Chapter 25 Chapter 25

Fangbicong is the place where the emperor spent his summer vacation and governed.The emperor loved the beauty of "thin, leaky, and transparent" in the gardens of the south of the Yangtze River. In the courtyard, there are strange hills with rock formations in Taihu Lake.The jade waterfall flies into the air, covered by green bamboos.When the wind blows, there will be thick phoenix tails and dragon chanting, which is cool and pleasant. Passing through the zigzag verandah, there are large green plantains along the way, freshly washed by the eunuchs with clean water, so green that water drips out. , Ruyi stretched out her hand to lighten the Buddha, as if she could still smell the fragrance of the last green leaves.There are several red-crowned cranes in the deep part of the garden, plucking their feathers and swinging their wings among the flowers among the stones, enjoying themselves leisurely. There are also a row of rare birds of various colors hanging in the exquisite bird cages under the eaves, making crisp and melodious chirping sounds from time to time. .

Li Yuzheng led the little eunuchs to stick the cicadas on the tree with sticky poles. When they saw Ruyi, they rushed up to greet them, and said softly, "Why is the empress here? Be careful." Ruyi smiled softly, looked into the hall and said, "Is the emperor still discussing matters?" Li Yu said quietly: "The adults left half an hour ago. The emperor just fell asleep. These few days, the emperor is tired and his eyes are red." Ruyi thought for a moment and said, "Then it's inconvenient for me to go in?" Li Yu pursed his lips and smiled obediently: "It's fine for other people, of course you won't. Although the emperor is busy these days, he always thinks about you and the child in your womb, and he always said that he has no time to visit Elder Brother Twelve. "

Perhaps it was the word "child" that aroused Ruyi's hesitant nerves, she finally gathered up her clothes and said slowly: "Then lead me to see the emperor." When she came out of Fangbi Cong, it was already dusk, what she said to the emperor, naturally only she and the emperor knew, but she understood that what she said still moved the emperor. The setting sun was falling in the west, and the broken golden afterglow flowed thickly and colorfully like red gold paint.In the evening mist, the yellowish clouds roll and relax from time to time, changing into unpredictable shapes, giving people a kind of powerlessness of drifting with the current. There is a breeze flowing among Qionglou Yuyu, and golden ripples appear on the slightly wrinkled lake surface. It's like a lake of thoughts that is faintly flickering.

Rong Pei helped her back from Houhu along the Jiuyou Corridor Bridge, and said thoughtfully: "Today's matter is embarrassing for the empress, but why did the empress still go to persuade the emperor?" Ruyi straightened her hair that had been blown loose by the wind, straightened a gardenia hairpin inlaid with bergamot patterns and coral beads on the side of her bun, and said softly: "Do you think I can't do it?" Rong Pei thought about it, lowered her eyebrows and said, "Sometimes, one more thing is worse than one less thing. The empress is now in a stable position and sits firmly in the harem, why bother to go into this muddy water." The emperor..."

Ruyi said indifferently: "The emperor and the queen mother are mother and son after all, they can hide past the first day of junior high school, but not the fifteenth day of junior high school, they always have to see each other." "But Concubine Shu and Concubine Qing belong to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager does not use them, but uses you, Your Majesty. This matter is not easy to handle... Naturally, Your Majesty can handle it well, but it is too risky. Besides, what did the Empress Dowager do to you in the past? Queen Ulanara is too ruthless." Ruyi stared at the sunset on the Red River, the huge and omnipresent afterglow covered everything in the Old Summer Palace with a golden-purple dim light.

"The sun will always go down, just like a flower will always wither. Not for the past grievances, nor for the present gains and losses, but for the future." Ruyi's words contained a trace of calm and helpless, "Tomorrow, this day There will always be a time when the palace always loses its flowers and its beauty fades away. If the palace loses favor and hurts its own children at that time, then the queen mother can still be the last one to rely on. Even if there is no power, the queen mother is still the queen mother after all. There is no mother clan in the palace. Rely on, if you can't even rely on yourself, then if you help the Queen Mother today, you will help yourself in the future."

Rong Pei hastily covered her mouth with her hand, and hurriedly said: "Your Majesty is being favored, and she is pregnant one after another, how can this be so?" Ruyi's eyes are clear and clear: "Whenever there is prosperity, there will be times of prosperity and decline, and no one can escape." Rong Pei nodded slightly, and suddenly said: "If Queen Uranara is alive, how would she feel?" Ruyi poked her with a smile: "With my aunt's wisdom, she will definitely not be as hesitant as I am, but will agree immediately." When it was time for dinner, the emperor hurried into the Changchun Immortal Pavilion. When the emperor entered the hall, he saw that the servants in the palace had all retreated, and even Fu Jia, whom the empress dowager trusted most, was not around, so he knew that the empress dowager had something important to say , hurriedly invited Ann respectfully, and sat down.

For fear of the scorching heat of the fireworks, there were not many candles lit in the hall, and it was rather dark and cloudy.The heat of the early summer evening is diluted by the snow stored in the silver basin in the temple, and the coolness is like water slowly, penetrating the bones.There is a jade-colored mother-of-pearl inlaid bowl with cloud and dragon patterns on hand, and the top-quality Biluochun is soaked in it. After the second boiling water is brewed, the emerald green leaves have been fully stretched, and the color of the jade-colored tea cup is more green and translucent. Seeing the empress dowager's sullen face, and the slight and cold aura exuding from her body, the emperor felt a little uneasy in his heart.They have been called mother and son for so many years, and the emperor has been raised under the empress dowager's knees since he was more than ten years old. He has never seen the empress dowager so angry. The smile is calm, without showing any signs of expression.

There are times when such a woman can't hold her breath? The emperor thought silently, in addition to being surprised, he became a little more calm and calm. It turns out that no matter how wise and conspiring a woman is, she can't escape the tenderness of her sons and daughters. Thinking of this, his expression relaxed a lot, and his tone became more gentle and filial: "I don't know why the Empress called her son here urgently? If the weather is hot and the palace servants don't make enough offerings, the Empress can just tell her son. " The Empress Dowager's face was shaded by the blue gold earrings inlaid with oriental pearls and dotted with emerald green: "The palace servants are not well served, so the Ai family can naturally tell the emperor, and if the Ai family's own son is unfilial, the Ai family can tell the emperor Who is going?"

Hearing this, the emperor stood up suddenly and said, "My son dare not accept the words of the emperor's mother." The queen mother stared coldly for a moment, then said solemnly: "The emperor dare not? State affairs are important, and the Ai family dare not care about the etiquette of the emperor's morning and evening. There is only one sentence, and I have to ask the emperor." She took a deep breath, " It has been ten days since Dawaqi asked for marriage, how does the emperor determine the future of his own sister?" The emperor lowered his eyes for a moment, and said gently word by word: "Sister Duanshu has been the jewel in the palm of the late emperor since she was a child. How can I let my sister live alone forever? Dawaqi is brave and good at fighting, and he is a man who can be entrusted to him for life."

The queen mother almost gasped, her lips trembled for a long time before she could speak: "The emperor means..." The emperor smiled gently: "My younger sister has been married to Junggar for a long time, and has always been at odds with Dorza, and has never had a child. If this is what I want today, I want my younger sister to marry another man who suits me. Is it impossible for my son to be an elder brother? I want to come to the emperor Erniang is right, and she must be very pleased to have a good son-in-law." The Empress Dowager trembled for a moment, and said sharply: "Duanshu's first marriage was not harmonious, and the family cannot be blamed for the emperor. At that time, the late emperor was seriously ill. Although Duanshu was young, the late emperor had no older relatives. The emperor enthroned safely, and Ai's family could only do what the emperor wanted and let her marry Junggar. But now her husband is dead, and there is civil strife in Junggar. As the elder brother, the emperor is in turmoil if he doesn't take her back If you want her to marry her younger sister again, or to marry her husband's enemy, where does this put the way of Confucius and Mencius? Where does it put the face of the royal family?" The emperor was neither surprised nor annoyed, and with a sincere smile, he lowered his eyes to show his obedience: "Don't worry, the emperor's mother, the face of the royal family is that the princess remarries in a dignified way, and keeps one side peaceful. Although I respect the way of Confucius and Mencius, what is it? Manchurians don’t have to follow the etiquette of the Han people. Otherwise, when Emperor Shunzhi married his brother-in-law, Emperor Dong’e, the imperial concubine, wouldn’t it be a matter of condemnation, so that his sons and ministers, who are descendants of people, would also stand up and condemn them?” The Empress Dowager's eyes were firm, and she had no intention of backing down: "When Emperor Shunzhi married his younger sister-in-law, Emperor Dong E, the noble concubine Dong E, I just entered the Qing Dynasty and did not follow the folk customs. But now that I have been in the Qing Dynasty for a hundred years, do I still have to learn from those uncivilized people outside the customs?" Let the common people laugh behind our backs that we are still barbarians outside the pass, sleeping on the border of the capital and still retaining the habit of Manchurian tents and cellars?" The emperor's handsome face was covered with a thin smile, with a ruthless solemnity: "Emperor Niang, don't be angry, why don't you want to welcome my sister back? But now Dawaqi is quite popular in Gar, and won My relatives and nobles support me. If I forcefully use troops, firstly, the borders will be restless; secondly, it will be more difficult to be an enemy of the entire Junggar; , will definitely become a serious problem.” The Empress Dowager's face was gloomy and uncertain under the light of the candlelight. She sneered and said, "After all, the emperor's main goal is the country, and the younger sister can ignore it! She is indeed a good emperor, a good emperor!" The emperor's face gradually became hesitant, and he still tried his best to force his submissive tone: "The queen mother accused her son, but the son had nothing to say back. But the queen mother had never thought that even if I immediately sent troops to Junggar to quell Dawaqi, I would not be able to do so. Sister Shu has long been under house arrest in Junggar. If Dawaqi becomes angry and ruins her sister's reputation for a while, or kills her sister recklessly, will the empress blame her son for being unfilial? Has the empress ever thought about such a result? Instead of this, it’s better to go with the flow and marry the younger sister to Dawaqi, and then nothing will happen. It’s also because the younger sister’s first marriage was careless, and Dorza didn’t love her much. Today’s intention is to let the younger sister get what she wants. Marry her good husband!" The queen mother trembled all over as if she couldn't bear the cold. After a long time, Lang Ran smiled and said: "Okay! Okay! Okay! The emperor is so thoughtful, but the old lady Aijia is more worried." She stood slowly Standing up, that gaze was like the sharpest sword, solidified with murderous intentions, piercing straight to the bottom of the emperor's heart. "Actually, what the emperor is most afraid of is that Dawaqi will use your sister's life to blackmail the emperor into paying other things. Now that the Junggar rebellion can be quelled without a single soldier, the emperor will naturally agree." She said She raised her face and laughed endlessly, "Women in the palace, even if you are a princess, you still can't escape the fate of being manipulated by others, what a pity?!" The candlelight danced between the emperor's eyebrows, the emperor was very calm, slowly sipped his tea, and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry too much, Empress Xiaoxian is the first wife of my son, the first daughter of Empress Xiaoxian who was asked to marry by Mongolia. Princess Hejing, she can also understand justice." "The emperor is really blessed to have such a virtuous wife." She smiled slumped, with a little powerless oldness on her face, "It's useless to mourn the family. There are only two princesses in this life, and they can't help the emperor for a long time. Now, Your queen is pregnant again, emperor, you already have so many elder brothers, if you get a princess, one by one will marry your relatives far away in the future, and calm down the country, it will be better than a million soldiers." The muscles on the emperor's face twitched slightly, and cold anger flashed across his eyes, and he immediately smiled calmly and said: "The emperor's mother is very true. A woman's alluring smile is sometimes more powerful than a man's Kong Wu Back then, the Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang spared no effort to contain the regent Dorgon in order to protect Lord Shunzhi's country." She turned this smile into a deep bow, "Naturally, my son will not be so unfilial and sacrifice himself If you want to go to your mother-in-law, you will naturally take care of the mother-in-law for the rest of the year, so as to fulfill the filial piety of a son of man." The Empress Dowager was stunned, she fell down and sat on the Nine Phoenix Throne, pointed at the Emperor with trembling hands and said, "You...you...the Emperor, hello! Hello!" The emperor smiled and said respectfully: "Having been trained by the Queen Mother for many years, my son naturally dare not be bad. It's late at night, so the Queen Mother should go to bed early. Soon Princess Duanshu will get married, and all the etiquette will have to be presided over by the Queen Mother." Well. In this way, my younger sister will be able to marry well!" The Empress Dowager watched the emperor Xiao Ran leave, shed tears in a daze, and said to Fu Jia who turned out from behind the curtain: "Fu Jia! Obsessive, can't listen to others!" Fu Jia wept silently, unable to say a word of comfort, so he could only hug the Queen Mother tightly and let her be heartbroken. The candlelight on the gold-plated green animal candlestick danced a few times, and was suddenly extinguished by the cool wind pouring in from the long window. Only a wisp of milky white smoke curled up, like the most helpless sigh, faintly turning into a faint breath in the deep palace. Miserably desolate. A few days later, Ruyi and Hailan walked together. On the back lake, there was a lake of fresh lotus and verdant green. Hailan supported Ruyi to walk slowly, looked at Ruyi's figure and said, "Your Majesty's body is a bit rounder. The concubine looked at the sharp belly of the previous pregnancy, but this one is a little round, I'm afraid it's a baby. Princess." Seeing the maids following from a distance, Ruyi laughed softly and said, "When I was born, I was very cautious. I didn't dare to show it if I wanted to eat sour food. I only said spicy food. Now I really like spicy food. Even The small kitchen is joking, saying that the pots used to cook the dishes for Ben Gong have become hotter." Hai Lan caressed Ruyi's belly and smiled: "It's good to be a princess. My daughter is Er Niang's caring little padded jacket, and my concubine has always regretted that there is only one Yongqi under her knees. When she comes out of the palace in the future, my concubine will not be able to get married." There is no one to say sweet words." Ruyi looked at the blue waves on the lake, the lotus boats rippling, the emerald lotus leaves meeting the blue sky, and the lotus flowers reflecting the sun in a unique red color. Among the rippling water, there are blooms of water blooming in the water, and the stream of light turns thousands of times.The wind sent the lotus seedlings ten miles of incense, and the songs of the palace people picking lotus lingered among the green leaves and red lotuses. They vaguely sang: "The lotus leaves and skirts are cut in one color, and the hibiscus blooms on both sides of the face. You can't see the wind when you enter the pool, and you will feel someone when you hear the song." Come……" The singing echoed softly, heard through the waves on the water, there was still one singing and three sighs, the beauty of knocking crystals and breaking jade, she knew that it was Yuyan's new idea of ​​favoring, which was very in line with the emperor's wishes. Such a young girl in her twenties and eight years can sing with a beautiful voice, which is very touching.Ruyi is a little sad, who knows what the fate of the girl who is singing happily at this moment will be in the future? Her hand caressing her belly was a little slow, and she sighed dejectedly: "So what if you are really a princess? Just look at the queen mother's own princess..." Hailan looked around and quickly covered her mouth: "Your Majesty, don't say unlucky words." Ruyi drooped her eyes sadly: "I'm just sad about the loss of lips and teeth, the death of a rabbit and the death of a fox." Hailan was also a little sad when she heard the words, so she asked, "Is the matter of Princess Duanshu's remarriage settled?" Ruyi nodded and said: "It's a foregone conclusion, the emperor has issued a decree to confer the title of Taiji Dawaqi in Junggar as Prince, and to marry Princess Duanshu Gulun on September 12th. Now the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Internal Affairs are already busy. " Hailan nodded slightly: "No matter how busy you are, you still do it quietly. There has never been a princess remarrying in the Qing Dynasty. After all, it still needs face. The princess's big wedding this time is not as good as last time." "The princess married far away last time, when the late emperor was dying. How can we be more decent if we rush together. This time, I married my own husband-killing enemy. I heard that the emperor has given the princess a secret decree, asking her to put state affairs first. Heavy, do not have the thought of committing suicide." Hailan lowered her voice even more and said: "The princess is the empress dowager's constraint outside, and the empress dowager is also the princess' concern inside. They care about each other, and in the end they can only fulfill the emperor's wishes." Ruyi's bright and full expression gradually lost its splendor: "Princess Duanshu is like this, and so is Princess Hejing, who was born to Empress Xiaoxian. What about other princesses? They are just born in the emperor's family, and there is nothing left to do." Hailan was silently sad, and didn't know how to answer the words. She just pinched a vein and broke off the lotus leaf silently, watching her broken moon-shaped nail prints pinching the lotus leaf into a mess. While he was meditating, he saw Sanbao rushing up, slapped a thousand children and said, "Empress Empress, Concubine Yu, Concubine Shu..." Ruyi suddenly turned around and asked, "Is it Elder Brother Ten..." Sanbao bowed his head and said, "Yes. Elder Brother Ten is unfortunately passed away." Ruyi and Hailan looked at each other, and felt a throbbing pain in their hearts. That child, who hadn't had time to name her, was young, soft, and so pale, so she didn't want to.She didn't dare to imagine how sad Yi Huan would be. During the days when Elder Brother Shi was ill, Yi Huan's eyes had turned into two springs of water, shedding tears endlessly, as if those tears would never end. Ruyi couldn't help but walked back, Sanbao was so anxious that she crawled up to her and kowtowed: "Empress, you can't go, you can't go!" Ruyi shouted: "Get up!" Hailan hurriedly supported Ruyi, tightened her strength in her hands, grabbed Ruyi and said, "Your Majesty! You can't go! You are pregnant and are about to give birth. You can't set foot in a place of mourning and sorrow!" Ruyi struggled to prop up her waist, and said solemnly: "I am the queen, all evil and delusions do not reach my body, I am not afraid of anything, and my children will naturally not be afraid!" When Ruyi and Hailan arrived at the spring rain and comfort, the palace people had already retreated outside the courtyard, and began to decorate the palace that had lost their young lives with white cloth. Ruyi quietly walked into the bedroom, and saw that Yi Huan was wearing a large gauze cloak with dark brocade satin in Tang color, and a pair of green silk was rolled up high with plain gold hollowed-out flat square, sparsely adorned with a few sapphire pearls, and she was well dressed. It was very clean and tidy, without the slightest hint of sadness. Ruyi was surprised and approached quietly, but saw Yihuan sitting quietly beside the child's cradle, with her hands on her chest, tightly hugging a magenta satin cloth. Embroidered swaddling clothes, humming softly in the mouth: "The wind blows the trumpet, the thunder beats the drum, the pine trees dance with the birch trees, haha ​​with a bow and arrow, hunting into the valley, yo yo ho, hunting is not afraid of hardships, crossing snow ridges, climbing ice Lake, hide in the tiger must pass, draw the bow and shoot the arrow fiercely, yo yo ho, get rid of the tiger blocking the road..." She hummed softly, with such a warm and loving meaning in her singing, a gentle smile that Ruyi had never seen before rippled gently on her lips, stroking the pale child in her arms with one hand A face without blood. Ruyi looked at her, her heart was like a piece of thin porcelain, gradually spreading fine and sour cracks, she looked back at Hailan, Hailan approached, and coaxed with a soft smile: "My good sister, you can hug her too." Tired, let me hug Elder Brother Ten for you." Yihuan raised her head vigilantly, hugged the child tightly and shrank back, looking at Ruyi and Hailan with wary eyes. Hailan asked softly: "Are you tired from singing? Are you thirsty?" She poured a cup of hot tea from the table, and beckoned: "Come and drink, or your voice will become hoarse, and it won't sound good, Shia Brother won't like it." Yi Huan looked at the child in his arms with infinite love and compassion, and said softly: "Would Elder Brother Shi like it?" Hailan smiled gently, and said affectionately: "Isn't it? Elder brother ten likes listening to your singing. Wait for my fifth elder brother to come too, okay?" Yihuan let go slightly, not knowing whether to let go of the child in her arms, Ruyi coaxed in a good voice and said: "Go and drink water, the baby's swaddling clothes should be changed! I know you don't like being touched by others. Elder Brother Ten, come on, Bengong. You can rest assured, right?" Yihuan hesitated for a moment, then carefully put the child into Ruyi's arms, lovingly touched the child's face, smiled as warmly as the closest brocade quilt in winter, and said softly, "Er Niang, go drink some water, Come back at once, good boy, don't be afraid!" The moment Yihuan let go of her hands, Ruyi touched the child's face, which was cold, lifeless, and even a little stiff.Ruyi's heart felt sore, tears fell down involuntarily, how dare she let Yihuan see her, she hurriedly turned her back and wiped them away. Yihuan finished drinking the water in a hurry, only staring at the child in Ruyi's arms, and couldn't wait to reach out to hug it back.She said eagerly and reluctantly: "My child only wants to be hugged by me, so give it to me." Ruyi saw her like this, as if she didn't know that the child had already died, so she could only say softly: "Yihuan, you are tired, I will hold you for a while." The loving look on Yihuan's face disappeared immediately, like a vigilant she-wolf, she stared at Ruyi fiercely and said, "What are you going to do? Why are you robbing my child?" Hai Lan couldn't help wiping away her tears and said, "Concubine Shu, Elder Brother Shi has already passed away, you..." Before she finished speaking, Yihuan pushed Ruyi hard, rushed forward, snatched the child from Ruyi's arms, hugged her tightly, and put her face on his little face that had lost all warmth, her expression immediately became gentle, The gentle and sweet smile is like a butterfly flying from among the flowers, cruising between her blue and black eyebrows.She continued humming softly.Looking back with a smile: "Slow down, Elder Brother Shi is asleep, he doesn't like others disturbing him to sleep." Hailan looked at Ruyi, with a bit of soreness and intolerance, and said softly, "Sister Concubine Shu is probably so sad that she has lost her mind." She turned to worry, "How can this be good?" The twilight gradually brushes over the glazed green tiles of the palace with a gentle gesture, and the pale golden light flows down like a light waterfall. The wind passing through the heavy veils is extremely gentle, and gently plucks a nine-turned golden branch on Ruyi's temple. Linglong walks, the hanging crystal beads sway, there is a faint sweet floral fragrance in the wind, smell it carefully, it is the smell of tea, so elegant that people feel that the whole body is melted in such a gentle wind of. It was obviously such a warm courtyard in the setting sun, but for some reason, Ruyi suddenly remembered a day many years ago, as if it was the day when Yi Huan first fell in love with her.One day, when the green window screens were bright and the moon was shining through, I saw her stand alone under the light moon and the sparse wind, saw her delicate makeup in Xiangluan, beautiful flower embroidery, and softly sang someone's words.The tactful verse is clearly in my heart at this moment, "Light smoke and cold wind at dusk, scattered tea leaves, damage the spring marks." Today's afterglow is slanting, but it's not like a smoky and windy evening, watching the tea leaves fall, it's a flowery event.