Chapter 344 A Sachet
"This is it!" Rulan said as she took out something.
"Sachet?" Minglan asked in surprise, "Is this the good thing Fifth Sister mentioned?"
Rulan leaned close to Minglan's ear and whispered, "Mother said that I have not had any children, so she prayed for me. There are some drugs added to this. It won't hurt a woman if she smells it, but it will make a man more interested."
"Isn't this the Dragon and Tiger Medicine?" Minglan's face changed slightly and she said, "Fifth sister, you are confused. How can you bring something like this into the palace? If you are caught, it will be a serious crime!"
In the harem, people use all kinds of means to win the emperor's favor.
However, medicines such as Dragon and Tiger Medicine should never be used.
Although these things can add interest and fun, they are very harmful to your health.
"I'm not stupid. If it's that kind of medicine, how could I dare to take it?" Rulan whispered, "Mother said that this won't hurt the body. She tried it on father."
"Fifth sister, listen to my advice. The emperor loves you enough, so you'd better not use such means." Minglan said.
"The emperor favors me more, but there are many concubines in the harem, and there will be more and more in the future. If I don't get pregnant early, I may not have a chance in the future." Rulan shook her head.
Although she was looking forward to having a baby, she was not in a hurry.
But when she returned home today, Mrs. Wang pulled her aside and talked a lot, and she felt a sense of urgency.
Seeing this, Minglan did not try to persuade him, but asked, "Are you going to give this sachet to His Majesty?"
"No, I plan to put it on the pillow. If I give it to His Majesty, it would be a bargain for others." Rulan shook her head.
Minglan took the sachet from Rulan and put it to her nose to smell it.
There is a fragrance, which is not unpleasant, but the smell is very light.
Could it be that this was provided by the person behind Molan?
But although Madam Wang is sometimes confused, she is not stupid.
If it was really given by Molan, then what Madam Wang said about trying it on Sheng Hong must be true.
Otherwise, Madam Wang would not dare to give it to Rulan.
Could it be that the person behind Molan doesn't want to harm anyone in this way?
Or maybe the person behind Molan hasn't started to act yet, and this sachet is just a means to gain Madam Wang's trust?
Thinking of this, Minglan changed the subject. After some attempts, she did not find any other possibilities.
Madam Wang only told Rulan the importance of getting pregnant quickly, and didn't say anything else.
Minglan believed in her own judgment, unless Rulan was deliberately hiding something and was able to do so without revealing any flaws.
Minglan felt that the possibility of this was very low.
After returning to the palace, the two men and the palace maids who accompanied them were searched by special female officials.
Even if they were concubines, this was unavoidable.
After all, they are supposed to serve the emperor. What if they bring sharp weapons or poison to murder the emperor?
As shown in palace dramas of the Ming and Qing dynasties, concubines had to bathe before being favored, and then be wrapped in quilts and sent to the emperor's bedroom to prevent assassination.
The policy of the Song Dynasty was considered relatively relaxed.
After returning to the harem, Rulan asked Minglan if she wanted to sit with her for a while, but Minglan refused, saying that she was a little tired.
Not long after Minglan returned to her palace, a palace maid came to report that Zhao Xing had arrived.
Before Minglan went out to greet him, Zhao Xing had already entered the palace.
After sending the waiters away, Zhao Xing asked, "How is it? Have you found anything?"
Minglan told the story of the sachet and said, "Your Majesty, I am not sure if there is anything wrong with the sachet, nor am I sure if this thing was given to the Madam by the Fourth Sister."
"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded after hearing this, and after thinking for a while, he said, "Thank you for your hard work today. You don't have to think too much. I will have someone investigate the rest."
Minglan opened her mouth, seeming to want to say something but stopped herself. In the end, she nodded but didn't say anything.
Zhao Xing did not ask. Minglan was just trying to plead for the Sheng family or for Molan. Now that the matter had not been clarified, he could not promise anything, so it was better not to ask.
After chatting with Minglan for a while, Zhao Xing left.
After leaving the palace, Zhao Xing asked Sanshui to find a way to get the sachet out of Rulan Palace.
Whether there is a problem or not can only be known after a check by the imperial physician in the palace.
Because he was not sure whether there was anything wrong with the sachet, Zhao Xing did not go to the palace of Yu Yanran and others to rest at night.
Thinking that he hadn't visited Li Shunyi for some time, Zhao Xing went to Li Shunyi's palace.
Although I don't have any feelings for this woman, it is precisely because I have no feelings that I can enjoy it more.
The next day, when it was still dark, Zhao Xing came out of Li Shunyi Palace and went to Daqing Hall to attend the morning court.
It's almost September now, and the weather has become a bit cool in the second half of the night.
Zhao Xing was thinking about changing the time of the morning court session, and it was time to put it on the agenda.
The weather was getting colder and colder. It was really tiring to get up in the middle of the night to attend court in the cold winter.
I was lost in thought all the way and arrived at the Daqing Hall. After all the officials paid their respects, the morning court session began.
Several officials reported some trivial matters, and Minister Lu of the Ministry of Works reported on the progress of building the Great Wall in the north.
Preparations began at the beginning of the year, and construction officially started after spring ploughing. Now it has been under construction for half a year. Due to the existence of cement, construction has started simultaneously in many places, and a total of hundreds of miles have been built.
Zhao Xing was not very satisfied with this speed.
The Song-Liao border was very long, which was also why it was difficult to defend.
It is almost September now and the weather is getting cold. Given the weather in the north, it is impossible to continue construction in winter.
If this continues, it will probably take at least three years to complete the project.
"Speed up the construction schedule and recruit more laborers. If the labor service is not enough, we can hire people. No matter what, it must be completed next year." Zhao Xing said.
Building the Great Wall required a huge amount of manpower, which could not be done by hiring everyone, and the imperial court could not afford it either, so all of them were conscripted laborers.
However, there is a disadvantage to conscripting for labor service, which is that the people only need to serve one month of labor service a year, so people will be replaced frequently.
Although what the people do does not require any technical skills and is just hard labor.
But those who have been doing it for a long time are always faster than newbies.
Frequent changes of personnel are also a reason for delays in construction.
But there is nothing we can do about it. We can't force people to do labor service.
Generally, when the imperial court imposed corvée labor, it required the people to perform the labor according to regulations.
However, in special circumstances, when the people should not perform corvée labor, they will also be forcibly conscripted.
But doing so would lose the support of the people. Zhao Xing had just ascended the throne, so he definitely couldn't do this.
"But if we do this, the cost will increase and it will be hard for the court to afford it," said Minister Lu.
"You don't have to worry about this matter. I will find a way. It's too late this year. After Minglan conscripts the corvée, when the corvée expires, we can hire people to continue working." Zhao Xing said.
"Yes!" replied Minister Lu.
"Your Majesty, I have something to report!" An imperial censor stepped forward at Hu Zhongyan's signal.
"Prelude!"
"I want to impeach the Minister of Justice Yan Kuan. I heard that many criminal officials in Jiangnan died inexplicably during their exile. The Minister of Justice is to blame. Your Majesty, please investigate thoroughly!"
(End of this chapter)