20demayo Chapter 517 Going to the Cold Palace to Live the Rest of My Life
Chapter 517 Going to the Cold Palace to Live the Rest of My Life
Who made him owe Concubine Shu a big favor?
Su Peisheng stepped into the palace gate lightly, glancing back unconsciously from the corner of his eye, muttering to himself: His old friend is probably going to be in trouble again this time!
Li Songling's special ointment is not as effective as Wei Lin's, so she needs to find time to get some more stock.
The emperor summoned several important ministers today to discuss matters concerning the northwest. Their opinions were deadlocked. When he raised his eyes, he saw Su Peisheng walking forward with his head lowered.
The annoyed emperor immediately frowned.
"What brings you in now?"
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine Shu is requesting an audience outside the palace. She said she has something important to report."
As soon as Su Peisheng finished speaking, Ma Qi took a step back without leaving a trace.
He knew that the emperor's expression had changed without looking up, and he secretly worried about Concubine Shu.
In June of the 12th year of King Sejong's reign, he ordered the Ministry of Works to cast three iron plates with the words "No interference in government affairs" placed in the Gyaotae Hall, the Naewu Hall, and the Shenxingsi respectively.
This was not only to learn from the bitter lessons of the eunuchs' disorderly politics in the previous dynasty, but also to warn Empress Xiaozhuang Wen who had excessive control over him.
The late emperor even directly established the ancestral precept that "the harem is not allowed to interfere in politics" as a warning.
Concubine Shu has always been cautious in her actions. Why would she break into the Qinzheng Palace at this critical juncture?
The emperor was also quite surprised by An Lingrong's abnormal behavior, and he gave orders with a cold face.
"Then please let Concubine Shu come in!"
If An Lingrong doesn't give a proper reason for breaking into the Qinzheng Palace this time, he will never let her off easily.
Amid Su Peisheng's worry, An Lingrong walked into the Qinzheng Hall slowly and leisurely. She stood straight in the center of the hall and saluted respectfully without looking around.
"Concubine, please pay your respects to the Emperor!"
The emperor looked at An Lingrong with a gloomy face and did not let her stand up.
"Noble Consort Shu, I heard from Su Peisheng that you have something important to discuss with me. What is it?"
The oppressive feeling that came towards him made Su Peisheng, who was guarding the door, feel nervous.
An Lingrong, however, remained bent on her knees and spoke anxiously.
"Your Majesty, this morning, our servants discovered that the raccoons and rats in the garden were running around, and the water in the well near Lou Yueyunkai was more turbid than usual."
"The Great Tang Kaiyuan Divination Sutra records that 'rats gather and croak in the streets of the imperial court, and the land is in chaos.' I believe this is a sign of the earth dragon turning, and I have come to report it."
"The earth dragon turned over?"
The emperor clenched his fists in shock.
He personally experienced the earth-shaking event ten years ago, and he is still frightened by it.
"Your Majesty, I do think so..."
Before An Lingrong could finish her words, she was interrupted by a rude person beside her.
"Your Majesty, I find Concubine Shu's words absurd. The earth dragon turning over is a punishment from heaven. Your Majesty's words are not implying that your virtue is lacking, and that this has incurred the displeasure of heaven."
When she entered the hall, she saw Ma Qi and three military ministers: Zhang Tingyu, Jiang Tingxi and Marseille.
An Lingrong looked in the direction of the voice and found that the person who spoke was Lord Marsai from the Majia clan of the Zhenghuang Banner.
Although the Plain Yellow Banner and the Bordered Yellow Banner were both among the top three banners and were commanded by the emperor, before Emperor Shizong entered the Pass, the Plain Yellow Banner was the leader of the four banners.
After entering the Pass, the Plain Yellow Banner had a prince who was commanded by the emperor, while the Bordered Yellow Banner was directly commanded by the emperor.
Later, the status of the Plain Yellow Banner gradually became slightly lower than that of the Bordered Yellow Banner.
With the emperor putting pressure on them, they had to be harmonious on major issues, but minor frictions were always present.
Last year, the Emperor promoted Consort Shu, who had two princes in the harem, to the Bordered Yellow Banner, and the Plain Yellow Banner had objections to this.
Marseille did not give up, and his spearhead was directed at Ma Qi who was hiding aside.
"Your Majesty, I believe that Concubine Shu, who lives deep in the harem, knows very little about the Earth Dragon's rebellion. Someone must have been secretly instigating this."
His slanderous words made Ma Qi tremble with anger.
Since Prince Yi died in May, the Emperor transferred Marseille to the Grand Council, and this man has been finding fault everywhere like a mad dog.
The atmosphere in the hall was heavy just now, precisely because Marseille was contradicting him in every way.
This younger generation who entered the Grand Council with the help of his ancestors is extremely rude!
Ma Qi fell to his knees with a plop, crying tremblingly.
"Your Majesty, I have also read ancient books related to the earth dragon's reversal, and the situation described by Concubine Shu does exist."
"But Marsais slandered the Emperor and the Empress without even distinguishing truth from falsehood. Such foolish behavior truly makes him unfit to shoulder the heavy responsibility of a Grand Councilor!"
Marseilles opened his mouth to refute reflexively.
"Your Majesty, Ma Qi is slandering people with empty words..."
He wanted to argue, but was interrupted by the emperor's loud voice.
"Alright! The matter of the earth dragon turning over is of great importance, so other matters can be discussed later."
He stared at An Lingrong with his dark eyes for a long time before speaking.
"Shu Guifei, do you know the consequences of falsely reporting the earth dragon turning over?"
An Lingrong knelt on her knees and replied in a firm and clear voice.
"Your Majesty, I understand."
"I have thought about this carefully on the way here. I am the daughter of the humble Songyang County Magistrate. To have the honor of entering the palace to accompany the Emperor is the greatest blessing of my life."
"Everything I have now was given by Your Majesty, so I do not wish to see Your Majesty and the people you care about get hurt."
"If what I said today is wrong, I am willing to go to the cold palace to spend the rest of my life!"
After An Lingrong finished speaking, she kowtowed three times respectfully, and when she stood up again, her eyes were filled with sparkle.
When the emperor saw her like this, he suddenly felt a pain in his heart like a needle prick.