The light of the lantern dispersed the darkness of the night, illuminating a bright palace passage. The chamberlains all bowed slightly, and when they raised their feet, they all landed with their forefoot first like a cat, without making a sound. Even a team of dozens of people,
Only one person's leather boots made a gentle echo in the quiet night.
The night wind stirred up the dark cloak, and the hair on the temples was not messy at all. The golden crown on the head reflected the cold light under the stars. Turning around the palace wall, the sight suddenly opened up. The leaves of the sycamore trees on both sides had fallen off in late autumn, leaving only strong ones.
The branches of the palace stretch to the sky, and the palace lanterns hanging high on the eaves of the East Palace door reflect the black background and golden plaque on the palace door: East Palace.
The chamberlain trotted forward and knocked on the gold-lacquered door knocker. Soon someone from the palace opened the door. Seeing that the prince had returned, he immediately bent down and saluted. He walked straight through the atrium to the inner hall. The prince-concubine appeared to have just been convinced and was coming out of the room.
Li smiled and said, "But I'm back." He stepped forward to help the prince change his clothes.
The prince took a step away and said, "It's cold outside, and my whole body is filled with cold air. Don't come too close to me. Just let the palace servants take care of you."
They have been married for more than four years. Not to mention the prince and his wife, it is not common for ordinary young couples to have such a good relationship like them. The princess knew that her husband had always been considerate and meticulous, and she did not force it. She tried the copper basin herself.
I checked the temperature of the water in the kitchen and asked my husband, "Are you hungry? I left the stove open in the small kitchen. I drank bamboo fungus and jasmine soup in the evening. It was very good."
"That soup is too light. It's good to drink in the summer. It's a tonic in the autumn. If you have some stewed mutton, let's have some to satisfy our hunger." The golden crown on his head was removed, and the top of his head suddenly relaxed. The prince sat down in a thick sapphire blue robe.
Go over and talk to the Crown Princess.
"How can we not have this?" The princess casually added a few more meat and vegetable dishes, sent the palace servant to the small kitchen to send a message, handed the newly poured warm water to her husband, and asked him, "Isn't this for sharing with the father tonight?
Shit, why are you so hungry?"
"Seeing that my father is about to live a long life, today's celestial phenomenon is like this. Qin Tianjian can't figure out why. I see that my father is not very happy. I don't know how many speculations there are in the harem. I don't feel very happy either.
I didn't eat much. I wanted to come back to see you earlier, but my uncle came to look for me again, so I was delayed until now." The prince took a sip of water and said, "Where is Ayujiro, is he asleep?"
"They went to bed early."
The prince got up and went to the cubicle to look at his son. Ayu was older, and he was not very honest when sleeping. He also clicked his little lips twice, and he smelled like milk. This child was already one year old at first glance, and he was older than the twins in Mu'an's house.
Bigger, able to eat and sleep, pink and tender, like a piglet.
The prince has been favored by his father since he was a child, and now he is a father, and he is also a loving father. The tenderness and love in his eyes make the prince often smile to himself, thinking that his cousin really loves the children. The prince tucks the two children into bed, and then he is gentle.
After leaving the cubicle, the prince was originally raised by the wet nurse in the side hall or in the side room. The prince wanted to see his son from time to time, so he asked the wet nurse to take care of him in the cubicle. The prince had to see his son morning and night, and sometimes
We returned to the East Palace for lunch at noon, and the whole family sat together at the same table. Erlang was still young and could neither sit nor eat by himself, so his wet nurse sat beside him and fed him.
Therefore, although the prince was extremely tough in front of Duke Lu, he actually valued his family very much.
only……
A glimmer of ice flashed through the prince's gentle and loving eyes. His good uncle wanted him to make an alliance with the Crown Prince of Zhennan, so that he could gain the throne with the help of the Zhennan Imperial Master.
Written in handwriting the promise to cede the land...
Yes, his good uncle held a fatal grip on him. Before he stepped into the East Palace, even if he thought about it, he would not have thought that the blood flowing in his mother's family was the blood of the Zhennan royal family. This blood is certainly not despicable, but...
The ministers in the DPRK would rather accept the blood of Dongmu civilians than accept the prince who is half of the vassal royal family.
Once this matter becomes known to the world, no matter how much his father dotes on him, he will not be able to keep his throne.
But if he cedes the territory in order to obtain the throne, not to mention once he writes the words and establishes a life-and-death handle in the hands of Duke Lu and the Crown Prince of Zhennan, if he dares to do this, his reputation will be ruined both before and after him! In the distant future, Shi
How will Bi Zhaozhao record such a scandal? How will his descendants treat elders like him?
Of course the throne is important, but he will never become an emperor under the control of others. When his son talks about him in the future, he will not speak in defense of him, but feel that my father is really embarrassed.
Today, the prince spent a lot of time looking at his sons. The princess only thought it was because of the strange celestial phenomena and her husband was too concerned about the children. Because, when they were having supper, the prince asked, "Are the children not frightened? Are you?"
Aren’t you scared? Imperial Grandmother, how is your mother?”
"After crying twice and being coaxed, everything was fine. We were all at the Imperial Grandmother's place at that time. The Imperial Grandmother also gave us a Guanyin. I brought it back and put it in the cubicle, asking the Bodhisattva to bless the children. I ordered the hospital
The doctor came over and checked the pulses of the imperial grandmother and the queen mother. They were fine. Several mothers and concubines in the harem were frightened and prescribed a soothing soup. Several brothers had been studying in the study, and I also sent people
I went to have a look, and asked the imperial doctor to check their pulse in the evening, and they were fine. Sister Jiaxiang and sister Jiayue also sent people over to ask, and they were all fine." The princess personally poured soup for her husband and asked, "Father, are you still there?
All right?"
"Father, everything is fine, but it's a pity that the Qin Tian Jian is incompetent." After a mouthful of warm old duck soup, the prince's complexion softened a lot.
"What did Qin Tianjian say that everything was going well and suddenly day and night were reversed?"
"It is said that it should be in the war."
The Crown Princess's heart skipped a beat, "Is this where His Highness Ying San and the others are? This year, the war in Northern Xinjiang has not stopped."
"How many people in Lao San Northern Xinjiang can have such a celestial phenomenon?" The prince disagreed.
"I heard that His Highness the Third Highness has recruited many private soldiers in Northern Xinjiang."
"Who did you listen to?" the prince asked.
"My grandma said this when she came to the palace to pay her respects." The "grandmother" in the Crown Princess's mouth at this time was naturally Mrs. Lu, "I wanted to tell you, but Erlang had some diarrhea yesterday, and I forgot about it in a hurry.
. It is said that he has recruited many young men and asked Mr. Hu from Princess Xin'an's family to take them. According to his grandmother's wishes, the Third Highness now has many people who are loyal to him. Those who do not listen to him will be killed.
He chased him back."
"You're such a womanly family, you can follow the wind and rain. The third child is already in charge of the military affairs of Northern Xinjiang. If he wants to increase the number of troops, he can easily do so, so why bother to train private soldiers? What you are talking about is the manpower of the City Patrol Department, which is under the pacification department.
The purpose of appointing a yamen is to maintain public security in the city. Just like a police officer in a yamen, he is not a military official, but is hired by the yamen at his expense." The prince took a piece of stewed soft and sweet mutton and ate it slowly, "Don't
I always hear what my grandmother is saying. She is an old lady in her 70s or 80s. She is older than the imperial grandmother. She doesn’t know anything about military affairs. She only listens somewhere and then comes to the palace to talk to you. You and I
Mother, you really only listen to an old lady."
The prince laughed as he spoke, and gave the princess a piece of mutton, "Eat some meat to replenish your brain."
The Crown Princess smiled sheepishly, "That's all I heard."
"The old man is old and likes to nag." The prince said, "If you ask me, my grandmother deserves to enjoy a happy life. The imperial grandmother is healthy and energetic, but in the past few years, you have gradually let you take over the palace affairs.
, wouldn’t it be nice to have a leisurely and leisurely time. At my grandmother’s age, she can eat something delicious and drink something delicious every day, and when she has free time, she can talk to the old sisters who are about the same age. What a beautiful life it is.”
"Don't you know that she is the one who worries the most?" The Crown Princess was also helpless. The Crown Princess was still in her youth. Although she had grown up under her grandmother's knees since she was a child, when the Crown Princess was born, her family was already the palace of the Duke.
, the growing environment is completely different from Mrs. Lu's, and coupled with the age difference between grandparents and grandchildren, there is really nothing in common.
Yes, this old man is not an ordinary person who loves to worry. The corners of the prince's lips curled up, "Just think of coaxing her to play with her."
"I think so too." The Crown Princess said casually, "Why does my father want to ask you for anything? Why do you want to talk to you so late?"
"It's not a good thing. I didn't respond. I can't tell you now. I'll tell you later."
The princess nodded, "If there is any difficulty with my father, cousin, just tell me and I will persuade him."
"Okay." The prince smiled.
When she went to bed at night, the Crown Princess had closed her eyes and heard the Prince's voice ringing in her ears, "Is it better to be a queen or a princess?"
The Crown Princess opened her eyes, the curtains were dark, the Prince's eyes were bright, and he was looking at the Crown Princess tenderly. The couple were very close, almost face to face, breathing intertwined with each other, and their bodies were dependent on each other. The Crown Princess felt that the Prince was
There was a trace of unexplored depth in her eyes, and she looked at the prince with some confusion:
"Why do you ask such a weird thing? The mother is the queen and the sister is the princess. Whichever is bad, both are good."
The prince stroked her back and said, "If you asked a woman in the world to choose, which one would you choose?"
The Crown Princess thought for a while, "In terms of birth, the princess is naturally more noble. However, although the princess is noble, she is just as noble as one person. After the princess gets married, her children will only have ordinary titles. The queen is the mother of the country, and her children are all princes and princesses, so their husbands are
They are both valuable." Thinking of Princess Duanxiang's temperament, the Crown Princess quickly told her husband, "We are chatting in private, but don't tell sister Jiaxiang, she will definitely be unhappy if she hears me say this."
The prince smiled and said, "How can you tell anyone about a husband and wife's whisper?"
The princess also laughed quietly.
Honglu Pavilion.
Under the starry sky, the slightly cold night breeze came in through the window. The Crown Prince of Zhennan glanced at the hourglass on the table and poured himself a glass of fine wine, thinking that Duke Lu was about to break his promise. As he was raising his glass to drink, he suddenly saw someone else at the table.
He was startled and said angrily, "Even if my uncle is world-famous in martial arts, he can't be so elusive. My nephew is cowardly."
"I have already said hello to the Imperial Master." Lu Guogong said, "The East Palace failed to respond."
The Crown Prince of Zhennan drank a cup of wine and filled the empty cup in front of Duke Lu. "Isn't it a good deal to exchange the land of two lakes for the position of emperor?"
"You and I think it's a good deal but useless. Dong Gong has always been cautious. If he writes down the covenant, he will hand over the handle to you and me. He won't do it." Lu Guogong's eyes were cold.
"My cousin is his biological uncle and father-in-law."
"I'm not his biological father."
The corners of the Zhennan Crown Prince's lips curled up, "So, our alliance cannot be concluded."
"No." Lu Guogong's cold eyes were full of ambition, "If he doesn't want to, you might as well talk to me."
The Crown Prince of Zhennan smiled politely and said, "I also want to cooperate with my cousin, but you can't convince the Crown Prince of the Central Plains. I helped him ascend the throne, but I didn't get any benefits. I can't explain it to our courtiers when I return home.
"
"In addition to the prince, aren't there also great-grandsons?" Lu Guogong's eyes were narrowed, as sharp as lightning, "If the prince is disobedient, then the great-grandson will be obedient. Let the prince ascend the throne and become the emperor first, then the great-grandson will be the new prince and the new emperor.
If he abdicates for some reason, the new prince can ascend the throne. At that time, the new emperor was young. Since I am the new emperor's grandfather, and my daughter is the new emperor's biological mother, can the person in charge of the government be someone else? "
"I need a guarantee."
"Within two years."
"No, two years is too long. This Dong Palace has a very strong will. You can't even touch him. When he ascends the throne, I'm afraid it won't be you who kill him, but he will kill you after two years. It's too long.
It will be of no benefit to you." The cruelty of the Zhennan Crown Prince is exactly the same as that of Lu Guogong, "The young master must be enthroned within a year!"
Lu Guogong's chest rose and fell, and his breathing became faster. After a long time, the cold flames in his eyes were once again suppressed to the depths of his pupils. It was quiet all around, and you could hear a needle drop. The starry sky outside the window was as blue as the sea. The night breeze intertwined with the warmth in the room.
, Duke Lu Guo picked up the wine cup, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp. The wine cup was put back on the table with a bang. The prince of Zhennan heard the voice of Duke Lu Guo, "Okay! One year at a time!"