The Royal Merchant of the Red Chamber

Let's talk about the last time Xue Pan had wine and tea with the princes of the Tu family, and by the way, he implicitly expressed his intention of forming an alliance.Afterwards, Prince Zhonglian presented the irrefutable evidence that the Tong family members used the empress dowager's name to amass wealth and bribes in the past few years, and a major scandal that Miss Yun'er randomly stirred up...

After Xue Pan heard about it, he immediately went home to discuss with his father and uncle, and then went to the palace to report the matter after the morning court the next day.With the joint efforts of several parties, everything is ready, just waiting for the impulsive attack at the palace banquet.

It was the [-]th day of the twelfth lunar month, before dawn everyone in Xue's family washed up, dressed up, sat in the main hall of Ruirong Hall, and waited for the five drums to go to Beijing to worship.Taking advantage of the early time, Xue Pan and others took some Yikehua snacks with tea, which can satisfy their hunger but not make them too full. What an indecent move.

After dinner in silence, just waiting for the time to come, the men, led by Xue Zhizhang, and the women, led by Mrs. Xue, walked out of the lobby with breathless concentration. The huge lanterns and candles illuminated the entire mansion brightly, like daytime.From the main gate, the Yimen gate, the hall, the warm pavilion, the inner hall, the inner three gates, the Neiyi gate, the Sai gate, to the main hall, the main gates of Zhongxinhou Mansion are all open.On both sides of the stairs, there are big photos of vermilion, like two golden dragons.The male and female family members stopped at the front yard or in front of the mansion respectively. Someone had already prepared the big sedan chair, and they all rode in the big sedan chair according to their grades, and staggered all the way out of the Hou Mansion.

Compared with previous years, this year the number of people from the Xue family entering the palace to congratulate them suddenly increased a lot.Xue Zhiwen, who had just been conferred the title of Marquis of Cheng En, followed Xue Zhizhang and his wife's sedan chair with his direct descendants Xue Bian and Bao Qin.He stretched out his hands and slowly lifted the curtain on the side, looked out through the window covered with light gauze, and saw that the entire Sijiu City was decorated with dazzling colors under the attention of officials from the Ministry of Rituals.The withered trees on both sides of the avenue are wrapped in multicolored silk, and a variety of glazed palace lanterns are hung on the dry tree branches. The thin snow that has just fallen on the tree branches is gloomy, decorating the road as if The world of colored glaze, the world of jewelry.

From Changchun Garden in the west of Beijing, from Xizhimen, through Xinjiekou, Xi’anmen to Zhongnanhai, and connected to the celebration ceremony of the Forbidden City, the colorful spinning along the way is continuous, interspersed with colorful walls, colorful corridors, opera platforms, singing platforms, There are countless lamp houses, lamp towers, lamp corridors, dragon sheds, and lamp sheds. The words "Long live my emperor" and "Gongbi Yao and Shun" made of colored silk can be seen everywhere in the streets of Beijing.The temples and temples along the path also set up large celebration altars.

Xue Zhiwen knew that such extravagance was to celebrate the four years since the new emperor's accession to the throne, and finally got rid of all restraints and took power alone.Secondly, it was also to receive the Niijima envoys who floated across the sea from afar.Therefore, every plant and every tree is carefully decorated to show our Central Dayong, the heavenly atmosphere.Thirdly, just four years after he ascended the throne, the new emperor has opened up such a vast territory without bloodshed.How can such a merit not be publicized.It is also good to show the envoys from all over the world to see the outrageous strength of our Great Yong Dynasty.

From a certain point of view, the magnificence of this year's imperial congratulations is inseparable from Xue Zhiwen's timely return.And he himself is also one of the hosts of this splendid Asahi Banquet.

Thinking about it this way, a sense of arrogance arises spontaneously.Xue Zhiwen hooked the corners of his mouth proudly, and put down the gauze curtain complacently.Staring at the imperial palace in the distance with scorching eyes, his ambition is soaring.

Such glory is just the beginning.

One day, the reputation of their Xue family will resound throughout the land of Kyushu, and even resound throughout the universe as the Great Yong Dynasty continues to grow stronger.

Their Xue family will eventually become the most trusted ministers of the Emperor of the Dayong Dynasty.At the same time, those famous families who once disdained them were firmly trampled under their feet.

With such great ambitions, everyone in the Xue family went all the way to the palace without a word.

At this time, the morning light was bright, and the majestic and majestic Daming Palace exuded an unparalleled majesty in the golden morning light.Layers upon layers of golden glazed tiles and vermilion high walls undulating like mountains look more and more brilliant in the clear snow flying all over the sky.This piece of ancient buildings that created the painstaking efforts of every generation of emperors in the Dayong Dynasty exudes incomparable charm under the golden light of the morning sun.This is the charm of power, this is the charm of wealth.Every brick and tile here embodies the hard work and sweat of countless people.This is the brilliance born with a drop of blood.

And it will become more magnificent and brighter with the hot-blooded bodies going forward.

Slightly different from previous years, this year's ministers' pilgrimage skipped the exquisite and extravagant Qiankun Palace and held it directly in Qianqing Palace.And there is only one emperor, Tuzhen, who enjoys the worship of thousands of people.Against the backdrop of the fitted dragon robe and the crown shining with colorful halos, Tu Zhen became more majestic and solemn.It can really be called a dragon quality and a phoenix badge, the watch of the sun and the moon.

All the officials above the sixth grade walked into the main hall of Qianqing Palace according to their grades under the chanting of the ceremonial officer. They shouted long live, and after prostrating three times and prostrating nine times, they quietly stood in the civil and military classes.

Tu Zhen passed through the dense crowd and directly saw Xue Pan who was wearing a third-rank court uniform.The purple court clothes made Xue Pan's skin as white as jade, lustrous and lustrous.The morning sun directly shone in through the opened palace door, reflecting on Xue Pan's body like halos, which made Tu Zhen almost dazed.

After the audience of civil and military officials, it is the procedure of the audience of envoys from various countries.The envoys from all nations with colorful skin, colorful hair, eyes and colorful national costumes walked into the hall five by five to meet His Majesty according to the rules of the Yong Dynasty.Seeing these envoys from foreign countries showing off their might in the later generations all followed the rules of the Dayong Dynasty when they met the emperor, bowed three times and kowtowed nine times, shouting "Long live my emperor, long live, long live" in various accents that make people laugh, Xue Panshuang almost laughed out loud.

And after the envoys of all nations have paid homage, it is time for the natives who traveled across the ocean from the distant Oceania to offer their land and swear to submit to them.These foreign natives who also had yellow skin followed the rules of the Great Yong Dynasty. After bowing three times and knocking down nine times, they respectfully presented the document of offering the country to express their submission and hoped that the Great Yong Dynasty would send troops to the distant new island.

After Tu Zhen reservedly named these newly discovered islands and archipelagos, he accepted the documents from the native inhabitants of Oceania with a warm smile.

In the next second, the vast land named Penglaizhou, thousands of miles away, officially became the territory of the Dayong Dynasty.Then the envoys from Penglaizhou also attracted all kinds of gold, silver and jewelry, rare flowers and trees, and small animals that they had never seen before.

Xue Pan was also surprised to find two koalas and three kangaroos among the piles of donated animals.Later, I learned from Xue Zhiwen that there were more than 50 koalas and kangaroos brought by the caravan. Unfortunately, most of them died because of the unacceptable environment.

At that time, one of the koalas and one of the kangaroos had become Xue Baochai's dowry and lived in Zhongxinhou's mansion.

This is a later story, so I won't mention it for the time being.

Let's talk about the grand court meeting in the main hall of the Qianqing Palace, the envoys of all countries silently looked at the envoys of Penglaizhou who traveled thousands of miles across the ocean to offer their land, and their expressions were also cloudy.No one knows exactly how vast the territory of the distant Penglai Continent is.However, judging from the gold, silver, jewelry and precious tributes brought by these envoys, this place must be rich and rich in products.

Such a vast land is now the private property of the Yong Dynasty.This means that as long as the Great Yong Dynasty can transport a steady stream of gold and silver deposits from Penglai Island, the national power of the Great Yong Dynasty will be greatly improved in a short period of time.At that time, the difficult constraint of emptying the treasury will disappear.

Not to mention that Tu Zhen's famous name will unsurprisingly spread all over the world.

What made these envoys even more worried was that the Yong Dynasty had found such a large piece of land from overseas without saying a word, which proved that the naval power of the Yong Dynasty was not as useless as they thought. .They have ships that can float on the sea, they have artillery with a long range, and even the physical fitness of their navy members is absolutely first-class.Otherwise, how could they persist in a four-year voyage?

This kind of news is absolutely terrible for foreign countries outside the feudal vassal who come to harass them from time to time because their country is outside the sea.

Seeing the group of foreign envoys with flickering eyes and whispering eyes from time to time sized up the guests from Penglai Island with horrified eyes, Xue Pan curled his lips in a good mood, and bumped Gao Wei with his shoulder, Xue Pan Pan whispered: "Look at the faces of these wild monkeys, and see if they dare to rely on their strong ships and cannons to harass our Dayong border from time to time. If they invade again next year, three hundred high-end gunboats, and Even if the [-] cannons are fired in rotation, they will definitely hit them without returning."

Gao Wei looked back at Xue Pan and was about to speak.Hearing the ceremonial official yelling to open the table, he followed the officials in front of him and bowed to the mountain again, followed the officials in front of him out of Qianqing Palace, entered Zhaoyang Hall, and found his own seat and sat down.Beside him is still Xue Pan.

Taking advantage of the big furniture being seated and no time to observe their kung fu, Gao Wei leaned close to Xue Pan's ear and whispered, "I heard that the Tong family will make trouble at the banquet, so be careful."

Xue Pan sneered, curled his lips, shook his head and said with a smile, "Only they..."

Gao Wei couldn't understand Xue Pan's situation, so he couldn't help but sighed and said: "The eagle fights the rabbit with all its strength, the Tong family is a famous family that has been passed down from generation to generation, and their family habit is to plant and frame , sowing dissension, you'd better be careful."

Although Xue Pan didn't take Tong's family seriously, Gao Wei also had good intentions.Xue Pan said with a smile, "I know. But the matter has come to this point, and it's useless to be on guard. Let me see for now, the soldiers will come and cover them with water and soil."

After a pause, he said again: "I still don't think the Tong family can use any means."

Seeing this, Gao Wei could only shake his head helplessly.

At this moment, Tu Zhen, who was sitting at the top, raised his wine bottle again and got up to speak. First, he thanked the heaven, earth, ghosts and gods in the old fashion, talked about his ancestors, then continued to think about the future, and finally drank the wine in his glass.The civil and military ministers and relatives present here had no choice but to get up and leave the table, bowed and knelt down, shouting long live.After tossing and tossing for several times, he was finally seated.

At this year's annual banquet, the focus of all attention is naturally this young emperor who is full of vigor and power.But with only one person's power, he has opened up countless territories for the Holy Lord. The current Xue Zhiwen, the Marquis of Cheng En, is also the focus of everyone's efforts to win over.

Therefore, at the banquet, there were staggered cups and cups, and groups of princes and ministers flocked to Xue Zhiwen like flowing water, chatting with each other and raising their glasses to each other.They are so affectionate as if they were a family.Even Xue Zhizhang and Xue Pan couldn't hold back the enthusiasm of the crowd, and drank several glasses of wine in succession.

Tu Zhen sat behind the dragon table with his head high, with a smile that made people feel refreshed, and watched the lively scene below without saying a word. He drank a sip of wine and ate a bite of food from time to time, with a relaxed expression on his face.

Since he was a child, he has been used to being cautious and cautious.After suffering for more than 20 years, I can finally stop looking at other people's faces.But he didn't have the arrogance and arrogance of ordinary young people who suddenly gained power.His every move is still as stable and decent as before.He never seemed to have shown the frivolity of a young man's heart, and even now that he is in power, he has not shown any arrogance that looks down on the world.Still as gentle and elegant as before, soft and quiet.

But now, no one will ignore the ruthlessness and determination after this peace.

Therefore, although the crowd cheered and jumped for joy, they toasted and staggered.But his eyes were still firmly stuck to Tu Zhen.Even though he kept smiling all the time, he looked at everyone below with a gentle face.

When the commotion was in full swing, the crowd suddenly heard a cold snort, Wang Ruhuai, the inspector censor, got up and played: "Your Majesty, I have something to play."

In an instant, the hall was extremely quiet.Tens of thousands of civil and military officials looked at Wang Ruhuai, and the atmosphere was so quiet that one could hear the drop of a needle.On the other side, the envoys from all nations who didn't know why also started talking among each other. This kind of thing had never happened before.

As for those who understood a little bit, they subconsciously looked at the smiling Duke Cheng and the empress dowager sitting in the front seat.This Wang Ruhuai is the son-in-law of the Tong family. If he said that his remarks had nothing to do with the Tong family, no one would believe it.

Tu Zhen squinted his eyes slightly, and said calmly: "Today is the annual meeting of the palace, and we don't talk about state affairs. What's important for Wang Qing's family, let's talk about it next year!"

Wang Ruhuai pondered for a moment, then bowed and said, "Your Majesty Qizuo, this matter concerns the country and the country, and the stability of the country. My minister...don't complain."

When Tu Zhen heard the words "Jiangshan Sheji, Guozuo Anwen", he subconsciously looked at Queen Tong, who was like a wooden sculpture beside him.A bright sneer flashed in his eyes, Tu Zhen hooked the corners of his mouth, and said with a casual smile: "Today is a banquet given by the palace, Wang Qing's family had better not make a scene all over the city because of a trivial matter, and ruin everyone's interest."

Wang Ruhuai heard the words, bowed and knelt down and said: "This matter is related to the state system, and I really don't dare to be self-reliant."

Tu Zhen raised his eyebrows casually, and said with a lazy smile: "Then you can talk! Long story short!"

"Promise!" Wang Ruhuai got up, bowed and said: "Your Majesty Qizuo, I have conclusive evidence to prove that the Xue family in Jinling is plotting wrongdoing and intending to rebel—"

"You fart." Xue Pan flushed with anger, trembling all over.He got up brazenly and walked towards Wang Ruhuai.When I left the table, because I used too much force, I even dropped the porcelain containing the dishes on the table.The plate painted with gold lacquer hit the white marble, making a crisp sound.Greasy vegetable stains splashed on Xue Pan's clean clothes. Xue Pan stepped on the vegetable stains and dissimilated under his feet, and managed to support the table beside him so as not to fall.

He took two deep breaths, walked to the center of the hall, stared at Wang Ruhuai viciously, pointed at Wang Ruhuai's nose and cursed: "Don't think that you can unscrupulously slander the virtuous by relying on the Tong family. Cowardly, I also want to learn from other mediocre ministers and treacherous sycophants to frame things, and I don't want to see if you have the ability. Your Majesty is wise and powerful, how can you be deceived by villains such as you. If you say that my Xue family is rebelling, those with long heads know that it is impossible .On the contrary, it is you——frauding the virtuous, the next offender, what crime should you have?"

The civil and military officials also roared with laughter when they heard the words.It's fine to say that another courtier conspired against him, but the Xue family in Jinling, they are Conglong heroes who have devoted all their efforts to supporting Tuzhen to the upper position, and they have always been the most highly regarded by the Holy One.This meeting is even more of a double lord, with the same scenery.Saying they will rebel is like saying the sun has risen in the west, no one will believe it.

Wang Ruhuai, who was ridiculed by everyone, looked at Xue Pan expressionlessly in front of him who was in a bit of a mess, frowned slightly at the very impolite pointing at his fingertips, and took a step back to show his disdain.In his mouth, he said casually and indifferently: "If your Xue family has no conspiracy... How do you explain the secret underground palace built by your Xue family in the Ghost Mist Forest, ten miles away from Jinling?"

Hearing this, Xue Pan froze for a moment, staring at Wang Ruhuai in front of him dumbfounded, not knowing where he got the news from.You must know that he is full of ghost fog and miasma, and there are traps and traps carefully arranged by Mr. Shi. There are even more traps at the entrance of the underground palace.Where did Wang Ruhuai get the news from?

Fortunately, he was quick-witted. Although he was taken aback by Wang Ruhuai's question unexpectedly, he regained his composure and immediately asked, "What do you mean by the underground palace? My Xue family has lived alone in Jinling for decades, and I have never heard of any underground palace in Jinling. My Xue Who did you listen to arrange things that even the local snake in the house doesn't know? It's really funny."

Wang Ruhuai sneered and said, "Don't be in a hurry to get rid of the truth. The facts are all there, so you don't want to shirk them. This was verified by Yin Jiayu Village of Jinling Yingtian Mansion. Your servants of Xue's family have indeed wandered around the ghost fog forest many times. After entering the forest, follow the secret path and enter the underground palace—”

"Anyone can make up a story, but the storyteller in the lobby of the Fuyuan Pavilion is even better than you!"

"I have someone to prove it." Wang Ruhuai said, looking at Xue Pan with sympathy, turned to Tu Zhen and said: "Your Majesty Qizuo, according to Jinling Yingtian Mansion Yin Jia Yucun, this matter is the truth of the Zhen family. The manager Zhen Shirong personally reported it. The Xue family in Jinling indeed built a large underground palace ten miles outside the city. It is said that there are countless treasures and armaments, and there are many masters with high martial arts skills. Without years of preparation, it is absolutely impossible to reach this state. Your Majesty Qizuo, if the Xue family in Jinling has always been loyal, why did they build the underground palace?"

Xue Pan subconsciously glanced at Zhen Yan.Zhen Yan immediately got up and said: "Master Wang, be careful, Zhen Shirong has been sold by my Zhen family for various reasons, and is no longer a member of my Zhen family. Furthermore, I have never heard of the Jinling underground palace. Not to mention a small servant in the mansion? It seems that after Zhen Shirong was kicked out of the mansion by my Zhen family, he was used by someone with intentions to bribe him to make a fuss. After all, the underground palace is unpredictable, and we have never heard of it No. Second, even if the underground palace does exist as Mr. Wang said, it is a matter of confidentiality. How could a disloyal servant who was expelled from the mansion know?"

Zhen Yong on the side also said dissatisfied: "Master Wang, you and I are colleagues, and we have no grievances or enmities. How can you provoke the relationship between our Zhen family and the Xue family for no reason?"

Wang Ruhuai glanced at Zhen Yong expressionlessly, and said indifferently: "Are I provoking, or are your two families colluding together...Hmph!"

"Hmph! Evidence, empty teeth, who wouldn't talk nonsense, evidence?" Xue Pan looked at Wang Ruhuai angrily, his eyes were red with anger, his face was serious, and he threatened, "You If there is no evidence, no matter who is behind you. How dare you slander our Xue family at will... If I, Xue Pan, allow you to live through today, I will take your surname!"

Upon hearing the words, Duke Cheng jumped up and pointed at Xue Pan and scolded him, "Bold boy, this is the Zhaoyang Palace of Qianqing Palace, how can you allow yourself to be presumptuous—"

"Pan'er!" Tu Zhen interrupted Cheng Guogong's scolding with narrowed eyes, and said with a gentle smile at Xue Pan: "Of course I will decide for you what happens. Why do you get so angry about such a trivial matter? Gotta be a joke."

Hearing this, Xue Pan groaned aggrievedly, then turned around and returned to his seat to sit down.

Wang Ruhuai continued: "My minister has the testimony of Zhen Shirong, the former steward of the Zhizao Mansion in Jiangning, and Xue Zhiyi, the fifth housekeeper of Xue's family. Xue Zhizhang really conspired to build the Jinling Underground Palace."

"Fifth Uncle?" Xue Pan's heart sank, and he recalled the reticent Fifth Uncle who had never been very gregarious.I felt a little uneasy in my heart.However, he believed that he was thorough in his work, and he thought that even if the Tong family got some rumors, it would be impossible to grasp the real evidence, so he was not too worried.

Wang Ruhuai glanced at Xue Pan with a mocking face, took out an account book from his sleeve and handed it to Tu Zhen, and said in a low voice: "This account book was presented by Xue Zhiyi, a direct descendant of the fifth house of the Xue family. Transaction records over the past few years. Weichen discovered that they not only established an underground palace in Jinling in an attempt to rebel, but also colluded with overseas robbers to plunder the passing merchants. Burning, looting, and committing all kinds of evil. Not only that, the Xue family in Jinling relied on the emperor's favor and threatened them. Merchants colluded with them, wantonly disrupting prices, suppressing dissidents, and bribing officials in the court to do things cheaply. Unlike serving the country with loyalty, under the circumstances of the imperial court's explicit prohibition, they secretly sold private salt and armaments with tribes such as Mongolia and the Huns. Hiring cronies, doing whatever they want...the evidence of the crime is conclusive, please let your Majesty learn from you."