(2-in-1) Guo Mian laughed and said: "Are you just trying to avoid us? What? Do you think talking to us is boring? Do you think our words are meaningless and our faces are disgusting?"
Lin Jue was startled and said hurriedly: "How dare Lin Jue? Doesn't the eldest prince want my life? How could I have that intention? I was just thirsty when I left, and I wanted to go to the palace to ask for some water.
.”
"Then tell me, why have you refused to come to the banquets I invited you to several times? Don't you think there is nothing to talk about when we are together?" Guo Mian said reluctantly.
Lin Jue wanted to slap him twice. Guo Mian couldn't figure out what this meant, or maybe it was the thoughts of a superior, who didn't consider other people's feelings at all and just said whatever came to his mind.
"Your Highness, Prince Jin, I cannot bear this. I have already written to you to apologize. During that time, the Office of the Regulations Department was very busy. Mr. Fang and Mr. Yan both got up early and worked in the dark day and night.
Everyone in the yamen is working, so I really can't ask for leave. Your Highness, you must understand that I am working in the yamen after all. How can I be as free as your highness? If I don't do something well, I will be punished.
." Lin Jue said in a deep voice.
"Are you really that busy? That's not your fault. But you are also very strange. Since you envy my freedom, why do I want you to come to my Prince Jin's mansion to be the chief historian, but you don't want to? Come to my mansion,
I will not be as strict as Fang Dunru. I have to do things, drink wine, listen to music, and compose poems. This is life. What does it taste like to do things every day?
"Guo Mian laughed and said.
Lin Jue rolled his eyes and thought: Your logic is the logic that only your prince can express. You were born as a fucking prince, so you naturally enjoy life. Others are struggling to survive, making a living, and making a career. Where are you?
You are so cool and unrestrained. However, these few words also highlight the true temperament of this eldest prince. He is a straight-tempered, free and willful person. He does not think too much when doing things, and he does not have many worries in his heart.
intestines.
The King of Huai, Guo Xu, was drinking tea and listening to the exchange between the two. When he heard that Guo Mian said that he had invited Lin Jue to his residence to be his chief minister but was rejected, Guo Xu turned his head and glanced at Lin Jue, his expression slightly gentle.
Lin Jue did not accept his invitation, but also rejected the invitation of the emperor's brother, which made Guo Xu feel a little more comfortable.
"His Royal Highness King Jin, I don't know how to reply to your words. I just want to contribute to the reform, and I don't want to give up halfway. My mentor and Mr. Yan will be transferred to the Department of Ordinances. I also want to contribute some strength. How can I
Why do you leave just because the work is difficult? Doesn't it mean that you are disappointed with your teacher?" Lin Jue said with a smile.
Guo Mian nodded and said: "I understand, but I didn't think it through well. You are Fang Dunru's student, how can you not follow him? My request was indeed ill-considered. That's all, let's not talk about this. Recently, I have not thought about it well.
Are there any good poems or lyrics that have come out? By the way, what new songs are there? The last time I heard you sang "The Unrecitable Sutra" at Prince Liang's Mansion, it was very impressive. Today's New Year's banquet, if there are new songs, you might as well try it again
Let’s open our eyes and appreciate it.”
"Yes, yes, I have long admired Master Lin's reputation for poetry, music, and lyrics. His Highness the King of Jin highly respects Master Lin and praises you in front of us every day. If we can catch a glimpse of your grace today, it will be our blessing."
A middle-aged man with a handsome face smiled next to him.
Lin Jue didn't know him, but fortunately Guo Mian introduced him considerately: "Let me introduce to you, this is Princess Anping's consort. That one is Princess Changping's consort. This one is Yongping.
The princess’s consort is all her own family member.”
"I've heard the name of Lin Zhuangyuan for a long time. It's polite, it's polite." Several princes consort bowed their hands and saluted.
Lin Jue suddenly realized that he had been a little confused just now. Since these men had to participate in this New Year's banquet, their identities must not be simple. He thought he was the son of the prince from a branch of the royal family, but turned out to be the princess's consort. Although the emperor Guo Chong
Only two princes have grown up, but there are several princesses born to them. They are all older than the two princes, and they are all married. Speaking of which, his identity is also the son-in-law of the royal family, but his identity is that of a county horse and a prince-in-law.
Although they are similar, the difference in status is more than a little bit different. One father-in-law is the emperor, and the other father-in-law is the prince. That is a big difference.
"Long time, long time!" Lin Jue bowed his hands politely. In fact, he had never met these princes-in-law. However, since these people could become the emperor's sons-in-law, they must be extraordinary people.
"...I've been a little busy with work lately, so I don't have time to think about poems and articles, let alone new songs. That song was composed when I was living in Hangzhou many years ago. In recent years, I have lost interest in it, and there are no new songs. I'm afraid I need to teach
His Highness Prince Jin is disappointed." Lin Jue said with a smile.
"Oh, let me just say, it's such a pity. The chores in the yamen are harmful to people. How can people like Lin Jue be trapped in chores? Isn't this missing a lot of good poems and lyrics? It's a pity, it's a pity." Guo
Mian shook his head and sighed.
Lin Jue smiled and said: "Your Highness, poetry is a pastime, while government affairs are business and not chores. Your Highness's words are biased."
Guo Mian laughed and said: "That's not right. To me, poetry and articles are like food. If you don't eat for a day, you will feel hungry and your mind will be empty. The ancients said that it is better to eat without meat for three days than not to read for one day. This is
The words deeply touched my heart..."
Lin Jue could only roll his eyes at his words. If he didn't know that the eldest prince was a straight-tempered person, just listening to these few words, he would feel that he was extremely pretentious.
Guo Kun felt a little depressed as he listened to what the two said. He said to Lin Jue, "I'll go sit next to you and you can do what you want. You can sit down later and follow the eunuch's instructions. Just don't talk nonsense or move around."
Lin Jue hurriedly nodded in agreement. Guo Kun bowed his hands to everyone, turned around, walked to a table beside him, sat down, and ordered the palace maid to bring tea.
Guo Mian winked at Lin Jue and said in a low voice: "I'm afraid this uncle of yours, my cousin, can't get along with you? He is just like my second brother Huai Wang. He likes to talk about being a leader in the iron-blooded battlefield.
Things like fighting are not something that those of us who love poetry and writing can talk about together. It must be very hard for you to get along with him."
Lin Jue smiled bitterly and said: "It's indeed a bit hard, but it's not that serious. Just don't interfere with each other. If you can talk, say a few words, and if you can't, just don't talk. That's all." "Yes, with your attitude, just follow me.
My second brother and I have the same attitude when we are together, we stick to the courtesy of brothers and nothing else. He doesn’t talk about military affairs with me, and I don’t talk about poetry with him. We are just playing the piano to each other and wasting our saliva." Guo Mian said with a chuckle.
.
"Hahahaha." Several princes consort burst into laughter.
Lin Jue felt that Guo Xu's gaze turned to the side seemed to be a little sharp, and his sixth sense felt that the gaze was like a thorn in his back. He knew that it was not appropriate to have such an intimate chat with Guo Mian, otherwise even if he didn't say anything, it would be mistaken for saying something.
What? Guo Mian deliberately lowered his voice and suddenly laughed wildly. This was really a deliberate show.
"His Royal Highness King Jin, I haven't gone to pay a courtesy to His Highness King Huai yet. Your Highness, please forgive me. I'm going to pay you a courtesy."
Guo Mian waved his hand and said with a smile: "Go ahead, go ahead."
Lin Jue felt relieved and turned around to walk towards Guo Xu, who was sitting at the table next to him. Behind him came the unbridled laughter of Guo Mian and several princes-in-law.
"Lin Jue has met His Highness Prince Huai." Lin Jue saluted Guo Xu.
Guo Xu nodded, pointed to the chair next to him and said calmly: "Please sit down."
Lin Jue thanked him and sat aside. Guo Xu picked up the tea cup and drank tea slowly, as if he did not intend to talk to Lin Jue. When Lin Jue was embarrassed, Guo Xu suddenly spoke again.
"We had a very good chat with my royal brother and the others, right?"
Lin Jue smiled and said: "His Royal Highness the eldest prince is very witty and his words are very funny."
"Hmph! It's okay to be funny, but it's not good to try to flatter others. On such an occasion, it's really not solemn to talk and laugh in the palace. Lin Jue, what do you think?" Guo Xu said in a deep voice.
Lin Jue scratched his head and smiled bitterly: "I don't understand what Your Highness means."
"You know, you are a smart person, you are just pretending to be confused. That's all, let's not talk about this. Lin Jue, what was said in your theater last time, have you changed your mind?"
Lin Jue frowned and said, "Your Highness, please forgive me. I don't know what your Highness is talking about."
Guo Xu turned his head and glared at Lin Jue, but Lin Jue did not back down and looked back at him firmly. After the two of them looked at each other for a few seconds, Guo Xu suddenly smiled.
"Very good, very good. You are indeed a person of character. Forget about that matter. During this period, I also thought about it carefully and felt that what you said that day made sense. A
There is no need to implement a failed plan that is bound to fail. In fact, I have given up on this plan."
Lin Jue looked at Guo Xu blankly, not knowing whether what he said was true or false, or whether he was testing himself.
"Don't look at me like that. After I came back from that conversation with you, I reorganized the entire plan in detail. Indeed, as you said, the risk of the plan is too great. And what you said is very true, even in the plan itself
It can be successful, but this is actually a plan that treats the symptoms rather than the root cause. The biggest problem with the strategy of driving away the wolf and devouring the tiger is that when the tiger dies and the wolf comes, it cannot solve the fundamental pressure of our surrounding towns. You said'
A divided Liao Kingdom is in the interests of our great Zhou Dynasty. I think this sentence is correct. Now we should actually sit back and watch the tigers fight and develop ourselves. In the future, when tigers and wolves fight, one is killed and one is injured, and there may be a situation where the fishermen reap the benefits.
It's a good time. I figured out what you said that day, so I decided to give up that risky plan." Guo Xu sighed.
Lin Jue could see that he felt very sorry in his heart. Lin Jue could not judge whether he gave up the plan because of the overall situation, or whether he had to give up for some reason. But in short, it showed that he could let go of this unrealistic plan.
This person can still afford to let it go. You must know that this plan is related to the ownership of the Taoist throne. Most people may go all the way to death, and they may not change their stance because of some of the reasons Lin Jue said that day.
The specific reason is unknown, and Lin Jue doesn't want to know.
"His Royal Highness is wise and decisive, and Lin Jue admires him very much. His Highness always has the country in mind, and this is the responsibility of a prince. Although Lin Jue did not agree with His Highness's plan before, he admires His Highness's responsibility very much.
What we, the Zhou Dynasty, lack now is people who can take responsibility. There are too few such people."
Lin Jue was partly complimenting, and partly expressing his own feelings. The current situation in the Zhou Dynasty is that there are too few officials who are willing to take on the responsibilities, and there are too many who seek comfort and enjoyment. This is a fact that is obvious to all.
Guo Xu said with a smile: "I'm very happy that you can say that. How about I forgive your rude words that day and let us get back together?"
Lin Jue smiled and said: "Your Highness and I have no unpleasantness, so how can we get back together?"
Lin Jue's original intention was that you and I were never on good terms, so how could we get back together? But he couldn't say this.
Guo Xu chuckled and said: "That's right, that's right, we just had a few words. There's nothing unpleasant about it. Then from now on..."
Before Guo Xu finished speaking, he suddenly heard a loud voice shouting from the corridor in front of him: "The Queen Mother Luan Jia is here! The Emperor's Holy Jia is here! The Queen Feng Jia is here!"
This voice seemed to instantly inject blood into the crowd of idle people, and everyone immediately became nervous. Those who were standing and laughing immediately became solemn, and those who were sitting drinking tea jumped up like springs and rushed to the open space in the middle.
Kneel down, and the palace maids, eunuchs, and guards waiting around him also knelt down.
Amidst the respectful greetings, Emperor Guo Chong and Queen Yuan Shi of the Great Zhou Dynasty supported an old woman covered with jewels, with silver hair on her head and a face like a full moon, coming from the side. A group of palace maids and chambermaids followed behind.
The Queen Mother is sixty-one this year. Although she is well maintained, she was not powerful in her early years. Therefore, she lived a poor life in the palace and received poor treatment. Therefore, she suffered from cold legs. It is slightly inconvenient to move around. This is also
The reason why today's banquet was held in Ankang Hall. But she was still in very good spirits. As she walked over, she was chatting and laughing with Guo Chong beside her.
"Let's all get up. It's Chinese New Year, so don't use so many gifts. The people here are all relatives of the royal family. Your Majesty, please don't go through so many red tapes. You have to kneel and stand.
It's very troublesome. Let's celebrate the New Year and have a reunion dinner just like ordinary people. What do you think?" Empress Dowager Wei looked at the people kneeling in the yard and smiled. Guo Chong laughed and said: "The empress mother said so.
Now, what else can my son say? Everything today is up to the Queen Mother."
Queen Yuan also smiled and said: "Mother, the emperor has agreed, you make the decision today."
Empress Dowager Wei laughed and said: "Okay, today I will be the master of the Ai family. The emperor is usually busy with national affairs and trivial household affairs in the harem, so it is indeed rare to have leisure. Today I will let the emperor have some leisure."
Guo Chong chuckled and said: "Thank you for your care, Queen Mother. You have all heard it. The Queen Mother said that all red tape will be waived today. Let's have a reunion dinner like ordinary people. Get up."
Everyone thanked them in unison and got up one after another. Guo Chong and the Queen also supported the Queen Mother and sat in the middle of the soft couch, while Guo Chong and Queen Yuan sat sideways on both sides.
Everyone stood up, but there was still one person in front who was kneeling on the ground and refused to get up. After sitting down, Queen Mother Wei pointed and asked, "Is that Guo Mian? Why don't you get up?"
Guo Mian raised his head and said with a smile: "Didn't the Queen Mother and Grandmother say that the New Year should be celebrated in a common people's house? So according to the rules of a common people's house, the younger generation kowtows to the elders, and the elders cannot get up without giving New Year's money. Grandma does not give New Year's money to her grandson, but the grandson will not
stand up."
"Hahaha." Empress Dowager Wei laughed loudly and said repeatedly: "Look at this clever mouth, he even opened his mouth to ask for something. You are right. We must keep our words. We celebrated the New Year according to the rules of the people, so naturally we cannot
I broke my promise. Let me see what I brought with me? I didn’t bring anything."
"My grandson really likes the jade pendant on my grandma's waist. Maybe grandma will give it to me as a reward." Guo Mian said with a smile.
Empress Dowager Wei was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "Well, I'll reward you with this jade pendant. It's okay to hang it as a fan pendant in the summer. Take it."
Guo Chong hurriedly stopped him and said: "Mother, don't listen to his nonsense. There are no such rules among the people. The maximum reward is a few taels of silver. This jade pendant is a personal belonging to the mother, so there is no need to reward him."
Yuan said softly: "Your Majesty, my mother and I are in charge today. Why is Your Majesty in charge again?"
Guo Chong was stunned, and the Queen Mother Wei smiled and said: "Yes, it's just a jade pendant. What's that? It's just an old thing from the folding fan your father used when he was alive. It's appropriate to give it to Guo Mian. Guo Mian,
Take it, I make the decision."
Guo Mian happily accepted the reward, kowtowed and retreated. Queen Yuan looked at her son with a blushing face and eyes full of love. Guo Chong, on the other hand, seemed to have a displeased look on his face.
"Guo Xu, your brother asked for the reward, why don't you ask for it?" Guo Chong asked, looking at Guo Xu who was standing on the side like a wooden stake.
Guo Xu hurriedly bowed and said: "Father, there is no need to reward the child."
"How can that be done? Don't you teach others that the Queen Mother favors one over the other? Queen Mother, just give something to Guo Xu." Guo Chong said with a smile.
Empress Dowager Wei nodded and said with a smile: "Yes, yes, you can't favor one thing over another. Let's see what else I brought. I don't have anything with me, so I don't need anyone to go in and get one."
Guo Chong said with a smile: "No need, my son has a jade pendant here. The Queen Mother will take it and give it to Guo Xu. Then the Queen Mother will give her son something as a gift. Wouldn't that be enough?"
Queen Mother Wei was stunned for a moment, and then she laughed and said: "Okay, that's fine. I'll borrow it from you first, and I'll return it to you later."
While talking, Guo Chong took off a piece of white and crystal jade pendant from his waist and handed it to the Queen Mother Wei. The Queen Mother Wei waved to Guo Xu and gave him the jade pendant. Guo Xu kowtowed in thanks and slowly stepped back.
The smiles of Guo Mian and Queen Yuan became quite embarrassed.
Lin Jue silently enjoyed the show, feeling extremely moved in his heart. Perhaps in the eyes of others, this was just an ordinary matter of two princes asking for rewards, and not worth mentioning. But in Lin Jue's view, it was like watching
A wonderful drama.
At first, Lin Jue only thought that Guo Mian was obviously more active than Guo Xu. He deliberately played a farce of asking for reward money, not only to make the Queen Mother happy, but also to sensationalize and gain some limelight. Lin Jue initially thought that he was just Xiaoyu.
It was just a pendant. Unexpectedly, the Queen Mother later told her that it belonged to the late emperor, and she immediately realized that this was not just a mere show off. The late emperor rewarded Guo Mian with the fan pendant. This symbolic meaning is self-evident. The Queen Mother rewarded Guo Mian.
Come on, the subtext conveyed to people is that the Queen Mother has already made the decision in her heart. This will bring extremely strong hints to the courtiers.
The reaction of the emperor and the queen was also very interesting. Guo Chong obviously realized that it was inappropriate to reward Guo Mian with this pendant, and he wanted to stop it. But Yuan was so clever that Guo Chong could not stop it. This shows that although Yuan was
She is weak in the palace, but she is very smart and smart. For her son Guo Mian, she will speak out at any time. Lin Jue even thought that this drama may have been discussed in advance between Guo Mian and the Queen mother and son. Just imagine,
The relationship between the Queen and the Queen Mother must be close. She naturally knew what the Queen Mother was wearing today and what she was thinking today. It is not impossible to say that she taught Guo Mian to deliberately take away the jade pendant as a reward today to convey a hint.
Maybe. Because she knew that on this day, it was impossible for the Queen Mother to refuse.
Guo Chong's reaction was even more exciting. After Guo Mian succeeded, Guo Chong clearly felt that something was wrong. He realized that he had sent the wrong message to outsiders, so he immediately made amends and wanted to reward Guo Xu on the grounds that he could not treat others favorably. More
What is most meaningful is that he used the jade pendant he wore to reward Guo Xu. That means that what the Queen Mother rewarded Guo Mian was something from the previous emperor, and what she rewarded Guo Xu was something from the reigning emperor. In this way
This will balance possible misunderstandings.
Moreover, this move subconsciously conveyed a hint that he was partial to Guo Xu, and this was probably what he wanted to express to outsiders in his heart.
In short, it is such a short scene, and it seems to Lin Jue that it is extremely exciting. The internal intrigues and calculations of several characters are extremely subtle. Each of them is not visible to the outside. On the surface, it is a scene where three generations of grandparents are enjoying each other. Secretly,
But it was a stormy sea. As the saying goes, those who know how to read watch the doorway, and those who don't know how to watch watch the excitement. Many people in the courtyard were watching and enjoying themselves, but they were unable to understand the undercurrent surging under the calm water.
Lin Jue also deeply realized from this that the battle for the throne is really no joke, it is really a fight between you and me, everywhere. This is just a secret fight that has not yet been put on the agenda. If it really needs to be negotiated in the future
At that time, what a fierce scene it must have been.
