Zhuo Qihua

In the Shoukang Palace, the Empress Dowager's face was weak as if she had just recovered from a serious illness, but she was much more energetic.For the emperor to let her take charge of the harem, the queen mother originally refused.After the emperor told her the intention of such a decision, the queen mother agreed.Emperor Yong'an didn't want to give people a certain illusion after Cheng's death, so he decided not to hand over the power of the harem to any concubine or maid for the time being.He doesn't like others to speculate on his mind at will.

Concubine Jiagui and Concubine Xi all came to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager, but the other concubines and maids did not show up.It's not that they are not filial, but that Jiaguixie and Xiguifei obviously didn't just come to pay respects to the Queen Mother, it's not suitable for them to come here at this time.When Jiaguixie and Xiguifei came to Shoukang Palace, they first sent the scriptures they copied or painted Buddha statues for the Queen Mother, and then they chatted with the Queen Mother.The Empress Dowager pretended to be ignorant and didn't mention Jinse Palace.

In the end Concubine Xi Gui could not hold her breath, she was pointed out by the Empress Dowager to Emperor Yong'an, she had a little blood relationship with the Empress Dowager, and sometimes she was closer to the Empress Dowager than others.Jiagui Xie didn't mention it, but knew that Xi Guifei would definitely ask.

"Queen Mother, my concubine has been ill for the past few days. I heard that the elegant man who was imprisoned by the Cheng family in the West Third Courtyard is now highly favored. His Majesty directly gave Jinse Palace the main palace, not to mention, and even hangs around every day. Your Majesty spared him from paying respects to you and your concubine, the Queen Mother, and I have no chance to meet him. I heard that he is more beautiful than Yan Yaren? But is it true?"

The Empress Dowager said with a smile: "I don't know, but I don't know. He is not in good health. The emperor sympathizes with him and spares him to pay my respects to the old man."

Jia Guixie: "Queen Mother, this is not right. You were ill before, even if His Majesty spared him from paying his respects to you every day, he should still come to see you. It is his blessing that His Majesty dotes on him, and he should cherish it even more. It is."

Concubine Xi nodded: "Yes. Empress Dowager, if His Majesty did this, the concubine and others would feel very sad..." Concubine Xi wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.

The queen mother said: "The emperor told the old man. He is not in good health, and he was afraid that he would make me sick, so he spared him to pay his respects. The emperor dotes on him, but he will never make him faint. As for what kind of person he is People, as time goes by, we will naturally know. The emperor is busy with everything, and you are all old people around the emperor. If you want to share his worries, you must not disappoint the emperor like Cheng did."

"That's what the Empress Dowager taught me."

The empress dowager lightly revealed the emperor's unusual favor to Zhuo Ji. Jiaguixie and Xiguifei were very disappointed, but they also knew that they couldn't say more.The two said something else with the Queen Mother, and then they left together.After the two left, Gu Shen who was beside the Queen Mother asked inexplicably: "Queen Mother, why didn't you just say that Zhuo Ya is a talented person, that's why His Majesty loves him so much?"

The Empress Dowager said lightly: "It's better to let them figure it out for themselves than to tell the old ones. If they can understand the emperor's painstaking efforts, it will not be in vain for the emperor to value them. If their eyesight is so shallow that they can only see the amount of grace, then What's the use of saying more." What the Empress Dowager didn't say was that if a person like Zhuo Ji couldn't let him do whatever he wanted in this palace, he would have to guard against all kinds of calculations in the harem every day, fearing that no matter how many rewards the emperor gave, There is no way to make him willingly work for the emperor, maybe in turn, he will deal with the emperor.Zhuo Ji is a dangerous person, if used well, Mata country may usher in an unprecedented prosperity.If it is not used well, it will lead to great disaster.The emperor chose to fight on Zhuo Ji, and the queen mother had to help the emperor solve all kinds of troubles in the harem that would target Zhuo Ji.

■

Jiaguixie and Xiguifei returned without success from the queen mother, and they tacitly did not ask about Zhuoji in front of the emperor.There are no stupid people in Danyang Palace, let alone the Shaoyao and Kuang clans who have achieved the position of concubine (concubine).When the two recovered from their illnesses, Emperor Yong'an was "willing" to leave Jinse Palace and spend the night in their palace or summon them to sleep.But every now and then, I would still stay in Jinse Palace for two or three nights.Zhuo Ji's favor made the noble lords of the palaces extremely jealous.The queen mother let her go, and there is no queen who can justifiably suppress Zhuo Ji, and the emperor is protecting her. No matter how uncomfortable Jiagui Xie and Xi Guifei are, they can't help Zhuo Ji.Zhuo Ji did not harm the harem by relying on his holy grace, at most he would not ask for peace or show his face, this was allowed by the emperor, and no one could take this opportunity to attack him.How can you attack someone who you can't even meet?

Zhuo Yizhi mentioned to the emperor several times that he wanted to visit Zhuo Ji in the palace, but Emperor Yong'an pushed him away.Zhuo Yizhi's wife mentioned to the queen mother several times that she wanted to visit Zhuo Ji, but the queen mother also pushed her away.After a few times, Zhuo Yizhi didn't mention it anymore, he could see that the emperor didn't want him to see Zhuo Ji.Helpless, Zhuo Yi sent thousands of taels of silver and a lot of jewelry to Zhuo Ji through normal channels in the palace.Although Zhuo Ji's palace share is treated according to the standard, it is only 300 taels of silver a year.All the duties and expenses of the palace servants selected by him in Jinse Palace will be paid from the 300 taels of silver.Emperor Yong'an rewarded him with many treasures, but he didn't have a single copper coin.To paraphrase Zhuo Ji's words, Emperor Yong'an was obviously a landlord and had no surplus food.

Emperor Yong'an ascended the throne, and the three kings rebelled for four years. After that, there was a flood in the south of the Yangtze River. Within two years of peace, there were three droughts and two years of drought. Then there was a plague of locusts. I took out some money from my private treasury.Then there will be another draft, another batch of silver.Although a lot of homes were confiscated, half of the real gold and silver was taken to the national treasury, and the remaining half had to make up for the loss of Emperor Yong'an's previous private treasury.Most of the treasures and farms that were copied from the house went into the private house of Emperor Yong'an, but they couldn't be converted into gold and silver immediately.Zhuo Ji, who didn't know how much gold and silver treasures were in Emperor Yong'an's private treasury, took it for granted that the reason why Emperor Yong'an didn't reward him with money was because he didn't have money.The Zhuo family's money is very much in Zhuo Ji's heart.However, if you agree with each other, Zhuo Ji is determined not to participate in the affairs of the Zhuo family.

The draft was officially decided, and it was scheduled for February [-]th of the following year.Most of the harem was emptied at once, and this time the officials didn't accuse the emperor of calling for donations from all over the country for drafting, but rather sympathized and understood.The common people also expressed their understanding of the emperor's draft.There are not many serious masters in the harem, and more than half of the palace people have been lost. If there is no draft to expand the harem, the emperor will be too pitiful.

The tenth day of March is Tianshou Festival, the birthday of Emperor Yong'an.Emperor Yong'an's birthday is after the Cold Food Festival and the Ching Ming Festival, and the new lord who entered the palace can just catch up with the Tianshou Festival, adding some excitement and joy to the Tianshou Festival.So Xiunu and Duanlang will enter the palace after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.The Zhuo family is mixed.The good news is that Zhuo Shuzhen will be seventeen next year, but she can keep up with her age increase this year.What is worrying is that the candidates for this draft are 16 to 20-year-old healthy women and elder brothers. I heard that His Majesty's intention this time is to give birth to healthy dragon heirs.

If Zhuo Shuzhen could not give birth to dragon heirs as soon as possible after entering the palace, she might not be able to compete for the favor with those who gave birth to dragon heirs first.If Zhuo Ji can conceive a dragon heir this year, even if Zhuo Shuzhen can't conceive as soon as possible after entering the palace, it doesn't matter.It's just that they can't see Zhuo Ji now, and they can't ask about the specific situation of the other party in the palace, so it's difficult for the Zhuo family to arrange Zhuo Shuzhen's entry into the palace.As for the possibility of Zhuo Shuzhen losing the election, the Zhuo family never thought about this possibility, because it was simply impossible.Zhuo Shuzhen is from the Zhuo family, and Zhuo Ji is in the palace who is in favor, so it is a sure thing for Zhuo Shuzhen to enter the palace.

Zhuo Ji was drowsy on the recliner until he dozed off, when suddenly there was a "bang", the door was kicked open.Zhuo Ji, who was startled, sat up straight, and saw Emperor Yong'an rushing in, his face was so dark that it could catch up with the bottom of the pot.

"This is..." Zhuo Ji's head was still a little heavy, and he couldn't think of what he did to offend this person today.

Xiaohui and Chang Jing followed Zhang Xian in without showing any courage. Emperor Yong'an sat down on the couch and slapped the Kang table.Zhang Xian looked at Zhuo Ji with pleading eyes, Zhuo Ji waved to the three poor people, and the three of them immediately slipped away dishonestly, and Zhang Xian even closed the door.Zhuo Ji got up and walked to the other side of the kang table and sat down: "Your Majesty, getting angry hurts the body and the liver even more."

Emperor Yong'an took a deep breath and let it out slowly, but he still couldn't suppress his anger.Zhuo Ji sat down across the kang table and asked, "What happened? Your Majesty lost his temper."

"The granaries in Jiangnan East and West Roads, Huainan Road, and Shannan Road are seriously short of money! Old rice has been secretly replaced with old rice, and the new rice has disappeared. The people involved in this case even include royal family members!"

Someone knocked on the door, Zhuo Ji: "Come in."

Chang Jing lowered his head, bowed his body, and entered with a tray.Putting down the teapot and teacup on the tray, Chang Jing saluted quickly and hurried out.Zhuo Ji personally poured tea for Emperor Yong'an and said, "Your Majesty, I will tell you a story."

Emperor Yong'an looked at him.

Zhuo Ji: "The name of this story is 'The Granary of the World', which is very similar to what happened to you, Your Majesty."

This time, Sandao, who transported grain from the south to relieve the severe drought, found that there were many problems in the granaries in the south. Emperor Yong'an mentioned this matter to Zhuo Ji, but did not elaborate.At that time, Zhuo Ji thought of a TV series he had watched - "The Granary of the World" - which was about a major food case that happened when Yongzheng died and Qianlong first ascended the throne.The cause of the case was that during the natural disaster, it was discovered that the food provided for the disaster relief was seriously inconsistent with the food allocated by the court, which led to a major case related to the life and death of the Qing Dynasty.

Zhuo Ji doesn't know if this story is official history.He has a good memory. Although he only skimmed through it at that time, he remembered all the main plots.He is here just as a story to tell Emperor Yong'an.After Zhuo Ji finished speaking, Emperor Yong'an also completely calmed down.

"Your Majesty, as long as it is profitable, there must be selfish desires. This is a human nature, and no dynasty can avoid it. When something like this happens, what your majesty should do is up to your majesty's considerations, and I will not play tricks in front of your majesty." .”

Emperor Yong'an's eyes were full of murderous intent.

"I tell you this story, and I just hope that you can get some inspiration from it. There is also a companion piece to this story, called 'The Land of the World'."

Zhuo Ji roughly told it again, and Emperor Yong'an asked ambiguously after listening: "Then the emperor in this story is a Mingjun?"

"Some people say he is, some say he is not. His grandfather expanded his territory for him, his father left him a rich treasury, and he left a lot of stories of romantic affairs and luxury enjoyment in history. In his later years, he favored a big corrupt official, and that corrupt official was enough to feed the whole country after his successor's house was confiscated. If Your Majesty were in his position, you would definitely not be like him, you must be a famous emperor through the ages."

A dark light called Joy flashed in Emperor Yong'an's eyes.Zhuo Ji did not flatter him at this point, in his opinion, Emperor Yong'an was indeed much wiser than that Emperor Qianlong.At least it was easy to accept him as a wise man.

"When it comes to food, apart from reclaiming more wasteland, I have another idea."

"what idea?"

"Where is the most northeast of Mata country?"

Emperor Yong'an replied without hesitation: "Beigu on the Hebei Road."

"What about north of North Valley?"

"It belongs to the Talkin Department. The Talkin Department is brave and good at fighting. The winter there is extremely cold, and it is said that it is already very cold at this time. Because survival is not easy, it can be said that everyone in the Talkin Department can fight. Talkin The Ministry, the Northern Man and the Western Fan are the serious problems of our country."

Zhuo Ji poured a cup of tea for the emperor and himself, then picked up the cup to moisten his mouth, and said, "If your majesty wants to expand abroad, the first choice is the Talkin Department."

"Why?"

"The Tarkin Department has a large piece of fertile land in the northeast. Although the food grown there can only be cooked once a year, it has a vast area, rich soil, high grain yield and good taste. If the area of ​​the Tarkin Department can be Incorporating the Mata country, the Mata country can increase a lot of grain every year. The rice in the northeast region is the best. And there are also very rich forest resources.”

Emperor Yong'an straightened his upper body suddenly: "Can rice be grown in such a cold place?"

"Of course. It is black land, the most suitable place for growing food. Because of the cold, rice is only ripe once a year. But there are abundant water resources, so it is not a problem to grow rice. The most important thing is that it tastes good."

Zhuo Ji mentioned that the taste was good twice, Emperor Yong'an held back and asked him about "that life".Emperor Yong'an clenched his fists, and then he was puzzled: "In that case, why doesn't the Tarkin Ministry grow food, but instead invades my Omata year after year, robbing people, animals, food and grass?"

Zhuo Ji raised one corner of his mouth: "Why don't you tell me, does Your Majesty know that it is suitable for growing grain?"

"..."

"A group of uneducated barbarians, what can you expect them to know about farming? The northeast is rich in forest land, and you need to retreat to the forest before farming. The northeast is a fertile planting area, and there is another place that is also an important place for food production."

"where?"

"South of Jiangnan."

Emperor Yong'an frowned: "You mean Nanyue?"

Zhuo Ji nodded: "I read from the book that south of the south of the Yangtze River, the north of Shu, and the south of Jiannan is Nanyue, which is full of miasma and full of insects and snakes. The people of Nanyue are familiar with witchcraft and do not follow enlightenment. Because of the mountains and forests, there are poisonous miasmas. It’s hard to tell, although it’s within the territory of the Mata country, it can be regarded as a self-proclaimed king, and the imperial court’s control over that side is very weak.”

Emperor Yong'an: "That's true. There are hundreds of tribes in southern Guangdong, all ignorant and difficult to educate. Emperor Mingzong once sent troops to suppress them. As a result, only [-] troops came back, but less than [-] returned. Most of the soldiers died of poisonous insects and fever. "

Zhuo Ji: "Aside from these things, the climate in southern Guangdong is hot and the air is humid. Although the soil is not as fertile as the black soil in the northeast, the grain there can be harvested twice or even thrice a year, and everything can grow. With these two places , Your Majesty, why worry about not having enough food."

Emperor Yong'an shook his head: "How can these two places be easy to win. Tarkin Department, it's too cold. Nanyue, it's too hot."

Zhuo Ji: "So, Your Majesty, take good care of your dragon's body and don't get angry. Once you get angry, the toxins produced in your body can poison a horse. You don't want to expand the territory of Mata to Tarkin and Nanyue in your hands. ?”

Emperor Yong'an smiled: "You seem very sure?"

"I'm not sure. Whether you can expand the territory can only be determined by your majesty. But as long as your majesty is healthy and always wise and powerful, it can always be achieved."

Emperor Yong'an didn't want to admit it, he was delighted.No emperor is unwilling to see his country expand in his own hands, that is a symbol of wisdom and martial arts!Emperor Yong'an couldn't help worrying: "Now, can I really poison a horse to death?"

Zhuo Ji laughed out loud, his usual lazy tone added a bit of teasing that he didn't even notice: "If you are still angry, Your Majesty, you will definitely be able to poison a horse to death."

"I've lost my temper."

Zhuo Ji got up, walked to the desk and sat down, took a piece of white paper, and picked up a quill.He is not used to writing with a brush, and he does not shy away from using a quill in front of Emperor Yong'an, and Emperor Yong'an has never asked him how to configure this ink.

Zhuo Ji wrote down a series of formulas and five sets of ratios on the paper, and some text descriptions, and then handed the paper to Emperor Yong'an, saying: "Your Majesty, Long Yan is furious today, and I send you a gift. Make you happy."

Emperor Yong'an took it suspiciously, and took a look: "What is this? Potassium nitrate, sulfur, and charcoal?" The things written on this piece of paper were no strangers to Emperor Yong'an, except that there were "=", " + "symbols that resemble Haixi Chinese characters.

"This is the chemical formula for the synthesis of potassium nitrate, and I have specified it. What is the specific configuration, I will let you know first. Your Majesty, please find someone to mix it according to the first ratio written on it. The configuration There must be no open flames during the process, to prevent heat from friction, put it in a bag after mixing, and then ignite it with a fuse. Bang!"

Zhuo Ji made a gesture of fireworks exploding, but unfortunately Emperor Yong'an didn't understand.But he realized that it was a good thing, and immediately folded it and put it in his pocket.Xindao: 【It turns out this is called a 'chemical formula'. 】

Emperor Yong'an was in a very good mood and asked, "What reward do you want?"

Zhuo Ji: "This time the counting minister gave it to His Majesty, Your Majesty, don't let it out easily."

Emperor Yong'an raised his eyebrows and happily accepted the gift: "I will rest here tonight."

Zhuo Ji couldn't laugh anymore: "Your Majesty, why do you have to ask for it?"

Emperor Yong'an: "My servant is so considerate of me, so I naturally want to pamper you more. If you can't sleep at night, I will accompany you."

Zhuo Ji's goosebumps gushed out: "Hehe..."

"Ok?"

Zhuo Ji rolled his eyes disrespectfully: "Thank you for His Majesty's favor~"

"Ha ha……"

Emperor Yong'an swept away the anger when he came, how good and how good he is at the moment.