Chapter 7 Chapter Six Deep Willow

The sun slanted down from the tower of Yongdingmen.The air in early summer is getting hotter and hotter, and there is no coolness in the wind.The bank willows are as thick as a woman's temples, hanging heavily on the mirror-like river.A few pieces of the latest catkins came from nowhere and stuck on the face, making people even more disturbed. Qiao Changqing, a member of the Ministry of Rituals, cleaned his hands, took the handkerchief from his attendant, wiped his face, sighed and climbed back to his horse.At the end of the official road, there is a little bit of smoke and dust, and there is no shadow of Prince Zhongjing's car driving at all.

At the end of last month, the emperor ordered his son to visit the queen mother in Beijing.This move is of course to restrain King Zhongjing, but superficial things still need to be done.In order to express his goodwill towards Xu's family, the emperor specially asked officials from the Ministry of Rites to come out of the city to greet him personally.This move was already beyond the norm, but the Queen Mother felt that it was not enough, and even Yang Lian, the king of Zheng, also sent her out. However, the eldest son, who received the solemn and courteous reception, stayed away from the beginning of the morning until noon, and refused to show up for a long time.The people on King Zheng's side were also a little shaken.Qiao Changqing was not familiar with King Zheng, so he couldn't guess how King Zheng felt about his brother-in-law, so he didn't dare to discuss with him.

Cheng Ning raised his head and persuaded, "Your Highness, go hide under the shade of a tree for a while." Zheng Wang Yang Lian looked back on his horse, all the servants who came out looked tired, and said: "When you are tired, go and have a rest." The implication is that he himself does not move. Cheng Ning ordered everyone to take turns to enjoy the cool in a low voice, and he was still by King Zheng's horse.Yang Lian was dressed in Wubian attire, with a straight back and a calm expression, without a drop of sweat on his jade-like cheeks.Cheng Ning recalled that in the twenty-eighth year of Wan'an, Crown Prince Zhuang Jing performed the winter solstice sacrifice on behalf of the late emperor, walking from the Meridian Gate to the Temple of Heaven, accompanied by his young grandson.Everyone thought the journey was hard, but they were afraid that Yang Lian would not be able to walk.Unexpectedly, the little man was wearing a crown heavier than himself, and followed closely behind his father without making a sound... The solemnity of the Tian family was originally his kung fu since he was a child.

"I'm coming." Qiao Changqing looked up and saw a group of iron cavalry appear on the road across the river. The glistening armor shone dazzlingly in the sunlight.Civil officials rarely saw such a formation, and Qiao Changqing was taken aback.He quickly glanced at King Zheng.King Zheng had a calm face, turning a blind eye.Qiao Changqing's heart trembled, he rode forward and shouted at the bridge here: "Your Majesty! Sergeants are not allowed to enter the city!" His words didn't work, the lead rider rushed to the bridge one by one and stopped suddenly, the white horse raised its hooves high, and everyone on the shore saw the god-like face under the silver helmet.Xu Anzhao, the eldest son of Prince Zhongjing, took control of Bao Ju under his crotch, and said with a smile: "My lord, don't mind. These are my life and death brothers. They have been with me for half a month, and now they want to watch me ride into the city." .We understand the rules of the imperial court, and we have no intention of making trouble."

Qiao Changqing said: "My son, what do you mean by this! According to the rules of the imperial court, the foreign army should set up a camp five miles outside the city, how can they reach the city!" Having said that, the cavalry had no intention of stopping, and saw the bridge over there.Qiao Changqing's hands were trembling. He only had a team of Beijing soldiers and a few protocol officials on his side. It was probably a dream to stop the prestigious Xu family's iron cavalry.If they were allowed to rush under the city gate, the consequences would be disastrous.He was about to ask Jingying to stop him, when he suddenly saw a man and a horse passing by from the corner of his eye.King Zheng rushed to the bridge, stopped lightly beside Xu Anzhao's saddle, and suddenly showed a warm smile on his face: "Your Majesty, come and be safe."

"Your Highness Jin An." Xu Anzhao hesitated for a moment, and had no choice but to jump off the horse and salute. "You and my brother, why bother to be so polite." Zheng Wang waited for him to finish his ceremony and got off his horse to help him up, while holding him by his side, his expression was very kind. "Cousin, grandma is afraid that you will have a hard time on the road, so she asked me to come and take a look first." He whispered in Xu Anzhao's ear, "Don't make it difficult for me." Xu Anzhao watched intently, and Yang Lian's smile was flawless, like a newly opened mirror, which seemed to clearly see the bottom of his heart—he was actually dazzled by this brilliance.He didn't expect to be able to lead troops into the city, but he just wanted to show his edge.After pondering for a moment, he waved his hand and let the cavalry retreat.

Yang Lian walked down the bridge with Xu Anzhao on his arm, but at the same time took his horse with his own hands.So Xu Anzhao couldn't get on the horse anymore.The two walked hand in hand to the shore, Yang Lian suddenly stood still and said with a smile, "There is one more thing to congratulate my cousin." Xu An took a look, but saw an old internal official respectfully holding up a big red square box.Yang Lian took it and handed it to Xu Anzhao.Xu Anzhao had no choice but to accept it with both hands, unable to figure out what mystery was inside. "This is the black gauze, jade belt and python suit given to Prince Zhongjing's son by the emperor," Yang Lian said solemnly, "Please change into the python suit and ride into the city with me."

"No one changes clothes under the city gate!" Xu Anzhao laughed angrily. Yang Lian pointed with his horsewhip, and a green hut had already been built under the city. "The account preparation is a bit sloppy, please forgive me." Although he was smiling, he did not leave any room for words, "Or does the prince want to change clothes on the tower?" The defenders on the tower had already gathered, clusters of shining gunpoints flickered among the battlements. "Then why bother?" Xu Anzhao sneered, "I wanted to invite the Empress Dowager to take a look at the newly made armor in the army, but now... I think too much."

Does he still want to bring armor into the palace?A sneer flashed in Yang Lian's heart, but he wrote lightly: "This python suit is also a new look in the inner palace. As soon as the emperor said that he would give you a suit, the queen mother went to the sewing bureau to choose it for you. Her old man saw you put it on. , will surely rejoice.” Xu Anzhao had nothing to say, took the box by himself, and got into the green cottage. At this point, Qiao Changqing breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly realized that his middle coat had already been soaked through, and it was icy cold against his back.He couldn't help looking at Zheng Wang Yang Lian, but he saw Yang Lian's eyes move - a four-wheeled carriage with silk and paper curtains came from the bridge.The guard of honor followed behind the car, all of them were servants of Prince Zhongjing's residence.The carriage rushed straight from the bridge, very rude, Yang Lian couldn't help but put his hand on the saber.

The car suddenly stopped in front of him, and the curtain was lifted, revealing a face as bright as the morning sun.The dull air was suddenly illuminated, and everyone's eyes turned. "Brother Lian." The girl in the car called out clearly. Yang Lian remembered.He quietly let go of the hand holding the sword, leaned over and said to the girl: "Miss Xu... is about to enter the city, let's put down the curtain." Zheng Wang Yang Lian and Xu Anzhao, the heir son of Zhongjing Wang, walked through Zhuque Street side by side. The silver-saddled white horse and the handsome prince attracted passers-by to stop and watch along the way.Walking to the Meridian Gate Square, I met Xia Dynasty, full of red clothes and green robes pouring out of Chengtian Gate.The crowd stepped aside, King Zheng and Shizi dismounted slowly.Someone paid homage to His Royal Highness Zheng Wang, and Zheng Wang immediately returned the salute one by one.Some people also recognized Shi Zi and came forward to greet him with a smile.More courtiers just didn't say a word, watching the good show set up by the emperor from a distance.Shen Hongrang stood behind the crowd and lightly stopped Xie Qian.

Suddenly someone yelled, in a moderate voice, as if deliberately trying to let someone hear: "Xu's son-in-law." Yang Lian couldn't help but turned his head, seeing indifferent faces under the uniform black gauze hats, unable to discern any meaning.These three words were clearly in my ears, Xu Anzhao just smiled, pretending not to see Yang Lian's fingers clenched tightly on the horsewhip.And the little girl of the Xu family in the car actually bloomed a cluster of bright flowers in her heart, and after thinking about it silently for a while, she remembered that they were talking about her elder sister who died early. King Zheng and his son went to see the emperor as usual.Xu Anyuan went straight to Qingning Palace.Seeing that she arrived first, Empress Dowager Xu was surprised: "Why did you even come?" Xu Anyuan bowed profusely, and said with a smile: "So that my aunt can know, I am afraid that my brother will be lonely on the journey, so I will also accompany him to see the scenery of the imperial capital." "How can a person like An Zhao be lonely? It's your father who is willing to let you go this way." Isn't it enough for a son to be a hostage?Empress Dowager Xu also knew that this grandniece was the most willful and restless, so she could only sneer and say, "How beautiful is the imperial capital? It's not like you haven't been here before." "Not good, how can it compare to West Lake." Xu Anyuan curled his lips and rolled into the arms of Empress Dowager Xu, "But there are aunts and grandparents in the imperial capital who love me, which is something that Hangzhou can't compare to." Empress Dowager Xu caressed the girl's curls of blue hair hanging on her knees, a soft rose color was revealed under the translucent skin.The Empress Dowager said thoughtfully: "Is it almost fifteen years old? My aunt will arrange the ceremony for you, do you think it is good?" Xu Anyuan put his arms around the Queen Mother's neck, smiled and said, "Thank you, great-aunt." "What do you want? Playing wine, visiting the garden? You came earlier, the lotus in Xiyuan hasn't bloomed, and Yuxi Palace hasn't been cleaned up, or wait until summer?" "The garden of Qingning Palace is very good, there is no need for Xiyuan. The stage of Yuxi Palace is not as big as the one here." Xu Anyuan thought for a while, and said, "On that day, invite all the relatives in the palace. Come and listen to the play, okay?" The queen mother blinked her eyes, pursed her lips and said with a smile: "Jiji ceremony only invites female relatives." Xu Anyuan said: "Then salute in the morning, and invite the emperor and brothers to come over in the afternoon." The queen mother smiled without saying a word, just looked at Xu Anyuan and shook her head, her eyes flickering.Xu Anyuan was a little anxious, just shaking the Queen Mother's arm and begging repeatedly.Seeing this, Li Sizhu next to him also followed suit: "The palace has been quiet for a long time. It's rare for Shi Ziye and Miss San to come to Beijing. It's a good idea to use the name of Miss to make everyone lively." There was something in Li Sizhu's words, the emperor never gave a formal face-to-face meeting when Prince Zhongjing's son entered Beijing.Under such circumstances, it would be embarrassing for the Empress Dowager to give a banquet to the eldest son. In the name of Miss Xu San, everyone will look better.The Empress Dowager naturally had the same meaning in her heart, so she said with a smile: "Go get the emperor's calendar." The auspicious day chosen was May 15th.The Empress Dowager posted a post asking Empress Xu to preside over Miss Xu San's wedding ceremony, and invited Liang Yu and other concubines and princesses to attend.In the main hall of Qingning Palace, there are expensive media like clouds, colorful clothes lined up, gold powder and precious makeup, and the ceremony is very grand.Even the princess and Ji are just so ostentatious. The next day, the theater wine was set up in the garden, and the emperor and empress were invited, as well as the dowagers, princesses, princes and princes from all the palaces, and the theater hall of Qingning Palace was fully seated. Concubine Shu reclined on the couch with her eyes closed, she could hear silk and bamboo singing from a distance, babbling and babbling.I don't know where the palace people walked past under the palace wall with a smile, thinking that they sneaked away to watch the theater.She sighed and moved across the chess field.Seeing this, Yuchou hurriedly asked: "Miss Qin, I haven't seen you for a while, do you want to invite her to come and stay with you for a while?" Concubine Shu ordered someone to invite her. Not long after, the inner officer who came back said that Qin Taiwei had been taken to Qingning Palace by Empress Xu. "Why did you even call her?" Concubine Shu was startled, and said to Yu Chou repeatedly, "You send someone to inquire." Concubine Shu is too worried.It was not the Queen Mother who ordered Qin Taiwei to go to Qingning Palace, but Miss Xu San.Back then, Qin Lingxian and Xu Gongye were both officials in Hangzhou, and the two families had social contacts, and the little girls also formed a handkerchief acquaintance.When Xu Anyuan heard that Qin Taiwei was in the palace, she wanted to invite her to meet her. The queen mother only said that she would just invite her to meet her when she was watching a play, and there was no need to make a big fuss. The empress sat in the main hall and talked with the empress dowager and the emperor for a while, then she resigned in the name of taking care of her elder brother, but ordered Qin Taiwei to stay and wait for Miss Xu San to summon her.Shen Ye and the other female officials liked to watch plays, so they asked the queen to let them stay here.They sat on the east building and looked towards the main hall. Qin Taiwei hadn't seen An Yuan for many years. From a distance, she could only feel that she was extremely beautiful, and her hair decorated with gold beads could not conceal the magnificence of her face.The people in the palace commented one after another, saying that the queen mother was a peerless beauty when she was young, and this third miss Xu inherited seven or eight parts of the queen mother's beauty, and she was born so beautiful.At this time, Xu Anyuan and Princess Xianju were leaning on the queen mother's couch, Yingying and Yanyan were talking. Xie's residence often invites theater troupes to come during festivals. If there are no outsiders, she and Xie Yuanyao will sit beside the eldest princess, chatting and laughing, and Xie Qian will sit outside.Compared with her own granddaughter Xie Yuanyao, the eldest princess loves her granddaughter more, just like the queen mother treats Miss Xu San preferentially.Thinking of this, Qin Taiwei is sour again. Emperor Yang Zhi loved Nanxi Opera when he was King Qing, and even secretly hung out with people in the Liyuan Bank for a while. The theater troupe is very eye-catching, asking how Yuxi Palace is preparing and when to go to escape the summer heat, and making fun of the little sister, Princess Xianju.The queen mother also answered with a smile, and asked the emperor to be in good health and not to work too hard on state affairs.The mother is kind and the son is filial, and they are happy and harmonious. No one can see the contradiction between the emperor and his uncle's family.Prince Zhongjing's son took a cup of wine, came to respect the emperor, and said a lot of praises, and the emperor also praised him for his bravery and loyalty to serve the country.The princes all toasted the wine, and the princes and princes under the east corridor couldn't be idle, they brought the wine up, and the father, son, brothers, uncles and nephews gathered around and made a round of toasts.The emperor drank a few more cups and became slightly drunk. Suddenly he saw his second son Yang Xi in the crowd and asked with a smile, "Have you asked your cousin about riding and shooting?" Yang Xi failed in studying, but recently she gradually shifted her mind to martial arts. Hearing his father's question, he was overjoyed and said quickly, "I just want to ask for advice. I have practiced on the shooting range for three months. Brother Lian Said, if I go hunting in Nanyuan in autumn, I will definitely bring back a rabbit with my own hands!" "So Ah Lian took you to practice?" The emperor looked at Yang Lian and smiled inexplicably. Yang Lian's drinking capacity is very light, after a round of drinking, he gradually became a little dizzy.He was most afraid of getting drunk, so he sat on the edge and closed his eyes for a while, when he heard the emperor talking about him, he stood up immediately.Just as he was thinking about how to respond, he heard Yang Xi say: "The masters of Jin Yiwei are all bad, only Brother Li's archery skills are the best!" Yang Lian took a deep breath, but said with a smile on his face: "With Xu's cousin here, who dares to say 'good at archery'?" Xu Anzhao smiled and said, "Your Highness is too modest. I didn't beat you a few times in the arrow competition in the Liao Navy." "I know it's because my cousin released the water to make me happy." Yang Lian said, "No one in the army knows the bravery of General Xu, but I can't match it." The Empress Dowager listened, covered her mouth with a smile and said, "It's so boring to push back and forth, why don't you have a competition?" The emperor also wanted to see their abilities, so he ordered people to bring bows.The theater building is not too wide, and it's too close to shoot anywhere, and you can't show your skills, and you can't run a horse. Xu Anzhao pointed to the Wusheng who was somersaulting on the stage and said: "Tell that Wusheng not to stop, there are two feathers on his head." , you and I each get one, how about it?" Yang Lian frowned when he heard this suggestion. "It's just for fun, why gamble with human life?" the emperor said lightly. Xu Anzhao sneered in his heart, and said respectfully: "Your Majesty sees the teaching, so let's shoot willows?" Xu Anyuan saw that these men didn't even watch the show, and they even made a fuss about bowing and archery, and felt very interesting.At this moment, there was a sudden silence, and she took the opportunity to stand up: "Please give me a bow, Your Majesty." The emperor was very curious, so he followed his advice.Xu Anyuan looked around and saw five-colored peonies in a large cloisonne bottle on the desk, so he picked up a large pink flower and tied it to the arrow feather with a silk rope: "Please take the flower as the injection, whoever shoots the arrow feather?" Flower, whoever wins." She walked up to the people and stood still, and slowly drew her full bow, aiming at a pillar of the stage.The tiger girl of the Jiangmen, with a heroic posture, has just posed a pose, and has already won repeated applause. With a sound of "thump", the feather arrow flew into the air carrying the peony flower.Immediately after the bowstring sounded again, when everyone looked intently, they saw a long arrow barely piercing the silk flower, and nailed it impartially to the platform pillar. "Xiao General Xu has good arrow skills!" The emperor took the lead in praising, and everyone echoed, and Jin Jue drank the wine.The smile on the Empress Dowager's face grew even stronger. Yang Lian weighed it, knowing that the bow that the emperor brought out was far from the hardest bow in the palace, but he didn't know the weight of Xu Anyuan's small bow.Xu Anyuan tilted his head halfway, and carefully selected a bright red peony, turned his face and met his gaze, a pair of black eyes suddenly bent.Yang Lian lowered his eyes subconsciously, concentrating his mind on the bowstring.He slowly drew the bow, and everyone fell silent. He suddenly felt a cool look behind him, and subconsciously loosened his fingers.The blood-red flower flew across the sky, but was hit by the shaft of the arrow, spinning a few times in the air, and fell to the ground. The emperor sighed and glanced at Yang Lian again, his face was full of disappointment.Yang Lian was stunned for a moment, and could only say, "I'm laughing." "You live in the deep palace for a long time, with nothing to do. You write lyrics or make medicine all day long. Bow horse riding and shooting are all neglected. Even I feel sorry for you!" The emperor frowned. The words were so serious that the brothers and sisters of the Xu family felt very embarrassed when they heard it.Yang Lian's complexion gradually turned pale, and he had to kneel down to plead guilty.For a while, no one dared to speak.The queen mother looked at it coldly, and smiled softly: "It's just a kid's game of comparing arrows, why take it seriously? It seems like Ah Li can't afford to lose." The emperor heard the words clearly mocking him for his small size, and felt uncomfortable: "My son didn't mean that. It's just that Ah Li was carefully cultivated by the late emperor and elder brother since childhood, and my son also hoped that he could set an example for the younger brothers in the palace. .” The Queen Mother smiled and said, "Ah Lian is still young, let him be free for a few years. If you want to set an example, who can set an example for the world like the emperor?" The emperor was gagged by the queen mother's words, and almost had to roll up his sleeves and shoot arrows.Seeing that the momentum was not good, Xu Anyuan quickly interjected: "Your Majesty, let me tell you the truth. This is a trick that my brother and I often play at home, and we have already cooperated very skillfully. There is no way that you can't shoot. Your Majesty, please don't." Just blame our brothers and sisters for cheating." The queen mother gave her a sideways look, angry and funny, and hugged her in her arms: "This is obviously a case of malpractice for personal gain. If you don't punish me, who will you punish? I don't agree with you brothers and sisters working together to plot against Ah Lian. Pour the wine quickly." Go and respect your elder brother, and see if he will spare you!" Xu Anyuan was ashamed and angry, and everyone hurriedly laughed and laughed, and finally got over it. "What is this?" Shen Ye suddenly snorted softly. Although Xu Anzhao is related to the royal family, it is against the rules for a foreigner to participate in the celebration banquet of the palace family members.But this is the empress dowager's favor, even the emperor can't say it.When he came in from the front, the palace family members lowered the curtains on the upper floor in unison, for fear of losing their appearance.Although Miss Xu San is young, showing her face in front of a group of men will also lose her status as a boudoir.Shen Ye was born in a family of poetry and etiquette in the south of the Yangtze River, so he naturally disliked the behavior of the Xu family. Qin Taiwei looked back and saw no one around, Fang whispered: "The Xu family is from a military background, of course they all want to practice martial arts." "I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about Miss Xu San, who actually calls her brother-in-law brother." Shen Ye continued to criticize, "If that counts, then you can also call Zheng Wang brother!" "My elder sister is not Princess Zheng..." Qin Taiwei suddenly understood that what Shen Ye was talking about was not Concubine Shu, but that Xu Anyuan's grandfather and queen mother were brothers, and Qin Taiwei's grandmother was also the younger sister of the late emperor. They are cousins ​​for three generations.But Miss Xu San can call the princes brothers and sisters, but Qin Taiwei is just a slave. She called Xie Qian her brother.Back then, because of the early engagement, and the Xie family's style of family, she didn't meet Xie Qian too often, and there will be no chance in the future...Qin Taiwei's eyes suddenly became hazy.She collected herself, picked up the half cup of leftover tea in her hand, and swallowed it with her neck raised. Looking down through the curtain, I saw Xu Anyuan holding the wine glass and walking towards Yang Lian with a smile on his face.Shen Ye frowned and said, "The Xu family wants the old son-in-law to be the new son-in-law, but this is too..." Yang Lian took half a step back imperceptibly, and an elderly internal official next to him immediately stepped forward to take the wine.Seeing this, Xu Anyuan was a little overwhelmed, and couldn't utter the words he had thought up. At this time, the emperor suddenly heard the emperor say leisurely: "Miss Xu, Ah Chi said that he also wants to try." After reaching this step, Xu Anyuan immediately turned and walked away.She looked at the flushed Yang Xi standing beside the emperor, and made a sad face: "Go back to the emperor...but I didn't bring a rabbit!" Everyone laughed loudly, even the concubines who were hiding behind the curtain were laughing backwards and forwards. For a while, the hairpins jingled, and many cups and trays were broken, and the tea was spilled all over the floor.The palace people held back their laughter and rushed to tidy up, and the upstairs was in a hurry.Only Concubine Xian remained motionless and sighed slightly. The queen mother stopped laughing, poked Xu Anyuan's face and said: "You are so narrow-minded, you are reluctant to bring out another flower?" "It's really gone, what should I do?" Xu Anyuan had picked all the red peony flowers in the bottle, and there was not one left.Everyone laughed again.So the clever internal officer ran to the field, picked up the flower that King Zheng knocked down, and held it to Xu Anyuan: "Miss, let's take it easy." Xu Anyuan had no choice but to tie the residual flower to the tail of the arrow and shoot it out, passing across the sky - but Yang Xi's arrow did not catch up. With a sound of "thump", the feathered arrow with flowers pierced the pillar of the stage. Only then did Yang Xi react, and hastily loosened the string and released the arrow.The feather arrows pierced through the red flowers on the stage impartially. Everyone was silent for a moment, not knowing whether to laugh or applaud.Seeing that Yang Chi was frozen there speechless, the Queen Mother had no choice but to come out to smooth things over: "Your method is good, you can be sure of it, and you will hit it with a hundred hits." Then she turned to the emperor and said, "I only know that Ah Chi is always honest, but today he can even play a little trick. gone." "That counts?" Xu Anyuan whispered.Glancing at Yang Xi, seeing that his face was like a pig's liver, and the tip of his forehead and nose were covered with bean-sized sweat, the contempt in Xu Anyuan's heart became more and more intense. This little archery competition made the Yang family's children lose face.The emperor had already lost his mind, and said lightly: "It's all rewarded." After the rewards are distributed, everyone returns to their seats.The golden gong on the stage re-opened and the pipes rang together, and the big show opened again.After all the tossing just now, everyone lacked the mood to watch the show.The emperor caught a glimpse of the empress dowager, so he passed on the play list to ask the empress dowager to reorder the play.Yang Xi didn't understand anything, blushing and randomly clicked "Broken Black Pot". Seeing this scene, Xu Anyuan became more and more uninterested, and suddenly remembered the matter of Qin Taiwei, and hurriedly said to the maid beside him: "You go to the east building to find a palace lady named Qin from Kunning Palace, and invite her to come here. Meet me." "Wait." The Empress Dowager glanced at the emperor from the corner of her eye, and felt that he seemed to be smiling, so she said to Xu Anyuan with a smile, "There's a lot of chaos here, let's tell her the next day." "But—" Xu Anyuan was a little puzzled. "Your aunt has already left with the people from Kunning Palace," Empress Dowager Xu said indifferently, "Who told you to think of it now." Yang Lian sat on the seat with his hands in his sleeves, he was at a loss, and suddenly saw Cheng Ning beside him, and said, "I have a headache after drinking, and I want to sleep in the back for a while. Go and talk to the Queen Mother." Cheng Ning just wanted to persuade him. , I saw that he had already staggered away, so I had to grab a small internal officer to serve him. Qingning Palace has been managed by several generations of empress dowagers, and there are many houses and pavilions.At the back of the garden is the Shenliu Reading Hall, which was originally Yang Lian's house.Later, when others left, the study hall was not used for other purposes, and it was still empty.Until he came back in July last year, Empress Dowager Xu was not worried about him living in the palaces of the princes outside the palace, and left him to live in the Shenliu Hall for a while, and did not move out until the Qingfu Hall in Xiyuan was cleaned up.Last year, Nalin Juanjuan was his concubine, and he also used this room as his bridal chamber. Seeing that he came here drunk, the internal officer guarding the house hurriedly opened the door and helped him onto the couch. As soon as he touched the pillow, he gradually became sober, and the pattern of pine branches on the silk silk curtains became more and more clear to his eyes.The furnishings of this room have not changed since he left.When I was twelve or thirteen years old, it was the same afternoon, I hid alone in this tent, counted the lines on the tent, connected them in my imagination, and assembled them into human faces.After the death of his father, he left the Eastern Palace. For two or three years, he had to depend on his grandmother.Afterwards when his uncle ascended the throne and the overall situation was settled, he moved into Qingning Palace with the Queen Mother and lived in the Deep Willow Hall.Later, I went to Hangzhou, and then I was called back to Beijing to live in Xiyuan.Most of the old things from childhood are lost, but this tent is one of the few things left. He regrets coming here.If my father was still there, I don't know how I would feel when I saw him laughing and exchanging glasses with the Xu family.This place is far away from the theater building, but you can still faintly hear Xiange laughing and laughing. All the dignified people in the entire Erhuang Palace gathered here - except Concubine Shu who was about to give birth. The blazing sun slowly slipped through the pine branches, and there was a lingering musty smell in the room, as unbearable as Huangmeitian in the south of the Yangtze River. He took out a smoked veil from his sleeve and covered his face.The aroma of the borneol, as cold as water, slowly rises to the top.He groped under the water, walking with difficulty, his feet seemed to be stuck in the mud, and he even lost his breath quietly.A silver-white fish slipped past his ear, and he stretched out his arms to catch it, and the silver fish landed on his palm, turning into a soft and slippery hand.He held her hand tightly, feeling peaceful and joyful in his heart, and was about to go with her, but she suddenly pulled back and swam away again in the illusion of a whitebait. He was in a hurry, pushed away the water wave and chased a few more steps, the whitebait was far and near, bright and dark, and after a while, it disappeared suddenly.With a pain in his heart, he shouted, "Don't go." Cheng Ning rushed forward to shake him.He suddenly sat up from the bed, feeling dizzy and tight in the chest. It turned out to be a nightmare. "It's really hot here," he said sullenly, "I'm sweating all over, I need to change my clothes." Cheng Ning saw that his face was blushing and his clothes were soaked, so he immediately asked the following eunuchs to go back to Xiyuan to get clean clothes, and asked the on-duty eunuchs to boil some hot water.At this time, most of the officials of Qingning Palace, big and small, were watching the play in front, even if there were one or two people, it was not good to send them too much.Cheng Ning rolled up his sleeves and tried the water with his own hands, and helped Yang Lian to take off his clothes and wash them a bit. Qin is too lost.The elderly palace man who led the way was anxious for a moment, and only told her the route once, then hurriedly turned to the side road and disappeared. When she realized it, she had already forgotten what the other party said.She stood there for a while, and suddenly felt something was wrong.Third Miss Xu could have summoned her openly, why did she make a secret appointment alone in the garden?Based on the shallow friendship between her and Ms. Xu San, it seems unlikely that she would have any private things to say... It will not be related to the lawsuit of the uncle's family, right? A white cat passed through the flower path, and she couldn't help calling out. The white cat stopped to look at her, then turned around and jumped into the thick shade.She recognized it, it was the cat that scratched her that day, and she couldn't help but chased after it a few steps.The cat ran so fast that it was gone in a blink of an eye. The soft willow branches tickled slightly on her face, and she felt that the further she walked, the more she couldn't even see the figure, and she became more and more nervous.Suddenly, in the depths of the willow forest, there was a row of huts with green tiles and bamboo fences. The houses were outdated and in disrepair, and the door was not guarded. whispers.She wanted to ask for directions, but she called a few times but no one answered, she simply pushed open the half-closed door and walked in. "What's the matter, you've been away for so long before you come back?" the old internal official asked after hearing the sound, with a hint of blame in his tone.She looked over in confusion, and the other party was obviously taken aback by her. It was evening, and the light in the west-facing second room was excellent, and the room was filled with water smoke.In the warm and soft smoke, a straight naked back is slowly turning around, as if the snow-white mountains are suddenly illuminated by the sun. While she was watching the movie, her mind suddenly rang, and she walked out. "Stand don't go." Yang Lian subconsciously stopped her and chased her out in a few steps.Qin Taiwei's knees went limp, and she couldn't help but kneel in front of him, feeling the hot blood all over her body flooding to her head and face, choking so hard that she couldn't even utter a word of begging for mercy. "Your Highness, be careful to catch a cold." Cheng Ning hurriedly took the gauze shirt and wrapped it up for Yang Lian.Yang Lian tied his shirt, calmed down a little, and finally recognized the girl's face in front of him, his heart sank suddenly: "It's you. What's going on?" Qin Taiwei took a deep breath, and tried her best to reply clearly: "My servant was called by Miss Xu to Shenliu Hall to wait for her. I lost my way and bumped into Your Highness. This servant deserves death." Cheng Ning also had a bad feeling: "What nonsense are you talking about. Shenliu Hall has always been the residence of His Highness King Zheng, why would Miss Xu San summon you here?" Qin Taiwei panicked: "This is a message from the palace servants around the queen mother to the servants, and the servants don't know where Shenliutang is..." Yang Li and Cheng Ning exchanged glances, before they could say anything, there were crackling footsteps outside.Yang Lian sighed silently, dragged Qin Taiwei up, and pushed her back again and again.Qin Taiwei was startled, but he heard him yell in a low voice: "Don't make a sound, hide inside." Qin Taiwei immediately understood what he meant, and quickly ran to the inner room, hiding her body behind the screen. Cheng Ning was amazed.Zhang Chun, the head of the Kunning Palace, has already brought people in. "While watching the play in the afternoon, a palace attendant got lost in Kunning Palace, I don't know—" "I didn't see it." Yang Lian cut off his words coldly. Zhang Chun was annoyed when he saw that he was naked, and there was still half a basin of warm water in the room, so he became even more suspicious, so he laughed and said, "Your Highness can't see him when he's asleep. I wonder if Eunuch Cheng has noticed?" Cheng Ning bit the bullet and said, "Our family didn't see it either." Zhang Chun said with a smile: "This room is big, maybe—" "Otherwise, Eunuch Zhang will come in and search to see if someone is hiding on my bed!" Yang Lian walked back to the bed and lifted the curtain. Zhang Chun only said that Yang Lian had a gentle temperament and seldom lost his temper with people in Qingning Palace. Seeing him suddenly turn his back on him, he didn't dare to press him, and said with a smile, "What is your Highness thinking? The servants are afraid of those girls The child was ignorant and wandered around, and bumped into His Highness. Since there is no one, the slaves will look elsewhere, so His Highness can rest and not catch a cold." Yang Lian slowly suppressed the anger on his face, and said, "Thank you for your concern, father-in-law, let's go slowly." Zhang Chun walked to the door, looked back, and said meaningfully: "The previous drama is over. Will His Highness return to Xiyuan tonight, or stay here? If you want to stay overnight, our family will send a few more people to take care of you." , so as not to tire Eunuch Cheng. If we leave now, our family will order someone to prepare a car to go." Before giving up, Yang Lian stared at him and said with a slight smile, "I haven't made up my mind yet. I'll send someone to tell my father-in-law when I've made up my mind." Cheng Ning helped Yang Li put on the brocade robe, shoes and socks, checked the situation outside, and then called Qin Taiwei out. The two little internal officials who fetched the clothes came back again, Yang Lian was annoyed that they had been away for so long and caused this incident, so he ordered Cheng Ning to go out and talk to them, but he dragged Qin Taiwei to find the hidden A back door under the rockery pointed out the way for her to leave quickly. They stayed for a while before going to bid farewell to the Queen Mother.When I left the gate of Xi'an, it was already dusk, and a crescent moon hung far away on the high wall of the imperial city. Cheng Ning couldn't help but whispered: "Your Highness, why bother? Since the Queen Mother sent her here, someone must have followed her secretly." "I don't care who the Empress Dowager wants to punish. But this method is too unbearable," Yang Lian said angrily, "Don't I want to be famous? Meeting palace people privately in the Empress Dowager's palace?" If it is really found out, it may not necessarily hurt your reputation.Instead, disturbing the empress dowager's situation aroused suspicion.Although Cheng Ning thought so, he didn't dare to say more. When we returned to Qingfu Hall, it was already dark.Mrs. Lin brought over the sober wine that she had prepared earlier, and slender purple petals were frozen in the agar.Yang Lian took a look and frowned.It was too early to drink, but there was not a few mouthfuls of food at the banquet.It might be too late to ask for a snack at this time, and sobering up with ice would probably satisfy your hunger, so he took it and drank it indiscriminately, leaving behind a group of attendants and walking to the Tianlai Pavilion behind. Everyone who conquered the palace knew that once Yang Lian was in a bad mood, he would go upstairs to Tianlai Pavilion and stay alone.No one was allowed to go there except himself.Cheng Ning looked at his back, hesitated to speak, and waved his hand to make everyone disperse. I slept in the afternoon, but now I don't feel sleepy at all.Open the window, only to see the shadow of the moon sinking in the west, and the long river in the sky.The ever-bright palace lanterns in the imperial city also appear so faint, the high walls and verandahs are all hidden in the deep night.The waves of Taiye Pool are soft, like the peaceful breath in a beauty's dream. And he felt that his stomach was as cold as ice and burning as charcoal, and it was difficult to even have a dream.The faint starlight fell through the window lattice and fell on the coral tree on the desk. It was scarlet and dazzling, like a handful of green blood that would never dry up. After the show ended, the queen mother left Xu Anyuan in her bedroom for dinner, talked for half the night, and got up late the next day.After cleaning her face just now, she saw a silver-red gauze shirt swaying outside the curtain, the queen mother smiled and said: "Your child is energetic, how long have you been up? Can you have some snacks?" Xu Anyuan greeted Yingying, Fang smiled and said: "Maozheng got up and walked around the garden for a while. I dare not eat first, I am waiting for my aunt." "The sun rises early on the seaside." The queen mother smiled, "When I was a daughter at home, I was used to getting up early. Now I am old and sleepy." A beautiful face was reflected in the makeup mirror, which looked much younger than its actual age due to years of deliberate maintenance.However, no matter how clear the smile on the lips, no matter how pure the waves in the corners of the eyes, the elusive brilliance that once enveloped the 28-year-old girl like the morning sun on the sea cannot be retained.太后微笑着看着徐安沅：“替我掌镜？” 李司饰摆开一排梳栉、髻子、簪钗，打算为太后梳一个如意牡丹头。徐安沅捧着一面手镜立在太后身侧，忽然轻轻说：“早上楝哥哥来过了。” “他每天都要来问安。见我没起，自然是走了。”太后淡淡道。 “他说，今日要去阳台山清修。” “他常去。” 徐安沅踌躇了一下，方问道：“昨日我听皇上的话里……难道楝哥哥很喜欢修道吗？” 太后从镜子里瞧见她半垂了眼帘，似乎怕人看见自己好奇的目光，遂笑道：“他去阳台山，不全是为了修道。山上有太子妃的故居。” 听见太子妃三个字，徐安沅愣了一下，才明白是指徵王的生母：“崔……” “嗯。”太后明确地应了一声，止住了她继续探究的念头，“去瞧瞧小厨房送的点心，昨儿我吩咐他们做了八宝酥糕，那是你从小就喜欢的，南边可没有——你先去尝尝看。再替我传一碗山药粥来。” 徐安沅放下镜子，谢恩去了。 李司饰瞧着她走远，低声笑着说：“奴婢斗胆说一句，三小姐这次进宫来……倒真是长大了。” 哪个女孩儿家长大了，能没有心思？太后微微一笑。 “这日子真是快。不过一眨眼，三小姐也及笄了，徵王也早就出了服。”李司饰笑道，“娘娘的意思，这一回是不是就把他们的事情给办了？这话说了好几年，如今都是水到渠成。” 太后低声道：“哪有那么容易。我跟安照提了一下这个话，那浑小子竟然说，安沅不合给人做继室。又说阿楝前面娶的那个安澜，是他父亲的通房丫鬟所生。庶小姐为嫡妃，嫡小姐倒做了继妃，将来还得以妾室之礼祭拜安澜的牌位，他想着就替妹妹觉得委屈。” “他自己不也是庶子吗？”李司饰道，“再说，当时三小姐还不到十岁。若稍微年长些，也轮不到那位病恹恹的庶小姐出阁呀。” 当年杨楝由徐太后做主与忠靖王府联姻，纳忠靖王徐功业的庶女徐安澜为王妃。这只是当时局势下无奈之举。徐安澜自幼体弱多病，一入门便缠绵病榻，熬了三年终于撒手人寰。徐功业亦觉得有些对不住杨楝，便在安澜丧事之后许下承诺，等嫡女安沅及笄，就送给杨楝为继妃。可如今又过了两三年，似乎双方都生了些别的想法。 徐安照表面莽撞，内心精细。徐功业不会让他说无用的话，嫡庶之争亦不过是托词。太后心如明镜——徐家这一代的嫡女只有徐安沅一个，偏偏生得出类拔萃。徐功业对这个女儿的前途一向怀有奢望，不止是想要一个王妃。 杨楝只是皇帝的侄儿，因为徐太后的偏爱才等同于半个皇子。但如今杨檀和杨樗也长大了。杨檀自不论，杨樗的舅族却是徐氏一党，地位正在渐渐高升。徐功业在两难之中，只能将安沅的婚嫁问题扔给了太后去拿主意。 如果杨楝再积极一些，徐太后便不会犹豫。偏偏杨楝对继续与徐家联姻这件事儿，一直都不冷不热。 “上次给他的那个林绢绢，”太后忽然想起什么来，“到底怎样……” “听说……也不怎样。”李司饰道。 太后怅然道：“难得寻到这么一个人，又会画画儿，又长得和那人有几分相似。当时指给他看，瞧他那神情也是喜欢的，这才给了他。怎么最后还是不喜欢呢，你可知道为什么？” 李司饰犹豫了一下：“我仿佛听到一些传言，说殿下有些嫌忌她。” “嫌忌她？”太后诧异道，“嫌忌她什么？” “奴婢也不知道。”李司饰道。 太后怔了一下，叹道：“不是嫌忌她，怕还是嫌忌着我，嫌我老太婆多事吧。你看，事情都过去六七年了，他还在怄气。这笔账，我是永远赔不清了。” “怎么会呢？殿下和谁怄气也不能怄着亲祖母啊！”李司饰笑道，“奴婢虽不明就里，平日里冷眼瞧着，应该是这林绢绢自己什么地方开罪了殿下。殿下大约是真不喜欢她吧。林绢绢虽生得美，到底也只是个画院待诏的女儿。小家子没见过世面，终日垂眉顺目的，又不大方，又不伶俐，怎么比得上世家小姐的神采。”言毕又往外间瞟了一眼。 这话宽了太后的心，又奉承了三小姐，一时倒说得太后心甜意洽。太后再度审视了一下镜中那副巧夺天工的妆容，觉得再无可挑剔了，方稳稳地站起来。明间已经摆好了早膳，太后扶了李司饰的手朝外面走去，却看见张纯守候在落地罩外面。 徐太后挑眉薄嗔：“你又有什么话，不能等我吃了饭再说？” “原是赶早儿给娘娘说笑话来着的。”张纯一边笑，一边却往外面瞟了一眼。 太后心知有异，遂命李司饰去伺候着明间里的徐三小姐，方转头道：“说来听听。” 徐安沅才喝了一小口白粥，吃了一块糕，便听见有人回话说二皇子过来给太后问安。转眼杨樗便进来了。李司饰望了一眼，只见太后正仔细听着张纯回话，脸色越来越难看，忙朝杨樗迎上去，道：“二哥儿可来得早。太后身上不爽快，说二哥儿就不必多礼了。在此间少待一会儿，就和三小姐一道去西苑吧。” 杨樗本就不是为了太后来的，得了这话，索性拣了一张交椅坐下，笑嘻嘻地瞧着徐安沅：“三妹妹早。” 徐安沅心中暗骂“谁是你妹妹”，脸上却只得端着客气：“二殿下早。” “妹妹吃的什么？闻着真香。”杨樗说着，伸长脖子往桌上瞧了瞧。 “八宝酥糕。” “清宁宫的点心一向出了名的精细美味，我们都难得领一回赏赐。”杨樗说。 徐安沅不知该怎么接这句话，求助地望了一眼李司饰。李司饰忙用小碟子装了两块酥糕端给杨樗。杨樗掂了一块吞下。那糕做得极细，一下子噎在喉咙里，噎得杨樗满脸通红。徐安沅见状，忙唤宫人倒水。杨樗挺了半天的脖子总算缓过来，泪光盈盈地看着徐安沅：“多谢妹妹。” 徐安沅看看他紫涨的阔脸，又看看盘里的糕，半点胃口也没了，叹气道：“那咱们走吧。” 两人一前一后，讷讷无语。刚走到门口，忽听见大殿深处传来尖厉的喝声：“秽乱宫闱的贱婢！” 徐安沅愕然立住。李司饰心知有事，忙朝二人催促道：“不干你们的事，快去吧！车都备好了。” 车马一时驱动，只看见张纯一溜烟儿从清宁宫跑出来，朝坤宁宫的方向去了。 李司饰送走两个孩子，连忙跑回寝殿，只见太后的脸色青得像雨天的黄昏，一只雪白的手微微颤抖着，不停揉着太阳穴。