Beginning on the second day, for several days, the emperor took the two elder brothers out of the palace to check the embankment of the Dezhou River, and Li Dequan followed him out without calling Qi Su Niang to accompany him. Qi Su Niang's most difficult first three days were spent without danger.

Qi Su Niang was relieved, but she was worried about Qi Qiang, these men have already fought like this, Qi Qiang said that he came to the south when he went out, and there has been no news so far, what is there in the Nine Emperors' Mansion that makes him run so far?

Qi Su Niang was pondering, and the little eunuch Wei Zhu outside the door knocked on the door and said, "Miss Qi, the emperor has suddenly returned to the palace, and Deputy Chief Liang told everyone to hurry up." ”

Qi Su Niang hurriedly got up and thanked Wei Zhu, and when she followed Liang Jiugong and others to greet the holy car in the palace, she found that Zhang Pengxi, the governor of the river, was on the emperor's side.

Kangxi was still in a good mood, and gave a seat to the fourth elder brother, the thirteenth elder brother, and Zhang Pengxi, and inquired about the Jiangnan River Work for two hours, and then ordered to pass the meal.

Qi Su Niang was about to turn around and go out of the hall to pass the meal, Kangxi suddenly pointed to the heavy brocade screen on the left side of the hall and said, "Qi family, you don't avoid it, don't make a sound." ”

Qi Su Niang didn't know what she meant, and she didn't dare to ask, so she turned around and walked behind the screen, and heard Kangxi whispering to Li Dequan, and Li Dequan walked out of the palace.

After a while, footsteps sounded, and Qi Su Niang looked through the gap in the screen, and was stunned for a moment, but it was Chen Yan who walked in behind Li De's body. Qi Su Niang's eyes were sour, and she looked intently, only to see Chen Yan wearing a seven-grade stone blue five python and four claw robes, decorated with yang pattern plain gold embroidered purple mandarin duck supplement, and wearing a plain gold flower top, although he was also covered with wind and dust, but he was more calm and generous than when he left, but his face was tanned, he was only twenty-one years old, and there were faint lines of lines on his forehead, and his bright eyes were also a lot darker.

Qi Su Niang saw the pain in her heart, and her brain was at a loss. Although it is to repay Mrs. Chen's great kindness, she really has no heart to marry, so she can only be sincere, but she didn't expect Chen Yan to be the same. Chen Yan is in her, the **** food and clothing in a desperate situation, she has never been slow to treat her, she is close to her on weekdays, and her property and family are entrusted to her, and she has never had any suspicions. She changed into a lonely world, only to feel **** ethereal, even if Kangxi intended to marry, she also withdrew and retreated, looking at Chen Yan to climb the noble family, and her life was smooth. However, in the middle of the night, looking at the letters in the pillow box one after another, how could she not be sad that she had never met him in her previous life?

After Chen Yan finished asking for peace, Kangxi smiled and said: "Chen Yan, it has been one month since you were promoted to Qinghe's parents, do you have any understanding?" ”

Chen Yan seemed to have a lot of emotion, with a wry smile on his face, and arched his hand: "Back to the emperor's words, Weichen used to only take the control of the river as a difficult thing in the world, but now he knows that the most difficult thing in the world is the parents of the people, and although the river is governed by the imperial court and the officials are in use, if there is no local gentry and the people to help, they will not be able to succeed." ”

Kangxi nodded again and again, and said with a smile: "That's right, I am the parent of all the people in the world, and I am especially conscientious and walking on thin ice." Since you have this realization, it has reassured me a lot. After that, he groaned: "Your filial piety is already full?" ”

Chen Yan's face darkened, and he said: "If you go back to the emperor, my mother died on June 23, the 37th year of Kangxi, and Weichen's filial piety has been completed for a year. ”

Kangxi said: "I let you win the love, because of the big deal of governing the river, you are over twenty, and you should also get married." Nian has worked hard in the past few years, although you are a Hanchen, I will point out the daughter of the Zhenghong Banner Dong E clan to you as a wife——"

Before Kangxi finished speaking, Chen Yan had already knelt down heavily, kowtowing again and again, Kangxi said angrily: "Chen Yan, in the thirty-seventh year of Kangxi, I gave you a marriage, and you have already resisted the decree, and I have never blamed your father, what else do you have to say?" ”

Chen Yan kowtowed three times, and said in a dumb voice: "The emperor, the emperor is gracious, and Weichen Minggan is guilty, but the Qi family was ordered by the first mother, and the first mother was sick, all of them were Qi's service decoctions, and the things behind him were also handled by Qi's parents." Chen Yan is not filial, the virtue of serving his mother, and the grace of burying his mother has not been reciprocated, how dare he abandon it? Please also ask the emperor to be clear. ”

Kangxi's face was slightly gentle, and he said: "Although honesty and filial piety are right, but the brother of the Qi family has already betrayed his family, she has no heart, how can you be strong?" ”

Chen Yan kowtowed again and said, "Your Majesty, the Chen and Qi families were originally close friends, and the brother of the Qi family has treated Weichen like a brother since he was a child. The reason for his withdrawal from his relatives was just that he was worried that Weichen would lose his roots after he became a minister, cling to the powerful, and treating the Qi family poorly, and he was afraid that the ministers would resist the decree and refuse to marry, and lose love with the Son of Heaven, which was not a breach of trust. After a pause, he said in a dumb voice: "And the Qi family is virtuous, and the industry of Weichen in Gaoyou Township is its control, and the minister has not given a cent." Before the resignation, it was only three houses, 20 acres of land, after the resignation, there were 380 acres of Zhongtian under the name of the minister, and the annual income was nearly 200 taels of silver. The elders of the township all have letters, praise their township actions, Qi's peace and poverty, virtue and neighbors, the ministers do not believe in the Qi family, and the ministers do not bear the Qi family. ”

Kangxi was stunned when he heard this, glanced at the screen on the left side of the hall, and said unhappily: "Zhengbapin's silver square is only forty taels, but Zhongtian needs three or four taels of silver, where did she get the money to buy land for you, but you are using her in Gaoyou to seize other people's properties?" ”

Qi Su Niang heard what Chen Yan said first, and she was already in tears, choked up, and when she heard Chen Yan talk about the fields, she knew that it was not good. Hearing Kangxi's tone again, he had the intention of asking guilt, his vest was sweating, and he knelt down behind the screen with a "porphyr" sound.

Everyone in the hall heard the sound of kneeling behind the screen, Chen Yan's face moved, and he couldn't help but want to turn his head to look, the thirteenth elder brother shook his head slightly, and Kangxi asked: "Chen Yan, is there such a thing, you don't reply quickly." ”

Chen Yan was confused for a while, his eyes glanced behind the screen from time to time, and he was a little incompatible. Kangxi was furious, and he was about to attack, Chen Yan hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, Weichen is not clear about the matter of the silver industry, and Weichen has a letter from relatives and friends in the township, please ask the emperor to read it, and you will know at a glance." With that, he pulled out a letter from his bosom.

Qi Su Niang saw it behind the screen, but it was the letter she wrote to Wang Dawhip asking him to buy land and pay off the debt, and her heart jumped, and she was even more panicked when she remembered something.

Kangxi took the letter at a glance, his expression changed uncertainly, and at the end, he was furious and shouted: "Qi family, you dare to rely on the situation to occupy sixty acres of terra nullius, so bold!" ”

The two elder brothers in the hall were all shocked, and Zhang Pengxi couldn't help but be surprised, even Li Dequan, Liang Jiugong, and Wei Zhu, who were waiting on the side, also looked at each other.

Qi Su Niang hurriedly climbed out from behind the screen, kowtowed again and again, and said: "The people's daughter is a capital crime." ”

Chen Yan hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, those sixty acres of land are near Chen Qi's two houses, which was originally a borderless land after the 30-year disaster of Kangxi, but because of its remote location, it has been barren for nearly ten years. The imperial court ordered the wasteland, although she opened it without reporting, but bought it at the price of Zhongliangtian, and she did not have the intention of encroachment. ”

Zhang Pengxi looked at Kangxi's face, stood up and said: "Your Majesty, in the thirty-sixth year of Kangxi, the imperial court did issue the "Wasteland Reclamation Order", and the Qi family opened it without reporting, although it was a violation, but if it was purchased at the Zhongtian price after the wasteland was opened up, it was beneficial to the country, and most of them did not have the intention of encroachment. ”

Kangxi's face was slightly gentle, and the thirteenth elder brother said with a smile: "Huang Ama, Erchen wants to know, where did she get the money to buy the land for Chen Bianzhi." ”

Kangxi snorted lightly and said, "Five villages and four surnames, three hundred and sixty acres of Zhongtian, where did you get this thousand-grain silver?" ”

"If you go back to the emperor, the queen mother's grace will let the people serve in the palace, in addition to the monthly money, all the masters in the palace and the nobles who enter the palace will be rewarded." Qi Su Niang replied honestly, but she was glad that the letter was vague and did not include the bribes, but counted the bribes into the field price, so that she could barely hide it.

Kangxi turned his head and glanced at Li Dequan, Li Dequan said respectfully: "Your Majesty, although the Qi family has been in the palace for a short time, it has always been economical, except for the people who are close to the left, no one has benefited from her, and the Queen Mother has indeed rewarded a lot, and it is not difficult to save more than a thousand lines of silver." ”

Qi Su Niang secretly wiped her sweat, thanks to the fact that she has a name that has been in and out of the palace, she is already well known in the palace, so she doesn't have to worry. Kangxi nodded slowly, raised his hand to let Qi Suniang and Chen Yan get up, read the letter carefully, and asked, "You let the tenants grow cotton, why don't you grow grain?" ”

"If you go back to the emperor, the benefits of selling cloth in the south of the Yangtze River, you can get two in the next county, you can get five in the next province, go north along the river, go to Beijing, taste one can get ten, the profit is so heavy, in the Jiangnan township, the growers are eight or nine out of ten." Qi Su Niang pondered and replied slowly.

The fourth elder brother frowned and said, "If the whole world is like this, where does the food come from?" What is the use of having money but no food? ”

Zhang Pengxi nodded and said: "What the fourth elder brother said is very true, but in Jiangnan Township, most of the cotton plants are wheat hybrids for the field, but there are only a few people like the Qi family who completely grow cotton." And sweet potatoes and corn have been planted all over the place, and Weichen thinks that he will not worry about no food in 50 years. ”

Kangxi looked at the letter again and said, "What did you plant on your own three acres of land?" ”

Qi Su Niang thought for a while and said: "The people are small and live alone, so they only grow some vegetables, if there is anything left, they will exchange some cornmeal, salt, and oil with relatives and friends in the neighboring villages." ”

Kangxi turned his head to Zhang Pengxi and said: "In this way, if there is no catastrophe, the people of Jiangnan will still be able to eat and wear, and the governor of Ahsan and the two rivers will do a good job." "Zhang Pengxi should be again and again.

Kangxi asked carefully about the credit, pawn, and cotton planting, but he didn't take much responsibility, and he pondered for a long time, and said: "Qi, although my father died from my brother, but your brother is not here, I ask you, what do you plan to do about this marriage?" ”

Qi Suniang heard Kangxi's intention to agree to Chen Yan's invitation, and she didn't say anything for a long time. Chen Yan refused to marry at the beginning, and Jin Hai made a love, that is, she wanted to withdraw from her family, and she never broke the letter, and now he disregarded his life and future, and refused to marry again, she only felt that she had all kinds of concerns, where could she match his affection?

“…… The minister does not take the Qi family as a minister, and the minister cannot bear the Qi family's ......" She unconsciously flashed in her mind this sentence that did not have half a **** word, but made her cry behind the screen, and her hands under the sleeves slowly clenched into fists.

Chen Yan stood aside, saw that she was silent for a long time, and finally spoke up, and called softly: "Su Niang......"

The familiar call entered her ears, Qi Su Niang's heart trembled, closed her eyes slightly, knelt down and said: "The people's daughters are all up to the emperor." ”