Harem Daily Life

Chapter 499 Retreating to Advance

In the evening, Tao Qian was invited to the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion. The two chatted in the study until very late, and Tao Qian quietly left through the side door of the mansion.

The next day, after the court session, Ningyuan Hou went to the imperial study to ask for an audience with the emperor.

"Lord Gu, is there something urgent?" He Linzhang asked after he had time to read the brief report on the annual expenses submitted by the Ministry of Revenue.

Ningyuan Hou stepped forward respectfully, bowed, and then slowly reported to the emperor: "Your Majesty, General Rong has returned triumphantly this time. He has finally returned to the capital after guarding the border for many years. I think the Rong family has been loyal for generations and has made great contributions. General Rong has guarded the border and protected the people. His loyalty is evident to all! In my humble opinion, with the Rong family's profound qualifications and General Rong's sincere heart for serving the country for so many years, he should be granted the title of marquis, which will be hereditary. This way, the court can show its great respect for loyal ministers and generals!"

He Linzhang tapped lightly on the imperial desk with his fingers. On his left hand side were several memorials, all of which were requests to confer a higher title on General Rong.

There were people from the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of War, and now there was also Ningyuan Hou standing in front of him, asking for his help in person.

Marquis Ningyuan is the imperial concubine's uncle. Although the outside world is not aware of this relationship, He Linzhang does not believe that Marquis Ningyuan will sincerely help the Rong family at this moment.

He gave Zhang Fuhai a look, and Eunuch Zhang tactfully called everyone in the imperial study out.

There were only two people left in the imperial study. He Linzhang sat upright on the dragon throne, his posture as straight as a pine tree. The bright yellow dragon robe made him look extremely majestic.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, staring coldly at Marquis Gu below, and said, "Marquis Gu, if you have anything to say, just speak frankly. Why do you have to go to so much trouble to test my feelings?"

As he spoke, an invisible imperial pressure emanated from him. Ning Yuanhou became even more respectful and stood with his hands hanging down.

"Your Majesty, everything I said just now was truly from the bottom of my heart. I had no intention of testing your Majesty's feelings. I hope your Majesty will not misunderstand me." Ning Yuanhou immediately apologized.

He Linzhang chuckled: "I know how you treat the imperial concubine. Tell me, don't challenge my patience."

He Linzhang looked at Ningyuan Hou leisurely.

Ning Yuanhou smiled awkwardly, and then said helplessly: "Alas, Your Majesty is Your Majesty after all, and you can see through my thoughts at once."

He Linzhang raised his eyebrows and thought that your sudden presence at Rong's house is suspicious in itself, it would be strange if I didn't suspect you.

Ning Yuanhou seemed to struggle for a moment before he spoke: "Yesterday General Rong returned to the capital and the people lined the streets to welcome him, which shows that General Rong has a high prestige in the hearts of the people. In the harem, Concubine De is in charge of the six palaces and has given birth to the eldest prince, so her prestige is also very high."

"I used to think that the Imperial Concubine was smart, kind and gentle, so I thought she was a good candidate for the Empress. But after General Rong returned to the capital, I realized that the Ningyuan Marquisate was weak after all, and I was very worried that I would not be able to help the Imperial Concubine."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at the emperor, and seeing that he did not look unhappy, he continued, "The imperial concubine will give birth in early March after the Chinese New Year. I only hope that they can be safe and healthy. Then I will be worthy of my sister in heaven."

Ning Yuanhou was so sad that his voice became hoarse when he said this: "After much thought, I finally decided that it would be better to sell the Rong family so that we can avoid it. I only hope that the imperial concubine can escape from this vortex of fighting and live a rich and noble life."

He said all these deliberately after discussing with Tao Qian last night. His purpose was to retreat in order to advance and see whether His Majesty would stand firmly on Tao Yanyan's side.

Furthermore, the more the Rong family's reputation is raised, the more His Majesty will be wary of the Rong family. Ning Yuanhou saw the emperor's suspicion.

Of course, they were also prepared for His Majesty to really confer the title of nobility on General Rong. After all, even if Marquis Ningyuan did not mention it, the Ministry of War would. Since someone would nominate it anyway, it would not be that important whether one more person or one less person mentioned it.

Ningyuan Hou's show of weakness really caused He Linzhang to ponder.

He picked up a memorial and handed it to Ning Yuanhou: "Take a look. There are quite a few memorials requesting a title for General Rong."

Ningyuan Hou took it respectfully, looked at it, and returned it: "Your Majesty, there is actually no need to think too much about the matter of conferring a title of nobility. It would be inappropriate if it is not conferred."

The people are looking forward to it, so many court officials are looking forward to it, the Rong family is looking forward to it, how can you not confer the title? If you hesitate or delay, the supporters of the Rong family will be confused, and if they are confused, they will cause trouble.

He Linzhang chuckled and shook his head: "For so many years, although the father and son of the Rong family have been guarding the border, there has been no war between Xia Kingdom and the Great Zhou. However, I have spent nearly one million taels of silver just to support the army. I am the one who supports the army, and it is my court officials who write memorials, but they all turn to the Rong family, and they can't wait to ask me to reward the Rong family!"

Ningyuan Hou did not say anything, but listened quietly to the emperor's sigh.

"You are right. There is no need to think too much about the matter of being conferred a title of nobility. It has to be conferred whether you want it or not." He Linzhang pondered for a moment, opened the memorial and wrote a few words.

"As for the position of queen, I prefer the noble concubine. When she gives birth to the child safely, I will issue an edict to confer the title on her." He Linzhang gave Ningyuan Hou a reassurance.

Ning Yuanhou was excited in his heart, but he looked worried: "Your Majesty, what if... the imperial concubine gave birth to two princesses?"

Ning Yuan Hou hoped that Tao Yanyan could give birth to a prince, so that she would be more legitimate.

He Linzhang said calmly: "It doesn't matter. Giving birth to a princess is also a contribution to the country."

He Linzhang thought to himself that Jin'an was also a prince, and he was raised under Yan Yan's name, just like his own son. If Yan Yan only gave birth to a princess in the end, then he should train Jin'an well. At the moment, this child seemed to be very outstanding.

When Ningyuan Hou heard this, he understood the emperor's intention and finally felt relieved.

As the New Year approaches, all departments of the court are extremely busy. The Ministry of Personnel is busy evaluating the performance of officials. Some should be promoted, some should be demoted, some should be commended, and some should be criticized. Every official above the fifth rank must eventually submit their evaluation to the emperor for his review.

After reading the memorial submitted by the Ministry of Personnel, He Linzhang said to the Minister of Personnel: "General Rong has served on the frontier for many years and has made great contributions. I want to confer him the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery. You can read the imperial edict."

The Minister of Personnel did not expect that the Emperor would approve it so quickly, and he took the job with a delighted look on his face.

It is true that the Rong family is a family of military generals, but their family foundation is not as deep as that of the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion. If we talk about their real leap to the level of power and nobility in Kyoto, it started from the generation of General Rong.

Therefore, General Rong's personal strength was still very strong. He was favored by the late emperor and was selected as one of the ministers to assist He Linzhang. He also sent a daughter to the Eastern Palace.

Naturally, no one had any objection to him being conferred the title of marquis, and people came to congratulate him one after another.