Chen Xi is not at home, and in fact he doesn't need to stay at this time.

He predicted Zhu Houzhao's decision in advance. He was very familiar with Zhu Houzhao's personality. In the previous strategy, he suggested that all the money be returned, and Zhu Houzhao also agreed.

No matter how nonsense Zhu Houzhao was, he was still a reasonable emperor. If it weren't for this, Chen Xi wouldn't have been killed by it, and might have thought of replacing it.

On the same day, Chen Xi left the Shen family and stayed at Hui Niang's place. He had already greeted Yun Liu in advance. If there was any emergency, he could notify him in time.

After all, the next day was the day of the grand dynasty meeting. Although Chen Xi would not attend, he was still the focus of this dynasty discussion. The court and the court were all focusing on him, which was really impossible to avoid.

"……The master has done all major things recently. I thought he would not come today. Tomorrow is the day for the court to discuss, so why not stay in the mansion and wait for news?"

Hui Niang was very surprised by Chen Xi's arrival and felt that he could not come to her at this critical moment.

"Annoyed."

Chen Xi answered simply and directly, "Are Hui Niang satisfied with this reason?"

"Puchi!"

Li Jin couldn't help laughing when she heard this. She felt that Chen Xi's words were always so funny and humorous, and she didn't have the airs that a big man should have.

Hui Niang gave Chen Xi annoyed and said, "You said that in front of me, I really don't know how you, the master, are you."

Chen Xi smiled and said, "Well, Hui Niang, you are still confronting me in front of your sisters. Do you don't respect me?"

Hui Niang ignored it, but what Chen Xi said was a fact. Although she usually obeyed Chen Xi's words, she would occasionally show some of the few opinions that women of this era rarely had and fight against Chen Xi.

After calming down, Chen Xi raised his head and said, "Training the affairs of the palace is exhausted... After the northern border has settled, I should have had a lot of time to rest, but I didn't want to be idle at all. First, I was responsible for the selection of the Secretariat and the seal selection work, and then there were envoys from foreign countries that needed me to receive them. I'm afraid there would be other things to do in the future..."

Hui Niang said, "Then the master will not come here in the future."

Chen Xi shook his head: "You can't bring business into your private life, it's hard and tiring... I'm willing to take time to spend more time with you."

When Chen Xi was talking, Sui An and Dongxi, who were teasing Chen Hong, looked at him frequently, as if they felt that these words were too emotional and not like what a big man should say.

Until now, they only vaguely know that Chen Xi is from a very extraordinary origin and is a high-ranking official in the court. As for what specific official he is, they are not very clear.

With their knowledge, they couldn't understand the conversation between Chen Xi and Hui Niang and Li Jin at all.

Hui Niang asked, "That's the matter of the master's title..."

“No news for the time being.”

Chen Xi smiled and explained, "Your Majesty, I remembered that it was like one after another, and there were many loud storms and thunders, but the raindrops were very small in the end, so I didn't have much hope from the beginning."

"Actually, it's nothing. Your Majesty did this just to win me over. Now I have arranged for me to do something else. He told me to do things as an emperor, and I have no other choice except to obey. After all, he is the king and I am the minister, and this relationship will not change."

...

...

Early the next morning, the Meridian Gate of Forbidden City began to gather a large number of officials, and it was the day of the grand court meeting.

After Emperor Zhengde ascended the throne, the affairs of the court were basically desolate. Although whether Zhu Houzhao went to court did not have a great impact on the affairs of the court, Emperor Hongzhi left him a good team, and most of the court officials were wise and capable, but for the ministers, they really wanted to get the opportunity to directly meet the emperor. This court meeting was the first time after the end of the Battle of Tatars, which made the ministers have a lot of hope for this.

As the chief minister of the cabinet, Xie Qian naturally became the target of attention of all civil and military officials. Because it was a grand dynasty meeting, many people who had not appeared for a long time appeared.

However, there were still two ministerial-level people who did not come, one was Chen Xi, the Minister of War, and the other was Bai Yue, the Minister of Rites.

As for why the two did not attend the court meeting, most officials knew very well. Only a few people who closed their eyes and listened to each other asked more questions after meeting each other, and then they discussed it. The reality was that they had a lot of remarks about Chen Xi not attending the court meeting.

"...Yu Qiao, it's all up to you to report to His Majesty to you." He Jian brought several ministers to greet Xie Qian.

Xie Qian is the head of the cabinet minister. He is already responsible for reading memorials and drafting votes, which makes his status stand out. Xie Qian's attitude towards He Jian is OK, but when he saw the few people brought by He Jian, his face was not very good.

The Minister of War Chen Xi did not come. The Left Minister of War was Lu Wan, the left minister of the Ministry of War, who had always been prejudiced by Xie Qian. In addition, the Minister of Justice Zhang Zilin was also regarded by Xie Qian as a remnant of the eunuch party. As for the Minister of Works Li Yu, he had a close relationship with Chen Xi, and no one from the Ministry of Rites came to say hello, so Yang Yiqing, the Minister of Revenue, who was standing in the last position, Xie Qian still felt it was a bit more pleasing to him.

Regardless of whether Xie Qian liked him or not, after someone bowed to him, he still nodded politely, which was considered a return of the gift.

More than four years after Zhu Houzhao ascended the throne, officials in the court have changed frequently. First, Liu Jin suppressed a group of old ministers, and then liquidated the eunuch party. In just four years, officials in the court have changed several times. This group of people have been considered relatively stable teams. It is long for Zhengde Dynasty to be the Minister of Shangshu for two years, and now they are facing new changes. At least Bai Yue and He Jian have clearly proposed to surrender and return to the country.

Because there was still some time before entering North Korea, a few people stayed with Xie Qian and were about to discuss it in advance.

He Jian asked, "Yu Qiao, why didn't you see the mentor?"

Xie Qian shook his head and said, "He had returned to the cabinet a few days ago, but today he was taking leave due to physical discomfort and probably would not attend this court meeting."

He Jian sighed: "I don't know how many people will be replaced this time, but it's good that everything in the court is stable now, so I can leave with confidence."

At this time, He Jian still had great expectations for the return of the old man to the field. Zhang Zilin and others beside him spoke out to keep him. After all, He Jian was not as ill as Bai Yue and could not get out of bed. He could still hold on in the court for a few years to make use of his remaining energy, but He Jian had no intention of compromise.

Xie Qian had long understood He Jian's attitude and did not force himself to stay, but he made up his mind and would not take the initiative to help He Jian resign in the court meeting. His eyes were always aiming at the direction of the palace gate, as if he was looking forward to something.

...

...

For Zhu Houzhao, the Chao would be the greatest torment.

He is used to the day and night in a reversal of work and day. He is the most tired during the morning. He can sleep until dusk when he falls on the bed. His favorite rhythm is to handle government affairs before going to bed, summon Xiaozi to ask about things, and then ask questions while washing and asking, and it will probably be done.

But it was different to convene a court meeting. He had to return to the palace from the leopard room, go to the hall to meet the ministers, and make a round before he could return to the leopard room to rest. He had to wait until the sun was over. With his habit of "sunrise" obviously he could not bear it.

Early in the morning, Zhu Houzhao came out of the backyard of the leopard room while yawning. Xiaotiaozi had been waiting for a long time.

Xiao Tiaozi was very nervous at this time. It was not that he was afraid that Zhu Houzhao would not attend the court meeting. Anyway, Zhu Houzhao didn't know how many times he had let go of pigeons before, and it was not bad this time. What he was afraid that Zhu Houzhao would not give a clear letter, and the ministers came to ask him and he was not able to answer.

"His Majesty."

When Xiao Tiaozi saw Zhu Houzhao appear, his heart was finally relieved.

However, seeing Zhu Houzhao wearing casual clothes and not wearing dragon robes and treasure belts, she couldn't help but lift her heart up again. This is not the rhythm of attending the court discussion.

Zhu Houzhao said: "If I remember correctly, I will hold a grand ceremony in Fengtian Palace today, right?"

"Yes, your majesty." Xiao Zhuozi answered cautiously.

Zhu Houzhao sighed softly: "Shangshu Chen always asks me questions. I originally said that I would hold a court meeting once a month, and I just want to hold it once every ten years. Isn't this a torment to me?"

The emperor complained with a frustration on his face. When Xiao Taozi heard this, he complained: "I don't know who the court is. As the emperor, you don't even want to participate in the court meeting. Who will leave the court affairs to take care of?"

Zhu Houzhao asked again: "Have all the ministers gone to the palace?"

Xiao Guozi was stunned and said, "I don't know, should I send someone to check now?"

Zhu Houzhao thought to himself: "If the ministers were asked to come to the Leopard Room to hold a court meeting, what do you think? The environment here is more casual. You can sit down and chat about it. If you have any questions, I will review it immediately, so you don't have to go back to the palace to make trouble."

Xiao Guozi quickly replied: "Your Majesty, if you do this inconsistent with the rules, you will inevitably be criticized by the censors, which will damage Your Majesty's reputation. In addition, according to regulations, all officials above the sixth rank must participate in the dynasty, that is, there are about a thousand officials involved. There is not such a big house in the Leopard Room to meet the court officials!"

Zhu Houzhao asked with some annoyance: "This is not OK, that is not OK. After all, I am the emperor and have the final right to judge the affairs of the court... Shangshu Chen is sure not to participate in this dynasty today, right?"

"Yes, your Majesty."

Xiao Tiaozi replied with a grievance on his face.

Zhu Houzhao said: "If he doesn't go, it doesn't matter whether I go or not... Well, I'm a little sleepy, so let's sleep first."

"Then... how should I explain to those ministers this time?" Xiao Taozi asked hurriedly.

In Xiao Guozi's opinion, it is okay whether the emperor goes or not. He is responsible for letting the ministers know whether they need to wait.

Zhu Houzhao turned around and left a sentence: "Let them wait first. Anyway, I'm going to bed. If I wake up at noon, I'll go to the court meeting. If I can't wake up, I'll forget it... It's not interesting to go to the palace so early. In the future, change the court meeting to before Mao, or Shen, You, so everyone is fine..."

While speaking, Zhu Houzhao went to the bedroom. The plausible words he said made Xiao Tiaozi very embarrassed.

Xiao Tuozi looked at Zhu Houzhao's back and muttered in his heart: "It means to let you all wait? Then, depending on your Majesty's mood, are you interested in seeing them? This Ming Dynasty official is really hard to be a good official."

...

...

The officials basically got up in the middle of the night, set off after a little tidying up, and arrived at the Wumen Gate one after another before the hour of Mao.

As a result, it was not until mid-Chen that the eunuchs on duty came out to pass the message and asked the ministers to enter the palace.

As the palace gate opened, all the officials entered one after another, crossed the Jinshui Bridge, prepared to pass through the Fengtian Gate, and went to the Fengtian Hall to participate in the court meeting. At this time, they were wondering whether the emperor had arrived at the Golden Palace.

In front of Fengtian Gate, Xiao Guozi was already waiting there. As a eunuch who was on duty in the Sili Supervisory Office and also a close servant of Zhu Houzhao, he came to pass the message this time.

Xiao Tiaozi walked to the queue and said loudly: "Sir, don't go forward anymore, wait for the audience here first!"

One sentence made the ministers who were walking in the front feel angry.

Why, let us attend the court meeting, either or not, but we stopped in front of Fengtian Gate. What is this saying?

Because Liu Jin had falsely circulated imperial edicts to hold a court meeting, but when officials lined up to apology, they scolded all the civil and military officials and arrested the court officials and tortured them to prison. The officials were resistant to waiting for the emperor to hold a court meeting. Even though Xie Qian did not participate in that incident, he still felt that such a purposeless waiting was not a solution.

Xie Qian stepped forward and asked, "Brother-in-law, what's going on?"

Xiao Tiaozi smiled bitterly, approached Xie Qian, and whispered: "Mr. Xie, I won't hide it from you. It was Your Majesty who passed the message and asked you to wait first. Will Your Majesty hold a court meeting today... The villain can't say it well."

Xie Qian heard this very well. After careful consideration, he seemed to have not been successful in attending the court meeting in the past few times. However, when he thought, it would be better to wait here than to go back and not knowing that the court meeting could be held again. If you have the chance, you have to seize it. As for the hard work of your body, it seems irrelevant.

Xie Qian asked with a dark face: "Your Majesty is still in the leopard room?"

Xiao Guozi thought for a while and shook his head apart: "You can't reveal too much information. Please wait first. If you feel tired, officials above the third rank can go to Wenhua Hall to rest, and the rest can sit down and wait on the steps of Fengtian Gate, Zuoshun Gate and Youshun Gate."

While speaking, Xiao Tiaozi looked at the steps behind him and on the left and right sides of the front.

"Nonsense!" Xie Qian didn't say anything, but Lu Wan spoke out loudly, and was extremely disdainful of Xiao Tiaozi's proposal.

Xiao Tiaozi glanced at Lu Wan and smiled bitterly: "If Mr. Lu thinks it is inappropriate, he will pretend that the villain did not say anything. The villain cannot stay here for a long time. He is just responsible for sending messages. If there is news in the future, he will come to inform you as soon as possible. Say goodbye!"

After saying that, Xiao Guozi hurried into Hongzheng Gate, pretended to be Wenhua Hall, and left the palace from Donghua Gate to return to the Leopard Room.
To be continued...