Chapter 49 Jade Seat Bead Curtain (12-2)

Having said that, the Empress Dowager Cixi never consulted the ministers, and it is inconvenient for the Empress Dowager Ci'an to mention it again.In a blink of an eye, it was the tenth day of February, and the day for the re-election of the showgirls arrived. Because there are only twenty people in the re-election, and there is no need for a place as big as the Qin'an Hall, so I changed it to Shufangzhai.It was a warm and sunny day, and the re-elected show girls entered the palace again, not as shy and withdrawn as they were the first time, so the atmosphere of the scene was very different from the primary election.

The primary election salute is a group of ten people, and the secondary election is changed to a group of five people. After kowtowing, you have to report your resume, in order to listen to their voices.Bannermen stationed in various places have lived in the same place for several lifetimes. They are no different from the natives, but they never dare to let go of a Beijing film. respectively. Because they were kneeling very close, and it took a long time to report their resumes, the empress dowagers of the two palaces and the emperor saw everyone very clearly. The emperor fell in love with her at the first sight, so he paid special attention to her resume.

"Slave Wangcha, born in the sixth year of Xianfeng, Manchuria Zhengbai Banner, Hangzhou garrison. Great-grandfather Fushu, Deputy Commander of the Han Army in Zhenglan Banner, grandfather Yina, county magistrate of Tonggu County, Shaanxi, father He Yinbao, currently inlaid with red banner Mongolia Co-leader. The servant respectfully invites Shengan!" Her voice was extremely clear, to the emperor's ears, it seemed that she could be broken into several pieces if she fell on the ground, and she was thinking in her heart that this person would definitely be left behind. "What's your nickname?" He heard Empress Dowager Ci'an asking.

"The slave's nickname is Guilian." "Is it those two words?" "Osmanthus of sweet-scented osmanthus, chains of chains." The emperor thought in his heart that the words passed down from behind must be "stay", but what he heard was the two empress dowagers discussing in low voices. "How is it?" The Empress Dowager Ci'an asked. "It's not bad looking, but the chin is too sharp." The Empress Dowager Cixi said again, "I only read halfway, and there are already seven left. I see, let's put it down!" The emperor had already "put down the sign", and the emperor blurted out: "Slow down!" As soon as the words came out, he realized that his tone was disrespectful. Guilian stay!"

This was the emperor's first time picking someone out, so he couldn't help but look coy. The two empress dowagers glanced at each other, and they both couldn't help laughing.Finally, it was the Empress Dowager Ci'an who agreed to his request and told An Dehai, "Bring back Guilian's brand!" "Cha!" An Dehai took out a green-headed stick from the silver tray, put it back on the imperial case, and then shouted at Guilian: "Thank you!" So Guilian kowtowed and said: "Slave Guilian, thank the two empress dowagers for their kindness!" "Why don't you thank the emperor?" Empress Dowager Ci'an said in a teaching tone.

This is disrespectful and disrespectful.Guilian was half ashamed, half terrified, his face flushed immediately, he quickly agreed "yes", and kowtowed to the emperor: "Slave Guilian, thank the emperor for his kindness." "Iri!" It was a Manchurian phrase that meant "get up," and the emperor routinely replied to the ministers in the banner who kowtowed to him.But Gui Lian didn't understand, he still knelt there upright, his eyes as clear and bright as a cold spring, quickly circled the emperor's face, and then lowered his head. "Get up!" An Dehai yelled with the attitude of a chief executive: "Stop kneeling there all the time!"

That's why Gui Lian stood up, took a few steps back and turned around, and his eyes passed the emperor's face by the way. Then came the third class to salute.Because eight people have been selected and the quota is limited, only two are selected for this class, and the same is true for the fourth class.A total of 20 re-elected show girls were selected, and 6 out of 10 were selected. The eleven are not related to the emperor. He only cares about one Guilian, and he has made up his mind a long time ago, so he went to the Empress Dowager Ci'an and asked, "Emperor Niang, what happened to the person selected today?" What to do?"

The Empress Dowager Ci'an knew his purpose, and deliberately asked, "Look, what should we do?" According to his opinion, it is best to make Guilian a concubine.He knew that this was a privilege of being an emperor, but he felt that exercising this privilege was like exercising another privilege-killing people. It was too early, so he didn't know how to answer for a while. "You like her quite a bit, don't you?" He obviously said what was on his mind, but he refused to admit it, blushing in embarrassment and said: "No!" "Then why did you choose her? Let me tell you a reason."

"I feel sorry for her." "Hey! So it's for good deeds." The Empress Dowager Ci'an deliberately teased him, "I don't pity anyone, I pity her. How can I say that?" At this time, the emperor had already thought of a reason, and his expression became calm, "Isn't she stationed in Hangzhou?" He said, "Maybe many people in the family died." Can't think of such a reason!When Hangzhou fell to Hongyang for the second time, the banner camp was strong and strong, with many casualties. On the day the city was broken, General Ruichang set fire to himself. The most heroic move since the garrison.In the past few years, the Empress Dowagers of the Two Palaces have always had a lot of complaints when talking about this with princes and ministers.Empress Dowager Ci'an thought, the emperor must have heard a lot, so he thought of Guilian's family, fearing that she would be the survivor of the catastrophe, and treat her differently.

"By the way, this time I didn't see many beautiful women stationed in Hangzhou. However, I don't know if Guilian's family and Lao Dier are stationed in Hangzhou, or were they transferred from Jingzhou?" "Emperor Niang left her in the palace and asked her slowly." In the end, the truth was revealed, which was also expected by the Empress Dowager Ci'an, so she nodded and said: "Okay, I'll ask her to come here." When he heard that his wish came true, the emperor was very happy, and greeted him with a smile: "Thank you, Queen Mother."

"Huh!" The Empress Dowager Ci'an laughed, "Which one is thanking you? I picked Guilian here, what does it have to do with you?" As soon as he said it, the emperor couldn't help being embarrassed, and it happened that Princess Rong An came to say hello, so he covered it up.On the second day, the Ministry of Household Affairs formally issued a report, reported the list of candidates, and asked for an order to handle it. The empress dowagers of the two palaces discussed at breakfast and decided not to refer to marriage for the time being. Of the twelve beautiful women, the empress dowagers of the two palaces kept four of them. Download four more and transfer them to each palace. "Give me the name of the man stationed in Hangzhou." Empress Dowager Ci'an said this on purpose. "It's Guilian." Because the Empress Dowager Ci'an never cheated, the Empress Dowager Cixi didn't think there was any deep meaning in it, so she used a Chinese ink pen to mark Guilian's name without hesitation. The emperor was also serving the meal, and he was secretly happy when he saw that the matter was a foregone conclusion.From this day on, when I got out of the study, I paid attention to the newly selected show girl, had she ever entered the palace?After waiting for two days, there was no movement, so I couldn't help asking Zhang Wenliang, "Where are all those beautiful girls?" "The slave doesn't know." Zhang Wenliang replied, "Probably the Ministry of Internal Affairs." "It's not a beautiful girl in a coat, how could she be in the Ministry of Internal Affairs? No!" "That's what the slave thinks. Every time a beautiful girl is selected, they will be sent to the Ministry of Internal Affairs by the Ministry of Household Affairs to learn the rules of the palace. After they understand the rules, they can be sent to the palace to work as errands, so I guess the Ministry of Internal Affairs." "Go and find out!" Zhang Wenliang quickly replied that the new draft girl was about to enter the palace in three days.On that day, the emperor woke up very early and felt disappointed when he heard the sound of the pattering rain.But when he thought of the naughty eyes on that melon seed face, he suddenly felt refreshed, and he opened his mouth and shouted: "Come on!" The little eunuch, Xiao Li, had been waiting for him for a long time. He looked at the clock several times, and was about to wake him up. At this moment, he rushed to the bed, lifted the curtains, and greeted him, saying: "Long live, sleep soundly!" "Is there any 'introduction' today?" He asked. "It was there yesterday, and it will be tomorrow, but not today." Xiao Li likes to make the emperor happy with his gossip, but this day he hit a snag, "You bastard, it's so trivial!" The emperor asked again, "Is it cold outside?" This time Xiao Li didn't dare to talk too much, knelt down and replied, "It's almost the same as yesterday." There is no need to wear a gown without an introduction.The emperor had a set of clothes that he loved, and he specially told the eunuchs of the "Four Deacons" to fetch it. It was a maroon squirrel fur robe, matched with a light gray satin "Batulu" vest, and a row of diamonds on the flat shoulders. The buckles are shining with crystal light, dazzling people's eyes.A bright yellow silk sash is tied around the waist, and there are flat gold purses, colorful embroidered watch bags, and many jingling Hanyu pendants.On the head is a cap made of coral, with a piece of green "glass emerald" inlaid in front of it. The braids are shiny and shiny, but the hair is not much and not long enough. The emperor asked Xiao Li to adorn the ends of the braids. of silk thread.After dressing up, I took the full-length mirror to look at the front and back. I felt that I was more beautiful than Zai Cheng, and I was very proud of it. As soon as he arrived at the study, all the masters paid attention to him. Only Wu Ren didn't take it seriously, and his face was not very good-looking. He was supposed to talk about "Book of Rites", but he opened the book and asked something else: "The emperor is in the palace, can he often read "The Golden Mirror of Enlightenment?" This is a textbook compiled by Wo Rente for the emperor, which records the deeds of the emperors of all dynasties, as well as the memorials of famous officials, and adds annotations. After reading it, Wo Ren asked the emperor to take it back to the palace and review it from time to time.But the emperor thought it boring, so it was not as good as another "Di Jian Tu Shuo", a textbook compiled by Zhang Juzheng in the Ming Dynasty for Shenzong's reading. Illustrated." "That's also good." Wo Ren said slowly, "Please tell the emperor, what kind of clothes does Emperor Hanwen wear in the palace?" The emperor said in his heart: "Old-fashioned again!" But his momentum could not be avoided, and he immediately replied: "Yi Ti." "Excuse me, what is Yi Ti?" "Black, very thick silk." "Yes!" Woren looked at the emperor from top to bottom again, "The emperor is rich all over the world, why does the emperor of Hanwen dress so plainly? I will ask the emperor again, how did the 'Anshi Rebellion' come about?" Both "Qi Xin Jin Jian" and "Di Jian Tu Shuo" pointed out that the "Anshi Rebellion" was caused by Tang Xuanzong's extravagance and lust, but the emperor refused to answer, "It was because of Li Linfu, a treacherous minister." Then he asked: "Master Wa, is it time for you to read the book today?" Woren was so clumsy with words that he couldn't even speak to a thirteen-year-old student, but he finally let him flash past with "Guess what he said" and silenced Woren's words. Today's "Book of Rites" is a book about craftsmen. When you listen to the first four sentences: "Craftsmen build a country, water and land are counties, houses are counties, and scenery is the scenery." The emperor didn't understand three sentences, and there were two words. Having never seen it before, his head hurts.When reading Worenjiao's books, there was almost no time when he didn't get a headache. He used various methods to deal with it. When he was in good spirits, he deliberately made troubles, chattered, and finished the work when the time was right; .Sometimes I want to listen to my master's advice, put some thought into it, and "gnaw" some taste out of the books, but those books are too old and as hard as rocks, so it's useless to just gnaw them. Fortunately, Woren had a meeting in the cabinet, and he only taught the four unfamiliar sentences, and recited two lessons of familiar books, and it was over.The next homework is to write, which belongs to Weng Tonghe's "inheritance".Usually, this is a moment when the emperor is relatively relaxed. He doesn't bother to read the posts and listen to Weng Tonghe's instructions on how to use a pen.And the most important thing is that only at this moment can the little eunuch be called to talk in the name of Momo.I feel uncomfortable in my heart, and I can feel that the ink is too thick and too weak, so I can vent my anger by scolding the little eunuch. But this day he changed his normal routine, and wrote two big letters and one small letter in a proper manner, and gave it to Weng Tonghe to read, and then ordered: "Go in!" One day's homework is divided into two sections, one goes to the study at six o'clock in the morning, one goes to the palace for dinner at nine o'clock, and leaves early if there is an "introduction", and then returns to the study room at around ten o'clock, and reads the book first , and then read Chinese until about 1:30 in the afternoon before school is over. There was an hour of rest and meals in the middle, in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, where there were no maids, only eunuchs.The emperor was thinking about Guilian, but he couldn't go to the Empress Dowager Ci'an's palace to have a look for no reason, and he didn't want to reveal his thoughts, so it was inconvenient to ask Zhang Wenliang or other eunuchs to ask if Guilian had entered the palace? Thinking about it, he must have entered the palace, Zhang Wenliang's words have always been reliable.I just don't know what she is doing at the moment?Thinking about it now, he realized something that he had never thought about before, "Xiao Li," he asked, "What do you do when you are free?" "Where does the slave dare to sneak away? Don't you serve the Lord Long Live all day long?" Xiao Li misunderstood him. "I'm not talking about you, you're very flattering when you're on errand, very nice!" He said this deliberately, so as to teach Xiao Li to be at ease and tell the truth, "I mean how about other people?" "That's not necessarily the case." Xiao Li replied, "Drinking, playing chess, gambling, feeding cats and dogs, or raising a sparrow or something, everyone has their own fun." "Where are those girls?" "They?" Xiao Li curled his lips, "Aren't they just getting together and talking right and wrong, or bickering, and even fighting if they're in a hurry." The emperor was very surprised: "Are they also fighting?" "Why don't you fight? You beat him fiercely, punching, kicking, biting, and pulling your hair." When it comes to pulling hair, the emperor smiled, and he likes to pull the long braids of court ladies.The court ladies who have suffered a lot, when they hear footsteps behind them, always grab the ends of the braids in their hands first. Thinking about it now, it's a child's play, and they can't play this trick again in the future. "Then," he asked again, "does no one bother them to fight?" "I can't control that much. I was afraid of being punished when I asked. They all said that they didn't fight, and those who suffered a loss had to admit it." "That can't be done!" The emperor said without thinking, "Whoever bullies others will be punished!" Xiao Li is a restless person. When he heard this, he took the opportunity to take revenge and sued the emperor's court ladies who were usually favored by the Empress Dowager because of his cleverness, but who didn't care much about others. So he wanted to Liao wanted to say: "Long live Lord Shengming, there are some domineering girls who speak and act unreasonably, and even slaves often suffer from them." "Oh!" the emperor asked curiously, "Even bullying you?" "yes." "How to bully you?" "For example, at that time, the Long Live Lord ordered the servant to ask for the foreign candy imported by the sixth master. There was still more, but Qinger said in a daze that there was no more. The servant said to her, 'you can figure it out, it's not that I'm greedy, it's a fake rumor The imperial decree is for Long Live Lord.” Qing’er replied to me, “No one wants it. If you don’t give it, you won’t give it!” The servant thought to himself, if you don’t come to foreign sugar, you can’t do business with Long Live God, so you have to beg her hard. Later, Qinger nodded, but there is one thing, I need to crawl on the ground and pretend to bark three times." The emperor laughed loudly: "Have you pretended?" "It's okay not to pretend." Xiao Li said in an extremely aggrieved tone: "Long Live God only knows that foreign candy is delicious, how do you know how this foreign candy comes from? This slave thinks of the sentence 'no one wants it', and I feel so sad." Dissatisfied! Whose power is it that even the Long Live Lord is not in his eyes?" These few words provoked the emperor into a rage, "That's right!" He asked with a livid face, "Whose power is Qinger relying on?" "Isn't it Xiao Anzi?" When Xiao Anzi was mentioned, the emperor became even more annoyed. He gritted his teeth and said, "Okay! Let him wait!" Because of Xiao Li's words, the emperor lost his appetite, so he returned to his study after a hasty lunch.On the porch outside the hall, Xiao Li whispered what he had just said to the other eunuchs.Just as he was talking about his pride, someone came and called, "Xiao Li, Chief Zhang is looking for you." Leader Zhang is Zhang Wenliang. Xiao Li has always been afraid of him, so he asked: "What are you doing?" "Probably to ask you to go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ask for something." It is a good job to go to the outer court to ask for things. First, you can ask for more according to the opportunity; go!" As soon as the emperor went to the study, Zhang Wenliang was on duty in a wooden room next to the Fengcai Gate, west of the Hongde Hall. As soon as Xiao Li got there and saw Zhang Wenliang's face, he knew he had been cheated. "Do you still plan to have those two legs of yours?" Zhang Wenliang asked right away. "What's the matter?" Xiao Li asked with a sad face, "Did I make a mistake there?" "You are still talking fiercely!" Zhang Wenliang lifted his foot and kicked. Xiao Li didn't dare to escape or hide, so he just twisted his body to let him kick on his thick buttocks, and then took advantage of the situation to fall down, as if he was kicked down for him. "Let me ask you, what nonsense did you talk to Long Live just now?" He also thought about it, it must be this important public case, and he couldn't rely on it, so he had already thought about his answer: "I'm telling the truth." "Yes, to be honest." Zhang Wenliang sneered, "There is another truth, why don't you say it? You touched Qing'er's face and got slapped. Why didn't you tell Long Live Lord?" After telling the truth, Xiao Li was speechless.Zhang Wenliang told him to stand up, pointed at his nose and cursed.Eunuchs are notorious for swearing at people, they are bitter and mean, and the last trace of self-esteem that people keep deep in their hearts must be peeled off before it is over.But they don't take it seriously when they are scolded. Some people can practice to turn a deaf ear, and Xiao Li has such kung fu, so as much as Zhang Wenliang scolded, he only thought about Qing'er's greasy, stripping A face like a light egg. "Let me tell you the last sentence." Zhang Wenliang issued a serious warning: "If you dare to make trouble out of nothing at Long Live Lord's place again, fabricate rumors, and cause trouble, I will shake you off for molesting Qing'er." If you expose it, you just wait for her brother to clean you up!" Qing'er's god-brother is An Dehai, and she has recently been favored in front of the Empress Dowager Cixi. If this matter is revealed, the emperor will not be able to save herself. Xiao Li panicked at this moment, knelt down, and said pleadingly : "Uncle Zhang, I dare not! You always forgive me." "I can't forgive you." Zhang Wenliang said, "You still say Qing'er, Qing'er is very kind, and didn't tell her about your shameless things as a big brother. But there is no guarantee that someone will come to Xiao'anzi one day. Move your mouth there, you just wait carefully. roll! " It was only at this time that Xiao Li realized that he had caused trouble, and he had already spoken in front of the emperor. The emperor hated An Dehai the most, and he had to find an opportunity to attack him.At that time, the Empress Dowager Cixi will definitely investigate.Who is telling the truth in front of the emperor?However, Zhang Wenliang was not necessarily willing to cover up for himself, and reported the truth according to the facts, the consequences would be disastrous. Thinking of this, he immediately turned around and knelt down in front of Zhang Wenliang again: "It's all my bad mouth! Nonsense. Hit, hit!" He slapped himself on the mouth left and right, and then said, "Uncle Zhang, I have punished Xiao Li for you." "how is it?" What Xiao Li meant was to ask Zhang Wenliang to try to stop the emperor, without having to trouble An Dehai or Qing'er. Zhang Wenliang originally had such a plan, but it happened that Xiao Li himself said it first, so he took advantage of the situation and gave him another admonition. After asking him, he was convinced, and then he agreed to his request. When the emperor left the study, Zhang Wenliang was already waiting outside Hongde Hall.This was the time for the emperor to play. As usual, he first went to see his dogs and monkeys in the imperial garden, and Zhang Wenliang planned to speak with the camera at that time. I don't want the emperor to order: "Go to the palace!" At this time, Empress Dowager Ci'an lived in the Suishou Hall of Changchun Palace, and Empress Dowager Cixi lived in Pingkang Room of Yikun Palace. The two palaces were only separated by a West Second Chang Street.The emperor came and went from east to west at will, so the saying "go to the palace" does not refer specifically to Changchun Palace or Yikun Palace, both places can be used.Zhang Wenliang only thought that he was going to Yikun Palace and was going to find trouble with An Dehai or Qing'er, so he hurriedly stopped him: "Long live Lord, go back to the bedroom first, the slave will have something to say." "What? Let's talk now." "Yes!" Zhang Wenliang supported the soft sedan chair and whispered to the emperor, "Long Live Lord, don't listen to Xiao Li's nonsense. Qing'er works for the Holy Mother and Empress Dowager. She has always been very cautious. There is nothing wrong with her, and she is not bullying others. The person who is favored by the empress dowager, Long Live God should have a filial piety, and a cat or a dog in front of the empress dowager must be treated differently." The emperor always listened to Zhang Wenliang's words very much, nodded and said, "Understood!" Zhang Wenliang was still a little worried, and told him again: "Long live Lord is sympathetic to the slaves, please don't get angry with those people." "Those people?" Zhang Wenliang originally refused to speak out, but the emperor didn't know whether he wanted to force him to speak out, or really didn't know?Anyway, I have to be clear at this time, but I only said half a sentence: "Those people in front of the Holy Mother and Empress Dowager." Speaking of this, the emperor felt more and more uncomfortable.He has always had this idea that the Empress Dowager Cixi loves him, but with An Dehai in the middle, it is impossible for a mother to love her own son.Not only did An Dehai often tell stories, but whenever he was a little unruly in the study, or the masters were impatient with their words, An Dehai would go to complain quietly.What made the emperor most angry and unable to speak out was that An Dehai would show that he was more "filial" than the emperor whenever he had the opportunity, and even used the Empress Dowager Cixi's signboard to act like an elder brother teaching younger ones. Or tone to speak to the emperor.At the same time, he always reminded the "master" that the relationship between the empress dowager and the emperor should be more important than the relationship between mother and child, so what the emperor saw was not a loving mother, but a very strict "Ama" . The emperor had been raised by Zhang Wenliang since he was a child, and he had a kind of respect and love for him, so he endured his unhappiness at this time, comforted him and said, "Okay, I just ignore them." "This is it!" Zhang Wenliang said with great satisfaction, "Great quantity and great fortune!" Speaking of this, the soft sedan chair was about to enter Xierchang Street, and the emperor said: "Suishou Hall!" "Isn't it appropriate at this moment?" Zhang Wenliang mentioned to him: "Mother, the Empress Dowager, is taking a nap." "En, er!" The emperor was so focused on Guilian that he forgot about the habit of the Empress Dowager Ci'an, "Then, let's go and see Dafu and Erfu!" Dafu and Erfu are two pug dogs kept by the emperor in the imperial garden.On normal days, the emperor would always squat down, and the two dog brothers jumped up and lay docilely in his arms, waiting to be fed.But this day the emperor was afraid of soiling his beautiful clothes, so he just called out: "Xiao Li, hold on! Go and see little baldy." Little bald is the name of a little monkey, extremely naughty, once pulled a court lady's braids to swing, and made people cry, so An Dehai proposed, and Empress Dowager Cixi ordered that little bald be locked up in a cage .Now the emperor can only watch from outside the cage, and the little baldy has learned a skill. When he sees the emperor, he will greet the emperor with his hands down, and then squeak, and according to Xiao Li, "it's the little baldy asking for rewards." As usual, there are chestnuts, peanuts and so on. Throw it in the cage. Today's emperor didn't care to play with dogs and monkeys. What he was thinking all the time was how to make Xiao Anzi make a big fool of himself in the public?This matter cannot be discussed with Zhang Wenliang, only Xiao Li. Xiao Li was very scheming, and he would think of weird tricks to make the emperor happy. At this time, he frowned and smiled, "I have an idea, Long Live Lord, see if it works?" He said, "If you can't, think about it. " "It's not funny, it's not that he can't cry or laugh, so don't say it!" "There are more than these." Xiao Li said triumphantly, "Slave's trick is as smart as Xiao He's. I guarantee that even the two empress dowagers will be happy." So Xiao Li whispered in a whisper, and the emperor was overjoyed, and said repeatedly: "Do it quickly, do it quickly!" "Yes!" Xiao Li said: "My slave asked Long Live Lord to issue an order so that I can ask for things." "Okay, I'll write right away." So the crowd surrounded him and returned to the Xinuang Pavilion of the Hall of Mental Cultivation where the emperor lived. After Zhang Wenliang had something to leave, Xiao Li sneaked into the hall, spread paper and rubbed ink, and handed a tube of dental pens to the emperor. . "How do you write it?" Xiao Li thought for a while, then read word by word: "Let Xiao Li take a piece of big jadeite. Here it is!" "Will this give?" "Who dares not to give it?" Xiao Li quickly replied, "If you don't give it, it's against the order." The emperor hesitated for a while, and suddenly said happily: "No, take that paperweight!" He put down the pen. Xiao Li also hesitated for a while, and finally took a green emerald lion from Duobaoge, put it on the emperor's desk and said, "I'm afraid Zhang Wenliang will ask questions, but I don't know how to tell him." "It doesn't matter, you can let him ask me." Then, he handed the emerald lion to Xiao Li. With the emperor shouldering the responsibility, what is Xiao Li afraid of?After taking the things and putting them in his arms, he knelt down and exited. "Let's go to Suishou Hall!" "Yes!" Little Li Ji was thinking in his heart, this is the second time to mention Suishou Palace, why is he in such a hurry to go?You have to take a closer look. As soon as he saw the new maid from Shoushou Palace, Xiao Li suddenly realized.The Empress Dowager Ci'an didn't like to use eunuchs, and the servants in the palace were all maids of honor, so Xiao Li just knelt in the courtyard and retreated.Suishou Hall has its own small kitchen, mainly for supplying sweet and salty snacks and tea for the Empress Dowager Ci'an. There is an empty room next to it, where Xiao Li rests there to listen to greetings every time he goes there, sometimes he just breaks into the kitchen. He has a sweet mouth and can tell jokes, so although there are people who hate him like Qing'er, there are also many court ladies who get along with him and take over Shuangxi's position. Xiao Li calls Yuzi "Sister Yuzi".That is a veritable name. Yuzi is twenty-five years old this year. According to the regulations of the palace, he should be released. However, with the generosity of the Empress Dowager Ci'an, Yuzi is willing to delay her late spring, "Serve the master for another year ".And Xiao Li is only nineteen years old. It's not bad to call her "sister", but she calls her very kindly, which is harsh to others, and Yuzi understands.Although every time I see Xiao Li, I have to scold him a few times, but I secretly keep all the delicious and interesting things for Xiao Li.Sometimes when Xiao Li loses money in a bet, as long as he sits down in front of Yuzi, he must have scolded him, and the silver carcass will fall into his arms. Today, Xiao Li was full of energy, "Sister Yuzi," he waved, "Please come here, I have something urgent to say." After some "important words", Yuzi took the bright yellow tureen with her own hands, brewed a bowl of Junshan tea, and shouted: "Gui Lian'er, come here." The timid Guilian was actually very alert, imitating Xiao Li and shouting: "Sister Yuzi!" "Give this bowl of tea to Lord Long Live on a tray. Will you greet me with tea?" "meeting!" "Okay! Go ahead. It's your first time working on an errand, but it's good luck!" Guilian held his breath, walked up to the emperor, greeted him calmly, gave the emperor a bowl of tea, and said: "Long Live Lord, please use tea." "Oh!" The emperor asked for words, "Do you know what kind of tea I like to drink?" "The slave doesn't know." "Who told you to bring the tea?" "Sister Yuzi." "Hey!" Empress Dowager Ci'an smiled and frowned, "Who taught you such a name? Yuzi is just Yuzi, so I don't mind calling you sister or younger sister. It doesn't matter if you make a mistake here, it's the same in Yikun Palace , must be scolded. Remember?" "Yes!" Gui Lian lowered his eyelids, blushed, and bit his lips constantly, as if he dared not shed tears. The emperor couldn't bear it, he guessed that she must be loved by her parents at home, she could get what she wanted, never heard a harsh word, and now she was scolded for the first time as an errand, she must be thinking about the situation in front of her parents, and felt wronged.It is appropriate to use some words to break her mind away, otherwise she can't help but shed tears, at least she will be scolded, and at worst, she will be sent to work as a drudgery in a cold palace where no one comes all year round. It's a pity that I can't reach the Queen Mother? So he also taught her the rules: "If you really want to mention elder sister or younger sister, you must first use your own address, and say 'sister of the servant'." "Yes!" Guilian looked up at the emperor and said, "The emperor's tea was brought by my servant's elder sister Yuzi." "I made a mistake again." The Empress Dowager Ci'an shook her head greatly: "Looking at you, you are quite smart, how can you not teach me? Yuzi is not your real sister, so you shouldn't be called that!" "She was on duty the first day, so she doesn't know the rules of the palace." The emperor quickly looked at the Empress Dowager Ci'an and said, "It will be all right in two days." The Empress Dowager Ci'an saw the expression of the emperor trying to protect Guilian, and found it interesting, but the emperor is the emperor after all, so she couldn't make fun of him, so she nodded calmly, and told Guilian: "You ask Yuzi to pack the cigarette for me!" "Yes!" Guilian greeted him and withdrew. The emperor was quite unhappy.Thinking of the day of the re-election, when I looked back, I suddenly remembered the song in the middle of the song: "When I go to look at the turn", I sincerely understand it, but I can appreciate the beauty of this song, but I can't tell where it is.So he thought of the Tao poem that Master Weng said but didn't understand very well, which teaches "If you want to distinguish, you forget the words"! I suddenly understood a line of lyrics, music and a line of poems, and I could comprehend them all by myself. The emperor had never experienced the elation and joy. Are they "right"? Naturally, for Luo, Master Weng would cry with joy.Just like that pairing, using "Dabaozhen" to "Zhongxing Song", I didn't know what to do to make Master Weng happy, just holding my hand, and kept saying: "Heaven is holy, heaven is holy !" Only when he thought of such a situation, did he feel that reading had some joy that other things could not bring, and he was so narcissistic.The Empress Dowager Ci'an was funny, angry, and wary. It seemed that the emperor, like his father, would not be able to see through women's sex in the future. "What are you laughing at alone?" This question woke up the emperor, and he was stunned for a moment before he could answer: "I'm thinking about something in the study." How could the Empress Dowager Ci'an believe his words?Just when he was fascinated by Guilian, he wanted to warn him a few words, but he didn't understand the shallow words, and was afraid that he would lose his face if the words were too heavy, so he had no choice but to sigh and say: "You are just like you, Ama. Same!" These words confused the emperor, what's wrong with being like the father, how can you say it in such a disgruntled tone?He had nothing to say in front of this Queen Mother, so he immediately asked, "Should I not be like Ama?" "Nonsense!" The Empress Dowager Ci'an tried her best to pretend to be angry, "How can you not be like Ama?" The emperor felt that the question was correct and he shouldn't be reprimanded, but for the Empress Dowager Ci'an, he was willing to be wronged. Remembering the teachings of Adidas, he stood up quickly, knelt down on the ground, and said in a tone of begging for forgiveness. : "Don't be angry, Queen Mother, I was wrong." This is where the Empress Dowager Ci'an felt most comforted. Although the emperor was not her own son, she was as filial as a parent and child, so she pulled him up and wanted to explain the two words she said, but she couldn't express them, so she had no choice but to do so Said: "It's not that you shouldn't be like Ama, but in some places, don't be like you Ama." The emperor understood these words, and in order to please the Empress Dowager Ci'an, he said cleverly: "It's like Ama's health is not good, I want to raise a strong son." "By the way!" Empress Dowager Ci'an was very happy, "You understand now. Ama is a good emperor, but she suffers from her thin body." Her complexion and voice became serious, "You have to be careful! You are not young anymore. At your age, Lord Kangxi has already done a lot of important things. Now your sixth uncle is blocking everything. You just study hard until you can stand on your own. You can get what you want. Don't think about it!" The last sentence confuses the emperor again, wondering what the four words "crazy thinking" refer to?But he didn't want to ask any more, because there would be no nice words to ask. Yuzi, who had been waiting for a long time with a cigarette bag at the side, understood the deep meaning of the Empress Dowager Ci'an, and when she said it out of the palace, it was right and wrong.So hastily interrupted, stretched out a dry tobacco pipe inlaid with green square bamboo, and then blew on the paper coal, leaving no room for the Empress Dowager Ci'an to speak. Yuzi meant not to mention Guilian, but the emperor wanted to ask, "Yuzi," he said, "is Guilian very good with you?" "Yes!" Yuzi asked with a smile, "How does the emperor know?" "I think she called your sister very affectionately." "By the way!" Empress Dowager Ci'an interjected, "Guilian still doesn't know the rules, you have to talk to her about it." "The slave has already told her." Yuzi replied, "I just came here today, and I still don't know everything. She is very clever, and after ten days and a half months, she understands everything." The Empress Dowager Ci'an thought for a while, then said slowly: "I see, Guilian is just too clever, so people can't rest assured." Why is that?As the emperor was thinking this way, Empress Dowager Ci'an and Yuzi all cast their eyes on his face. Needless to say, the words "Teaching people can't be at ease" were aimed at him.He was a little ashamed and annoyed, so he turned his temper on Yuzi. "What are you laughing at?" He scolded Yuzi with staring eyes: "There are no rules!" It is not the first time for Yuzi to be scolded for no reason. She has known for a long time that it is neither "for no reason" nor "being scolded". Anyway, the status of the emperor does not match his age. It is a habit to be reasonable.With a lot of experience, Yuzi has many ways to deal with such a situation, and now she has to make do with the queen mother to suppress the emperor's temper. So she withdrew her smile, pretended to be very well-behaved without expression, and stood quietly, and then Empress Dowager Ci'an raised her face and scolded: "It's so unruly! 下次不许这个样子！ " "yes." “皇上待你们好，你们就不知道轻重了！看皇上年纪轻，性情随和，就敢这个样子，下次再让我瞧见了，皇上不罚你们，我也饶不了你们。听见了没有？” “听见了。”玉子看着皇帝说：“奴才再也不敢了！” “去！”慈安太后又说，“问问皇上，要吃点儿什么，喝点儿什么？” “是！”玉子便走近一步，请个安说：“奴才请旨，皇上想吃点儿什么呐，还是想喝点儿什么？” 这样子一吹一唱，往往会把皇帝弄得老大过意不去，恨不得拉着人家的手说：“没有那么了不得，你别把皇太后骂你的话，放在心上。”这时也是如此，很想给玉子一个笑脸看，但抹不下这张脸来，只是摇摇头：“不要！” “不吃什么也好，快传膳了。”玉子又问：“皇上打算在那儿用膳哪？” 这两三年的惯例，除了初一、十五，多半由皇帝侍奉两宫太后临幸漱芳斋，听戏侍膳以外，平常日子的晚膳，大致一天在长春宫，一天在翊坤宫。但在长春宫的时候要多些，这天有种种缘故，便更舍不得走了。 “在这儿吃。”皇帝说，“我要吃南边的春笋。” “哎唷，那还不知道有没有了？”玉子略有疑难之色。 “浙江巡抚李瀚章，不是进得不少吗？”慈安太后问。 “一共十篓。”玉子答道：“除了赏各位王爷以外，还剩下四篓，一面分了两篓，倒有一大半是烂了的，奴才看样子，禁不住再搁，做了笋脯了。” “我就吃笋脯。”皇帝的脾气变得非常好了，“只要是笋就行。” 慈安太后看着玉子笑了，而玉子却不敢再笑。即令如此，皇帝也觉得不大对劲，便有些坐不住了。 “我去绕个弯儿再回来。” “别走远了。”慈安太后吩咐。 “不远，”皇帝答道：“我到后院看金鱼。” 等皇帝一走，慈安太后换了副神色，“玉子，”她把声音放得很低：“你看出来了没有？皇上对桂连有了心思了。” “奴才也看出来了。” “你替我留点儿神。”慈安太后想了想又说，“最要紧的，叫桂连得放稳重一点儿！可不能在我这儿闹出笑话来。” 其实就有那回事也不算闹笑话。玉子虽是未嫁之身，但当宫女“司床”、“司帐”，对男女间事，无不明了，没有见过也听说过。皇帝看中了那个宫女，不但不是笑话，雨露承恩，且是美事。不过皇帝到底只有十三岁，还在读书，倘或真的为桂连着迷，慈禧太后一定归咎于这一边。为了避免是非，玉子很重视“主子”的话。 于是她退了出来，把桂连悄悄找到僻处，告诫她说：“你在皇上跟前，可当心点儿，少笑！” “嗯！”桂连答应着，很快地瞟了她一眼，就象黑头里闪电一亮。 “要命的就是你这双眼睛！” “怎么啦？玉子姐姐！”这一次不瞟了，却瞪大了一双眼怔怔地望着玉子，桂圆核似的两粒眼珠，不断在转。 玉子当她是个不懂事的小妹妹，有些话不便说，说了她也不懂，想了想答道：“宫里不兴象你这个样子看人，别老是瞟来瞟去，也别瞪着眼看。你，你那两眼珠，别老是一刻不停地转，行不行？” “这……，”桂连低着头，嘟着嘴说：“这我可管不住我自己！” 想想也是实话，玉子无可奈何地叹口气，“那么，”她问： “你自己的那两条腿，你管得住，管不住？” “那当然管得住。” “好，你就管住你那两条腿好了。第一、要离开长春宫，不管是谁叫你，你得先告诉我。” “嗯，”桂连点点头，“我知道。我一定先跟你说。” “第二、看见皇上来了，你得躲得远远儿的。” 这句话一出口，桂连的脸色变了，“玉子姐姐！”她惊慌地问，“我第一天当差，可是出了什么错儿？我自己不知道啊！ 你，你得教给我，我一定听你的话，好好儿的当差。 " “你当差当得挺好的。”玉子看她神态惹怜、语言娇软，心里有七分喜爱，但也有三分醋意，摸着她的脸说：“你就是当差当得太好了。” What is this called?桂连要去细细想一想，反正眼前照玉子的话，管住自己的两条腿总是不错的。因此，一见皇帝的扈从，立刻就避了开去。 越是这样，皇帝到长春宫来的次数越多，终于，慈禧太后不能不派安德海来找了。 皇帝还恋恋不舍，问道：“有什么事吗？” “请皇上去试一试龙袍可合身？” “拿到这儿来试！” “不！”慈安太后接口说道：“你去！” 有了慈安太后的吩咐，皇帝才回到翊坤宫。“四执事”太监已经伺候了半天，由宫女帮着，七手八脚地把一袭新制的龙袍，替皇帝穿好。 “请皇上往亮处站站！”安德海说。 这是为了好让慈禧太后仔细看一看，但安德海的声音，就象跟个不相干的人说话那样，既无礼貌，亦无感情，皇帝心里非常不舒服。 因此，皇帝很想借故骂安德海一顿，但转念想到不久就可以发生的，要安德海啼笑皆非的妙事，顿时把气平了下去，乖乖地走向亮处。 慈禧太后也跟了过来，前后左右端详着，这袭明黄缎子的龙袍，在五色云头之中，绣着九条金龙，前胸后背，是蟠着的正龙，肩臂之间，是夭矫的行龙，另外加上“五福捧寿”、“富贵不断头”等等花样，下摆绣出石青色的海浪，称为“八宝立水”，配上朱纬东珠顶的朝冠，益发显得威仪万千，眩人心目。 慈禧太后非常满意，点点头说：“挺好的！” 怎么好法，皇帝却还不知道，他只能俯身下视，看到胸前的衣服，到底穿在身上是何形相？无从想象。便忍不住大声喊道：“拿镜子来！” 两名宫女拿了大镜子来为皇帝照着，前前后后看了半天，他在得意中有些忸怩和拘束，不由得就扭肩摆手，作出不大得劲的样子。 “穿上龙袍更不同了。”安德海说，“皇上得要更守规矩才好。” “是啊，要稳重！” 从这句话为始，慈禧太后大开教训，说正面的道理的同时，每每把皇帝“不学好”的地方拿来作比。皇帝每应一声： “是”，心里便说一句：“杀小安子！” 于是一件原该很高兴的事，变得大杀风景，害得皇帝的胃口不开，侍膳时勉强吃下一碗饭，托词第二天要背书，跪安退出翊坤宫。 慈禧太后的心思却还在那件龙袍上。膳后一面在前廊后庭“绕弯子”消食，一面跟随在身后的东德海发感慨：“皇帝也委屈，接位七年了，才有一件龙袍！” 委屈多由变乱而来，先是洪杨未平，以后又闹捻军，廷臣交谏，时世未靖，须当修省克己，力戒糜费。恭王、文祥等人，也常常哭穷，就这样内外交持，抑制了她的想“敞开来花一花”的欲望。连带使得安德海，也总觉得不大够味，枉为掌实权的太后面前的第一号红人。 所以，这时候见她有此表示，自然不肯放过进言的机会。 “其实，”他紧追两步，凑在慈禧太后身边说，“受委屈的倒不是皇上。” "Who is it?" “是主子！”安德海说，“大清朝的天下，没有主子，只怕早就玩儿完了。主子操劳，千辛万苦，别人不知道，奴才可是亲眼得见。按说，外头就该想办法把圆明园修起来，让皇太后也有个散散心的地方。不说崇功报德，就说仰体皇上的孝心，不也该这么办吗？奴才常在想，人人都见得到的事，怎么六爷他们想不到？要就是想到了，故意不肯这么办。那都是欺负皇上年纪轻，还不懂事，如果皇上肯说一句，为皇太后颐养天年，该怎么怎么办，孝母是天经地义，谁敢说个'不'字？” 这番话，慈禧太后都听入耳中，因为话长，她觉得有对的，也有不对的，一时想不完，所以也就没有开口。 不过，她的神态，在安德海是太熟悉了，他一面说，一面偷窥，始终没有不以为然的表示，就知道自己的话有了效用。于是接着又往下说：“奴才常想，在热河的时候，肃顺克扣主子，不错，不过有一句说一句，肃顺对大行皇帝的孝心，那可是没有得批驳，要什么有什么，供养得丝毫不缺。如今内务府跟户部，手这么紧，可又供养了谁呢？如果说是为了供养皇上，皇上才十三岁，可怜巴巴的，当了七年皇上，才有一件龙袍。这不教人纳闷儿吗？” “哼！”慈禧太后在鼻子里哼了一下，又似苦笑，又似冷笑。 “再说，”安德海越起劲了，“那时候逃难在热河，发匪也还没有剿平，日子是苦一点儿，现在跟当年的光景大不相同了，再说时世艰难，大库的入项不多，不是骗人的话吗？” “这你不知道！”慈禧太后说，“剿捻花的钱也不少。”她突然住口，觉得国家的财政，不宜告诉太监。 “是！”安德海很快地又说：“不过奴才也听了些闲话，不知道真假，不敢跟主子说。” "What gossip?" “都说朝廷拨了那么多军费，真用在打仗上的，不过十成里头的三成。” “呃！”慈禧站住了脚很仔细地问：“都用到那儿去了呢？” “还不是上上下下分着花。” 带兵官克扣军饷，慈禧太后早就知道，方面大员，除了曾国藩和丁宝桢以外，其余的操守，她也不敢相信，至于京中大僚，在逢年过节，或者各省监司以上的官员到京，照例有所馈赠，更不足为奇。但十成中有七成落入私囊，未免骇人听闻，她不能不注意了。 “你说的上上下下，倒是谁呀？” “这奴才就不敢说了。”安德海很谨慎地，“只听说六爷他们，都在外国银行有存款。” “噢！”慈禧太后诧异地，“把钱都放在洋鬼子那儿啦？”停了一下她喊：“小安子！” "twitter!" “你倒去打听打听，他们放在洋鬼子那儿的款子有多少？” “是！”安德海说，“洋鬼子的事儿难办，主子得宽奴才的期限。” “期限倒不要紧，就是得打听实在。”慈禧太后很严厉地说：“你可不许胡乱谎报。” “奴才不敢！”安德海接着又陪笑说道：“奴才还有件事，叩求天恩，可是……。” “怎么啦？”慈禧太后斜睨着他，“有话不好好儿说，又是这副鬼样子！” “奴才上次也跟主子求过，主子吩咐奴才自己跟皇上去求，奴才怕跟皇上求不下来，还是得求主子的恩典。” “又是那回事！”慈禧太后想了一下，摇摇头：“你还是得跟皇上去求。” “是！”安德海委委屈屈地答应着。 看他的神气，慈禧太后于心不忍，便安慰他说：“你先跟皇上求了再说，倘或不成，再跟我说。” 有了这几句话，安德海有恃无恐，心情便轻松了。细细盘算了一下，正好有个机会，三月二十三皇帝生日，借万寿讨赏，也是个名目。而且日子还有个把月，也来得及好好下一番工夫。 于是安德海一改常态，对皇帝特别巴结，一见面便先陪笑脸，也常在慈禧太后面前，颂赞皇帝的书读得好。这样一到了三月初，他找个机会，提议今年皇帝万寿要大大热闹几天。得到了慈禧太后的许诺，他亲自到升平署去接头，准备了好几出皇帝所喜爱的武戏和小丑、花旦合作的玩笑戏，然后到皇帝面前来奏报献功。 “办得好！”皇帝很高兴地笑道：“我可真得赏你点儿什么！” 一听这话，安德海喜在心里，表面却很恭顺地答道：“奴才伺候皇上，是应该的。只要皇上高兴，比赏奴才什么都好。” “总得赏点儿什么。”皇帝沉吟了一下问道：“小安子，你父母还在世不在世？” “跟皇上回话，奴才父母已经故世了。” “有了封典没有？” “前年蒙皇太后赏了四品封典。” “喔，你是四品。”小皇帝问，“按规矩怎么样啊？” “奴才请旨，皇上问的是那一个规矩？” “你们的品级啊！” 安德海不慌不忙地答道：“按规矩是四品。有特旨那就可以不按规矩了，规矩本来就是皇上定下来的。” “噢！”皇上又沉吟了一会，踌躇着说，“我想另外赏你个顶戴，不知道行不行？” “奴才不敢！”安德海赶紧跪下说道，“奴才决不敢邀赏。不过，皇上要另定规矩，没有什么不行。奴才说这话，决不是取巧儿。” “我知道你不是取巧。只要能另定规矩就行了。”皇帝指着安德海的头说：“蓝顶子暗，太难看了，我给你换个顶戴。” 世上真有这么称心如意的事！自己想换个红顶子，偏偏皇帝就要赏这个。安德海几乎从心底发出笑来，但无论如何得要做作一下，这个顶子才来得漂亮。 于是他免冠碰头，口中诚惶诚恐地说道：“奴才受恩深重，来世做牛做马都报答不来，实实在在不敢再邀皇上的恩典。求皇上体念奴才的一点诚心，收回成命！” 小皇帝有些穷于应付了，极力思索，想起上谕上对大臣的任命，常用的一句话，随即说了出来：“毋许固辞！” “皇上已经吩咐了。”小李在旁帮腔，“你就谢恩吧！” “皇上天高地厚之恩，奴才不知怎么样报答。”安德海说，“奴才感激天恩，实在不知怎么说才好。”他故意装出那讷讷然的忠厚样子。 皇帝笑笑不响。安德海亦是心满意足，抖擞精神，帮着去照料皇帝万寿的庆典，尽可能把排场铺展开来，搞得花团锦簇，十分热闹。 这是为了讨皇帝的欢心，但也是迎合慈禧太后的心意。盛年孀居的太后，最怕的是月下花前，悄无人声，那兜上心来的寂寞凄凉，无药可治。唯一的办法是别寻寄托，不让这份寂寞凄凉的心情出现。安德海在她看来重要，就因为他总能想些花样出来，为她打发闲处光阴。但是要热闹一番也不容易，第一要有个名目，免得外面说闲话；第二更要有那份闲情逸致——象岁尾年头那样，捻军扰及西陵，直逼京畿，弄得食不甘味、夜不安枕，想热闹也热闹不起来。 这些日子不同了，西捻已越过滹沱河南窜，李鸿章由冀州移驻直、豫、鲁三省枢纽的大名府，指挥郭松林、潘鼎新，以及改隶左宗棠的老湘军刘松山，还有豫军张曜、宋庆，以及善庆的蒙古马队，分路拦截追剿，打得极其起劲。不但京畿之围已解，而且依慈禧太后这几年天天看军报的经验，官军只要不是以屯守为名，专驻一地，养得师老，能够不怕辛苦，穷追猛打，收功的日子就不远了！因此，以轻松的心情，借皇帝万寿好好热闹几天，在她可以弥补“这个年没有过好”的遗憾，是非常需要的。 万寿前后七天，七品以上的官员都可以穿蟒袍，称为“花衣期”，当暖寿及正日在高宗养老的宁寿宫赐大臣入座听戏之前，宫中已经热闹了两天了。