Daming: Stealing Chen Yuanyuan at the beginning

Chapter 264 Looking back at the prosperity like a dream

In the early morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, snowflakes were falling in the capital, and the air was filled with the smell of gunpowder smoke after the firecrackers exploded.There is an icicle hanging on the eaves, which is crystal clear.

Zhu Cihong curled up on the kang, he was awakened from his sleep by the cold, turned over, yawned and shouted: "Qingluan, Qingluan, I'm hungry..."

Qingluan opened the door curtain and walked in, said: "Are you awake? The sky has just dawned for a while, and it's not time to eat, so bear with it. You can go to sleep, you won't be hungry after you fall asleep."

"I'm hungry even when I'm asleep, and I dream of eating dumplings." Zhu Cihong sat up with the quilt in front of him, leaned against the wall, and looked at Qingluan beggingly.

During these days, Zhu Cihong ate the last meal without the next meal, and had breakfast and lunch together, often suffering from hunger.

Qingluan had no choice but to go outside: "There may be some porridge left in the pot, I'll go heat it up."

Zhu Cihong let out a long sigh, thinking that this kind of life is really not for human beings!

Since he was captured in Kaifeng, he has been in the capital for nearly a year.At first, the Manchu court treated him very courteously and gave him generous living guarantees. He even went to the palace to attend a banquet.

Later, with the establishment of a new prince in the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Cihong had no use value, and became a tasteless chicken rib that was discarded with meat. The attitude of the Manchu and Qing courts towards him gradually became cold, and finally he was put under house arrest and became a prisoner.

He was transferred to a remote house, guarded by heavy soldiers outside, and he was not allowed to step out of the house without Dorgon's order.

Qingluan was the only one guarding him, and there were no other servants to drive him around.

Qingluan is a spy carefully trained by Fan Wencheng. He made great contributions in the Battle of Kaifeng, but because his identity was exposed, he no longer engages in spying activities.

Fan Wencheng originally wanted to arrange for Qingluan to enter the palace to serve the little emperor, but Qingluan refused. She just wanted to watch Zhu Cihong live a life that was neither human nor ghost, and was willing to live in poverty for the rest of her life.

"Without me, Zhu Cihong can't live!" Qingluan said to Fan Wencheng.

Fan Wencheng sighed: "I didn't expect that you are also a seed of infatuation, that's all, a person must have a beginning and an end, so you can stay with Zhu Cihong."

Zhu Cihong put on his clothes and walked to the yard.The cold wind blowing on his body made him a little awake.

The yard was bare, without any flowers and trees, only four unattainable and cold walls.In addition, there is a water well under the east courtyard wall, and there is a layer of ice skates along the well.

Thinking back to my life as the crown prince of the Ming Dynasty, how rich I was, with fine clothes and fine food, fragrant cars and BMWs!

Now it's a cold kiln with broken tiles, no clothes to cover the body and no food to eat, how desolate it is!

Zhu Cihong grew up in the capital since he was a child, but he has been staying in the palace all the time, so he doesn't know where he is at this time.He always thought that he was probably cut off from the world and became a lonely ghost that people ignored.

He didn't know what was going on, but today he especially wanted to know which direction the palace was in. He looked back at Qingluan's figure in the kitchen and asked, "Sister Qingluan, tell me, where is the palace?"

"Why are you asking this?" Qingluan straightened up and turned her head, her eyes a little wary.

"Today is the first day of the new year. In the past, every new year, my father, queen mother, younger brothers and sisters and I stayed in the palace to watch the new year. On the first day of the new year, we have to receive congratulations from civil and military officials. How lively it is!"

"Don't think about the past." Qingluan said.

"No, I can't forget!" Zhu Cihong ran into the kitchen and shouted, "My dear sister, tell me, which direction is the palace?"

Qingluan stared at Zhu Cihong, tears rolled down the corner of her eyes: "It's in the north."

Zhu Cihong ran out of the kitchen, and after identifying the direction, he stood under the north courtyard wall and looked up to the sky, as if he could see the palace in this way.

Looking at the sky through the narrow patio, the sky has become very cramped.The sky was covered with snowflakes, and it was gray and dark. Zhu Cihong cried silently, shaking his lips.

How did the prince of the Ming Dynasty fall to such a state?

Not reconciled, he wandered around in the yard.Qingluan came out holding a bowl of steaming hot porridge, and asked, "What's wrong with you, are you looking for something?"

"I want to find a ladder!" Zhu Cihong said, ran into the bedroom, pulled out a chair and stood on it, still eagerly looking north with his head up.

"The courtyard wall is so high, we don't have a ladder, you can't see it anyway, don't bother." Qingluan smiled wryly, and persuaded, "Come down, aren't you hungry? Come and have porridge."

Zhu Cihong stood still, Qingluan walked over to persuade him.Unexpectedly, Zhu Cilang lost his temper, and knocked over the bowl in Qingluan's hand, and the gruel flowed on the ground, steaming.

Zhu Cihong was taken aback, hugged Qingluan and cried: "Good sister, have I become a useless person? I just want to see the palace and the place where I grew up. Why can't I even make such a small wish come true?" Satisfied?"

"Everything is predestined, I can't help thinking about it at all." Qingluan caressed Zhu Cihong's head, and said after a while, "Forget it, it's Chinese New Year anyway, and you should fulfill your wish. Come, I will step on the chair and you sit On my shoulder, maybe I can see it."

"You are so kind!" Zhu Cihong smiled.

Qingluan put the chair under the wall, she squatted on it first, and when Zhu Cihong stepped on her shoulder with great effort, she slowly stood up while supporting the courtyard wall.

Although Qingluan has received strict training and her body is stronger and stronger than ordinary girls, she still feels very strenuous carrying Zhu Cihong on her back.

After finally standing up straight, Zhu Cihong's forehead was flush with the courtyard wall, but he still couldn't see the outside world.But he tried his best to raise his hands and climbed on the wall, feeling great satisfaction.

"Did you see the palace?" Qingluan asked.

"I saw it, I saw it!" Zhu Cihong lied.

"Really?"

"real!"

The two laughed, this cold winter finally had a tinge of warmth.

"Good sister, are you tired? Let me down, my wish has been fulfilled, I am very happy!" Zhu Cihong said.

Qingluan agreed, and squatted down cautiously.But at this moment, Zhu Cihong suddenly noticed a person popping up from the top of the wall, like a ghost, he yelled and fell down.

"Why are you so careless, did you break it?" Qingluan jumped off the chair and hurriedly went to help Zhu Cihong.

Zhu Cilang pointed to the wall and said tremblingly, "Who are you?"

Qingluan turned around and looked, and saw a person jumping down from the wall with a leopard mask on his face and holding a cold dagger in his hand.

At the same time, another person climbed up the wall, also wearing a mask, but it was a tiger's head.

Qingluan was taken aback, flipping his wrist, a dagger appeared in his hand, protecting Zhu Cihong, and asked, "Who are you and what are you trying to do?"

The man wearing the tiger mask jumped off the wall and said in a cold voice, "Don't say anything, the guards outside are all dead, no one will come to rescue you!"

Saying that, the two knelt down on one knee, and said to Zhu Cihong: "I'll come and see His Highness the Crown Prince on his way!"

"Ah, you... are you sent by my father to save me?" Zhu Cihong said in surprise, with some hope in his heart.

"No, we are here to send His Highness the Crown Prince on his way!"

"What do you mean?"

"They're going to kill you!" Qingluan cried out, pulled Zhu Cihong up with all her might, and shouted, "Run, I'll stop them!"

As soon as the voice fell, the figure flickered, and the person had already rushed out.

(End of this chapter)