Ma Shaoguang has also been an official for many years, so he naturally knows that Lin Yangzu wants to form a community of interests with himself when he says this. Ma Shaoguang is not a clean official like Hai Rui, of course, he should not take anything at all, but he should not be missing half of it.

Ma Shaoguang thought of this and said with a smile: "Brother Lin, the younger brother has just arrived, and there are still a few brothers who need to take care of anything in Beijing in the future!" ”

Lin Yangzu was very happy when he heard Ma Shaoguang say this: "Okay, then it's decided, go to Chunfeng Tower tonight, and my brother will be the east!" ”

At this moment, the pen holder from the outhouse came in and said, "My lord, a father-in-law in the palace is here!" ”

Someone from the palace? Lin Yangzu frowned, he was born as a Jinshi, and he was very disgusted with these dead eunuchs, and he was just about to ask something. The pen holder looked at Ma Shaoguang and said, "My lord, that father-in-law is from Kunning Palace, and he was sent by the imperial concubine, and he wants to see Master Ma!" ”

Lin Yangzu only remembered at this time that Ma Shaoguang was Ma Jiyuan's son, and the imperial concubine who was now in charge of the harem was Ma Shaoguang's sister.

Lin Yangzu hurriedly turned around and said to Ma Shaoguang: "Brother Xian, since the nobles in the palace are invited, then please go!" Don't forget your appointment tonight! ”

Ma Shaoguang nodded, went out and entered the palace with the little yellow door.

After Ma Shaoguang left, the pen holder asked in a low voice: "Lord Lin, what is the number of this Ma Shaoguang?" How do you still have a connection with the palace? "It's not that I don't recognize nobles in the pen frame type, it's just that Ma Shaoguang is a five-grade official, this kind of official Wen Xuan Division has to see a hundred and eighty people every day, and the pen holder type doesn't have the time to check the files in detail one by one. Today, Ma Shaoguang can be personally received by Lord Lang Zhonglin, which has made the pen holder very surprised, I didn't expect this Guangxi guy to have anything to do with the palace.

Lin Yangzu glared at the pen holder and said, "If you don't know, don't ask around, do your own job!" ”

The pen holder listened to Lin Yangzu's reprimand, and hurriedly bowed out.

Lin Yangzu sat on the chair and thought about things carefully, now that he has a relationship with Ma Shaoguang, the next step is to approach King Qin.

Lin Yangzu attaches so much importance to Ma Shaoguang, although he has the element of participating in the salt industry, but the most important thing is to get close to King Qin. Lin Yangzu is almost fifty years old this year, according to his qualifications and ability, at most he is to be a waiter, and it is extremely difficult to become a scholar in the future, as for entering the cabinet, there is no need to think about it.

But I've reached this position, and I can't be in front of me when I see that position, and this feeling is too painful. Although Lin Yangzu is also considered a Chu party, he and the crown prince can't reach it at all, and if they want to go further, they have to make another plan. At this time, Lin Yangzu happened to hear the news from the palace that the emperor was very dissatisfied with the prince and intended to abolish the prince.

This made Lin Yangzu find an opportunity, if the crown prince was deposed, the most promising successor was King Qin. It just so happened that there were no literati around King Qin, and he would naturally be reused when he went, and that Shangshu wouldn't be pinched by King Qin in the future? Maybe you still have hope of joining the cabinet?

Lin Yangzu thought very well, but he had nothing to do with King Qin, so he couldn't go to King Qin's Mansion to take refuge! In that case, not to mention whether King Qin can pay attention to it, even his identity as a literati cannot do such a shameless thing.

Just when Lin Yangzu was worried, he happened to get the news that Ma Shaoguang was going to enter Beijing as an official. He knew too well who Ma Shaoguang was, and after getting the news, Lin Yangzu felt that the opportunity had come. This Ma Shaoguang is the uncle of King Qin, and he must have a close relationship with King Qin, so if he and Ma Shaoguang become friends, can't he just make friends with King Qin?

In this way, Lin Yangzu asked his subordinates to pay attention to the fact that if an official from Guangxi surnamed Ma reported, he must not be blocked.

Lin Yangzu saw that Ma Shaoguang was called away by the eunuch, and he was even more determined in his heart, it seems that the relationship between Ma Shaoguang and King Qin is not simple, and he is really on the right step.

Ma Shaoguang originally thought that when he came to Beijing, he only had to be his own official and no party would participate, so it would be fine! But Ma Shaoguang thought wrongly, his identity was too special, and as soon as he arrived in Beijing, he became the focus of the competition between all parties, which really responded to that sentence, an outstanding man like Ma Shaoguang, no matter where he is, is like a firefly in the dark, so distinct, so outstanding!

The organization department is the first yamen on the left side of the thousand-step corridor, and a few steps out of the yamen is the Chengtianmen, which is the Tianan* Gate of the later generations, and here is the imperial city.

Coming to the Chengtian Gate, the little eunuch took out the token of the imperial concubine Ma Ruyan, and the brocade guard guarding the door let Ma Shaoguang walk into the imperial city after inspecting it.

The large area from Chengtianmen to Wumen is the Taimiao Temple and Sheji Altar, and the division headquarters of the Praetorian Guard Division is also on the left side close to the Wumen Gate.

After passing through the end gate, it is the noon gate, and here you will enter the palace city, which is the emperor's home. The guards here have been replaced by brocade guards, and the Janissaries guard the imperial city, and the core of the palace city is the brocade guard. Of course, this Jinyi Guard has nothing to do with the Jinyi Guard led by Qian Lide, and Zhu Hongsan will never hand over his safety to Qian Lide, so the guards in Miyagi are called Jinyi Guards, and they are actually the most elite non-commissioned officers in the army. Although Zhu Hongyi was named to lead the ministers of the guards, Zhu Hongyi could not command these brocade guards, and they directly obeyed the emperor's orders.

In addition to inspecting the seal of Kunning Palace, Ma Shaoguang must be brought into the house to check whether he has a weapon on his body. After all the inspections were completed, the thousand households guarding the noon gate took out a cardboard card, and wrote on it Ma Shaoguang's physiognomy, entry and exit time, where to enter the palace, etc., there are also brocade guards patrolling in the palace, if the card does not match me, you can immediately cut it off.

After all the inspections were completed, Ma Shaoguang followed the little eunuch into the palace from the left gate on the east side of the noon gate, and passed through the Xiehe Gate and passed through the first three halls. The three major halls were burned down by Li Zicheng in Kyoto, after the Manchu Qing Dynasty occupied Beijing, half of the Fengtian Temple was repaired and the country died, Zhu Hongsan continued to repair after taking over, after several years of renovation, the Fengtian Temple has been renovated, but the back of the Huagai Hall and the Jinshen Hall have not yet begun to start.

Outside the Concord Gate is the Ming Cabinet, the center of the empire is here, there are more than a dozen houses built here, there are more than 40 rooms, and the seven prime ministers and directly affiliated offices of the cabinet work here. Ma Shaoguang looked at this place that literati all over the country yearned for, and then followed the little eunuch to the north and entered the deep palace.

Along the arrow path outside the three major halls, go to the end is the Qianqing Gate, which is the junction of the inner palace and the outer palace. Further inside is the Qianqing Palace where the emperor lives, the Kunning Palace where the queen lives, and behind it is the imperial garden and the place where the concubines live. All those with handles are not allowed here, but there are exceptions, which are the princes and relatives of the emperor. These people have a special purpose to enter the harem with restrictions.

When Ma Shaoguang arrived at Qianqingmen, he wanted to change his clothes, and if he wanted to enter the harem, he could only change into a unified green coat and hat. Of course, not everyone has to change their clothes, the princes and princesses don't have to change, and some ministers with noble status don't have to change, such as Ma Jiyuan, Ma Mingyuan and others. Emperor Ma Jiyuan dared to scold you and let him change his clothes? Ma Mingyuan's means are all over the sky, although he doesn't dare to scold the emperor, but he still has a handle in his hand to clean up your little eunuch.

But Ma Shaoguang didn't have his father's domineering or uncle's wrist, so he had to change his clothes obediently according to the rules.

Ma Shaoguang, who had changed his clothes, was taken to the inner left door on the edge of the Qianqing Gate to enter the harem, and only the emperor could walk through the Qianqing Gate.

Emperor Zhu Hongsan is not at home today, he is playing in the Old Summer Palace, so there are not many guards here in the Qianqing Palace, but there are also ten steps, one post, five steps and one sentry. Ma Shaoguang lowered his head and followed the little eunuch through the Rijing * Gate, and came to Jinghe Gate, and from here he entered the Kunning Palace.

Kunning Palace has always been the residence of the queen of the Ming Dynasty, in ancient times the status of the queen is opposite to the emperor, is the most noble among the women in the world, the emperor is the sky, the queen is the earth, the emperor is Qian, the queen is Kun, the queen is also the only one in the world, the queen's bedroom is taken from the Tao Te Ching in the "Kun De Yi Ning" sentence, so the name Kunning Palace, the same reason that the sky is clear, the emperor's bedroom is called Qianqing Palace.

Kunning Palace was built in the eighteenth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, from Zhu Di's queen Xu to Chongzhen's queen Zhou, a total of seventeen queens lived and died here. The last queen, Zhou, hanged herself in this Kunning Palace.

Kunning Palace sits in the north and faces south, the main hall faces nine wide corridors, and enters three deep rooms. On both sides of the Kunning Palace is the East and West Warm Pavilion, the residence of the Queen herself in the East Warm Pavilion, and the West Warm Pavilion is the residence of the queen's minor children, but now the owner of the Kunning Palace is Ma Ruyan, and Ma Ruyan has only one son who is Zhu Jiang, the king of Qin, so the West Warm Pavilion is not inhabited, and there is a Buddhist shrine inside.

Kunning Palace should be lived by the queen according to the etiquette, but Zhu Hongsan's only queen, Ma Xiaofang, died in Guangzhou, and later after the establishment of the queen. After entering Beijing, Zhu Hongsan specially issued an order to let the imperial concubine Ma Ruyan live in Kunning Palace and govern the harem.

Zhu Hongsan originally thought that he could not only appease the Chu Party, but also keep the status of the crown prince Zhu Hai, but it was Zhu Hongsan's approach that made Ma Ruyan have other thoughts.

Ma Ruyan is forty-eight years old this year, the same age as Empress Ma Xiaofang, and three years older than Emperor Zhu Hongsan. Ma Ruyan was robbed by Zhu Hongsan to be a concubine, and originally thought that this life would be like this. But when I thought that Zhu Hongsan's career was getting bigger and bigger, and finally he occupied the whole country, and Ma Ruyan also became the first person in the harem, only one step away from the world of Muyi.

If Queen Ma Xiaofang was still alive at this time, Ma Ruyan would never dare to think of anything, after all, Ma Xiaofang was much stronger than Ma Ruyan regardless of her identity and status. But I never expected Ma Xiaofang to die young and die in Guangzhou.

The vacancy in the middle palace made Ma Ruyan think, she is also a girl of the Ma family, and she has followed the emperor for many years, since her aunt is dead, why can't she become the queen? Why can't his son become a prince?