kvmb Chapter 350 Broken Dream
Chapter 350 Broken Dream
Upon hearing this, the Imperial Tutor looked up at the Emperor of Northern Qi, only to see the Emperor staring at him with eager eyes, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
He understood immediately and asked in return, "How does Your Majesty intend to settle the Prince of Guangling?"
The Northern Qi emperor had indeed decided on Zhao Yi's future: "The other princes are in charge of the Six Ministries, and the Prince of Guangling is also my son. I cannot show too much favoritism to one over the other."
"The Ministry of Revenue is of paramount importance among the Six Ministries, and now it has been handed over to the King of Qi for management."
"The Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice are next in rank, and are under the control of the Wise Prince."
"The Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of War are next in rank... I intend to have the Prince of Guangling take charge of the Ministry of Rites."
Because the Ministry of Rites was in charge of matters such as rites, sacrifices, and the imperial examinations, and the imperial examinations were controlled by the Northern Qi emperor, there was no fear that Zhao Yi would use the Ministry of Rites to cultivate power and disrupt the court.
“The Ministry of Rites is a relatively leisurely department, not as powerful as the other departments. Prince Guangling is frail and not suited for overwork, so it is a good fit for him.” The Imperial Tutor, following the Northern Qi Emperor’s wishes, spoke these words flawlessly: “Your Majesty’s wish to place Prince Guangling in the Ministry of Rites is not unreasonable.”
When the Northern Qi emperor saw that his imperial tutor agreed with his decision, his frustration was completely relieved.
He immediately instructed Eunuch Liu to order the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet to draft an edict to punish the Lin family, and to draft another imperial edict to reward Zhao Yi.
When Eunuch Liu came out of the Imperial Study, he was stopped by Hong Qiao and invited to a quiet corner.
Hongqiao slipped some money to Eunuch Liu as a token of respect, and then subtly inquired about the situation: "Eunuch Liu, my lady is thinking about her family. I wonder what His Majesty's plan is?"
She waited at the only way out of the palace from the Imperial Study and saw several ministers helping the unconscious censor out of the palace.
Hongqiao realized that something was wrong; the censor had broken his forehead, clearly a desperate act of remonstrance.
Why did the censor die for his remonstrance?
Hongqiao was a palace maid deep within the palace and was unaware of what had happened in the previous dynasty. Unable to figure out the reason, she kept this matter to herself.
A quarter of an hour later, she saw Zhao Yi leaving the palace again.
Hong Qiao breathed a sigh of relief. The Northern Qi Emperor did not value Zhao Yi and was too lazy to even be polite. Otherwise, he would have kept Zhao Yi in the palace for lunch.
Before going to inform Consort Shu, Hongqiao deliberately bribed the eunuch on duty in the Imperial Study to inquire about the situation of the censor's death in remonstrance.
The eunuch did not know the specifics, only that the censor had died remonstrating against Lin Yi.
Hongqiao felt relieved. She vaguely understood that the censor was a member of Lin Yi's faction and was probably trying to seek justice for Lin Yi by remonstrating against Zhao Yi's overstepping of his authority.
In addition, Zhao Yi has half the blood of the Great Zhou Dynasty in his body, yet he arrogantly ordered the execution of court officials and displayed their heads in public. Which civil or military official did not fear him?
Hongqiao wanted to get specific information to report the good news to Consort Shu.
Eunuch Liu knew that the Northern Qi Emperor had always doted on Consort Shu, but Lin Yi had made a huge blunder, which led to the spread of treasonous proverbs among the people. This gave the censors a handle to force the Northern Qi Emperor to punish the Lin family and reward Zhao Yi.
Given the temperament of the Northern Qi emperor, he would probably harbor resentment towards Consort Shu.
He returned the silver: "His Majesty has granted the Empress the privilege of visiting her relatives. With Lord Lin in trouble, Lady Lin must be feeling very sad. Your Majesty might as well invite Lady Lin to the palace for a chat and to comfort her."
Hongqiao looked at the silver in her hand, pondering Liu Gonggong's words, and her expression immediately changed.
She would usually give money to Eunuch Liu to inquire about the Northern Qi Emperor, and Eunuch Liu would give her some pointers, both overt and covert.
The fact that the Northern Qi Emperor is no longer accepting her money shows that his attitude towards Consort Shu has changed.
Thinking of this, Hongqiao felt that something terrible was about to happen.
If the censor were to remonstrate with Zhao Yi to the death, hoping that the Northern Qi emperor would severely punish Zhao Yi, this would be great news for the Lin family, allowing them to vent their anger.
But then Eunuch Liu hinted to Consort Shu to invite her family members to the palace to comfort Madam Lin, which meant the Lin family was about to suffer another disaster.
Hongqiao hurriedly returned to Zhaohua Palace and saw Consort Shu sitting in front of the bronze mirror doing her makeup. She was wearing a long dress with mandarin ducks embroidered on Shu brocade, which was the favorite of the Northern Qi Emperor, and even had gold-plated face flowers pasted on her forehead.
Consort Shu's elaborate attire clearly indicates that she is going to see the Emperor of Northern Qi.
Hongqiao's legs felt heavy, and she couldn't take a step.
"Hongqiao, what are you standing there like an idiot at the door?" Consort Shu turned to look at her: "What's going on outside?"
Her red, upturned lips moved as she said with difficulty, "Today, the Imperial Censor went to the palace to remonstrate with the Emperor. I tried to bribe Eunuch Liu to find out more information. But Eunuch Liu refused to accept my money and asked you to invite Madam to the palace for a talk and to comfort her."
With a "thud," the snail-shell ink in Consort Shu's hand fell to the ground.
"It was my Lin family who died remonstrating with the Imperial Censor? Not the Prince of Guangling who died remonstrating against his overstepping his bounds?" Consort Shu refused to believe it and vehemently denied it: "The Imperial Censor is one of our people, so how could he die remonstrating with the Lin family?"
Feeling flustered and uneasy, she instructed, "Go and find out more information."
Consort Shu did not believe that the imperial censor had turned against her at the last minute.
Hongqiao nodded and hurriedly left Zhaohua Palace.
Consort Shu was restless; her brother was dead, but she and her son were still alive.
Why would an imperial censor betray his post on the eve of battle?
She used her miscarried child to secure the position of Junior Chamberlain for her brother.
Over the years, she and her brother have worked tirelessly to place the men of the Lin family in crucial positions, promoting each of them by at least one rank, paving the way for her son.
Their power was subtly surpassing that of the Empress, and they were about to rise to prominence.
Therefore, nothing can happen to the Lin family.
An hour later, Hongqiao finally returned.
Consort Shu gripped the soft pillow tightly with her fingers, looking at Hong Qiao without saying a word. Seeing Hong Qiao's pale face, she dug her nails deep into the pillow.
She stared intently at the red, upturned lips as the prince spoke, “Your Majesty, His Majesty has bestowed honors upon the Prince of Guangling and appointed him to head the Ministry of Rites.”
Consort Shu's pupils constricted, and she clenched her teeth. The censor had truly betrayed her and her son. Was he going to offer his dying remonstrance today to seize power for Zhao Yi?
Immediately afterwards, Hongqiao delivered another heavy blow to Consort Shu: "All the men of the Lin family will be demoted one rank."
Consort Shu saw dark shadows before her eyes and fell backward.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..." Hongqiao hurriedly helped Consort Shu up and shouted towards the outside of the hall, "Someone, quickly summon the imperial physician—"
Consort Shu dug her fingernails into Hongqiao's arm and said with resentment, "Please have my mother enter the palace tomorrow."
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In contrast to the chaos and turmoil on Consort Shu's side, the Guangling Prince's mansion was filled with joy as eunuchs read out the imperial edict.