"Since the reason why Zheng Shanguo was demoted was not entirely because of the Lu Chu case, what was the reason for asking his grandfather to retire from office?" Pei Hong was still a little unwilling.

Pei Ju said slowly after a while: "Actually, I have already told you the answer, think about it yourself!"

Pei Hong lowered his head and pondered for a moment: "Is it because of the Lu family?"

Pei Ju was very impressed by his grandson's ability to learn from others. He nodded and said, "Zhang Xuan is a very good at balance and knows how to compromise. Last year, he demoted Lu Zhuo and Cui Huan to attack the Hebei gentry group, and his bias in the imperial examinations has to some extent caused general dissatisfaction among the Hebei gentry. You should also see that there are not many high-ranking officials from Hebei in the court. This time, the establishment of the Shangshu Pushe deprived Li Shoujie of the opportunity to be promoted to Shangshu Zuo Pushe, which will inevitably cause even more dissatisfaction among the Hebei gentry.

Especially the Lu family, where Lu Qing is the princess, Zhizhi is just a partial concubine. This pattern of Lu Shang Peixia should be consistent in the court. However, in fact, the court was Peixia, Lu Shang, and before, it was because Zhizhi had no children, so the Lu family didn't care. Now Zhizhi is pregnant, and the situation becomes more sensitive. If this matter is not handled well, the Northern Sui Dynasty will fall into a de facto division. At this time, Zhang Xuan needs to balance. To carry out a new balance in this reform of polygonism, it will be natural for me to retire and return home."

Pei Hong was also a high-ranking official after all. He pondered for a moment: "But his grandson felt that His Highness King Qi did not intend to let his grandfather retire, and the dissatisfaction of the Hebei gentry had no direct relationship with his grandfather. Could it be that his grandfather thought too much? In fact, it was because of the Lu Chu case that His Highness King Qi was a little dissatisfied with his grandfather. At this time, his grandson felt that his grandfather should communicate with the King of Qi first, and should not be busy retiring and returning home. Please forgive his grandson for speaking out for his grandson!"

Pei Ju paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. Of course, he didn't want to retire and return home. When the new dynasty was founded, his concessions would inevitably affect the Pei family's century-old interests. He didn't want to be the second Zheng family. The wrong positioning led to the entire family losing completely.

"You're right, I should have a good talk with Jang Hyun first."

Pei Hong whispered again: "The grandson has another request."

“What request?”

"Can my grandfather not call him the name of King Qi? After all, he is the king and should be respected as a minister."

Pei Ju looked at Changsun in front of her and couldn't say a word for a long time

The Zhongyuan Festival has passed and the weather is still hot and unbearable. It has been three months since Zhang Xuan returned to Zhongzhong, and his life has become very dull, but the only thing that makes people expect is that Pei Zhizhi is pregnant.

Any news about the descendants of Prince Qi is a big deal, especially for the Pei family, which is even more of a surprise that makes them think. If Pei Zhizhi gave birth to a son, would the grandson of the Pei family be able to rule the world one day?

The news quickly spread in the government and the country, and many officials were speculating that Zhang Xuan would be a son or daughter?

However, the Qi Palace was very calm and was not affected by any outside world.

Early in the morning, Lu Qing came to Pei Zhizhi's yard. Pei Zhizhi was sitting in the room to rest. A maid reported at the door, "Mrs. is here."

Pei Zhizhi was about to get up when Lu Qing walked to the door and smiled, "Don't move!"

Pei Zhizhi had no choice but to sit down and smiled, "Why is the eldest sister here on such a hot day?"

Lu Qing walked into the room, sat down opposite her, looked at her face and asked with a smile: "I heard you were not feeling well last night?"

Pei Zhizhi's face turned red, "It's okay, I just have a little chest tightness. It's going to be fine in the second half of the night. Did Xiaoman tell his elder sister?"

"Don't blame her. I specifically instructed me. If you have any discomfort, you should report me immediately. She was still a little slower and told me only in dawn."

"Sister needs to rest too. How can you be embarrassed to disturb your sister like this?"

Lu Qing shook his head, "Fourth sister, the eldest sister is a veteran. You must be careful when you are pregnant three months ago. Preserving the baby is the first priority. You should not underestimate any discomfort. You should also take care of yourself after six months. Your second sister gave birth seven months because of the miscarriage."

Lu Qing's face turned slightly red, and he couldn't continue to say anything. Pei Zhizhi was pregnant and was very interested in this kind of thing. He quickly asked: "What was the second sister because of that time?"

Lu Qing did not answer her, but said, "You must not have sex three months ago or six months later. You must remember this!"

Pei Zhizhi understood a little, and his pretty face turned red, and he murmured, "I understand, little sister."

Pei Zhizhi is a very smart woman. She knew that her elder sister was reminding her in a tactful way that she had pestered her husband for a night with her yesterday. She didn't dare to say that her stomach was uncomfortable. She endured it in the middle of the night and did not fall asleep until the second half of the night.

Lu Qing stopped talking and asked with concern: "Do you really have nothing to do? I'll just look for the imperial doctor."

"don't want!"

Pei Zhizhi waved his hand quickly, "Sister, I'm really fine, I'm just a little tired, just take a break."

"That's good!"

Lu Qing held her hand and smiled and said, "It is important to take care of your health. I will take over the affairs of the mansion for you first. I will give it to you when your health is well."

Pei Zhizhi was in charge of the financial expenses in the mansion. He had to look at the bills sent by the big tent every day, which really made her exhausted and miserable. However, she was strong by nature and kept gritting her teeth and persevering. Until today, the eldest sister finally brought up this matter. She felt relieved and blurted out, "Thank you, sister!"

After saying that, she immediately realized that she shouldn't have shied away like this, and then quickly changed her words: "It doesn't matter, it's okay, little sister can withstand a little thing!"

Lu Qing sighed, "I should have let you rest a long time ago. It's my responsibility to remember this matter until today. Fourth sister, don't be stubborn."

Pei Zhizhi had to bow his head and remained silent for a moment. After a while, she asked: "The General is out today?"

"Well! He left the city before dawn. Xinhe was completed in the past two days, and almost half of the court officials have gone."

"I heard that Xinhe was completed, so we can take a boat to Jiangnan directly, right?"

"I'm saying stupid things, can't I be able to do it before?"

"No! I mean taking a big boat, so I won't be seasick. You know I feel uncomfortable taking a small boat."

Lu Qing knew that she was a little seasick, so she smiled and said, "That's true. You can take a boat to the south in spring. It's really convenient. Staying at home all day is so boring!"

"Then when can we go out for a walk?" Pei Zhizhi asked in surprise.

Lu Qing also knew that going out for a walk would be beneficial to Pei Zhizhi, especially when taking a big boat and being at home, it would not affect the fetus, but Zhizhi would be in a good mood and would also be beneficial to the children in her belly. She smiled and said, "Let me discuss with the general and let him arrange it for us."

The two of them said a few more words, and Lu Qing stopped disturbing her rest and said goodbye and left. However, Pei Zhizhi began to consider the days to go out for a trip. Living in the mansion every day really made her feel bored.

As soon as Lu Qing walked out of the yard, a little maid ran over and said, "Madam, Princess Guangling is here."

"Is she at Houhu Wharf?" Lu Qing asked with a smile.

"No, she is at the gate of the palace."

Lu Qing was stunned. How could Yang Ji'er come in from the mansion? Without thinking, she hurriedly walked towards the gate and walked into the yard of the outer hall. She saw Yang Ji'er coming towards her. She was wearing a dress of a civilian woman, and carrying a small bag on her back shoulder, and there was clearly signs of crying on her face.

Lu Qing was shocked and hurriedly approached and asked, "Jier, what's wrong?"

Yang Ji'er said with red eyes: "My mother and I have a fight. Sister Qing, I want to stay with you for a few days."

The Huan River is connected to the Yongji Canal a hundred miles away in the north of Zhongdu City, but the Huan River has been silted for a long time and the river channel is narrow. At most, it can only sail a thousand stone ships. Large ships over a thousand stone can only be parked in the Yongji Canal a hundred miles away. In order to clear the main river channel of Zhongdu, the imperial court invested 500,000 jin of money and hired 20,000 workers to dredge the river channel. After more than half a year of intense construction, the work was finally completed in the past two days.

This is not only a major event for the people of Zhongdu, but also related to the prosperity of the entire Zhongdu. This means that giant ships like Hengyang Boat can also be parked directly under Zhongdu City, without having to park in Yongji Canal a hundred miles away like before. The goods transported from all over the world will turn Zhongdu into the world's richest city.

The Zhongdu court also attached great importance to this matter. Under the leadership of Regent Zhang Xuan, nearly half of the officials rushed to attend the completion memorial.

This time, the dredging of the Huan River not only expanded the waterway, but also completely locked down the flood caused by the silt for hundreds of years. The workers built a lake in a low-lying cofferdam fifty miles away from Zhongdu, and formed a lake of thousands of acres with a water depth of more than two meters. They could moor the Hengyang boats and 3,000 stone warships. The completion of the memorial service was held by the lake.

There were hundreds of tents neatly tied in the open space by the lake, and thousands of soldiers were guarding each other. A large wooden platform was built close to the lakeside, and three animals were placed on the platform. Before the time came, no officials who participated in the memorial service came.

Zhang Xuan's king's tent is located in the middle of the group tent. It is a complex tent covering an area of ​​about three acres. It looks like a blooming lotus on the grass. The big tent is covered with a thick carpet, and the big tent is very quiet. Zhang Xuan paces back and forth in the tent with his hands on his back, and Pei Ju sits not far away.

Pei Ju's face was pale and calm. Today he wanted to take this opportunity to have an open and honest conversation with Zhang Xuan. He had already admitted frankly that the Lu Chu case was his planner and was willing to accept any punishment.

But Zhang Xuan seemed a little irritable, no longer had the calmness of the past. He was trying his best to restrain his inner anger. Some things were like this and could not be said. Once they were said, it would be difficult to deal with. Zhang Xuan had guessed that the Pei family was behind the Lu Chu case, but Pei Ju admitted it calmly, which made Zhang Xuan's anger that had been suppressing suddenly erupt.
Chapter completed!