In a blink of an eye, it has entered July, and Wang Naizeng, who has been out for nearly a year and returned to the capital again, really has a sense of being wrong. Not only did the owner change from Han Xiufeng to Wen Xiang, but Wen Xiang was so busy these days that he didn't have time to sit down and listen to him report on the situation of each semicolon.

The Empress Dowager Kangci collapsed, and it is said that the emperor mourned and shouted, not only took off the crown and Yi Sufu went to drink wine in front of the spirit, but even ordered the queen to be dressed in the following clothes. Below the prince and above with a top belt. The princess is below Fujin, the guard wife and above, as well as the men and women such as the cloth and the collar are all dressed, each according to the rank, gathered to mourn, the mourning is deep, and the crying does not stop!

Wen Xiang, who had just been awarded the top belt of the fourth grade for his meritorious service in "accepting the grain", naturally could not be an exception, and he entered the palace last night and has not come back until now.

"Mr. Wang, this is the palace newspaper you wanted, these are the palace gate copies in the last few days." Enjun didn't need to enter the palace on an errand, but his clothes were also changed, he put down a thick stack of palace newspapers and "palace gate copy", and said in a low voice: "After you left, the 'Rizhao Pavilion' has been empty, and no one else has lived, and the big head is helping you clean up." ”

"Thank you."

"What's so thankful for this," Eunjun thought about it and said helplessly: "Mr. Wang, it's really unfortunate that you came back, not only is Master Wen not here, but he can't even put wine for you to wash the dust." ”

The Queen Mother died, and the civil and military officials of all yamen could only cry and not laugh, let alone drink.

Although the "Houyi Hall" is not a yamen in the economic system, there are several guards stationed in the hall, and they know people and faces, so Eunjun really doesn't dare to drink and have fun at this time.

Wang Naizeng didn't care if he had any alcohol to drink, and while flipping through the newspaper, he asked in a low voice: "Enjun, does Lord Cao come every day?" ”

"Lord Cao hasn't been here for two or three months."

"If he doesn't come, how can he report this situation to Prince Gong and Master Peng?"

"Feng Xiaowhip picks up and goes to the palace every day to be on duty, if there is any affection, Master Wen will let Feng Xiaowhip go."

Wang Naizeng was not very happy to realize that Cao Yuying must have failed to be the big shopkeeper of the "Houyi Hall", so he thought about it and asked: "Does Master Wen often hand over signs and beg for an audience?" ”

Although Enjun is also used to Wenxiang's boss, deep down he still feels that Wang Naizeng is his own person, so he simply closed the door and said: "It's not very often, I hand over the brand two or three times a month." ”

Wang Naizeng thought to himself that it was a lot to meet two or three times a month, and the six Shangshu who were not on duty in the military aircraft department might not be able to see the emperor once a month. Thinking of the speed of Wen Xiang's promotion, Wang Naizeng asked: "Xincheng, you often go to the palace to order Mao, and your brother is on an errand by the emperor's side, have you heard some rumors about Master Wen?" ”

"Mr. Wang, do you want to ask the palace or the outside?"

"I want to know everything inside and outside the palace."

"There are no rumors in the palace, the guards on duty in the palace and the eunuchs in the performance office, seeing that Wen Xiang often visits, all feel that Master Wen is a saint. There are a lot of rumors outside, and there are all kinds of things that are said, and they have noses and eyes. ”

"What do you say?"

"Say...... It is said that the reason why the emperor attaches so much importance to Master Wen is that he is worried about Su Shun, although it is pure nonsense, but many people believe it. Especially those Manchurians who dare not speak out against Su Shun, they come to Master Wen whenever they have the opportunity, so that Master Wen doesn't dare to live here. ”

"What a commotion!" Wang Naicheng was taken aback.

"Mr. Wang, Master Wen also knows that things in the hall can't be publicized, but the emperor has just rewarded the prefect title and the Taoist title, a few promotions a year, and it can't be done if you want to be obscure." Enjun sighed and said with a wry smile: "Although Master Wen didn't think about climbing Lord Sushun's Gao Zhi'er, he didn't want to be an enemy of Lord Sushun, but he couldn't help those people outside chewing their tongues, so I met several times, and Master Wen stepped forward to meet him, and Lord Sushun didn't give Master Wen a good face." ”

"What about you, have you ever met Su Shun?"

"I met it once, but it didn't give me a good face." Eunjun thought about it and couldn't help but say, "But I don't think it's that simple. ”

"What do you mean by that?" Wang Naizeng asked in a low voice.

"Lord Sushun likes to make friends with Han people like you, it is said that the house has hired more than a dozen friends, and Lord Cao also ran to Lord Sushun's house twice in three days. Qingxian said that the reason why Lord Sushun was so unwilling to see Master Wen was probably because Lord Cao was secretly doing bad. ”

"It's possible."

"But I don't think there's anything to worry about, first, we are all running errands for the emperor, and we are doing errands to find out the situation, and we have never fought with anyone for power and profit. Second, even if Lord Su Shun is unhappy, he can't take care of us now. ”

"What do you mean?" Wang Naizeng asked subconsciously.

Eunjun got up and walked over and opened the door to look outside, confirming that all the people in the hall were busy in each room, then closed the door and returned to the desk, and said nervously in Wang Naizeng's ear: "Mr. Wang, I heard my brother say something big, Prince Gong is estimated to not be able to do it for a few days!" ”

Wang Naicheng was taken aback, and hurriedly opened yesterday's "palace door copy".

Yesterday, the emperor actually issued two edicts because of the death of the Empress Dowager Kangci, the first is: Prince Gong Yi? , Prince Yi Zaiyuan, University scholar Yucheng, Shang Shulinkui, all respectfully handled, all matters that should be done, and read the old classics in detail, carefully reviewed, and played at any time.

This edict was issued entirely according to the old funeral system, and there was nothing to be faulty about.

However, the "Edict of the Empress Dowager of Daxing" issued immediately afterwards had ulterior motives, and the edict said in the tone of the Empress Dowager that all funerals and other matters after death should be handled in accordance with the old practice, "the emperor will be removed for 27 days", "decorate the final ceremonies, and those who can be a little thrifty should spare material resources".

In other words, this is an attempt to reduce the specifications of the funeral of the Empress Dowager Kangci!

Seeing that Wang Naizeng was thoughtful, Enjun couldn't help but pull out a newspaper: "Mr. Wang, that's what I said." ”

This is a holy decree two months ago to canonize the concubine of Emperor Kangci as the empress dowager of Kangci, Wang Naizeng didn't see anything wrong with the will, raised his head and asked: "There is nothing wrong with this edict!" ”

"The edict was drafted by the Military Aircraft Department, so naturally there will be no problems, but this matter is not so simple." Enjun stared at Wang Naizeng and said in a low voice: "I heard the eunuchs in the palace say that the emperor went to visit when Emperor Kangci's concubine was seriously ill, and he happened to meet King Gong, who had just come out after visiting the imperial concubine. The emperor asked the concubine how her condition was, and King Gong knelt on the ground and cried that the concubine was no longer good, because she didn't have a title, so she couldn't look away.

The emperor hummed twice noncommittally, and he didn't know if King Gong had misunderstood the emperor's meaning, or if he was dizzy in a hurry, or maybe he was pretending to be confused, anyway, as soon as he returned to the military aircraft, he sent a decree, saying that the emperor had granted Concubine Jin the empress dowager, and ordered the Ministry of Rites to prepare for the canonization ceremony! ”

Wang Naizeng couldn't believe that this was true, and muttered with a frown: "Emperor Kangci's concubine is the biological mother of King Gong, and it is reasonable to want to ask for the title of queen mother for his mother, but this is such a big thing with the emperor's clear permission, wouldn't it be overkill for him to do this?" ”

"He is the foreman of the Minister of Military Aircraft, he said that the emperor gave permission, and Lord Peng, Mu Yin, and Du Han naturally believed it."

"He's giving people a handle, as you said, Su Shun really can't care about the lord now."

"I'm afraid that Su Shun will take this opportunity to bring down King Gong and deal with us!"

"Don't worry about it, Master Wen's official promotion is a little fast, but it has not yet reached the point where he is regarded by Su Shun as a thorn in his eye." Wang Naizeng thought about it, picked up the teacup and said slowly: "As long as we do our errands in a down-to-earth manner and find out the situation, even if Su Shun wants to move us, the emperor will not let us." ”

"That's right."

……

Wang Naizeng came back, not only did Eunjun and Datou seem to have the backbone, but even Qingxian felt much more down-to-earth.

When Wenxiang rushed to the "Houyi Hall" from the palace, Wang Naizeng had finished reading the newspaper in the past few months, and was sitting in "Listening to Yuxuan" to talk to the big head about Shanghai.

"Master Wen, sit down and make tea." The big head hurriedly stood up.

"Don't worry about it here, I'll have a good chat with Mr. Wang."

"Okay, retire first."

When the big head walked out of the "Listening to Yuxuan" and brought it to the door, Wen Xiangcai arched his hand and said: "Brother Yunqing, I've tired you!" ”

"Dong Weng is talking about this, Nai Zeng is not only not tired, but it is really eye-opening."

"How can I be, although I haven't seen many things with my own eyes......" finally met a fellow practitioner who could talk freely, Wen Xiang was full of emotion, and he couldn't hold it as soon as he opened the box. From England to France, to America and Russia. From the customs of Xiyi to the astronomy, geography and the study of things in Xiyi, the last two people were so worried that they didn't even have the appetite to eat.

"Dong Weng, can you not report good news and not bad news like Lord Ye, but I think that Britain, France, the United States and other countries will never give up on the matter of revising the treaty, and it will be a year soon, two years at the slow, and there will definitely be provocations."

"Xiyi will start fighting?"

"Those foreign businessmen in Hong Kong are ready to move, and Lord Ye not only knows nothing and has no preparations, but he thinks that if Lord Ye is self-righteous again, the foreigners will definitely fight, and the only thing that is not sure is a big fight or a small fight."

Wen Xiang knew very well that it was not a way to always fool, and he knew that Ye Mingchen had no other choice than to fool one day at a time, not only because the imperial court would never agree to the conditions put forward by foreigners, but also because the matter of not allowing foreigners to enter Guangzhou City was instructed by the emperor and the emperor.

If Ye Mingchen dared to let foreigners enter the city of Guangzhou, or promised foreigners any other conditions, then he, the minister of trade and the governor of Guangzhou, would have done it. As for preparing for war, there is no way to talk about it, first, the two Guangzhous are not peaceful, not only there are long-haired remnants, but also there is a dispute between the Turks, and second, even if he has the conditions to prepare for the war, he will not dare to start a war with the foreigners without authorization, and if this battle is lost, he will definitely be investigated for "starting a light war".

Thinking of this, Wen Xiang said helplessly: "I can only perform according to the truth, and I can't do anything else." ”

Looking at Wen Xiang's weak appearance, Wang Naizeng couldn't help but smile bitterly: "Master Han, this is roasting you on the fire!" ”

"Brother Yunqing, you can say that, I don't dare to think so. If I didn't have ambition, I wouldn't be where I am today! But you're right, he handed over this big hot potato to you and me, while he hid in a place called Sheep's Horn Sitou at the junction of Sichuan and Guizhou to enjoy leisure, and he didn't know how moisturizing his life was. ”

Speaking of Han Si, Wang Naizeng couldn't help but smile: "On being an official, Dong Weng, you really have to learn from him." ”

"Why did Brother Yunqing say this?"

"I flipped through the newspapers of the palace for half a year in the afternoon, and there was only one edict about him, whether it was Xiang Rong and the monk king, Hu Linyi and Zeng Guofan, and even Ye Mingchen had three days and two heads to report to the emperor for success, but there was no good news on his side."

"He was originally responsible for the prevention of blockage, and it is said that he was later entrusted by the new governor of Sichuan, Huang Zonghan, to help handle the transfer of grain and salary in Sichuan and Guizhou.

"So to say that there is no fault is merit!"

Wang Naizeng smiled, and then changed his words: "Dong Weng, doesn't Zhixing have a righteous sister, who is now in Shanghai, not only did she not come back with me, but also went to the American Christian Congregational Church missionary Tu Richmond and his wife just organized the Piwen Girls' School to learn the language and writing of foreigners." When I persuaded her to come back, she actually showed the token given to her by Zhixing, saying that she would not enter the tiger's den and get the tiger, and she planned to help find out the situation. ”

"There is such a thing!"

"Zhixing once acted as the governor of Songjiang Prefecture and Haiphong, and had been the supervisor of Jiang Customs for a few months, and the official reputation in Shanghai was not one or two o'clock, and the tea was not cold when people left. Everyone knows that she is Zhixing's righteous sister, Xue Huan, Sun Feng, Zhou Xingyuan and other officials all treat her as their own person, and Wu Jianzhang even treats her as an aunt and grandmother, so she can do whatever she wants over there, and even foreigners think she is a strange woman, and they treat her differently, what can you say I can do? ”

Wen Xiang's head was big, and he hurriedly said: "Brother Yunqing, Zhixing only entrusted the 'Houyi Hall' to me, and did not entrust his righteous sister to me, but entrusted it to you. I look at this, you can write a letter to Zhixing yourself. ”

"Dong Weng, how do you ask me to write this letter?"

"That's your business." Wen Xiang didn't want to cause trouble, so he changed his words: "When it comes to you, I want to ask if you will participate in next year's examination." If you plan to take the exam, you don't have to worry about the things in the classroom, and you should review your homework quickly. ”

"If you don't take the test, not to mention that you may not be able to Chinese style, even if you can do Chinese style, what can you do?"

How could Wen Xiang not know what he said about "what can it be" means that no matter how good the article is, it can't resist the foreigners, and solemnly persuaded: "It's a pity not to take the test, otherwise wouldn't it be unbearable to suffer in the cold window for ten years, Yunqing, in my opinion, you can't be rash, you better think about it again." ”

"Dong Weng, I've thought about it a long time ago, I really don't want to take the test again."

"Determined?"

"Hmm."

"Then I'll find an opportunity to help you ask the emperor for an errand."

"Dong Ong ......"

"Listen to me first," Wen Xiang put down the teacup, stared at him and said sincerely: "It's not that I can't bear the two thousand taels of silver that year, but the emperor is likely to let me take on other errands, and the affairs in the hall can't be delayed because of this, and I can't have someone to help me preside over the affairs of the hall." ”

Thinking that the name of the curtain friend is not right after all, and it is impossible for the big shopkeeper of the "Houyi Hall" in front of him to always be outside the current system, and he must have a promotion level, otherwise it will be unjustifiable, Wang Naizeng arched his hand and said: "It's okay to ask for an errand, but this lack can't be too conspicuous." ”

Wen Xiang said with a smile: "I've already helped you think about it, see if I can help you find a shortage of the Internal Affairs Office, if you can't find a vacancy of official learning." ”