Red Mansion and Crimson Pearl

Chapter 394 Dai Quan’s “Idle Seal”

It was the early morning of the ninth day of the Lunar New Year, at the end of the Chou hour, and it was not even time for court sessions.

The Grand Minister of the Interior, the Grand Secretary, the leader of the inner guards, the leader of the guard camp, the leader of the palace gate guards, and the leader of the imperial guards who were in charge of the Taiji Palace were all summoned to the Yanjia Hall.

Fortunately, Dai Quan and Tao Xingjian had a brief discussion and misinterpreted what the Supreme Lord said about "under the steps of the Yanjia Hall" from the steps outside the main hall to the red steps inside the main hall.

Therefore, when this group of people came in, they knelt before Emperor Dan for an hour.

After listening to Dai Quan's quiet account of what happened, he told them, "You all know Cheng Qian, the aunt who came with the Empress Dowager during her marriage and has been with her all her life.

"In order to save the Queen Mother, he was shot to death by the assassin with a crossbow."

The Grand Secretary was the first to collapse to the ground, with cold sweat dripping down his cheeks, instantly wetting the front of his court robes.

Such a big thing!

The older and calmer Minister of the Imperial Guard asked hurriedly, "Did anyone else get hurt? Have you found anyone who might have helped the assassin?"

"Thanks to Princess Yimin who raised her arm to block it, leaving a bloody mark, the crossbow arrow lost its power, speed, and accuracy.

"Otherwise, I'm afraid Aunt Cheng might not be able to make it in time..." Dai Quan sighed, "Although she is the Queen Mother's adopted daughter, her filial piety is no less than that of her own daughter.

“It’s okay for others.

"As for the assassin, I later had people search the Taiji Palace, but didn't find anything unusual.

"Now, everywhere is restricted from entering or leaving. So you guys should make arrangements as soon as possible."

The Grand Secretary in Charge of the Imperial Guards looked at the useless Grand Secretary with disdain, and first instructed the Emperor to "protect both the Supreme Emperor and the Empress Dowager well", then bypassed the Grand Secretary and whispered to the imperial guards, the imperial guards and the palace guards.

Seeing that they were not really panicking and were still in good order, Dai Quan stopped interfering.

Only Tao Xingjian was standing by, looking up and down at the Grand Secretary, whose face was becoming more and more frightened, and he felt more and more that something was wrong.

So he asked Dai Quan to talk to him in private: "This fear is not right.

"He's a minister of the inner court, a first-rank official, personally selected by the Supreme Lord. Why is he so scared?"

Dai Quan glanced at them indifferently and whispered, "They were from the same family as the deposed crown prince.

"Just because he was cowardly, when the deposed crown prince was plotting rebellion, he was the first to rebel. He ran to the emperor, crying and snotting, and made a big fuss.

“Although he was promoted based on his merits, the Supreme Lord dislikes this man for being so disloyal and unrighteous.

"He has been very careful and prudent over the years, so he should have enough experience and be given an important position.

"But the Supreme Lord said that this man was spineless and should be placed in an insignificant position. When he reached a certain age, he would be given money to return home.

"That's why I put him in the position of Minister of the Interior for nearly ten years."

ten years.

Tao Xingjian nodded in understanding.

No wonder.

The emperor's imperial guard consisted of six ministers of the imperial guard, who were of the first rank but most of them held the position concurrently; there were also six ministers of the inner court, who were of the first rank and served as deputies to the ministers of the imperial guard.

Therefore, if the position of Grand Secretary is capable, the Grand Secretary in charge of the Imperial Guards can hand over all these tasks to him and focus on his main duties.

But if this person is a waste, then the Minister of the Imperial Guards in charge can just leave him aside and make him a messenger.

It seems that this person has been a herald for ten years!

But no matter what, he has been in this position for ten years...

“…This person is the well-known black pot head.

"Whenever there is something wrong with the Imperial Guards, the Minister of the Imperial Guards will punish the person who did the work, and then punish him who is nominally 'in charge'.

"The Supreme Emperor also hated him for being a figurehead and not resigning for several years, so he was the first to reprimand him when something happened."

Dai Quan continued in a low voice, "This matter is too big, the Supreme Lord must sacrifice at least three or five heads to the heaven, otherwise he will not be able to calm down.

"He probably thinks his life is in jeopardy, so he's so scared."

This barely makes sense.

Tao Xingjian hurriedly thanked Dai Quan for his advice.

It happened that Xiaohong saw the two of them standing and talking for a long time, so she ordered people to put a small table and two cushions in the corner of the hall, and also put a charcoal basin aside, and invited the two of them to come over and have some hot oil tea.

Dai Quan thanked Xiaohong with a smile. Tao Xingjian hurriedly invited him to take a seat and asked him to sit down for a while while he took care of the meal.

Dai Quan shook his head, rubbed his shoulders, and said with a wry smile: "I'm old, and I don't sleep much. Now I'm tired and can't sleep."

Tao Xingjian stepped forward, took off his hat himself, rubbed his shoulders and head, and chuckled, "It's a rare opportunity like this. I can show my filial piety to my ancestors."

The words sound nice and the work is done well.

Dai Quan slightly closed his eyes and enjoyed it, and chuckled: "You little monkey. How can you be worse than me when you are so powerful now?

"You are so respectful. You must be asking for something when you are courteous. Tell me, is there anything I can do to help you?"

"Unfair!" Tao Xingjian cried out, "I am so wronged. My filial piety is pure and genuine. I have no ulterior motives!"

Dai Quan laughed softly.

After a while, Dai Quan pointed at the few people kneeling under Danbi from a distance and quietly "chatted" with Tao Xingjian about their resumes.

He then started talking about these few people and also gossiped a little about the five groups of ministers in charge of the imperial guards and their subordinates who were working in the Daming Palace.

The food on the small table quietly changed from oil tea to plain tea, and even ginseng chicken soup was added.

It was the end of the Yin year and the beginning of the Mao year. Dai Quan felt his shoulders relax a lot, so he patted Tao Xingjian's hand, signaling him to stop.

Xiaohong came quietly over, bringing a tray. On it were tea cups for rinsing mouths, hot towels for washing face, a bronze mirror and a comb. She looked at Tao Xingjian inquiringly.

Tao Xingjian was surprised at the girl's thoughtfulness. He smiled and nodded, took it, and helped Dai Quan rinse his mouth and wash his face.

Then she expertly combed the old man's hair, put on his hat, helped him stand up, and tidied his clothes.

Dai Quan felt very comfortable being taken care of by him. He looked at Xiao Hong again and praised her with a smile, "That's how it is said that our Princess Zhaoqing is the best at taking care of people.

"Look at Miss Zijuan, who the Empress Dowager can't live without for a day, and look at Miss Xiaohong, who takes care of the Yanjia Palace quietly!

“It’s really amazing!”

Tao Xingjian smiled and said, "What the ancestor said is very true!"

He was so happy just because he heard that he brought Princess Zhaoqing along with him to praise him!

No prospects!

Dai Quan wanted to roll his eyes, but then he remembered that although he had many disciples, they were all eunuchs, and he did not have a caring goddaughter.

Come to think of it, it is a bit enviable!

Dai Quan finally gave Tao Xingjian a sidelong glance, and walked towards the people of His Majesty Dan:

"Everyone, we are going to wake up the Supreme Lord and His Majesty now.

"My lords, please consider the method of retouching carefully and do not make the Queen Mother angry or sad again."