalleled by others."
Minglan felt nervous for a while after hearing this. Gu Tingye patted her hand and comforted her: "Don't worry, you are not the only one who has received the imperial decree. There should also be Mrs. Weibei Hou and the wife of Zheng Xiao, the left deputy commander of the Royal Forest Army, who are here to express their gratitude."
Minglan held her face in her hands and said in surprise: "Could it be that the emperor is waiting for you to issue the imperial decree now?" - The second uncle is so respectable in front of the emperor?!
Gu Tingye patted her fat paw lightly, and rolled his eyes at her angrily: "One of them is the uncle's wife, and the other is the queen's biological sister. They were originally going to be sealed, but there is an extra you!"
Minglan was slightly shocked, rubbed her paws, and muttered: "Isn't it said that a wife is more valuable than her husband and her mother is more valuable? Then, the queen's sister..." The deputy commander of the Royal Forest Army is not high enough.
Gu Tingye smiled and took her little hand and rubbed it: "The emperor is a promising king and has his own sense of propriety. He only named Shen a third-grade lady."
Minglan repeatedly praised the emperor's wisdom, and suddenly thought: "Why don't you marry Queen Shen's sister? Wouldn't we all become a family?" As soon as she finished speaking, Minglan scurried away like a rabbit.
Gu Tingye was not very angry, but was secretly amused: "Your Majesty only returned to Beijing two years ago, and he does not have a deep foundation in Beijing. Zheng Jun has been in charge of the Forbidden Army for many years, and has many connections with the three major camps. The British Duke is an important auxiliary of the country.
These two families have never been involved in the dispute over the reserve, so they naturally want to win over each other."
Minglan nodded, she completely understood.
There is only one Queen Mother Sheng'an, and the two mothers have been neglected for many years. Apart from his wife's family, there are not many trustworthy people around the emperor, and Gu Tingye is considered one of his own. If Gu and Chen marry, not only will it be a waste of resources, but in the long run, it will also be detrimental to the emperor. It's not a good thing. To put it more deeply, Gu Tingye marrying the daughter of an ordinary civil servant may be more in the interest of the emperor.
The carriage was rolling, and Minglan heard the sound outside and knew that she had entered the outer imperial city. After driving for a while, she arrived at the gate of the inner city. The couple got off the carriage and put on the green-mantle sedan and horses that had been waiting there. Everyone got on their horses and sedans and walked for a while. Once they arrived at Donghua Gate, they all had to walk, with a group of servants leading the way.
Along the way, Minglan didn't dare to raise her head and look around. She just followed Gu Tingye with her head lowered and walked slowly, vaguely feeling that the interior layout of the palace was vast and magnificent, with white marble as the steps and gold-painted columns as the corridors. Everywhere was tall, wide and majestic.
Entering a side hall, a middle-aged female official wearing an azure brocade with dark patterns came out and said with a smile: "Master Gu and Mrs. Gu, please come in quickly, the Queen Mother is waiting."
Gu Tingye glanced sideways at Minglan, and saw that she was extremely calm at the moment, without any signs of nervousness or panic. He made up his mind, and the two of them followed the female official as they walked slowly, bypassing two palace corridors and crossing the high ground. Entering the main hall through a high threshold.
The precious ambergris is burning in the copper incense burner, spreading out like curls of green smoke, filling the room with a fragrant aroma. The smooth marble floor is almost as bright as a human figure. Sitting above it are two queen mothers, on the left and right. Sitting on the side is a lady in bright yellow attire. She is about twenty-seven or eighty years old. She thinks she is the queen. There are screens on both sides. There is a faint fragrance of makeup and powder behind her. There is the sound of hairpins and a brocade skirt can be seen below. They were probably a group of female relatives or concubines. ~
Gu Tingye and Ming Lan first knelt down and kowtowed, saying thanks, and then listened to a soft voice above: "Get up, you are late, the queen's sister-in-law and sister have arrived early."
The Queen turned her head and chuckled: "Don't blame them, Queen Mother. Who told her to live so far away? A decree issued by the same person will come sooner or later."
Minglan stood up, looked up quickly, and saw that the voice just now came from the right. The Queen Mother had a beautiful and fair appearance, a noble manner, and a gentle and amiable smile. The Queen Mother on the left, although she was well-maintained, looked a little old. There was a slight embarrassment in his movements.
At this moment, Minglan basically understood which of them was which.
Queen Mother Shotoku looked at Gu Tingye twice and said with a smile: "Those who are married are different after all. They look much more friendly."
The queen's face was not very beautiful. She only had a cheerful and bright look between her eyebrows and a deep dimple on one cheek. She smiled before saying anything: "The queen has good eyesight. I also feel that Erlang is much kinder. Back then, When the emperor was in Shu, Erlang wore a big beard all year round. From a distance, he looked really fierce. Every time he came, Hui'er was so scared that he didn't dare to come out. Both Zaifu and Zaishun liked him. Now that I have a daughter-in-law, I have to live a good life in the future, mother, don’t you think so?"
The Queen Mother Sheng'an on the side only smiled and faltered twice, and didn't say much. The Queen Mother Shengde paid little attention to Minglan, and only talked to Gu Tingye at length about the lesson of "ruling the country with a family, being loyal to the emperor and loving the country". After a while, Kong, Meng and Xun were involved for a while; Minglan looked sideways and saw that Gu Tingye was very cooperative and did not show any impatience. He was also very grateful for the 70,000 taels of silver and seven hectares of land newly given by the emperor, plus countless brocades and silk.
Empress Dowager Shotoku was very talkative, and the empress occasionally helped with words. Empress Dowager Sheng'an and Minglan were in the audience position. As they talked, they talked about border trade issues. Empress Dowager Shotoku mentioned her father and brother Funinghou's family's defense duties at the border: "
When the Jie Nu invaded, the emperor acted urgently and asked my father and brothers to withdraw from the border. Now that the border is peaceful, I wonder if border trade can be resumed?"
Gu Tingye said: "Although Jie Nu has retreated, the border army has suffered heavy losses. If the border trade does not have the military strength to protect it, it may be difficult to make a profit..."
At this time, a chamberlain came from outside and preached: "Your Majesty is meeting with all the lords in the imperial study. Is Mr. Gu here? The Emperor has summoned you for something. Please thank Mr. Gu and come over immediately."
Empress Dowager Shotoku seemed a little disappointed, but she still smiled and said: "Since the Emperor has business, you can go ahead and leave your wife to talk to me."
Gu Tingye bowed in response and glanced sideways at Minglan before going in. There seemed to be worry in his eyes. Minglan nodded slightly to express his relief, and then he left Cining Palace with the eunuch.
As soon as Gu Tingye left, the queen immediately ordered the screens on both sides to be removed. Three young ladies walked out on the left, and four beauties in palace clothes walked out on the right. They walked over with smiles, slowly gathered around the first seat, and looked down.
Minglan: Minglan screamed in her heart, "Yes! The target has been moved."
"Come, come over, let the Aijia have a look." Empress Dowager Shengde smiled and waved to Minglan.
Minglan heard the words and walked slowly over. It was the first time in her life that she walked so seriously. Following the instructions of Grandma Kong, she kept her skirt still while walking. She couldn't appear rigid and artificial, but she had to embody all the respect and closeness in her heart.
Show it with movements and expressions.
Empress Dowager Shotoku took Minglan's hand, looked at her carefully, and sighed: "Everyone said that Gu Erlang's new wife is a beauty. I took a look today and she looks really good."
Ming Lan was not easy to answer, she just lowered her long eyelashes in a shy manner and thought to herself, you are not bad looking, I will have the opportunity to introduce you to Ms. Gong Xuehua.
The queen also looked at Minglan repeatedly with her eyes. Seeing that her actions were smooth and flawless, she couldn't help but said: "Erlang is so lucky. His appearance is the second best thing. I like her very much when I see that she is well-behaved. Has your family ever done this?"
Have you asked a nun to educate you?"
Minglan replied respectfully: "I invited one several years ago."
"Who? Is she from the palace?" the queen heard.
"It's from the palace, it's Mother Kong from the former Shanggong Bureau."
"Mother Kong?" Queen Mother Sheng'an took the initiative to speak for the first time. Her voice was a little hoarse, as if she was still suffering from a cold cough, "But the tall one with a square face?"
"Yes." Minglan smiled, "She also has a mole on her left forehead."
A smile appeared on the slightly aged face of Queen Mother Sheng'an: "Mother Kong is an old man in the palace. She is kind and upright... she is a very good person; how is she now?"
"She writes from time to time, saying that she has bought property in her hometown and lives leisurely all day long. Her nephew is also filial and she is living a good life." Minglan glanced sideways at Empress Dowager Shotoku and saw that she seemed not to care.
Lower your head and drink tea.
Queen Mother Sheng'an seemed to miss Grandma Kong very much and asked Minglan many questions. However, in fact, Grandma Kong's body had already declined, but she was just surviving the last few years. Minglan couldn't speak directly, so she could only use euphemisms carefully.
Express it in your tone.
Queen Mother Sheng'an's eyes were lonely and her tone was low: "She has been in the palace for a lifetime. It doesn't matter if she can live a comfortable old age. It only takes a few years."
Minglan looked at her quietly. Queen Mother Sheng'an did not see the smoothness that was customary in the palace, but instead had an instinctive innocence and straightforwardness. She seemed to know that she could not speak fully, so she simply did not speak much.
After saying a few more words, the queen showed everyone their seats. Minglan then had the opportunity to rest her sore legs and feet. While listening to their words, she secretly identified: the four beauties in palace attire were all palace concubines, and one of them was The particularly cool and charming girl is the most favored Concubine Rong nowadays. The other one is the newly appointed Yu Zhaoyi who is small, charming and as white as snow. The other two are the concubines that the emperor has had since he lived in the palace. One is Jieyu, One is talented people - to sum up, because the emperor has to observe filial piety and has not drafted many women, there is still a lot of room for struggle in the harem today. I wonder if there are any time-travelling women who are interested in developing here.
There were three other young noble ladies leaning on the Queen's side talking. The one with the most gorgeous clothes and the loudest jokes was naturally the Queen's sister, Xiao Shen. She was born quite similar to the Queen. The young lady with beautiful features behind was Shen. Uncle Guo's new wife is also a young lady from the British government. The last, delicate and graceful girl Minglan could never guess who it was, and it took her a long time to figure it out - she was actually Uncle Shen's second wife, Zou! The former wife's wife. younger sister.
She actually got a fifth-grade Yiren title?! She was also very friendly with the Queen. How could the British government be so easy to talk to?!
Last night, Gu Tingye made up for Minglan's misfortunes about the queen's family history.
The Eighth Prince was an unpopular emperor, and the vassal territory was still an extremely remote and barren place, so no wealthy family was willing to marry him. Queen Shen's father was Shen Wang, a famous scholar in Jinzhong, and his family was also a local celebrity. Unfortunately, his parents died early. The Shen brothers and sisters could only rely on their clan members to live, and were later betrothed to the Eighth Prince by their uncle.
At that time, Minglan asserted: "The Shen family must be bad to their brothers and sisters!"
Gu Tingye was shocked: "How do you know?"
Minglan said: "The emperor is at the time when he is employing people, but no one else from the Shen family has become an official. It is obvious how much he hates you!"
Gu Tingye rewarded and affirmed her with a bear hug.
According to the principle of diminishing returns, the Eighth Prince's wife's family is no longer in good shape, and Shen Congxing's wife's family is probably even worse.
The Zou family is just an ordinary scholarly family. The grandfather was the county magistrate and passed away a few years ago. The father was a juren. The eldest daughter married into the Shen family and had children. Until now, there are no outstanding talents in the family.
But the most unlucky thing about their family is not that there are no talents among the younger brothers, but that the eldest son-in-law's brother-in-law finally ascended the throne and became emperor, and the eldest son-in-law was promoted to uncle-in-law. Just when glory and wealth were just around the corner, their daughter died~~~
Everyone in the Zou family almost vomited three liters of blood. How tragic this is!
If Shen Congxing was just an ordinary widower, there would be no problem in marrying his aunt as his second wife. However, now the Shen family is the most prosperous family of relatives (the Empress Dowager Sheng An was born in a humble background and has long since lost her natal family), and the Zou family The grade is obviously too far apart.
Minglan glanced at the uncle's wife lightly, and then looked at the little Zou who was joking with the queen. She had a clear mind and immediately understood that the final compromise was like this - somehow, she suddenly thought of Gu Tingye His biological mother, Mrs. Bai, suddenly felt a little pity for Mrs. Shen.
The British government needs the Shen family to strengthen its relationship with the new emperor. Uncle Shen needs the deep-rooted British government to enhance his family's power. The Zou family needs to continue to maintain the marriage relationship with the Shen family and protect the interests of Mrs. Zou and her daughter. , everyone gets what they need, so this abnormally harmonious situation arises.
Minglan felt depressed for no reason and felt very uncomfortable. She asked herself, if she fell into such a situation, could she resist the oppression of her family and resolutely oppose the marriage? Minglan gritted her teeth, and it was not women who really had sex in ancient times.
A place to stay!
After chatting for about a cup of tea, the queen saw that it was almost done, so she took Minglan and four other newly-confirmed imperial edicts and resigned to the empress dowagers of the two palaces. After walking out of Cining Palace, the queen asked Minglan and Xiao Shen to go back first. She wanted
Go to Kunning Palace with Mrs. Shen and little Zou to talk.
Little Shen pulled the queen's sleeve and said coquettishly: "Sister, I'm so partial. Is there something delicious at your place? Why don't you keep your two sisters-in-law close to you first?!"
The queen pointed at her and laughed and scolded: "How old are you, and you still think about eating and drinking all day long? I will tell your mother-in-law later and ask her to discipline you well!...Okay, don't let everyone laugh, I have a relationship with your sisters-in-law.
By the way, Mrs. Gu is entering the palace for the first time today, so you can lead her out so that you can get close to her along the way."
Little Shen answered with a smile, Ming Lan bowed respectfully, her posture was graceful and graceful, she didn't even turn sideways, but she had a graceful charm of her own. Little Shen seemed dumbfounded, and said goodbye to the queen neatly, saying goodbye.
He held Minglan's arm and walked away.
Along the way, I could only hear little Shen chattering non-stop, introducing the scenery along the way to Minglan. Minglan just listened with a smile, making some jokes from time to time, and gradually walked out of the confines of Cining Palace.
Walking towards Donghua Gate, little Shen asked inexplicably: "...Tell me, what does the Queen have to do with my two sisters-in-law? Is there anything I can't say to you?"
Minglan paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's probably just a matter of heart-to-heart talk between my aunt and sister. There are fewer people who can talk about what's on their mind."
Isn’t this easy to guess? Just now in Cining Palace, Mrs. Shen was elegant and gentle, and little Zou was greeted respectfully. The two seemed to be in harmony, but they never made eye contact from beginning to end, and they didn’t even say a word.
The destined wife could not enter the palace every day, so the queen probably took this opportunity to provide some ideological education to the uncle's wives and teach them how to get along with their wives and concubines.
But... Minglan found it funny, wasn't it the Shen family who broke the rules of wives and concubines first?
It is rare for a concubine to be given the imperial title. Unless the son is really outstanding and has made great contributions to the country and the community, then the mother can get the imperial title based on her wealth. How many unborn concubines in the past dynasties have been able to get the imperial title?!
Probably the Shen family felt ashamed of their support to the Zou family when they were in dire straits, so they used this to make up for it. However, they were concerned about the power of the British government, otherwise the young Zou family should be able to find a common wife. However, look at today
This posture and the demeanor of the little Zou's side wife are not much different from those of ordinary wives.
Little Shen was staring blankly at the imperial garden in the distance, but suddenly stopped and looked at Minglan intently: "Do you think the Shen family is shameless? My brother not only married Zhang, but also married Zou.
Family, you didn’t care about bad feelings in the past, but you coveted wealth and power later?”
Minglan was pulled back a few steps by her. After listening, she smiled faintly and said: "Most of these rumors are spread by jealous people, so you don't need to take them seriously." - Nonsense, it's natural to get the benefits of two things.
Receive twice as much criticism.
"Then what do you think?" Xiao Shen still kept her name firmly in mind, forcing her to express her position.
Minglan looked at the closed palace door in front of her, where the guards were solemn and the palace eunuchs were busy walking. She sighed softly and said: "I feel that if there is any difficulty in this kind of thing, the one who will benefit is generally the one who will benefit.
Men, and it’s mostly women who suffer.”
Little Shen's expression changed, she lost her naughty and coquettish look, she turned serious and solemn, and stared at Minglan for a long time. After a while, she suddenly smiled: "You are an interesting person, I like it, and I will often do it in the future."
Come to play with you!"
Minglan was amused by this and said with a smile: "It's an honor."
——The fact that you can ask this question shows that Xiao Shen is not completely unintentional. A woman with such a lively and cheerful spirit is considered worthy of friendship.