Surrounded by strong ministers

Xiao Zong picked a dozen or so secret guards to accompany him, and took a group of imperial nephews in a carriage to leave the palace from a remote gate of the palace, all the way to the south of the city where the temple fair was held.

Several children in the carriage looked excited, but they didn't speak. They sat in a row across from each other and watched the little cousin whom his uncle had picked up, not very neatly put on the coat.

The kid who was so excited was naturally Xiao Jian.

Originally, Xiao Zong said that taking the nephew out of the palace did not count Xiao Jian. Firstly, the baby was asleep, and secondly, Xiao Jian was too young to walk too much, so it was not convenient to hold him all the time. Only bring a few large ones.However, when he arrived at Zhaoyang Palace to pick him up, Xiao Jian just woke up.

Xiao Jian, who woke up, saw his uncle leading a few older brothers walking out of the hall lightly, wearing plain clothes that were different from usual. Although this baby was always despised by his eldest cousin for being a poor brain, she only knew how to act coquettishly and giggle , but in some aspects he was extremely keen and sensitive. He saw that his brothers were all taken away by his uncle, and only he was left behind. He felt abandoned, leaned on the door frame, curled his mouth, and sobbed pitifully and aggrieved.

How could Xiao Zong stand this, the little nephew burst into tears and immediately took him down.

Xiao Zong dressed his nephew in the brocade gown in the carriage, picked him up and stood on his knees to straighten him up.Xiao Jian was still whimpering a little, wrapped his arms around his uncle's neck, and said softly, "Don't leave Jian'er..."

Xiao Zong secretly sighed in distress, and patted his nephew on the back.

Among the boys who had been quiet for a long time, some sighed, but it was Xiao Li, who slapped his thigh with regret on his face: "If I knew this tearbag is so easy to use, I would let him howl first, so as to save us and uncle It took me a long time to figure it out, and I almost didn't scratch my tongue."

Xiao Jun nodded, "Next time if I want something, I'll howl at Uncle twice." Turning around, he asked Xiao Heng, "Are you howling?"

Xiao Heng looked at the two shameless younger brothers, and turned his head in distaste.

The carriage drove on the secluded road for about half a stick of incense, and turned into the main street in the imperial city, gradually the voices of people penetrated into the car.After walking for a while, the voices outside the car grew louder. After a while, the carriage stopped, and Wang Rong said outside: "Master, we're here." Opening the car door, the hustle and bustle poured in like a tide.

Xiao Zong got out of the car with his little nephew in his arms, and saw the wide street in front of him, with all kinds of lanterns hanging on the cornices and branches of high-rise buildings on both sides, and four stalls lined up on the street, selling various kinds of goods on the stalls There are a lot of beautiful things in sight, crowds of people extend along the street, the sound of hawking comes one after another, and the sound of gongs can be heard faintly in the distance, and there are also various vendors and stalls lined up in various branch streets in the distance.

It was the first time for Xiao Zong to see such a lively atmosphere of people's livelihood, he was slightly taken aback, and then he was touched by the warm atmosphere in front of him, and felt relieved.The nephews couldn't stay around him, even Xiao Jian, who had been wronged all this time, lifted his head from his uncle's shoulders, but when Wang Rong wanted to hug him and change hands for the emperor, he was probably afraid of being thrown away again. Yes, but not yet.

Holding his little nephew and walking into two rows of stalls, Xiao Zong was a little dazed by the bustle, his eyes subconsciously fixed on the children running in front, although there were guards secretly protecting him, the temple fair was full of people after all, he still didn't mind Dare to worry.

"Master, Taifu Han." Wang Rong beside him suddenly tugged at his sleeve.

Xiao Zong was taken aback, turned his head and saw a person standing in front of the crowd with his hands behind his back, that person was wearing a navy blue narrow-sleeved long gown, which accentuated his tall and slender figure, with an elegant appearance and a slight smile, it was indeed Han Su.

But Xiao Zong didn't dare to admit it. In the past, he had seen the Taifu in court clothes of a public servant. In his memory, it was rare for the Taifu to wear casual robes and a white gown with wide sleeves. Today he suddenly saw a dark-colored body Han Su, who was dressed in a robe, showed a bit of calmness in his unparalleled style, but this was a little different, and his demeanor was quite different from usual.

Xiao Zong was slightly stunned, Han Su had already stepped forward, bowed slightly, and said, "Master Fourteen." But he was not at all surprised by Xiao Zong's casual appearance in the downtown area.

Xiao Zong regained his composure, and said, "Too...Han Su, you also come to the temple fair?" He actually didn't think Han Su was the kind of person who would join in the fun.

Han Su looked at the emperor and smiled slightly: "It's rare to have such an opportunity, it's a pity to miss it." After a pause, "And there are indeed some rare things in the temple fair that are worth seeing."

Xiao Zong nodded, "If that's the case, let's take a look together." He moved Xiao Jian in his arms, hugged him tighter, walked forward slowly with the flow of people, and casually chatted with the Taifu: "Today You mentioned a temple fair in front of me, and my nephews took it to heart, if you don't agree with them, you probably won't even want to sleep at night."

Han Su followed Xiao Zong and listened to him, only smiled lightly and said nothing.

This Sheng'an Street is one of the several big streets in the capital. The street was originally very spacious, but now it is extremely congested because of the few stalls and the constant flow of people.Xiao Zong and the others tried their best to follow the flow of people to the side, but even so, the current emperor who was holding a small baby was bumped and bumped by the people who crowded the temple fair in the past, Han Su kept him aside without a trace, Wang Rong wanted to say a few words to those bold people who offended Long Ti and didn't even have a word of apology, but Xiao Zong stopped him, only saying that people didn't mean it.

After stumbling and walking for a while, there was a side street that branched off, the street was also brightly lit, and there were stalls on both sides, but there were not so many people, so Xiao Zong called a few nephews to turn into the side street.

On the side street, Xiao Zong suddenly felt relieved and took a breath, just now he was crowded with people, it was really uncomfortable.

"Is the emperor okay? Do you want to take a rest?" Han Su frowned slightly and said.

Xiao Zong shook his head lightly.

Han Su said: "The market is no different than the imperial palace. It is more chaotic and noisy. Today, there is a gathering every three years. It is inevitable that it will be more bustling and chaotic."

Xiao Zong smiled and said: "Zhen... I really hope that it will be like this every year. It is always lively and lively. It is a sign that the people live in peace and prosperity."

Just as he was talking, when he passed by a stall, the owner of the stall saw Xiao Zong, his eyes lit up, and he immediately solicited business in a loud voice, "Master, sir, please stop and take a look at our business, all the places in the north and south are gathered together My son’s are all rare items, keep them as genuine as possible.”

Xiao Zong paused sideways, he had never bought anything by himself before, glanced around the small booth, and saw that there were all kinds of wooden boxes, porcelain vases, large and small items on it, and the wooden boards separated them. There are also jade pendants carved into various shapes and hanging tassels on the crossbars of the simple stalls.

Xiao Zong held his little nephew in one hand, and casually picked up a rather elegant blue and white porcelain cup with the other.

The stall owner immediately said enthusiastically: "Master, you really have good eyesight. Anyone with your eyesight must be from a wealthy family. Although we say that everything on our stall is exquisite and expensive, it is true, sir. This one in my hand is a high-quality product, and only a rich family like you deserves such a rich product." The stall owner smeared honey, and he would travel all over the world, saying hundreds of thousands of compliments, and opened his mouth He used it to flatter the guests, and also mentioned the value of his own property by the way.

Xiao Zong took the blue and white porcelain cup and looked at it in his hands. There was a label on the porcelain cup, which said "Rejuvenating Muscle and Revitalizing Cream" in ink.Xiao Zong thought, looking at this name, it is probably something that women use to put on face, or it is used to remove scars and treat trauma.

Han Su also saw the name on the side, and said softly to Xiao Zong, "Let's go."

The stall owner turned his mouth up and down, opened and closed without stopping, and he just kept complimenting Xiao Zong, boasting that his goods are good, trying to persuade Xiao Zong to pay for the money, and Han Su, who was also dressed in a wealthy outfit, was beside him. But he didn't say a word.

"Master, only a wife of your family status is worthy of using this precious product." The stall owner smiled all over his face, "If you give this to your wife, she must like it very much. If your wife is happy, you must be even happier .”

I don't know if it was Xiao Zong's illusion, but he felt that the stall owner was smiling a little strangely on his pockmarked face.

Since this thing is for a woman to apply to her face, he didn't know who to give it to when he bought it back, so he wanted to put the porcelain cup back.

Although Xiao Zong and his entourage were dressed casually, their clothes and demeanor were unusual after all. One could see that they were from a wealthy family, and such a man with a family background looked gentle and indifferent, with the appearance of a good butcher who was not deeply involved in the world.The sky will send a big fat sheep, if it is not slaughtered, it will be struck by lightning, how could the stall owner let the fat sheep fly away.

Seeing that Xiao Zong didn't seem to be interested, the stall owner quickly poked his head out from behind the stall and approached the fat sheep: "Master, don't rush away, this is really a good thing." Two small eyes gnawed on the fingers of Xiao Zong's arms The little boy turned around, and then glanced behind Xiao Zong, because Xiao Zong didn't allow the emperor's nephews to stay too far away from him, Xiao Heng and the other little boys were all joining in the fun in front of another stall a few feet away, and the stall owner would A group of children glanced over, and said with a hey smile: "I am young and have a strong son, I think my husband and wife must be in harmony." After laughing twice, he said in a very clear and considerate tone, "Baby There are so many and so big, although there must be no shortage of wet nurses in the master's house, but if the wife only nurses a few mouthfuls for each little son, that place should hang down."

After a short breath, the stall owner went on to say: "Use our skin-rejuvenating cream, apply it for two days, and keep it tall and straight again."

Xiao Zong didn't understand what it meant at first, but he finally woke up after choking on the last sentence. Looking at the strange smiling face of the small vendor, he involuntarily glanced at Han Su beside him, silently put down the porcelain cup, hugged Xiao Jian walked away.After walking a long distance, I heard the vendor yelling behind him: "Master, this is a time-honored brand. Many young ladies, wives and concubines buy from us, and they agree to use it. Why don't we treat it as a favor for the first time? You can get [-]% or [-]% of it, keep it up, if you don’t, we will compensate you ten or eight boxes, until you get it.”

Xiao Zong walked out without saying a word for a long time, with a dull expression on his face, and almost bumped into the oncoming woman who was also holding a baby. Fortunately, an arm wrapped around his waist in time and pulled him over.

Xiao Zong turned his head and saw that it was Taifu.

Han Su said: "There are many people, don't go too hastily."

Xiao Zong looked at the Taifu, although the Taifu had a composed expression on his face, calm and calm, as if the stall owner had never said those words, and Han Su hadn't heard anything, but Xiao Zong always felt that the Taifu was holding back smiling.

"It's okay to hear the vulgar words of the common people." Han Su said lightly.

Xiao Zong's face was already a little tight, but he couldn't help but tighten again.

At this time, Wang Rong came up very appropriately, changing hands for the master to hug the young master, but Xiao Jian still didn't want to be hugged by anyone except his uncle, so Wang Rong sang and danced, coaxed and coaxed for a long time, In the end, he managed to coax the little master into his hands, and somewhat relieved the embarrassment for the master.

With the help of his servant, Xiao Zong felt a little more at ease. He moved his arms that had been numb while holding his nephew for a long time, and walked slowly along the crowd side by side with Han Su. Wang Rong followed Xiao Zong like a slave. Followed two feet away.

At this time, the night was dark, the night sky was full of stars, countless lights hanging under the eaves of the corridor swayed in the slight night wind, just like starlight, the sky and the ground were connected with sparks, and the scene was very spectacular.

Xiao Zong looked up for a moment, turned his head and was about to say something to the Taifu, but he saw Han Su leaning very close to him, almost looking down at him with his face on his shoulder.Xiao Zong never thought how tall Tai Tuo was before, and he always felt that although he was not strong, he was tall, but now he compared himself, so he was so short.

The candles lit by the stalls on the street illuminated the surrounding area brightly. In the light of the fire, the way the Taifu looked at him seemed to be inexplicably different from usual. Xiao Zong said, "What's wrong?"

Han Su slightly turned his eyes away, didn't speak for a while, and then said after a while: "It's nothing, but I've been out for a while, I don't know... Are you hungry? In the branch alley in front are food stalls from all over the city. If you are hungry, go there have a look."

Xiao Zong thought for a while, he wasn't hungry, but he touched a few nephews who might want to eat something, and, at the food stall, there shouldn't be any inexplicable things, so he said hello.

Turning around to greet a group of nephews, only to see a few children surrounded by a booth.

The stalls of that family are quite ostentatious. Others’ stalls are only one or two feet square, but the length of that one is four or five feet, occupying the positions of two or three others. , I don't know what to buy and sell, which made all the princes refuse to leave.

Xiao Zong and Han Su turned around and approached the stall, and saw that the porcelain vases were packed neatly and crowded together. The vases were all of the same size and not far from each other in appearance, except that the patterns and patterns of the glaze on the vases were different. , but it looks very high-grade, which is very commensurate with the posture of the big stall.

Seeing his uncle coming, Xiao Li raised his head and said depressedly: "This old man said that he doesn't sell his things to children, and he doesn't even let people touch them. Uncle, is he afraid that we don't have money or looks down on children?"

Xiao Zong smiled, he said that these children usually look down on everything, how could they be interested in some bottles and cans today, it turned out that they were underestimated and became stubborn.

Han Su stood beside Xiao Zong, glanced at the stall, frowned slightly, and was about to say something, but saw that Xiao Zong had already picked up one from the pile of bottles, so he didn't say anything.

Xiao Zong held the bottle and looked at it in his hand. The word "Peach Blossom" was written on the belly of the bottle in small letters. The handwriting was extremely light and graceful. Xiao Zong reckoned that the stall owner was a knowledgeable person, and the bottle was filled with some face powder. Spices and the like.Looking at the middle-aged stall owner in the middle of the busy market, he neither yelled like the merchants in the Zhou Dynasty, nor was he too enthusiastic to solicit customers, he was very calm.

"Young master, what you have in your hand is made from carefully selected peach blossom petals in full bloom in March. It is fragrant and delicious. It is a good product." The stall owner said to Xiao Zong with a smile, and glanced at Han Su in the blink of an eye. , looked at Xiao Zong again, and said more euphemistically, "However, this fragrance is for women, I'm afraid it's not suitable for you, my lord."

Xiao Zong took something that shouldn't be taken by mistake, but the stall owner didn't beg for nothing to sell his own things, which made him kind to the elegant merchant in front of him, and said, "So, is there any one for men?"

The stall owner looked at the two clearly distinguished guests again, nodded, and pointed to a special place on the stall separated by a carved wooden strip, "These are all prepared for men, but because of the complicated process , the effect is not unusual, and the price is a bit higher."

Xiao Zong didn't think much about it, he picked up two bottles at random, and saw "Agarwood" written on one of them, and "Clivia" written on the other. Many literati in the Zhou Dynasty were fond of incense, but Xiao Zong didn't know much about it, so he Holding two bottles, Han Su asked beside him, "Which one do you want?" He often smelled a faint fragrance from the Taifu, for example, now, when the Taifu was close to him, this fragrance wafted through his breath , much richer than usual, which made him a little unaccustomed to it.

Han Su's face was pale, and he glanced at the two vials in the hands of the emperor, "You don't need fragrance. Let's go eat something, I'm a little hungry."

Xiao Zong felt that there seemed to be something wrong with the Taifu, but he couldn't tell what was wrong. Turning his head, the stall owner was looking at him. Xiao Zong thought, he had lingered in front of this stall for a long time, and he couldn't justify it without paying some money. Just buying a bottle of incense, at this moment, Xiao Heng suddenly said: "Uncle, someone is looking for you again."

Xiao Zong turned around, and a tall figure in the crowd in the distance pierced into his eyes.The visitor had slender eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and his thin lips seemed to be holding a slight smile. He walked slowly towards him.

Xiao Zong couldn't help but frowned, and murmured: "Didn't I tell you to let him stay peacefully in the hotel during his stay in Beijing?"

Han Su looked at the person coming, and said in a low voice, "Young Master Chu is very skilled and has a high status. If he wants to go out, if there is no force, no one in Zhuxiang Court will dare to force him to stay."

Xiao Zong frowned, and after a long while, his voice was soft but slightly cold: "Does he not understand his situation, or does he intend to cause trouble for me...to cause trouble for me?"

That day King Qin said that he would not allow himself to be completely passive, Xiao Zong later thought about how King Qin would not be passive.When he first received the letter from his uncle to send his son to Beijing, Xiao Zong wondered whether the matter might be related to the King of Qin, but everything was chaotic afterwards, and he could not come to a conclusion.Now that King Qin is imprisoned by him in the capital, if he still wants to stand up, the most likely thing he will not be able to get rid of is King Chu after much deliberation.He didn't know what scheme that man would set up to cause trouble between him and his uncle, but he could see that Sima Xian couldn't be bothered.He doesn't know how many secret lines King Qin has in the capital, but he can't be allowed to touch Sima Xian.He thought that the Second Young Master Chu would know how to settle down when he clicked so far, but why is he still so ostentatious, running around alone?

Xiao Zong couldn't help but frown even more when he thought of the report that all the ministers jointly used troops against the Northwest this morning. He kept Sima Xian in Beijing because he wanted to see what his uncle would do next. Now it seems that this is not the case. a thing.

"I see, tomorrow I will order him to return to Chu as soon as possible to save trouble."

Han Su nodded beside him. He had just thought of something suddenly, and was thinking about when it would be appropriate to talk to the emperor, but he didn't need to say anything more when he heard that Xiao Zong was about to expel Second Young Master Chu. what.

Xiao Zong and Han Su stood in front of the booth and watched Sima Xian coming.

The second prince of the King of Chu came close to the Son of Heaven, bowed slightly, said "Fourth Lord", raised his slender eyebrows and smiled, and groaned, just looked at Xiao Zong and didn't speak.

Han Su frowned slightly, and said, "Mr. Sima is also going out to watch the temple fair?"

Sima Xian smiled and replied: "Mr. Han can go out to see, so can't I also go out to see? The one who was locked up was the wolf in the northwest, not me." His slender eyebrows raised.

Han Su looked at him lightly and said nothing.

Sima Xian continued to smile, and turned his eyes to Xiao Zong, just about to say a few words, when he saw the porcelain bottle in Xiao Zong's hand, he couldn't help but take a second look, then turned his eyes back to the booth, the corners of his mouth and eyes suddenly They all rose up.

Seeing this, Xiao Zong suddenly had a bad premonition, and couldn't help following the eyes of the second son of King Chu.

Under the bright firelight, a bamboo pole was erected next to the imposing stall, and a small cloth flag was hung on the pole, with three words "Spring Night Tent" written on it.

Xiao Zongzheng felt a little numb, and the porcelain bottle in his hand was taken away.

A voice was low but full of derision: "The 'Aloes' of the Spring Night Tent is said to be the best product in men's beds, it can not only reduce the pain of bearing but also increase the joy of happiness."

Xiao Zong suddenly remembered the eyes of the middle-aged stall owner on him and Han Su.

In fact, this temple fair was specially designed to make life difficult for him.