(I have cervical spondylosis, so that’s all I can do today. Sorry! I’m in pain.)
In addition to the matter of establishing a prince, another matter seemed to be more urgent. During the three months in the capital, although the emperor was friendly to Guo Bing, Guo Bing still smelled of it during the small talk during several family banquets.
There was an unusual smell.
The Holy Emperor asked several times about the situation of pirates in Hangzhou. It seemed like a casual question, but it made King Liang feel alarmed. The reason why he stayed in Hangzhou in the first place was to guard Hangzhou and monitor the pirates. The reason why the emperor agreed
Guo Bing himself stayed in Hangzhou because of his previous contribution to suppressing the pirate bandits. In recent years, the pirate bandits have become increasingly powerful and have done many daring things. They not only harassed the inland, but also posed a huge threat to the maritime trade routes. Along the coast
The merchants in the land complained a lot, and naturally it was difficult to hide these things from the court.
It's just that the imperial court now has difficulty in encircling and suppressing the pirates, so it can only let it go. But in fact, the source of these things will inevitably fall on the Liang Palace. If the power of the pirates is uncontrollable, and there are
The risk of causing a catastrophe can only mean one thing, that is, the existence of Prince Liang's Mansion in Hangzhou is meaningless.
Under this situation, Guo Bing had to worry that the Emperor's brother would take this as an opportunity to call him back to the capital and abandon the original order of the late emperor. In the three years since he ascended the throne, the Holy Emperor has actually been following all the regulations of the late emperor. People say that
Not only did the situation of the emperor and his courtiers not happen, but all the edicts issued by the late emperor were followed. This was naturally the wisdom of the emperor. When he ascended the throne, he needed to stabilize his throne and control the situation, so it was his job to maintain stability and transition.
The first choice. However, it has been three years since the Holy Emperor ascended the throne. The situation has gradually stabilized, and the people of the world have returned to their hearts. What should be controlled is already in hand, and it is time for him to dare to take action.
Around the New Year, the Holy One quietly promulgated several new rules, replacing several of the former Emperor's rules. There was no sound or reaction from the court, which was clear evidence that the Holy One had taken control of the situation. Although those new rules
It's just some insignificant rules, but the Holy One has already taken this step. I believe there will be more and more fires in the future, and the fire will become more and more fierce.
As a brother of the Holy Lord, Guo Bing understands the character of his elder brother. He is not a stickler in the first place. On the contrary, under his modest and steady appearance, there is an out-of-the-box heart. He is definitely the same as his father.
He was a different emperor. So under this situation, when the emperor asked about the pirates, he would never dare to turn a deaf ear. He believed that this was because Lu Zhongtian's blows over the years had an effect.
He has become dissatisfied. If he continues to do nothing, the emperor's brother will issue an order to call him back to the capital on the grounds that his suppression is unfavorable, and the former emperor's edict will also be annulled by him. This is definitely not what Guo Bing wants to see.
Arrived.
Therefore, this matter actually makes Guo Bing more anxious than the matter of establishing the crown prince. He must find a way to deal with this situation. The emperor's words are a kind of temptation. After the temptation, he will take action. Before that, if he
If you can't think of a countermeasure, you will have no choice but to return to the capital for no reason. From now on, you will be under the eyes and ears of the emperor, and you will never be able to make a difference again. Moreover, you will have to face it after returning to the capital.
The two major forces in the imperial court will be caught if they are not careful, which will lead to even more cruel consequences.
This is by no means Guo Bing's unfounded worry. Putting aside the character of this royal brother, the disputes among the royal family in the 160 years of the Zhou Dynasty actually have traditions, and many things are just covered up and not mentioned. Several previous dynasties
The emperors were extremely cruel in fighting for the throne and eliminating dissidents. After the Zhou Dynasty unified the world, there were court disasters.
The current royal family lineage was actually inherited by Taizong from his brother Gaozu. Everyone recites Gaozu's style of giving way to talents and praises him, but this is actually just a superficial statement. Gaozu passed down the throne to Taizong even though he still had several sons.
Only a fool would believe that he would do this. After Taizong came to the throne, several of Gaozu's sons died mysteriously, which is naturally not normal. Many people know that Taizong killed his brother to seize the throne and killed Gaozu's lineage, but no one
Just mention it publicly.
Guo Chong and Guo Bing both have Taizong's blood flowing through their bodies, and the ferocity in their genes is indelible. Guo Bing favors others by himself, and he also understands that it would not be a surprise if the emperor's brother really kills him. After all, he
There was always a fire burning in his heart. If he had the opportunity to kill his brother and inherit the throne, Guo Bing would do it without hesitation.
…
In the hall of the dragon-headed ship in the palace, the sunshine is still warm, the fragrant tea is still warm and sweet, and the face of Liang Wang Guo Bing is still peaceful and calm, but in fact, his heart is a little restless. That's why he suddenly lost his temper and scolded Guo Kun just now.
His behavior was actually due to his irritable mood. For the first time, he also wanted to compensate the people who were sunk for the loss of their ships. Rather than saying that he had a compassionate heart, it was better to say that he suddenly felt that he should accumulate more reputation.
Do more kind deeds, because it may help yourself, although this is just a kind of psychological comfort.
"Daddy!" A crisp call sounded from the bow of the ship, and Guo Bing's frown suddenly relaxed. That was the voice of his beloved daughter. Hearing her voice, Guo Bing temporarily put aside the worries in his heart.
Beyond the sky.
Guo Bing chuckled and looked at the door. A girl in colorful clothes rushed in from outside the cabin, with a bright smile on her face.
"Dad, you are finally back. I miss Wei'er so much." Guo Caiwei rushed to Guo Bing's side, her eyes full of excitement.
"Why didn't you wait on the dock instead of running to the boat?" Guo Bing smiled and reached out to touch her head.
"My daughter misses her father. I ran to Beiguanmen Pier, but missed the opportunity. I had to catch up in a small boat. Is your father okay? My daughter wants to say hello to you." Guo Caiwei took a step back and bowed her skirt.
Guo Bing laughed and said: "Okay, okay, everything is fine. But you, we went to the capital, are you the tiger who is not at home and the monkey is the king? Have you done anything extraordinary?"
"Daddy, what are you talking about? My daughter is so well-behaved, how could she do anything outrageous? Where is my mother? I'll go see her." The little princess said angrily with a slightly red face.
"Hehehe, as long as you didn't do anything extraordinary, your mother is on the second floor. You can go and say hello. I was talking about you just now."
"Well, the daughter is gone." Guo Caiwei rushed up to the second floor like a flying swallow.
The smile on Guo Bing's face did not disappear, and she felt a lot more comfortable. She reached out to hold the teacup to drink, but she saw Guo Kun walking in quickly with a frown on his face.
"Kun'er, we're almost there. Come on, come on, sit down and have a cup of tea with your father. Let the people below arrange those things. Don't worry about everything all day long."
Guo Kun said hurriedly: "Thank you very much, father. Where is my sister?"
"Upstairs with your mother."
Guo Kun nodded and frowned: "This girl really doesn't make people worry."
Guo Bing was surprised and said: "What's wrong with her? Don't scold her as soon as we meet. She is a big girl now. You, as an elder brother, should give her some respect."
"Father, you don't know yet. The person who accompanied her just now told me something. During the few months we were away from Hangzhou, this girl has gone crazy."
"Oh? What's wrong?" Guo Bing laughed.
"She ran to the Jiangnan Grand Theater to watch some Lao Shi Zi opera when she had nothing to do. She lost her soul. It is said that she even learned the lyrics of the opera at home, which is simply unseemly."
Guo Bing laughed and said, "Oh? This skinny monkey is still so elegant?"
"Father, please don't spoil her. She is the princess of the royal palace and acts like a princess. How can she be like this? That's fine. She didn't come home all night on the Lantern Festival, and I don't know where she spent the whole night.
The housekeeper was so frightened that she reported to the Hangzhou government office that they were looking for someone in the city, which caused uproar in the city. Guess what? She came back from outside the city alone early the next morning. When she came back, she said lightly that she went out to see the snow scene, but then she didn't
I came back in time and stayed outside for the night. Tell me, is this ridiculous?"
"Oh? This happened? This is too outrageous. It's okay to go out to watch games and play. It's not okay to stay out all night and make the whole city shake." Guo Bing also frowned.
"Also, it is said that Sima Qingshan and Dongfang Weiming, who I finally stayed behind, were sent away by her. This is too willful. I spent a lot of effort to keep Sima Qingshan and Dongfang Weiming in the palace as guests.
, it will be of great benefit to my palace. It would be better for her to drive people away while we were away. It makes me so angry." Guo Kun said angrily.
Guo Bing frowned and said: "Weier is not the kind of person who has no sense of measure. What's wrong? Let's go back to the house later and ask her the whole story. I'm talking to your mother right now, so it wouldn't be appropriate to call her down.
Little girl, you really don’t teach people to worry about it.”
…
The atmosphere in the back house of the prince's palace was a bit strange. The little princess lowered her head with red eyes and looked pitiful. Just now, in front of her father and brother, she recounted what happened on the night of Shangyuan, excluding that of course.
Wan and Lin Jue's several passions.
The expressions of the prince and his son were a little dull. How could they have imagined that such a dangerous thing happened that night, and the little princess almost lost her life. And what is incredible is that Sima Qingshan and Dongfang Weiming turned out to have that kind of relationship, and Sima Qingshan's
So he actually had other motives for staying in the palace, and the idea was for the little princess.
"You really know people but not their hearts. Look, the two people you left behind almost caused disaster for Wei'er. It's scary to think about it." Guo Bing said in a deep voice.
Guo Kun frowned. He was thinking about other things. There were many doubts in the girl's narrative, and he felt that he needed to ask clearly.
"Sister, is everything you said true?"
"Brother, you don't believe me, how can I make up lies to deceive you?" Guo Caiwei said with wide eyes.
"Kun'er, what do you mean? I want to doubt your sister?" Guo Bing also said dissatisfied.
"Father, don't get me wrong, I want to ask you clearly. Since the girl is telling the truth, I have a few questions to ask the girl."
"You...just ask, I will tell you everything I know." Guo Caiwei licked her lips with her pink tongue, feeling a little guilty.
"Okay. You said that Sima Qingshan used Lin Jue's letter to deceive you into going to Nanshan. Then tell me, why did you go happily when Lin Jue invited you? And you didn't tell anyone? Could it be that you and Lin Jue
What's the connection...between sleep and sleep?"
"..." Guo Caiwei was silent. This was the most difficult thing to explain. If he denied it, it would be unreasonable. If he admitted it, it would probably cause an uproar. As a brother, he was really not a light-hearted person, so he immediately grasped the key point.
.
"Where...is there any connection? It's just a familiarity. I didn't think much about it. Didn't my father and brother want to win over him? I thought that if I could help persuade him, it might work.
Besides, Lin Jue doesn't seem like a bad person. He helped us with the birthday gift, so I can't refuse him." Guo Caiwei used the excuse she had discussed with Lin Jue.
"Well, although this idea is redundant, it is not unreasonable. Wei'er, don't get involved in these things from now on. This is not your business. Dad and your brother have to worry about these things, you know?" Guo Bing?
I am very satisfied with Guo Caiwei's answer. My daughter is not one of those ordinary women. She is thinking about important matters in the palace.
Guo Kun frowned and said: "Then how does Sima Qingshan know that with Lin Jue's tone of invitation, you will definitely go to the appointment?"
"..., how do I know? Why don't you ask him? You kept this shameless person in the house and almost killed me, but you blamed me instead. I want to ask you, how do you view people.
"Guo Caiwei couldn't answer, but she could change the subject.
Guo Kun also couldn't answer Guo Caiwei's question, so he could only smack his lips and said: "Forget it, let's put this matter aside. Why did Sima Qingshan also trick Lin Jue? He tricked you... with evil intentions. He tricked Lin Jue.
What to do?"
"He hates Lin Jue. Have you forgotten what happened at the Oiran Competition last year? He made a fool of himself, so he holds a grudge. Moreover, he himself said that after he hurt me, he put the blame on Lin Jue. He used
Lin Jue deceived me into going to enjoy the snow in the name just to set a trap. If we died in the Nanshan cabin that night, when you found my body, you would have found the forged invitation letter on my body.
Do you think it was Lin Jue who killed me? Sima Qingshan said that he would throw Lin Jue in the valley and pretend to have slipped and fallen. Then everyone would think that Lin Jue killed me, and then he would slip and fall off the cliff and die.
.This way Sima Qingshan can get away with it."
Guo Kun nodded. There was no flaw in this reason. This was actually the reason he had guessed just now. He asked just to see if there was any flaw in Guo Caiwei's answer.
"So, are you saying that Lin Jue broke free from the rope and killed Sima Qingshan and Dongfang Weiming? Does Lin Jue have that ability?"
"Brother, you didn't hear clearly. Dongfang Weiming was killed by Sima Qingshan. Lin Jue burned the rope while they were talking, and killed him when Sima Qingshan wasn't paying attention. He felt that this matter should not be made public.
, after all, he killed someone, so he begged me to keep it a secret for him. Besides, this matter is related to my palace, and it would be bad to make a fuss, so I kept silent. And he also saved my life, otherwise Sima Qing
I still don’t know how that thief will torture me. He said that when you come back from the capital, he will report the matter. Who would have thought that you would ask in such a hurry. I can’t hide it from you."
"Well, it is reasonable for him to think so. After all, he has a life in his hands, and it is Sima Qingshan's life. It is right to hide it. This matter cannot be made public. It will also be detrimental to our palace. The corpse
It's good to burn it, it's clean and beautiful. Sima Qingshan deserved his death, Lin Jue killed him and saved you, I would like to thank him." Guo Bing nodded.
The way the incident was dealt with was actually in line with Guo Bing's thoughts. This matter must not be made public, otherwise the palace would become the laughing stock of others. Let Sima Qingshan and Dongfang Weiming disappear from the world forever, and everyone will pretend
I don't know where they went. Anyway, Sima Qingshan threatened to leave the palace. When someone asked, he randomly found a few people to testify, saying that he and Dongfang Weiming left on their own before the prince returned, and the palace did not
Bear the relationship.
"Sister, the last question, I know this question is a bit abrupt, but I still want to ask you. After Lin Jue killed Sima Qingshan, why didn't you return to the city quickly? There is just such a wooden house in the deep mountains and old forests, could it be that... you
Have you been in that wooden house all night?" Guo Kun asked in a deep voice.
Guo Caiwei's face turned red. She stamped her feet and shouted, "Dad, please listen to what my brother is asking."
This time Guo Bing did not side with Guo Caiwei. He also frowned and said solemnly: "Weier, please answer honestly. Father also wants to know why you didn't come home all night?"
"I...I, you bullied me. I want to tell my mother. The bad guy you brought into the house almost killed me. Instead of comforting me, you interrogated me like a prisoner. Wuwuwu. You don't care about me at all.
"Guo Caiwei suddenly covered her face and cried loudly.
Guo Bing couldn't bear it, and Guo Kun said in a deep voice: "Sister, you don't know how worried we are after knowing this. You are the girl I love the most. Although my brother is usually a little cruel to you and cares about you, but you have to ask yourself,
How does your brother treat you? As for your father, let alone him. He dotes on you. Aren’t we asking this because we are worried about you? Tell me, has Lin Jue been rude to you? No.
I'm afraid, my father and brother will make the decision for you, don't let others hold you hostage. No matter what happens, you are the princess of my palace, my father's most beloved daughter, and my good sister. We will not dislike you."
Guo Caiwei said angrily: "What are you talking about? Why do you dislike me? What's wrong with me? Lin Jue is... a gentleman. He stayed by the bonfire all night without sleeping to protect me. What are you thinking? That's because I stayed away all night.
It's impossible to go down the mountain when it's dark. Don't you want me to fall to my death at the foot of the cliff? That's all, if I had known this, I would have gone down the mountain in the middle of the night and fallen to my death. It saves you from throwing dirty water on me, woo woo woo.
"
Guo Kun frowned and was still waiting to speak, but Guo Bing was already panicking and scolded: "What are you asking? Do you want to force your sister to death? Weier, please don't cry, it's our fault, let's not mention this matter, and no one will
