The Female Lead Decides to Act Wickedly

Chapter 1271 - 474: Palace Schemes Pale Before Rebellion (Part 11)_3

When he wasn’t confronting the Empress Dowager He, his mind was still sharp.

For instance, he quickly realized that the crux of the issue lay with that man.

"Give him Silver Coins, or promise him a future, and make him stop bothering Nianer!"

Emperor Yongcheng ordered someone to go to the Zheng Family to handle this.

The Zheng Family, in fact, did have money. After Emperor Yongcheng ascended the throne, he granted Lady Hu’s husband, Zheng Youliang, the title of Lord of Loyalty and Courage that very year.

Emperor Yongcheng’s reason was also fairly justifiable; when he was sent out of the palace as a child, Zheng Youliang served as a guard in the He Family’s subordinates.

When Emperor Yongcheng was practicing horse riding, for some reason, the horse got startled, and in those critical moments, Zheng Youliang risked his life to save him.

Because of this, Zheng Youliang even had one of his legs trampled and broken by horse hooves.

To this day, Zheng Youliang walks with a limp.

This is also an important reason why the Empress Dowager He turned a blind eye to the Zheng Family’s favor.

Mrs. Hu was indeed obnoxious, but she and the Zheng Family certainly took good care of Emperor Yongcheng outside the palace, and did their utmost to protect him.

Having an Earl meant having a stipend and granted land.

Additionally, some merchants in the capital would also align with them.

In the past three or four years, although Emperor Yongcheng suppressed the He Family, he showed unusual respect towards "Mrs. Hu", making even some minor officials come to curry favor with the Zheng Family.

...In this way, the Zheng Family changed their fortunes and accumulated a large amount of wealth.

Sacrificing a large sum of money to exchange for Zheng Nianer’s "future" seemed worthwhile, even to the normally honest Zheng Youliang.

Yet, the scholar refused money altogether, as he wanted to become an official!

It’s understandable, in the Dayuan Dynasty the social classes were distinct. Having money didn’t necessarily mean one could become an official, but once an official, you were sure to get money.

This poor scholar was willing to risk offending the Emperor and agreed to side with the Wang Family because the Wang Family promised to recommend him for an official post once their plan succeeded.

At that time, there was no imperial examinations yet, and the selection of officials generally followed the nine-rank system from the previous dynasty.

Ordinary poor families seeking to enter the Imperial court could only rely on recommendations from those in power.

And the powerful ministers in court mostly came from noble families.

Being a new dynasty, the Dayuan Dynasty’s Imperial court had some founding merits, which slightly divided the noble families’ dominance.

But overall, it was still the noble families who controlled the selection of officials.

Of course, if the Emperor on the Dragon Throne was powerful and authoritative, he could also decide the appointments and dismissals of courtiers.

For example, the late Emperor, as the Founding Emperor, not only had the meritorious deed of "Opening the Heavens and Splitting the Earth" but also held military power.

Even those aristocratic families did not dare to clash head-on with him.

Even so, the late Emperor did not completely eliminate the noble families’ control over the Imperial court but instead cooperated with them.

Given what the late Emperor did, there’s even less to expect from Emperor Yongcheng, who hasn’t yet taken direct control.

"Damn it!!"

Emperor Yongcheng received the message returned from the Zheng Family, and was furious, almost beside himself with anger.

However, besides being angry and smashing things, he found himself at a loss for solutions.

Yet, in the end, Emperor Yongcheng wasn’t foolish. After his anger subsided, he calmed down again.

He might not understand the tactic that "the best way to deal with rumors is to create newer and bigger rumors," but he knew the principle of temporarily avoiding the sharp edge.

Anyway, he didn’t care about Zheng Nianer’s reputation, as long as the Zheng Family insisted on not marrying off their daughter and then sent away Zheng Nianer.

With the disturbances in the capital calming down, he could then bring Nianer back to the palace.

As for a woman’s reputation?

Ha ha, in the past, there were women who married twice and still became Empresses, setting an example for all.

Zheng Nianer was merely wronged; she still maintains her chastity. As long as the Emperor doesn’t mind, outsiders have no business to meddle!

Once Emperor Yongcheng figured this out, he conveyed his thoughts to Mrs. Hu.

Mrs. Hu:... What else could be done?

Outsiders all said that she, a slave, was more glamorous than the Empress Dowager.

In reality, Empress Dowager He still stood high in power, commanding respect and awe from the court as the Empress Dowager at the imperial throne.

While she, even a poor farmer dared to bully her on her own doorstep.

"Don’t fret! Don’t fret!!"

Mrs. Hu, in her frustration, desperately calmed herself: "Everything will be fine once His Majesty reigns personally!"

Once His Majesty wrests back real power from the Empress Dowager He and the regent ministers, he can truly ascend to King’s Rise.

By then, "Mrs. Hu" will finally be legitimate and proper.

And those who once humiliated her would all be trampled under her feet.

Including Lady He!

In fact, it wasn’t just Mrs. Hu who was eagerly hoping for the little Emperor to reign personally.

Even Emperor Yongcheng, after finally coming up with a solution to the Zheng Nianer issue, was contemplating how to reign personally.

To reign personally, he must first have a grand marriage.

Because in Hua Country, it has always been recognized that one is only truly grown up once married.

To establish a career, you must first establish a family to succeed in a career.

Furthermore, through the opportunity of the grand marriage, the Emperor could ally with some powerful ministers and seek adequate support.

However, those noble families had successively married off their daughters of appropriate age.

Could it be that he would have to settle for marrying a daughter from a noble but lowly noble family?!