Tang Hong Di Xue

Two years after Emperor Sheng ascended the throne and established a new dynasty, the world returned to Yuan, and the four realms were peaceful.

The undercurrent that had been surging in the court for two years gradually retreated quietly under the emperor's powerful and gentle wrist.

Although the eldest son of the Yan family died of illness two years ago, it was not very strange, but the young man Yan Sheng who ascended to the throne in the end also bore the surname Yan, and he was in charge of the chief son's warrant, ordering the Yan clan, no one dared not obey. .

At the beginning, the last emperor of the previous dynasty was tyrannical and licentious. After he succeeded to the throne, he carried out large-scale construction projects, tyrannical government and heavy taxes, so that the people had no means of living, their bones were exposed in the wild, and there were no chickens crowing for thousands of miles.

The curtain of the chaotic world is rising, and the smoke of wolves is billowing, sweeping thousands of miles away.After one of the rebels intercepted and strangled the last emperor who was on the way to escape, the vast Central Plains fell into the melee of rebels from all over the country again.

A crowd of lords competes for the throne, and for a while they stand on their own as kings.In the end, the one who led the army to wipe out the rest of the rebels, break out of the siege, and be qualified to win the Central Plains was the outstanding son of the Yan family—the eldest son Yan Su.

……

In the third year of Emperor Sheng, there was a palace banquet on Yuanxi.

"...Speaking of which, even though the rumored Eldest Son and Jinshang were not born of the same mother, they are considered to be in the same line. According to my sister, our Emperor's appearance is already rare, so the elder brother must be a What kind of person..."

The stars and the moon are hazy, and the sedan chair inlaid with gold and jade comes slowly from the depths of the night. More than a dozen maids in light purple long clothes carry lanterns on both sides of the soft sedan chair. Reddish halo.Sitting in the sedan chair were two women dressed in palace clothes, chatting casually, one of them seemed to be asking casually, with a voice as delicate and crisp as a warbler.

"This..." The other person was about to answer, when he caught a glimpse of the oncoming guard of honor outside the sedan chair, he stopped in horror.

"Doesn't sister know?" The girl who asked the question persisted and asked repeatedly.

"If Mr. Shu Gui really wants to know, why not ask me directly."

A stern voice inserted out of thin air made Mr. Shu Gui get out of the sedan chair and kneel down in a moment of sweaty and heavy clothes in the winter when the dripping water turned into ice: "Your majesty... the concubine didn't mean to talk about the old affairs of the previous court on purpose, the concubine knows wrong……"

"In my palace, there are no talkative people."

Emperor Cheng didn't give her a chance to defend herself, and with a few words between his thin lips, she had already sealed her fate for the rest of her life.It is said that lips are thin and love is thin, it is true.

After Yan Cheng finished speaking, he stopped looking at Mrs. Shu Gui who was lying limp on the ground, and fixed his eyes on the maids on the left and right sides of the sedan chair, with a slight frown on his brows: "The maids' clothes should be blue, did Concubine Yi forget?"

"Chenqie... Chenqie thinks that the purple color is more auspicious for the Yuanxi palace banquet..."

"No need." Yan Cheng was in a daze for a moment, then said calmly, "Purple is precious, how can it be used by court ladies?"

"...Yes, the concubine immediately ordered them to replace them."

He nodded slightly, and raised his hand to signal the guard of honor to move on.

Snow piled up behind her, covering the mourning and crying of the concubine whose position was abolished for talking too much.

Trees of fire, trees and flowers of silver blossoms, iron locks of the star bridge opened, moon chasing people, and lights for ten miles, such a grand scene was just a foil for the golden palace in the middle of the palace.

On the night of the New Year's Eve, a palace banquet is held as usual, and all the ministers are invited, and there is another concubine's family banquet in the inner palace.

There was a constant push and change of cups at the banquet, which seemed to be noisy and lively, but the eyes of officials, big and small, were all consciously or unconsciously paying attention to the emperor who was drinking by himself on the high seat.

Emperor Sheng is undoubtedly a master of enlightenment, but gold is not enough, this master of enlightenment has never thought of thrift. Since he ascended the throne, he has worked hard to govern, but at the same time he has built golden palaces and collected jewels and antiques wantonly, at the expense of people and money.

For example, at this banquet, when the golden bottle of wine was cold, a grate stove was set up to heat it up; when the jade plate was exhausted, new seats were added all the time... Several clean and honest people couldn't help frowning, thinking that it was too extravagant.

But Yan Cheng, who used to drink blood on the battlefield and was always vigilant, seemed to turn a blind eye to these eyes at this moment - he had already ordered the palace servants to remove the clear wine in front of him and replace it with strong wine. After drinking a few pots in a row, he was already Wei Wei was a little drunk.

It is clearly such a clear and almost transparent wine, the mouth is warm and mellow, but the strength of the wine is long, at first it enters the throat quietly, and then along the lungs, burning a ball of pungent flames.

He was so drunk, he didn't know what night it was, but his hand was still steady, he held the glass cup in his right hand, raised it to his eyes, stared at the fine wine in the cup as if researching, and didn't move for a while.

For a moment, it seemed that there was a wind, and the light blue wine gently undulated... Undulating, swaying the ripples of the loop.

The layers of water patterns made people dizzy, he moved his eyes away briefly, and when he looked down again, his whole body froze suddenly.

The turmoil stopped, and the liquid in the cup returned to calm again, like a blurred mirror, with shadows and shadows reflecting a wave of eyes.

The smile is like a smile, soaked in the blurred night, vaguely cold and vaguely looking down, but also seems to contain vaguely lingering, enough to make people drown in... eye waves.

The ambiguous and lingering meaning firmly entangled him - only one person in the world would look at him like this.Yan Sheng sobered up from the wine almost instantly.

When he was young, he lived on the streets, begging along the streets, covered in filth, and hated those disgusting eyes that seemed to look at him with dirty eyes; later he joined the army, and was repeatedly attacked with malicious intentions because of his handsome, almost feminine appearance. watch.

As he rises step by step, from the most humble pawn, to a centurion, a thousand generals, a thousand households, a general, a general, and finally a general, who has been tempered into steel, murderous, and dares to look at him with sizing eyes Fewer and fewer, and most of them had to look up at him from the bottom up—but among those who looked up, the person sitting opposite him was definitely not included.

The eldest son of the Yan family, who is stunningly talented and wears endless glory, is his eldest brother in name, the eldest son Yan Su.

Yan Cheng trembled slightly, but it was not from fear, but because of the resentment that had been buried for more than ten years and had never subsided.

No matter what he looks like, the way this person looks at him doesn't seem to change at all, it's always the same as the way he met at the beginning of the year when he bent his face from the horse's back to look at him, condescending, indifferent, and filled with some kind of pity tenderness.

——All are his most hated emotions.

The two years of flying flowers and flowing scenes turned into nothingness in an instant, and it was still like a dream. He returned to the tree and flowers that were in full bloom this year. Sitting opposite each other, his eyes are dark and his eyes are rolling.

Yan Su lifted up his deep purple sleeves with silver edges half rolled, and touched the gold cup with his fingers hidden in the sleeves, his eyes were as misty as clouds, and his sigh was real: "After five years of separation, I finally came back."

The night breeze in late spring was intoxicating, and the scent of incense swept over his body. It was glamorous, it was the prosperity of the Gongqing family's century-old heritage, and it also faintly revealed the corruption that had settled down to the bones.

Yan Cheng looked around the courtyard, but didn't make a sound - the orchids are bright and clean, the pines and bamboos are luxuriant, among the green scenery, there are three or two leisurely pavilions. This is the old house of the Yan family in Beijing, where Yan Su lived when he was young. It was his first time here.

During the five years, the last emperor was killed, and the rebel army rose together. After the Yan clan rebelled against the previous dynasty, the whole family left the capital.Today, when I return to my hometown, the dust has settled, Shanhe is about to change his surname, and he has changed his world.

The capital city fell into the flames of war again and again, and now it can be regarded as a breath of relief. Although the former prosperity is gone, the population is gradually thickening, the market has reopened, and a lot of waste is waiting for prosperity. It is just around the corner to restore the original grand occasion.

After Yan Su entered the capital, he has been busy rectifying the court affairs. Now that he has some free time, Yan Sheng ordered someone to clean up the old house, opened the other's old wine cellar, and placed it behind the study/in the courtyard where Yan Su studied in the past. A table of family banquets, two jugs of wine, waiting for my brother to enter the table.

On a cold spring night, a silvery-white full moon is held in the heavy sky, hundreds of Tangdi plants planted in the courtyard are in full bloom, and thousands of flower cups are crimson and cold white, clustered like a canopy, enveloping a couple of flowers.

The world has been established, and three days later, it will be the day when Yan Su practices Zuo, and Yan Sheng will be allowed to take the position of Prince.

Their status is no higher than before, and even if it is a private banquet for the two of them, they dare not neglect the future new monarch.Although the flowers are in full bloom, the singing and dancing are endless, silk and bamboo are singing together, playing a deep ancient tune, secretly in tune with the time of the ancient poems, the singing is far away, as if it sounds behind the floating clouds thousands of miles away: "Tang Di Zhihua, E Buwei, all people today are like brothers..."

When the wine was full, Yan Cheng clapped his hands and waved away the musician and dancer.The sound of the orchestra stops, only the wind blows and the shadows move, and the flowers and branches above the head sway.

"Brother, do you miss this place very much?"

"Nostalgia?" Yan Su's ending sounded like a real question, "No. I just feel that no one remembers what this courtyard used to look like."

He paused, tapped his forehead, and smiled again: "Yes, why am I telling you this. I picked you up from the street eight years ago, and I have never brought you to the capital, let alone the ancestors here. House, I forgot."

If it was a few years ago, Yan Cheng would definitely not be able to bear to mention his background in such a way, as if sitting on a cloud and watching the world fight, with a distant and contemptuous tone.

But these years, bathed in bloody storms, swords and swords, pools of red lotus blood under his feet, and corpses everywhere, he followed him, experienced so many plots, betrayal and killing, and countless murders with swords in his hands. Among Yan Su's generals, in the end, only As long as he can survive to the end, he is naturally no longer a beggar on the street without a city.

So he only held the green emerald handle of the jug, filled himself a glass, and said with his head down, "It is indeed today that I saw this courtyard for the first time."

Yan Su leaned on the rosewood armchair, staring at him drunkenly: "Look at this... Sigh, it really is different from before..."

before?

Yan Cheng pressed a sneer back into his heart, thinking silently, no one will remain the same forever...Brother.

But you, you always have to look at me with the eyes of the past.

He turned the mouth of the pot in the other direction, poured another cup for Yan Su with his own hands, and then offered it with both hands, his eyebrows closed, with a cold respect, just like his usual actions: "Brother is about to ascend the throne, when there will be It’s a grand ceremony, if you don’t have talent and don’t have much to wear, let’s prepare a little wine first, congratulations brother is happy.”

Yan Su stretched out a hand, took the glass of wine straightforwardly, held the glass impeccably, but frowned slightly: "How many times have I said... Ah Cheng, you don't need to be so careful when speaking normally. Or," his tone softened, as if he was very helpless, "do you think this is the only way to show the etiquette of a noble family?"

Yan Cheng couldn't organize his words for a moment - he mobilized all his strength to suppress the anger that was coiling wildly like a snake in his heart and was about to get out of the cage.

He was right.

After all, when it comes to the demeanor of a public servant, who can compare with Yan Su?

Even though he has always spoken casually in private, he never pays attention to rhetoric, and he doesn't care about the so-called demeanor.But once Yan Su's name came out, as long as he stood there, he was already the No.

Yan Cheng calmed down for a moment before recovering his voice: "Brother is right, I will be taught." He picked up the golden cup engraved with a dragon pattern on the side wall, and raised it towards the person opposite, making a gesture gesture of worship.

Different from Yan Su's toga with long sleeves, he was dressed in black with tight cuffs, dark embroidered scarlet patterns on the belt, and no other decorations. His whole body was neat and heroic. God himself.

Yan Su raised his eyebrows slightly, provoking a little appreciation, watching the rumored serious young general leaning over to bow to him, a rare smile appeared on his delicate face, his eyes were still as cold as ice crystals: "The first cup, Brother Xie used to send charcoal in the snow with a string of copper plates."

The old things flow past, bit by bit, endlessly, converging into a deep vortex, tempting people to walk into it uncontrollably.

Yan Cheng took a deep breath, and amidst the turbulent tide, he suddenly saw that dim day eight years ago, a border town, snowy sky, and a handsome purple-clothed boy surrounded by dozens of attendants, riding his horse past the abandoned broken bridge When a nest of beggars came down, he pulled the reins for some reason, and the horse stopped with a long hiss.He lowered his eyes slightly, looking at these young and ragged children, with a look of interest and indifference.

The beggars don't have so many extravagant hopes, the biggest wish is to be able to eat hot porridge and steamed buns every meal.But the winter is severe and there are few passers-by. You can't get three copper coins a day, and the land at the border is barren, and you can't find a job to make a living.There are all roads in the world, only poor people like them are as cheap as grassroots, and they will never have a way to go.

So a dozen or so half-grown children fought ferociously under the bridge and rolled into a ball in order to grab the land.Everyone feels that if there is one less person, there will be less scrambling and more chances to have a full stomach.

He was 12 years old at the time, and he didn't remember his last name. He only remembered that he had heard firecrackers to welcome the spring four times after escaping from the traffickers.He couldn't eat a grain of rice for two or three days, he was dying of hunger, curled up to preserve his strength, and refused to participate in this terrible chaos.However, before he had time to escape, a red-eyed companion rushed forward, pinned his head with thin hands, and slammed his face into the snow, trying to suffocate him to death with snow.

He struggled hard, because he went to steal the master outside the martial arts hall when he was free for a few years, and learned a little bit of kung fu, one forcefully toppled the man, and then stomped on his head.

It was this trick that attracted the fear of the leader of the beggars.Before he could stand still, the muscular black-faced boy sneaked up from behind, stretching his legs and sweeping towards his chassis unexpectedly.

After a fierce fight, he gained the upper hand with a slight advantage, and grabbed the boy's neck with both hands. As long as he exerted more force, this vicious thing would die—at this moment, he saw a layer of frightened tears in the boy's eyes , I suddenly lost strength in my hand.

"Go away." Finally he let go, got up staggeringly, and said in a hoarse voice.

"Do you have any copper coins? If you have any, take out a string." The north wind howled, the sound was like a ghost crying, such a fine voice like pearls and jade rang out unhurriedly, the voice was not high, but it was strangely not overwhelmed by the wind. Clear as in the ear.

He turned his eyes and saw the young man in purple sitting on a big horse with a bunch of copper plates in his hands. He tilted his head and thought for a while, then took off the jade pendant around his waist: "plus this. Who of you can defeat everyone? The son gave them all to him."

There was an uproar.

The black-faced boy knew his kindness, and whispered to him: "We are half of each, and after dealing with everyone, divide the money equally!"

He looked at the face bent down from the horse's back, like jade and snow, with an uncommon good looks, but his gaze was like the tip of a thin knife, piercing the bone lightly.He shivered for no reason, gritted his teeth, and nodded.

The boy's words were so sincere that when he was cut down by the opponent's palm, grabbed his hair and slammed into the bridge pier heavily, he still couldn't believe it: "You..."

"The money is all mine...you can't live!"

The tip of the knife passed across the throat, but there was a slight "chi".

The boy's strong body "plopped" down, his eyes wide open, and he numbly grabbed a ball of snow and wiped the knife that was taken out of his arms at the moment of life and death. The edge of the knife was full of rust, and the fresh blood melted snow and ice.

"It's pretty plausible."

The young master's eyes were not surprised, his smile was lightly interested, lightly boring, as if watching a not-so-exciting excerpt, with a sense of indifference.

Throwing down the string of copper coins and the white jade, he fumbled to pick up the copper plate, then knelt down and held the jade pendant in front of the man again: "I don't want this jade."

"Oh?"

"I want...I want to follow you." He panted with exhaustion, put his elbows on the ground, and tried to support the heavy body, "Live like a person."

The strong wind tore through the clouds, and the pale sun cast a faint shadow. The youthful boy looked up at the sky and smiled slightly: "The sun rises very brightly, and the light is bright, it is for Sheng... Then, from now on , your name is Yan Sheng."