Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 279 Shameless [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

"Don't say your godfather won't promote you. Do you want to spend your whole life serving food in the Imperial Kitchen?"

The old eunuch squinted and continued speaking.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change our fate. Not only should we do it, but there is also a powerful person outside who is supporting us in doing it."

"If you succeed, you will have rendered meritorious service to the emperor. Your godfather will then find a way to promote you to the position of Director of the Imperial Household Department. In the future, you may even have the opportunity to inherit your godfather's mantle and enter the Directorate of Ceremonial."

"As you know, His Majesty is currently unwell and has not appeared in public for some time. He is even unable to personally issue edicts for major events such as the execution of Anda and the recapture of the Hetao region. All the bestowals are handled by Xia Yan. The day of dynastic change is probably not far off."

"At this juncture, once the Emperor passes away, the Crown Prince will rightfully ascend the throne."

"When that time comes, the one who will benefit the most will be Yan Maoqing, who has just made unparalleled contributions, been granted the title of Duke, served as the Crown Prince's tutor, and also holds the special privileges of the Western Depot."

"And then there's Xia Yan. Through this incident in Shanxi, it's clear that Xia Yan has colluded with Yan Maoqing. Otherwise, how could they be working together, one in charge of internal affairs and the other in charge of external affairs?"

"However, the Crown Prince is still young, and he must be entrusted with the care of ministers to succeed him to the throne."

"Given the current situation, regardless of whether the Emperor left a will, Yan Maoqing would definitely be the first choice for the regent, followed by Xia Yan, who is in charge of the cabinet."

"If these two join forces to protect us, it will be like a dark cloud covering the sky above us. For the next few years, decades, or even decades, not only us, but the whole world will probably find it difficult to see the sun through the clouds."

"This is something we do not want to see, and it is something that people all over the world do not want to see."

"Now you are our hope and the hope of the world, so we must not let down your godfather's expectations at this critical juncture."

"..."

The young eunuch dared not refuse, yet dared not agree; his face was full of embarrassment.

If I agree to do this, and it is accidentally exposed, it will certainly be a crime punishable by the extermination of my entire clan and death by a thousand cuts.

But refusing to do it... that's even worse.

Since he already knew things he shouldn't have known, he could only become his godfather's accomplice. Otherwise, how could his godfather tolerate him? It's not uncommon for one or two eunuchs to disappear from the palace occasionally.

"Tell your godfather how he treats you on a daily basis."

Seeing that the young eunuch was still hesitant, the old eunuch finally hardened his face and looked at him coldly.

“My godfather has been incredibly kind to me. If it weren’t for him, I would probably still be emptying chamber pots in the palace.”

Upon hearing this, the young eunuch immediately knelt down, kowtowed, and said...
"I would never dare to disobey my godfather's words, but I am a little worried."

"Godfather also knows that Consort Wang is extremely cautious about the Crown Prince's affairs. The Crown Prince's meals must be tested for poison by someone before they are served to him. How can this be kept secret?"

Moreover, the one who tasted the poison was the one responsible for delivering the food.

Consort Wang usually had to watch him taste every dish before she would allow her trusted confidants to send it to the Crown Prince.

In other words, if the crown prince dies from poisoning, then he too will die from poisoning.

The old eunuch laughed upon hearing this, a laugh brimming with confidence:
"Hehe, do you think my godfather wouldn't have thought of this?"

"This is the most amazing thing about this Western poison. If an adult ingests it, it will only be fatal if the dosage is more than five times that of a child. Otherwise, at most, the adult will feel thirsty and hot. If you don't know, you might think that the adult has just caught a cold."

"Therefore, as long as you administer the medicine according to your godfather's instructions, whether you test the poison yourself or have Consort Wang's people test it, it will not only not be fatal, but it will also be difficult to arouse suspicion."

The young eunuch thought about it and agreed; this was indeed a very important point.

If the prince were to die from poisoning, and the person who tested the poison also died from it, then even if the Western poison could not be detected, people would surely suspect that someone had poisoned the prince's food.

If he dies along with them, that would be fine, but if he survives, there will definitely be trouble, and his godfather will probably have some difficulties.

at last.

Under the old eunuch's coercion and enticement, the young eunuch kowtowed and agreed:
"The son will listen to his godfather. He will do whatever his godfather tells him to do."

"Good son, your godfather has not spoiled you for nothing."

The old eunuch nodded in satisfaction, a barely perceptible hint of coldness appearing on his wrinkled face.

After this incident, this young eunuch must not be allowed to live; otherwise, it would be irresponsible of me, and if even a whisper of it were to get out, it would be extremely fatal for him.

However, we cannot rush into dealing with him; we must wait until the dust settles before taking any action…

And as long as he gets it done.

Next comes the matter of Consort Lu and the court officials outside. If they can help after the Crown Prince's death and the Emperor's passing...

If he successfully helped Prince Jing ascend the throne and then brought down Yan Maoqing and Xia Yan, he would have also contributed to the succession. The position of Director of Ceremonial Affairs would naturally be his, and Zhang Zuo should relinquish his position as "ancestor".

……

Yan Maoqing felt that this was the downside of having a large family and business; even a simple trip from Beijing back to his hometown required two days of preparation.

Back when he was still a junior scholar, it wouldn't take him even an hour to get his travel permit and get ready to arrive at Chaoyang Gate.

Even for the White Dew solar term, I felt that the preparations were not comprehensive enough, and I was afraid that he would suffer on the way.

What hardship could he possibly endure? Now he is the Duke of Biguo, not only protected by elite soldiers selected from the Heroes' Camp, but also by the imperial regalia bestowed upon him by the Emperor to signify his status.

This force wouldn't suffer any hardship or even loss in Ming territory.

After two days of commotion, Yan Maoqing finally rode in the same carriage with Bai Lu and left the Yan residence in a grand manner, heading towards Chaoyang Gate.

This time, he doesn't have to worry about anyone trying to stop him from returning to his hometown.

He even thought that the guards at Chaoyang Gate might not dare to stop him, and the personal guards leading the way might not even need to show their travel permits; a few words of reprimand would be enough to make the guards let him pass quickly.

After all, who would dare to make things difficult for a duke like him? Moreover, no duke or prince would dare to leave their fiefdom without the emperor's permission. This was one of the biggest rules of the Ming Dynasty, and could even be equated with treason.

Historically, when Li Zicheng led his rebel army to attack the capital, those vassal kings knew that the capital was probably doomed, but they dared not raise troops to come to its aid without authorization. They didn't even dare to submit memorials requesting support, and this was the reason.

“My lord, it’s five quarters past Chen Shi (7:45 AM). Even if we’re on the road, we absolutely cannot stop taking this medicine.”

He had barely boarded the carriage when Bai Lu promptly handed him a still-warm water pouch, looking him in the eye with an unquestionable expression.

"Why did you bring it in the carriage? You could have just drunk it at home beforehand."

Yan Maoqing looked troubled.

This is a prescription that Bai Lu specially went to Fulingtang to get, saying that it has the effects of nourishing yin and strengthening yang, and bringing many children and grandchildren.

He felt that Bai Lu had been a bit obsessed lately, because she had fought for several days in a row before going to war, but her belly still hadn't shown any signs of pregnancy, so he thought something was wrong with her.

However, Bai Lu did not say it was Yan Maoqing's fault, since Yan Maoqing had performed quite well in this regard.

He's bad, and she likes him a lot.

However, she couldn't get any results, and she always felt indebted to Yan Maoqing, so she was determined to try harder in this matter, and she didn't hesitate to try any folk remedies.

Therefore, she not only gave this tonic to Yan Maoqing, but also had her own medicine to take.

Just a few days ago, during their post-coital tenderness, she even suggested that Yan Maoqing consider taking a few concubines.

After all, he was not only the only son in the family, but also a Duke. Such a large family business and title needed to be passed down to his descendants.

Then Yan Maoqing rejected her without hesitation, and even lectured her instead:

"Our well-being is more important than anything else. Having children isn't absolutely necessary. Why think about all this nonsense?"

"Furthermore, what is destined to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force."

"Didn't our neighbor Yan Song also only love your aunt his whole life, and he still lived a good life? Did he lack something?"

In fact, Yan Maoqing was still a little worried.

He enjoyed his intimate moments with Bailu, yet he feared that Bailu would become pregnant and give birth.

After all, medical technology was limited in that era, and the proportion of people who died from infections after childbirth was not small. Wasn't Xu Jie's wife the one who died the year after giving birth to their eldest son?
If possible, he felt that it could be delayed for a few more years, until Bailu had developed further. After all, Bailu was not yet twenty years old, which felt much earlier than the childbirth age of women in later generations.

As for taking concubines and such.

He was not greedy in this matter, just as he had no desire for fame or fortune.

He always felt that having more wives and concubines would do more harm than good, and would become a troublesome thing, turning his life, which he just wanted to live a peaceful and carefree life, into chaos.

Although he could tell that Bai Lu, his legal wife, had a natural air of a big sister and would definitely be able to keep things in check.

"So he only has one good-for-nothing, one-eyed son?"

Bai Lu also had her own explanation for Yan Maoqing's education.

"That must be because Yan Song was morally flawed. His son was just missing an eye above his head, not below. Perhaps it was all a blessing from heaven."

Yan Maoqing spoke with great conviction.
“My husband, I am not like Yan Song. I may lack many things, but I am not lacking in virtue… Alright, alright, even if I lack virtue, I certainly do not lack great virtue.”

"So when we have children in the future, they certainly won't be like Yan Shifan, who was blind; they won't lack anything."

"By the way, the reason we went back to our hometown to visit relatives this time is precisely for this matter."

"Madam, you wouldn't want our child to be born with a missing eye like Yan Shifan, would you?"

Bai Lu immediately pinched Yan Maoqing's lower back, puffing out her flushed cheeks and scolding:
"Pah, pah, pah! Husband, what nonsense are you spouting? Quickly spit out those words! How can you curse our future child!"

"..."

Regardless, he has now achieved half of his ultimate goal.

"Retiring from office and returning to one's hometown" is a kind of progress, isn't it?

Just as I was thinking this.

Suddenly, a commotion arose outside, and the convoy that had reached Chaoyang Gate stopped, nearly knocking over the medicine bowl in his hand.

(End of this chapter)