Opposite the entrance hall

It was Li Hongyang's birthday at the end of the month, and everything was not going well this year. He wanted to win the favor of Emperor Chengde. Celebrating with the people, I really gained a good reputation among the people, got the reputation of being honest and caring for the people, and my reputation has improved a lot,

Li Hongyang's meaning is just for the sake of meaning, and people who understand it will naturally understand it in their hearts. The civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty would not really take his birthday seriously, and then it would be boring. If it's too high-profile, it doesn't understand the meaning. If it's too shabby, it becomes meaningless. This gift is so embarrassing for everyone.

Although the birthday banquet was simple, it was not deserted. Emperor Chengde's condition fluctuated from good to bad, and he had been bedridden for many days without seeing anyone. Li Hongyang is the crown prince, and he is also the one who is in charge in the court, this is a matter of course, although all parties don't say anything on the surface, there is a dark tide surging in private, among them, the faction of Liang Wang Li Hongye is the main one.

The two of them have been arguing so much lately no matter how big or small the matter is, and there is a King Rui who doesn't think it's a big deal and wants to fight to the death. It seems that King Qin is too calm, but it's no wonder that King Qin never It was the intention to play wisely and protect oneself at the beginning, and it is wise not to get involved.

But no matter how noisy it was, Li Hongyang's name as the crown prince also belonged to Li Hongyang, and he was also the agent of state affairs. His birthday was simple and casual in name, but in fact the excitement only increased.

The banquet was arranged by the people in the Queen's Palace, and all the family members of the adults were invited in her name. It was called watching the moon and tasting tea, but in fact it was not a drunkard's intention.

On the night of Li Hongyang's birthday, a lot of sedan chairs and carriages were crowded in front of the gate of the East Palace. The crowd was stirring, and the shadows of the lights were heavy, crowding the originally quite spacious gate of the palace.

Pei Zhan got off his horse and handed the reins to the guards of the Eastern Palace who came up to meet him. He turned around and walked to the sedan chair, bent over and opened the curtain, and carefully helped the people inside out. Say you should go back, there are so many people here, what should I do if I can't take care of you for a while, besides, this kind of banquet is the most boring, it's not as interesting as fighting crickets with Le Jin and Le Yu at home."

Pei Yao came out of the sedan chair, hearing the words, she couldn't laugh or cry, "Brother, it's better to say less, Lin'an is no better than the outside of the pass, people always say what they don't want to listen to, and what's more, this moon appreciation party is invited in the name of the empress All the female relatives of the family have delivered the posts to the mansion, if they don't come, it's not like publicly refusing the empress's face, it's a bit of a shame."

"Oh," Pei Zhan sighed, "Everywhere in Lin'an is good, but there are more rules."

The two followed the East Palace Inspector and stepped over the palace gate, and saw Li Hongyang coming to welcome him. Today he was wearing a red shirt with a light yellow gown over it, a four-clawed golden dragon embroidered with gold silk across his chest from behind, and a gold belt on his belt. Wearing a hook, wearing a pair of jade rings on the waist, and a hair crown inlaid with gold and jade on the head, the whole person looks handsome and unparalleled, followed by the little prince of the Zhen Guogong Mansion, Yan Guanqing is wearing a short dark red gold silk hexagram today She wears deerskin soft boots, her hair is tied with a red tassel rope, and emerald beads are hung from both ends, supporting that kind of dismissive energy, which is both flamboyant and eye-catching.

When the two of them came over, the two brothers and sisters of the Pei family saluted one after another. When Pei Zhan lowered his head, he could even see a little brat grinning at him, and he was a little amused.

Li Hongyang raised his hand and said in a warm voice, "General Pei, excuse me."

"Your Majesty is terrified, how can you let His Highness greet you in person? Isn't this a shameful minister? This small gift is a little bit of my heart. I also wish Your Highness a good year in Gehuashu, and Honghu will fly high to Wan Yuning." Pei Zhan looked Flattered, he made another salute again and again.

"I have a heart." Li Hongyang held the man's arms and refused the gift, motioning to the servant behind him to take it over, "Qi Xiu's words are a bit out of line. When we were young, we had classmates, but now we are officials in the same dynasty. The friendship is natural. It’s different from others, and if you don’t have others, you can be more casual, you will have time to congratulate you for your contribution to the Great Jin this time, it’s a rare opportunity, and you can have a few drinks tonight.”

"According to the order."

Li Hongyang smiled unabated, turned his body sideways, and his eyes fell on Pei Yao who stood silently at the side after saluting. She was wearing a lotus root pink skirt with peach blossoms and white water on the floor. It is Molan embroidered with silver-white moon thread, with a slender figure and an orchid-like air, it is extraordinarily beautiful.

Seemingly feeling something, Pei Yao raised her head and bumped into Li Hongyang's eyes, panicked and hurriedly lowered her head, Li Hongyang narrowed his eyes, and said with pursed lips: "This must be the second lady of General Dingwei's residence. "

Hearing this, Pei Yao hurriedly bowed and replied: "The daughter of the people pays her respects to Your Highness."

"Second Miss Pei, you don't need to be too polite. Second Miss came here at the invitation of the queen mother, and the banquet is not here." Having said that, he tilted his head and ordered: "Fang Qing, take Second Miss Pei there in a while."

"Yes."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"Second Miss, if..."

"Your Highness."

Before Li Hongyang could speak the following words, he was hastily interrupted by someone who came and whispered a few words in his ear. Li Hongyang's expression froze, but he returned to normal in a flash, and he left after saying a few words in a hurry.

When the people walked away, Fang Qingcai, the chief eunuch of the Eastern Palace, leaned over slightly, and respectfully said to Pei Yao: "My slave will lead Miss Pei, this way please."

Pei Yao didn't move, she raised her eyes and glanced at Pei Zhan, then she smiled lightly when she saw him nodding, "It's time for you, Father-in-law."

Yan Zhao, who had been standing by without making a sound, walked silently to Pei Zhan, stretched his neck and stared in Pei Yao's direction, then slapped the person next to him with his shoulder, raised his eyebrows and said, "Yaoer is so gentle, It's not like you are such a bastard, is she really your sister?"

Pei Zhan turned his head to the side and rolled his eyes at the person, leaving behind the words "She is two months older than you" and walked over the person.

Yan Zhao tilted his head and turned around, rubbed his nose, followed after a few steps, hesitated for a while and said: "Most girls in their twenties and six years old are married as wives, and they are in the mansion to take care of their husbands and teach their children. Your sister has both talents and affections." With outstanding looks, there must be quite a few matchmakers who came to propose marriage."

"Well," Pei Zhan said lightly, "I kicked them all out."

"..."

"When my daughter's family grows up, she must have a good home." Yan Zhao continued, choosing his words carefully.

Hearing this, Pei Zhan's expression changed and he stopped suddenly, looking Yan Zhao up and down, with a complicated expression, "Little Lord, I didn't know that you treat Yaoer..."

"Wait," Yan Zhao understood the meaning of his words, and hurriedly interrupted, "I'm not, I'm not, you're talking nonsense."

"I understand." Pei Zhan nodded again and again, "My Yao'er is really good, with a good temper, good looks, and sensible and caring. The little father-in-law is throbbing when he is young, but it's just that he can't control himself."

"I said no, you are sick!"

Seeing that people were in a hurry, Pei Zhan's vicious humor became even more vigorous, and he bowed and patted people's heads in a playful joke, "What are you panicking, my little father-in-law, what's there to be ashamed of when a man is married and a woman is married, although You are younger than Yao'er from my family, you have a bad temper, and you don't have any talent, but you are not bad, come and call my good brother, maybe I will agree to the marriage as soon as I am happy."

Yan Zhao is still young and the least used to being teased. He is not a tough opponent in the military camp like Pei Zhan at all. He was annoyed and annoyed by being teased with a few words, and his mind became hot and he yelled sharply: "Grandpa, I am interested in you." It won't be interesting to a little girl."

Pei Zhan was stunned for a moment, the expression on his face was dull at first, then shocked, and finally suddenly realized, "Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Pei, Pei Zhan is flattered."

After finishing speaking, Yan Zhao finally came to his senses, looked around, and as expected, everyone's eyes fell on him, they were all watching the excitement, Qi Ran and Yang Qin who appeared at some time were even more incredulous The expression was so embarrassing that the tips of the ears turned red, but the face turned everyone's eyes back fiercely, and said angrily: "Pei Qixiu, you wait for me."

Then he hurried away angrily.

This appearance fell into Pei Zhan's eyes, embarrassing and amused, he couldn't hold back his laughter, the person in front walked faster when he heard his laughter, someone thought to himself:

It's really a little wolf cub, it starts to bark its teeth and grin when it's teased casually, full of bestiality.

Yang Qin came over, shifted his eyes from the back of Yan Zhao's departure to Pei Zhan, and said in shock, "You and Young Master Yan..."

"That's right, that's exactly what you think," Pei Zhan raised his eyebrows, "He made a secret promise to me infatuatedly, and would like to break up his sleeves with me, and I don't love him deeply, and I can't be with him until the end of life. "

Hearing this, Yang Qin's mouth grew even bigger, and he still fully believed it.

Qi Ran couldn't be more clear about this person's temperament, so naturally he didn't believe a word, just stood aside and watched one of the two go crazy and the other stupid.

"Then, just now, the young master hated you out of love, and prepared to retaliate wantonly?" Yang Qin asked cautiously.

Pei Zhan put his arms around Yang Qin's shoulders, carried him forward, and began to babble, "Master Yang, you don't know something, the thing is like this..."

Qi Ran shook his head angrily, pursed his lips and followed.

The birthday banquet started in the main hall of the East Palace, and all the officials who were worthy of the title in the court came. Although San Gong did not arrive due to physical discomfort, the ceremony was not missing. The scale was simpler than in previous years, but it was still It was extremely lively. Candles were lit everywhere in the East Palace, drums and music sang together, singing and dancing raised the peace, and the feast was full of wine and chatter.

The main hall was bustling, and the sound of silk and bamboo was endless. Compared with the side hall, it seemed a lot colder. Empress Cao took a sip from the teacup and blew off the foam from the teacup. She wiped the water stains from the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief. He chuckled lightly and said: "It hasn't been so lively for a long time. This palace has long wanted to entertain ladies and wives, but the palace is busy with affairs and cannot be spared. Today is the crown prince's birthday, so I invite everyone to be lively and lively. Don't be too restrained. Tonight The moonlight is just right, why not go out and have a look together."

"Yes." Everyone responded in unison.

A group of people followed Empress Cao one after another. Qi Xi slowed down and walked to the end, walking side by side with Pei Yao, looking at the front and whispering: "Don't let the empress notice you."

Pei Yao raised her head and glanced at her, but nodded despite being puzzled.

The tea and snacks were prepared early in the garden, and all kinds of lanterns were hung around, which made the place very bright. The breeze blows slowly, and the wrinkled lake surface is shimmering, against the bright moonlight Beautiful.

The young ladies of each family seemed to come prepared, competing to be the best and showcasing their talents, Pei Yao also noticed something was wrong at this time, it was not like appreciating the moon and drinking tea, but more like choosing a concubine for the prince.

Thinking of this, Pei Yao frowned slightly, her expression a little unsightly.

The sound of the pipa stopped, Empress Cao's smile deepened, and she clapped again and again, "Dong Shangshu's daughter played Yangchun Baixue really well. The aftertones of a song are still echoing in my ears. The fingering is skillful. Compared with it, Dong Shangshu spent a lot of thought." There is a way to teach a girl."

"Your Majesty's reputation is too high," Dong Cunliang's wife hurriedly stood up to answer, "My little girl's ability is nothing, she can't compare to the daughters of other big families with superb piano skills and excellent dancing skills, but she is more down-to-earth and does her best in everything she does. , saying that he didn’t want to make himself feel regretful.”

Empress Cao smiled and didn't answer, but waved at the girl, beckoning her to come closer, and asked in a soft voice, "What's your name?"

The girl was a little timid but not flustered, her gestures were generous and decent, and she replied respectfully: "Return to your mother, the name of the folk girl is Xiwen."

"He has a good name and a well-behaved personality. Danrui brought me that white jade bracelet."

"Thank you madam."

Dong Xiwen returned to her seat proudly under the eyes of a woman with envy and hatred. Cao Yuhan glanced around, landed in the corner, and said with a smile: "It's lively today, how about Second Miss Pei showing off her talents?"

Pei Yao bit her lower lip, and just about to get up to answer, Qi Xi who was beside her was the first to speak out, "I want to report to your mother, Yao'er did prepare a dance, but this song was written by a woman, and I hope your mother will approve it." People's women accompany music."

"It's rare that you are willing to play the piano, sure."

The palace man took the Qin over quickly, Qi Xi took it and glanced at Pei Yao, then put the Qin flat and set it up.

At this point, Pei Yao stood up and saluted, stood in the middle of the crowd, bent over and began to dance as the first sound of the piano sounded. This song and dance were choreographed by the two of them. Where is fast and where is slow, it is natural He was not familiar with it, but in the middle of the dance, he suddenly made a few moves. Qi Xi temporarily changed the tune, tactfully and quietly, like a woman who told her story, she played casually, calmly and elegantly, and the sound flowed from her fingertips Out, the dance became the auxiliary of the song.

The clothes covered his face, and the sound of the piano stopped abruptly.

"This song is well written, and the playing is even more wonderful." Cao Yuhan's eyes were full of admiration, and a smile appeared in his eyes, "You, the number one talented girl in Lin'an with both talents, really don't give up the limelight to others, Dan Rui, reward."

"Thank you ma'am."

This matter passed without any surprises, the banquet was halfway through, and the activities in the garden did not have to be with the queen, and it was easier for everyone to go in small groups.

Qi Xi and Pei Yao searched for few people, but when they passed the corner of the corridor, they heard voices coming from ahead.

"Today's Moon Appreciation Party has really given Qi Xi the limelight." A female voice with a sharper voice said, "I'm still the number one talented woman in Lin'an, bah."

"Cousin, is it true that the Empress doesn't like me? I don't play the piano well. Is it possible that I can't be a princess? What's the matter?" Another female voice was a little anxious.

"What are you panicking about? No matter how good Qi Xi plays the piano, can the queen still fall in love with her?" The woman said fiercely, "When I think of her marrying that idiot Yang Qin, I feel happy. Trash, nothing can be accomplished, thanks to having a good father, otherwise there would be no chance to be a dog in front of Qi Xi, and they are quite suitable, a talented woman with a dog will last forever, ha ha."

These words were unbearable, Pei Yao carefully glanced at Qi Xi beside her, but saw that her face was expressionless, but her eyes were a little gloomy.

The two in front chatted for a few more words before leaving, and Qi Xi came out from behind the corner when they were far away, walking past the spot where the two had just stood.

"Sister Xiaoxi, aren't you angry?" Pei Yao asked.

"My mouth grows on other people. I can't solve what they say when I get angry," Qi Xi said in a flat tone. "Besides, I have heard these words a lot, and I will always get used to them."

As soon as the words were finished, there was a creaking sound from behind, Qi Xi seemed to have sensed something and stopped in his tracks, looked at the other side of the courtyard wall for a few moments before leaving in a hurry.

The footsteps gradually faded away, and the figure hiding in the corner slowly raised his head and took a closer look, it turned out to be Young Master Yang Qin.

He sat down on the ground, poked the crushed dead branches with his fingers, and muttered: "I was almost discovered. Look at you, it's useless."

When he returned to the main hall, many people were already drunk. Pei Zhan didn't know what he had talked with Du Heng, and he was making a lot of noise to marry Jinlan. The four big characters of "hungry ghost" are written on the head, and Qi Ran is the one who looks a little normal among the crowd.

Yang Qin hesitated for a while, then slowly moved over and sat next to Qi Ran, causing the latter to look back at him.

"Heng, don't you hate it?" Young Master Yang asked aggrievedly.

Young Master Yang has never been very smart in Qi Ran's cognition, and he doesn't know what's wrong with this person coming back from the toilet, so it's rare for him to reply patiently: "I don't hate it."

"I knew it," Yang Qin said with red eyes, "Xiaoxi also hates me, she never has me in her heart, never has, it has always been my wishful thinking."

Hearing this, Qi Ran generally understands that Yang Qin eats too much and is too idle. Although my sister doesn't like Yang Qin, she doesn't really hate him, so she patiently replied, "How much are you doing?" Think about it."

"You're right. I'm the one that's redundant. I don't know what I am. It's not unreasonable for others to say that."

"........."

Qi Ran was a little tired, so it was rare for him to talk nonsense with him and directly handed him a jug of wine.

"That's right, getting drunk can relieve a thousand worries!" After finishing speaking, Yang Qin lifted the wine pot, raised his head and did it all.

The two of them came and went, the eunuch and maid served wine several times and poured all of them into their stomachs. When Li Hongyang was too drunk to let everyone leave, Pei Zhan let Du Heng go to look for him. However, Yang Qin, who was out of breath crying with snot and tears all over his face, was suddenly terrified, "How much did you drink? Wake up, it's time to go."

Yang Qin couldn't cry, Pei Zhan had no choice but to push Qi Ran and asked: "How much did your brother-in-law drink? He is not smart, so don't be stupid."

He didn't get a response for a while, and Pei Zhan was wondering. When he looked up, he saw this man pouring wine into his mouth glass by glass. His complexion was normal and his movements were smooth. If the two of them hadn't grown up together, Pei Zhan couldn't tell that this man was drunk at all.

"Hey," Pei Zhan snatched the flagon, stared into the eyes of the person in front of him and asked, "Do you know who I am?"

Qi Ran's eyes were clear, but his reaction was slower than usual. He stared at Pei Zhan for a while, and suddenly smiled, as if the ice and snow melted and everything revived, "Li Si."

Before he finished speaking, Pei Zhan covered his mouth, looked around cautiously, and said in a low voice, "Master, shut up."

He was a little tired by himself, so he entrusted Yang Qin, who was still crying, to Du Heng, and he dragged Qi Ran out of the East Palace. At the gate of the palace, he learned that the queen had left early, and Pei Yao was relieved when he returned home. Just as he was about to lead the horse from the servant, he saw that the person behind him was moving faster than him, turned on the horse and rushed straight out.

"Master, I really owe you!"

Pei Zhan galloped away and followed closely behind.

Both of them are good horse riders, and they moved forward in the dark night as fast as a bolt of lightning, piercing the dark and boundless sky.

The curfew time has come, and the gates of the city have been closed early. There are soldiers guarding the gates. Hearing the movement, they hurriedly blocked the way and shouted loudly: "The gates are closed. If you want to leave the city, you have to wait until tomorrow. Go back."

Qi Ran was still drunk, fearing that he would cause trouble, Pei Zhan didn't care about other things, so he took out his badge from a distance and shouted: "I am the commander of the foreign imperial army, I have something important to go out of the city, and I need to open the city gate quickly."

The soldiers standing on the tower looked at it for a long time, then waved and ordered, "Open the city gate."

As soon as the city gate opened, Qi Ran rushed out like a shooting star. Before the fast people had time to react, Pei Zhan also hurriedly followed. After passing the waist card to someone to check again and again, when he left the city, there was a shade of trees. The road is hidden in the night, and there is no one in sight.

The sound of the horse bleating across the long night disturbed the peace in the forest. The sound of the horse's hooves crushing the dead leaves was getting closer and closer. Finally, the white horse's front hooves flew into the air, and the reflection under the moonlight reflected on the ground and fell back again and again.

Qi Ran got off his horse, and the bright moonlight poured on the lake, as if it had been coated with a silver-white halo. The breeze passed by the lake, making ripples and shimmering light.

He walked in a daze, and stopped after a while, staring at the lonely grave in front of him with a dull gaze, but slowly squatted down, stroking the writing on it, which was engraved by him stroke by stroke .

Beloved Li Si's Tomb

"I knew you were here." Panting, Pei Zhan walked forward and squatted beside Qi Ran, waving at the tombstone that was shrouded in moonlight and turned white, "Little prince, long time no see I know if you married a wife down here, if you do, just tell me in a dream, so that someone won’t be upset, why are you staring at me, and I didn’t say who it is.”

After rambling on, Pei Zhan took out two bamboo tubes from his arms and threw one over.

Qi Ran took it and uncorked it and smelled it, and said hoarsely, "Where did you get the wine?"

"I just drank it at the banquet." Pei Zhan took a sip and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I planned to take it home and drink it secretly. You know, Yao'er won't let me drink."

After he finished speaking, he poured some in front of Li Si's grave, then raised his head and took a sip and asked, "Is there something on your mind recently?"

This sentence used an affirmative sentence, Qi Ran was stunned for a while, but didn't reply, just took a sip of wine.

Seeing this, Pei Zhan glanced at him sideways, and said again: "As long as you have something on your mind, you will be drunk if you drink too much. When is it not like this, let's talk about it, and brother will share it for you."

Qi Ran raised his head and took another sip, hesitated for a moment and said: "There is one thing, I'm not sure if he is the one I want to do, maybe it is, maybe it's not, maybe it's because I'm crazy. I don't know whether this matter is true or not, but there is still an eventuality in it, and this eventuality has become the bondage of my cowardice and incompetence."

"What and what are you talking about?" Pei Zhan listened in a daze, "What is true and false, what is false and true, how do you know whether it is true or not without doing it? When did you, Qi Ziheng, act like this?" You're being hypocritical, I'm a bit disgusted with you, you told me a reason when I went out to lead the soldiers, and now I'm giving you back the reason."

Pei Zhan held his bamboo tube up and smiled and said, "The hesitation of a tiger is not as good as the sting of a bee; fake!"

Qi Ran looked at him, held up the bamboo tubes to touch each other, his smile deepened, and he said loudly: "This glass of wine is toast to you, I wish you and the little father-in-law a happy marriage for a hundred years, a precious son will be born early, and the house will be full of children and grandchildren."

"You're fucking angry when you bring this up again," Pei Zhan laughed angrily, "Look at this guy, little prince, you'd better quickly find a beautiful female ghost down there to marry, and then marry four or five little ones." Isn't it beautiful to be a concubine?"

"No, he can't tolerate other people after meeting me."

"I'm going, shameless, I've never seen such a brazen person."

The two looked at each other and laughed out loud.

The moonlight is quiet, the breeze is gentle, the love is on the left, and the best friend is on the right. Holding fine wine, raising your hand to embrace the moon, facing the sky and the earth, following your own heart, luck in the world, but two or three, the luckiest thing is nothing more than this.

How lucky he is to have everything.

The two stayed overnight in the forest, the weather had just entered autumn, it was not that cold, the morning dew wet the clothes of the two, Qi Ran gently wiped the tombstone clean before galloping into the city, the prime minister's mansion and General Dingwei The house is not on the same street, and the two parts are separated at a fork in the road.

As soon as Qi Ran stepped on the threshold, he saw Qi Kuangshan coming out with a solemn expression, his brows were tightly frowned, and his expression was hurried. When he saw him, he hurriedly asked, "Where did you go yesterday?"

"I drank too much last night and was with Pei Qixiu."

Qi Kuangshan nodded and urged: "Go and tidy up, you and I need to enter the palace quickly."

Qi Ran was puzzled and said, "Isn't Xiu Mu today?"

Hearing this, Qi Kuangshan's expression darkened, and he lowered his voice, "The crown prince has been poisoned."

The author has something to say:

There is no Master Ji in this chapter, woo woo woo, heartache 2020

But in this chapter Yang Qin is crying like a dog. Yang Qin just wants to be an ordinary waste, but he is surrounded by gods, living around the gods, he is also under a lot of pressure, it's too miserable, too miserable.

ps: I have to work hard to code, otherwise I have to change my name to Thirty.

The hesitation of a tiger is not as good as the sting of a bee;

Sima Qian, Records of the Historian