Chapter 69 The Sixth Round of Listening to Oral Plays

The left draped eaves under the back wall of Qianqing Palace is also known as Yangdezhai.When Emperor Longqing was around, this Yangdezhai was the place where he read idle books and played games with Gong Ecai girls.After Empress Dowager Li took the little emperor to live in the Qianqing Palace, she rearranged the Yangde Zhai to remove the powdery smell that Emperor Longqing liked, and replaced it with Su-like tables and chairs—this is Empress Dowager Li I listened to Rong'er's suggestion - everything that is delicate and ingenious is a boudoir.Since then, it has become the place where Empress Dowager Li met privately with officials, gentry and women.In addition to burning incense and worshiping the Buddha to purify the handwritten scriptures, Empress Dowager Li also has a major hobby of watching operas and listening to music.If you want to watch a big play, you can go to the Youyi Zhai behind Kunning Palace. If you only want to sing a cappella on a sandalwood board, you can arrange it in the Yangde Zhai.

At the end of the afternoon that day, Empress Dowager Li, supported by Rong'er and a group of maids, left the Yuehua Gate on the west side of Qianqing Palace, and walked gracefully and gracefully into Yangde Zhai.It is said to be fasting, but it is actually a spacious hall, and it is not crowded when thirty or twenty people sit in it.The main seat placed under the south wall.Two huanghuali embroidered couches can be used for sitting or lying down, but they are covered with brocade satin-covered leopard skin mattresses.After Empress Dowager Li entered the Zhaimen, when she took her seat, she gave up the embroidered couch on the left where she used to sit.The habit in the palace is the same as outside, the left side is the most precious.Rong'er, who was in charge of arranging care, knew that the embroidered couch on the left was reserved for Empress Dowager Chen.

As soon as Empress Dowager Li sat down, she heard the noise at the door and the sound of sedan chairs dropping off, and knew that it was Empress Dowager Chen who had arrived.Ever since Emperor Wanli ascended the throne, Empress Dowager Li has grown in value, and she has made a lot of promises both inside and outside the palace, but she has not lost her composure. To Empress Chen, the empress of Emperor Longqing, she has always treated her with humility, kindness and respect. .Whenever there are pleasures such as watching operas and listening to music, he must order his subordinates to invite Empress Dowager Chen out of Ciqing Palace.When asked, Empress Dowager Chen came in gently, surrounded by several maids.Rong'er hurried up to invite her to sit on the embroidered couch on the left. Empress Dowager Chen stood in front of the embroidered couch and said to Queen Li who was looking at her with a smile:

"You always talk about courtesy, let me sit in this seat, I feel uneasy." "You are an older sister. If this elder sister doesn't sit, it may not be possible for us to sit on it when I'm a girl? Take your seat quickly." Empress Dowager Chen listened to Empress Dowager Li's affectionate words, and a warm current surged in her heart. Due to her poor health, she seldom left the Ciqing Palace, but for Empress Dowager Li's invitation, she had to be sure. arrive.The two sat down, and the Empress Dowager Chen asked: "Sister, what song are you listening to today?"

"It's not Qu'er, it's oral play." "Mouth play?" "Yes, oral jokes!" Seeing that Empress Dowager Chen didn't understand at all, Empress Dowager Li smiled deliberately, "This oral drama is also a joke, my sister will know after watching it." Empress Dowager Li pouted at Rong'er as she spoke, and Rong'er went out when she knew what she meant, and came back after a while, followed by Feng Bao and another person.This man was thin, he looked to be in his sixties, he was wearing a crow-blue silk quilted jacket, and he was carrying a small blue cloth bag in his hand.

Feng Bao went to the embroidered couch and made a big bow, and said: "To the two empress dowagers, this is Zhang Jiulang, a well-known mouth-playing king in the capital." The dry old man knelt down early, and said in a trembling voice: "The untouchable Zhang Jiulang, kowtow to the two empress dowagers." Empress Dowager Li looked at Zhang Jiulang's listless look, and thought: "This is a poplar stump that burns without smoking. It’s time to call him Lord, why is he still called Lang?” Zhang Jiulang knelt on the ground and didn't dare to lift his head. He aimed his eyes at the cracks in the bricks and replied, "To the Empress Dowager, Zhang Jiulang is our stage name."

"Stage name? How much art have you saved?" "Only one kind, oral play." "Okay, we want to hear your mouth jokes today." At this time, two fire fighters had already lifted up a six-fold screen and set it up about a zhang away in front of the Empress Dowager.A wooden table and a stool are placed inside the screen.Zhang Jiulang was led to sit down on the stool, he untied the green cloth bundle, and took out a gavel and a fan from it.Through the screen, Zhang Jiulang no longer panicked because he couldn't see the two empress dowagers. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead due to nervousness, and asked loudly:

"I don't know what joke the empress dowager wants to hear?" On the side of the screen, Empress Dowager Li asked, "What jokes do you have?" Zhang Jiulang picked up the fan and gave it to Huo Zhe, who turned the screen and handed it to Empress Dowager Li with both hands.Empress Dowager Li opened the folding fan, only to see ten or twenty opera titles neatly written in regular script on it, such as "Hundred Birds Throwing Into the Forest", "Rain Beats Plantains", "County Magistrate Ascension", "Ancient Temple in the Deep Mountain" and so on. Various.The first one was called "Tiger Roaring in the Jungle". Queen Mother Li's zodiac sign is a tiger, so she wanted to order this discount, but she also wanted to hear the story of "The County Magistrate's Promotion", so she said to the fireman:

"Go and tell him to play "The County Magistrate" first, and then "Tiger Roaring in the Jungle" next." Without Huo Zhe telling, Zhang Jiulang heard clearly through the screen.He took a sip of the hot tea brought by the small fire maker, closed his eyes and brewed his emotions there. The Yangde Zhai was surprisingly silent at this moment, the two empress dowagers stared at the screen in a daze, and the tea and cakes in front of them did not move.All the attendants including Feng Baorong'er also found stools to sit down, waiting eagerly for the "good show" to begin.

Suddenly, there was a sound of gavel, and then two heavy doors were heard being pushed open.Everyone looked towards the door together, but the door of the Yangde Zhai was tightly closed, and then everyone realized that Zhang Jiulang's oral drama had begun.Then, I heard a rush of footsteps approaching from far away, and when I reached the gate, I heard a crisp sound, which was obviously a soap boot with a copper pad knocking on the stone threshold.A stagger—the sound of soap boots jumping to the ground was very clear.There was a momentary blank in the middle, I think the hall attendant who almost stumbled stood still, I don't know what he muttered in a low voice, and then he heard him yelling loudly: "Sheng--Tang--" The lingering sound spread far away, interspersed with the intermittent sound of horseshoes, and the fluttering sound of birds starting from the branches.There was the sound of kicking and kicking footsteps, the sound of a small bowl being crushed, and the clucking sound of a rooster as it spread its wings and fled.At this moment, three cannons of "Boom, Boom, Boom" were heard again, the sound was intense and heavy-in the sound of this sacred cannon, all the sounds disappeared...In an instant, another small door was heard. Squeak II Chou'er opened with a sound, and a person came out from inside, stepping on the brick floor with his leather boots, making a sound of "橐, 橐, 橐".The footsteps moved over slowly, getting louder and louder.He heard the sound of chairs being moved and a slight cough.The sound of buttocks being seated, the sound of teacups being placed on the table, the sound of paper being flipped—it must be that the county magistrate has already sat in the high hall and is looking through files and documents in a serious manner.The lobby was surprisingly quiet. Suddenly, there was a "goo--", and someone in the lower room farted loudly.The sound of flipping the paper stopped, and a sandy throat with a slight phlegm sound asked: "What's the noise, bring it to me!" Another voice was a snotty nose, and replied: "Qixian county magistrate, I can't take it." There was a sound of gavel, and the magistrate of the county was annoyed, and asked: "You waiter, how did you cheat to fool me? You must bring it to me!" Running back, in the midst of panting, I heard the nose say: "Sir, the principal culprit who made the noise just now has escaped, and now only his family members are here." The county magistrate coughed out a mouthful of sputum and said: " Bring the family members here and let me have a look." Jubi replied, "I'm afraid I'll dirty your lord's hands." The county magistrate asked, "What is it?" Jubi replied, "Shit!" Just as the words fell, there was a burst of laughter ——This laughter is no longer Zhang Jiulang's oral joke, but all the audience in Yangdezhai, from the two empress dowagers down to the little fireman.

The Empress Dowager Chen, who had never heard of mouth opera, could hardly believe that Zhang Jiulang "acted" this vivid and lifelike county magistrate's ascension opera.She saw everyone in the room laughing up and down, thinking about the ridiculous conversation, she couldn't help laughing, she wiped her tears.After laughing enough, she asked suspiciously the Empress Dowager Li who was already laughing out of breath: "Sister, this Jiulang is really alone, no one to help?" "Ask him." Empress Dowager Li beat her chest with one hand and pointed at Feng Bao with the other. "Report to Empress Dowager Chen that this Jiulang is alone. If you don't believe me, you old man will see for yourself." As Feng Bao said, he ordered Xiao Huo Zhe to remove the screen, only to see Zhang Jiulang knelt on the ground with his butt off the stool, and there was only a gavel and a cup of tea on the table. Empress Dowager Li was so amused that she was in a good mood, and ordered Feng Bao to give Zhang Jiulang a seat, and rewarded him with a plate of food from the imperial dining room - a few pieces of amber-colored flower cakes made of jujube paste. Zhang Jiulang thanked him.Pick up a piece and benefit from it. "Zhang Jiulang, with your mouth, how can you make several sounds at the same time?" Queen Mother Li asked. "I learned it when I was young." Don't look at Zhang Jiulang's unique skills, once he is face to face with the Queen Mother, his temper will be paralyzed.I wanted to answer playfully, but my words came out dry. "How did you learn it? Do you have a teacher?" Queen Mother Li asked again. "Yes," Zhang Jiulang replied cautiously, "I was a mischievous ghost when I was young. Once I stepped on a tree to dig out a bird's nest, stepped on it, fell down and broke a leg, and has been disabled ever since. My father always looked sad when he saw me. , I was afraid that I would not be able to support myself when I grew up, and would become a burden to my family. One day, I went to the Chenghuang Temple market, and saw an old beggar performing oral tricks, imitating donkeys and horses, and it seemed that he really came A group of donkeys and horses, I followed him and wandered outside for many years." "The old saying is not bad. If a family has mountains of gold and silver, it is better to defend yourself with thin art." Empress Dowager Li suddenly felt sympathy for Zhang Jiulang, and asked, "Can you support your family with this unique skill?" "Yes," Zhang Jiulang said with a bright smile on his face, "there are many big families in the capital, and every once in a while someone invites the younger ones to perform, and they will reward the younger ones with a few taels of silver more or less." "Well," Queen Mother Li nodded, and asked again, "Can you learn any voice?" "can!" "You learn to cry like a magpie." As soon as the words fell, Zhang Jiulang was already sucking his mouth.Immediately, there was a burst of chirping magpies in Yangde Zhai. Empress Chen, who had been listening quietly to the conversation, interrupted at this moment and asked, "Zhang Jiulang, can you learn how to sing like a little girl?" "Go back to the empress dowager, this is simple." "Sing a song and listen to it." "I don't know which passage the Empress Dowager wants to listen to?" "Sing as you please, it should be nice." "Young one obeys." Zhang Jiulang said after a little deliberation, "The young one will sing a southern song in Suzhou dialect called "Marrying a Poor Man". I wonder if the Queen Mother would like to listen to it." "Okay, let's sing this song." With the consent of the Empress Dowager Chen, Zhang Jiulang opened the big folding fan to cover his face, first he heard the sound of three-stringed plucking, and then, a delicate voice sang in Wu Nong's soft language: The slaves are miserable to marry poor husbands, There will be no Duanyang pieces tomorrow. Every family drinks realgar wine. Only Nunu, a glass of clear water and calamus. A slave does not blame his father or his wife, Don't blame your parents for mismatching your husband. Only because of the slave, the arrangement within the eight characters, Punish a slave to marry a poor man in this life. Hate enemies for no reason, Eat, drink, gamble and swim in the lake all day long. Careful consideration to no avail, It's better to be a nun. Long Zhai recites Amitabha in one mouthful, Xiu can marry a good husband in the next life. However, it is said that this southern tune originated in the Susong area, and later became very popular in Beijing.In the halls of gentry families, silk and bamboo troupes who specialize in singing Nanqu are often invited.This song "Marrying a Poor Man" is a famous passage in Nanqu, and anyone who understands Nanqu will hum it.Zhang Jiulang chose this song to sing, originally because he wanted to show his oral opera skills through the familiar song.It should be said that his dim sum machine was not in vain.Just when he babbled and sang like weeping, the people present had hallucinations—they forgot that it was an old man with a goatee who sang like a celebrity in the party .It’s no wonder that their singing voices are so sweet and expressive: the sound quality like a jade chime makes you intoxicated by the sadness of beauties from the south of the Yangtze River; There is still no sound, everyone is still immersed in the song and has not woken up. "It seems!" I don't know who said it loudly, and the room became lively, and everyone praised Zhang Jiulang's "female voice" for its vividness.Rong'er is from Suzhou, so Empress Dowager Li asked her: "Ronger, does this Jiulang learn Suzhou dialect, does it look like it?" "Like," Rong'er blushed with excitement, "If seeing is believing, I really wouldn't believe it was sung by a man." After these two performances, the Empress Dowager Li was very impressed with Zhang Jiulang in front of her. She was about to order him to perform today's finale "Tiger Roaring in the Jungle", when the door was pushed open, and Sun Hai, the waiter next to the little emperor, panicked He ran in, went straight to the embroidered couch, knelt down and said: "Report to Empress Dowager Li, Lord Long Live sent a servant to invite you to come over." "What's the matter?" Queen Mother Li asked. "The Department of General Administration sent people to send two urgent packages, both of which have been stamped with a 100,000 urgent defense." "Ah, there is such a thing. Sister, you continue to listen to Zhang Jiulang's oral jokes here, and come as soon as we go." After finishing speaking, Queen Mother Li took Feng Bao out of Yangde Zhai, led by Sun Hai through Yuehua Gate to Dongnuan Pavilion.As soon as he entered the room, he saw Zhu Yijun standing in front of the desk, rubbing his hands anxiously.In the afternoon, Empress Dowager Li went to Yangdezhai to listen to oral dramas, but left Zhu Yijun in Dongnuange to study.She always selectively let Zhu Yijun participate in the entertainment activities in the palace, and tried not to go if she could.Zhu Yijun was young and was not interested in entertainment like listening to Quer and watching big plays, so he was also happy to play alone, temporarily leaving the control of his mother and empress, and playing with Sun Haike with a group of young eunuchs.Just now, he was shaking the diabolo outside the Dongnuan Pavilion, and Zhang Hong, the eunuch of Bingbi, the supervisor of ceremonies, hastily sent over two booklets, saying they were for quick reading. Zhu Yijun couldn't make up his mind, so he sent Sun Hai to call his mother in. "What book?" Queen Mother Li asked as soon as she entered the room. "Here it is." Zhu Yijun pointed to the desk. Empress Dowager Li sat on the embroidered couch.Ask Feng Bao to open the folder, and there are two folders inside that have not been opened.All of them are covered with the emergency clearance of the Secretary of General Administration.According to the rules of handling official documents, all urgent documents do not have to wait until every morning to be sent to the Rites Supervisor, but should be submitted as soon as they arrive without delay.Feng Bao took out the memorial and unpacked it, only to see that the inscriptions were "Please Punish Zhongguan Wu He for Fraudulent Biography of the Imperial Decree" and "Hangzhou Weaving Bureau Uses Silver Screening Book". Shi Caiqifang drafted it, and the latter one was played by Mo Wenlong, the prefect of Hangzhou. "What book?" Queen Mother Li asked. Feng Bao bit the bullet and read the name again.Empress Dowager Li turned pale, looked at the little emperor, and said: "First read the imperial decree of fraudulent transmission." Feng Bao knew what was in the book just by looking at the name.It's about him.I don't know if there is any reference to him in the book, so I feel uneasy, but I have to read it. As soon as he finished reading it, Queen Mother Li asked: "Is it your idea or Wu He's idea to lure old man Zhu Heng to Zuoye Gate by falsely passing on the imperial decree?" Hearing this aggressive tone, Feng Bao immediately felt strongly the pungentness of Queen Mother Li. Fortunately, he was not involved in the booklet, so he hastened to declare: "How could this old slave come up with such a bad idea? From our point of view, Wu He may not come up with it either. Cai Qifang may have falsely accused him." The little emperor took the booklet and flipped through it, and asked suspiciously: "Dad, didn't you say the day before yesterday that it was Zhu Heng who made trouble in front of the Zuoye gate? How could it be a lie?" "Wu He just reported it, and the servant listened to him." Feng Bao replied cautiously. Zhu Yijun asked again: "Why did Wu He punish Zhu Heng?" Feng Bao glanced at the Empress Dowager Li, and replied: "That day, the Empress Dowager said that Zhu Heng would be severely punished. The slave used the silver for the Hangzhou Weaving Bureau, and he was also angry with Zhu Heng, so he took Zhu Heng in front of Wu He. I counted a few words." "Isn't it true that Wu He spread the imperial decree falsely?" Queen Mother Li asked. "What's going on, wait for the servant to go back and find out." The Empress Dowager Li saw that Feng Bao wanted to protect Wu He, so she fired a cannonball: "We said that Zhu Heng will be severely punished. It was just a moment of anger, and you didn't pass the order out. You took it seriously? Now When something goes wrong, the civil servants outside don’t know how to talk about our two mothers? Zhu Heng is a little wrong, but the truth is the truth, the law is the law, how can we force the cow to drink water? Wu He did it, you have to investigate quickly." "Yes, yes." Feng Bao murmured repeatedly. "Also," Empress Dowager Li paused, and said again, "We heard that this Wu He has committed some dirty things. He found a maid in the palace to be his opponent, do you know?" "The servant heard about it and scolded him the day before yesterday." "Just scolding is not enough, you have to be disciplined according to the family law!" The Empress Dowager Li looked at her son who was listening carefully to the conversation, and suddenly her tone became more severe, "The imperial court, no matter what aspect it is, should be a model for the world, isn't it? It can become a place to hide filth." Feng Bao knew in his heart that these few words of Empress Dowager Li were meant for the little emperor, but the tone of the lesson also made him feel nervous.At this time, Empress Dowager Li asked him to read the second excerpt - Mo Wenlong's "Hangzhou Weaving Bureau Uses Silver Screening" again. Mo Wenlong's excerpt is basically the content of the conversation with Zhang Juzheng in the cabinet that day, exposing all kinds of bad deeds of how the admiral and eunuch of Hangzhou Weaving Bureau bullied ordinary people to enrich their own pockets. There is a passage like this: The system of making dragon clothes was established by Emperor Hongwu Taizu. Now it has gone through nine emperors without any changes, and it has become an eternal system. However, ministers and others are very worried about this.The disadvantages are as mentioned above.I take the liberty to suggest that the price of garments should be re-verified, and the adjustment of the weaving bureau should also be re-regulated.The most important thing here is to prevent middle officials from blaspheming and arbitrarily doing Weifu to exploit places... After reading this booklet, the East Nuan Pavilion was completely silent, as if the air had frozen.After a while, Empress Dowager Li asked seriously: "Is there such a big disparity in the cost of a piece of dragon clothes?" When Feng Bao read this notebook, although he was not as nervous as he was when he read the first notebook, he was also deeply depressed.After all, he still wanted to make a fortune through the Hangzhou Weaving Bureau, but Mo Wenlong, who didn't have the name of a fighter, also jumped out and became a biting insect.Therefore, when Queen Mother Li asked, he quickly replied: "Mo Wenlong only knows one thing, but he doesn't know the other thing. His words are not credible." "Why not trustworthy?" Queen Mother Li asked. "The wage silver made of a dragon garment, in addition to the material price Mo Wenlong said, also includes jewelry. The pearls and agates on the dragon garment are all collected from the South China Sea or Siam. The price of the jewels is only one-two-tenth." "Ah, that's right." After hearing Feng Bao's explanation, Empress Dowager Li felt a little relieved, but her doubts were not completely eliminated. She knew that she could not say too much about Feng Bao, the "client", so she asked tentatively: "These two scriptures are being dealt with urgently at the same time. It seems that there is someone instigated behind the scenes. Who could this person be?" "Could it be Zhu Heng?" Feng Bao whispered back. Empress Dowager Li didn't respond.At this time, I saw Rong'er running over, blessed Queen Mother Li, and said: "Report to the Empress Dowager, Empress Chen asked her servants to come over and ask if you are still going to Yangdezhai to listen to the jokes." "Go, why don't you go?" The Empress Dowager Li said, pointing to Feng Bao, and said, "Eunuch Feng, you don't have to go there. You should investigate Wu He's matter first. What he sent is a rush ticket. We can't just take it easy." "yes." Feng Bao agreed to quit.As soon as he went out, Empress Dowager Li pulled her son up from the embroidered couch, and said softly: "Jun'er, go with mother to listen to Zhang Jiulang's mouth jokes, and see how he performs the song "The Tiger Roars in the Jungle"." For several days, due to Cai Qifang and Mo Wenlong's two papers, all the yamen in the capital were in the midst of excitement and commotion.It usually takes less than half a day for a quick reply to be submitted to the imperial court.But these two documents were sent in for three days, but they were not sent to the cabinet for drafting.Such a move of "staying in China" has caused many officials to speculate.Zhang Juzheng, the chief assistant, also seemed to downplay the matter. Within three days, he summoned more than a dozen officials from the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Taipu Temple. They talked about various taxes and expenditures, the amount of water transportation, the southern salt affairs, and the northern border. Financial matters such as the tea-horse trade—these investigations were originally intended to obtain first-hand information for his upcoming fiscal reforms.In contrast, Zhu Heng's mansion in Shijar Hutong was much more lively.The day after the two urgent documents were sent to the university, Zhu Heng also handed in the documents for his application for becoming an official.It was all because he heard the imperial decree delivered by the eunuch sent by the emperor to the cabinet in person, and told black and white that he ran to the Zuoye gate in disregard of the honor of the ministers to make trouble.What's more, Zhu Heng is a tough guy who chews down Mount Tai and refuses to thank the soil. At that time, he was so angry that he fainted.His actions aroused widespread sympathy from the Beijing officials, whether they were old disciples or staff members who had been obedient during the day, they all went to visit him one after another to express their resentment and sympathy.It is inconvenient to talk about things that can only be slandered in public, and you can vent them here, such as scolding the eunuch party, accusing Sang and Huai to ridicule the Queen Mother Li's interference in politics, etc. In short, it is a thousand arhats with a thousand mouths, and the old Zhu Heng is fascinated by the words. Chaos, the body is getting weaker and weaker. Besides, Feng Bao has been anxious these days like a crab without legs, wanting to bite anyone he sees while sitting there.That afternoon, when he came out of Dongnuan Pavilion and returned to the office of the Si Li Supervisor, he immediately sent someone to inquire who the supervisory censor Cai Qifang of the Metropolitan Procuratorate was.Soon he got a secret report: this Cai Qifang was not only Zhu Heng's fellow countryman, but also a Jinshi in the 44th year of Jiajing—the chief examiner for that year was Gao Gong.Behind a small sixth-rank official, Gao Gong and Zhu Heng are competing to lead.This reminded Feng Bao of the saying "There is a basket of grain by the bedside, someone will cry", thinking that this is Gao Gong's lingering ghost, he wished he could catch Cai Qifang in Dongchang and cut him alive.He also inquired that this Cai Qifang was outspoken and had some influence among his peers.It stands to reason that such an official should be reused in the hands of Zhang Juzheng, but he was not promoted in the Jingcha the year before last, and he is still in his original position until now.After summarizing all these information, Feng Bao concluded that the matter of these two excerpts had nothing to do with Zhang Juzheng.But how to settle this matter, he wanted to hear Zhang Juzheng's opinion.In this limelight, it is not appropriate for the two to meet.He called his confidant Xu Jue to whisper, and asked him to communicate with Zhang Juzheng's housekeeper, You Qi. That night, Xu Jue took a sedan chair and went into Shamao Alley at Dengshikou where Zhang Juzheng's mansion was located.The sedan chair didn't stop at the gate of Zhang's mansion, but was carried about a hundred feet further in, and stopped at the gate of a small courtyard.This courtyard is next to the tall courtyard wall of the Zhang Mansion, and it can be seen that it has been renovated at first glance, the black lacquered gate is shiny with oil.Xu Jue went forward to knock on the copper door knocker, and heard someone coming out from inside, but it was You Qi who opened the door.However, You Qi followed Zhang Juzheng to the capital for so many years and lived in the Zhang Mansion. Last year, with Zhang Juzheng's consent, he bought the courtyard next to the Zhang Mansion, renovated it, and moved in with his family.It turned out that the back wall of the courtyard was the passageway downstairs in the front hall of the Zhang Mansion. After You Qi moved in, he opened a door on the back wall to directly lead to the Zhang Mansion. Xu Jue had sent someone to inform him about Xu Jue's visit at night, so You Qi was not surprised. He welcomed Xu Jue into the living room of the south wing.He ordered a child servant who was on the job at home to arrange Xu Jue's bearer to have tea in the hall.Six years after Longqing, Xu Jue and You Qi had a very close relationship. Not only did they get bribes and sell money together, they also ate flowers, wine and went whoring together.As soon as Xu Jue sat down, he cut to the chase and asked: "Old You, is Master Shoufu coming home tonight?" "I'm back, and I'm meeting guests in the hall." You Qi replied while making tea for Xu Jue. "Ah, did he go to Jixianglu tonight?" "Didn't go." Seeing Xu Jue's lustful eyes, You Qi smiled and replied, "How can I go every day? Women can only be used as medicine, not as food." "Hey, Lao You is enlightened, and what you say is based on experience," Xu Jue grinned, winking and said jokingly, "I heard that you imitate your master and plan to marry a lady like you?" "Who said that?" You Qi became nervous. "There is no impenetrable wall in the world. Besides, what is there to hide about this kind of thing?" Seeing that You Qi still wanted to hesitate, Xu Jue simply pierced it and said, "Did you lead a cute little girl the day before yesterday?" Miss, have you gone to the Qicaixia silk shop? I heard from Hao Yibiao that you chose a dozen or twenty kinds of fabrics for that little lady in one go." "There is such a thing." Seeing that he couldn't deny it, You Qi had no choice but to admit it, "This old Hao really has a long mouth." "Who is that little lady?" "It's Liu Xuan's aunt in Hu Ke's case." "Hey, you are still an official family member. You are very lucky to be old, have you married?" "Looking at the date, it's March 18th." "Well, there's still a few months left, let's ask for a cup of wedding wine." Xu Jue said with a frown on his brows, and then sighed sourly, "You two, master and servant, live a happy life, but it's hard. Our master." "What happened to your master?" "You don't necessarily know about those two excerpts?" "Know." "You still ask me what's wrong if you know it?" Xu Jue sighed, "My lord, this year has been unlucky, and increasing the amount of silver used by the Hangzhou Weaving Bureau is the first thing he wants to do. A big iron nail." You Qi touched the cinnabar mole on his cheek, and asked evasively, "What do you think of Cai Qifang's excerpt?" "The most troublesome thing for our master is this book." "Eunuch Feng has a headache, so it's reasonable, but you old Xu shouldn't have a headache, you should be happy." "Why should we be happy?" Xu Jue was taken aback. You Qi stretched his head over, and said in a low voice, "Didn't your brother dislike Wu He for a long time? Why don't you take this opportunity to get rid of him!" Xu Jue remained silent for a while. ．Let's say that since Wu He became an internal official supervisor, especially after worshiping Feng Bao as his godfather, among the more than 10,000 eunuchs in Da Nei, his worth has grown rapidly to become an incomparable prominent figure.This kid is not good at being a man, he not only puts up his arms in front of Yi Ying Diao Dang and claims to be a sage, even in front of Xu Jue, he often complacently shows his sense of superiority.Xu Jue was originally a character with a slanted nose and eyes that could make jokes. He didn't allow such upstarts to show off in front of him. He complained in front of You Qi more than once, blaming Feng Bao for spoiling Wu He, and said through gritted teeth: "Sooner or later, we have to get rid of this fluffy liar." Knowing these internal reasons, You Qi dared to come up with this idea. Seeing Xu Jue's silence, You Qi urged: "Why, don't you dare?" Xu Jue shook his head, with a helpless look: "It's not that I dare not, I'm just worried that this kid is our master's godson, and I'm afraid our master won't be able to do it." "You have to explain the truth to Eunuch Feng," You Qi urged urgently, "Wu He is a person who buys dried fish and releases them—he doesn't know how to live or die, and keeping him will only cause bad things." "That's true, let's go back and persuade the master to let him lose his pawn and save the car." "This is the best policy. If Eunuch Feng personally disposes of Wu He, wouldn't the mouths of these officials outside be blocked all at once?" Xu Jue thought it was a good idea, and thought in his heart: "You Qi is full of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, how can you have such a spiritual head? This must be Lord Shoufu's idea, but I just said it through your mouth." I didn't go into details, just copied straight: "Our master has already found out that Cai Qifang is a remnant of Gaogong. He jumped out this time to complain for Zhu Heng. We can't let him succeed. Zhu Heng, an old shit, applied for an official position. We The master of the family asked me to convey the meaning of Queen Mother Li, so he was allowed." "Okay, I will definitely convey it to my master." The two chatted secretly for a while, and then Xu Jue took his leave and went back to Feng Bao's residence. Feng Bao hadn't fallen asleep yet, and was playing the piano alone in the piano room next to the study, with a forked-horned piano boy standing next to him, and a Tibetan incense was lit on the table, and a faint strange fragrance floated in the room.Feng Bao was playing a piece of "Ancient Temple Cold Spring" which he composed himself. Although he saw Xu Jue coming in lightly, he was not in a hurry to answer, but concentrated on playing the piece.It took him almost three winters and summers to create this song "The Cold Spring in the Ancient Temple".However, deep in the heart of this successful man, there is still a lingering depression hidden at any time. After all, in the Ouchi for many years, there are too many cases of victorious and disabled killings.Life is like walking on thin ice every day, even if you enjoy the wealth and wealth in the world, there is more fear than joy.In the summer of the sixth year of Longqing, on the day he was awarded the post of Supervisor of Rituals, he returned to the mansion and wrote down fourteen characters: "Whoever wins a horse may not be happy, and whoever loses a horse may not be worried".On the left and right walls of his piano room, there are two paintings and calligraphy, one is Tang Bohu's "A Picture of Ancient Temple in Deep Autumn", and the other is this banner written by himself.It was this worry hidden in his heart that gave him the inspiration to create "The Cold Spring in the Ancient Temple".For three years, he has been pondering this piece of music. In his own words, it is "a note that is not stable, and his heart is uneasy". It was not until this year's New Year's Eve that the score of "Ancient Temple Cold Spring" was finalized.Drums in the evening and bells in the morning are accompanied by the flickering sound of the spring, and the desolation and dryness imply the helplessness of life.The cold spring of the ancient temple, good intentions! Tonight, Feng Bao ordered his disciples to abandon all visitors, sit in the piano room, burn incense and chime, and play this song again... Zhuang Sheng Xiaomeng, Wangdi Chunxin, everything is expressed in a graceful and tortuous way.When the last note hits the emerald green banana leaf like a shining raindrop, it rolls like a bead and disappears suddenly.Xu Jue, who was waiting and listening respectfully, clearly saw the lost expression in his master's eyes. He suddenly felt that staying here was unnecessary, and was about to tiptoe out, but he heard Feng Bao shout from behind: "return!" Xu Jue was startled, couldn't catch his feet, took two or three steps back, turned around to stand still, and slapped his master again.Feng Bao took the bowl of tea offered by Qin Tong, took a sip, and asked without raising his eyelids: "Have you seen You Qi?" "I see," Xu Jue roughly recounted the situation he had talked with You Qi, and said again, "You Qi has an idea." "What idea?" "He suggested taking this opportunity to remove Wu He." "Ah?" Feng Bao stared at Xu Jue, "Does You Qi know that Wu He is our godson?" "I know," Xu Jue hesitated for a while, and then said boldly, "Master, this Wu He is your godson, and he is domineering and domineering everywhere, which has made him have a bad reputation. Now he is not only in the palace, but also outside. There are also many rumors. Otherwise, how would You Qi know?" "What does he know?" "He knows that Wu He accepts bribes, sells officials at a clear price, and even plays with the right food. You Qi knows everything about it." These words were all made up by Xu Jue. He knew that Feng Bao was most afraid of "selling an official", so he specifically pointed them out.Sure enough, Feng Bao's face changed when he heard it, and he asked: "For Wu He, what public opinion is there?" "Too many slaves don't know about it," Xu Jue deliberately pretended to be cautious, and said cautiously, "However, there are more public opinions on him in the palace." Even if Xu Jue didn't say these words, Feng Bao knew in his heart.Especially when listening to Queen Mother Li talking that day, she clearly expressed her dissatisfaction with Wu He.After Wu He knew that Cai Qifang had written his impeachment papers, he became very nervous. Yesterday afternoon, he went to the Supervisor of Rituals to find out about Feng Bao.Feng Bao didn't think about how to deal with it for a while, so he said a few big words to persuade him not to worry.Wu He left happily, but Feng Bao had a heartache. Seeing that Feng Bao was deep in thought and silent, Xu Jue knew that he was hesitating, so he added: "My lord, my servant is always worried about this Wu He." "What are you afraid of?" "The matter of fraudulent transmission of the imperial decree was made by the master, and it is a big secret. How could that Cai Qifang know?" "We've been thinking about this too? Who leaked the news?" "Sun Long is careful in doing things, and Hu Benyang is timid by nature. Both of them will do bad things, but this Wu He is a character who walks forward over the threshold. He is good at showing his merits. According to my slaves, he is probably the one who revealed it. Talked about it." At this point, Xu Jue paused, and then said in a more emphatic tone, "This matter is leaked, and it is his own harm. If he reveals the matter of 'selling an official', wouldn't it be Don't kill a bunch of people." Feng Bao was silent for a while, and then asked gloomyly, "In your opinion, you should accept You Qi's suggestion?" Xu Jue pretended to be mysterious and replied: "According to my servant's analysis, You Qi didn't come up with this idea." "Who did it come from?" Feng Bao asked: "It's Mr. Zhang." "how do you know?" "Let's listen to You Qi's tone. Besides, this is such a good idea, how could You Qi's lumpy head come up with it. This idea kills two birds with one stone. It not only calms the resentment of the officials in the outer court, but also prevents future troubles. Therefore, simply Get Wu He out." Feng Bao pondered for a while, and suddenly his eyes showed a fierce look, and he said viciously: "It's not removal, it's removal!"