Zhuge Qing felt a little regretful. He should have covered his ears if he had known earlier...
At this time, Lu Fusu came back.
"Your Majesty, please respect yourself in front of your ministers..."
"Who told you to peek?"
"I didn't watch it... I really don't understand that there are still people who want to take love away from you."
"To seize love with a sword?"
Lu Fusu sat on the chair again. Zhuge Qing looked at him, folded his arms, and said in a low voice: "Didn't Your Majesty hear? Uncle Fu hired an assistant, and the gardener is from the same hometown as the Queen."
"I heard..."
Lu Fusu suddenly showed an unhappy expression.
"I heard that he is the same age as Shui Xinyuan, but Shui Xinyuan said that he is not very familiar with him."
"Did your Majesty only hear this?"
"I heard from the maid that he calls Shui Xinyuan by his first name..."
No wonder the emperor is frowning.
Zhuge Qing pursed his lips tightly and looked up at the ceiling.
"anything else?"
"Is there anything else?"
"I heard that the gardener was bragging about..."
"What are you bragging about?"
"He said he once asked the Queen to marry him."
"..."
"Of course it was before the Queen came here. Because she didn't agree to his marriage proposal, the Queen will become your Queen."
"Please tell me more details..."
Lu Fusu stared at the empty wall. Zhuge Qing shrugged and calmly stated the situation reported by the supervisory censor Li Yuezhen...
Ziwei was Shui Xinyuan's childhood sweetheart. He once proposed to her, but in the end because Shui Xinyuan was sold, the marriage was abandoned. However, if both parties continued to stay in the village, they should have been married.
"I heard that he mentioned this matter to several Imperial Guards and servants..."
They should be married already... When Lu Fusu heard this, veins appeared on his temples.
"Is there really... something like that?"
"This is Li Yuezhen's report. I have also received news from other sources."
"No, I'm just asking, is that man really asking Shui Xinyuan..."
"I don't know about that. Maybe the gardener was talking to himself, or maybe he really asked for marriage...Did the Queen's father say anything to you?"
"He didn't mention it."
"Even if it really happened, I probably wouldn't mention it!"
"Childhood sweethearts..."
Lu Fusu's face turned to Zhuge Qing as stiffly as a puppet.
"What, what's wrong?"
"You and Qing'er are also childhood sweethearts..."
"This... these are two different things! In this world, not all childhood sweethearts will get married..."
"But the relationship between childhood sweethearts is very good, isn't it?"
"That's not necessarily true! Qing'er's sister and I were also childhood sweethearts, but we never thought of marrying her!"
"...Do you think there is any way to silence the gardener?"
Lu Fusu's tone of voice didn't sound like he was just asking him to shut up, but like he was asking him to never speak.
"Well... you can send someone with an official position to remind him not to talk nonsense."
"Yeah……?"
Even if Ziwei had really proposed marriage to Shui Xinyuan, he had not committed a crime. As long as he argued that he was so happy to reunite with his childhood sweetheart that he couldn't help but bring up the past, there would be nothing to do with him.
"There is no need to issue an edict for this kind of matter. All you need to do is find a ferocious-looking censor to go and give verbal orders."
"Yeah...that's right."
"Just do it!"
If Lu Fusu directly threatened him with the terrifying expression on his face at this moment, it might be more effective than the supervisory censor's verbal orders.
"I'd better ask Shui Xinyuan first..."
"Even if it is true, will the Queen tell His Majesty that he has proposed to her before?"
"Shui Xinyuan will not lie to me."
Lu Fusu answered without thinking, as if to say that this was a stupid question.
Zhuge Qing pulled the collar that was a little tight and let out a breath.
"That's enough... If that gardener knew that Your Majesty is particularly narrow-minded on the issue of the Queen, he might be able to live a few more days."
"I've been tolerant enough. At least I restrained the urge to rush in and beat up the gardener."
"Okay, Zhuge Qing, please accompany me for a while."
Lu Fusu stood up slowly and prepared to walk to the corridor.
"Ah? Where are you going?"
"It's almost lunch break at the martial arts training ground. I'm going to practice swordsmanship. Come and accompany me."
"Sword...? Does the emperor want to kill me?"
"Don't be alarmist."
"I won't go! Your Majesty is in a bad mood. If I practice swordsmanship with you, won't you treat me as a punching bag?"
"Stop thinking so much and let's go!"
"I don't want to go! Hey, help..."
Zhuge Qing's screams resounded throughout the corridors of the Rising Sun Palace. Many officials poked their heads out of various rooms to look around. When they saw Zhuge Qing being dragged away by the emperor, they screamed and hurriedly closed the door and acted as if they hadn't seen him.
.
…
Shui Xinyuan was invited by the princes and noble ladies to a restaurant called "Red Kite House" on Chunhua Street.
When the maids of Chunying Palace learned about this, their faces changed drastically.
Because Chunhua Street is famous as the Flower Street and Liuxiang.
It would be fine if the princes and nobles had a dinner there, but it would be really inappropriate for a group of ladies to go to Flower Street... not to mention the banquet for Shui Xinyuan, the queen, there should be a more suitable place.
In the capital, people of high status usually go to restaurants in the Jufang area.
The maid was very angry about this and questioned the courier who delivered the invitation. The courier argued that the shops on the north side of Chunhua Street, especially the shops near the entrance, were run in an upright manner, but they were not as formal as those in the Jufang area, so
The queen should be able to dine there easily.
"Because I am from the country, they are especially considerate of me."
"This is not considerate..."
Chunxiang, who followed Shui Xinyuan out, pouted and said.
I heard that the maid who received the messenger almost beat him.
"Since they say they have good intentions, just take it as good intentions! If you think about how others are embarrassing you all day long, you will be too tired as a human being."
"Your Majesty is so kind, the Emperor should express his objection..."
"..."
Of course Lu Fusu was unhappy and told Shui Xinyuan not to go, but in the end he respected Shui Xinyuan's wish to attend.
...If you don't go, it will only increase the scope for others to gossip...
Shui Xinyuan observed the situation on the street from the small window of the carriage.
The street that runs from the south gate of Miyagi City to the southernmost part of the capital is the busiest street in the capital, with many large shops and many roadside stalls in the morning.
The festival three days later will be even more lively.
The west side of that street... that is, the street in the back alley of the street is the place called Chunhua Street.
The entrance of Chunhua Street is located on the south side of the street two blocks away from Miyagi-mae. In the past, only brothels were opened on both sides of the street, but now the shops have been opened to the back alleys, and the entire Chunhua Street is formed by three blocks.
street.
During the day, there is also an ordinary market on Chunhua Street. When night falls, there begins to be a different kind of lively scene that cannot be seen on the street.
"Chunxiang, have you ever been to Chunhua Street?"
"No, that's not a place for women."
"I think so..."
Shui Xinyuan sat in the carriage and couldn't help but smile bitterly when he heard Chunxiang's answer.
Shui Xinyuan had never been there before, but the Imperial Guards who were accompanying her had just hesitantly explained the general situation of Chunhua Street to her.
"I have heard about the situation here. For example, the shops have no signboards, and the shops further south have cheaper prices..."
"Doesn't the store have a sign?"
"I heard that places like that don't hang signs with the name of the store, but hang an embroidered flag at the entrance of the store. For example, the one called Peony House hangs a flag with embroidered peonies..."
"Ah, could this be the origin of Flower Street?"
Shui Xinyuan clapped his hands and said, Chunxiang nodded.
"That's right... but people who go there for the first time are confused. Aren't there red and white peonies? There are also red peonies and white peonies on Chunhua Street. Customers often don't know which one is the Peony House.
"
"You'll really get lost..."
When making an appointment to meet someone, if you don't clearly indicate that you will meet at the Peony Building where the red cloth is hanging, you may never be able to wait for the person.
"Wouldn't it solve the problem just by hanging up the signboard?"
"I think so too. I asked the person who told me, and it was said that they didn't put up the sign on purpose."
"on purpose?"
"If a husband is looking for flowers in Flower Street and spends money to find beauty, wouldn't the wife go to find her husband in a rage?... Even if she heard that her husband was at Peony Building, she doesn't know where the store is because there is no signboard, and
, if there are several shops with flags embroidered with peonies..."
"You really can't find it..."
There are many puzzling things in this world.
Chunxiang, who was sitting across from her, said with a puffed face: "In any case, this kind of man's pursuit of beauty has no chance of meeting the Queen."
"That's not necessarily the case..."
Shui Xinyuan burst into laughter and looked out the small window at the street.
Many people walked around carrying baskets full of fruits or large wine jars, seeming to be preparing for the upcoming festival.
"Actually, I might have been sold here."
"Empress..."
"I am just lucky enough to become a palace concubine."
When she left the village...she was mentally prepared to accept her fate no matter where she was sent.
Looking back now, there are all kinds of human traffickers. The middle-aged man who originally bought Shui Xinyuan and several other girls told them that he would only send them to a brothel unless he had to, so he carefully selected each girl.
buyer.
Among the girls who left the village with Shui Xinyuan, some went to work as maids in the homes of officials in Yongfeng, the capital of Liuzhou, and some went to wash dishes in a restaurant. After saying goodbye on the way, they never saw each other again... I wonder if everyone is safe?
"...However, the empress did not become the empress just because she was lucky."
Shui Xinyuan looked at Chunxiang who was blinking her eyes, clenching her fists, and feeling emotional.
"Chunxiang..."
"Ah...I'm sorry, I'm too excited..."
Chunxiang blushed and shrank her body, while Shui Xinyuan smiled.
"Yes...thank you."
"You're welcome..."
The carriage suddenly stopped. The imperial guard on horseback looked out of the small window and asked: "Empress, we are going into Chunhua Street, is it okay?"
"go in."
"As commanded."
The carriage started again, Chunxiang showed a hint of uneasiness and warned the imperial army.
"Before sunset, we must return to Chunying Palace."
"yes……"
After a while, the carriage stopped again, and the Forbidden Army reported that it had arrived.