usatvline Chapter 383: King Dongli's target is Xie Qingrou
Chapter 383: King Dongli's target is Xie Qingrou
Xie Ci'an naturally sat next to Gu Jianchu and took over from Qiutou to massage Gu Jianchu's shoulders.
"Your Majesty, please don't joke with me. This is a sacred Buddhist place. It's not good to be contaminated by these meats." Gu Jianchu looked at Xie Ci'an seriously, fearing that Xie Ci'an would really have someone secretly move the meat into the meditation room to eat.
Gu Jianchu glanced guiltily at the Buddhist characters hanging behind him.
Xie Ci'an knew Gu Jianchu was overthinking it when he saw her expression. He raised his hand and flicked Gu Jianchu's head gently. "What are you thinking about? Of course I'm not asking you to eat here. There's a hot spring pool in the back mountain of Wanguo Temple. The abbot mentioned it to the late emperor, and the late emperor had a Qushui Pavilion built there, as well as a simple courtyard. The purpose was that when people came to Wanguo Temple to pray for the people every year, they could secretly go there to soak in the hot springs and stay for a few days."
"After all, the hills behind Wanguo Temple are still very beautiful, especially when covered with snow. After a while, the white snow and the red plum blossoms complement each other, attracting many scholars and poets to visit every year."
"How come I never knew this?" Gu Jianchu stared at Xie Ci'an in surprise.
"Few people know about that place. Not only you, but I'm afraid many ministers in the court don't know either. Only the abbot, the late emperor, and a very few others know about it. Even I don't know. After praying today, the abbot knew you were pregnant and was worried that you wouldn't be able to get used to the vegetarian food in this temple, so he told me about that place. I've already asked Wen Zhu to take a look at it. It's indeed well built. Although it's a little simple, it's very warm."
"Although it is within the territory of Wanguo Temple, it is not inside the temple. If Ah Chu wants to eat barbecue, you can ask someone to go over there to prepare it and eat there. You can also take a hot spring bath. It's snowing now, so it's just right for a hot spring bath." Xie Ci'an's tone was gentle.
Gu Jianchu was indeed quite moved.
She stared at Xie Ci'an with sparkling eyes and asked softly, "Is it really okay?"
"Of course you can. Why would I lie to Ah Chu?" Xie Ci'an picked up a piece of dried apricot and placed it in front of Gu Jianchu.
Gu Jianchu lowered his head and put the dried apricots in his mouth. They were sour and sweet and very appetizing.
"Yunhe, take some people over to clean up now." After giving the order, Xie Ci'an helped Gu Jianchu lie on his knees again. His fingers were not idle, and he rubbed Gu Jianchu's shoulders and neck.
After receiving the order, Yunhe immediately took people to Qushui Pavilion and the small courtyard in the back mountain to clean up.
Zhu Xia helped pack some utensils and the clothes that the emperor and empress would wear when taking a hot spring bath. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please rest there tonight."
If you are going to rest, you will need to bring more thick clothes and maybe even a quilt. After all, no one has lived here for a long time, and even if you have a quilt, you may not be able to cover yourself with it.
Xie Ci'an looked at Gu Jianchu, making it clear that everything would be decided by Gu Jianchu.
"There's no need to go through so much trouble. Let's just come back and stay. There's a Dharma Assembly tomorrow." She didn't like getting up early. The back mountain was not very close to here. If she stayed there, she would have to get up early. But if she stayed in the Zen room, she could sleep a little longer.
After giving the order, Gu Jianchu's gaze fell on Xie Ci'an again, "It will take a long time to toss back and forth. It won't delay the emperor from handling government affairs, right?"
"It's not a serious matter. It has been handled properly now."
"It's a letter from the new King of Dongli. The Left Prime Minister didn't know how to deal with it, and was afraid that important matters would be delayed, so he asked someone to deliver it hurriedly." Xie Ci'an had already told Gu Jianchu about this matter before, so there was no need to hide it.
Besides, even if he didn't say it on his own initiative, Gu Jianchu would know it sooner or later.
Gu Jianchu knew more hidden information than him.
Xie Ci'an continued, "This new King of Dongli is quite resourceful. As soon as he ascended the throne, he eliminated all of the Prime Minister's followers. He even threw the child that the Prime Minister almost supported into a temple. In less than two weeks, he stabilized the government. With the help of Shuangjiang and others, he replaced all the officials who followed the Prime Minister with those he had painstakingly trained."
"King Dongli's brother sent him out all day long. It looked like training, but in reality, he wanted to suppress dissidents. However, he was quite happy with it. During this training, he got to know many officials. This time, he promoted them. They are all very capable, and because he promoted them, they will be even more loyal to him. How can this not be considered a blessing in disguise?"
"The King of Dongli said in the letter he sent me that the Dongli Kingdom's political situation is now stable, and he wants to come to the capital to thank me for my assistance. He is even willing to re-sign the non-aggression treaty between the two countries and open a border trade. I think his idea is excellent, so I agreed to it. Once the letter is delivered, the King of Dongli will be able to come to the capital soon. Opening a border trade will be mutually beneficial to the people of the two countries and will also enhance the friendship between the two countries."
[Ouch, King Dongli wants to come to the capital, and signing a trade treaty is only one aspect.]
Upon hearing this, Xie Ci'an's eyes immediately dropped.
But hearing that Gu Jianchu wasn't angry, it didn't seem like a bad thing.
Just as he was thinking about it, Gu Jianchu's revelations came again.
[The second target is Xie Qingrou.]
Xie Ci’an:…
Could it be that he wants to take his sister-in-law back home?
[It's really not about taking my sister-in-law back, but about taking Xie Qingrou back myself.]
Xie Ci'an was not stupid and immediately realized what was going on.
At that time, marrying Xie Qingrou to Dongli Kingdom was a decision made by the late emperor out of necessity. Now Jin Kingdom is no soft persimmon that can be easily manipulated. Xie Qingrou has already suffered once in Dongli Kingdom. There is no need to sacrifice Xie Qingrou again in exchange for peace between the two countries.
He also had no intention of letting a princess marry two husbands.
This would make him appear to be an incompetent emperor who could not even protect a princess and had to sacrifice the princess in exchange for peace between the two countries.
He can support King Dongli to ascend to the throne, and he also has the means to make the Dongli Kingdom disappear, or replace it with another King Dongli.
Gu Jianchu had no idea that Xie Ci'an's mind had been full of thoughts during this moment, and she was just immersed in her own world of gossip.
After experiencing these events, King Dongli discovered that he had long harbored feelings for Xie Qingrou. Xie Qingrou was resilient, patriotic, and willing to sacrifice herself for the people of Jin. She even taught them some of Jin's crafts so they could have better survival skills. These were qualities no other woman possessed. Besides a subtle fondness for her, King Dongli felt that his feelings for Xie Qingrou were more of admiration.
[The two of them had experienced disaster relief and fighting the plague together, and their feelings had subtly changed. However, because he was getting married, Xie Qingrou had to marry his brother. Even if he had feelings for her, he could only endure it and could not express it out loud.]