turmoil

The fourth year of Xinglong was really not a peaceful year. Although the Marquis of Dingbian was in danger of pacifying the northern border, the year was approaching, and the Northwest was not peaceful again——Zhuo Jiusi, the deputy general of the Northwest Camp, sent him eight hundred miles in the name of Marquis Dingbian Hurry up, it is said that a group of Huihe cavalry broke through the defense line of the northwest garrison, and invaded the Central Plains through the old territory of the Daobile people. Judging from their whereabouts, they seemed to be heading for the capital.

It was almost the end of the new year, and the ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven was imminent. Neither the princes of the court nor Emperor Xinglong would allow such an important ceremony to be destroyed by a group of Huihe Huqi.

What exactly does this act of cheapness mean, the imperial edict did not specify clearly, but Zhuo Jiusi has been given enough room to act in private.

At the same time, Emperor Xinglong who was far away in the capital was not happy. You Yunwei searched the capital two or three times like plowing the ground, but he could not find Zhang Jingche. Xiao Heshan even suspected that this person was no longer in the capital.At this juncture of life, the queen in Zhaoyang Palace doesn't look very good, and it's still unknown whether she can survive the New Year's Eve.

After all, Liu Yanzhao and Empress Jian are young couples. Although the initial friendship is not deep, after years of companionship, there is always some affection that cannot be compared with others.On this day, following the Queen Mother's order, he visited Zhaoyang Hall to visit his seriously ill wife.

Empress Jian is really dying, there are always seven or eight hours of groggy in a day, and she doesn't even know that the emperor is coming.It was the personal maid who whispered in her ear for a long time and poured some ginseng soup before she opened her eyes with difficulty: "The emperor... the emperor is here?"

Liu Yanzhao looked at Empress Jian in the brocade mattress, feeling mixed feelings for a while.After taking off the fancy clothes, this is an ordinary seriously ill woman, with a pale complexion, disheveled temple hair, and sweat on her forehead.

Emperor Xinglong suddenly remembered the situation when Empress Jian first married into the East Palace many years ago. At that time, she was only seventeen or eighteen years old. It is bright and beautiful.

How did you end up in such a situation?

Liu Yanzhao's heart was slightly sour, he waved his hand to dismiss the palace servants, and sat down beside the bed: "Queen, I'm here to see you."

Empress Jian stretched out a hand from under the quilt, tremblingly reaching towards Liu Yanzhao.That wrist was bony and bony, with ferocious veins wrapped under the thin skin. It was clearly overwhelmed, but it insisted on wearing an emerald bracelet. The rich emerald green color further contrasted the paleness of the owner.

Liu Yanzhao recognized at a glance that it was worn by himself for Queen Jane on the wedding day.

"Your Majesty," Empress Jian murmured in a low voice, "I thought I would never see you again in this lifetime."

Liu Yanzhao held her hand, feeling a little guilty in his heart.He knew that Queen Jane had begged to see him many times, and he also knew that she tried to intercede for her family, but Liu Yanzhao didn't see her, and even asked the personal servant to reprimand the queen, which was tantamount to the last straw that broke the camel's back.

"Don't talk nonsense," Liu Yanzhao said in a low voice, "You are still young, our days... are still long."

Empress Jian smiled miserably: "I am the most aware of my own body, so I'm afraid it won't work... It's just that there are some things that I really want to ask the emperor."

Liu Yanzhao thought about the relationship between husband and wife for many years, and said gently: "You say."

Immediately afterwards, he only felt his wrist tighten, but it was Empress Jane who held him tightly, and those five skinny fingers erupted with unimaginable force, pinching the Son of Heaven painfully.

"The concubine wants to ask the emperor... In your heart, what is the concubine?" Queen Jian said through her teeth, "Wife? A tool for marriage? Or is it a dispensable plaything?"

Liu Yanzhao didn't expect her to say such a thing, so he couldn't help being stunned for a moment: "What kind of words are these? You are my queen...how can you be so self-deprecating!"

Empress Jian smiled bitterly mockingly: "Empress? Yes, in the emperor's heart, concubines are just empresses... the indispensable decorations and decorations in the emperor's harem, but do you know who concubines are? Do you know concubines? What is your boudoir's name? Have you ever called your concubine by name... just like a husband calls his wife?"

This time, Liu Yanzhao was speechless and speechless.

"You don't remember," Queen Jane sneered, "you never even knew about it. The concubines... and the women in the harem are all dispensable embellishments of your prosperous age, and you never take us seriously Just like you don't care about the blooming and withering flowers of the imperial garden."

Liu Yanzhao finally couldn't bear it anymore: "Queen, I am the emperor! Three thousand miles of the country rests on my shoulders, and I have to worry and shoulder too much. You have to be considerate of me!"

Maybe it was the dying of a person, or maybe it was the decline of the family. Empress Jian had no worries, and tore to pieces her usual mask of being cautious, gentle, courteous and thrifty: "Really? Then why are you treating that male favorite named Zhang like this?" Do you care? Even after he escaped from the capital for so many years, you still want to send someone to capture him and tie him by your side?"

Liu Yanzhao was speechless, and was even more annoyed when his mind was punctured: "Queen...you are overstepping!"

"The concubine is overstepping...but the concubine doesn't regret it, the concubine only hates herself for having behaved so well for half her life, and didn't overstep earlier!" Empress Jian confronted her tit for tat, "Your Majesty, you care so much about a male favorite, why? Can't you be more sympathetic to your wife?"

"The concubine is not bad. With the title of queen and the backing of the Jian family, in this deep palace, no one dares to belittle... The real poor one is Concubine Shu!" Empress Jian leaned back on the pillow, absent-minded. Staring at the long curtains, "She has nothing, but was pointed out by the Queen Mother to be your concubine. She became the side concubine of the Eastern Palace as a humble maid, and everyone said that her timing was lucky. Leaping over the Dragon Gate, the concubine wants to know how a woman with no family, no background, and no husband's favor can gain a firm foothold in the heavy palace ban?"

"During those years when she was married into the East Palace, how much grievance she suffered and how much loneliness she endured... Even if she was later named Concubine Shu, her status was only lower than that of a concubine, and she was tortured! All these... did the emperor know ?”

Liu Yanzhao was dumbfounded, and even more unexpected: "I said... I am the emperor!"

"That's why you can justly neglect Concubine Shu, so you can treat the harem as nothing with peace of mind, so you can treat your courtiers and concubines with respect like ice, and at the same time never forget your unworthy male favorite," Queen Jane gritted her teeth , One word at a time, "Your Majesty... Since you don't need it, why did you marry us in the first place and waste our lives for nothing!"

The weather was bad that day. In the evening, the sky was overcast, and finally there was a loud thunder.At this moment, a dull thunder rolled by, and the bright lightning shone through the palace pavilion. Liu Yanzhao was shocked and angry, and said in a low voice: "Queen, do you know what you are talking about!"

"The concubine knows!" Empress Jian looked at him without evasiveness, "These words have been held back in the concubine's heart for these years, if the concubine didn't know that the end was approaching, the concubine would not have dared to reveal it! Everyone knows that the emperor is wise Benevolence, but in the eyes of my concubines, the emperor is really ruthless and ungrateful... You are high above the ground, and you never bow your head, so you can't see the resentment and resentment in our eyes. The kindness you think is actually just stabbing people at the heart Finally, apply a little medicine that is better than nothing!"

"It's no wonder that the man named Zhang doesn't care about God's grace, and would rather bear the name of prisoner than escape from the deep palace... He sees it more clearly than us!"

Another bolt of lightning tore apart the sky and the earth, and the long-prepared rain finally torrentially fell. Liu Yanzhao walked out of Zhaoyang Hall in a daze, and the long-awaited Yuezhao rushed forward and covered Liu Yanzhao's head with an oiled paper umbrella.

Liu Yanzhao pushed him away blankly, looked up into the depths of the night, but was blocked by the ubiquitous darkness.He didn't know where to go, Yuezhao caught up to him again, and covered him relentlessly: "Your servant asked the emperor to show me, but where are you going now?"

Liu Yanzhao wandered around, and heard a sharp voice from the direction of Zhaoyang Palace: "The Empress's funeral!" As if struck by lightning, the blood color faded down his cheeks visibly, and it took him a long time to murmur in a low voice: "Go... palace!"

Yuezhao was stunned for a moment: "The road to the Palace of Compassionate Ning is far away, with such a heavy rain, your dragon body, Your Majesty..."

Enraged by his hesitation, Liu Yanzhao almost shouted sharply: "I said to go to the Palace of Compassion, don't you understand?"

Yuezhao didn't dare to say any more, and led the way in a well-behaved manner.

The news of the empress's trip has been sent to the Compassionate Ning Palace, the heavy rain, the empress dowager didn't have time to get up, she first heard that Emperor Xinglong had arrived.Holding Yuxiang's hand, she rushed to the entrance of the hall in a hurry, and saw Liu Yanzhao walking in with a expressionless face dressed in rain and rain.

The queen mother was taken aback, and hurriedly ordered the palace servants to dry Liu Yanzhao's hair, put on clean clothes, and brought a cup of strong ginger tea, and pressed Liu Yanzhao to drink it. She was half distressed and half angrily reprimanded : "What are you doing! Emperor, you are the Son of Heaven, and your words and deeds have their own rules... Aijia knows that you have been with the Queen for many years, and you can't bear her sudden death, but no matter how sad you are, you have to take care of the dragon's body and health Ancestral face!"

Yanzhao looked dazed, his eyes were still out of focus, and he said after a while, "My boy just went to see the queen..."

The queen mother noticed that Liu Yanzhao claimed to be a "baby" instead of a "children", so she couldn't help squinting: "But what did the queen say before she died?"

"I said a lot... what should be said, what should not be said, everything has been said." Liu Yanzhao said softly, "I just found out today that they have so much resentment in their hearts... Empress, my boy has never looked at her carefully. , she doesn't want to be my wife at all!"

The Empress Dowager said in shock: "What are you talking about, Your Majesty? You are the Son of Heaven, and being able to marry you is a blessing they have cultivated in their previous lives. Who dares to complain?"

Liu Yanzhao looked at her straight, he wanted to say "No", he wanted to say "They resent me for being ungrateful", and he wanted to say "I was digging my heart and soul for that person, but in the end it was wishful thinking, he didn't care about Tianjia at all. Favor", but when the words came to his lips, he couldn't say a word.

The queen mother seemed to understand something, and her expression was almost pitiful: "Emperor, Aijia knows that you are suffering, but you are the emperor, and you are on the road to the summit... No one can walk with you, even the queen mother. I can only accompany you for a ride, and in the end, you can only go on by yourself."

Liu Yanzhao was silent for a long time, choked up and said: "Mother, stop talking!"

The Empress Dowager stroked his head for a long time, then called softly: "...Zhao'er."

Liu Yanzhao was slightly startled, and let go of his last defense in response to his mother's gentle call.At that moment, he stripped away the power and glory of the emperor, threw himself on the Empress Dowager Wu's lap like a helpless child, and burst into tears.

Empress Jane's passing away was very untimely, just in time for the year-end ceremony, which cast a haze over the originally grand ceremony.Even so, the Ministry of Rites still did not dare to be negligent, and the funeral ceremony was orderly, and did not lose royal face in front of the courtiers and the people of the capital.

The death of Queen Jane not only moved Liu Yanzhao greatly, but also made the already dangerous situation in Beijing and China even more turbulent.On the night of the first seven days, the heads of the aristocratic families in Beijing gathered again at the Shilang's Mansion, and Jian Zhaoting, the commander of the Imperial Forest Army, was the guest of honor.

"The empress passed away, and our last reliance is gone, we can't wait any longer!" Jian Zhaoting said impatiently, "People are mean and ungrateful today, but my uncle owed a lot to him for defeating King Ping and successfully ascending the throne back then. But after he was firmly seated on the throne, he turned around and killed my uncle regardless of the kindness of his support and the love of his father-in-law, it is really chilling!"

After all, this is a major event, and if you are not careful, you will lose your fortune. Some of you here are timid, and asked timidly: "Didn't it mean that Han Xun, the commander of the Jinyiwei, made his own decisions? Han Xun is dead now, and the emperor also Consider giving an explanation."

Jian Zhaoting disagreed: "What kind of thing is Han Xun? It's just a dog under the seat today. If you tell him to go east, he dare not go west. How can he have such courage? Make up your own mind? Huh, it's clear that he has carried it on behalf of the people above. Black pot!"

Han Xungui is the commander of Jinyiwei, even if it is a knife, only the Ninth Five-Year Supreme is qualified to hold it.Who is Han Xun's "upper man"? The answer is self-evident.

Fang Zhen, the servant of the Ministry of Rites, sat at the head all the time, with a gloomy face and said nothing.Although the Fang family has been implicated by Uncle Zhongyong, the family fortune is still there. Fang Zhen has done a good job in the official department over the years, and this year's assessment is excellent again.After a few years, when the Minister of the Ministry of Officials came back to his hometown, he was the sure candidate to succeed him. Now that the aristocratic family was suppressed by Liu Yanzhao, it was rare to have such a promising child, and everyone was willing to listen to Fang Shilang's words.

Fang Zhen was playing with the teacup in his hand, and after listening to the quarrel for a long time, he said unhurriedly: "That's all, the case of reselling military rations forced Jian Shangshu to death. I see what the emperor means, and I don't plan to Shut up... Everyone knows why Jian Sihui died, and if the investigation continues, which one of you would dare to pat your chest to guarantee that you are clean?"

There was a moment of silence, and after a long time, someone said cautiously: "Isn't it? Once Jian Sihui dies, there will be no evidence for his death. Who can hold on to it?"

Fang Zhen sneered: "There is no military ration case, but there are also deficit cases and corruption cases. It is true that Jian Sihui is dead, but you are still alive? If you are taken into prison by Jin Yiwei, who dares to say that you can survive the 36-year-old prison?" Punishment? Who can guarantee that he won't bite out something?"

Jin Yiwei and You Yunwei are the two swords of the emperor, and they have removed many stumbling blocks for Liu Yanzhao over the years. Many people still vividly remember the bloody incident that happened in Shangshu's mansion. Anyone with a discerning eye knows that it was Jin Yiwei's handwriting, but no one dared to Proclaim it openly.

"What Mr. Fang said is that we are determined not to give us a way out now, and we can't sit still!" Jian Zhaoting said, "I know that everyone doesn't believe it, so I brought someone here tonight. When it comes to today's thoughts, no one is better than him. I understand better. If you have any questions, just ask him!"

Before he finished speaking, he clapped his palms twice, and a man in black in a cloak turned out from behind the screen in the inner hall.He took off the hood, raised his face to the candlelight, and the whole house let out a low gasp.

"You, you are..." Someone stammered, "You are... Father-in-law Yuezhao?"

Yuezhao curled the corner of her mouth and smiled secretly: "My lords, long time no see."