turmoil

The Jinyi guards on both sides rushed forward like wolves and tigers, and pinned Zhang Jingche to the ground. Zhang Jingche couldn't break free, and hissed, "Commander Lu, what did you do wrong with your humble job!"

Lu Xiang stood up, walked down the hall slowly, raised Zhang Jingche's chin with the toe of his boot, his condescending eyes were like looking at a lifeless ant.

"What mistakes did you make?" Lu Xiang repeated playfully, and sneered, "You probably didn't take what I told you the day you entered Jinyiwei, did you?"

After Zhang Jingche's arm was twisted backwards, his joints were in severe pain, and cold sweat broke out crazily.Han Xun outside the hall wanted to rush in, but was stopped by the Jin Yiwei guarding the door with a knife.

"Let me tell you, since you have entered Jinyiwei, you can only have the Holy One in your heart, and the kindness and righteousness of the past are all the past... You didn't hear a word of this." Lu Xiang said lightly with his hands behind his back , "Do you think this commander doesn't know that there is the stronghold of the Beile spies? The reason why he didn't move is just to see what these barbarians are going to do, and by the way, use their hands to stir up the water in the grassland... …It’s all right now, thanks to you, this wonderful chess piece was destroyed before it was used, do you think you deserve to die?”

Zhang Jingche clenched his teeth, his cheeks were as tight as a knife, "I know I'm wrong!"

"That's all, how noble are the father and son of the Tian family, how can you, an ant, have the right to talk? How dare you, a little brat, dare to go up against your will in the battle of gods? If you want to die, don't burden the Jinyiwei!" Lu Xiang stared sharply. He said, "Your Majesty hates Jinyiwei's involvement in party disputes the most. I still don't understand why he put you in Jinyiwei? Based on this alone, I will abolish you today, and no one dares to say anything!"

He made a gesture, and the Jin Yiwei on both sides understood, and the court staff fell like a storm, and the sound penetrated into the flesh.

Zhang Jingche gritted his teeth and swallowed back what he wanted to say—he once again clearly realized his identity, even though he had made great contributions to the battle in Beijiang, even though he had the blue eyes of the East Palace on the bright side, and Emperor Taiping himself The appointed Jinyiwei Tongzhi is nothing in front of the real position and power.

He is still a soft-spoken ant, and the superior can make him unable to live or die with a flick of a finger.

"Master Commander...is really impartial and selfless!" Zhang Jingche said through the gaps between his bloody teeth. Did you dispose of the humble position?"

Lu Xiang said coldly: "What about this time?"

"Why King Ping was grounded, and why the public debates were boiling, the command made the adults know... nothing more than the word "foreign enemy!" Zhang Jingche slid down his throat with difficulty, swallowing back the blood that had reached his mouth, " No matter how insignificant a humble position is, at least I have been lurking in Beile for more than a year. There is no credit but hard work. The commander who made a move at this time fell into the eyes of those who are interested. I am afraid that he will be regarded as King Ping to vent his anger. Fu Zhu probably has something to do with it..."

Lu Xiang suddenly yelled: "Don't worry, rats!"

With this loud shout, the court staff fell heavily, Zhang Jingche couldn't hold it anymore, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

A Jinyi guard next to him was probably quite appreciated by Lu Xiang. Seeing that the fight was inauspicious, he boldly said, "My lord, let's forget about it, don't really cause death. Let alone the East Palace, it is difficult to explain even in front of the Holy Majesty."

Lu Xiang had no intention of taking Zhang Jingche's life, so he waved his hand immediately when he reached this step.The Jin Yiwei on both sides let go of Zhang Jingche, and his blood-stained cheeks fell limply into the dust.

"This board should be a reminder to Zhang Tongzhi. When you join Jinyiwei, you have to be clear about what you can and can't do," Lu Xiang said lightly, "Otherwise, this time it's a board, and the next time you will be killed! How much I feel sorry for the life I have worked so hard to earn back!"

Zhang Jingche struggled several times before he managed to stand up, bent into a prostration posture in the mud and blood: "I'm humble... Thank you Commander for reminding me!"

Jin Yiwei is the Son of Heaven's pro-army, even though they are not monolithic, they are also very tight-lipped.Zhang Jingche's punishment was limited to the inside of the hall, and no one knew what happened when he left the gate of Fusi in Beizhen.

The only one who felt uncomfortable was Zhang Jingche. He suffered a great loss at the hands of the Beile people. He had not regained his vitality, and he was beaten again. The old and new injuries were combined, and he returned to the residence. He developed a high fever that night, and his back The scars on his face were connected together, bloody and bloody, it was very scary to look at.

Zhang Jingche lived alone. In the small courtyard, apart from the housekeepers, there were only old servants who cooked, not even a personal caregiver.Han Xun couldn't bear it, so he simply stayed and looked after him all night. When the next morning, it was still dark, he touched Zhang Jingche's forehead again, and found that the man was burning again, showing signs of getting worse. .

Han Xun was taken aback, and was at a loss for a while—the doctor had seen him two or three times, and the medicine was prescribed, but this beating was unusual, and it involved an old injury that had not yet healed, and it was really menacing.At this time, the sky was still dark, and the gate of the palace was not opened yet. Han Xun was inconvenient to enter the palace to disturb His Royal Highness, and became an ant on a hot pot. When he was walking around, he suddenly thought of a person.

He called the old servant and told him like this: "Look at me, I'll go out for a while—remember, the medicine prescribed by the doctor is fed every two hours, if you can't feed it, just pry your teeth open." Pour it in! If there is something, I'm afraid we won't be able to survive!"

The old servant knew how powerful it was, so he responded repeatedly.

Zhang Jingche was drowsy for two or three days, and the stick mark on his back was burning, making him unable to sleep well, and unable to wake up again.While half asleep and half awake, someone pried open his mouth and stuffed a hot and warm object into it.Zhang Jingche vaguely recalled what happened to Bei Le when he was tortured. He tensed up and pushed the thing out with his tongue. Someone beside him pressed his hands and feet and stuffed the medicine bowl back.

The sleeping man couldn't break free, so he could only turn his head away with all his strength, the medicine poured in slipped down his cheeks along the corner of his mouth, soaking his collar.

The person pouring the medicine was lost, so he could only pat him on the shoulder and said patiently, "Be obedient, take the medicine!"

Zhang Jingche gathered some strength from nowhere, and tugged at the man's sleeve in a daze. While hesitating, he seemed to see a person he hadn't seen for a long time, and called out indistinctly: "Mom..."

That person: "...what did you say?"

A confused person can't tell the truth from the illusory. In a trance, he seems to have returned to many years ago. There is no overwhelming imperial authority and blood feud, and there is no tightrope intrigue and conspiracy. What he cares about every day, It's just the three-foot-wide desk and my mother's constant chatter.

"Mom, I was wrong..." Zhang Jingche murmured, "I want to go home...I will never get angry with you again."

The man was silent for a moment, seemed to sigh, and patted his back.

It was dusk when Zhang Jingche woke up, and everything he saw was soaked in the sunset light. He turned his eyes slightly to see the furnishings in the house, and his slack eyes instantly condensed. sharp.

The next moment, he heard someone beside him greet lazily, "Hey, are you awake?"

Zhang Jingche turned around suddenly, and saw a person sitting in front of the short desk, with one hand resting on his cheek, with a smile in the corner of his slender eyes, and he tilted his head to look: "What the doctor said is accurate, as long as you can take the medicine and get rid of it, If you burn it, it’s fine... yes, I’ll give you some rewards later.”

Zhang Jingche blinked lightly, a line of cold sweat rolled down his forehead, his fine eyelashes were wet: "Yang... Marquis Yang?"

Yang Fan: "Nonsense, it's not me, who else do you expect?"

Zhang Jingche was a little confused, even if he saw Lord Yan, he would not be more surprised than the Lord in front of him: "You...why are you here?"

In February, the capital city is catching up with the late spring cold, and there is a brazier in the house, and it is a bit stuffy after staying for a long time.Marquis Dingbian fanned himself with a book, opened his collar, and said casually: "You are willing to be Ben Hou? It's not your lieutenant general surnamed Han who caused endless disturbances early in the morning. Ben Hou thought about it, and there is nothing left and right. If it’s a problem, why don’t you just come over and have a look in person, and if it can be saved, ask a doctor to take a look. If it doesn’t work, just drag it out and bury it, and you can save a few taels of medicine money.”

Zhang Jingche: "..."

He felt that Marquis Dingbian had some skills, and he was able to say such unappealing good words that were obviously caring for people when they came to Yang's mouth. He fed the dog unexpectedly with a little gratitude that had just arisen.

Zhang Jingche shook his head with a wry smile, and said weakly, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Lord Marquis."

His back hurt so badly that he couldn't move while lying on the pillow, and he didn't have the strength to scream for a while, so he could only stare blankly at the corner of the wall.Seeing this, Yang Fan threw the notebook in his hand aside, stretched out his hand and shook it in front of his eyes: "Why, did you become stupid after being beaten by Lu Xiang?"

Zhang Jingche closed his eyes, and suppressed the weakness after his injury tightly: "Master Hou is injured, it's really, really not suitable to work hard, it's better as soon as possible..."

Before he finished speaking, Yang Fan was impatient to listen to his wordy words, rolled up the scriptures into a bundle, and tapped lightly on his head.

Zhang Jingche couldn't help but be astonished.

"Call you stupid, even King Ping and Benhou are fooled by you, say you are clever...Which really smart person would lie here half dead like you, and you can't even find someone to serve tea ?” Yang Fan tutted, “It’s fine if the yard is small, and you can’t even find the servants you need. You say you’re working so hard, what are you trying to do?”

Zhang Jingche didn't have the strength to argue, so he could only curl the corners of his lips mockingly and sarcastically.

Others are devoting their minds to success, fame, glory and wealth, but he is just to live.How could such nobles as Dingbian Hou understand the difference?

Immediately afterwards, this "Tian Huang nobleman" picked up the teapot, poured a cup of hot water, and personally fed it to his mouth.

Zhang Jingche was startled: "Master Hou..."

Yang Fan didn't have the patience to talk nonsense with him, and asked bluntly, "Do you want to drink?"

Zhang Jingche pursed his bleeding lips, and finally gave up.

After sweating and drinking water, Zhang Tongzhi's fate was dragged back from the palace of the king of hell. Yang Fan probed his forehead and felt that it was not hot anymore, so he stood up slowly while leaning on the edge of the bed: "Success, I just came to take a look." , now that I'm awake, I didn't waste the few taels I paid for the doctor..."

His voice suddenly stopped, he pressed his chest with one hand, and frowned slightly.

Zhang Jingche took a good look at his words and couldn't help asking: "Why, did the injury from fighting with the Beile people happen again? Hou Ye has a body of ten thousand gold, so he didn't have to make this trip himself..."

Yang Fan interrupted him before he finished speaking: "I am happy to be idle, and idle is idle... Seeing your half-dead ghost, I just want to have fun, no!"

Zhang Jingche was extremely helpless: "Okay, Master Hou can look at it as he pleases, no money is required."

Yang Fan didn't speak, just snorted, raised the curtain, and walked out in a big way.

Of course Dingbian Hou knew that he didn't need to come here in person, even if he wanted to give Shun Shui a favor, he just asked the housekeeper to invite a doctor to come over.But he still couldn't help coming, probably because of the casual answer of "I can help as much as I can" that day.

It may also be because he is simply worried.

Yang Fan once thought that Zhang Jingche was a "favorite" and "treacherous" kind of seductive servant, but the conversation deep in the alley that night made him know that this person is also proud, and he can't be easily bent, he is Tianjia Wealth and honor can hardly make him tempted.

This made Marquis Dingbian very curious, just like the first time he saw a revolving lantern when he was a child, he was attracted by the exquisiteness and rarity of the object, and couldn't help but check it out.

Zhang Jingche didn't know the intricate thoughts of Marquis Ding Bian. He knew that he had been too much in the limelight and attracted the fear of countless people.On the other hand, at the East Palace, after asking several times in a row, Zhang Jingche blocked her back with the excuse of "accidentally suffering from a slight illness", which made Liu Yanzhao quite critical, thinking that this person was thinking of starting a new life.

It wasn't until one day that His Royal Highness was relieved after hearing Xu Qian mention it.

"I've wronged Ming Huang." Liu Yanzhao was stunned for a long time, thinking of Zhang Jingche's punishment, and remembering that he had mentioned to Yang Fan a few days ago that he was afraid of this person, he couldn't help feeling a little guilty, "This punishment is for alone Yes, logically, I should have come to see it in person.”

Xu Qian hurriedly said: "Your Highness, you are serious! What is your identity? The servants should be punished for going through fire and water for you, how dare you come to visit in person? If you are interested, appoint an imperial physician to take a look and give you some medicinal materials , is enough for the ministers to be grateful."

Liu Yanzhao thought about it, and felt that it was inappropriate to come to the door in person, so he followed Xu Qian's instructions.

In fact, even if Liu Yanzhao really wanted to visit him, he might not be able to find the time.As the big wedding day approaches, various matters are handled in a complicated and orderly manner--Nai Cai, asking for names, Najib, Na Zheng, and the date of resignation. Many agendas have to be completed one by one, and March of the 23rd year of Taiping is also quietly approaching. .

For the prince's big wedding, it is unavoidable for all the houses to send congratulatory gifts. Zhang Jingche was so soft-spoken that he didn't need to join in the fuss. He just let people pass through Zhaoyang Palace and gave Zhang Jingsu a mahogany box as a dowry for Zhang Jingsu who was about to marry.

Zhang Jingsu is about to marry into the East Palace as a side concubine, so naturally she doesn't have to work hard on duty, and the cost of food and clothing is no less than that of the noble lord in the palace, and there are two more maids to serve.That night, she shunned the maid and opened the wooden box alone, only to find that in addition to her daughter's usual clothes and spices, there were also several house deeds and land deeds - all of which were shopfronts in prosperous areas in central Beijing.

Zhang Jingsu was stunned for a while, holding the deed paper, and finally shed tears.

The congratulatory gifts from Zhang Jingche were very rich, among them was a jade pendant carved from Khotan white jade, which was warm, delicate and flawless.The jade pendant is tied with a double-ring Ruyi knot, which is not a palace craft at first glance.

On this day, Liu Yanzhao came to Zhaoyang Palace to pay his respects, and ran into Zhang Jingsu by accident.Ordinarily, married couples should not see each other before saluting. Fortunately, Zhang Jingsu is only a side concubine with a low status, so there are not so many taboos.

Liu Yanzhao ordered her to lie down, and accidentally saw the wishful knot hanging around her waist, and thought it was new and delicate, so he asked casually, "Where did you get it?"

Zhang Jingsu remembered the queen's instructions, and did not dare to tell the truth, but said in a low voice: "This is a gift from Zhang Tongzhi outside the palace. It is a pair of jade pendants carved from the same piece of jade, and it is said to be a congratulatory gift for His Royal Highness's wedding."

Liu Yanzhao was stunned for a moment.