Minglan is reborn, this time with no regrets!

Three days later, the couple went to the palace to express their gratitude.

After the formal kowtow, Minglan was called to the Queen's Palace to talk, and Gu Tingye went to the Imperial Study to discuss state affairs with the Emperor.

After the emperor had dismissed his attendants, Gu Tingye reported to the emperor the matter of submitting the carrier pigeon letter.

Zhao Zongquan was very satisfied: "Erlang is thoughtful! If this method can be used in the army, the transmission of military intelligence will be much faster."

Gu Tingye: "It's just that pigeons are easy to be shot down. If they are obtained by someone with ulterior motives, it may be disadvantageous. It is best to combine them with secret codes, so that even if they fall into the hands of others, the military secrets will not be leaked. Secondly, large birds such as eagles in the wild occasionally hunt pigeons for food, so the express delivery of reports cannot be stopped."

Zhao Zongquan slapped his thigh and said, "Not bad, not bad! This will ensure that nothing goes wrong! With Erlang by my side, I can rest assured."

Gu Tingye: "Your Majesty is the man of destiny. As a citizen of the Song Dynasty, I shall die to protect the emperor."

Zhao Zongquan sighed, "Without outsiders here, there's no need to say these words to appease me. I'm really worried about how long I can rule the country."

Gu Tingye: "Your Majesty, why do you say that?"

Zhao Zongquan: "I was appointed as the emperor in a time of crisis, but most of the court are old ministers who have served the previous emperor for many years, and the imperial seal is in the hands of the Empress Dowager. They control important matters and have the final say. I am really dispensable."

Gu Tingye's eyes darkened: "I didn't expect that the Queen Mother would do this. If it weren't for your Majesty leading us to fight to the death to enter the imperial city, the court would probably be in a bloody storm now. How could they sit there and fight for power like they are today?"

"At the beginning, I just wanted to protect myself, and I didn't expect them to recognize this favor. But now that I am sitting on this throne, it would be a joke if I still let a group of old adults lead me around like a five-year-old child."

"I'm afraid that once they have the power, it won't be easy to get them to give it up."

"Yes, I have thought about this before. Maybe I can accept it if it goes on like this. As long as my family is safe, let them fight for power. After all, we will all be a handful of dirt in a hundred years. Who can weigh more than anyone else? Haha."

Gu Tingye bowed deeply, "Your Majesty, why do you say that? Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, the father of all the people in the world. The burden on your shoulders is so heavy that no one else can compare. If some individuals mess up the government and ruin people's livelihood because of power struggles, it will not be them who will bear the infamy of future generations, but Your Majesty! These people are well aware of this, so they are unscrupulous... Your Majesty, how can you do what I wish?"

Zhao Zongquan was a little angry, "How could I not know? But what can I do? The imperial seal is in the hands of the Empress Dowager. If I want to mobilize the inner treasury and the national treasury, I need the Empress Dowager's approval. But since the battle with Xixia half a year ago, she felt that I violated the late emperor's will to live in harmony with the people. She said that I was preparing for war and would destroy the foundation laid by the late emperor for decades. From then on, she criticized me everywhere and would not allow me to say anything. Now, I have a lot of soldiers, but the money to support them is all dependent on them... Hey, to hold power in the world, it is nothing more than soldiers and money. You can't do without either of these two."

Gu Tingye bowed and said, "I am your Majesty's soldier. I will take whatever your Majesty wants. If your Majesty wants the imperial seal, I will grab it for your Majesty!"

Zhao Zongquan rolled his eyes at Gu Tingye and said, "You little brat, you are talking nonsense again. Why did I ask you to rob the Empress?"

Gu Tingye chuckled twice: "I just said this on a whim. Am I exaggerating..."

Zhao Zongquan: "How can you say such things? If others hear it, they will think that I am going to do something to the Empress Dowager! Well, I just want to let the Empress Dowager know that I am not a child and I will not use a knife or a gun without thinking. At that time, it was because Xixia took the initiative to invade that we had to fight back!"

Gu Tingye: "The Xixia Li family saw that our country was in turmoil at that time, so they raised their troops to surrender. In fact, the emperor does not like war and does not want to fight. The ministers all know it. However, if the Empress's prejudice against the emperor cannot be eliminated in time, if there is another foreign invasion, it may delay military operations."

Zhao Zongquan: "I am worried about this. The Li family is like annoying mosquitoes, which can never be killed. They come up and bite us at any time, suck our blood and then run away, then come back again after a while. They are also on good terms with the Khitans, and they are relatives by marriage. The two sides are pulling each other left and right, which really makes me feel uneasy. Although I don't want to take the initiative to provoke a dispute, I really don't want to be gnawed back and forth like a piece of fat meat by these jackals."

Gu Tingye: "The so-called self-cultivation, family management, governance of the country, and peace in the world, if you can't take care of these things at home first, how can you deal with the wolves outside?"

Zhao Zongquan: "Erlang, what good plan do you have?"

Gu Tingye: "I can't think of a good plan for now, but my new wife has an interesting story in the past that may be of use to Your Majesty."

Zhao Zongquan: "Oh? Tell me about it?"

Gu Tingye: "When my new wife was still a girl at home, she worked as a housekeeper for a period of time. At that time, she was appointed in a time of crisis. No one in the family except my grandmother was optimistic about her. Moreover, she was an unpopular concubine's daughter. She had no power at home and the people below were afraid of her. The whole Sheng Mansion was a mess for her. Your Majesty, guess how she managed to get rid of the problem?"

How similar is this situation to Zhao Zongquan's current situation?

Zhao Zongquan felt something in his heart and said, "If the head of the family supported her, she would never face such a dilemma, so she would definitely not ask for help from Lord Sheng."

Just like him now, if he could get the full support of the Queen Mother, perhaps he would not fall into his current predicament.

Gu Tingye nodded, "Your Majesty is wise. She knows that the subordinates are disobedient because they have their own motives. Some do it for money, some for their former masters, and some for nothing but to do bad things. She can't resolve all these situations. So, my new wife pretended to be weak, allowing those villains to be ignorant of the sky and the earth, act more and more unconcealed, rebel against their superiors, fight each other, until everyone in the family knew about it, and finally my mother-in-law came forward and punished those people together."

Zhao Zongquan: "In this way, your bride will not have a reputation for being mean, and heretics can be eliminated. The remaining people will also be afraid of this purge and dare not do anything wrong again."

Gu Tingye bowed: "If you take it first, you must give it first."

Zhao Zongquan: "I want to exercise the power of the emperor, but someone is trying to stop me. They are accusing me of all kinds of things and trying to take away my power, leaving me sitting on the throne in vain. If I let them continue to do what they want, sooner or later, they will not only fight for power, but also seize it - treason!"

Gu Tingye: "Ministers fighting for power can be forgiven, but those who plot treason can be killed by everyone, regardless of whether they are civil or military officials."

Zhao Zongquan: "In this way, I won't be known as a mean official."