Reincarnation of the powerful minister

Zhu Helin suddenly opened his eyes.

In the dream, the misty verdant forest and the big deer emitting hazy white light in the forest still linger in his mind.

The room was full of warm fragrance, and he felt his mouth was dry, especially his nasal cavity and throat, which were as painful as if they had been sanded.

As soon as he sat up, the palace guards outside hurried forward a few steps, knelt down and asked, "What orders does His Royal Highness have?"

Zhu Helin heard the little court lady speaking with a Jinling accent, so he asked, "Why...Fubao..." As soon as he opened his mouth, he realized that his voice was unbelievably hoarse.

The little maid cleverly brought the warm tea that had been prepared earlier, and Zhu Helin drank a few cups before he felt his throat feel better, and asked, "Why are you, Fu Bao?"

"Back to the young master, the rich father and father caught a cold occasionally, so he was afraid that his highness would be sick, so he asked his slaves to watch for him for a few nights."

Zhu Helin likes to use old servants as personal servants. First, he is familiar with his habits, so he doesn't need to order more when serving; second, he is impatient to remember the names of new palace servants.His father once teased him about this: "This son of mine likes the new and dislikes the old, and has no long-term nature. Only the palace servants around him can keep him, and he won't let him change it easily."

Therefore, when he came to Nanjing this time, Zhu Helin almost moved all the attendants from the Eastern Palace here.

The Nanjing Imperial Palace has been vacant all year round, and only a small number of palace personnel are kept for regular cleaning and maintenance.After Zhu Helin's Eastern Palace attendant followed him into the Nanjing Imperial Palace, he sprinkled a small handful of rice into the big soup pot, which was not enough at all.

So Yan Yiyi, the Nanjing garrison eunuch, was in a hurry, feeling that the prince's platoon was not supported-he had to take care of this matter.

This eunuch Yan was sent to guard Nanjing by the Ministry of Rites of the Beijing Normal University.He immediately acted vigorously and dispatched a group of well-trained servants and maids from various places, and sent them to the Nanjing Imperial Palace to be used by the prince.

At this moment, the little maid who was guarding Zhu Helin at night was dispatched from the supervisor of Nanjing Shrine. She worked there for three months and hardly saw the prince. Later, she got close to the prince's father-in-law, Fu Bao, and was given the night watch in the bedroom. Opportunity.

Zhu Helin put down his teacup and squinted at the fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl in front of him: she has delicate features and a quiet demeanor, which is quite pleasing to the eye.What is especially important is a plain face, unlike some maids who boast of their beauty, seeing the East Palace getting older, they write their thoughts of inviting pets on their black eyebrows and pink cheeks.

So he didn't lose his temper and lash out, but frowned and asked, "What's your name? What kind of incense is this?"

"My lord, this servant's humble name is Tao Ling." The little maid replied softly, "This is benzoin, which helps sleep and soothes the mind."

Zhu Helin said: "Remove, I'm not used to smelling benzoin. Give it a breath."

Tao Ling responded nervously, and moved the small sapphire incense burner that was breathing smoke at the corner of the bed out of the bedroom, opened the window again, and tried to fan away the residual fragrance in the hall with a feather fan.

Zhu Helin drank another cup of tea.The soreness in the throat gradually disappeared, and he said in a deep voice: "This is my least favorite scent, remember it. Even if you want to burn incense in the future, you must use Lingling incense."

While fanning the wind, Tao Ling replied in a low voice: "But Lingling incense is generally used for lavender, or directly compiled into mats and mattresses, so it is called 'weeding'... and it is also made into fragrant round soap. Yes, it is often sold in the market."

Zhu Helin said unreasonably: "Tomorrow, go spread a message and let the palace people find a way to make incense. I like that smell, sir!"

Tao Ling had no choice but to accept the order, and turned around to fetch the pillow that had been scented with Lingling's fragrance and put it on for him.

Zhu Helin sniffed the fragrance on the pillow, and felt that it was a bit different from the soap on Su Yan, so he could only smell it.

Tao Ling closed the window again, and seeing the prince put a pillow under his head and hugged another pillow in his arms, he opened his eyes and looked at the top of the tent, as if he had no intention of continuing to sleep, so he asked, "What else do you want me to do?"

Zhu Helin whispered in a sleepy voice: "I'm still thinking... the big white deer I saw in the dream, exuding spiritual light like a divine beast, is very magical..."

Tao Ling was stunned, and then lost her voice: "Is it a big deer with golden horns and snow-white body?"

Zhu Helin was alert, turned to stare at her, and asked, "How do you know what I dreamed about?"

Shocked by his gaze, Tao Ling quickly took two steps back and said, "This is a local rumor that a golden-horned white deer appeared on Zhongshan in some unknown year and month. If you get the deer antlers and grind them into powder, you can eliminate all kinds of diseases and prolong your life."

Zhu Helin's eyes quickly sobered from the mist, and he sneered: "It's just a folklore, do you still take it seriously? The so-called auspicious signs are all made up by officials from all over the place to please my father and get rich for their own promotion.

"What's the 'Nectar from the sky, it tastes sweet and has a fairy air', the young master ate it, hey, it's just translucent leather candy! What else is Sansui Jiahe, I think it's similar to Bingdi lotus, it's too much There are a few plants with crooked heads growing, so what's so 'auspicious'! The courtiers wanted to make a good fortune, and the emperor didn't want to spoil everyone's happiness, so he accepted it.

"As for offering auspiciousness, those local officials who want to get promoted and make a fortune, guess what?"

Tao Ling didn't dare to guess.

Zhu Helin laughed loudly: "If you want to say that the father is the best, he has his own way of expressing praise and secretly harming - he gave all the officials who offered auspiciousness a piece of cooked cowhide! Hahaha..."

Tao Ling thought about it and realized that she wanted to laugh but didn't dare to laugh, she fell down and buried her face in her sleeve.

"Those officials went home with the cowhide bestowed by the emperor, and had to hang it at home or in the Yamen to thank God. Looking back, others saw it and asked: 'Hey, my lord, why did the emperor give you the cowhide?' Do you think those officials should How to answer? Do you want to say: "The emperor thinks that I am good at bragging, so I will give you a special one to take home and blow it day and night"? You have to hold your nose and pretend not to know what it means, hahahaha..."

Tao Ling smiled and said, "This Zhongshan White Deer is not fake. When the servants were working in the Shen Palace, they saw sika deer all over the mountains and plains. They all said that they were transformed by Emperor Taizu's dragon energy, so they were called 'Longevity Deer. '. The white deer was seen among the deer. Few people saw it. Everyone who saw it said it was an auspicious beast. Even the servant himself saw it with his own eyes when the fog was thick. It was really It's too... I don't know how to describe it... It's amazing!"

What she said, the white deer in the foggy forest in the dream became clear again, Zhu Helin was a little dubious, and asked, "Did you really see it?"

"Really, although it's just a glimpse, it is indeed a very big white deer with golden horns."

Zhu Helin remembered that the founding emperor's Xiaoling Mausoleum was located in Zhongshan in the eastern suburbs of Nanjing.

The construction of the Xiaoling Mausoleum started before the death of Emperor Taizu. It was built according to the southern foot of Zhongshan Mountain. The palace is majestic and the pavilions are connected.Taizu also made a decree to raise thousands of deer in the pines and forests, and the sound of deer can be heard from time to time in the mountains.

Could it be that one of them really turned into a golden-horned white deer?

Regardless of whether it is auspicious or not, if you have the opportunity to see and capture it, it will look good if you send it to the East and West Garden in the capital.Moreover, doesn't the father often have headaches?Deer antler has the effect of producing lean blood, nourishing the marrow and strengthening the bone. The golden horn of the white deer may really have a miraculous effect, and it may be able to cure the father's headache!

The more Zhu Helin thought about it, the more he felt that it was worth a try. Even the dream he had just had a kind of "mysterious and mysterious" taste of God's will.

"How long is it?" he asked.

Tao Ling looked at the watch, and replied: "Back to my lord, it's four o'clock."

Zhu Helin said: "If I can't sleep for an hour or so, I will go out of the palace and go to Zhongshan to hold the mausoleum ceremony. Don't sleep anymore, and ask someone to come in to wash and change the clothes for the young master, and make some breakfast... I want Xiaolongtangbao."

"But...you can't eat meat during fasting," Tao Ling hesitated, "Master..."

Zhu Helin resentfully said: "I know, I know, I can only be a vegetarian! How about vegetarian stuffed soup dumplings? Prepare a few more baskets, today will be hard work."

Tao Ling received the decree, went out of the hall to greet the changing servants - and took away the benzoin and the incense burner that the prince detested.

She held the sapphire incense burner in the shape of the end of a divine beast, and came to a remote well. First, she poured the remaining spices in the furnace into a pre-dug deep pit, filled it with soil, and then sprinkled some grass. Stems and dead leaves cover up the traces of excavation on the ground.

Then he fetched well water, cleaned the incense burner thoroughly, and took it away.

Su Yan got up early in the morning, and changed into the sacrificial attire of officials accompanying the sacrifice.

The styles of sacrificial clothes are green robes and red robes. From Su Yan's point of view, they are dark blue cross-collared robes with a vermilion long skirt around the lower body... No, it's "纁衣".

Wearing a beam crown with black yarn and gold thread on the head, a large belt around the waist, and hanging ribbons, jade pendants, tooth plaques, etc. on the waist, it is much more solemn and solemn than the ordinary clothes worn in the court.

After the crown prince's ceremonial car left the palace, the mausoleum sacrifice team set off to Zhongshan in the east of the outer city.

In front of the hall of enjoyment filled with smoke, the chief priest stood at the front, and the rest of the accompanying officials were lined up neatly, including officials from the Ministry of Rites, Nanjing Taichang Temple, Xiaoling Shrine Supervisor, Xiaoling Shrine Office, etc. No less than hundreds of people.

The sacrificial objects are paid tribute from all over the country, including five animals, incense, wax, wine, fruit, etc., which are extremely prosperous.

The process of the sacrificial ceremony is quite complicated, boring and lengthy.As a result, Lu Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites in Nanjing was worried throughout the whole process, lest the prince lose his temper and quit halfway through the toss like he did during the rehearsal.

But to his surprise, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was uncharacteristically uncharacteristically at this important moment, showing a calm and solemn personality that was completely different from his age and temperament. He did not make a single mistake in the whole process, and even the most demanding etiquette officials could not find any faults.

Even the Zhu Wen was recited smoothly and with great momentum:

"The order of the air is flowing, the time is the winter solstice, remembering the deep kindness, Fu Zeng's sorrow, I would like to use sacrifices, Fu Wei still enjoys..."

Counting from leaving the palace, the sacrificial ceremony lasted for four full hours, and it didn't come to an end until the end of the day.

The prince successfully completed the last eight prayers for offering incense, and when he went to change clothes in the Gufu Hall next to him, he motioned to Eunuch Cheng Sheng who was beside him, and secretly called Su Shilang over from the crowd.

Su Yan guessed what the prince wanted to do, smiled, and followed Cheng Sheng into the clothing hall next to the square.

While changing clothes, Zhu Helin called him to come closer, and asked with a little complacency, "How is the young master doing today?"

Su Yan smiled and gave an evaluation: "Perfect." Just give it [-] points, not afraid of your pride.

Zhu Helin couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth, and said, "It's still early, I'll take you to the back mountain to look for deer later."

"Looking for deer?" Su Yan thought for a while, "There are deer in the Songtao Garden of the cemetery, what else are you looking for, just touch it, it's a family."

Zhu Helin said: "It's not those ordinary deer, it's Zhong Shan Rui Beast, a big deer with golden horns on its head and snow-white body!"

Su Yan thought about it for a while, and thought it might be an albino sika deer. As for the golden horn... Maybe it's a genetic mutation?

However, in this era, it can indeed be called "auspicious", and its political and symbolic significance is greater than its biological significance.If he can really be found by the prince, it means that he is a blessed person who is favored by heaven, and it will be of great benefit to his reputation among the people.

"If you find that white deer, what will I do?"

"Think of setting a trap and catch it! It is said that using the golden horns of this white deer as medicine can strengthen the body and prolong life, so I thought of sending it to my father."

In any case, filial piety is commendable.Su Yan is also quite curious about this legendary white deer, but he also has some scruples:

The Great Ming Law stipulates that all princes, princes and other royal families passing through Nanjing, and even officials entering the city on official business, must come here to pay homage to the mausoleum.Anyone who violates the prohibition or disrespect will be severely punished.If someone steals sacrificial vessels or cuts down mausoleum trees, it is disrespectful and a serious crime of beheading.

Although Zhongshan is big, it is after all the Emperor Taizu's imperial mausoleum. If the Crown Prince led a team to search for the white deer in the forest, would it be illegal?

Su Yan expressed his concerns.The prince had already prepared, and replied: "Twenty miles from the outer wall of the cemetery is a restricted area, so it's okay to go twenty miles away. It's just to catch a deer, and it doesn't kill indiscriminately or destroy the forest. It won't violate the prohibition."

Su Yan drove the duck to be the servant of the Ministry of Rites. He hadn't fully learned the etiquette, so he was afraid of being fooled by the prince, so he found an excuse to go out of the palace, and turned the corner to ask Lu Shangshu.

Lu Shangshu twirled his beard and replied, "It is true. Why do you ask this?"

Su Yan casually found a way to prevaricate, and returned to the hall of clothing.

Zhu Helin seemed to know that he was going to seek evidence, and he looked unhappy: "Why, I'm afraid that the young master will cause trouble and implicate you?"

Su Yan said with a smile: "I'm afraid that my master won't be used to walking on mountain roads, so I'll send someone to find some shrewd servants who guard the mausoleum to be my guide."

After hearing this, Zhu Helin turned his anger into joy: "That's right. My master heard from a young maid who once worked as a supervisor in the shrine that the place where she saw the white deer was on the top of the hill behind the Xiaoling Circular Hill, on a road. It's not hard to find the woodland next to the stream and waterfall."

"In two hours, it will be dark." Su Yan said.

Zhu Helin said: "It takes at most an hour to go back and forth. If we don't see the white deer, we will turn back and look for it next time."

Su Yan thought about it, and felt that it was nothing to go and have a look, so he just went for a walk in the wild.Besides, the weather has been fine for the past few days, and you can still walk the mountain road. When it snows, it will be difficult to go up the mountain again.

So he also took off his sacrificial clothes and put on the easy-to-move Thasa.

Zhu Helin ordered a hundred strong attendants, brought ropes, machetes, bows and arrows, etc., and led them out of the Xiaoling Mausoleum under the guidance of a guide from the Jingu Supervisor, and continued to the north hillside.

There are some trails on the hillside for walking, so you have to pay a little attention to your feet, and you don't need to climb your feet.

A group of people walked for half an hour, and faintly saw a waterfall in the forest ahead.The guide said: "His Royal Highness, this is the place where the legendary white deer often haunts."