Chapter 16 Chapter Sixteen

Ruyi was dragged to the bottom of the steps and knelt, and the snow rustled on her face, as if hitting frozen skin. At first she felt pain, but gradually it became numb.After a while, a thin layer of icicles formed on the skirt.Seeing Hailan being humiliated, she was furious for a moment, as if a wildfire shot from her heart to her throat, and she couldn't help it anymore and said: "Your imperial concubine, if you want to scold Hai Changzai or beat her, I have nothing to say." Answer. But Hai Changzai is the emperor's concubine after all, you can't humiliate her like this, especially in front of the servants. If Hai Changzai is stripped and searched, you really want to force her to death!"

Hailan whimpered, like a little trapped animal, struggling in vain and powerlessly.A wish button on her neckline has been ripped open, revealing the raw silk-colored tunic.Concubine Hui just had a leisurely smile on her face, looking at the porch in leisure, as if she was sitting under the stage watching a wonderful drama.She glanced at Ruyi contemptuously: "I also know that she can't hide red bamboo charcoal on her body. But she can steal charcoal, so she may steal some other valuable things. Since you are a thief, don't be afraid of shame. If you can't think about it , anyway, she forced herself to death."

Ruyi saw that she had no room to turn around, so she struggled to get up.However, she was frozen to the bone, and she couldn't control her hands and feet at all. When she stood up, she couldn't help a gust of cold wind, and was pressed down again in a hurry. The anguish in her heart reached her tongue, she only felt that her tongue was frozen, only the tears in her eyes were hot, scalding her face drop by drop, and soon turned into ice drops.This kind of pain is like endless cold wind, without end. In the midst of the confusion, there was sudden applause from outside, and the announcement from the eunuch came in: "The emperor is here—the queen is here—"

The heart almost loosened, and the whole person fell limply to the ground, with a tinge of joy in the midst of grief.He's here, he's finally here. Concubine Hui immediately raised her face, signaling everyone to stop what they were doing.With sharp eyes and quick hands, Ah Ruo hurriedly took off her bombshell jacket and put it on Ruyi. There was a flash of bright yellow at the door, and the emperor had already stepped in quickly.The queen was wearing a hazy blue-colored Baizi Kesi double-breasted feather gauze gown. Although she got up again after resting at night, her temple hair was not messy at all, and a few dark red agate beads were sparsely slanted on her hairpin.Despite the urgency, his expression was as serene as deep water, undisturbed, and even the emerald green tassels hanging from the hairpin swayed delicately with the footsteps, shining with sparkling silver emerald green.

Concubine Hui led the people to pick him up in the courtyard.Seeing her, the emperor hurriedly supported her: "As soon as I heard that you had a cold syndrome, I hurried over here." He held the concubine's hand and said anxiously, "How is it? Does it matter?" The queen followed behind, with a bit of concern and anxiety in the silence: "The emperor was so anxious when he heard that you had a cold syndrome and got angry. Originally, the emperor had already fallen asleep, so he hurriedly gave orders to get up with you. Ben Gong came here together." The emperor's brows and eyes were full of eagerness, and he said, "Has the imperial doctor visited? How is it?"

Concubine Hui said softly: "The concubine thanked the emperor and the queen for her love. The concubine lacked red bamboo charcoal here, so she didn't care about warming up for a while, which resulted in a cold syndrome. The imperial doctor has already come to see it, and said that the concubine died due to the cold. Injured yang qi, resulting in cold body and limbs, vomiting clear water, stagnation of qi and blood, poor circulation, and pain in the body." She tilted her body and fell right into the arms of the emperor, "At this moment, the concubine feels dizzy I'm tired, and my knees are sore." The emperor was distressed, and said in a loud voice: "Come here! Help the imperial concubine to go in and sit down. Take a few more hand stoves to warm up."

Concubine Hui took two steps with Caizhu's hand, her feet felt vain, and she almost slipped and fell.The emperor sighed, stretched out his arms to embrace her and said, "I will accompany you in." The emperor was so focused on Concubine Hui that he didn't seem to see Ruyi since he came in.Ruyi and Hailan were standing under the eaves, dripping wet, with gusts of cold wind blowing against them like steel knives.Hai Lan was trembling all over, and she couldn't stand firmly. With the support of Ruyi and A Ruo, she could barely stand still.The emperor was only focused on talking to the imperial concubine, and his eyes didn't fall on Ruyi at all.Ruyi's heart was sore and unspeakable, she just felt that she was not good at standing or sitting, she wished she could turn into a stick of ice and freeze here, and it would be fine if it melted away immediately.

The emperor passed by the two of them, frowned slightly and said: "What are you doing here? Go change into warm clothes. It's wet. Don't pass the cold on the imperial concubine later." The queen said softly: "Go. Go to Hailan's room to change clothes and see you again." Ruyi knew that the emperor was still merciful, so she hurriedly led Hailan back. After entering the Nuan Pavilion and sitting down, the emperor called the accompanying imperial physician: "Qi Lu, you are the judge of the imperial hospital, and you have been taking care of the noble concubine's body. You should take care of the noble concubine quickly, so that you don't suffer from any symptoms."

Qi Lu hurriedly agreed to take the medicine bag for pulse diagnosis, took a while and said: "The imperial concubine's cold syndrome is not serious, and she became angry again, I'm afraid she will have to recuperate for two days." The emperor breathed a sigh of relief, and said with pity: "In the past, your body was particularly weak in winter, why are you so angry today?" There were tears in Concubine Hui's eyes, she turned her head away and wiped the corners of her eyes lightly, Fang choked up and said: "It's unfortunate for Xianfu Palace, it's also because the ministers and concubines have no way to discipline them, and they actually caused such a shameful thing as stealing in the palace. Chang Zai stole something else, but Chenqie can't ignore the love of sisters for many years, so just give it away. But it's the red bamboo charcoal that Chenqie can't lack in winter."

The emperor was quite surprised, he exchanged a glance with the empress, and asked, "Why is Haichang stealing that?" The queen let out a sigh of relief, and said regretfully: "I'm afraid that Hai Changzai is the only one in the palace who kindly agrees that the rank is low and that he doesn't need red bamboo charcoal, so Hai Changzai was confused for a while, right?" Concubine Hui's long eyelashes hung down like a small feather fan, and there seemed to be tears in her eyes: "Every time the concubines are called to serve in bed, Mo Xin and the others always hear Hai Chang beating and beating the ground and are unhappy. The concubine thought to herself Forget it, but this time I didn't expect her to be so vicious. The concubine can't smell the smoke of black charcoal, and always only uses red bamboo charcoal to keep warm. She stole the red bamboo charcoal from the concubine, causing the concubine to have a cold syndrome... ..." She coughed and stroked her forehead and said, "The concubine is so angry that I can't take it anymore. The first trial brought the stolen goods, but Hai Changzai still refuses to admit it."

She was weeping secretly, Ruyi had already changed Hailan's clothes, brought Hailan in with her, and said, "How can Hai Changzai recognize something that has never been done?" Ruyi led Hailan to salute, but Hailan was still timid, like a frightened bird, trembling all over, and shrank behind Ruyi. The queen shook her head, also in a tone of half-belief: "Looking at Haichang being a weak and weak person, why are you thinking so viciously?" She looked at Ruyi, "Concubine Xian, I heard that you made a big fuss in the Xianfu Palace, wantonly Noisy, what happened?" Ruyi bowed her body and said respectfully: "Reporting to the emperor and queen, how dare the concubines make noise wantonly, but Wang Haichang was under the so-called 'getting stolen goods', received a cane and was searched, the concubines really had to Wei Hai is always arguing a few words. And if the ministers and concubines are really noisy, how can they be splashed with ice water and not make a sound?" The corner of the emperor's eyes fell on the two of them, and he said casually: "Did you talk back and forth after drinking ginger soup? Don't bring the cold air in." Ruyi saw that Hai Lan just kept shrinking behind her, not even daring to lift her head, and felt more pity and love, and replied: "Yes, I drank it all, I dare not let the imperial concubine get cold. It's just that the emperor... ..." She looked up at the emperor's stern face, "Your majesty, although the imperial concubine found the ashes of red bamboo charcoal in Haichang's used charcoal ashes, and Xiangyun also testified, but..." The emperor's tone was indifferent, as if he was talking about an extremely unimportant matter: "What is it? I remember I told you when it was just cold in the sky, saying that Hai Chang in the palace was always in the palace and promised not to use red bamboo charcoal. I'm afraid that the black charcoal will smoke them. It's nothing more than a low status for a gentle promise. Haichang is there asking you to allocate some from your own palace to her. I remember I also told you that day, this matter should not be publicized, so as not to Gossip. You are too honest, the imperial concubine is so angry, and you refuse to tell her." Ruyi immediately understood the emperor's intention to protect her, and said with a face full of self-reproach: "It's all the concubine's fault. I was thinking about the emperor's instructions not to speak, so I specifically told sister Hailan. She was originally the same concubine." Thoughts, I dare not speak out to cause trouble, but I did not expect to cause trouble.” The emperor's eyes only looked at the shocked concubine, and his heart ached: "It turns out that concubine Xian and the others are too idiotic and don't know how to turn around. The concubine is already weak, how can she bear such anger?" He turned his head and ordered, "Wang Qin, Remember to tell the House of Internal Affairs that in the future, whatever is lacking in the Xianfu Palace, there is no need to tell the House of Internal Affairs that it is such a trouble, and it will be allocated from the Hall of Mental Cultivation to the noble concubine immediately." Concubine Hui's complexion was ugly with green and red, but she came to her senses after hearing this sentence, and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your love." The emperor's tone was as soft as the wind in April: "Okay. Now that you have a cold syndrome, why don't you take good care of it and make such a fuss? Don't you know that your body is the most important thing?" Concubine Hui was still a little dissatisfied: "Although the emperor ordered Concubine Xian to take care of Hai Changzai secretly, Xiang Yun also clearly saw Hai Changzai stealing. Hai Changzai..." The emperor's tone was insignificant, but his tone was extremely gentle: "Speaking bluntly, this is a trivial matter. Does it matter if you have a noble concubine? As for Hailan, since she annoys you, I won't allow her to live in Xianfu Palace." That's it." Ruyi was overjoyed when she heard the words, and quickly glanced at Hailan behind her. There was a slight blush on her pale face, but she was just holding on to Ruyi's sleeves tightly, like she was holding on to a life-saving straw. Concubine Hui hurriedly said: "Stealing is fine, but it's a serious crime in the palace. Does the emperor just let it go so easily? And Concubine Xian, who is so reckless and rude..." The emperor smiled and said: "You have been beaten, and you have been punished. The ice water that Concubine Xian and Haichang are together can be regarded as punishment. I have to distinguish rewards and punishments for today's matter, so as to relieve your anger and calm down this situation." matter." He turned his head and asked, "Who is the witness for today's matter?" Xiang Yun timidly walked forward on his knees, and said with a half smile: "It's a slave." Without raising the emperor's eyelids, Wang Qin said, "It's the maid who is serving Hai Chang, named Xiang Yun." Only then did the emperor glance at her: "You look very upright, and your tongue is also flexible. It can reveal what happened tonight, and this tongue is vivid." Xiang Yun said happily: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your compliment." The emperor lowered his head, playing with a jade pendant carved with Haidong on his waist, and said casually: "Wang Qin, take her down and beat her to death with a stick." Wang Qin was startled, and quickly agreed: "Yes." He raised his face, and several young eunuchs understood, and immediately dragged Xiangyun down.Xiangyun was so frightened that she couldn't even beg for mercy, and was dragged out like a rag bag. Dozens of screams could be heard outside, and gradually subsided, a guard came in to report: "Your Majesty, Xiang Yun has been beaten to death." Hailan shuddered, but Ruyi just let out a happy smile, which quickly faded from the corner of her lips. The emperor nodded slightly, not paying attention: "I pulled out my tongue and hung it on the palace gate, so that all the palace people in the palace can see, sowing discord, murdering the Lord, what is the end!" Ruyi shuddered abruptly, his eyes met the emperor's eyes that looked like still water in the abyss, and his heart felt warm, like a person who lost his way in the snowy field and saw a lighted house from afar, and found his place.The emperor looked away immediately, as if he just didn't care about her. Concubine Hui was startled and frightened, she couldn't stop shivering, the emperor lovingly tightened the cloak for her, and said softly: "Don't be afraid! It's all the servants' fault, the only thing that matters is that you take care of yourself and keep warm. " Concubine Hui relaxed slightly under the comfort of the emperor, gritted her teeth and forced a smile: "Yes. Such a gossip slave can't be kept. If the emperor doesn't let her down, the concubine will kill her to make an example. It's just that she pulled out her tongue and it was bloody. Yes, since she has got involved with these red charcoals, let's stuff some hot coals into her mouth, and leave her a whole body." With a lazy smile on his face, the emperor stroked her hand: "That's fine. Since you're begging for her, leave a whole body for her." His eyes sank, and he looked around at the crowd, his tone undeniable. , "The example that the imperial concubine has set today must be remembered in the harem. No slave is allowed to provoke right and wrong and cause trouble. Otherwise, it is not the master's fault. I only ask you if your tongues and mouths can withstand pulling out your tongues." The pain of scalding the mouth!" The palace people were so frightened that they knelt down immediately and said: "Xiangyun is the one who is making troubles, and the slaves dare not." The emperor felt a little tired, yawned and said, "Okay. It's late at night, you should rest early. The queen and I are going back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation." Everyone hurriedly got up: "Respectfully send off the emperor, and respectfully send off the empress." The emperor went out together with the queen's hand, and stopped for a while when passing Ruyi and Hailan. His eyes passed Hailan without any warmth or emotion, as if he was just looking at a small dust mustard, which was not worth it at all. Yi Gu: "If you live in Xianfu Palace again, you will only make the imperial concubine angry. Let's live in another place." Ruyi hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, Yanxi Palace is still empty..." The emperor was a little impatient: "Then you should teach Hai Changzai well, so that so many things don't happen again." Ruyi agreed, her heart was relieved, and she pulled Hailan to go out with her It was late at night when we returned to Yanxi Palace.After arranging Hailan to live in the back hall, and inviting the imperial physician to give her a diagnosis and treatment, Ruyi returned to the bedroom to rest for a while.Although she had put on a thick warm jacket earlier, and Ruyi held a few hand stoves to keep warm, she still felt chills, so she ordered the little maid to bring in a few more braziers to burn.The little girl, Luhen, brought several large bowls of thick brown sugar and ginger soup to Ruyi on a silver lacquer plate with pine patterns, and fed her to drink, and then put on a mink fur cover for her to surround her tightly.Ruyi took a bowl for A Ruo, who was wrapped in a coat and squatting by the brazier to keep warm: "Drink a bowl quickly, to get rid of the dampness." Sweating hot, I couldn't help but sneezed a few times before I felt my body loosen up. Yong Xin had already accompanied the imperial physician to see Hai Lan, and at this moment, she followed to ask the imperial physician Xu to give Ruyi a pulse diagnosis.Imperial Physician Xu took out a purple pulse-taking bag and placed it under Ruyi's wrist, and put a piece of pure white silk cloth on it, and said "offended", before he dared to put two fingers on Ruyi's wrist. After a while, Imperial Physician Xu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Concubine Xian is lucky, Su Xi is in good health, but suffered from a little cold. I will prescribe some prescriptions for evacuation of fever, as long as the empress drinks the medicine and ginger soup for a few days, pay attention Keep warm, and then soak in the hot water boiled with ginger and mugwort leaves, and you will be fine. But remember, don’t let the wind see you again for a few days.” Ruyi took the silk and pressed her stuffed nose, said in a muffled voice, "Thank you, the imperial physician. How is Hai Chang?" Imperial Physician Xu shook his head, seemingly in deep thought. Ruyi felt more uneasy, so she said: "Physician Xu comes and goes frequently, and only takes care of me, so you may as well speak up if you have anything to say." Doctor Xu thought over and over again, and said in a deep voice: "Being cold and being frightened are trivial matters. I have prescribed tranquilizing medicine for Hai Changzai to drink, and he has already slept soundly. Although the wind and cold are severe, it is not a serious problem after recuperation. The important thing is, It's Hai Changzai's foot injury." Doctor Xu said: "Hai Chang was beaten and injured at the Yongquan point in the center of his foot, that's why he's so weak, like a serious illness." Ruyi wondered, "Yongquan point?" Imperial Physician Xu said in a deep voice: "Yes. Yongquan acupoint, also known as Dichong acupoint, is the first acupoint of the kidney meridian, and it is also the key point where the kidney meridian and the heart meridian connect. I checked the young master's foot center, and the Yongquan acupoint The location is a place severely damaged by thorns, which means that the person who started the attack deliberately picked this place. Once this point is damaged, it means that the kidney meridian and heart meridian are damaged at the same time, and there will be insomnia, fatigue, lack of energy, dizziness, irritability, headache and palpitations. Complications of other diseases, coupled with the fact that the little master catches the cold, is really dangerous." Ruyi's face turned pale with shock, she felt her heart beating violently, and hurriedly asked: "Prince doctor, is there any way to treat it?" Doctor Xu pondered for a long time before saying: "I will carefully weigh and prescribe a prescription to make the cold air escape and the wound heal. I also ask the empress to order the servants who are always there to soak the springs of the young master's feet with hot salt water every day. For the spring point, soak in hot water for half an hour before going to bed every day. In addition, use moxibustion to fumigate the Yongquan point at noon every day, once a day, until the Yongquan point feels hot, and the fumigation is good. Afterwards, apply Evodia rutaecarpa fried in wine to protect it. After the wound is healed, massage it every day, hoping to see results.” Ruyi listened to him talk about the healing method in detail, knowing that there is still a way, she was a little relieved, and her brows loosened: "Then there will be Imperial Physician Xu. Luhen, please send Imperial Physician Xu out." Imperial physician Xu left, and Ruyi looked towards the back hall for a moment, then hurriedly said, "Don't worry, my lord, everything has been taken care of. Hai Chang has taken the tranquilizing decoction and is already sound asleep at the moment. I'm exhausted too. If you want to see her, you'd better wait until tomorrow when you have recovered enough energy." Ruyi couldn't hide the tired look in her eyes: "Okay. I'm tired too, so I'm ready to settle down." Xin Xin agreed to serve hot soup and water, and A Ruo patted Ruyi's changed Hai Lan's clothes, full of uncontrollable anger, the strength in her hands increased, crackling.Ruyi was annoyed at hearing this, frowned and said, "What's the matter, rough hands and loud voices?" A Ruo said inwardly: "The young master is cold, but the servant is cold and even more angry. Who is Concubine Hui? When she was in Qian Mansion, she was a head shorter than the young master..." Ruyi was upset, so she interrupted her and said, "Okay! It's now, don't talk about the past!" Ah Ruo held his breath and said, "How dare you humiliate my lord like this now. My lord, you must think of a way to stop being wronged like this." Ruyi turned around, and handed the soup cup in her hand to the little palace maid who squatted on the ground and stoked the fire: "After cleaning up, go down, there is no need to stir the brazier." The palace people retreated, and Xin Xin stood quietly by the side, adding a handful of soothing incense to the green-glazed Suanni incense burner on the table.The snow-colored light smoke slowly escaped from the mouth of the sitting lion on the top, and the warm and quiet fragrance lingered in the bedroom without a trace, exuding a peaceful and fragrant fragrance that calms the mind and calms the mind. Ruyi flipped the enamel cover on the stove, and said softly, "Ah Ruo, then according to your opinion, what should I do?" A Ruo put the clothes she had photographed on the rosewood clothes hanger, her eyes flashed, and they lit up instantly: "According to the servant girl's wishes, it's easy to handle! A man lives, a tree lives a skin, we must fight hard." Come back with this breath." She approached Ruyi, and said with confidence, "What are you afraid of, my lord? You don't have to be afraid of anything! In terms of family background, the Ulanara family was once a queen of the middle palace, and the lintel is higher than that of the Fucha family. What's more, she's the only one who carries the flag in a coat? In terms of status, the concubine and the noble concubine are just a step behind, and one day she will pass her by surprise. In terms of favor, the young master used to share the same love with her, as long as she shows some wrists Come and win over the emperor, and the emperor will come to Yanxi Palace often." Ruyi took a sip of hot tea, slowly rubbed the backs of her hands to warm her hands, and said lightly, "Your words are good, and you have all the reasons. But your eyes are too high, and you only see my strengths, but not my strengths." Shortcomings." Ah Ruo was puzzled: "Shortcomings?" The hot air from the stove rushed to the face, and the scent of wintersweet provided in the room was steamed, giving people the illusion for a moment, as if they were in the sea of ​​​​flowers in April, warming the world in spring.However, it was clearly a severe cold season outside the window, counting nine cold days.And the encounter in the palace will only be colder than this cold day, and it will not be warmed up no matter what. Ruyi was in a daze for a moment, and said calmly: "A person's strengths and advantages will only add to the cake, allowing her to go higher. But her shortcomings and shortcomings can pull her all the way down to the abyss and then climb up again." I can’t get up. So when I look at people, I don’t look at how high her strengths can take her, but how hard her weaknesses can make her fall!” Ah Ruo couldn't answer for a while, so she could only ask: "Then the young master plans to endure this forever?" Ruyi's hands trembled slightly, and she sighed Yu Ran: "The current situation is not good for me. If I try to fight blindly, I will only fall to my head and bleed. Bear with it, and the days to come will be more relaxed. I don’t think it’s so unbearable anymore. If I can’t bear it, I will always be squeezed in a narrow road, and I will really embarrass myself.” Ah Ruo pursed her lips, unable to speak.Ruyi propped her forehead and waved lightly: "You are also tired tonight, out of breath and cold, hurry up and take a rest." Ah Ruo agreed to go down.Sing Xin helped Ruyi to bed and rested.Ruyi watched as she put down the akane purple lace curtain. She was wearing a dark purple pop-up jacket with a very pale jade-colored swirl pattern, and a dark purple skirt underneath. She stood like this under the thin Outside the curtain, it seemed as if the whole person had melted into it, except for a dim figure like an ink landscape. Ruyi breathed a sigh of relief, and hurriedly asked: "My lord, is it because Mrs. Tang is not warm enough?" Ruyi patted her arm: "Ah Ruo just said such a long speech, and you just listened quietly at the side. But I know that without you reporting to the Hall of Mental Cultivation tonight, the emperor would not be able to come so soon. " Tong Xin's face was as calm as water: "Your servant is waiting outside Xianfu Palace. When you see the young master being humiliated, of course you have to report it. It's just..." "Just what?" Shouxin said in a low voice: "The servant girl saw the prince, and the prince said that since it was a matter of the Xianfu Palace, it was up to the master of the Xianfu Palace to decide, so he sent the servant girl out. Fortunately, it was the turn of the eunuch Li Yu. I only went to tell the emperor when I saw the servant girl. Otherwise, the matter would have been delayed." Ruyi pondered for a moment, then said with a smile: "How can Wang Qin be a good friend? He always only listens to the queen and noble concubine." Tong Xin's eyebrows and eyes drooped submissively, and he said in a low voice: "Eunuch Wang is not easy to get along with, it is determined by others. But Eunuch Li..." Ruyi's eyebrows moved, and she patted her hand with a smile: "This is where you are more careful than Ah Ruo. You don't speak much, but your eyes are on the ground. I didn't love you in vain." Kneeling straight on the shelf in front of the bed, with a hint of sparkle in his eyes, Ji Xin said: "When this slave girl first entered the Qian Mansion, she was just a little maid who was sold by Ren Yazi, and it was only worth two hundred dollars. He was assigned to cut firewood in the kitchen, and he was a pariah who would not be counted even if he was beaten to death. It was the little master who pitied the servant, who picked the servant out of the firewood pile in the kitchen, and raised him to this position all the way. The servant has nothing to say, only to protect her Follow the little master, serve the little master." Ruyi took her hand, her heart was warm, hot and hot: "Okay, okay, I have been treating you like this for all these years. Ah Ruo is clever, but his mouth is too fast. If you are quiet, just do it for me." Keep your eyes open and take care of yourself."