Zhu Houzhao said that he would rest immediately after returning to the bedroom, but after going to bed, he was anxious and unable to fall asleep.

A long time later, he got up from the dragon couch and shouted outside, "Is there any living person?"

Zhang Yuan was staying outside. When he heard Zhu Houzhao's words, he hurried in and saluted respectfully.

Zhu Houbao looked at Zhang Yuan and waved his hand: "I can't sleep, I'm upset... Alas, dress me..."

After Zhang Yuan came in, he secretly glanced at Zhu Houzhao. Seeing that Zhu Houzhao's eyes were red, he knew that the emperor was in a state of anxiety and did not dare to disobey. He stepped forward to help Zhu Houzhao put on his clothes, and then stood respectfully, waiting for further instructions.

Zhu Houzhao sat down at the table, picked up the teapot and poured a cup of herbal tea to his mouth. Zhang Yuan hurriedly dissuaded: "Your Majesty, don't hurt the dragon body, let me change it to you with hot tea."

"No!"

Zhu Houzhao didn't care at all, so she raised her neck and drank the tea. Then she looked up at Zhang Yuan and asked, "Zhang Yuan, do you think I'm useless?"

Zhang Yuan didn't know what kind of wind Zhu Houzhao was trying to get, so he said respectfully: "Your Majesty, you are a wise king in the world. No emperors from ancient times to the present can compare with you!"

Zhu Houzhao was a little impatient and reached out to interrupt Zhang Yuan's words, scolding: "No need to say anything about compliment. I am a wise lord who knows in his heart that I have not done anything that benefits the country and the people since I ascended the throne. Even if the war with the Tatars is currently in vain, I have been happy for two games... By the way, is there any news from the Ministry of War?"

Zhang Yuan was slightly stunned and replied: "Your Majesty, no one has entered the palace to report anything."

"well!"

Zhu Houzhao sighed, "Yes, I said I wanted to rest before, and said that I would ask about things after I woke up. I guess I would suppress any war reports from the Ministry of War... I really hope that Liu Jin did not falsely report his military achievements this time, and I would not be embarrassed again."

Zhang Yuan stood there, not daring to talk too much. He is now cautious everywhere to prevent Zhu Houzhao's anger from being affected.

Zhu Houzhao held the teacup, as if observing the pattern on the outer wall of the teacup, and asked again: "Since I ascended the throne, I have been having fun in the leopard room, and I want to do big things but have not put them into practice. I am really ashamed of the late emperor. Zhang Yuan, what do you think I should do to become a wise monarch?"

Zhang Yuan said: "Your Majesty, you are already a wise monarch..."

Zhu Houzhao frowned: "Didn't you hear me if you don't say anything complimented? If you say such words, I will immediately ask someone to drag you out and beat you up to see if you wake up!"

Zhang Yuan said bitterly: "Even if you ask me to punish me, I feel so... Since ancient times, as long as the people can live a peaceful and prosperous life, they must be the wise lord. Now that your Majesty has been in power for only two years, my Ming Dynasty will be in good weather and prosperity, the country will be prosperous and the people will be safe. How can Your Majesty not be a wise lord?"

Now, Zhang Yuan has learned to flatter and try not to flatter the horse's legs.

Zhu Houzhao thought for a while and nodded, "You have some reason to say it, but I always feel that I have not done enough."

Seeing that his compliments had been effective, Zhang Yuan continued to talk about this topic: "Your Majesty, you are too careful. In fact, it has nothing to do with whether Your Majesty cares about the government. As long as Your Majesty can entrust the court affairs to capable people and these people will take care of them, why should Your Majesty work hard? The people are controlled by officials, and Your Majesty is controlled by officials. As long as Your Majesty can control the officials well, he is the wise lord!"

Zhu Houzhao smiled, and his gloomy face that had been before finally improved. He looked at Zhang Yuan and said, "Eunuch Zhang, you don't think so smart in normal times, but you can hear me so much... Well, I have roughly the same idea as you. I have come to a good time, and I have many talented people under him, such as Chen Shangshu of War, and his abilities are considered to be unprecedented? Behind every wise lord, there must be a group of wise ministers. I think with ministers like Chan Shangshu, history will definitely record my mark in the future..."

Before he realized that Zhu Houzhao was already floating.

Zhang Yuan understood one truth. No matter what, Zhu Houzhao was just a half-aged child and needed someone to coax him. In the past, Liu Jin was not as powerful as his knowledge and ability, but only knew how to flatter and invite favors in front of the emperor. With Zhang Yuan's current understanding, as long as he could please Zhu Houzhao and some ruthless means, he would definitely succeed.

Zhu Houzhao said: "This incident made me restless. If you want to say that Liu Jin's ability is there, I don't believe that he will make mistakes repeatedly... A messenger returned to the court to report good news in the name of Liu Jin. Who would have thought that such a big storm would cause? Is this person sent by Liu Jin not sure?"

Zhang Yuan was still complacent before, feeling that he had mastered the essence of flattery, but when he heard Zhu Houzhao's words, he couldn't help but become nervous and said tactfully: "Your Majesty, some things... there is no wind or wave."

"What do you mean? Are you trying to say that those ministers have objections to Liu Jin because they were much more mean by Liu Jin in the past? Humph, others can say this, but you can't, do you know? I know that you want to take over Liu Jin's position, but I have considered it, you are not that suitable for the time being!"

This made Zhang Yuan feel cold, but Zhu Houzhao himself did not realize that his words were hurting. "No matter what Liu Jin did in Xuanfu, at least he would take care of the government affairs, I could stay in the leopard room with confidence and never lack money on hand... Others complained in front of me, saying that he was corrupt, fed his own pockets, and promoted his followers to the court. But I observed those so-called eunuchsmen, who were all good at abilities, such as Jiao Ge Lao and Liu Shangshu, who had a good reputation in the court!"

Zhang Yuan complained deeply: "What is good? Is there a standard? Liu Yu is just a puppet, and Jiao Fang has done all the bad things. These people only follow Liu Jin's orders. Others call Liu Jin Jiu Qiansui. Who dares to say these words to you?"

Zhu Houzhao said again: "No one is perfect, just correct one's shortcomings. I can't beat a person to death because of a temporary mistake! This way, Eunuch Zhang, I'll give you a task..."

Hearing this, Zhang Yuan became cautious and felt that his chance to make contributions had come. If he did well, he might have the opportunity to enter the Silijian, become the eunuch of the seal, and then reach the peak of his life...

"...I asked you to keep an eye on it. If the Ministry of War reports that Liu Jin has indeed falsely reported his military achievements, you can kill the messenger who came to report the victory before, so that there will be no evidence to die. Even if others attack Liu Jin, no one will prove it!" Zhu Houzhao felt that he had come up with a good plan and ordered with a smile.

The speaker was happy, but when he heard the man, his face was full of gray.

Zhang Yuanxin quickly sank. He finally knew how high Liu Jin's status was in Zhu Houzhao's mind. He couldn't help but wonder: "What did I do wrong or have any shortcomings that made Your Majesty respect Liu Jin so much, but I can't get His Majesty's trust?"

He didn't know that Liu Jin not only served as Zhu Houzhao's personal companion for a long time, but also took Zhu Houzhao to travel to Jiangnan together. Liu Jin knew many secrets that could not be told.

Liu Jin works in front of Zhu Houzhao, without asking for returns and willing to invest, while Zhang Yuan is always smart in front of Zhu Houzhao. This is the difference between him and Zhang Yuan and Liu Jin.

"Your Majesty, the messenger has been seen by the court officials before. Is this appropriate?

Zhu Houzhao looked at Zhang Yuan with a slanted eyes and said, "You said this to doubt my IQ? You don't think about who I am and what your brain is. Even if this messenger has been seen by those ministers, he just unilaterally said it was Liu Jin's man and killed the person. Who knows the authenticity? I just don't want to make this matter big, I think it was a meticulous work by the Tartars, and I want to provoke discord in front of me..."

Zhang Yuan was dissatisfied when he heard this and his breathing was a little uncomfortable. Zhu Houzhao's cover for Liu Jin made him feel that he was a little helpless as the eunuch.

He felt that he could not continue to do it after being so biased.

"Why can those ministers give up at any time but I can't do it? Even if I have any objections in my heart, I still have to be this eunuch who is neither male nor female and suffer all my life?"

Zhu Houzhao said: "Did you hear it? I asked you to keep an eye on it. Be sure to pay attention. This matter is related to my face. If you do well, I will naturally have a reward."

"Yes, your Majesty!"

Zhang Yuan lowered his head with a bitter face, not to mention how awkward it was.

Zhu Houzhao said again: "Look at the Ministry of War. If there is any news, remember to spread it to me as soon as possible... Well, you'd better stay in the Ministry of War and go in and out with Shangshu Shen. If there is no report on victory today, there will be no more. When you return to the palace at night, you can kill the person and end it all!"

"yes."

Zhang Yuan responded first, his head lowered, and his heart was full of bitterness, and he couldn't help but cry.

Zhu Houzhao waved his hand: "Since you understand, go now. Don't talk nonsense when you arrive in front of Shen Shangshu. I have high hopes for you. If you don't do well, I won't look for you if I have this job in the future. I will never raise people who eat idle food!"

After being frightened by Zhu Houzhao and being maliciously defamed, Zhang Yuan was mixed with all kinds of feelings. He came out of the Qianqing Palace and felt like he had lost his soul.

"Eunuch Zhang, have you just been in here to meet the saint? What are your Majesty's instructions?" The eunuch Li Xing, the imperial chief, was waiting for the news outside. When he saw Zhang Yuan coming out, he stepped forward to compliment him.

Zhang Yuan calmed down, looked at Li Xing, and said, "What did Your Majesty say? What does it have to do with you? Your Majesty has arranged a very important errand for our family to do. You can go back and sort out the account book, and then find someone to calculate it in detail... Our family doesn't care about the accounts for the time being. Let's check it carefully. Remember to record the names of those who give gifts. When we look back, our family will also promote these people!"

Zhang Yuan is preparing to learn from Liu Jin to be a corrupt official.

His hand did not extend to the court officials, because his power was not enough to affect the court officials and no ministers sold his face, so he could only focus his attention on the eunuchs in the palace, let these people pay for money to fill the deficit in the inner treasury, and promise to give promotions in the future to post and status, and make many short checks.

Liu Jin lost power, and even if the eunuchs were unhappy, they would still take out some money as appropriate. However, after Liu Jin reported his military achievements, the internal supervisors felt waiting and watching. After all, the eunuchs couldn't understand. Will Liu Jin fall completely or will he rise again in the future?

In this way, the money he had promised to give was now refused to give it to him, and Li Xing became furious because of this, but those who paid the money had a good status, and even deacons and eunuchs like Dai Yi and Gao Feng were among them. Li Xing had no choice but to come and discuss with Zhang Yuan.

But because Zhang Yuan was in a bad mood and was anxious to deal with the matter of sending troops, he left Li Xing with a few words and left in a hurry. Li Xing didn't even have time to tell Zhang Yuan about this.

Zhang Yuan originally thought that no one dared not pay the money, but he didn't know that many people are now looking forward to Liu Jin's return.

Those people would rather be bullied by Liu Jin than be exploited by a newcomer like Zhang Yuan, because Zhang Yuan's efforts to make money from the people below were much greater than Liu Jin at the time.

At that time, the eunuchs below only had to pay a little money to curry favor with Liu Jin. Unlike now, even the internal treasury expenses had to be borne by these people. Now Liu Jin has become the eunuchs in these systems who are looking forward to coming back to take charge of the overall situation. When Liu Jin comes back, these people may not only not have to pay money, but also drink soup and get benefits from the internal treasury.

...

...

Zhang Yuan came out of the Ganqing Palace and went to find the people from the Jinyiwei first.

He first greeted the Jinyiwei and watched the messenger firmly, so that he could not run away or die. He had to wait for him to come back to deal with everything. Then Zhang Yuan calmed down and went to the Ministry of War. He was in a hurry along the way and finally saw Chen Xi in the Ministry of War.

At this time, Chen Xi had just returned from the Ministry of Rites and had not been very surprised by Zhang Yuan's visit. In Shen Xi's opinion, regardless of whether Zhu Houzhao made an explanation, Zhang Yuan should be concerned about the information on the Ministry of War.

Zhang Yuan was not seen. After arriving at Chen Xi's office, he sat down, as if he was at his own home. He asked in a plain tone: "Is there no news about Xuanfu yet?"

Chen Xi was so amused and laughed when he saw Zhang Yuan's attitude.

"There are news from Xuanfu at all times. I wonder what news is about Eunuch Zhang?" Chen Xi sat back on the desk and asked back.

Zhang Yuan said: "Didn't Mr. Chen ask this knowingly? What Your Majesty wants to know is a good news. If Xuanfu won a great victory two days ago, the Ministry of War should have received the news today... Our family is not wrong, right?"

Chen Xi smiled and said, "Eunuch Zhang knows a lot about the errands of the Ministry of War."

Zhang Yuan said angrily: "Our family has been ordered by the emperor to find out the news. Don't ask about other things, and we won't tell you even if you ask."

Chen Xi had already sat down, but when he heard Zhang Yuan's words, his body stiffened slightly, and he was already thinking about the meaning behind Zhang Yuan's words.

Chen Xi said to himself: "If you don't say this, I won't think too much. Since you said it, it means that you are carrying the errands entrusted by Your Majesty. From your impatient attitude, you can see that this matter is very unfavorable to you. It doesn't need to be said that it is related to Liu Jin's return to the court... I am afraid that even if Liu Jin falsely reports his military achievements, he will be safe and sound in the end, and your emotions will be so negative. Doesn't this mean that the emperor is preparing to attack the messenger who spreads the news?"

Just because of Zhang Yuan's attitude, Chen Xi guessed the whole story. Zhang Yuan never expected that he had accidentally revealed the truth of the matter.

Chen Xi asked, "Your Majesty asked you to be in charge of the Ministry of War and will never be separated from me?"

"Hmph, you really got it right. Your Majesty did explain this. Don't believe it. Your Majesty is the war in Xuanfu now. After all, it is about Long Yan." Zhang Yuan said.

Chen Xi shook his head and smiled bitterly, and asked, "Do you hope the final result is whether Liu Jin falsely declares his military achievements or whether the border really wins a great victory?"

Zhang Yuan thought for a while and said, "Since the dignity of Your Majesty is involved, it is best if the dog thief named Liu does not falsely report it, so that everyone will have a better life."

"oh."

Chen Xi was not sure of his guess before, but when Zhang Yuan's attitude changed, he knew that it was exactly what he expected.

Zhang Yuan was very repulsive. Chen Xi thought about the whole story and felt helpless. Zhu Houzhao would actually do things that disregard principles for a eunuch. I wonder how many ministers in the court who were dedicated to serving the country and the people were disappointed. Chen Xi said intimately: "You can't tell Mr. Xie about this matter. If he lets him know, he will not be furious, or even let go of his head and go back to the countryside?"

Thinking of this, Chen Xi shook his head helplessly again. He had already thought about how much impact Xie Qianli's court would have on him. He could not let this situation happen.

Zhang Yuan said: "Our family didn't have a good rest yesterday. Is there a place to stay here?"

Chen Xi saw Zhang Yuan's attitude and knew that Zhang Yuan was no longer interested in the result of the matter. Anyway, whether Liu Jin had false reports, Zhu Houzhao would go back to protect Liu Jin. It was inevitable that Liu Jin would return to the court. Zhang Yuan was tired and wanted to sleep, and even his intention to help the emperor was faded.

Chen Xi nodded: "There are naturally places to rest. I have someone take you to rest. If you have any questions, just come and find me. I will stay in the Ministry of War today and wait until dusk before leaving!"

"That's good! Let's save our family from looking for you everywhere!"

After Zhang Yuan finished speaking, he stood up and walked to the backyard of the Ministry of War. Judging from his posture, he really didn't want to know any news.
Chapter completed!