Raising chickens and pigs and digging for wild vegetables, the county magistrate's promotion wa

Chapter 181 Old Zhu: Thank goodness, they weren't coming for us.

When Empress Ma returned to the capital with Zhu Biao, Zhu Lao Er, Zhu Lao San, Jin'er, and Yu'er, she noticed that the atmosphere in the court was slightly off.

Busy and anxious, these were the two expressions on the faces of almost every official I met along the way. I could no longer see their leisurely and reserved demeanor.

Empress Ma was curious. After returning to the palace, she first asked Zhu Lao Er, Zhu Lao San, Jin'er, and Yu'er to settle in. Then she asked the hurried Emperor Zhu Chongba, "What's going on in the capital? Why do all the officials I've met along the way look so busy?"

Emperor Zhu Chongba chuckled, pulled Empress Ma to sit down, and said with a smile, "This all started with the memorial submitted by our good son-in-law."

Under Empress Ma's curious gaze, Zhu Chongba carefully took out Magistrate Yang's memorial from his pocket, and then handed it to Empress Ma like a treasure: "Here, this is the memorial. With it, as long as nothing unexpected happens, even if Biao'er's descendants are not up to par, our Ming Dynasty can still be secure!"

Empress Ma curiously took the memorial, glanced at it a few times, and then suddenly frowned and asked, "You sent Chen Zhong to Ningyang County to make trouble for Magistrate Yang?"

Upon hearing Empress Ma's words, Emperor Zhu Chongba's smile froze, and he cautiously said, "We did ask Chen Zhong to give him a hard time, but we told Chen Zhong not to provoke him. Chen Zhong is known for knowing when to advance and retreat, so he probably won't... Maybe it was someone from the Ministry of Rites or the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs who offended him?"

Empress Ma chuckled and said, "Then tell me, where did this memorial come from? To get it to you before I returned to the capital, it must have been sent by express courier, right? Also, where are Chen Zhong and the others? Why haven't they returned to report yet?"

Emperor Zhu's heart skipped a beat, and he tentatively asked, "Does my sister mean that this bastard has no good intentions and is just here to cause trouble for us?"

Empress Ma nodded slightly and said, "It's possible that it wasn't directed at you—judging from the contents of his memorial, it should be as you said, that the people from the Ministry of Rites and the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs angered him, which is why he's resorting to all sorts of tricks again."

"Of course, how he torments you and the ministers in the court is a matter between you, him, and the ministers. Moreover, the commotion he creates is beneficial to our Ming Dynasty and to the people."

At this point, Empress Ma couldn't help but smile again: "But it's all good. All the commotion he's caused has brought endless benefits to our Great Ming Dynasty and the people. The only ones who will suffer are the officials in the court. We don't need to worry about that; let him be."

Emperor Zhu finally breathed a sigh of relief, "I knew it! Our son-in-law is a man of principle. He definitely wasn't after us this time."

After saying this, Emperor Zhu held Empress Ma's hand tightly and said, "You must be tired from the long journey. We've had some snacks prepared for you. Have something to tide you over."

Upon hearing Emperor Zhu's words, Empress Ma immediately burst out laughing and said, "You good-for-nothing Zhu Chongba, when it's not your turn to cause trouble, you're our son-in-law, a good son-in-law, but when it's your turn to cause trouble, you're a dog, right?"

Empress Ma slapped away Emperor Zhu's hand and then instructed the palace maid beside her, "Go and heat up all the things we brought back from Ningyang County. Once they're heated up, go and call the Crown Prince over for dinner."

After the palace maids had left, Empress Ma sighed softly and said, "This trip to Ningyang County has truly left me with many impressions. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, who would believe that there is such an official in the world as Magistrate Yang, who is so dedicated to the people? And who would believe that a young man who is not even twenty years old could have such abilities?"

Emperor Zhu hummed in agreement and said, "Is the sister referring to that theory on commerce and commercial taxes?"

Empress Ma nodded slightly again.

"It seems that your good son-in-law has long been dissatisfied with the commercial tax, but he also knows the pros and cons. He only talked to Biao'er about it and did not submit a memorial to you directly."

"Also, do you know what he said to Biao'er when Biao'er asked him about his views on tributary states?"

Before Emperor Zhu could speak, Empress Ma continued, "He told Biao'er that a great nation should be magnanimous."

Emperor Zhu was slightly taken aback and asked, "A great nation should naturally be magnanimous? That's not right. These words are clearly inconsistent with that scoundrel's behavior."

"Don't be fooled by his usual nice-natured demeanor. Even Liu Hongchang and Master Geng's relatives only did manual labor in Ningyang County and never caused any trouble. But this bastard is definitely not a good person—he even sent Limpy Wu to Chang Heitan to test medicine on Semu people. Do you think he's the kind of person who treats barbarians as human beings?"

"If you ask me, he considers the people of the Ming Dynasty to be human, but those who are not people of the Ming Dynasty, especially those Semu people, may not even be considered human in his eyes."

"Do you think someone like him would be as magnanimous as those poor, pedantic scholars?"

"You really know your good son-in-law!" Empress Ma chuckled and said, "Biao'er later kept pestering him to ask how a great nation should be magnanimous. He actually told Biao'er that the Han envoys were all very magnanimous, and that the Ming Dynasty should be like the Han and Tang Dynasties, never meant to be liked by barbarians, but rather meant to be feared by them."

Emperor Zhu finally breathed a sigh of relief, "I knew it! This dog is just like a watchdog; how could he be like those poor, pedantic scholars?"

At this point, Emperor Zhu couldn't help but smack his lips and said, "This is good too. At least we won't have to worry about Biao'er being fooled like a fool in the future."

Empress Ma smiled and nodded, then chatted with Emperor Zhu for a while. After the palace maids brought up sausages, luncheon meat, dried chicken, smoked ribs, and other dishes, Empress Ma smiled and said, "Back then, you and Biao'er were wondering whether your good son-in-law was good at making a name for himself or something else. Now you'll know. He's just good at talking. You can't afford to lose anything but his mouth!"

After serving Emperor Zhu a few bites of sausage and luncheon meat, Empress Ma continued, "However, these things he prepared this time are relatively easy to preserve, and they are perfect for sending to Xu Da and Chang Yuchun as rewards for the soldiers. It's just that the national treasury..."

"By the way, besides being a smooth talker, he also loves to enjoy life. Because he was afraid of the cold in winter, he made a down comforter, saying that it was made of duck down instead of cotton, which was both light and warm. He also wove a heated kang in the house and used glass instead of paper for the windows. He was even more extravagant than those high-ranking officials in the capital."

"As for other things... well, he doesn't seem greedy at all. But he always sneaks peeks at Jin'er and Yu'er when no one is looking. With his shifty eyes, he looks like a lecherous man. He's just like his future father-in-law."

Upon hearing the words "thief-like eyes," Emperor Zhu couldn't help but reach out and touch his own face.

Back then, we liked to secretly watch you, Ma Dajiao, but our old Zhu is also quite handsome, so how could he be considered shifty-eyed?

Besides, when did our old Zhu ever become a lecher?