Empress Dowager Zheng, with a sullen look on her face, came to Zhaohe Hall with impressive momentum.
Eunuch Qi, the eunuch in charge of Zhaohe Palace, was complaining in his heart, but he didn't dare to stop her. He didn't even have time to pass the message, and he watched Empress Dowager Zheng enter the palace.
When Eunuch Zhao walked past Eunuch Qi, he said with a smile: "The Queen Mother wants to see the Emperor, how can slaves like you and me stop her?"
Most of the eunuchs have been cleansed since childhood. They are not considered men and have a feminine nature. Eunuch Qi was so angry with Eunuch Zhao that he had no time to glare and hurried into Zhaohe Hall, ready to plead guilty.
Eunuch Zhao let out a sigh of relief and followed him happily.
The two of them stooped into the palace one after another. Before they could open their mouths to apologize, they heard a majestic man's voice: "This is the Zhaohe Palace, where the emperor summons his ministers to handle government affairs. When the late emperor was there, he strictly ordered that no one in the harem should be allowed to leave." Unauthorized entry into the Zhaohe Palace. I wonder if the Empress Dowager suddenly came here for something urgent?"
Eunuch Zhao shouted fiercely, and when he heard this voice, he shrank his neck subconsciously.
The same goes for Eunuch Qi.
The man who directly reprimanded Empress Dowager Zheng was Wang Rong, the Prime Minister of Liang Dynasty.
The Wang family is a famous family in Daliang, which has been passed down from the previous dynasty to today for hundreds of years.
I am afraid that no one except the head of the Wang family can calculate how many branches the Wang family is divided into, how many clan members there are, how many are working as officials, how many are big landowners, and how many are doing business.
Wang Rong is the head of the Wang family. He became an official at the age of twenty. He was worshiped as prime minister by the late emperor at the age of thirty-five, and then served as the prime minister of Liang Dynasty for more than twenty years. The clan members are spread all over Daliang, and there are countless disciples under his command.
Wang Rong was sixty-three years old. He was tall, handsome, sharp-eyed, and not angry. For a prime minister's age, he is really not old.
Moreover, Wang Rong maintained his health well and was in good health. Looking at this posture, there is no problem in living another twenty or thirty years and being the prime minister for another twenty or thirty years.
When Empress Dowager Zheng broke in, Prime Minister Wang was discussing political affairs with Emperor Taikang. In addition to Prime Minister Wang, there were also six ministers, ministers and other important ministers.
It is indeed against the rules of the palace for Empress Dowager Zheng to barge in when political affairs are being dealt with. Prime Minister Wang stood up and faced her, and opened his mouth to reprimand, which was really too much and did not save the Empress Dowager Zheng any face.
You know, this is the emperor's mother, the Queen Mother of Liang. Even if Empress Dowager Zheng behaves a bit out of line, how can she get a minister to point out her?
It can only be said that Prime Minister Wang is indeed a powerful minister and is not afraid of the Queen Mother at all.
The Queen Mother Zheng was so angry that she sneered and retorted: "If the Ai family wants to see their son, do they need Prime Minister Wang's permission?"
Prime Minister Wang did not give in at all and responded coldly. Said: "The Queen Mother If you want to see the emperor, you can wait until the small court meeting is over and then ask the emperor to meet you at Jingyang Palace. It is better for the Queen Mother to come to Zhaohe Palace less often, so as not to spread the word and let everyone misunderstand that the Queen Mother has ambitions to get involved in the government. "
Empress Dowager Zheng's words were not as sharp as those of Prime Minister Wang, and her face changed with anger.
An Guogong, Minister of the Ministry of War, coughed and opened his mouth to smooth things over: "The Queen Mother has always understood the general situation. She is so anxious today. She must have something important to do. Why should Prime Minister Wang be so aggressive?"
The Ministry of Personnel. Zhang Shangshu was a confidant of Prime Minister Wang, and he immediately said: "Prime Minister Wang's words were a little harsh, but he was only concerned about the emperor and the reputation of the Queen Mother."
Li Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites is the biological mother of the prince, Concubine Li. 's biological father. As a relative, I should have been on Empress Dowager Zheng's side. However, this is just logical. Li Shangshu was thinking in his heart but did not express his position.
The Secretary of the Ministry of Finance opened his mouth: "Since the Queen Mother is here, why not first listen to the Queen Mother's important matters."
This Minister of Ji, sixty this year, with half-white hair and beard, is the father of the late Empress Ji and the serious father-in-law of Emperor Taikang. When Prince Jiang Song saw him, he wanted to respectfully call him his grandfather.
Ji Shangshu opened his mouth to rescue Empress Dowager Zheng, and Prime Minister Wang stopped speaking. At this time, Emperor Taikang stood up with a smile and came over, holding Empress Dowager Zheng's arm: "Queen mother, calm down, Prime Minister Wang did not mean to target the empress mother."
So, Empress Dowager Zheng hated the king very much. Prime Minister.
I don’t know what kind of delusion Prime Minister Wang gave the emperor. Although Emperor Taikang was filial to his mother, he trusted the Prime Minister even more.
Empress Dowager Zheng suppressed her anger and said to Emperor Taikang: "Princess Nanyang wrote a letter to the Ai family. After reading it, the Ai family was very angry and couldn't hold it back for a while, so they came to the Zhaohe Palace."
Nanyang Princess?
Emperor Taikang was a little surprised, and Prime Minister Wang and others were also surprised.
The first emperor passed away and after the new emperor succeeded to the throne, he was very afraid of the extremely prestigious King Nanyang. However, King Nanyang died of illness a year ago, and his bones were already cold. The current Princess of Nanyang is just a ten-year-old girl. In the eyes of the ministers, there was no threat at all.
Why did Empress Dowager Zheng suddenly mention Princess Nanyang?
Empress Dowager Zheng glanced at Prime Minister Wang's face: "Hasn't Prime Minister Wang received a letter from his loyal dog Zuo Zhen?"
Prime Minister Wang didn't even move his brows: "The Empress Dowager's words are wrong. .General Zuo is a military commander of the imperial court. He is said to be a loyal dog, and he is also a loyal dog of the emperor. Emperor Taikang's eyes flashed and asked Empress Dowager Zheng: "What happened to Zuo Zhen?"
Zuo Zhen was sent to take charge of the Nanyang Army. , which is indeed what Prime Minister Wang meant. However, Prime Minister Wang "shared worries and solved difficulties" for him, the emperor. Empress Dowager Zheng took advantage of this incident to get angry, and Emperor Taikang didn't look good.
Empress Dowager Zheng was not aware of the emperor's subtle displeasure for a moment, and listed all the mistakes Zuo Zhen had committed in the army: "...he received the salary from the court, but did not pay attention to his mistakes, and brought down the Nanyang army. It’s a smoky mess.”
"What's even more hateful is that Princess Nanyang came to question him. He dared to take action against the princess. He also claimed that with the support of Prime Minister Wang, he was not afraid of Princess Daliang." The princess of the Jiang family wants to be judged The despicable general humiliated him."
"The Ai family must not ignore this matter."
Emperor Taikang: "..."
Prime Minister Wang. : "..."
All the ministers looked at Prime Minister Wang's face.
What Zuo Zhen committed were all common mistakes among generals in the army. Demotion and removal from office were the end of the matter, not a crime of beheading. The most terrible thing is precisely the last two sentences.
He is a military commander, who gave him the courage to take action against the commander?
Prime Minister Wang’s “loyal dog” dares to despise Princess Daliang?
No matter how young Jiang Shaohua is, he is still of the Jiang family’s royal family and is the princess of Nanyang conferred by the imperial court. A minister who has no ruler in his sight will deceive the ruler and offend his superiors. How arrogant is this?
Prime Minister Wang deserves to be the Prime Minister for more than 20 years. Hearing these heart-wrenching words, he only moved his brows: "You can't just listen to one side of the story. It's not too late to discuss this matter again after Zuo Zhen's memorial is presented to the court." "
As soon as he finished speaking, a chamberlain reported: "To report to the emperor, there is a memorial from the Nanyang Palace."