The old concubine's Zi Palace was parked in the Hongxiao Hall. A black velvet curtain separated the seven-couplet central hall into two parts. Behind it was the old concubine's Zi Palace. In front was the mourning hall where people offered sacrifices. There was a burst of noise.
A burst of wailing accompanied by mournful music.
At this time, I saw Zhang Fantai staggering a few steps after entering the palace, rolling and crawling in front of the old concubine's body, crying so hard that he felt like he was mourning his heir, and he was about to commit suicide.
When Wang Xian and Magistrate He saw how hard Fan Tai was working, they had no choice but to follow. It was not necessary to be as exaggerated as Fan Tai, but it was still necessary to kneel down and cry loudly.
The eunuchs of the palace over there helped the three officials up, and the three of them expressed their condolences to the King of Jin and several county princes. Zhang Fantai stayed behind to watch over the old concubine. When Wang Xian saw Magistrate He withdrawing, he wanted to follow him, but
Seeing him shaking his head slightly, it was obvious that he, as an imperial envoy, should stay just like the feudal lord.
In vain, he had no choice but to kneel on the side, sobbing along with Zhang Fantai. After a while, his legs became numb and his knees hurt. He had never knelt for such a long time in his life, but he could only hold on and cry in mourning.
After that, I secretly glanced at the furnishings in the hall, and saw several rows of altars placed horizontally under the curtain in the center of the mourning hall. The inner rows of altars were filled with three animals, melons and fruits, and three buckets on the front row of altars.
In the large copper furnace, three incense sticks as thick as cup rims were inserted into each, the cigarette smoke was thick, and the curtains were hung low. In the nooks and crannies on both sides of the palace door, there were more than forty musicians, holding sheng, Xiao, Pipa, and playing.
Tambourines and drums played mournful music to mourn the king of Jin and his brothers and nephews who were kneeling in front.
Wang Xian secretly looked at Jin Wang Zhu Jiyan who was kneeling in front of him, and saw that his face was full of tears, and he was crying the most. He was more miserable than someone who had lost his own mother... As far as he knew, Zhu Jiyan was the third son of a concubine, and
The old concubine Xie, besides Zhu Jixi, also gave birth to other legitimate sons. Unfortunately, now everyone wears sackcloth and mourning, and it is impossible to tell who is who.
In the morning, officials and gentry from Taiyuan came one after another to pay their respects, but except for the Dusi, the Right Chief Minister and a few others, most of them kowtowed and went out, so that they did not have to suffer further like him. When he was bored, he was in a coma.
I was about to sleep when I suddenly heard the sound of hurried footsteps. A young man rushed in in pain. He did not kneel down in front of the sacrificial table, but ran frantically towards Dowager Zi Palace behind the curtain, hissing and trembling:
"Mother, your son is back. Please open your eyes and look at me. How could you leave your son? How can I live... Haha...ha..."
The sound was like a cuckoo weeping blood. Although it was not loud, it made those who heard it cry. Wang Xian finally realized that His Highness Jin's crying method was hard, but there were still traces of gouging, and this young man's crying method was more natural and sincere.
, this is what it feels like to have your own mother die.
While he was thinking blindly, he watched two men kneeling behind King Jin step forward, lift up the young man lying on the Zi Palace from both sides, and choked out: "Seventh brother, you have to hold on."
"I won't, please let me die." The young man's identity was soon revealed. He was the seventh son of the old King of Jin, Zhu Ji'an, King of Guangchang. He cried heartbreakingly and made a fuss about opening the coffin.
He looked at the mother and concubine again and said that he had not seen the mother and concubine at all. The old man went away and said that he did not believe that the two brothers could not hold him back.
At this time, the scene was a bit chaotic, and King Jin couldn't help but stay silent. He knelt there and shouted in a hissing voice: "Seventh brother, if you want to cry, just cry well and happily. Don't do this, I'm shocked.
Is the rest of my mother and concubine what you want?"
With these few words, Wang Xian felt the calm and calm temperament of King Jin. He couldn't help but widen his eyes and looked at the scene happening in front of him.
"Don't do this, let me ask you, how did my mother-in-law die?" Zhu Jizhu roared and asked: "She has always been in good health. She was fine five days ago. How come she died in the blink of an eye?"
"My mother is suffering from a sudden illness and has died violently," Zhu Jiyan frowned and said, "Now is not the time to talk about this. I will tell you later." He ordered in a low voice: "First come here to watch over my mother and concubine. Don't let me go."
foreign ministers jokes
"I was about to ask them to be witnesses." But Zhu Ji'an didn't take his advice. He pointed at the concubine's palace and said, "Let me ask you, on what day did my mother-in-law die?"
"Last night." Zhu Jiyan frowned even more tightly. In fact, Concubine Xie left three days ago and the mourning ceremony was only made today. He really had unavoidable difficulties and could not explain it to outsiders.
But Zhu Ji'an asked loudly: "Why did you not stop the mourning for seven days and then bury me? Why did you bury my mother and concubine on the same day?"
"Seventh brother, don't make trouble unreasonably." A brother said in a deep voice: "The Yin and Yang officials have calculated the time when the mother and concubine will be buried, and they must be buried on horseback, otherwise it will be detrimental to the bereaved family."
"What about the burial?" Zhu Jizhen said reluctantly: "The eldest son has to hold the head during the burial. Where is my eldest brother?
"Bastard!" One brother suddenly changed his expression and scolded: "The boss has been imprisoned by the emperor. Who among us dares to get him back?"
"The emperor only asked him to guard his father's tomb, but did not ban him," Zhu Ji'an said angrily.
"Seventh brother, don't make trouble unreasonably," the other brother scolded: "Are you tired of talking to the emperor?"
"Okay." The two sides were just about to stop arguing when Zhu Jixiang shouted: "Seventh brother is grieving too much and is a little confused. Come here, help the prince to go down and rest. I am waiting for you."
"Yes." Several eunuchs hurriedly stepped forward, held Zhu Ji's arms, and pulled him out half-stretched. Zhu Ji'an struggled desperately and shouted: "Let me go, let me go. You are a thief and a guilty-minded mother and concubine. It is you who are harming me."
dead……"
King Guangchang's voice gradually faded away, and the hall became quiet. The foreign officials all lowered their heads to their stomachs to avoid His Highness King Jin from being embarrassed. However, King Jin took the initiative to clasp his fists and said, "I'll make you laugh, my little brother."
That’s it, I have an impatient temper and speak carelessly, but my heart is not bad, so please don’t pay attention to me.”
Several people hurriedly said they didn't dare. King Jin invited them to sit in the side hall again. He, Zhang Fantai and Zhou Dutai were all old acquaintances, but Wang Xian was the only one who was new to him. King Jin took the initiative to offer his hand to Wang Xian and said: "This
Is this the king sent by the imperial court?"
"My lord, I dare not take this position. I will lower my rank to Wang Xian to pay my respects to the prince." Wang Xian bowed deeply.
"No gift, no gift." King Jin held him up with both hands and said with a bitter smile: "Yesterday I heard that the official has arrived. I should have gone to ask for the saint's greetings, but my mother and concubine..." As he said this, he couldn't help but feel sad.
Xiu wiped away tears and said: "The little king is in chaos, and the difference is thousands of miles."
"How dare you, how dare you." Wang Xian hurriedly shook his head. Putting aside the negative news he had received before, he had a really good impression of the Jin King in front of him. He had a majestic appearance, slender eyes and a beautiful beard. Gu Pan looked like a king, but
He also speaks modestly and behaves modestly, which makes people secretly heartbroken.
It is no exaggeration to say that the three princes he saw, including Zhu Zhanji, were not of such a decent character... It is said that the King of Jin went to battle to kill the enemy, sat outside the border, and also studied Song Lian, calligraphy, Du Huan, and Duan.
He must be both civil and military. Such a person is obviously better at teaching his son than Zhu Di, who only knows how to wield swords and guns.
Of course, Zhu Zhanji is only half of this person's age. Maybe he will be better than him at the same age.
His Royal Highness the King of Jin asked about the well-being of the emperor, the prince, and the grandson, and then cautiously asked: "The imperial envoy came to Shanxi, do you have any message for the little king?"
"Your Majesty, no." Wang Xian shook his head and reassured him: "I was ordered to investigate last year's military ration loss case, which has nothing to do with your Majesty." He paused, looked at Zhang Tuesday and said, "Of course.
It has nothing to do with you two."
"Yes, it was all Liu Zijin's fault," Zhou Dutai said in a muffled voice.
"This Liu Zijin, I wish I could skin him." Zhou Dutai answered casually, but Zhu Jiyan also frowned and said bitterly: "Sir, I can't hide it from you. In fact, my mother and concubine
, who was cursed to death by him.”
"Ah?" Wang Xian said with a look of astonishment: "Is this happening?"
"Yes, as my seventh brother said, my mother-in-law was fine five days ago." King Jin whispered: "But starting from three days ago, my whole body suddenly twitched, and then started... going crazy..." Recalling the pain
At this point, he covered his face and shed tears again. After a while, he calmed down and said: "She shouted some terrible words about "kill you, kill you", dug her face hard with her hands, and bit her arm...
…”
"This is ghost possession," Zhou Dutai cried out.
"The mage I invited also said the same thing, but he said that the evil ghost that possessed my mother-in-law was controlled by someone with powerful Taoist skills, and he was no match. Later, I forced him to cast a spell, and the mage really vomited blood and fell into a coma...
In desperation, we had to tie her up with a quilt, plug her mouth with cotton cloth, and put a yellow charm on it to prevent her from hurting herself again."
After a pause, tears welled up in her eyes and she said, "But one day later, the mother-in-law still breathed her last and died. Her appearance was extremely terrifying. We had no choice but to bury her immediately..."
"My condolences, Your Majesty." The three people hurriedly comforted each other. Wang Xian actually felt goosebumps all over his body. He thought to himself that grandma is a bear. What kind of ghost place is Shanxi? Why is everyone telling me ghost stories?
It's a pity that I am possessed by a ghost. I am afraid of Wei. Wang Xian cheered himself up and asked: "How can your highness be sure that Liu Zijin did it?"
"The mage hired by Xiao Wang was one of the best in Taoism in Shanxi, but he almost lost his life. When he woke up, he told Gu that his opponent was a stranger who had been taught by gods and was no longer invincible to mortals.
." Zhu Jiyan said: "In Shanxi, I heard that Liu Zijin is the only one who has been taught by gods."
"It makes sense." Wang Xian nodded and said, "Then what is the grudge between Liu Zijin and the concubine? Why did he harm the concubine?"
"My mother-in-law is a high-ranking princess, but Liu Zijin is reckless. What kind of hatred can there be?" Zhu Jiyan frowned and said: "Who knows what that insidious monster is thinking..."
"It should be to intimidate." Zhang Fantai said solemnly: "To show his strength, the government will not dare to mess with him, so as to protect his subordinates."
"It makes sense." Wang Xian was like a rookie, everything he heard made sense.