Surrounded by strong ministers

On the second day, Xiao Zong announced the news of Prince Chu's entry to the capital at the court, and all the officials expressed their views on this and discussed for a long time.The king of Chu was very popular, and the courtiers either spoke official language, uttered nonsense, or were full of praise. Only a few new court officials who had been selected by Zengkai Enke last month said a few words that were in line with Xiao Zong's heart.

Sitting on the throne, Xiao Zong suddenly felt a little sad.

After coming down to court, Xiao Zong went to Zhaoyang Palace as usual.It was the time when the emperor's nephews were having their morning class, Xiao Zong stood outside the study for a while, listening to Xiao Heng discussing politics with the old master inside, with extraordinary knowledge, he felt a little comforted in his heart.

He cherished and cherished all his nephews.The fortune of being born in an emperor's family is that prosperity and wealth are within your reach, and people can live and die with their feet on their feet.The misfortune of being born into an emperor's family is the unavoidable fratricide and brotherhood for thousands of years.Brothers, friends, brothers and sisters, the easy-to-follow human relationship and family happiness for ordinary people in the world, is the most extravagant delusion for the prince and grandson. Just like him, he once let go of the throne, but he never dared to let go of his blood relatives. .Now he would occasionally look back at the past, when he was young, Prince Rui approached him several times to warn him, in fact he was kind to him, but at that time he thought that the second brother was cold-hearted, he was not the same as him, so he kept him at a respectful distance.

Xiao Zong stood in the corridor, listening to the answer from the partition wall.

"Your Highness, the Mohists sacrifice their lives for benevolence, is that a great righteousness?" the old master asked.

"Sacrificing one's life for benevolence is called great righteousness, but raising the banner of the Mohist school with many sacrifices is false righteousness. The so-called righteousness means that the common people are pure in heart, that the generals are defending the country from the enemy, and those who are in positions of power are the smallest sacrifices. In exchange for the greatest benefit, to give peace to the world without worrying about means and reputation."

Xiao Zong listened with his hands behind his back, and raised his lips unconsciously, the eldest nephew even held the same opinion as his father.

He always had regrets for Prince Rui, so he couldn't help showing more love to Xiao Heng.

"Is the emperor going in?" Wang Rong asked in a low voice.

Xiao Zong stood for a while, then said: "No, let him concentrate on class." He turned around and walked out.

Xiao Zong came out from Zhaoyang Palace, he got up today and only ate two pieces of pineapple cakes to fill his stomach before going to the court to discuss government affairs. He felt a little hungry at the moment, and was planning to go back to the palace to eat, and then go to Chongyang Palace to review the papers and beat the imperial court. When passing by the garden, I saw a gazebo surrounded by several jasmine plants in full bloom. With a heart move, I ordered Wang Rong to pass the meal to the gazebo.

A few dishes of pastries and cold dishes, a bowl of porridge with whitebait and egg flower was placed on the stone table in the pavilion, Xiao Zong sat by the table, watching the elegant and quiet scene, the faint annoyance that he had pent up in his chest when he went to court gradually dissipated.

Yesterday Han Su told him to unite Chu against Qin.

If in the end his country cannot avoid the disaster of war, this may be his only way out.

But, if possible, he really didn't want to take that step.

Xiao Zong was stunned for a while, picked up the blue and white bowl, and just blew two breaths on the hot porridge with the emerald spoon, when a servant rushed over.

Xiao Zong put the ladle of thick and fragrant porridge that had been blown cold into his mouth, and heard the servant kowtow to say, "King Qin begs to see you."

This is probably the last thing Xiao Zong wants to hear right now. He took a mouthful of the fragrant whitebait porridge, and suddenly found it hard to swallow.

No matter how hard it is to swallow, it still has to be swallowed.

If you don't want to see King Qin, you still have to meet him.

Xiao Zong sighed, with a pale face, said: "Xuan."

After a while, King Qin arrived in front of Xiao Zong under the guidance of the palace servants. Today, he was wearing a silver python wearing cloud and navy blue body-shaping brocade robe with narrow sleeves and long swings, making his burly figure very awe-inspiring and upright.

"I have seen the emperor." The king of Qin bowed slightly outside the pavilion, and with his long and narrow eyes flying into his temples, he did not shy away from shooting at Xiao Zong inside the pavilion.

Xiao Zong sat at the stone table with a cold face, met that gaze, and said lightly, "Excuse me." The secluded corner of the imperial garden really became secluded, no one could hear anyone speak.

Wang Rong was waiting for a few servants, and he saw His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness Qin Wang standing upright, the other sitting quietly, inside and outside the pavilion, the two looked at each other, one raised his eyebrows, none of his facial features were not revealingly sharp, and the other With a cold face, I don't know if he is pretending to be a dead fish.

Wang Rong wiped his forehead subconsciously, and led a few young eunuchs back a few feet away.

"Qin Wang saw me today, why?" After a long time, Xiao Zong asked.

The King of Qin still didn't speak, but looked at Xiao Zong's body up and down, and finally settled on the face of the emperor, and suddenly bent his lips, "The emperor left the minister's room yesterday. His expression and mood were not very good. I feel a little sorry. Today I'm here to say hello." A thin joke slipped from his lips.

Xiao Zong rolled his eyes blankly and didn't intend to say anything.

The King of Qin continued, "Now that I see that your Majesty seems to be well, I feel relieved. The emperor gave up his life for the sake of the people and the country yesterday. His generosity is truly admirable. I did not expect that the emperor can really do this and be so flexible."

Xiao Zong drooped his eyelids, his face was a little stiff, but he still didn't say anything.At this moment, a dark cloud suddenly covered his head, Xiao Zong raised his eyelids, but it was King Qin who walked into the pavilion.

King Qin leaned against the pillars of the pavilion, standing against the light, his profound and exquisite face showed a faint aggressiveness in the darkness, but there was a playful smile between his eyebrows and eyes.He stared at Xiao Zong's expression, and said slowly, "Your Majesty, why did you have such an expression? You...wasn't like that yesterday." His amber eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had thought of something worth remembering, and he gave a low laugh, "Mr. It wasn't until yesterday that I found out who the words "lively and fragrant" were written for."

Xiao Zong looked at the wolf who was talking nonsense in front of him without any restraint, and seemed to be getting more and more energetic. He was silent for a moment, and said lightly, "I didn't know until yesterday that the King of Qin is also anxious and thirsty." .” He raised his right hand and looked at it, then looked at King Qin in a blink of an eye, “It’s a thousand miles away.”

Qin Wang's joking and teasing just froze on his face, and his face darkened bit by bit.

With a blank expression, Xiao Zong picked up the whitebait egg porridge that had been put aside, and took a few sips. The porridge was already cold, but he unexpectedly cleared his throat and moistened his lungs, making it comfortable to drink.In fact, Xiao Zong is not a person who can show his temper for a while, and he has always disdained to waste time on trivial matters, and he is even more ashamed to make dirty jokes. However, there are always exceptions in the world. He thought about it. Sometimes the way to deal with robbers is better than Robbers are stronger robbers, and the most effective way to shut up King Qin right now is to be more rascal than King Qin.

Xiao Zong unhurriedly ate half a bowl of porridge, and left Qin Wang leaning on the pillars of the octagonal pavilion with a gloomy complexion, as if he was still a little suffocated.

Xiao Zong put down the bowl, wiped his mouth with a brocade handkerchief, and said again: "King Qin didn't enter the palace just to flirt with me with such useless talk."

Qin Wang leaned on the pillar of the pavilion, did not move for a long time, his eyes suddenly flashed towards Xiao Zong, his expression was complicated, he didn't know what he was thinking.After a long time, he walked slowly to the stone table and sat down opposite Xiao Zong, the frivolous look on his face was no longer there.

"I'm sending something back to Your Majesty today." He took out an object from his lapel and held it in front of Xiao Zong's eyes. He looked straight at Xiao Zong with amber eyes as if they were covered with a thin layer of ice, calm There is no trace, but the determination is abnormal.

Xiao Zong watched King Qin pinch the object with two fingers and handed it to him, he was stunned and lost his mind for a moment.

"I found this on the small couch in the minister's bedroom. It must have been left by the emperor."

Xiao Zong didn't say a word, just looked at the object for a moment, then turned his eyes lightly, and looked outside the pavilion.

It was like a pendant.

Bone carving.

Because it is bone, the tentacles are rough, not as smooth as jade, and also because it is bone, the whole body is yellow, with streaks of blood coagulated in several places.The pattern carved on the bone is a roaring beast, which is exquisite in craftsmanship and lifelike. The two crystals in the eyes of the beast are full of cold light, against the dark blood stains on the bone, revealing a galloping and dignified ferocity.

He vaguely remembered that the original owner of the bone carving had said that the beast carved on it was the totem of his clan, and the bone used to carve it was taken from the totem itself.Different from the customs of the Central Plains imperial family to engrave letters with jade, other clans have used the bones of holy beasts to carve letters since ancient times. The king’s seal is from the spine of the beast, and the king’s seal from Qin is from the limbs of the beast, implying that the limbs and spine support the family’s strength and prosperity. .The owner of the bone carving said that he was the prince of the clan, so the bone was taken from the leg bone of the beast.

"Does the emperor have anything to say to the minister?" King Qin looked at Xiao Zong's condensed side face, withdrew his hand, held the bone carving and flipped it back and forth carelessly a few times, raised his eyebrows, and his eyes flickered slightly, setting off an unpredictable Li Guang, "This is the trust of the princes of my Yeqi family, why... is it in the hands of the emperor?" His gaze was fierce, sharp as a thorn.

Xiao Zong's eyes moved, and he glanced at King Qin, but his expression was flat but showed no emotion at all.

Several times after he ascended the throne, looking at the bone ornament, he recalled the moment when he first saw the owner of the bone carving in the Daming Hall when he was young.The boy with a blank face was tied up and knelt in the golden hall. At that time, he was standing on the imperial steps, and he could see the slightly lowered half of the boy's face, showing a dead look.His father was sitting in the golden palace, Long Wei was furious, Tuoba Hong, the first king of Qin, pointed to the dull young man at his feet and said, "This bastard offended the prince, let him be judged by the emperor."

He looked at the young man who looked like he was waiting to die, and felt sad, he couldn't help but feel pity, and he couldn't stand by and watch.

Later Prince Rui approached him and warned him not to get involved too much.In fact, he probably knew what his father was planning, and he also understood what the first king of Qin was planning, and he was even more aware of what he was powerless to change in the major affairs of his family and country.But he just couldn't bear it and wanted to help the boy.

That was a past event many years ago, except for him, probably no one still remembers it now.

"Since this is the seal of the Prince of the Wild Banner Clan, King Qin kept it for himself, so why send it to me on purpose." After a moment's pause, Xiao Zong said calmly, "Now, whether I keep it or not, it makes no difference."

Saying that, Xiao Zong was about to get up, but King Qin stretched out his long arm suddenly, clasped Xiao Zong's wrist which was propped on the stone table with five fingers, "Is the emperor planning to dismiss the minister with just such a sentence? Will the prince be kept as a trustee?" To commemorate, the emperor has a long relationship with that person, right?"

Xiao Zong thought that the man in front of him looked up at him under the imperial steps with arrogance and arrogance when he met him in the Daming Palace that day, and the glance he shot at him in an instant should be the sharpest gaze he has ever seen. Not so.

Looking at King Qin, Xiao Zong suddenly wanted to laugh, and couldn't help but raised his lips mockingly, "What is King Qin doing? Is it possible that I still need to explain everything to you? If you really want to know something, just ask The master of Wang Yin is."

The King of Qin stared at Xiao Zong with sharp eyes, remained silent for a while, and said: "More than ten years ago, there was a boy in the Palace of the King of Qin who injured the blood of the emperor. In a fit of rage, that kid was thrown to the capital to await the divine judgment. No one thought that he would survive to return to the Northwest, and not many people expected him to survive. But after half a year, he survived and returned to Prince Qin's Mansion " Qin Wang pinched the bone-carved prince seal, "It seems that the emperor is the reason why he was able to save his life."

Some things are in the past, after a long time, no one mentions them, just like a cloud of smoke.Xiao Zong actually understands that he'd better stop dwelling on the past, but sometimes he can't help but suddenly remember the past.Recalling that there was once someone, young Xinxing, who engraved his name on the tree trunk and swore to him at the same time.

"Is this really left by Tuoba Yue?" King Qin's voice was cold.

Xiao Zong slightly closed his eyes.After a long time, I heard King Qin's cold voice, "Your Majesty should know that all of my brothers have been killed before the army."

"You can let me go." After a long time, Xiao Zong said.

Qin Wang looked at Xiao Zong's appearance, and suddenly sneered: "Instead of holding on to the past, the emperor should think about how to appease this king."