Between the vast sea of ​​clouds

Yan Jinghan couldn't see anything on her face, Qingping glanced at the clerks and attendants behind her, those people all lowered their heads, she moved slightly in her heart, and said: "Then let's go and have a look."

According to the law of this dynasty, the Taimiao is jointly supervised by the clan, Chenghui Mansion, and the Ministry of Rites. Generally, the Taimiao is at the foot of the imperial city. This place in Chenzhou is special because the former emperor built it to worship his parents, and this place was once a fief of the former emperor. meaning in it.The villages and counties where the Taimiao is located are no longer under the jurisdiction of the local county magistrates, but are taken over by the state government. If there is any business, it will be directly reported to the court.As for the fields near the Taimiao, they are all included in the scope of the sacrificial field, and what is planted in the field and what the harvest is needs to be reported.However, the land near the Chenzhou Taimiao is chosen by the farmers themselves, and the county government or even the state government has no right to control it.The movement of every plant and tree here will be played in front of the imperial court and will be decided by the emperor.

The detached status of the Taimiao determines that the matter of land selection and enclosure needs to be cautious and cautious. If there is a slight inappropriateness, the cap will be taken off at the slightest, and the house will be ransacked at the worst.A group of people detoured from Qinglu Mountain and walked southwest for more than ten miles. The flowing water flowed down slowly. At first, they saw the two mountains slanting inward like brackets, like a gate.Entering from here, an open field appeared in front of them. The land was flat and open, and the field was divided into many small pieces, which were very orderly.But because of the mountain cover, only half of it can be seen.Qing Ping got off his horse and said: "Master Yan, the person who troubles you will wait here first, let's walk over and have a look?"

Yan Jinghan ordered his entourage to wait here, and the documents that accompanied him said: "My lord, Mr. Zhou Mu has ordered the subordinates before, and the Ministry of Rites has to keep an eye on the matter of choosing a site for the Taimiao... Please forgive me for offending you. .”

Qingping turned around and looked, the clerk seemed to be afraid of her, bowed his head, and took a step back, she smiled and said: "Is there such a rule? Is Mr. Liang worried about the Ministry of Rites, or the Ministry?"

The clerk's shoulders trembled, he just bowed and saluted, and muttered: "My lord, forgive me, I was ordered by the state shepherd, and there is nothing I can do about it."

Yan Jinghan was silent for a long time after hearing the words, and said: "Since it is the order of Master Zhou Mu, then you follow."

The entourage fetched the water bag, Qingping took a sip of water, and said with a smile: "Master Yan is really considerate, I am far behind."

Yan Jinghan just smiled, but there was no emotion in his eyes, and walked towards the field with Qingping.

At this time, it was supposed to be the ripening of summer, but because of the flood, this field was also flooded by the downstream river, but at this time there were no rice seedlings in the field, and I don't know why.

The path on the field was somewhat muddy, Yan Jinghan walked behind and almost slipped, Qingping supported her and said, "Is there nothing wrong, Master Yan?"

Yan Jinghan straightened her hem, and the corners of her robe were already stained with black mud. She raised her head and wrote lightly: "It's nothing. These days, after taking up the post of Chief Inspector of River Channels in Chenzhou, because of going to various places to inspect, the road is even more unbearable than this." I have been through it all, and wrestling is a common thing.”

As he spoke, he patted the robe casually to show that it was unusual.Qing Ping borrowed his hand to support her, heard the words and squeezed her hand, glanced at the person behind her, and said: "Master Yan is for the country and the people, I am really ashamed."

"Master Li said that it is Zhesha. In this position, he must be loyal to his duties and be a minister." Yan Jinghan laughed, and the clerk behind her interjected: "Lord Zhou Mu also has a lot of respect for you Appreciation, adults must not be humble."

Yan Jinghan let go of Qingping's hand, and said lightly: "That's right, I haven't thanked Lord Zhou Mu for his appreciation. I have been promoted a lot by the lower officials, and every time I think about this, I tremble with fear, lest I be embarrassed by this position, I am ashamed Appreciate it."

The clerk paused, bowed and said, "Master Zhou has never been shy about closeness and distance when selecting officials. She often tells officials, 'There are thousands of things, and those who are able should live'. Mr. Yan is naturally capable in her heart. It is natural for Master Mu to appreciate and promote you. If you are so self-effacing, isn’t it saying that Master Zhou Mu doesn’t know people well? …Naturally, I don’t have this intention at all, I just hope Master Yan can understand Master Zhou Mu. A lot of painstaking efforts, don't belittle yourself."

Qingping watched the two sing together, the document was obviously someone close to Liang Zhoumu, and he spoke with a sense of domineering, and it was a joke that the little document could teach Sipin River Supervisor a lesson.But judging from his haughty attitude, it was obvious that he had not taught the officials this once or twice. Thinking about it, Liang Zhoumu often sent this person to accompany the officials. It was called secondment, but it was actually surveillance.

Probably never seen a subordinate who dared to lecture Shangguan in front of others, Qingping's followers were all stunned, Yan Jinghan looked calm and coped with it freely.But the document was quite reluctant, Qing Ping glanced at the guard walking at the end, and said: "Master Yan, can you still go?"

Yan Jinghan turned around, although he was smiling, he said very reluctantly: "Come here."

Seeing that the clerk was standing straight, Qing Ping said something to Yan Jinghan rather arrogantly, and when she saw her looking over, he subconsciously nodded slightly.Qing Ping couldn't help but lowered his head and smiled, the attendant seemed a little displeased, and whispered: "My lord, this man is really rude."

Qingping tilted his head and said casually: "Do as the Romans do, Liangzhou Mu has been in Chenzhou for many years, and some of the rules are indeed different from those in Beijing. As the saying goes, one side raises one side's people, and the official style is naturally different."

The entourage respectfully said: "What the adults said is true, but I have heard such a saying that poor mountains and rivers make troublesome people."

Qingping scolded softly: "What nonsense are you talking about? The Chenzhou government educates the people, knows etiquette, and understands the way of sage's education, how can there be troublesome people? Only those who don't know the etiquette are officials, and they follow the example, resulting in bad morals. "

The entourage immediately confessed his guilt and said: "They are all small and outspoken, please punish me, my lord."

The conversation between the two of them was not too loud, just enough for everyone around to hear.A smile flashed across Yan Jinghan's eyes, and he just shook his head slightly at her.The document also had some other meanings, his face was flushed, Qingping accepted it when he saw it, and said sideways: "Since Mr. Yan has gone through many paths worse than this, please ask Mr. Yan to lead the way. "

Yan Jinghan took advantage of the trend and walked to the front, and his followers gave way one after another, standing in a row by the path.Qing Ping threw away the folding fan with a slap, and said leisurely: "It is really a shame to have the Chief Inspector of the River Channel guide me the way."

Yan Jinghan didn't look back, only heard her say with a smile: "Why, why is Mr. Li worthy of it?"

Qing Ping said: "I have never promoted my lord, and when I was studying in the official school, I also failed to appreciate this dusty pearl of my lord. Now that I think about it, I am really ashamed."

One of the entourage said: "It turns out that your lord and Lord Yan were classmates? You are so stupid, if you didn't tell me, you wouldn't be able to see it."

Qing Ping shook his fan and said: "Master Yan speaks publicly about public affairs, and clearly distinguishes between private and public affairs. It is the good conduct of an official, and the province will be honest."

Yan Jinghan said: "It is for this reason, Mr. Li is very alert, and he can point out the key points at a single point."

The entourage looked sideways and saw that the clerk blushed even more. He didn't know whether it was from anger, shame, or both.She winked at the guard who was walking at the end, and after a while, she heard an ouch, the document somehow missed and rolled into the field, covered in mud.

Seeing this, Qingping was pulled up from the field, and said in a friendly manner: "Send her to the water to wash quickly. If you don't bring a robe, you can take the one from the headquarters and put it on with her, so as not to suffer from the wind and cold." The attendant looked at her. Dazzled by the sun above his head, he weighed the word "Feng Chi" carefully in his heart for a moment, and then heard Qing Ping and said softly: "When Mr. Liang blamed it, he said it was all the idea of ​​the headquarters and he wanted to come here to have a look. I think Mr. Liang is reasonable, maybe will blame you."

Before the clerk could react, two guards supported her and walked towards the river.

Yan Jinghan shook his head at Qingping disapprovingly, and the people around him backed away with great winks, and after a while, Qingping said: "Master Yan, if I want to talk to you, I have to make such a bad plan. Easy."

Yan Jinghan sighed, and said: "Say what, say it."

Qingping sneered, and said: "I haven't seen you for so many years. I came back from Yunzhou and was an official in Beijing, and I thought I would have the opportunity to meet you. But later I heard that you have been transferred from Hezhou to Chenzhou. It's a pity to lose."

Yan Jinghan turned his head away, took a deep breath, and said: "You separate everyone, you must have something to ask, just say it directly."

Qing Ping said: "I asked, will you answer?"

Yan Jinghan choked, and said with difficulty: "I can say... I will definitely say it."

Qingping closed the folding fan and said, "Okay then, let me ask you, how much do you really know about Deng Jie's affairs, and how much have you mixed up with Hezhou's affairs?"

Yan Jinghan's jaw tightened, and he said slowly: "You..."

Qingping observed her expression, and continued: "To tell you the truth, Deng Jie's account book is already in front of His Majesty's case."

Yan Jinghan's pupils shrank, as if shocked, and he didn't speak for a while.Qingping looked at her in a daze, and said: "Jinghan, when we parted, you went to Hezhou to be an official, and I went to Yunzhou to take up a post. At that time, the future was uncertain. When we parted, you and I said a lot. I think Let me ask you, now, have your ambitions and ambitions been fulfilled?"

Yan was startled, and quickly turned to look at her. Qingping looked at her calmly, and said, "It doesn't seem to be. It's rainy in Chenzhou, and the roads are not well repaired. It's because of this, you Is it difficult to walk?"

Yan Jinghan couldn't help laughing, and replied evasively: "The road is much better, it's me... I want to take that remote and muddy path."

Qingping looked at her with a good look and said, "Then why don't you go on the Yangguan Avenue?"

Yan Jinghan took a breath and said, "Because... I don't want to."

Qing Ping said: "Is it unwilling or not?"

Yan Jinghan quickly replied: "I neither want nor want to, Qingping, what do you want to ask—"

Qingping suddenly said: "They sent you to this position, what exactly do they want you to do? Hezhou is already in chaos, is Chenzhou going to repeat the same mistakes and continue to be chaotic?"

A cloud covered the sun, and the mountain wind blew in, adding a bit of coolness, Yan Jinghan's robe was blown flying by the wind, she pressed her eyebrows, and said in a deep voice: "If you really understand, you should do it after this incident Get far away!"

Qingping stared at her and said, "What happened afterward?"

Yan was stunned and dumb, Qingping took a few steps forward and said, "If you don't tell me, someone will investigate."

After a while, Qingping heard her coldly say: "Check? If it is really useful to check, Deng Jie will not die in prison in vain."

Qing Ping nodded and said: "The ledger in Deng Jie's hands disappeared. Without any support, she was going to die, so who did she give the ledger to? I'm afraid everyone will think that the ledger is in your hands, but the affairs of the court will be very fast. It can be passed to Chenzhou, and the account book has been submitted to His Majesty by Yuan Sui, how will you deal with yourself then?"

Yan was stunned and remained silent, the tightly clenched hands in his sleeves gradually loosened.

Qing Ping pressed his fan against his palm and said: "Now, are you still unwilling to tell me the truth?"

"Then how do you deal with yourself? You and I are classmates, and we have had too much contact in this matter. If the government investigates it, you will not be able to get rid of it." Yan Jinghan strode up to her and said in a trembling voice : "Quickly end this matter, go back to Chang'an and be your official, don't get involved in this matter anymore, the matter of He Chenmin Sanzhou is by no means as simple as you think!"

Qingping pressed the fan on her lips, blocking her next words.She looked at Yan Jinghan and said: "Not long ago, I also said this to someone. So you don't have to do this, push yourself to a situation of isolation and helplessness, and then put all your eggs in one basket and take risks."

Yan Jinghan looked at her for a moment, and said with difficulty: "But... I'm already, I can't turn back."

The sun fell again, Qingping's eyelashes trembled, and he said calmly: "There is no turning back when I shoot the bow, I am shocked, since I have come here, there is no room for turning back, in a sense, I am no different from you. As for the involvement you mentioned, it doesn't matter if you lose your official position, life is more important than anything else."

She put away her fan and thoughtfully said: "When you left, you told me about Bahuang, but what kind of place is this Bahuang?"

Yan Jinghan smiled suddenly, stretched out his hand to hold her fan and said, "Qingping, do you believe in ghosts and gods?"

Chu Jun sat in front of the bronze mirror, and Liu Zhen removed the jade crown and treasure hairpin for her. The precious stones on the hairpin were shining brightly in her hair. Then Liu Zhen put it in the cushion in the box, and took out a wooden comb to smooth her long hair. But found a white hair in the black hair.

She lowered her eyes and kept moving her hands, as if she had never seen it before.

It is always not a good thing to have gray hair in one's prime.

Liu Zhen tied up her long hair with a silk ribbon, and said: "Your Majesty seems to be a little restless these days. There are too many government affairs during the day, and I don't sleep well at night. According to my servant's humble opinion, it's better to ask the imperial physician to prescribe the assistant to soothe the nerves." medicine."

Chu Jun changed his unlined clothes behind the screen, and said: "There is no need to prescribe medicine. There are many things to do recently, and it is inevitable to think too much."

Liu Zhen took off the golden hook, put down the curtain gently, and went outside to burn incense incense to hold it in person, saying: "Your Majesty is worried, is it still the matter of Xie's family?"

Sitting on the couch, Chu Jun watched her bring the ice mirror, first lowered his eyes in thought, then raised his head, but he never spoke.Liu Zhen thought that he asked the wrong question, or that His Majesty had something to order, so his hands paused slightly, but seeing Chu Jun's eyebrows lowered, a very faint smile suddenly appeared, and it was as fleeting as melting ice.

She coughed lightly and said, "There's no need to tidy up, just put the things there, and it won't be too late to do it tomorrow."

Liu Zhen withdrew his hand according to his words, and Chu Jun asked, "Is there something strange in the palace recently?"

Liu Zhen thought about it and replied: "The servant did not notice anything wrong. The person serving His Majesty is still an old man in the house. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be any problems."

Chu Jun slid his finger across the cloud pattern embroidered on the brocade quilt, paused for a moment, and said, "All changed, replaced with a new person."

Liu Zhenzong was very puzzled, so he had no choice but to agree.

It didn't take long for Chu Jun to look tired, and Liu Zhen put down the bed curtain for her. The curtain was woven with gold thread mixed with peacock feathers, reflecting the strange golden and blue intertwined colors in the candlelight.Liu Zhen felt a little worried, and wanted to say something to persuade her, but she didn't know what to say.

Chu Jun always said one thing, Liu Zhen knew that she could not shake her mind, so she could only sigh from the bottom of her heart.

She stepped back from the room, and heard a light slap, and the golden-red koi in the porcelain vat leaped out of the water for some reason, looking unexpectedly lively.

The lotus flower in the bowl of the tank has failed to bloom, and the petals of the fans have turned into a lifeless ink purple, which looks a little uncomfortable.But without the emperor's order, the palace people didn't dare to do anything to the tank. Liu Zhen stood aside and looked at it for a while, then went to fetch the fish food and fed it to some fish. Not only did the fish not eat, but they jumped a few times.It seemed that I was tired from jumping, and I dived into the bottom of the water, and there was no more movement.

Liu Zhen didn't know how to raise fish, so she didn't quite understand why the koi kept diving. After feeding the fish, she left the bedroom and returned to her residence. The palace people had already made her bed. He bowed to her and said, "Liu Shangnv."

Liu Zhen nodded, went into the room to wash, the maid stood outside the door, and asked in a low voice: "My lord, do you want my servant to serve you?"

Liu Zhen took off his outer robe and said, "No need, just go and rest."

The maid answered, closed the door for her, and left the yard.

Liu Zhen took off her cumbersome gown, feeling relieved of all the burdens on her body, and she seemed to feel lighter.She thought of the court clothes that Chu Jun usually wore, which was far thicker than this, and every piece of gorgeous embroidery on it was dazzling, and she was so oppressed by the wealth and power that she couldn't breathe.She stared at the lamp on the table and sighed deeply again.

The moon was in the middle of the sky outside the house, and the light was like water. Liu Zhen turned her head, opened the lampshade and blew out the candles, and suddenly thought of Qingping.

She thought, if Qingping is here, it should be, can you persuade His Majesty to stay?

The drizzle was hazy, wet the cobblestone road, and the moss was moistened by the water, which looked particularly bright in the gloomy sky, as if it had endless vitality.

The candle light flickered, and there was a light crackle, and the lantern exploded into sparks, illuminating the chess game on the table. The face of the person under the lamp was a bit blurred, with sunspots in his hands, as if he was thinking about something.

"Miss, how much do you believe in ghosts and gods?"

When Bai Zi fell, she replied, "I don't really believe it."

"What about the theory of fate?"

With a click, the sunspots landed on the plate, and she said: "Success or failure depends on human affairs, what does it have to do with destiny?"

The man coughed a few times, his voice was a little weak, he still smiled and said: "That's right, that's very good, it's not in vain for me to entrust you with the position of Bahuang Patriarch behind Xie's back."

She took out a chess piece from the chess cage, and said with a sneer: "If you want to seek skin from a tiger, you will only end up as a minion of a tiger. The position of Patriarch Bahuang, whether you want it or not, is not very different from me."

No one spoke for a while, and the candles dimmed a bit, but no one paid attention to it.The man said slowly: "That's it, there are benefits to not believing."

The picture was suddenly reversed, the chess game on the table was knocked to the ground, and the chess pieces bounced off the ground one after another, black and white mixed together, just like an overturned destiny.

"You will encounter countless coincidences... I want you to believe that all of these are predestined, and you cannot escape this disaster. Even those who don't believe in fate will feel palpitated. There are thousands of temptations, and the heart is the best... ..."

Standing on the edge of the Linyuan Pavilion in Tianliang Mountain, she looked down at the sea of ​​clouds that were born and died under her feet. It was yesterday and today, the past and the present coincided. Under the young and vigorous body, there was a dusty heart hidden.Memories flowed in from the long years, and those voices that no one answered were left aside by her, ignored and ignored, making it silent, as if it had never existed.

Someone held her hand, the warm palm slowly approached, the little finger entwined, she hugged her subconsciously, the body temperature in her arms came through the clothes, ironing every crease in her heart, like never before It's been intimate.

She let go of the person in her arms, and carefully described her face, but she still hesitated when she wanted to reach out to touch it.

There are tens of thousands of people in this world, thousands of things, and everything is different, but it seems that they all lead to the same goal. It is nothing more than gain and loss, and all kinds of desires that cannot be desired.

She finally couldn't help stretching out her hand. For a moment, she thought about throwing everything away and hugging the person in her arms who might hide a deadly blade even tighter.

If this is her variable, such a desirable 'coincidence' that shouldn't have appeared in her life.

So... how?

Just like that day, she waited for that person in Yuehe. If all this was a scene arranged by others, then she should have followed her will and watched with cold eyes. No matter what, she shouldn't be... moved by it.

The lonely city of remnant snow, the condensed light of the falling moon, fell in that person's eyes, it was an incomparably tender affection.

In the reflection in her eyes, she saw a self she had never seen before.

Chu Jun slowly opened her eyes, with only the brocade quilt in her arms, she moved her fingers slightly, she turned over and sat up, feeling a little stuffy in her chest.

Yesterday she received a secret report from Yuan Sui, it turned out that when Bahuang was selecting candidates, the person selected in the test that year was always Yan Jinghan.

For so many years, although Chu Jun was called Patriarch of Bahuang, he could use some influence, but Bahuang was always afraid of her, and even the Xie family was divided into two factions.Chu Jun felt that this force was unusual, but when the situation was unclear, he couldn't easily investigate it.

She later found out that if the previous Patriarch Rao Ru passed on the position of Patriarch to her without authorization, it should have been the Xie family's turn to take this position.

As for Rao Ru's insistence on doing things like this after she vaguely found out her identity, ignoring the voices of opposition, she was also very puzzled.

But Yuan Sui couldn't find out such secrets, only Dao Xiandi was in Shiqi, and the two kings of Yue seemed to be inseparable from this force. Bahuang actually stood in two factions secretly. I don't know if it was for the sake of retreat, or what .

This turned out to be the case, and Chu Jun understood what the Xie family meant, but there were some things that had not yet been proved, so it was still hard to say.

During this trip, Li Qingping's suspicions were all gone. When Bahuang was in Hezhou's officialdom, Li Qingping was still in Anping County, Yunzhou, and he was far from being involved.Yuan Sui submitted a list in the letter, requesting that officials related to the case be detained immediately.

Chu Jun glanced over those names, and finally moved to the word 'Li Qingping', only to feel that his chest was more stuffy.

The author has something to say: Aww