Chapter 42 In the 42nd Chapter, Emperor Qianlong scattered "rule grass" and Gao Dayong skillfully presented "yellow rice meal"

Sun Jiagan, Shi Yizhi and E Shan were all deep-minded people, and the three of them respectfully received the holy banquet in the Xipei Hall without saying a word.The eunuchs were very attentive, and when they heard a cough, they would serve a bowl and hand a towel;They were also deeply disturbed by this. They drank three cups together to celebrate the holy birthday, took a few mouthfuls of their favorite dishes, and then exited the West Side Hall.Shi Yizhi and E Shan still bowed three times to the main hall in the courtyard, and then withdrew.Sun Jiagan followed Gao Dayong back to the East Nuan Pavilion in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"Have you used the feast?" Qianlong held a memorial with Zhu Zhu written on it with one hand, and pointed to the wooden pole next to him with the other, without raising his head, he said, "Xi Gongtu Li, sit over there. There are some hidden people in Dajinchuan." The people are restless. This is Zhang Guangsi's book, Zhang Guangsi has been bored for a while, and now I need to comfort you—I will talk to you after I approve it." Sun Jiagan had to sit down with his body tilted.Sun Jiagan has been here countless times, and he always speaks out of politeness and kowtows to say goodbye when things are done.At this time, there is nothing to examine carefully, looking west from the East Nuan Pavilion, the bright yellow and heavy curtains cover the scattered Western bookshelves, and the black and blue square bricks on the floor are shining.To the north of Xinuang Pavilion, there seems to be a corridor and aisle, and there are palace maids standing in front of many doors.Occasionally, deacons and court ladies come and go, all wearing flat soft shoes, and their steps are light.The Xumi seat in the main hall was empty, and there were eight eunuchs standing beside it, all of them holding whisks in their hands and not looking sideways.Beside the partition screen of the Nuan Pavilion, five personal servants including Gao Dayong, Bu Ren, and Bu Yi stood bowed.Looking at this grandiose style, Sun Jiagan only felt that the so-called jade hall and golden horse haunted by the so-called jade hall and golden horse, and the eight living rooms were all turned into dung, which was really exhausting for scholars... Just as he was thinking, he heard the rustling of paper, When Sun Jiagan was busy watching, he saw that Qianlong had finished writing the imperial approval.

Gao Dayong had been watching for a long time, and when he saw Qianlong co-writing, he hurriedly stepped forward to apologize and said with a smile: "These things are handled by the slave, master, you rest." Qianlong said: "The memorial documents on this case are usually sorted out by myself. You tidy up according to the order, and if you don't follow the order, you can't move a piece of paper." He looked at Sun Jiagan with a smile on his face: "From the Han and Tang Dynasties to the Ming Dynasty, how many foolish emperors have suffered from these lowly eunuchs The holy ancestor was born with virtue, and the eunuchs dare not be a little presumptuous; the emperor Shizong is strict, and the villains dare not violate it; I am the master of the business, if I don’t guard against it, I will ask them to coax it away sooner or later. Therefore There must be rules, and eunuchs who talk about politics and those who interfere in politics will not be pardoned! The memorials I have read, no matter whether they are important or not, whoever dares to read or pass them on privately will not be pardoned—Gao Dayong, listen up! "

"Yes yes yes!" Gao Dayong hurriedly said: "The eunuchs, including me, are all scumbags! Turning around, the slave will pass on the master's will to Yu Quangong." Qianlong gathered up the fifty yarrow roots and held them in his hands, and said to Gao Dayong, "Follow me." As he spoke, he got off the kang and walked towards the main hall, Sun Jiagan didn't know what the emperor was going to do.Qianlong had already walked to the partition screen of Xinuang Pavilion, and threw fifty yarrow sticks on the ground as soon as he let go.He pointed to the grass sticks scattered on the ground and said: "This place needs to be cleaned every day, but after cleaning, the straw sticks must be arranged as it is now. The system I established is called 'rule grass'. One day in the Qing Dynasty Here, this grass has been like this for thousands of years!" After finishing speaking, he ignored Gao Dayong who was stunned there, turned around and took a sip of milk, and said to Sun Jiagan, "How should I deal with it?"

"Your Majesty," Sun Jiagan leaned forward and said, "I would like to see you today, and I am not here to defend that fake memorial. But please be strict with the imperial confinement and keep away from the inner prison. This is the first thing I will report. Your Majesty has already done this, and my minister's suggestion is beyond the sanctity of the holy plan. I really admire you!" Qianlong pointed to the divination ceremony, ordered Sun Jiagan to be given tea, and said, "It seems that you have more to say than this one. " "Yes," Sun Jiagan said solemnly, "What I want to say is the emperor's heart!"

Qianlong's smile froze on his face, and it took him a long time to come back to his senses. He slowly put the tits on the table, and said in a leisurely manner, "I would like to hear more about it!" "The emperor conducts benevolent government. Everyone in the world, regardless of the old man Huang Tong, knows it. This superior minister has nothing to say." Sun Jiagan looked at Qianlong quietly.Only at this moment, did Qianlong see the iron bones of this old courtier who confronted Chen directly.He changed his appearance and listened intently to Sun Jiagan who said: "The emperor's heart is benevolent, filial and respectful, and he is merciful and compassionate. He is impeccable at first. But ordering chaos is like yin and yang. Yin and yang are born in the cathode. The anode starts with the yin. Things should be at their peak. At that time, there must be disasters and chaos lurking, its mechanism is hidden in the subtlest, people can't realize it, and when it manifests, it is already accumulated and cannot be returned, don't you think?"

Qianlong was originally afraid that this ruthless veteran would expose his faults in person and tell about Tang'er and other things.Hearing what he said, he was immediately taken aback, leaned over and said, "Xi Gong, go ahead and speak boldly!" "I don't want to talk about facts. That would only blind my eyes, and I won't see Mount Tai." Sun Jiagan was encouraged, his face flushed, and he said frankly: "The Lord has a high prestige and has received the hearts of the world. I want to remind your majesty to practice one Disadvantage." "The ears are used to what they hear, and they like to flatter and hate to be straight. When the lord speaks a word, he is full of praise, and when he makes an order, the whole world praises it. The subjects are indeed from the heart, but your ears are filled with these all day long. One gets used to hearing the words of praise. As long as it is not praise, it will be regarded as disobedience, and if it is regarded as dull, it will be regarded as stupid. After so long, if the praise is inappropriate, it will be considered disrespectful. "

"The eyes are accustomed to what they see, and they like softness and dislike rigidity. Lord, you kneel down and kowtow every day, smiling and flattering you. Since you ascended to the throne, you have been cautious and rarely made mistakes. The smarter you are, the more you will feel I'm stupid, the more capable you are, the more you will admire you, which is a good thing. But after a long time, as long as you don't flatter you, you will feel offended." "Everything in the world, if you see it too much, you will think it is not surprising, and if you do it too much, you will think it is commonplace. Ask others, but you will not hear your own shortcomings; Introspection, and you will not find faults. What you have to do is confident That's right; when you issue an order, you are confident that it will pass without delay. After a long time, if you get used to what you do, you will like it and hate to disobey it."

Qianlong breathed a sigh of relief, obviously, he didn't expect that Sun Jiagan didn't talk about the things in the fake memorial in a matter-of-fact manner, and he didn't seem to be eager to find out who made the fake memorial.This kind of remonstrance does not hurt self-esteem, but also hits the nail on the head.Qianlong couldn't help thinking to himself: "As worthy of a famous minister, he laid out step by step, seemingly plain, but actually aggressive." Thinking, he said with a smile: "When you remonstrated the late emperor three things, I didn't see it personally. Are you so calm? What does this mean? 'Three practices', what about 'one disadvantage'? I'm all ears."

"Don't dare." Sun Jiagan said with a serious face, "Back then, when he remonstrated with the late emperor, he pointed out that government affairs were improper, and he risked his life to speak up. Naturally, he was talking about it. The lord has not made any major political mistakes now. It’s nothing more than a problem. It’s natural to talk about it—with these ‘three habits’, there will naturally be a disadvantage. I like the villain and hate the gentleman. The minister saw with his own eyes that the emperor abandoned the internal servants and intervened in politics. Every system is the way of a sage and a benevolent monarch. I thought these words were superfluous. But the minister is old, the emperor is in his prime, and has a bright future. If you don’t say these things in your heart, you are not sincere. The principle is that you are close to a gentleman and far away from a villain. The emperor also understands. Which emperor does not think that he is using a gentleman, but a villain?"

Qianlong stared at Sun Jiagan in a daze, and sighed: "Isn't it like this! I am most afraid of misusing a villain and wronging a gentleman. But it is also very difficult to distinguish a villain from a gentleman." "The emperor's mind is connected to the sky, which is the blessing of the country." Sun Jiagan said unhurriedly, ""Virtue" is unique to gentlemen; "talent" is shared by gentlemen and villains; and the talents of villains are often better than gentlemen.The language is correct, the gentleman is straightforward, and the villain is flattering, which corresponds to the "ear habit"; running around, the gentleman is clumsy and the villain is smart, which is in line with the "eye study"; the class test results, the gentleman often does what he wants , and ashamed of his merits; the villain is skillful in catering and hardworking, which is similar to the "heart habit".As time goes by, black and white can change color, and things can be transposed.Therefore, in "University", it is really not easy to say "you can't lift up when you see a good man, and you can't quit when you see a bad man".From this point of view, the opportunity to govern chaos is determined by the advancement and retreat of the gentleman and the villain;The host does not expect others to respect, but respects himself, and he is cautious when there is no fault, and he dare not be self-righteous.Keeping this self-respect and not daring to be self-righteous at all times, how can the rule of the king not be prosperous? " While listening, Qianlong paced back and forth underground.To be honest, Sun Jiagan's words didn't quite match his state of mind today, they were obviously a little vague.But compared to the details of accusing himself in the fake memorial, some of them are indeed not based on rumors.What exactly is this Sun Jiagan referring to?Thinking about it, Qianlong asked: "The reason you said is very clear. The way of a university is to be close to the people and to stop at the ultimate good. I am very careful. My thoughts may be trivial, but now I feel that there are villains. Look at the ministers, it's hard to tell!" Then he told Sun Jiagan all the weird things that happened recently, as well as what was said in Zhang Tingyu's residence. "There are so many clues, I find it difficult to start. Xi Gong, what do you think?" "If you have clues, investigate clearly; if you don't have clues, observe secretly." Sun Jiagan said: "For example, those who falsely used my name to slander the Holy Majesty; Zhang Guangsi from Shanxi who meddled in the military almost caused the defeat of the entire army; we must be investigated. If not investigated, this There will be more and more things like this. The emperor might as well take another look at things like the eight kings discussing politics. Does he really want to restore the ancestral system, or does he have other plans. There is no gap that a gentleman and a villain cannot jump. Some people have good foundations, But if you have a bad habit, you are a villain. Some people are good at first, but later they become villains. There are also - of course, very few - such as Guo Xiu, a famous official in the former court, who was a corrupt official at first, but later turned into a earner. Gentleman. There is no definite rule for this. So I said, where is the way to rule chaos? It is in the heart of the emperor! You set your heart upright, and this is a firm one. It is natural to be a gentleman and retreat to a villain. Pursue deliberately Gentleman, looking for a villain is the worst way." Qianlong blushed, thinking of Tang'er: It is true that her husband is doing meritorious service outside, and he is behind... Thinking about it, he couldn't help sighing, but changed the subject and asked, "Are you a Jinshi in the fifty-second year of Kangxi?" "yes." "Fifty-six years old this year?" Sun Jiagan glanced at Qianlong. I don't know why he suddenly asked these things, and he quickly leaned over and replied: "The servants have fifty and eight horse teeth." "You're talking about old age." Qianlong said with a smile, "Except for Yin Jishan, you are still young as an official at your level. What happened to your illness earlier? How could there be rumors that even your wife said you were What about those who became ill due to depression?" Sun Jiagan said with a smile: "I'm not young anymore. In recent years, my stomach has been bad and I don't want to eat. My wife figured it out by herself, there are too many rumors outside, the minister is depressed, and it is true that he is depressed. I am here to see the master today, and I also want to ask Enzhun to go back to my hometown to recuperate. I really can’t stand it anymore." Qianlong laughed He asked: "Really not because of those rumors? Are you not worried about slander at all?" Sun Jiagan lowered his head and thought for a while, then said: "My Majesty's words, I have also thought about it carefully. I am famous because I violated Yan Zhizhi back then, and I am afraid that I will lose my reputation because of the word 'good name'. In all fairness, when it comes to talents, it is not surprising that Chen and Shi Yizhi are similar, and they are both a bit famous. Now that the master is good, and seeing the prosperity of the world, I have the heart to get out of the whole world. From this point, worry about slander There is a heart of awe and ridicule." "You can't retire. Prepare to serve me for the rest of your life!" Qianlong said with a smile: "After much deliberation, you should go to be the censor of the capital, so I ask your age. If this official does not work, write a letter in a few months." Feng Yingjing'er's book is very idle. If you want to do things, you will be busy all year round. I want you to be the censor. If you are strong enough, do more; if you can't stand it, you will sit in the Metropolitan Procuratorate It is also good for me to suppress the evil. Now there is an evil spirit in the court, and there is no trace of it, and there is no trace of it, and it is dedicated to slandering the ancestors, Shizong and Zhengong. You have seen this fake memorial. If I am not open-minded , without any mental barriers, how can you send the original text of these nonsense things to the six departments? Slandering me, I can still swallow it, and now some things involve the ancestors and emperors, if I let go, it will be difficult to comfort the ancestors , Sejong is the spirit of heaven. I am an unfilial king. Therefore, I have sent Liu Tongxun to investigate this false report. Find out the mastermind, and I will punish him for the crime of disrupting the country!" Sun Jiagan said: "The emperor is this Honesty, words of gold and stone. This kind of thing, even if it is to slander the present, cannot be tolerated. I have been a censor all my life, and now it is all right to be the censor of the capital. But please allow the censor to play the role .No, you can't cheer yourself up." It is a system of memorial service that Kangxi abolished in his later years.At that time, because the princes competed for the reserve position and each established their own sects, the censors relied on "rumors" to prove their innocence.In anger, Kangxi issued an edict, "It is not allowed to play the rumors rashly. Anyone who reports falsely will have to sit back."Since the report was not true and they had to sit back, the censors all kept silent, making them dead.After listening to the silence, Qianlong said: "This is a big matter. I will discuss it with the Shangshufang and the Military Aircraft Office before I issue an edict. It is rumored that there is a good side in him, which can encourage the officials to speak boldly, but some people take the opportunity I am also very disgusted to stir up trouble, lest the court situation will not be chaotic, or even add a bad name to the king's father, and try to gain fame by myself. Can you make a compromise? Anyone who speaks has facts and evidence, and those who vehemently report are not guilty, and they must be recorded Performance appraisal. Anyone who is perfunctory or pretentious without any basis will not sit back, but he will also be punished. You can make a list of these trivial matters and come in for consideration." Seeing Qianlong getting up, Sun Jiagan hurriedly got up and wanted to resign .Qianlong pressed his hand, and said: "This year Nan Xian is studying politics, I want you and Yin Jishan to carefully select a few good ones to come to the palace test. Shu Hede, the Minister of the Ministry of War, made a note, please abolish Shiwen, this matter must also be done." I will send you his original copy later." "There was an imperial edict when the patriarch Wen Sheng was abolished." Sun Jiagan replied solemnly: "The way to select scholars came from learning for more than three generations; from the county officials after the Han Dynasty; So far, it is based on the imperial examination. It has been 400 years to select scholars based on contemporary literature. Everyone knows that this thing is flashy and useless. It can neither understand the way nor be suitable. It is rotten and plagiarized. Find a better way to select scholars than this. This is also a helpless thing. When the minister presided over the Shandong provincial examination, he used "Time Chicken" as the topic. A scholar wrote, "This is a black chicken, a white chicken, whether it is black or white Is it a chicken?' I saw it and laughed, and approved a 'reed chicken'. Looking down, I asked myself, 'Is this a rooster, a hen, or a chicken that is neither male nor female', so I had no choice but to A batch of 'capon'..." Before he finished speaking, Qianlong spit out a sip of tea with a smile: "Good criticism... I always thought you would only keep a straight face all day long, but unexpectedly you still have this humor!" Sun Jiagan sighed: "I can only follow the Act according to reason. Serving the emperor has the way of serving the emperor, serving friends has the principle of serving friends, and waiting for the next, the minister is telling the truth, and dare not joke with the master under this golden palace." He resumed Zhuang Allow. Qianlong was in high spirits, when he heard Sun Jiagan's words again, his excitement was washed away again.He could see the unbreakable city in Sun Jiagan's heart: servants, friends, and subordinates all have their own insurmountable norms, and he is unwilling to take a step beyond this self-defined norm.Feeling awe, Qianlong slowly returned to the kang and sat cross-legged, saying: "You killed your mother's enemy with your hands at the age of nineteen, and entered the forest of secret Qing Dynasty at the age of twenty-five. It was shown to Shizong, and in my hands, I want to use you as a national treasure. I can do it for myself, and I can come in and face it at any time if I have something to do—kneel down!" After Sun Jiagan calmly resigned, Qianlong realized that he hadn't had dinner yet.Look at the time card when the bell rings, but the days are long in early summer, the sky is still bright, and it is not yet time to hold the lamps.Seeing Qianlong's tired face, Gao Dayong hurried over to gently beat his back and squeeze his waist, and said in his mouth: "Master is really tired. Just now when someone from Lafayette came to ask, the slave said that the master is seeing you. Lafayette sent a message: today He and a few Fujins went to Dajue Temple to offer incense, and they also got tired of each other. I told the master not to go to pay his respects today. The slave will let you relax... They came from the imperial dining room and asked the master how to eat. The slave said that the master came from It’s not loose until now, so it may not have a good appetite, greasy ones are definitely not palatable; some home-cooked ones can still taste good. According to the servant’s instructions, the imperial dining room boiled a small pot of millet porridge, fresh cucumber mixed with sesame oil, and old salty mustard greens If you make more progress, the slave will be as loyal as possible..." "Okay." Qianlong listened to his nagging and said "yes", seeing a court lady holding a silver bar plate, which contained a bowl of millet porridge, a small plate of fragrant mustard shreds, and a plate of green cucumbers. There are also four small steamed buns made of cornmeal.There are also fermented bean curd, bean paste, and chive flowers—it really is a village meal that old farmers often eat. As soon as they are put in front of them, they immediately arouse Qianlong's gluttons.His eyes shone with joy, he looked at the plate and said: "Change this plate with a wooden one!" The maid agreed, and immediately changed to a carved boxwood plate of original color.Qianlong just started to move, and he drank two bowls of porridge, ate two steamed buns, and picked up mustard greens, chewing loudly and crisply in his mouth, and said with a smile: "The eunuch still wants If you use people from Baoding, people from Baoding know how to serve you! This meal is delicious, I have never eaten like this before, I am a little carried away." Gao Dayong answered with a groin: "Master is talking about Beijing Youzi, Wei Zuizi, and Baoding Mansion's dog legs! At that time, the old lady of Zhang Laoxiangguo (Zhang Juzheng) came to Beijing all the way from Huguang, and everywhere she went, there were delicacies from mountains and seas. Chicken, duck and fish. When I went to Baoding County, I had this kind of meal. When the old lady met her son in Beijing, the first sentence she said was, "I didn't eat enough all the way, so I ate a full meal in Baoding." Mrs. Zhang Xiangguo He is a filial son, and immediately told the magistrate of Baoding County to make up for the lack of Baoding Mansion—the trick to being a slave is to be a slave, you have to figure it out! " "There is a way to the so-called stealing," Qianlong suddenly remembered Sun Jiagan's "three practices and one evil", and then he memorized a passage of "Liezi" with a smile: "The one who hides in the room is the sage; the first is the original." ;After leaving, justice is also; evenly sharing, benevolence..." Gao Dayong blinked, and said in a daze: "This is all about adults, and slaves can't afford it..." Thinking about his words, Qianlong couldn't help laughing even more Laughing loudly: "That's right... there are thieves among the grown-ups, let's go to the queen!" When Qianlong arrived at Zhongcui Palace, it was already dark, and without waiting for the maid to report, Qianlong stepped in, but couldn't help being surprised, it turned out that Niu Hulu and Tang'er were both there.The queen sits on the couch and sucks her breasts.Niu Hulu's family stood by.Tang'er knelt on one side, her eyes were swollen from crying, and she was talking like a peach.Seeing Qianlong coming in suddenly, all three of them were startled.Niu Hulu knelt down, Tang'er leaned over and did not dare to raise her head, the queen stood up, bent slightly, and said calmly, "Has the emperor seen someone?" "What did you do?" Qianlong said with a smile, "I'm very busy today. I haven't even had time to change clothes since I got up at five o'clock in the morning. My legs are numb... There are still jokes. , Sun Jiagan said today..." Then he recited the two candidates' broken questions that Sun Jiagan said to the queen.He asked again: "Why did Tang'er come to this palace? Didn't you see Lafayette?" Tang'er hurriedly wiped away her tears, and said, "Your servant has greeted Lafayette. Lafayette is tired today, and he is not here to be kind." Ning Gong stayed for a long time, so I came here to say hello to my empress and your master." Qianlong called out and said: "Fu Heng will not come back for a while. He is in charge of measuring land in Shanxi and persuading him to reduce the rent. He is still in Heicha To quell the White Lotus Sect bandit riots in the mountains and west of Shanxi, we need to open warehouses to help the people, and there are also thieves to appease. The errands are done very well. If you need anything for your family, just tell your mother, and you will naturally try your best to take care of it." Qianlong said something, and Tang'er agreed, she has a big belly, and it is very inconvenient to move.Qianlong wanted to tell her and Niu Hulu to sit down, but swallowed it after a bit of tiptoe.The empress was clear-eyed, and she didn't say anything, she said with a faint smile: "Tang'er, it's getting late, and the emperor is very tired, so you should withdraw. Don't listen to those nonsense gossips outside. Don't I know your character? Yes. The Niuhulu family and I are standing in the way, no one dares to do anything to you! You are a man with a body, take care of yourself. Just as the emperor said, the man is not at home, and you are my natal family, so naturally I will come Take care." "Yes." Tang'er bowed to Mrs. Fucha, gave Qianlong a resentful glance, and followed Mrs. Niu Hulu out.Qianlong watched them go out, turned to the queen and asked the queen: "You seem to be muttering something, but when you see me coming, you keep quiet, what's the matter?" The queen gave Qianlong a bowl of ginseng soup and ordered Qin Meimei: "Tell them to leave!" Then she calmly said: "Isn't it because of the rumors outside? It's really a shame, and it made trouble in front of Lafayette. I just called Prince Yi Fujin came over and asked her to go to Fu Heng's mansion to make amends to Tang'er in person tomorrow. I said this is my order, if we don't obey the order, we will lose our sister-in-law status and our status as monarch and minister, and we will never be allowed to She entered the palace. There is also a concubine Jie who fights cards at Lafayette's place. Every word you say is sarcasm, sarcasm Tang'er. It makes Lafayette confused. I also got angry and told her to think about her mistakes behind closed doors. You are not allowed to leave her palace gate for a month. I still want to demote her position, but it requires your order." After finishing speaking, he let out a long breath of depression, looked at Qianlong who had a dull expression, and said nothing. "I know what you guys said." Qianlong blushed, took a sip of ginseng soup and said, "I'll tell you the truth, Tang'er's belly is my flesh and blood. This matter will be passed here and sealed. That concubine Jie was demoted to concubine and told her that misfortune comes from the mouth and blessings come from the heart. I will bear this matter to the end." The queen sighed and said: "Can you bear it, can Tang'er ?” As he spoke, he rubbed his belt and lowered his head. Qianlong looked at her under the lamp, and saw that she was charming and angry.The queen's appearance was not less than that of Niuhulu's, but she usually had a dignified figure and a dignified appearance, but at this moment, her expression turned Qianlong's mind upside down.Uncontrollably, he went forward and hugged the Queen's shoulders, and said: "I can save myself, and I understand what you want to remonstrate. If you change it from now on, it will be fine." As he said that, he was about to knock her down and lie down. "Mo Xiang!" The queen broke away from him lightly, and ordered outside the door, "Wait for the emperor to rest first. Light the incense, and I will rest after reciting this scripture!" Qianlong let go of his hand in a daze, his tenderness was swept away immediately