Early in the morning, four nobles asked to enter the palace to see the emperor. Emperor Chongde knew that he was here to intercede with Li Guorui. It's just that two of these four imperial relatives are considered to be the elders of Emperor Chongde, and even if Emperor Chongde disagrees with his suggestion, it doesn't seem to be very good if he refuses directly. The eldest of these people is Guo Tongxin, the commander of the horses, he is the husband of the aunt of Emperor Chongde's father, and he is now over eighty years old, and he is also the oldest emperor who is still alive.

Then there was his sister-in-law, Empress Zhang's father, Taikang Bo Zhang Guoji, and then Emperor Chongde's cousin Liu Wenbing, Xinlehou, and his brother-in-law, Gong Zigu, the concubine.

Emperor Chongde also felt that by resolutely rejecting these people's requests, he could also show his attitude, so that these imperial relatives died of the idea of exploiting loopholes, and honestly took out the money. So he asked these four royal relatives to come to the apse of the Wenhua Hall to meet them.

The four imperial princes waited in the apse of the Wenhua Hall for about half an hour, and Emperor Chongde went to the Wenhua Palace.

The emperor sat down on the throne, several imperial relatives knelt down and bowed three times and bowed nine times, after the salute, the emperor originally had the intention to let them kneel for a while, but when he saw Guo Tongxin's white hair, his heart suddenly softened, so he let them all calm down, and asked the eunuch to give them a seat.

"What's the matter with a few Aiqing coming into the palace?" Emperor Chongde asked, his voice cold.

According to the discussion of the four people before entering the palace, the eldest Guo Tongxin should speak first, and then everyone should beat the side drum. Who knows, when Guo Tongxin heard that the emperor's tone was very cold, he closed his mouth and didn't say anything. Tai Comber already had a stuttering problem, so it was not his turn to speak about this matter. And Xin Lehou and Li Guorui are brothers-in-law, and it seems that it is not easy to speak first. As a result, everyone, you look at me, I look at you, and in the end, it was Emperor Chongde's brother-in-law Gong Zigu who spoke first:

"Your Majesty, the ministers have come to the palace for nothing else, and I implore Your Majesty to ...... Li Guorui for the sake of the Empress Dowager Cisheng's affection."

"Li Guorui's matter, I have my own opinions, and I don't need to say much." Emperor Chongde didn't wait for him to finish at all, and directly interrupted him.

The emperor's attitude surprised several people, but Gong Zigu still reluctantly spoke: "Your Majesty, since this matter is out of interference, the ministers should naturally not say much. But thinking of the Empress Dowager Cisheng......"

"Hehe," Emperor Chongde sneered, "I originally thought that as the prince of the Jokhang Emperor, when the world was in turmoil, coming to the palace to see me would be beneficial to the country and the people, but I didn't want you to say such vulgar words!" Moreover, this country is not only my country, but also the country of the Empress Dowager Cisheng, and the country of the ancestors and ancestors. The difficulties of the imperial court and the hardships of me, even if the Qing and others do not know, the ancestors will also know everything. If it is not a last resort, how can I bear to ask Qing and others to help? ”

"Your Majesty forgives your sins!" Listening to Emperor Chongde's words were very harsh, Gong Zigu was so frightened that he quickly knelt on the ground again, "The minister is stupid." ”

Liu Wenbing saw that Gong Zigu couldn't speak, so he dared to say: "Your Majesty works hard for the country, and the ministers know very well. But today's difficulties in the imperial court are by no means rescued with the help of a few Qi Wan. What's more, the country has not yet reached the point of exhaustion today, and the emperor has taken too much responsibility for Li Guorui, and will make the Empress Dowager of Cisheng ...... in the spirit of heaven."

Emperor Chongde shook his head and said, "I really don't know. Don't say this to outsiders, the inner treasury of the imperial court is really almost exhausted. He looked at the four royal princes, his eyes suddenly moistened, he sighed, and then said: "I rule the world with filial piety, don't you know?" How could he bear to really harm the Empress Dowager's mother's family? If it weren't for the empty hiding, and the military salary was gone, how could I bear to do this? Since ancient times, loyal ministers have destroyed their families and relieved their difficulties, and history is endless. Li Guorui, as a relative of the country, should take out the silver to advocate for his subjects, which is far worse than the ancients relieving the country and destroying the family! ”

"It's just that the emperor ......" Guo Tongxin, the oldest and most senior, finally spoke, "The country is in difficulty, and the ministers are also very clear." But today's Qi Wan is not comparable to previous years. The land is desolate, and the farms have limited income. Since he is a relative of the emperor and the country, his use cannot be drastically reduced. Although the Hou family of Wuqing was relatively solid in previous years, in recent years, there is actually an empty shelf left. ”

When Emperor Chongde heard this, he sneered: "You are all imperial relatives, so naturally you will only think about the imperial family. If the world is peaceful and the country is rich, and the royal family is given more rewards every year, everyone will not complain. ”

This was a bit of a heart-wrenching taste, and everyone didn't dare to speak for a while.

When Emperor Chongde saw that none of them spoke, he asked them:

"What else do you have to say?"

Several people stood up and looked at each other, but they still did not dare to say anything.

Emperor Chongde said again: "Qing and others were entrusted by the Li family to come to intercede, although I did not allow it, you also did your best." I am mentally tired today, and there are many hardships that I cannot tell you in detail. Let's go. ”

Several people silently kowtowed, and Yuguan withdrew.

Out of the palace gate, Liu Wenbing said to the other three: "Otherwise, we will persuade Marquis Wu Qinghou to give a little more, give 100,000, and the emperor will have a step down." ”

"No!" Guo Tongxin, who looked a little old and confused, immediately objected, "He can afford 100,000, can you and I afford 100,000?" Breaking off does not set this precedent. If you really need money, I'd rather use it from a few fathers-in-law......"

Emperor Chongde also went to the Qianqing Palace, and Cao Huachun followed. Emperor Chongde said to Cao Huachun: "I let those imperial relatives hit a nail today, do you think Li Guorui will be honest?" ”

Cao Huachun didn't know how to answer. When Emperor Chongde saw it, he shook his head, smiled, and went to the Qianqing Palace.

Another day later, after Emperor Chongde was on official business, he remembered the fifth child who was still sick, so he decided to go back to the Chengqian Palace to have a look.

As soon as he entered the Chengqian Palace, he saw that Concubine Tian had already led the fifth prince and the second prince and the fourth prince to greet him. Seeing the emperor, Concubine Tian bowed down and said, "The concubine greets the emperor." The nurse of the five princes also hurriedly asked the five princes to kowtow to Emperor Chongde. Among the sons of Emperor Chongde, the second prince was ten years old and the fourth prince was eight years old, and they all already knew etiquette and were very dull by court education. They timidly knelt down and prostrated to their father, and then stood in silence before his father's knees. Only the fifth prince is still young, and he doesn't know what the courtesy of a monarch and a minister is, so he is the only one who is not afraid of the emperor. Now he followed behind his brothers, and when he saw his father, he cried out happily and indistinctly: "Father! Father's ...... Banzai! Ahri wants to ...... Hug ......"

When Emperor Chongde heard this, he laughed, took him in his lap, and kissed him on the cheek. He said, "It looks like Ahri's illness is completely cured." ”

Facing the beautiful and talented concubine and beloved son, Emperor Chongde temporarily put aside the depression of not being able to raise military salaries. He originally had the intention to signal to Concubine Tian today, asking her father to use tens of thousands of silver to break the current deadlock with the help of Qi Wan. Now I decided not to mention it for the time being, so as not to spoil the moment of pleasant relationship. "Let Tian Hong encounter the matter of money," he said in his heart, "put it in the second step." ”

"Doctor Li said that Ahri has not been fully returned, and he still has to take care of it. In the morning, Ahri still had a slight fever, and drank a bowl of medicine, but now he is getting better. Concubine Tian replied with a smile.

"Father, the medicine is bitter, Ahri doesn't take medicine, Ahri doesn't take medicine......" Hearing his mother say "take medicine", he was sitting on Emperor Chongde's lap, playing with Emperor Chongde's beard intently, but he mistakenly thought that he was going to take medicine again, and hurriedly put down the beard in his hand, looked at his father, and his small mouth deflated little by little, as if he would cry in the next moment.

"Alright, alright. We're all right. Emperor Chongde stretched out his hand, touched his head and said, "No need to take medicine, no need to take medicine." ”

"Father is the best!" As soon as he heard that he didn't want to take medicine, the fifth child became happy. Looking at the child's smiling face, Emperor Chongde's mood also improved rarely, but after a moment of thought, somehow, he thought again: "I really don't know, when Ahri grows up, this Jokhang country will still allow him to enjoy all the glory." ”

Thinking of this, he lost interest again, and when he saw that his son was fine, he picked up the fifth child, asked him to stand up by himself, and then stood up and said, "Seeing Ahri like this, I am relieved." It's time for me to go back to the Qianqing Palace. ”

According to general habits, Concubine Tian should take someone to kneel down at this time and say "Congratulations to the saint", but Concubine Tian also has something in her heart. Her father asked someone to bring a message several times and asked her to help Li Guorui say a few words. Concubine Tian knew that Emperor Chongde had always been very taboo about interfering in the harem. However, her father repeatedly brought words, and she didn't do anything at all. So he asked:

"Your Majesty is so happy with your Sacred Heart, why is it suddenly troubled again?"

Emperor Chongde did not doubt him, so he said: "Recently, there has been emptiness in the treasury, and it is not easy to raise salaries, so I am sad day and night. ”

When Concubine Tian heard this, she asked, "Didn't I hear that Qi Wan was asked to help?" ”

"Hehe......" Speaking of this, Emperor Chongde couldn't help but sneer, "Call Qi Wan to help?" First of all, Li Guorui resisted the decree, who was willing to pay for the other royal relatives? And not only did he refuse to pay, but he also deliberately made all kinds of ugly things to damage the reputation of the court and me, damn it! ”

"The Li family has been favored by the country, and they should be an example. If the emperor summons him into the palace and tells him in person, how can he not pull out a hair? Tian Fei said.

"He stubbornly resisted, and I have sent him to prison."

Concubine Tian plucked up her courage and said, "Please forgive your majesty for your ignorant and vain words." I'm afraid going to prison is not the way to go. Li Guorui is probably very old, in case he dies in prison, one will not look good on the emperor's face, and the other will be sorry for the Empress Dowager. ”

Emperor Chongde stopped speaking and did not make any indications. Although he felt that Concubine Tian's words were somewhat reasonable, he had never allowed the concubines to inquire about state affairs, not even to inquire, so he regretted mentioning this matter with Concubine Tian. So he said, "You don't have to worry about this, I have my own measure." ”

After saying this, Emperor Chongde got up and went to the Qianqing Palace.