Chapter 140: The Secret Passage Leads to Spring

At the beginning of April in the first year of Baoqing of the Great Song Dynasty (1225 AD), the original undercurrent of the court suddenly became tense, and some of the officials belonging to Shi Miyuan's party originally accused Zhen Dexiu and others of negligence all day long, but in an instant, they turned the spearhead and began to accuse their relatives Yang of being greedy and lawless.

The Yang family is now in the court, mainly Yang Gu and Yang Shi brothers, they have always been cautious, although they are relatives, but they can restrain their clansmen and domestic servants, and do not do some tyrannical and illegal acts. Suddenly, they were attacked by this, and the two brothers were dumbfounded and didn't know why. Fortunately, what those people accused was just some chasing after the wind and shadows, without the slightest evidence, although the two of them also asked for the crime to think about it behind closed doors, but in fact they were not punished for it.

After the incident of King Ji, Yang Shi was afraid of Shi Miyuan's ruthless methods, and originally wanted to retreat bravely, and persuaded Empress Dowager Yang to withdraw and return to power. After this incident, he thought even more so, and discussed with Yang Guyi, but was fiercely opposed by Yang Gu.

"Brother Xian, you and I, as noble relatives, have been tired of the emperor's favor, and now the powerful ministers are in charge, the Son of Heaven is young and weak, and the people we rely on are nothing more than the government and the opposition to discuss with you and my brothers." Yang Gu Zhengse said: "If the Queen Mother withdraws the curtain and you and I beg to go, in the middle of the court, there is no one to rely on in the official family." With only the real Jingxi and them, how can they be Shi Xianggong's opponents! ”

The two of them were originally good friends with Shi Miyuan's party, and they were even better friends with Xue Ji, but now they have to fight back in order to protect themselves.

Xue Ji was also very puzzled at this time, what those officials did, anyone with a discerning eye knew that it was Shi Miyuan's instigation, but for such a major matter, Shi Miyuan didn't reveal any news to him. He didn't know what kind of medicine was sold in Shi Miyuan's gourd, but he felt that it was a little too strange that such a major matter in the court was not summoned to discuss it.

For this reason, he deliberately went to ask Xuan Xuan, only to learn that Xuan Xuan did not know about this matter in advance.

"Shi Xianggong, what does this mean?" Both of them are puzzled, and they are a little frightened, although the two of them have been in the dynasty for a long time, but they have been attached to Shi Miyuan, if Shi Miyuan wants to leave the two of them, then according to the things they have done for Shi Miyuan over the years, I am afraid that they will be degraded immediately.

"Could it be because you and I have a good relationship with the Yang brothers?" After thinking about it again and again, Xuan Xuan asked tentatively.

"I'm afraid that's the case...... Xue Ji nodded, and the two glanced at each other, although they didn't say it, they both knew the meaning of the other party's complaints.

Shi Miyuan has always colluded with Empress Dowager Yang inside and outside, so they also have a lot of dealings with the Yang family. Especially in the matter of establishing the prince, in order to get the support of the Empress Dowager Yang, Shi Miyuan instructed them to make friends with the Yang brothers and give generous gifts two years ago, and through them to influence the Yang family, who was still the queen at the time. But now that the throne has been decided, Shi Miyuan wants to compete with the Empress Dowager Yang for power, and he should not leave them aside for their friendship with the Yang family. Moreover, if the court continues to dispute like this, whether it is the defeat of the Shi Party or the departure of the Yang family, they will inevitably be implicated in the middle.

For the two of them, this is a disaster that is not justified.

Shi Miyuan actually didn't doubt these two people, as he grew older, all the problems of power and rape gradually revealed themselves in him: suspicious, stubborn, and stubborn. He trusted his own guests more than his own party officials, because these guests had to depend on him for food and clothing, and the court officials could change their doors at any time. Although he didn't listen to Wan Xin's words, he really regarded Xuanxuan, Xue Ji and others as enemies, but for the sake of prudence, when dealing with the Yang family, he didn't inform these two. In his mind, it was not too late to force the Empress Dowager Yang to withdraw the curtain and drive the Yang brothers out of the court, and then slowly investigate who was a spy among his people. If you look at it with great fanfare at this time, you are afraid of startling the grass and snakes, and you are also afraid of chilling the hearts of your subordinates.

But it was such a move that made Xuan Xuan and Xue Ji, the two generals, have to maintain a superficial neutrality at the beginning of his battle with the Yang family.

Then there were naturally rumors, whispers among the officials, and the eyes of Shi Miyuan, Xuan Ji and Xue Ji and others were different, and there were also rumors that came to the ears of the three of them, saying that it was a strife within the Shi Party, Xuan Xuan, Xue Ji and Shi Miyuan turned against each other, and Xuan Xuan intended to replace Shi Miyuan.

Xuan Xuan and Xue Ji were extremely frightened, but they couldn't defend themselves in this matter, so they couldn't run to Shi Miyuan and say that the rumors that I wanted to replace them were really lies, which was suspected of wanting to cover up. Especially Xuan Xuan, he and Shi Miyuan were originally in-laws, and they have been friends for many years, and it is impossible for him to defend himself for this thing that has not yet been shadowed. Shi Miyuan was so calm that he was originally a little alienated from the two, but after hearing this rumor, he invited the two to the mansion and set up a banquet for a drink.

"There have been a lot of gossips recently, so you don't have to take it to heart." Seeing the trembling appearance of the two, Shi Miyuan smiled: "The prime minister and the two have known each other for many years, how can they be deceived by the villain!" ”

Hearing him speak like this, Xuan Xuan and Xue Ji glanced at each other, Xue Ji reacted faster, and immediately words such as "discerning the details" and "discerning eyes like torches" were surging endlessly, Xuan Xuan was old and ashamed, although he had never been so explicit, but he also had a flattered look.

"There are quite treacherous people in the court, seeing that the Son of Heaven has first ascended to the great treasure, he intends to deceive the Holy Hearing, collude with him, and plot against the old man." Shi Miyuan squinted and said, "Have you two ever heard the wind?" ”

Xuan Xuan and Xue Ji were neutral and bright, and the reason why Shi Miyuan launched a slander against the Yang family was because of this matter. The two of them also have their own eyes and ears, although they are not as wide as Shi Miyuan, but they can also hear that the students of Taixue are quite colluded.

Hearing that Xuan Xuan and Xue Ji also said this, Shi Miyuan confirmed in his heart that there must be a conspiracy against him behind this. He has been in power for many years, and his methods are extremely old-fashioned, and it is not the first time he has encountered an opponent like this hidden in the shadows, but he has Qin Tianxi to help him before, and he can always find out the hidden person, and the only time he has not found out is the person who pointed out King Ji at the beginning.

Thinking of this, his heart moved, that person had instructed King Ji, and he couldn't find out who he was through Lu Qi. Could it be that person behind the scenes, colluding with the Yang family, and colluding with Zhende Xiu Wei Weng's generation, to attack his family again?

Not to mention that Shi Miyuan is worried about the person behind it, just Zhao Heju, who is now the Son of Heaven. In the midst of the noise in the city, he ran more and more diligently as if he had nothing to do.

The Son of Heaven has an order, and it is very cheap to act naturally, and all the famous plum trees in the Jujing Garden have been relocated to other gardens, and the garden has been expanded. The palace wall was rebuilt, because it was used as a farm, so it was not painted with white ash like other palace walls. Facing the West Lake, there is no need to worry about the water, but in order to facilitate flooding and irrigation, ditches are still dug.

In the whole garden, more than 300 acres of flat land have been excavated, plus the terraced fields on the hillside, a total of about 450 acres.

March is the planting season, these "farmers" are working hard in the fields, they are very skillful, at least Zheng Qingzhi and others can't see what is the difference between them and real farmers, they can see it, and they only say that it is a means of cultivating Liuqiu, or these seeds from the ocean are to be planted in this way.

Beyond the fields, the grass is green, and unknown wildflowers are already blooming, and bees and butterflies wander in between, making people feel relaxed and idyllic at first sight.

Zhao and Ju sat on top of Maza, breathing in the fresh breath of the garden, he squinted his eyes and showed a smile. Han Yu presented a towel, he touched the sweat on his forehead, and then said to Zheng Qingzhi: "Zheng Qing, when will these crops ripen?" ”

"Some of them are early, like pumpkins, but they can bloom and bear fruit in February and March, and some of them are late." Zheng Qingzhi just got a scaly claw from the mouth of the "begging farmer", naturally he couldn't say it clearly, Zhao Youju frowned slightly, and then said with a smile: "Zheng Qing, this matter is important, don't let these begging farmers prevaricate, now it's just these hundreds of acres of land, naturally they can be cultivated, if it's tens of thousands of acres, we have to be cultivated by our Song farmers, I don't know the details, how to persuade farmers?" ”

Zhao Youju's criticism made Zheng Qingzhi blush a little, and he responded with a "yes". Zhao Heju said again: "You go and ask, I will take a break." ”

Hearing the order of the Son of Heaven, Zheng Qingzhi had to leave to find a farmer, Zhao Youju stood up and glanced at Han Yu beside him. Han Yu's face was slightly red, and she was wearing a crown of wild flowers on her head, and Zhao Heju reached out and grabbed her bright wrist: "Ayu, your flower crown is extremely beautiful." ”

The two of them hugged each other and walked slowly to the next room, and the guards were about to follow, but Long Twelve stretched out his hand. He has now been promoted to be the leader of this group of guards, and although he is silent and looks a little silly, this team of guards understands what he means. The Son of Heaven is now in great interest, and what he wants to do with the harem beauties in his arms can be imagined with his knees, and they are shocked by the Son of Heaven, but that is a big crime!

Zhao Youju and Han Yu entered the room, Han Yu was still with a red tide on her face, but Zhao Youju had already restrained her smile, and said with a faint expression: "Ayu, some can't stand you, but that person's eyes and ears are all over the inside and outside, and it is impossible to avoid it." ”

"The slave knows that it can be useful to the official family, and the slave is very happy in his heart." Han Yu did not use "concubine" to call herself, she was still a "slave", in order to show that she did not forget her roots.

"I'm gone, you can hide it here." Zhao Youju smiled and waved his hand, and then pushed a bookcase in the room hard, revealing a secret passage. He took up the lantern and went into the secret passage, and after a few moments, he came out of a fancy room outside the palace walls.

"The official family is here!"

Seeing him, Meng Xisheng was extremely happy, although this secret path was not used for the first time, but Meng Xisheng saw Zhao and Ju here for the first time. Since Zhao and Ju entered the king of Yi, they have not seen each other for more than four years.

"Judgment!" Zhao Heju saw that his expression was both joy and awe, and he went up and gave him a hug, just like when he was in Yuzhang Villa. Meng Xisheng had strong self-control, but he was almost so excited that he burst into tears: although his own officials were already the Ninth Five-Year Supreme, they were still as close as before!

At this time, the people have great respect for the Son of Heaven, and Meng Xisheng has followed Zhao and Ju since he was a child, and almost all of the most critical growth periods in his life have been spent by Zhao and Ju's side, and his feelings for Zhao and Ju are different from ordinary people. Thinking of the beginning, and then remembering that he has become the king of a country from a distant branch of the clan that had declined to today, Meng Xisheng became more and more admired.

"Official!"

Looking at Zhao Heju, he called again, Zhao Heju waved his hand, and the excitement on his face had disappeared: "Call me a big official here, listen to it more pleasantly." ”

"The big official, now he is taller than the villain." Meng Xisheng said tentatively, seeing that Zhao and Ju were still the same expressions, although the initial affectionate appearance was gone, he felt hot in his heart: his own big official, although he is the respect of the Son of Heaven, is still the temperament of the year!

"There are letters written by the four ladies to the big officials, as well as Fang Youcai and Chen Zicheng." Meng Xisheng remembered the serious matter, hurriedly took out a stack of letters, handed them to Zhao Heju, Zhao Heju read the letter, and said: "Let's talk about the current situation of Liuqiu, in front of Zheng Qingzhi and the guards, Dashi They are not easy to say." ”

"Liuqiu is very good now......" Meng Xisheng said as he pondered.

Since the flow of the river to open the port, the merchant ships coming and going are endless, before going to the Wa Kingdom, Goryeo, only from the Qingyuan Mansion to the sea, now some Quanzhou, Guangzhou maritime merchants, after the fresh water supply transit, sailed to the Wa Goryeo. With more maritime merchants, not only did the amount of tax collected by the Office of Seeking Demand increase, but also the raw materials needed for Seeking Demand increased. In particular, since the implementation of the "Liuqiu Loan Agreement," Liuqiu has successively lent money to 16 powerful maritime merchants, who, with the support of Liuqiu, have purchased a large amount of land from Fujian and Guangzhou, specializing in planting cotton, mulberry, tea and other cash crops, and have formed a certain scale. The abundance of source materials and the vast market demand have enabled the various workshops of Liuqiu to expand in scale, and the largest cotton weaving workshop has employed a full 600 workers.

The population of Liuqiu also grew rapidly, more and more people from the Northland, Wa Kingdom, and Korea were recruited, and the old immigrants started families after being granted land, which brought about a round of baby boom, and now the population of Liuqiu has exceeded 300,000, and more than 100,000 people are waiting to settle down. As a result, due to industrial development, Liuqiu still felt that there was not enough manpower, especially those who had been specially trained. The graduates who came out of the Liuqiu Primary School were looted out by the various "units" of Liuqiu almost instantly, and the total number of children and teenagers studying in the primary school has exceeded 15,000.

The number of secondary schools is also growing, and there are more than 600 people in total.

Regarding the news of the Liuqiu Academy, Zhao Youju listened in the most detail, and even put down the letter and listened attentively. In his heart, the flow of the school is the foundation of the fundamentals, if you want to promote social change, encourage innovation and progress, you can't do without the talents in this school.

"Great official, now that you are the Son of Heaven, to deal with that thief, why do you have to cover it up so much, a piece of holy decree, he has to bow his head and bind it, if you dare to resist, isn't our secret camp transferred in?" After Meng Xisheng finished speaking, he asked with some puzzlement.

Although he said that he was very clear and had the ability to take charge of himself, after all, he had never seen the sinister officialdom, let alone Shi Miyuan's methods. Zhao Youju smiled slightly: "If it can be so easy, I don't have to be so cautious, even when I see you, I have to dodge like this...... But, soon, you just have to do what you do, and soon we will meet in the open. ”