Chapter 60 Chapter Seventeen

Candlestick lights, red tears. The third watch drum had already been beaten, but Yan Xun still hadn't come back.The little maid carefully pushed open the door with the brazier in her hand, only to see the lights in the room like beans, the woman's figure was thin and slender, still leaning over the desk, she didn't raise her head when she heard the noise, her brows were slightly frowned, as if she was thinking about something. "Girl," the little maid showed a look of impatience. Although she was only twelve or thirteen years old, she still understood something ignorantly. She cautiously whispered to the usually serious and taciturn master: "It's getting late. You'd better go to bed early."

Chu Qiao didn't speak, but raised her hands slightly, motioning for her to go out. Holding the replaced brazier, Luliu walked to the door and suddenly turned around and said, "If the prince comes back, my servant will call you." The slender woman raised her head slowly, her eyes raised slightly, she looked at Lu Liu lightly, and said in a low voice, "Are you busy?" The little servant girl was taken aback, then knelt down on the ground with a thud, and said quickly: "Your servant is troublesome, please punish me." "Go down." The clear voice came out suddenly, the girl didn't speak any more, she just lowered her head and continued to look at the letter in her hand, Lu Liu bowed her head tremblingly and retreated, the door closed, and the room suddenly became quiet.

The candle was lightly lit, and sparks burst out from time to time. The candlelight dragged the girl's shadow very long, a slender one, and the outline could not be seen clearly. He didn't do anything different, he was still busy and thinking as usual, and even the tone of his reply didn't change a bit.It's just that on the sheets of pure white rice paper, the ink stains are deep and penetrate the back of the paper. The winter night was long, at five o'clock, there was the sound of the door opening from the front yard, and the writing brush stopped immediately. Chu Qiao listened for a while, then stood up, and lit all the lights in the room.

The light suddenly became brighter, and she could be seen no matter how far away she was. Chu Qiao stood in front of the window and lifted a corner of the window. The night wind blew along the edge of the window, blowing her long black hair. Quietly silent. She was waiting for a result, and with just one glance, she would know that she hadn't slept yet, that she was waiting for him.If he came over, it meant that there was still room for improvement, if not, it meant that he had already made up his mind and would not change it. Time passed slowly, and the lights in the front yard never moved. The man was wearing a silver fox fur cloak, the hood was half covered, and the blue shirt was upright.Ah Jing stood behind him, holding a green bamboo umbrella covering his head, and snow fell on the top of the umbrella.A small wind blew from a distance, rolled up the snow on the ground, and turned around in the corner, forming small eddies one by one, sweeping over his white boots and the corners of his fur coat.

"Your Majesty," Xiao Lizi walked forward with a bow, followed Yan Xun's gaze to the end of the corridor, where, amidst the shadows of the plum forest, behind the rockery, there were bright lights pouring down from a distance. "The girl should not be asleep yet." Yan Xun acted as if he hadn't heard of it, he just stood quietly, he knew that there must be a figure standing silently behind the dense houses and in front of the green bamboo window curtains.Between them, there are three corridors, two rich gates, a pool of clear springs, and a garden full of plum branches. It is only a blink of an eye to walk there.

However, a heavy sense of powerlessness gradually arises in my heart. Why does this seemingly short journey seem so far away? His eyes were peaceful and leisurely like water, he didn't speak, just watched quietly, his eyes penetrated the past seven years, through the joys and sorrows of the past years, the past is like flying, like an illusion like a dream, sharing weal and woe, sharing weal and woe Blessing depends on each other. The wind picked up suddenly, and the bamboo umbrella in Ah Jing's hand was blown away.The young guard was startled, and turned around to chase after the bamboo umbrella. The heavy snow fell on Yan Xun's shoulders. Even though he was wearing a thick fur, he still felt so cold.

"Walk." A short word came out of the man's mouth, Xiao Lizi was overjoyed, and immediately led the way in front, saying as he walked: "Young lady must not be asleep yet, my son..." Before he finished speaking, he saw Yan Xun and Ah Jing heading in the completely opposite direction, Xiao Lizi was slightly taken aback, holding the lantern, his mouth wide open, he was at a loss for a moment, not knowing what to do. With a soft "poof", Chu Qiao lowered the window lightly, slowly took off her outer robe, only wearing single clothes, walked to the four corner lanterns and blew them out one by one, her movements were slow and her face was calm.

Finally, with a soft sound, the candle on the desk was blown out, and the room was instantly plunged into chaotic darkness. He fumbled to the bed, pulled off the quilt, and lay down in it.The wind was quiet and unusually quiet. In the darkness, the girl's eyes were wide open, and the cold moon poured out the brilliance all over the ground. In the haze, there were no tears in the cold eyes, but there were some inexplicable things , Gradually sank, layer by layer, like continuous fine sand and waves. Early the next morning, Chu Qiao came to the front yard to have breakfast as usual. Today's Yingge Courtyard was exceptionally quiet, it seemed that everyone was carefully restraining themselves from making any noise.Chu Qiao and Yan Xun sat facing each other, and they still ate separately as usual, occasionally raising their heads to say a word of gossip.

The masters showed no abnormality, they were as calm as if nothing had happened.Ah Jing, Lu Liu and other servants were puzzled by Hu Wang, but in the end they all sighed helplessly: Maybe, I was really wrong. After breakfast, everything calmed down, everyone performed their duties, and there seemed to be a bit of joy in their expressions. After all, from now on in this huge palace, Yinggeyuan no longer has to look at other people's faces to act. At noon, Yan Xun opened the door of the greenhouse, and saw Chu Qiao quietly leaning on the railing of the flower stand, as if she had been waiting for a long time.

"My Blood Tilan!" Yan Xun wailed, and hurried forward. Chu Qiao was taken aback, and when she turned her head, behind her, Yan Xun was holding a bluegrass with a broken root. Annoyedly shouted: "My Blood Tilan!" "I didn't do it." The girl immediately raised her hands to stay out of the matter: "I didn't rely on that." "Didn't you see the silk rope between the flower stands?" Chu Qiao was taken aback for a moment, but after a closer look, it was indeed the case, she shrugged: "Even if it's me, I'll pay you a big deal."

Yan Xun shook his head, put the flowerpot aside, sat on the chair, and said seriously, "What do you think about this?" Chu Qiao thought for a while, and then said: "The emperor has murderous intentions towards you." Yan Xun smiled faintly, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly: "It's not been a day or two since he wanted to kill me." "It's different this time," Chu Qiao shook her head, and said in a deep voice, "He doesn't really want to settle the feud with you, but he just wants to block the mouths of the people in the world and find a slow step for himself. You, you have to stay out of it again." The girl's complexion was dignified, and she analyzed clearly: "Nowadays, the clan is powerful and the land is vast. The emperor has almost no military power except for the army in Gyeonggi. The military, government and financial power are all in the hands of the elders and scattered in the family. Zhao Zhengde wants to take back the royal power. Apart from relying on Meng Tian Le Xing and other few imperial power generals, you can only rely on the princes who are entrusted in the border areas. Therefore, he must not kill you blatantly. First, he is afraid of causing restlessness in Yanbei and arousing the Great Brotherhood. The crazy assassination of dead men is also afraid of chilling the hearts of the royal families in the world, so as not to cause rumors of cutting the feudal clan again. After all, the clans are waiting for the troops of the princes and royal families to seize the opportunity to compete for fiefdoms and expand the family power. Once the princely power is eroded by the clan, it will be even more difficult for the royal family to take back the imperial power." Yan Xun nodded in agreement, and the girl continued: "So if he wants to kill you, he has to use someone else's hand to do something specious, and then he will blame others and keep himself out of the matter. But now as long as you die, the whole world will kill you." All the spearheads will be pointed at him, so he chooses to marry his daughter to you at this time, making the illusion of being tolerant and tolerant, making the world think that he really wants to let you go back to Yanbei, and he will never agree with the past. Go after it again, and then personally take action until you die. Once you die, his most beloved daughter will become a widow, and no one will doubt him at that time." Yan Xun smiled lightly, took a sip of tea, and said, "You are right." The greenhouse is very warm, Yan Xun prefers orchids, the orchids in the room are fragrant, the warm wind blows gently, making people want to get drunk. Yan Xun raised his brows slightly, and asked softly, "Ah Chu thinks, what should I do?" "You have already been concerned about it in your heart, so why come to ask me?" Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows slightly, and said in a deep voice: "If you marry Zhao Chun'er, you will be killed in the future. If you don't marry her, you are disobeying the imperial decree and disrespecting the emperor's order. Refusing to marry the daughter of the enemy, the intention of treason is clearly revealed, and the catastrophe is imminent. How can you be so smart, how can you not weigh the pros and cons of this?" After finishing speaking, Chu Qiao smiled slightly, and said slowly: "In the past seven years, how many insults and difficulties have survived, let alone a mere woman today? Oh, the emperor is looking for a way out for himself to cover up, we It's not just delaying time, I just feel sorry for Zhao Chun'er's infatuation and tenderness." Yan Xun's complexion gradually changed, and his indifference brought a trace of loneliness and hard work, and he said slowly: "Is this your real idea? It turns out that you have already planned for me." "You and I have shared misfortunes and misfortunes for many years. Life and death, honor and disgrace have long been one body. Naturally, I want to plan for you." Chu Qiao said in a deep voice: "Besides, even if I didn't tell you, you would have made the same decision. Last night , you already told me." Yan Xun was taken aback when he heard the words, and then smiled lightly: "Ah Chu really is the person who understands me best in this world." Chu Qiao stood up, smiled relievedly, stepped forward and patted Yan Xun on the shoulder and said, "Of course, we grew up together, and it is a bond of life and death, and this will never change." Yan Xun looked at Chu Qiao's relaxed smile, smiled too, nodded and said, "Yes, it will never change." "I'm leaving first. I'm going to serve in the Xiaoqi Battalion soon. Before I leave, I'll say hello to Zhao Song." Yan Xun nodded, stood up, and said, "Give him my regards as well." Chu Qiao turned around and walked out. As soon as she reached the door, she stopped when her footsteps faltered. She clenched her fist slowly and then let it go again. She repeated this three times, but she still didn't go out.Yan Xun seemed to know that she had something to say, so he didn't press the question, just stood quietly. "Yan Xun, the love between children is long, and it is inevitable that the hero will be short of breath. You still have many wishes that have not been fulfilled, and the big things are the most important." Yan Xun's heart was cold for a while, he didn't make a sound, just watched the girl's back gradually disappearing in the layers of emerald green of the flower hall, and didn't move for a long time. Ah Chu, I gave you a drop of water, but you repaid me with a spring.So, in the face of your monstrous kindness, how should I repay it? The afternoon sun was shining brightly, but suddenly, Yan Xun felt that everything was so dazzling. "Who?" A short soft drink came suddenly, Chu Qiao was startled, looked down, and saw a head protruding from the bridge hole under the stone bridge, with a golden crown and hair, two thick and black eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and angry eyes , his forehead was red and swollen, as if someone had hit him with a hard object. Chu Qiao's heart sank, her brows were tightly frowned, and she thought that her luck was really bad today, so she gave up the idea of ​​turning around and running away, stood up and saluted condescendingly: "Join the Seventh Highness, Chu Qiao didn't know that His Highness was under the bridge, offending you Please forgive me." Zhao Che was wearing a dragon robe with azure pattern, a gold crown and a purple ribbon jade belt, and a dark blue jade pendant hung around his waist. It was of a beautiful color, and he was handsome and handsome, which was quite different from his usual attire.If it weren't for the expression on his face that was too angry, it would be a pleasure to appear in such a snowy scenery. "It's you?" Zhao Che frowned, looked up at Chu Qiao on the bridge, and said in a gloomy voice, "You mean to blame me for not appearing at the right time and staying under the bridge, right? " "Your Highness the Seventh Prince is serious. Is it the king's land in the whole world? Is it the king's subjects on the shore of the land? The whole world belongs to the royal family. Where Your Highness likes to be and where he wants to be, naturally it is not up to his subordinates to comment." Zhao Che was taken aback, and repeated the words "Is it the king's land under the whole world, is it the king's subjects on the shore of the land", thoughtfully. If you don't leave now, when will you stay? Chu Qiao saluted, and said in a deep voice, "Don't disturb His Highness's rest, I will take my leave." "Stop!" A clear voice sounded immediately, stopping Chu Qiao's steps, Zhao Che made a big circle and climbed up from the other side of the frozen lake.Prince Daxia panted slightly, and shouted at Chu Qiao from a long distance: "What are you doing standing there stupidly? Come here!" Chu Qiao sighed in her heart, and she had to be tempted by him again, which made her already bad mood worse. With a gloomy complexion, she slowly walked down the stone bridge. The branches on both sides of the bank are dry and desolate, the snow is heavy, and the edge of the lake is frozen. The Qiyue Bridge spans the lake, which is white and clear. Looking from a distance, it is as dazzling as a ribbon. After Chu Qiao left Yinggeyuan, she didn't go to Zhao Song, but came to the Royal Garden alone to think about something quietly.The days of summer are extremely short, and the days of winter are extremely cold. This imperial garden is decaying and dull, and has always been rarely populated.He didn't want to throw a stone from the bridge, but it hit Zhao Chelai instead. "Just now you called yourself a subordinate, not a slave, what exactly do you mean?" Chu Qiao was taken aback for a moment, but she didn't expect that what he wanted to ask was this matter, so she quickly replied: "At the hunting ceremony that day, the emperor graciously released me from slavery, and personally bestowed on me the position of instructor of archery in the Xiaoqiying Camp. Your Highness is The leader of the Xiaoqi Battalion, although he has not officially met with him, is also Chu Qiao's boss." Zhao Che raised his eyebrows, and said in a deep voice, "Xiaoqiying Archery Instructor? You?" He was surprised, but Chu Qiao was even more surprised. She frowned and asked, "Don't you know, Your Highness? No one told you?" Zhao Che's brows were frowned immediately, slightly annoyed, he looked at Chu Qiao coldly, and didn't answer. It's just these two short sentences, but invisibly revealed too much information to Chu Qiao, the shock in her heart was almost speechless for a while, too many thoughts were summed up, making her dizzy.That day Zhao Che retreated after performing the military exercise, and didn't have time to watch her fight with Zama, so no one told him about it afterwards? Could it be that the relationship between Mu Heshi and Zhao Che has broken to such an extent?The emperor was not close to the son he loved most at the beginning?It is impossible for Zhao Che not to have spies in Beijing, so who deliberately concealed it?Yan Xun's subordinates were canonized as military generals, he didn't know such a big thing, what does this mean? Just as she was lost in thought, she suddenly glanced at the corner of her eye, and Chu Qiao was startled. Pointing to Zhao Che's forehead, she said awkwardly, "Your Highness Seventh, you..." Zhao Che frowned, and asked in doubt: "What's the matter?" Then he reached out his hand to wipe it, and his hand was immediately covered with blood. "Don't move." Chu Qiao stepped forward quickly, took out a white handkerchief from her bosom, and pressed it on Zhao Che's forehead regardless of her dignity. "Stop!" Zhao Che showed disgust on his face, the seventh son of the emperor who always disliked slaves and was proud of his status frowned, and coldly scolded Chu Qiao: "Who allowed you to touch this king?" Chu Qiao was taken aback when she heard the words, and immediately stepped back to one side, looking coldly at the seventh prince whose head was gushing blood like a fountain, and said flatly: "Since His Highness does not allow your subordinates to help, you will obey orders, but this place is far away from the main hall. There are two sticks of incense before the crowded place in the harem, judging from His Highness's injuries, he probably died of blood flow before reaching the place." "Untouchable!" Zhao Che yelled coldly, the rapid blood loss made him a little dizzy, and he was almost unable to stand still. He was hit by the stone thrown by Chu Qiao before, but it only hurt a little, and he didn't bleed. The bleeding didn't stop.But despite this, he still stubbornly said in a deep voice: "If you dare to hurt this king, I will kill you nine clans!" Chu Qiao sneered coldly, and said disapprovingly: "My nine clans have already been wiped out by you, and now I am the only one left, which is very easy. But if Your Highness doesn't let me help you, you may even tell others to help you There is no chance of revenge." After finishing speaking, Chu Qiao casually took out a small packet of golden sore medicine, and walked forward. "Step aside!" "Be honest with me!" the woman without makeup sternly shouted, a small grabbing hand restrained Prince Daxia, who was bleeding and dazed, and said in a dark tone: "You think I am willing to save you, I just don't want to be implicated in your death." It was the first time in Zhao Che's life that he met such a bold and ruthless servant, and he was slightly taken aback for a moment, forgetting to struggle. Chu Qiao grabbed a handful of snow and pressed it on Zhao Che's wound. The stunned prince suddenly let out a miserable cry, "What are you doing?" Chu Qiao snorted coldly, thinking that some kind of tough guy would call it pain.While thinking about it, he quickly brushed off the snow, poured the golden sore medicine, and then covered it with a handkerchief, grabbed Zhao Che's brocade robe, took out a dagger and tore off a piece of cloth with a swish. With a roar of anger, he bound up. "Bold slave," Zhao Che said in a low voice bitterly while sitting on the snow, "Tearing the royal python robe without authorization, do you know what crime you should have?" Chu Qiao frowned and looked at him, then slowly shook her head, showing a hint of pity on her expression.Counting this time, it was only the sixth meeting with Zhao Che.The first time, was on the first day of coming to this era, when Zhao Che was still a child, with ruthless methods, cruel and ruthless, he pointed arrows at her several times, ruthlessly and resolutely wanted to take her life.The second time was the night when he and Yan Xun were captured together. Zhao Che led his troops to ambush them in the snow field outside the city and defeated them in one fell swoop. Their suffering also started from here.At that time, he was extremely lonely and full of conceit.The third time was the day when Zhao Che left Beijing. He and Yan Xun secretly hid in a corner of the imperial city and witnessed the moment when the child was pushed out of the palace gate.That time was the first time I and Yan Xun took action against someone in the royal family. At that time, the main target was not Zhao Che. After leaving, Mu He's hatred for the Wei Clan came to restrict Wei Shuyou, so as to gain breathing power for survival.Then, it was his recent few times, one in the imperial city corridor and one in the paddock. This man gives people a different feeling every time they meet, and people can't ignore him. In the past, she was deeply afraid of this man, but now, she finds it a little funny. Seeing his clothes stained with blood and his face pale With an appearance of struggling to save face, a heart that was originally depressed and disturbed gradually relaxed. "I've offended enough today, and I'm not short of the crime of tearing clothes." The girl smiled faintly, and sat down against the tree, with a snow-white fur draped over her shoulders, like an orchid in an empty valley, or a smoke tree in the wilderness. Zhao Che was taken aback when he heard the words, and raised his eyebrows in doubt: "I can see that you are really not afraid of death." "No, I'm afraid of death." Chu Qiao shook her head, "I just don't believe you will kill me." Zhao Che asked in a deep voice, "Why?" Chu Qiao said: "People who really know how to take revenge will first remember it schemingly in their hearts, begging me to save them, and then come to kill me to take revenge after being saved. Although you are a bit arrogant, self-righteous, and have eyes higher than the top , plus cruelty and bloodthirsty, but there is still a bit of character and conscience, so you won't seek revenge from me afterwards." The golden sore medicine is really good, and it has stopped the bleeding after a while. Zhao Che snorted coldly and said in a deep voice: "Do you know that what you just said to insult the royal family is enough to kill you?" You ten times." Chu Qiao smiled and stood up: "It's okay, anyway, I even beat the prince today, so I don't miss a few more insults." "Bold!" Zhao Che stood up abruptly, his face furious. "Don't come here." Chu Qiao also snorted coldly: "You should know that I am not an ordinary woman with no power to restrain a chicken. Whether you were my opponent in your prime is another matter, let alone you are seriously injured now. I don't want to beat you up and make you hate me even more." Zhao Che gritted his teeth: "What a bold woman." "Thank you for your compliment." Chu Qiao smiled brightly, turned around and walked towards the stone bridge, and said loudly: "If I misread you, you are really the kind of scum who doesn't know how to bully others, then I also advise you not to send someone to arrest me. Because I am not I will admit it, and maybe I will bite you back at a critical moment. If I remember correctly, this should be the place where the concubine Yuan threw herself into the lake. If the empress knows about this, what do you think will happen? " The woman's voice could be heard from far away. Zhao Che stood on the lake bank, staring fiercely at Chu Qiao's leaving back, his eyes almost burst into flames. The sun was very good that day, a rare sunny day in winter, it was fine in the afternoon, and the breeze was gentle.