Chapter 40 Chapter Forty

Sure enough, at the end of the second day, Yi's decree came from the servant, and His Majesty summoned Li Chu and his wife in the inner court of Xingyuan. When Fang stepped into the threshold of the inner court, Li Fuguo, the head of the inner court, greeted him. He seemed to be respectful, and said politely: "Your Majesty is waiting inside." Suzong kindly offered them a seat, and did not ask about Shen Zhenzhu's past experiences, but only asked her how she was in health, coming to Fengxiang was a habit, like an ordinary family's loving father.Without saying a few words, Concubine Zhang Shu also came out. She had just arrived in Fengxiang and gave birth to a son, named Dong. At this time, she was just over a month old, and the postpartum care was not good, and she looked quite sick.Seeing Shen Zhenzhu, she was smiling all over her face, holding hands carefully to inquire about the health and wellness, Shen Zhenzhu answered respectfully one by one.

Concubine Zhang Shu said: "Now that the pearl has returned safely, Chu'er can handle military affairs with peace of mind. Yesterday, my concubine occasionally heard that Huihe soldiers were arrogant and rude, and often clashed with the soldiers left behind under Marshal Guo, but it was not a trivial matter." The deputy marshal of the world's soldiers and horses, but only a small part of his soldiers and horses stayed in Fengxiang. Guo Ziyi led his own soldiers. Since the end of last year, he has been dealing with the rebels in the Hedong area, while Li Guangbi has led his troops to defend Taiyuan.There are less than 20,000 Tang soldiers stationed in Fengxiang County, most of them are mobs; the rest are all reinforcements and Huihe soldiers, about 10,000 people.The sources of troops and horses from all walks of life are different, and their habits are different, and disputes often occur, thanks to the mediation by Li Mi and others.

Suzong frowned and said, "Oh, there is such a thing?" He looked at Li Chu. Li Chu had been prepared for a long time, and replied calmly: "I have inquired clearly. This matter is a misunderstanding-because most of the Huihe soldiers do not eat pork because they believe in religion, the secretary of our army's food delivery is not familiar with this matter. Yesterday, Jiang Zhong After the grain and grass arrived, they sent some lard and pork, and the Uighur soldiers thought they were deliberately contemptuous of them, so they started a dispute. Now that the matter has been settled, the Uighur Prince Ye Hu may come to see His Majesty and apologize in person."

Li Fuguo interjected: "Although our army made mistakes first, the Huihe soldiers are too arrogant and unreasonable." Concubine Zhang Shu said with a smile: "After all, it is Chu'er who is capable. He has dealt with such a difficult matter just after he came back. Your Majesty, how did you have the heart to punish him for kneeling for so long last night? The concubine did not dare to persuade him. You have really wronged this child." Suzong snorted, and said, "I'm still taking it lightly, and next time—" "Your Majesty, Prince Huihe is asking to see you." The servant reported.

"Hey, I really mean Cao Cao, Cao Cao is here." Li Fuguo said in a low voice. Shen Zhenzhu frowned.It was still early at this time, and the emperor asked His Majesty to see him in the inner court, regardless of the time and place, it was inappropriate, and he silently delayed Chuu, who was already in Fengxiang, and did not come to see him in person, but only let Ye Hu, a child, come here, it is really arrogant and rude Tang Shi, has it really fallen to the point of relying on others? Suzong said the word "Xuan" to exit, and seeing the light and shadow shaking at the gate, a person walked in proudly.He was wearing heavy armor, with a childish face, and a tall and straight figure. It was Ye Hu. He was much taller than two years ago, and he already had the aura of a young general.

Ye Hu took a few steps, and half-kneeled down: "Ye Hu sees His Majesty the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty." But he couldn't kneel three times and knock nine times.Although Suzong was displeased, he still signaled Li Fuguo to hold his arm and lift him up.Said: "The prince has worked hard." Ye Hu's obeisance was already 80% empty, he stood up immediately, glanced around, immediately beamed with joy, stepped up, knelt down in front of Shen Zhenzhu, and shouted: "Ye Hu pays homage to the mother-in-law. " This kneeling immediately stunned everyone.Shen Zhenzhu hastily helped Ye Hu up.

Li Fuguo immediately laughed and said: "The prince has not done such a big gift to the emperor, how can he be so respectful to the princess of Guangping?" Ye Hu said seriously: "My Huihe people regard their mother as a god. She is above the father and above the king. The princess has saved my life and is my foster mother. Please don't blame me." As soon as this remark came out, everyone in the room was silent, with different expressions on their faces. Shen Zhenzhu yelled inwardly that it was not good, Ye Hu's words, how could it not remind people of the past between An Lushan and the noble concubine!At that time, An Lushan was trusted and favored by Bo Xuanzong, recognized the noble concubine as his mother, and said: "The courtiers are Fan people, and the habit of Fan people is to worship their mother first, and then their father." The noble concubine is a disaster for her beauty, and she is annoyed by hatred.Ye Hu's words today are exactly the same as An Lushan's words back then, so why not make people suspicious?Stealing a glance at Li Chu, I found that even he was silent and thoughtful.

Suzong laughed and said, "It turns out that there is such a story with twists and turns. It's a beautiful story. It's just a pity——" Concubine Zhang Shu said, "What is your Majesty's pity?" "It's a pity that I see that the prince is a good-looking talent. Recently, I am thinking about which princess or princess will marry the prince. Since such a thing happened, the seniority will not be messed up. It is a deep pity." Concubine Zhang Shu pursed her lips and said with a smile: "What are you talking about, seniority, we each have our own way, as long as the prince likes which princess or princess, what can't you marry?" Then she asked Ye Hu: "Prince, Is there anyone you like?"

Ye Hu bowed and replied: "Your Majesty is joking, Ye Hu's marriage is decided by the Khan, and I dare not make my own decisions." Suzong sighed: "He is really a good obedient boy. As long as my children are as capable and obedient as you, they don't need to worry about me so much." Li Chu listened to what he said about himself, and stood upright with his head bowed. But Concubine Zhang Shu complained: "Your Majesty said such a thing, where can you put Chu'er and Tan'er? How can there be such a father who is not partial to helping and protecting his shortcomings!"

Suzong glanced at Li Chu and sighed: "It's not that I don't favor them, it's that they disappoint me sometimes..." Shen Zhenzhu was terrified when she heard it.She didn't have much contact with the emperor, and knew that since he became the crown prince, he has always been careful not to fight with others, has a weak personality and is easily instigated by others.Judging from today's situation, the emperor clearly understood Li Chu - he must have known about Li Chu leaving the barracks without authorization, but he did not make it difficult for him.Under the overall situation of the Tang Dynasty, as the emperor, he might be afraid that Li Chu would take advantage of the opportunity to suppress the rebellion to support himself and threaten his throne, but he was even more afraid that Guo and Li Zhu would not obey the rules and do great harm, and seize the country of the Tang Dynasty.Comparing the two evils, the one who chooses the lesser power must have more trust in Li Chu for a while, and will never cut off his own arm.However, Concubine Zhang Shu and Li Fuguo sang together, deliberately provoking their father and son, so that the emperor's dissatisfaction with Li Chu could not be relieved.Look at this situation, the emperor trusts and loves Concubine Shu even more than when he was in Chang'an. If things go on like this, Li Chu is in danger.

While thinking about it, Su Zong said: "Pearl has returned from an adventure, and I have a big gift for her." Shen Zhenzhu hastily knelt down: "My son, please take care of my father, my son dare not accept the gift!" Suzong said with a smile: "This ceremony has a lot to do with you, and you must accept it." He said to Li Fuguo: "A proposed edict—" Neither Li Fuguo nor Concubine Zhang Shu seemed to know what Suzong meant, Li Fuguo held his pen and listened. "Canonize Princess Shen of Guangping as the wife of Yipin Zhenguo, hereby." Li Chu was overjoyed, pulled Shen Zhenzhu's sleeve and said, "Thank you quickly." Shen Zhenzhu quickly kowtowed to thank her.She is the princess of the county, and she is only in the third rank, but now she is awarded the first rank of Zhen Guo's wife, but she has skipped several ranks, which is very special.One must know that because Emperor Xuanzong was still in the middle of Shu, even Li Chu and other county kings were not enfeoffed, so he kept the original title, but suddenly named her a little concubine, what was his intention?Could it be—— She secretly raised her eyes to look at Su Zong's expression, and saw that he looked at Ye Hu with deep meaning. I see.This war, the bloody battle, the meritorious deeds of men, but the emperor intends for her to be involved. Giving her such a high status not only reassures her—who dares to talk too much about a daughter-in-law who is recognized by the emperor; it also allows her to hold the thread of affection for Ye Hu in the past and achieve the goal of the Tang family to calm the world. She, Shen Zhenzhu, a mere weak woman, when did she reach such an important position! Shen Zhenzhu returned from the inner court full of thoughts, Li Chu also seemed a little dazed, took Shen Zhenzhu's hand and said: "I went to the Marshal's Mansion, I have a lot of business these days, I will come back later." Shen Zhenzhu nodded, suddenly remembered about Suci, pulled Li Chu's sleeve, and said simply.Li Chu thought about it for a while, and said: "This is easy to handle. I will ask Yan Ming to find a house in the city and buy two servants to serve her. If you miss her, just go and see her. There is another place to walk around, so as not to spend a lot of time It's boring here." Shen Zhenzhu was deeply delighted and nodded repeatedly. She walked slowly back to the courtyard where she lived with the two personal maids. "Ah -" the person in front of her ran and yelled, bumping her into a stagger, and took a closer look, it turned out that she was a maid of honor, and when she bumped into the princess, she knelt down and kowtowed in fright. "What's the matter of panic and disrespect!" Behind him reprimanded the maid. "Here, Mrs. Cui is ill again. She took a knife from somewhere and stabbed people everywhere!" Just as she was talking, Shen Zhenzhu had seen a woman with disheveled face, muttering something, holding a long knife of a ruler, scrambling around in the courtyard, surrounded by several guards, but she did not dare to forcibly snatch her away. knife, for fear of accidentally hurting her. She raised her head suddenly, caught a glimpse of Shen Zhenzhu, her eyes suddenly brightened, she shouted: "I want to kill you, I want to kill you!" She came straight to kill Shen Zhenzhu. "Be careful!—" Her body was dragged aside, and a petite figure rushed forward, lowered her head and touched Cui Caiping's abdomen, and pushed her away by ten feet, and fell to the ground.The guards rushed forward, pushed Cui Caiping down, and took the knife from her hand.Unexpectedly, Cui Caiping lost his mind and only resisted instinctively, but his strength was enormous. The guards were all scruples and did not dare to use their full strength, nor did they take precautions. Cui Caiping opened his mouth and bit off the arm of a guard. "The pain let go, Cui Caiping did the same thing, and bit another guard's arm, took the opportunity to break free, swung the long knife in place, and continued to stab Shen Zhenzhu. Seeing that she was about to pounce on Shen Zhenzhu, with a "bang", her body sank and she was pinned down firmly to the ground.It turned out that a guard saw that the situation was not good, so he made a decisive decision and threw himself on Cui Caiping to subdue her.You must know that although Cui Caiping is Li Chu's concubine, they dare not hurt her easily, but everyone knows His Highness's heart for the princess, and if the princess makes a mistake, they are afraid that they will lose their heads.At this time, even if it surpasses the etiquette, it can't be taken care of. "Sister-in-law!" Li Ruo took a breath, still a little shocked, it was she who pushed Cui Caiping away in a pinch. Shen Zhenzhu caressed Li Ruo's hair, and said: "It's lucky that you were lucky just now." Looking at Cui Caiping, the beautiful woman who was round and beautiful in the past is now haggard and out of shape. , couldn't bear to look at her again under pity and pity, and waved: "Help Mrs. Cui go back to her room to rest." The court lady serving Cui Caiping faltered: "Madam Cui's current situation, she can only be tied up, and then take the medicine to soothe the nerves." Seeing Shen Zhenzhu nodding, she led the guards to forcibly drag Cui Caiping into the room.Cui Caiping rolled her eyes and stared at Shen Zhenzhu, but she was not messing around at this time, and was dragged into the inner room obediently. "Being a woman, why are you so pitiful?" Li Ruo sighed softly beside her, and there was a lot of worry on her brows. After some troubles, Li Ruo, who was lively and carefree back then, is no longer here.Why do people grow up after suffering and tempering; or, suffering is an indispensable part of life? Shen Zhenzhu said: "The old Ruo'er was not like this." Li Ruo smiled wryly, "My sister-in-law has returned safely, and my son will be less guilty." Then he said: "Sister-in-law, I have already repented. It turns out that it hurts people so much to treat ruthlessness with love. To people, if you don't want your father to worry about you, you have to be filial, keep yourself safe, and just want to live this life without waves." Shen Zhenzhu expected that Li Ruo would be sad and desperate for a long time, but she did not expect her to be so disheartened. Thinking that she was in the Mood for Love, she decided to give up the word love, and never opened her heart again.Over the years, as the princess, she will definitely be registered as a princess, eldest princess, and eldest princess in the future, and she will definitely marry her as a good man.However, even if there is someone to accompany the long night, the heart is still barren and empty. If there is no dawn in the Geng Geng starry night, what is the end? She persuaded: "Nao'er, you can't plan the past, you should forget it. I still love the talkative and laughing Ruo'er the most. Now the state affairs are also frustrated. I traveled from Luoyang to Fengxiang all the way. I saw the people displaced and cried bitterly. There are Taoists everywhere, the people are hungry, and the wild are hungry, and the world is in pain, not just you and me." Li Ruo shook his head lightly and said: "I only know that I can never go back to Li Ruo back then. I only hate why I was born as a daughter in the royal family. If I hadn't been born as a daughter, I wouldn't have suffered from love." ; If you are not born in the royal family, you can travel around the world." While talking, Zhe Miyi heard the news and came to visit Shen Zhenzhu.Zhe Miyi is extremely happy, she and Li Chengcai are a match made in heaven, talking about the interesting things between the husband and wife, chatting endlessly, Shen Zhenzhu and Li Wei are originally very sad, but they can't help but put aside their troubles for a while and laugh non-stop . After having lunch together, the two left, and Shen Zhenzhu sent her out of the courtyard, but Zhe Miyi shouted: "Oops, I piled the towels in your room." "I'm afraid she doesn't know where she is. It's better for me to find it myself, and the princess will go first." Li Ruo agreed to leave, and Shen Zhenzhu remembered that Zhe Miyi didn't have the habit of carrying a towel with her, so she knew that she was procrastinating on purpose, and she must have something to tell her.Then he said to Zhe Miyi: "If there is anything, please tell me quickly." Zhe Miyi smiled strangely, and whispered in Shen Zhenzhu's ear, "Khan wants me to send a message, please stay at Pingyuan Tea House in the east of the city tomorrow at noon." Shen Zhenzhu was stunned, and before she could speak, she heard Zhe Miyi whispered: "Khan said that he only discusses state affairs with the concubine, and we will see each other." He laughed, and before Shen Zhenzhu could answer, he had already walked away. As expected, Yan Ming handled the tasks assigned by Li Chu very quickly. In the afternoon, he went back and forth to report that he had found the house, equipped with servants and servants, and after cleaning, Su Ci could move in tomorrow. Shen Zhenzhu instructed the court lady to help Su Ci pack her luggage, thinking about Zhe Miyi's message just now, she was a little puzzled.With Mo Yanchu's character, he is by no means evasive and entrusting someone to pass on a message. If he really needs to find himself, this little behavior can't stop him at all. What is he doing?Do you see yourself or not?Then I thought, Li Chu is the most nervous about his own safety, no matter where he goes, he must be protected by his attendants, how can he go to see Mo Yan Chuo in private, how can he not be known by Li Chu?Once Li Chu knew about it, he would be very angry. If he could tell it frankly and openly, he said that the silent delay was a state affair, and the teahouse was not a private place. It is expected that Li Chu would agree. Unexpectedly, this night, after waiting and waiting, Li Chu did not return all night.