Riding on his horse, Ban Weizheng looked at the imperial guard of honor in front of him and asked Luo Anyuan beside him: "I thought this matter was hopeless, but how could I have imagined..."
Luo Anyuan lowered his voice: "Luo didn't hide this from you either. After I mentioned this matter to my wife, she shook her head and said it was difficult to handle. Later, my daughter Ai Qing overheard and actually volunteered to go to the palace to tell me. When I came back,
, not only her, but also the angels in the palace followed."
When Ban Weizheng heard this, he asked in a low voice: "Is it possible that the emperor knows about it...?"
Luo Anyuan waved his hand and said: "Don't guess, don't talk about it, just pretend you don't know."
When the convoy arrived at Binhe Road in the palace city, Ban Weizheng and Luo Anyuan dismounted and first spoke to the chamberlain who came from the palace.
Then, Ban Weizheng found Qu Chaoyi, who was looking nervous in the motorcade, and said to him: "I can only send you here. If you go further, someone will take you... Remember, when you enter the palace, don't look too much.
Don’t ask too much, and don’t say too much.”
When Qu Chaoyi heard that Ban Weizheng was about to leave, he almost cried: "Brother Ban, what should we do if you leave?"
Ban Weizheng whispered: "You are all old people from Bachuan Villa. As long as you don't make big mistakes in the palace, nothing will happen to you."
Aunt Gongsun on the side came over and said with a smile: "What Brother Bang said makes sense."
Ban Weizheng nodded to Aunt Gongsun, then followed Luo Anyuan and left together.
The Qu family and Mrs. Gongsun's family followed the chamberlain and moved forward along the outer edge of the palace road.
After passing four or five gates and walking for nearly two miles, we finally came to a villa built by the lake.
Qu Chaoyi, who was sitting in the carriage, saw that the scenery and architecture of the villa were quite similar to those of Bachuan Villa. He couldn't help being stunned on the spot and was speechless for a long time.
Qu Sanweng was walking halfway when he suddenly jumped out of the car and tried to run towards the other courtyard. He shouted again: "Chang'an, Chang'an has arrived."
Qu Chaoyi reacted and quickly got out of the car. Under the loud scoldings of the chamberlains, he caught up with his father and pulled the latter back.
The carriage entered the courtyard and stopped again.
The eunuch who was in charge of the ceremony first told everyone what to pay attention to in the palace, and then asked everyone to wait here and not to wander around.
About a quarter of an hour later, a female official came over and led everyone to the courtyard.
Qu Chaoyi looked around. The more he looked at the surrounding scenery, the more familiar it became.
Walking to the outfield of the villa, relying on the vague memories of Bachuan Villa, Qu Chaoyi could even call out the destination of each path.
At this moment, many chambermaids and palace maids came out protecting a woman.
When Mrs. Gongsun saw the woman's appearance, she shed tears first, and then bowed.
Seeing everyone kneeling down, Hua Yue took Wan Niang's hand and came to the crowd. He first helped Aunt Gongsun up, respectfully called her master, and then asked everyone to stand up.
Fan Jinian, the chamberlain who came with Hua Yue, was also among them.
However, the face of the chief steward of the inner palace did not look very good at this time.
Allowing a group of common people to enter the palace and then hosting a banquet to entertain them was not in line with the etiquette and also violated the dignity of the royal family.
Although Fan Jinian was unhappy, he could only endure it.
Huayue led everyone to the main hall of the other courtyard. They exchanged greetings first, and then asked Aunt Gongsun: "The Palace Liyuan has been merged into Xuanwen Prison. Auntie is proficient in opera and dance. Are you willing to stay in Liangcheng and join the prison?"
official?"
Aunt Gongsun shook her head and said: "I am getting old. Let alone the sword dance, I can no longer do ordinary running and dancing. When I come back from Anxi this time, I just want to go to Chang'an to return to my roots."
Hearing this, Hua Yue felt a little sad and stopped trying to persuade her.
Moving her gaze to the back, Huayue said with a smile: "Rou Xing, come here."
Rouxing, the daughter of the Qu family, later married Gongsun's son.
In the early years at Bachuan Villa, she and Hua Yue were close friends. Now that they met again, one became a palace concubine and the other a commoner's wife.
Seeing Rouxing's face showing fear, she walked over slowly. Huayue didn't rush her and just smiled and spoke.
After a while, Rouxing saw that Huayue was approachable, so she slowly started talking and talked a lot about things in Anxi.
A long time passed, and the sun outside the door began to gradually set in the west.
Fan Jinian, who was outside the hall, was bored as he listened to a group of people chatting about household chores. Suddenly, a young eunuch hurried over and said something.
After Fan Jinian finished listening, he stood up excitedly and shouted to the palace people beside him in a deep voice: "Go! Hurry up and get ready! The emperor is here!"
Not long after, Zhou Jun, who had just finished handling the government affairs, walked into Quanhu Xiaozhu amidst shouts of long live.
Looking at the crowd kneeling on the ground, Zhou Jun, who had not shown a smile for a long time, actually made a rare joke in front of the palace people: "Forget these false etiquette, everyone, please get up, don't waste your time eating."
Soon, a table was set up in the hall, and the wine and food were passed around by the palace servants.
The wine is the Bingyu roast that is common in the market, and the food is the stir-fried dishes that were often eaten in Bachuan Villa.
Looking at the stir-fried tripe, roasted chicken in soup, braised tail and other dishes in front of him, Qu Chaoyi had an illusion for a moment, as if he had returned to that lively and happy time ten years ago.
Zhou Jun drank a drink by himself first, then waved away the palace maid who wanted to come forward to serve him. He held a rice bowl in one hand and chopsticks in the other. He picked up vegetables and ate by himself. While eating, he did not forget to say: "Everyone is watching."
What? The food will be cold if you look at it again."
Fan Jinian watched from the side and saw that the emperor ignored his manners and looked troubled. He wanted to step forward to give a few words of advice, but he hesitated.
At this moment, Qu Sanweng picked up the wine glass, drank the wine in the glass, and praised the wine.
He stretched out his chopsticks again, took a bite of fish, shook his head after eating it, and said, "My daughter-in-law cooked this dish, right? There is less soybean oil and less heat. It is far inferior to Zhou Lang's craftsmanship..."
When Fan Jinian heard the words "Tuesu Lang", he was stunned at first, then coughed violently, and finally said angrily: "You are so brave..."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Zhou Jun remained calm and just glanced at Fan Jinian.
After Fan Jinian saw it, he immediately softened, remained silent, looked up at the sky, and just sighed slightly.
Qu Sanweng drank wine and ate fish. He looked around and asked, "Where's Ping Po? Why didn't she come? If she doesn't come to serve the dishes, won't Mr. Pang be hungry?"
As soon as these words came out, the whole hall fell into silence.
Qu Chaoyi was horrified and quickly covered Qu Sanweng's mouth to stop him from talking.
The smile on Zhou Jun's face gradually faded, and his eyes slowly became filled with sadness.
Seeing this, Huayue slowly grasped Zhou Jun's hand beside her.
But Wan Niang, who was eating belly silk, was confused and didn't know what was happening.
Zhou Jun put down his chopsticks, gently held Huayue's hand, and said to everyone: "Chang'an Bachuan is now being rebuilt. Ten-mile long streets, three continents in the east and west, and Lianshan Academy have begun to take shape. If you want to go back,
I can ask the governor of Chang'an to properly arrange for you."
After hearing this, Aunt Gongsun left her seat, knelt down on the ground and said, "Your Majesty has a kind heart. I would like to express my gratitude to the old people of Bachuan."
Zhou Jun nodded lightly.
Wan Niang asked from the side: "Father, I always hear my mother talk about Bachuan, what is it like there?"
Zhou Jun touched Wan Niang's head and said, "The mountains, rivers and scenery there are just like those in the paintings. Sooner or later, you will see it..."
As soon as we get together in Xiaozhu, it means parting.
Three days later, the Qu family and Gongsun's family took the gifts from the emperor and set off home again, leaving Liangcheng and heading to Chang'an.
More than a month later, Ban Weizheng, who was in Fusi, Beizhen, received a letter from Qu Chaoyi.
Qu Chaoyi first thanked Ban Weizheng for his kindness in his letter.
Qu Chaoyi went on to say in the letter that as soon as his family arrived in Chang'an, they received the care of the government. Not only did they buy a house in the city, but they also got a well-paid job in the newly moved official tea house in Bachuan.
The little one has no worries about food and clothing.
Finally, Qu Chaoyi mentioned something in the letter.
One day, Qu Sanweng ran away from home, and his family searched everywhere but couldn't find him.
Later, a neighbor reminded me that he had seen the old man on Bachuan Long Street.
Qu Chaoyi took his family to Bachuan Long Street, and finally found Qu Sanweng at the gate of the old site of Bachuan Villa.
The latter was sitting on the threshold, leaning against the door wall, facing the long street, with the long-abandoned old house behind him and the sunset over the lake in front of him.
Crouching down and taking a closer look, people discovered that Qu Sanweng was guarding the door of Bachuan Villa and had closed his eyes forever.
But the old man's face was full of smiles, as if he was having a sweet dream that he would never wake up from.
