This year, the holy car went out of Beijing to escape the summer earlier than in previous years, and on April 13, the holy car went out of Beijing Xingrehe. Originally, it was planned that the third elder brother, the seventh elder brother, the ninth elder brother, the fifteenth elder brother, the sixteenth elder brother, and the twenty elder brother would follow the family. Later, for some reason, the ninth elder brother and the sixteenth elder brother both stayed in the capital.

The third elder brother hesitated in his heart, and for a while he felt that the fourth elder brother who stayed in the capital to preside over government affairs was more valued by the imperial father, and for a while he felt that it was a good thing that he could follow the holy driver.

After all, the prince and brother who stayed in the capital were not as good as the prince in charge of the country, and national affairs still had to be approved by Rehe.

It's just that a few days ago, the Queen Mother was in the underground palace, and the imperial father asked the fourth elder brother to read the proclamation, but I don't know if there is any deep meaning.

Thinking of this, the third elder brother became more and more resentful, if it weren't for the Meng Guangzu case, he would not have been implicated, and his status in front of the imperial father plummeted.

I'm not sure who did it, but it's just those good brothers. Don't others have doormen? Before the third elder brother left Beijing, he called his henchmen, that is, he sent a lot of people to pay attention to the various prefectures in the capital.

According to the imperial sister's warning, he is not too famous to save the taboo of the imperial father. Since he is not good at inviting names, then others should not expect to be clean. When the big guys are dirty, they can't tell black and white.

On Cao Hao's side, after sending the holy car from the courtier's palace, he hurried back to the household.

Mu Helun, the secretary of the household department, "collected the money and grain of the household department with the balance of silver and did not show it according to the truth", was demoted to five levels, and now he is said to have left the household department.

For this Shangshu with a belly of "[***]" in the household, Cao Hao was not bored in his heart. Speaking of which, the relationship between the two can be traced back to the forty-ninth year of Kangxi. Although I didn't have much contact, I also knew each other for ten years.

In the early years, whether he was a langzhong in the household department, or in the past two years, Mu Helun, the official of the household department, treated Cao Hao politely. Cao Hao likes such people, saving trouble and worry.

Even if he doesn't have any talent, but he is not jealous of his meritocracy and does not rob his subordinates of their credit, Mu Helun, an old man who usually looks like a smile, is already a lot better than many people.

Moreover, speaking of which, Cao Hao still owes Mu Helun a favor. In the early years, when Cao Hao was still in the household department, Mu Helun asked him to recommend the secretary and fill the vacancy of Fu Xiangong and Peng Zhu of the Fujian Division. Among them, now these two people are still in the household department, Fu Xiangong is already a Fujian Shilangzhong, and Peng Zhu is promoted to Cangchang Langzhong.

These two are grateful for Cao Hao's kindness, and no matter whether Cao Hao has been promoted or demoted over the years, they have always been respectful to Cao Hao. It's just because Cao Hao is now serving as a household official, in order to avoid suspicion, the contacts are more estranged.

Mu Helun left, and Cao Hao naturally wanted to send him off.

Several officials of the household department, Shangshu Zhao Shenqiao, together with the waiters Fu Erhuana and Guo Yan, have already left Beijing with Hu, leaving only the waiters Wang Jingzeng and Liang Shixun.

In addition to Cao Hao, Wang Jingzeng and Liang Shixun both came to see Mu Helun.

Mu Helun was born in the family of Lord Eight Banners, even if he was condemned this time, it is difficult to guarantee that there is no time to turn over. In officialdom, no matter what the relationship is in private, you must leave three points of leeway on your face before you can speak.

Mu Helun was still smiling, but he looked a little haggard. He was not born in a professional class, he started from the pen and paste style, and then moved to the imperial history four times, and the third moved to the cabinet bachelor, and was the most relied on courtier of Kangxi. Even if he was involved in the "Pearl Case" and "Kali Case" in his early years, he was still standing.

It's just that he is in a prominent position, and he has long lost the courage of his early years.

Cao Hao sighed slightly in his heart, who would have thought that the fat man in front of him was once an iron-faced imperial history. In his early years, he went to Shandong to inspect and impeach officials in Shandong and other provinces, and cut off the tops of more than a dozen national beetles.

Over the years, the role of Mu Helun's household department has been nothing more than to be a palm print Shangshu, which has become the emperor's echo worm and restrained Zhao Shenqiao.

Wang Jingzeng and Liang Shixun arrived at the household department late, and because of the Manchu and Han divisions, the relationship with Mu Helun was mediocre, but it was just a formality, and the official of the same hall sent Mu Helun out of the household yamen.

On the contrary, it was Cao Hao, who was usually low-key, who rode a horse and sent Mu Helun out of the two streets.

At the time of parting, Cao Hao didn't say anything, but personally sent a half-sized blue satin baggage. Mu Helun didn't want to accept it, but seeing Cao Hao's calm expression, he couldn't refuse, so he still accepted it.

The long attendant waiting beside him knew Cao Hao's name, and muttered in his heart, isn't there really any rumor, his master has no hope of recovering, and he has attracted people to send money and property.

Mu Helun was also curious about what was in this package.

When he returned to the house, he opened it before he could change his clothes. There are only two small barrels of tea and a purple clay teapot inside.

Mu Helun looked at the tea leaves, smelled the faint fragrance of tea, and immediately recognized that this was the priceless "Yimeng Winter Tea" in the capital. He is a tea lover, but Cao Hao has known him for ten years, and he has been in constant contact, and it is the first time he has been given tea.

Although "Yimeng Winter Tea" was discovered by Cao Hao, everyone knew that the Cao family did not keep it privately, and the tea garden was distributed to several princes' mansions.

Mu Helun is of the same clan as Mrs. Jueluo, the mother of Seshtu, and has exchanged half a catty with the house over there a few years ago.

Don't talk about this tea, just say this purple sand teapot, Mu Helun is a tea lover, and there are naturally all kinds of good tea sets at home. This teapot looks simple in style and is not prosperous, but when you hold it in your hand, you can know that it is a purple sand product. If you look carefully at the payment below, there is only a simple word "Dabin".

Mu Helun's eyes lit up, this is the name of everyone in the previous dynasty.

Such a purple clay pot, even if you want to spend money, there is nowhere to sell it. For a while, he couldn't put it down, and the loss of being demoted was gone.

He rubbed the purple clay pot and the two barrels of tea, his face was full of joy, and he was already thinking in his heart how much of these tea could be drunk.

Yes, he will not be a scholar in the future, and he will not be in the prominent position, so can he be cheeky and mix a few catties of tea with Cao Hao, a "tea boy".

Thinking of the young man who rode a horse and sent him two streets, Lao Shangshu couldn't help but fall into deep thought......* After sending Mu Helun here, Cao Hao turned the reins of the horse and returned to the household.

Mu Helun's transfer was suddenly decided by Kangxi, and there is no new Shangshu elected yet. According to the Sixteenth Elder Brother, I am afraid that Kangxi will move to the Household Department because of the occupation of Tibetan Province, so Mu Helun can only be unlucky to give up his position.

The emperor reused Zhao Shenqiao and placed Mu Helun in the Ministry of Talents, but because he was used to it, he did not ask him to be meritorious, but asked him to be innocent. Nowadays, the household needs silver, and "no fault" becomes "pass".

Why is it difficult to guess the emperor's thoughts, because others are human beings. People's hearts are different, but comparing hearts to hearts, you can also understand the joys and sorrows of others. In addition to being a human, the emperor is also an emperor. There is only one emperor, so his mind is like a floating cloud in the sky, unpredictable, and no one can grasp it.

As soon as he arrived at the entrance of the household department, Cao Hao was intercepted by the fourteenth elder brother.

Although Cao Hao was impatient in his heart, he could only dismount and ask for peace because of the rules.

The fourteenth elder brother had a little regret on his face, and frowned: "Cao Hao, the master and the emperor Ama are the servants of your household, but the emperor Ama rejected the excerpts. ”

When Cao Hao heard this, he felt funny. He is twenty-five years old this year, and since the founding of the Manchu Dynasty, he has not been a twenty-five-year-old squire, right?

A few decades later, there was a favored minister and Shen, who was in his thirties and became a scholar, and then became a cabinet minister. After 20 years of illustrious work, he saved a splashing family business, and the new emperor ascended the throne and was given death by raiding his family. Burdened with the infamy of corrupt officials, and finally cheapened the royal treasury, so it is said that the emperor is the best of the best. Where is this pampered courtier, what is the difference between this and raising fat pigs in captivity?

The fourteenth elder brother sold well, but he was just trying to win him over, although Cao Hao was disdainful in his heart, he still thanked him respectfully.

The fourteenth elder brother has always been in a hurry to come to the military department, and after greeting Cao Hao, he took out his pocket watch from his arms, apparently in a hurry. He put the pocket watch back and asked straight to the point: "Cao Hao, Xiao Sixteen was originally going to follow him, why didn't he go?" I heard that he has been looking for you recently, do you have something to do? ”

Cao Hao is a little difficult to answer, the relationship between the two is not to the point of knowing everything; But if he didn't know, when Qian Zhuang did it, he couldn't hide it, but offended the fourteenth elder brother.

As he was thinking about it, he heard the fourteenth elder brother say: "Cao Hao, I know that you have some grievances with the ninth brother, and you are still our niece and son-in-law. are all in the capital, look up and don't look down, Brother Jiu is the most economical. Change the name to be the east, let's have a good drink, laugh and avoid enmity, what do you think? ”

Cao Hao's scalp was numb when he stared at him, and he couldn't hold it up, admitting that he had any grudges with the prince's elder brother, so he could only deal with it: "The fourteenth master carries love, dare to disobey his fate?" It's just the word enmity, please don't mention it to the Fourteenth Master, Weichen has never had any resentment against the Ninth Master in his heart. ”

I don't know if the fourteenth elder brother believes it or not, maybe what he wants is just a statement from Cao Hao.

He was in the military department, and he couldn't be clearer about the situation in the northwest, and he could guess that what the sixteenth elder brother and Cao Hao were discussing must be a "great cause of accumulating money", so he came over and wanted to push the ninth elder brother out and get a piece of the pie. But I didn't know that in Cao Hao's plan with the sixteenth elder brother, the ninth elder brother was originally counted.

Because he was in a hurry and wanted to get results before the end of the year, the sixteenth elder brother did not delay, and after discussing with Cao Hao, he found an opportunity to show his feelings to the ninth elder brother. Otherwise, Brother Jiu would not have been temporarily removed from the list of his followers.

The fourteenth elder brother left satisfied, Cao Hao looked at his back, but got a message, that is, the ninth elder brother and the fourteenth elder brother, who watched the relationship "return to the original state", were not as close as they appeared in front of others.

Without the assistance of the eighth elder brother and the support of the ninth elder brother, the "emperor dream" of the fourteenth elder brother became more and more illusory.

* Cao's house, Xifu, Lanyuan, upper room.

Li and Chu Yu's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were discussing going to Haidian Garden to escape the heat, and seeing that the weather was getting hotter, Li wanted to go to Haidian Garden with her husband.

As a daughter-in-law, Chu Yu wanted to serve with the past, but was persuaded by the Li family.

According to Li's statement, every time Cao Hao went to the Yamen on an errand, if he went to Haidian, it would be strange. Besides, there are a bunch of maids and mothers-in-law, and there is nothing that has to be served by the daughter-in-law herself.

Besides, Cao Xiang of Dongfu has already completed his appointment to the General's Mansion and is scheduled to marry on the eighth day of the fifth month. In the mansion over there, Zhao Jia's family couldn't count on it, and the Li family wanted to ask her to take her fourth sister and fifth son to Haidian Garden to escape the summer, so as to save her from adding to the chaos.

The remaining Jinghui is seven months pregnant and has a bulky body; Su Xin is just a little daughter-in-law, taking care of red ceremonies, I am afraid that there will be shortcomings, and I have to help Chu Yu, the eldest sister-in-law.

Because of her mother-in-law's insistence, Chu Yu had no choice but to stay, and the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law agreed on a list to follow. I still want to follow last year's example, the children and my husband have passed, and only Cao Hao and his wife are left in the house here.

Yuan was still worried about Tianhui, whether to follow her grandmother to the garden, or stay in Wutong Garden, but yesterday the Pingjun Wangfu sent a letter, and Cao Jiashi wanted to pick up her niece to live there.

Although Chu Yu was reluctant, she was sympathetic to the pain of her eldest sister's loss, asked her mother-in-law, and asked her daughter's meaning, but she agreed......

(To be continued)