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When Jiang Zhao woke up, it was dark.

She slept so deeply that she didn't know when Xie Jin left. When she woke up, she disappeared. She was lying on the couch, covered with a fox fur to keep warm, and there was no one around her.

After sitting cross-legged for a while, she called out loudly when she regained consciousness.

Gao Sheng'an and Yuan Xiang, master and apprentice, opened the door and came in, one to light the lamp, and the other to help her put on her boots.

Jiang Zhao stood up and stretched, quite refreshed, and walked to the imperial case, seeing that the messy memorials she had thrown before had already been neatly arranged, piled up in several piles, and placed on the left and right.

She reached out to pick up the two books and flipped through them, and smiled softly, with tenderness in her eyes.

"Your Majesty." Seeing that she was in a good mood, Gao Sheng'an stretched his neck and said cautiously: "It's getting late, it's time to deliver dinner."

Jiang Zhao shook his head and said, "No need."

Gao Sheng was in a hurry, and was about to speak out to persuade her, when she heard her say: "I'm here today, go back to the bedroom for dinner."

"what?"

Gao Sheng'an was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized, and hurriedly urged Yuan Xiang, "Hurry up, run back and send a message to Qingshi, and ask her to prepare the meals, and wait for His Majesty to return to eat."

Yuan Xiang responded, and ran away.

Jiang Zhao seems to have figured it out. Although she is still busy with government affairs and the disaster in Lizhou has not been well resolved, she has not forgotten to take care of her body while she is working hard, and she has no way of burning lamp oil with her life.

After a few days, more urgent mails arrived in the capital, besides the secret letter from Lizhou, the letter of incrimination submitted by Zhao Zhijie, the inspector of Yunyang Prefecture, and the letter from Lu Cangyu.

Jiang Zhao first opened Lu Cangyu's letter, in which he not only reported to her about dispatching troops to relieve the disaster, but also affirmed her decree to use military pay to relieve the disaster, and assured her that the three armies under the commander-in-chief would never accept His Majesty's decree. There is no objection, after Lizhou is stabilized, Lu Cangyu will go to the border to comfort the soldiers in person.

After reading Lu Cangyu's letter, Jiang Zhao seemed to have taken a reassurance, and finally ushered in the long-lost sense of relaxation.

She opened the other two letters. The secret letter from Lizhou was still sent by Zhou Cheng Li Zhen, which explained the current situation in Lizhou, and gave Jiang Zhao a new statistics of casualties. There is calm.

However, Li Zhen also brought some good news, saying that the aftershocks were over, the earthquake had completely subsided, and the number of casualties would not increase. , and dispatched a lot of doctors and medicinal materials. Now most of the injured have been treated. Except for those who were seriously injured and died, there are not many people who died due to the deterioration of their injuries.

This was a blessing in misfortune, and it reminded Jiang Zhao, she immediately ordered a few imperial doctors from the palace to lead the team, set off from the capital, purchase medicinal materials along the way, and send them to Lizhou urgently.

After the matter was arranged, Jiang Zhao finally picked up the incrimination letter of Zhao Zhijie, the inspector of Yunyang Mansion.

Today, Dameng Tianxia, ​​except for the capital that belongs to the emperor, the rest of the region is divided into eight prefectures and 42 prefectures, and there are county and town yamen under the prefectures to govern one side, which is under the jurisdiction at all levels.

The governor of a prefecture called the patrol case, hand-picked by the emperor, under the jurisdiction of five to six prefectures, and the officials were from the third grade, which was regarded as a high position and weight in the local area.

The governor of a prefecture called Zhizhou, although he was also appointed by the emperor, but in fact all government affairs were directly under the jurisdiction of the patrol after taking office. Logically speaking, letters from Lizhou could not go directly to the palace gate, but had to be forwarded to the patrol first. Then it is up to the patrol to decide whether to present it to the imperial court.

It was also thanks to Emperor Taizong's imperial order that he had been in a hurry to follow the power. Because the Lizhou earthquake happened suddenly, and it involved a lot of people, causing heavy casualties. I gave Jiang Zhao a look, instead of waiting to arrive late with the incrimination letter from Yunyang Mansion.

Jiang Zhao tore up Zhao Zhijie's letter of guilt, and did not order him to be punished for the time being, but he made a note of it in his heart.

In the afternoon, Jiang Zhao finished approving a stack of documents and issued three edicts. Finally, she had time to rest for a while. She called Yuan Xiang into the hall to exchange for new tea, and Gao Sheng'an also came in with her.

"What are you doing here? I didn't call you." Jiang Zhao looked Gao Sheng'an up and down, and asked casually.

Gao Sheng said: "I have something to report. Someone came to visit His Majesty, and the servant saw that His Majesty was busy with business, so I left him outside the hall to wait. It has been more than an hour. I would like to ask His Majesty, do you want to see me?"

Jiang Zhao said: "If you can keep it outside for so long, it is probably not an important person, right?"

Gao Sheng'an chuckled and said, "It's Xinke Tanhualang, Zhao Chengming."

"Zhao Chengming?" Jiang Zhao obviously didn't like to see this person very much, he frowned slightly and asked, "What is he here for?"

Gao Sheng'an shook his head, "The slave doesn't know."

Jiang Zhao thought for a while, then nodded, and said, "Okay, I've been waiting around for so long, let him come in."

"The slave obeys the order."

Not long after, Gao Sheng'an left and returned, followed by a young man.

Zhao Chengming didn't wear official robes, he was dressed in plain brocade clothes, and his hair was tied with a jade crown.

He knelt down before the case and kowtowed to Saint Ann.

"Get up and talk." Jiang Zhao leaned on the back of the chair, looking at him lightly.

Zhao Chengming thanked him, stood up, slowly raised his eyes to look at Jiang Zhao, and before she could ask, he took the initiative to say: "I am deeply sorry to hear about the earthquake in Lizhou recently, but Your Majesty has always loved the people like a son, The grief must be a hundred times greater than that of the minister, thinking of this, the minister cannot sleep or eat at night, so I come to pay my respects, and ask your Majesty for peace."

The words were sincere, as if they were spoken from the heart, but I didn't know if it was true or false.

Jiang Zhao chuckled lightly and said, "I have received Zhao Qing's wishes."

"Your Majesty." Zhao Chengming said again: "The minister came to visit this time, of course, it is not just to say a few words on the occasion, to delay His Majesty's time to deal with government affairs.

The minister knows that the national inventory of silver is limited, and the sudden incident in Lizhou is really stretched. Recently, under the leadership of Prime Minister Qin, all the officials donated their salaries to help Lizhou. "

It was Han Xuan's idea to ask the courtiers to donate money, but he is a soft-spoken person after all, he can't take the lead and may be hated by others, so Jiang Zhao asked someone to deliver a letter to Qin Duan, borrowing his old man's name.

Qin Xiang was indeed generous, as soon as he made a move, he was given a two-year salary. At that time in the Xuanzheng Palace, in front of the emperor, all the officials naturally followed suit and donated a sum of money.

This matter was not a secret, Jiang Zhao wished that all the officials in the world would follow suit, so he didn't let anyone control the news, and Zhao Chengming was a member of the Zhao family, so it was not surprising that he knew about it.

It's just that Jiang Zhao didn't know why Zhao Chengming came over to tell her about it, so he joked, "Why, Zhao Qing is worried about the people of Lizhou, and wants to donate generously?"

Zhao Chengming nodded, took out a stack of banknotes from his sleeve, and without Gao Sheng'an's hand, he went forward and handed it to the imperial case, and placed it in front of Jiang Zhao, "This is a little thought from my humble minister. , Your Majesty, please accept it."

Jiang Zhao lowered his eyebrows and glanced at it. On the top was a bill of 1 taels of silver. Even this one was a huge sum of money.

She didn't move to look at the bank notes below, and asked directly: "How much is Zhao Qing planning to donate?"

Zhao Chengming said: "With a little effort, 10 taels of silver."

Jiang Zhao's eyes flashed, and he looked at him calmly, "Zhao Qing's family is well-off, with a total of 10 taels of silver, and he took it out as soon as he said it. Your grandfather didn't take so much."

Qin Duan received a two-year salary, while Zhao Heng followed suit and also received a two-year salary.

Putting those silver coins in the homes of ordinary people can be described as a windfall, but compared with this 10 taels, it is nothing.

Jiang Zhao was a little uncertain about Zhao Chengming's intentions. He didn't know if this was a trap set up by the Zhao family, or if Zhao Chengming himself had lost his mind and sent her money behind Zhao Heng's back.

Hearing what she meant, Zhao Chengming explained: "Your Majesty, my father is the eldest son of my grandfather, but he never entered an official position. He was in charge of business and housekeeping. When I was young, my father set up property for me to prepare for my future marriage. I am hired to run a small family. I am not married yet, and I don’t need those properties for the time being, so I sold them for cash. Moreover, I admire your Majesty’s demeanor, and I am willing to follow in His Majesty’s footsteps. , it’s nothing, I’m willing to do my best for His Majesty’s use.”

Having said that, he knelt down again and kowtowed vigorously.

Jiang Zhao was silent for a long while, then Fang asked, "What you meant just now... I didn't understand it wrong, did I?"

Zhao Chengming knew what she was talking about, even though he was afraid, he still gritted his teeth and said truthfully: "I dare not lie to Your Majesty, let alone offend Your Majesty, but... I do have admiration for Your Majesty!"

Jiang Zhao frowned, took a memorial and threw it down, angrily said: "Bold!"

Gao Sheng'an was also dumbfounded. He looked at Zhao Chengming who was kneeling on the ground with horror, and wiped his cold sweat furtively.

This strong man, as if he was not afraid of death, knocked his head loudly while saying loudly: "I know that Your Majesty is a man of gold, above ten thousand people, no one in the world is worthy of His Majesty.

But the heart of a humble minister can be learned from the world. The humble minister only has a deep affection for His Majesty, and has no intention of blasphemy. If Your Majesty does not believe it, I am willing to die! "

Zhao Chengming raised his head, his forehead was already bruised, and against that truly handsome face, he looked even more pitiful.But his expression is firm, his eyes are like torches, as if he really dared to die to prove the truth.

Jiang Zhao was not moved by his determination, and said with a sneer, "Deep love? How many times have you met with me? Do you know what kind of person I am? When you open your mouth, you are full of love. How much is your love worth?" ?”

She picked up the stack of silver bills on the case, threw them out with split hands, let them fall to the side, and asked, "Is it worth this 10 taels of silver? Zhao Chengming, you speak so boldly. I really think I won't dare to punish you if you commit the crime below." sin?"

This attitude is really cold and hurtful, Zhao Chengming's eyes darkened, and he said in a low voice: "Your Majesty can punish me, but Your Majesty cannot insult my feelings...

This 10 taels of silver was obtained by selling the land property without telling my father to relieve your majesty's anxiety. Huang Bai is just a possession, but what I dedicate to your majesty is my sincerity. "

Seeing Jiang Zhao's cold face and silence, Zhao Chengming continued: "When I first met Your Majesty in Tai'an Palace, I didn't dare to look directly at Tianyan, I only dared to take a peek, but it was that one...

I used to be proud of my talent, and even more so because of my good background, thinking that no woman in the world could match me, but only after I saw His Majesty's demeanor did I know what it means to be ashamed of one's appearance and what it means to be astonished as a heavenly man. "

"I know the difference between me and Your Majesty, I dare not climb high, and I also know that Your Majesty treats me indifferently and never takes it to heart. But when greed arises, how can I let it go so easily?"

Zhao Chengming walked a few steps on his knees, raised his face to look at Jiang Zhao, the fire in his eyes lit up again, and said sincerely: "Your Majesty is a king, I dare not ask for too much, and I am not a jealous person, but please His Majesty takes pity on this humble minister, as long as he leaves a place for this humble minister by his side, even if he is nameless, this humble minister will never complain.

Your Majesty, what Han Xuan can do, I can do, and what Han Xuan can't, I can do for Your Majesty! "

"Han Xuan?" Hearing that he suddenly mentioned someone irrelevant, Jiang Zhao frowned even tighter, "What's the matter with him?"

"Yes! It's none of his business, it's between me and Your Majesty!"

Zhao Chengming became inexplicably excited, his eyes were astonishingly bright, but he forcibly restrained himself from offending the person in front of him, and said clearly: "I know that your majesty has opinions on the family, but it's just because of their great power that they can't use it. Your Majesty promises that as long as Your Majesty allows me to stay by your side, I will be at His Majesty's command unconditionally just like Han Xuan."

Jiang Zhao looked at his fanatical appearance, his anger gradually dissipated, and he couldn't help being a little funny.

She thought, don't know if Zhao Xiangzhi knows that his valued grandson is so virtuous in front of her, if it's really their Zhao family's way of disgusting her, it's fine, if it's not...

Then Zhao Heng reckoned he would spit out a few mouthfuls of old blood.

"Okay." Jiang Zhao's voice was flat, and he couldn't hear any emotion, "Let me think about it and give you an answer."

Zhao Chengming's eyes froze, and he was inevitably a little disappointed, but he still forced a smile, and reluctantly said: "I understand, then please think about it carefully, after all, I... have no intention of forcing Your Majesty."

Jiang Zhao responded lightly, and ordered: "Then you go back first, so that you can take care of the wound on your forehead."

Thinking that he was cared by His Majesty, Zhao Chengming was overjoyed, stood up and thanked Jiang Zhao again, and left reluctantly.

As soon as Zhao Chengming left, Jiang Zhao ordered Gao Sheng'an to put away the thrown booklets and scattered bank notes.

"What do you think he suddenly mentioned Han Xuan?"

When Gao Shengan was packing up his things, Jiang Zhao asked a question out of the blue, making his hands tremble in fright.

Tremblingly raised his head and looked at His Majesty who was holding his chin and asking questions in doubt, Gao Shengan was sure that she didn't ask knowingly, so he explained: "Your Majesty, although Xueshi Han has not been reused in public, everyone knows that he has shown his loyalty to you." , and you often summon him, Han Xueshi has not been married until now, so in the eyes of others..."

He didn't dare to speak too clearly, for fear that His Majesty would throw him with the book.

But Jiang Zhao understood, and asked in surprise, "Do they think Han Xuan is my face?"

Gao Shengan coughed lightly and nodded.

Jiang Zhao's face darkened, and he endured it for a while before throwing out the paper again. He gritted his teeth and said, "Go and give Han a publicity decree, let him deal with his life-long affairs quickly, or don't blame me for messing up the mandarin ducks, and give him a reward." married."

"Slave complies with the order!" Gao Sheng'an put the packed things on the court case, shrunk his neck and hurried away.

Because I was meeting with Zhao Chengming just now, the door of the imperial study room was always wide open. When Gao Shengan stepped out of the door, he saw Xie Jin standing by the door with a food box, and beside him was Yuan Xiang who had returned from making tea with a bitter face.

His face was startled, and he stammered: "Thanks... Mr. Xie, when did you come here?"

Xie Jin's complexion was as usual, and even smiled at him, but Gao Sheng'an was the most observant, and he couldn't tell that she was smiling but not smiling, and her eyes were so condensed that she would freeze to death.

He subconsciously rubbed the back of his hands, and heard Xie Jin say: "My aunt made some snacks, and asked me to help deliver them. Now that the things have been brought, I will go back first, and trouble Manager Gao."

"Eh……"

Gao Sheng'an was about to speak when Xie Jin stuffed the food box into his hand, turned and left mercilessly.

He sighed tiredly and could only turn his head to ask Yuan Xiang.

Yuan Xiang still had a bitter face, and replied truthfully: "My son came back from making tea, and Mr. Xie was already at the door. Just now, what Mr. Zhao expressed his heartfelt to His Majesty...she heard all of it."

Gao Sheng'an's eyes went dark, he almost couldn't hold the food box firmly, and sat down on the ground.

The author has something to say:

Real love has a rough brain, Si Li, Zao Chengming!

Happy New Year everyone~