National Division

It is indeed a happy event to win a big victory at the Northwest Frontier Pass.What's more important is that this victory was due to the auspiciousness from heaven, and it was just in time for Emperor Jing'an's Longevity Festival, so the excerpts of the victory report at the border are all praises of Emperor Jing'an Debi Yao and Shun, so God protects and wipes out Jie Nu The most valiant prince can get rid of all the troubles of his confidantes.In short, seven points of this victory depended on the bravery of the frontier soldiers, and three points depended on the blessing of Emperor Jing'an.

Needless to say, Emperor Jing'an was overjoyed when such a letter was delivered to the capital in a hurry. None of the officials in the court were human sperm, and they immediately expressed their congratulations. But it seems that the Sheng Dynasty will enjoy peace forever.

As soon as Emperor Jing'an was happy, he ordered to seal it.Naturally, Zhao Di was the first to make the first contribution. He was promoted to the first rank of the general of the Zhu Kingdom, and the soldiers under him were promoted to the first rank to the third rank, plus a large amount of rewards such as gold, silver, silk and satin.Of course, Zhao Di's notes also mentioned how His Royal Highness used his body as a bait to lure Jie Nu to come to the ambush, and carefully saw through the traitors of Jie Nu inside the Chengguan during the battle outside the pass. credit.

The crown prince is already the heir apparent, so there is no need to add a seal, but the crown prince is so selfless for the country and the people, and rewards are available.Emperor Jing'an first took a batch of antiques and jewels from the inner treasury to reward the East Palace, and then ordered the prince to escort the Jienu captives to Beijing to offer them.

Offering prisoners is no small matter.Every dynasty and generation are not allowed to fight, but offering captives is not something that is often seen. You must have great military merits to escort captives to the Meridian Gate to offer captives.It is self-evident that the prince offered captives as the crown prince.That's why this decree was issued, and a precious glazed black teacup was smashed in the Hall of Liangyi.

"Auspiciousness from the sky?" Concubine Ye Gui gasped with anger, "What auspiciousness from the sky, it's clearly, it's clearly—" It's clear that Qi Jun is playing tricks to please Emperor Jing'an!This kind of trick was used by her Ye family and Zhen Mingzi before, how come Donggong has also learned it now?

Qi Zhang's face was extremely ugly: "I said earlier that he shouldn't be allowed to go to the northwest, but now it's a good thing, and he came back with a meritorious service... Otherwise, I will also go to the southeast to make a military contribution under uncle's command?"

"How can it be done!" Concubine Ye Gui was willing to let her son go to serve in the army. "The sword has no eyes, not to mention the southeast is hot and humid. If something happens, how will you let the mother and concubine live!" Just crying to death, even though she and the queen are mortal enemies, they are both mothers, and people share the same heart and mind, so no one would be willing to let his son go to war.Furthermore, the southeast is different from the northwest. The northwest is fighting against foreign enemies, and the southeast is just suppressing pirates. Secondly...now even the pirates are not much to suppress. Military exploits are so easy to establish of it.

"Then what should I do?" Qi Zhang was impatient, "The assassination on the Lantern Festival is not over yet, and Qi Jun has made military exploits. He is the prince. If this is the case, wouldn't I be far behind?"

Concubine Ye Gui also frowned.In the former harem, she was the one who could figure out Emperor Jing'an's intentions the most. The empress was stupid, and always put on airs and disdain to make small fusses; A true bright child, the two of them can be said to be invincible in the palace together.But for some reason, Qi Jun suddenly opened up such a trick, first he brought back a Xiuming immortal master, repeatedly defeated Ma Mingzi, and this time he will also offer auspiciousness.In this way, coupled with the natural noble status of the Central Palace and the Eastern Palace, what is she, a noble concubine?Why did Donggong choose such a princess in the first place?Although I don't look like a smart person, but I have a father who can fight and lead the army!

"You can't go to the southeast." Concubine Ye Gui pondered for a while, and finally made up her mind.Don't say that military merits are hard to make, even if they can be made, with Qi Jun's great victory in the northwest, what kind of merits should Qi Zhang make to surpass him?It is not uncommon for people who have made meritorious service to be suspected of picking up people's teeth.As the saying goes, using one's own strengths to attack others' weaknesses is the way to win a hundred battles. She was able to rise from the daughter of a general to a noble concubine all the way, and her favor was not fading. What is she best at?Naturally, it's the harem's set!

"These days, just spend your life with your concubine. She must give me a royal grandson for this child, which can be regarded as a celebration of your father's birthday."

"How can you be sure?" Qi Zhang also knew that having a boy or a girl is beyond human power.

"When I say giving birth to an emperor's grandson, I mean giving birth to an emperor's grandson!" Concubine Ye Gui sneered, "By April, the imperial doctor will naturally be able to diagnose that she is pregnant with a boy."

"If a daughter is born at that time—" Qi Zhang looked at Concubine Ye Gui's dark eyes, and suddenly felt a chill down his back.

"Naturally, only sons will be born." Concubine Ye Gui smiled lightly, the coldness on her face disappeared, and she was as gentle as usual, "Your uncle has collected nine big beads in the southeast for three or four years. It’s time to offer it up. These pearls are known to soothe the nerves and nourish the body. Use it to inlaid a nine-bead court crown for your father, with the meaning of calming the Kyushu, and also for the Longevity Festival.”

Qi Zhang didn't understand why the mother and concubine suddenly mentioned the nine-bead crown, and said in a daze: "Mother and concubine wants to use the nine-bead crown as a birthday gift for the father?"

Concubine Ye smiled and shook her head: "These nine beads were brought in as a tribute, and they were not handed over to me privately. How can they be my birthday gift? Such a precious birthday gift should be supervised by the empress or the princess." Yes……"

The troops from Northwest China who offered prisoners of war entered Beijing, causing a sensation in the whole city.Although the offering of prisoners at the Meridian Gate was to be held the day before the Longevity Festival, as soon as the army escorting the prisoners arrived at the outskirts of the city, some people came to watch the excitement.Emperor Jing'an sent a minister of rites to greet him personally, and announced the imperial decree of rewards at the gate of the city, which caused the soldiers and common people to shout long live, and it was very lively.

"Why is Your Highness unhappy?" Zhibai lay on the side of the carriage window and looked at the people outside who refused to disperse, and poked Qi Jun back, "Everyone is saying that His Highness is willing to take risks for the country and the people. "The son of a daughter can't sit still, even if the prince went to inspect the border, it was just for show, and now he is willing to use himself as a bait, what kind of courage is this?The common people like to hear such things most. Although the people of Qi Jun have not returned to Beijing, the stories in the streets and alleys have been spread long ago.

Qi Jun leaned on the carriage, and smiled wryly: "How can you be happy? In the past, the magistrate of Huishui County pretended to offer auspiciousness, and I wished I could kill him immediately, but now I also..." He used to disdain to do these things, But ever since he overwhelmed Concubine Ye Gui with a sword dance at the New Year's Eve Banquet, he found that sometimes it is much faster and more convenient to do so.But if he did the same, how would he be different from Concubine Ye Gui and Qi Zhang and others?

Zhibai didn't quite agree with his point of view: "Huishui County pretends to offer auspiciousness in order to get promoted and get rich. What's more, Shengxian Valley is not auspicious but a disaster. Although the northwest border is not auspicious, it is not a disaster. Besides, His Highness will comfort the people in the future. , It is enough to make up for the selfishness of this thought today."

Qi Jun reached out and stroked his hair: "It's selfishness, that is, you dare to say this to me." Anyway, this is also his selfishness, but Zhao Di, who knew the inside story, didn't Who dares to say that he is selfish.

Zhibai didn't understand the meaning of these words, and continued: "Since Your Highness knows to stop killing by killing, there is no need to worry about pretending to be auspicious. Although lying with one's tongue is a sin, if it is beneficial to all people, it is more meritorious than that. Faults. Taking one person's faults as the merits of all peoples is actually in line with the Buddha's saying, 'If I don't go to hell, whoever will go to hell'."

Qi Jun couldn't help laughing: "After you say that, I'm going to kill myself?"

Zhibai said earnestly: "Your Highness's blessings will be damaged if you lie with your tongue, but if the people understand the Lord because of this, it will be the merit of all the people. Your Highness is naturally the one who sacrificed his life."

Qi Jun was slightly taken aback, and suddenly realized that Zhibai was not trying to comfort him.He said that lying with tongue is a sin, then it is really a sin, that is to say, he is doing his own crime today by pretending to be auspicious, and all the lies damage his own blessings.

"In this way, the Ye family's party is deceiving the upper and lower all day long, so what?"

"Naturally, there will be retribution." Zhibai nodded, "I'm afraid that the blessing of the second prince was wiped out by me."

"So that's how it is..." Qi Jun murmured, "Strange ways are taught by sages, and gentlemen don't deceive dark rooms..." It turns out that every word and deed is really a bright candle in the sky, how can it not be alarming Of course, self-police!

However, Qi Jun's emotion only lasted until the palace.After entering the palace, the first thing he did was to meet Emperor Jing'an, and he had to tell about the "miracle" that the battlefield outside the pass suddenly turned into a flat ground, and then say a few more words about "blessed by the blessings of his father and emperor".Firstly, he is really not good at this kind of flattery, and secondly, thinking about what Zhibai said in the carriage, if he said one more word of heavenly auspiciousness here, it would be another point of his own luck, so these words are very good. It was very brief and could not satisfy Emperor Jing'an completely.However, the news of the auspiciousness has already spread throughout the capital, so it is inevitable that people will praise it. Besides, everyone knows that the prince has always been slow in speech but quick in action, so Emperor Jing'an was not demanding, and after he finished speaking, he praised him a lot Fan finally said: "Although God blesses our dynasty this time, as the prince, it is not advisable for you to take risks with yourself, and you must not do this in the future."

These words showed a bit of concern between father and son, Qi Jun's heart felt a little hot, and he bowed and said: "It's my son who is too reckless, and I won't do it again in the future."

Emperor Jing'an nodded: "Go and see your mother. Ever since she heard that you put yourself in danger, she has been worried day and night, and even fell ill. Now let her see that you are unharmed, and she will be relieved."

"Yes." Qi Jun hurriedly withdrew when he heard that the queen had fallen ill and was no longer interested in flattering her here.Feng En was already guarding outside the hall, and Qi Jun saw that he had a worried look on his face at a glance, but he was trying to cover it up, and suddenly his heart tightened, and he asked face to face: "How is the mother's condition? What does the imperial doctor say? Go ask the fairy teacher Go to Zichen Hall to check the pulse of the empress!"

"Your Highness——" Feng En stopped the little people who were going to invite people from the observatory, and instead waved his hands to let them all walk far behind, then said in a low voice, "Your Majesty is not really sick, it's—"

It's not really sick, it's just pretending to be sick.Qi Jun frowned: "What's wrong with the queen mother?"

"Your Majesty—it was the Crown Princess who broke the Emperor's Nine-Jeweled Crown."

"What nine-bead court crown?" Qi Jun was puzzled, "How could the crown princess touch father's court crown?"

Feng En smiled wryly, "This matter—the servant always suspects that it has something to do with it..." He pointed to the direction of the Hall of Erectile Dysfunction with his eyes, and then told the whole story from the beginning to the end.

Since April is the Longevity Festival, officials from all over the country must offer birthday gifts.Ordinary star-point petty officials are nothing more than that, and the big officials guarding one side have to rack their brains to offer treasures. For a time, jewels, jade, exotic flowers and rare plants have entered the capital, and the internal treasury is dizzy just by counting.Among them, the nine pearls presented by the southeast are the most precious.These nine pearls are all mysterious pearls, each of them is as big as a longan, dripping and flawless.Profound beads are rare to come by, not to mention that the size and color of the nine are exactly the same, so it is not an exaggeration to say that they are rare treasures.When these nine mysterious beads were brought in, Emperor Jing'an couldn't put them down on the spot. At that time, all the empresses and concubines were present, Concubine Ye Guifei said: "This dynasty respects the virtue of water and respects black color, and it is also worthy of respecting Emperor An's Longevity Festival. Why don't you use these?" Nine mysterious beads are newly made into a court crown, crowned with a map of Kyushu cast in red gold, and nine beads are inlaid on it, taking the meaning of Sheng Chaode being glorified by Kyushu forever, and also wishing Emperor Jing'an a long and endless life.

Since the number nine is respected, this is very popular, and Emperor Jing'an was naturally overjoyed, so Concubine Ye Gui volunteered to supervise the production of this imperial crown.At that time, Feng En could only wait outside the palace, and he didn't know what was said inside. The queen and Concubine Ye Gui had a dispute, and finally the matter of supervising the imperial crown fell into the hands of the queen.

There are craftsmen in the palace, and the empress just checks in on it day by day, and inspects it herself after the imperial crown is made.Because the court crown was made for the Longevity Festival of Emperor Jing'an, and it also has the good reputation of the unification of Kyushu, the craftsmen also paid special attention to it.But at this time, the news came from the northwest. When the queen heard that Qi Jun was in danger, even though she heard that she was not injured, she became impatient. She wished she could see her son right away.Thinking about the bitter cold in the northwest, Qi Jun had been there for a month, and he didn't know how much hardship he had to endure, so he couldn't help becoming anxious.However, at the Hall of Martial Ying, there are often various news about the second prince and concubine being happy, and there are frequent rewards from Concubine Ye Gui. How can you be happy?Not only did they often beat and scold the palace people, but even Zhao Yue, the daughter-in-law who had no good news, was also displeased.

Zhao Yue is not a submissive temper either, although she dare not talk back to the queen, but she is full of resentment, even perfunctory with the palace affairs in hand.In this way, after the tiara was made and sent to the Queen's Palace, neither the Queen nor the Crown Princess inspected it immediately.For some reason, when the queen went to look again, the pearl inlaid on the top of the crown loosened and fell off. Just as the queen picked up the crown, the pearl fell to the ground and broke in two.

"Confused!" Qi Jun's face became more gloomy the more he heard it, "Why does the empress want to compete with Mrs. Ye for the title of producer!" This is obviously the conspiracy of Concubine Ye Gui.

Feng En bowed his head and dared not speak.As soon as the pearl shattered, everyone knew it was a trap, but the queen fought for it herself, so how could he, a slave, dare to complain?Even the queen knew that Emperor Jing'an had been greatly offended this time, using the excuse of worrying about Qi Jun pretending to be sick.

There was a smell of medicine in Zichen Palace, but the bowl of so-called soothing liver and clearing fire medicine was thrown aside, and the queen sitting on the bedside and the princess who was sick by the bed all had gloomy faces. Jun, his eyes lit up immediately, the queen raised her body and was about to go down to the ground, but was held down by Qi Jun: "The queen got up carefully and became dizzy."

"Jun'er—" the queen took his hand, her eyes turned red, "That bastard Ye..."

"Mother, why bother to compete with her for such leisure?" Qi Jun Fengchen rushed back from the border, he was happy, but now he seems to have been splashed with a bucket of ice water. He didn't want to blame the queen anymore, but he couldn't help it .He was doing his best in the front, but the queen and the princess were causing trouble in the palace, how could he make people happy?

"How can I let Mrs. Ye supervise the crown for His Majesty? If she is really allowed to supervise, where will my palace be placed?" The queen also felt aggrieved, and glared at Zhao Yue displeasedly. The Crown Princess can share my worries, but who knows that she is useless! If she had been more careful when delivering it to Chao Guan, she would not have made such a mistake."

"Your Highness, I—" Zhao Yue opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by Qi Jun irritably: "The matter has come to this point, it is useless to talk, what about the court crown? Maybe you can find a matching pearl?"

Zhao Yue shut her mouth angrily and refused to speak.Shao Yaodai replied: "The Empress and the Crown Princess have tried various methods, but it is really hard to find such a big Xuanzhu. Although there are two Xuanzhus in the Crown Princess's dowry, they are not as big as this..."

Qi Jun let out a long breath: "Since this is the case, let's report to the father. Now that I have said it, I can try to ask the father to forgive me. If it is delayed until the Longevity Day, the father will be angry if he is not angry."

Zhao Yue sneered very lightly, and glanced at the queen.Qi Jun suddenly felt a little bad: "What?"

"Your father came here that day." The queen gave her son a timid look, "Ask about the imperial crown, I, I said that I have already made it, but I want to make an embroidered seat for the imperial crown. It was beautiful to present on the Longevity Day, so...so I never let your father see the imperial crown..."

Qi Jun only felt choked in his heart: "Mother! Since you can't find a matching pearl, you should explain it to your father!"

"Yes, but that bitch Ye came here with your father, that bitch insisted on looking at the crown, if I said that the crown was broken..."

"What about now?" Qi Jun only felt a burst of anger in his chest, "Forget it, give me the court crown, and I'll go and talk to my father."

The queen lowered her head subconsciously: "Yes, but that Ye..."

"What did Mrs. Ye say again?" Qi Jun raised his voice involuntarily.

The queen stopped talking, and Shaoyao knelt on the ground with a plop: "Your Highness, Concubine Ye Gui is pressing every step of the way. That day when the empress said that she would make an embroidery seat, Concubine Ye Gui said that this is an auspicious event for the harmony of heaven and earth, which made Your Majesty feel at ease." Smiling, how dare the empress say that the court crown has been damaged..."

"What about now! How will it end with such delay and concealment?"

"This..." The Empress knew she was wrong, she lowered her head and murmured, "Isn't it because I expect you to come back and think of a way..."

Qi Jun held his breath in his chest and couldn't get up or down. He was depressed for a while and said in a deep voice: "Bring Chao Guan!"

Shaoyao hurriedly fetched Chaoguan, but Qi Jun didn't even look at it: "Wrap it well!" Could it be that he is allowed to pass through the market with swagger like this?

Shao Yao shivered from being scolded, and hurriedly wrapped it in soft satin, found a food box and put it in.Only then did Qi Jun coldly say to Feng En: "Take it, let's go."

"Your Highness—" Zhao Yue waited for a long time but did not find a chance to talk to Qi Jun, so he quickly caught up two steps, "Your Highness, are you going back to the East Palace?"

"Go to the observatory!" Qi Jun didn't even want to say a word, turned around and left, throwing Zhao Yue at the gate of Zichen Hall.