Chenxi is very busy.

He had a lot of things at hand. In addition to affairs in the Ministry of War and military academy, he also had to investigate and handle eunuch party cases and foreign relatives cases, and to calm local civil unrest and raise military expenditures. He even needed to plan the details of sending troops to the grassland next year.

If someone else was facing such great pressure, the work would definitely be so hard to eat and sleep, but it would be quite easy for Chen Xi to deal with it.

At least he can still go to and from get off work on time and maintain a relatively fixed life pattern.

Xie Qian no longer asked about the case of the foreign relatives. Since the hot potato was given to Chen Xi, he didn't want to cause trouble, he just needed to keep a close eye on it.

Empress Dowager Zhang soon learned that Zhu Houzhao arranged for Chen Xi to investigate the Zhang case.

Empress Dowager Zhang would never allow her two younger brothers to have problems. She was a woman who was unwilling to give in. For a little planning, she issued an imperial decree to summon Chen Xi into the palace. Although it did not explain the specific intention, anyone with a discerning eye could see that Empress Dowager Zhang wanted to put pressure on Chen Xi, or to force Chen Xi to surrender.

When the minister entered the palace to meet the empress dowager, this was inconsistent with etiquette and law. Xie Qian did this because he relied on his qualifications, and Chen Xi entered the palace to meet the empress dowager, and he was worried about it.

In the past two days, Chen Xi had a rough investigation of the crimes committed by the Zhang brothers and was mentally prepared to enter the palace to see Empress Dowager Zhang.

On that day, Zhu Houzhao did not hold the Wu Dynasty. Chen Xi entered the palace at Wei and followed the eunuch who was ordered to lead the way and headed all the way to Yongshou Palace.

Chen Xi thought to himself: "Xie Lao'er can come to the palace to see a vain. It's because he is old and in a state of mind. People in the court believe that he will not have anything to do with the empress dowager... And what do I say when I see the empress dowager when I see the empress dowager? If the empress dowager is an elderly person in his fifties and sixties, it's okay, but the key is that she is not yet forty years old..."

Chen Xi couldn't help but think of Hui Niang. In terms of age, Empress Dowager Zhang was only six or seven years older than Hui Niang.

If it were others, they would not dare to think so, but Chen Xi would not worry about these things. His mind was relatively open-minded and his thoughts were not as restricted as the ministers of this era.

When they arrived at Yongshou Palace, the eunuch went in to spread the news. When the empress dowager summoned him, Chen Xi entered.

This is the first time Chen Xi has come to Yongshou Palace, and it is very unfamiliar to him.

When he entered the hall, Chen Xi found that it seemed relatively narrow, or in other words, the reduced version of Kunning Palace, with all carved railings and painted buildings, but it was not as luxurious and exaggerated as the Ganqing Palace and Fengtian Palace. Everything seemed simple and suitable for living at home.

Chen Xi thought to himself: "The court previously allocated funds to rebuild the Cining Palace, Yongshou Palace and other palaces. Why didn't Empress Dowager Zhang build the place where she lives more luxuriously and elegantly?"

Empress Dowager Zhang sat upright on the warm seat. The weather was cold outside, the north wind was howling, and there was light snow in the sky. The temperature in the hall was still suitable. Next to the warm seat, there was a screen. Chen Xi glanced there and judged from the dark shadow that there was someone behind the screen... If Empress Dowager Zhang did not avoid it when she met the foreign minister, Chen Xi thought that there was only Empress Xia, the mother of a country that was famous and unreal.

"I am here to see the Queen Mother."

Chen Xi's etiquette is simple and he did not kneel down to Empress Dowager Zhang.

He hadn't kneeled for Zhu Houzhao for a long time, and the monarch and ministers were not very polite. The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty usually asked the ministers to kneel down during the Fengtian Palace dynasty, and treated his ministers well at other times, which was very different from the rumors in later generations.

Empress Dowager Zhang did not return to Shen Xi, and waved her hand gently, and the palace maids and eunuchs around her bowed and retreated.

In an instant, the Yongshou Palace became deserted, which made Chen Xi feel strange. Although he knew that Empress Dowager Zhang's move was just not to make the family scandals public, he still felt the embarrassment of the lonely man and widowed woman living together in the same room.

"The Chen Qing family is exempt from gifts."

Empress Dowager Zhang's tone was very gentle.

Chen Xi recalled carefully. He didn't even remember when he saw Empress Dowager Zhang last time, and thought to himself: "It must be when the late emperor was alive."

Empress Dowager Zhang said: "Chen Qing family, Ai family came to you because he heard that His Majesty has arranged a new job for you to investigate the case that the ministers participated in before..."

Chen Xi said in his heart: "You are saying this very directly. It seems that you don't need to beat around the bush."

"yes."

Chen Xi also answered very simply, "Your Majesty asked me to thoroughly investigate the illegal acts of forced buying and selling by Marquis of Jianchang and Marquis of Shouning, rape and looting."

Empress Dowager Zhang frowned when she heard this. She didn't like to hear such tendency words, but fortunately she could still keep her restrained. After all, she knew that she was still in the investigation and evidence collection stage. If she had a feud with Chen Xi, it would be no good for the Zhang family. She lacked communication with her son, so Chen Xi only needed to be responsible for Zhu Houzhao. According to the principle, the Empress Dowager, she had no right to summon ministers to meet in the palace.

Now that Shen Xi can come, it is already very considerate to her.

Empress Dowager Zhang said: "Those ministers are thinking about the gains and losses of the people in the court every day to reflect the value of their existence. In fact, many things are false, or small things are exaggerated by them as much as possible."

Empress Dowager Zhang is a smart woman. She doesn't say something directly, for example, she doesn't explicitly say that the Zhang brothers were framed, but instead use some simple truths to explain it.

Chen Xi thought to himself: "Just just now, you didn't think you would be swaying around the bush, why did your style change in a blink of an eye?"

But Empress Dowager Zhang added: "I wonder how Chen Qing's family is investigating?"

Chen Xidao: "Your Majesty arranged for me to investigate the case two days ago. I have a lot of things on hand recently, and Your Majesty has not set a deadline, so I have only made small fuss and have not found useful things... However, judging from the current situation, Shouning Hou and Jianchang Hou did make mistakes."

Empress Dowager Zhang thought that Chen Xi would smooth things out in front of her, but she didn't expect that Chen Xi would directly raise the problem with the Zhang brothers.

Queen Mother Zhang asked in surprise: "Have you not found the result yet? Why... Is it a conclusion so early?"

Chenxi Road: "As far as I know, the land and houses owned by the Housing Housing and the Housing of Jianchang have expanded rapidly in recent years. You can find it clearly from the Shuntian Prefecture household registration book."

"Can't they buy land and houses?" Empress Dowager Zhang said anxiously.

Chen Xi shook his head: "I have read the transcript of the transaction contract stored in Shuntian Mansion and learned that the price of the land and houses purchased by the two marquises was 60% or 70% lower than the market price, and some even had less than 10%, which is a very problematic."

Empress Dowager Zhang looked unhappy: "Can't it be because some farmers in the local area own too much land and cannot cultivate it, so they sell it at a low price? Or maybe some people deliberately set the price so low to avoid taxes... I heard that many people's juren and Jinshi have a lot of land and houses at home, but in fact, these lands are not owned by them, they are just evading taxes under their names!"

Chen Xi couldn't help but look at Empress Dowager Zhang with admiration. This woman knew more than he had imagined. She couldn't help but think to herself: "It seems that you have done your homework and it's hard to deal with today."

Chen Xidao: "Some things can be explained by the Queen Mother's words, but some things cannot be explained clearly... There are indeed many tricks in the fields, but what about the house? The courtyard where the two marquises lived alone has expanded several times since His Majesty ascended the throne. From the fifth entrance to the yard to the more than ten entrances now, some people even compared it with the palace... Although there is no way to compare, the Queen Mother thought about it, why did the families around the marquis' mansion sell the houses passed down from their ancestors?"

Empress Dowager Zhang murmured: "It turns out that the house has been expanded. It's really too much. I won't talk to the Ai family!"

"What did the Empress Dowager say?" Chen Xi asked.

Empress Dowager Zhang coughed and said, "The Ai family didn't say anything, but they just kept a certain doubt about the things that Chen Qing family said... If it was just a matter of land and house, the Ai family would not care so much. Someone attacked the Marquis of Jianchang to rape and loot, and said that he privately dispatched troops in the Beijing camp to do evil. If this matter is confirmed, the impact will be quite large... The Ai family is afraid that the public opinion will be guided by the Di Yi, so they deliberately aroused suspicion from all over the court. Those who submitted memorials and impeachments must be guarded against it!"

When Chen Xi heard this, he felt very familiar. It seemed that everything could be summoned to the enemy. For example, Zhang Yanling's excuse for forcing the robbery of the people and invading the land and houses was also an affair with the Tatars. Chen Xi said seriously: "I am investigating. I will not let good people suffer injustice, nor will the conspirators succeed!"

Empress Dowager Zhang's eyes swept across Chen Xi's face, obviously doubting that this was a bit sincere. What she needs now is a promise, and immediately said:

"If there is no conclusive evidence in the end, Chen Qing's family must bring those censors who are looking for trouble to justice. My Zhang family works diligently to protect the country and the country of Ming Dynasty. The Ai family has only these two younger brothers, so they cannot be wronged... The Ai family cannot avenge them in the palace, so please ask the Chen Qing's family for the matter!"

Chen Xi thought to himself: "Why is it a plea? Can't it be a proof of guilt?" He immediately bowed and bowed and said, "I must do my best."

Empress Dowager Zhang shook her head: "The Ai family knows the difficulty of handling a case. The Chen Qing family shoulders a number of important missions. It is not necessary to find out everything. If you encounter something you don't understand, you can go to see the Marquis of Shouning and Marquis of Jianchang. Although the Chen Qing family is young, they have made countless contributions to the court in the north and the north. I believe that the two brothers of the Ai family are very respectful to you..."

Chen Xi didn't know how to answer the conversation after hearing this, and thought to himself, it would be good if I hadn't been eaten alive by your two brothers, so why did they say respectful? When did they have me in their eyes? I haven't found the real master when I was assassinated at home before, maybe it was his brother's instructions?

Empress Dowager Zhang said: "Chen Qing's family, you should know who impeached Shouning Hou and Jianchang Hou. Can you tell the Ai family the name?"

Chen Xidao: "Forgive me, the Empress Dowager. Before the case is finally concluded, the name of the person who reported the report must be kept confidential so as not to change the case."

Empress Dowager Zhang frowned and said, "The Chen Qing family is really cautious. Do you think the Ai family will retaliate, right? Why is it? This country belongs to the emperor. As the emperor's mother, how can the Ai family destroy their son's platform? The Ai family just wants to know whether there are enemies of Zhang's family among these people who spared no effort to attack my Zhang family, but it is also true... With the Chen Qing family investigating the case, the Ai family can rest assured and believe that they will definitely give our Zhang family a clean clean!"

Queen Mother Zhang didn't think that her two younger brothers would do such lawless things. Even if there were any, the court would try its best to excuse her two younger brothers.

Chen Xi said nothing when facing such a queen mother who helped her relatives and didn't care. It was almost impossible to change the thoughts of such a woman who had lived in the deep palace for a long time. It had no effect in reasoning with Queen Mother Zhang, but would instead cause unpredictable consequences... He would rather tell these to Zhu Houzhao or Xie Qian.

As the saying goes, the right medicine is, no matter how reasonable it makes, it is impossible to reason in front of such a strong woman. He is unwilling to offend this woman to death. At least not at this moment, and he still wants to leave the palace smoothly.

What Empress Dowager Zhang said later was basically criticizing the censors who sued the Zhang family. When talking about Emperor Hongzhi's preferential treatment and trust in the Zhang family, Empress Dowager Zhang finally looked at Chen Xi:

"Chen Qing family, you are the capable assistant who carefully trained and assisted the emperor. Over the years, you have made great contributions to the royal family. The Ai family and the emperor will not let you down... The Ai family begs you to handle the case carefully and not allow any changes in the Ming court!"

Chen Xi saluted respectfully. He no longer needed to say anything more to this point. Anyway, Empress Dowager Zhang said that it was just one thing, helping Zhang cover up his crimes.

Finally, Empress Dowager Zhang said: "The Chen Qing family must have worked very hard for the court recently. The Ai family wants to keep you in the palace for a simple meal... Come on, please invite Chen Qing family to the east wing for dinner!"

Chen Xi didn't expect that Empress Dowager Zhang would still take care of the food and did not give him a chance to refuse.

Then two palace maids walked out from behind the curtain, and Qiao Shengsheng walked here, with a restrained expression and slow walking. When they arrived in front of Chenxi, Empress Dowager Zhang ordered: "Super Chen well for food, do well, and be rewarded when you come back!"

"Yes, Empress."

The two palace maids spoke timidly and tenderly, just like a yellow oriole singing, which was extremely pleasant and pleasant, making people feel very comfortable when they heard it.

Chen Xi bowed: "I am leaving."

"The Chen Qing family has eaten before leaving, and the bento is the wish of the Ai family!"

After saying that, Empress Dowager Zhang no longer tried to keep him and asked the palace maid to take Chen Xi to the side hall east of Yongshou Palace for meals.

Chen Xi withdrew from the palace gate and wanted to leave. The two palace maids were already leading the way. After thinking about it, they had to keep up. After all, it took great courage to openly reject the queen mother's kindness.

When they arrived at the place, two palace maids stood on one side, and a slightly rounded palace maid said in a sweet voice: "Mr. Shen, please have a meal."

Chen Xi didn't expect that Empress Dowager Zhang had already made arrangements. When he came, the round table in the middle of the house was filled with dishes, all covered with metal utensils to prevent the delicious food inside from getting cold.

At this time, the two eunuchs brought wine pots and wine cups again. After making a gesture of invitation, they respectfully left and handed over the place to the two palace maids.

Chen Xidao: "I'm lucky for two... I can have dinner on my own and I will leave after that. You don't have to stay here."

Chen Xi is not used to being stared at by people to eat, and he doesn't think this is a favorable treatment. Today's banquet is comparable to the Hongmen banquet. I expected that it would not be poisoned, but if you use some diarrhea or chronic poison, it is still possible to warn him.

If someone is staring at him, he can only eat, otherwise he will be disrespectful to the empress dowager. But if no one is staring at him, he can leave if he deals with him casually.

The round-faced palace maid said, "The Empress Dowager has given me a special order. How dare I leave without permission? I will add wine to the Lord."

Chen Xi wanted to help the two men away, but the two palace maids stayed and said nothing, and they approached intentionally or unintentionally. Their beautiful faces became more and more intense. Chen Xi then had the leisure to pay attention to the appearance of the two palace maids. They looked like fifteen or sixteen years old, with their eyebrows as spring mountains, their eyes as autumn water, their skin was fair and tender, their nose was as white as jade, and their cherry lips were delicate and radiant, and they were all rare beauty embryos.

Unfortunately, there are many women like this in the palace garden, which is not very strange.

After all, Chen Xi is a foreign minister. After entering the palace or entering the inner curtain, he consciously keeps a distance from any palace maid, otherwise he may commit the crime of deceiving the emperor at any time.

"Mr. Shen...ah!"

The round-faced palace maid was about to add wine to Chen Xi, but accidentally touched Chen Xi's arm and the wine spilled out, and her appearance suddenly lost its color.

Chen Xi hurriedly said, "It's okay, I'll just wipe it myself."

Chen Xi was wearing a silk handkerchief and took it out and wiped it. The round-faced palace maid had handed the square scarf, but it was a pink silk scarf with mandarin ducks embroidered on it, which looked very elegant.

When Chen Xi saw the pink scarf stuffed over, he couldn't help but frown. Logically speaking, the palace maids in the palace could not touch things such as man and woman that had obvious metaphors for relationships such as man and woman. Now it was like sending a token of love.

"Um?"
To be continued...