Ming: I am fake, walking on thin ice

Chapter 169: Demon Queen: Just once, after tonight, just pretend nothing happened

After hearing his sigh, the demon queen's beautiful eyes flashed with tenderness: "What a pity, I don't have any extravagant dreams in this life."

Zhu Qizhen spread his hands and said, "I'm talking about us. Look, there are two of us standing here, right?"

"Bah!" the Demon Queen spat.

In the sunlight, her fair face flushed slightly, her black hair fell to her waist like a waterfall, her hands folded on her belly, her posture was dignified and elegant, she pursed her red lips, and a crisp voice rang out, revealing a bit of dissatisfaction: "You are becoming more and more presumptuous."

"I can't help it." Zhu Qizhen said pitifully.

The Queen smiled and turned to look at him. Her elegant and mature face was flushed and her eyes were shy. "Isn't it... the masquerade ball is coming soon?"

Zhu Qizhen grasped the point and asked, "Does this mean that I can be unrestrained at the masquerade?"

The witch queen shook her head in panic: "No... No, you can be unruly to those concubines. Didn't you say so? There are so many beautiful girls in the palace, what am I? A middle-aged woman."

"Do you still remember what I said?" Zhu Qizhen stretched out his hand and gently embraced her slender waist.

"I will never forget it as long as I live." The Demon Queen glared.

The breeze blew by, and the afterglow of the setting sun fell on them. Zhu Qizhen leaned close to the Queen, and his hand around her waist also slightly tightened. The Queen did not move. Under the setting sun, her skin was tight and delicate, her pretty face was tinged with a lingering blush, and her delicate collarbone was white and attractive.

Suddenly, she rolled her eyes at Zhu Qizhen, reached out and slapped away his mischievous hand, turned around gracefully, walked back into the hall, and said, "It's time to eat."

"I'm not hungry yet, just watch for a while."

"look by youself."

"Is it not okay if I don't do it?"

"roll!"

……

Yonghe Palace.

Zhu Qizhen turned over the card of Concubine De today. He liked to go directly to the door. As soon as he entered the door, a gust of fragrant wind blew in his face, and then his neck was hugged by a pair of white arms like lotus roots, and what caught his eyes was Sun Zhenzhen's charming face.

Zhu Qizhen held her flexible waist and bit her red lips passionately and fiercely, moving constantly, and finally came to the phoenix couch and fell down.

Gradually, the gauze hanging in front of the couch floated in the breeze.

A pair of men and women, who were inseparable, floated with the floating gauze. After half an hour, they finally calmed down. Sun Zhenzhen lay in Zhu Qizhen's arms, looking up at her beautiful face full of blushes, her black hair falling, making her neck look even whiter and more delicate, like a beautiful jade. Her slender jade fingers stroked across his chest: "Your Majesty, I also have the soup that Concubine Xian cooked for you. I will bring it to you right away."

Zhu Qizhen: “???”

Although I come from the countryside, I am not a working ox.

"Your Majesty, I have made sufficient preparations for tonight." Sun Zhenzhen blinked.

A pair of snow-white, slender legs came out from the curtains, she took the robe and put it on, got out of bed and walked out. After a while, she came back with a bowl of steaming hot soup.

"Your Majesty, I will feed you." Sun Zhenzhen's eyes were charming.

Zhu Qizhen took the soup, drank it all, and said proudly: "Let's hurry up, the good night is short."

Sun Zhenzhen lay down on her side and glanced at him seductively. Zhu Qizhen gently hugged her and asked, "I asked you to accompany the Queen Mother to Fahai Temple before, but you didn't go?"

"The Queen Mother hasn't left the palace recently. She said she would go after... the masquerade ball." Sun Zhenzhen asked curiously, "What masquerade ball? Was it you who came up with the idea for the Queen Mother?"

Zhu Qizhen smiled and nodded: "I think the harem is too depressing, everyone should relax."

Sun Zhenzhen's charming face was full of anticipation: "The sisters are all very happy. With masks on, no one can recognize each other, so we can have fun."

Zhu Qizhen had a smile on his face.

No matter how unruly you are, I am the only real man in the harem.

……

Summer is here, the sun rises early, and the ministers no longer have to go to court in the dark.

In the morning court, the Minister of Justice Qian Lao resigned and returned to his hometown. He recommended the Vice Minister of Justice Dong Yuchang as the new Minister of Justice. Zhu Qizhen secretly praised the old man for his understanding and approved the proposal.

At this point, almost all the ministers of the six ministries in the court were promoted by him, and they belonged to his own people. Over the past four years, he slowly replaced them, and finally half of the civil and military officials in the court were replaced.

After leaving the court, Zhu Qizhen went to the Ministry of War. What he was most concerned about was the war in the northern border. However, there had been no new war reports recently, and there had been no major actions. The troops of both sides were fighting on the long border.

Zhu Qizhen invited Yu Qian to take a walk, and the two walked on the path in front of the Ministry of War to analyze the current war. Yu Qian was still very confident and said, "Your Majesty, although we cannot eliminate Yesen at present, it is no problem to stop him from entering the pass."

"Aren't they short of food? They are here to fight to the death, but why does it feel like there's much thunder but little rain?" Zhu Qizhen said.

"It's spring now, everything is reviving, and the cattle and sheep on the grassland are growing fast." Yu Qian sighed, "The food crisis will slowly pass. Those who can't survive the winter and those who starve to death will just starve to death."

Zhu Qizhen frowned deeply: "Survival of the fittest, and the same is true for us humans. After a winter, wouldn't Mobei's strength be greatly reduced?"

"A new batch of people will emerge." Yu Qian said with a wry smile, "For more than a thousand years, the grassland has never been peaceful. The Xiongnu, the Turks, the Liao people, the Jin people, the Mongols... It's strange. When we have civil strife in the Central Plains, they also have civil strife in the grasslands. When we have a unified dynasty in the Central Plains, hey, their grasslands are also unified."

Zhu Qizhen thought about it and realized that it was true. There was the Han Dynasty in the Central Plains and the Huns in the grasslands; there was the Tang Dynasty in the Central Plains and the Turks in the grasslands; there was the Song Dynasty in the Central Plains and the Liao and Jin dynasties in the grasslands; and later, Mongolia unified the world.

“Your Majesty, maybe we have to do as you said before. When firearms develop to a certain stage and the grassland cavalry completely loses their advantage, we can deal with them then,” said Yu Qian.

He has fully realized the power of firearms, and the Ministry of War is also increasing its investment in the research and development of improved new muskets and artillery.

Zhu Qizhen was walking under the tree when he suddenly asked, "Old Yu, do you know Junshan Society?"

Yu Qian was stunned and shook his head blankly: "What Junshan Society? What does it do?"

Zhu Qizhen stared at him for a moment and smiled: "The Jinyiwei recently discovered a secret organization whose purpose is to welcome back the so-called true emperor."

Yu Qian waved his hand nonchalantly: "The throne has been decided, Your Majesty, don't worry about it. I think it was just some gangsters who did it. They are just a bunch of rabble and nothing can be accomplished."

Zhu Qizhen smiled: "I hope so too! Haha, but they actually looked for Wang Zhi and Hu Yi. It is said that those who can be like Junshan Club are all big shots."

"Hey, you don't like me?" Yu Qian spread his hands, "You never looked for me."

Zhu Qizhen waved his hand and smiled, "You must be on my side, so of course they won't look for you."

He raised his eyes and looked into the distance, no longer testing Yu Qian, and stopped there.

After leaving the Ministry of War, Zhu Qizhen did not return to the Qianqing Palace, but came to the Wenhua Palace to discuss the preparations for the summer flood with the cabinet. Although the river had submitted a detailed report, the overall dispatch still required the cabinet's participation.

After the meeting, the cabinet chief Shang Lu escorted him out, and he took the initiative to invite Shang Lu for a walk. After chatting for a while, he suddenly asked: "Old cabinet minister, do you know Junshan Club?"

Shang Lu also had a blank expression and shook his head: "What meeting?"

Zhu Qizhen explained, his eyes fixed on Shang Lu. Shang Lu snorted, "Your Majesty, are the Jinyiwei just here to eat? Can't you find out who they are? If you find out, kill them one by one."

"So cruel?" Zhu Qizhen asked.

"My Lord, this person is endangering your kingdom, are you still merciful?" Shang Lu said, "This is a crime of treason, of course he must be killed."

Zhu Qizhen smiled and nodded: "He deserves to be killed!"

……

When Zhu Qizhen returned to the Qianqing Palace, it was almost noon, and he was busy reviewing memorials. But soon, Gao Gu, the Minister of Works, Li Zhuang, the commander of the Wucheng Army, and Liu Bian, the inspector of the Censorate, came together.

"How did you three get together?" Zhu Qizhen asked.

"Your Majesty, last year you asked us to implement new traffic... rules in the capital." Gao Gu reported, "I am here to report the situation to you."

Zhu Qizhen held his forehead with his hand.

He had forgotten this. The last time he left the palace, he had seen that people walked on the sidewalks, and cars and horses walked on the carriageways. However, he was in a hurry those two times and did not have time to observe carefully.

Gao Gu continued to report:
"Your Majesty, the implementation of the new rules does have many benefits. It reduces accidents because there is no congestion, and improves the traffic capacity of the roads. There are so many benefits that I won't list them all."

"But it also caused a lot of trouble. To fully implement it, it would require a lot of manpower, material and financial resources to carry out transformation and construction."

"Some high-ranking officials have complaints. Why should they share the same path with the common people who are dragged by donkeys?"

"Your Majesty, the memorial contains detailed information. To sum it up, it requires money!"

Zhu Qizhen looked at them with a frown on his face and said angrily, "I don't have any money, but I have a life!"

Gao Gu was anxious: "Your Majesty, you have to be fair. You waved your hand to He Dao, and it was several million. We don't want much, just a few million."

"Get out!" Zhu Qizhen waved his hand.

He was thinking, should we not do this? Is it necessary? The traffic pressure in the capital is not as great as in the cities in the previous life.

"Your Majesty, it was you who came up with this idea and you who made the final decision," Gao Gu argued.

Zhu Qizhen pondered for a while and said, "Let's not rush. Let's take it step by step, okay? If we take too big a step, we'll easily get into trouble. We have to do it. Sooner or later, the capital will become the largest city in the world. When the population increases dramatically, there must be rules."

The three listened, their faces were obviously depressed, knowing that His Majesty was just talking nonsense and was unwilling to give more money. Zhu Qizhen comforted them and sent them away.

"It's not easy to be the head of a family." He sighed, "It's not easy to lack a steward to manage finances. It's like Xia Yuanji during the reign of Emperor Taizong. Emperor Taizong spent so much money on five expeditions to Mobei, but he still had the prosperous Yongle era. How did he do it?"

Emperor Taizong was willful all his life and always wanted face projects, but Xia Yuanji was good at financial management and found a balance for the Ming Dynasty in terms of national influence, treasury revenue and expenditure, and people's livelihood.

……

The masquerade ball has finally arrived.

As night fell, the entire harem was enveloped in a mysterious and charming glow. The banquet was held deep in the imperial garden, surrounded by light gauze curtains. The breeze blew, and the light gauze danced lightly, revealing an indescribable ambiguity and temptation. The moonlight was like water, pouring on the carefully arranged flowers and fountains, and every drop of water seemed to whisper, telling unknown secrets.

Zhu Qizhen entered, looked around, and secretly praised, thinking that this was exactly the feeling he wanted. The Queen had good taste.

The maids all wore long gauze skirts, which were as light as mist and swayed gently in the wind, revealing their skin. On their faces, they each wore exquisite masks, some with intricate patterns, and some with strange totems, which concealed their true appearance but added a bit of mystery and temptation. Under the mask, their eyes flickered, either full of affection or cunning and smart.

The music was melodious, sometimes like the gurgling of a stream, gentle and lingering; sometimes like a violent storm, passionate and surging, leading everyone's mood to fluctuate. The air was filled with a faint fragrance, which was from exotic flowers and spices, which mixed together to create an intoxicating and psychedelic atmosphere.

"Your Majesty~"

When the women saw Zhu Qizhen coming in, the brave ones swarmed forward, because the empress dowager said that there were no rules at a masquerade ball and they could do whatever they wanted.

The only man in the room was the emperor, who was not wearing a mask. He laughed and hugged women on both sides, trying to identify who they were among these beauties.

He recognized Concubine Xian, Concubine De, the Queen and several others at a glance. After all, they were husband and wife, and he was very familiar with them and could recognize them by looking at their body shape.

"Hahaha, bring the wine." Zhu Qizhen waved his hand, "Play the music, and dance."

A group of dancers were dancing on the stage in the middle. Zhu Qizhen enjoyed the dance while hugging them on both sides. Some of them brought wine to his mouth, and some brought fresh fruits to his mouth.

After a few drinks, Zhu Qizhen got excited and stood up to play the same song, "A Laugh in the Sea". The atmosphere of the banquet was getting lively, and they no longer gathered around Zhu Qizhen. They drank in groups of three or two, laughed wildly, and some walked to the corner.

Zhu Qizhen even saw two palace maids hugging each other boldly in his peripheral vision. Their laughter echoed in the night sky, and they sang and danced gracefully, or raised their glasses and smiled, their eyes moving.

"Hey, where's the Demon Queen?"

After Zhu Qizhen finished playing a piece, he did not find the Demon Queen. It is possible that she has already arrived, but she is wearing a mask and cannot be recognized.

……

The night deepened, and Zhu Qizhen still hadn't found the witch. He was a little dazed, and walked towards the depths of the imperial garden. Along the way, he encountered groups of palace maids playing around.

There were no rules tonight, they could tease His Majesty or ignore Him. A mask seemed to make them bolder.

Zhu Qizhen passed by a pavilion and looked up to see a woman wearing a white dress as thin as a cicada's wing, slightly wrapped in a white silk, which made her figure more graceful and attractive, especially the grand figure in front of her. She trembled when she moved slightly.

She had uncombed, smooth black hair that fell to her slender waist. Her skin looked even whiter against the black hair. She wore a mouse mask that covered half of her face, so that only her rosy lips could be seen.

"Beauty, are you lonely?" Zhu Qizhen walked forward.

"Do you want to die?" The woman smiled.

Zhu Qizhen of course recognized who she was, what a demon queen, hiding here. Seeing the wine glass on the table, Zhu Qizhen smiled slightly: "Demon queen, why do you have to drink alone? I will accompany you."

"Okay, fake emperor." The Demon Queen picked up a pot of wine and threw it to him.

The false emperor walked up to her and stood side by side. Facing the moonlight, the two drank a few sips in silence. The Demon Queen spoke first: "That song is good. It makes me want to give up everything and wander around the world."

"That's not difficult. If you're willing, I'll accompany you." The fake emperor spread his hands.

The Demon Queen was slightly stunned, then turned to look at him, her beautiful eyes shining: "Are you willing to give up all this?"

The Pseudo-Emperor, who was experienced in love in his previous life, spoke without hesitation, and his expression was extremely serious and sincere: "Of course I don't want to, but for you, I am willing."

This is shameless, but definitely not scumbag.

"Really?" Upon hearing that, the Demon Queen stared at him with a hint of joy in her beautiful eyes.

The false emperor met her gaze with blazing eyes, and asked word by word: "Do you dare?"

The demon queen's eyes flashed, she avoided his gaze, and turned sideways. The curve of her figure was enough to make any man's blood boil, especially her luxurious and classical temperament.

"See, you always take a step back. Can't you be brave for yourself for once?"

The pseudo-emperor grabbed her waist and pulled her into his arms domineeringly, staring at her mature and charming red lips with burning eyes, full of attraction.

Scorching impact!
"You...are too presumptuous..."

The Queen's heartbeat accelerated. The first beat was very loud, but it became smaller in an instant. She thought, now she is wearing a mask, tonight is a masquerade, and she should ignore all the rules.

"Don't you know what I'm thinking?" The fake emperor hugged her tightly.

"you……"

Before she could finish, her mouth was blocked by him. Her beautiful eyes suddenly widened, full of surprise. She was obviously not mentally prepared. Her hands involuntarily grasped his clothes tightly, trying to push him away.

But her hands stopped again and she reluctantly hooked her arms around his neck.

The false emperor has a sense of conquest on a spiritual level, this is the demon queen.

The Demon Queen's beautiful eyes slowly closed, and her arms gradually wrapped around his neck, cooperating very well.

For a long time.

The false emperor opened his mouth, looked at the demon queen with gentle and domineering eyes, and said slowly: "We..."

"I am leaving."

The demon queen's beautiful eyes moved slightly, her mind was in turmoil, her breathing was a little rapid, and her mind was empty. However, she knew that she couldn't stay here any longer, otherwise, something bad would happen.

She used both hands to gently arrange her long black hair. Her eyes blinked, and the long and curled hairs at the corners of her eyes seemed to be filled with a hint of electricity: "Just this once! I'll pretend nothing happened."

After saying that, she fled from the pavilion.

"Is it so deceptive?" The fake emperor muttered, "No, I have to find a real concubine."

He returned to the main venue and found Concubine De in the crowd. He found Concubine De because she was brave. He pulled Concubine De into the grove nearby.

"Your Majesty, this...is not possible, right? Let's go back...ah..."

"It's so dark, no one can see you. Besides, you're wearing a mask."

Concubine De bent over, held the tree trunk with both hands, and looked around nervously.

Zhu Qizhen held her waist and thought to himself, is this matter really so serious?
……

The next day.

Zhu Qizhen was in high spirits. After the morning court session, he summoned the King of Zhou who was going back to his fiefdom. During this short period of time, he was ill and finally recovered in the capital, so he came to say goodbye.

"Your Majesty, I broke the rules and should have left earlier." King Zhou bowed.

"Rules are dead." Zhu Qizhen smiled, "We are all family. How can I let someone drag his sick body on the road? I also know that many princes of the royal family say that I am ruthless. I don't care. For the sake of Ming Dynasty, I will bear that infamy."

The King of Zhou bowed respectfully again and said, "Your Majesty, I understand your painstaking efforts."

Zhu Qizhen said some official words of encouragement, and the King of Zhou withdrew. When the King of Zhou left, the commander of the Jinyiwei, Shi Biao, walked out from the back hall with sharp eyes: "Your Majesty, this King of Zhou is quite good at pretending. He met the Duke of Cheng and the King of Qing in Beijing. Did he think that we, the Jinyiwei, didn't know?"

"Send someone to keep an eye on him." Zhu Qizhen snorted coldly, "I will deal with these people from the Zhu family together when the time comes."

"As you wish." Shi Biao nodded.

Zhu Qizhen pondered for a moment and said, "There was a masked ball in the harem last night. You should keep an eye on it. Maybe there will be some new news coming out of the harem. I have also informed Cao Jixiang. You should cooperate well. Humph, there must be a spy in the harem."

Shi Biao was secretly shocked. It turned out that His Majesty had this consideration in organizing the masked ball.

……

Twilight Quadruple.

Zhu Qizhen came to Kunning Palace and saw the mother-in-law sitting in front of the table as soon as he entered. She was wearing a formal and dignified long dress, her hair was combed into a bun and tied with a hairpin, and her hands were folded and placed lightly between her legs.

"So formal? Which country's envoy are you meeting?" Zhu Qizhen asked with a smile.

"I...I will be so formal from now on. I am the empress dowager." The empress dowager was cold, elegant and gentle.

The scene of last night appeared in her mind from time to time. More than ten years have passed, and her heart was completely confused because of that kiss. She felt that she had to act like a queen mother and suppress her thoughts.

"Even though they know you're the empress dowager, no one wants to depose you. Besides, no one can depose the empress dowager, unless you give up on your own." Zhu Qizhen said as he approached her and whispered in her ear, "Let's go to the heinous world together."

The Queen Mother's charming face was covered with an intoxicating blush, and she shook her head: "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Zhu Qizhen whispered: "You really don't admit anything. You are heartless, cold, and unreasonable!"

The Queen Mother certainly didn't know this joke, but she immediately followed up: "You are heartless, cold, and unreasonable!"

Zhu Qizhen spread his hands: "How can I be ruthless, cruel, or unreasonable!"

At this time, Shuangxi came up with the dishes and looked at the two of them in confusion. The Queen Mother was obviously embarrassed. In order to break the awkwardness, Zhu Qizhen took Shuangxi by the hand and glared at her: "Shuangxi, was it you who wore the phoenix mask last night? You are so bold that you even grabbed my butt."

"Ah?" Shuangxi's hands trembled, "That... is not me, Your Majesty."

"Don't come on, I still recognize you? Have you been holding a grudge against me for a long time? Grabbing my butt while the chaos is going on?" Zhu Qizhen had a speechless expression, "I didn't expect that Shuangxi, you look so good, but you are actually a female hooligan."

Shuangxi's body trembled slightly, and he was about to cry: "Didn't they say there were no rules for the ball? Some palace maids even hugged you. Your Majesty, why did you only look for me?"

"You are wearing a phoenix mask, which is the most conspicuous." Zhu Qizhen was puzzled. "You two are enough. One palace maid is wearing a phoenix, and the queen mother is wearing a mouse mask."

Shuangxi said aggrievedly: "The Phoenix Mask originally belonged to the Queen Mother. She exchanged it with me."

The Queen Mother rolled her eyes and walked over: "You stupid girl, are you still betraying me now?"

(End of this chapter)