King Ning’s Manor had been very quiet recently. Even after King Ning got the Emperor’s imperial edict that he would marry Princess Caifeng of the Southern Barbarian Lands, who was said to be very powerful, the manor was still very low-key. Since w.a.n.g Yueyue, King Ning’s legal wife, had pa.s.sed away because of that incident, Feng Yuzhen had been pushed into the teeth of the storm and almost gotten himself into trouble.
Since then, he had been more low-key in front of people.
Since this marriage was related to the relationship between the two countries, Emperor Zongwen also attached great importance to it. He had already sent people to help Feng Yuzhen prepare the bridal chamber. Of course, the previous bridal chamber could not be used anymore. The late Consort Ning died at a young age not long ago, and it seemed to be inauspicious.
And the original scale was not large enough. No matter what, King Ning was going to marry a princess of another country, so he had to make it look more decent.
The bridal chamber was bound to be rebuilt. Feng Yuzhen was King Ning. Building a house was a matter for the Imperial Household Department, and it also had something to do with the Ministry of Works. The Ministry of Works and the Imperial Household Department had sent people over. They had to finish the job within a month and make sure that the Southern Barbarian Lands could not find fault with it.
The official sent by the Ministry of Works was none other than the former minister of the Ministry of Works, Lian An. During this period of time, Lian An had aged a lot. He was no longer a young a.s.sistant minister of the Ministry of Works, full of enthusiasm. He had gone from being a first-grade official to a fifth-grade official. No one with a low degree of mental health could bear it.
However, Lian An was obviously not one of them. He had a strong ability to resist blows. He still ordered his men to take care of the affairs, suffered together with his men under the sun, and commanded the progress of the whole site. The person from the Imperial Household Department was an incompetent man. After a few words of command at the site, he left the position to Lian An and didn’t care about it anymore.
Although it was said that Lian An had bad conduct recently, he was still trustworthy in ability!
Lian An didn’t let others down. Under the sun, he commanded the people from the Ministry of Works and the Imperial Household Department to speed up the work. When it was break time, he took a rest in a wing room by the side and took a sip of water. As he was about to go out to continue to command, a little eunuch suddenly came through the door and asked with a smile when he saw Lian An, “Are you Minister Lian, Lian An of the Ministry of Works?”
Lian An put down the teacup in his hand and asked respectfully, “What’s the matter?” In a prince’s manor, only the official master of the manor was capable of dispatching several eunuchs. In King Ning’s Manor, the only official master was King Ning, Feng Yuzhen.
“His Highness wants to ask Minister Lian about the details of the construction. Do you have time to go with me to tell His Highness the details?” The eunuch was very polite.
How could he not have time when King Ning invited him? Lian An nodded and gave his a.s.sistant a few more instructions before he followed the eunuch into the depths of the manor.
They were now in the middle of King Ning’s Manor, where the location of the bridal chamber would be. From that point of view, it could be seen that King Ning was very respectful to Princess Caifeng. They walked through two gardens and a path, and arrived at Feng Yuzhen’s study. The eunuch waved his hand and said, “Minister Lian, please!”
Lian An nodded, straightened his clothes, and solemnly walked into the study.
Inside the study, Feng Yuzhen sat behind a big desk casually, reading a book. When he heard Lian An’s greeting, he just waved his hand casually and said, “Minister Lian, please have a seat!”
The book was placed on the desk, revealing Feng Yuzhen’s handsome face. He said with a faint smile, “Minister Lian, have you brought the design drawing of my courtyard?”
Lian An, who had just sat down, immediately stood up and respectfully took out the design drawing from his arms. Then he handed it over with both hands and said, “Your Highness, please take a careful look.”
This was the drawing done by the Ministry of Works and the Imperial Household Department according to the necessary rules. The construction of the bridal chamber was based on this. Feng Yuzhen was a prince, and he was going to marry a princess. The original scale was already the highest. He could add something on this basis as long as it was not taboo.
Feng Yuzhen took the drawing and laid it flat on the table. After looking at it carefully, he suddenly pointed to a position and said with a frown, “Minister Lian, isn’t this place a little too crowded? If you expand it over there and build a lake, the whole layout will be wider and more reasonable.”
Lian An looked at the place that Feng Yuzhen pointed out and thought for a while. Then, he lowered his head and replied, “Your Highness, the size of this place was determined by the Imperial Household Department. I have no right to change it. If you are not satisfied with it, you can ask the people from the Imperial Household Department to come and discuss it.”
That was what the Imperial Household Department was in charge of. As a member of the royal family, one must not exceed the specifications. With Feng Yuzhen’s status, even if he was going to marry a princess, his house couldn’t go beyond the established limits. The Ministry of Works just needed to build it according to the scope. As long as it didn’t violate the rules, he could plant and build anything he wanted.
However, the ground that Feng Yuzhen was pointing at just now was far beyond the area that the Imperial Household Department had determined!
“Imperial Household Department, that’s really troublesome. I heard that the people of the Imperial Household Department have left, leaving everything to Minister Lian. Isn’t it the same as looking for you, Minister Lian?” Feng Yuzhen knocked lightly on the table and looked at Lian An with a half smile.
“I don’t dare. I’m just a subordinate of the Ministry of Works. I don’t dare to interfere in this kind of thing.” If Lian An were still the minister of the Ministry of Works, he might intervene and deal with it. At that time, he had a high rank, and the people of the Imperial Household Department were also willing to take his bribes. But now, things were different. Even his previous subordinates could trample on him and make fun of him for making a mistake because of women.
The reason why he was still able to work in the Ministry of Works was that he was familiar with the work and was willing to deal with concrete matters relating to work. Otherwise, he would have been demoted to another place long ago!
Feng Yuzhen smiled slightly and leaned back. He looked at Lian An with sharp eyes and asked meaningfully, “Minister Lian, you’re a capable man. Are you going to be a small subordinate of the Ministry of Works for the rest of your life who never has a chance to stand up again?”
Given Lian An’s situation that he had something to do with a consort in the palace, which was dishonorable, the rest of his life had been ruined even if there was no evidence. It was impossible for him to be put in an important position again, unless…
Lian An lowered his head and said obediently, “Your Highness, I don’t dare. I only want to serve the royal family and His Majesty. I don’t dare to think of anything else.” There was not a trace of emotion in his voice, as if he was really grateful to Emperor Zongwen. If it was said by a man late in his life, it would be more credible.
As Lian An said it so respectfully, it gave people a very strange feeling. It didn’t increase his credibility, but sounded very awkward.
Feng Yuzhen smiled with satisfaction. He pointed at the chair beside him and said, “I really admire your graciousness, Minister Lian. Please take a seat.”
Lian An looked at Feng Yuzhen and answered in a low voice, “There is no position for me in front of Your Highness.”
“Minister Lian, don’t be too polite. It’s because you’re in trouble now. If you soar into the sky in the future, you may be a first-cla.s.s official again. There will be a position for you everywhere. Please have a seat!”
As Lian An heard Feng Yuzhen speak again and again of his old authority, a trace of darkness appeared in his eyes. He did not say anything more and sat down in the chair beside him.
A eunuch came over to serve tea and then left!
Feng Yuzhen picked up the cup of tea beside his hand and took a sip. Then, he said casually, “There have been a lot of things happening in the palace recently. Consort Yu lost her child and Consort Zhao was sent to the Cold Palace. The Empress couldn’t even protect herself. I wonder if someone had offended Tai Sui and they created a scene every time.”
Lian An was stunned when he heard Feng Yuzhen mention Consort Zhao. However, he immediately lowered his head as if he did not care. What Feng Yuzhen talked about was the matters in the palace, and he could not talk about either of them.
“The others are not a big deal. They just lost favor for a period of time. When His Majesty thinks about them again, there will still be a chance for them to be released. Only the one in the Cold Palace is the loneliest. It’s said that if one enters the Cold Palace, she could only die. In the past, when I was still in the palace at a very young age, I saw a crazy woman who escaped from the Cold Palace. She s.n.a.t.c.hed sour food to eat, but was pushed into a lake by several eunuchs and drowned. It’s a pity. I heard that she used to be a peerless beauty and was in line with the previous Emperor’s liking. But later on, alas…”
Feng Yuzhen did not finish his words, but he had already conveyed the message clearly. Lian An clenched his hands tightly in his sleeves, and the corners of his eyes twitched. But he gritted his teeth and did not say a word.
Nothing in the palace had anything to do with him. He was just a small subordinate from the Ministry of Works. How could he make a decision? He could not ruin things because of Consort Zhao again. The past was over, and it was useless to think about it anymore. The Emperor would deal with Consort Zhao. It had nothing to do with him!
“When I entered the palace to visit the Empress Dowager that day, I saw Consort Yu there, crying. She said that the death of the child in her belly was all Consort Zhao’s fault, and she asked the Empress Dowager to punish Consort Zhao severely. She also said that she would tell His Majesty and must make His Majesty punish Consort Zhao and cut her into pieces.” Feng Yuzhen raised his voice leisurely and his eyes fell on the trembling corners of Lian An’s eyes, becoming more and more meaningful.
“I don’t know if His Majesty has agreed to Consort Yu’s requirement. Consort Zhao has a miserable life. Eighth Brother doesn’t care about the past at all. I heard that the Empress doesn’t like her because of her appearance. Consort Su and Imperial n.o.ble Consort Wen don’t have an apparent connection to her. And Consort Yu wants her to be killed. The Empress Dowager doesn’t want to care about this kind of thing now. It’s estimated that she will die in a few days. It’s a pity that a beautiful woman will end like this. I don’t know how miserable she will die in the end. Maybe she will die in pain. There is no lack of cruel torture in the palace.”
The last part of his words became the last straw to crush the camel’s back. Lian An’s former female bosom friend would be tortured to death by someone, her soul would disappear, and they would never see each other again. Maybe nothing would remain of her, just like what King Ning had said. It was so miserable. At the thought of this, the trembling at the corners of his eyes had reached his hand.
Almost uncontrollably, he picked up the cup of tea beside his hand and drank it up. Then, he put it down with his trembling hand. The impact of the teacup on the table brought a strong determination. Lian An suddenly looked up, and his eyes were a little wild. After a while, he looked at King Ning blankly, and his lips shivered. Suddenly, without saying a word, he stood up, knelt down heavily before King Ning, Feng Yuzhen, and kowtowed to him.
“I’ll do whatever you order, Your Highness!”
