From a son-in-law to a favorite of the empress

Chapter 555

The Imperial Palace of the Great Jin Dynasty, the Imperial Study.

Empress Zhaojing calmly looked at the memorial from Hetao without saying a word.

The other five cabinet ministers stood in front with their heads bowed and solemn faces, not daring to say a word.

The atmosphere was depressing and dull, with only the sound of flipping through the memorials.

It was unknown how long it had passed before Empress Zhaojing raised her head and said calmly, "I was not the first to receive the news that the governor of a province was assassinated. It took a small minister of the Ministry of Works to tell me during the morning court..."

"Lord Wang, you are the Minister of Works. Can you tell me why a minister of the Ministry of Works knows more than me?"

Wang Lun immediately knelt down and whispered, "I don't know, but I will definitely investigate it. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Empress Zhaojing sneered, "Don't know? Among the countless memorials from the Jin Dynasty, which one has not been reviewed by your cabinet? You don't know now?"

She spread out the memorial in her hand and said, "You didn't expect it, right? Not only did they say it in the Golden Palace, but they also handed it to me."

"Who handed this memorial up!"

At the end, she was so angry that she stood up, with a murderous look on her face.

The five cabinet ministers knelt down immediately, their faces pale.

Yang Guozhong said: "Your Majesty, as the chief minister of the cabinet and the head of all officials, I have failed to supervise. Please punish me."

Deng Bochi also hurriedly said: "Such a big mistake has occurred in the cabinet. As the second minister, I am also to blame."

Others wanted to speak, but they saw Empress Zhaojing slammed the table and shouted: "Do you think I dare not punish you!"

"Do you think that I dare not kill you now that the Great Jin is in a mess and there are countless things you need to do every day?"

"Come here!"

As soon as the voice fell, dozens of imperial guards rushed into the imperial study, drew their swords, and moved in unison.

The whole room was filled with murderous aura.

Empress Zhaojing said calmly: "We need to guard against the Eastern Tartars, fight against the Northern Mongols, and the Heshuo tribe in the West Sea is ready to make a move. There are constant wars in the northern part of the Jin Dynasty."

"The island pirates in the south are rampant, and their number has increased from dozens to thousands."

"The chieftain wants independence, and he said he would drive the "Han dogs" out of the village, and even openly opposed the official uniform."

"The Portuguese occupied Haojing, controlled our southern coastal waters, and aimed their strong ships and cannons at the docks..."

"The natural disasters in the past two years have just passed, and there are refugees everywhere, and the whole country is starving."

"Salt The corruption of the government is deep-rooted, and the tax base of the Jin Dynasty is unstable. It has completely fallen into the quagmire and cannot extricate itself. "

At this point, Queen Zhaojing looked at the five people and said slowly: "But the situation in the Central Plains is good."

"The areas most severely affected by natural disasters and banditry have recovered after a year, and are now in full swing and have shown a vibrant posture."

"Without you! The Jin Dynasty can still survive from desperate situations! It can still revive the country! It can still create a thousand-year hegemony!"

The five cabinet ministers trembled, and for a while they dared not even breathe.

Queen Zhaojing waved her hand, and the imperial guards quickly retreated.

She sat down and said calmly: "Don't take yourself too seriously. The Jin Dynasty can survive without anyone, especially you civil servants."

"You are trying to show off your power to me in front of me? Ha! You are not good enough!"

Yang Guozhong said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, I will investigate it strictly!"

Empress Zhaojing said: "What to investigate strictly? The murderer who killed the governor? Or the minister who submitted the memorial? Or the Minister of Works?"

"You know what to investigate. I might as well tell you that this time, I will scrape the bones of the Jin Dynasty to heal the wound. The sore in Jiangnan cannot rot any more!"

"Even if I have to dig out the flesh and split the bones, I will completely eliminate it with blood and tendons."

...

It is early summer with a sunny day.

The weather in May is the most comfortable time of the year. It is neither cold nor hot. Everything is in full bloom and full of vitality.

At Jining Wharf, Zhou Yuan stood on the deck, watching the shimmering waves of Weishan Lake. The scenery was just right, and his mood became much more open.

Li Yu'an's injury had healed for the most part, and she was sitting in a chair basking in the sun with a bright smile on her face.

She was in a very good mood these days, and she didn't seem to feel any pressure. Even if she knew that she would face a very difficult situation next, she always laughed it off.

On the contrary, Guan Caixi was huddled in the cabin, daydreaming.

Ever since she bought and sold salt in Yanzhou that day, Guan Caixi's mood has not been very good.

Countless scenes flashed back in her mind. She was listless during the day, couldn't sleep at night, and caught a cold. Even if Zhuang Xuansu infused her with internal strength, she didn't get better.

Her mood fluctuated greatly, and she was frightened, and her whole person was in a state of depression.

And Zhuang Xuansu... she was still so capable, thatHe was so calm, but he didn't smile, as if he had a lot of worries.

Some of the cards Zhou Yuan revealed put a lot of pressure on her. She gradually realized that the young duke in front of her seemed to be no longer the scholar of Lin'an Prefecture.

Time always changes a lot of things.

The high-spirited young man disappeared, and Zhuang Xuansu was very sad and depressed. She had a premonition of something, but she didn't know where to start.

And Zhou Yuan finally waited for one of the most important people in this trip to Jiangnan.

"Sir, we're here."

Guan Lu whispered, and waved to the shore.

The big ship docked, and an old man strode onto the ship, walked to Zhou Yuan's back, and bent down.

Zhou Yuan didn't say hello, but walked straight to the cabin.

The old man followed behind him until he entered the cabin, then he knelt down and whispered: "Miao Lian from the Cao Gang, I pay my respects to the Duke of Wei."

Zhou Yuan sat down, glanced at him, and said: "Sit down and talk."

"Thank you, Duke."

Miao Lian sat down carefully, looked at the young Duke in front of him, and couldn't help but lower his head.

The other party was not old, but he had a strong aura, and the pressure he gave people was really not to be underestimated.

Zhou Yuan said: "Guan Lu said you have three requests, tell me."

Miao Liyan said: "Duke, please forgive my boldness..."

Zhou Yuan frowned and said: "Just tell me the truth, don't talk about anything else."

"Yes."

The weather was not hot, but Miao Liyan was sweating for no reason, and said in a hoarse voice: "First, please, Duke, save the lives of the Miao family no matter what, and don't make any settlements."

He waited for a few breaths, but the boy didn't respond, so he continued: "The second thing... After the matter is done, the Miao family wants to control the canal."

Zhou Yuan said: "Except the court, no one can control the canal."

Miao Lian said quickly: "What I mean is that the Miao family will be the leader of the Cao Gang."

Zhou Yuan said: "After this incident, there will be no Cao Gang."

Here, he paused slightly and said lightly: "But the water transport needs the participation of the people and countless people to maintain order. At that time, a special department may be established to participate in the control of water transport and canals, including but not limited to river transportation, river dredging, dock order and labor control."

"The Miao family can be given priority in this regard, provided that your Miao family is worthy of my priority consideration."

Miao Lian nodded quickly, his breathing was a little sluggish, and his mood became more nervous.

He swallowed and gritted his teeth and said, "The third thing is to ask the Duke of Weiguo to help the Miao family get revenge!"

Zhou Yuan looked at him and squinted his eyes and said, "Do you have enemies?"

Miao Lian smiled bitterly and said, "Yes, but I can't afford to offend them."

Zhou Yuan said, "Tell me the details."

Miao Lian's eyes were filled with hatred, and he said boldly, "Three years ago, my eldest daughter and youngest daughter were raped. That person was too powerful and gave me a lot of benefits, so my two daughters were taken to his house as concubines."

"I have always been worried about this, but considering that the other party's status is too high, I accepted it."

"But half a year ago, I found out that my two daughters did not live well in his house. Not to mention serving him every day, , and was beaten. The most hateful thing was that I had to serve his cronies and suffer humiliation. ”

Speaking of this, Miao Lian smiled bitterly and gritted his teeth and said, "Our Miao family does not have a high status in the Cao Gang. It is only ranked third. In recent years, it has declined severely and is even less valued."

"I dare not complain, let alone take revenge. The gang leader and others have always advised me to be patient."

"At first they advised me kindly, but later they became impatient, and I became the ignorant one."

His eyes were red, and he choked and said, "Two months ago, my wife went to visit my daughter, but she didn't expect that the other party was no different from a beast."

Hearing this, Zhou Yuan couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth.

Miao Lian looked at Zhou Yuan and gritted his teeth and said, "I dare not say anything! The other party can kill me like an ant! I still have parents, brothers, sons and nephews..."

"Duke, I know you are very capable. As long as you agree to my request, I will get everything you want!"

Zhou Yuan looked at him and said slowly, "Who is your enemy?"

Miao Lian said, "His surname is Guan! Do you dare? Do you dare to agree to me, Duke Wei?"