Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

Chapter 164 God’s Will is Hard to Ask

It rained heavily in the capital and also in the south of the Yangtze River.

Emperor Zhaoming stood in front of the imperial study, looking at the pouring rain in the air with a frown on his face.

Tao Xingjian looked at his back with a worried look on his face: "Your Majesty, it's summer, and you sweat a lot, which makes your body weak. How can you survive without eating?"

"It's hot and I can't eat." After listening to him nagging for a long time, Emperor Zhaoming finally responded to him.

Tao Xingjian sighed, walked behind him, and whispered: "Isn't there news that the arrangement is indeed quite good? It is not uncommon to collude with local officials and gentry. Didn't you know about it a long time ago?"

Emperor Zhaoming stared at the rain for a long while before he whispered, "I'm not only worried about Jiangnan, but also the Yellow River..."

Tao Xingjian was stunned for a moment, then looked at him distressedly: "Then you have to eat more! If you continue to eat a meal in two or three bites like this, I'm afraid you will collapse before the water cures you! Look, you've lost a lot of weight in just these two or three months!"

Emperor Zhaoming looked back at him and couldn't help but smile: "This is what the saying goes, the emperor is not anxious, but the eunuch is."

Tao Xingjian smiled bitterly: "How about I make you a bowl of steamed eggs with milk?"

"Forget it." Emperor Zhaoming turned back to the imperial desk and checked the figures reported by the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works. "Where are the leftover snacks from the morning? Take them to fill your stomach first and then have them raw for lunch."

At noon, Lu Changqing brought up a large bowl of noodles with his head lowered and a small pile of soybeans in a small plate next to it.

"What is this?" Emperor Zhaoming was stunned.

Lu Changqing stood beside him with his head bowed deeply, and said softly: "The day before yesterday, Jia Zhen of Ning Mansion passed away, and Miss Lin ate vegetarian food for seven days. This is the fried chicken and mushroom noodles we had the day before, and next to it is the Hunan vegetable and moldy beans that we had with the porridge in the evening.

"I heard that the girl ate two small bowls of porridge in one go, but because the moldy beans were spicy, she only ate one and drank half a bowl of porridge. So I asked them to get some to see if it suits your majesty's taste."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Zhaoming picked up a bean and ate it. It tasted delicious after chewing it. He looked up at Lu Changqing and said, "Is this so spicy that she drank half a bowl of porridge?"

Lu Changqing laughed, "Yes. I also think that the girl's taste is too light. This taste is probably just right for Your Majesty."

Emperor Zhaoming chewed another one, hummed and nodded, "Just right." He tasted a spoonful of noodles and smiled, "This noodle is very fresh."

"In fact, the noodles tasted good when the mushrooms were fresh and tender. Nowadays, we eat dried mushrooms, which are not as good."

Lu Changqing answered again, and stole a glance at Tao Xingjian. Seeing that his grandfather Tao looked relieved, he became bolder and said with a smile,

"I always think that Miss Lin's cook is from Shanxi and she cooks excellent noodles. Miss Lin has eaten a lot of noodles in the past two years and she says the variety is beautiful."

Emperor Zhaoming pretended not to hear, lowered his head and ate a large bowl of noodles in one breath, and also ate up the plate of beans. Then he raised his head and let out a long sigh.

I am full.

Tao Xingjian finally felt relieved when he saw him touching his belly with satisfaction.

After they cleared the bowls and chopsticks and went out of the main hall, Tao Xingjian smiled and tapped Lu Changqing's hat with his whisk: "Good boy, you are quite clever!"

"That's because grandpa loves his grandson!" Lu Changqing grinned naively.

After having his fill, Emperor Zhaoming walked around the hall for a few rounds distributing food, when he suddenly came up with an idea. He ordered people to spread the word outside: seven kinds of auspicious signs had been dug up simultaneously on the Yangtze River mudflats and the Yellow River channel. Whoever could collect all the auspicious signs on both sides would be able to achieve immortality.

The news quietly came out from a courtyard in the suburbs of Beijing, slowly spread to a place two hundred miles away, and then emerged, spreading from north to south, gradually becoming a prairie fire.

The last person to hear the news was Tai Shang.

"Did the Emperor spread this?" Tai Shang was very unhappy. "These are just some sinister and despicable methods!"

Dai Quan smiled and said, "In this way, I wonder how many more people will be needed to dig mud and repair the dike! No matter what the method is, at least it solves the urgent problem, which is good."

Tai Shang couldn't help but snorted again: "He just drove Rong Ge'er out of the capital, but he didn't have any good intentions!"

"That's true..." Dai Quan sighed, "It's fine if he just indulges in sensual pleasures. But now he's becoming more and more unruly and arrogant. Isn't that a way to a quick death?

"Prince Beijing and Prince Zhongshun, for the sake of an actor, one tied the tribute from foreign countries around the actor's waist, and the other harassed the ministers' homes all over the capital. How can this be allowed?!

"It is because of your great reputation, kindness and generosity that you can suppress them and tolerate them. If someone else didn't have your ability, they would probably just kill them."

Dai Quan said it lightly, but Tai Shang knew it was all true, and his expression became gloomy. After a while, he shook his head and whispered:

"What can we do? If it rains, it will rain. If my mother wants to get married, let them do as they please!"

The Lin family closed their doors and no one knew what was happening.

Only Miaoyu's copy of the Ksitigarbha Sutra was finally completed. Lin Daiyu took a closer look and saw that it was indeed made with top-quality ink and paper. Miaoyu also put a lot of effort into copying the sutra in a solemn, dignified, kind and compassionate manner.

"What's the matter? Should I pass the card to ask for a meeting on your behalf?" Daiyu asked Miaoyu.

Miaoyu smiled and nodded.

Daiyu did as she was told.

But the next day, someone came out from Taiji Palace, and it was Dai Quan.

Miaoyu suppressed her inner excitement, stuffed a roll of account book into her sleeve pocket, and waited to see the emperor present it to her, so that she could...

"Is this the scripture?" Dai Quan pointed at the scripture in Miaoyu's hand and looked at Daiyu.

Daiyu glanced at Miaoyu and nodded: "Yes."

Dai Quan did not even look at Miaoyu, but only spoke to her with a smile: "You haven't seen Sister Lin for a while, and you haven't come to the palace to see the Queen Mother? She was still talking about you yesterday!"

"Prime Minister Dai, are you making fun of me? I have no position or rank now. At most, I have received an errand and completed it before I dared to pass the badge to the palace. If you go into the palace and disturb the Second Saint, I will save my head!"

Daiyu had no choice but to follow his words and laugh.

Dai Quan laughed and said, “You still have to come more often.

"Look at your distant relative, Miss Xue, who keeps persuading Princess Shouchang to come to the palace to fulfill her filial duties.

"Now the Queen Mother's place is bustling with more guests than the Kunning Hall in the Daming Palace!

"Okay, I'm leaving now. Take a rest, sister!" He picked up the scriptures and waved goodbye.

Daiyu hurriedly agreed, but was stopped by Dai Quan when she tried to send it out.

Before leaving, Dai Quan glanced at Miaoyu, as if he had just remembered: "Is this the nun who copied the sutras?"

Daiyu replied with a smile: "Yes. My Buddhist name is Miaoyu..."

"What a nice look!" Dai Quan interrupted Daiyu, seemingly not caring who Miaoyu was. He casually complimented her and walked out, laughing and asking Aunt Meng to see him off.

"Come here and chat with me!"

The laughter faded away, leaving only silence in the room.

Daiyu looked back at Miaoyu and sighed in her heart.

God’s will is always difficult to question.

How could the emperor of Taiji Palace be taken away so easily by someone else? !