Chapter 40 Chapter Thirty-Nine

The palace where the Empress Dowager lived was mostly planted with pines and cypresses, and the courtyard was mixed with flowers and trees. Because of the warm weather, peonies and peonies competed for beauty, and the courtyard was full of flowers.Concubine Duan and Concubine Hui accompanied the Empress Dowager to admire the flowers in the courtyard, and while they were talking lively, the court lady announced that Ning Guiren had arrived.Concubine Duan couldn't help but glanced at Concubine Hui, Hua Zhu had already entered, and greeted the Queen Mother respectfully.The Empress Dowager always treated her very affectionately, but now she only said lightly: "Get up." Concubine Hui said with a smile: "My sister looks really good today, like the peony flowers in this yard, white and red. It's fragrant." Concubine Duan said, "Sister Zhu's complexion is of course better, she doesn't look like us old and yellow."

Huazhu smiled and said: "My sisters are all in their prime, and the queen mother is in her prime, just like this peony blooming just right. How can the flowers and plants next to it be just in case?" The queen mother just laughed, Said: "I'm old, why would you compare me to a flower?" Duan concubine said with a smile: "My sister's mouth is just flattering, I can't complain that the Long Live Lord looks at my sister differently, and even flipped my sister's brand on the Longevity Day It can be seen that in the emperor's heart, the younger sister is the closest person to the emperor." The corner of Huazhu's mouth twitched slightly, and finally held back, but remained silent.Concubine Hui smiled at the Queen Mother: "Look at Sister Duan, because you have always loved her, she even said such things in front of you." Concubine Duan blushed and said angrily, "The Queen Mother knows that I never You can say whatever you think." The Empress Dowager said: "This is the good boy of the Empress Dowager, and she doesn't hide her thoughts from me."

Concubine Hui pointed to the flowers and the Queen Mother looked at them. Concubine Duan also admired the flowers as if nothing had happened, sometimes saying this one is good, sometimes praising that beauty. Well, just come and talk with me tomorrow." The three of them quit together, and Concubine Hui lived far away, so she left first.Concubine Duan smiled at Huazhu, "I haven't congratulated my sister yet." Huazhu was already a little angry, and asked with hesitation, "What kind of congratulations?" Concubine Duan said, "The emperor has rewarded my sister again. Things, shouldn’t I congratulate my younger sister?” Huazhu said with a smile: “The emperor is also rewarding today and tomorrow, I don’t think it’s a big deal.” Hearing this, Concubine Duan was naturally not pleased. Couldn't help but said: "Sister, the emperor treats you well, everyone can see it. It's a pity that there are never flowers in this palace." Hua Zhu heard her unhappy tone, laughed, and said: "Sister always knows me Because my sister has been taking care of Huazhu, Huazhu is grateful to her sister. Huazhu's face is actually the same as her sister's face. We are on the same boat. If my sister treats Huazhu as an outsider, Huazhu will not dare to come again Solve my sister's worries and problems."

Concubine Duan gritted her teeth lightly, and after a long while, she finally smiled: "My good sister, I am teasing you. You know that I have no intention of speaking." Huazhu also smiled and said, "Sister, I am also arguing with you. playing." Concubine Duan returned to Xianfu Palace and just sat there in a daze. Seeing her like this, Qixia said softly: "Master, don't be too sad. The matter has reached the current stage, just be on guard against her. Long Live Lord is now Spoil her, master will wait for a while." Duanbi snorted and said: "You didn't see her like that, you are so frivolous. You actually threatened her with words, and you almost climbed on my head to act wildly." Qi Xia laughed and said: "Then There is nothing I can do about it, she has made great contributions to what happened that day." Concubine Duan sneered and said, "Don't look at the emperor's treatment of her now, it's only three days old, I don't believe that the emperor can spoil her for a lifetime. Now don't blame me Ruthless, if you don't draw the bottom line, I'm afraid it will really make her strike first."

The emperor stayed in the Compassionate Palace for meals these few days, it was still early on this day, the emperor was diligent in reading, and there was a little eunuch beside him to carry the books he read daily, at this time the emperor picked out a book first I read it, read it for more than half an hour, because I was thirsty and wanted tea, I couldn't help but look up, the maids in the Palace of Compassion and Ning have all changed into green silk singlets, and Lin Lang is also wearing a green smoky and water-colored lake crepe jacket, Only a few plum blossoms are sparsely embroidered with silver thread.As soon as the emperor raised his head, he saw the blue color surrounded by the crowd. She lowered her head and was cutting clothes, with a thin strand of tassel hanging from a jade hairpin on her head, brushing her temples while rinsing.Su Mo'er came over to talk to her, she turned her face with a smile, just happened to see him looking at her, the tassels on her temples swayed slightly, her smile became deeper, and the light twitch on her left cheek pear vortex.Behind her is a flower shelf, clusters of peonies, like a brocade, she smiled like this, she felt like a full moon shining brightly, and those flowers were also vividly reflected.

Seeing this, Su Moer hurried over and asked, "What does Long Live Lord want?" The emperor suddenly came back to his senses and said, "Oh, Madam Su, I'm thirsty." The empress dowager was sitting on the upper kang Seeing Linlang cutting the clothes, she told Su Moer, "Go and bring our good tea, and invite you Long Live Lord to taste it too." As soon as the tea was brewed, the Empress Dowager said to Linlang: "You Come and taste it too, the slave who was sent to the south respected me and said it was a new tea produced in Dongting, I think it is fragrant but the taste is bland." Lin Lang put down the scissors, thanked him for the reward, and then swiped his hands to drink the tea .

The emperor took a sip of the new tea, and suddenly remembered something, and said to Liang Jiugong, "Go and bring the records of the river governor Jin Fu's report on floods in the past two years. I want to have a look." Liang Jiugong agreed to go, and the emperor The Empress Dowager put down the teacup in her hand, and seeing that the maids on the left and right had all retreated, she asked the Emperor, "Are you going to see the river workers?" The emperor couldn't help smiling, and said: "The emperor's grandmother is holy." The empress dowager said: "The three major events you wrote on the pillars of the Qianqing Palace that day: San Francisco, river affairs, and water transportation. River affairs and water transportation are actually the same thing. In a word, now that the San Francisco is in peace and the world is in great order, if the river affairs are under control, the water transportation will naturally be smooth."

The emperor said: "according to my grandson's memory, from the first year to the fifteenth year of Kangxi, the Yellow River breached forty-five times. The weir levee could not bear the flood of the Yellow River and the Huaihe River, and more than 30 places broke through, the canal levee collapsed, and several counties in Huaiyang were flooded, resulting in the impassability of the canal and the obstruction of water transportation." At that time, the imperial court needed six to seven thousand water ships to carry four hundred Wanshi's grain came to the capital as official salaries, soldiers' salaries, and common people's rations, which are actually related to lifelines.When the emperor mentioned it, there was unavoidable worry on his face.

The Empress Dowager asked: "Are you going to see the Yellow River Water Treatment?" The emperor thought for a while, and said: "The grandson wants to see the Huang and Huai rivers, and the Yongding River, which is close to the capital, naturally wants to see it." Don't be too hasty about everything. It would be no small matter if you drove out of Beijing to make a tour of the south." The emperor pondered for a while, and said: "Then grandson will only go to see the Yongding River first, and issue an edict if he doesn't know it, so as not to bother the teachers and mobilize the crowd." In line with the rules.Now that he said so, he expressed that he wanted to travel in subdued form.The Empress Dowager smiled slightly and said: "The imperial grandmother will not stop you, but you have to promise the imperial grandmother that the wife will come back peacefully."

The emperor was really happy, got up to say hello, and said: "Thank you, the emperor's grandmother." The empress dowager pondered for a while, and then asked again: "You plan to go directly to the Zhili yamen, go down the Yongding River to the Shuntian mansion, and then go to the Hejian mansion. ?” The emperor calmly said: "Sun'er is planning like this right now. Suo'etu, the Minister of the guards, will lead the imperial guards to follow. It should be all right. In case there is something wrong on the way, Sun'er will order Suo'etu to inform Fengtai Daying and the people along the way. Just go to the yamen." The empress dowager nodded when she heard his consideration, and the emperor said with a smile: "Grandmother, the imperial envoy who always sings about the imperial envoy who visits in disguise in the drama, and the grandson who walked in the innocence, what you see I heard that it must be more than ten times better than those in the court." Seeing his great interest, the Empress Dowager also smiled and said: "You really can be like the opera sung, pretending to be an exam candidate or a merchant going south. "The emperor suddenly became childlike, and said with a smile: "This year is not the year of the competition, it is not good to pretend to be a son, if you pretend to be a businessman, I am afraid that your grandson will not have the stench of copper, and your behavior will reveal your secrets. It is better to pretend to be the master of Mufu who is going to go to relatives and friends , wouldn't it be more interesting?" The Empress Dowager really couldn't hold back her smile: "You child..."

Seeing the grandparents and grandson talking and joking, Su Moer interjected with a smile at this time: "No matter how much I look at the Long Live Lord right now, I don't feel like a master." The emperor looked down at the jacket of the Nine Dragons Tuanfu on his body, and said, "I At that time, I will change into a long gown of blue cloth, add a satin vest on top, and a hat with green satin and Xiuyu buttons. Once the hat is changed, it will naturally look like a three-pointer." The Empress Dowager pursed her lips and said with a smile: " No matter how you dress up, you won’t look like it—how can there be a master in this world who takes the chief and assistant ministers to take office?” The emperor thought about Suo’etu as the chief and assistant center, an extremely personable minister, and officials of all yamen in the capital. Naturally, everyone knew him, and said with a smile: "That can't be helped, I have to order Suo'etu to sit in the carriage, and don't have to come out if there is nothing to do." Lin Lang sat aside, although she kept silent, the emperor paid great attention to her expression, but he didn't have a chance to speak.After lunch, the weather became hot in the afternoon, and the emperor changed his clothes. Because Li Dequan was not around, the emperor thought the eunuchs were clumsy, so Lin Lang had to come forward to help. Let's move." The corners of Linlang's mouth twitched slightly, as if he wanted to speak but stopped, he just lowered his head and buttoned the button for the emperor.The emperor gave a slight signal, and the little eunuchs all retreated.The buttons on Batulu's vest were all made of red gold, and her hands were slightly sweaty and slippery. The knot of the plate of blessing.The emperor couldn't help asking: "What's wrong with you these days, you've always been in a daze?" She seemed to come back to herself in horror, her eyes still had that dazed look, but said: "The emperor said so." The emperor thought she was worrying about him, and said with a smile: "It is said that it is a micro-clothes, and there are many people following, so nothing will happen, and it will only come back after reaching Hejian, and the journey back and forth will only take ten and a half months." She smiled slightly, and the emperor was very close to her. He felt that her smile was bright and radiant, but there was no joy in her eyes. He couldn't bear it, and said: "At that time, you will still come to talk to the empress dowager and her old man every day." , One day flies by quickly, I will definitely send someone back to pay my respects to the imperial grandmother every day, and then you will know where I have been and what I have done." She felt a little hot in her heart, and raised her head to see the emperor staring at her intently. Those dark and deep eyes were bright and deep. She turned her face away involuntarily, and said in a low voice: "I'm afraid..." The emperor just felt that There was a little panic in her voice, but she was trembling slightly. She was really pitiful, and she couldn't help pulling her into her arms, and said, "Don't be afraid, I've arranged everything. They can't take care of themselves, so they can't be distracted and have trouble with you. Besides, there are The emperor's grandmother is here, she promised me to protect you well." I just felt that there was a delicate fragrance in her temples, and she was very pitiful.But she didn't want her to sigh softly, and said, "Lin Lang isn't afraid of those." The emperor couldn't help but asked, "Then what are you afraid of?" "Butterfly Love Flower" Xiao Selan looked old.For fear of being sentimental, I don't make pity sentences.Court tears leaning on flowers worrying silent.I don't know where the dark fragrance is. Return to the old Mingyue Road.The cuffs are fragrant and cold, and the heart is bitterer than Qiulian.Don't say that you live in flowers, but people who cherish flowers go to flowers without owners.