The predecessor who was scumbag by me was the emperor

"Is this considered to have passed the Ming Road?" Zhao Zhang happily hugged Shen Jia and asked.

"Half, mother will cover it for us, at least this courtyard is safe, I was thinking about changing to a house closer to the palace, so that it would be easier to come here." Shen Jia has always had this idea, he didn't If you want to live in the palace, you have to rely on Zhao Zhang to run around. Yujingfang is not far from the palace, but the secret road is winding and winding, and you need to walk for a while.

Zhao Zhang laughed softly, pinched his cheek and said: "The places near the imperial palace are all the mansions of the royal family and aristocratic families. You want to move there, but unfortunately I can't find a piece of land to reward you. "

Shen Jia patted his hand away, went to the table to get a pen and paper, and drew him a map of the secret road from Shen's residence to the palace.

"Look, this is the route map I drew after walking twice. You can walk more times to see if there are any mistakes." Shen Jia has a good sense of direction. When Zhao Zhang took him to the secret road for the first time Introduced to him which families live in each place, and which houses also have hidden exits.

The secret passage underground in Chang'an was left by the previous dynasty. Hundreds of years have passed, many people have moved away, or the secret passage has collapsed. Nowadays, few people still know that there is this secret passage. Difficult to find the entrance.

"You have a good memory, that's right, then what?"

"Since our purpose is to shorten the distance, the first is to change the house, and the second is to change the route. Can't these twists and turns be changed into a straight line?"

"I'm afraid it won't work. These places are either boulders or the roads don't bear enough load and are prone to collapse. I've thought about this problem before."

Shen Jia put down her pen in disappointment, and continued to think of ways, and there were always more ways than difficulties.

He stared at the route map for a while, and felt that if it was in modern times, this route would be more like a sewer layout map. In fact, he felt that it was necessary to build underground water channels in Chang'an City, so that the city's drainage could be strengthened, and there would be no accumulation of water in the rainstorm season. Waterlogged.

Shen Jia began to mark the mansions in the area he remembered. Although the area he circled was very large, because they were all princely and duke mansions, each house was very large, and there were not many houses that were actually distributed in this area. .

"These dozens of houses are all over a hundred years old. There must be a secret passage in the house. You say, if someone knows this secret passage and uses it to do bad things, wouldn't it be difficult to find out?"

"I also know this, but so far, I haven't let people dig through the secret passages under the entire Chang'an city. In unknown corners, there will inevitably be darkness."

"I feel that this secret passage cannot be kept. After all, it can lead to the palace. If anyone finds out, the palace will not be safe. But once it is closed, it will be even more difficult for us to meet."

Seeing his troubled face, Zhao Zhang smiled and said, "Don't think about it, let's do this first, and then we can figure out a way to rectify it later."

He dragged Shen Jia to bed, the weather was hot, and there was an ice kettle in the room, but the two of them still felt hot when they were pressed together, so Zhao Zhang took a fan to fan Shen Jia.

Shen Jia's anxiety was swept away, and she exposed her neck to let the wind blow into her collar, enjoying the emperor's service comfortably, "I'm the only one in the world who is treated like this? I'm afraid I'll be surprised if I let the courtiers know." .”

"Just know that I treat you well. I'm not a person who doesn't ask for anything in return. You have to treat me well."

Shen Jia suddenly had an idea, pressed his fan and said, "I will send you an automatic fan when I have time some other day. The principle is simple, and my carpenter should be able to make it."

Zhao Zhang didn't appreciate it: "Could it be that I think my fan is not good?"

"Why not let you free your hands?"

"But I don't need it. There are many court ladies and eunuchs in my palace who are willing to fan me."

Shen Jia couldn't refute this, no wonder many people hated the rich, hearing such words really had the urge to kick him out of bed.

"Then I'll use it for myself. I don't even have a servant who can serve people in my yard."

"It will be available tomorrow." Zhao Zhang threw the fan out of the bed, pulled Shen Jia to roll to the inside of the bed, turned off the light and fell asleep.

The next day, Ren Yazi led a group of young men and women to the door, and said that they were sent to choose for her by order of the old lady of the Shen residence.

The concierge didn't know about this, but there were really not many servants in the family. Only half of the servants brought by the Shen family to Beijing, and the other half stayed in their hometown. Now that the master is about to get married, the servants in the family really should add some up.

Shen's mother was a little surprised when she got the notification. She didn't expect Zhao Zhang to act so fast, and thought she would have to wait a few days.

"Go and bring people in."

Soon, Ren Yazi led the people into the front hall, Shen's mother had already arrived, and even Mrs. Shen was dragged in. Hearing that he was picking someone, he murmured, "Just pick it, I don't need to look at it." Bar?"

Shen's mother didn't sleep all night, with dark circles under her eyes, she glared at her husband, "If you come here, just sit down. This is to add people to Jiajia's yard. Of course, it's better for you to hold your eyes."

"Hey, do you only add people to Jiajia's yard? No other places?"

"Pick one place first, and pick the others later."

Mrs. Shen thought it was troublesome, didn't he just buy a few servants?It's over after one selection, and as soon as the group of people walked in, he was very satisfied, feeling that everyone was very good.

He whispered: "This capital is different. Even the servants look much neater. They stand out one by one like young ladies and young masters."

Shen's mother rolled her eyes, these people are probably from the palace, the rules are very good, don't they just look pleasing to the eye?In such a comparison, the servants of the Shen family are all like weeds.

"Greetings to the old lady and the old lady. You and the elders look really young, and the house is well-organized. At first glance, they are good masters. It is really lucky for these people to be able to enter the Shen's house."

"The mouth is sweet enough. Are you people coming from the right way? Don't you kidnap them?" Their son is an official in the court. If he is implicated because of the servants in the family, it will not be worth the loss.

"Don't worry, they are all with deeds and clean backgrounds, but they dare not bring messy people to your house, villains don't even have the guts."

Shen's mother stopped Shen's father from nagging, "Bring him up and let me have a look."

Ren Yazi brought a total of thirty or so people. Shen's mother glanced at them. Their ages ranged from twelve or thirteen to 20 years old. There was also a woman in her 40s, wearing dark purple makeup and a horse face of the same color. The skirt, the hair combed meticulously, although the head is lowered, but the style of the body is no less than that of Mrs. Shen.

"This is..." Shen's mother asked in surprise, why did she send a nanny here?

"Did you say Madam Xu? Don't look at her age, but she is an old man who has retired from the palace and is familiar with court etiquette. The villain thinks, Mrs. Shen is getting married soon, and there will be a female relative living in the family soon. Madam Xu Such people are all eager to get them, whether they are kept to take care of the yard or teach the rules to the sisters and children, it is very good."

This is not bad. They didn't even dare to think about such a person before. Shen's mother asked seriously: "Nurse Xu, where do you live? How many people are there in the family?"

Madam Xu bowed her knees, performed a standard salute, and replied in a cold voice: "The old lady is too polite, the slave is from Tongzhou, but it has been 30 years since she left home, and she is alone in contact with her family. If the old lady looks The old lady is willing to stay in the Shen residence to take care of her, she just hopes to adopt a daughter to take care of me in the future."

No one would refuse such a small request, not to mention that the Shen residence has always been kind-hearted, the old people in the residence who have no children to support will be specially accommodated, and the money will be given accordingly, it is rare for the master's family to be so generous.

Shen's mother thought for a while and said, "Nurse Xu is not very old, you can sign a contract of living with the Shen family, and it will be convenient for you to leave whenever you want."

Mother Xu was a little surprised. They were all prepared to be servants of the Shen family for the rest of their lives. Although the Shen residence was not as rich and noble as the palace, they lived a more comfortable life. At least their lives would not be in danger at every turn, so everyone was willing to serve them Master Shen's.

She asked to come here on her own initiative. Originally, the emperor asked Mr. Du to choose a trustworthy steward to manage the yard for Mr. Shen, but Madam Xu felt that the man's house was fine in managing the outside affairs, but he was not so careful in managing the house, so Offer to help.

She is the nanny who took care of the emperor since she was a child, and she is also an uncompromising figure in the palace. She originally thought that she would be able to ask for grace to take care of the little prince or princess in the future, but she did not expect that the emperor would not even want to leave an heir .

Others don't know the relationship between Mr. Shen and the emperor. She noticed it earlier than Mr. Du. Women's intuition is very sensitive in this regard, let alone the child who grew up by herself, but she didn't ask anything. Later, The empress dowager had a conflict with the emperor.She didn't get involved in the affairs of the palace even more.

Among these people, except for her and a few confidantes of Director Du, the rest are just making up the numbers.

"That's fine, thank you for your care, old lady, I wonder how many servants you want to choose this time?"

"This time I'm adding servants to my son's yard. I wonder what Madam Xu thinks?" Shen's mother could guess that this is the backbone of this group of people, so she simply handed over the job of selecting people to her.

"Since that's the case, why don't you keep four big maids, four second-class maids, eight young servants, and two rough envoys? Besides, is there a small kitchen in the master's yard?"

Mother Shen smiled slightly, nodded and said, "It's under construction. The main house is far away from the kitchen. It's troublesome to have a snack in the middle of the night. I'm planning to build a small kitchen for him." , otherwise people will not mention it.

"Then add a few more good cooks. I'm afraid there are none here today. It's better to let Yazi bring them for you to choose from tomorrow."

"Okay." Afterwards, Madam Shen seemed to be the one to choose someone, but in fact, Madam Xu pointed it out first before she nodded.

After the people were settled, the old man asked unhappily: "Since when has there been a rule of setting up a small kitchen in our family? There are only a few people in total, let alone neither of us. You dote on that brat too much."

Shen's mother didn't dare to tell him the truth, and explained: "The new wife will come in soon, and the small kitchen is naturally reserved for her and me."

"Are you stupid? Why does the daughter-in-law live in the front yard after entering the door? That's where the men live. Didn't they all clean up the Canglan Pavilion?"

Shen's mother smiled sheepishly, supported her head and said, "I didn't sleep well last night, my brain is not working well, I made a mistake, isn't it just a small kitchen, I will build one for you if you want."

Old Mrs. Shen was speechless, "I don't want it." He just thought his wife was weird these two days.

When Shen Jia went home that day, he found that there were many more people in the yard, all of them were working, and his yard was reorganized and looked brand new.

"Master is back." A beautiful maid came out, blessed him, and asked softly: "Master, do you want to take a bath and change clothes first, or have some snacks first?"

Shen Jia was not used to it, so she walked in and asked her, "What's your name?"

"Slave Xiaoman."

"You call everyone in this yard in, I will recognize them."

Xiaoman replied and withdrew, and soon led a dozen people in. The maids were wearing pink panties embroidered with iris and lake green pleated skirts. They walked in a row and trotted in with small steps. into a nice arc.

He really deserves to be a person who came out of the palace, there is nothing to say about his manners.

Mother Xu came in last, holding a bowl of soup in her hand, and placed it next to Shen Jia, Fushen said: "Master, let's use this bowl of summer heat soup first, it's hot outside, you will feel better after you come back and drink a bowl of heat dissipation soup." .”

"Thank you." Shen Jia drank the soup without hesitation, and then asked Aunt Xu suspiciously: "What do you call Aunt? Are you in charge of the eyes in this yard?"

"The old slave's surname is Xu. For the time being, the old slave is in charge of the internal affairs of the main courtyard for you, and Xiao He is in charge of your external affairs."

Shen Jia nodded, and then recognized the people. Eight maids and eight servants seemed too many to him. In fact, his yard was not very big, and he was often away from home, so he didn't have much to do.

"Does it have to be so many people?" He asked Mother Xu.

Nanny Xu smiled slightly. She should be a very gentle woman. When she smiled, there were obvious wrinkles at the corners of her mouth. She looked at him with some scrutiny and criticism, but there was no disgust or contempt.

"Not many, everyone has their own responsibilities, and when the emperor comes over, there must be someone to wait on him. If you don't like the maids to be close to you, you can ask the servants to come over."

Shen Jia waved her hand, "You can just arrange it. Most of the time, I don't need people to wait on me, especially for bathing and changing clothes. I don't like people around. The most important point is that you just leave one person to watch the night. Don't enter the formal office. house, I don't like being disturbed, I will call if necessary."

"Yes, the old slave knows."

Zhao Zhang doesn’t come every day. The Southwest is not peaceful recently. It is said that riots broke out inside the Southwest Chieftain. They fought for the position of Chieftain King, disturbing the people’s peace. The officials of the court are in a state of quarrel over whether to send troops to suppress it every day. The military generals naturally want to fight for this opportunity to make meritorious service, but most of the civil servants are against it. A small tribe of chieftains is in conflict, so let them go. Why bother to fight a war?

Shen Jia couldn't give any good advice on the military, so he didn't say anything from the beginning to the end, but Zhao Zhang was the lord of the country, and he was the one who made the final decision.

Zhao Zhang summoned the cabinet ministers to discuss matters at night, and Zhou Qing presented a strategic material budget form. He was the fastest and best learner about the use of the form.

"Your Majesty, I don't know how to fight, but everyone knows that the army will go ahead without mobilizing food and grass. This year's summer harvest is not bad. There are grains in the south. It should be more than enough to attack a southwestern chieftain with an army of [-]. And within two months, [-] The army will consume the food reserves of at least three provinces, and the longer the war drags on, the more food and grass will be consumed."

Geng Yun, Minister of the Ministry of War, who sat at the bottom, also presented a battle plan, "Report to the emperor, the chieftains of the Southwest have always refused to obey the discipline of our dynasty, and the people under their jurisdiction only obey the orders of the king of chieftains. It is a hidden danger, why not take this opportunity to capture the native tribes, implement the system of our dynasty, abolish the former chieftain's mansion, and rebuild the magistrate's yamen.

This is the battle plan drawn up by the minister. Zhou Shangshu's budget is not bad. The poisonous insects and miasma are rampant in the southwest. It is difficult for our soldiers to adapt to the climate. The [-] army seems to be large, but this can ensure victory, and two months is too long Short, the road over there is difficult, unless troops are transferred from neighboring provinces, two months is only enough time for the road back and forth. "

Director Du handed the memorial in his hand to Zhao Zhang, who read it carefully, put it aside, and asked Xu Shoufu, "What does Xu Aiqing say? To fight or not?"

Xu Shoufu hadn't been able to get a glimpse of the emperor's mind, and he couldn't tell whether he wanted to fight or not, so he made a compromise and said: "Fighting has the benefits of fighting, and it can completely solve the situation where the chieftain occupies the land and is king, and let me win the Jin Dynasty." The land is more complete and the political power is more stable, but not fighting is also beneficial, in addition to saving money and food, you can sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and it will definitely be easier for us to clean up the mess when the chieftain's internal fighting is over."

Zhao Zhang leaned on the dragon chair and closed his eyes. Of course he understood the pros and cons, but what he considered was not whether to fight, but whether it was necessary to fight. With Dajin's current national strength, it would not be a problem to fight a chieftain. I want to, but what about after the fight?It is impossible for them to kill all the natives. As long as the natives are around for a day, they will believe in the Chieftain's Mansion. Even if they establish a magistrate, it is difficult to get the respect of the locals.

The first emperor once conferred the title of King of the Southwest on a younger brother of the emperor, and the fiefdom was in the southwest, covering the entire southwest territory. However, he died of illness within a year after he went to the fiefdom. The real cause of death was not introduced to the court until several years later. It turned out that A southwestern king took a fancy to the daughter of the chieftain king, and after taking it forcibly, he was revenged by the chieftain king. As for the reasons for his death, there are thousands of reasons. Anyway, the imperial doctor didn't see the problem.

Zhao Zhang wanted to change the status quo of chieftains being self-governing and self-reliant kings. He could allow the existence of the chieftain's mansion, or let local natives be officials, but whoever would be the official had to be appointed by the court, so that the natives could be controlled under the regime.

"Let's not discuss these things for now, I'm free to decide, let's go." Zhao Zhang already had an idea in his mind, and after they left, let Ling Jingyun enter the palace.

"I see the emperor, my majesty, all blessings." Ling Jingyun was wearing a black brocade robe with auspicious clouds on the hem, taking advantage of his aloofness and elegance.

"Stay flat, where is Lu Jian?"

"A few days ago, I received a letter from Commander Lu, saying that I have passed through Shuzhou, and I will be back in about half a month."

"Send him a secret letter immediately, telling him to return to the southwest. I have something to tell him to do."

Ling Jingyun recalled the important matters discussed by the court recently, and knew that the matter the emperor referred to had something to do with the chieftain of the Southwest, so he hurriedly responded: "Yes, my minister will send the letter right now."

Zhao Zhang gave him the written secret order, and watched Ling Jingyun hide the secret order in wax pills, then wrapped it with a layer of sugar coating, and threw it into a kit bag. It's inconvenient to pass it on, and it takes a lot of time to go back and forth, do you want me to make a trip?"

Zhao Zhang squinted at him, and said flatly: "Lu Jian has a deep prejudice against you. If you go to the southwest, he will mistakenly think that I don't trust him. Instead, you will get twice the result with half the effort, so let him lead the Southwest Thousand Households Office to handle this matter." , and it’s not going to fight, presumably he can do a good job.”

Ling Jingyun is the deputy, and Lu Jian is the principal. Naturally, the two cannot live in harmony. Lu Jian is extremely capable and proficient in solving crimes. The emperor values ​​him very much, but as a royal guard, what the emperor needs is a finger to fight wherever The sharp knife, especially for the powerful families in Chang'an City, needs talents like Ling Jingyun even more, so in the past two years, Ling Jingyun has been reused by him.

"I understand."

"Well, don't be idle, go explore the underground secret passages of Chang'an City, it is best to find out every exit, and also find out the routes that are still connected. Get out of the bottom."

"I obey the order." Ling Jingyun should have left immediately after getting up, but before he left, he still had the courage to remind him: "Your Majesty, since the secret path has not been fully controlled, you'd better not take risks lightly, even though it's only a short distance away. road, but in case something happens, we will not be able to rescue in time."

"I will be careful." When Zhao Zhang first found this secret passage, he had people reinforce it, and also blocked passages in several other directions. That is to say, there is only one road from the imperial palace to Shen's residence, unless Someone had cut through the wall, otherwise he would be safe for the time being.

In the early morning of the next day, Shen Jia unexpectedly discovered that no one had mentioned the Southwest matter. Presumably Zhao Zhang decided not to fight. For Shen Jia, fighting means death. If you can not fight, then you must not fight. To deal with the ethnic minorities in the Southwest, completely relying on force to suppress them is not the best strategy. Their ideas are more rigid, they will not easily step out of their hometowns, and they have no intention of aggression. They are different from the wealthy wolves in the north.

Afterwards, Zhao Zhang told him his thoughts, "I want to make them internally chaotic for a while, and then select three to five people from them to be officials. We can build a pacification department in the province, and these people will serve as officials of the pacification department as appropriate. , in charge of the internal government affairs of the natives, and then elect Han officials to rule with them. I will issue an imperial decree to recognize the identity of the natives and allow them to retain the customs and inheritance of the natives, but at important moments, they must put the court first , no civil strife, otherwise it will be regarded as treason."

"This is indeed the best solution at present. If different ethnic groups want to live in peace, they need to be guided slowly. If the emperor's method is implemented, it will only take about 20 years to completely change the native people's view of the court. If Coupled with the encouragement of intermarriage and commerce, the two sides will have closer contacts, and that layer of estrangement will gradually be eliminated, but it must be done step by step, otherwise it will easily lead to incidents."

Zhao Zhang nodded. He knew that Shen Jia would understand him, "I sent Lu Jian to deal with this matter. If it goes well, there will be news in a month or two."

Shen Jia has never met the mysterious Commander of the Jinyiwei, and he seems to be out on business all the time. He always thought that the emperor trusted Ling Jingyun more, but to deliver such an important matter, the Commander Lu must also belong to the emperor. confidant.