5. Leaning on the railing outside the Chenxiang Pavilion
It has been drizzling for the past few days, and the air is filled with a moist smell of floral and green grass. The large handfuls of peach blossoms are wet from the rain, and gradually bloom to the extreme, revealing the lingering and strange fragrance of ****. I myself
Yi Yuandian brought back wolfberry peach blossom soup for Xuan Ling. Suddenly, he smelled such a moist aroma overwhelming the sky and the earth. He closed his eyes and was intoxicated, but heard a gentle call, "Shu Mu Fei."
I opened my eyes and took a look. Next to the Agarwood Pavilion in Shanglin Garden, I was holding an umbrella and standing alone in the rain.
I smiled gently and said, "It's quite elegant to enjoy the scenery in the rain."
He was quite hesitant, as if he had something to say. After a moment, he just said: "Did the mother-in-law come from the father? How is the father in a good mood today?"
“People tend to get bored on rainy days, not to mention the pile of desks piled up like mountains.”
He laughed along, seeming a little worried, "With my mother and concubine helping to read the memorial, and her witty remarks, I think my father will not be bored."
When I saw that he was still about to speak, I suddenly remembered what Xuan Ling said just now, "Yu Li, this kid, has been coming to greet me frequently these days. It's as if he has something to say but doesn't dare to say it."
I laughed at that time, "The emperor is still hesitant when his son fulfills his filial piety. The emperor's eldest son is a person of pure filial piety."
Xuan Ling sneered, "I think so, but I can't see how indecisive he is."
I looked up and saw Yu Li's slightly furrowed black eyebrows. In fact, his gentle and a bit cowardly temperament was very similar to his mother-in-law. I was about to speak when I saw that the umbrella he was holding was an oil-paper umbrella with a light cherry color base.
It is a sparse freehand landscape, with a rose sprouting out from the horizontal thorns, dripping with dew. It is very moving. If you look closely, you will see that the meticulous technique is delicate and not the work of a palace painter.
I thought about it, so I said warmly: "The emperor has been praising you recently for your filial piety, saying that your highness is getting married and is very sensible."
His brows relaxed, "It's rare for my father to praise me." He paused and tentatively said, "I don't know much about the draft, and I would like to ask Concubine Shu for advice."
"Your Highness, it's okay to say so."
"On the day of the draft, on the day of the draft... does it matter which show girl I choose?"
"Of course not." I looked at him with a smile, "As an emperor, we cannot cancel our parents' orders. Naturally, it is up to the emperor and the empress to make the decision."
His eyes dimmed and he whispered: "What if the mother I choose is not to my liking?"
"The emperor keeps his word." I only looked at him with a gentle smile, "His Highness seems to have already found someone he likes." Seeing him shaking his head hurriedly, I said deliberately: "But the eighth lady of the Zhu family? Kiss me, the queen.
I’m happy to see it come to fruition.”
Yu Li raised his eyebrows and said, "Shu Mufei has always been considerate and never made fun of others." He thought about it and said, "My father is the emperor. Naturally, this draft will be filled with candidates chosen by my father first."
I felt funny in my heart, and raised my eyes to look at the peach blossoms everywhere, "The focus of this draft is to choose the concubine for His Highness, and we will wait for His Highness to choose the candidate for Ye Ting. So His Highness was also busy that day. He not only had to take care of his own vision, but also
Just look at the expressions in the Emperor's and Queen's eyes before deciding which lady to give the jade in your hand to."
Yu Li looked timid, "I know that I am stupid, so I will definitely care about one thing and not the other. What if my father doesn't like it..." An anxious look gradually appeared in his eyes, as if he was very uneasy.
"Choosing a concubine is a lifelong matter. Although the Tian family has many wives and concubines, it is not easy to find a sensible and agreeable person to stay with and take charge of family affairs. In fact, the emperor also mentioned to me that the matter of selecting a concubine will eventually
It depends on your Highness, otherwise no matter how the Emperor likes it, the couple will end up having a feud if they don't get along. The Emperor also knows that the Queen cares about His Highness and is afraid that caring about His Highness will lead to chaos, so the Queen should not ask the Queen to comment on this matter. The Queen must arrange in advance for His Highness to communicate with each family.
The queen met her. The Queen had actually given her Highness some advice - 'If you like anyone, go and ask your father. Now that you have grown up, your mother will only make arrangements for you and not make decisions for you.' So if Your Highness
If you have your own ideas, why not tell your father quietly first, out of filial piety for His Highness."
The more Yu Li listened, the more relaxed her expression became. Finally, the corners of her eyebrows and eyes almost flew up, and she was full of smiles, "Thank you, Concubine Shu, for your advice."
"How come I am here to give you advice? I am just parroting the words of the Queen. I have to remind Your Highness that if Your Highness really has someone you like, just ask the Emperor quietly what he means. If there is any news, you must first talk about Your Highness.
Respect yourself, and whether you will succeed or not will be left to others to gossip about. Your Highness is someone who will take on a big responsibility in the future."
Yu Li bowed his head to the end and said, "Whether it succeeds or fails, I will thank my mother and concubine for taking care of me. I should keep this in my heart."
I smiled even more gently and said, "You and I are a family, but we are talking about the separation of this life. I will take the first step. The peonies beside the Agarwood Pavilion are outstanding. I wish your highness a happy full moon."
At night, I was sitting in the inner hall playing with Longyue on a burner pipa. It was the favorite of Concubine Yang Shu of the first dynasty. I took it out when I was cleaning up the warehouse. The pipa trough was made of sandalwood, which was bright and bright.
There are two phoenixes formed by gold and red patterns, and the strings are made of Lushui silk tribute from the West Yue Kingdom. The sound is as new and graceful. Longyue has always had a heart-beating nature, and she fell in love with her at the first sight. The Queen Mother
So he gave it to her and asked her to put it in my palace to adjust the strings. So Yue Yue kept her hands on the strings every night and came to me to play with them a few times.
Under the green bamboo window, the shadows of clouds and gauze reflected the newly bloomed Xifu Begonia outside the window. The rain was long, hitting the iron horse on the eaves and the banana trees in the atrium. Pink flowers were still blooming on the peach branches, and the sound was clear and clear.
Longyue has always loved listening to the sound of rain, but at this time she was playing the pipa with concentration. It was a piece of music taught to her by the musician Xie Jinniang. The melody was simple, but when she heard it on this rainy night, it had a faint sad tone. I smiled unconsciously and said
: "For thousands of years, the pipa has been playing nonsense, and it is clear that there is resentment in the music. The misty moon can deeply understand the meaning of the pipa's resentment."
As soon as the words came out, she felt vaguely ominous. Wuyue was studying Wang Anshi's poetry and calligraphy, so she naturally knew Wang Zhaojun's allusions, and smiled sweetly, "Life is about knowing each other, and there is really no need for Princess Pipa to have too many grudges."
I didn't expect her to think this way, so I smiled and fed a piece of preserved fruit into her mouth. As the night became darker, Huayi stepped forward and lit a few more lamps, picked the wicks, and a small lantern burst out.
But I heard a voice saying: "The lanterns are exploding, but is there any happy event?"
I turned around and saw Xuan Ling, and my smile became more and more beautiful, "The emperor is about to get a new favorite, and he is going to be a family man again. How can it not be a happy event?"
Xuan Ling chuckled, "The main purpose of this draft is to select a concubine for you, the palace concubines are just a fill-in. Speaking of which, if I become a man of the family, you will also be his aunt.
Are you afraid of being called old when someone calls you that?"
I curled my lips and chuckled and said, "How can I deserve to be called 'family aunt' by Princess Qi? The emperor and the queen are the serious aunts."
Xuan Ling scratched my nose, and his smile deepened, "The children are becoming more jealous, and they are not afraid of Longyue's jokes."
Longyue smiled, made a face, and played the pipa by herself.
He pushed me and said, "You are becoming more and more domineering when you don't let me sit down even when I'm here." I laughed and spat at him, reluctantly giving in, and he sat next to me on the concubine's couch.
Next, "Speaking of being a family man, there is something I want to hear your opinion on."
I casually picked up an orange and peeled it, but I still didn't forget to be angry with him, "I just listen to whatever ideas I can come up with."
Her satin-black hair looked like she was combing her thoughts. "Yu Li came to say hello in the afternoon, saying that he had fallen in love with a beautiful girl named Xu Yiren and wanted to make her his concubine. When I inquired about it, I found out that she was recommended by Yun Rong, who occasionally meets her
Live in her palace."
I was startled, then looked back at Xuan Ling, "I know that the beautiful girl is the adopted daughter of Duke Sui, and she is extremely upright and delicate. But..." I glanced at him, "Sister Yunrong once told me that she wanted to
I leave her to serve the emperor."
He said "Oh" and said calmly: "Yunrong is interested." He looked a little angry, "Since Yunrong is the person prepared for me, why did Yuli take a fancy to him? Is this child really ungrateful?
"
I handed him a piece of orange and whispered softly, "Yunrong only mentioned this to me. I'm afraid even the emperor doesn't know about it. How did the eldest son of the emperor know about it? It's just a coincidence at most." I pursed my lips and smiled,
"It's hard for the eldest son of the emperor to come and say this to the emperor. It seems that this Xu Yiren is indeed touching."
Xuan Ling thoughtfully said, "That's right. This child has always been timid in front of me. Now he dares to say this. It's rare."
I nodded slightly, "The emperor has always said that the eldest son of the emperor has a bad temper, but now it seems that he is quite angry. It is indeed very important for a man to have a good wife."
Xuan Ling smiled and said, "In this way, Xu Yiren is really good. If she can make Yu Li have some temperament, I will be relieved."
I suddenly suppressed my smile and said hesitantly: "Ms. Xu was prepared by Yun Rong for the Emperor. I'm afraid she would be displeased if she found out. Moreover, the Queen had arranged for the Emperor's eldest son to see more than a dozen of the most outstanding shows in the past few days.
Daughter, and Zhu Qianwei from the queen’s mother’s family.”
Xuan Ling snorted lightly and disagreed very much, "The meeting is just a pretense. In the final analysis, it is only for Zhu Qianwei. I no longer allow the queen to interfere with the draft, but she still bothers a lot."
I comforted him with gentle words, "After all, it was the Queen who raised the Emperor's eldest son herself, and the love between mother and son is deep."
"I also hope that the love between mother and son is deep. The queen vaguely mentioned to me that although Zhu Qianwei's appearance is not outstanding, her temperament is very docile."
Wuyue turned her head when she heard the sound, with a hint of anger between her eyebrows, and said angrily: "The Queen Mother is wrong! That Miss Zhu Ba dislikes Erchen very much. Erchen likes to touch the peonies on her skirt, and she thinks Erchen's hands are dirty.
"Hurry up and wipe it off." She put down the pipa in her arms and crawled on Xuan Ling like candy, "I don't like that Zhu Ba. If the eldest brother marries her, he will definitely not like me either."
Xuan Ling always loved this daughter the most, and was almost stunned with anger, "Children's words are unbridled! It seems that the queen is ignorant of people and is nepotistic. Since she dislikes my concubine's dirty hands, she naturally dislikes the royal family. I will not do that either.
Force her!"
"Then Yunrong's place..."
He said coldly: "I know Yunrong's thoughts. She tried every means to recommend beauties to me, just to ask me not to neglect her. I will treat her well without her having to go to all the trouble!"
I leaned on his arm gently and said, "Yunrong is a caring person and the most considerate of the emperor's thoughts. The emperor attaches great importance to the eldest son's choice of concubine. If there is a suitable candidate, she will definitely be willing." I shook his hand, "
I'm afraid that the emperor will be reluctant to see Xu Yiren when he comes."
Xuan Ling couldn't help laughing, "Don't be ridiculous. The adopted daughter of the Duke of Sui is not particularly noble. However, I value that she can make Yu Li more kind-hearted. The rest is not important. I will wait until the day of the draft.
Take a good look at it, if it is really good, I will certainly approve it."
The rain rustled outside the window. I lay on his chest and thought quietly, the rain is so good. The sky and the earth, which were originally so indistinct and infinitely separated, are connected together like this, and it is difficult to separate them. Just like fate and man-made, they are connected at will.