Chapter 809 Ji Zijuan Tiger Crouching on the Barren Qiu Brother and Brother

When King Zhongshun entered the palace, he caught up with Lu Song coming out of the east study.

Seeing that Lu Song, whose face was slightly gloomy, seemed to be thinking about something, and was about to pass him by without noticing him, King Zhongshun couldn't help but coughed dryly.

“Ah, Lu Song has met the prince.” Lu Song woke up and quickly clasped his fists and saluted.

"Just came out from the emperor's place? How is the emperor's mood today?" King Zhongshun and Lu Song have always had a good relationship in private, but King Zhongshun also knows that it is best to keep this relationship in its current state.

As Lu Song is in charge of the power of the Dragon Guard, even he himself should not be too close to him. Although the emperor's brother has great trust in him, King Zhongshun knows that the throne has been contaminated by power and cannot tolerate others. If If you can't grasp a limit, no matter how close the relationship is, you may be on the edge of one another.

Lu Song smiled bitterly and shook his head, "After the prince is gone, maybe the emperor will be in a much better mood."

  King Zhongshun’s heart sank.

The emperor's brother has not been in good health for the past six months, and his temper has become a bit irritable. A few days ago, King Shou and King Fu visited the emperor's bedridden brother, but they were both scolded.

Prince Fu even threw a cup of medicine and almost broke his head. He was so frightened that Prince Fu couldn't sleep in the palace. Even Concubine Su hurried to Emperor Yonglong's side and waited on him naked for several days to prevent anyone from taking the opportunity to slander him. Adding insult to injury to his own son.

 “What happened?” King Zhongshun couldn’t help but ask.

Lu Song shook his head, but subconsciously glanced around. It was not a secret at all. The prince would know it as soon as he arrived, so Lu Song did not intend to hide it from him: "The emperor is not satisfied with several things. , the lion's mouth in Liaodong is a big deal, I'm afraid there are some differences between the cabinet and the emperor on the issue of the imperial examination, and the spring drought in Shaanxi is getting more and more serious. Attacking southern Xinjiang..."

King Zhongshun was shocked. "The situation is so bad? Has the cabinet come up with any countermeasures?"

"That's not all..." Lu Song sighed, "The prince will know when he goes to see the emperor. The emperor has been in a bad mood these days. The countermeasures proposed by the cabinet are all sound, but they are difficult to solve the problem. , or the schedule is too tight and demanding, and it’s simply too late.”

Hearing such a situation, King Zhongshun regretted entering the palace at this time, but he had already reached the door of the east study. Naturally, King Zhongshun could not go back. Moreover, the more upset the emperor's brother was, the more it would show up. It's your own role.

 So after King Zhongshun said goodbye to Lu Song, he made up his mind and went to the east study room to ask for an audience.

The chamberlain led King Zhongshun outside the study. After the announcement, King Zhongshun entered calmly.

Emperor Yonglong's face did not look good, but it was not that he was in a bad mood as Lu Song said, but he still had a sick look. This made King Zhongshun couldn't help but say: "Brother, the affairs of the court are important, but You need to take more care of your body. Now the Zhou Dynasty can live without anyone, but it can’t live without you."

"Huh, Lao Jiu, I'm afraid many people will feel uncomfortable after saying this." Emperor Yonglong raised his eyelids, then lowered his eyelids and read the memorial on the desk, "I think many people wish that I had been I am bedridden. Some people hope that the government will handle the affairs according to their wishes, while others hope that I will simply die and have other thoughts."

  King Zhongshun was startled.

Although the imperial brother had vaguely revealed such meanings in the past, he had never vented his inner dissatisfaction so directly and openly. Of course, this may also be an emotional outburst when facing oneself alone. The two brothers grew up with each other. Growing up, my brother had always been modest and reserved in front of outsiders, and would only occasionally let loose in front of himself.

"Brother, the emperor's words are serious. The people in the cabinet have always been mature and prudent, but without the emperor as their backbone, they would not be able to come up with truly practical strategies..." King Zhongshun is not easy to talk about this topic, but he can't help it. In response, he could only bite the bullet and say, "As for the boss, it's just some small tricks, just inserting bids and selling out."

Amused by King Zhongshun's last words, Emperor Yonglong laughed, "Old Jiu, I didn't expect you to use some flattering words to make me happy. This is really rare. I have met Lu Song. ? It's not that exaggerated. How can I not face such troublesome things one day? My eyes are red when I look at this chair, but I feel like sitting on pins and needles, and I can't sleep on my pillow. Lao Jiu, what do you think if I continue to be a How can my carefree and peaceful King Zhongxiao be so troubled? Look at the gray hair on my temples, which is growing day by day. If I become this emperor, my lifespan will be reduced by at least twenty years!"

King Zhongshun quickly shook his head, "Your Majesty, please don't say such unlucky words. Your Majesty's dragon-horse spirit will last for thousands of years..."

"Okay, Fourth Brother's words are just to fool outsiders. Is it interesting for you and me to say these things?" Emperor Yonglong waved his hands calmly, a look of yearning flashed across his eyes, "I also hope to be like my father. I would like to live a few more years, but everyone is different, so I have been cultivating my mind and character. Apart from court affairs, I basically have no other hobbies..."

Only with this compatriot from the same mother can Emperor Yonglong put aside other ties and say things he can't say to others at will. This is why Emperor Yonglong cherishes the relationship between himself and this compatriot from the same mother the most. Of course, this My brother also helped me a lot, but he was a little too greedy for money.

But if he is neither greedy for money nor good at masculinity, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to confide in him.

Emperor Yonglong never believed in loyalty. If a person has no desires, it can only mean that this person has a big plan. Even for those in the cabinet, Emperor Yonglong knows their plans in his heart. Either he will die and keep his skin. When a person dies, he leaves his name in the history books, either to leave a rich political legacy for the descendants of the family or the children of students, to inherit their political ideas, or to strive for more benefits for their fellow villagers. Benefits and actions are nothing more than these three.

Without these plots and desires, Emperor Yonglong would still not be able to trust this group of people, although there are still many shortcomings in this group of people.

Facing the emperor's brother's emotion, King Zhongshun could only remain silent. This topic was not something he could handle.

Emperor Yonglong quickly retracted his love for his children and regained his composure as an emperor, "I'm afraid Lu Song has told you that I thought this year would be better, but I didn't expect that disappointing news is still spreading. The spring drought in Shaanxi is far worse than the weather, and the summer harvest in northern Shaanxi and even Gansu may have another big problem. The Chief Minister of Shaanxi has written a letter requesting to be exempted from taxes for three years, and grain relief is also needed. The price of grain in Yulin has doubled compared with October last year. Twice as much,…”

  King Zhongshun also trembled in his heart. This was really too bad news.

 According to the usual practice, a mild winter and a drought in spring will be followed by a locust plague. This year, Shaanxi's harvest will be in danger.

Shaanxi has always been an unstable place, especially northern Shaanxi, which has always been riddled with banditry. Feng Tang can still maintain stability in Yulin, but now the governor of Jiubian has been replaced by Chen Jingxuan, and although Yulin's commander-in-chief He Shixian is also considered experienced, But he does not have the prestige of Feng Tang. Guyuan's general soldier Hou Xiaoduan is from the Xiuguo Gong family, but he is a useless good man. I am afraid that once banditry breaks out, it will be difficult to control the situation.

"Brother Imperial, Shaanxi is the key point of the northwest border. There must be no chaos. I'm afraid that the relief food must be arranged and deployed as soon as possible. Otherwise, once banditry breaks out, the cost will not be covered by some food." Gotta live with it.”

King Zhongshun saw this very clearly. The bandit rebellion in the thirteenth year of Guangyuan broke out in northern Shaanxi. It took two years to suppress it. The military expenditure exceeded 5 million taels. Emperor Guangyuan also suffered from this. The mind is haggard and he ends up depressed.

"Why don't I know this truth?" Emperor Yonglong's face became more and more gloomy and ugly, "But where does the food come from? Henan was also affected by the spring drought. Food prices in Luoyang, Kaifeng, and Zhengzhou have also nearly doubled. Shanxi itself There is no guarantee that Huguang will have good weather this year, but the transportation of grain from Huguang to Shaanxi is another big problem, hey,..."

"Brother Emperor, no matter what, this matter must be done at the front. Shaanxi must not be chaotic, otherwise the reputation that Zhou has won in Gansu, Ningxia and even Kaibian will be in vain." King Zhongshun said solemnly: "This is related to the future of Da Zhou,..."

Emperor Yonglong was shocked, and Lao Jiu's reminder made him even more alert.

The expansion of Hami and Shazhou was his greatest political achievement in the past two years, and it also won praise from scholars in the north. If there is chaos in Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia will definitely be affected. The supplies cannot keep up, and Gansu and Ningxia may have another disaster. If the story of the year before was repeated, it would really become a big joke. At that time, the reputation of the northern scholars would definitely be reversed. In addition, the Jiangnan gentry who already had a close relationship with the boss would probably criticize their own family for wasting food, money, and money.

"Lao Jiu, do you think I was a little hasty in changing Feng Tang from Sanbian to Liaodong?" This kind of thing can only be said in front of his brother Yonglong Emperor, "I feel that Chen Jingxuan is a little softer and can't control it. A three-sided situation.”

"Brother Emperor, Chen Jingxuan has been working on water transportation. He doesn't know much about military affairs in the border areas, and his time as the commander-in-chief of Jizhen was too short. Fortunately, the Mongols who are the main ones to deal with on the three sides, as long as the Tumuts can't afford the trouble, the problem will be solved. Not big. If banditry really breaks out in northern Shaanxi, as long as the food and grass supplies can keep up, I believe Chen Jingxuan and He Shixian can still suppress the situation." King Zhongshun knew what his brother was worried about, "It's hard to say for Chen Jingxuan, but He Shixian He can be regarded as a veteran general on the border. Even though he is not as famous as Feng Tang, his performance in quelling the rebellion in Ningxia is still remarkable. Brother Emperor, don't worry too much."

 (End of this chapter)