Chapter 596 Power struggle, Bian Zhuang stabs the tiger
"Ah sneeze!"
Xiao Tang sneezed heavily, rubbed his nose again, and looked doubtfully at the hot air around him, thinking that the temperature in the bathroom was pleasant, and logically he shouldn't catch a cold.
After returning to his own mansion in Bianjing, Xiao Tang hurried to the back house to visit Su Jinniang, who was pregnant with Liujia. Fortunately, when Shi Xiu and other brothers escorted Xiao Tang's family back to Xiao Mansion in Bianliang, Tokyo, Su Jinniang always had Jin'er.
Li Shishi, Hua Xiaomei and a few caring maids in the back house accompanied and looked after her, and they did not see outsiders on weekdays. Therefore, the whole Bianjing people did not know that Xiao Tang's head wife was pregnant.
Now Su Jinniang's belly was already swollen, and she saw that the birth was imminent. Tang Pengxiu and Gao Zhanling saw their husband-in-law caressing Su Jinniang's round and swollen belly indulgently. While they were happy for Su Jinniang, they couldn't help but move toward her.
Looking at his still slender belly... and when Xiao Tang saw the meaningful eyes of Tang Pengxiu and Gao Zhanling turning towards him, he knew that the family members in the Chungui were eagerly waiting for them, and he didn't want them.
Worked hard.
Later, Xiao Tang, Yan Qing, Xiao Jiasui and other brothers held a grand banquet in the mansion to entertain Wang Huan, Han Cunbao, Zhang Zhang and other colleagues in the court who had come to support him. The banquet was held until three quarters of Xu, when Xiao Tang sent everyone out of the mansion.
Finally, he had to go to a separate bathroom in the mansion to take a bath to relieve his fatigue.
During the Song Dynasty, the public bathing industry was already very developed. There were public bathhouses in Tianshui Lane in Bianliang, Tokyo, perfume shops and other prosperous public bathhouses, and bathhouses were built in the mansions of dignitaries. Now Xiao Tang has long
I plunged into the bathtub, put a towel behind my head, and lay comfortably in the pool made of sandalwood, surrounded by strange rocks and green bamboos, and the water temperature was suitable.
As for bath products such as lip balm, facial medicine, incense burners, loofah pulp, incense, bathrobes, saponin soap, hand towels, etc., they have also been neatly placed in the bathroom by maids. Although rich people have maids in their homes
It is normal for the master to wash his face, wash his feet, rub his back and do other indescribable things in this season, but Xiao Tang is not used to exposing his naked body to women who have no emotional basis.
Perhaps ordinary maids are accustomed to serving their masters for bathing, but for Xiao Tang, both maids and maids also have their own dignity and sense of shame.
to demonstrate one’s identity and status.
Although Xiao Tang had some evil thoughts in the past and wanted to try out the ways of playing in the water with his wife, Su Jinniang and Tang Pengxiu, who were born in ladies in the past, were not as foolhardy as their husband-in-law (according to the etiquette of husband and wife in "Book of Rites").
: Men and women have different shackles. They dare not hang on their husband's 椸椸, dare not hide in their husband's basket, and dare not bathe together. When the husband is not around, he gathers his pillow, quilt, mat, and utensils and hides them). So he just returned home.
Xiao Tang, who was in his own residence, was taking a bath and being alone, so he could think about the people he would see and the things he would have to do in the next few days.
The warm water in the bath enveloped Xiao Tang's whole body. Under the caress of the water waves, Xiao Tang gradually felt that his spiritual platform was clear and clear. At this time, Xiao Tang thought of coming together with Wang Huan, Han Cunbao and other colleagues in the court during the day.
To greet him, there was also a lieutenant sent by the Ministry of Palace Affairs in the imperial city. The lieutenant conveyed Zhao Ji's oral instructions, saying that Xiao Aiqing was in danger on the border of the Liao Kingdom, and it was very hard to rush back to Bianjing all the way.
After Beijing, I will rest for a few days and then I will declare my love to you.
Xiao Tang was not surprised by Zhao Ji's arrangement. In the final analysis, he was just his "favorite", only because of Jinfeng Yululou and Liu Yingyan, the leader of the line who had a close relationship with him. That made the romantic emperor feel very happy, so he paid attention to Xiao Tang's existence. However, Zhao Ji had many ways to have fun and entertain himself, and there were many treacherous ministers around him who tried their best to curry favor with him. Now Zhao Ji still remembers Xiao Tang For such a number one figure, even if he still has some humanity.
Xiao Tang didn't expect to have any deep feelings with this model of a faint king. After all, there was the precedent of Gao Qiu. As long as the willful Zhao Ji still remembered how happy he was to have fun because of himself, then Xiao Tang could take advantage of it. With his so-called favor, he established a firm foothold in the court.
However, although Zhao Ji was easy to deal with, Xiao Tang had to cheer up and think about another person. That person was Cai Jing and Cai Yuanchang, the treacherous prime minister who had held the power of the Song Dynasty for more than ten years after returning to the throne.
Although Cai Jing was a powerful traitor with a long-lasting reputation, Xiao Tang knew that he could never underestimate his power skills that he had honed through his ups and downs in the officialdom. As the leader of the Six Thieves in the late Northern Song Dynasty, he was an opportunist who fought between the old and new parties. Many people in later generations blamed Cai Jing, who was blamed for the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, but he was able to serve as prime minister four times. During his ups and downs, he fought many political opponents. Even after being tabooed by Song Huizong, he was demoted and suppressed, and then But they still have to regard him as a vague minister. In terms of political skills and city scheming, he is far better than Gao Qiu and other jesters who only cater to the emperor. If you really want to deal with him face to face, I am afraid you will never do it. It was as easy to deal with as when I got along with Liang Shijie.
To be a powerful and sycophantic official who will be remembered for eternity, one must have real talent and practical knowledge. There are not many treacherous officials in the imperial court who have made their fortune through speculation and flattery. However, when it comes to the treacherous and powerful officials in the Northern Song Dynasty, most people The first thing that comes to mind is Cai Jing.
It’s not yet time for Cai Jing to turn against him...
Such an idea suddenly came to Xiao Tang's mind. Fortunately, he was a military commander in the court. In the situation where the Song Dynasty was a noble and a military man, Xiao Tang thought that he would not have an affair with Cai Jing, who was determined to dominate the political arena, in the short term. What kind of conflicts of interest? Machiavellian tactics, I am no match for Cai Jing, but other figures with strong political energy such as Zheng Ju have already regarded Cai Jing as their mortal enemies. Tong Guan, Liang Shicheng, Li Bangyan and other power traitors also have their own agendas. Thoughts... In the Spring and Autumn Period, Bian Zhuangzi of the State of Lu was no match for the fierce tigers, but he was able to take advantage of the two tigers to fight for food. When one of the two tigers was dead and the other was injured, he stabbed and wounded the tiger, achieving the reputation of killing two tigers in one fell swoop. Now Xiao Tang, who had little foundation in the court, could only adopt the method of pretending to be a pig and eating the tiger.
After thinking hard for a while, Xiao Tang, who had sorted out his thoughts a little, felt that his mind was tense again. He took a long breath and covered his face with a soaked handkerchief. The political game between the imperial courts was indeed far away. It was much more troublesome than when Xiao gathered in the mountains and forests. What will happen next, I can only take one step at a time to see what happens...
In the next two or three days, Xiao Tang and the stewards of the mansion received many old friends from Bianjing who came to visit. During this period, Yang Xu, the manager of the mansion, also said that the news that he had not been killed in Liaodong a few days ago had not yet spread. When he arrived in the capital, Gao Qiu also sent minions from the Palace Commander's Palace to various shops under Xiao Tang's name in Bianjing to stir up trouble. However, the court later received news that Xiao Tang, who had survived the danger, was already on his way to Bianjing. , Gao Qiu saw that the attention of Zhao Ji and even the whole capital was focused on Xiao Tang again, so he had no choice but to give up temporarily.
When Xiao Tang heard this, he just smiled slightly and didn't take it to heart. It seemed that Gao Qiu still had the same tricks to trick some low-ranking officers, and he was a commoner. Now that he had returned to Bianjing, he always wanted to
Gao Qiu, who acted based on the official's wishes, did not dare to take advantage of this juncture to make the matter bigger.
Another day passed, and finally the inner palace of the imperial city sent a small official to the Xiao Mansion and summoned Xiao Tang to go and see the Holy Emperor.
