In the first month of the fifteenth year of Wanli, the ice and snow in Beijing have not yet thawed, but the morning sun still rises from the east as usual, shining on the Ming Empire.

And Zhu Yijun, the emperor in the Forbidden City of the empire, was exempted from forced labor in Shaanxi and Shanxi not long ago, which can be regarded as greatly reducing the burden on some peasants in the empire.

This made him wander around in the West Garden, so he noticed in the palace that many palace maids were walking with a light smile before they were bumped into by him, and it seemed that he could not hide the joy in his heart.

Zhu Yijun specially invited a smiling palace maid named Huang Min to ask him why he was snickering.

The palace maid Huang Min replied: "The slave and maid are Mizhi people, because they heard a letter from their family saying that they are exempted from forced labor, and they can pay a lot of food to the government less, and they can also let the slave and maid go home, so that the slave and maid don't have to worry about not having enough food after returning home, and the slave and maid are very happy." ”

Zhu Yijun has known through the secret report system of the inner court that there are still many palace maids who want to go home in the future and do not want to stay in the palace often, and to avoid this kind of longing gradually turning into resentment, he also allows the palace maids to apply to leave the palace and go home if they are not fortunate to be honored after three years, and those who are still willing to stay in the palace can also communicate with their families, but the letters must be collected and checked by special personnel, and the specially appointed female officials are responsible for reading the letters, so as to prevent fornication.

In any case, the Inner Court is still particular about secrecy.

The conversation turned back.

It is precisely because Zhu Yijun established this system that Huang Min can also receive letters from his family and know about the exemption from forced labor.

Zhu Yijun was also overjoyed when he found out, so much so that he paid more attention to Huang Min's fair and pretty face, and asked, "So, you really want to go home?" ”

Huang Min couldn't help but bow his head, and then replied, "Back to Your Majesty, yes!" ”

Zhu Yijun smiled, and then said: "Go down, before leaving, you can go to Concubine Yang to sign up to learn some medical skills, or go to Concubine Liu to learn some piano skills, and you won't be bored in the pavilion when you return home in the future." ”

Huang Ming said yes.

"The family doesn't have to pay for the conscription, and the money saved is ready to build a room, so you don't have to squeeze with your sister when you come back."

"Your brother doesn't herd cattle for Huju's family now, and he has begun to have extra money to go to school."

"Because you don't have to serve, your father has cultivated three acres of land, just waiting for you to come back as your dowry."

……

A number of palace people from Shaanxi and Shanxi like Huang Min almost all received letters from home, and because of this, when the female official read the letter, they were all very happy, and some of them cried directly with joy, and hugged their best friends in the palace and said:

"My parents are finally willing to let me go home in three years, woo!"

And these palace people also added a lot of good feelings to the royal family in the future.

After Huang Min bumped into Zhu Yijun again on this day, he couldn't help but look at him a few more times, and was willing to listen to Zhu Yijun's words, so he went to Concubine Yang to sign up.

However, when Huang Min was walking towards Concubine Yang, he bumped into Cheng Qing, the female official who was in charge of him.

"I've seen Madame!"

Huang Min hurriedly knelt down and saluted.

Cheng Qing pulled her face and asked, "Where are you going?" ”

"Go to Concubine Yang Niangniang to sign up to study medicine."

Huang Min replied.

Cheng Qing stretched out her hand: "Give me five taels of silver dollars first!" ”

"Why is that?"

Huang Min asked.

Cheng Qing was a little stunned, put her hands on her waist, and said:

"You dare to ask why?!"

"Don't you know that if the people of the palace want to find Concubine Yang to sign up for gynecology, they need to pay the repair fee first, this is the rule set by Concubine Yang, you don't know."

"I don't know."

Huang Min replied.

Cheng Qing approached Huang Min's body and whispered: "Concubine Yang's side promised Mrs. Dou, and Mrs. Qin who was in charge of Princess Yongning's mansion was a handkerchief, Mrs. Qin was once the personal lady of the Empress Dowager Cisheng, and she was also the nurse of the emperor, don't you go to the secret to expose and denounce because you are reluctant to use these five taels of silver dollars, so as not to casually accuse you of unclean behavior, such as eating in the palace, and you can't even go home!" ”

"You know, even Princess Yongning and Master Ma were bullied by Mrs. Qin and didn't dare to come out, so they had to send hundreds of silver dollars to her house, so that they could get her a good word and meet together, and you can be nobler than Her Royal Highness the Princess and Lord Horse?"

Huang Min was stunned for a moment after hearing this.

"Do you hear that?!"

Cheng Qing suddenly twisted Huang Min's ear, twisting her crystal jade right ear as red as blood on the spot, and at the same time gritted her teeth and asked Huang Min.

Huang Min hurriedly endured the pain of his head: "I know, Madame spare her life, five taels of silver dollars, I will bring it to Madame tonight!" ”

Cheng Qing let go of her hand when she heard her say this, and then smiled coldly and said:

"It's good to be interesting! Remember that there are some things that you can endure, the rights and wrongs in this palace have nothing to do with you, you have to wait for the future to be able to go home. ”

"Yes!"

"I remember."

Huang Min replied.

"Get out!"

After Cheng Qing said this, Huang Min went back to his house in despair.

But after Huang Min returned to the house, she had a dream, and she dreamed that the emperor was talking to her with a smile: "It is my kindness that you can go home, what should you take to thank me?" I am the Son of Heaven, representing the will of Heaven! If you don't know how to thank me for my imperial kindness, and if you don't be loyal to me, I won't let you go. ”

However, Huang Min heard Zhu Yijun saying to him in his dream again: "You have to save my imperial sister, let me know who is bullying her, otherwise, you are sorry for me!" ”

Huang Min listened to it and suddenly heard the princess's cry, and suddenly sat up in fright, sweating for a while, and hurriedly lifted the futon and walked to the eucalyptus and said:

"I have to tell the whistle, even if I can't leave the palace for the rest of my life, I have to sue! The emperor is so good to us people, I can't let him down! ”

Huang Min wrote two letters as she spoke, one was a letter to her family saying that she suddenly didn't want to go back, and the other was a letter written with her left hand accusing Concubine Yang of privately restraining her wealth and Madame Qin bullying the princess and her horse with the old etiquette.

After Zhang Hong received this anonymous letter, he hurriedly came to Zhu Yijun: "Emperor Qi, there is a new secret notice from the inner court." ”

After hearing this, Zhu Yijun put down the chapter in his hand, then pinched the bridge of his nose, got up and took the secret notice, and opened it to read.

"How can it be!"

"The poison of the old rites and daring in the palace has not been cleared yet, no wonder the emperor will not be respected, let alone other royal relatives!"

After Zhu Yijun said that, he personally put the big coat on himself and walked out.

Not long after, a deacon and eunuch named Xiu Song came over: "Where is the emperor going, and the slave and maid still ordered the chariot?" ”

Zhu Yijun ignored it, and just walked straight to Princess Yongning's mansion.

……

And in Princess Yongning's Mansion, her grandmother, Mrs. Qin, was holding a board and kept pumping on Princess Yongning's maid, so that the maid was covered in blood, and stared at the eyes of the two fish and said: "I told you to instigate the princess to pass on the message privately with the concubine!" Tell you to pass it on! ”

Princess Yongning, who was being held by two young eunuchs, could only cry on the side: "Don't fight, don't fight, madam, please look at my face, don't beat her, she has been with me since she was a child, I beg you!" ”

"Why should Your Highness be sad, if you are killed, you will change your Highness to a better and more polite one! The last thing my royal family lacks is slaves! ”

Mrs. Qin said with a sneer at this time.

"Yes, there is no shortage of slaves and maids in the royal family, but there is no shortage of beasts!"

Zhu Yijun walked in in a deep voice at this time.