Pihanjin

Many years later, until Mu Fulan grew up, she still couldn't forget the scene when her aunt said goodbye to her when she was about to die in Fengyi Palace at the age of six, and every word she said to herself that night.

My aunt is the most beautiful woman in Changsha. In addition to her beauty, she is famous for her virtue and talent. Later, she was selected by the queen mother and entered the Fengyi Middle Palace and became the queen of the dynasty.

This seems to be such a glorious thing.

This dynasty has been established for more than 200 years. At the beginning of the founding of the country, the world was sealed off. In addition to the royal vassal kings who were divided into various places, there were also several surnamed heroes who were named kings with different surnames for their merits.

The ancestor of the Mu clan was one of them. Because of his unparalleled achievements, he was awarded the king of Changsha to govern Yuezhou and Tanzhou. The Mu family also moved to the south and lived by the Dongting for generations.

Several generations of Changsha kings have all kept in mind the teachings of their ancestors. The field service king contributes and invites you in the spring and autumn; manages the country internally and loves the people like a child.

The country has been passed down to this day, and several families with different surnames, Wang, have been deposed or removed from the country due to various charges, and the rest are still in danger.

Only Changsha is the only country, although the country is small, due to the diligent administration and love of the people by the previous kings of several generations, and the fact that it is located in the remote south, and relying on the 800-mile Dongting and the Yangtze River moat, not only is it far away from the disputes in the Central Plains, the Taoyuan of Chu, the country's peace and prosperity, Now, the younger sister of the king of Changsha, who is deeply loved by the people, has been chosen by Tianjia, who is far away in Shangjing, to be in the middle palace.

What a glorious and proud thing this is for the people of Changsha.

My aunt left Yuecheng by the Dongting Lake, and Fulan was not born the year after she was sent to Beijing.

But since she was sensible, she has heard more than once from the old ladies in the family that she looks like an aunt. Talking about the grand occasion of Wang Mei's appearance in Dongting, everyone's face still has the pride brought by the glory of that day.

Although my aunt has not seen Xiao Fulan yet, she probably heard something about this little niece who looks like her, and she has always been very caring for Fulan.

Ever since she was born, gifts from the capital have been coming all the time. The little Fulan was also full of longing for the legendary Queen's aunt who was far away in the Shangjing Palace, and she was always looking forward to seeing her aunt's face.

She often prayed devoutly to Emperor Junshan and made a secret wish.

The gods seemed to hear her request.

At the age of six, her wish finally came true.

That year, the queen was pregnant, and the Changsha king and his wife were allowed to enter Beijing to congratulate them.

Fulan was taken by her parents, along with her elder brother, who traveled through mountains and rivers, and walked on the road for nearly a month, and finally arrived in Shangjing.

Fulan originally thought that Yuecheng, where he grew up, was the most prosperous city in the world. Her home by the Dongting Lake, which is called the "Royal Palace" by the people of Changsha, is the best place in the world.

It was not until she came to Shangjing and saw the prosperity of the capital of the emperor, and then saw the place called the "Imperial Palace" where her aunt lived, Fulan didn't know what her previous thoughts were like sitting on the well and watching the sky.

The palace in front of you, with the eaves and the sky facing the sky, is endless, and it is impossible to see the end at a glance.

That kind of thousands of hectares of colored glass, jade-level Tongting. I can't say enough about the gold and blue, and the paintings are flying.

The Fengyi Palace where my aunt is located is even more carved and jaded, and the golden shop is bent.

In a splendid splendor that captivated people's eyes, Fulan saw her aunt, the most honorable woman in this palace.

Auntie was dressed like a fairy in the sky, and she was beautiful like a fairy in the sky. With a smile on her face, despite Fulan's mother's dissuasion, she let the little Fulan sit on her lap and placed a warm kiss on her cheek.

Auntie and Fulan looked exactly the same as they imagined.

Auntie likes Fulan, and Fulan also likes her aunt. Later, when her parents brought her brother back to Changsha, Fulan was left behind and continued to accompany her aunt in the palace.

In Fulan's Chenghuan around her knees, her aunt's belly was getting bigger every day, and it was finally time to give birth.

What Fu Lan didn't expect was that her aunt had a difficult childbirth and then collapsed.

That prince, not long after he fell to the ground, could not be saved.

My aunt was lying on the phoenix bed in Fengyi Palace and had been in a coma for three or four days.

In the past three or four days, Fulan prayed to the emperor Junshan in his hometown Dongting all the time, and prayed to the gods to bless her so that her aunt could get through this difficult time safely.

Emperor Junshan, in the eyes of little Fulan, is the most capable and merciful deity between heaven and earth.

Every year on the spring equinox, parents will prepare five animals, bring Fu Lan and elder brother, as well as officials of Changsha State, abandon the yurts, walk reverently, climb the top of the mountain from the foot of the mountain, and worship the emperor Junshan.

It is with the blessing of the gods that the country of Changsha can enjoy good weather and abundant crops.

It was also because of the god's request that she came to the capital and had to see her aunt.

However, this time, the **** of Junshan no longer listened to her prayers.

In the middle of the night, tired of crying, she, who was sleeping beside her aunt, suddenly woke up.

In her ears, there seemed to be a song coming from somewhere in the palace.

"...There is Kunming in the southwest, and the sea comes out to cough up golden birds... The pearls have turtle brains, and they spit out gold shavings like millet..."

"...If you don't accept Bihanjin, how can you get the emperor's heart... If you don't accept Bihantian, how can you get the emperor's pity..."

Little Fulan didn't know the meaning of the song she heard at that time. Later, when she grew up, she realized it.

Legend has it that there is a golden bird in Kunming, flying in the distant sea. During the reign of Emperor Wei Ming, his country came to offer birds and fed them with pearl tortoise brains. The emperor stopped, pity and love. The palace servants competed to use the gold vomited by the birds as hairpins. It is called cold gold, because birds are not afraid of cold.

The hall is heavy, the singing is erratic, accompanied by the swaying candles that are suddenly blown by the night wind, the resentment seems to come from the underworld, and in the late night of this silent palace, it is extraordinarily frightening.

During the six months that she lived in the palace, Fulan had also heard the goddess Xiaogong tell herself mysteriously that in a place called Lenggong that they could not see, there were ghosts of female ghosts for hundreds of years. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, the palace servants in the palace who were full of Yin Qi could even hear Kuang complaining songs coming from that direction.

Fulan didn't believe it.

How could there be resentment in such a bright and upright place as the palace.

But at this moment, she was horrified to find that a strange singing sound really seemed to float into her ears.

What frightened her even more were the palace and female officials who were watching the night beside her.

They didn't respond at all. Either because of extreme tiredness, he secretly napped against the pillar, or in front of the phoenix couch, weeping and guarding Su Ri to treat the palace servants, the Empress Mu from Changsha who is still unconscious at this moment.

The resentment in my ears was intermittent, as if it were still going on.

At this moment, Fu Lan saw her aunt who had been in a coma for several days, her drooping eyelashes trembled slightly, and then slowly opened her eyes.

Auntie woke up, staring blankly at the satin tent above her head embroidered with phoenix peony. After a while, Fulan saw her lips slightly pursed, and murmured something in her mouth.

Her voice was so weak that it was almost inaudible, but Fulan could see it, her lips were repeating the erratic song just now.

If you refuse to accept the cold gold, how can you get the heart of an emperor,

If you don't accept Bi Handian, how can you get the emperor's pity.

"aunt!"

Fulan called out and rushed to the phoenix bed, grabbing her aunt's hand, tears in her eyes, and a bit of surprise.

The nearby palace and female officials were alarmed and gathered around them one after another.

Aunt's face was as white as if a layer of snow had fallen on the top of Junshan Mountain.

After a while, she turned her face slowly, her cold fingers gently rested on Fulan's little hand, and with a faint voice, ordered everyone around to go out.

The palace and female officials silently exited the inner hall.

The ethereal singing in my ears came and went without a trace.

All sounds are silent, and the ears are clear.

The aunt said softly, "Laner, sing a song that our people in Changsha sang when your father, the king, climbed the mountain to offer sacrifices to the harvest year..."

"Auntie hasn't listened to it for years. I want to hear..."

Fulan hurriedly wiped away her tears, nodded vigorously, and sang the song she was all too familiar with:

"Emperor Yi, his wisdom is like a god, he divides China's time, and helps me to live."

"Emperor Yi, his work is like the sky, and it is all four seasons, and it will be a good year for me."

The girl's voice revolved in the empty and deep palace of Fengyi Palace, immature and ethereal, like the sound of heaven.

The corners of my aunt's lips slowly turned up slightly.

Fulan sang it over and over, finishing this ballad and singing another for her aunt.

The aunt listened intently at first, but slowly, as if tired, she closed her eyes.

After a while, Fu Lan heard her murmur, "... Prime Minister Yuan, is he okay now..."

Fulan was stunned and stopped.

She had heard her mother say to herself in a nostalgic tone that Prime Minister Yuan of Changsha was the right-hand man of her father, but he had fallen ill a few years ago.

Prime Minister Yuan never married, leaving only a adopted son who is said to have been picked up by the wolf's den in the deep mountains in his early years, named Han Ding. After the prime minister died, the mother and queen took the child to the palace to raise him as if she were her own. He was a few years older than Fulan, and he was obedient to Fulan, just like another brother of Fulan.

"Aunt... Prime Minister Yuan... He has fallen ill..."

Fulan didn't understand why her aunt suddenly asked about Yuan Xiang, she hesitated, and answered in a low voice.

Auntie didn't move, her eyelashes suddenly trembled again, and she slowly opened her eyes, as if she had woken up again.

"...Yeah, he's gone...I forgot..."

She muttered to herself in a voice so low that it was almost inaudible.

"Aunt! You are getting better!"

An ominous feeling, like a tide, engulfed the little Fulan and the whole person.

She was lying on the side, her little hand tightly holding her aunt's soft and clammy hand, crying and calling her constantly.

Auntie raised a hand with difficulty, and gently wiped the tears that kept rolling down her face with her fingertips. She stared at her with beautiful eyes and said in a low voice, "They all say that Auntie is the number one in Changsha. Beauty, but Auntie knew at first glance when she saw you, and when Laner grows up in the future, she will truly be a beauty in our country of Changsha."

She smiled and said word by word, "Laner, you will definitely be luckier than Auntie in your life. Auntie will pray for you and protect you."

She held Fu Lan's hand firmly.

It seems that only in this way can I convey the wishes of my heart to God.

Behind him, the female officer hurried in with the imperial physician.

After all, the aunt still couldn't get through that level, and she didn't want Fulan to see her dying. Later, someone forcibly took away the crying Fulan.

When it was dawn, Fu Lan heard from the palace maid that her queen and aunt had left, and she walked very peacefully, as if she had fallen asleep.

It's been ten years.

Perhaps, far more than ten years.

After so many years, time has passed like this.

She is no longer the little girl who sang to her aunt back then.

But that night, every word and every word that my aunt said to her, Fulan still remembers it, and it is vivid in her ears.

However, her aunt's good wishes on her deathbed were ultimately in vain.

There was a saying at the time that the daughters of the Mu family in Changsha, each generation must have a stunning appearance.

Unparalleled beauty, but ill-fated and unhappy death.

This may be the fate of the Mu family's daughter.

…

Turning from Dongting to the Yangtze River, going west along the river against the current, passing Jiangling, Xiazhou, Guizhou, passing through Badong, passing through Wushan, and beside the difficult Shu Road is Kuizhou. There is an ancient county under the state. It is said that the county annals can be traced back to At the beginning of the founding of the dynasty, a group of people with the surname of Xie from the previous dynasty moved here to avoid disasters, and they slowly multiplied and lived together.

The morning light gradually illuminated the scene of the house through an old window that was covered with window paper and carved with **** patterns.

In this main hall of the Xie family's ancestral house, on this day, Xie's mother, Mrs. Shen, sat cross-legged beside the bed as usual, waiting for her daughter-in-law Mu Fulan to come and say good morning to herself, and then put on her shoes, comb her hair, and put on a new coat. One day, it started.

Mrs. Mu is the princess of the Changsha king who passed away three years ago, and is now the king's sister of the Changsha king.

Marrying into her husband's family, regardless of her original status, it is necessary to greet her sooner or later. This is the daughter-in-law's filial piety to her mother-in-law.

But every day she puts on shoes and combs her hair for her mother-in-law. As a daughter of the Mu family, it is inevitable that she is condescending.

So at the beginning, when the new daughter-in-law took the initiative to serve herself and do these things, Shen shi was unexpected and a little restrained.

But now, it has been more than half a year since Mrs. Mu's daughter has been through the door. She is gentle and graceful, respectful to herself, and considerate. She doesn't seem to be a princess at all. From the beginning, Mother Xie has become accustomed to it and even takes it for granted. .

Shen was used to getting up early, and her new daughter-in-law followed her. Every day when she didn't get up, she must have been waiting outside the main room. Seeing that it's been a while since today, the Mu's daughter has not yet appeared. At the new house in the east wing, the Mu's mother who followed her new daughter-in-law to serve her, but only sent a girl, saying that the madam got up a little late this morning, first. Apologizing to the old lady, and coming to say hello later, I felt uncomfortable, and my brows gradually frowned.

On the side, Qiu Ju, the maid who came to serve her from Qi's house a few years ago, whose real name is Qiu Lan, has a bit of beauty. In order to avoid the name of the mistress, she changed it to Qiu Ju. People, it’s not that the slaves and servants are talkative. Although the lady is married from the Changsha Kingdom, it is not what it used to be. Three years ago, when the marriage was just married, the Changsha Kingdom was okay. But since the old Changsha King is gone, the Changsha Kingdom is one A year is not as good as a year. Our grandfather has grown steadily in recent years. It is said that at the beginning of the year, when he married her, he was named Hexi Jiedu by the imperial court. The slaves heard that even the current Empress Liu has seen her. Our grandfather, we all have to smile at each other, and say a few good words to win over. When the grandfather succeeds in quelling the rebellion this time, it will be even more indispensable for him to be promoted as an official."

A smile appeared on Xie's face.

"Old madam, you treat madam as your own, and you feel bad that it is not easy for her to marry far away, it is better than kissing a daughter. She has only been married here for a few days, but there is no old madam in her eyes. Let the old madam Just wait!"

The tip of her tongue pressed against the upper jaw, and she tapped deftly, making a crisp "tsk" sound.

"The slaves only know that it is only right for the daughter-in-law to serve the mother-in-law, and this is the first time she has seen the mother-in-law wait for the daughter-in-law to show her face, relying on her mother's family."

The smile on Shen's face disappeared, and her face became a little unhappy. She said, "Go over there and see what's going on. The sun is drying up her spine. Could it be that she hasn't gotten up yet?"

Qiu Ju responded crisply, and the lotus strode like a fly, crossing the veranda and quickly coming to the east wing.

The ancestors of the Xie family are the direct descendants of the Xie family who moved here in the previous dynasty. At the time of Emperor Gaozu, he was still a local tyrant. It is no exaggeration to say that there are thousands of acres of fertile land, accounting for almost half of the land in Xie County. This ancestral home was once one of the most stylish mansions in the county. But later, the great-grandfather was addicted to gambling, and the Xie family began to lose. By the time of Xie Changgeng's father, Xie's father had become a postmaster in the county, relying on a meager salary to support his family. After Xie Changgeng committed a crime and left home at the age of fourteen, the Xie family's ancestral house was once deserted. It was not until a few years ago that the Xie family regained momentum and the Shen family moved back, and the house was repaired. The East Wing here was rebuilt when Xie Changgeng married Mu's daughter at the beginning of the year.

Xie Changgeng married the princess of the Mu family in Changsha in the early spring.

More than half a year has passed, and now it is autumn. Although the red letter of Double Happiness on the doors and windows is still sticking, it can't stand the wind and the sun.

"Mother Mu, the old lady got up early in the morning, and I waited and waited. If you don't see the lady, you sent me here to take a look. If the lady has a headache, please tell me, mother, and I will go back and tell the old man. People have been waiting."

Standing at the corner of the veranda leading to the East Wing, Qiu Ju said to Mu's mother who was patting the door. Her tone sounded respectful, but in fact it implied disrespect.

What kind of person Mu Mama used to be.

The princess traveled through mountains and rivers, fulfilling her contract and marrying far away in this bitter land of Badong. On the night of the wedding, Xie Changgeng entered the bridal chamber, and was summoned by the imperial court's urgent edict. , has not returned yet.

In the past half a year, I have seen with my own eyes the princess who used to be doted on at home to serve Mother Xie in the morning and evening.

This Xie mother, if it is a well-informed and considerate person, that's all, but a person with shallow eyes. Seeing that the princess was submissive and soft, and took advantage of her son's confidence to push her nose on her face, she felt at ease, and increasingly ignored the princess.

Mu's mother knew that the princess had a heart and was firmly bound to Xie Jialang, so she loved Wu Jiwu and was willing to suffer grievances. Although her heart was bitter, it was related to the relationship between her and Xie Jialang's husband and wife, and some things were difficult to say clearly. On weekdays, I could only raise some secrets in front of the princess. Seeing that she didn't care, I could only bear my anger.

For more than half a year, the princess has been up early every day, rain or shine. Someday, she would wait in front of the main house door to open the door early in the morning and go in to serve her.

Only today, the princess didn't get up for some reason, and she was afraid of thanking her mother for waiting, and she had already sent someone to spread the word.

There is no time for a cup of tea, so I came to urge. Not only that, but even this humble servant from the Qi family dared to come here to speak like this.

If this was when she was young, Mu's mother would have slapped her away sooner.

Several maids waiting at the door to serve the princess to get up, all had scornful expressions on their faces.

Dogwood, who had the most violent temperament, couldn't bear his anger, and said coldly: "In the early morning, he cursed my Weng Master. What is a mud pig and a scabies dog, I can see it today."

Qiu Ju choked, her face immediately flushed red, and she was about to speak again to save her face, when Mu's mother said, "It's our fault to ask the old lady to wait for a long time, but it's not out of the ordinary for us to send someone a message just now. Disrespectful. The only thing you need to know is the court, and the emperor also allows his servants to take leave inconveniently, not to mention the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law's family?"

After she finished speaking, she turned her face and instructed the other maid Dan Zhu, who was more stable, "Go, pass the words I just said to the old lady, and then accuse her of the crime. I think the old lady wouldn't care about such trivial matters. "

Dan Zhu agreed and turned to leave.

Qiu Juping was a little bit afraid of this Mu mother from the Changsha palace. At this moment, listening to her talk like this, she stared at herself with two eyes, and she didn't dare to say the words in her mouth. She swallowed it back, lowered her head, and turned around. When I was about to go back, I heard a "squeak" from the east wing, looked up, the door was opened, and Mrs. Mu appeared at the door.

Her face was pale, her beautiful eyes were slightly red and swollen, but her expression was extremely calm.

It is clearly the same person, but for some reason, the appearance looks different from yesterday.

Her two eyes fell straight on Qiu Ju.

"You're here. Go and tell my mother-in-law that I'm leaving for my hometown today. When I pack up, I'll go to my mother-in-law to say goodbye."

After he finished speaking, he turned to the surprised mother Mu and the maids outside the door.

"Pack up as soon as possible, prepare the carriage and arrange manpower, I'll hit the road today, I'll go back to Dongting."

After she gave her orders, she turned around and went back to the house.

Mu's mother woke up like a dream, hurriedly walked in, and followed.