"Husband, you came back a little later than usual today."
In the room, candlelight flickered. Li Yi moved the wooden basin away, helped Ruyi dry her feet, and covered her with the quilt. Then, he said, "I was indeed delayed by something today."
He roughly told Ruyi what had happened that day.
Ruyi leaned against the headboard and curled her feet under the quilt. She said, "Speaking of which, I haven't seen Mrs. Chen for a long time."
Li Yi sighed. He didn't know what to say for a while.
"I'm just a woman. I shouldn't say anything …" Ruyi looked at him and said, "But I think that in the future, no matter what happens to the Li family and the Chen family, we must treat Mrs. Chen well."
Li Yi nodded. The complexity of this matter couldn't be explained in a few words. He gently picked up Ruyi, laid her on the bed, and covered her with the quilt. He said, "It's getting late. Go to bed early, my wife."
Ruyi nodded and closed her eyes obediently. "Good night, husband."
"Good night."
Li Yi kissed her gently on the forehead. He walked over to turn off the light and left the room.
The moon was very bright that night. There were lanterns hanging in the courtyard, so it wasn't very dark.
Li Yi took some desserts from the kitchen and a pot of grape wine. He sat at the stone table in the courtyard.
He had cooked a lot today, but he didn't eat much. He was a little hungry now.
He ate the desserts and drank the wine, thinking about something.
Many things had happened these days. He needed to think about them from time to time.
The most important thing was to find another job for Old Fang. With a Grandmaster like Xu Lao by his side, his existence seemed a lot more unnecessary …
Secondly, since the old emperor handed over the affairs of the court to the Eldest Princess, he really didn't care about anything. He moved to Hibiscus Garden with the empress, Yan Fei, and the others, and retired early.
According to the Eldest Princess, he actually asked the imperial guards to open up a vegetable garden in Hibiscus Garden. He had already planted the seeds himself. When spring came next year, he would be able to eat the vegetables he grew himself.
Other than that, he played on the streets with Shouning and Yongning every day under the protection of a group of hidden guards. He led the dogs up the mountain to chase rabbits and set traps to catch pheasants. Of course, he didn't chase them himself …
Li Yi was starting to wonder if things really turned in the opposite direction when they reached an extreme. The old Emperor had been working hard his whole life, but in his old age, he had completely let himself loose and neglected his duties. If this went on, he would not be able to keep his chastity …
However, after staying away from the affairs of the court, he went to bed early and woke up early every day. Even the frequency of his illness was reduced.
Li Yi didn't remind him too much about this. Winter was coming, and at that time, he would have to obediently stay in Hibiscus Garden like a turtle. Winter was the season of asthma. If he survived this winter, there would be hope for the next year.
Li Yi was also worried about the Eldest Princess, who was personally in charge of the court affairs.
Although she often participated in the court affairs, it was the first time that she was acting in the place of the emperor. There would be too many problems in the process. Therefore, during this period, whether it was Li Yi entering the palace or the Eldest Princess leaving the palace, they were very frequent.
Moreover, apart from the court affairs, the two of them had other more important things to discuss.
Of course, these things were secrets only the two of them could know. They couldn't let others hear about it.
Li Xuan couldn't, and the old emperor couldn't.
Besides, there was something else — about himself.
For him, compared to other things, this matter was more troublesome.
Miss.Liu, who was wearing a thin shirt, came over and sat opposite him. She pinched a piece of pastry and poured herself a glass of grape wine. She was very busy these days and often didn't eat at home. There were not many opportunities for the two of them to sit quietly and face each other like this.
When she poured the second glass of wine, she slowly said, "I'm out of silver."
"Take a hundred thousand taels first. We'll talk about it if it's not enough."
Liu Meng was his family's power. Li Yi wouldn't be stingy on spending money on this. He gave her the silver and she could do whatever she wanted.
She didn't expect him to be so straightforward this time. Miss.Liu looked at him in surprise.
"Ruyi," Li Yi thought for a moment, suddenly sat up straight and looked at her, "I have a question to ask you."
Miss.Liu pinched another piece of pastry and said lightly, "Speak."
"I have a friend …"
Li Yi looked at her and said seriously, "This friend of mine has encountered some troubles recently."
Miss.Liu looked at him calmly and waited for him to continue.
Li Yi looked at her and continued, "This friend of mine has fallen in love with a woman. That woman is very good, but he has a wife. His wife is very gentle and beautiful. He also loves his wife very much …"
"This friend of yours, don't tell me his surname is also Li?" Miss.Liu suddenly looked at him and asked.
"…" Li Yi nodded and said, "It's just a coincidence."
"A coincidence … This friend of yours, other than that woman, has a lot of women outside?"
Li Yi thought for a moment and counted with his fingers under the stone table. He shook his head and said, "Not a lot …"
"It's also a coincidence that this friend of yours, other than his wife, has a powerful and beautiful wife's sister and a lovely servant girl?"
Li Yi shook his head. "Haha, how can there be so many coincidences? Whose coincidences are they …"
Miss.Liu lowered her head and poured another cup of wine. She asked, "Are there any other questions?"
"None." Li Yi stood up and turned to walk two steps. He then turned back and said, "The night is cold. Don't sit for too long. Rest early …"
…
Morning Dew Hall.
After His Majesty left the palace, although Her Highness the Eldest Princess had been acting as the court's administrator, she did not live in the Hall of Diligent Government. Usually, the memorials sent by the Minister of Shangshu would be sent to the palace where she lived.
"You have to continue following up on the matter of papermaking. But I think it should be done soon. In two days' time …"
Li Yi spread out a piece of paper and wrote and drew on it. "Lowering the price of paper is a good thing for the scholars of the world. It is also a sharp weapon to rope in the scholars. The academy has already begun preparations in the various provinces. When the time comes, there will naturally be people who will publicize what you have done in the capital. Once these two things are done, it will almost be enough to win the hearts of the scholars of the world …"
"Continue to send people to the Yu family every day. They will definitely continue to raise the price of paper. When the price reaches a certain level, they will definitely be tempted and start to stock up. Because if the academy uses that price to buy their paper, the entire operation of the academy will collapse. They will kill two birds with one stone …"
"Of course, we will definitely not let them kill two birds with one stone. After the new cheap and good quality paper is released, the Yu family's paper mill will collapse and the paper they have in stock won't be sold. The Yu family … It just so happens that winter is coming. We won't starve to death with the Cui family. We will have company and won't be lonely."
After listening to him, MIngzhu nodded, but her face showed some confusion.
She looked at Li Yi and asked seriously, "I … Can I really do it?"
Li Yi looked around and moved closer to her. He said in a small voice, "Don't think about these things now. What we need to do now is to let His Majesty know, let all the civil and military officials know, that what His Majesty can do, you can also do it, and you can do it better, even better than all the previous emperors of the past dynasties …"
This is something that happens subtly. We already have a lot now. Even if we encounter some resistance in the future, at that time, that little bit of resistance won't be a big deal … "
Li Yi had also seriously thought about it. Compared to the legendary figure, the Eldest Princess, whether it was her identity, position, or the power in her hands, was much greater. It could be said that she was truly a good seedling. The only thing she lacked might be that kind of temperament and means.
Of course, he also did not want the Eldest Princess to have that kind of temperament and means. She only needed to be responsible for completing the task given to her by His Majesty and being as beautiful as a flower. As for other things — there was him.
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