Chapter 24 Retreat as Advance

"Even if the queen wants to beat the imperial concubine and the others, the timing is not right." Mrs. Zhao Wu who rushed over looked at Gu Zhen and sighed. This is because her daughter has become a queen, and the mother must be careful when she speaks, otherwise If so, she would have to directly ask Gu Zhen if he was in a daze, "If you had had the attack earlier, when His Royal Highness the King of Chu had just contracted the disease, or when His Highness the King of Chu had just recovered, even if everyone knew that the noble concubine would Concubine Shu and Concubine De are all wronged, there is a difference between high and low, and we always have to take care of your mood! But at this moment, His Royal Highness King Chu has recovered, and you are also fine. Are they?"

Gu Zhen said sullenly: "Before the King of Chu was ill, I was busy taking care of him; later, I was not feeling well, so I lay in bed for a few days, and I have the energy to ask questions after I recover, right?"

Mrs. Zhao Wu said: "Then what did you ask? When you took over the power, you said why you took it? It means that you don't need their help to share it, right? There is nothing wrong with this statement, but you also I know, His Majesty wanted to favor those concubines, especially the noble concubine! In the past, the noble concubine helped share the palace affairs, and she also took care of several important things, and she did it well. Now you can lightly say that you can If you have personally taken care of Liugong, let her retreat, if she doesn't say anything, Liugong will think that you will tear down the bridge. What's more, as a noble concubine, can you not say anything?"

"...It's useless to say these things now, mother can tell me what to do with this matter!" Gu Zhen said in a self-defeating manner, "It's all like this anyway."

"If you don't make it clear to your empress, how will your empress know what to do next time when you encounter similar things?" Mrs. Zhao Wu sighed and said, "You take back the palace power for nothing. Of course everyone thinks that those few have shared your worries and hardships. But What if you didn't take power for nothing, but because something went wrong with them? You are too honest, didn't you say that the real culprit who murdered His Royal Highness the King of Chu has never been found? Why can't you ask the concubine and the others about this matter? Liugong has always They are all helping to take care of it, and even before you became the empress, you didn't have any palace power in your hands, so they started to take care of things. If something goes wrong in the palace, who do you turn to if you don't ask them?"

Gu Zhen opened his mouth, not knowing what to say for a moment: "...When the King of Chu was sick, I asked the concubine in private, and the concubine gave me some advice."

Mrs. Uncle Zhao Wu was quite speechless: "So you are embarrassed to turn against the imperial concubine on this matter? Madam, the battle in the harem is not like yours! Look at the imperial concubine, who saw the former queen when she entered the palace. I care about Your Majesty! What happened later? The Ji family was destroyed and the former queen lost her power. What kind of face does she have? Right now, she is the Empress Dowager, and she is only putting on a show, but is there any real respect? If you keep doing this I'm sorry, I'm sorry, what do you think you have to fight against someone like her?"

Seeing that Gu Zhen didn't speak, he said, "Before you do it, have you thought about your purpose? Or did you just think about making trouble when you were angry for a while, without thinking about the consequences?"

"Bengong..." Gu Zhen pondered for a while, then said slowly, "Bengong just wants to show his prestige."

A look of sadness flashed in her eyes, "King Chu is like that, so far we don't know the real culprit! Your Majesty doesn't care about me, and even my heirs don't take seriously! If I continue to be like before, Liugong will think it's a crime." Soft and talkative temperament. Even if there are ten or eight heirs under his knees, how can he stop the calculations from all directions? At this age, I have been in the palace for many years, and I don't expect to be loved by His Majesty. Just thinking about it It is called the Sixth Palace, and everyone knows that it is known as the Palace of the Front and the Palace of the Queen, even though this Palace relies on the family to establish a queen, but not everyone can bully it!"

"The heirs under my knees are also untouchable!"

"Your idea is very good, but why didn't you explain it when you took over the power?" Madam Zhaowu was very sorry. Gu Zhen has been in the palace for almost ten years, and he has made no achievements and demands. The daughter had no hope.

So from the very beginning, she decided to let her live a good life behind closed doors, and concentrate on raising the heir to the East Palace.

This is mainly due to the fact that Gu Zhen's city mansion is insufficient, and he also feels that Gu Zhen himself is not very interested in Vega Six Palaces.

If I knew she would think so, the family would naturally plan for her.

At this moment, he sighed, "You said at that time, how dare the noble concubines find trouble for you? Anyone who dares to find trouble for you will be guilty of a guilty conscience and may murder His Highness the King of Chu!"

Not only that, but the hot potato for His Royal Highness Princess Minghui to find a son-in-law is not up to the Queen, "If His Majesty entrusts you with this task, you can say that the real culprit who murdered the King of Chu has not yet been found, and you have nothing else to do. , as a queen, you can't see who in the six palaces has harmed the prince under your knees, so how dare you give the eldest princess the palm of your hand? Your majesty will be speechless if you say so!"

Gu Zhen hurriedly asked: "Then this palace is going to tell His Majesty now...?"

"That's definitely not possible." Mrs. Zhao Wu said, "You have seen me before you say this, can your majesty know that it was taught by your family? At that time, you may think that your sudden power takeover is the meaning of your family. That's it. How could His Majesty not hold grudges, thinking that we deliberately manipulated him? You are not unaware of the fate of being held grudges by Your Majesty."

Gu Zhen frowned and said, "Then now...?"

"Now we can only take a step back." Mrs. Zhao Wubo looked at her, "Go and plead guilty to His Majesty later, saying that because of His Highness King Chu, you suspected the noble concubines and the others, and took advantage of the opportunity of assisting the Sixth Palace to attack King Chu. Your Highness is at a disadvantage. After he recovered his breath, he immediately took power and tried to find clues. But after persuasion from your family, you feel that this may be a misunderstanding."

"..." Gu Zhen remained expressionless and said nothing.

Mrs. Zhao Wubo sighed: "Are you not reconciled?"

Gu Zhen still didn't speak, but his expression said everything.

"I am not reconciled, and my family is not reconciled either. Although our Uncle Zhaowu's mansion is not a top lintel, it is also a family with real power, and because of the Dingbei Army, even the Ji family has not dared to be too unreasonable to us all these years in the imperial capital. Harsh." Mrs. Zhaowu Bo said seriously, "What is Concubine Min? How dare she be so disrespectful to you? But there is no way, His Majesty favors her. The most important thing is that people like us who hold military power should It’s hard to come to a good end. Especially today, it’s not like the late emperor, just look at Ji’s affairs and you’ll know the end of offending this emperor!”

"Although today is the time when I use my Gu family, I will be very tolerant and generous to you and the Gu family."

"But that's it, we can't show it any more!"

"Otherwise, I'll be happy now, and the emperor won't need us later, then... how can you and I meet like this today?"

Gu Zhen said sadly: "Then bear it now, and will endure it in the future, but how long will it last?"

"Your Majesty is also a human being, and will grow old." Mrs. Zhao Wubo reached out to hold her hand, and comforted her in a low voice, "You take good care of the emperor's heir, and when the East Palace is established in the future, the East Palace will grow... At that time, you can only Look at today's loving empress dowager, she is still an empress dowager with a bad name. Who dares to offend her? It is the empress dowager, who has no blood relationship with your majesty, but the status and seniority are placed there, including your majesty, who will dare to offend her? Dare to neglect? At that time, what will Concubine Min be? Whether she can be a concubine safely depends on your face!"

"But what if Your Majesty changes another queen?" Gu Zhen asked back, "Or he thinks that the prince under the care of this palace is not good enough, and thinks that Concubine Min or someone else's prince is more suitable for that position. Then mother, tell me, this palace What's the point of suffering with your family?"

Mrs. Uncle Zhaowu was silent for a while, and said slowly: "These are things that didn't happen, why should you worry about it? Besides, the Gu family has been in the court for many years, and I have seen all kinds of situations. Many things, the uncle and the old man will know considerate."

Gu Zhen didn't want to listen to these perfunctory words: "It's easy for me to ask His Majesty for a crime. Anyway, in the past two years, I have been forced by Concubine Min. What kind of face has I never lost? But mother should know, this time I will be with you. Concubine Min almost blatantly tore her face openly, but in the end it was Ben Gong who gave way first, so how should the Sixth Palace treat Ben Gong? Heir, how could he not be underestimated? Now it’s just that the King of Chu has made a mistake, what His Majesty said implied, that is, in the future, other concubines will give birth to a prince, and they will hug and raise him with this palace.”

"But what do you think His Majesty will think if accidents happen to the second and third adopted sons? What will the sixth palace think?"

"At that time, who will be cheaper in the Eastern Palace?"

"Although Your Majesty has been married for many years, how old is the oldest child because of the Ji family?"

"Nowadays, the princes still don't know how to be virtuous and stupid, and they can't even guarantee that they will grow up...Unless there is something wrong with His Majesty, the ministers will definitely not ask for a crown prince in a short time, and they must observe it carefully. It is."

"Chenguang in the middle, mother, what do you think I will use to intimidate the sixth palace and protect the children under my knees?!"

"... Your Majesty is thinking about it." Madam Zhaowu pursed her lips, and said slowly after a while, "You just think that you are the first to give in, and Liugong will look down on you, but you Have you ever thought about it? You took the back seat because you are the daughter of the Gu family, not because you defeated the concubine of the sixth palace! And during this period of time, you have accepted the power of the noble concubine and the others, and there must be some turmoil in the harem. How can your majesty Don't worry? If you are willing to take the initiative to give in at this time, His Majesty will certainly be willing to take advantage of the situation to settle right and wrong while you are willing to take the initiative to give in. Then whoever dares to ridicule you at this point of view will have trouble with His Majesty!"

"At that time, you don't need to complain for yourself, His Majesty will be the first to take care of people!"

"Even Concubine Min and the others, who are smarter, dare not push forward because of your concessions, but treat you with extra respect!"

"Otherwise you will offend His Majesty!"

She looked at Gu Zhen and continued, "As for the safety of your children, you don't need to worry about it. Do you really think that you are the only one who cares about the safety of His Royal Highness the King of Chu? You must know that he is not your son alone. , In addition, this emperor's heir is the hub of mutual trust between the Gu family and His Majesty, do you think His Majesty will let you watch him alone without paying any attention?"

"...Mum, is it true that King Chu's illness was just a coincidence?" Gu Zhen was taken aback, startled, and murmured in a low voice, "So, the noble concubine lied to me?!"

Mrs. Zhao Wubo first answered her about King Chu's illness: "It's not easy to be sure at home if it's accidental. If it's not accidental, then it is certain that His Majesty is determined to protect the person who did it. But anyway, your knee There must be a prince who can live in the East Palace. This is the bottom line of our family, and it is also what His Majesty must do. Even if someone murdered him this time, His Majesty will definitely not condone a second time. The family is very sure of this, Even the loving mother, the Empress Dowager, cannot control His Majesty in this matter. After all, Your Majesty is not the kind of foolish, loyal and filial person, if so, our family would not rely on him."

"You said the imperial concubine lied to you? What's going on?"

Gu Zhen bit his lip, and recalled that he had doubts about the King of Chu's illness but could not find the real culprit, so he sent someone to seek help from Yun Fenghuang, and Yun Fenghuang's reply roughly said: "...the palace was at that time He didn't comment, but he still felt that what the concubine said was very reasonable. A few days ago, didn't you let the family look at Xingningbo's mansion? It was for this purpose. It's just that this is a big matter, and you didn't enter the palace at that time , I dare not go into details.”

Mrs. Uncle Zhao Wu pondered for a moment, and said: "Indeed, this is a big matter, and it is always right to be cautious. Don't tell anyone about this matter, and the servants who know it around you should also beat them up, and tell them to be tight-lipped. As for what's going on, the family will investigate."

"If the Empress Dowager really did it..." Gu Zhen couldn't help asking, "What should I do? According to the concubine's words, I can't refuse at all!"

"Is it true that the King of Chu has no hope of the East Palace?" Madam Zhaowu asked with a sigh.

Gu Zhen hesitated for a while, and said sadly: "The imperial doctor said that the king of Chu is still young, and what will happen in the future is unknown. But according to my observation, he is much slower than before Feng Han. He was very smart before, but now he is a little confused. Even The third prince doesn't like to play with him anymore, saying that he thinks he is stupid and not fun..."

Mrs. Zhao Wubo frowned and said: "Whether what the noble concubine said is true or not, I have to guard against it!"

After thinking for a while, she persuaded Gu Zhen to finish pleading guilty with Chunjia, and then recommended some concubines to Chunjia, and even the concubines she promoted, implying that Chunjia would be more lucky with these people, "You take the initiative to make concessions, so that Your Majesty will no longer In a difficult situation, if you reciprocate, His Majesty should also act as if he favors you. Of course, this time will not be long, after all, His Majesty is not thinking about you... Take this opportunity, let Your Majesty be more fortunate to your own people, so that as long as Yuan Xianfei gives birth, These people are pregnant, so you have room to decline. As for other things, after returning home for your mother, discuss it with the old man and the others, and I will talk to you next time."

After all, Mrs. Zhao Wubo herself is not a particularly clever person, so it is difficult for her to give her daughter a bunch of reliable ideas in such a short time.

...Not long after Mrs. Zhao Wubo left that day, Gu Zhen went to Xingxintang to plead guilty with Chunjia.

Because of her dissatisfaction, this gesture of pleading guilty was not particularly submissive, but anyway, she lowered her head and promised to restore the situation in the harem, and let the noble concubine Shu and Concubine De concubine continue to assist the sixth palace, and she would never do it again in the future. Such an abrupt takeover.

The news quickly spread to Lanzhou Yeyu Pavilion, everyone was happy for Yun Fenghuang, thinking that this was another victory for the imperial concubine, but Yun Fenghuang couldn't be happy, and sighed slightly: "I heard that Mrs. Zhaowu just left , the queen went to plead guilty, this is the action of the Gu family! This kind of family, even if one or two children are unworthy, and they can be rich until now, they still have to be valued by His Majesty. How can it be easy to provoke their daughter-in-law? Well, they must have a backup, it is impossible for people like Ben Gong to win without a fight so easily."

"This is advancing in order to retreat!"

Yun Fenghuang thought for a while, and ordered someone to send a message to Concubine Shu, "In the harem, I can handle it by myself, but if the Gu family intends to start from the previous dynasty, I would like to ask Lord Ouyang to take care of me."